Based on the real story of a man who lived in the Canadian wilderness as a hunter, then became an ecological activist. The time is the 1930's.
The story per se is my idea of fascinating, and I think I would watch a much worse film just to get acquainted with these facts. But an objective assessment of the film itself leads to only moderate praise. The romantic element is hipertrophied and not done in the most convincing manner, in my opinion. The lead performance is quite satisfactory, on the other hand. And there are several moments of good cinema in it, especially near the end.
Saw it dubbed in Portuguese.
Rating: 55
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Annie Oakley (1935)
Biography of a country girl who was an extremely sharp shooter, and became a show woman in Buffalo Bill's Wild West traveling show. There is a romantic entanglement with a fellow shooter.
Although it doesn't stray from biopic conventions, Stevens is remarkable for his perfect attention to details. Oakley's life per se I don't find particularly interesting, but the Wild West show as a phenomenon is interesting. Also interesting is the fame cycle, in each individual case and in each era. Cody's point of attraction was his real-life past. Thus, he became a famous star because he had done noteworthy exploits which had already bestowed him an amount of fame. The same goes for Sitting Bull. On the other hand, the contrast between Oakley's special talent and her former obscurity was a kind of point of attraction. The logic behind this film, however, is different: it awakens interest because these people were famous show stars of the past. It is show business feeding show business. In recent times, the Buffalo Bill phenomenon is reversed: people assume real life positions because of a show business career (for example, see some actors who become politicians).
Critic Dale Thomajan's number 5 of his 1935's top ten movies.
Rating: 61
Although it doesn't stray from biopic conventions, Stevens is remarkable for his perfect attention to details. Oakley's life per se I don't find particularly interesting, but the Wild West show as a phenomenon is interesting. Also interesting is the fame cycle, in each individual case and in each era. Cody's point of attraction was his real-life past. Thus, he became a famous star because he had done noteworthy exploits which had already bestowed him an amount of fame. The same goes for Sitting Bull. On the other hand, the contrast between Oakley's special talent and her former obscurity was a kind of point of attraction. The logic behind this film, however, is different: it awakens interest because these people were famous show stars of the past. It is show business feeding show business. In recent times, the Buffalo Bill phenomenon is reversed: people assume real life positions because of a show business career (for example, see some actors who become politicians).
Critic Dale Thomajan's number 5 of his 1935's top ten movies.
Rating: 61
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
A fox gets in trouble when he returns to his life of stealing.
This is a film with serious identity problems, even though it displays artfulness and humor on occasion. Several screenplay elements have a distinctly ad hoc feeling. The writers have used family themes as counterpoint to the action sequences, yet the joining of the two strands seems forced. It's a real mystery to me why someone would be willing to make a comedy with adult situations using anthropomorphic animals. Maybe the filmmaker enjoys creating problems to himself all the time which cannot be satisfactorily solved (such as, what human characteristics should these characters have and what specifically animal ones?). The film had a favorable reception, it seems. It seems that people like what is quirky, even though it's for quirkiness' sake alone. Anyway, in a capitalist environment who can tell a stupid move from a smart one? Mr. Anderson's self-consciousness, conspicuous in the replacement of cursing words by the word 'cussing', exemplifies the above dilemma in a dismal way.
Rating: 44
This is a film with serious identity problems, even though it displays artfulness and humor on occasion. Several screenplay elements have a distinctly ad hoc feeling. The writers have used family themes as counterpoint to the action sequences, yet the joining of the two strands seems forced. It's a real mystery to me why someone would be willing to make a comedy with adult situations using anthropomorphic animals. Maybe the filmmaker enjoys creating problems to himself all the time which cannot be satisfactorily solved (such as, what human characteristics should these characters have and what specifically animal ones?). The film had a favorable reception, it seems. It seems that people like what is quirky, even though it's for quirkiness' sake alone. Anyway, in a capitalist environment who can tell a stupid move from a smart one? Mr. Anderson's self-consciousness, conspicuous in the replacement of cursing words by the word 'cussing', exemplifies the above dilemma in a dismal way.
