EATING MOVIES

#103 of 2011: Take Shelter

2011-10-28T21:34:00.000-07:00

my motivation to see this movie came largely from my love of/current inability to witness thunderstorms, since i come from storms and now live in a weak, persistent drizzle. my anticipation was further strengthened by the other imagery included in the trailer (weightless livingrooms, birdclouds), the promises of which are gorgeously kept by the film's dream/hallucination sequences.

most of the film's other visuals are appropriately kept clean and naturalistic in the way that is comfortable enough to keep a viewer listening to the dialogue (which, in this case, is where most of the character development is stored) instead of continually ogling the scenery. after all, the film's emotional resonance is what makes it extraordinary, and that comes from the combination of personality-dense line delivery and the main character's thoughtful-though-sometimes-stunted process of trying to figure himself out. the aesthetics are simply the device by which the audience is reminded of the overwhelming bigness that our minds contain- successfully, if we're lucky.

#69 of 2011: Birth

2011-07-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

Only extraordinarily focused storytelling can make a viewer feel so strongly about the emotions of characters who she knows almost nothing about and who she has no reason to particularly like. "Birth" never gets off topic, except for temporary indulgences in pure contemplation of the setting (that dining room, my god). Even then, the small, overpatterned, overlush rooms of Anna's apartment- rarely without a preponderance of visitors, supposedly still at their ten-years-long work of stabilizing Anna's emotions- are a physical reminder of the overwhelming density of the simple storyline.

It's important to note how huge a role omission plays in the film's poignancy. The decision to represent the original Sean minimally (with only an imageless voiceover at the opening of the film, followed by a faceless body running through the snow for 2.5 minutes before succumbing matter-of-factly to a heart attack) lays the foundation for the tense and unresolvable ambiguity about whether or not something paranormal is at work: we have to take most of our cues from Anna, because we can't compare the dead Sean to the boy Sean, played by Cameron Bright. The latter's performance is, itself, a kind of fillable blank- slow, deliberate, contemplative, cryptic. When he's on screen with Nicole Kidman's Anna (an irreparably affected woman whose apparent brokenness seems more and more to come from a well of deluded commitment to an ideal that probably never existed in the first place), it's almost as if we can see the clean slate of his nearly expressionless face and tone of voice being filled in by her desperation for the love she thought was hers when her husband was alive.

Another omission: answers. As always, I was perfectly happy to find no clean explanation for the mentally fatiguing ordeal that both main characters (and viewers, too) experience due to this plot. Hard facts are of negligible importance by the end of the film, if they were ever important at all.

Oh yea, and Lauren Bacall is the matriarch.

#57 of 2011: Dogtooth

2011-05-27T21:29:00.000-07:00

the first thing i want to say has something to do with how absorptive this film is considering its 'bareness' and its peculiar premise. on some sort of coordinate plane with axes for viewer investment and narrative complexity and perceived production cost, "Dogtooth" would share a pushpin with Michael Haneke's films: it is a seemingly natural, straightforward location inhabited by a few important characters who interact in consistently compelling ways, as dictated by a story that is told enough to keep the viewer rapt without excessively defending its own probability.

as for acting: Christos Stergioglou as the dad is a paradigm tyrant, but Aggeliki Papoulia and Mary Tsoni as the daughters are especially impossible to stop watching. their dancing, their playing, their conversation (they are the only characters in the film between whom there is neither significant antagonism nor stifling distance), and their violations of the family's codes introduce a measure of doubt into attempts by the viewer to judge their situation. is it an unsustainable paradise which the facts of nature will not allow to persist? or is it an idyllic prison where they are unwitting (at least for the earlier bulk of their lives) victims whose right it is to escape? by the end of the film, this issue is cleared up, but- meaningfully- it is impossible to tell if the decisive factor originates inside or outside the house.

on the imagery front, nearly every shot is brimming with contradiction: appalling but comically absurd (father beating progeny with videocassette contraband which he has securely taped to his own hand), awkward and ravishing (the anniversary dance), violently chaotic while at the same time painterly (see below).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogtooth_(film)

#55 of 2011: O Brother, Where Art Thou?

2011-05-26T10:52:00.000-07:00

as i become familiar with the work of the Coen Bros, they remind me more of Woody Allen in this way: i see what's going on in terms of style, and it is interesting (even astounding at particular moments), though as a whole, the thing doesn't shake me much. that said, it has to be acknowledged that with the Coens, specific triumphs (in narrative or character development or imagery) are often redemptive of the entire undertaking.

but first: a significant drawback. George Clooney's performance was possibly the most under-realized aspect of this movie, with the most obvious shortcoming being his line delivery- both his timing and his accent. i understand that his character is supposed to be a fast/sharp/smooth talker, so it makes sense for the audience to note a distinction between his speech and the drawls of his companions. but it becomes too obvious that he's half-assing when even John Goodman's minor character (also a salesman, and apparently a better one) sounds more authentic. and next to the measured and involved facial expressions and diction of Turturro and Nelson, Clooney simply comes off as unimpressive (instead of "faux impressive", as the writing seems to demand). Turturro and Nelson pull off the stylized melodrama with their typical comedic flair, especially when it's a tad corny. if Clooney weren't capable of doing the same, i might not feel so slighted. but that's what i get for watching "O Brother" after seeing "Burn After Reading". maybe he just needed time to learn.

now for the redemption: 1:09:03-1:09:21. i'm not sure if Roger Deakins or the Bros deserve the greater portion of credit for this, but it's a striking use of three things as simple as darkness, flashes of colored light, and camera movement (RESOURCEFUL EFFECTS. YES.).

what makes this different from other "camera descends into the narrative" scenes is its expertly nuanced balance between expressionism (dream sequence) and naturalism (scenery description). the camera pans down slowly while artificial blue flashes illuminate a branch so that it resembles the represented source of light. but the contrast is absolute between the black and the branch, and the flashes are short-lived and sparse, so that when a noose moves through the frame, it is logical to assume that what is being shown is simply a tree that has been prepared for a hanging. . . except that the darkness that follows the noose's appearance is invaded by an interior scene, with the camera continuing it's journey until it lands on a terrified John Turturro. it wouldn't make sense for a noose to be hanging above this building, and (because the panning had til now made sense) this is a bit jarring for the duration of the time it takes the camera to scan the room, from its rafters down to the bunks of sleeping men. by the moment movement ceases, by the time Turturro- awake amongst sleepers- fills the frame, the previous two images register not only as a combination that actually exists within the world of the story, but also as stark and terrifying fragments of a dream that has shaken this man awake. the camera's continued motion stitches everything together, paces the experience of the viewer in such a way that s/he and the character simultaneously "wake up". and it is good enough to recommend.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Brother,_Where_Art_Thou%3F

#107 of 2010: A Woman is A Woman

2011-02-03T10:03:00.000-08:00

i don't have much of a desire to review Godard. that's not really an option based on how/why i watch his movies. and how/why is that? by making/to make a list, as follows:

emile (Jean-Claude Brialy): "why are you crying?"

angela (Anna Karina): "because i wish i could be both little yellow animals at the same time."

emile: "you always want the impossible."

angela: *smile*

angela says a general, contentedly-affirming-but-overall-emotionally-neutral thing in response to alfred's (Jean-Paul Belmondo) request to hear her thoughts and then she walks across the street away from the camera. he turns to the camera with his cigarette dangling out his mouth, says, "and off she goes," then turns away to watch her as the focus drifts up to the neon sign on the building.

alfred: "i'm very clever."

angela: "oh really? bet you can't do everything i can."

alfred: "bet i can"

several shots of them standing in identical poses, revealed in the last shot to have been angela's plot to get alfred back for slapping her ass by kicking his.

angela: "could you sweep the floor instead of acting like a jerk"

emile stops at the window and turns, the camera traces his sight line as the words "EMILE TAKES ANGELA LITERALLY BECAUSE HE LOVES HER" appear one by one across the screen, then disappear. the camera reaches her, she stands, and the camera pans back, a stare volley, while "AND ANGELA CAN'T BACK DOWN BECAUSE SHE LOVES HIM" appears last word to first word in a right to left progression.

after a little spikey speech back and forth, they both look down and then look up at some off center focal point, the camera starts a slow rotation leftwards, towards the door, and another sentence appears a few words at a time, backwards as the one about angela had: "BECAUSE THEY LOVE EACH OTHER EVERYTHING WILL GO WRONG FOR EMILE AND ANGELA". stops. volleys back to the couple with: "THEY MISTAKENLY THINK THEY CAN CROSS THE LIMITS DUE TO THEIR MUTUAL UNDYING LOVE".

alfred (Belmondo) says "make up your minds, Breathless is on tv and i don't want to miss it"

the boys whisper to each other and laugh, suddenly allied against angela's toying with them. somehow incredibly precious. everyone is on a schoolyard in demeanor.

woman: "they're showing vera cruz"

alfred: "my pal burt lancaster is in it" (turns to the camera, grits teeth in a Lancaster Grin)

angela flips an egg into the air, runs next door to answer the phone, asks alfred to hold on, runs back in her apartment, catches the egg.

happy ending with forgiveness and books and sex and Anna Karina winks at the camera.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Woman_Is_a_Woman

#106 of 2010: ...And God Created Woman

2011-01-31T10:18:00.000-08:00

of all the movies i watched in 2010, this is the one from which i took the largest number of screen shots. the preponderance of camera setup/camera motion tics in ...And God Created Woman was unignorable. for instance, check out the "large dark visual metaphor for emotional distance hogging up a significant portion of the frame" trick:

zooming in and zooming out to indicate trouble for the sensitive young bro with a soulful nymph wife (who has not-so secret and not-so unfulfilled longings for older bro) is another common occurrence in the film, as seen here:

i don't have any shots of what was probably the most moving scene (fittingly the near-tragic violent climax). certainly i was too transfixed by Ms. Bardot's impassioned, solitary dancing to interrupt. instead of reading me ramble on about how refreshing it was to see a smoking hot young woman embrace her sensuality for the pure pleasure of it (rather than as a bargaining chip in the business of life), just watch this movie.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/And_God_Created_Woman_(1956_film)

#105 of 2010: Casino

2011-01-31T01:58:00.000-08:00

obvious compare/contrast-type statements: more Robert Deniro, a more convoluted relationship storyline, and a more graphic whacking of Joe Pesci's character (Nicky in this case) than we saw in Goodfellas.

now for what really sticks with me about this movie.

a subtle but important triumph of Casino is how effectively it utilizes voiceover. the entire film is narrated by the two main characters alternately, but there are two places where a disembodied voice plays an especially captivating/surprising role in the transpiration of a scene.

the first of these occurs around the 43:00 mark. it's the night of Ace and Ginger's wedding, and as she sits in the hallway outside of the reception, on the telephone with Lester (her slimy, unshakable emotional baggage personified), we see Ace come through the door to find her [Lester's voice: "this is great for us"]. cut to a reverse shot of what Ace sees: his new wife, the hitherto strong, charming, smart hustler with whom he has basically cut a deal in the hopes that they can have what they need from each other, now slouched, crying, clinging to a payphone outside her own wedding reception. just as the shot reverses to show us Ace's reaction to all this, Lester's voice continues, "I'm looking at you right now. I'm seeing you for the very first time, right this minute." Lester's creepy/nostalgic/manipulative remembrances of the Ginger he met when she was just 14 occur on the soundtrack simultaneously with Ace's first unavoidable glimpse into her past, his first real encounter with the side of Ginger that is still as malleable and scared and frail as if she were fresh on the street. we were already pretty sure that his willful ignorance and exaggerated sense of control were going to cause him trouble. now he's starting to see it that way, too.

the second striking voiceover comes at about 2:47:30, ten minutes shy of the credits. Nicky has gotten a big head, messed around, fouled up. and though Ace's narration clues us in on what's about to happen out in the cornfield, Nicky's voice reassures us that he organized this meeting, that he's gonna straighten things out, that he wants to make sure his "brother don't get fucked around. what's right is right. they don't give a fuck abou- AGGH!". the voiceover is cut short by a baseball bat to the back; the flashback catches up with the narration. it's a bit of a brainmess, sort of a paradox, but it is also effective. even the source of approximately half of the story can wind up beaten and buried still breathing alongside his brother in a cornfield. even a "made" narrator isn't safe.

and this line about Piscano: "this guy, basically, sunk the whole world". it's a good line.

