Idle Thoughts

I don't understand the lack of love for David Slade's "30 Days of Night". I raved about it during an earlier post and on a second viewing this week, my appreciation only grew. Instead of trying to be a full-screen version of a graphic novel (think "Sin City"), "30 Days of Night" fully places itself in the cinematic realm as a movie based on a graphic novel, sparing us the cartoonish after-effects of previous attempts at this conversion from page to screen. Simply put, while the images in the film are clearly inspired from it's 4x4 framed origins on paper, director Slade transforms them into wholly cinematic terms. Think of the beautifully composed overhead pan down the city street that documents the carnage below with a coolly detached mood. Or the image of the creatures standing against a backdrop of rising flames in the snowy street towards the 'rock star' finale as described by actor Josh Hartnett on the commentary. I'm sure these images fit perfectly in a graphic novel form, but they look even better on screen. And, as stated before, these are some of the most visually impressive and terrifying embodiments of a vampire ever put on screen, complete with demonic voices that eek out language that sounds like a record playing in reverse. I love this movie.

I didn't exactly love Michel Gondry's "Be Kind Rewind", one of the worst experiences I've had in a movie theater this early season. While Gondry certainly makes movies with imaginative 'young kid gusto', this one searches for tone and mood early and never finds a rhythm. I'm not sure exactly what the hell was going on the first 45 minutes of this film. Was it slapstick (based on the magnetism of Jack Black sticking to everything metal), was it social drama (with Danny Glover making some weird secret cross-neighborhood odyssey to study a competition DVD rental store).. and what the hell is Mia Farrow doing as an old woman renting VHS movies, seemingly the most culturally alienated urban woman in the universe? None of it made any sense. When the "sweded movies" come into play, the laugh factor and visual inventiveness picks up considerably, but "Be Kind Rewind" plays like a film drastically out of touch with modern audiences. Pretty painful stuff.

Trailers I Love

Here's hoping one of my very favorite writer-directors turns in another early spring surprise with this one. I believe "The Spanish Prisoner", "Heist" and "Spartan" all received March/April releases and went onto rank in my favs of the year. This one looks to be just as good, full of razor sharp Mamet-speak and double crossings.

Regional Review: Room

Director Kyle Henry's debut fiction film, "Room", inspires comparison to the weird vibes present in a lot of David Lynch's dreamy narratives. And while Henry's film leaves just as much to be desired in way of commercial closure as Lynch's trips down nightmare alleys, the overall effect isn't quite as effective. Almost though... and that's a pretty good compliment.

Julia (Cindi Williams) is not your typical movie star. Middle aged, out of shape and average lower middle class, she makes ends meets by working nights in a bingo hall. She has two girls and a loving husband and a scrapped-together existence in Houston. Inexplicably, images start to imprint themselves in her head when she sleeps, eventually overtaking her emotions, causing random black outs. The visions, shown in saturated video clips which include a drone buzzing sound, reveal an unidentifed room. Unable to function and driven by the images, Julia robs her bingo hall and hops the first flight to New York. Once Henry's film globe-trots out of the muggy Houston atmosphere, the mood becomes strange and elliptical, neutralizing spoken dialogue for long stretches as Julia wanders New York City hoping she can find the room. Williams gives a believable performance, transitioning quietly from a subservient mom to obsessed seeker. And director Henry is clearly more interested in the evolution of this single character rather than servicing a story with logical resolution. Not only does Julia leave her suburban Texas life behind, but she initiates a one-night stand with a man in a bar (wearing a cowboy hat and calling himself Big Tex, naturally) and, in the movie's most vivid moment, seeks the advice of a fortune teller. It's a compelling scene that most closely resembles the cryptic impulses of Lynch.

Running only 70 minutes, University of Texas graduate Kyle Henry seems to be struggling with developing from short films and documentaries to feature length efforts, but "Room" showcases a distinct eye and ear for avant garde filmmaking nonetheless. "Room" was nominated at the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards for its John Cassavettes award. Henry's other cinematic passion is editing, and the subliminal cuts to Julia's disturbing images prove a deft touch in image and juxtaposition. The latent feel and expertise is there, now I'm wondering what Henry can do with a fully formed script. Produced by Michael Stipe and Jim McKay, "Room" benefits from their production company, C-Hundred Film Corp which seems to be a mainstay for true independent filmmaking. Not only have they produced a majority of McKay's own films (including "Our Song") but the films of Christopher Munch ("The Hours and the Times" and the hugely underrated "Sleepy Time Gal"). It's encouraging to see a company with disciplined attention on films that could fall through the cracks. "Room" certainly qualifies as one of those films, saved from extinction and breathing life into a burgeoning filmmaker. I look forward to what Henry does next.

This Is Not A Test...

"The Signal" is a convincing, low budget vision of our world in complete moral and social collapse. Earning raves at last year's South By Southwest Film Festival, it's bleak, thrillingly original.. and even darkly funny. Filmed in High-def by three separate directors, "The Signal" plays out in chapters (or "transmissions") following the same set of people caught up in, basically, the end of the world. Imagine the brilliant opening of Danny Boyle's "28 Days Later" magnified over 90 minutes, and that begins to give you a hint of the grim eeriness "The Signal" achieves. Even though each director- David Bruckner, Dan Bush and Jacob Gentry- participated in the overall story and screenplay, they each take the same story in wildly different directions, ranging from satire to the gravely serious. The sum doesn't quite equal to its parts and that just barely keeps it from becoming a truly great and horrifying apocalypse flick.

We're introduced to Mya (Aneesa Ramsey), post coitus, with her adulterous partner, Ben (Justin Welborne) in Terminus City (points off for film school obviousness here) on New Year's Eve. She slinks out of the apartment when the TV set suddenly turns itself on and gives us a Grateful Dead-like explosion of colors and static. Ben turns it off and goes back to bed, unable to talk Mya into running away with him. Mya returns home to her husband, Lewis (A.J. Bowen) who's entertaining friends. The TV set in the background is producing the same white noise. After a brief squabble, Lewis takes a baseball bat and bludgeons his friend to death. Mya runs into the apartment hallway and the apocalypse is certainly underway as bodies are strung about the hallway. People begin to randomly turn into homicidal maniacs as every bit of technology (TV, phone, car radio) emits the same incessant buzz. Eventually able to flee into her car, "transmission 1" ends with Mya crashing her car and hoping to walk to "terminal 13" at the local airport, which stands as the veritable Eden in this vision of hell. "Transmission 2" abruptly shifts gears as it follows Clark (Scott Poythress) as he watches Mya walk away from her vehicle. He seeks shelter with Anna (Cheri Christian), a housewife whose just killed her husband as they prepare for a new year's eve party. Overshadowing the previous mayhem, this section opts for a more comical take on the situation. And while this scenario, ending with Lewis breaking in to find out where Mya went based on her car being outside, will take most of the flack from hardcore gore lovers, it makes sense in its own weird way. Not only does it give the viewer a much needed break from the grimness of the opening section, but it manages to subvert our expectations and place us inside the warped heads of these people being manipulated by the signal. Some are turned into maniacs, and others are rendered helpless by their loss of reality. Even though Anna killed her husband, she continues to manifest the belief that Clark is her husband. It may seem easy to pick apart this section and while it certainly lacks the intelligent edge of the others, it supplies us with an equally deranged descent into madness. The third section reunites Ben and Mya in terminal 13, but with an axe-toting Lewis not far behind.

I have to admire what directors Bruckner, Bush and Gentry have attempted. "The Signal" is not over-directed, i.e. full of inescapable hand held shots that whiz by without a proper sense of any character or emotion. There's a careful attention to ambiance, placement and mood throughout the whole film. The bodies are displayed in just the right corner of the frame and while some of the 'kill scenes' are obviously making up for its shoe-string budget, they're no less disturbing. And even when the story itself heads into some pretty heady territory, one can see the whole thing fitting together in a radically mind blowing way. If nothing else, "The Signal" deserves a spot on the midnight cult circuit for years to come.

70's Bonanza- The Anderson Tapes

Well known for it's continual procession of trend-setting paranoid thrillers, the 1970's was a veritable golden age of American "thrillers" and "retro noirs". One of the largely unsung forerunners of this genre has to be Sidney Lumet's "The Anderson Tapes". Released early in 1971 and yet to be manufactured on DVD in any form, it originated smack in the middle of a row of films that director Lumet was producing with actor Sean Connery. The premise is this- a master thief is released from prison and he immediately begins planning the robbery of a building that covers an entire block. He gathers a small crew (including Lumet regular Martin Balsam and featuring the first role for a blond, bright eyed Christopher Walken) and the adventure begins.

