the LAST FILM YOU'VE SEEN thread

[Chris Knipp]

But, of course, if someone were to like the film, they’ll be able to find a few quotes also (perhaps from even more formidable sources). If you really feel that strongly against it then someone as natural as you should be able to come up with something.Wouldn’t you rather have a part of your review come up in a discussion rather than having someone discern what A.O. Scott really said (he likes the film, by the way) going up against an Ebert or an Atkinson. (Obviously, I’m just using this as an example since I haven’t seen the film myself.) And do we really need to have bloggers "speak" for us now? You're perfectly right and I appreciate being called natural. I guess my argument would be that if anybody came up with those observations about the writing, which are rather extreme and not what you normally see in a review, then I'm not crazy and they have validity. Moreover I think Tsai is more than just a blogger and writes as good reviews as I do. And even if it's just a blog, he has a right to be heard as we all do here. But I didn't mean to write a review and this isn't one. If I do go on to write one, which I may now and perhaps am forced to, you'll see it, and you can forget about my hastily assembled quotes. As for Scott, I think he has all the same reservations and criticiams of the movie that I do; perhaps he's more impressed by the good intentions, but I would praise the final scenes even more than he does, so we come out about even, and I don't think I've distorted his position.

[wpqx]

Alfie (1966) - Lewis Gilbert

Well I thought I had all of 1966's best picture nominees done, but alas the Sand Pebbles still stands in my way.

Alfie had some charm to it, and I enjoyed the narrative quality to it, the monologues started early, and continued throughout. Granted a bit of an overdose of British slang from the 1960s, but followed the dialogue well enough. Michael Caine is always good and nice to see him not as a feeble old man but as a charming leading man. Of course this was remade, and I avoided that version, and have no desire whatsoever to see it in the course of my lifetime.

Alfie does take itself a little too seriously at times, and would probably function better as an all out comedy, but too often it tries to be more serious than it needs to be, and most of the moments of drama seem badly dated today. Wouldn't recommend the film, but I'm getting harsher these days in my judgements, or I'm just watching weaker movies.

[HorseradishTree]

March of the Penguins

The film was fantastic, aside from the obnoxious children surrounding me. However, I felt this was something I could have just seen on PBS. I understand the great lengths they made to make this film, but it just didn't seem cinema-necessary.

[oscar jubis]

Those amazing white-on-white vistas would lose their majesty and grandeur if seen in a small screen. Yes, the film IS fantastic. It seems somewhat surreal than any species would risk and sacrifice so much to propagate, to prolong its existence. Seen from a certain angle (the one taken by Freeman's narration), March of the Penguins is the love story of the year.
It's documentaries like the masterpiece The Corporation, an investigation of the world's leading institution, that lose nothing when viewed at home.

[trevor826]

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Originally posted by trevor826
Noce blanche (1989) White Wedding

Directed by Jean-Claude Brisseau

Starring Vanessa Paradis, Bruno Cremer


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arsaib4

Thanks for this. Brisseau is another neglected French filmmaker in this part of the world. His 2002 film Choses secrètes (Secret Things) made it here last year but that's about it. Is White Wedding available on DVD? I recall bidding for a vhs of it on Ebay a few months ago but didn't get it.

---------------------------------------------------------------


I picked it up by pure chance on vhs from a sale in the library for just a few pence, I hadn't heard of it before but just grabbed it with a couple of other films, luckily the tape is in good condition and the film was a lot more enjoyable than I expected.

Choses secrètes didn't get any sort of release here but it will be released soon on DVD, I am looking forward to seeing it.

Cheers Trev.

[arsaib4]

From all accounts, since its rather unremarkable release in 1978, Fingers has slowly climbed up the ladder and is now considered a "cult classic." And it’s quite easy to see why: this emotional and sexually charged drama cogently portrays its self-contradictory protagonist without ever betraying him. Harvey Keitel is Jimmy, a man perhaps capable of perfecting the art of life under the right circumstances but internal and external pressures prevent him to do so. On one hand, his mother (only seen briefly), a pianist, wants him to follow her path even though he’s past the beginner’s age; while on the other, his father (Michael V. Gazzo), a loan-shark, often urges him to forget everything else in order to help collect his debts. We watch Jimmy doing both – brilliantly playing a Bach piece in the opening sequence, and not long after, expertly drawing the owed money from a restaurateur. But as this compulsive man starts to question himself and his manhood, things start going downhill (he even stops carrying his tape player everywhere like he used to). So, to prove himself capable in more ways than one, he tries to develop a relationship with an enigmatic sculptor (Tisa Farrow), but it turns out that she belongs to a local boxer-turned-pimp (Jim Brown). Directed by James Toback, Fingers, which was his debut feature, remarkably covers a lot of ground in its short running time. Much credit certainly goes to Keitel who might’ve won more accolades for his leading performance in Abel Ferrara’s Bad Lieutenant (1992), but he’s just as good here as a man incapable of getting rid of his demons which brings this tragedy full-circle in the classic Greek sense as the final sequence unfolds. Perhaps Toback was so enamored with his character that he didn’t quite flesh out the secondary ones, but then, he’s cut the film lean and raw, not the way everyone likes it.

________________________

*FINGERS is available on DVD (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00006FDBU.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg) from Warner.

[Chris Knipp]

I agree Toback does get in a lot in a short space of time, and it's a very interesting film with lots of stuff going on that it's a bit hard to imagine in an american picture today. I'm surprised you didn't relate Fingers to The Beat That My Heart Skipped. Did you do that earlier and I've just forgotten? My enthusiasm for the new Audiard was what led me to find Fingers and watch it. The Beat feels like a bigger film and a more resolved one, but it's interesting how much was lifted. Certain scenes like the gangster in the hotel swimming pool with his girlfriend and the father asking his son to pressure the restaurant guy to pay up and bringing in his new girlfriend, are quite closely followed, even the same kind of jacket, the little pice of paper with the address on it, and so on; it's more than just deriving from, it's alluding to, in a very familiar and affectionate way, and playing riffs on and expanding. Of course Keitel's character is crazier and more doomed than Romain Duris's Tom. I don't know if I've ever seen two films related in this way, both good, the second perhaps better, but a homage to the first, honoring it and making us sit up and recognize that Toback, by god, had something. Neither film detracts from the other when you watch both. Fingers is very original stuff. Keitel seems smaller than later on, strong but less mannered than he later became. I also thought of Bad Lieutenant after seeing Fingers -- it's a film that made a very strong impression on me, quite a go-for-broke performance by Keitel. A harrowing film. One of Ferrara's best. Also to be mentioned is that it's said and I assume truly that Fingers and Toback have always been much more highly regarded in France than in the US, hence the choice of Audiard to work from Fingers and make something serious and intense 18 years later, with Toback's enthusiastic blessing. Toback has been promoting the new Audiard, an interview showed. I wish you'd posted this on the "De Battre mon coeur s'est arreté" thread, but maybe you thought that would be unfair to Toback.

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by Chris Knipp
I agree Toback does get in a lot in a short space of time, and it's a very interesting film with lots of stuff going on that it's a bit hard to imagine in an american picture today.

Absolutely. There is a sex scene late in the film and it features more than a few "thrusts," so while watching it I was thinking that this film wouldn't have made it out of MPAA today w/out a few cuts. And, of course, the final violent confrontation. There's a great commentary track on the DVD and even Toback seems surprised about what he got away with in the 70's!

I'm surprised you didn't relate Fingers to The Beat That My Heart Skipped. Did you do that earlier and I've just forgotten? My enthusiasm for the new Audiard was what led me to find Fingers and watch it. The Beat feels like a bigger film and a more resolved one, but it's interesting how much was lifted.

I don't think I have, at least not here. Audiard's is bigger, slicker, better packaged but I wasn't able to locate the subversive... internal charge that Fingers had. Duris does the best he can and he's certainly the best thing about that film. I don't dislike the film as much as Atkinson but he's on to something when he says," As it is, Duris, capable and dull, is no Keitel, 2005 is no 1978, and The Beat That My Heart Skipped is no Fingers." Lower Manhattan of the 70's, that we so often see in films from that era plays a big part in them, and that can't be replaced.

Of course Keitel's character is crazier and more doomed than Romain Duris's Tom. I don't know if I've ever seen two films related in this way, both good, the second perhaps better, but a homage to the first, honoring it and making us sit up and recognize that Toback, by god, had something. Neither film detracts from the other when you watch both. Fingers is very original stuff.

I prefer that character as a "doomed" one. It just feels right with the rest of the proceedings. I can tell that you certainly like Fingers, but prefer the more upbeat remake.

Keitel seems smaller than later on, strong but less mannered than he later became. I also thought of Bad Lieutenant after seeing Fingers -- it's a film that made a very strong impression on me, quite a go-for-broke performance by Keitel. A harrowing film. One of Ferrara's best. Also to be mentioned is that it's said and I assume truly that Fingers and Toback have always been much more highly regarded in France than in the US, hence the choice of Audiard to work from Fingers and make something serious and intense 18 years later, with Toback's enthusiastic blessing. Toback has been promoting the new Audiard, an interview showed.

I think it was wpqx who recently mentioned that Keitel looks exactly the same in about everything he's done. I was just watching The Border (1982) with him and Nicholson where he plays a Texan and all the attempts made to have him look the part failed miserably. I did say somewhere that Toback (not to mention Ferrara) are more popular in France than here. Toback has actively promoted the remake but I did hear him say that part of the reason is to draw attention to his own film!

[Chris Knipp]

Now that I may be getting Netflix flicks regularly I'm going to have more and older films that I can't write reviews of. This is one. Directed by Volker Schlöndorff, in French, presumably with Jeremy Irons as Swann just moving his lips and somebody else's voice dubbed. Twenty years ago, Irons was a very good looking man, yet he also looks rather like Marcel Proust only taller, and he manages to look very ill toward the end when he seems to be turning from Swann into Marcel. The lady who plays Odette may be dubbed too, since her name is Italian -- Ornella Muti. It's interesting to see Alain Delon as the Baron Charlus after having seen John Malkovich do the role for Raoul Ruiz in Le temps retrouvé. Now there's a difference. I prefer Delon, though Charlus is an unsavory character, and there's some justification for making him seem as ugly as Malkovich, still, since he's gay, why shouldn't he be rather good looking, as he certainly would have made every effort to be? This is the way Delon plays him, aging and painted like Achenbach in Death in Venice, but still quite presentable. Lots of splendid clothes and settings and reacreations of period gatherings at Mme de Verdurin's and the Duchesse de Guermante's (Fanny Ardant, charming and noble, if not quite aristocratic), and lots of nice coach rides. I don't think you can take this entirely seriously as a recreation of Proust, but on the other hand it's not crude or philistine in its treatment of the material; it's just that 500 pages of the subtlest psychological analysis of love in 20th century literature can't be conveyed in a pretty historical film. But I wasn't distrubed by it, rather I got into the lushness of it. I've rarely seen a more elegant recreation of this period. A little too perfect, maybe, but it is like the paintings and photographs of the period. Something between Caillebotte and Renoir. The music is very interesting too -- it's "modern", i.e., modern for that period, as the theme of the two lovers should be since it's by a contemporary composer, Vinteuil. Sorry to keep referring to Proust's novel, but hey, they'd never have made this movie without it, nor tried so hard with such success. I'm not really comparing the two. It's just that if you've read a book and you see the movie, you do remember the book. Roger Ebert says something perfectly justified, but unfortunately he says it in a philistine way:
All of the reviews I've read of Volker Schlöndorff's SWANN IN LOVE treat it like a classroom assignment. The movie is described as a version of one of the stories that make up Remembrance of Things Past, the epic novel by Marcel Proust, and then the exercise becomes almost academic: "Compare and contrast Proust and Schlöndorff, with particular attention to the difference between fiction and the film." Imagine instead, that this is not a film based on a novel, but a new film from an original screenplay. It will immediately seem more lively and accessible. Because not one person in a hundred who sees the film will have read Proust, this is a sensible approach; it does away with the nagging feeling that one should really curl up with those twelve volumes before going to the theater.That would be fine, but as a the most famous movie critic in America, he might have done a little research and found out that they're six volumes, not twelve, and this isn't "one of the stories that make up Remembrance of Things Past," but one of the novels. He doesn't have to read them; maybe his eyes are shot from all that time in the dark. But he can afford a fact-checker.

Or course the movie has to work on its own. I think it does; Ebert seems to understand it. But it means a lot more actually if you've read the novels. Different from Ruis's film, which I can't imagine making much sense at all to anybody who's unfamiliar with Proust; it just jumps in in medias res and throws tons of complex stuff at you. Swann in Love focuses on Swann and Odette, and anyone can understand it -- even Roger Ebert.

[Chris Knipp]

Indeed The Beat... has drawn attention to Fingers. I would rather not say one is better than the other, but I did. I love this new film, and I won't comment on your use of Michael Atkinson to bolster your "attack" (your assertion, not without justification, that Fingers has a special intensity The Beat... may lack). I've used Atkinson as a weapon myself....He's a bit of a heavy weapon to bring into any film discussion. I can see lovers of edgyness finding The Beat lacking, but I could find flaws in Fingers that I preferred not to mention. I think Duris has lots of edge -- especially since what I rememered him from was L'Auberge espagnole where he's just an average young French guy. This is an enormous leap forward and he carries it off and has I think been credited for dong so in France where they're more familiar with all the things he's done in movies for Klapsch, Gatflif, et al. Again, I would not want to say he or Keitel is better. The interest to me of comparing the two is to see how Audiard used the material, both thematically and in little details, and came up with something good this time. Adaptations are so often a failure.

Keitel is small and he did a lot of body building after Fingers and that's what I meant by saying he looked small then. Sure he looks otherwise the same. But he has more muscular bulk as he gets older, that's all.

As for being "doomed," that appeals to romantic young men. I'm neither. Audiard's film makes something positive out of the situation: Tom is trapped in the rut his father has created, and he wants to get out. He thinks music is the way, and once maybe it was. And it still is. But trying out for the agent is a false start, not the end of the road. Life is full of false starts, and we can move on and have a good life. Yet Audiard ingeniously works in the encournter with the gangster on the stairway (another scene that's quite closely followed in many details, including grabbing the balls and getting the upper hand, to coin a phrase) during the "two years later" sequence, continuing to play back and forth between dark and light. That sequence reminded me of Ripley's Game -- the way Malkovich as Ripley offs some people and then comes to his wife's harpsicord concert. This way, Audiard shows that his finale isn't pretty-pretty; the violent side and the sleazy past are still there.

[arsaib4]

Well, if I was simply a romantic then perhaps I would be more worried about my Heart than my Fingers.

[arsaib4]

Miranda July's Me and You and Everyone We Know (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12252#post12252) (2005)

Ousmane Sembene's Moolaadé (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12055#post12055) (2004)

[trevor826]

Not the last film seen but I couldn't find anyone elses comments on it.

Imaginary Heroes (2004)

Directed by Dan Harris

Starring Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Daniels

This film that could have easily been a TV movie but for the quality of the casting. The basic premise; a familial tragedy causes the collapse of an already dysfunctional family, the father has no idea how to communicate with his children, his wife or even himself. The mother puts on an air of being completely oblivious to the facts, one daughter is in University (she’s lucky to be out of it) and the son is so full of his own problems and angst that although he can see what’s happening and shares a close bond with his mother, he doesn’t want to have to deal with the problems.

It’s a good representation of a middle class family in crisis, it is also obvious that the family has been on the verge of collapse for a long time, a complete communication breakdown and a total lack of respect pervades the air only to be accentuated by the tragedy, comments that seemingly have no meaning are daggers to the heart when the truth eventually spills out and guilt is borne by a couple of members of the family who both feel that they could/should have prevented the tragedy.

So any problems? Due to the nature of the set up, Sigourney Weaver kept reminding me of her similar role in “The Ice Storm.” As for the son, half the time he looked as though he was trying to do an impression of “Donnie Darko,” so not a bad film but an above average dysfunctional family in crisis drama, not as good or interesting as The Ice Storm, Donnie Darko or American Beauty but generally very fine casting.

Classic quotes:

Speech at the High School graduation “These were the best years of our life. At least that's what they told us. Personally, I hated high school. I hated all of you and I hope you all rot in hell!”

Cheers Trev

[arsaib4]

No, I don't believe there's a thread for it. Sounds like this material is ripe for a credible TV film. Good review, though; your short takes are of perfect length.

[trevor826]

Unfortunately it's one of those films where even slightly too much info would entail including spoilers and Imaginary Heroes has plenty of moments that if mentioned would ruin it for any potential viewers.

Cheers Trev.

[wpqx]

Happiness of the Katakuris (2001) - Takashi Miike

Well got four films from him, and this is the first to be viewed. Can't say anybody makes films quite like him, although I could see Lars Von Trier making a similar picture. For those unfamiliar with the picture, it is a black comedy/musical with random clamation.

That being said the film is fun if for nothing else the sheer lunacy involved. There isn't any moment in the film that's utterly predictable, and it keeps things permanently interesting. I'm still very ignorant of Miike as a director (having only seen Ichi), so I will however say I find him very intriguing, and am certainly looking forward to seeing more films from him.

[Chris Knipp]

Directed by Claude Sautet of Un Saison en hiver, with Daniel Auteuil, which made a good impression on the US arthouse audience for understandable reasons. This one is almost equalily good and likewise features the gorgeous Emanuelle Béart, this time along with one of France's most seasoned actors, Michel Serrault. It doesn't have quite the mood and focus on the internal nature of a central character that Saison en hiver has -- or the strong focus on music (which Sautet can handle very beautifully, but eschews for conventional movie music here). M. Arnaud is a rich old man with a mildly interesting past who persuades Béart to come and type a memoir, but you wonder if he doesn't just want to have her around and pry into her private life, and you can see why. It's funny how elegant and reserved everybody is and yet how nosy Arnaud is and frank Nelly is. Are French people reserved or passionate? Both, I guess, and you get both here. There's a drollness about the portrait of this grumpy but sometimes charming man. Charles Berling and Jean-Hugues Anglade provide young male interest, Berling as Béart's estranged husband and Anglade as her new boyfriend. And there's the eternally odd Michel (AKA Michael) Lonsdale as .... an odd fellow who wanders in and out. Elegant, talky, intellectual stuff not for the Michael Bay fan, this could be used to illustrate a friend's assertion that French films are nothing but people talking and not feeling very strongly. Deftly done, and this got a higher rating on metacritic than Un saison en hiver, but I'd go the other way, because of the touching portrait of the emotionally shut down man provided by Auteuil in Hiver.

[arsaib4]

Good stuff. However, I'm not sure if you had to pronounce, "Elegant, talky, intellectual stuff not for the Michael Bay fan." Most wouldn't but let's keep the door open.

I love Un coeur en hiver (1992), I think it's one of the best French films of the 90's. Nelly is good but it's a bit meandering and is ultimately inconclusive. Fine performances, though. It was Sautet's last film.

[wpqx]

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2003) - Chris Columbus

Wasn't overly impressed with this installment, yet to see the third, which is supposed to be the best of the bunch.

[Chris Knipp]

Imaginary Heroes--I saw it in the end of 2004 in New York and I enjoyed it but I didn't think it was an outstanding movie; a little bit too meandering and self-consciously depressed, perhaps. I too enjoyed the acting, not only Sigourney Weaver, who's always so much more interesting than her Yale Drama School classmates gave her credit for being, but also Jeff Daniels, and especially Emile Hirsch, who really caught my attention in the very offbeat and completely ignored The Mudge Boy and in the higher profile Lords of Dogtown (one of this year's better and more enjoyable American films so far), and I first saw him in Secret Lives of Altar Boys but didn't particularly notice him then because he was overshadowed by another very talented young actor, Kieran Culkin -- probbly by Vincent D'Onofrio too. I didn't think of The Ice Storm when I watched Sigourney Weaver. She's been in so many other things, including the equally related A Map of the World. And personally when she caught my eye forever was in Ridley Scott's Aliens. But her Ice Storm role may be the most relevent to her one here.

The quote from the high school graduation address would appeal to most anybody who recently graduated from high school and pretty well sums up my feelings at that time.

[Chris Knipp]

Good stuff. However, I'm not sure if you had to pronounce, "Elegant, talky, intellectual stuff not for the Michael Bay fan." Most wouldn't but let's keep the door open.

I love Un coeur en hiver (1992), I think it's one of the best French films of the 90's. Nelly is good but it's a bit meandering and is ultimately inconclusive. Fine performances, though. It was Sautet's last film. You're right because that's misleading. I didn't mean a specific demographic, only somebody who's looking for an action movie. The door is always open. But in this particular area, where Nelly showed is not where Michael Bay movies show. So they'd have to drive cross town as well as open doors. I agree with you that I feel that Sautet creates a bit too much static in Nelly & Monsieur Arnaud with the other men and plotlines and the lady who introduces Nelly to M. Arnaud, a party, nights out, etc. This indeed causes the movie to be meandering. It's a shame because Béart and Serrault are so crisp and effective together. You don't need much else. But a character portrait as haunting and an actor as right for it as Auteuil in Un cœur en hiver just come along only once in a lifetiime; luckily it came along for Sautet while he was still around. It's amazing how much he looked like Serrault when he directed him in Nelly. I didn't realize Sautet'd died in 2000 or that Nelly came out as long as ten years ago. Speaking of Sautet, I'm also a big fan of Vincent, François, Paul... et les autres, a great ensemble piece and an example of a movie about grown up people with grown up problems.

[arsaib4]

I haven't seen Vincent, François, Paul... et les autres. Will check it out; I believe it's available on vhs. Have seen his popular 1972 film César et Rosalie with Yves Montand and Romy Schneider. This one also deals with grown up problems.

[Chris Knipp]

VHS is how i discovered Vincent, François, Paul... et les autres. I have not seen the popular 1972 film César et Rosalie--I'll have to get it. French films seem to focus more on grownup problems than ours, but not always in the way of Vincent, etc. Maybe it's a more recent innovation for them to focus on youth -- and an underclass, as in Lila Says and La Haine, etc., do you think?

[arsaib4]

The definition of what’s considered an "independent" film nowadays has certainly broadened. In recent years we’ve seen big-budget films financed by sub-divisions of major studios competing with the rest of the market yet they’re still considered indies. However, that doesn’t apply to Campbell Scott’s Off the Map. Unlike those "pseudo-indies," it was made with as minuscule a budget as possible but it languished without a distribution deal for nearly two years after premiering at Sundance in 2003. In most cases, the blame is placed on the distributors for not taking enough chances but that’s hard to do in this case. A voice-over narration (overutilized here which usually signals that the director doesn’t have much confidence in his own abilities) from a young woman takes us to the summer of 1974 when she was a precocious 11-year-old (Valentina de Angelis) living at an off-the-map location somewhere in New Mexico with her enterprising "earth mother" (Joan Allen) and an almost catatonic father (Sam Elliot). No one quite knows what ails the patriarch but it’s probably not that they primarily live off the land and their makeshift house is devoid of any modern comforts. Then one day, another depressed soul, this time a tax-inspector, shows up at their paradise but conveniently passes out perhaps due to the overwhelming milieu or the fact that Allen was in the nude admiring the beauty of a nearby coyote. Needless to say, he ends up staying for a little longer than what anyone in the family expected, but he expectedly (at least to us) ends up bringing about certain changes to this unit. Scott has a lot going for him in Off the Map -- the strong performances from Allen and Elliot; the breathtaking, Malick-esque visuals of Juan Ruiz Anchía; an unusual subject matter -- but he fails to properly take advantage. Certainly, the stilted dialogue, part of a poorly written screenplay (surprisingly since writer Joan Ackermann adapted it from her own play) didn’t help matters. Another problem here is that our young narrator is the least interesting character; her overly-theatrical performance is annoying to say the least. Instead of adapting a metaphysical and poetic stance (it's possible that he simply isn’t capable), Scott chooses a more conventional approach for a film which moves in fits and starts, and ends up grinding to a halt.


Grade: C

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by Chris Knipp
VHS is how i discovered Vincent, François, Paul... et les autres. I have not seen the popular 1972 film César et Rosalie--I'll have to get it. French films seem to focus more on grownup problems than ours, but not always in the way of Vincent, etc. Maybe it's a more recent innovation for them to focus on youth -- and an underclass, as in Lila Says and La Haine, etc., do you think?

Yeah, I think César et Rosalie is available on DVD. As for the focus on youth, you might be right. Perhaps the market has changed and it demands certain types of films. Although, Nouvelle Vague and some post-NV filmmakers dealt with youth in their own ways, didn't they? I'm not sure if I, or you, have the time to go deep into La Haine (I think hengcs just started a thread), but I don't see too much depth or relevant socio-political critique there. It looks good; sounds good; is certainly a "cool" film to like; has a Christian, a Jew, and a Muslim roaming around and speaking the "langue de la banlieue," but that's about it.

[Chris Knipp]

They have César et Rosalie on Netflix and I've requested it. La Haine caused a stir and, I believe, got publicity here by being brought in under the aegis of Jodie Foster, who did an interview on Charlie Rose with Kassovitz. However, the actual film seemed so boring I couldn't sit through it. True, Nouvelle Vague films have young people, from les 400 coups on, however often not in a "youth" context. You wouldn't call Le genoux de Claire a youth context. Maybe Nénette et Boni is though

[wpqx]

Finally got to finish Law and Order (1969) from Frederick Wiseman. Like numerous films, this DVD had a problem (because it was burnt). So with it finished, I can see in this film the genesis of the show Cops. On a more serious note, the film is absolutely fantastic. Although I've only seen three full films from him, I might just list Wiseman as my favorite documentary filmmaker. His style is strictly observational. He just lets his camera record what's going on. I wish he wasn't such a lunatic and would actually allow his films to come out on DVD, which despite rumors still looks like it'll never happen. He's a true visionary in his field, and along with Titicut Follies and High School, I would consider Law and Order a throroughly interesting and ingenius slice of direct cinema. I know it isn't exactly easy to find his films, but if any of you can get your hands on any Wiseman movies, please do so, you will not be disappointed.

[arsaib4]

In many circles, Wiseman is not only considered the best documentarian, but simply the best American filmmaker alive. I'd like to see a bit more of his work in order to properly evaluate him. Although, Titicut Follies (1967), Public Housing (1997), Domestic Violence (2001) etc. speak for themselves.