Rating: 44
Sylvia Scarlett (1935)
Father and daughter living in France move to England after the former commits embezzlement. She disguises herself as a man in order to impose more respect from people (I hope memory serves me right here). In their new country they get mixed up with a con man and smuggler, and the three become traveling showmen. They meet a rich artist and his friends.
A very unconventional film. More than one reviewer describes it as "ahead of its time", yet there are picaresque elements in it which date back to the sixteenth century. It's easy to see why it flopped, too, since its plot is slightly absurdist and wanders from comic events to tragic ones without noticeable change of register. The key plot element turns out be to the romantic afflictions of the heroine, but this is not your typical romantic comedy, by any means. Hepburn suits the part, and is made to look like Parker Lewis Can't Lose's title character.
This is critic Dale Thomajan's fifth entry on his 1935 top ten list.
Rating: 83 (third entry on my favorites list for 1935)
A very unconventional film. More than one reviewer describes it as "ahead of its time", yet there are picaresque elements in it which date back to the sixteenth century. It's easy to see why it flopped, too, since its plot is slightly absurdist and wanders from comic events to tragic ones without noticeable change of register. The key plot element turns out be to the romantic afflictions of the heroine, but this is not your typical romantic comedy, by any means. Hepburn suits the part, and is made to look like Parker Lewis Can't Lose's title character.
This is critic Dale Thomajan's fifth entry on his 1935 top ten list.
Rating: 83 (third entry on my favorites list for 1935)
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Os Inquilinos (2009)
English title: The Tenants.
A working class family's routine is disturbed by the arrival of three new tenants next door. There is a growing suspicion that they lead a criminal life. The tenants are imposed on the house's owner, an elderly man, by his ex-wife, who shares ownership of the house.
A film with an interesting plotline and which is harmed, but perhaps not completely ruined, by silly psychological and sociological characterizations on several occasions. The film seems to want to make a statement about what he expects from his main character, and which the latter cannot fulfill. In interviews the director claims nonpartisanship and absence of manicheism, in very contradictory terms. The film is a variation on Straw Dogs, examining the alternative to that film's development. It is based on a short story which can be read online (in Portuguese).
Rating:46
A working class family's routine is disturbed by the arrival of three new tenants next door. There is a growing suspicion that they lead a criminal life. The tenants are imposed on the house's owner, an elderly man, by his ex-wife, who shares ownership of the house.
A film with an interesting plotline and which is harmed, but perhaps not completely ruined, by silly psychological and sociological characterizations on several occasions. The film seems to want to make a statement about what he expects from his main character, and which the latter cannot fulfill. In interviews the director claims nonpartisanship and absence of manicheism, in very contradictory terms. The film is a variation on Straw Dogs, examining the alternative to that film's development. It is based on a short story which can be read online (in Portuguese).
Rating:46
Thursday, February 10, 2011
High Anxiety (1977)
A new director arrives at a psychiatric institute, after his predecessor dies in mysterious circumstances.
A spoof on Hitchcock movies. This is my second viewing. Although I found it better than on my previous viewing, I am still not impressed. Maybe a third viewing will make me embrace it fully. I see it as a film which takes no chances; it does what you expect from it, with little in the way of surprise.
Rating: 40 (up from 28)
A spoof on Hitchcock movies. This is my second viewing. Although I found it better than on my previous viewing, I am still not impressed. Maybe a third viewing will make me embrace it fully. I see it as a film which takes no chances; it does what you expect from it, with little in the way of surprise.
Rating: 40 (up from 28)
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
The Devil Is a Woman (1935)
Instead of giving the plot summary for this film, I shall give the plot summary for the novel on which it was based, "The Woman and the Puppet", by Pierre Louÿs, published in 1898. It is taken ipsis litteris from the site CritiquesLibres:
-beginning of quote-
la femme et le pantin de Pierre Louÿs
Catégorie(s) : Littérature => Francophone
critiqué par Hiram33, le 30 septembre 2006 (Bicêtre, Inscrit le 31 juillet 2006, 41 ans)
La note:
Moyenne des notes : (basée sur 3 avis)
Cote pondérée : (17 276ème position).