Casino is tragic in the way that you see coming right from the beginning, but it makes sure to take you along for the ride. nifty camera manipulations. pretty splendid performances. worth recommending.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casino_(film)

2010-12-09T12:14:00.001-08:00

more movies coming soon. selections from the past 3 months.

#104 of 2010: Lost in Translation

2010-09-25T23:29:00.000-07:00

Movies like this don't seem like they need me to say much about them. First, because so many people have seen them and have already said plenty about them, and second, because you should probably just watch them if you haven't already. (I'm not saying that I write extensively about movies like Fassbinder's "Lola" because they need me to talk about them, or haven't been widely seen. You know what I mean.)

One gripe: the "ahh-ahhh oooo-ooo ah oh aaahhh" music was a little much at times, particularly when Bill Murray gets to Tokyo. that should have been like, a pared-down cello, you know. but luckily that scene is fairly generic and I don't recall crappy sounds ruining any of the outstanding scenes.

It has been noted by plenty of critics, and I agree, that one of the most profound accomplishments of the story is that its "romance-without-sex"-ness doesn't come off as stifled or repressed (as if by wrong-headed 'morals'). The situation speaks clearly (almost startlingly) to the "issue"/odyssey/wonder that is friendship between supposed sexual counterparts, and it effectively and movingly challenges some very ingrained (though, thankfully, often questioned) notions about the kinds of relationships between men and women that might be considered "fulfilling". It doesn't make up our minds for us, either, doesn't tell us how wrong or right traditional wisdom is. The brief and inconclusive introductions of so many important factors help the Bill/Scarlett interaction to seem more like real life- where you can never quite say for sure- than a sermon on gender relations. If you haven't seen it yet, go ahead, it's "highly recommended" for being highly watchable.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_in_Translation_(film)

#103 of 2010: Multiplicity

2010-09-25T21:15:00.000-07:00

I'm not kidding. Jmilz told me she wanted a review on the little cinematic gem that is "Multiplicity", and I aim to please with this blog. Obviously.

First observation: Micheal Keaton is not a "good actor". He falls somewhere between Kevin Costner and Nicolas Cage, almost as if he is, himself, the outcome of some hollywood genetic accident where the test tube "Cage's spaziness and gravel-whisper voice" got dumped into "Costner's bland looks and latent pattern baldness" and some kind of full grown baby happened, complete with plaid workshirt. Second observation: Micheal Keaton is impossibly hilarious in th(i/e)s(e) role(s).

The clones are easy, middle-school skit character sketches: Tough Guy, Effeminate Man, and The Idiot. But that sort of works here: in a movie about how what seems like a simple solution (and is treated in passing conversational hyperbole as one, which was undoubtedly the inspiration for this story in the first place) is actually a complex mix of drawbacks and advantages, it makes sense to take the three extremes of what men are and turn them into simple characters who interact externally in representations of the complex ways we all deal with our own facets, our own "versions" of ourselves. Ok, maybe that's a bit of a stretch, considering how much time is frittered away on the "I'm The Only One Who Sleeps With My Wife" rule and the instances of its being "bent" or "broken". That's not exactly a literal illustration of deep, metaphorical, existential quandaries (or. . .?).

Andie McDowell is delicate and lovely in a "normalish southern person with a perm" kind of way. It's a little sad that a movie that was made in 1996 treats the "working mom" thing as a MAJOR plot thickener, but I guess there are still, to this day, women dealing with that shit. As funny as Michael Keaton's character might be, he's also a totally self-involved asswipe. And maybe it's a bit problematic that what seems to be a marriage-breaking disconnect (in two ways: 1] to her, he appears to be erratic, unstable, and sometimes completely unresponsive to her based on which clone is standing in, and 2] even WORSE than the problems she perceives, he's actually OFF SAILING while instructing the stand-ins not to take any of the privileges of emotional intimacy even if they are the ones actually experiencing it and putting in the effort to achieve it, because he certainly isn't) is absolved with the expensive and time-consuming remodel of the kitchen. Well and I guess he promises to be a better husband, or something. Ok, sure.

I'm gonna slap a "recommended" on this, you know, why not. Plus Laszlo Kovacs as DoP?!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiplicity_(film)

#102 of 2010: Goodfellas

2010-09-09T02:59:00.000-07:00

There were some great slo-mos, a gripping freeze frame at the instant of a firing gun's flare, and that CLASSIC zoom in/dolly out in the cafe. I wasn't so thrilled about Karen's freaking out voice, and I definitely thought that allowing her to narrate just for that little bit was detrimental to the effectiveness of the narration device as a whole. costuming was really notable, especially the outfit Henry wears as he beats the shit out of Karen's neighbor. There's more to say, clearly, but I'm making an effort to catch back up on these reviews. Recommend.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goodfellas

#101 of 2010: The Wrestler

2010-09-08T15:12:00.000-07:00

"The Wrestler" is punishing on several levels. It wraps up all the down(est)sides of everything from hero worship to commercialized body image to absentee fatherhood to nostalgia for the eighties (and the list goes on), while still getting viewers to care about what is happening to the characters (a point where that other Aronofsky adaptation, "Requiem for a Dream", largely failed, in my opinion). Mickey Rourke: yes. Marisa Tomei: yea, alright. Evan Rachel Wood: maybe not. The daughter storyline is to be expected. Of course this torn up old beast of a man fathered a child twentysome years ago (right?). But I feel like this aspect of the plot gets severely boiled down and serves (a little too exclusively) as an excuse for Randy to get to know the "Pam" side of "Cassidy". Which, cool, "we both have kids and shit, we both work in entertainment industries but are real people, look at us, we're real, but one of us definitely feels more real when we're working". And it's the super tan bleach blonde one. . . the man, the legend, the Ram. Cut to final RAM JAM. The End. I may have been too hard on "The Wrestler"'s narrative oomph, because immediately after I saw it, I watched "Goodfellas" for the first time, and of the two the latter stands out a bit more prominently in my mind. I still recommend the former, especially if you are into "walking in ____'s shoes" downers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wrestler_(2008_film)

#100 of 2010: Paris, Texas

2010-09-08T11:45:00.000-07:00

The incredibly slow trickle of narrative disclosure made the first hour of "Paris, Texas" a little tough to get through, but after all is said and done, I think the pacing of the film can be considered one of its most notable achievements. It starts out a garble that we see through "the brother's" eyes, and the tension of what will happen if or when Travis (Harry Dean Stanton) comes back into the life of his son, Hunter, competently propels the garble on through the first forty minutes. By the time Hunter says "Goodnight, Dad" twice, I began to wonder if there was any story left to tell. Or rather, I knew there was story left to tell, but judging from the opening half of the movie, I had my doubts as to whether or not it would get told. At precisely 1:02:01, everything starts all over again, with the simple gesture of walking backwards on the other side of the street. From this point on, I was enamored. The remainder is speckled with little vignettes that keep you watching and listening- fully attentive to what is being shown and said- because your brain figured out early on that here, there's no reward for guesswork.

One of my favorite scenes was the one on the bridge. On first viewing, it seemed completely interruptive (i didn't mind), and now that I skim it again, I see the significance in showing Travis walking at night, then cutting to him walking (in the same direction) across a bridge over some highway in the low light of what could easily be taken for early morning: after learning that there might be a way for him to find his long-lost wife, he walks all night, quickly, without giving much notice to his environment. Still, it isn't the narrative implications that get me about this scene. It's the way the sound (an audio parfait of footsteps and traffic buzz and some echo-y orating within the scene, topped off with that bending and twanging guitar soundtrack) and the visual composition (tracking Travis, who's centered in the shot, as he glides over the bi-directional river of head- and tail-lights) combine and fluctuate and culminate in Travis slowing down as the shot overtakes the orator (who turns toward him without lowering his volume), and the guitar drops back while we listen (along with our main character) about how "none of that area will be called a safety zone. there will be no safety zone. i can guarantee you the safety zone will be eliminated. eradicated." The orator turns back towards the highway, Travis softly touches his back as he walks around him, and the camera let's our main character walk on without it.

ps, Hunter is great. Not like a "great kid actor", but a real kid who doesn't seem like he's on film.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris,_Texas_(film)

#99 of 2010: Hara Kiri

2010-09-06T22:54:00.000-07:00

In the tradition of non linear storytelling, "Hara Kiri" calls into question the efficacy of first impressions and, in the process, also casts doubt on the morality of strictly defining what kinds of behavior count as"honorable". Most of the film is fairly understated, but moments of tension (i.e. are they gonna make him stab himself with a bamboo blade?) are furiously anxious, and the quiet sadness of Tatsuya Nakadai's character is absolute.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harakiri_(1962_film)

#98 of 2010: Exit Through the Gift Shop

2010-09-06T22:38:00.000-07:00

Some of the dialogue/monologue is hilarious, but the "this guy is a schlub" shtick begins to breach overkill right around the time that Banksy starts to really paint himself as the genuine article/overlord/golden standard of socially integrated art-making. Maybe he is, and I don't care to get into that, I just wish that he would have allowed some of the criticism of his modus operandi/aesthetic to fall on his own shoulders instead of re-routing the whole deluge of "can you really call this guy an artist and sell his work as art" in "Mr. Brainwash"'s bumbling direction (and setting up a pretty clear analogy to a certain Mr. Hirst). I really enjoyed the scene with the "forged" currency, how in the end, anonymity or not, the artist knows that there are limits, that you can't just do ANYTHING and still expect to work and make an impact, and I wish there would have been more of those "oops" moments, not just for comedic effect. As for the "hoax vs. docu" semi-controversy, I went into the viewing with the idea that the "real subject" was fictionalized, and I enjoyed the bulk of the movie from that angle. Overall I'll recommend it, especially for people (like me) who are unclear on the development of "street art" as a genre.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exit_Through_The_Gift_Shop