[arsaib4]

La Haine caused a stir and, I believe, got publicity here by being brought in under the aegis of Jodie Foster, who did an interview on Charlie Rose with Kassovitz. However, the actual film seemed so boring I couldn't sit through it.

I didn't know that Jodie Foster and Charlie Rose were involved. Anyway, I'm a little startled that you found the film boring. I know most will probably disagree with that part even though they might not like the film themselves. Kassovitz hasn't accomplished much since then and to be honest, I'm not surprised (Amelie doesn't count).

[wpqx]

Made in USA (1966) - Jean Luc Godard

I just might have to hand the title over to Godard as the greatest filmmaker ever. This is about the 14th film of his I've seen from the sixties, and it's great. I believe it was the last of his collaborations with Anna Karina, which makes it somewhat bittersweet. She was my favorite leading lady of his, and although I could never cite her as a great actress, she is a fascinating face.

Plot is pointless in any Godard film, but this one is set up as a mystery. Anna's lover was killed, and she has to find out who did it. Along the way many strange characters pop up, and for no reason whatsoever Marriane Faithful sings "As Tears Go By" in a cafe. Godard of course can't sit still for long, and likes to use his normal techniques of intertitles, non-diegetic shots, and of course direct camera narration. It may not be anything new for Godard, but it is still unique in the annals of cinema. But the next time I watch a Kubrick, Scorsese, or Bergman film I'll probably change my mind again.

[Johann]

Similar in some ways to Danny Cannon's Judge Dredd and often drawing unfair comparisons to Blade Runner, this is a classic of sorts.

The story is a sci-fi good vs. evil thing with Alphaville intensity.
It seems like an amalgam of Dune, Wigstock and Robocop.
Powerful visuals, with large, operatic space scenes.
Religion invades every frame.
Watch it for the striking camerawork, perfect editing and mind-blowing soundtrack.

Besson is an auteur.

Gary Oldman is arresting as Zorg. His visage is repulsive fashion show chic with the Mad Hatter's collar. His (Texas?) accent and hairstyle are grating. "Rocket launcher, Arrow launcher with exploding poisonous gas heads (very practical), our famous Net launcher, the always efficient Flame-Thrower, ice-cube system... ". Fun stuff.


It's an absurdly comedic premise, and Besson might be accused of trying too hard but I love the spirit of this film.
His use of color is very pleasing to the eye.
The futuristic 23rd century cops are pretty cool. Their uniforms are gauche, but it's good gauche, the kind of gauche Versace brought to Judge Dredd. "Garish but right" gauche..

I like the basic story involving earth, air, fire and water and Supreme Beings.
Some shots are pure cinema: city scapes, the cruise ships (Fhloston Paradise), shots of explosions, suns/planets, the whole Diva Plavalaguna sequence, etc..

Overall Besson is quite the visionary. He's got a Baz Luhrmann
feel but please don't think I'm comparing them.
They are two different animals.

The sfx and effects-laden finale are reason enough to give Fifth Element repeat looks.

[Chris Knipp]

I didn't know that Jodie Foster and Charlie Rose were involved. Anyway, I'm a little startled that you found the film boring. I know most will probably disagree with that part even though they might not like the film themselves. Kassovitz hasn't accomplished much since then and to be honest, I'm not surprised (Amelie doesn't count).I should have said only that Jodie's sponsorship of the film may have helped it here. Charlie only interviewed her and Kassowitz, didn't otherwise sponsor La Haine. I probably should have sat through it. Now I can't find it at Netfflix. It's expensive to buy a tape of it. If Vincent Cassel was in it (when he was good) that would be a reason to watch it. Obviously it has a significant spot in recent French film history. I'll have to see it somehow. As for Kassovitz, agreed, but as an actor he has some significant credits, perhaps most significant, Audiard's A Self-Made Hero (Un héros très discret)? Also not on Netflix -- therefore not on a US DVD?

[wpqx]

These Are the Damned (1963) - Joseph Losey

Considered an important film in the career of Joseph Losey, this caries some of his pacifist ideology from his days in America. The print I had was terrible, formatted to fit my screen, and none of the dialogue matched the lips of the characters. Oliver Reed makes a very early appearance as the gang member brother. Although it seems like a protective brother from a dysfunctional family is going to go to lenghts to prevent his sister from finding happiness, the story takes a strange turn. Suddenly there are perpetually 11 year old kids made for atomic survival. It gets strange, and the government gets involved, etc. Perhaps it had some relevance in the early sixties, but seems somewhat silly today.

[Chris Knipp]

Maybe your next one should be The Boy with Green Hair. Have you seen

The Servant
Accident
Mr. Klein
Modesty Blaise
Galileo
The Go-Between

I think his collaborations with Pinter are fascinating, above all The Servant.

Dan Callahan has an interesting opinionated and gossipy piece about Losey in Sense of Cinema http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/03/losey.html

[wpqx]

I have seen the Boy With Green Hair, hence the reason for my opinion about the film.

As for the others on your list I've seen The Servant, Go-Between, and The Accident. Of those, the Servant is by far the best, and it's my favorite Losey film period.

I just watched Antonioni's The Passenger (1975) and it was fantastic. His best English film imo, and it's a crime this isn't more readily available. The best of the pictures I've seen today (and I have been busy).

[arsaib4]

Audiard's A Self-Made Hero (Un héros très discret)? Also not on Netflix -- therefore not on a US DVD?

No, it's not available on DVD yet, at least not in the U.S. While it's not an automatic that if a film is out on DVD it will be accessable through NetFlix, that is the case most of the time.

The Servant is also my favorite Losey, closely followed by Monsieur Klein. La Truite with Huppert is also pretty good. I do need to see more of him, though.

I'm thinking about camping outside Film Forum for The Passenger. It is scheduled for a re-release in October.

[Chris Knipp]

I don't agree with wpqx that The Passenger is Antonioni's best Engliish language movie, and I'm astonished that he'd say that. Blowup is a classic and tremendously influential, as well as an interesting still-elegant picture of Swingin' Sixties London, with it's Who Concert, parties with drugs, its trendy young women and its androgynous, though macho, protagonist, not to mention its metaphor about photography and crime.

I think that each of the Losey-Pinter collaborations is brilliant and fascinating, but The Servant is of course the best of the three movies, both as a development of Pinter's themes and as a movie. Dan Callahan's Senses of Cinema comments on Losey, his relationship with Dick Bogarde, and his handling of the servant-master relationship is very interesting.

Monsieur Klein (why did I call it "Mr. Klein"?), Modesty Blaise, and Galileo are all worth watching.

Last Film I've Seen: Bruno Dumont's Twentynine Palms (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1473) , on DVD.

[wpqx]

Well I didn't "get" Blow Up when I first watched it, and honestly haven't watched it again. The DVD release I believe wasn't worth buying, so I've just been left with my first reaction. Oh and I believe it was the Yardbirds, not the Who in there (I destinctly remember seeing Jimmy Page on stage). The Passenger was just a moving hypnotic film, from it's opening desert shots, to it's final illustrious long take, it captivated me, which few films really do. It was a film that made me pay attention, made me want to rewatch scenes, and pay attention. I had to deal with Japanese subtitles, but well for this film beggars can't be choosers. Hell I once watched City of Sadness without any subtitles, and believe me I can't follow Chinese.

I've seen most of the Losey films that came recommended (at least through my out of date History of Film book where I first heard of him). Monsieur Klein however I have not seen, so that will most likely be the next one to check out, any word on it being available on DVD?

Also wonder if any of you are fans of his Don Giovanni, I mean it's very uncharacteristic of him, but I think it may be the best filmed opera, certainly miles above Bergman's Magic Flute. But if I remember correctly no one seems to have seen this film.

[Chris Knipp]

Have not seen Don Giovanni. Can't say I'm much of an opera fan so I wouldn't seek it out.

Our reactions to Blowup and The Passenger are at opposite poles. To me the latter was overwhelmed by its sick-soul-of-Europe profundity. As with the movie I've just watched, Twentynine Palms, the filmmaker's working away from his natural milieu in both, but Antonioini's use of Sixties London works, partly just by luck I think, but also because the situation has some degree of urgency about it. A problem with The Passenger for me may be that just as Bruno Dumont is using the horror movie format to make philosophical statements and it turns into a fashion shoot with crude sex and quarrels, The Passenger uses the thriller format to ponder the issue of identity but his connection to his "story" is so casual and uncommited that it's hard to care about the generalizations about identity either. Antonioini loses himself in The Passenger in the netherworld of what one writer calls "Lacan's primary matrix (Imaginary, Symbolic, Real)" -- notice that real comes last. Blowup is rooted in Sixties London atmosphere, which he somehow was able to catch, though there is at least one artsy Felliniesque interlude (the costumed team of mimes) that drags us into the Symbolic with a capital S. The whole change-of-identity story of The Passenger feels contrived and there's nothing and no one to identify with. Sure, it's hypnotic and dream-like, but that blends into uninvolving and soporific after a while. I hope I'm wrong and they're both great and the relative lack of interest in The Passenger compared to A's big trilogy L'Avventura, La notte, L'Eclisse and a few others including Il Deserto rosso and Blowup is a case of criminal neglect, but that hasn't been my viewing experience. The Passenger certainly isn't as vapid and embarrassing as Zabriskie Point, but it fails to engage and is an indication that somhow, after a pretty long period of originality and sheer genius as a filmmaker, he was slowly but surely losing his way.

[wpqx]

Well I probably will get a repeat viewing of Blow Up done, believe me it's on my list of films to re-watch, but the list of films to see for a first time is still too large.

I finally got to see Lukas Moodysson's Together (2000). Admittedly I've never seen all of Show Me Love, so this is my first full film from him, and I have to say I enjoyed it. It is a charming film, and although there might have been too many characters, I do think that most of them stayed interesting enough to carry the film through.

I'm not an opera fan either, per-se but any film highly rated I'll see.

[Chris Knipp]

Together is a charming and enjoyable movie.


Well I probably will get a repeat viewing of Blow Up done, believe me it's on my list of films to re-watch, but the list of films to see for a first time is still too large.....I'm not an opera fan either, per-se but any film highly rated I'll see. Granted you don't have to be a fan of a genre to want to see a highly rated film. As for re-watching, I'd rather re-watch a movie I previously loved, than one that left me cold. It's usually more worthwhile. Unless you're locked in a debate with somebody or reexamining something systematically, better to move forward. Life's short, and the lists are long.

[wpqx]

Well some of my favorite films didn't do much on a first viewing, I think La Dolce Vita is the biggest example of a second viewing turnaround. All too often though I get a similar reaction on a repeat viewing.

I watched some Kenneth Anger films today, three to be exact.

Innauguration of the Pleasure Dome (1954)
This one was an early color film, and he uses it well, quite strange and bizarre, but so are all of his films

Invocation of My Demon Brother (1969?)

This featured music by Mick Jagger, which was actually just obnoxious synthesizers, quite easy to see that he was high, and so was Anger when this film was made.

Lucifer Rising (1970?)

See above

In all pretty good tripped out crap.

[Chris Knipp]

Well some of my favorite films didn't do much on a first viewing If you're talking about watching them on DVD or tape at home that's understandable, but doesn't count. If you're talking about in theaters, that's an impractical, costly, and time consuming approach. I'd say, just pay more attention, but at home, that may be hard since it's easier to drift away from the monitor screen.


quite easy to see that he was high, and so was Anger when this film was made.
You can't really say that unless you actually know. Appearances can be deceptive. What you can say is that it's stoner stuff. And I'd probably agree with you on that. Jagger's "just obnoxious synthesizers" has a powerful hypnotic effect, though that may no longer work for you.

[Chris Knipp]

Intriguing and well described.

[Chris Knipp]

What you say sounds like it could be a B+ instead, but I too like Maggie, and so I guess I must see this, which you do make sound interesting.

Last films I've seen: Singleton's Four Brothers (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1479)

Greg Marcks's 11:14 (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1480) .

[arsaib4]

I can't say whether you'll like Happy Endings or not. Usually I've a pretty good idea where you'll stand on a film but that's tough to judge here. There have been a few too many of these "multiple" character films lately but this one seemed fresh to me, partly due to the performances. It's not the kind most will like, though. Reaction has been mixed.

I guess you liked Singleton's latest. But what about 11:14, I mean what made you go see it?

[Chris Knipp]

Well, I went to see 11:14 because my friend picked it over Junebug. I think I like comedies more than he does but we both like crime movies. It's worthwhile to see a new young director's work, and the person I went with is young. Yes I did like Four Brothers, but I would rate it and 11:14 about the same overall. I can't say Four Brothers is a great movie, or that 11:14 is a bad one. It shows talent and has a clever, airtight screenplay, even if it's missing something, which maybe Greg Marcks will find as time goes on.

[Chris Knipp]

Last film I"ve seen: Cédric Klapisch's 1996 Un air de famille, US title Family Resemblances [DVD>Netflix]. From a play by Jean-Pierre Bacri and Agnès Jaoui. Excellent cast including:

Jean-Pierre Bacri .... Henri (grumpy brother, bar owner)
Jean-Pierre Darroussin .... Denis (his meek employee)
Catherine Frot .... Yolande (ditsy wife of Philippe)
Agnès Jaoui .... Betty (slightly macho sister, in leather jacket)
Claire Maurier .... La Mère (mother, an accident waiting to happen)
Wladimir Yordanoff ... Philippe (the "successful" brother, the insecure cyber exec)

IMDb summary by Eileen Berdon: "An upper middle-class French family celebrates a birthday in a restaurant. In one evening and during one meal, family history, tensions, collective and separate grudges, delights, and memories both clash and coalesce."

Well, that's right but "upper-class" could be misleading. Upper middle-class, maybe. One brother is an executive, number 4 in a Silicon Valley type firm, but the other runs the bar -- it's more a bar than a restaurant, from what we see -- and it's no great success, more a sign of Henri's lack of ambition (that's Jean-Pierre Bacri) and the sister (Agnès Jaoui) works as an underling at the firm, and her boyfriend is the barman and she seems totally without ambition even to marry, at 30. The exec's wife is a rather ditsy (but at moments sweet) blonde lady. One gets the impression that the family is somewhat going to seed. Henri's wife has just left him, Betty can't commit to anything, Philippe's totally insecure, their mom is a pain... This was a play written by Jaoui and Bacri and is full of their delicious dry humor, pettiness and grumpiness and keen social and psychological observation. I found it very funny but at the same time a bit depressing and somewhat static, since it's a play. To underline the static quality, one of the "charicters" is Caruso, a paralyzed dog. It doesn't "open up" as the 2000 Le goût des autres/The Taste of Others and the 2004 Comme une image/Look at Me do; on the other hand, the focus on personalities is even more precise. The "air" is bad air (or a sad tune or an undesrable resemblance), but things don't end on a too unhappy note in this gentle, ironic comedy. Now that I'm following French dialogue more carefully, I enjoyed this a lot, including the social nuances I could catch about who gets called "tu" and who gets called "vous" and when. Klapisch keeps the camera moving but unobtrusive, adding a childhood flashback perhaps once too often, framing the story with a street panorama and a warm musical theme. To call Bacri "grumpy" may be redundant. I'm not sure what led Klapisch (who from L'Auberge espagnole seems to have a more lighthearted outlook himself) to direct this, and for Jaoui to start directing her writing with Bacri afterwards with Taste of Others and Look at Me.

[arsaib4]

The window between theatrical and DVD releases is certainly shrinking. 11:14 came out in theaters on Aug 12th, and it will be on home video on Oct 11th. I'll keep it in mind. Although, your review of Four Brothers seems more positive.

Un air de famille sounds very familiar. I'm sure I saw it on French tv when I was a youngster (I feel old now, you know). Don't remember much about it so that's not a good sign, but I don't think Klapisch has made a film yet which is worth remembering. Chacun cherche son chat (When the Cat's Away/1996) was nice though.

[Chris Knipp]

Ha! I saw Chacun cherche son chat and I can't rememver it either. But I've re-watched Auberge Espagnole recently to compare Duris' role there with Tom in The Beat That My Heart Skipped so I certainly remember that. Klapisch seems to be a pretty bland but competent director.

Maybe 11:14 isn't a case of the window between theater and DVD release narrowing but the fact that they gave up on theatrical release and went for DVD, but somehow theatrical distribution has come through. That's what I thought.

[arsaib4]

But I've re-watched Auberge Espagnole recently to compare Duris' role there with Tom in The Beat That My Heart Skipped

Yeah, I wonder which one you found more compelling?!

Anyway, DO NOT miss the new print of Bertolucci's The Conformist if it makes it to SF. Absolutely ravishing! That was an unbelievable experience. I'm glad I caught it in its last week at Film Forum.

[Chris Knipp]

Yeah, I wonder which one you found more compelling?!

I find L'auberge entertaining -- and not the piece of empty tomfoolery you may consider it. It's not realistic, not meant to be, but it has plenty of charm and it moves with a brisk pace. And Duris manages to provide a range of lively emotions, which vary from depressed to aroused to intense to riotous to silly.

But The Beat That My Heart Skipped is, needless to say, a chance for him to do something much edgier and more intense. He's a whole different person in that. I hardly recognized him at first. This is the role that can make people take notice that the guy can act. But his performance in Tony Gatlif's Gadjo Dilo got him a nomination for the César du Meilleur [jeune] espoir [masculin], I find, so I figure that's worth a look (I saw it once, but it made little impression).

[Chris Knipp]

CLAUDE SAUTET: CÉSAR ET ROSALIE (1972)

Flawed perfection

A quiet and flawed little early Seventies "classic" by Sautet about a love triangle. Why quiet, despite the violence and threat of destruction emanating from Yves Montand's character (César), the very successful and impulsive scrap metal dealer? Because David, his cartoonist/illustrator rival (Sami Frey), is so calm, and because Rosalie (a too-perfect Romy Schneider) is so reserved. And flawed -- because the story and the characters ultimately go nowhere. Why "classic" (in quotation marks, however)? Because of the excellent casting, the sure touch, and the polished look. This should be seen in conjunction with Sautet's more complex 1974 Vincent, François, Paul... et les autres, also featuring Yves Montand in the central male role.

As the film begins, César and Rosalie are living together. David reappears after a stay in America. It turns out David has always loved Rosalie, but he let her marry somebody else (an artist from whom she's for some time been divorced). When David reappears at a wedding, Rosalie quietly goes off and spends time with him. César meets David at a café and politely but very firmly tells him to back off. David ignores this, and César wrecks his studio. Rosalie takes David to César's offices, gives him the combination to the safe so he can steal a million francs in compensation for the studio damage -- and runs away to live with him and work in a café in another town. People are able to act with gross impulsivity in this movie -- and still remain pals with the victims of their acts. César tracks the pair down and plays his trump card: he's bought the big seaside house where Rosalie was so happy as a child. She now goes off to live there with him. But later César goes to David again, with a polite proposal. . .

In actual screen time, the male-to-male relationship is more fully represented -- and hence develops more -- than the rapports between Rosalie and either of the two men. It goes from confrontation, to truce, to friendship, to intense camaraderie. The ménage è trois doesn't work for Rosalie, and she goes off by herself. As philosophical voiceovers (by Michel Piccoli) come and go, you expect something desperate and violent to happen. Perhaps César will off David; or both men will die violently at sea or on the road? But instead, in the complete absence of Rosalie, César and David remain bachelors and become each other's best friends and most constant companions. Maybe they should get married to each other? But the trouble is, they aren't gay, and this was before gay marriage anyway.

Frey is perfectly handsome and charming in the hirsute style of the Seventies; Schneider is perfectly elegant and beautiful in the cold style of Yves Saint Laurent; Montand is as great a combination of charming and macho and emotional and "cool" as anybody in the movies has ever been. You understand why the other two both love him. He's a little older, but thank God for that. He's tall and slim and he has all his hair and he's got that grin and that twinkle in the eyes, and when he brandishes a big cigar, it looks dashing and you forget that it stinks.

But there's a flaw in the piece, which is Rosalie. She has been tremendously admired by viewers and the director himself, who spoke of Romy Schneider as representing "all women" (though he was originally going to cast Deneuve). But Schneider really hasn't much to do other than be pleasant and look lovely and move around from scene to scene. (In view of the way her part is written, the icy Deneuve might have been more convincing -- and more haunting.) Rosalie expresses herself by running off; or by being absent when she's with César and can't get David out of her mind. David is appealing in an enigmatic kind of way. Like Rosalie, he bends cooperatively at times, but holds back a part of himself always. All the passion is César's. This is like Jules et Jim with a lovely mannequin where Jeanne Moreau's character was (unfortunately "all women" apparently is not a single, real, live woman). A positive addition, typical of Sautet's work, is that the two men's professional work is a strong element in the story.

The writer-director team is to be congratulated on not opting for a violent resolution. But they have found no resolution, and their surprise finale is only a repetition. Despite the charisma of the three principals, a movie that repeats and goes nowhere, no matter how appealing, can't be called a masterpiece. César et Rosalie is an idea that is toyed with as a kitten toys with a ball of wool, and then abandoned, left in a harmless tangle. If these people weren't so attractive, they'd seem aimless and desperate.

[DVD>Netflix.]

Posted on Chris Knipp website. (http://www.chrisknipp.com/writing/viewtopic.php?t=454)

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by Chris Knipp
I find L'auberge entertaining -- and not the piece of empty tomfoolery you may consider it. It's not realistic, not meant to be, but it has plenty of charm and it moves with a brisk pace. And Duris manages to provide a range of lively emotions, which vary from depressed to aroused to intense to riotous to silly.


Yeah, I actually do consider it an "piece of empty tomfoolery." I think it tries to be "realistic," but it's clichéd and a bit too eager to please. You liked it that's why it moved with a brisk pace for you; for me, it was 2 hrs too long.

[Chris Knipp]

I agree that pace is, often, a subjective thing.

[arsaib4]

Apichatpong Weerasethakul's Mysterious Object at Noon (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12455#post12455) (2000)

Henry Alex Rubin & Dana Adam Shapiro's Murderball (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12094#post12094) (2005)

[wpqx]

Last Days (2005) - Gus Van Sant

Drove to a theater that I hope to never have to go to again to see this one (let's just say splitting an atom is less complicated than their parking garage). Well knowing nothing about the film I went in blind. I began to notice many, many similarities to Blake (Michael Pitt) and Kurt Cobain, just as everyone noticed similarities between the teens in Elephant to the Trench Coat Mafia of Columbine. And I tell you, with the glasses, and jacket, I could have sworn I was looking at Cobain (Pitt even sings like him too). The rest of the cast has some interesting moments (Asia Argento keeps her clothes on again), and Kim Gordon (of Sonic Youth) makes an appearance as what my guess would be Blake's mother, or something like that.

Overall I can't say the film had quite the same impact that Elephant had, but it was damn good, and the more I think about it, the better I like it. Last Days is a film that stays with you, it runs through your mind, and that's good for a film. All too often I forget everything about a film as soon as it's over. I can't imagine this film is going to make ANY money here. The city of Chicago had it playing in only one theater (that's including all the suburbs), and that one theater on a Friday still had about 7 people in it total. It's a damn shame, because people went to see Van Sant's much lamer films like Finding Forester and Good Will Hunting, but well there's no accounting for taste. I hope Van Sant stays on the art house route that he's currently on, I really think the man is at his peak.

Also got to re-watch Last Year at Marienbad (1960). This one was the first Resnais film I had seen, and since then I've come to understand and appreciate his style much more. On a second viewing I found myself falling asleep just as I did the first time. I also wasn't as completely captivated as I thought I should have been. A second take didn't really help to elevate this film. Sure I think it's better than the last time, but I still would probably prefer Providence or Mon Oncle D'Amerique to this.

[Chris Knipp]

Glad somebody else here saw and liked Last Days and you'll find my enthusiastic review of it on this site here http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1444 -- it would be nice if you could discuss it on that thread I started. I'm assuming nobody has seen it or has anything to say about it since the thread hasn't had any contributors other than me and arsaib. How can that be? I regret that it disappeared quickly before I got another chance to watch it in the theater because it's a visually beautiful movie just like 2046. If people say "I'll wait for the DVD" they just don't know what they're missing.

Have you seen Gerry? That is one with the series, Gerry, Elephant, Last Days. Very artistic, very personal, definitely reclaiming terroritory Van Sant lost with things like Finding Forrester and his pointless Psycho remake.

I may have appreciated Last Days more because I have little knowledge of or interest in Kurt Cobain. Though obviously I know the story of his end, in general, I wasn't distracted by thinking about Cobain for a minute while watching Last Days.

Each one in this last trilogy by Van Sant establishes its own world, pace, and mood.

Of course Elephant has the most impact. But Last Days may be the most haunting of the three. One critic said, "The poetry of Last Days has a stoned grandeur," Manohla Dargis: "One of this year's indisputably great films." Unfortunatley, it didn't do that well even critically. I'm afraid it's Elephant that is going to last in people's collective critical movie memories. But the three, Gerry, Elephant, and Last Days, should really be seen as a single long hypnotic meditation on youth and death.

[Johann]

I have the DVD of Elephant.
I'm watching it again tonight.

Hey, I liked van Sant's Psycho. He updated it and made it even more creepy. Vince Vaughn was pretty wacko.
William H. Macy was in fine form.

Sant's Psycho has gotten a bashing since 1998 and I think it's undeserved. I understand the blasphemy crowd when it comes to Hitchcock cinephiles but cripes who can complain about the new shower scene?

[arsaib4]

I'd certainly prefer to see Last Days on the big-screen. Harry Savides' work probably deserves it. But this film is another example of the shrinking "window" between the theatrical and home video release. It had a limited run starting on July 22nd and Oct 25th is the DVD release date.

It seems like the number of releases this year have been far greater than before. It's been tough keeping up. I just saw Broken Flowers and The Constant Gardener but I feel like I've missed on so many during the past few weeks. Will post a few thoughts on the Jarmusch film tomorrow.

Would love to hear your comments on Elephant, Johann. I believe this Palme D'or winner was one of the best films of 2003.

[Chris Knipp]

I'm sorry if I seem to be bashing Van Sant's Psycho, Johann, and I can understand your liking it, and I happen to love Vince Vaughan, who's on top of things now with Wedding Crashers' huge success --not undeserved, but I wish more people had gone to Last Days..... The Psycho remake may eventually become the delight of cinephiles. Certainly it would be a perfect thing to use in a film course. To me I have to confess it seemed a "sterile exercise." And rather incomprehensible. Why? I just wish Van Sant had spent the time doing something of his own. But overall, it's been a great career, and a richly varied one, and here is a gay filmmaker who's made it into the mainstream, and still remained gay, and made it back out again. And that's pretty cool.