Taken on plot synopsis alone, "The Anderson Tapes" reads like a redundant narrative pieced together from numerous other heist films. But the glory of this gem lies in the impending paranoia that soaks the entire affair, pre-dating the electronic malaise that surfaces in Coppola's "The Conversation" and Alan J. Pakula's "Three Days of the Condor" and pretty much any other 70's thriller that comes to mind. Not only is the CIA canvasing some of the people that Connery brings into the heist (including a mob boss played to smarmy perfection by Alan King) but there's a jealous lover bugging the apartment of the woman (Dyan Cannon) that Connery shacks up with. The endless Pandora's box of electronics surveillance is represented with unnerving sound design by Lumet regular Jack Fitzstephens and genuinely claustrophobic music by Quincy Jones. The various bugs and tape recorders become a central character as they stay hidden in the background, threatening to rise up and obliterate Connery's single-minded determinism. One viewing of "The Anderson Tapes" and one understands where Coppola and the others gleaned their own visions of modern technology interfering (and controlling) human deceptions.

The final half of "The Anderson Tapes" deals specifically with the robbery itself, as Connery and his group quietly go from apartment to apartment and rob the tenants. Here, Lumet is in full control of sound, motion and camera placement, slowly turning the screws as the goings-on inside the apartment building contrast with the logistics outside the building (not wanting to give too much away). In this final 40 minutes, Lumet cuts between the black and white monitors, the reactions of the tenants before and after the robbery and the structured precision of the robbery with a fluid sense of increasing tension. When a heist film is done right- thinking specifically of Jules Dassin and "Rififfi" or certain scenes in Michael Mann's "Heat"- it all coalesces in the editing. In "The Anderson Tapes", not only is the technical part handled with perfection, but one actually roots for the bad guys because you can appreciate the care that's gone into pulling off the perfect job. If anything, "The Anderson Tapes" is Lumet's perfect job as well.

Oscar 2008

When this type of thing is done well, it's fun to watch. But this pastiche of the Oscar nominated films makes my heart and mind soar.

What's In the Netflix Queue #14

With so much dreck in theaters right now, it's been a rather DVD heavy month. Next weekend promises the first movie I actually want to see in a theater this year- Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind. Here are the next ten titles in my Netflix queue:

1. Maculin Feminine- I've been rewatching alot of Godard lately. I've only seen this film once. Certainly due for a second round.
2. Equus- For any concerned, I'm still plowing my way through Sidney Lumet films.... almost to the point of compulsion. I've been able to track down early VHS copies of movies like "The Anderson Tapes" and "The Group", plus there's still some available on DVD that I've yet to watch. This is one of them.
3. Grandma's Boy- I really have no excuse for this one. Some friends tell me it's hilarious, plus it feautures some of the Apatow crew such as Linda Cardellini (who I'm in love with) from "Freaks and Geeks" fame and Jonah Hill. By the way, check out the new red band trailer for the next Apatow-crew project, Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
4. The Real Dirt On Farmer John- Documentary about a hippie commune that folded under the agricultural boom of the 80's. It got a lot of good print a while back and just out on DVD in the last few weeks.
5. The Quiet Duel- I've seen all available Kurosawa films on VHS and DVD, and this five disc "Postwar Kurosawa" boxset from Eclipse fills the gap with some of his late 40's and early 50's films. "The Quiet Duel" deals with a doctor (played by regular Toshiro Mifune) who contracts syphilis and the ramifications in family and society.
6. Comedy of Power- Recent Claude Chabrol release.
7. The Boston Strangler- Is New York really the center of the film universe? I ask this because anytime a film society (Lincoln Center, Film Forum) hosts a retrospective or partial retrospective screening of a director, that artist immediately undergoes critical evaluation around the U.S. This month, they're showing three Richard Fleischer films. The net is beginning to buzz about him (hack or not?), he's enjoyed a prominent and well-written essay in the latest issue of Film Comment and his name is being vollied back and forth on blogs. All of this to say... I've never really investigated him as a director. Checking his filmography, it's filled with films from my youth ("Red Sonja", "Conan The Destroyer", "Mr. Majestyk") but not any real obvious career definers. I'll check out "The Boston Strangler", which I hear is a pretty involving police procedural, and if I like, I might dig deeper.
8. No Regrets For Our Youth- Another postwar Kurosawa release.
9. In the Shadow of the Moon- NASA documentary that ended up on quite a few top ten lists this past year.
10. Quiet City- DIY filmmaker Aaron Katz's highly regarded independent film. The trailer was well rendered. I'm not a huge fan of the 'mumblecore' movement, but this one seems different somehow.

Tops In Pops '07

I bought probably half of what I usually buy in a given year. I blame it on my Ipod. After purchasing one in early spring, I spent the first half of the year importing my mammoth collection into the little bugger and the other half of the year continually giddy over hitting the 'shuffle' button and being surprised by what comes out. Still, I did manage to discover some new bands, cherish some old ones and find a few diamonds in the rough. Here, in order of preference, are my favorite albums of 2007:

1. Radiohead "In Rainbows"- Anyone who knows my predilections in music will understand that pretty much any Radiohead release will shoot directly to the top (yes, even their experimental and almost non-musical efforts like "Kid A" and "Amnesiac"). But this year, Radiohead's "In Rainbows" earns its spot by laying out a solid return to form with pretty straight forward rock that echoes back to their days of "Pablo Honey". The guitar is simple, the drums push the melodies, and Thom Yorke hasn't attempted to hide his voice behind electronic manipulations. For sheer rock and roll, "In Rainbows" is brilliant and it re-affirms my belief that Radiohead are not happy with simply pushing the envelope, but staying in front of the pack and choosing to look back momentarily.

2. The National "Boxer"- Lead singer Matt Berninger's crooning, baritone voice would feel right at home in the smoke-filled lounges of 1970's Vegas, and with "Boxer", The National have become pretty close to filling the spot as my new favorite band. If one can take the self-defeating lyrics- which reel off like negative counterparts to the world weary musings of Greg Dulli from The Afghan Whigs-then The National are just the band for you. And that speaks volumes about this band when one actually cares to listen to the lyrics. The music is startling, but the words cut like a knife. Their music has been compared to the likes of Interpol, but there's something more at work here. While their previous release, "Alligator", scores just a little higher for me personally, "Boxer" is a knockout regardless.

3. The Arcade Fire "Neon Bible"- Canadian band The Arcade Fire create a wild merging of music and sounds. Integrating old fashioned rock, a brass section, church style organs and a Polyphonic Spree chrous of voices, their music reaches magical heights at times. Very similiar to the sound of fellow Canadian band, The Broken Social Scene, they often front up to 10 band members. And when you listen to their music, you get a sense of every single personality, as if their individual musical talent is fighting to be heard and erupts in one joyous blend. Their stuff is simply indescribable. "The Neon Bible" is another huge step forward that blasts pretty much everything else out of the water when listened to in one sitting.

4. Once Soundtrack- A sure-fire artistic coup to take musicians Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova and build a film around their ingratiating abilties as naturalistic performers and even better musicians. They portray a couple on-screen who meet and make some pretty impressive music together (literally, not figuratively). Hansard, part of the Irish band The Frames, places his music not only as the soundtrack for the film, but the emotional foundation for the characters and dramatic thrust of the entire narrative. This has been called the best musical of the modern age, and I wouldn't disagree.

5. Interpol "Our Love To Admire"- Continuing to mine the Joy Division sound of the 80's, Interpol's latest album is more of the same but their lyrics have grown increasingly dark and their pulsating sound has begun to dig a little deeper. This is a great entrance point for any new admirers and an evolving mid-point for long time fans.

6. Dinosaur Jr. "Beyond"- After I placed Dinosaur's new cd, "Beyond" into the player, it immediately transported me back to 1993 when I first discovered this racous, guitar-heavy grunge rock band. Even the album cover- a black and white photo of a party thrashed living room and couch with half of a human body disappearing beneath the cushions- gleefully recalls the early days of grunge. Frontman and guitarist J Mascis has bounced through several projects, but the current release sounds like they never missed a beat. It's certainly nothing new, but its exactly this timelessness that I adore.

7. Asobi Seksu "Citrus"- I featured this band in an earlier blog posting, and while their sound is a little more pop-tinged than I usually like, there's something very inviting about female singer Yuki Chikudate's airy, ethereal voice wafting against the heavy sound of James Hanna's guitar and drummer Ben Shapiro. This is definitely mood music, and Asobi Sekse (Japanese for 'playful sex') can put you in a variety of moods.

