Operation Avalanche - directed by Matt Johnson
I had no knowledge at all of this film until a day before attending an advance screening tonight.
The little that I did know was so vague that it mattered not one jot in terms of spoiling anything.
The poster is a strong hint at what is on the table though but without spoiling anything too major I can say that this is a sort of found footage deal like "The Blair Witch Project" or "Cloverfield".
It becomes obvious pretty quickly that it isn't a spooky Blair Witch affair, nor is is a big bang wallop flick like Cloverfield.
What it is however is a pretty clever and very well made thriller with a decent dose of comedy to it.
This film was shot on a budget of $400,000 and some of the techniques used including using bolex glass lenses from decades ago used on 16mm and digital cameras not only helped keep the costs down but provided a genuine period look to the piece.
This is set in the late sixties around the time of the Apollo missions that were aimed at ultimately landing a man on the moon.
There was pressure from Russia who were also racing to achieve the feat and had already put a manned craft into orbit.
Enter two ambitious CIA agents keen to make their mark.
They pitch an idea to pretend to be documentary filmmakers at NASA when suspicions are raised that there is a Soviet spy feeding secrets from the agency to the Russian Government.
The pair are film fans and have posters of movies likes "Touch of Evil" and "Lolita" on their walls.
That second one is very appropriate as they find themselves caught up in a plot to fake the moon landings.
Some conspiracy theorists claim that Stanley Kubrick- the director of "Lolita" was hired by the US Government to fake the moon landings.
One of the clever things that this film does is mix in all of that nutty conspiracy stuff - including some Kubrick and turn it into one big explanation of sorts as to how it might have played out.
The filmmakers pretty much do everything including playing the lead characters who bear their real names.
The problem of explaining how the cameras are on all the time is not handled much more believably than any of the other films of this ilk but the moment that the 4:3 aspect black and white opening footage turns into a more respectable 16:9 colour frame is smart and pretty funny.
In fact there is a case to be made for this movie being a comedy - there are plenty of lines and occurrences played for laughs.
But with numerous scenes framed almost like a horror film with figures sitting at desks and unseen figures speaking from the shadows or mysterious men appearing in footage reviewed later there is an overall tone more akin to a Paranormal Activity movie.
Not that this is scary - it is only ever a bit tense.
The strongest aspect of the film is definitely the mystery behind the events shown.
There is even a very effective car chase tossed in and it is one of my favourite scenes in the movie.
It's a riff on a similar scene in "Children of Men" clearly and while not quite as incredible as that miraculous piece of Alfonso Cuaron magic it still works really well and on a fraction of the budget.
In fact this feels like a movie for movie fans made by movie fans.
There are loads of references from the abundance of movie posters on walls in the backgrounds to the Kubrick moments to some shots lifted from other movies.
There are several scenes in which the in-film (and real life) director explains how Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey" effects shots were done and how they are going to replicate them.
All of this stuff is interesting if not necessarily new to anyone who loves movies but it is a breath of fresh air at a couple of points when the plot seems to have run out of ideas.
Added to this is the issue of the leads being flat out boring and sometimes unlikeable.
It makes a lot of the final twenty minutes when the action ramps up considerably less compelling than it might have been if I had cared about the plight of the protagonists.
Still- this is an admirable second feature from Johnson all the more so for the miniscule budget.
More a diverting blu-ray than a must see big screen picture for sure but it's hard not to like it.
The filmmakers had to use small hidden cameras secretly to shoot at NASA and at Kubrick's Studio and were kicked out of Shepperton Studios by the crew working on "The Avengers" so I suspect the story of how it was made could well be every bit as interesting as the film itself.
RATING: 70 / 100
CONCLUSION: More clever than fun but well made without question this is only really let down by an ending that is a bit of a letdown after the promise shown in the lead up.
