The Current Cinema

Bernie

At times, I consider Richard Linklater to be the best Texan filmmaker. Or at least the most honest and practical about this fair state’s diametric array of personalities and hazy country lifestyles. With his latest film, “Bernie”, Linklater has gone full country bumpkin and crafted a tale of twisted dedication and love gone bad in East Texas. Carthage, in fact… a small city that I used to have family in and spent many a family reunion there as a youngster. Starring Jack Black and based on a true story, “Bernie” grasps onto the black comedy genre with ease as Black portrays the amiable town mortician and friend-to-old-ladies, including wealthy Shirley MacLaine, whom he ends up killing in a fit of blind rage. Linklater fashions “Bernie” as a documentary of sorts, casting real life citizens as speakers to an unnamed filmmaker describing their interactions with the devious murder and eventual cover-up… and where Texas-speak such as “oh shit…. Our donkey’s in a ditch!” lingers across the film alongside the wrinkled, impressionable faces of its cast of non actors. Matthew McConaghy, as the high profile prosecutor, overdoes it a bit in stretches, but overall, “Bernie” is an unassuming comedy that fits right into the patchwork oeuvre of Linklater and his quest to enlighten all corners of the state.

The Intouchables

Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano’s “The Intouchables” probably earns a bit more cache due to its European pedigree. I can just imagine Al Pacino and Mos Def in the American remake. Wheel chair bound Phillippe (Francios Cluzet) hires strong-bodied street tough Driss (Omar Sy) as his personal assistant and opposites attract with a good measure of learning-to-love-life mixed in as well. It’s hard to deny the fairly rote narrative procession the film follows, yet it succeeds on the hugely magnetic performances of Cluzet and Sy. And I’ll be damned if I didn’t get a bit choked up in the final moments. The closing credit sequence with clips of home video footage of the real Phillippe and Driss effectively amplifies the relationship between fiction and non-fiction. In the same way Linklater showed footage of Jack Black talking with the real-life, imprisoned persona behind “Bernie”, “The Intouchables” adds an affecting coda that portrays depth and sensitivity to a story already drenched in it.

Prometheus

Take one part Alien trilogy and shake well with Erich von Daniken’s “Chariots of the Gods” and one ends up with Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus”, a sleek looking but infinitely detached sci-fi prequel to the aforementioned “Alien” films. I did get giddy at certain parts of the film, namely its various echoes of trilogy past. The appearance of the ship that starts it all in 1979, further disdain for cyborgs who seem hell-bent on obeying orders from a mischievous corporation and propelling the violence of alien DNA over human survival and especially the idea of strong female lead Noomi Rapace strapping up and taking charge recall the glories of the original two films. But regardless of this eager fan boy attitude, “Prometheus” stalls when it comes to character development. Not only are the characters of Idris Elba and others cardboard recreations, but their ultimate actions failed to move or engage me. “Prometheus” is startling for being a summer movie with some heady ideas and a terrific nihilistic attitude at one point (“there’s nothing”…. “I know”), but that’s about it. Subplots pop up without any credence (Charlize Theron and her father), an elusive backstory concerning Noomi Rapace’s family and an oblique opening scene that raises more questions than it answers all create huge divides in the narrative. Perhaps there’s a director’s cut on the way. It’s just disappointing that we need a later DVD to underscore the intentions now.

An Appreciation: Robert Aldrich

Apache (1954) *** - Burt Lancaster began his long and illustrious career with Aldrich in this adept western as an Indian waging a terrorist war against his white man oppressors. There are two or three terrific sequences here: Lancaster’s first entrance into the town of St. Louis…. A montage of violence that seems to place Lancaster’s warrior Indian everywhere at the same time…. And several hard bam-bam cuts which push the narrative forward in a manner that would later befit his noir masterpiece “Kiss Me Deadly”. The only drawback to this one- watching it in high def exposes the awful make-up job that transforms Lancaster and female costar Jean Peters into red faced Indians.

World For Ransom (1954) ***½ - Starring the always watchable Dan Duryea as a private eye caught up in political kidnappings and murder, “World For Ransom” earns its merit for stripping the film noir genre from postwar America and placing in among the hot and humid streets and jungles of Singapore. Thick humid air and dank corners are the film’s main setting here which gives the genre a wholly fresh spin. After a nuclear scientist is kidnapped, Duryea’s old cronies end up framing him for the crime and he embarks on a one-man mission to uncover the truth. Like later Aldrich films, the threat of nuclear annihilation is at the heart of the story and it also features some interesting themes of friendship and betrayal. Not one of the more recognizable Aldrich films, but a great starting point. Not available on DVD, streaming video only.

Vera Cruz (1954) **- The air of a Saturday afternoon special hangs over this languid western that pits outlaw Lancaster alongside soldier Gary Cooper in a fight against the Mexican army as they escort a wealthy woman across the west. Looks nice, but its ultimately harmless and without any real cinematic teeth.

Kiss Me Deadly (1955) ****- A turning point for Aldrich’s career and a true capstone to the film noir genre comes “Kiss Me Deadly”, a terrifying, nihilistic and paranoid thriller that pits private investigator Mike Hammer (Ralph Meeker) against a shadowy organization with a very deadly hidden briefcase. From the opening credits where the titles spiral backwards from top to bottom and a cryptic woman enters Hammer’s world for a short car ride dressed only in a trench coat, “Kiss Me Deadly” never plays by the rules. Mimicked to no end by future filmmakers (Tarantino and Spielberg of course), the golden glowing briefcase is probably cinema’s most intriguing ‘maguffin‘, made all the more unsettling by the violent hissing added to the soundtrack. All in all, “Kiss Me Deadly” deserves its place as one of the more forward-thinking pictures of its time and a true masterpiece.

The Big Knife (1955) ***- Hollywood in the 50’s doesn’t appear to be any less morally bankrupt than today. Perhaps that’s a bit harsh, but “The Big Knife” lies all the ugliness out on the table. Based on a play by Clifford Odets, Jack Palance stras as an A-list actor separated from his wife, spurning the advances of several women, and trying to re-negotiate his contract with a studio boss (Rod Steiger) who seems to be more Al Capone than Daryl Zanuck. Confined to only a few settings, “The Big Knife” is a pessimistic attack on the creative process and the inner turmoil of a man whose had enough of the good life. Palance is the film’s beating heart and he gives a complex performance. Aldrich tightens the spectrum with simple a shot/reverse shot formula, never allowing the strict confines of a word-bound play to suffocate his big-screen version.

Attack (1956) **½- Another stage play transported to the screen by Aldrich and his film company, “Attack” opens with a very gritty Sam Fuller-like scruffiness which ends with a soldier’s helmet rolling violently down the hill after a platoon has been decimated due to a coward colonel. Jack Palance plays the leader of the decimated squad and Eddie Albert is the coward. The rest of the film examines the vehement verbal tug of war between the men. As a war film, one can’t but help imagine the great possibilities Aldrich could have ended up with… instead the film lags. Much like Kubrick’s “Paths Of Glory”, “Attack” strives for a higher calling of anti-war rhetoric, but ends up writhing due to its stage-bound wordiness.


The Garment Jungle (1957) **- It’s debatable how much Aldrich truly contributed to this film, as he was replaced during production with director Vincent Sherman. The film itself, which contains little resemblance to any creativity behind the camera, is a generic tale of the New York manufacturing block and the Union’s attempt to take a stronghold on its impoverished workers. As the Union idealist, a young Robert Loggia is good, but it’s the performance of Gia Scala (an actress who died way too young with numerous personal demons) as Loggia’s young wife that really impresses. Sultry one minute and intelligent the next, she raises the overall pleasure from an ordinarily mundane cinematic effort.

Autumn Leaves (1958) ** - Aldrich’s first enterprise with Joan Crawford- whom he would later exploit for more gaudy effect in “Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?“- “Autumn Leaves” is an interesting title that explores the late-in-life romance between Crawford and mentally unstable, but much younger Cliff Robertson. Alternating between uneasy drama and psychological thriller, “Autumn Leaves” isn’t entirely successful because its such a rote, bland film. Recently more accessible due to Robertson’s death, “Autumn Leaves” is an average Aldrich film. Not available on DVD.

The Angry Hills (1959) ***- Robert Mitchum stars as an American military journalist caught up with Greek Resistance fighters and the Nazi Gestapo working to uncover a list of important names he’s been entrusted with. Solid acting all around, but the real meat of the film lies in Aldrich’s razor-sharp mise-en-scene which seems to be growing in confidence. One set piece- with Mitchum being led into a trap in a small Greek church- is a mesmerizing example of editing, music and camera movement. I watched this scene over and over, definitely a trend-setting moment. Gia Scala (above) also co-stars. Not available on region 1 DVD.