I don't remember Macy in Psycho. For me he is rarely memorable, and only works well as a complete nerd, as in Magnolia, "Quiz Kid Donnie Smith." There, he was well used, and performed well.

I'd agree Elephant was one of the best of its year, definitely. They thought so at Cannes too.

I'm sorry about the shrinking window; Savides' work in Last Days is superb. And he sees big.... never more than in Gerry -- where the desert landscapes are simply amazing; awesome, forbidding, harsh, and endless. Gerry is on a huge scale, and demands to be seen on a big theatrical screen, and up pretty close.

For me, DVD/videotape is a great tool for study or for catching up on things, but it just doesn't work on the same level as theatrical viewing of films.

Lacombe, Lucien by Louis Malle was just shown with Au revoir, les enfants at a little theater in San Francisco, the Balboa. As you probably know it isn't available on US tape or DVD. I'm not even sure I've seen it, though I remember fondly seeing Au revoir in its first week of showings in Paris. I wanted to see this, but the Balboa is rather remote from where I live and I didn't make it. So, another shrinking window effect. So I'm at home with my Netflix.

[arsaib4]

But overall, it's been a great career, and a richly varied one, and here is a gay filmmaker who's made it into the mainstream, and still remained gay, and made it back out again. And that's pretty cool.

That's certainly one way to look at it, and you aren't incorrect. I guess Don Roos could also make that claim -- on a smaller scale, of course. He made The Opposite of Sex and then made an Affleck/Paltrow starrer called Bounce (no, I haven't seen it either). And now he's come back with Happy Endings which I reviewed a few days ago.

I was fortunate enough to watch a few early Malle films -- Le Monde du silence (1956); Ascenseur pour l'échafaud (1957); Zazie dans le métro (1960) -- in his retro (http://www.filmlinc.com/wrt/programs/6-2005/malle05.htm) we had here at the Walter Reade. I consider Lacombe Lucien as one of his very best. I hope you get a chance to watch it.

[wpqx]

I was quite upset that retrospective didn't come to Chicago, I've still been unable to see The Silent World in any form. Although a restoration has been done on Elevator to the Gallows, and it will receive a limited theatrical re-release, I believe in September (or at least that's when it comes to my city).

I vaguely remember Gerry coming out, and I think I was still too put off by Van Sant's films to check it out, but knowing now that there is another potential masterpiece out there from him, it is certainly going on my list of films to see now.

I will shed some light on your topic of Last Days, but well long day, and I'm not really up for analyzing.

[Chris Knipp]

Alas, Lacombe, Lucien stopped showing today without my making it to SF's Richmond Dictrict. But I'll catch it eventually. Maybe I can get a DVD of it in France.

I saw Bounce, and it wasn't much. But The Opposite of Sex was okay. I'm hoping to see Happy Endings but it isn't working out so far. That's an interesting comparison, and I wouldn't defend Van Sant's more mainstream efforts, but I'd say Bounce was more out of gear for Roos than Good Will Hunting, which after all did have personal qualities (on the face of it) being by the then young unknown team of Affleck and Damon, rooted in a location, Southey, etc. But I saw it with a friend from Southey and though he thought they got the accent right, for him the movie was just fluff. I've found a silly website that might be a good dicipline for a verbose chap like me: four-word movie reviews. http://www.fwfr.com/ My fave there for Good Will Hunting: "Pinesol-swabbing Southey smarty." But even if you work at it, it's hard to do a review in four words and that ain't a review. One that is: "Brilliantly spun underdog story." This isn't bad: "Matt plays brat, easy." and here's one a tad more critical: "Genius stuns psychiatrist. Yawn." Now that's good!

L'Asenceur pour l'Echafaud is being revived here too, maybe with Zazie. I will see L'Ascenceur with a friend on Tuesday in downtown Berkeley. But actually I have long had a tape of it. I love all the old stuff by Malle that I'e seen. Have never seen Le Monde du Silence and you were indeed fortunate to see it in the Walter Reade retrospective because there seems to be no DVD of it, even in France.

[Chris Knipp]

wpqx--

If you loved Elephant and Last Days, you've gotta see Gerry. Not many people have, yet, it seems, and there were like four people in the theater when I watched it and two of them walked out. I sat with it, and I was real glad I did. That was when I discovered Manohla Dargis, when she was still writing for the LA and not the NY Times -- she liked it, and I thought, this lady is cool. I still consider her a worthy replacement for Elvis Mitchell

[Johann]

Elephant loses none of it's power on DVD.

I can see why the jury gave Van Sant the Palm D'or.
It's shot like a dream, and he captures high school angst perfectly.

It gives a situation like Columbine more humane treatment, it shows us teens (and staff at Watt High) who were just going about their lives, just like the kids at Columbine High School were.

It lulls us along with it's "realistic drama" and then pulls the rug out from under us. In slow motion.

We get to see the same day interpreted thru different sets of eyes to give us a greater scope of what's going down in Anyhigh, U.S.A.

The shower scene shocked me, I must say.
The weird vibes this movie produces...The drunk father, the school on fire, the delivery of the weapons, the tracking shots, the music (very appropriate) and all the other "real life" scenes that were pretty damn unsettling.

I don't know how many times I want to see Elephant again.

[wpqx]

Pixote (1981) - Hector Babenco

Finally got to see this film, which I believe was Babenco's first feature, or certainly his breakthrough film. To me it helps to have seen Carandiru. This film is like a prequel to that, taking place slightly earlier, and featuring somewhat younger characters. We can see that the "untouchable" minors of Pixote will become the hardened inmates of Carandiru once they get older.

The story is moving without really being exploitative, which it certainly could have done. Crime is something of a way out, but these kids remain kids. They are not the professional gangsters at the age of 10 that were found in City of God. Instead they're gullible and get fooled easily. And on occasion they really do want to be kids. The absence of family affects them all, and they're ambition is misguided. When one of the gang is discussing what he wants to do with his share of money, it is to buy a .38 so he can shoot and rob people, which he thinks will give him respect. It is not the dream of escaping crime common to other films. Crime is life for them, and that's all they plan on.

Babenco's best film, at least of the four I've seen. Damn good picture.

[arsaib4]

I don't place Gerry anywhere near Elephant but it was certainly an interesting start for a "rejuvinated" Van Sant.

Interpretation of events through various sets of eyes in Elephant comes from Béla Tarr's Sátántangó. This overlapping 7+ hr masterpiece has had a huge influence on Van Sant. However, I have heard musings that his latest borrows a bit more than what he perhaps intended from Tarr's work.

Pixote is one of my favorite films of the 80's. Not an inch of that film is exploitative, something that can't be said about the otherwise technically brilliant City of God.

[Chris Knipp]

Pixote's great.

I don't feel that Gerry is drastically far from the two films that followed it; it certainly has less to offer an audience looking for action and dialogue than Elephant, but so does Last Days. My main point remains, that it's valuable to see all three, and if you really admire one, you must see the rest.

The last films I've seen:

Dominick Moll: With a Friend Like Harry (Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien, 2000).

Harry Balestero is an old schoolmate of Michel (though Michel has forgotten him). They meet in a highway men's room. Harry and his girlfriend wind up staying the night at Michel's summer place with Michel and his wife and kids. Their life will never be the same. One of the sublest and most original horror movies of recent years. With it's haute bourgeoisie accoutrements and assured pacing, With a Friend Like Harry has echoes of Hitchcock and other masters of suspense. But his quiet smugness and increasingly menacing "kind" gestures make Sergi Lopez's Harry a pretty creation.

Re-seen on a Netflix DVD.

Lucas Belvaux: On the Run: Trilogy 1 (Cavale, 2002) The Belgian writer-director also stars as Bruno, the sullen escaped prisoner with revolutionary ideas who sets out to eliminate the people who got him in jail. Not much style, or much fun, in this piece on appearances, but I'll have to reserve judgment till I've seen the rest of the three of which it's a part, each interlocking tale in a different genre. The woman in the piece, Catherine Frot, played the ditsy wife in Klapisch's Un air de famille/Family Resemblences (1996). She looks tired.

Netflix DVD.

[Chris Knipp]

Mad Hot Ballroom

(seen in a theater -- still showing, for obvious reasons). This crowd pleaser is one of the best feel-good documentaries of the past couple of years. Watching the charming Dominican kids, I couldn't help remembering Raising Victor Vargas -- and how much I love to dance. This makes me want to go up to 181st street to meet them.

[trevor826]

Chris, I was slightly puzzled when I read your post on "Dominick Moll: With a Friend Like Harry (Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien, 2000)". It seemed very familiar then I realised it was just a change of name and I had seen it a good while ago under the name "Harry, He's Here to Help".

I can't remember her name but I'm pretty sure the girl from "L'Ennui" was in it as well?

Cheers Trev.

[Chris Knipp]

trevor--

Yes, the English and American titles were different. It has had a variety of names, but the French title as you'll see on IMDb is "Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien." I'm sorry, I haven't seen "Ennui," but you mean Sophie Guillemin, who plays Harry's girlfriend.

[trevor826]

"With a Friend Like Harry" is a more honest translation and makes more sense than "Harry, He's Here to Help", pretty decent film from what I can remember.

And yes it was Harry's girlfriend.

Cheers Trev.

[arsaib4]

I also liked Mad Hot Ballroom (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1459) quite a bit.

Harry, un ami qui vous veut du bien borrows from just about everyone but I agree with you and Trevor that it has its moments.

Haven't seen Belvaux's trilogy.

[arsaib4]

First of all, young Italian filmmaker Matteo Garrone needs to be commended for having not taken the route of his counterparts after the success he had with his previous film The Embalmer (2003). Having said that, his latest feature, Primo Amore ("First Love"), which is undoubtedly a unique and personal effort, is also a bit oblique and underwhelming. Vittorio (Vitaliano Trevisan) is a lanky, shaven-headed goldsmith who seeks perfection when it comes to the human mind and body (not unlike his crafts). Through a classified, he ends up meeting a soft-spoken young woman named Sonia (Michela Cescon), an art-school model, who he instantly recognizes as someone who could meet his ideals. Sonia is a bit hesitant at first because of Vittorio’s unflattering remarks about her weight, but Garrone slowly reveals to us that she isn’t particularly happy about the way she looks so she ends up falling for Vittorio’s watchful gaze. After the couple move into a derelict mansion somewhere in Verona, Vittorio’s obsession increases, but Sonia more or less continues to oblige to his masochism which leads her to become a ghost of herself. Much like his previous feature, Primo Amore is a visually confident effort from Garrone. The gothic-colored palette is employed quite well in this strikingly shot film. What isn’t particularly striking is the narrative. Garrone probably would’ve been better off situating it a century or two ago because there are a few implausibilities associated with the time-frame. If this is some sort of a statement about the beauty and fashion standards that women have to live up to then he’s too forthcoming and a bit disillusioned. Trevisan’s straight-forward performance certainly doesn't help matters; it needed to be more evasive and subtle. Though, the Berlin and David di Donatello award winning music from Banda Osiris definitely meets all demands for a film which only seems agreeable due to the consistency of Garrone’s vision, as flawed as it may be.


Grade: C+

___________________________

*PRIMO AMORE is now available on DVD from Strand Releasing.

[Chris Knipp]

I shall probably have to see Primo Amore some time, though I think from what I've read and heard it's far more unpleasnat watching than your description implies; I have liked Garrone's earlier efforts and agree he's a welcomely individual and quirky director, especially in the climate of Berlusconi and Muccino's crowd-pleasers.


Re-watched for the second time in the past few days: Cavale (Trilogy 1: On the Run) by Belgian-born Lucas Belvaux. I have not looked up reviews of this lean, workmanlike and highly focused but somehow ultimately lacking film. Too many following shots, and the procedural detailing of the escaped leftist revolutionary/terrorist on the run played by filmmaker/writer Belvaux himself turns too much into just dogged running--ultimately pretty much to nowhere. But the actors can't be faulted, and I have to see parts 2 and 3; maybe what you have to say is that even if Belvaux isn't up technically to a plot requiring more of a Jason Bourne franchise budget and production staff, he's to be congratulated for undertaking a multiple-genre trilogy project of this kind, with its potential for richness and depth, at all. Probably the most interesting aspect of part 1 is how it contemplates the plight of a revolutionary who's all alone without any fellow revolutionaries or, according to Catherine Flot's character, the "masses" he claims still support his aims. He's isolated, deluded, dangerous, even -- with all his fake moustaches and hairpieces -- comic; but his intensity and passion are real and strangely touching.

[Chris Knipp]

War of the Worlds (Steven Spielberg). Not bad in the ways critics had led me to believe, quite entertaining, but without any depth as an experience, unlike A.I.

Grizzly Man A documentary about an American who thought he was the friend of Alaskan bears and spent 14 summers living among them in a wildlife preserve (possibly against gov't regulations) and finally got eaten up -- along with his poor girlfriend -- by a mean and hungry one in the autumn after he would usually have been gone and his bear "friends" were all hibernating and replaced by new wilder meaner ones. Made by Werner Herzog the famous offbeat German filmmaker, who has made movies about crazy originals before, using a lot of footage left behind by the guy. A disturbing picture of what happens when humans lose touch with the line separating them from wild animals. Indigestible (no pun intended), disturbing and thought provoking, this will be one of the best documentaries of the year on my list.

I will post a review at least of Grizzly Man.

[arsaib4]

Yeah, Primo Amore isn't something you need to see right away, but it isn't violent or painful in anyway.

Still haven't decided whether to watch War of the Worlds or not. I'm a little turned off by the smugness of Spielberg and Cruise.

Herzog is having a huge year. Can't wait to see Grizzly Man. It's right up there with Murderball as the best reviewed doc of the year.

[trevor826]

Strings (2004)

Directed by Anders Rønnow-Klarlund


A dark fairytale that plays out like a very simplified Shakespearian tragedy with suicide, murder, love, revenge, sacrifice and a lot more besides.

There is little if anything original about the plot but what makes this stand out is the fact that the puppet strings are integral to the characters lives. This is shown in a number of ways such as the suicide right at the start, the King, ashamed of what he’s done leaves a note for his son then takes his knife and cuts the string that’s attached to his head, this causes his death. There are many clever little touches to show the effect of the strings throughout the film such as the design of the city gate which is a single bar that’s raised, preventing the strings to pass under.

It’s a strange one though, there are moments which are too dark for children and most adults won’t be bothered simply because it’s a puppet play and fairytale like, so who would enjoy it?

Well I did, I enjoyed it for the little touches and the sheer artistry of the puppeteers plus the way the strings were integrated into the story, and also I like a good Shakespeare style tragedy. The rest of the audience seemed enthralled as well but this was an art-house cinema, it didn’t make it to the multiplexes, not in Cardiff anyway, unfortunately this will mean the majority will miss out on something enjoyable which is a shame.

A definite recommendation for those who like to try something a little different. If you get the chance to see it, especially in the cinema then take the opportunity.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated PG.

[oscar jubis]

It went straight to dvd here so a theatrical screening is not possible. I'll rent it based on your recommendation. Gracias.

[Chris Knipp]

Grizzly Man (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1496) seems quirky and offbeat but when you think about it it becomes very rich and significant, both as reference to Herzog and as a study of the kitsch anthromorphism of nature promoted in so many movies and TV shows. I can't compare Murderball because haven't seen it.

I haven't seen Bad News Bears either, but it seems to be less like Bad Santa (which I have seen) than I assumed at first and more a remake of the original that's an updating but doesn't add much, hence this is another one where you need to see both to describe and compare the new model completely, though that wouldn't necessarily change your impressions of the new one or your rating of it.

I went to see
War of the Worlds (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1495) to see the end-of-the-world effects especially in the early part. They were worth seeing. I wanted to see it on a big screen and I wish the screen had been even bigger. My friend says Batman Begins is much better. Certainly War of the Worlds is pretty empty otherwise, but not quite in the ways reviews had led me to believe. Everything happens so Cruise's character can become a mensch, they said. It didn't really read that way so much to me. But that doesn't make it a good movie. Still, with world-class mise-en-scene, you have to admire the visuals, and Spielberg is a master at maniputating crowds, compare A.I., the fun fair sequence. But A.I. is way more interesting that this and so is that sequence. It seemed to me that much of what Spielberg was trying to do in War of the Worlds was done better in Haneke's 2003 Le temps du loup/Time of the Wolf.

[wpqx]

The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)

Well I was bound to eventually see this, and my motivation to see it jumped considerably recently (maybe it's the Spanish class I'm taking). I must say I enjoyed the film quite a bit. While it's no masterpiece, and probably wouldn't make any list of mine from last year, it was not the dreck I thought it might be. The characters were great, and even if it's a somewhat standard coming of age film, well it's been a while since it's been done. Thumbs up, and nice work to have Che's first time not be with a prostitute (which at least puts it above similar French movies).

I will say that the editing annoyed me. Road movies should be full of extremely long shots (ala Robby Muller), and this was edited like a music video, shame on you all.

[Chris Knipp]

You're absolutely right. I found it hard to talk about this movie because I enjoyed it as much as you did, but couldn't single it out as a significant statement about anything. Definitely not dreck. Had not thought that about the editing. There are certainly lots of road shots of the pair on the motorcycle, but you may be right.

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by Chris Knipp
I haven't seen Bad News Bears either, but it seems to be less like Bad Santa...

Yeah, you're right. But watching an obnoxious Billy Bob will certainly remind you of his performance in Bad Santa.

I wanted to see it on a big screen and I wish the screen had been even bigger. My friend says Batman Begins is much better. Certainly War of the Worlds is pretty empty otherwise, but not quite in the ways reviews had led me to believe. Everything happens so Cruise's character can become a mensch, they said. It didn't really read that way so much to me. But that doesn't make it a good movie. Still, with world-class mise-en-scene, you have to admire the visuals, and Spielberg is a master at maniputating crowds, compare A.I., the fun fair sequence. But A.I. is way more interesting that this and so is that sequence. It seemed to me that much of what Spielberg was trying to do in War of the Worlds was done better in Haneke's 2003 Le temps du loup/Time of the Wolf.

No matter what, Spielberg can certainly come up with some interesting set-pieces, and I've heard a lot about certain sequences from the film. Even someone as cynical as Atkinson was impressed. But if your friend said that Batman Begins is much better then I'm not sure because I certainly wasn't impressed with Nolan's effort. I'll try to see it, if not for anything else than to just add to your new thread (good idea, by the way).

It's safe to say, even without watching War of the Worlds, that there isn't much common between the Spielberg and the Haneke films, other than the apocalyptic landscape. Time of the Wolf dealt with what happens afterwards which is much more interesting I think. Haneke's vision was so pure that it possibly ended up impeding whatever success the film might've had.

[Chris Knipp]

It's safe to say, even without watching War of the Worlds, that there isn't much common between the Spielberg and the Haneke films, other than the apocalyptic landscape. Time of the Wolf dealt with what happens afterwards which is much more interesting I think. You're basically right of course. But The funny thing, though, is that it's already pretty much "afterwards" in War of the Worlds too, but they don't acknowledge that in the screenplay. The fact that the planet has been trashed by the dying aliens is disregarded in favor of the little family reunion, which is flat-out stupid, but somehow satisfies an unthinking audience.

Hence the situation --the danger of losing people, being separated, starving- isn't completely different even if the two films naturally do feel completely different and I think the human intereactions in Hour of the Wolf are vaguely echoed by Spielberg's movie, but in a more limited way because there are fewer characters and more emphasis on the set pieces-but it's all more intense in Haneke because the big budget destruction process is skipped. I'm glad you don't think the new War of the Worlds thread is redundant. My friend has completely different taste from me -- the one who preferred Batman Begins to War of the Worlds -- but I'd guess B.B. does have more content that W.O.T.W.; and opinions differ on B.B., but some do think it an improvement over recent Batman flicks. I wouldn't be qualified to say, haven't yet seen it or all the earlier ones, and am not enthused about doing so. My immediate program for new flicks in local theaters now is (probably):

The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
Red Eye
Murderball
Happy Endings &
2046

(though I have a DVD of 2046 and have already watched it various times)

The Talent Given Us is also open here and may be an important new entry in the small indie category.

I may miss Winterbottom's 9 Songs. I missed 24-Hour Party People so I have nothing to compare it to by him, other than Welcome to Sarajevo, which doesn't seem very relevant, and it's hard to get to now.

Grizzly Man is going to rank very high among the movies I've seen in theaters this summer. Junebug was also good, and of course Last Days brilliant.

[arsaib4]

Interesting. I guess I'll give War of the Worlds a go pretty soon. If nothing else, it'll probably be a visual experience.

I've already commented on Murderball and Happy Endings

Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance - If you're an OldBoy fan (and you are), then there's a good chance that you'll like it.

9 Songs - It's an experiment but one that doesn't seem to have much thought process behind it. It was worth it for me just because of the musical performances. I'm still glad that Winterbottom made it, although if he had modest intentions then I'm not quite sure why he hired a model for unsimulated sex scenes.

2046 - Still mulling it over but I wasn't overly impressed.

Haven't seen The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Red Eye. Not sure if I really want to either.

I highly recommend The Constant Gardener. For me, Fernando Meirelles found a compelling story/screenplay to go along with his talent.

_____


It's gonna be a busy couple of weeks for me. I want to make a quick trip to the city to see Last Days, Junebug, Grizzly Man etc. but I also have to go to Toronto to pick up the schedule and choose my films (they don't allow it via phone/online anymore). School is starting next week so that's another problem. I'll also try to catch a couple of films at Latin-Beat program.

I want to see Hong Sang-soo's A Tale of Cinema at NYFF because for some reason it didn't make it to Toronto. Not sure if I'll have the time. I'm an FSLC member so I do have a good chance of getting in but I'll have to make my decision shortly.

[Chris Knipp]

2046 - Still mulling it over but I wasn't overly impressed."Still mulling it over" describes me too.

The Constant Gardener is a little out of the way for me to go to but it is in San Francisco.

I think I'll like Red Eye, but I may be wrong. the 40-Virgin film I will see with some friends who have totally different taste from me, it's dinner and a movie, just a social thing. The last thing I saw with them was March of the Penguins, which believe me, was not mon genre. I agree with Walter Chaw (http://filmfreakcentral.net/screenreviews/wildmarchgrizzly.htm) on that, though I'm not as angry a guy as he is sometimes.

If you can see Last Days, Junebug, Grizzly Man, etc., that's great. A good list.

Maybe I'll see you at the NYFF, I'm expecting to be there. How great to go to Toronto, but they make it hard to get tickets, I don't see thhe point.

[Chris Knipp]

Last film I've seen: My Father and I/Comment j'ai tué mon père (2003) DVD > Netflix.

Father who abandoned his family long ago reappears from Africa and hangs about contemplating the sterile existence of his now successful and rich doctor son. An elegant production; the son lives in a very grand chateau. Rather static and theatrical. It contains substantial longeurs. With Charles Berling as the son, Stephan Guillon as his happier, but no-account brother, Natacha Regnier as his well-bred wife, and Michel Bouquet (a very spry if deadpan 79) as the rather annoying father. Directed by Anne Fontaine, who I never heard of. I don't think this is enlightening enough to justify the unpleasantness. Berling is a steely fellow. The French title is "How I Killed My Father," but it could more accurately be called "How I Almost Killed MY Father" -- but that wouldn't be very catchy, would it? (Of course Berling's been in some more interesting films, like Chereau's Those Who Like Me Will Take the Train, Assayas' demonlover, etc. Now if I didn't like this much, why do I list it here? Well, I watched it with the English subtitles off and I understood over 85% of it, so that made it a plus for me. I watched the all-French version of Le Divorce and I lost a lot of it.

[arsaib4]

Red Eye has surprisingly gotten some good reviews but it seems very generic. I'm gonna avoid the Penguins.

When are you coming? What do you plan to see at NYFF?

Yeah, they sure make it tough at Toronto, no more options for submitting choices through mail either. I guess they want to process all the entries at the same time so it'll be fair because Toronto has now become the biggest, most important fest in N. America. I'll definitely try to get into Larry Clark's Wussup Rockers, but I'm sure that so will everyone else.

It's been a while but I liked the Anne Fontaine film. Quite cold but it was fun to watch. Strongly disliked her next film called Nathalie which had all the pitfalls of bad French films.

[wpqx]

Never actually been to a film festival, wish I would have went to Chicago's last year, then I could have seen the Weeping Meadow, but I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I just watched Ley Lines (1999) - Takashi Miike

Another in a seemingly endless string of movies from Miike, the man is active. This is one of his crime films, and one that concludes an informal trilogy. The camerawork was exceptional here, but unfortunately it is somewhat wasted on this somewhat bland film. Wasn't overly impressed with it, and seems like a lesser work.

[arsaib4]

Béla Tarr's The Outsider (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12524#post12524) (1981)

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Bright Future (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12599#post12599) (2004)

[Chris Knipp]

I don't know what movies I'm going to at the NYFF, as many as I can handle I guess, especially French ones and ones by directors I admire like the Dardennes, Neil Jordan, Haneke, Soderbergh, Park Chon-wook, and Hou Hsiau Hsien. After that I'm going to Paris and stage a little mini-film festival of my own.
____________

The last film I watched: François Ozon's 1998 "SITCOM." DVD > Netflix.

White rats can make you gay

A wry look at the bourgeois family and sexual temptation. According to the French movie website Allociné this is Ozon's first full-length film. Perhaps that's not totally accurate. But assuming that it is, he got off to kind of a late start (he was thirty-one then, now he's about thirty-eight) but has had a pretty amazing, high-profile career since then. The father brings home a pet white rat and the sight or touch of it seems to make everybody go sexually haywire beginning with the son's dinner declaration that he's gay. Well-paced amusing outrageous polymorphously perverse and at the same time in a French way genteel, Sitcom has the bright glossy upper middleclass look you'd probably expect from a TV family comedy. An American newspaper reviewer said this is "John Waters crossed with Eric Rohmer," but for various reasons that is silly. At first I thought Ozon was somewhat derivatively channeling Almodóvar, and there is even an obstreperous Spanish housemaid. Ozon's personal touch is that she has an African husband who seduces boys in his gym classes. Ed Gonzalez got it right when he wrote that this is a bad movie but "its queering of genre conventions is still refreshing."

