Three films, back-to-back, on one day, every week. That is what being a film critic is all about. Sometimes four films if you’re really (un)lucky. So yesterday, I challenged myself to find a common theme running through each film, which is trickier than it sounds. First up was buddy cop comedy, The Heat, starring Sandra Bullockand Melissa McCarthy, then came the dark and violent Only God Forgivesand the last film of the day was demonic horror, The Conjuring. A comedy, a thriller and a horrible horror. I did panic halfway through Only God Forgives - how on earth am I supposed to find a link between three totally different films?
Aha! They all have dogs in them. There’s a sniffer Alsatian in The Heat, a few stray mongrels who follow Ryan Gosling (who wouldn't?) in Only God Forgives and a family hound who comes to an unexplained sticky end in The Conjuring. Too mundane? Maybe dogs are a stretch but I did find something else… family dysfunction was the thing that really stood out for me. In The Heat, Melissa McCarthy’s family are eccentric to say the least. We find out that the reason her brother’s in prison is because she put him there. But weirdly, he’s fine about it; it’s the rest of the family who resent her for it. They’re a loud, Boston based stereotype – unflattering tracksuits and pictures of Jesus playing baseball; think the family in The Fighter.
It’s all light entertainment in The Heat but it strays into darkness with the revelation that Sandra Bullock’s character was a foster child, the knock-on effect being that she has trouble forming close friends or relationships later on, damaging her shot at promotion. Who knew a Bullock/McCarthy collaboration would tug on the old heartstrings?
Only God Forgives is an entire film dedicated to messed up families.Gosling plays Julian, whose brother is murdered and mutilated after committing a horrific act of violence himself. Not normal family behaviour but an anomaly, surely? No, Julian’s evil, drug lord mother turns up and expects him to exact revenge on her firstborn’s killer. Then, she emotionally blackmails him at the same time as comparing the size of his manhood with that of his dead brother’s. Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww. You don’t get more dysfunctional than that.
The Conjuring. Ah, The Conjuring. Watched mainly through a scarf, as is my wont when it comes to horror films. The family in the film aren’t dysfunctional per se, in fact they’re quite a happy, solid family unit. Until a demon invades their home, attaches itself to them and destroys any potential family bonding time. And then destroys their home.
Phew, challenge complete. Maybe this’ll become a regular thing. Here’s to the next three-in-a-row…