Ten Seconds To Hell (1959) ***- The second of two films Aldrich made in the UK for Hammer studios after his disastrous affair on “The Garment Jungle”, “Ten Seconds To Hell” is a gritty, hollowed out post-war tale about a group of German soldiers returning home to work as bomb disposal experts. The opening, with a voice over lending a prose-like history of each soldier, threatens to sink the film before it even begins with overbearing wordiness, but Aldrich pulls back the reigns and allows the basic tension of a bomb blowing up in one’s face to be the real star of the film. Not only does Jack Palance give a terrific performance, but the film out-tensions “The Hurt Locker” in its quiet, protracted scenes of death-on-the-line as the men work to disarm their various assignments throughout the leveled city. Not available on region 1 DVD.


The Last Sunset (1961) ****- An interior western and a superior one. All the regular genre tropes are there: a cattle drive, outlaw and sheriff, open vistas…. But the real tension in Aldrich’s understated masterpiece is the simmering tension boiling between all involved. Kirk Douglas is an outlaw on the run when he finds his way to the cabin of an old flame (Dorothy Malone), immediately hooks up with her and her husband’s cattle drive, and then finds the sheriff chasing him (Rock Hudson) join the fray as well in order to serve the existing warrant on him the minute they cross the Texas border. Throw in a 17 year old daughter (Carol Lynly) who develops a crush on Douglas, and “The Last Sunset” turns into a chamber drama under the sun with every principal character hiding an ulterior motive. The way in which Aldrich moves the chess pieces around the board is hugely satisfying, and it all culminates in an extremely moving testament to the individual lost amidst the lawlessness of the Old West and his quiet redemption.

The Last Days of Sodom and Gomorrah (1962) *½ - The obligatory 60’s religious epic by a named filmmaker finds Aldrich examining the waning years of these infamous Biblical cities in a very sanitized and boring manner. We get 1960’s eyeliner and Stewart Grainger badly miscast as the Hebrew savior. Beyond that, the cheekiness of the city’s destruction and the all-too-important acting moments are fun to watch in a very guilty pleasure sort of way. Not available on DVD.

What Ever Happened To Baby Jane? (1962) **½ - Also known as Bette Davis and Joan Crawford hamming it up well past their prime. Highly regarded as a camp classic of sorts, Aldrich does his best to heighten the tension of the story while remaining (mostly) fixed in the old decrepit house where ex-Hollywood star sisters have a very tortured existence. The main reason to see this film is Bette Davis, though. Appearing caked in make-up and often looking like an insane circus clown, clomping around her house in slippers and delivering pent-up maliciousness against Crawford… it’s a performance that resembles a force of nature. Overall, it’s hard to take the whole thing seriously though.

Four For Texas (1963)- *½- A rat pack western that crumbles under its own fragile existence, failing to elicit any real laughs or thrills. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin are cowboys in South Texas playing games with a town’s corrupt banker. As a Technicolor effort, “Four For Texas” is surprisingly flat and even the sexy goodness of Ursula Andress can’t elevate the film. And I’ve said it before, but any film that tries to locate its setting in Texas amongst tall, rolling mountains automatically loses points with me.


Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte (1964) ***- A return to grand guignol with Bette Davis as a reclusive Southern belle dealing with whispers of long-ago-murder and foreclosure on her looming estate. Unlike “What Ever Happened To Baby Jane”, “Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte” feels like Aldrich having more fun, mixing up genres (psychological horror and tabloid ‘dramady‘) with panache. It’s certainly his most striking film to date, though…. like a 40’s Jacques Tourneur movie, full of looming shadows and people framed by light and darkness.

The Flight of the Phoenix (1965) ***½- A crew of oil workers crash land in the Arabian desert with plenty of guilt and apathy to go around. Featuring an eclectic cast (including James Stewart as the pilot, Richard Attenborough as his co-pilot, Peter Finch as a tight lipped army captain and Ernest Borgnine as a sniveling crack-up), “The Flight of the Phoenix” is gritty, tense stuff. Not only does Aldrich heighten every sun-burned tear on the men’s faces, but the psychological distress is just as engulfing. But the most interesting conflict in the film emerges between Heinrich Dorfmann (played by Hardy Kruger) and Jimmy Stewart. The patriotic good ‘ol American versus staunch German pride, staged just a few years after the end of World War 2 as both men are pitted against each other to take possession of great savior for the lot. The remake from a few years ago doesn’t do this underrated film justice.

The Dirty Dozen (1966) ***½- Boy, watching this again for the first time in years and I’m reminded how much of a genre-stealing hack Quentin Tarantino really is. With an all-star cast, Aldrich basically upped the ante on the “men on a mission” war genre that would see itself re-invented and re-imagined for years to come- and on both sides of the ocean as well. The great conceit in Aldrich’s adrenalized affair is just how long he spends humanizing the ‘dirty dozen’ before their fatalistic mission to wipe out the German high command at a Paris chateau. Nihilism doesn’t begin to describe the lengths Aldrich goes in that final battle, and its all very non-Hollywood, which probably earns the film even higher regards nowadays. This was 1966 and we’re treated to Lee Marvin sadistically trying to break off the vent hoods so his men can drop grenades down into the underground hideout of the German men and their party-goers. As an action film, “The Dirty Dozen” is aces. As a film that successfully inverts our expectations about the ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’, it’s a revelation.

The Killing of Sister George (1968) *½- A potboiler subject treated in a very ham-fisted manner. As the title character, Beryl Reid gives a shrill and off-putting performance while Susan George, as her much younger and sultry girlfriend, alternates between sexy lounge candy and poutiness. Based on a play, “The Killing of Sister George” focuses on the deteriorating relationship between two swinging London lesbians after Sister George is written off her long running BBC television show. Unable to cope with the psychological impact of not going to work every day, plus the fact that her lover is quite the younger dish, Sister George takes it out on everyone around her. One or two scenes really stand out, such as a dance club altercation with a prim and proper studio employee, but the possibly brave subject matter is neither sensitive nor introspective and Aldrich’s direction feels flat.


Too Late the Hero (1970) ***- Workmanlike war film that details the mission of one American radio expert (Cliff Robertson) and a squad of British soldiers (including Michael Caine and Denholm Elliot) trying to disable a Japanese communication center in the South Pacific. The violence is quick and harsh (such as the death of a wounded sergeant left behind and a soldier stepping on a landmine), the characters a bit stock, but it all adds up to a tense series of war scenarios with the usual class differences built in. Michael Caine, in particular, enjoys chewing the scenery though.

The Grissom Gang (1971) **- White trash crime spree is the best way to describe Aldrich’s Depression-era kidnapping saga whose best moments include the twisted performance of Scott Wilson. A backwoods family kidnaps a Southern heiress and then has to deal with her being locked upstairs. Watching Wilson fall in love with the kidnapped heiress (Kim Darby) dwarfs anything else in the film. Clearly influenced by “Bonnie and Clyde” and the other white-trash exploitation flicks of the early 70’s, the film never really gels as a whole though.

Ulzana’s Raid (1972) **- The last of Aldrich’s westerns, it does pair him with favorite actor Burt Lancaster once again, this time with middling results. It’s a curious film, to say the least… failing to fall squarely on either side of the fence between soldiers led by a young lieutenant (Bruce Davison) and Indian hunter (Lancaster) or the bloodthirsty and violent Apache Ulzana (Joaquin Martinez). It does look terrific even if the final results are problematic.

Emperor of the North (1973) ***½- A very unique subject for a film as scruffy tramp A No.1 (Lee Marvin) pits wills against train conductor Shack (Ernest Brognine) and attempts to hitch a ride on his train for free during the Great Depression. Seemingly one long action set-piece, “Emperor of the North” excels in grubby viciousness as the two men fight their way across the Pacific Northwest. Before long, the film almost becomes an existential battle, with no real accomplishment in sight for either man, each one simply trying to invade the other’s worldview and personal confines. I suppose there’s something there about the “haves” and have nots”, but Aldrich has little use for that type of preachiness, instead crafting an action film that penetrates both the psychological and the physical.


The Longest Yard (1974) ***- Aldrich loved working with the same crew both behind the camera and in front, and here begins a mini love affair with actor Burt Reynolds over the course of two films. While “The Longest Yard” is a serviceable dramady, Reynolds is highly magnetic as the once superstar quarterback dealing with life and deadly sport behind the big wall of a prison. Not without its typical Aldrich flare for violence- especially the arsonist death scene that always felt very creepy and nihilistic- “The Longest Yard” just may be one of the best football movies ever put to film as well.

Hustle (1975) ****- One of the great character studies of the 70’s with Burt Reynolds as a Los Angeles detective working the death of a young girl whose father (Ben Johnson) just won’t let her death go unnoticed. Like many other sun-noirs of the 1970’s, “Hustle” wallows in the genre tropes- political corruption cover ups, beaches awash with immoral subplots and cops trying to balance it all. But the brilliance of “Hustle” is it’s complete inversion of the genre. Reynolds isn’t trying to solve the case… content to shove it under the carpet and focus instead on the marred relationship with his hooker girlfriend (Catherine Denevue) and a police chief (Borgnine) who just wants to hear how good things are going. It’s Ben Johnson, as the dead girl’s father, who really pushes the story forward with his old-school sense of morality and gruff, Biblical views of redemption. All of this comes full circle with a shocking conclusion as the world exacts revenge on pretty much everyone. One of the more underrated 70’s films.