8. Foo Fighters "Echoes, Silence Patience and Grace"- While The Foo Fighters are certainly capable of producing ready made FM hits ("The Pretender"), their newest outing also slows things down a bit, mixing in some slide guitar on slow, ambling songs as well as other experimental efforts. It still remains clear that for sheer musical ability, Dave Groehl was pretty much the driving force behind Nirvana's sound while Kobain was the deliverer of its tortured soul and voice. "Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace" is exactly that- an album that impresses and intrigues with each new song as it turns its back on commercialism after the first hit.

#6 Radiohead

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later this week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned.

So nice to see and hear Radiohead return to good old fashioned rock. And when they're on.. there's no one that does it better. Their online album marketing was revolutionary and yes, I still paid $9.99 for the download.

#5 Once Soundtrack

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later this week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned.

If you haven't seen this movie (or heard Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova) run to your local video store now.

Admissions of Guilt

I can admit it. I made the wrong choice. HD-DVD is probably not the hi-def choice of the future, and this e-mail I received from Netflix today states the slow turning of the tide to Blu-Ray:

<< Dear Joe, You're receiving this email because you have asked to receive high-definition movies in the HD DVD format. As you may have heard, most of the major movie studios have recently decided to release their high-definition movies exclusively in the Blu-ray format. In order to provide the best selection of high-definition titles for our members, we have decided to go exclusively with Blu-ray as well.

While we will continue to make our current selection of HD DVD titles available to you for the next several months, we will not be adding additional HD DVD titles or reordering replacements.

Toward the end of February, HD DVDs in your Saved Queue will automatically be changed to standard definition DVDs. Then toward the end of this year, all HD DVDs in your Queue will be changed to standard definition DVDs. Don't worry, we will contact you before this happens.

Thank you
Netflix Management>>


Sucks. Oh well. The shitty thing is, now I'm itching to buy a Blu-Ray player. I can't stand the idea of my home theater system and projection screen not producing Hi-Def results. I just need to take a deep breath, avoid spending more money and live with it for the next few months. RIP HD-DVD.

#4 Dinosaur Jr.

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later this week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned.

Ahh, Dinosaur Jr. We've all gotten older but the song remains the same. From a live event in Portugal late last year.

#3 The Arcade Fire

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later this week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned.

I became a fan of The Arcade Fire just this year, re-discovering their debut album, "Funeral" and was immediately blown away by their all encompassing sound. This is a fun clip that has them playing a song from their latest album in an elevator.

#3a Bonus Clip- The Arcade Fire w/ David Bowie

#2 Foo Fighters

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later next week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned. One of the major surprises this year- a terrific Foo Fighters album that expands their range dramatically. And the above clip is from a 1-23-08 concert here in Dalas that was phenominal. Two hours and 30 hours of pretty much everything they'e recorded, including a nice acoustic set that they performed at the opposite end of the theater for us not so close to the stage.

#1 The National

In lieu of my favorite music of 2007 post later next week, I'll let pictures and sound do most of the talking for the next seven days as I post various clips from the bands mentioned. Enjoy. In no order, New York band The National perfoming the song "Mr. November", the jaw-dropping finale song to their 2005 release, "Alligator" which stands, right now, in my top ten albums of all time. 2007 saw them release "Boxer", a terrific follow-up and yes, obviously one of my fav albums of '07.

Random Thoughts On the Super Bowl

1. Not that I had a vested interest in either team winning, but I kinda hoped the Pats would win just so every ESPN announcer would stop trying to clone the Chris Berman G-MEN expression. It's annoying enough when just Berman does it.
2. Commercials- not so funny. Since when did people doing stupid dances, celebs singing badly and doing stupid dances, and CGI created lizard things doing stupid dances become funny?
3. I kinda wanna see "Iron Man" now.
4. I don't watch many Pats games so I don't know the amount of coverage she usually receives, but where were all the Eva Longoria-type screen shots of Giselle whats her name? They could've got alot more mileage out of her.
5. I enjoyed the game. Sorta old fashioned, very few referee interferences and they allowed the guys to play football for a change. Nothing was decided due to controversial calls or blown flags. Good job guys.
6. That Manning non-sack-catch play will live on and on and on.
7. Bellichick really hates losing. A classless showing after a legit beating.
8. Another thing about Bellichick. Why not go for the long field goal at 46 yards to at least give your team a chance? I mean 4th and 13 conversion? Not the way Brady was dodging blue jerseys in the pocket all night. Maybe all those 4th down 'go for its' during the regular season when they were already up by 31 finally came back to haunt them. You can't convert 'em all. Hire a new kicker then.
9. I guessed it. There were at least 2 mentions of God during the post game interview. And from the same player!
10. Look on the brightside, Boston. You still got 1 world champ. Don't be greedy.

The Least Pretentious Way To Watch A Movie

I don't know how prevalant these types of places are around the country, but if there's one near you, I urge you to check it out in the near future. It's known as a movie grill. By doing some quick research, it appears the chain I visited here in Dallas is locally owned and operated, opening a little over 10 years ago. I know places such as Austin's Alamo Drafthouse have been catering to this style of movie-watching for years now and I'm sure each city has their own variations, but this is a fun environment. I went with a group of friends on Friday night and was blown away by the level of entertainment. First off, for you alcoholics out there, I've yet to be at a movie/bar setting (such as the various Angelika settings for example) whose bar doesn't outclass a majority of the city's other hot drinking spots. Then, when allowed into the theater, we found ourselves a perfectly clear view of the screen, relaxing in plush chairs with a table directly in front of us. There was room to spread out your legs and truly enjoy the experience. Throughout the movie, the waitstaff remains fairly invisible so they don't detract from the film. And, add to that, this is an environment that elicits howling, clapping and reactions to the on-screen action. Overall, just a highly pleasurable experience that everyone should participate in with friends.

And as for the movie.. I've kept you in suspense long enough. Rambo. Based on the reaction of 1 of my friends as we exited the theater, "that was the greatest film known to mankind." Need I say more? This is the type of film that defies critical expectations. Simply order another pitcher and roll with the fun.

DVD Shout Out- Loach x 2

Looks and Smiles

Newly released on DVD, Ken Loach's 1981 slice of docudrama life "Looks and Smiles" is a clear-eyed yet lacksidaisical effort to observe the wasting away of the young and unemployed. Following two teenagers, Mick (Graham Greene) and Allen (Tony Pitts), times are not good. While both are on the 'dole', they spend their days drinking and dancing in discos, stealing motorcycles for the occassional joyride, and scowering the newspapers for dead end jobs that never come to fruition. That is until Allen up and joins the army and Mick begins dating a local shopgirl named Karen (Carolyen Nicholson). A majority of the film follows this relationship between Mick and Karen, documenting the various ups and downs of young love stuck amidst poverty, feuding parents and endless hours. While all three amateur leads handle their acting roles with sensitivity and believability, Loach does something else entirely. As he's done for a career now, he says much more about responsibility and life in a specific time and place through casual observances and as little flash as necessary. There are no grand statements here. No one charges the institution or goes on strike. At times, its hard to even understand Mick and Allen through their strong Sheffield accents, muttering conversations and making sense of their simple life, but the rage of poverty and alienation during early 80's England is highly resonant throughout. And just when you feel like something dramatic is going to happen as Mick and Karen go off to find/live with her estranged father after a particulary nasty fight with her mom, Loach keeps the emotion true and the outcome simple. This is very close to the best film Loach has produced. And enough can't be said about longtime cinematographer Chris Menges' shimmering black and white photography.

Tickets

"Aria"? "Paris, je t'aime"? "Boccacio 70"? "Eros"? If none of these films ring a bell, then you're probably not a fan of the European-financed genre of films esoterically known as the anthology film- one in which a group of filmmakers combine segments to create a (mostly uneven) whole. Call it the auteur project in the finest sense of the word. For "Tickets", the directors on display include Ermanno Olmi, Abbas Kiarostami, and Ken Loach. While each film exudes the overall sensibilites of each director (Olmi's being the least involving and empty), I bring up this triptych because the final section of the film, helmed by Ken Loach, is a magical 40 minutes of film that could've succeeded as a completely enriching feature length effort on its own. While each segment takes place on a train traveling to Rome (yes, another European touch), Loach introduces us to three young football fans traveling to the Championship game in Italy. When they meet and be-friend a young boy on the train who says he's from Albania, one of the boys names Jamesy (Martin Compston) shows him his wallet and football ticket. When the train inspector calls for tickets later, Jamesy can't find his ticket, and his throttled up partners have him believing the young boy probably stole his ticket. It goes to say, that in Loach's hands, this section of "Tickets" turns into a tense altercation between class and culture. While there's merit in each section, Loach's blue collar imprint can be felt on every inch of his section (and while there's very little fanfare when the sections transition between filmmakers except a hard cut, you know Loach takes command when the first words you hear are "you fucking cunt, hold up"). I'd recommend renting "Tickets" if only for Kiarostami's quietly poised section and Loach's frenetic, charged finale.