It's not revolutionary though, and that goes for all his films I've seen (Water Drops on Burning Rocks is still on my to-see list): Criminal Lovers, Under the Sand, 8 Women, Swimming Pool, 5x2. He's had fun with these and so have we, but there's a certain lack of conviction or consistent style (apart from the gay sensibility) and given that, it's worth looking back at this "minor" effort. It may have more meat in it -- and confront more personal demons -- than the slick ones with Charlotte Rampling.

We can track back those demons in the US DVD's one extra -- Ozon's very first film, a seven-minute silent in color made in 1988, Photo de famille (Family Photo). Like many fledgling efforts the cast consists of the young filmmaker's family members and they're used to show how a youth casually kills his whole family after dinner, poisons his mother, stabs his sister and smothers his father -- with a smile on his face every time, and then props up the dead bodies on a couch and poses with them for an automatic camera photo, throwing back his head and grinning from ear to ear. The young killer (Guillaume Ozon) looks like River Phoenix so that's a plus that would not have eluded the filmmaker whose young male principals in Les amants criminels were good enough looking to be given the full lush gay beauty treatment by the super-campy photo team Pierre et Gilles. Sitcom obviously realizes this early fantasy of intra-familial hostilities with a lot of embroidery added. Sitcom's siblings are played by an actual brother and sister, Marina and Adrien de Van (they sound like the incestuous siblings in Nabokov's Ada!), Marina being an old collaborator and schoolmate of Ozon's who's made films of her own. It's an amusing touch that Stephane Rideau, who's starred in and directed a number of gay films, plays the sister's straight boyfriend. I assume the Ozons in Family Photo are the actual brother and sister and mother and father. Ozon is doing the same thing in Sitcom; it's just more elaborate.

Posted on Chris Knipp website. (http://www.chrisknipp.com/writing/viewtopic.php?p=465)

[wpqx]

Unknown Pleasures (2002) - Jia Zhang-Ke

Not quite as ambitious or good as The World. Matter of fact I don't really think too much of this film at all. Just sort of went under the radar for me, no real impact left on me. Continues his theme of apprehension towards capitalism, and it's corruptibility. Maybe a second look is necessary for this, I don't know.

[wpqx]

LA Confidential (1997) - Curtis Hansen

Almost forgot I watched this. Saw this one for the fourth time tonight, and I love this movie. It's so damn good that you rarely stop to appreciate anything but the plot. I did pick up some deep focus shots, and paid attention to Jerry Goldsmith's score a lot more this time around, but it's still the plot and acting that make this such a damn fantastic film. Granted I had someone asking me questions about the plot throughout the entire thing, but well that's to be expected I guess. Try to find a respectful way to say "stfu and watch the movie". But seriously though if it weren't for her, I wouldn't have watched it again.

[arsaib4]

I'd recommend that you give Unknown Pleasures another try sometime in the future. The fact that it's Jia's most humorous film shouldn't undermine its overall message, which, like you said, is his reservations regarding capatalism.

As for the humor, I recall a scene when the protagonist hears an explosion and runs to window and says, "Shit, are the Americans attacking?" We also witness him selling bootlegs of Jia's underground films on the street. And, of course, the dollar bill which roams around throughout the film and ultimately ends up buying a pleasure. I do agree with you that it's an inferior film to The World, which is slowly gathering momemtum.

[Chris Knipp]

Red Eye.
After watching this generic new Wes Craven thriller focusing on airlines and big hotels instead of terrified 20-somethings and houses, whose only originality is the new targets and techniques plugged into the right-wing politics of the plot, I'm doubtful that Cillian Murphy has a great future ahead of him, though both he and Rachel McAdams do a decent job as an evil terrorist-blackmailer and his almost too plucky victim. I should have seen 40-Year-Old Virgin instead. Or should I?

[Chris Knipp]

Park Chon-wook: Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002).
Made before Oldboy (2003) and now part of a "revenge" trilogy. The third one, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance, came out this year and I expect to catch it at the New York Film Festival. I haven't written an extended comment on Mr Vengeance yet. This is more gruesome than Oldboy and seemed to me to drag in the middle, while picking up momentum nicely in the latter part. Park's movies are as baroque and decadent as the late Jacobean "revenge tragedies" of 17th-century England, and there may be other similarities. An English university course outlined on the Internet uses the following statement as the basis for its first essay assignment:
"Jacobean theatre interrogated structures of belief which legitimated prevailing power relations, and...it often did this by seizing upon, intensifying and exposing those contradictions in the prevailing social order which it is one of the effects of ideology to efface" (Johnathan Dollimore, Radical Tragedy, p.xxiii). Well, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance has a rich man and a poor, disabled youth lined up against each other, and the boy's revolutionary girlfriend leaflets mafiosi and the public alike with screeds against neo-liberalism and corporate dominance. In other words, this one reads as more political than Oldboy.

[arsaib4]

"I don't know what movies I'm going to at the NYFF, as many as I can handle I guess, especially French ones and ones by directors I admire like the Dardennes, Neil Jordan, Haneke, Soderbergh, Park Chon-wook, and Hou Hsiau Hsien. After that I'm going to Paris and stage a little mini-film festival of my own."

That's nice. I didn't know that you were a HHH fan. Even if you were to miss the Dardennes and the Haneke at NY, you can probably catch them in Paris.


______________________

Benoît Jacquot's Seventh Heaven (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12635#post12635) (1998)

Shinji Aoyama's Mike Yokohama: A Forest with No Name (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12611#post12611) (2005)

[Chris Knipp]

I don't know what will be on in Paris when I get there, I think it's best to see things when you can. There will be new things opening in Paris I'm sure. The Parisian cinematic fare last September was pretty interesting, and quite different from what you got here. Another thing I'm thinking of doing is buying some DVD's there. I don't have an all-region player but I can watch them on my computer. As you may recall I did that -- bought and sent back a little pile of DVD's -- in Italy last year, with some good results -- Gianni Amelio, and Buongiorno, notte, several interesting things by Pupi Avati and my favorie Muccino, his first, Come te nessuno mai (not available on US DVD).

If I'm becoming a fan of HHH, it's entirely thanks to Filmwurld. I've only seen three so far, Puppetmaster, Flowers, and Goodbye, South, Goodbye. Netflix doesn't have much else that I haven't seen, just a couple. Some of his highly regarded movies, such as Boys from Fengkuei, appear hard to come by. Kevin Lee had a good, very personal, essay on it in Senses of Cinema. I ignored Milenium Mambo when it was showing here because I'd hever heard of Hou then.

When I said "directors I admire," some of them are ones I think I'm beginning to admire, and some are ones I used to admrie who I hope will still do good things, such as Soderbergh and Neil Jordan....

I appreciate your comments on Jacquot and Seventh Heaven on the DVD Releases thread and have put Seventh Heaven on my Netflix queue. It's not clear to me if all the other movies by him tht you mention in your first paragraph about Seventh Heaven are available on US DVD's. I like The School of Flesh very much, have a copy on tape and have watched it many times, but I was a bit disappointed (at least at first viewing) in A toute de suite, though I certainly preferred it to Lila dit ça (they came here in close succession, they opened in NYC about the same week). I have seen nothing else by Jacquot and a lot of his work is not available on US DVD's, it seems (How many of the best ones are?), and only four are available from Netflix, two of which are coming, not yet available.

I wonder what's going to happen to all the stuff on videotape that isn't going to make it to DVD. A friend just mentioned that the bigger local libraries are now removing their videotapes and paring down to just DVD's. They seem enamored of the new medium, as are the big commercial rental stores, but for the purpose of renting or lending, it's not at all clear that DVD's are an improvement on tapes; in fact they seem to degrade more quickly, because they're rather delicate and if they're handled roughly, they're ruined and unwatchable. And anyway removing the tapes from the shelves means a fair number of films will just not be available any more that we might need to see.

When there was still a big Tower Classical store in Berkeley (now long gone) with a large, well informed staff, I remember one guy saying that there were tens of thousands of CD's already out of print. There is no permanence in these new media.

[Chris Knipp]

I hope somebody will watch Gianni Amelio's Le chiavi di casa/The Keys to the House. I saw it in Italy and in NYC, but I don't think it ever got here. Now it's at Blockbuster, so... watch it, people!

Lamerica is on my Netflix queue so I'll finally get a chance to watch it. Oscar has said he likes it the best, I think. But I was very impressed by both The Way We Laughed/Così ridevano and The Keys to the House. Both amazing.

[arsaib4]

I don't know what will be on in Paris when I get there, I think it's best to see things when you can. There will be new things opening in Paris I'm sure. The Parisian cinematic fare last September was pretty interesting, and quite different from what you got here. Another thing I'm thinking of doing is buying some DVD's there. I don't have an all-region player but I can watch them on my computer. As you may recall I did that -- bought and sent back a little pile of DVD's -- in Italy last year, with some good results -- Gianni Amelio, and Buongiorno, notte, several interesting things by Pupi Avati and my favorie Muccino, his first, Come te nessuno mai (not available on US DVD).

Yeah, if you can fit them in your schedule here then that's the way to go. Not quite sure when you'll be leaving for Paris but Chéreau's Gabrielle opens on September 26th; Haneke's film will be out the first week of October closely followed by Dardenne's latest. Films from Blier, Allen, Garrel etc are also in October.

It's good to see that you're more keen on foreign DVD's now; it's like a whole new world especially for someone who lives here. Will you be visiting Italy this year? I do remember our exchanges on the Italian films you saw and brought.

If I'm becoming a fan of HHH, it's entirely thanks to Filmwurld. I've only seen three so far, Puppetmaster, Flowers, and Goodbye, South, Goodbye. Netflix doesn't have much else that I haven't seen, just a couple. Some of his highly regarded movies, such as Boys from Fengkuei, appear hard to come by. Kevin Lee had a good, very personal, essay on it in Senses of Cinema. I ignored Milenium Mambo when it was showing here because I'd hever heard of Hou then.

Millenium Mambo should be at Netflix, although I'm not totally sure. A few of his earlier films that were part of a box-set devoted to him were available at Nicheflix once, but a couple of them aren't there anymore otherwise that would've been an option. (The four films in the set are: Boys from Fengkuei [1983], A Summer at Grandpa's [1984], Time to Live, Time to Die [1985] and Dust in the Wind [1986]. All of them are region-0 or "All" so they can be played everywhere.)

I appreciate your comments on Jacquot and Seventh Heaven on the DVD Releases thread and have put Seventh Heaven on my Netflix queue. It's not clear to me if all the other movies by him tht you mention in your first paragraph about Seventh Heaven are available on US DVD's. I like The School of Flesh very much, have a copy on tape and have watched it many times, but I was a bit disappointed (at least at first viewing) in A toute de suite, though I certainly preferred it to Lila dit ça (they came here in close succession, they opened in NYC about the same week). I have seen nothing else by Jacquot and a lot of his work is not available on US DVD's, it seems (How many of the best ones are?), and only four are available from Netflix, two of which are coming, not yet available.

Thanks. I hope that you get to see Seventh Heaven. Among the other films I mentioned, only A Single Girl and The School of Flesh are available on DVD here. I really liked Pas de Scandale with Huppert and Vincent London but it's only available in France (no subs). His 1990 film The Disenchanted is available here although it isn't as good as some of the other ones; also Sade which I didn't like very much. His other worthy films like La Fausse suivante, Tosca, Marianne, and earlier ones like L' Assassin musicien are hard to come by. As for his latest, there were a couple of problems late as I mentioned in my post on the film, but I liked the consistency he showed with his protagonist.

I wonder what's going to happen to all the stuff on videotape that isn't going to make it to DVD. A friend just mentioned that the bigger local libraries are now removing their videotapes and paring down to just DVD's. They seem enamored of the new medium, as are the big commercial rental stores, but for the purpose of renting or lending, it's not at all clear that DVD's are an improvement on tapes; in fact they seem to degrade more quickly, because they're rather delicate and if they're handled roughly, they're ruined and unwatchable. And anyway removing the tapes from the shelves means a fair number of films will just not be available any more that we might need to see.

I agree. There are A LOT of films that are still only available on vhs and in some cases that will continue because the source prints are either lost or aren't good enough to be used again. Even libraries seem to running out of space which is a bit sad.

[Chris Knipp]

Even libraries seem to running out of space which is a bit sad.


It's more than a bit sad, if you ask me. I have put everything on my queue that you mention, or I will shortly. Yes, Netflix does have Milleniium Mambo and I will be getting it eventuallyl, I have a list of Chinese items, but I've gone for the French ones first. I have put Seventh Heaven near the top and added A Single Girl. Of course I'll soon be gone, so I can't watch many more Netflix flicks right now. If Peter gets me into press screenings and that enables one to also get DVD's of films one can't make it to, I may be able to watch the films I want to see before the public gets to them, but I will be leaving on October 7, arriving Paris October 8. Yes, I am going on to Italy after two weeks in Paris. I don't think I will bother to buy books in Italy thhis time because that didn't turn out to be useful. If I buy any I will have to research them more carefully. In any case one is inevitably rushed, but I think I will be luckier in getting French DVD's this time, which I didn't even think of last year, assuming there is not any unexpected snag. From going over the Netflix list of French (which seems pretty limited -- again, because it is just DVD's -- there is a lot of stuff on US videotapes that has not come onto DVD's and never willl --) and from going over all the French films in video stores here in the past, I have a pretty good picture of what is available here or isn't. Of course the price in France is higher, as it is in ITaly, and as CD's are. But I saw a lot of tables on the sidewalk especialy around the Pompidou..... So there may be cut-rate DVD's. Know anything about that? Anyway I'm sure there are tons of French DVD's there that you can't get here.

I may get to Nicheflix eventually. But I wonder how I could get The Boys from Fengkuei if even they don't have it any more? I can't go to China, and even if I could, I can't follow Chinese without subtitles!

[wpqx]

I believe Facets still has those films available.

feel free to check at www.facets.org

If I were taking a trip to France to buy some DVD's, I'd certainly look into the Ousmane Sembene films released there that still haven't made it to America. I also believe they're ahead of us on Louis Malle. I'm an embarrassing ignoramous on modern French film, I've maybe seen ten from the past decade.

[wpqx]

Audition (1999) - Takashi Miike

Kind of a let down on this one, too much hype. The first 90 minutes or so were so damn boring that I didn't even care by the end.

[Chris Knipp]

wpqx--
\
Thanks for the reminder about Facets--I know about them, though I haven't tried their rental service and having just joined Netflix the past month or so and living in CA, I can't make any generalized use of them now. They're a great resource, and you're the more lucky to be in Chicago where they are, but the disappearance of tapes generally is still going to cut out a lot of films for us, Facets or no.

Facets says:

" Renting VHS tapes over the mail will entail an outgoing surcharge (because
they weigh more): $5.00 for one tape, $8.00 for two and $10.00 for three.
You are responsible [sic] the return postage."

That's in addition to the $25-a-month membership fee.

[Chris Knipp]

John Palmer's Sugar (Think Film , 2004) > rental DVD.

This is a little Canadian indie first film (based on stories by Bruce LaBruce, and pretty much straight-to-DVD, I guess) about a gay youth who comes of age by leaving the suburbs -- prompted by his precocious and understanding little sister -- on the night of his eighteenth birthday for the gay hustlers of downtown Toronto. He finds one to like right away, the druggy but fresh-faced and Bruce Weber-handsome Butch (Brenden Fehr of "Roswell"). "I'm bad news. You know that, right?" says Butch, predicting the outcome of the story. Nevertheless, they bond in a semi-sexual, semi-buddy relationship. Sugar gets extreme reactions, from total dismissal because of the cheap production and desultory plot (and frank details about sexuality?) to raves because of lively, committed acting and plausible situations. The trick scenes go deeper into both nastiness and sweetness than slicker efforts like My Own Private Idaho. It all may seem a complete waste of time to clueless straights but from the gay point of view it's curiously endearing and feels very real and familiar. This is not the usual gay-audience skin-deep pretty-pretty gay boy drama. Felt performances and authentic subject matter make this something quite different from that. There's an extra poignancy in the fact that Andre Noble, who plays Cliff, died that year from a poisonous flower while camping. If not a total success, Sugar has redeeming features. There's no doubt that Palmer and his actors (who include Sarah Polley in a minor role) highlight Cliff's naïve enthusiasm and Butch's ambivalence about his sexuality quite effectively. I'd have to recuse myself from trying to express a "neutral" opinion. I could not describe the basics of Sugar better than Harrison Cheung of Movie Gurus: http://www.movie-gurus.com/content/reviews/s/1497/index.html.

[arsaib4]

You could get some good deals from those vendors but don't expect top quality. Might wanna pick up Les Soeurs fâchées starring Huppert if you can get it for a good price. It's a nice comedy and should have English subs. Same for La Femme de Gilles which you've seen (I think) as it just came out on DVD.

Wpqx is right about the Sembene set but a few of his films are out now in the U.S. and I'm not sure how much you're interested. As for Malle, films like Zazie dans le métro and L'Inde fantôme are available but no subs.

The Hou set isn't cheap (http://us.yesasia.com/en/PrdDept.aspx/pid-1004000772/code-c/section-videos). Perhaps you could find something on Ebay but I think you should first watch the films that are on Netflix.

Facets has a great selection but it's a bit too much for non-residents. I believe they do carry a Tarr film which is only out on vhs.

Sugar is from TLA Releasing I think who specialize in Gay/Lesbian films. (include Sarah Polley in a minor role.) I think I'll have to see this one, although, I'm not sure if it's readily available. You got the un-rated version, didn't you?! ;)

Miike's Audition is said to be the film for non-fans and I qualify as such. I liked its slow build-up instead of getting bashed in the head from the start, something you normally get from him.

[wpqx]

Yeah sorry about the facets endorsement. My membership is $250 a year for however much I feel like renting. Unfortunately though, this year I'm not going to renew, seeing as how I'll be going away to school, and in all honesty I haven't made as much use of my membership this past year as I did the one before. I still got a couple to watch however, and they have been the best damn resource imaginable for me.

[Chris Knipp]

There may not be any other rental store in the country that's as big and as good as Facets, but if you're not in Chicago, it just won't work as well. It's Netflix for the rest of us. It may be particularly popular here because the San Jose mailing point makes for an especially quick turnaround.

Yes, I guess the version of Sugar I just watched was unrated, if there is any other. If I got it at my local Blockbuster I should think maybe it actually IS readily available, but I could be wrong.

I know if you buy on the street you're taking a chance, but I could get more that way. Even if I go to Paris every year that's not often, so I want to stock up, but not blow all my dough on them. I would go for anything with Isabelle Huppert that I haven't seen. I don't really care about subtitles, by the way. It's nice to have them, if you can cut them off or on (some films cheaply produced on DVD for the US you can't take them off), but watching without them makes me focus on the language more, and as I've mentioned I'm working to improve both my French and my Italian. With French DVD's with subtitle on-off options, I try to watch with them off, and if I'm really studying a film to improve my French, I go back and read the subs for phrases I can't catch. As my French teacher has pointed out later, I still often get the phrases wrong, but at least my comprehension is improving some this way.I've bought more DVD's lately, hardly any till the past year or so. These fancy US DVD's like Collateral, Bourne Supremacy, and The Aviator, and Le Divorce, all of which I just bought very cheap at this local Blockbuster the past week, usually have soundtracks in French now so I watch them that way. So Bourne begins, "Ceci n'est pas un exercice d'entrainement...."!

I will watch whatever Netflix has of Hou, contemporary French, Liang, etcl, before I go to any other more complicated or expensive source. Their French list seems disappointing--there's just obviously so much that's not on it that would be interesting, some of it stuff you've seen at the Rendezvous showings or on Canal 5, but I guess that's simply true of the US DVD's of French films and not particularly the fault of Netflix, that the selection is limited and some choice items are always missing. Netflix is doing their best. But why do they have to hard-sell Audrey Tautou so much?!

[Chris Knipp]

Combats de femme - Un amour de femme/A Woman's Love (2001) (TV)

With Raffaela Anderson and Anthony Delon. Written and directed by Sylvie Verheyde, whose first film, Un frère/A Brother (1997) was described by Stephen Holden as "rhapsodically sensual" (César du meilleur espoir féminin 1998). Un amour de femme is about Jeanne (Hélène Fillières) a bored and beautiful married woman with a young son and a successful practice as an osteopath, who has an affair with a vivacious and soulful (female) dancer Marie (Anderson) whom she meets at a club with her husband David (Delon, Alain's son). I thought it might be trashy, but it's not. I didn't know that Verheyde had been a Cannes entry and a César winner. It has a light touch and is pleasant to watch. I believe it was shown in the Rendezvous series in NYC. Verheyde has done aa more recent film called Princesses (2000) that has Jean-Hugues Anglade in it. Earlier, two shorts. This was shown at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival back then (and at other simililar festivals) but I didn't see it before.

Talking in campy VARIETY-speak, Dennis Harvey was unimpressed:
Lipstick lesbiana without the ice pick still sports the same artificial, titillative feel. Writer-helmer Sylvie Verheyde may intend French telepic as a serious portrait of one woman's abrupt coming-out-cum-marital-collapse. But glam mood and glib emotional content make this play more like a slightly arthoused "See two chicks together!" exercise.... That's such a gem I'm sure you'd like to read on, but I haven't got the dough to subscribe to VARIETY.

Seriously, it was pretty funny watching this after Sugar, which is relatively so real and specific. Un amour de femme is too smug and pleased with itself, and Dennis Harvey was right to have his shit detector turned on. There is indeed too much of the "'See two chicks together!' exercise" and too little exploration of relationships. Jeanne is like a girl who doesn't know how to handle being on a date. Okay, this is new to her. But why should Marie, who's had other relationships with women, be so girlish and tongue-tied? There's a kind of shy gloating ("See two chicks!") going on that's kind of embarrasing.

[wpqx]

In theaters 2046 (2004) - Wong Kar-Wai

Somewhat baffling film that seems designed to be seen at least twice. Very characteristic of Wai's work, and not without it's high points. Overall though I'm still trying to figure out what I think about it.

At home, Close to Eden (1991) - Nikita Mikhalkov

Interesting but not fantastic. Mikhalkov makes what could be a boring story about modernization interesting by throwing a few surreal sequences in. There was humor throughout, but not exactly a comedy. If I were to be generic I'd say thumbs up, but don't go telling people I said it was a masterpiece.

[arsaib4]

I also plan to watch 2046 again in order to form a more stable opinion.

________________________

Ousmane Sembene's Mandabi (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12725#post12725) (1968)

[Chris Knipp]

I feel the same way you do about 2046. Designed to be seen a lot more than once. Ravishing as it is to look at, I hate to come out and say it's a disappointment. I've watched it on DVD any number of times, but it remains uninvolving. Given the bipolarity of the experience, I'm not sure a more stable opinion is possible.

Yves Saint Laurent 5 avenue Marceau 75116 Paris (2002)
Paired on DVD with
Yves Saint Laurent: His Life and Times (2002) as it was in showings early this year at Film Forum. DVD > Netflix.

Both by David Teboul. The first one is coverage of YSL and his staff preparing over a period of several months what turned out to be his last annual collection, dress by dress, in a film which has not inaccurately been called "incredibly tedious." But if you're into French couturier design or are yourself a designer, this is gold. The other one is a life of YSL with some great interviews with him, at various ages, his longtime companion, Pierre Bergé, his "muse," Loulou de la Falaise, and others. You also see some of the collections being shown. I was deeply impressed by Saint Laurent's unquestionable genius and precocity, and maybe because of this context I was more appreciative than I've ever been before of the glory of one of his collections. An incredibly concentrated period of creativity precedes the production of the several hundred designs each year. In a couple of weeks he turns out all these pencil drawings on sheets of paper, the pages are organized and lined up, and under his constant hands-on supervision his brilliant team -- still themselves doing everything in the classic way, by hand -- rapidly turns them into splendid dresses. It's quite an amazing process in which elegance and style are bound up with intense hard work. YSL came to Paris from Oran, Algiers, with his mother when he was sixteen. At nineteen he began working with Dior. At 22 Dior declared him his only possible successor, and in four days, Dior died and Saint Laurent took over the house of Dior. Five years later he was forced out of Dior and started the house of Yves Saint Laurent. Fashion may be ephemeral, and it is different from art. Jean Cocteau thus famously contrasts the two: "Art produces ugly things which frequently become more beautiful with time. Fashion, on the other hand, produces beautiful things which always become ugly with time. " But after seeing this melancholy genius at work in Yves Saint Laurent: His Life and Times, I have no doubt that he is an artist, and one of the great ones of his century. Amazing, and essentially a mystery, like all the great ones. It's sad to see the contrast between the cute, witty young YSL and the old, addiction-ravaged chain smoker at the end, but the words are as carefully chosen at both ends, and the terrifying intensity of focus, the passion for creation, never falters. I will guarantee you that if you give your attention to these films and particularly the biography, this man will leave a lasting impression upon you: tall, erect, with the distinctive large-framed glasses, he is as unmistakable a trademark as his fashion. You will also get to see Catherine Deneuve, as beautiful as ever, casually picking out some clothes for daytime wear from her pal YSL in the year of these documentaries, just before he said his last adieux to haute couture (January 7, 2002). Not all the great couturiers are gay, but a lot of them are, and the art of fashion seems somehow inexplicably and inextricably bound up with homosexuality -- this special love of a man who loves men for women and their bodies, which are YSL's declared and unmistakable inspiration. That to me is part of the mystery and fascination of this intense closeup of fashion design at its highest level. And Saint Laurent speaks of his homosexuality and its role in his work. His collaborator, his manager and his director was also his lover, Pierre Bergé.

[Chris Knipp]

Jun Ichikawa: Tony Takitani (2004). Theatrical showing, Berkeley, California.

Perhaps obviously a short story. It seemed like a short story. It turns out it is, by Haruki Murakami, and it appeared in translation in The New Yorker three years ago. It's constantly narrated, this film, in voiceover, sometimes with the actors finishing one of the narrator's sentences, as if they were in a tableau. A boy is born to a jazz musician father shortly after the end of the war and his mother dies, he is neglected, he learns the melancholy life of being alone, and he becomes an artist, eventually a successful illustrator specializing in depicting anything mechanical. He finds a wife, younger than himself, who makes him happy, but loving clothes, and now having a good source of income, because Tony Takitani is quite successful in his career as an illustrator, she becomes addicted to shopping. She buys an endless number of dresses, coats, shoes, so many a whole big room has to be set up to store them. When he loses her, he devises a strange ruse to transition himself into a life without her. The story fizzles away... but it's told with such tact and style that one walks out curiously satisfied.