Twilight’s Last Gleaming (1977) ****- Burt Lancaster and two other escaped convicts violently seize control of a missile silo and hold demands to the President (Charles Durning). Aldrich’s laser sharp direction and editing- including a highly inventive use of split screen- rally what could have been typical material to the point of exhaustion… in a good way. This is a nail biter of a movie, constantly shifting between the Army’s plan to break into the compound, the President’s debate with his cabinet at the White House, and the grainy black and white images of the security cameras while the convicts anxiously watch their surroundings. “Twilight’s Last Gleaming” deserves some type of mainstream release. It’s excellent, sweat-inducing 70’s cinema at its finest. Not available on DVD.

The Choirboys (1977) *- The novel it’s based on (by Joseph Wambaugh) essentially had its author disavow the film and one can easily see why. A group of L.A. policemen (including Charles Durning, Louis Gossett Jr, James Woods and Randy Quaid) blow off steam as they drink, cajole and fight with each other. It starts off promisingly well as a visual Jacques Tati like comedy- the police hit the street and cause a traffic jam before they even exit the police station parking lot. The titular “choir practice” is simply the cop’s word for their nightly excursions, which often ends in someone being tied to a tree or an all out brawl. The idea of stress manifesting itself in crude, unrelenting ways is an interesting idea, yet Aldrich’s version too often swerves into deplorable moments of unfunny castigation or racism/sexism. Struggling to find a tone, “The Choirboys” is a misguided effort of the highest degree. Not available on DVD.


The Frisco Kid (1979) **-- Occasionally funny western starring Gene Wilder (who usually raises the pedigree of ANY comedy) and Harrison Ford as an unlikely duo traveling from east to west, facing the dangers of the rugged western exterior and the bad guys that dwell in it. Wilder, playing the part of a Hassidic Jew, probably offends a lot of the archetype he portrays with his uneven accent and bumbling persona, while Ford fares only marginally better as the outlaw-turned-good-guy who helps the helpless Wilder. It’s interesting to see Aldrich’s failed attempts at humor with a few loose canon comedies, but “The Frisco Kid” and “The Choirboys” needed something more.

…All the Marbles (1981) ***- After years of choosing strong females to base his theater around, Aldrich closes with a boisterous, magnetic female duo. Vicki Frederick and Laurene Landon are female tag team wrestlers managed by Peter Falk, knocking around cold Ohio and eventually earning their way to a major match in Nevada. The scruff-dog atmosphere, zero to hero narrative, and especially the presence of Burt Young, undoubtedly earn comparisons to “Rocky”, but “…All the Marbles” is something unique. There’s real heart and humor in Mel Frohman’s script and Peter Falk is just magnificent. And if all that doesn’t win one over, then the protracted, punishing final wrestling bout surely will.

Music On the Mind

One of the most overlooked and under appreciated bands of the 80's.... The Blue Nile. Please check them out if you're so inclinded.








And not an 80's band, but one that could easily pass for one... and currently the song I'm most obsessed with:

Revisiting the Faves: Alien

My affections for Ridley Scott's "Alien" came in a roundabout way. It was one my father's favorite movies (along with "Blade Runner", "Cat Ballou" and "Angel Heart"- wonderful tastes in film I may add!). I tried to watch it several times during my teenage years, but always seemed to either lose interest or shrug off its more than modest conceits as a sci-fi horror. Then, about 6 months ago- when the buzz for Scott's supposed Alien prequel "Prometheus" began to reach its fever pitch- I decided to dive back into "Alien" in all its Blu Ray glory. Perhaps by coming at the film with a less jaundiced eye or relating to the film through its many imitators and sci-fi horror practitioners, I realized the sheer greatness of the film only recently. Made in 1979, "Alien" could have been released in 2009 and I would not have batted an eye. It's visual gravitas, narrative brilliance and embedded horrors put so many of the genre's other efforts to shame.

The narrative brilliance I speak of is Scott's long-winded desire to make Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) the eventual hero of the film... and the franchise face. Sure, there had been women heroes before whose quest for survival derived from their victim status (rape to revenge or assault the system by crime), but here was a woman hero who outlasts the danger and actually kicks ass on her accord. Upon original release, I'm sure untrained eyes were just waiting for Tom Skerritt or Yaphet Kotto to retaliate against the evil alien life form. But they were just pawns on the board, disappearing in order and timed to a screeching soundtrack that seemed to propel the alien forward. Also, besides the now infamous John Hurt stomach emergence scene, I was quite taken aback how bloodless "Alien" works. Unlike the future installments, "Alien" gets its point across through unsettling lighting, quick cuts of protruding alien tongues and, my favorite, death through the eyes of a cat.

I don't know how good "Prometheus" will be, as early reviews are diving the critics, but one can always return to the original greatness of the "Alien" franchise and relish the moments that created such a terrific series of films... and broke some genre ground in the process.

Produced and Abandoned #13

A few more titles deseving a proper release:

1) The Confession (1970)- I love the calculated, politically aware films of Costa-Gavras and after recently tracking down the wonderful "State of Siege", I'm ready for more. This film deals with the imprisonment and interrogation of a high ranking official.

2. The Woman Chaser (1999)- Actor Patrick Warburton (yes, David Putty from "Seinfeld") stars in this offbeat drama/noir that got tons of play on IFC back in the day, but has disappeared since. That's usually how it goes. There's much internet love for its eventual resurrection, but this small indie film by cult director Robinson Devor ("Zoo" and "Police Beat") has been MIA for over a decade now.

3. The Wild Life (1984)- Another film that had its continual run on cable back in the day, "The Wild Life" is written by Cameron Crowe and directed by Art Linson but has fallen through the cracks since then, mostly due to copyright laws with several songs in the film- which means we'll probably never see it on DVD if history holds true. I was way too young to appreciate the film's probable greatness when I would sneak peeks at it on HBO as a ten year old, but I do remember the electric performance of Chris Penn and sorta fell in love with Lea Thompson after this and "Howard the Duck".

4. No Blade of Grass (1970)- Apocalypse film directed by the great Cornel Wilde about a family surviving the end of the world. One would think this would crop up on TCM or another channel by now, but, alas, it hasn't. Bootleg copies are readily available though, if one were inclined... not that I'm supporting that.

5. The Games (1970)- From Imdb: "Four marathon runners (one from England, one from the U.S., a Czech and an Australian Aborigine) prepare to run in the Olympic games. The film follows each one and shows what their motivations are for running in the games." Plus, it's directed by Michael Winner and currently aired on Fox Movie Channel. It's sitting on my DVR now. Review forthcoming?

6. Static (1986)- Cult oddity from director Mark Romanek ("One Hour Photo") and writer/director Keith Gordon, this film stars Gordon as a religious young man who claims he can communicate with heaven from a device he builds. Based on the descriptions, this is a film replete with Lynchian images and off-putting ideas. Has anyone seen this?

Trailers I Love

My God this looks amazing.....

Cinema Obscura: Leere Welt (The Empty World)

Wolfgang Panzer's "The Empty World" is a prototypical German film- dour, analytical and emotionless- which make the film's subject about the apocalypse via a disease that terminally ages everyone overnight even more puzzling. It's an end-of-the-world genre film unlike anything else you've ever seen.

Following teenager Tom (Tilman Schaich), "Leere Welt" is broken into three distinct parts of the apocalypse- introduction, survival and commune. Tom lives with his grandparents as the virus first begins to spread across the world. Lectures in school are presented on the topic and we meet Helen (Beatrice Dossi), a bright girl who Tom has feelings for but than leaves to work as an actress. The next day, Tom's teacher arrives to school severely aged and its clear that the disease is progressing through the adults in Tom's world. As the virus spreads, Tom loses his family and hits the road where he meets various scavengers and survivors- including a little girl. There's no real reasoning to how the virus spreads or why it afflicts certain people and leaves others unharmed. "Leere Welt" is less about this scientific outbreak and more about how Tom interacts with the crumbling world around him. Finally, in the last section of the film, Tom wanders into an abandoned factory and finds Helen surviving with her friend Kiki (Astrd Marshall). The trio comprise a certain kind of family, complete with jealousy between them and an interrupted threesome. All of this is handled with straight-forward ambition and a distinct avoidance of emotion.

Made in 1986 and released as a TV movie, "Leere Welt" has its obvious supporters and has even been called the "holy grail of apocalypse films" by avid fans. I feel a bit jealous to say it wasn't that hard for me to locate. Still, while "Leere Welt" feels like a fairly average film on every level, I can understand the unusual interest in the film. There are moments of bizarre randomness- a pack of dogs that relentlessly chases one of the girls.... an ode to Nicholas Roeg's "Don't Look Now" in its representation of the creepy, wrinkled face of a little girl appearing on-screen.... and the disjointed performance of young Tilman who swaggers through the film like a spoiled brat searching for his lost dog rather than confronting the harsh realities of the world's destruction. As a novelty to say I've seen it, "Leere Welt" was worth the effort. Otherwise, it belongs in the annals of weird German cinema.