#97 of 2010: Paper Moon

2010-09-01T00:15:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's the fact that the biological relationship between the characters Addie and Moses is tenuous that allowed Tatum O'Neal to so totally break out of the shadow of being the male lead's daughter in real life. After all, this wasn't just a case of an actor parent supplying their own child to play their character's child. This isn't an easy case of "just act like i'm your dad, but in a different setting, and call me a different name". This is a real role, a lead role, really. But calling her a "supporting actress" allowed Ms. O'Neal to become the youngest person even to win an Oscar (she beat out her co-star Madeline Kahn's comedic performance for it). "Historical Awards Wins" and "Incredibly Young" aside, the younger O'Neal's gravelly voice and locked scowl, her androgynous grit and youth and supposed poverty of "sentiment", smoking in bed, scheming for affection, smarts, everything she is, down to how her hair is cut and how she walks (even in the dress she wanted but won't change for, she'll wear but won't inhabit, because her clothes don't make her), contributes to the beautifully filmed steely grey edge on everything. It's an edge made of a lot of dust but it's still reeeeal hard looking, which might be the only way to ensure the preservation of soft, old-fashioned fondness.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_Moon_(film)

#96 of 2010: Inception

2010-08-17T00:25:00.000-07:00

"thought it would be all about the visual, but it's more about the feel of it" -ariadne (ellen page)

no, ms. architect. you are mistaken. any feeling that "Inception" conveys is built primarily on visuals. in fact, not just the feeling, but the meaning and the narrative of the film are rooted much more firmly in aesthetics than in verbal poetics or hard logic. and i don't have a problem with this, because it made for incredible watching. that "waking up from 50 yrs of fantasy building" bit, where marion cotillard suicidally contemplates a knife in front of a positively glowing red vegetable on a cutting board- simple, stunning photography. and the dream world training run with ariadne was like a wonderful over-the-top magic stage routine during which you forget to keep track of the performer's hands. most of the movie is like that, if "the performer's hands" is seen as a metaphor for "the meat and bones of the story". of course, i'm not willing to let everything slide for the sensuality of the movie. one thing that annoyed me was how the male team members had to rely almost entirely on their ethnicities and quickly exemplified "special abilities" to provide distinction amongst them. their personalities were all but nonexistent. another gripe was the undue portion of the weight of the story that seemed cast on ariadne "accidentally" forcing her way into cobb's unconscious. and seriously, "ariadne"? the lovely, smart female student who dresses almost exclusively in obvious layers is not only the architect entrusted to build the dream worlds, but also the guardian of cobb's fragile secret and basically broken emotional composure? *her namesake is the thread girl who helped the youths get out of the labyrinth? then i don't understand why whoever was in charge of the soundtrack didn't make sure to play "dream weaver" every time the camera (playing the p.o.v. of cobb) turns to her.

although this short version of a review seems to lean towards negative, i have no trouble at all recommending "Inception". it is, in general, a compelling film and a legendarily beautiful parade of images.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inception_(film)

*i had ariadne and arachne confused. duuuh. but still. blatent mythology tie in to do with textile production.

#95 of 2010: La Femme Nikita

2010-08-13T00:41:00.000-07:00

see "B13" review regarding the characters and plots of Besson. Nikita was pretty dynamic, but still fit in to that description. there was a strangely relatable undercurrent throughout the whole thing relating to the helplessness of people trying to occupy their own lives despite the hellish trap of constant obligation. the love is jumped to in the story, but sincere feeling. the violence is not especially graphic, but in context it is disturbing and stripped of logic or explanation (as it probably should always be depicted). overall, she's not all laid out as a natural bad ass or a victim overcoming her trauma, she's pretty emotional and kind of quiet, and she's not a "nice girl". that's a protagonist that we don't often get to see in action films. also i was sad when victor died purely because of leon. recommend.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikita_(film)

#94 of 2010: Blackmail

2010-08-12T23:08:00.000-07:00

billed as a thriller- and there were some suspenseful or downright thrilling parts- but more of a really really really dark comedy (no way that in any era all of those "knife gags" were intended to be straight scary). and intentional or not, it was a really good really really really dark comedy. recommended.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackmail_(1929_film)

#93 of 2010: B13

2010-08-08T13:25:00.000-07:00

the script was fairly shallow, with the white, male, compassionate, heroic ass-kickers bringing it from both sides of the "tracks" (or wall) with wonderfully choreographed flair. as with several of mr. besson's film projects, the characters are fairly strong iterations of recognizable stereotypes, the underlying message is thought-provoking, and the outcome is warm and right, even though the situations sometimes skirt absurdity without fully embracing it (a dangerous place to be). i found the little sister's story undeniably lacking and hurried and flat where it could have either contributed or been left alone. but i'll recommend "B13" overall for the parkour and solid action storyline.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_13

#92 of 2010: 10 Shorts by the Bros Quay

2010-08-08T13:24:00.000-07:00

i couldn't stop writing while watching these. and "street of crocodiles" is perhaps the single most pressing motivation i can think of (ed's encouragement comes in at a close second) for me to make a film of my own (though it won't be animation). this short has been pivotal in my development of a more detailed and thought out theory of the ability of film to manipulate time like no other medium. and as much as i wish i had the focus and time to hash out everything i thought about even a single film in this collection (perhaps someday, after hundreds of viewings), i can't say anything other than find it and watch it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brothers_Quay

#91 of 2010: Russian Ark

2010-08-08T13:23:00.000-07:00

there were rembrandts. spectral guides. slices of history taken not from cultural climaxes or defining moments, but from the daily homelife of royals, the nondescript pain of common people, and the in-between and just-before moments that define a nation as much as the most recognizable pinpoints on timelines. the power of the film comes from the drifting, from the soundtrack that keeps the viewer uncomfortable, from the views, and from the feeling that we are actually stumbling- right along with the disembodied voice and his guide, the marquis- in and out of real history. "Russian Ark" is both breathtaking and subtle, incorporating the most intricate architecture and overdone period costume into a bare-bones non-narrative that pretty much amounts to a fantastically compelling and tantalizingly incomplete history lesson. sokurov has certainly made me crave information about Russia and renewed my desire to become more versed in general world history. major props to tillman buttner for his stamina and timing with the swooping pans.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_Ark

#90 of 2010: Short Circuit

2010-08-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

i thought i had seen this as a kid but i'd actually only seen "Short Circuit 2", which has the advantage of starring the most entertaining two characters (Johnny 5 and Ben) without the baggage of ally sheedy's horrible failing and painfully unnatural line delivery (disclaimer: i haven't seen the sequel since i was maybe 6 or 7, so i can't vouch for it really being good. i do remember a sweet scene in a bookstore or library where Johnny 5 devours all the books, which i have wished i could do ever since). the anti-military theme reminded me of "Real Genius", but with fewer academia-based hijinks and less concern for developing characters that a viewer can really give a shit about. still- somehow- "Short Circuit" managed to be surprisingly delightful. No. 5 was alive enough to make up for (almost) everyone else's glaring creative incompetence.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_Circuit

#89 of 2010: Five Easy Pieces

2010-08-08T10:46:00.000-07:00

jack nicholson as Bobby claims to not feel anything but what that actually means is he feels a lot of shit and it doesn't feel nice because he's a total Guy In The Seventies and doesn't know how to balance doing "hard work" plus "having a good time" with being a sensitive pianist and a scared little boy on the inside. his well-to-do family of musicians include people who he generally ignores, though his sister is an incredible sweetheart (smart and a tad awkward, but full of feeling and good humor). strained relationships with dad and bro, no surprise there, and depictions of troubled masculinity throughout the movie- from the physical ailments of dad (stroke) and bro (some neck thing, now he can't play his violin), to the law hauling away Bobby's dim, giggling pal (who seems to represent self-satisfied, "settled down" blue collar america, the authentic version of what Bobby pretends to be). as the film's most prevalent on-screen plot complications (the family issues are established as having arisen before the time period which is the subject of the film) are Bobby's relationships with two different women (an emotionally dependent, intellectually simple, gaudily feminine pregnant waitress who is Bobby's mental inferior but moral superior; and a softspokenly delicate, independent fellow musician (and soon to be sister-in-law) who is Bobby's emotional superior and intellectual equal), it is important to note (and commend) the depth and variety of gender depictions presented in "Five Easy Pieces". overall, it seems like the women (sister, pregnant girlfriend, short-term love affair) come off as more stable, thoughful, compassionate, and rational people, though there are certainly negative female counterpoints (the "pompous celibate" and the almost intolerable [but hilarious] hitchhiker). the most likable male character is probably the nurse, who is little more than a hulking, whitewashed mass of comic relief and a chance for the sweetheart sister to demonstrate her full personhood through sexuality. i'd like to go on about the visuals, but i've spent so much time on the gender bit that all i'll say is: that bit after Bobby gets on a moving truck and plays piano up the exit ramp, the next scene, he's walking around in what basically looks like a George Segal from the late 60's/early 70's, and it is evocative in the same way, with the same economy of image and lack of (need for) verbal explanations. also, T. Bak pointed out to me the expressionist use of the oil derricks in the aforementioned run-in-with-the-law scene, which is a praise-worthy utilization (and transformation, from eyesore to emotional barometer) of that machine.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Easy_Pieces

#88 of 2010: Micmacs a Tire-Larigot

2010-07-14T23:36:00.000-07:00

Some large, uncomfortable and unsightly stitches hold together the endlessly pleasing visual gags of "Micmacs" and the films fairly heavy (complete with close-ups of photos of war-mutilated children) anti-weaponry message. One of these stitches is a prolonged montage where the camera watches people watch YouTube and sometimes skips the people and watches YouTube directly. Like other reviewers of the film, I wouldn't have minded the romance between the comedian and the contortionist taking up a bit more screen time, but, "Amelie" this is not. In the end, the sight gags worked, and I liked the movie, holes, hasty sutures, and all.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micmacs_(film)

#87 of 2010: Daisies

2010-07-14T01:35:00.000-07:00

they giggle, maniacally; they're thin and peppy in swimsuits, dresses, heels; they'll hang out with a rich old dude for a meal and entertainment. but after they get bored of teasing and frolicking, they'll light wads of crepe paper on fire in their room and cut phallic foods (pickle, sausage, crescent roll, banana) into tiny pieces with scissors to the soundtrack of a lovesick butterfly collector on the phone.

it might be possible to miss the feminism of this film- the message isn't militant or presented in an altogether serious fashion- but you aren't watching very closely if you do. "Daisies" continuously points out contradictions in society's opinions on propriety and feminine behavior [example: stylized drunkeness and suggestive dancing by a couple performers doing a flapper number are enjoyed by a chuckling, clapping audience, but the crowd is completely indignant when the two girls get drunk and dance for real. ACTUALLY having fun instead of faking a good time is NOT ok].

far from being a manifesto, or even suggesting how things "should" be, Chytilova's attention-getting early feature film is an absurd/surreal interpretation of the current (as of the 60's, and we can argue how far we've come since then) state of womanhood, which was and still is rather absurd on its own. this is the point. it is made with joyous, psychedelic, and well-paced deftness. and you should watch it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daisies_(film)