A Day Late and A Dollar Short

On the Decline of 24

Season 6 of "24" is a shining example of a great series that doesn't quite know when to stop. Allow me to preface all this by saying I've been a fan of the show for many years now, even defending the many episodes where daughter Kim (Elisa Cuthbert) was continually put in peril by kidnappers, demented baby-sitting fathers, and yes even a wild tiger. I mean, honestly, the situations were far-fetched, but she looked so good being caught between a rock and a hardplace that I couldn't help but forgive her (and all that has been erased by loathsome career choices like Captivity.) Bottom line, while the series often took exaggerated detours, Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer and his frenetic chase for American righteousness was always just short of electric. He commanded the screen with authority and the contrast between his tense field exploits and the personal drama of peers at CTU and the White House made for a winning combination of well-edited gunfire and menacing political skulduggery.

But, in Season 6, I felt like I was forcing myself to watch each and every episode. The mechanics felt rote, the personal tension felt awkward and even the timing of the show's trademark counting clock felt stretched to the point of unbelievability. Without giving too much away for those who haven't seen the latest season, Los Angeles finds itself again fighting off the hatred of Islamic extremists carrying suitcase nukes and CTU finds themselves heading the search for the terrorists. There are some new faces, but the show's reliance on Sutherland kicking ass and taking names is mired behind soap opera theatrics (or maybe it was ALWAYS this way and season 6 was bad enough to finally call attention to itself). There are some interesting diversions thrown Jack's way this time and needless to say, the calamity hits very close to home for him. My real problem with season 6 is the lazy way emotions and narrative are strung together. I couldn't count how many times I rolled my eyes or let out an "uggh" when ex-Vice President Logan and his loony tunes wife pop up for a mid-season cameo. Or we're made to suffer ponderous back stabbings inside the underground bunker of President Palmer (yes, that's right.. the OTHER Palmer... his brother who seems to have been elected in 2 years only due to his last name) as power grabs are executed like chess moves. And I haven't even mentioned the entrance of Jacks' brother, father and ex-girlfriend who just happens to be the wife of his brother. I know.. I know.. I'm even confusing myself. If anything, Season 6 feels like a parody of itself. There's very little tension mounted from any of the show's numerous twists and turns and with the introduction of each new face (Ricky Schroeder, Powers Boothe, James Cromwell), I could feel myself being removed further and further from the genuine excitement I used to get from "24". Perhaps the scale has gotten too big, and the consequences too great. The first two seasons (and I could argue for 3 and 4 as well) dealt with huge issues, but they worked through with plausibility. Remember how economical the narrative was in the first few seasons and how much we cared for the characters? Case in point- in season 1 when Jack is asked to assassinate candidate Palmer, I remember thinking how in the hell are they going to write themselves out of this one. And they did. You can name the same thing from many moments throughout the next couple of seasons. In Season 6, the breaks come with a resounding "huh".

Even the timeline of Season 6 is sketchy. For the first time in the show's history, I question the amount of time taken with so many plot points. Perhaps watching the season back to back on DVD, eliminating the week long hibernation and memory loss between episodes, opens one up to the illegitimate flow of time more evenly (although I've watched all of them since season 2 this same way, and the implausibilities were not this glaring). One episode ends and the next starts (seemingly within 1-3 seconds of its timeline), and they've already swept the entire crime scene, downloaded any incriminating evidence off a computer hard drive and ran background checks one 101 known business associates? This occurred continually throughout season 6, and when you don't buy into something after the first minute, its hard to regain your acceptance of everything that follows. Season 6 tackles world war, international crisis and nuclear explosions, but as the show's story grows exponentially, it loses the vitality and originality of its predecessors. Season 6 does redeem itself, slightly, in the last few episodes when it unleashes Jack Bauer into a frenzy of gunfire and personal vendettas. But, everything up until that point, remains a ghost of itself.

Having said all of this, I'll still tune into Season 7 if there is one. Part of the magnetic draw with shows like 24, besides the feeling that 'I-was-there-when-nobody-cared-about-this-show' way back in 2001, is the strong fan base they've established over the past 6 years. It wasn't long ago when I remembered how great this show was. Perhaps, with a new season, Sutherland fresh off his jail stint, and an end to a lengthy writer's strike, "24" will find some of the magic of season's past and toss off a truly energetic and fresh premise for its prime-time rebirth. If nothing else, maybe bring Kim back to get lost in the valley or something in one of these tight-fitting shirts?

Trailers I Love

The Return of Ghost Children

While American film studios are wasting money and intelligence on remaking Asian horror movies instead of nurturing any proprietary creativity, a small group of Spanish filmmakers have quietly taken the horror genre into sensitive and atmospheric places. Alejandro Amenabar's "The Others", the various fantasy-horrors of Guillermo Del Toro such as "The Devil's Backbone" and even "Pan's Labyrinth" and now Juan Antonio Bayona's "The Orphanage"- all subtle and highly creative efforts that have found a small cult following and even mainstream distribution. "The Orphanage" is the latest and perhaps the best of this group. Not only is it an increasingly creepy haunted house tale full of mood and delicately balanced scares, but like del Toro's "Pan's Labyrinth" it strikes a genuinely emotional tone as the harsh realities of modern life intersect with the mysterious affairs of the afterlife.

Starring Belen Reuda as Laura, she returns to the orphanage where she lived as a young girl before adoption to set up a school for mentally challenged children with her husband (Fernando Cayo ) and young son, Simone (Roger Princep). Its not long before Simone is talking of invisible friends which may or may not be the reason for his sudden disappearance one sunny afternoon. As the frustration and inability to turn up any clues mounts with Laura after nine months, she turns to a local team of paranormal investigators (led by Geraldine Chaplin) who uncover a dark secret about the orphanage. Unable to leave the orphanage, Laura gives herself two days alone to figure out the secrets of the sprawling property.


There are two scenes in "The Orphanage" that rank with some of the best moments of on-screen dread since the psychological horrors of Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa. The first, dealing with the appearance of a young boy with a straw sack over his head (who may or may not be the ghost of a deformed child) plays out in a surreal manner as he slowly walks down the hallway towards Laura and eventually lashes out in violent ways. The second, dealing with the paranormal investigation on the property, exhibit mood and fear through perfect camera placement and sound editing. The silences are almost as frightening as the unnerving sounds that eventually come through the audio devices planted strategically around the orphanage. It's to the credit of director Bayona that he's able to sustain such an involving narrative throughout, especially since the genre relies so faithfully on jumps and scares. Directors like Bayona and the others mentioned here create intimate stories first, then carefully construct the thrills later to support the story. Horror films often fail when they contrive the scare first and emotional involvement later. Why do we care who lives and who dies? With "The Orphanage", we certainly care about who's alive and who's dead, and the lines of mortality are blurred. Not to mention the fact that the main character, Laura, is suffering from an illness and emotional strain (the loss of her son) that's certainly clouding her judgement. Director Bayone modulates everything with intensity and pulls off something special. Don't let this one get lost in the post-Holiday shuffle. It's best seen in a movie theater with the sound up and the lights way, way down.

The following review and others can be read at Talking Moviezzz.

What's In the Netflix Queue #13

It's been awhile since I've posted one of these. Blame it on the mad rush of the holidays and my incessant re-arranging of my queue at the end of the year to see as many '07 flicks as possible.