Jumper or Junkie: Sound of My Voice

Zal Batmanglij's "Sound of My Voice" is a low-fi stunner. Co-written by himself and actress Brit Marling- who was so good in last year's "Another Earth"- the film challenges the viewer in many of the same ways. As a micro-budget science fiction indie, "Sound of My Voice" exceeds its modest expectations. As a whodunit and elliptical thriller, it knocks it out of the park.

Opening in the midst of a transfixing procedure as Peter (Christopher Denham) and Lorna (a wonderful Nicole Vicius) are blindfolded, bathed and led into a nondescript basement, we soon learn the couple have been accepted into an exclusive sect of people, led by the sickly Maggie (Brit Marling) who claims to be from the year 2054. She preaches to them, puts them through nervous psychoanalysis (eating an apple then having them puke it up) and promises to lead them into safety when an upcoming cataclysm will strike. Not long after, we learn that Peter and Lorna have infiltrated the group as an experiment to create a documentary about the mysterious Maggie. "Sound of My Voice" remains, mostly, in the confines of Maggie's presence as her stories and lulling personality drive a wedge between the reality of Peter and Lorna. The big question which looms over the entire film- is Maggie real or a scam artist- comes into muddy moral focus when she asks Peter to commit a crime for her. As the star of both this film and "Another Earth", actress Marling has become the sort of queen of the micro-indie sci fi tale. While I feel "Sound of My Voice" is the stronger of the two efforts, Marling possesses a mysterious quality that enables her to embody boh roles- morose lurker in one and ambient, trance-inducing beauty in the next- with perfect ease. And both films feature a shocker of an ending, with "Sound of My Voice" delivering an ambivalent denoument that reinforces the slow-burn momentum of everything up to that point.

What's In the Netflix Queue #35

1. The Son of No One (2011)- I'm a big Dito Montiel fan, but the talk about this Al Pacino-Channing Tatum drama has been middling. After his "A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints" from a few years back, I'll give director Montiel the benefit of the doubt every time.
2. Burnt By the Sun (1994)- This film has been out there for ages, received some major recognition during the early 90's and won an Oscar as best foreign picture, but I've never seen it. The recent Film Comment article on Alexei German has my wet my appetite for Russian cinema I've missed- which is alot.
3. Fear and Trembling (2003)- My look into the films of Alain Corneau continues with this film. "In search of a new beginning, Amélie (Sylvie Testud) moves from Belgium back to her early-childhood home of Japan, where she starts working full time for a large corporation. But life as a foreigner proves difficult to navigate -- and Eastern office etiquette is nothing like what she's used to. French director Alain Corneau helms this Tokyo-based dramedy adapted from the autobiographical novel by Amélie Nothomb." From Netflix description.
4. Around A Small Mountain (2009)- One of the very few Rivette films actually available on DVD, this recent release from him charts the romance between a man (the always wonderful Sergio Castellitto) and a circus owner (Jane Birkin).
5. The Hills Run Red (1966)- Quasi spaghetti western starring Henry Silva and Dan Duryea as soldiers caught up in a heist. The director, Carlo Lizzani, is an extremely prolific and underrated creater of some terrific 70's Italian cinema.
6. The Image (1975)- Apologies that I don't remember where, but several blogs I've been reading lately have posted about director Radley Metzger and his sexploitation canon. This will be my introduction to his work. Fingers crossed!
7. War Horse (2011)- Yea, missed this one last year. I hope it doesn't reek of the sappiness I gleaned from its trailer.
8. Dark Waters (1993)- I go through phases of genre watching, and last October I added a ton of French horror flicks to the list, and with the constant re-arranging and shuffling of titles, this one got missed. Plot is as follows: "After her father's death, Elizabeth (Louise Salter) visits a desolate island to discover why he left his money to a secretive order of nuns. Though the foreboding Mother Superior (Mariya Kapnist) tries to send her away, Elizabeth soon discovers that the convent is actually a prison, built to confine a terrible aquatic demon that can be controlled only if the shattered pieces of an ancient stone amulet are kept apart."
9. Fear Me Not (2007)- Danish thriller about a man (Ulrich Thomson0 struggling with the after effects of an experimental drug. Director Kristin Levring comes from the vonTrier dogma school of filmmaking (does anyone even remember this now, besides us movie board affecianados who argued about this style from 1998-2001??).
10. Solaris (1972)- Re watch of the Tarkovsy classic.

Reviews, New Stuff

The Cabin In the Woods


Drew Goddard’s “The Cabin In the Woods” sets itself apart from other horror films pretty early on with its opening scene: two men (a wonderful Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford) in suits ramble on about failed experiments in faraway countries as they drive through a concrete office bunker and the sense of mind-numbing beaurucracy settles in. From there, “The Cabin In the Woods” turns into a witty deconstruction of the horror genre and plays like an episode of “South Park”. Remember the “Margaritaville” episode? Written by Joss Whedon and Goddard, “The Cabin In the Woods” is sheer fun, circumventing the horror film in both narrative and fundamental ideals as a group of teenagers and their weekend retreat turns into a real-life nightmare. Irony for the sake of irony is never fun, and that is where a majority of the post-Scream and Whedon’s own “Buffy” series posit themselves nowadays. “The Cabin In the Woods” is a bit mean-spirited towards its main characters, sardonic in all the right moments and facetious with the genre tropes (the old man giving directions at the gas station begins with a wince and then pays off to terrific lengths later in the film), but it also works in the same way Sam Raimi’s early horror films work. There’s a creativity and a sense of devotion to inverting the genre that seeps through the whole film. Highly recommended for upside-down entertainment.

4:44 Last Day On Earth

“4:44 Last Day On Earth” is the first Abel Ferrera film in over a decade to receive a marginal stateside release (the last was minimal drug dealer procedural “R Xmas”) after his self imposed exile to Italy. Sadly, it’s not a major triumphant return, ranking as one of Ferrra’s weaker efforts. Starring Willem Dafoe and Shanyn Leigh as loft-dwelling New Yorkers awaiting the end of the world, Ferrera’s catastrophic world view is a supremely interior one. There are hints of the chaos outside as Dafoe witnesses a neighbor jump off the fire escape in the building next door, but the film largely concerns itself with the spiraling doubt and relapse of his own drug dependence and his painter-girlfriend’s distrust of his ex-wife. There are moments of tremendous spontaneity- as when Dafoe creeps into the apartment of his old dealer and finds his sober brother (a wonderful Ferrera-stable actor named Paul Hipp) there to talk him out of “nodding his way” through the end of the world- but overall, “4:44 Last Day On Earth” fails due to a strained performance by Leigh and a muddled preachiness via numerous slow zooms into a television set where people such as Al Gore and the Dala Lami talk about global destruction and the joys of inner peace. If seen as a parable for Ferrera’s own recent sobriety, “4:44 Last Day On Earth” makes some sense. Moments feel very personal and, as written by Ferrera himself, the film delivers a quiet examination of one man’s balancing act of sobriety. But as a straightforward, low-key thriller about a man and a woman and the general population of New York itself, it’s unconvincing atmosphere and amateurish narrative choices derail the thing long before it fades into supposed oblivion.


The Raid

Building on the kineticism of John Woo and "The Fast and the Furious" aesthetic, Gareth Evans' "The Raid" excels in style and, at times, even slows down the camera movement enough to make me appreciate the hyperballad of fists, legs and jabs. All is well and fine, I just simply didn't care for anyone in this film. The cops and bad guys are drawn with generic broadness and the film plays out like a video game, techno music and strobe lights intact.

Music On My Mind....and Baseball

Ahh, baseball season. Nothing better. MLB baseball cable package ordered, Opening Day game tradition still intact (although the Ranger bandwagoner fan is making this increasingly stressful!) and all is good. Random music on my mind the last few days:









Opening Day montage: 2012

The Last Ten Films I've Seen, March Edition

1. The Interrupters (2011)- If I had seen this film last year, it would have ranked very high on my favorites of 2011. Documentarian Steve James takes a fascinating approach to gang violence through the people who once lived the life and now try to be stop the violence along Chicago's South Side. Truly moving and heartfelt filmmaking.

2. Silent House (2012)- I really, really love Elizabeth Olsen and believe she'll amount to one of the best actresses of this generation. And all of this based on just two films now. A tepid subject- gimmicky idea of one continuous shot as a woman roams a darkened house in search for bumps and noises in the night- all held together by Olsen's riveting performance.

3. Of Time and the City (2009)- Currently working my way through a majority of British director Terence Davies films, and this is a poetic, if not hermetic, look at his hometown of Liverpool. There's little history or insight here... all mood and tone as Davies orchestrates lush music over archival images. It seeps under the skin, though, and commemorates a city like no other piece of work.