#86 of 2010: Forbidden Planet

2010-07-14T00:48:00.001-07:00

Leslie Nielsen is totally being serious: there is some heavy shit going down on this planet. Oh but first we'd better make sure we decide who gets the sexy daughter. Ok, it's Leslie, NOW we can try to figure out what's up with people getting ripped apart by some huge, malicious, unconquerable force. This movie was made in 1956, and I'd be willing to bet that it inspired more than a few kitschy/futuristic mansions. Despite hindsight and shifts in decorating tastes, the film is a pretty incredible visual feat. Good source material, too. The action/suspense/thriller agenda moved out of the way to let a healthy portion (in 50's sci-fi terms) of epistemology and ethics come across at several points, and the solution to the "what's eating/disemboweling gilbert astronaut?" riddle is pretty smart and well explained, if not a total surprise by the time it's revealed. I feel like that kind of dramatic irony was more respected back then, the kind where you make the characters even more dumb than the viewer so as to appeal to a wider audience and make people feel special. Of course there are contemporary examples. Like in that fucking "Da Vinci Code" book when a professional cryptologist has to stare at a scrap of text for HOURS before he thinks to get out a mirror. Dude, it's the name of the book. Hint. Anyways, I recommend "The Forbidden Plant" for it's fully electronic musical score, it's well-developed hypothetical super-intelligent beings and explanation of human research of them, and images like this one:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Planet

#85 of 2010: Freaks

2010-07-10T23:55:00.000-07:00

I don't feel like I have to say a whole lot about "Freaks". Someone who was into the fantastic margins of culture- long before I had realized how huge the margins are- told me to watch it years ago, just like someone probably told you to watch it years ago, and if you haven't yet, do. Even as it puts the characters (who are largely identical to the actors who play them, melodramatic relationship crises aside) "on display", the film somehow manages to use the same voyeurism that allows the performers to earn a living as "sideshows" and "monstrosities" towards an opposing goal: it makes us wish that more people were like them. Because there would presumably be a whole lot less marginalization, mistreatment, and self-pity in the world if more people were as accepting, thoughtful, and resourceful as the "freaks" are here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freaks

#84 of 2010: Rome, Open City

2010-07-10T11:57:00.000-07:00

The setting (filming began only two months after the Nazis were driven from the country, the year after the story takes place) and concerns (with the responsibilities and risks, desires and decisions, the adaptability- for better or worse- of regular people in dire circumstances) of "Rome, Open City" are decidedly neorealist. Though not strictly faithful to that sub-genre, the scriptedness of Fellini's meticulous character development pairs wonderfully with the deft, professional, sincere, and sometimes even over-emotional (especially in Anna Magnini's case) acting, and the result is a perfectly distilled story with honest reality as a backdrop. As for the look of the film, Rossellini sure has an eye for composing a scene. Seen in context, after traveling through a story full of death-by-injustice, this final preparation is devastating:

As always, it is heart-rending to watch a truly good man (even a fictional one, though i'm sure the priest depicted here has historical counterparts) abruptly ceasing to exist at the hands of despicable forces. The visual composition here mangles the edges of the initial wound past the point of healing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome,_Open_City

#83 of 2010: The Curse of the Cat People

2010-07-09T00:18:00.000-07:00

"Oh Kay, we're gonna do the short, short version":

Mr. Golly Gee/Dad (still attached to spurned, cursed dead wife) has effectively domesticated his former office buddy/new wife, or she has domesticated herself to the point that you wouldn't know anything about her past life as a working gal if you hadn't seen the previous film. They have an imaginative and solitary daughter, Amy, and in raising her, Dad takes his characteristically simplistic approach (play with other kids = happily normalized life, tell me what i want to hear = i've taught you a lesson, incredible truths = lies). There's a somewhat underdeveloped and maudlin interwoven storyline about an aging actress (with something akin to alzheimer's) and the daughter who struggles to care for her. Simone Simon is as charming as ever, and her singing to/interaction with Amy is a highlight of the story, alongside the young character's personality and openness to the world. The plot climax during a blizzard on christmas is a bit too much.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Curse_of_the_Cat_People

#82 of 2010: Cat People

2010-06-21T22:00:00.000-07:00

"Cat People" has a lot in common with "I Walked With a Zombie" in terms of its ambiguity about what is really going on here. Both films utilize the exotic foreignness of non-American legend as a portal into the "unknown" and cross-examine seemingly supernatural phenomena (which is rarely evidenced visually) with the opinions of psychologists or doctors, and it is the viewer hirself who must ultimately judge whether disturbed minds or demonic curses are to blame for the trouble that transpires. In addition to ethnic and religious differences, "Cat People" also deals rather thoughtfully with the problem of defining love, as the storyline absolutely demolishes the lead male's simplistic ideals concerning the subject. So it goes like this: there are two beautiful, charming, decent women in the story. One is the delicate, dark (but still generally cutesy), sexually abstinent wife who possesses an undeniable, almost primal magnetism. The other is a peppy, self-assured office buddy who shares professional interests and skills (designing/engineering ships) with Mr. Golly Gee. After his marriage based on "I love you and you love me, even though I'm totally dismissive of your deeply held and life-guiding beliefs", he finds that (surprise) he's unhappy for the first time in his life- the bulk of which he describes as a happy childhood plus a great time at school plus lots of fun at the office. At this point is the scene during which office pal both describes a more solid (though still pretty idealistic) view of love and complicates the idea by professing the relationship between them to be a perfect example of it, but concluding the conversation without seeming to want anything decidedly romantic from him. I knew better than to get too hopeful about what a film made in 1942 might have to say about cross-gender friendships or acceptable gender relations, but (ultimate conclusions aside) "Cat People" was willing to engage the topic interestingly, and often in a way that demonstrated the weaknesses in patriarchal assumptions. I haven't even gone into the best part of the movie where the wife is following the office buddy down the street in the dark, but you gotta see it so WATCH THIS MOVIE.

#81 of 2010: Dear Wendy

2010-06-17T00:13:00.000-07:00

most of the reviews you'll find of this are negative in one of two ways: either they rip the movie apart for being absurd and unfollowable, or they seem not to mind the movie except for the "obvious" loathing of America and Americans which all Lars Von Trier's creative output (supposedly) seeks to exude. a few see it as more complex, and i'll side with them as far as the first hour and five minutes is concerned. during that time, this whole "pacifism with guns" thing plays out interestingly, confusing in its paradoxical theory and clearly unsustainable as a way of life. plenty of narrative details are left out the whole way through, but other embellishments (mainly velvet or pearl or wood) are inserted in their place, and as all of the rising actions occur- the kids become truly happy in their committed (and impressively academic) pursuits, their concealed weaponry maximizes their confidence as worthwhile members of a dead-end society, their parents die off of apparently unimportant natural causes- everything looks nice enough, is fanciful enough, and develops a style enough to hold your attention. beware the dreaded plot climax. of course it's a showdown. how could it not be a showdown. but the premise for the shoot out with the law is completely brainless. built on a foundation of a few lines of shitty dialogue (it isn't Danso Gordon's fault that his character was saddled with being the bridge from "secret good times with friends and guns" to "fire-away suicide mission to deliver some coffee"), the scene that allows for the guns to "awaken" and serve their destructive purpose never tries to defend the protagonists' hitherto good-heartedness. the first kill has no discernible motivation beyond shutting up an annoying adult, which completely destroys any affinity i had for the kids. you can go back and forth all you want about whether or not this is satire, who is being caricatured, if Lars Von Trier makes movies exclusively to try and trick Americans into paying to see themselves made fun of (I don't feel like a target here, but apparently some people do? maybe the ones who have managed to befriend only named revolvers?). the way i judge a movie is by how well it holds together, how skillfully it does its own thing. this one disintegrated as it tried to figure out if it said that out loud or just thought it. watch it until 1:05:08, then turn it off and make up your own ending. and P.S.: you did a pretty good job, Mr. Vinterberg. the writing sucked way more than the things i feel like you had control over.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dear_Wendy

#80 of 2010: Moon

2010-06-15T00:41:00.000-07:00

Sam Rockwell is, in general, fun to watch. The retro effects and costuming combine with the binary scenery (in the base or in the rover outside the base) and "British" filming to give the film a "walking with dinosaurs" style documentary kind of look into a time we can't see photographic evidence of. "Moon" is like a dramatization of the future, a recreation of what happens years from now, when the line between valuable life and expendable life rests in a different place than it does now (currently, corporations allow oil rig employees to blow up because safety hampers production. in the future that kind of abuse might be a little more flagrant). yea, the story wasn't air-tight. if it had been weightier, more emotionally demanding, i would have taken issue with the glaring moments of "nah-ah, no way". but the film was mostly sweet or funny or thoughtful rather than epic or conscience-shaking or heart-rending. its axe grinding was more akin to the main character's whittling (versus the extreme display of corporate greed in, say, "District 9"): it's not all that detailed, it simply beats sitting on your ass and forgetting about life's finer print (that is, what actually makes it matter, which people profess to care about, though not enough to read into it too deeply). what i mean is, Jones and Parker sort of indict LUNAR inc., but the story is more about being a human- and the "sarang" (the name of the base which i learned from wikipedia means "love" in Korean) that defines us, whether clones from a common source or simply fellow members of the species- than fighting "the man", or even picking out an "evil" "the man" to fight. "Moon" doesn't point fingers or seek violent comeuppance, it quietly asks us to consider the question of the opening credits: "where are we now ?" on the timeline that leads to the future depicted here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_(film)

#79 of 2010: Hunger

2010-06-15T00:37:00.000-07:00

i'm tempted not to say a whole lot about this. one reason is that i still can't be absolutely sure that it streamed correctly. but i'm fairly certain it did, so what i do say will be based on what i saw/heard (and didn't hear). most of the movie i saw was silent. if not silent, it was muffled except for the choice mic-ing of wood being shattered and water being splashed, etc. this may be what one critic meant by complaining about the film coming off as "scrubbed of political dialogue" or something to that effect. but the visuals were so audible, and the near-absence of "civilized sounds" like talking or music makes the minute or so of violin (beginning at minute 28:49) the most expressive audio possible at that moment in the film. also, any kind of vague politics or selectively-contextualized fault gets quickly re-embodied in individuals when nothing about those individuals is conveniently explained.

another reason that i don't want to say a whole lot is that this guy- http://www.donalforeman.com/blog/?cat=2 - already has, and i think you should read it. you should also see "Hunger" for yourself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunger_(2008_film)

#78 of 2010: The Notorious Landlady

2010-06-15T00:05:00.000-07:00

first and foremost, i was surprised to find Jack Lemmon carrying himself more gracefully than Fred Astaire (who i kept wishing would break into a fit of irrepressible tap-dancing, but alas. . .). oh man, that scene where Jack's going downstairs to snoop around or get the scoop after he hears something, and down an entire flight of stairs his hunched shoulders and lowered brow both stay perfectly level, perfectly parallel to the floor. he just glides around. what a charmer. people (including me) say that the best actors aren't the drama mongers, the best actors are often the truly funny comedians. maybe they're the best dancers, too. Kim Novak was enchanting except for when she clung to Jack and bobbed her head and flung her eyebrows impossibly high, all alternately, robotically, and to some horrible rhythm. that was hard to watch, but it was over in a matter of seconds and she was her same slick, wide-faced whisperer once again. The crazy camera angles and light-speed panning and zooming at the moment of the movie-opening murder were notable, as was the coherence of the plot-driving mystery's resolution. it's a sexy romp and a sizzling suspense and might even be considered female-empowering. and if for no other reason, watch it because the guy who plays officer Oliphant is so. spot. on.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056289/