Tony's backstory, his boyhood, his trombonist dad, his early artistic development, the far off immediate postwar years, using black and white stills and movies, is constructed so engagingly and with such a fine hand in the editing that the central events, which may seem more a conceit than a story, are almost a letdown. The main section is presented in very faded greyed out color that is perfectly right for the delicacy of the telling. Left to right slow panning shots create an effect like turning pages; the wife's developing shopaholism is depicted in overlapping shots of her legs walking in a succession of elegant shoes and boots. Ryuichi Sakamoto's simple piano score resembles French impressionist compositions like Satie's "3 Pieces in the Form of a Pear."

If the subject matter is a bit thin, the style is such a delight that it doesn't matter, and the themes of loneliness, dress, possession, and money (relevant to our last century and to Japan's postwar history and perhaps to all human experience) are thought-provoking enough to make the minimalist content expand in the mind. A quiet, subtle, delightful film.

[arsaib4]

Have heard a lot about Tony Takitani but might have to wait till it comes to DVD due to all the other events coming soon.

Good post on Laurent. People who are in some way associated with the industry will certainly be interested in the doc.

[Chris Knipp]

Thanks. Too bad not to see Tony Takitani theatrically since it's so visual, but one can't make it to everything. I might have missed this myself if a Japanese-American friend had not made this her first choice for us to see yesterday. The sureness and elegance of the style grabbed me immediately.

[arsaib4]

Jacques Doillon's Petits Frères (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12748#post12748) (2001)

[Chris Knipp]

Benoît Jacquot: Seventh Heaven (1997) >Netflix DVD.

arsaib already has an interesting comment on this on the DVD Releases/Jacquot (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12748#post12748) thread. I may add my own comment later. It fails to engage me like Jacquot's 1998 École de la chair/The School of Flesh. I have seen À toute de suite but I have not seen much of Jacquot so my knowledge of his filmmaking is limited. I can see a similar taste for jump cuts here.

Volker Schlöndorff: The Ninth Day (2004)/ Der Neunte Tag Theatrical screening in the Bay Area.

A austere, wonderfully cast WWII film about an unusual incident in the life of a Luxumberg priest who was released briefly from Dachau in 1942, apparently to pressure the bishop and possibly his fellow priests to endorse Nazism, based on Dachau surviver Jean Bernard's 1945 memoir, Pfarrerblock 25487. There's excellent reference material online about this film particularly through , Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Ninth_Day), which will take you to a comparison (http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/marcuse/dachau/visits/04ninthday/NinthDayFilm053.htm) of the film with the memoir by Prof. Harold Marcuse of UC Santa Barbara, several Dachau websites, and much more. Just having given a careful and loving look at Schlöndorff's 1984 Swann in Love/un amour de Swann I'm pretty amazed at the sheer versatility of the man.

[wpqx]

Irreversible (2002)

Well second time did some wonders for this film. Knowing what had happened, I didn't have to figure anything out, and I didn't really have to pay attention to the plot. So I focused on the shooting of the film, and I was pretty damn impressed. This film may be a gimmick movie, but I think it's a damn effective one. Due to it's subject matter it will never be loved by all, but I think the film is quite successful in its objectives. Helps to mention as always I'm a fan of long takes, which is one reason why I'm still kicking myself for having never seen a Bela Tarr film.

[Chris Knipp]

(wpqx)
Irreversible (2002)
Well second time did some wonders for this film. Knowing what had happened, I didn't have to figure anything out, and I didn't really have to pay attention to the plot. So I focused on the shooting of the film, and I was pretty damn impressed.So much for the whole silly idea of "spoilers." If you know what happens you can appreciate a film better: I'm always trying to get that idea across but nobody listens.

[wpqx]

I'm not condoning giving away vital plot points, just saying a second viewing of a film like this can do wonders.

I just watched Happiness (1998), and well I'm not overly impressed. Kind of a mess of a movie, with some redeeming qualities, but ultimately a little too embarassing.

[wpqx]

The Circle (2000) - Jafar Panahi

One of the few films I've seen from Iran that focuses exclusively on women. Needless to say there is plenty of material for drama, as we find just how little rights these women have. I am unfamiliar with any of Panahi's other films, so I'm yet to make any comparissons. The film can be somewhat preachy (as many Iranian films are), I found it somewhat muddled however. Not quite as effective as the story could have been.

[arsaib4]

I'm still kicking myself for having never seen a Bela Tarr film.

Well, his first three are available now so try to see them if you get a chance. I've talked about his first two so far in this (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1324) thread. Feel free to add there if you like.

[wpqx]

I know, but the release of those films coincided with my financial collapse. I'm more intrigued by his later, largely unavailable work. From what I've read of his style though, he seems very much my kind of filmmaker. Basically a modern incarnation of Miklos Jansco.

[wpqx]

Dolls (2004) - Takeshi Kitano

Interesting change of departure, that put me to sleep. Now the sleeping part isn't necessarily a bad thing, because I literally fell asleep for every Andrei Tarkovsky film I watched. Certainly plenty to enjoy about the film, but not really exciting cinema.

[wpqx]

Rebels of the Neon God (1992) - Tsai Ming-Liang

Well perhaps I paid more attention, or perhaps I finally understand Liang's style, but this film went over wonderfully well for me. The characters were more identifiable, and although I couldn't tell who was who for awhile (the main characters do look a lot alike), I figured it out and went from there. I believe the similarity of the characters looks was intentional, naturally as two were brothers, but I think there was a similarity amongst everyone. Lots of people going somewhere with no destination. As the film progressed a conscience built up, and truly a great film. I still have more Liang to watch, so my expectations are certainly high for the next viewing.

[Chris Knipp]

Erik von Looy: Memory of a Killer (2004)

In De Zaak Alzheimer, a Belgian hit man rebels when sent to kill a young girl and finds out she's at the bottom of a child prostitute ring which he decides to wipe out all the way up the chain of command -- just a few steps ahead of the police detectives. The only trouble is he's experiencing the onset of Alzheimer's. A brother is in a sanatorium with it. Despite this nod to an aging population (and hypertrophied genre) this is a conventional enough police procedural that includes such clichés as feuding branches of law enforcement and a bond between the chief investigator and the criminal, but it's well worked out with some neat little details and it moves fast. It would have been nice if there weren't all those banging drums to signal when the action is heating up and it would have been even nicer if the very able hit man would actually show more signs of oncoming senility. But the plot cheats us out of whatever dash of color that would bring by having him take medication to control the symptoms. Even with a bullet wound and a crooked shrink working for the top man in the ring trying to shoot him full of poison our hit man keeps the whole police force hopping till the end. Jan Decleir, who resembles the late William Bendix, is compelling as the hit man, Angelo Ledda, and Koen De Bouw is sexy as the chief detective, Vincke.


Fernando Meireilles: The Constant Gardener (2005).

Meireilles' chronicle of three decades of favela crime life in Rio, City of God/Cidade de Deus (2002), was a wonder of color and whirlwind action. Here he applies his bright brush to a post-cold war John Le Carré story about a mild and moral diplomat, Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) whose political firebrand wife Tessa (Rachel Weisz) gets assassinated in Kenya, leading him to go against the grain and offend his superiors by hunting down the medical cartel scandal that got her in harm's way. The contrast between the gentleness and focus of Fiennes's character and the turbulence and corruption all around him as he moves closer and closer to the same danger his wife faced is beautifully conveyed. The film is particularly notable for its endless fast succession of dazzling bright African images and its panoply of morally dubious secondary characters ably played by the likes of Bill Nighy, Danny Huston, Gerald McSorley, and Keith Pearson. But unfortunately Meirelles' hyperactive editing, which underscored the wild energy of the favela in Cidade de Deus, tends to overwhelm the story sometimes and isn't altogether appropriate to a writer whose métier was always conveying the gray world of self effacing bureaucrats. When it's all over all you may remember is Fiennes' sad face. He's fine, though, and so is Weisz and so are many of the others. It's not certain this was the ideal project for Meirelles, though he has produced a stylish mainstream film.

[arsaib4]

The Circle (2000) - Jafar Panahi

I couldn't agree more. What I did like here, however, is the tragectory of his shots, all referring to the circularity of the title, but otherwise it doesn't have anything new to offer. There isn't much common between The Circle and Panahi's other efforts (The White Balloon/The Mirror/Crimson Gold). The latter two are available on DVD and they're much more Kiarostamian. I think you'll like them.


Rebels of the Neon God (1992) - Tsai Ming-Liang

Glad to see that you stuck with Tsai. His films will definitely grow on you.

[wpqx]

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1974)

Holy shit this is quite possibly the funniest movie ever. Every time I watch it there are new things to laugh at, and within the first five minutes I was literally crying. So much for saying no movie can make me cry. Sure these weren't tears of sorrow, but nevertheless I was hysterically laughing as my girlfriend looked at me in stunned disblelief. I regret to inform you that she wasn't too amused with the film. Of course only a super grinch would be unable to laugh at anything in the film, I mean is there much funnier than a white fluffy rabit decapitating a full grown man?

Girl, Interrupted (1999)

Well I like it, certainly not enough to see it for a THIRD time, but well it wasn't my choice. Try reasoning with someone who refuses to watch 8 1/2. Not a very strong acting film, but great characterization, and people can historically point to this film as the one that made Angelina Jolie a household name. Actually it was more her Oscar acceptance for this film that did that, but whatever. I don't recall anyone commenting on this one the last time I reported on it. I'm curious to know if anyone else saw it, and what they may think about it.

[Chris Knipp]

I saw it and I thought it was a lot of drama queens hamming it up. The Oscar showed that the Academy is fooled by actor-y excess. But Angelina may be a force for good. I bought the issue of W magazine with the 30-page art photo spread with her and her new boyfriend, and I wish them a happy life.

You can't go wrong with the Python crew.

[Chris Knipp]

Cote d'Azur/Crustacés et coquillages (2005) French seaside sexual midlife crisis-cum-coming of age story with a gay slant. Fluff. Gay fluff, with a farcical structure this time, so it has straight people and the classic round of secret trysts, only this time some if it is just fucking and some of it is just cruising.

Games of Love and Chance/Les jeux de l'amour et du hazard.The one that won the Cesar for best picture beating out films by more prestigious directors, brilliant conception, though the execution drags at times due to reliance on improv. I was touched, and that isn't happening at the movies much lately. It was a bold gesture on the judges' part to choose this, but not a foolish one.

Green Street Hooligans Directed by a German woman kick boxing champion, a rather dumb movie out of Clarke's The Firm and Fincher's Fight Club. I love Charlie Hunnam and he rules in this. Elijah Wood is sweet and sincere, and the whole thing is aquestionable project but I hope it doesn't hurt either of these young men's careers. Anyway Wood has Everything Is Illuminated, which is some high literary stuff, coming out shortly, so he's perhaps safe. Except for a bad cockney accent, Hunnam does manage to strut through this with undeniable panache. I still love him, but I wish he'd let his hair grow back out.

[wpqx]

The Notebook (2004) - Nick Cassavettes

At the risk of never getting laid again, I'll refrain from saying anything bad about the film. Needless to say, that's about all I can say.

[arsaib4]

I think many men out there share your sentiment. :)

[Chris Knipp]

The French title of Games of Love and Chance isn't Les jeux de l'amour et du hazard--that's the title of the Marivaux play used in the film. The film is called L'Esquive. It means "avoidance" or "evasion," and no doubt refers to the young lady's behavior toward her suitor in the story --Lydia's evasion of Krimo. The director, by the way, was Abdel Kechiche (born in Tunisia Abdel Latif Kechiche in 1960). This was his second film. The first one was called La faute a Voltaire (2000).

The directors of Cote d'Azur were Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau. Their previous films were The Adventures of Felix (Drole de Felix) and My LIfe on Ice (Ma vraie vie a Rouen).

The director of Green Street Hooligans was the German female former kick boxing champion, Lexi Alexander. Her third outing.

[arsaib4]

Jacques Doillon's Raja (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12812#post12812) (2004)

Danis Tanovic's L'Enfer (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12869#post12869) (TIFF)

[Chris Knipp]

Michael Almareyda's William Eggleston in the Real World

Gael Morel's Three Dancing Slaves/Le Clan.

Will post reviews of them later.

[arsaib4]

I think you accidentally reposted in the TIFF thread.

[arsaib4]

Fernando Meirelles's The Constant Gardener (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1502) (2005)

Jeff Stanzler's Sorry, Haters (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12887#post12887) (TIFF)

[wpqx]

Izo (2004) - Takashi Miike

A very, very, very senseless and boring display of pure violence for 128 minutes. This film was a complete and utter waste, lots of blood thinly trying to immitate art. There was no point to the story, no character development, no plot, just some stupid asshole randomly transported to different times and places killing everyone in sight.

[wpqx]

Elevator to the Gallows (1957) - Louis Malle

Well for some strange reason this film is in re-release, and I was determined not to miss it. Seeing it after a slew of later era Malle films, this is a radical departure. Whereas he steadily began to make his films "wordy" this one is low on dialogue. With it's infectious Miles Davis score, and rain soaked Parisean streets, this has all the "feel" of a classic New Wave film.

The film centers on irony, from the very beginning we get a sense that things aren't going to go the right way, for somewhat strange reasons. That said, the film doesn't have too many surprises, but there is a comedy of irony. Something that we can laugh at not with. Not to say it's "ha-ha" funny, but there is certainly a tension break, and constantly reminded of the sad, sad face of Jeanne Moreau.

We do pick sides here, and both me and the person going with me agreed that we were for the main couple. The younger couple that stole Julien's car was irritating and immature. I wanted them to get caught right from the beginning, and somebody badly needed to smack the skinny car thief. Well I won't say who get's there's and how, because that would defeat a lot of the fun. The film was not a disappointment, and the print is in pretty mint condition, I would recommend seeing it at your earliest convenience.

This was Malle's first feature film and he made it at the age of 24, not bad considering. The film avoids almost all the cliches of adulterous lovers hatching a murder plot. Malle focuses on the crime and aftermath, rather than the affair leading up to it, in many ways a radical departure from the American style. Like any great Hitchcock film, which this was clearly influenced by, we find ourselves wanting to yell at the characters in the film, on how to save themselves, particularly Julien, who's on our side from the get go.

[wpqx]

Summer/The Green Ray (1986) - Eric Rohmer

Well Rohmer #5 for me, and still not sure I really understand him. I got his style somewhat down, I just can't see why he's so great, if he's great at all. His films are boring, not slow, boring. Perhaps they are made more for an intellectual crowd of senior citizens, whose tastes I thought resembled my own. I'm not sure though, point is, I found this film to be somewhat pointless, just like most of his other films. Perhaps somebody can explain the allure of Rohmer to me, and offer some better recommendations.

[arsaib4]

I'm not sure what exactly you've seen of Rohmer so far, but I'd highly recommend films like Claire's Knee (1970), Perceval le Gallois (1978), his latest, Triple Agent (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1035) (2004), and, of course the Four Seasons Quadrilogy (1990-98).

There's a bit of discussion here (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=962) (near the bottom of the page). Chris Knipp is perhaps a bigger fan of Rohmer than me so hopefully he'll get a chance to add to this.

[wpqx]

The Time to Live and the Time to Die (1985) - Hou Hsaio-Hsien

The breakthrough film of Hsien and the entire Taiwan new wave, the film remains one of his most personal attributes. It is a story of growing up, and it is one of the few Hsien films written by Hsien. His directorial style was emerging but not quite cemented. The shots were becomming more observant, and the takes slightly longer, but he was still a few films away from the distinct style he would be known for in the coming decade.

Like most films of the movement, this has a political undercurrent as well. The story emphasizes the detachment that these Chinese citizens feel living in Taiwan. No one expected to stay long, but in the case of the revolution, and health problems, the family remained. There is that youthful detachment that we see in later Tsai Ming Liang films, present in Ah Ha, the Hou character in the story. It seems there really isn't much else to do in Taiwan but raise a little hell.

This was extremely popular in Taiwan, and internationally helped to break Hou through. It established him as a festival favorite director, and focused a great deal of attention on his future films, most notably City of Sadness.

I personally wanted to get a better prespective of his earlier work, but due to problems in availability, I had to take what I could get. This film is certainly up to his later more readily available films, and it begs the question once again "Why isn't City of Sadness available?"

[arsaib4]

Indeed, "Why isn't City of Sadness available?" Well, technically it is on DVD but without English subtitles.

Good review, by the way. Two films that Hou made between The Time to Live and City of Sadness are also excellent: Dust in the Wind (1986) and Daughter of the Nile (1987). I can't think of another filmmaker who's made as many great films in the past 25 years.

[Chris Knipp]

I've seen a solid block of the NYFF official entries now, though there is another week of press screenings. Peter will set up a special location for it and my capsule reviews will be posted. I'm not much up for talking about Rohmer right now, because I have my hands full seeing two or three films a day -- and you don't have a choice of the times! But they have been good, as I hope you'll see.

[wpqx]

I have that City of Sadness DVD, and that's the only way I saw it, so I still have no idea what the hell the movie is about. It played for one day in Chicago about a year ago, but it was downtown at a bad time, and I couldn't get to see it.

Regarding Rohmer,

I've seen My Night at Maud's, Claire's Knee, Chloe in the Afternoon, A Winter's Tale, and Summer.

Of those I might have found Claire's Knee the most interesting, partially because of the whole pedophelia subtext. I just believe he's a director that I'll appreciate the more films I see from him, but I'm starting to lose patience, usually five films is more than enough to grasp a director. Speaking of which I'm about to have my introduction to Bela Tarr, so we'll see how that goes.

Regarding Hou, I am not too familiar with a lot of his films. He's an avenue I'm quite excited about exploring (along with Peter Greenaway, if I could possibly get a larger contrast). At least these director's are readily available, at least their later films are. Cafe Lumiere I still have heard no news about being released here in Chicago, so keep my fingers crossed. Not to get on a rant, but I also don't see The Weeping Meadow on the upcoming release list for the next month or two, I really hope this film comes around as Angelopoulus is damn close to my favorite director currently making movies.

[arsaib4]

City of Sadness recounts the massacre committed by Chinese troops in 1947, but it's not overtly political, it makes its point by following a single family through the tribulations. I was fortunate to see the film at the Walter Reade a few years ago and I'm dying to see it again. A vhs exists in the U.K. but it's OOP.

I'm looking forward to your take on Tarr. But early Tarr isn't what you might expect based on his recent works.

I'm a bit surprised that you haven't gotten into Hou yet. Trust me, there's much to explore and you won't be disappointed. Café Lumière doesn't have a U.S. distributor. However, a few screenings have been held recently in major cities; not sure about Chicago. The Taiwanese DVD has subs. I want to write about a few of his films starting with his latest.

I'll try to watch The Weeping Meadow next week. Angelopoulos is one of the few filmmakers who deserve to be seen on the big screen. But, as you saw, I posted about the DVD which is available in the U.K.

[wpqx]

Autumn Almanac (1984) - Bela Tarr

Well who wants to see a bunch of miserable people try and make life more miserable for each other? If you answered yes, you have some issues you need to deal with and you should also check out this film. Perhaps because I was just thinking about the film, but this reminds me a little of the tormenting family in Zanussi's Family Life. Whereas in that film people existed for the sole purpose of making their family miserable, this group has some agenda, and of course it involves money.

The whole film is masked in darkness. Tarr tints nearly every image, and most of the picture is shrouded in blue. The takes are moderate, but certainly not the epic shots that earned Tarr his current reputation. The film is heavy on dialogue in parts, and comes off more as a chamber drama than anything else. You could see a film like this working on the stage, and therefore the actors give a theatrical performance to it. The words are spoken with some angst, and nearly everyone is prone to violence.

I was hoping my first Tarr film would be characteristic, hence the reason I avoided the three films already on DVD, but alas I'll have to wait a little longer before I can make him out as a director. I can however assess this particular work as a film in and of itself. It's not the most spectacular of films, and certainly can wear your resistance down (as many gloomy films can), but there is something intriguing in the misery.

[arsaib4]

Abdellatif Kechiche's Games of Love and Chance (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1500) (2005)

Patrice Chéreau's Gabrielle (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12930#post12930) (TIFF)

[arsaib4]

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Doppelgänger (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12976#post12976) (2005)

Im Sang-soo's The President’s Last Bang (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12942#post12942) (TIFF)

[arsaib4]

Béla Tarr's The Prefab People (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13026#post13026) (1982)

Amos Gitaï's Free Zone (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12963#post12963) (TIFF)

[arsaib4]

Turtles Can Fly (Lakposhtha hâm parvaz mikonand) is the third feature film from award-winning filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi. And much like his earlier two films, A Time for Drunken Horses (2000) and Marooned in Iraq (2002), Ghobadi has set it near the Iraqi border. Here, more specifically, it’s Northern Iraq from where the Kurd population spreads out inside the border of Turkey, another country (besides the likes of Iran, Syria, and Armenia -- who also hold Kurd population along their borders), which has failed to acknowledge the region commonly referred to as "Kurdistan." But this film isn’t about borders; it, in fact, transcends any that exist, whether geographical or political, and that’s one of its major triumphs.

Our protagonist is a young 13-year-old boy (Soran Ebrahim) who’s nicknamed "Satellite" due to his ability to install TV satellite dishes. He’s also the leader of a horde of orphan kids living in makeshift refugee camps as they depend on him for various "odd" jobs, including plucking mines from minefields, something that has taken many lives and limbs. Their territory is partly invaded by an armless boy who can see the future (an obvious and rightful attempt by Ghobadi to undermine what villagers got through news channels after upgrading -- the one they flipped on was Fox!), but Satellite eventually tries to befriend him because of his hauntingly beautiful young sister (Avaz Latif) who’s usually seen carrying a child, a relationship that gets defined in a disturbing flashback.

Turtles Can Fly is strikingly shot. The stunningly poetic visuals remind one of mid-period Kiarostami, perhaps not surprising since Ghobadi, a Tehran based Kurd, was an assistant of the master on The Wind Will Carry Us (1999). But Ghobidi’s landscape is almost mythical, perpetually shrouded in fog and mist, a potent metaphor or perhaps a pungent pun. Unfortunately, the film’s narrative also seems lost at times in trying to impede the impending tragedy, which doesn’t hit as hard partially because this isn’t the first film that has dealt with kids in precarious situations. However, it was the first to be shot in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein (a giant arm from one of his numerous statues gets bought by a kid for a few mines!), obviously a time-period which coincided with the arrival of American troops. But Ghobadi seems ambivalent, and rightfully so: the problems of his people didn’t start with Saddam and they’re not going to end with the Americans. And the last thing to do now is to start the blame game because that will only delay the support the Kurds rightfully deserve.


Turtles Can Fly - Grade: B+

_________________________

*The film had its international premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in 2004. IFC Films released it theatrically in the U.S. earlier this year. It is now available on DVD (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000A7LR82.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg).

[Johann]

Vincent and Theo


According to Robert Altman the van Gogh brothers had quite a relationship in the 1800's.

With Tim Roth as Vincent and Paul Rhys as Theo, this film is stately, visually stunning and emotionally gripping.

It was screened at the cinematheque for the "Frames of Mind" series on supposed "mad artists". Loved it.

The costumes and sets seem just about perfect. Altman's locations are evocative and serve their point marvellously.
Vincent pretty much lives in squalor while Theo is more "upper crust". He's an art dealer, and he can't sell his brothers' paintings to save his life.

{van Gogh sold only one of his paintings in his lifetime, and the film opens at the 1988 Christies auction where his canvas "Sunflowers" sold for 40 million pounds}

The contrasts and clashes between between "the Artist" and "the narrow-minded successful brother" is what makes the story so great. And the casting of two FINE actors to play the leads adds mountains to the experience.

This is an Altman film I'd seen on vhs many moons ago but had forgotten how incredibly accurate and engaging this movie is.
The big-screen amplified everything, and the opening credits are among the best in cinema history- it's just paint...

Kudos especially to Tim Roth, an actor that I wouldn't have thought could play Vincent van Gogh.

He sucks the paint from his brushes, he drinks the cleaning water from his canisters, he cuts his ear off, he goes out into the middle of a field...

[JustaFied]

Originally posted by Johann
The contrasts and clashes between between "the Artist" and "the narrow-minded successful brother" is what makes the story so great.

I like your review of this film, Johann, but maybe I didn't see Theo as being quite so "narrow-minded'. Yes, he was more practical than Vincent, whose brilliance lay in his madness. But Theo was also a sympathetic character who, unlike Gauguin, never really wavered in his love and support for Vincent.

I agree that Tim Roth's performance is top-notch, and Altman's "realism" type directing is perfect for the story of this man's life. This ain't no period piece, folks. Fluffy dresses and funny accents aren't gonna tide you over here. Van Gogh was inspired by a woman pissing in a bucket, and Altman's not afraid to show it, and if that makes you quesy than you better not watch this film. But if you're interested in the devolution (or evolution) of a brilliant artist's mind, then this film will certainly hold your interest.

Also recommended for anyone planning a trip to Paris is a visit to the large Van Gogh collection at the Musee D'Orsay. And if you make it to Provence region of southern France, stop by the town of Arles, where Van Gogh descended into madness while producing some of his most famous paintings. Lots of beautiful sunflower fields in the area.

[stevetseitz]

"Flightplan"






Spoilers!


The Jodie Foster vehicle makes good use of her range and abilities as an actress but unfortunately descends into sap and goofiness at the end of the film. A serious Sean Bean is given little to work with as a frustrated captain. The tension is sustained and the feeling of unease is well crafted until the unfortunate third act.

Peter Saarsgard seems to be trying to channel John Malkovich with his sleepy and insincere portrayal of a corrupt air marshall.

Wait for video (if that).

[arsaib4]

As good as Altman's effort is, I think the great French director Maurice Pialat's film simply titled Van Gogh is better. Pialat, as always, also didn't pull any punches showing a burnt-out Vincent nearing the end of his rope. Unfortunately, it's only available here on vhs. Hopefully a DVD will come shortly.


Flightplan seems quite unusual. Although, I do recall the audience laughing at its preview before another screening. It was either gonna be really good or it was gonna suck. Looks like the latter is true.

[Johann]

Haven't seen Pialat's movie. Thanks for the tip.