4. Onimasa: A Japanese Godfather (1983)- Hideo Gosha's epic rendering of a young girls' introduction into the home of a yakuza mobster. Spanning some thirty years, "Onimasa" feels like a precursor to so many later films. Moving, violent, unexpected... it's simply one of the best films of its time. See this one!

5. Texas Killing Fields (2011)- The daughter of Michael Mann tries to imitate dad, but this murder mystery is all over the place. There are times when director Ami Mann captures a stirring image, especially at night, but the poor performances by Sam Worthington and Jeffrey Dean Morgan elicit little sympathy and the mystery itself is so plodding and unrealistic that it made me check out pretty early. Sad since the original idea this film is based on is one of great Texas lore.

6. Mother, Jugs and Speed (1976)- Terrific, fast paced comedy-drama starring Harvey Keitel, Bill Cosby and Raquel Welch as Los Angleles ambulance drivers. Immensely funny in parts, disturbing in others (see the performance of Larry Hagman), Peter Yates' film turns on a dime and jams so much into this energetic farce.

7. The Passion of Darkly Noon (1995)- I just don't quite understand the fanaticism for cult director Philip Ridley's films, including this one and "The Reflecting Skin". It does prove that, from 1994-1997, Ashley Judd was one hot thing. This tale of gothic religious confusion gone horribly wrong in the backwoods suffers from an alternating tone between fantasy and surreal commentary as Brendan Fraser stumbles out of a religious sect into the caring graces of Judd and mute lover Viggo Mortensen.

8. Paranormal Activity 3 (2011)- More of the same. I think I'll go re-watch "The Changeling" or "The Stone Tape".

9. We Are the Night (2010)- A female version of "The Lost Boys", or "Near Dark"... pumped full of house dance music, chic European clothes and beautiful people everywhere. For a guilty pleasure, Dennis Gansel's superficial film does the job, but don't look for anything more than that.

10. Two Men In Manhattan (1963)- Very hard to find Jean Pierre Melville film about two reporters (one writer and one paparazzi) searching for a missing French UN delegate in New York. Starring Melville himself, it's a very touristy film, full of the New York skyline and long-lost locations that would probably make any native New Yorker cry. There are some of Melville's themes, but its a very minor work in his illustrious and moody career.

70's Bonanza: State of Siege

"State of Siege", directed by Costa-Gavras, has alot in common with the 70's films of Francesco Rosi.... films that are right in my wheelhouse with their dry, intelligent depiction of the vagaries of big government mixed up with corruption, terrorism and bureaucratic mess. Like "The Mattei Affair" or especially "Lucky Luciano", Costa-Gavras' film takes one incident- the kidnapping of a high ranking government official- and spins a narrative from several angles, viewpoints and moral conviction. And because the film opens with a startling discovery, the prime motivation is not in telling the story with a resolution, but in the high--wire act that both sides of the law navigate across.

Released in 1973, gaining no real fanfare and relatively lost in home video distribution (my copy is a Region 4 disc from Spain), "State of Siege" is an amazing and angry film. Yves Montand plays Philip Michael Santore, an agent for the AID (US Agency For International Development) when he's kidnapped by a group of terrorists and held hostage. The entire course of the film is refracted back and forth across several Latin American countries as one of the kidnappers interrogates Montand for his supposed in collusion with the government, especially his role in creating police states and roving "death squads" around the globe. There are many moments for Costa-Gavras (always the liberal leftist) to display these absurd acts of violence and husky, looming stares of the men in charge to clearly define the 'good' and the 'bad' and position himself clearly on one side of the fence, but "State of Siege" also generates some honest moments between terrorist and hostage. It's left up for interpretation exactly how much Montand is involved with the charges waged against him, and the scene where he meets his mortality rings as an honest, quiet reaction.


"State of Siege" is an amorphous title. A majority of the film details the police state Uruguay is hurtled into after Montand and two other officials are kidnapped. It could also reference the attack on Montand's character as well. Like "Z", Costa-Gavras takes a purely functional stance, relieving the film of any real emotion. "State of Siege" is a film of action and idea, working in painstaking detail to show how the terrorists carry out the kidnappings, stealing one car after another, parking them in strategic locations and executing their plan. Later, when the fate of Santore is put to the group, Costa-Gavras holds on a bus passenger as a stream of terrorist partners nonchalantly get on the bus, carry on the same conversation over and over, arrive at a judgement, and then exit the bus. It's democracy perverted, but democracy nonetheless. Yet just as much attention is given to the police force as they relentlessly canvas the city as well as a journalist (the great O.E. Hasse) probing military and government officials for their (non) response to the event. All sides of the argument are given weight, and for a politically charged film such as this, that's all one can ask for.


Costa-Gavras would go on to a great career, racking up Hollywood efforts like "Betrayed", "Mad City" and "Missing", but nothing comes close to the incisive, burning power of his early 70's political thrillers such as "State of Siege".

Let the Games begin

No, not a post about "The Hunger Games"..... but something more exciting and riveting. My 2012 fantasy baseball team.


Lineup:

Mike Napoli (C)
Albert Pujols (1st)
Brandon Phillips (2nd)
Emilio Bonifacio (3rd)
Jimmy Rollins (SS)
Eric Hosmer (Util)
Eric Aybar (Util)
Andrew McCutchen (OF)
Ben Revere (OF)
Mark Trumbo (OF)
Melky Cabrera (OF)
Josh Willingham (OF)
Raul Ibanez (OF)

Bench:
Neil Walker
Jhonny Peralta
Daniel Murphy



Picthing:

Roy Halladay
Tim Lincecum
Ian Kennedy
James Shields
Jair Jurrjeans
Joel Hanrahan
Jose Valverde
Jordan Walden
Drew Storen

Destruction of Magnificent Proportions: The Walking Dead and Treme

I suppose it's unfair to compare the fictional end of days scenario with the real life force of nature that was Hurricane Katrina, but both "The Walking Dead" and "Treme" deal with the apocalypse in very moving and heartfelt ways.... specifically how a select group of people scheme and survive when faced with the most preposterous of odds. Still, here' a few words on each.... just in case you're NOT watching them and I can implore you to do so.

Based on a graphic novel, I was with "The Walking Dead" from the very beginning. At first, I was expecting a George Romero horror-fest, unsure of how confidently AMC would handle the series but anticipating, at the very least, an entertaining time. Over the course of two seasons, the show not only proves that no main character is safe, but it has expertly established a foundation of human emotion that often builds to terrifying proportions upon each episode's finale. Like the brother to brother face off in Sam Raimi's "A Simple Plan", "The Walking Dead" often instills its greatest chills and horrifying gasps from the violence inflicted from human to human rather than the hungry undead. It has become mandatory viewing each week. It also forces me to shutter myself off from social media in lieu of reading a spoiler- as was the case on an episode two weeks ago. If that isn't evidence of a large cult following, than I don't know what is.

Likewise, HBO's "Treme", created by "The Wire" scribe David Simon, takes as its main setting post-Katrina New Orleans, fashioning a roundelay of characters suffering to survive and acclimate. There's the small business owner (a wonderful Kim Dickens), the affluent intellectual family (John Goodman and Melissa Leo), the troubadour musicians and a family dealing with the disappearance and maltreatment of their son after being incarcerated. Like "The Wire", Simon and his team of writers give ample time to each story, allowing them to breathe, criss crossing them back and forth upon each other and creating a vibrant blueprint of life directly after the disaster. Like "The Walking Dead", there's anger, confusion and resentment, but the overriding theme is one of survival and community. Choreographed in-between the human drama is the resilient nature of French Quarter jazz and impromptu jams. The shared musical experience is, at times, infectious. Just when the oppression of the federal government's lack of expediency becomes to much or a character laments the destruction of her business' tattered roof, "Treme" washes all the sadness away with a longeur that features blaring horns and swinging trombones. It's not long before we're taken back to the drama, but the idea that another horn session is right around the corner creates a strong sense of healing. "Treme" is terrific in the way it balances both.

Top 5 List: Morose French Kids, Post 1990

Yet another random top 5 list that came to me recently. Post 1990 because, you know, it's way too easy to create a list from early Truffaut, Garrel, Godard and Eustache!



5. A Single Girl- Not only was this the film that introduced a majority of the western world to the stunningly beautiful Virginie Ledoyen (and she can act too!), but it helped establish director Benoit Jacquot's career. Released in 1995, it was one of the first films I can remember Dardenne Brothers style.... i.e. a simple idea (a cleaning girl struggling to make a life for herself), exemplified through long handheld camerawork perched just above the shoulder and creating extreme tension from the mundane. Benoit would go on to make other films in this vein, but none had the power of "A Single Girl", largely thanks to Ledoyen's steely eyed gaze and supermodel visage. With a pregnancy just discovered and a forceful push into the adult world, "A Single Girl" could be described as a psychological procedural as Ledoyen goes about her daily routines trying to push the bad news aside. A great film. Jacquot deserved more recognition on home video distribution. Ledoyen went onto a terrific little career as well.


