Ben Mendelsohn

  • Needle (2010)

    Needle (2010)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (In French, On Cable TV, July 2021) There is a modest spark of interest in Needle’s premise, as an ancient artifact (a box in which you can insert a picture of a victim) helps wreak havoc among a group of college-age friends. There’s just enough intriguing historical background and supernatural shenanigans to take the film one notch above the usual college slasher. Alas, that’s where Needle stops — once you get over those elements, as the film so clearly does, there’s nothing else in execution than a lame serial murder mystery. To be fair, the film does manage some acceptable technical credentials, which aren’t inconsequential for a low-budget Australian film. As a result, it can be watched… but that’s where the praise stops for writer-director John V. Soto. Ben Mendelsohn shows up in a supporting role, but doesn’t get the chance to do much. Otherwise, Needle is cookie-cutter horror for the younger adult audience, not particularly distinctive once the exposition stops.

  • The King (2019)

    The King (2019)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, December 2020) It’s been scant hours since I’ve seen The King, and the film is already a blur of fuzzy memories, largely undistinguishable from other similar films. Telling us about Henry V’s first years in power, it’s dirty, grimy and thoroughly not fun. The acting talent is fine (what with such notables at Timothée Chalamet, Joel Edgerton, Robert Pattinson and Ben Mendelsohn) and the script relies equally on loose adaptations from historical facts and Shakespearian plays. But the result, ugh – you may want to get out on the next cold rainy day, roll yourself in the mud and spend a few days without electricity and have a more entertaining experience. It does get a bit more interesting late in the third act with a depiction of the Battle of Agincourt, but even a film as dull and gritty as The King can’t escape substantial deviation from historical fact – it’s almost as much fun to fact-check the film than watch it in the first place. It’s as featureless and generic as its title suggests – I was barely reminded of 2018’s Outlaw King (also released via Netflix), and it’s not a favourable comparison.