#77 of 2010: Cria Cuervos

2010-06-13T02:13:00.000-07:00

like "spirit of the beehive", "cria cuervos" is a movie about pivotal events during childhood, stars Ana Torrent as the central character, and allows children to be complex and/or uncomfortably (though realistically) amoral. the later film also echoes the earlier in the way that it treats fascism and political turmoil as secondary to the more immediate experiences of family life, but makes sure to demonstrate a strong connection between the socio-political situation of the time and the behavior of the adult characters, which in turn seems to offer insight into the behavior of the children. one thing I could have done without was the flash-forward adult Ana appearing on screen in several highly contrived scenes (she is basically a speaking bust that seems to be answering the unasked question "what was your childhood like?") where she explains how she felt at age nine. this could have been included to introduce some instability into the narrative, call into question what we've seen. after all, if the movie is taken as the telling of memories by the adult Ana, we can assume that a good deal of it is confabulation, and that would somewhat explain scenes like the strange mash-ups of arguments between parents, where the girl Ana circles and observes in a way that tells us that the scene is not literal, not meant to be understood as "what happened", and that the camera is not acting as a witness, but as a "mind's eye". still, i feel that the subjectivity of the visuals- the fact that we are meant to see the movie as a look into Ana's mind- was clear without the adult version applying her overarching conclusions retroactively. it might have simply been the lines in these scenes that i didn't care for, or the fact that a woman staring into a camera as if she is being interviewed by a psychologist (who happens to be more interested in studying What People Say About Childhood than Childhood Itself) is not as visually stimulating as seeing what a little girl thinks. regardless, the movie as a whole is a successful (moving, articulate, beautiful) argument for the differentiation between inexperience and innocence. watch it, and relish "porque te vas".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cría_cuervos

#76 of 2010: The Celebration

2010-06-05T00:12:00.000-07:00

"The Celebration" has been languishing in my DVD queue for months, hovering near the top but always being postponed in favor of a more recent recommendation. its turn finally came, and i was thoroughly blown away by it. i found out as the opening credits played that the film was the first movie made according to Dogme 95 requirements, and i was impressed with how polished and cohesive (in comparison to my only other experience with Dogme filmmaking, Korine's "Julien Donkey Boy") the whole thing turned out to be. i've said it before and i'll say it again: few things fill me with more admiration than financially resourceful executions of engaging visual storytelling. solid creativity can function on any budget, and this film exemplifies how much you can do with a bit of precise editing, some murky lighting, fantastic acting, and impeccable direction. the dream/drunk sequence towards the end was probably the most moving, most spot-on depiction of semi-consciousness that i have ever seen. also, while the plot revolves around tragic victimization, blatant/uncomfortable confrontation, and the struggle towards recovery within a family, it never feels like the "movie version" of something that happens in real life; it feels like the "real life version" (this from the perspective of someone who's never experienced anything like the film's premise first or second or even third hand). as a viewer, you're included as a guest at the table, you're a bystander trying to figure out how or if- once a horrendous act can no longer be ignored or denied- it might be possible to keep on existing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Celebration

#75 of 2010: Together

2010-06-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

besides the oblique jabs which consist of the inclusion of a "crazy hippie aunt" or "weird psychic/naturopath", i feel like movies in general shy away from critically examining political and social liberalism in a serious way (i'm not counting outright satires like Allen's "everyone says i love you"). bucking that trend (as i perceive it), "Together" offers a sizable helping of pros and cons concerning practices like communal living, political sexuality, and liberal parenting. Though aspects of radical counter-culture are introduced as stark theoretical oppositions to mainstream family values, the narrative allows a much more complex exploration of the left-leaning continuum to take place. By the still-uncertain (but happy anyway) denouement, we've gotten to know left-wing counterparts to every right-wing stereotype: the protective parent, the self-serving hypocrite, the political evangelist, the sheepish proponent of the most idealistic version of hir beliefs (in place of the right's "american dream" of freedom to prosper is the left's ideal of "harmonious equality" in which the group prospers because of the altruism of its members), and so on. all this anthropological/sociological documentary (the zooms, quick turns, and handheldiness of the camera work are reminiscent of early, possible-to-presume-unscripted reality shows) is part of a complete narrative package, with interesting and interwoven plot lines and a really great brother-sister-parallel-yelling-at-significant-others scene. the subtitles on netflix's disc were definitely shoddy, but who doesn't love listening to Swedish, even if there are big holes in the translation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Together_(2000_film)

#74 of 2010: The Spirit of the Beehive

2010-05-31T00:20:00.000-07:00

everything about this film- from the lighting, to the editing, to the dialog between sisters, to the fade-as-small-scale-time-lapse technique, to the loose narrative (almost without plot, as the word is conventionally defined)- combines to create the effect that we are travelling back into our own childhood minds as we watch. "The Spirit of the Beehive" is not so much a story about a single fictional child as it is a reminder that children, living in the same disturbing world as adults without any guarantee of shelter from loss or grief or disillusionment, have the ability to cope in incredible ways. it's hard to say much about this movie except that it was transporting, filled with the awe and discovery of being young without any condescension, and without forgetting that there is pain and confusion (right alongside joy and beauty) in living, from day one on.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spirit_of_the_Beehive

#73 of 2010: I'm Not Scared

2010-05-30T23:35:00.000-07:00

after reading some of the facts about the setting of this film (which were not made explicit in the movie), i get the feeling that there is more here for Italians than for the international crowd. it's like setting a film that's not about slavery in the 1850's in America: we're gonna automatically figure that historical moment in as we watch the specific story unfold. but in "I'm Not Scared"s case, i would have had no idea that the 70's was a particularly dangerous decade for Italy, when assasinations and kidnappings were relatively common. national implied history aside, the narrative is generally heartwarming, culminating in the main character (a ten-year-old who you couldn't convince me was less than twelve by the looks of him) demonstrating incredible altruism and compassion in defiance of the selfishness and violence of the adults in his life. there is a bit too much maudlin music and the slow motion hand grasp of the ending is sort of terrible, but the film breaks even overall, because it is SO much FUN watching the brother and sister gesticulate and bicker. i feel like children can sometimes act as lovable caricatures of cultural habits (after all, they are in the process of learning their own culture), and these kids do a fierce whole-hand point, a mannerism i've come to know as particularly Italian. "I'm Not Scared" ends up falling somewhere between recommended and not, so you decide.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'm_not_scared

#72 of 2010: Following

2010-05-29T12:48:00.000-07:00

in several ways, Christopher Nolan's "Following" reminded me of Robert Rodriguez's "El Mariachi", another low-budget, home-grown, internationally distributed debut that was made in the 90's. the films were both written, shot, and edited largely by their directors, and both use less-than-entirely-convincing actors and public or borrowed-from-friends locations to tell truly compelling stories. "Following" is significantly more understated than "El Mariachi" in it's brand of suspense and it's visual composition as a whole (we're talking the difference between shoot-outs because of coincidences and meticulously plotted sneaking around, the difference between a black-and-white, grey-skied London and south-of-the border sun-drenched vibrance), but they are both commendable in their resourcefulness and in their effectiveness, and definitely demonstrate the potential (which is now being realized) of these directors. Even though "Following" isn't so impressive standing as a piece of art in a vacuum, disconnected from the history of it's maker and production, it's fast-paced (short too, only 70 minutes!) and intriguing and non-linear enough to be worth recommending.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Following

#71 of 2010: Lola

2010-05-29T11:35:00.000-07:00

as i mentioned before, "Lola" is the genetically identical graft of it's Marlene Dietrich-starring predecessor, "The Blue Angel". still, in R.W. Fassbinder's hands, it certainly became it's own plant as it progressed. obvious comparisons to be made: a seemingly non-sexual older man in a socially respectable position is at odds with the people at work while he falls in love with a singer in the adult entertainment industry and is subsequently "corrupted"; the woman is financially dependent on men but finds plenty of other ways to be in charge of her own life; idealism doesn't have much of an effect, if any. basic contrasts: more developed rivalries; more circularity and interconnectivity amongst characters; this film is not only in color, it is in hyper-color, with tinted lighbulbs on screen and richly-hued stage-lighting to create giant planes of color which envelope characters or intersect. the second contrast, the interconnectivity, is elemental in developing the complexity of the woman around whom all the other characters orbit. Lola's scenes show her in different costumes (standard vocal performance stage-clothes, lingerie, her conservative and high-class sunday best, 20-something around-the-house wear, etc.) as she interacts with different combinations of friends, coworkers, clients, and family. she's casual at home with her daughter, mother, and friend/coworker Esslin; she's in her room at the brothel being fought over by Shuckert and Esslin while wearing her prostitute uniform; she's singing at a church in a modest (though head-turning) hat and dress while von Bohm sings beside her; she's at her wedding with all the women from work, her mother, and her new husband. but even as she changes costumes- presumably playing different roles in order to be what people want her to be- she has a consistent resilience, a self-reliance, and a kind of ambition that drives her to gather up love and admiration (and to withstand the abuse that comes with them) for her own practical benefit. she isn't attention hungry, she's business-minded, and she knows enough about how to survive in her environment that she allows herself to mix business with pleasure. her predicament (along with her perspective) is summed up well in her response to Esslin when he asks, rhetorically, "you want to live in a world that has lost all morality, where there's only evil and depravity and corruption?" she answers, "gladly. my only problem is that they never let me really join in." though she's left out when it comes to the distribution of clear-cut power, Lola has smarts, is willing to use what she's got, and is adaptable in the extreme. whether or not these abilities can also count as detriments is ultimately left up to each viewer's own system of priorities and moral evaluation. i love when flimmakers allow viewers the privilege of judging for themselves, and i'm starting to really love Armin Mueller-Stahl, so i'm recommending "Lola" highly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lola_(1981_film)

#70 of 2010: The Blue Angel

2010-05-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

i rented this specifically because it was mentioned in the blurb on #71 as an inspiration for that film. i'll save drawing connections for the next post. as for "The Blue Angel" on it's own, it has the distinct flavor of a 30's PSA-ish morality tale without demonizing the woman who "lures" the poor bastard to his "fall" from "respectable society". all those catch-words and -phrases are in quotes to convey the film's ambivalence about defining them. audiences could read the surface of the story as an indictment of lascivious living and wantoness in women (including this shallow super-text floating above the real story is an age old censorship-dodging trick), but if you're paying attention you'll notice that she never deceives him or pretends to be something she's not, and she doesn't pass judgement on him. it's the "fallen" male character who really gets dissected: his obsession with respectability and subsequent "descent" into impropriety, his silly (but destructive) clinging to scraps of the honor he never had, his grotesque inability to settle on a self. i'm not clear on the historical moment in Germany when this was filmed, but i feel like the professor makes a good stand-in for institutional hypocrisy in any era, and the film's real moral is that hypocrisy will tear you apart and leave you death-gripping your old desk in a hobo clown outfit.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blue_Angel