Visites : 1 099 (depuis Novembre 2007)
Duel de pervers
Au cours du carnaval de Séville, un jeune Français André Stévenol tombe amoureux d'une jeune espagnole inconnue. Il lui déclare sa flamme lui envoyant un oeuf sur lequel il a eu le temps d'écrire "Quiero". A grand peine, il suit la trace de la belle et se présente au domicile de celle-ci. Il se fait éconduire par le domestique mais un commerçant voisin lui donne le nom de la Sévillane : Conception Perez. Rentré chez lui, il reçoit un mot de la belle lui proposant un rendez-vous. Les heures qui séparent André de sa rencontre galante le taraudent, il décide de se ballader et croise une ancienne connaissance, Mateo Diaz. Diaz lui demande de soulager son angoisse et apprenant qu'il est éperdu d'une certaine Concha, il est pris d'effroi, ne serait-ce pas Concha Perez ? La femme qu'il a connue et qui a causé ses pires tourements ? Oui, c'est bien elle. Alors commence le récit de Mateo. Il va tenter de convaincre son ami de ne pas venir au rendez-vous. L'Espagnol a rencontré la belle dans un train, il a été séduit par sa beauté et par son chant qui accompagnait avec ironie la danse d'une gitane. Puis plus rien jusqu'au hasard des retrouvailles. Là, démarre un crescendo où l'ancien Don Juan jette son dévolu sur Concha. Alors qu'il s'est servi des femmes comme d'objets sexuels c'est lui qui se transforme en pantin dans les mains de la belle Sévillane. Elle va le manipuler, lui laisser croire qu'elle l'aime. L'embrasser, et même entrer dans son lit mais munie d'une "cuirasse" de tissu empêchant les ébas. Humilié, insulté, Mateo en redemande pourtant et il cède à tous les caprices de Concha. Elle disparait de sa vie pour réapparaître et lui, se laisse encore prendre au piège. Elle dit être restée vierge pour lui, n'avoir aimé que lui et Matéo d'y croire naïvement. La belle est danseuse dans un cabaret se qui excite la jalousie du Don Juan jusqu'au paroxysme quand il s'aperçoit que Concha danse nue devant les "Inglès", il le découvre par hasard. Mais Concha réussit une fois encore à le convaincre qu'elle est toujours sans amant. L'humiliation atteint son apogée quand Concha repousse Mateo devant la grille de son appartement et appelle un homme qu'elle embrasse devant le "pantin". Il aura sa revanche en frappant Concha comme pour vider sa colère emmagasinée pendant des mois. Mais, comble de l'ironie, c'est Concha qui en redemande, avouant qu'elle l'a toujours aimé et que s'il elle a tout fait pour le rendre jaloux c'est pour qu'il la batte car elle aime se faire frapper. Mateo obtient ce qu'il a toujours recherché, Concha devient sa maîtresse mais elle l'oblige par tous les moyens à céder à la violence et aux coups. Elle torture psychologiquement Mateo en lui interdisant tout contact avec une femme, toute sortie au théâtre et tout lecture alors qu'elle ne se gêne pas pour le tromper. Elle va jusqu'à le provoquer lui écrivant pour lui donner rendez-vous là où elle se trouve avec son amant, espérant qu'il arivera au moment de l'étreinte. Un duel entre les deux rivaux s'en suit. Résolue à sortir de cet enfer, Mateo fuit à Tanger puis en Italie. La fin du récit du "pantin" aurait dû convaincre le jeune Français d'éviter la manipulatrice mais il n'en est rien. Et comble de la déchéance Mateo lui-même cherche à retrouver la belle...