Starring: Matt Johnson, Owen Williams, Josh Boles, Jared Raab, Andrew Appelle, Krista Madison, Joe Thomas, Tom Bolton, Madeleine Sims-Fewer, Sharon Belle, Chris Gonsalves, Joe Anastasio, Emilie Paquet, Samantha Michelle
Screenplay: Josh Boles & Matt Johnson
Music Score by: Jay McCarrol
Cinematography: Andrew Apelle & Jared Raab
Cinematography: Andrew Apelle & Jared Raab
Edited by: Curt Lobb
Running Time: 94 minutes
Language: English
Rated: M - mild, infrequent violence and profanity
Running Time: 94 minutes
Language: English
Rated: M - mild, infrequent violence and profanity
I had no knowledge at all of this film until a day before attending an advance screening tonight.
The little that I did know was so vague that it mattered not one jot in terms of spoiling anything.
The poster is a strong hint at what is on the table though but without spoiling anything too major I can say that this is a sort of found footage deal like "The Blair Witch Project" or "Cloverfield".
It becomes obvious pretty quickly that it isn't a spooky Blair Witch affair, nor is is a big bang wallop flick like Cloverfield.
What it is however is a pretty clever and very well made thriller with a decent dose of comedy to it.
This film was shot on a budget of $400,000 and some of the techniques used including using bolex glass lenses from decades ago used on 16mm and digital cameras not only helped keep the costs down but provided a genuine period look to the piece.
This is set in the late sixties around the time of the Apollo missions that were aimed at ultimately landing a man on the moon.
There was pressure from Russia who were also racing to achieve the feat and had already put a manned craft into orbit.
Enter two ambitious CIA agents keen to make their mark.
They pitch an idea to pretend to be documentary filmmakers at NASA when suspicions are raised that there is a Soviet spy feeding secrets from the agency to the Russian Government.
The pair are film fans and have posters of movies likes "Touch of Evil" and "Lolita" on their walls.
That second one is very appropriate as they find themselves caught up in a plot to fake the moon landings.
Some conspiracy theorists claim that Stanley Kubrick- the director of "Lolita" was hired by the US Government to fake the moon landings.
One of the clever things that this film does is mix in all of that nutty conspiracy stuff - including some Kubrick and turn it into one big explanation of sorts as to how it might have played out.
 |
| Much of the fun is in the re-creation of effects made famous by 2001 A Space Odyssey |
The problem of explaining how the cameras are on all the time is not handled much more believably than any of the other films of this ilk but the moment that the 4:3 aspect black and white opening footage turns into a more respectable 16:9 colour frame is smart and pretty funny.
In fact there is a case to be made for this movie being a comedy - there are plenty of lines and occurrences played for laughs.
But with numerous scenes framed almost like a horror film with figures sitting at desks and unseen figures speaking from the shadows or mysterious men appearing in footage reviewed later there is an overall tone more akin to a Paranormal Activity movie.
Not that this is scary - it is only ever a bit tense.
The strongest aspect of the film is definitely the mystery behind the events shown.
There is even a very effective car chase tossed in and it is one of my favourite scenes in the movie.
It's a riff on a similar scene in "Children of Men" clearly and while not quite as incredible as that miraculous piece of Alfonso Cuaron magic it still works really well and on a fraction of the budget.
 |
| The cast/crew served as director, cinematographers, editors and actors |
There are loads of references from the abundance of movie posters on walls in the backgrounds to the Kubrick moments to some shots lifted from other movies.
There are several scenes in which the in-film (and real life) director explains how Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey" effects shots were done and how they are going to replicate them.
All of this stuff is interesting if not necessarily new to anyone who loves movies but it is a breath of fresh air at a couple of points when the plot seems to have run out of ideas.
Added to this is the issue of the leads being flat out boring and sometimes unlikeable.
It makes a lot of the final twenty minutes when the action ramps up considerably less compelling than it might have been if I had cared about the plight of the protagonists.
Still- this is an admirable second feature from Johnson all the more so for the miniscule budget.
More a diverting blu-ray than a must see big screen picture for sure but it's hard not to like it.
The filmmakers had to use small hidden cameras secretly to shoot at NASA and at Kubrick's Studio and were kicked out of Shepperton Studios by the crew working on "The Avengers" so I suspect the story of how it was made could well be every bit as interesting as the film itself.
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