JustaFied: I agree with everything you said.
The relationship between the 2 brothers is near perfect acting. I'm not taking anything away from Paul Rhys. He was stuffy, but his stuffiness comes from the time and the employment he had.

It's such good acting because this is how people relate to each other. The problems Vincent had with "marketing" his work were very real, and that was the time.

The auction at the beginning is Altman's trump card for driving home the idea (which Antonin Artaud made famous) that van Gogh "was suicided by society".

An Altman masterpiece I would say. See it folks!
There is so much to admire in an Altman film!

[arsaib4]

Jason Reitman's Thank You for Smoking (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12970#post12970) (TIFF)

2005 / 3rd Q Film List (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1519)

[arsaib4]

Jang Jun-hwan's Save the Green Planet! (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13112#post13112) (2005)

Pierre Morel's Banlieue 13 (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=12995#post12995) (TIFF)

[wpqx]

Female (1933) - Michael Curtiz, George Cukor, William Dieterle

Well it took three men to direct a 60 minute movie, although only Curtiz got the credit. The result is a pre-code film that could have been extraordinary, but instead reaffirmed chauvinist attitudes of the day. In other words a women's picture written and produced by men.

Ruth Chatterton plays a corporate boss who is able to command pretty much anything she wants, and as we see she isn't used to not getting what she wants. Her philosophy is to treat men the way they treat women (at least at the time). She invites them to her home, gets them drunk, has sex with them, and then disregards them the next day at the office. Right now you're probably thinking this movie rocks, but it is when she meets George Brent's character that the film turns to shit. Suddenly this cold calculating woman becomes a mere child doing "men" things. All that thinking and hard work, it's too much for her to bear. Let her worry about important things like finding a husband and raising kids. This solution is not a surprise, but it is a letdown. I found it degrading and as a result the whole film suffers. It also is flawed by it's multiple director approach, blatant stock footage, and uneven pacing. My how times have changed though.

Grade D+

[arsaib4]

Ruth Chatterton plays a corporate boss who is able to command pretty much anything she wants, and as we see she isn't used to not getting what she wants. Her philosophy is to treat men the way they treat women (at least at the time).

Ahhh... the good 'ol days. ;)

[wpqx]

Who'll Stop the Rain (1978) - Karel Reisz

Well I thought I was getting a Vietnam movie, and instead I got a disintesting story of a stubborn ex-marine trying to get rid of some heroin. That's the bare bones plot synopsis. The film itself is not that good and suffers from what I believe to be weak characters. Nick Nolte is the one actor in the film that does any acting, and he makes an impression, but the rest of the cast is easily forgettable and fails to make any sort of mark.

[arsaib4]

For a Summer Season which contained films from the likes of Christopher Nolan (Batman Begins), Ridley Scott (Kingdom of Heaven) and Steven Spielberg (War of the Worlds), it would’ve been hard to imagine that a film that would display a few flickers of skill and intelligence would belong to Michael Bay (the key word being "flickers" because ultimately anything and everything gets buried underneath the rubble), but that was just the case. The Island, starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson, a pair of actors who aren’t known for their box-office clout, starts off intriguingly enough. Set in a post-apocalyptic near future, most of the film’s surprisingly leisurely-paced first-half unfolds at a self-contained facility whose identically dressed residents consider themselves survivors, and from time-to-time, one is sent to supposedly the only uncontaminated place left on Earth: "The Island." But Lincoln Six-Echo’s (McGregor) curious nature impels him to question his existence and that of his surroundings. And when his virginal object of affection, Jordan Two-Delta (Johansson), is selected as the next candidate, it prompts him take a bold step. Something that also enables Bay to expertly start blowing up downtown L.A., but not before he gets to support our President’s stance on stem-cell research (in a typical doltish manner, of course), and shamelessly, yet skillfully ape from the likes of Kubrick and Scott (ahhh… the good ol’ days). The lead actors have nothing much to do. Only Steve Buscemi, who plays that one guy who knows everything, seems to be enjoying his big payday. It’s too bad that Bay ultimately decides to back-peddle from all the exquisitely shot mayhem, taking the film where it started, but quite possibly he simply ran out of ammo. The Island is too long and too loud, but it's conscious of itself, and for a summer flick, that’s a good thing.

Grade: C+
_________________________

*THE ISLAND was released in July. It will be available on DVD on Dec 13th.

[wpqx]

In Her Shoes (2005) - Curtis Hanson

Well I've always been a Shirley Maclaine fan, so that was enough to get me to this film. I'm a little amazed that the last four movies I've seen have all been playing at regular mainstream theaters. This film has a tendency to want to get too happy and Hollywood, but it restrains itself slightly, key being slightly. There are good moments, and I found the acting good all around, even Cameron Diaz who is usually completely forgettable does a good job here. I must say Curtis Hanson has earned his reputation as being one of the best actor directors. The man gets great work out of whoever is in his cast no matter how bad of an actor they may be.

Needless to say the film really picks up when Maclaine comes in the picture. Obviously it is the big turning point that sets the story in motion, but she gives the film a new life, and brings about a whole different world. Can't tell if Miami is just that sunnier, or if there was an intentional contrast between Philadelphia and Miami. That said, the scenes back in Philly with Toni Collette eventually got sunnier and brighter to coincide with her emerging happiness. The basic message of the film is that these sisters need each other, but they needed the time apart to get their lives in order. There is also a little case of everyone helping everyone, and of course no one really minds a little attack on the wicked stepmother.

The film did get a little Jewish when Simon showed up, which is to say normal for Hollywood, but the Jewish themed humor was used only once to make a comment about joining "Jews for Jesus". Simon is neither charismatic, or in my opinion a really good catch. He's demanding, he orders for everyone, and he can be a little wimpy. Yet at the same time he seems exactly what is needed, flaws and all.

I enjoyed the film, but I can't see it as a best of the year. Of the three films I got to see theatrically this week, this seems the weakest.

Grade B

[arsaib4]

What were the other 2 films you saw this week besides this and A History of Violence? In Her Shoes had a screening at Toronto but I knew that it was getting a wide-release relatively soon so I passed. It has garnered some good reviews.

[arsaib4]

Hollywood’s decision to make Canada the home of its numerous productions for monetary causes seems fathomable, but apparently the sort of effect that has had on Canadian film board’s own trajectory doesn’t. As Toronto-based critic Liam Lacey recently reported, TeleFilm Canada has now decided to channel its support towards more "commercially viable" projects, and has more or less delivered an ultimatum to the likes of David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan and others to get in line with their new policies or lose funding. (No, it’s not a coincidence that Cronenberg chose to sign on with an American company for A History of Violence (2005), while Egoyan’s decidedly more marketable Where the Truth Lies (2005) is a Canada/U.K. co-production.) Unfortunately, Canadian bureaus want to compete with our films by making films that look like ours, something that has met with disbelief within the film community. A key member of which is Don McKellar, a multi-faceted prodigy who’s been a part of many key projects in recent years. His debut feature as a filmmaker came with Last Night (1998), a brilliantly staged apocalyptic drama I remember much more vividly than War of the Worlds (2005), which I watched just a couple of weeks ago. Anyway, McKellar’s second film, Childstar, comparably seems to be a more commercially calculated effort, and it suffers for being so even though the reasons for that are quite obvious.

McKellar, also an accomplished actor, plays Rick who, quite ironically perhaps, is a struggling filmmaker working part-time as a limo driver. He comes across an arrogant and obnoxious American "childstar" named Taylor Brandon Burns (Mark Rendall), who’s come with his mother (Jennifer Jason Leigh) to Toronto to shoot his latest vehicle. Rick gets involved with Taylor through the mother who herself is a bit lost, yet fails to admit it. McKellar’s initial set-up seems to be a Hollywood satire, but the film is too tame to be taken seriously, and at times it even falls into its own traps. Seeking freedom, Taylor eventually runs off with an aspiring actress/model who also happens to be a hooker (with a heart of gold, of course), and Rick’s job becomes to find the kid which makes him realize the true nature of the people that surround Taylor. Overall, the film is briskly-paced and handsomely-shot, but it doesn’t have an original point-of-view to offer, and perhaps it isn’t much better than these sorts of films that play on kiddie channels. McKellar does provide a bit of dry humor through his performance; although, he would’ve been better off basing the film on Jason Leigh’s character, which was ripe enough to be explored. Childstar has its moments, but they’re too few and far between for it to be considered a success.


Grade: C

[wpqx]

Serenity was the other film I saw in theaters.

On video I just watched The Sand Pebbles (1966). This finally gets me settled on the Oscar nominees from 1966. The next several films I watch will probably all be Oscar related. This film is an out of touch and out of date exotic epic that was already obsolete by 1966. The presence of Steve McQueen makes it worthwhile, but the film is generally just droning. Robert Wise handled the direction about as well as you might expect, which is to say a seemless invisible style. There's nothing I can get out of this film, and like all too many of the films in this category, worth only watching for Oscar-related research.

[wpqx]

A Woman's Face (1938) - Gustav Molander

Early Ingrid Bergman. This film like so many others was given a Hollywood treatment by George Cukor with Joan Crawford. As for the original, Bergman plays a disfigured villian who finds her "true self" once her face is fixed by a wonderfully generous doctor who she intended to rob. Somewhat hokey, but for whatever reason this may cross your plate.

Grade C

[arsaib4]

Jean-Luc Godard's For Ever Mozart (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13168#post13168) (1996)

Wang Xiaoshuai's Shanghai Dreams (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13003#post13003) (TIFF)

[wpqx]

Quo Vadis (1951) - Mervyn LeRoy

Wow talk about a waste of three hours. Here's an overblown, boring, pointless epic featuring tons of mediocre performances and bad messages. Ustinov is irritating and over the top as Nero, Robert Taylor never could act, and even Deborah Kerr can't save this one. Instead it's three hours of "look how dumb the Romans were killing Christians". Jesus I can't believe this shit used to pass for entertainment. Someone should have fed MGM to the lions for making this nonsense. Again this received a boatload of Oscar nominations, as pieces of crap like this often do, thankfully it was denied any major awards. The story has been remade countless times, and I'm yet to see a version that does anything for me. They need to leave Rome alone.

Grade D

[hengcs]

Forgive me, just too lazy to cut and paste everything ...
so here are the links instead ...
;)


From Europe

(1) One Day in Europe (2005) (Germany/Spain)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=198.topic

(2) Aftermath (Lad de små børn) (2004) (Denmark)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=195.topic

(3) From Zero To Ten (Da Zero A Dieci) (2002) (Italy)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=196.topic


From Asia

(4) Everlasting Regret (Chang Hen Ge) (2005) (China/HK)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=183.topic

(5) Shen Hua (The Myth) (2005) (Hong Kong)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=155.topic

(6) Wait 'Til You're Older (Tong Meng Qi Yuan) (2005) (Hong Kong)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=190.topic

[arsaib4]

It looks like you're attending yet another film festival. ;)

[wpqx]

Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004)

Well between this, Saw, and Ladder 49 my options weren't very good. Hoping for some cheap laughs I opted for dodgeball. The result was a film that was just bad. Most half assed comedies can at least keep you laughing even if the humor is low brow. Dodgeball on the other hand delivers nothing more than a few light chuckles. The "I'm in every movie" Ben Stiller is his usual self in this movie, which is to say irritating and pointless. His character is the same one he's played in countless films, and I can't laugh too hard at him shoving a piece of pizza down his pants.

Vince Vaughn plays the "hero" of the story and his group of dodgballers is full of losers that don't exactly exist in any format. I did get a small kick out of seeing Wash from Serenity in here, but even his character was just an irritating pirate, so another point lost. The film was overly simple and extremly predictable, so much so that even the unpredictable moments were predictable. I know I'm sounding scathing, but I can't think of much to salvage this film.

Grade D

[wpqx]

Three Coins in the Fountain (1954)

Again with the Oscar nominees. This one was slightly better than the last few, for one simple reason, length. This picture shouldn't have been epic, and it wasn't. The story is unrealistic as one might expect from Hollywood. Convincing us that the Rome of 1954 is luxurious and romantic rather than a decaying hell hole. There are bound to be good match ups and this one pairs everyone off without much of a hitch, but one would expect there'd be a little conflict of interest. Generally the film has likable moments, what garnered an Oscar nomination when the Rear Window, A Star is Born, Salt of the Earth, and others were snubbed boggles my mind.

Grade C

[trevor826]

Wong gok hak yau (2004 - Hong Kong) One Night in Mongkok

Directed by Tung-Shing Yee

Starring Daniel Wu, Alex Fong, Kar Lok Chin, Cecilia Cheung

The second of six films in the Tartan Asia extreme tour and a damn sight better than the first, R-Point - 2004 .

A turf war between two gangs of youths leads to the death of one of them and escalates into a feud between two of Hong Kong’s biggest gangs. The police seem unable to clarify the truth and identify those involved but get information that a hit man has been hired to take out one of the bosses. Their job is to catch the assassin before he reaches his target and avoid an all out gang war

Sounds like any one of the dime a dozen Hong Kong action flicks, the sort that make you wonder why anyone would visit never mind live in Hong Kong and indeed that’s the impression it gives for the first ten minutes or so. It has all the usual ingredients including the tart with a heart (Cecilia Cheung) but somewhere along the line things change. As with "Infernal Affairs", this raises itself above the quagmire and produces a film with a bit of depth and conscience.

In the average flick of this type life is cheap, the deaths mount up till in the end you think they’re going for the world record, guns are seen everywhere and nobody seems to bat an eyelid even when they start going off. The bad guys and often the police don’t appear to care who gets caught in the crossfire as long as they get their man and more often than not, the police are just as, if not more thuggish and bullying than the bad guys.

In this film, people see someone with a gun and they panic, scream, run or fall to the ground, especially when the gun is fired. Life, even the lowest is respected by most and the police in particular have a conscience and try to capture the bad guys rather than putting bullets through their heads. Small changes, but ones that make big differences to the overall tone of the film.

There is a strange religious mix, the events take place just before Christmas and it’s quite funny when the hit man (who is also on a mission to find out what’s happened to his sister) asks Dan Dan (the tart with a heart) why everyone is dressed up and she says something like “ I don’t know, think it’s the birthday of that Jesus guy.”

I went to see it expecting the worst and have to admit I was impressed with it, the one problem I did have was with Cecilia Cheung’s character, she didn’t quite gel in her role as a working girl and (this maybe down to the subtitling) she had a horrible habit of saying “my dear” at the end of almost every sentence (a little too Nancy - the original "Tart with a heart" from Charles Dickens Oliver Twist!)

The camerawork was good, the acting overall very credible and the plotline although hardly original was above average for its genre, above all the films got soul.

Recommended, above average crime drama and one I'd probably buy on dvd.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated 15

[arsaib4]

Sounds good. I read in an Asian online journal that One Night in Mongkok is quite possibly the best HK crime-drama since Infernal Affairs, so it must be something; the film was also compared favorably to Johnnie To's PTU.

[wpqx]

Well saw a few today. Watched a rather long cut of John Wayne's the Alamo (1960), then wandered in and out of Forbidden Planet (1956), Swing Time (1936), and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954). I'm not going to get into any of these films, because none are the last film I've seen, and that goes to Richard Elfman's Forbidden Zone (1982), a deliberate cult movie if ever there was one.

The film is absolutely horrible, but in the best way imaginable. I honestly think it cost more to record the soundtrack (which is amazing btw) than it did to shoot the movie. Richard's brother Danny was responsible for the music and he also makes an appearance playing the devil, and he does it with a great deal of charisma. Another Elfman appears as Frenchy Hercules, part of a comically miscast family full of dysfunction.

So if you want animation, blackface, musical numbers, a topless princess, a midget king, and lots of other absurdities, this film is for you. Cult movies can be a lot of fun, and this film is. I challenge anyone to watch this film and not laugh at least once. Granted you'll probably laugh at it rather than with it, but that's ok. The film is so bad you can't even make fun of it. Fantastic stuff, and thanks to Fantoma, it's now available in an extremely well put together DVD.

[wpqx]

Vengence is Mine (1979) - Shohei Immamura

Like Oshima, Immamura has made a boatload of films that are rather hard to come across. Also like Oshima, I can't tell if there is a particular style of the director. But regardless of auteur status, the man made some good movies, and this is certainly one of them. The story is told in interesting fashion, jumping around a bit temporally. But it is the protaganist that makes the film interesting. How someone can be so indifferent to his own death boggles my mind, but that's just the character. There's no reason for his killing, but alas there's no reason for his living either.

Definitely looking forward to seeing more of his films.

[arsaib4]

"Buy 6, get 1 for free." That’s what a Ukrainian army general informs Yuri Orlov (Nicolas Cage) while referring to Soviet tanks after the end of cold war in Lord of War, a convoluted satire about the illegal international gunrunning operations. To its credit, the film’s opening and ending sequences are quite effective, but for much of its over-long running time, it relies a little too heavily on tawdry one-liners, which is surprising considering that it appears to have a socio-political agenda and is allegedly "based on true events" (we know to be careful when that appears in our multiplexes). Orlov, a Ukrainian émigré, is the "lord of war" as an arms-dealer without scruples, and he narrates his ups-and-downs that also involve his parents, his brother (Jared Leto), and a model wife (Bridget Moynahan). He got involved in this trade on a low-level in the early 80’s New York, but later discovered a gold mine in his homeland after the fall of Soviet Union. We follow Orlov from Ukraine to Columbia to Afghanistan, but the film mostly settles him in Liberia (thankfully a real African country even though that’s where a few clichés rear their ugly heads). On his trail is an Interpol agent (Ethan Hawke) and he faces competition from another dealer (Ian Holm), but that usually doesn’t stop Orlov from doing what he does best. Lord of War is written and directed by Andrew Niccol (Gattaca [1997] / S1m0ne [2002]), a talented filmmaker who, despite concocting interesting premises for his films, hasn’t quite been able to finish the jobs. Here, the screenplay carelessly throws out dates and events which seem just as imposterous as the name of the ship on which the arms were aboard, and the constant attempts to detail Orlov’s personal life end up being futile. However, the film boasts excellent cinematography (Amir M. Mokri) and production-design (Jean-Vincent Puzos). And while at times it ends up glorifying the man whose occupation it tries to condemn, the Lord ultimately fires a bullet which isn’t supposed to hurt, but for some reason it does.

Grade: C+
________________________

*LORD OF WAR is currently in theaters. It is scheduled to appear on DVD in January.

[arsaib4]

David Cronenberg's A History of Violence (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13202#post13202) (2005)

Hou Hsiao-hsien's Three Times (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13014#post13014) (TIFF)

[trevor826]

Vital (2004)

Directed by Shinya Tsukamoto

Starring Tadanobu Asano, Nami Tsukamoto, Kazuyoshi Kushida

Film No4 in Tartan's Asia extreme tour 2005.

Hiroshi Takagi (Tadanobu Asano) wakes up in hospital after a car crash, his memory is gone but his parents take him home and hope for the best. Finding his old medical books he decides to enrol as a medical student, (his father is a doctor). During the training he has to do dissect a corpse which is unusual in that it is a young woman, suddenly memories come flooding back to him, but are they just memories?

Sounds macabre, depressing or gross but provided you can let yourself flow with it, it’s quite beautiful. Hiroshi slips from the present to the past and often into a higher plane of consciousness!

Tadanobu breezes through his role and just manages to keep his character interesting, Kazuyoshi Kushida excels as the father of Hiroshi’s ex girlfriend. The directing and editing are superb (as I’d expect) and Nami Tsukamoto (any relation?) is beautiful and I assume from her performance, a trained dancer.

The film asks many questions such as: How do we define love? What is waiting for us when we die? What is reality? And as one of the doctors asks, “Where is the soul?”

Provided you can just absorb it, you will find plenty to appreciate in this “strangely poetic love story” from Tsukamoto. I've often noticed a similarity between the work of Tsukamoto and Cronenberg, one line in this film feels like a definite reference to Cronenberg's Crash!

I loved it but have no doubt that it will not appeal to a great many people which is a shame.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated 15.

[arsaib4]

I'd like to see Vital but I can't find another version of its Japanese DVD, which ranges anywhere from $40 - $70.

It looks like the best option would be the Tartan U.K. disc which will be out in the first week of December.

Any other upcoming Asian releases from Tartan that seem interesting?

[hengcs]

Recently ...

Kebab Connection (2005) (Germany)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=208.topic

Shade of Happiness (Onnen Varjot) (2005) (Finland)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=207.topic

Election (Hei She Hui) (2005) (Hong Kong)
http://p219.ezboard.com/fforeignfilmsfrm18.showMessage?topicID=210.topic

;)

[arsaib4]

Alan Clarke's Made in Britain (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13241#post13241) (1982)

Pornchai Hongrattanaporn's Bangkok Loco (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13051#post13051) (TIFF)

[arsaib4]

It’s not surprising to learn that Roads to Koktebel, the debut feature of two young Russian filmmakers, Boris Khlebnikov and Alexei Popogrebsky, has played at numerous film festivals around the world since its premiere a couple of year ago, winning many awards during its run. While the film isn’t remarkable in any way, its straight-forward, understated approach is quite appealing. But I’m sure a few people have overstated their case after discovering some correlation between the bleak landscapes found in Roads to Koktebel and the ones omnipresent in the works of Tarkovsky and Sokurov.

The film deals with a father (Igor Csernyevics) and his precocious 11-year-old son (Gleb Puskepalis) trying to reach a town called Koktebel, which is in Crimea near the Black sea. We gradually discover that they’ve started from Moscow on foot because of necessity, and need to see the boy’s aunt once they reach their destination. Along the way, they come across individuals usually found in movie road trips: a good-hearted station master, a duplicitous old man, a lonely nurse etc. But interestingly enough, the father, who initially came across as a responsible individual, slowly succumbs to booze (his possible problem before the trip started), and gets smitten with a woman, forcing the boy to make his own decisions.

Along with being a well-acted and beautifully shot effort, Roads to Koktebel is also expertly crafted and sustained tonally, something not usually seen in debut features. There isn’t much dialogue; most of the action is interpreted from gestures and expressions. A couple of characters early on in the film could’ve been employed more meaningfully, including a teenage girl, however, the filmmakers do spend as much time as possible with their protagonists, allowing us to grasp their developing relationship. The metaphysical contortions in the narrative are extraneous, but the film makes up for them during the final sequence which is fierce and brazenly alive.

Grade: B

_________________________

*ROADS TO KOKTEBEL was released on DVD in August by Film Movement (http://www.filmmovement.com/Default.aspx).

[wpqx]

Adoption (1975) - Marta Meszaros

Rather simple in it's construction. Adoption is an intamte chamber drama much in the vein of Autumn Sonata or even Saraband from Bergman. The story focuses on two principle females. An older widow, and a young girl from adopted parents. The two bond, and in the process each help to free each other of the obstacles in their way. Rather than the frequent use of deep focus photography, this film has a blurry visual style. The camera gets so close on occasion, that it's almost impossible for things to be in focus. As usual for films of the country and time, the pace is slow and contemplative.

[trevor826]

Novo (2002)

Directed by Jean-Pierre Limosin

Starring Eduardo Noriega (The Devil's Backbone), Anna Mouglalis (Merci pour le chocolat), Paz Vega (Sex and Lucia)

Graham (Eduardo Noriega) has a slight memory problem, within 10 minutes he’s forgotten everything so he’s forever scribbling notes to remember names, places, just about everything. A temp Irene, (Anna Mouglalis) becomes attracted to him and his somewhat innocent idiosyncrasies and they end up together with her forever writing little notes just so he remembers who she is, (one of the reasons she enjoys their relationship so much is that everytime they make love it’s like the first time).

A man who regularly reports on his activities is also following Graham; it’s only after a while we find out that before the start of his memory loss he was his best friend. There’s also a young boy who regularly appears; again it’s a good while before we know whom he and the mysterious woman (Paz Vega) who pops up now and again are and how they are connected with Graham.

A twisted chain of events slowly reveal the truth about Graham and his memory problems until for some unclear reason his memory returns and the story is wrapped up quite nicely, or is it?

This uses a similar idea to “Memento” but without the reverse plot. It seems (and the dvd extras only add proof to this) that the sole reason is to make a slightly twisted romantic drama with nudity in abundance (especially Eduardo Noriega and Anna Mouglalis), fairly smart and erotic, a little too glossy maybe (the cast are certainly more attractive than the average Joe), entertaining but not groundbreaking.

An ideal movie for a relaxing night, but definitely only for adults.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated 18

Region 2 Pal dvd available from Tartan Video.

[trevor826]

arsaib4 - Any other upcoming Asian releases from Tartan that seem interesting?

Tartan don’t appear to be up to much over the coming months apart from Vital, the other films on the Asia extreme tour and a few oldies.

They are releasing a series under the J-Horror banner but the 2 announced sound distinctly average:

Infection 2004 Masayuki Ochiai
Premonition 2004 Norio Tsuruta

Apart from those the only other film I could find was “A Bittersweet Life” 2005 Ji-woon Kim, hopefully a little more interesting.

What I’d like to know is why there are no releases of films by directors like Kiyoshi Kurosawa, after all the USA branch has Doppelganger on its schedule.

Cheers Trev.

[arsaib4]

A Bittersweet Life played at Cannes earlier this year. Looks like a typical K-thriller, but people seem to like it.

Yeah, I'm also a bit surprised by the lack of K. Kurosawa in the U.K., especially since you guys have so many Asian labels. Almost all of his recent work is available on DVD here. Bright Future and Doppelganger are quite good. Pulse is releasing theatrically next month, I think.

[arsaib4]

Wang Xiaoshuai's Drifters (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13264#post13264) (2005)

Abel Ferrara's Mary (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13096#post13096) (TIFF)

[trevor826]

Sei Mong se Jun (2004) Ab-normal Beauty

Film Five (and the last for me) on the Tartan Asia extreme tour 2005.

Directed by Oxide Pang Chun

Starring Race Wong, Rosanne Wong, Anson Leung (One Night in Mongkok)

The Pang brothers are known for their flash and panache with their film directing and editing, they have also created a couple of really good films, “Bangkok Dangerous” and “The Eye”. Unfortunately their visual flair is often more impressive than the films they create, “The Eye 2” and others, for once the styling works perfectly for the subject matter.

Jiney is an art student, a decent painter but an excellent photographer. She often attains the highest scores but is unhappy with her work until one day she takes photos at a car crash, she is sickened, repulsed but also fascinated, when she sees the results of her work she feels that at last she has found something to satisfy and stimulate her.