#69 of 2010: Veronika Voss

2010-05-26T22:56:00.000-07:00

the story itself and the exceptional acting certainly deserve praise, but the most striking thing about this film is how poignantly it reverses the light=good/dark=bad convention. though Fassbinder chose to shoot "Veronika Voss" in black and white and the story is built largely on the darker, more desperate and disturbing facets of humanity, i don't think it can be considered "neo-noir" for the simple fact that so much of the film is blindingly white- which in this case represents lack, unease (even torture), corrupt power, and decay. like Rembrandt's "hundred gilder print" depicting Christ with the greatest dimensionality possible for the medium (while the "bad guys" are punished by being made lightest, their forms constructed from the fewest and thinnest lines, barely worked on by the artist or visible to the viewer), Fassbinder shows the good people and places of this film in vibrant shadow and modulated light, while the rotten characters gleam. Robert and his extraordinarily devoted (though in no way inferior or dependent) girlfriend Henriette are the self-actualized, affectionate, honest, compassionate ones, and their truthful and openhearted interactions take place in spaces lit like this:

playing for the other (nasty, opportunistic, self-centered, avaricious) team is Dr. Katz, who swindles and makes addicts of Veronika and two elderly Holocaust survivors (who are probably among others not dealt with in the scope of the film). her office/home/trap is completely whitewashed, effecting the feeling that the only comfort or hope or life it can offer is contrived, flattened, and completely fake- and it is also inescapable. everything falls under the terrible whiteness' power, from the palm tree in the white hall

to Veronika herself, all bleached and washed out and sickly, even as she sparkles with the coldness of jewelry and ostentation.

the cleanliness and orderliness of her doctor's corruption eventually drains Veronika of even fake, drug-induced life, and one of the palest frames is the one that displays her demise.

I was stunned by this film on so many levels, but i'll refrain from going into any more of them and simply recommend that you watch "Veronika Voss" for yourself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veronika_Voss

#68 of 2010: Pirate Radio

2010-05-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

i'm not going to go too far into this one because it would be a waste of energy to write all the mean things that could be said of it. the short version: "Pirate Radio" (aka "The Boat That Rocked" in the UK) packs a huge ensemble of half-baked, over-flattened characters and continually puts lame gags and cheap references to the fabled sexual freedom of the 60's ahead of meaningful story development. i didn't watch the deleted scenes, but reading recaps of them has me wondering why the character formulation was cut to make way for the two most horribly pointless plot-lines possible (both including stupid, fickle, pretty women scheming to get what they want by putting on coquettish little shows; both devoid of the possibility of an interesting outcome). i would have much rather seen the backstory on Felicity, a slightly more two-dimensional (though not "hollywood-looking") female character. or the backstory on any of the characters, for that matter, because they all seem to have arrived on this ship from out of left field. the truly enjoyable parts: all of Bill Nighy's acting, the rock'n'roll, and the totally contrived but joyous ending.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boat_That_Rocked

#67 of 2010: The Body Snatcher

2010-05-22T15:11:00.000-07:00

the nice thing about basing a movie off a short story (written by Robert Louis Stevenson, no less) which is based off historical events is that, as long as your screen adaptation knows where to cut and not to add anything significant (which this one does), you can focus on acting, lighting, camera setups, suspense building, music, etc. and if you DO focus on these things as much as you should for not having to spend the time coming up with a new story, voila! the movie is a creepy, shadowy thrillride/success! at every place where this film could have soured, it was its sweetest: the first murder to provide a body doesn't just happen, and it doesn't happen sloppily, and it isn't without enormous emotional significance for the viewer; rather, the entire scene is expertly crafted for the utmost suspense and gravity. mr. karloff's greedy eyes find his victim as she crosses paths with his recent guest. as the camera (playing his eyes) tracks her, we are fearful, but still have hope that this is just a temporary whim in his desperate mind. we keep repeating, "he wouldn't, he wouldn't, someone would notice, someone will know, he wouldn't" until his cab clops behind her into a shadow and her voice stops. "the body snatcher" is the kind of horror film that respects humanity enough to base the inspiration for our terror in reality. each death is heavy, and the emotions that conscienceless slasher movies would exploit are instead put to good use in confronting the malice that greed and "ambition" bring about in the real world.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Body_Snatcher_(film

#66 of 2010: Strictly Sexual

2010-05-22T14:40:00.000-07:00

as a story it was decent, if strictly heterocentric and also improbable (but since when is improbable in itself a problem, right?). the title is ironic; the film actually offers some refreshing takes on love and sexuality (though it seems to lose any ground it gains during intercut "men on relationships" and "women on relationships" counseling sessions. on the other hand, this could simply be a reflection on how we are generally socialized to view the opposite sex and not the opinions of those who made the film. after all, what is said during this scene calls into question a lot of the simple binary assumptions we've been led to make about the four characters [2 men and 2 women], and the advice that is given is shown to be ineffective later in the movie. ok i've changed my mind, there is a net progress regarding gender stereotypes) i agree with the netflix reviewer who mentioned that a serious re-edit would do this some good, and i found some of the dialogue a bit "intro to fiction" sounding. some scenes, however, did achieve the recognizable realism that the entire movie was struggling towards: i.e. the scene where stannie describes his strained (now non-existent) relationships with his parents. it sounds convincing, his somewhat careful, slightly vague (but absolutely effective) in-a-nutshell description of why he and his family mutually opted out of keeping in contact when he was a teenager, and it lays a good foundation for our understanding of what happens to his relationship with donna. overall, though, this is another case of the movie being less interesting than the life of the movie - it has been released almost solely on the internet, streaming on netflix and hulu, and through those channels has managed to make 10 times it's production budget thus far. it may be a landmark in film distribution, but certainly is not one in filmmaking or storytelling. read the press on "strictly sexual", but skip seeing it unless you don't find less-than-good acting or hurried plot climaxes distracting.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strictly_Sexual

#65 of 2010: I Walked with a Zombie

2010-05-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

this film is deliciously ambiguous as a horror flick- full of speculations about the causes of the condition of the "zombie" in the story. each one twists the narrative further around on itself and refuses to provide an answer, only offering a possibility. the deftness of camera work during the first "walk with the zombie" is impossible to ignore, with perfectly (and dynamically) paced tracking shots. [my favorite: the few seconds where, after mostly following the actors, retracing their steps and trailing them around corners in the cane field, the camera jumps in front of them, reversing the shot so that we see the actors {paused momentarily to observe the creepy surroundings, the nurse's physical hesitation denoting doubt about the mission she's embarked on with her patient} squared in the center of the screen. when they start to move, the camera does as well, which highlights the fact that at this point, continuing is less about forcing ahead and more about being pulled in, regardless of inhibitions.] the love stories are left (appropriately) in the realm of rash decisions, and though the ending allows couples to "be together", it is certainly not an all-tied-up conclusion. the thoughtful ruminations on cultural differences don't end up favoring Western traditions over "other" ones: though the doctors scoff at the practices of villagers and mention "talking a little voodoo to get medicine down their throats", one of them is also convinced that she participated in a successful voodoo ritual; and the discussions of how the people got to this island usually expose the Westerner as a bit daft and uncompassionate, i.e. when the driver relates (with a troubled expression that only the camera can see) that everyone's long-ago mothers and long-ago fathers were carried here by the Hollands against their will ["chained to the bottom of the boat"], the nurse responds with an ignorant smile, "they brought you to a beautiful place didn't they". I could go on about interactions like this, but you should see the movie. it's short enough to watch without ever checking your watch (or the progress bar on the video player)!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_walked_with_a_zombie

#64 of 2010: Fantastic Planet

2010-05-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

visually interesting film, the narrative of which has some philosophical and political implications. it's short and easy to keep watching because of the occasional vignettes of Om and Tragg life (the "imaginations", the "meditations", the hunts and what seems to be a fertility ritual), which are left largely unexplained, which saves this from being one of those science fiction pieces that feels like a cheesy crash-course on quickly developing an impossible setting. though some summaries describe it as being set in the future, "Fantastic Planet" cleverly doubles as an earth-creation myth, in my opinion. wrap your head around it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fantastic_Planet

#63 of 2010: Battle Royale

2010-05-14T17:21:00.000-07:00

holy distopian microcosm of teenagers participating in a twisted, government-ordered, popularly sanctioned bloodbath. this story and director do a fantastic job of taking the viewer along on the emotional and mental rollercoaster that the kids are strapped to by way of their electronic collars. there are points where you're definitely gonna want to shut it off, and it'll be because of the obliteration of cinematic boundaries of "decency" that you're used to as an American. the movie itself stands as an attention-holding, thought-provoking examination of social issues, especially those that make complicated shitstorms out of the lives of many young people. it serves it's humor dark and absurd, and even though you get a little pulled out of the drama and chuckle, deep down, the part where the girl shoots-to-kill the boy and the boy tells her to run and save herself and she says "why?" and he says "you're so cute", that's gonna give you back the ability to see the characters as kids, which in turn is going to make it even more clear how scary and fucked up the premise requires this future to be. watch it when you get the urge to rent a slasher, but subsequently realize that you'd like your disbelief to be suspendable and your two hours to mean something (even if it's not precisely clear what).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale_(film)

#62 of 2010: Bram Stoker's Dracula

2010-05-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

i have to start by calling out the use of the author's name for any publicity of this movie. it would have been more appropriate to call it "Coppola's Shitty Dracula". i'll follow that with what i saw as the movie's strengths: sweet costuming for the Vlad preface; decent acting (however wasted on the film as a whole) by Anthony Hopkins, Gary Oldman (guaranteed by the screen actors guild to astound as an over-the-top villian while introducing a faint glimmer of humanity), and [surprise!] Tom Waits; and financially conservative effects (including camera positioning, aesthetically pleasing fades, and interesting editing), which i always appreciate for their resourcefulness and creativity. now for the weaknesses. in my perfect imaginary world, any time that someone tries to turn a piece of innovative and culturally important literature into a porn that is not even a good porn, they should have to apologize to everyone who watches it all the way through. i won't bother waiting for that, since this is not my world and Francis Ford Coppola's iteration of this horror story already achieved blockbuster status. besides the performances mentioned, the rest were either totally bland or (accidentally, i hope, for the sake of any respect i might in the future have for this director) unentertainingly comical. if you feel you must watch this, try to focus on the mystery of dracula's shapeshifting and centuries-long history. the movie got this right while it let all of the other great suspense-building plot-points from the novel fall apart. ff when Winona and Keanu are on screen together to avoid going into a bored coma.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dracula_(1992_film)