1. The Devil- I've yet to see any films from Polish director Andrzej Zulawski, and this one sounds fascinating. From Netlfix, "Banned from director Andrzej Zulawski's native Poland for 15 years, The Devil is part horror fest, part political allegory in its treatment of the tale of an imprisoned 18th-century nobleman who buys his freedom by selling out his co-conspirators. Curious about the stranger who extracted such a payment, the newly released Jakub follows him on a cross-country journey and becomes despondent over the brutality and corruption he witnesses." You may remember that Zulawski directed the weird horror movie called Possession, which starred Isabelle Adjani as a woman who elopes with a fungus which eventually morphs into her husband (Sam Neill). I'm only going off a plot synopsis as the film is on DVD, but I've yet found a website that has one in stock.
2. Pitfall- Criterion recently released 3 films from postwar Japanese new wave filmmaker Hiroshi Teshigahara's and this one of them. "Teshigahara's crime drama mixes murder, the supernatural and postwar commentary into an eerie tale about a Japanese miner (Hisashi Igawa) who's stalked by a ghostly man in white (Kunie Tanaka) with one intent: to imprison the down-and-out laborer in a ghost town. The plot moves deeper into sociopolitical realms as rival union leaders try to solve a mystery surrounding the miner."
3. Woman In the Dunes- Probably the most well-known Teshigahara.
4. A Stranger Among Us- One of the few Lumet films I've yet to see. I'm kinda scared, but I'll give it a shot. This is the one where Melanie Griffith goes undercover in an Amish community (!) to catch a killer. Lumet has made some turkeys, and this very well could be another.
5. The Bridesmaid- French master Claude Chabrol directed this a few years back. I'm sure it'll feature more than a few tips of the hat to Hitchcock.
6. Scene of the Crime- Mid 80's psychological thriller from Andre Techine, a hugely under-appreciated French director.
7. Rikyu- Third and final film from Teshigahara, this one a period piece about the cultural and spiritual differences between a Buddhist monk and a monarch. War erupts. Sounds like a nice Kurosawa imitation.
8. The Killing Kind- 70's exploitation film from director Curtis Harrington about "a man who returns home from prison -- where he was incarcerated after friends forced him to take part in a gang-rape -- and he moves into his mother's boarding home. Soon he's peeping on a pretty tenant (Cindy Williams), and his enemies start dying horrific deaths. Meanwhile, a creepy neighbor (Luana Anders) has an unhealthy fascination with Terry in this classic spine-chiller."
9. On the Silver Globe- Another Zulawski oddity. This time the film is about the following- "When a spaceflight crashes on the moon, the survivors establish a new society. Shortly afterward, all but one of the adults die, leaving the children to create their own civilization. When a visitor from Earth lands in this bizarre place, the children immediately welcome him as a messiah. Filmmaker Andrzej Zulawski labored for years to complete this chilling vision of the future after the original negatives were seized by Polish authorities." Could be total trash or an interesting find.
10. Carved: The Slit Mouth Killer- J-horror film about a murdering ghost.. what else would a j-horror film be about? Another Tartan release, and I give this studio all the kudos in the world.

Regional Review: Chalk

Mike Akel's Chalk aims to do for public schools what Christopher Guest did with small town pageantry.... and folk music.... and dog shows. But where Guest's comedies often veer into exaggerated territory, most of Chalk keeps its humor close to the vest, creating an affectionate and warmly humorous mockumentary. Following the school year of 4 teachers at Harrison High (actually Austin's own Travis County High school), Chalk received a cinematic push when it cleaned up awards at the 2006 Austin Film Festival, went onto strong word-of-mouth at the AFI fest here in Dallas in early '07, and gained Morgan Spurlock as its central spokesperson and executive producer. But I imagine Chalk would've succeeded without it grass-roots exposure because it feels so genuine. And it can also be interpreted as an eerie companion piece to Season 4 of David Simon's blisteringly authentic HBO series The Wire, in which they spent close to 9-10 episodes focused solely on Baltimore's stumbling educational system and its malcontent students. Taken together, both artistic visions represent a scathing yet redemptive portrait of our modern school districts. The Wire does it through harsh political commentary and young kids falling down the rabbit hole while Chalk gives us teachers who care more about winning the "Teacher of the Year" award rather than actually teaching his class anything. But remember, Chalk is a comedy.

There are five main characters we follow in the film. The new guy on the block is Mr. Lowery (Troy Schremmer), a recent engineer-turned-teacher getting his comeuppance by awkwardly stuttering through his lesson plans, dealing with cell phones in his class and an overall confidence problem. Someone not timid and awkward is Mr. Stroope (co-writer Chris Mass), a thirty-something guy who thinks he's got his classes all figured out. Be their friend, win the Teacher of the Year award and float through the semester. And while Mass could've embodied Stroop as a genuine asshole, there's something very casual and laugh out loud funny about his performance, full of improvisation between the actual students and himself. There's a rapport built up between him and the students that's hard to shake. We're also introduced to Coach Webb (Janelle Schremmer), petite and short-haired who prefers to teach yoga in her gym class rather than volleyball and basketball. She develops a crush on Mr. Lowery. As real life husband and wife, a small but unacknowledged flirtation erupts between the two on film and director Akel adequately exploits the sexual tension just under the surface between these two. It's to his credit that we're given so much with so less. Finally, there's Mrs. Reddell (Shannon Haragan), a music teacher promoted to assistant principal and struggling to find the balance between old friendships (with Coach Webb) and carrying out her administrative duties.

What's most impressive about Chalk is the way it eschews so many 'school drama' cliches and pulls gentle laughs out of its talented and amateur cast. One of the more exhilarating and profound examples of this generosity lies in the "slang bee" that the teachers take part in. Apparently a tradition at Harrison High, the teachers are put on stage by the students and have to spell out slang terms the students use throughout the year. What could have come off as mawkish and stunted turns into a moving vignette of teachers and students bonding over generational gaps and ethnic backgrounds. Everyone sells this moment in the film as believable, and perhaps, what we need more of in this intellectually stunted world are more selfless moments like the slang bee and less self-righteous divisions between educator and student. Chalk is still, after all, just a well intentioned comedy, but it ends up saying a lot more than so many well intentioned films. Director Mike Akel is one to watch.

My Dinner With...

So, the first meme of the year, courtesy of Piper at Lazy Eye Theatre asks a very simple question. The rules are as follows:

1. Pick a single person past or present who works in the film industry you would like to have dinner with. And tell us why you chose this person.

2. Set the table for your dinner. What would you eat? Would it be in a home or at a restaurant? And what would you wear? Feel free to elaborate on the details.

3. List five thoughtful questions you would ask this person during dinner.

4. When all is said and done, select six bloggers to pass this Meme along to.

5. Link back to Lazy Eye Theatre, so people know the mastermind behind this Meme.


I urge everyone to check out his own entry which is worthy of an Eli Roth torture porn adaptation.

So, I've given this lots of thought. I could go several ways. I could go fanboy and envision myself sitting down with Martin Scorsese or Terence Malick or Jean Luc Godard, but hell you only live once so I opted for the purely carnal.

My dinner would be with....

Yes.... Salma Hayek. Now I'm talking about the recent Salma Hayek and not the vampira/goth/rattlesnake-shape-shifting-Salma that Tarantino brought into cult status back with From Dusk Till Dawn (though I'm aware that there are those fetishists who hold this Salma as the only Salma... and that's cool I'm just not into that scene). But then you go back and, wow, you have the Salma from her Antonio-Banderas-swashbuckingly-hot-kickass-chick years with Once Upon a Time in Mexico and I'd be very ok with that kinda girl as well. What is it that makes a python around a girl's neck seem intimidating and yet the same girl can fire guns, swing swords and jump out of buildings tied to a sheet and it makes my heart flutter? But I digress.... I'm rambling here.

Back to the dinner. And I believe my entire last paragraph thoroughly explained in some warped way why I chose Salma, right? We'd have dinner at a restaurant reserved only for us. Yes, money would not be an option. Personal waitstaff, all that jazz. Since my meals consist mainly of things known as combo meals and big macs, I'd have to order one of those cheezy specials that the waiter offers.... "minced lamb chops covered in a tart mushroom sauce, sauteed in 3/4 ounce marinated lemon juice, artichoke salad and California honey dew grass slivers". Sounds good, serve it up. Let's skip over what I'd be wearing because does anyone really care? What is Salma wearing. Well I can't explain it because I don't know a lick about fashion, but she looks fucking incredible.

I'd ask her, what's it like to be the most beautiful woman on the plant, yet manage to keep yourself free from the shitty tabloids that desecrate so many other actresses of lesser talent and lesser beauty? Is Tarantino the ass I suspect he really is? Is George Clooney gay? How would you cure world peace? Do I have a chance in hell of sleeping with you... or following you to your home and peeping in your window? Ok.. I've officially entered into the Salma Hayek stalker club. I take back that last comment. I'm perfectly adjusted. But, honestly, who am I kidding? I should've just selected Woody Allen for this meme and been done with it.

Chris at Ojo's blog
Lucas at 100 Films
Moviezzz at Talking Moviezzz
Neal at The Bleeding Tree
Evan at Club Parnassus

You've been tagged.

Trailers I Love

Ok, so it's not an actual movie trailer, but this is still a great collection of scenes from some pretty great 2007 films. Pieced together by Matt Shapiro, it reminds me of those old Chuck Workman collages, framed with patience and attentive editing to musical beats. Nice stuff.