She starts taking more pictures at the moment of death, whether people or animals and becomes more than a little obsessed. All the time she’s doing this she’s being stalked by a male admirer from her class, despite the fact that she has told him she’s a lesbian he continuously follows and films her. Her lover, Jas becomes distraught with Jiney’s obsessive behaviour and does her best to get her away from the subject of death.

For a while it works, Jiney appears to have realised how sick it was but she suddenly receives a video tape with what she assumes (and hopes) is a fake snuff movie. The video contains extremely violent scenes culminating in the death of the girl but both Jiney and Jas are convinced it’s just a fake that’s been made by Jiney’s stalker. It’s only when Jiney finds another snuff video outside her home that she takes it seriously, but what can or will she do?

As I said earlier, the main build up is ideal for the Pang’s filming and editing techniques, as the main subject is art and photography. Everything runs along very well, the idea is interesting and the characters believable but………..

Yes unfortunately once again there has to be a but! Once the snuff tape is received, the film changes tack and loses everything it’s carefully built up. You can maybe excuse the first one (although it is pretty gruesome) but when the second one appears, it’s just so bloody obvious where the film is going and you’ll be able to work out the rest of the story in about 5 seconds.

Why, why, why, why, why. What the hell were they thinking, the only thing I’ll say is that it turns from a well developed character study to a more gruesome and even more predictable version of “Saw “. What the f*%k happened? If this was a Hollywood film I wouldn’t have been surprised but!

Anyway you get the point, with “Audition” it works because it’s constantly building towards it but it does not work in this film, it’s as though they couldn’t decide where to take it so just decided to make it as brutal but predictable as possible, in my eyes it’s a film with a lot of promise but ultimately a failure, I’m sure it’ll do really well in the US and UK.

Another little problem but this is nothing really, the two main characters, Jiney and Jas (the lesbian lovers) are real life sisters, although there are no scenes of a sexual nature it is a little odd.

Cheers Trev.

BBFC rated 18.

[wpqx]

The Island (1961) - Kaneto Shindo

A unique Japanese art film. One with no dialogue, and looking as well as feeling very much like a Flaherty film. Same harsh surroundings, the naturalistic lifestyle, the quiet surroundings, and of course a little drama to throw in there.

[arsaib4]

Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13278#post13278) (2005)

From various directors: All Souls (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13191#post13191) (TIFF)

[wpqx]

The Hidden Half (2001) - Tahmineh Milani

Well I began to wonder if I had peaked in Iranian film. All too often the films are merely stories of the poor and unfortunate, depressing tales of hardship and adversity. I was yet to see an Iranian film that showed anyone with a slight degree of wealth or even one that showed Iranian's as somewhat comparable to western citizens. That changed with The Hidden Half, a distinctly feminist film that shows an Iran not torn assunder by poverty and famine, but by ideology.

This is a daring film, one that makes political references rarely if ever shown in a film FROM Iran. It takes place during the cultural revolution of the late seventies and early eighties, and it shows women not just as capable of being independant thinkers, but even more so than men. It is comparable to the political films of Godard (minus the overt artiness) and socially consious American movies of the sixties. Because of that I believe the film works, but more than those films this happens to show the aftermath of ideology. It shows what happens when the idealism dies, and how it happens. This is the most important aspect of the film imo. All too often in those films of the time we see the idealist uncompromising, but we realize from history that those revolutionaries don't last.

The life of the film is from director Tahmineh Milani, who was arrested during the making of the film. True to the nature of the story, her crime was punishable by death. Luckily due to her popularity she was released and the film was able to be made. Like many Iranian films though, this seemed to find its audience outside of Iran. Like Milani's previous film Two Women, this stars Niki Karimi, who may very well be the most beautiful Iranian woman I've ever seen. There isn't a great deal of makeup here, and 17 years past, the characters basically look the same. I think it's more thematic than anything. Hard to show how ideas can't change, so instead lets show how people don't change. Sure there is a transition, but it is the essential person that remains the same. Karimi's Fereshteh (same name from Two Women) was made by her ideology. The person she is deep down inside was formed at this crucial time when she was still 19, even if her beliefs have remained internal.

I'd say The Hidden Half is a remarkable film. Sure there is something of a love story, that can offer melodrama, but for once I'd rather see romance be melodramatic than people starving and being exploited as so many Iranian films do. To me, this film represents a potential turning point for Iranian film, just as Rosellini's Voyage in Italy did for Italian film. The story of the poor and underprivalleged can only go so far, a different aspect of society needs to be examined in a national cinema, and with this film perhaps we can start to see a more idea driven Iranian film, rather than one so painfully immitating the Neorealist movement.

Grade A

[arsaib4]

As one of the final releases from the Miramax which belonged to the Weinsteins, The Brothers Grimm unfortunately has to bear the scars caused by them in an outwardly fashion: The film was not only delayed on a few occasions, but along the way, it had a new cinematographer and a lead actress, both personally chosen by the moguls. Director Terry Gilliam (Brazil [1985] / Twelve Monkeys [1995]) has certainly had his battles along the way with numerous studios, so perhaps this was nothing new -- at least this time he was able to finish the film unlike a few years back when his production of "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote" had to be shutdown (remember the excellent 2002 doc Lost in La Mancha?).

The Brothers Grimm is a solid, if a more commercially calculated, effort from Gilliam starring Heath Ledger and Matt Damon as the titular brothers who, in circa 1796, travel from town-to-town duping poor German peasants into believing that they’re what protects them from mystical and demonic creatures. A local general of the Napoleon army (Jonathan Pryce) becomes aware of their shenanigans, and as punishment sends them along with his maniacal Italian officer (Peter Stormare) to a village in order to solve the mystery of a few young girls who’ve been reported missing.

If that sounds a bit too grim, then fear not. For the most part, the film is a Monty Python-esque adventure -- meaning it’s inventive, extravagant, and silly, all at once. And, of course, what makes it stand out is Gilliam’s visual prowess, even though the look at times is less enchanting than disorienting. The screenplay by the ubiquitous Ehren Kruger features some clever folklore gags, but it spends too much time with the Grimms’ love interest (Lena Headey) and not enough with their ultimate enemy, an evil queen seeking eternal beauty (the ravishingly bewitching Monica Bellucci). Both Pryce and Stormare are seemingly aware of the fact that they’re in a Terry Gilliam film, and so they act accordingly; Ledger is fine with his Brando-esque mumbling (in some Australian/British accent), but he required more support from Damon, who’s upstaged by his hairdo.

Grade: B-

______________________

*THE BROTHERS GRIMM will be available on DVD on Dec 20th.

[wpqx]

Come Back Little Sheba (1952) - Delbert Mann

Wow what were they thinking? How many times have you asked yourself that watching an Oscar favorite? Well it happens a lot with me, and this was the film that brought Shirley Booth (a somewhat known stage New York stage actress) her one and only Oscar for best actress. Booth is absolutely terrible here. Her character is irritating from the first few minutes and it doesn't let up. Someting is indeed disturbing about a wife referring to her husband as "daddy" and same goes for a husband calling his wife "mommy" I mean that's enough to make you shiver.

Burt Lancaster is rarely ever bad, and I think he does just fine here, in a rather quiet performance. Booth on the other hand just gets melodramatic, so by the time she finally has a chance to do some "acting" we've pretty much lost interest in the story. The plot is slow and almost completely uneventful. I thought my girlfriend occasionally asks questions that she shouldn't but Booth's character takes that to a new extreme. Which leads me to believe that she just might be retarded, but I haven't done enough research into the source material and I'm not going to.

There are some young characters and they help to motivate the story slightly, but as supporting parts they just can't work. Booth's role was originally offered to Bette Davis, and perhaps she could have handled this better. It's a shame too, because well we all know what I think about 1952, but I really don't think the year was fantastic for actresses. If you're wondering just who I would have given the trophy to, I'd vote for Maureen O'Hara for The Quiet Man, now that was a strong female role.

Grade D +

[Chris Knipp]

Come Back Little Sheeba. This was a stage play and Shirley Booth I believe was the star in it. Things that work well in theater often don't play so good onscreen. The current Proof is an example. Come Back Little Sheeba was also presented as a radio play. It was irressistible but a corny tear-jerker nonetheless.

[arsaib4]

Wow what were they thinking? How many times have you asked yourself that watching an Oscar favorite?

:) Great opening!

Did you know that Booth also won awards at Cannes and New York? Heck, it almost makes me wanna watch this to figure out what the hell you're talking about here, even though you're usually on the mark.

_________________________

Alan Clarke's The Firm (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13292#post13292) (1989)

Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne's L'Enfant (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13309#post13309) (TIFF)

[Chris Knipp]

Shirley Booth was considered a powerful stage actress in her day.

[wpqx]

Doesn't detract from the fact that she's irritating in that film, and didn't deserve the Oscar.

[Chris Knipp]

I wouldn't doubt it. I never saw the film, I only heard the radio play. It was corny but a successful tearjerker. The point is that tastes change. She probably was't irritating to people then. But I don't know how the movie was received by critics or the public, do you?

[wpqx]

It was pretty well liked at the time, although not exactly praised as a film. After all great films like Ivanhoe got best picture nominations that year.

The Weeping Meadow was the last film I saw, and it's in the Favorite Films section, so see that.

[Chris Knipp]

I guess as usual you can figure out something about Academy politics from this.

[arsaib4]

Who inherits the guilt in the case of death penalty? That’s the question posed and rather obliquely addressed by Shadow Kill (Nizhalkkuthu), the latest film from Indian New Cinema pioneer Adoor Gopalakrishnan. Set in colonial India in the early-1940’s, the film examines the guilt-ridden life of a state-appointed hangman named Kaliyappan (Oduvil Unnikrishnan). While he works for the state of Travancore, he’s assigned to live outside its boundaries since the officials aren’t comfortable with him being around people he might have to hang one day. So, Kaliyappan and his family -- a wife, a pubescent daughter, a Gandhian, freedom fighter son -- reside in a small rural village whose inhabitants ironically believe that the ash from his rope contains healing powers. The beautifully paced and consistently engrossing first half, which promises more than what the film ultimately ends up delivering, features Kaliyappan in a state of despair due to his belief that the last man he hanged was innocent, and he’s taken to drinking to ease the pain. His son may not want to continue in his father’s footsteps, but he doesn’t get a say when a sick Kaliyappan is called in to perform an execution and he’s asked to accompany him. At this juncture, Gopalakrishnan veers to overlap his narrative threads that may or may not meet at the ends as Kaliyappan’s daughter and her sexuality become the focal point after a state official starts to tell a story about a young girl who was raped and murdered. The second half’s melodious images also undermine and distill some of the complexities the film established earlier on. However, Shadow Kill, which is possibly a minor work in the director’s much celebrated oeuvre, still has resonance because Gopalakrishnan with his trademark subtlety points toward pertinent issues surrounding the death penalty.

Grade: B
__________________________

*The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2002.

*SHADOW KILL was part of the GFI (Global Film Initiative): "A New York-based, nonprofit foundation working with leading American cultural institutions to promote cross-cultural understanding through cinema. Each year, The Initiative acquires ten narrative films from the developing world that tour the country for one year." GFI's partner First Run Features recently established a Global Lens Series, allowing them to release the features on DVD.

*A DVD (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000AM4POK.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg) is now available.

[Chris Knipp]

Seen in Rome:

Benigni's new one
Oliver Twist (English soundtrack, no subtitles)
Romanzo criminale/Criminal Romance (Michele Placido)

Last seen in New York:

New York Doll (documentary)
Late Chrysanthemums (Naruse retrospective, Film Forum)
Three Extremes (Chan, Park, Miike)
Jarhead (Mendes)

When I was leaving Jarhead, the theater was gearing up for the premiere of the new Pride and Prejudice film. I caught a glimpse of Donald Sutherland, who plays Mr Bennett. But I guess tonight he was playing himself.

[arsaib4]

I've seen a few Naruse films so far in Toronto (his retrospective is taking place over there also). Will see Oliver Twist tomorrow. What did you think?

Not sure if Jarhead has anything new to offer. Same for Three Extremes, although I believe Chris Doyle has shot one of the segments.

[arsaib4]

Alan Clarke's Elephant (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13390#post13390) (1989)

Anders Thomas Jensen's Adam's Æbler (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13329#post13329) (TIFF)

[stevetseitz]

Comments:

Some images and scenes are breathtakingly beautiful.

Most of the voiceover work is campy, silly, and just plain juvenile.

There is no grace or fluidity to the narrative like there was in "Star Wars" and "The Empire Strikes Back"

The lack of logic and planning by the Jedi make them seem more like smugglers in the vein of Han Solo rather than zen sci-fi samurai.

Comments towards the end of the film annoy:

"Only the Sith deal in absolutes"? Isn't that, in itself, an "absolute" statement?

Let's imagine the Jedi in a slightly different way:

They are a mysterious, exclusive and elitist society that meddles in all aspects of society: a sort of a intergalactic Klu Klux Klan. Let's look at this phrase one more time:

"Only (insert derogatory racial epithet here) deal in absolutes."

Ewan McGregor and Natalie Portman lend real class to the film.

George Lucas muddled story is matched only by his muddled understanding of government and politics.

The script spends far too much time in exposition:

Weird Jedi guy: "What about the droid attack on the Wookies?"

Mace Windu: "It is critical we send an attack group there immediately."

Obi Wan: "He's right. It's a system we cannot afford to lose."

Yoda: "Go I will. Good relations with the Wookies I have."

Mace Windu: "It's settled then. Yoda will take a battalion of clones to reinforce the Wookies on Kashyyyk."

OK. WE GET IT! No need to repeat the point five times.

It's as if they are desperate to make it realistic that Yoda would be off Coruscant and "out of the way" so all the other plot lines can converge. Yoda's (and Obi-Wan's) mission gives them an "out" implying that Anakin would never have been turned to the Dark side had Yoda or Anakin been there.

Does anyone else feel as if these Jedi have been clueless and sitting around in councils while the galaxy falls apart around their ears?

[Chris Knipp]

I was a bit disappointed by the Naruse Late Chrysanthemums. I was expecting Mizoguchi or Ozu and this wasn't up to that level.

I hope other people will see Three Extremes if it's being distributed now so we can get reactions, and I might write a review.

I'm also looking forward to writing a review of Bellocchio's Buongiorno, notte/Good Morning, Night, which seems to be getting limited distribution, starting in NYC; I have a DVD of it and have watched it a number of times this year.

Forgot to mention that I also saw North Country. I don't think it's got a very good screenplay, but the material is important, Theron's acting is commited and believable, and I was stunned by the material -- till the Hollywood ending and skimpy followup.

Jarhead may or may not be a well made war film. I'm not sure Mendes et al. knew what they were doing. But for me this film has a profound meaning. I do not agree with the critics who said it falls apart toward the end or that there's no sense of structure. I plan to write a review.

Oliver Twist is involving and vivid, well worth seeing. I was especially impressed by how brilliantly Ben Kingsley disappeared into the role of Fagin and kept the performance from seeming caracatured or cliched -- despite Dicken's extreme conception of the character in the first place. But the story is very familiar -- Imdb lists twenty versions -- and I should think David Lean's 1948 version will remain the classic cinematic version, unchallenged by this one. One of the reasons Polanski's doesn't challenge it is his cast hasn't the same depth.

[arsaib4]

"Workmanlike" is the word that comes to mind while thinking of Oliver Twist. I was quite impressed with its faithfulness to the source material. Ben Kingsley was wonderful as always. Production/costume design deserve nominations at the end of the year. The young boy was also quite good. Perhaps the film never quite comes to "life," but I'm not sure if Polanski really wanted that to happen.

[trevor826]

I hope other people will see Three Extremes if it's being distributed now so we can get reactions, and I might write a review.

I've had the dvd for quite a while now and I know wpqx has seen it as well, we differ on our preference for each of the episodes and I'd certainly like to hear your opinion Chris.

Cheers Trev.

P.S Also thought Buongiorno, notte/Good Morning, Night was an excellent film.

[Chris Knipp]

I think I do remember your alluding to Buongiorno notte but the title of Three Extremes slipped by me till I saw it showing at the Quad Cinema, though a friend has reminded me it was showing at this year's San Francisco Film Festival. I will put my thoughts on it down shortly, still regrouping after my long trip.

[arsaib4]

The fact that Après Vous ("After You"), a slight yet sweet-natured French rom-com, has done quite well at the U.S. box-office (about $1m, the benchmark for most foreign films) shouldn’t be surprising because European releases featuring pleasant, sitcom-ish characters/situations tend to "click" with the audiences here -- and I’m sure everywhere else too, for that matter. Ideally, of course, one would prefer more challenging fare to succeed. But on the other hand, it would also be a bit futile to damn a film for its fame, especially one like this which is aware of its limitations, and thus doesn’t attempt to insult anyone’s intelligence. In Après Vous, French star Daniel Auteuil plays Antoine, a selfless maitre d' at an upscale Parisian brasserie. One night after work, while scampering to meet his girlfriend (Marilyne Canto) for dinner, he ends up saving a man from committing suicide in a local park. Antoine’s monotonous life takes a dramatic turn with this act. First, much to the chagrin of his girlfriend, Antoine more or less ends up adopting Louis (José Garcia), the physical and emotional wreck he saved. And then after discovering Louis’ love (Sandrine Kiberlain), the cause of his problems, he ends up falling for her himself. Director Pierre Salvadori approaches this trivial premise as realistically as possible, a mistake because the film could’ve benefited from some inspired silliness. That’s not to say that it doesn’t have its share of droll moments. It certainly does, but with heavily reliance on narrative contrivances. What makes Après Vous agreeable, however, is the work of its cast. The ubiquitous Auteuil (about 20 films in the last 5 years -- perhaps following Depardieu’s footsteps) is in form after duds like Petites Coupures (2003) and Rencontre avec le dragon (2003). Garcia and Kiberlain are also quite effective.

Grade: C+
______________________

*APRES VOUS is now available on DVD.

[Chris Knipp]

Have not seen in spite of my desire to see lots of French films--due to reports of mediocrity. So your grade sounds right from what I've heard. Should I see it, and if so, why?

[arsaib4]

That’s a tough one, actually. I’d say that you’ll like the performances (like I did), and the fact that it’s pretty easygoing. Basically, if you’re looking for a film to simply enjoy without much effort, then go for it. (Après Vous is certainly superior to Ozon's 5x2, which I saw last week.)

You mentioned in an e-mail that overall the French selections weren't as good this year in Paris. What were some of the better ones, though?

[Chris Knipp]

Thanks for reminding me to do this, arsaib. I can't say anything unique to French release was outstanding, but here is all that I saw. Paris is a wonderful movie city, but you can't expect great stuff to be opening every week. The trouble is there were few surprises and few standouts other than Caché (which I could have seen at the NYFF but just missed). I admit to finding Les poupées russes very enjoyable. Klapish is an inventive entertainer and he started with a good given context. I didn't get excited by anything otherwise; but look, in my month on the East Coast before this, I saw forty movies.....and some of them were great....so it really didn't matter. There are other things to do in Paris. I could have seen Café Lumière at a special one-time MK2 showing, as I mentioned before, and I'm sorry I forgot to show up for it that morning.

Last year I saw more films in slightly less time and they seemed more interesting. Maybe it was because that was in September and this was October. Due to my departure date this year I just missed the opening of Woody Allen's Match Point, a shame because it sounds promising and I'd have scooped you guys, since it doesn't open here till Christmas Day.

The French language films I saw in Paris this time were:

Klapisch , Les poupées russes (12 June release, but still showing)
Sequel to L'Auberge espagnole, popular, with the same actors and others, near the end of its French run. Enjoyable, though not as unified as the first one. Kevin Bishop (William) is featured, a good idea because he was one of the most interesting characters in L'Auberge.

Alain Cavalaier, Le Filmeur (21 September release)
Idiosyncratic "no-budget" self-portrait shot over an 11-year period by the cultish 74-year-old director, shown at Cannes. An admiring description appeared in Variety (http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117927087?categoryid=1929&cs=1&s=h&p=0) . I found the narration hard to follow at times and would like to see this again with subtitles.

Richard Dembo, La maison de Nina (12 October release)
WWII story about a French haven for young Jewish refugees, starring Agnès Jaoui. Average in quality I think, this is a bustling \ little footnote to the many chronicles about Jews protected during and after the Holocaust. Malle's Au revoir les enfants is more focused and emotionally powerful.

Stéphane Brizé, Je ne suis pas là pour être aimé (12 October release)
A bittersweet, rather downbeat romantic comedy in which the star, Patrick Chesnais, is very appealing as the depressed bailiff who finds romance and a love of tango at the same time.

Michael Haneke, Caché (5 October release)
You know about that one!

Other films I saw in Paris:

Shane Black, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (14 September release?)
Spoofy-noir with Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer, this has done pretty well in US reviews, released a bit later here I think. I was too jetlagged to appreciate it; the French subtitles distracted me. Really it seemed too frivolous and pleased with itself, but there are those who will love it.

Eric Khoo, Be With Me (12 October release), Singapoorean film with multiple plots, this has been discussed on FilmWurld, mostly shown only in festivals. I didn't altogether buy or like this, but the director showed some assurance.

Wim Wenders, Don't Come Knocking (12 October release) Though it's fun to watch Sam Shepherd and Jessica Lange and some of the visuals of the West are handsome, this is a bit slim, not Wenders' best. The young Gabriel Mann was strong, if a bit over the top, as the pair's forgotten son, now a singer. I don't think this is coming here till March 2006; I don't think it's going to do very well.

[Chris Knipp]

Ducastel/Martineau, Cote D'Azur/Crustacés et coquillages
Lexi Alexander, Green Street Hooligans
Michael Almareyda, William Eggleston in the Real World
Gaël Morel, Three Dancing Slaves
Sam Wood, Beyond the Rocks
Marcos Siega, Pretty Persuasion
Deborah Koons, The Future of Food
Mike Mills, Thumbsucker
Lionel Baier, Garçon Stupide
Shinya Tsukamoto, Haze
William Cameron Menzies, The Green Cockatoo
John Madden, Proof
Puiu, The Death of Mr. Lazarescu
Stephen Soderbergh, Bubble
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardennes, L'Enfant
Hany Abu-Assad, Paradise Now
George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck
Dorota Kedzierzawska, I Am
Michel Negroponte , Methodonia
Bennett Miller, Capote
Noah Baumbach, The Squid and the Whale
Pierre Garrel, Regular Lovers/Les amants reguliers
David Cronenberg, A History of Violence
Mitsuo Yanagimachi, Who's Camus Anyway?
Bohdan Sláma, Something Like Happiness
Hong Sang-soo, Tale of Cinema
Lars von Trier, Mandarlay
Through the Forest/A travers la forêt
Paula Heil Fisher, Finding Eleazor
Park Chan-wook, Lady Vengeance
Hou Hsiau Hsien, Three Times
Neil Jordan, Breakfast on Pluto
Im Sangsoo, The President's Last Bang
Michaelangelo Antonioni, The Passenger/Professione: Reporter
Tennyson Bardwell, Dorian Blues
Aleksandr Sokurov, The Sun
Patrice Chéreau, Gabrielle

I also re-saw:

Jim Jarmusch, Broken Flowers
Jacques Audiard, The Beat That My Heart Skipped/De battre mon cœur s'est arrêté

[arsaib4]

Wow! Thanks for the lists.

Les poupées russes. This was a big hit during the Summer. It comes out on DVD next month, so I'll give it a try.

Caché. I passed on it in Toronto knowing that it's getting distributed. If it turns out to be anywhere close to Code Unknown, The Piano Teacher, and Time of the Wolf, then Haneke deserves consideration as the best filmmaker in Europe today. (A friend of mine has it on DVD and I must say that I've been tempted.)

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Probably the most hyped film in Toronto. Haven't seen it yet. It's said to be a subversive version of Shane Black's previous endeavors. I thought this might be something you'll like.


*I guess most of the films on the list are NYFF selections. It's funny that I also re-watched Broken Flowers (for free). Can't say that I liked it any more or less than the first time around.

Any comments on Haze and Three Dancing Slaves?

[Chris Knipp]

Do see Les poupées russes; it's fun. As I said, I was too jetlagged to appreciate Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; in an alert state I might like it. A friend of mine said they would like anything with Val Kilmer as a gay detective. Robert Downey Jr. goes at it with his usual enthusiasm, and he provides a glibness to his role that I guess is what's wanted. It just tired me out.

I definitely think Caché is up to the other work, and yes, Haneke is possibly the most important director working in Europe, at least of his generation.

Eleven on that list were not part of the NYFF which, remember, was only 25 official selections, plus one or two special showings I caught. I loathed the tasteless and unfunny Pretty Persuasion, was underwhelmed by the somewhat original but uneven Garcon Stupide, I found The Future of Food very worthwhile, I really liked Thumbsucker, was disappointed in the filmed play Proof, enjoyed Cote D'Azur but don't think it's memorable, got a kick out of Charlie Hunnam paired with Elijah Wood in Green Street Hooligans (if you like gangfighting it's your thing, and Charlie rules in the movie); Dorian Blues is forgettable gay coming-of-age stuff...Broken Flowers dragged a bit the second time but I still love parts of it, and The Beat That My Heart Skippedis a movie I will never get tired of watching--it may be the best French film of the year (not counting Haneke as French), the second half of the year, anyway.

Haze: didn't really grab me, it's so claustrophobic that you can't really see anything, and that doesn't work very well, but it's interesting that Tsukamoto is the creator of Tetsuo/The Iron Man (1988), which is one of the most amazing hallucinatory sci-fi films I have ever seen. If you haven't seen it find it and watch it.

Morel's 3 Dancing Slaves/Le Clan is full of gratuitous homoeroticism. I thought it a bad sign that it was coauthored by Christophe Honoré who made the terrible Ma mère released earlier this year. Le Clan is moody, meandering, and not very believable, but it has gay audience appeal for sure. As Dennis Lim wrote in the Voice, "Like so many films that target a gay male audience, Three Dancing Slaves transpires in an abstract parallel universe where half the population has mysteriously disappeared and the other half works out a lot and often goes unclothed." Right. The guys are built, hot, and often unclothed.

I forgot to mention seeing Late Chrysanthemums in the Film Forum Naruse festival. It was instructive but I wasn't very moved by it. I was looking for Ozu or Mizoguchi--they all seem to have films with "chrysanthemums" in the titles. But I think I spotted Armond White in the back taking notes, and that was cool; I admire him for contradicting all the other critics, even though he's a bit nuts.