4. New World-The late Alain Corneau made this quirky, fascinating little movie in the mid 1990's, garnering some attention due to its supporting role of mid 90's "it girl" Alicia Silverstone as the love interest of a jazz-crazy French teen during the American occupation of France in the decade after World war 2. Patrick (Nicolas Chatel) loves a prim and proper French girl Marie (Sarah Grappin) until his horizons are expanded through jazz music and the arrival of an American soldier and his family, including teeny bopper Silverstone. The idea of the loud, boisterous American versus the quaint French ways of living are a bit heavy-handed, but the film hits so many right notes in its depiction of young love that it wins one over. A young James Gandolfini also stars as a burn-out soldier who befriends both Patrick and falls in love with the impressionable Marie. Corneau's straight forward filming style and the charismatic performances raise "New World" into something quite good. There are dark moments and lots of brooding by Patrick as well.


3. Rosetta- No list like this would be complete without a Dardennes Brothers film, right? For my money, "Rosetta" is it. Sure I admire "The Son and really love "Lorna's Silence", but "Rosetta" was the film that put them on the map and branded their now imitable style. Morose doesn;t even begin to describe the punishment Rosetta (Emilie Dequenne) endures throughout the film, losing her job in the opening scene and crawling around a cold Paris scratching a living by selling old clothes and trying to stave off the death of her alcoholic mother. As a surprise winner at the Cannes Festival in '99, "Rosetta" is a tense, compulsive experience.


2. Wild Reeds- I much prefer the French title, "Les Roseaux Sauvages". Andre Techine's much lauded 1994 film, along with the next film on this list, probably did more than any other French film of its kind to propagate the confusing lives of French teens in the 90's. This time its a love triangle between young Francios (Gael Morel) and his best friend Maite (Elodie Bouchez), who has a hidden crush on him. Francois meets Serge (Stephane Rideau) and his latent homosexuality is stirred up. Techine establishes wonderful atmosphere in "Wild Reeds", placing the confused teenagers during a very volcanic time.... circa the Algerian War, whose effects are felt in killed loved ones and talk of future enlistment.


1. Cold Water- My appreciation for Olivier Assayas' masterpiece is well documented. Released in 1994 before Assayas would become an international sensation with "Irma Vep", I'm tempted to call "Cold Water" his best film- though I've yet to find three more of his earlier films. Ledoyen would go on to become a marginal star in the late 90's alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in the under appreciated "The Beach" and we're all aware of Assayas' cinematic legacy. "Cold water" is a tender, alive and raw example of a film that deserves a larger audience. And for all the films on this list, THIS is the most morose, moving and ultimately timeless example.

Love Will Tear Us Apart: Edward Yang's "Taipei Story"

Edward Yang's second feature, "Taipei Story" gives us glimpses of the impulses that would drive a majority of his later work. Though the film stays primarily focused on a couple instead of the panoramic array of characters that will embody his films directly after this sophomore effort, there are striking hallmarks within "Taipei Story" that make it a necessary stopover for anyone interested in this greatly under-represented filmmaker.


Charting the romantic demise of a couple, Lung (Hou Hsiao Hsien) and Chin (Chin Tsai), "Taipei Story" can be seen as an allegory for Taipei itself. In one of the film's early scenes, an architect who works with Chin stares out the window (a prominent theme throughout the film) at the Taipei skyline and comments that he can barely remember which buildings he helped design. It's an ominous quote that will hang over the remainder of the film as Chin and Lung grow apart and become indecipherable to each other. Chin's company is purchased by another and her job is deemed "redundant", so she quits. Lung, unable to really let go of the past, travels to America to visit family and returns with faded dreams of emigrating there and helping his brother-in-law with his business. After a brief conversation- and a walk through a spacious apartment building that Chin wants to rent in the opening scene- Yang keeps his couple apart with missed appointments at karaoke bars and Lung spacing out in front of a television set watching tapes of last year's baseball games. There are no great arguments or heavy emotional conflicts between them. Silence, indifference and the restlessness of being together for so long gently wash over the couple, and Yang's patient camera and sense of impending dread take control and turn "Taipei Story" into a cautious little thriller. There are eventual outbursts of violence and a finale that hurts, but overall, "Taipei Story" works in little flourishes.


As part of the revolving group of creative artists who spearheaded the Taiwanese New Wave, actor Hou Hsiao Hsien would make a bigger name for himself as a director. It's not hard to imagine a terrific career as an actor as well, emoting so much through his slumped shoulders and the way he uses his hands to cover his face while smoking a cigarette. Likewise, actress Chin Tsai- who would later be Yang's wife for several years- creates a full blooded character. There are slight flirtations with a male coworker, but we get the sense that she truly loves Lung. By placing her in the upscale corporate world in a time of major technological upheaval, it's easy to understand the massive confusion she's facing both professionally and personally. And as a final perfect ending- the image of her staring out a high rise window, unaware of what's happened to Lung below, encapsulates so much professionally and personally for all involved.... director Yang as well. Taipei would never look the same.

Indie Reviews

The Innkeepers

Ti West’s “The Innkeepers” is another low fi horror experiment… call it hipster horror if you will. But West’s retro sensibilities are firmly intact again (see the wonderful, if marginally better “House of the Devil”). With a sly nod to Kubrick’s “The Shining” through its ominous pans down hotel hallways and lots of embedded humor, “The Innkeepers” will satisfy both fans of 80’s horror and anyone sincerely attracted to actress Sara Paxton- as I am now. Starring Paxton and Pat Healy, they are the lone employees of the Yankee Pedlar Inn, a statuesque hotel that is facing its last weekend in existence after over 150 years in business. Paxton and Healy consider themselves amateur paranormal scientists, and the dilapidated, almost empty hotel bears the perfect time to do some electronic digging for spirits, which naturally, yields some terrifying results. West understands character connectivity, which he emphasizes for over half the film, giving us plenty of time to get to know and sympathize with our amateur sleuths before the shit hits the fan. Besides adding to the already impressive resume of writer/director West, “The Innkeepers” is atmospheric and terrific fun.

We Need To Talk About Kevin

In adapting Lionel Shriver‘s novel, director Lynne Ramsay hasn’t strayed far from her avant garde roots, splicing up the novel’s straightforward narrative about a troubled young man and his damaging after effects into a hotbed of distorted camera lens, disorienting audio and ethereal passages of wordless moments. Music, images and sounds- like a water sprinkler- bleed across several scenes giving the affect of an audio-visual museum piece more than a film, but it works. “We Need To Talk About Kevin” may seem needlessly arty, but this experimental drive is also where the film draws its feral power. Starring Tilda Swinton as the emotionally battered mother, the film shakes up its timeline of stressful motherhood, hinting at the monstrous acts of Kevin (Ezra Miller) and her life before and after his fateful decision. Through the musical score of Jonny Greenwood, “We Need To Talk About Kevin” becomes an alienating portrait that gives Swinton another opaque, interior performance. Brutal one moment and then brutally honest the next- such as the reaction of one man at an office party after Swinton rebuffs his advances- the film challenges and confronts us with horrors out in the open… and ones that we’re forced to deal with, regrettably, in our modern society all too often. A remarkable film.

Rampart

Oren Moverman’s “Rampart” is a blazing, hard edged character study that features a tremendous performance by Woody Harrelson doing his best “Bad Lieutenant” impersonation. With a script by the legendary James Ellroy, “Rampart” takes place in a very specific time and place- 1999 Los Angeles, hot summer in the middle of the LAPD corruption scandal. As police officer Dave Brown, Harrelson is under heavy duress due to his recorded beating of a suspect. “Rampart” tracks Harrelson’s slow decline both on the job and at home with his family, which is even more hectic with two ex wives, two confused daughters and a boatload of one night stands. As his sophomore film, writer/director Moverman has crafted a film that feels at once organic and kinetic. There’s a scene early on, around the dinner table, that feels so perfectly acted as Harrelson bounces around in flirtation with each ex-wife and then a back-and-forth with his teenage daughters, it would be easy to tag the film as improvised. But, with the pedigree of Ellroy and other scenes that give Harrelson long, stately (and filthy) monologues, the script firmly proves a foundation to a narrative that is otherwise rambling, but only in the best sense. Numerous sub plots are introduced, such as Ned Beatty as a retired cop who feeds Harrelson information and Ice Cube as an Internal Affairs officer investigating him. As shabby and aimless as these sub plots may be, the genuine thrill of “Rampart” is its fierce central performance by Harrelson and its obscure, perfectly realized ending that trades in tidy conclusions for mood and introspect. It’s one of the very best films of the year.