Moments of '07

In conjunction with my favorite films of the year list, I offer up some moments out of 2007 films that made an indelible impression on me. Older online buddies will recognize this as a recurring event. This list is a collection of film dialogue, gestures, camera movements, moods or looks and ideas within a given scene. This list is inspired by Roger Ebert's list of movie moments as well as the once great (now dead) yearly wrap up in Film Comment.

1. After a lengthy explanation of where she believes babies comes from, the reaction of a mother (Leslie Mann) to her daughter's story with an affirmative, "that's exactly right." Knocked Up
2. Sitting under a tree together, the quiet desperation in the voice of Constance (Marina Hands) as she asks her gamekeeper lover if he will come for her once he gets settled, and then a cut to black in Pascale Feran's Lady Chatterley.
3. Looking through a surveillance camera, its viewer gets distracted by a familiar face as a young girl is knifed by a group of kids in the lower right hand corner.... Red Road
3. The slow-motion run directly towards the camera as a man is surrounded by a village of old enemies.. and then they recognize him in The Hunting Party.
4. The first appearance of the creature and a long tracking shot as it rampages along the concrete banks of the Han river. The Host
5. Where to begin in one of the most sublime film in years.... a man rides ahead of Jesse James (Brad Pitt) in the dark as James slowly falls out of view and the shot lingers in deafening quiet for what feels like minutes.. then a gunshot pierces the silence. The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford
6. Probably the most uncomfortable scene of the year- a young man is forced to sing in front of a roomful of drunk/high men because they think he's someone else- Superbad
7. A whisper in the ear of a female agent (Jennifer Garner) that comes full circle in surprising and emotional ways in Peter Berg's The Kingdom.
8. Those long legs of Christina Ricci- Black Snake Moan
9. The long tracking shot as Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day Lewis) runs, holding his injured boy covered in oil, and the completely enveloping soundtrack of Jonny Greenwood. There Will Be Blood.
10. The sounds and texture of a crummy New York apartment where people are working in silence, carefully mixing drugs... and the sweat that glistens on the forehead of Joaquin Phoenix in James Gray's We Own the Night.
11. A man (Mathieu Amalric) catches a reflection of himself in a glass window next to a multi-colored lamp of the Virgin Mary as Ultra Orange and Emmanuelle's "Don't Kiss Me Goodbye" plays. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
12. The almost unbearable tension that builds up between Gadget (Andrew Ellis) and Combo (Stephen Graham) as racial hatred boils to the surface as they smoke pot together in Shane Meadows masterpiece, This Is England.
13. A figure standing against a cold winter sky, echoing the final images in 30 Days of Night
14. The quick flashes of youth as two soldiers are torn apart by bullets Lions For Lambs
15. The shot of the year- a five minute tracking shot that observes the absurdity of war when there's no one left to kill- a soldier wanders around a beach as men fight, drink, sing, shoot horses and hang their heads- Atonement
16. The reaction of Benecio Del Toro when his best friend (David Duchovney) leaves behind a sack of groceries. Things We Lost In the Fire
17. The sound of spitballs- Paris Je Atme
18. The scene that made me gasp with anticipation- a young girl with a bomb strapped to her back finally settles on a crowded Times Square corner with the detonator in her hand... and the film grows silent for several minutes observing the small quirks of everyone else's hands around her.. then the sound is brought back in full audio. Day Night Day Night
19. The way Chris (Emile Hirsch) politely turns down the advances of Tracey (Kristen Stewart) as she lies on her bed. Into the Wild
20. Coupled with its chromatic black and white cinematography, the dream-like quality that a 6 minute long stationary shot weaves as it slowly pans back and forth, observing the actions of a group of protesters behind a wall of smoke and flames in Phillip Garrel's Regular Lovers
21. The different shades of sky that take on an otherworldly feel- The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
22. The only real moment that I remember from David Lynch's preposterous 3 hour experiment Inland Empire- a woman's face morphing into something nightmarish as it comes into focus head long into the camera.
23. The tracking shot from the passenger side of a slow moving vehicle as it keeps the houses, fireworks and depth in perfect focus- Zodiac
24. The frenetic chase through a grass field in 28 Weeks Later.
25. Flames catching fire inside an enclosed garden, and the tortured screams of Michelle Yeoh watching her paradise blacken- Sunshine
27. "Look at those assholes!" and then the signature whip pan of Wes Anderson in The Darjeeling Limited
28. The wrinkles on Tommy Lee Jones' face on prominent display, full of.... something...... "and then I woke up" No Country For Old Men
29. As a music technician sits with his feet up on the desk, reading a magazine, the interested glance he gives towards a group of rag-tag musicians in the recording booth in front of him as they start to play... the power of music to transform- Once
30. The handheld camera shots of Keira Knightley as she fixes herself up in a large mirror, a white feather perched just on the edge of the frame. Atonement
31. In I'm Not There, A visual metaphor worthy of Godard when Jude Quinn (Cate Blanchett) unleashes electricity on the crowd at the Newport Jazz Festival, expressed as her band shooting machine guns into the crowd.
32. The anguished long take as a group of Irish men are lined up against a barn wall, questioned by intruders... and one of them doesn't speak English as a cacophony of friendly voices tries to explain what's happening.... then he's lead into the barn- The Wind That Shakes the Barley
33. The slow dissolve from one scene to the next that feels almost revolutionary in its classicism as Mark Whalburg walks to his car... violence waiting to erupt in We Own the Night
34. The long medium shot as a woman stands, head down, in front of a masked man, as he repetitively quizzes her on a name, address, birthday, social security number from a fake drivers license he's holding.... one of the most stark examples of brainwashing ever presented on film in Julia Loktev's Day Night Day Night.
35. In No Country For Old Men, the inflection in the voice of a young boy as he looks over the damaged body of Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) with, "look at that fuckin' bone..."
36. George Clooney's face filling the left side of the screen in silence as the end credits roll.... Michael Clayton.
37. The body of Marisa Tomei in Before the Devil Knows You're Dead- reason enough to pay to see the movie.
38. "By the power of Grayskull". Hott Fuzz
39. Those eyes of Imogen Poots in 28 Weeks Later.
40. In The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, the shot of a woman's brown hair blowing violently in the wind as the crisp blue sky looms around the edges.
41. There could probably be a hundred moments of Philip Seymour Hoffman on this list, but his entire performance in Charlie Wilson's War and they way he murmurs out humorous line after line in that monotone voice and the way he directs Charlie Wilson (Tom Hanks) to open the bottle of wine elsewhere.
42. Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) directing a British reporter (Paddy Considine) through a train station full of technology. The Bourne Ultimatum
43. A female police officer (Charlize Theron) recognizing that under the yellow light where a car may have been parked, the witness could've easily mistaken a green car for blue... just one of the many smart observations in a very smart film- In the Valley of Elah
44. The vampires in 30 Days of Night... a nightmarish bastard child of Nosferatu and everything unholy.
45. A baby reaching up to grab the moustache of the man holding him, and the way Daniel Day Lewis slumps to accept the infant's touch- one of the very few moments of tenderness in There Will Be Blood.

Favs of 2007

The following are my 20 favorite films of 2007. These 20 favorites may be someone else's 20 worst, but here's hoping we can meet in a compromise and enjoy 2008.

20. Atonement- Joe Wright's tale of star-crossed lovers is the stuff of Lifetime Movie channel upon first viewing. Beautiful people (Keira Knightly and James McAvoy) are torn apart by war and the deception of a child, and upon my initial viewing, Atonement registered as a very well done drama and nothing more. But the film lingered in my mind for days (something that only happens with my true favorites) and I gave it a second chance. The devastation and emotion of the narrative were there even greater the second time and it won me over.

19. The Bourne Ultimatum- I could've done with a little less hand-held camerawork, but this is still a terrific finale to a terrific spy trilogy. After watching this film twice on DVD, its clear that Greengrass has a subversive feel for editing and bodies in motion. Plus it features 2-3 of the greatest set pieces all year. Damon pulverizes through everything and everyone like a missile and we finally get some answers solved. I have the feeling that in 5-10 years, this will be for me what the Bond Franchise (minus 25 or so films) was to my father.

18. This Is England- Shane Meadows slightly autobiographical glimpse of youth in 1980's England as they flirt with rebellion, grow teenage crushes and deal with sobering reality. Oh, this is still a film that allows for its skinhead character (Stephen Graham) to elicit some unwarranted violence, but it's the way Meadows charts the impressionable journey of young Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) that resonates soundly. It would be easy to file Meadows' effort alongside previous 'skinhead flicks' of Mike Leigh and Alan Clarke, but This Is England is about so much more. He cares about his teen characters greatly and shows that their rebellious nature and nationalist zeal, when confronted with true evil, are merely excuses for hanging out and partying.