[Johann]

The Devil's Rejects



Woo-eee what a movie.
Saw it 2 nights ago at my buddy Brent's.

It kicked ass.
A neo-horror film that pulls absolutely NO punches.

Several times Brent and I looked at each other, big shit-eating grins on our faces: "What the fuck is this?!?!"


Blood, gore?
A little.

Sex, violence?
A wee bit.

Dark subject matter?
A tad.

Killer soundrack and awesome shots (some are "frozen" for major cinematic effect), The ZOMBIE has really arrived.

The movie is a quasi-sequel to his well-received House of 1000 Corpses apparently, and I give it a HUGE "thumbs up".

sample line:

A "Reject" is owly in "the motel room", says (paraphrasing):

"The next thing you say had better be some Mark Twain shit, 'cuz it's gonna be on your tombstone."

[wpqx]

Friday night, I too watched the Devil's Rejects. I hadn't seen House of a Thousand Corpses, due to across the board bad reviews (except for one friend who's opinion doesn't count). This film certainly stands on it's own, and I wasn't even remotely lost watching it, even without the backstory.

I do think Zombie is coming into his own as a director. He's a fan of the wipe, which is not a very common scene transition, and never really was aside from some Kurosawa. The freeze frames work to a point, but after awhile they should have been done away with.

The film has it's humor, and that's to be appreciated. There are also a host of cameos most of which I couldn't really recognize, let's just say PJ Soles really let herself go. I still would have appreciated a nice surreal animated sequence, but I guess I'll just watch his part of Beavis and Butthead Do America for that.

In the comfort of my own home I finally finished Ken Burns Baseball (1994), all 18 hours of peole reminiscing on America's pasttime. The film was thoroughly fascinating, and makes me long for sping and another fresh season of baseball, especially considering the White Sox are actually defending champions for the first time in several lifetimes. I'll admit plenty was left out, and I got the feeling that Burns wasn't much of a Chicago fan. He described at great length the failures of the Boston Red Sox, but the Cubs have choked just as admirably, and the team wasn't even mentioned after the 1932 World Series when Ruth apparently called his home run.

The film is a must for any baseball fan, and I think like his Civil War doc, that it'll carry interest to the casual admirer and even someone who could care less about the game. Granted I think the more you're into baseball the better the film will probably be.

In theaters, I saw Derailed , and it was lousy. No chemistry, weak story, and no interest whatsoever. The best part of the film was RZA, but even he was really supporting, so I would definitely not recommend the film. Clive Owen has no business as a romantic lead, he seems way too self absorbed for me. He worked in Closer, but that's because he was self absorbed in that. Jennifer Anniston did well for Jennifer Anniston, but she lacked any seductiveness that could have made her roll work.

[arsaib4]

Thanks again, Chris. I enjoyed your brief and to-the-point comments.

It's disappointing to hear that Morel's succumbed to "gratuitous homoeroticism" because I'm a fan of a couple of his films. Can't say that too many non-NYFF selections excite me other than the ones I already mentioned.

Johann never fails to amaze me with his posts. I wish I could write like him.

[Chris Knipp]

It's true. Johann has the flow of passion in him, and his English doesn't falter.

True, there aren't too many non-NYFF films I saw that stood out. But thosewere really full of depth. Sokurov's The Sun will always haunt me.

I've seen so many films this year, I don't know if I can keep track of them. I have to go over my log of what I've seen to sort out which ones really matter.

Others I liked a lot or that seemed important:

2046
Last Days
L'Enfant
Bubble
The Death of Mr. Lazarescu
The Beat My Heart Skipped
Caché
Grizzly Man
Good Night, and Good Luck
Lords of Dogtown
Mysterious Skin
Mondovino
Nobody Knows
Thumbsucker
The Passenger (best revival)

I saw Jarhead, and last night I saw The Weather Man. Both are better than they say, and I want to write reviews of them to explain why.

There are many in the B+ range, but it's hard to see which are really A's or A-'s.

[arsaib4]

The Sun still doesn't have a U.S. distributor. Hopefully that'll change.

I don't like L'Enfant, Nobody Knows, The Beat That My Heart Skipped, and Grizzly Man as much as you do, but I guess they're important in their own ways. 2046 is good, but certainly not as accomplished as WKW's other efforts (still have to cover this one). I saw The Passenger last week; it's a masterpiece at any length. We agreed on Lords of Dogtown, which was surprisingly effective. Will watch Mysterious Skin, Last Days and Mondovino soon.

I'd be interested in your reviews of Jarhead and Weather Man. I've read some encouraging comments on the latter.

[Chris Knipp]

Coming.

Jarhead (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1565)

The Weather Man (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1566)

[Chris Knipp]

The small Italian film series called N.I.C.E. (http://www.sffs.org/pt/articles/new_italian_05.html) is on this week in San Francisco. I plan on seeing a few of the showings. I think it will be presented in New York at Quad Cinema.

[arsaib4]

We have the annual Spanish Cinema Now (http://www.filmlinc.com/wrt/showing/spanish05.htm) series at the Walter Reade from Dec 8th. A few interesting selections to say the least. Film Comment Selects is also coming up shortly.

[Chris Knipp]

Netflix over the weekend:

Water Falls on Burning Rocks/Gouttes d'eau sur pierres brûlantes François Ozon. 2000. Brilliantly done, a blend of Fassbinder and Ozon. A bit odd, French people with German names talking about being in German places. The more I see of Ozon the more I see his neatness and skill -- but also his superficiality and lack of progression. There is little depth to this, which would work better as a play, and might have been done with more complexity by Pinter. The actors are great, especially the two men. Delicious--but brittle.

Et Dieu....créa la femme/And God Created Woman Roger Vadim. 1955. This made a strong impression on me when I saw as a teenager on my first trip to Europe -- the scene where a man pushes aside a sheet hanging out to dry and reveals Brigitte Bardot lying on the grass nude was a stunner in those days. Times change and what I enjoyed on this viewing was the abstract widescreen framings. The restored print in the Criterion DVD has all the original's terrific color and light. Fifties cinematographers at times played with composition using widescreen much as noir ones did with angle and light earlier. There aren't many closeups. The shots are often panoramic and offbeat, with a large object in the middle, separating two figures. It's not true that the movie is about nothing; it's simply that the story of the three brothers competing for the wild girl (Bardot) is wasted and lost in the meandering editing of a director more interested in Bardot mamboing or nude than in plot. I would compare this with Vadim's No Sun in Venice/Sait-on jamais, made two years later, again with Curt Jurgens as an urbane bad guy and Marie Laforet as the babe this time, and, a really pointless plot but wonderfully moody settings enhanced by the Modern Jazz Quartet's nifty, atmospheric score, and visually atmospheric elegant widescreen compositions. I saw that one back then too, but it isn't on DVD or tape, though you can get the timeless soundtrack on CD.

Crimson Rivers/Les Rivières pourpres Matthieu Kassovitz. 2000. With Vincent Cassell and Jean Reno as warring, then partnering, investigators in a police procedural about a Nazi-inspired community and grisly serial killings in the French Alps. This is presumably American-influenced (though based on a French novel) but however hokey the mystery is, sometimes the French do things better, avoiding over-obvious exposition or excessive cop sequences and crafting mutilated corpses Hollywood could drool over. The two actors play off each other well and Nadia Farès makes a sexy villainess. Special effects are good and the actors do most of their own physical stuff; Cassell broke his nose in a capoeira fight sequence. The DVD comes with an informative and down-to-earth commentary by the director and the two actors. Done before Gothika, and way better, this is a well-crafted entertainment; still, what has happened to the promise of social significance Kassovitz offered in La Haine?

[arsaib4]

Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13459#post13459) (2005)

Atom Egoyan's Where the Truth Lies (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13404#post13404) (TIFF/2005)

[Johann]

Thanks for the words of encouragement Arsaib & Chris!

I try.


The "making of" Devil's Rejects is incredible.
Film school? It's right here baby.

I have great respect now for Rob Zombie.
Watch the making of- he's very efficient and a pretty cool guy.

I assume everyone caught the references to 2001: A Space Odyssey in Burton's Chocolate Factory?

[trevor826]

I remember seeing "Somersault" really early this year, excellent performance from Abbie Cornish and quite a unique feel to the film. I've been too busy to catch it on DVD but it's one of those films that I want to see again simply because it is such an individual piece of work. The best Australian film I can remember for quite a while.

Cheers Trev.

[Johann]

The Ice Harvest


Excellent holiday entertainment.


I could fit in with the characters of this Harold Ramis "orderve" easily.

John Cusack robs his boss of 2 mil, and Billy Bob Thornton is his co-conspirator.

Things go really, really bad.
It's based on the book "The Ice Harvest", which is supposed to be awesome.

If the movie is any indication, it is.

This was an advance screening (it opens next week) and they gave away prize packs with Sling Blade DVD's and the book in them.

Nuditah, violence (Billy Bob pulls a Jack Nicholson with a golf club in a hilarious scene), it's one of the strangest Christmas movies you'll ever see. (It would be a good double feature with Zwigoff's
Bad Santa).

Some great plot twists and unexpected scenes made for a really enjoyable night out.

[wpqx]

Reincarnation of Golden Lotus (1989) - Clara Law

Well hard to believe there is a look and feel to such a remote genre, but this definitely feels and looks like a Hong Kong film from the late 80's. The music has that synthesized hybrid of Easternized Western music, the colors aren't sharp, and even the editing has a pace that makes it work on a John Woo level.

This was the first feature from Clara Law, and by most accounts it is her best work. The film certainly has promise. It begins with the dead Lotus about to be reincarnated, all she has to do is drink three cups of tea to erase her past, but she only drinks two, determined to go back and get revenge. She is warned that it will ruin her life, and well let's just say that's pretty obvious foreboding.

The story takes us to modern Chinese history, first in the sixties where Lotus is an orphaned child ballerina, and then her eventual exile, finall winding up in present (or at least present at the time the film was made) Hong Kong. There is certainly a contrast from the China of the beginning to the later Hong Kong. Everyone appears to be mindless slaves in China, and the ideology is shown as extreme, so not surprising the film wasn't produced there. According to the legend, Lotus was known as the "slut of all time" and her original story took place in the 10th Century. Law periodically cuts back and forth to reveal the life previously lived.

In all a pretty good film, things seem to get a little more hectic and confusing at the end, but over all I think it's a pretty compact film. It could have been longer to perhaps flesh out the different affairs carried out, but that might have made for a completely different film.

Grade B+

[Chris Knipp]

Claude Chabrol, La demoiselle d'honneur (2004) dvd (non-US).

This came out in Paris exactly one year ago yesterday. Laura Smet, the daughter of Johnny Halliday, and Benoît Magimel, star, with Aurore Clément and Bernard le Coq. Impeccable. A sexy mismatched couple. The ending is like The Cement Garden, the cops are just arriving at the door. Adapted from a novel by Ruth Rendell, whose La Céremonie Chabrol adapted ten years ago. An English writer, spiritual sister of Patricia Highsmith. For me not much not to like here. The first of the DVD's I just got in France.

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by trevor826
I remember seeing "Somersault" really early this year, excellent performance from Abbie Cornish and quite a unique feel to the film. I've been too busy to catch it on DVD but it's one of those films that I want to see again simply because it is such an individual piece of work. The best Australian film I can remember for quite a while.



An individual piece of work, indeed. (I had a feeling that you knew about it.) Lynch should get a hold of Cornish for Mulholland Drive 2. ;)

______

The Ice Harvest looks interesting.

Btw, check out Romero's Land of the Dead. Political fodder abound!

[wpqx]

Honestly I can't recommend Land of the Dead. Romero is capable of much better.

Lacombe Lucien (1974) - Louis Malle
Part of Malle's unofficial autobiographical WWII trilogy. This one tells the supposedly true story of Lucien, a country boy in Vichy France who finds himself more than willing to work with the enemy. Lucien is a rotten character, and it takes nearly the entire movie before we can even remotely identify with him. He's not the likeable sort of anti-hero we could secretly cheer, no he's a degenerate, and a horrible person.

From the first scene in the movie we see him take out a slingshot and randomly kill a bird. Not a great first impression. This brings up my first question to Malle, why all the cruelty towards animals. Sure Lucien is the worst of the bunch, but every animal dies in here, it's pointless and wrong. In fact much of the film is pointless, but the fact that Lucien is a cruel soulless bastard could have easily been established with that first gratutuitous animal slaying, no need to add chickens, rabbits, and other animals to the list. This is a rare film where animal deaths far outweigh human deaths. Although Malle seems to have a hard on for showing animals get killed on camera, he keeps nearly all of the human deaths off camera, only once do we see someone get shot, the rest of the film's characters get killed off camera. I find this necessary to point out, because few if any reviews will mention the fact that animal cruelty runs rampant here, and this type of thing should be warned about.

The film itself is about a sense of conformity. Lucien can't join the resistance because of his age, but winds up working easily for the German Police, even though his father is a prisoner in a German camp. He seems to have one motto "I don't like being talked down to". That and self preservation. Like any young adult, he's sick of being treated like a kid, so he'll join up with whoever will respect him as an adult. The nazis give him some power, which Lucien has no problem abusing at any time. However we can't help but hope that he'll wake up. This kid needs to snap out of it and take a stand, do something. We get a chance to see him make some sort of retalliation, but it doesn't really help, the damage has been done. Perhaps he has saved one or two people, but it doesn't quite make up for the countless he's either killed, or helped to get killed throughout the picture.

The film was received horribly in France, where most people had illusions of the French being brave during the occupation. Malle was there, and he's telling his own story, one that says that they weren't all agreeable. This may have been easier to swallow after Ophul's Sorrow and the Pity, which makes a very strong case of the French collaborating during WWII. One of the things Malle does that is effective, is that although he shows people working alongside their enemy, he lets them get some dirty words in when the doors are closed. Sure there are plenty of French helping out the German Police, but all of them resent it. They know and hope that the Americans will soon liberate them, even if their own future is in jeapordy for collaboration.

The main plot point is Lucien's love of France (Aurore Clement) yes that's a characters name. I find the name mroe than ironic as was most likely the point. Lucien doesn't love his country, but he loves France through this girl, and eventually does right by her. His love seems completely passionless, and he bullies his way into their home. It isn't until far into the end that you get a sense for the first time that they may actually feel anything for each other. Pierre Blaise plays Lucien so dryly that we don't get the feeling he has any emotion for anything. He's a cruel SOB, and he seems incapable of any positive emotion. He can be jealous, he can be greedy, he can be manipulative, but he can't seem to care. The whole love story seemed forced, and seemed to be used to motivate the plot, I found Blaise unconvincing, and the whole thing was durragatory.

Due to the reception it got, Malle had to make his exit for America shortly after, where he embarked on a string of interesting pictures, that I for one think are his best. Malle made Black Rain shortly after, a very experimental and poorly received film, before making his exit, where he stayed away for a full decade. He never really stopped being controversial though, and Pretty Baby wound up getting him in the hottest water of his career, but a fascinating film nonetheless. Lacombe Lucien isn't a particularly bad film, but I can't jump up and down and say it's a masterpiece either. It was shown as part of Facet's Louis Malle Retrospective. It's the only film I've managed to catch so far, unfortunately I missed The Silent World last week, which believe me I wanted to see arguably more than any film, certainly more than any Malle film. I will of course keep you all posted if I can catch any more.

Grade B

[Chris Knipp]

Thanks for this excellent discussion with details about Malle I didn't know about him and this film which is hard to see except at special screenings--I missed one at the Pacific Film Archive this summer. I don't like everything he did -- of what I've seen, which isn't all, maybe only half -- but I certainly love Pretty Baby and Atlantic City, I find Au revoir les enfants very moving (it's been copied recently in several French war films), and Vanya is a success. I find My Dinner with Andre incredibly boring. I'd like to see Les amants again, it made a big impression once but I bet it's dated now. Elevator to the Gallows was recently revived, and I think Le feu follet is worth seeing. Any comments on any of these? Aurore Clément at 60 is still busy working, one of those Parisian ladies whose figure never stops looking perfect and elegant, and I saw her yesterday in Le demoiselle d'honneur by Chabrol.

[Chris Knipp]

Lukas Moodysson's Lilja 4-Ever (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/newreply.php?s=&action=newreply&postid=13537)

[Chris Knipp]

Bob Swaim's La Balance 1982. DVD from Netflix.

A longtime resident in France, Swaim (with an M) was an American. I didn't like this film which turned me off right at the beginning with its flashy but uninteresting opening sequence of whores and street people with loud music. Swaim had researched "special brigade" Paris police for months, supposedly putting his life in danger, yet he manages to make the main cops in the film look as slimy as the bad guys in Diva -- a dumb move. Somebody said Swaim was a follower of Friedkin rather than Melville/Mann. Others say he really didn't follow anybody. This would be a virtue only if he had his own style, but I can't detect much of one. There is as much of late Melville as there is of American TV cop shows. I don't like the bright lighting, which makes the Belleville scenes look like stage sets, even though they're authentic.

That there is an illegal romance between a pimp (Philippe Léotard) and his stylish whore (Nathalie Baye) and they're both under pressure to be police informers as a result is a situation Melville could have made something good out of I'm sure, but Swaim just turns it all into brightly lit sleaze.

A police sting operation that goes wrong and turns into a traffic jam and massacre of civilians is one more thing that makes the cops -- who seem worse than the hoods -- look bad, but it provides the film's only excitement. I also liked a brief interrogation in a pinball gallery before that: there should have been more interesting, intense use of locations like that. Many times the locations seem wasted and the physical business overblown and inefficient. Just consider what Melville does with a big dirty empty bedroom in the opening of Le Samourai! In the final shootout, cops keep exposing themselves to fire in an empty building. They don't seem to have watched enough Miami Vice episodes. It's a bit hard to see how this got the César for best film in 1982 when Catherine Deneuve was president of the jury. I guess it was a bad year.

It's not that there haven't been any good French "polars noirs" since Jean-Pierre Melville or that there weren't any in the Eighties, because there have been and there were, but this just isn't one of them. It's competent but that ain't enough.

[wpqx]

Agreed about My Dinner With Andre, I too found it a little overrated and the conversation got old before too long.

I missed most of the showings, but perhaps I can catch one this weekend, having some time off for Thanksgiving.

The last film I watched was Flowers of Shanghai (1998), which gets my vote as Hou's best film, really remarkable. Anyways back to Harry Potter, because if I'm seeing the Goblet of Fire this weekend, I should finish Prisoner of Azkaban.

[Chris Knipp]

Domino -- I hadn't heard of it and now I see why. I'm beginning to lose the faith I had in Manohla Dargis when she was at the LA Times and when she began at the NYTimes with an admiring review of Mann's Collateral, which I happened to like a lot.

Glad I'm not alone in this good company on Dinner with Andre.

[arsaib4]

Originally posted by Chris Knipp
Bob Swaim's La Balance 1982.

I haven't seen this one due to the negative reviews. I think it became popular at the time it came out (the reason for the awards, perhaps). Tavernier made a couple of policiers a few years back that were pretty raw and socially conscious. They weren't "sexy," though. Pialat's Police is great, but it's not on DVD.

I think Dargis is still trying to adjust into her new role. La Weekly perhaps best suited her eccentric personality, and here she has more responsibility. So it's good to see her going out on a limb. And she has Ebert for company who usually doesn't prefer amoral fare.

[Chris Knipp]

arsaib -- Good comments. I was thinking of Pialat's Police, which I watched on VHS, too. It really puts La Balance to shame. It feels much more authentic, as I remember, and deals with racism issues more realistically. It also has a dark noir flavor, but updated for the times. The New Yorker video is hard to come by. Somebody on IMDb mentions finding it for $3.50 in their supermarket but online they're selling it used for $42 up.

I'll give Manohla a few more chances, but I think she's lost much of her flavor since she left the LA Times.

[arsaib4]

Gregg Araki's Mysterious Skin (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=13573#post13573) (2005)

Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Pulse (http://www.filmwurld.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1572) (2005)

[arsaib4]

In an interview with the BBC about Wheel of Time (Rad der Zeit), a fascinating, if slightly unfocused, documentary about the Buddhist Kalachakra initiation of 2002, German filmmaker Werner Herzog stated that "I was not attracted to make a film about Buddhism. I was rather reluctant to step in because I have very little knowledge of Buddhist philosophy." On one hand, that works in the doc’s favor because Herzog isn’t able to bog it down with unfamiliar theological musings, but on the other hand, since he’s not in the "inquisitory" mode, at times he doesn’t seem to have anything particular in mind at all. The title refers to the central metaphoric symbol in a sand mandala which attracts countless faithful to Bodh Gaya, India, the site where Buddha found enlightenment himself. After presenting a few festivities taking place before Dalai Lama’s arrival, Herzog, not surprisingly, discovers and skillfully captures the harsh terrain surrounding the sacred Mount Kailash which has to be overcome by many pilgrims, some of whom pray every step of the way (we find out that it took one more than 3 years to reach the site). The filmmaker’s brief narration is adequate, but not particularly insightful; however, his studious images make up for his lacks. Wheel of Time ultimately moves to Graz, Austria, the first western country to host the Kalachakra event. There, Herzog interviews a Tibetan monk who was imprisoned by the Chinese authorities for 37 years. An important topic for sure, but again, it doesn’t quite fit here just like many of the other pieces. Dalai Lama also speaks with the filmmaker and, as always, he’s a pleasure to listen to.

Grade: B-
________________________

*WHEEL OF TIME premiered in 2003. It received a few screenings in the U.S. earlier this years thanks to Werner Herzog Films. The film is now available on DVD (http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B000AQ68Y6.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg) from Wellspring.

[Chris Knipp]

Denis Dercourt, Mes enfants ne sont pas comme les autres (2003)/(My Chirldren Are Not Like the Others).
A film about young musicians and a parent who oppresses them. Things relax at the end, but despite the director and children being real musicians, the style is so austere as to be hollow. With Richard Berry as the severe parent, Malik Zidi as a boyfriend, and Mathieu Amalric as in Rois et reine/Kings and Queene (Dupleschin), kooky but simpatico.

French DVD, subtitles in French only.

[arsaib4]

Haven't heard anything about Mes enfants ne sont pas comme les autres. Good cast, though.

"...the style is so austere as to be hollow."

Would you mind expanding on that a bit?

[Chris Knipp]

The main cast is Berry and two newcomers, a boy of 11 Frédéric Roullier and a girl of 20 Elodie Peudepièce who were cast because they are actual talented classical musicians. Zidi and Amalric and Maurice Garrel have secondary parts. I found Berry just too unappealing and inexpressive. The kids too are inexpressive, though Peudepièce has several touching moments.

It's just a very cold and unappealing film. At the end, the father bends a little. He smiles once or twice. The interiors are big and cold. Everything has a grayness about it. Remember Sautet's wonderful, cumulatively powerful Un coeur en hiver? Of course you do. Everybody does. Despite the coldness of the Auteuil character's heart, there is a warmth about the film visuals and sound. Here, it's all cold. The screenplay/director don't want to show us anything. Not very winning. You have to be a bit masochistic to like this film. That's what I mean by "hollow."

[Chris Knipp]

The Nest/Nid de guêpes (Florent Emilio Siri 2002), French, Netflix DVD

This year we got French director Jean-François Richet's literal remake of Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13. This one, in French, straight to DVD in the US, which has a good cast with the tough/sexy Nadia Farès (of Crimson Rivers), Samy Naceri, and Sami Bouajila (Drôle de Félix), and including the surprise casting of Benoît Magimel and Pascal Greggory, copies the situation of Assault without the police station:: "good guys" and "bad guys" are both under siege by unknown evil assailants in a vacant warehouse. Appealing "bad guy" crooks have nabbed a large cache of new laptops. A special police unit takes refuge there too holding a Mafioso kingpin who traffics in women, when his gangster allies have attacked the police cortège on the way to trial. Despite its slick look, emphasis on teamwork in the action rather than heroics, and certain admirable restraints -- notably realistic, non-pumped-up bullet sounds -- Nid offers little that is new. But despite that and though it's arguably more preposterous in details I found it more enjoyable than Richet's remake. I liked the nifty visual sequences, which avoid dialogue even for necessary exposition. And though laconic, still it is in French, and that's why I rented it -- and won't hurry to watch Siri's new one, Hostage, starring Bruce Willis talking 'Murcan.

[arsaib4]

A remarkably sensitive, consistently engrossing, and ultimately moving tale of a family facing an emotional and spiritual crisis, Bee Season is the third and best film so far from director-duo Scott McGehee and David Siegel (Suture [1993], The Deep End [2001]). Adapted from a 2001 Myla Goldberg novel of the same name, Bee Season exquisitely charts the individualistic struggles of a foursome who are gradually fading away from each other.

Richard Gere plays Saul, a Jewish professor of religious studies, who’s the subtly overbearing patriarch of the said family. His wife Miriam (Juliette Binoche) feels suffocated by his presence, and along with attempting to come in terms with her enigmatic past, she starts to wither away in mind and body. Their two children -- teenaged son Aaron (Max Minghella) and 11-year-old daughter Eliza (Flora Cross), our precocious guide -- become aware of the widening gulf between them. Aaron, who already resents his mother, starts to undermine his father as he begins to neglect him in order to tutor Eliza for the National Spelling Bee championships after discovering her uncanny ability. Perhaps to make up for his own failures, Saul institutes his fascination with Kabbalah, the ancient practice of Jewish mysticism, in the lessons to which Eliza ultimately responds to.

One could imagine how difficult it would’ve been to adapt a novel which devotes ample time to each of its fascinating characters, but working with screenwriter Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, the filmmakers have molded and grasped its essence to the best of their abilities, while losing very little. Bee Season achieves visual and aural elegance due to DP Giles Nuttgens’ glassy compositions and Ben Barker’s intricate sound design. But the most important contributions to this nuanced study are its performers: Gere is intensely physical; Binoche channels a bit of her best from Kieslowski’s Blue (1993); Minghella is acutely sensitive; and Cross, whose bottomless blue eyes and a heightened worldview reminds one of María Alche, the other "holy girl," is brilliant as she takes charge and brings the film to its emotionally earnest conclusion. A demanding, yet highly rewarding experience, Bee Season is one of the best American films of 2005.


Grade: A-
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*BEE SEASON is playing in select cities.