Pierre Louÿs sert dans ce roman les amateurs de sensulalité mais c'est surtout un récit psychologique. Si Mateo est manipulé et Concha manipulatrice, le couple est égal dans la perversion. Il s'instaure une relation sado-maso physique et psychologique. Personne n'est vraiment coupable et victime, le jeu est partagé par les deux amants qui semblent y trouver un plaisir malsain. Ce roman a inspiré Julien Duvivier pour un film avec Brigitte Bardot et Von Stenberg [sic] pour un film avec Marlène Dietrich.
-end of quote-
The difference between the above and the film's plot is that the masochistic inclinations of 'Concha' are eliminated in the film. I would venture the opinion that this modification - and otherwise it seems to be a faithful rendering - makes the film an improvement over the novel. The dynamics of the relationship is purer in the film, in the sense that it is closer to a Masochian relationship. That is, the woman plays a purely sadistic part and the man a purely masochistic one. The novel, when it "justifies" Concha's behavior, seems - although this is just guessing without having read it in its integrality - to add a melodramatic element which fortunately the filmmakers chose not to include. The film is splendid, a visual dazzlement graced by a literate screenplay.
This is critic Dale Thomajan's fourth entry in his 1935 top ten list.
Rating: 95 (first in my list of favorites for 1935)
-beginning of quote-
la femme et le pantin de Pierre Louÿs
Catégorie(s) : Littérature => Francophone
critiqué par Hiram33, le 30 septembre 2006 (Bicêtre, Inscrit le 31 juillet 2006, 41 ans)
La note:
Moyenne des notes : (basée sur 3 avis)
Cote pondérée : (17 276ème position).
Visites : 1 099 (depuis Novembre 2007)
Duel de pervers
Au cours du carnaval de Séville, un jeune Français André Stévenol tombe amoureux d'une jeune espagnole inconnue. Il lui déclare sa flamme lui envoyant un oeuf sur lequel il a eu le temps d'écrire "Quiero". A grand peine, il suit la trace de la belle et se présente au domicile de celle-ci. Il se fait éconduire par le domestique mais un commerçant voisin lui donne le nom de la Sévillane : Conception Perez. Rentré chez lui, il reçoit un mot de la belle lui proposant un rendez-vous. Les heures qui séparent André de sa rencontre galante le taraudent, il décide de se ballader et croise une ancienne connaissance, Mateo Diaz. Diaz lui demande de soulager son angoisse et apprenant qu'il est éperdu d'une certaine Concha, il est pris d'effroi, ne serait-ce pas Concha Perez ? La femme qu'il a connue et qui a causé ses pires tourements ? Oui, c'est bien elle. Alors commence le récit de Mateo. Il va tenter de convaincre son ami de ne pas venir au rendez-vous. L'Espagnol a rencontré la belle dans un train, il a été séduit par sa beauté et par son chant qui accompagnait avec ironie la danse d'une gitane. Puis plus rien jusqu'au hasard des retrouvailles. Là, démarre un crescendo où l'ancien Don Juan jette son dévolu sur Concha. Alors qu'il s'est servi des femmes comme d'objets sexuels c'est lui qui se transforme en pantin dans les mains de la belle Sévillane. Elle va le manipuler, lui laisser croire qu'elle l'aime. L'embrasser, et même entrer dans son lit mais munie d'une "cuirasse" de tissu empêchant les ébas. Humilié, insulté, Mateo en redemande pourtant et il cède à tous les caprices de Concha. Elle disparait de sa vie pour réapparaître et lui, se laisse encore prendre au piège. Elle dit être restée vierge pour lui, n'avoir aimé que lui et Matéo d'y croire naïvement. La belle est danseuse dans un cabaret se qui excite la jalousie du Don Juan jusqu'au paroxysme quand il s'aperçoit que Concha danse nue devant les "Inglès", il le découvre par hasard. Mais Concha réussit une fois encore à le convaincre qu'elle est toujours sans amant. L'humiliation atteint son apogée quand Concha repousse Mateo devant la grille de son appartement et appelle un homme qu'elle embrasse devant le "pantin". Il aura sa revanche en frappant Concha comme pour vider sa colère emmagasinée