17. Red Road- Andrea Arnold has created a modernized version of Hitchock's Rear Window. A woman (Kate Dickie) is confined in a surveillance booth watching over the denizens of Glasgow through a wall of TV monitors. And then she recognizes a male face on one of the camera images. She puts a plan in motion and we're relegated to hapless observers, left wondering and watching as she puts her plan into action and we slowly gain answers to her mystery. Created out of the Dogma faction, Arnold's film looks better than a majority of those von-Trier inspired movies, and it packs quite a moral wallop as well.

16. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead- Sidney Lumet's Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is one of three films this fall to feature the rising real estate of Philip Seymour Hoffman. Here he gets to act sleazy, trade dialogue punches with Etahn Hawke... and he gets to screw Marisa Tomei. Things are certainly looking up for him. But in light of that, Lumet's latest is an intense chamber piece that observes the slow dissolution of a family through a heinous act. There's no redemption here and while Ethan Hawke churns out a frenetic, high-wire performance, it's the sad eyes of father Albert Finney that will stay with you longer than anything.

15. In the Valley of Elah- Not only has director Paul Haggis slightly redeemed himself for Crash, but In the Valley of Elah makes me look forward to his next film. Tommy Lee Jones is achingly poignant as a father searching for the answer to his son's death after he returned home on leave from the Iraq war. Charlize Theron plays the marginalized female police detective who helps with the case. Slowly, and with very little sledgehammer tactics (save for the final shot), Haggis weaves a smart and touching story that tackles some pretty heavy themes- all with great success.

14. Hott Fuzz- While I'm a fan of Shaun of the Dead, director Edgar Wright and writer Simon Pegg exceeded any average ambitions with that film and delivered a truly great comedy with Hott Fuzz. Essentially a lovingly recreated spoof on pretty much everything cinema-wise, Hott Fuzz has more heart in its sound effects than most comedies do over their entire 95 minute running time.

13. The Host- Korean director Bong Joon Ho directed one of the most underrated police procedurals in recent years (Memories of Murder, 2005) so it's no surprise he would helm one of the more criminally under appreciated monster movies in recent memory. And that's even after showing the monster in the first 25 minutes. Humor, pathos and action are all magically intertwined as the genre conventions are constantly twisted. A great film.

12. We Own the Night- I've long been a fan of director James Gray, and with We Own the Night, he continues to examine the fragility of a family cast against an urban canvas of crime. The moral stakes are higher in this one, as the film pits cop brother (Wahlburg) against fringe criminal brother (Joaquin Phoenix) during the Russian mafia days of early 80's New York. Featuring a few stellar set-pieces, a majority of the film's power is derived from the detailed texture and nuances that Gray infuses into the story. Whole stretches of this film feel so classical in style that it doesn't seem like a film in 2007. And no current director uses light and shadow quite as magnificently as Gray.

11. The Hunting Party- This is the best kind of movie experience one can have. You go see a movie based on limited word of mouth, minimal critical acceptance and low expectations and get steam rolled by a moving and charismatic genre picture, full of nouvelle vague camera homages, strong acting from Richard Gere and Terence Howard and an overall confident story. When this hits DVD, catch up with it.

10. Knocked Up- This is a film for any 30-something still feeling their way through life, unsure if they've made the right decisions and dealing with their mistakes the best way they know how. It's not only a magnificent comedy, but a pretty damn good representation of MY age group as well. And like I've been screaming lately, Leslie Mann deserves a supporting actress nomination. I don't know if Judd Apatow and his crew have another comedy with this much warmth up their sleeve (Superbad just missed the mark somehow) but here's hoping they do.

9. The Wind That Shakes The Barley- Ken Loach's Cannes 2006 Plame d'Or winner is his best film in years. Tracing the root beginnings of the IRA, Cillian Murphy turns in a wonderful performance as a young man who's drawn back into the nationalist fervor just as he's about to head off and become a doctor. From there, Loach draws out the dividing opinions of those involved with detail as different factions of the IRA want peaceful, political resolve and those that want violence. There are some gorgeous shots of the Irish countryside and don't be mistaken- this is a film of raw, primal power as scenes of violence and speech play out. Loach has always worked best as a fly-on-the-wall, observing the political and emotional explosions that go off, and The Wind That Shakes the Barley may be the most involving expression of this style yet.

8. After the Wedding- Susanne Bier's early year drama features Mads Mikklelson (yes, that lazy-eye guy in the latest Bond movie) being invited to a wedding. From that simple invitation, After the Wedding spirals into a complex family drama and blindsides you with devastating revelation after revelation. These aren't cheap plot twists either. The narrative earns its various twists and turns and Bier's handheld camera work is piercing.

7. Sunshine- The best science fiction film in the last few years? At least since Soderbergh's Solaris, anyway. While Sunshine borrows alot from previous cinematic forays into the genre, it also distinguishes itself from its predecessors by tripping in and out of genres with courage. What begins as a typical space thriller (featuring the ubiquitous repairing the outer ship panels and computer malfunction) soon evolves into a nightmarish collision of slasher flick and psychological thriller. Cillian Murphy heads an international cast and with the inclusion of two films on this list, he had a blockbuster year. Too bad enough people didn't see either film.

6. No Country For Old Men- What further praise can be heaped onto the Coen Brothers blood-spattered, suspenseful adaptation? Not much.

5. Once- A "musical" in the leanest sense, John Carney's independent film follows an Irish guitarist and immigrant female singer as they bond over the course of a dew days. There are so many magical little moments in this film, that it never takes a wrong step. It manages to be warm and heartbreaking at the same time, eschewing any false emotions as it follows their relationship in completely rewarding and unexpected ways.

4. Day Night Day Night- The debut feature of director Julia Loktev, Day Night Day Night is an oblique observation about a young female suicide bomber (Luisa Williams) in Times Square waiting to carry out her mission. The film is unrelenting in its penetrating handheld camera and the central performance of Williams. We're given long glimpses into the "brainwashing" process of the unnamed female by masked men, the hours spent alone in a hotel room and then her interaction with the crowds of Times Square. Loktev is a talent to watch.

3. Zodiac- Released almost ten months ago, David Fincher's obsessive procedural about the equally obsessive pursuit of the Zodiac killer by various outfits (the media and the police, specifically) has only grown in stature. Repeat viewings only deepen the rewards of the film- from the perfect blocking of the camera, to the restrained performances and especially its dark heart of unfulfillment.

2. There Will Be Blood- In There Will Be Blood, filmmaker/screenwriter Paul Thomas Anderson has created a riveting portrait of a terrifying, larger-than-life oil magnate played to dizzying perfection by Daniel Day Lewis. There are moments of stark originality and brutal images that rank with the best of Anderson's films. And the score, by Jonny Greenwood, conjures up tense and uncomfortable feelings. This is a work of daunting ambition and dare I say it, but with this film and Magnolia, Anderson has certainly established himself as the new great American filmmaker, unafraid to produce challenging and cathartic works on epic scales.

1. The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford- Dreamy, elegant, and a downright masterpiece- Andrew Dominik's two and a half hour tone poem about the myth of the Old West, celebrity status and the paranoia that infects even the closest allies, this is a remarkable film on every level. From Roger Deakins' other wordly cinematography to the luscious score by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis, The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford is transfixing from start to finish. This spot could've easily gone to There Will Be Blood, but Dominik's film is just as equally ambitious and successful in taking an old genre and simmering beauty, darkness and texture from the remains.



Runner Ups: American Gangster, I'm Not There, No End In Sight, The Lives of Others, Eastern Promises

Without These Guys, Who Would We Stare At?

Whether its pretentious or not, I've always loved the characters at the fringes of a movie. Leading actors get all the acclaim, and quite honestly, its been quite some time since the Academy got it right when it comes to supporting roles (as character actors like Richard Jenkins, Paddy Considine and Ray Winstone are continually left out in the cold while delivering outstanding performance after outstanding performance). As mentioned in a previous post, Josh Brolin and Tommy Lee Jones both turned in stellar work this year, so leaving their names off the following list seems adequate. They've already gotten their shout-outs here (and PLENTY of other places). What's left are mentions of a few actors and actresses who grabbed the limelight in mostly star-populated efforts. For whatever reason, these guys acted their hearts out in films that were either DOA at the box office, hardly seen or under appreciated. There's always Netflix.