Unintentional Double Bill: Silence of the Sea and The Night of the Generals

Anatole Litvak’s “The Night of the Generals” and Jean Pierre Melville’s “The Silence of the Sea” express their Occupation-timed themes with wildly varying degrees of sensitivity. While both could be subtitled “The Inner Monologue of an SS High Commander”, how they get to the root of madness via their self absorbed, larger-than-life Nazi commanders are distinctly different events. Litvak’s film, released in the late 60’s, is a much more lurid treatment of the Nazi atrocity, headlined by an all star international cast and an overwrought, queasy performance by Peter O Toole. Melville’s film is a chamber piece, rarely leaving its single main setting and drowning the viewer in subtle voice over that plays out like a stream of conscience diary just 5 years after the war had ended.

At 2 and a half hours, Litvak’s “The Night of the Generals” (1967) doesn’t seem to have a very hearty appreciation, yet it’s an ambitious, terrifically entertaining film that dared to frame a fictional murder mystery around very real events of the Third Reich. Omar Sharif is Colonel Grau, an intelligence officer following up on an eyewitness account of a murdered prostitute in 1942 Warsaw. Seen leaving the building immediately after the murder was a German soldier identified by the red stripe in his trousers, a clear indication of a general’s uniform. By process of elimination, Grau discovers that only three generals had unknown whereabouts the night of the murder: General Kahlenberg (Donald Pleasance), General Gabler (Charles Grey) and General Tanz (Peter O Toole). Grau’s investigation spans over twenty years and is consistently interrupted by history- first by the sacking of the Polish ghettos by General Tanz, followed by his own promotion to Paris and the Occupation there, and then later interrupted by the plot to kill Hitler. Yes, there is justice served and a perpetrator is eventually brought to justice but its not by the good guy of our story, but by a peer instead and only after two decades of the war ending. “The Night of the Generals” is good for a history lesson, but immediately startling for its no-nonsense treatment of these hallmark Nazi moments. Just when Litvak establishes the three possible murderers and Grau is closing in on the most likely candidate of Tanz (O Toole), his division is in the throws of executing Hitler’s Final Solution in the Warsaw ghettos. These atrocious actions, memorialized for the entire running time of other films, is given only a few minutes of screen time here, considered as buffer for the lethal mental state of General Tanz and an excuse for Grau (Sharif) to temporarily postpone his investigation. It’s only a day later when Grau receives a promotion to Paris by two of the three men he’s investigating and his case is permanently sidelined.

Flash forward two years and another girl turns up murdered in Paris, this time with all three Generals stationed there as the Allies push toward the German positions. Grau re-opens his investigation, only for the film to be sidetracked and deepened by the plots of a coup to assassinate Hitler. Again, the murder mystery takes a curious backseat as the film explores the various backdoor dealings of several Generals, but it’s also in this hefty middle section where the film explores the mental breakdown of General Tanz. O’Toole really gets to go off the deep end here. Through his fractured state of mind, obsessed with cleanliness and timeliness, “The Night of the Generals” becomes a Jack the Ripper tale that, for my money, best appropriates the nature of unchecked Nazi aggression on both the global and personal scale. We’ve already seen O’Toole wipe out a whole section of Poland, so what’s going to stop him from murdering a girl of the night? While the real life events of “The Night of the Generals” are firmly recorded, it’s the fictional aspects that seem to dictate the driving madness behind the whole Nazi agenda.

Jean Pierre Melville’s “The Silence of the Sea” trades in terror as well, but it’s psychological terror. His debut film released in 1947, “The Silence of the Sea” is based on a short story secretly released during the Occupation by a French writer named Vercors. It’s depiction of a Nazi Lieutenant slowly turning his back on the Nazi movement while embracing the quiet beauty of France certainly establishes the novella’s Resistance tinted ideas. In cinematic terms, Melville’s film is simple and economic. As the Nazi lieutenant, actor Howard Vernon is steely and opaque. In the film’s opening moments, he arrives in a small provincial Paris suburb and requisitions the upstairs room of an old man (Jean Marie Robain) and his niece (Nicole Stephane). As an act of resistance, the uncle and niece resolutely deny speaking to him. This doesn’t seem to bother the Lieutenant very much as he swaggers downstairs every night and delivers a soliloquy of thoughts and statements about his past love affairs and his love of French culture. Through simple point of view shots, Melville also weaves a delicate relationship between the three, continually framing the nape of the niece’s neck under the Lieutenant’s loving gaze and the uncle’s stone stare. Initially designed as a monster due to his uniform and career choice, Vernon and director Melville slowly peel away the veneer and create a conflicted narrative where its difficult to assign blame to anyone. It’s only late in the film when the Lieutenant, confronted with his army’s ultimate goal of wiping out France, that his inner pacifism is released and the monster is given a human form.


As with “Army of Shadows” years later, Melville would complete what was ultimately hailed as the best Resistance film. With “The Silence of the Sea”, the basics are there…. And remember this was only a few years after the war itself had ended. Placing “The Silence of the Sea” in retrospect, its examination of a high commander coming to terms with his nation’s atrocities is downright frightening. There are vague mentions of gas chambers and a massacre in Treblinka that ultimately shake the Lieutenant to his core, but its also Melville’s inference that this man’s sexuality is questionable. After a conversation in which an old roommate decries France and calls it a “beast”, the Lieutenant returns to his country boarding room with self destruction in his head. That conversation is the real dagger to his heart. And like the best of Melville’s films, where quick editing and fluttering glances provide the big thrills, it’s the hushed murmur of the niece that deals the biggest explosion.

With so many portraits of psychopathic Nazi commanders littering the cinema landscape, “The Night of the Generals” and “The Silence of the Sea” give us alternative glimpses into this cinematic paradigm. Both films are readily available on DVD, with “The Silence of the Sea” available on a Korean DVD label as well as a region 2 Blu-Ray edition.

Musical Interlude: Saxophone version

Can't stop listening to these lately. Destroyer, especially, is a new discovery for me.

The First Batch of 2012 Films

The Grey

Joe Carnahan is an interesting filmmaker. He obviously has the chops- see his intense and terrific “Narc”- but then washes any cohesive skills away with dreck such as “The A Team” and “Smokin Aces”. But then along comes “The Grey”… a film that’s certainly not fit for the January dumping grounds and proves to be a punishing but poetic meditation on the encroaching specter of death by hungry wolves. Starring Liam Neeson, “The Grey” follows a group of Alaskan workers as they struggle to survive not only a plane crash in a harsh wilderness but the impending hunt by a den of wolves. What’s most interesting about “The Grey”, besides its unilateral approach to non-commercial expectations in a commercial release, is its open--to-interpretation narrative and denouement. The wolves, designed solely as glaring eyes in the darkness and CGI rendering, may be real or they could all be paranoid projections of the mind by the sick and genuinely disaffected survivors. Like “Narc”, Carnahan seems fascinated by memories of loss and regret and their powerful impact on strong men. “The Grey” would make for a perfect double feature with his previous film. But besides all that lofty praise, “The Grey” is an excellent genre film, owned by Neeson’s steely performance and a sound editing team that creates a scary atmosphere of blistering winds, off-screen howls and crushing metal that linger long after the film is over.


United Red Army

At three hours and 10 minutes in length, Koji Wakamatsu‘s “United Red Army” could be called the definitive cinematic representation of the Japanese Red Army faction- if it weren’t so damn hard to comprehend the appearances and disappearances of its massive cast and decidedly ‘interior’ focus on the human being rather than the revolutionary movement. What I mean is this- “United Red Army” is a very good film, but Wakamatsu experimental technique aims for something more interesting than a simplified documentation of the terrorist organization. One does get their history lesson here. For example, in the first 45 minutes or so, the film details the growth of student civil unrest during the 1960’s and this outcry of emotion turning activism, followed by the marriage of several factions under the moniker of the JRA. From that point on, “United Red Army” becomes like a chamber piece as the remaining members of the army hole up in a mountain cabin and selfishly decimate their ranks through jealousy, political in-fighting and grandiose notions of superiority. People come and go with a written message detailing their eventual fate, capture or death. Then, the final third of the film details the annihilation of the remaining members after a ten day standoff with police in a mountain retreat. Wakamatsu’s real judgment of the Red Army feels obfuscated, yet “United Red Army” is an intelligent approach to the history of a radical organization and its eventual downfall- egoism. And through all of this, the film refuses to locate a central figure to anchor its ideas, choosing the group rhetoric as its focus. True communism as cinema, perhaps?


Safe House

Take one-fourth cup Jason Bourne, a half cup of Tony Scott and add Denzel Washington… and you get “Safe House”, a slightly engaging but ultimately average action flick with yet another fluorescent visual scheme and two-second editing that covers up for any real originality. The character arch is there for director Daniel Espinosa and actors Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington. At certain parts, I really rooted for these guys. But the aggressive, handheld style of shooting is, I suppose, the here and now and I better get used to it. Fact is, the faster and louder a film gets, the more I lose interest.


