January 2012 has proved to be a rather busy month for films and this, the final week, proves to be just as busy with these new releases; Acts of Godfrey, House of Tolerance, The Descendants and Liam Neeson battling wolves in the wilderness, in his first, big-dumb-film of 2012, The Grey. Welcome back Liam, you’ve not been missed! It’s time, once again, for this week’s, Knotted Fur…

Acts of Godfrey
Director: Johnny Daukes
Running Time: One hour & twenty-four minutes
Certificate: 15

The British film, Acts of Godfrey, from débuting director John Daukes, is a black comedy with an unusual twist, it’s written throughout in rhyming verse. A very British quirk and potentially quite an alienating characteristic, not just for an international audience, but a British one too. When Godfrey (God) decides to improve the love-life of Vic he pairs him up with the sexual predator, Mary. However, even with Godfrey’s divine powers the path to true love is a complicated affair, which involves a sexual wonder drug, an unscrupulous conman, two psychotic gangsters, a long-dead twin and a terrible case of mistaken identity.

Now, doesn’t that sound rather… ‘quirky’. It stars a variety of British actors, with Simon Callow as the titular, Godfrey, and a whole host of TV ‘stars’ including; Myfanwy Waring, Iain Robertson and, of course, Harry Enfield. Hopefully, this won’t be as embarrassing as, Sex Lives of the Potato Men, but the trailer doesn’t fill me with optimism.

You can also check out Dan Doolans review when he attended Raindance last year.

House of Tolerance
Director: Bertrand Bonello
Running Time: Two hours & six minutes
Certificate: 18

The director of The Pornographer, Bertrand Bonello, returns to the sex industry with his newest film, House of Tolerance, but this time casting an eye over prostitution, in a bordello, set in the early 20th century. House of Tolerance explores the last days of an upmarket ‘knocking-shop’, the ladies who work there and the many dangers they face in their ‘chosen’ career. Bonello’s fixation with sex continues, which in itself isn’t problematic, but in one sequence a prostitute has her face slashed and Bonello (apparently), manages to imply that she got-off on it. This of course, is deeply unpleasant and troubling if accurate. However the trailer with its use of Lee Moses’ Bad Girl, beautiful ladies and cinematography all make for quite the alluring experience, illustrating (at the very least) Bonello’s manipulation of both sound and image and the power (and danger) of the montage.

The Grey
Director: Joe Carnahan
Running Time: One hour & fifty-seven minutes
Certificate: 15

There was a time when Joe Carna-Ham was a director with flourishes of creative flair, but after the enjoyable Narc, everything just went downhill and The Grey, is only further evidence of the director’s awfulness. There was a time, believe it or not, when Liam Neeson did something other than punch people. Shocking but true! So the director of such awful hits as Smokin’ Aces and The A-Team has teamed-up with Neeson to make, The Grey. Not so much a film, but an excuse for Liam Neeson to beat-up animals indiscriminately, which marks a new direction for the actor, who usually chooses his victims discriminately. See the xenophobic trash Taken for proof, it’s the ultimate in moronic action cinema, despite whatever its millions of fans say, it’s rubbish!

Anyway, Neeson and his cronies are on a flight to some oil deal over Alaska when their plane crashes, stranding the band of businessmen to survive in the wilderness. However they are not alone, they are being hunted by a nefarious pack of wolves, who will no doubt pick the group of one by one until there is only Mr. Neeson left. Shucks! As with every Liam Neeson action film you can expect this to be utter nonsense, just look at his ingenious use of miniature bottles – hilarious!

The Descendants
Director: Alexander Payne
Running Time: One hour & fifty-five minutes
Certificate: 15

So hot on the tails of its Golden Globe win for Best Picture and Best Actor, Alexander Payne’s newest film, The Descendants, which stars George Clooney (Best Actor… doh!) is released nationwide. And with Clooney starring, I have little doubt that this will be Payne’s most commercially successful film to date, but will it be as humorous as About Schmidt or 2004′s wonderful, Side Ways - “No, if anyone orders Merlot, I’m leaving. I am NOT drinking any fucking Merlot!”

Clooney plays Matt King, a land baron and very much the absent father until his wife is injured in a boating accident, falling into an irreversible coma. This finds Matt at the dawning of a new era where he must become the responsible parent and reconnect with his estranged daughters. However this time of grieving is complicated further when it becomes clear to Matt, that his soon-to-be-late-wife, was cheating on him and so the chaos (no doubt) ensues. Watching Clooney play the fool is always a pleasure, he always manages to channel Marcello Mastrianni in Pietro Germi’s, Divorce Italian Style, if you ask me. His fool is always perfectly nuanced and this is definitely my film of the week.