In no order:

Sienna Miller


Ok, so beauty before age. But don't let this woman's looks alter your perception of her. She can throw down with the best of them, and in the Steve Buscemi directed Interview, she proves she can also hold a film for 90 minutes through dialogue and intelligence. More like a 3 act play with 2 settings, Miller plays a young pop icon who agrees to an interview by journalist Steve Buscemi. What begins as a meeting of two wildly varying personalities soon morphs into a bitter, psychological war. The film holds together pretty well, and whether Miller is seducing Buscemi or throwing him out, one believes every ounce of her portrayal.

Imogen Poots


As the teenage sister left to fend for her brother and herself in 28 Weeks Later, she manages a fierce performance in a role that could've gone south in a hurry. How many chances does an actress get to make her mark in the movie-going world when her on-screen com padres are brain-eating zombies? Not much, but British actress Poots makes it work. And she has some of the most haunting eyes I've seen on film on year.

Luisa Williams


As the unnamed female with a bomb strapped to her back in Julia Loktev's brilliant debut feature, Day Night Day Night, Williams is in virtually every scene of the film. And its her conviction that sells the plot. There are scenes of such tension in this film, that certain noises in the soundtrack will make you gasp. And as an actress in Times Square, playing a role when no one around you except the director carrying the camera knows you're making a movie, her performance is even more stunning for its naturalism and subtlety. This is a commanding performance, brave and raw.

Leslie Mann


Comedy is hard enough to do, especially when its a comedy made by a group of guys about, basically, a guy finally growing up. Leslie Mann (right) certainly carves out a smart, humorous place in Judd Apatow's mostly male affair Knocked Up, and her comedic timing is perfect. If you saw her cameo as the drunk girl who gives Steve Carell a ride home in The 40 Year Old Virgin, then her wry gig in this latest film should come as a surprise. Still, she gives a performance that upstages just about everyone else in the film and establishes her as an actress who not only can score the laughs, but just might sting you a little when things get serious.

Terence Howard


While Richard Gere certainly had a remarkable year, Terence Howard didn't do too bad either. As the cameraman and friend to Gere's muckracking journalist in Richard Shepherd's criminally under appreciated The Hunting Party, Howard continues his tear of creating electric on-screen personas. Able to veer from lazy to frenetic with panache, Howard's performance in this comedy-drama-political satire is spot-on.

Carice Van Houten


Even after being covered by a vat of human shit, stripped naked several times and one scene of pubic hair dying, actress Carice Van Houten manages to pull out of Paul Verhoeven's World War 2 thriller Black Book with finesse and grace. Not only does she carry herself like a true classic screen actress, but Houten has the emotional temperance to make her role as a German double agent highly accessible and believable.

Sam Rockwell, Jeremy Renner, Paul Schneider


In Andrew Dominik's The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford, the screen time goes to Brad Pitt and Casey Affleck, but it's this trio of supporting actors that lends the film its elegant, expansive mood. As the film continually breaks away from the main storyline to document their various longueurs and subsidiary narratives, each actor brings an authentic view of outlaw life into clarity. And its their shoot-out in an upstairs room that gives the film one of its most jarring and shocking gun fights that feels highly authentic in how messy and quick the whole things ends.

Alicia Keyes


Yes, you read that right. While director Joe Carnahan's amphetamine-fueled shoot em up Smokin Aces is crass, vulgar, bottom-feeder action fare, singer Alicia Keyes actually made me a care a little about someone in the carnage, and that's always a good thing. Here's to hoping we see more of her in films.

Stephen Graham


As a skinhead in Shane Meadows' This Is England, Graham touches on something very realistic and frightening. Sure, its easy to make a skinhead terrifying and frightening (ask Edward Norton, Gary Oldman and Tim Roth), but in This Is England, actor Graham actually gives meaning to the motives and anger beneath the surface. He keeps it just below the surface for a majority of the movie, until it comes lashing out in violent ways, but up until that point, its a performance that revels in genuine interaction between the film's younger characters. One could easily see how this skinhead promoted from point A to B in his beliefs, which is all the more terrifying.

Zineb Oukach


While a majority of Gavin Hood's Rendition deals with the bland predicament of a cute American family dealing with secret imprisonment due to the father's mistaken Islamic nationality, the real juice of the film was given short shrift. As the female daughter of the police inspector investigating a terrorist bombing, Zineb Oukach added an increasingly interesting storyline that melded with the main narrative in unsuspecting ways. Too bad she was given so little screen-time. I could've done with more of her and less of Jake Gyleenhaal confronting his nationalist fears.

Charlize Theron

Ok, so allow me one big time name, ok? She deserves it. As the small-town police detective fighting female prejudices in Paul Haggis' In the Valley of Elah, Theron turns in another remarkable performance where she shrinks into character and obliterates all vain outward appearances. This is a strong performance and yet another example of Theron shedding her vanity for a role that doesn't play up her beauty, instead showcasing her brains and intuition. Just watch how her body language plays during a scene as fellow male detectives make fun of her. She doesn't react in any predictable manner, instead letting her presence do the actingfor her.

Trailers I Love

With this film and "The Pineapple Express" later in the year, here's hoping local boy David Gordon Green gets the credit he finally deserves in '08. Not only does this film look great, but it stars Sam Rockwell, who's becoming one of my favs.

Linkage

I get increasingly frustrated by visiting sites like AICN where the fanboy dementia just seems to be mutating by the hour. And don't even get me started on the Talkback boards there, which features some of the most sarcastic, vile message-posters I've ever seen. Still, one writer there named Moriarity (whose blog I link on this page and can be found here) still manages to impress and wow me with some of his writing. He's still a fanboy yes, but his reviews are heartfelt and sincere and I enjoy them immensely. His latest is yet another shining example of the movie fever that flows inside him. A great review.

Quick hits

Juno

Sweet and virtually inoffensive, "Juno" plays as the modern alternative to other 'teen comedies', i.e. treating adult concerns with adult humor. But, while Ellen Page is getting accolades as the lead character in baby-trouble, her presence is the reason why I didn't fully embrace the film. Diablo Cody's script is extremely artificial. I didn't believe for one second that there exists a 16 year old as whip-smart and sarcastic as Juno (and certainly a 16 year old who appreciates bands as obscure as Mott the Hoople and The Melvins) and her razor-sharp reactions continually removed me from the warmth building from the film's plot. Mildly amusing, at best.

Charlie Wilson's War

Definitely one of the best screenplays of the year, written by TV veteran Aaron Sorkin. I should probably pay more attention to his stuff if everything he writes is this witty and intriguing. Not only do actors such as Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Julia Roberts get to bask in the intelligent delivery of lightning dialogue, but the plot concerning a Texas Congressman's covert dealings to arm the Afghan holy soldiers against invading Soviet forces circa 1981 is probably more pertinent than a majority of the Iraq war films released this year. Director Mike Nichols keeps a light touch on the whole affair, but "Charlie Wilson's War" is still dark, funny and it pulls no punches by indirectly commenting on the screwed-up state of affairs left behind after America wages war in a given country. It's easy to laugh at the film's comedic framework, but there's still a very troubling undertone as stock footage of Afghan warriors shooting down Soviet helicopters plays on the screen; probably alot of the same weapons that are killing American troops over those same mountains today. Hindsight is 20-20.

Lonely Hearts

Todd Robinson's noir pastiche is an up-and-down affair, hitting the nail on the head one moment then splintering the entire wooden board the next. Chock full of A-list stars, "Lonely Hearts" documents the murderous relationship between a couple (Jared Leto, bad hairpiece and all, and sensual and lovely Salma Hayek) as they murder and dispense of wealthy female bodies across the midwest. The cops on the trail, played with earnest by John Travolta, James Gandolfini and Scott Caan, spout the usual lean dialogue and act moody, hardboiled and terse. But, in fact it's the relationship between the cops that works best, especially the heavy cloud of depression that hovers over Travolta's widowed cop persona. "Lonely Hearts" is less believable when it follows the jealous, violent excursions of Leto and Hayek, stirring up some sexual tension (mostly on Hayek's part) but wavering just a bit above camp. This could've been something really good. Still, director Robinson is someone to watch.

Sweeney Todd

In a sold-out theater, you could literally feel the anticipated air sucked out of the place when song burst forth from the lips of Johnny Depp and shipmate Anthony (Jamie Bower). While the film largely succeeds on one's patience with the musical genre, the cast is marvelous and the song's often soar. And the blood is really, really red and director Tim Burton certainly planned alot of mileage out of Sacha Baron Cohen's lower half. It didn't quite live up to the hype for me, though.