A Seperation

Asghar Farhadi’s well-conceived “A Separation” follows in the tradition of Iranian cinema at its finest. Simple human moral dilemmas increasingly grow until they almost explode. In this example, a family whose father (Payman Naadi) and mother (a terrific Leila Hatami) are on the verge of a divorce become involved in a complex war of words against a caretaker (Sareh Bayat) and her hot tempered husband (Shahab Hosseini). As the film develops, it becomes a faint legal potboiler with the children (and especially daughter Termeh, Sarina Farhardi) standing to lose the most. Writer/director Farhardi will, hopefully, win the Oscar for best foreign language film and rightly so. “A Separation” is a tense, perfectly crafted piece of cinema that treats people with dignity and intelligence, constantly shifting our affinities for each character as the film rolls along. And the final scene is just perfect, coming full circle with a haunting message of familial disharmony that far outweighs the meaningless legal procedural that came before it.

Revisiting the Faves: Until the End of the World (5 hour cut)

Until the End of the World ranks as my number 7 favorite film from the year 1991. This is a review from the 280 minute German PAL DVD.


Directed by Wim Wenders at the apex of his critically acclaimed career (following "Wings of Desire"), "Until the End of the World" was released in 1991 after a long production stint that spanned several continents, languages and level of actors. As a science fiction film, its loopy and goofy. As a road movie, its mammoth. And it's also a typical Wenders film in that it sharply divides the viewer. Those of us Wenders devotees abolsutely love it while others remember the film soley for its remarkable soundtrack. Add to the cocktail mixture the fact that the film was severely truncated upon U.S. release (cut from over 5 hours to two and a half) and one gets the sense that "Until the End of the World" is one of those great, inpsired acts of personal filmmaking that will never receive its actual due. In my small part of the universe, this is an attempt to give Wenders and his full version the recognition.

Essentially a five hour love story between nomad Claire (Solveig Dommartin) and on-the-run cyber fugutive Sam (William Hurt), "Until the End of the World" works in an apocalyptic story concerning a satellite that's crashing to Earth and the unsure effects of this radialogical disaster in the year 1999. Claire meets Sam in a subway terminal and falls in love with him when he asks her to help him escape a bounty hunter. Sam has smuggled out some technology from the States.... a device which allows him to record images and overlay his own thoughts on them, all in the hopes of delivering color images back to his blind mother (Jeanne Moreau) in Australia. Along the winding, arduous journey across four continents is Eugene (Sam Neill), Claire's jilted lover, whose voiceover leads the narrative and is unwilling to accept her love for Sam. Longtime Wenders collaborater Rudiger Volger also stars as a cyber detective helping Eugene track down the lovers on the run. Over the course of the film human connection becomes elusive. Wenders has his characters find each other, spend harmonious time together, and then wake up the next day to find various factions have moved on with their own independent goals to another city or country. And everyone else has no choice but to continue the global chase. Inevitably, this rag-tag group of scientists and detectives converge on the Australian Outback after the satellite has crashed to Earth and caused all electronic communication to fail. Through all the globe-trotting, "Until the End of the World" keeps its gaze on the sweet romance between Hurt and Dommartin. The futuristic, post-punk aesthetic is firmly in place, yet Wenders and writer Peter Carey have essentially crafted a screwball road movie with an innocent couple at the helm.

From the originally released two and a half hour version, the director's cut never alters its original story, allowing the longer version to develop and linger. Conceived as a mini-series, the 5 hour version also plays like a TV movie, dividing the film in three parts that could be subtitled as "The Chase", "Going Home" and "Home". While the first two parts deal with the connection and flight of Claire and Sam to Australia where his mad scientist father (Max von Sydow) and mother reside, the final 90 minutes hits moments of deep sensitivity as a son tries to not only win the acceptance of his father, but give his old mother the sense of sight. It's here, in the final third portion of the film, where Wenders' themes of technology and aimless collaboration between various road-warriors really begins to gel. The final 90 minutes of "Until the End of the World" is a moving and powerful examination of memory and regret. One can bemoan the time it takes to get there, but once it does, "Until the End of the World" feels like Wenders' most heartfelt experiment to date.

The Last Few Films I've Seen, February Edition

1. Higher Ground (2011)- First time director Vera Farmiga adapts the memoirs of Carolyn Briggs in a woman's search for spiritual satisfaction that grows and wanes. Also starring Farmiga, this is a highly intelligent and moving story. The moment between John Hawkes and his ex-wife at a dinner table over a birthday party is such an honest and moving moment... and the whole film honors this type of naturalism wonderfully. A real treat that was mis-managed during its release last year.

2. Mysteries of Lisbon (2011)- Raoul Ruiz's highly regarded period piece is lush and involving, even at a running time of 4 plus hours. Its oil-painting aesthetic, characters that appear and then re-appear as others, and swooning narrative can be confusing at times, but at a certain point one has to let go and enjoy it.

3. Ken Park (2002)- Known for its outre` teen sexual posturing, Larry Clark's tale of suburban anomie is little more than that- teen posturing. I guess I really shouldn't expect anything less from the maker of "kids" and "Bully".

4. Fright Night (2011)- Colin Farrell is good and it took me forever to realize that's Imogeen Potts... an actress who really stood out in "28 Days Later". Other than that, not so much going on here.

5. Texasville (1990)- Oh how far the mighty have fallen. "The Last Picture Show" is pretty damn close to masterpiece status and one of the most evocative renderings of small town Texas life ever put on film. "Texasville" is a chore to get through, with grating characters and a script that feels labored and cliched. A huge disappointment.

6. Contraband (2012)- Gritty thriller with greasy haired guys doing bad things along the ports. There are a few nice set pieces and Mark Wahlburg can do this type of thing in his sleep.

7. Bellflower (2011)- Hipster artiness to the extreme. If this is the future of independent cinema, I think we're in trouble.

8. Haywire (2012)- An action thriller from the chameleon of filmmaking, Steven Soderbergh. The fight sequences with Gina Carana are thrilling and seeing her tussle with Michael Fassbender in a tight hotel room is exhilerating. I just wish Soderbergh would've abandoned the Oceans Eleven soundtrack.

HBO Does It Again: Broken Down Ballplayers

By all accounts, I really shouldn't enjoy Jody Hill's "Eastbound and Down". I've made my stance pretty clear here in the past- modern comedy, with the exception of a few pieces here and there, has gone down the tubes. It's all improvised sketches expanded to (boring) feature length premises or misogynistic and cruel. "Eastbound and Down" is all of that- with Will Ferrell as a producer to boot- but it also strikes some pretty deep down moments of empathy while maintaining a steadfast view of a true sociopath.

The idea, now finished in its second season, follows a once good relief pitcher for the Atlanta Braves named Kenny Powers and his (mal)adjustment back into society. As the vulgar, cocksure Powers, Danny McBride sets his tirades to autopilot and his confident showmanship up to 11. Moving back home with his brother (the excellent John Hawkes) and re-kindling a flirtation with his high school girlfriend April (Katy Mixon), Powers chooses to be a gym teacher as his new post-baseball profession. Every self-absorbed, largely delusional figure has to find himself a sidekick, and here enters dim witted fellow teacher Stevie (Steve Janowski) to join Powers in his many adventures around suburban North Carolina. What follows is less an episodic series than a trenchant, brutally funny portrayal of Powers' attempts to cash back in on his limited success and win back his former girlfriend. Creator and sometime director Jody Hill has assembled a cast and crew that fully understands the absurdity of the situation, refusing to pull any punches and keeping the tone as black as possible. For example, the first time Powers sees April after years, the camera slowly zooms in on her face in a likely sweet moment of reconnection before it alters the zoom onto her breasts. Dirty yes, but its these harsh, unsuspecting moments consistently break the monotonous and reclassify "Eastbound and Down" as an uncompromising study of a dark heart.


Season 2, which picks up right after Powers has an "oh shit" moment in the finale of season one refreshes itself with a change of venue (Mexico) but refuses to soften the character of Kenny Powers. He connects with an amateur baseball team, finds romance with another beauty that he surely doesn't deserve (Ana de la Reguera) and traces for roots of his past. But while the first season spends a majority of its time establishing the bleak worldview of Powers, season 2 breaks through the nihilism a bit. In one scene of an episode directed by David Gordon Green, a bit of haphazard tenderness seeps into the closing moment as Kenny and Vita (de la Reguera) ride a roller coaster. The expression of free-falling bliss on Vita's face and Kenny's half-hearted acceptance of being in that moment with her resemble the shaggy-dog honesty that Green formalized in his early film efforts such as "All the Real Girls" and "George Washington". Alongside Wayne Kramer's evocative score, this scene more than makes up for any of the jokes that fall short or any scenes that run on just a bit too long while McBride improvises his vulgar dialogue.

I'm just beginning the first season of "Boardwalk Empire", another tent pole HBO success that, most likely, gives Jody Hill and co-writer Ben Best more of a creative leash with "Eastbound and Down". Rarely talked about... at least in the circles I travel anyway..."Eastbound and Down" is a show that deserves to be discovered. While Larry David has the market cornered on subtle aggravation and social quirkiness, Kenny Powers is the real psychopath. But at least his baseball card is still worth at least five dollars.