#61 of 2010: Hero

2010-05-12T11:01:00.000-07:00

The colors and drama are formulated as arduously as you would expect in a film by Zhang Yimou, and it pays off. Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung are, as always, beacons of emotional subtlety and masterful believability. Also, the CGI scenes worked: while highly (some might say preposterously) stylized, i found them tasteful and well-incorporated [as opposed to some of the tacky scenery in "Curse of the Golden Flower"]. Overall, an absolutely beautiful epic, a legendarily romanticized historical fiction that can hold the viewer's attention with spectacle alone, but that doesn't forget to tell a moving and somewhat didactic story.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hero_(2002_film)

#60 of 2010: Angels with Dirty Faces

2010-05-12T09:49:00.000-07:00

James Cagney being on screen for a healthy portion of the runtime is reason enough to watch this or any movie in which he stars. his dancerly grace and the bad-kid-with-gusto/lovable-bully persona that he captures are undeniably winning, even when his character is doing what can only be described as despicable. still, that character, Rocky Sullivan, is more resourceful than despicable, and you can't argue that he doesn't have a strong and relatively just (compared to the crooked cops and greedy lawyer) personal code of conduct. but that doesn't mean we don't sympathize with Jerry (Pat O'Brien) and his position. like other gangster films of the era, this acts as a PSA in regards to at-risk youth. yet unlike films like "the public enemy" (another Cagney-full gem with a few legendary scenes) and "scarface" (i'm talkin the original), the anti-hero criminal at the center of "Angels" isn't simply a figure for us to pity, wishing it didn't have to be this way as he spirals down to nothing, whimpering and cornered or disposed of at the hands of rivals. Rocky never seems too far gone, and we know that he isn't because of the final scene. the grey area occupied by this character is ostensibly the same area in which children who tend towards criminality live, too beaten down for the ideals embodied by the priest, but too good to transform completely into hedonistic brutes; this unwillingness to strictly polarize good and bad, saved and lost, citizen and criminal, makes "Angels with Dirty Faces" a compelling entreaty.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angels_with_Dirty_Faces

#59 of 2010: Real Genius

2010-05-11T16:24:00.000-07:00

for all it's keen-but-shallow witty one-liners and teen comedy silliness (i.e. the hot braniac throws a sexy de-stressing "beach" party and invites a bunch of correctly-bodied and intellectually deficient "beauticians" from the cosmetology school up the road. plenty of offensive insinuations to go around), this movie packed a substantive bundle of ethics and life lessons. there's the triplet of past, present, and future "top-dogs", a kind of diagram of what can happen to a smart kid who doesn't balance- work with fun, break-through successes in the lab with a philosophically sound conscience, nurturing his abilities with challenging himself to work on or accept his weaknesses. i was especially impressed by the message (which Mitch gets from Chris, then subsequently has to reflect back to his mentor when Chris' sealed future comes undone) that above bragging rights, above grades, above salaries, above rivalries, it is the work we do that really matters (along with the our relationships with and responsibilities to the people who share in our endeavors). and, as everyone comes to find out the hard way, worthwhile work deserves to be thought- and felt- through. all the raw intelligence in the world is valueless, even harmful, without the moderation of the human soul. awwwwwww.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_Genius

#58 of 2010: The Lives of Others

2010-05-10T23:39:00.000-07:00

netflix was right, i do give it that many stars. what a totally absorbing film brimming with narrative convolutions (which tighten up the suspense without feeling too contrived, except in the way that certain interactions between characters are contrived and based around a "subject/audience" relationship). besides being a studied observation and commentary on oppressive political systems (aren't they all), the movie also handles a very wide array of topics {art-making, patronage, patriotism, and ambition [good and bad kinds, for the sake of creative fulfillment and for its own sake]} in micro- they are dealt with to the extent that they fit into the specific story being told, which is one hell of an emotionally/historically dense slice of life. Ulrich Muhe is INCREDIBLE as the listener/interrogator, and his character's dual/opposing roles in the name of state security exemplify the kind of provoking dichotomies that arise less-than-manageably from the premise. there are clear villians here, and- in a move which movies with clear villians don't usually make- "Lives" exposes those men who would be tagged "evil" in more epic histories as simply immature, infantile even: hungry for attention and praise and control for no reason but to fan their little teenagesque egos. . . with disproportionately tragic though entirely possible consequences. watch this one, but maybe not right before bed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lives_of_Others

#57 of 2010: days of being wild

2010-05-02T12:49:00.000-07:00

i can see how these premises and characters grew into Wong Kar-Wai's later movies (it's "sequels", "in the mood for love" and "2046", but also the chronologically-nearer "chungking express"). the whole film has a "learning" feel- in the content, people learn about how other people work, learn to move on, learn secrets, travel and learn new trades; through the visuals, the viewer must learn to translate darkness and the small, fragmented plains of faces or furniture or clothes that catch the light; after seeing the later films in the sequence, it is clear that the director is learning how to build and where to block characters, when they should enter and exit for greatest raw effect (rather than greatest/clearest contribution to narrative), and besides that, he is working for the first time with Christopher Doyle, no doubt entering into a relationship in which both parties learned from each other. if you haven't seen any Wong Kar-Wai, maybe start here and watch the "trilogy".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Days_of_being_wild

#56 of 2010: Fritz Lang's M

2010-04-27T13:37:00.000-07:00

l killer, fritz lang, german, otto wernicke, peter lorre, social problems, suspense

this "first-cinematic serial killer" film (that's how it's billed in the netflix summary) is much less polarized- in terms of "good v. evil", "victim v. villain", "justice v. retribution", etc.- than you would expect if you hadn't seen anything else by Lang. based on my limited experience of the director's work ("Metropolis"), I certainly wasn't predicting a cut-and-dry morality tale, but I was surprised at just how complex, how condemning and also redeeming of EVERY character/character-type, this movie is. it'll yank on your emotions but it won't tell you what you'd need to do if it was real. you'll see the good in bad guys but it won't hold up outside of present circumstances. you'll see the bad in victim-mothers, and you'll have a hard time placing the divisions between complicity and willful ignorance and helplessness. like any examination of morality with real depth, this movie forces you to judge yourself as you judge its characters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M_(1931_film)

#55 of 2010: Everyone Says I Love You

2010-04-19T13:01:00.000-07:00

The best chemistry was between Goldie and Woody, for sure. Tim Roth played his part magnificently as well. I haven't actually seen that many Woody Allen movies (besides this, "Vicki Christina Barcelona" and "What's Up Tiger Lily"), but I get the feeling that they all have a similar air of cinematic transparency, that is, that they don't bother to ask for a suspension of disbelief, especially where dialogue is concerned. I prefer movies that are based on more absorptive writing, even when the acting doesn't hold up. personal preference. however, I do appreciate how Allen builds his heroines: they may all be beautiful (but so are the men, except for him, and who but beautiful people do we expect to populate movies that never claim realism), but they are also smart, independently thoughtful, fallible, and (perhaps most importantly) are distinguishable from each other in their priorities and views on love and life. the musical element here was fairly gimmicky, but the choreography was pretty wonderful to watch.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everyone_Says_I_Love_You

#54 of 2010: Leon: The Professional

2010-04-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

Sure, it's an action flick, plus a kid-in-trouble-saved-by-reluctant-loner storyline. that hybrid in itself is not what makes this film incredible. what DOES, is, well, it's frenchness: this is the international version of what was released in america as "the professional", and is, intact, much more emotionally rewarding than the puritanized iteration. yes, it is disturbing to watch a reedy preteen girl participate in contract killings. yes, it is somewhat uncomfortable to hear this young girl engage in a conversation with her older, male guardian which amounts to her asking him to sleep with her. but this movie is not an example of the creepy oversexualization of young girls that takes place in american media and retail. this is a 12-yr-old girl character in a crazy situation acting like a 12-yr-old girl in a crazy situation (p.s. i would be in love with Leon, too). that the movie had to be cleansed of this character's chance to demonstrate her inner thoughts (and learn from the response she gets) for the american release is a perfect example of the hypocrisy and oversimplification that have always allowed good, accessible, human art to take a backseat to low-brow feel-goodism in this country. thank you, The French, for being so ok with puberty, and for being willing to present uncomfortable images so that all the bad we bring to the table as viewers may be swept aside by the excruciating (and redemptive) depth of your characters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Léon_(film)

#53 of 2010: Vera Cruz

2010-04-14T23:08:00.000-07:00

it was a western. there were plenty of problematic portrayals of people of color. dialogue was stinted in favor of lancaster's (freakishly gleaming) teeth, but was often entertaining. too much discussion of unseen cautionary tale character, "ace". but some of the action shots were beautifully composed and followed through (good work, Mr. Laszlo).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vera_Cruz_(film)

catching up with the movie count

2010-04-14T13:56:00.000-07:00

this blog is being taken over by my documentation of movies i see this year. if i stay on track with my movie-every-other-day average (currently balanced), that'll be over 180 movies by new years eve. OR MOOORE. here is what i've seen so far:

#52 of 2010: Persona. this deserves another viewing, several. the unconventional visual and auditory presentations of events and thoughts are thoroughly impactful without being totally (or even mostly) readable. Ms. Andersson is startlingly convincing as the complicated, thoughtful, younger woman, with weaker resolve but no shortage of intellect. Ms. Ullmann matches her effort as the virtually line-less "patient" whose composure almost instantly calls into question her doctor's desire to have her "cared for" by the young nurse. Illogical behaviors (blood-sucking, and the nurse playing the actress' wife role to the latter's visiting husband?) leave the reader provoked into sorting out what the characters are "actually" doing and what is imagined, what is visual representation of internal conditions (my preliminary conclusion is that they are really getting THAT TWISTED by the end of the film). this is just inspecting the surface. if you haven't seen it, do.

#51 of 2010: My Night at Maud's. this is a moral tale that i can get on board with: everyone is "guilty", honest, and still able to love meaningfully.

#50 of 2010: Paper Heart. some of it was really pretty entertaining, and the rest was watchable if slow. but i feel like that's kinda how Charlyne Yi's comedy works. you just have to pay attention.

#49 of 2010: Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi State. finished the miniseries. i would recommend this in general as an extremely well documented history lesson. of course all history consists of the interpretation of evidence, the reconstruction of events based on that evidence. and as such, conjecture (statistical or emotional, either way based on the world views of the society that is doing the looking back) sometimes enters in. what i respect about this kind of history is the same thing i respect about good journalism: it is researched well, and presented honestly, and that makes the impact stronger and deeper than sensation and dramatic guesses. also, look up the Jewish Brigade and Moshe Tavor (he was interviewed in the final episode about his role in post-war vigilante-style Natzee killin' operations).

#48 of 2010: Un Chen Andalou. sixteen minutes of surrealism i.e. dead donkeys in pianos holding a man back from sexually assaulting a woman whose armpit hair replaces his mouth.

#47 of 2010: Love in the Afternoon. best moral tale i've seen, and a fitting end to the series, it would seem. Rohmer is so adept at portraying inner lives, or at least the part of inner life that gets saddled with sorting out love. this film (amongst the tales) is particularly likable because there are only solid characters and still no easy answers (it is basically the mirror of "la collectionneuse", with thoughtful instead of mindless attachments [not that that other tale didn't go into intellectualizing mindlessness] and quotidian instead of exceptional living situations). sure, i'd like to see the story continue with frederic telling helene that he's gonna have a baby with chloe, and helene saying, "great, we'll have weekly dinners or something", and everybody being happy, but rohmer and you and me all know that whether or not that happens doesn't change what we've seen here in these 93 minutes.

#46 of 2010: La Collectionneuse . none of the characters are likable, and this moves much slower than "claire's knee". again, i do appreciate the highly flawed (so egotistical!) male narrator. and my favorite rohmer trick occurs at the end: the abrupt end of the scene after a line or an action that contradicts the convictions that the scene (or in this case, the whole movie) has shown prior. Elsie Wolfa, i'd be interested in knowing what your take on this is from the feminist angle.

#45 of 2010: The Iron Giant. this is the best thing i've seen in a few weeks, which is saying a lot considering. . .

#44 of 2010: The Lost Boys. you can tell they're vampires because they have beautiful mullets. could have done without the strained reference to peter pan in the bloodbath scene at the end ("they just needed a mother"?)

#43 of 2010: Claire's Knee. suggested tagline: it's not as creepy as it is.

#42 of 2010: Suzanne's Career. in a way, this made me feel like i was in college again. not sure what way exactly.

#41 of 2010: The Bakery Girl of Monceau. i might be cheating a little by counting each of these, but the six moral tales are certainly not a single film. in the first installment, it's good to see the neuroticism of men, the assumptions and judgements and vanity. there is something so egalitarian about the "moral" evaluations of the films filtering so obviously through the subjective temperaments and flaws of the narrating character, who acts as a sort of clearly unreliable judge in a position of extreme authority. this not only complicates the story by simplifying it unfairly (the observed or objectified, used or simply associated characters can't defend themselves against the voice-over's impressions), but also complicates the viewers expectations about the "moral of the story".

#40 of 2010: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. analogous to Radiohead's "In Rainbows", this was good in plenty of ways, but what is most interesting about it (and what distinguishes it from similar works) is it's distribution (but it wasn't as catchily mind saturating as 'jigsaw falling into place' no way). Also, the motivation for the making of this is interesting: it was created and released during that little writers' strike that really threw a wrench in the schedules of the still-watches-tv-on-tv-in-traditional-weekly-installments public. really, it's just an extended, kinda funny, viral-esque video. yea, it's a reflection of what's going on in the larger culture as far as form (on several levels), but i wouldn't recommend spending the time on it.

#39 of 2010: Wings of Desire. "city of angels" ripped off this movie's plot and blew it up into a weepy mess. "wings of desire" was better, but not the best thing i've seen this week. too much listing, a little too much theoretical dialogue for my taste. and at the end, this all-consuming knowledge and truth of "man and woman" together (versus the truth of sensuality, of physical and spiritual love between people, of feeling the world in non-heterosexual ways) felt a little like an ethereal support of DOMA. but i liked the main character, the library scenes, peter falk's part, the trapeze artist's complexity, the nick cave concerts (count 'em, 2 in the movie). i'm neutral on this one.

#38 of 2010: The Circle. same director as "The Mirror" (1998), and it uses similar narrative, production, and camera devices to suggest the reality of the situations portrayed: sometimes the camera focused on the speaking characters is blocked by an extra, the soundtrack describes loud actions occurring behind closed doors, there is little or no use of additional lighting (the characters' positions are such that streetlights and environmental fixtures are utilized for maximum impact), and all but two actors (one more central character, and one with a relatively small part) are amateurs. this is an incredibly emotional film that hits all of it's social-problems talking points without ever becoming overwrought or providing details that would morally acquit or condemn the characters. excellent.

#37 of 2010: Joe Versus the Volcano. Some of my suspicions were assuaged, especially by the periodic visual references to German Expressionist films (more straightforward in the first half hour, subtle but very present "cabinet of dr. caligari" scenery and makeup, "metropolis" trudge and elevator to the depths. some down-played expressionism in the coloring of later scenes.) really, everything up through the businessman's visit was solid for sure. the love story was a little easy (duh). and there was a trying-on-clothes montage. and a fishing montage. and a ritual preparation montage. it was like the happy version of "Brazil" (with a little less cinematic self-reflexivity), and enjoyable anyways.

#36 of 2010: Iran: A Cinematographic Revolution. "to show how we were and not how we were seen". crash course on recent Iranian political history, along with the cinematic history that it played a part in shaping. wide-ranging reel of clips from the last 50 years. a trip to the "Iran" section of Movie Madness is now in order.

#35 of 2010: The Lover. probably need to read the book [huh, rachet? exchange fodder?]

#34 of 2010: Chungking Express. just watch it.

#33 of 2010: El Mariachi. Robert Rodriguez is my new favorite director of the moment. This movie has heart and conscience as well as action, AND is impressively economical, in terms of actual budget and in terms of time (clocks in under 1.5 hours and still avoids scrimping on character development). five stars for this debut (Rodriguez made this film when he was only 23, without wealthy backers or even, in large part, professional actors). 'Robert Rodriguez List': "you make a list of things you have access to like cool cars, apartments, horses, samurai swords and so on, and then write the screenplay based on that list".

#32 of 2010: Risky Business. okay so this upper-class brush with the sex trade is less creepy than "pretty woman"s premise, but not quite as wholesome as "milk money"s. the three of these together, though, seem to point to a depressing thesis: when you're a man (pre-adolescent, teenage, or grown and undeniably despicable) in a sexual jam (or an existential one. it's the same if you have a penis, these movies seem to say), your cash won't fail you. and as a bonus for being so noble after all (surrendering your money without even exercising your physical dominance! how refreshing!) you'll probably end up having bought more than just sex. you'll have purchased something deeper. . . something akin to love, with all the meal-ticket affection you can handle. that's just one of my takes on this movie. the other one is: oh those crazy eighties hijinks, they get me every time.

#31 of 2010: Splendor in the Grass. this was surprisingly good. it should be shown to anyone who wants to teach their teenager about the birds and the bees via focus on the family. i have no doubt that this story is still played out, and though i could say more, i'll end on this thought: thank heavens for parents who teach their kids to think by letting them decide.

#30 of 2010: Rashomon. moral chaos=narrative chaos=sweet intercuts of laughing medium channeling dead shitty husband. "true" "sword fight" scene (as told by uninvolved witness. if you've seen it you'll know why both of those are in quotes) and wife's preceding commentary on the situation combine for a sort of feminist reading of the troubling story, which at that point we've been told three times. not that the wife is necessarily a noble person- or even the most noble person in the movie. still, the brokenness of the standard patriarchy (and weakness of men who seem to retain power [for a while] despite it) is in full view. not sure what i make of the conditions of the hopeful ending, but it's good to see "goodness" triumph over "manliness".

#29 of 2010: The Usual Suspects. took me long enough to sit down and watch this. the movie is the reward. nice work on the screenplay, Mr. McQuarrie. could've sworn it was adapted from a book (i don't really know why). also, i'm becoming a Benicio fan.

#28 of 2010: The Fall. really lovely. the leads were fantastic. there was never a point that i wished it would end, but i didn't feel cheated out of any remnants of story. the final montage with voice-over "zoomed" out to a sort of meta-film in a really tasteful (almost memorial) way. if you've seen 'the cell' you'll notice some visual similarities, but this is certainly it's own movie.

#27 of 2010: Metropolis. solid silent sci-fi. kudos to the "maria" actress for the demonic change-up.

#26 of 2010: Das Boot. looooooong. but good. pretty effective as an anti-war movie, and i like seeing things from the German side of the world wars (as in books/movies like "All Quiet on the Western Front"). suspense and my emotional involvement really peaked in the last hour.

#25 of 2010: Aimee and Jaguar. a good historical love story drama. and i love that johanna wokalek.

#24 of 2010: Beverly Hills Cop II. can we get just a couple more dick jokes?

#23 of 2010: La Jetee. A massive amount of story in just a half hour. no movement but an eye blink. i would like to hear how her voice sounds. a narrative distillation of what nostalgia feels like to the extreme.

#22 of 2010: The Cell. the first time i saw this was around the time it came out, and i thought it was pretty amazing. i'm even more impressed now. visually incredible, and the story is solid enough not to disappoint.

#21 of 2010: Inglourious Basterds. Second viewing. This revisionism is weirdly and deliciously retributive. Wonderfully played out suspense, excellent writing, and the cast (excluding diane kruger and eli roth) was brilliant.

#20 of 2010: A Single Man. so wonderful to look at, and especially because the beautiful surfaces contain a glow of slow-moving, sincere emotions. the ending is debatable. i will promptly seek out more colin firth in dramatic roles.

#19 of 2010: Ace Ventura 2: When Nature Calls. yea, ok. i'd never seen this. and now i have. and that's all there is to say.

#18 of 2010: His Girl Friday. second viewing. light-speed banter and overall message about the fallacy of gender "normalcy" still refreshing. "trytoturnmeintosomethingelse, i'm not a suburban bridge-player i'm a NEWSPAPER MAN!" - "hildy" rosalind russel

#17 of 2010: Blow Up. plodding with some nice digressions and a few subtly charged moments.

#16 of 2010: Farewell My Concubine.

#15 of 2010: La Bete Humaine. eerie pre-noir. 1:05:02 was my favorite part.

#14 of 2010: Let the Right One In. 3rd viewing of this, still new thoughts on the significance of events/relationships within the plot (without regard to what is or isn't in the book). highly recommended.

#13 of 2010: 500 Days of Summer. Second viewing, still the best rom-com-dram in recent memory.

#12 of 2010: The Duellists. eh. watchable (but certainly not because of the acting. cinematographer- and possibly director- saved this one).

#11 of 2010: Valerie and Her Week of Wonders. probably the best movie viewing experience i've had. screening in a bar/venue with a live score provided by three different electronic bands. i'll recommend the movie to myself (couldn't see the subtitles, would like to catch more of the content) and anyone up for a cerebral, symbolic, vision quest of a vampire movie.

#10 of 2010: Eros. rewarding mix of visual styles, storytelling devices, and degrees of narrative abstraction. acting awards go to Gong Li and Alan Arkin. "The Hand" wins for balancing subtlety with could-be unappealing frankness, resulting of a weirdly beautiful and original (not just trying, succeeding, and without becoming too "arty") love story. see man-alone-with-hand-up-empty-dress-that's-lying-on-the-table scene.

#9 of 2010: Aliens. a great sequel (with just a few stretches at the end).

#8 of 2010: The Man Who Fell to Earth. yea.

#7 of 2010: Alien. finally, not a disappointment.

#6 of 2010: S. Darko. i'll admit that i watched it- all of it- so that you'll take me seriously when i say DO NOT SEE THIS. Unless you want to be encouraged to make your own bad movie, in which case this is a handbook.

#5 of 2010: Lost in La Mancha. a "making of" prior to the completing of. a good way to introduce someone to the intentionality and process of movie making ("in the mood for love" was not on the nightstand when Wong Kar-Wai woke up one morning).

#4 of 2010: Choke. less satisfying compared to the source than the fight club book/film.

#3 of 2010: Quantum of Solace. not as good as the last bond.

#2 of 2010: Hustle & Flow.