pendant des mois. Mais, comble de l'ironie, c'est Concha qui en redemande, avouant qu'elle l'a toujours aimé et que s'il elle a tout fait pour le rendre jaloux c'est pour qu'il la batte car elle aime se faire frapper. Mateo obtient ce qu'il a toujours recherché, Concha devient sa maîtresse mais elle l'oblige par tous les moyens à céder à la violence et aux coups. Elle torture psychologiquement Mateo en lui interdisant tout contact avec une femme, toute sortie au théâtre et tout lecture alors qu'elle ne se gêne pas pour le tromper. Elle va jusqu'à le provoquer lui écrivant pour lui donner rendez-vous là où elle se trouve avec son amant, espérant qu'il arivera au moment de l'étreinte. Un duel entre les deux rivaux s'en suit. Résolue à sortir de cet enfer, Mateo fuit à Tanger puis en Italie. La fin du récit du "pantin" aurait dû convaincre le jeune Français d'éviter la manipulatrice mais il n'en est rien. Et comble de la déchéance Mateo lui-même cherche à retrouver la belle...
Pierre Louÿs sert dans ce roman les amateurs de sensulalité mais c'est surtout un récit psychologique. Si Mateo est manipulé et Concha manipulatrice, le couple est égal dans la perversion. Il s'instaure une relation sado-maso physique et psychologique. Personne n'est vraiment coupable et victime, le jeu est partagé par les deux amants qui semblent y trouver un plaisir malsain. Ce roman a inspiré Julien Duvivier pour un film avec Brigitte Bardot et Von Stenberg [sic] pour un film avec Marlène Dietrich.
-end of quote-
The difference between the above and the film's plot is that the masochistic inclinations of 'Concha' are eliminated in the film. I would venture the opinion that this modification - and otherwise it seems to be a faithful rendering - makes the film an improvement over the novel. The dynamics of the relationship is purer in the film, in the sense that it is closer to a Masochian relationship. That is, the woman plays a purely sadistic part and the man a purely masochistic one. The novel, when it "justifies" Concha's behavior, seems - although this is just guessing without having read it in its integrality - to add a melodramatic element which fortunately the filmmakers chose not to include. The film is splendid, a visual dazzlement graced by a literate screenplay.
This is critic Dale Thomajan's fourth entry in his 1935 top ten list.
Rating: 95 (first in my list of favorites for 1935)
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
My Zinc Bed (2008) (TV)
This is my second viewing of this film. The summary I wrote exactly one year ago (a creepy coincidence) is good enough:
'A love triangle consisting of the owner of a business software company, his ex-alcoholic, ex-druggie wife, and a recovering alcoholic poet, who is hired by the businessman to do publicity work.'
I am sad, however, at how brutally dismissive I was back then. Here is what I wrote:
'The theme here is addiction and the role of support groups in recovery. The text possesses a modicum of refinement which keeps it watchable, although it is nothing particularly strong or memorable.'
In the first place, I should have remarked how very well directed it is. And after watching it for the second time I have to admit that it is stronger and more memorable than I supposed then. The plot is a bit of a dud, no doubt, and with a length of 1 hour 13 minutes it was unlikely to be otherwise. But for as long as it can it draws the viewer into it.
Rating: 53 (up from 39)
'A love triangle consisting of the owner of a business software company, his ex-alcoholic, ex-druggie wife, and a recovering alcoholic poet, who is hired by the businessman to do publicity work.'
I am sad, however, at how brutally dismissive I was back then. Here is what I wrote:
'The theme here is addiction and the role of support groups in recovery. The text possesses a modicum of refinement which keeps it watchable, although it is nothing particularly strong or memorable.'
In the first place, I should have remarked how very well directed it is. And after watching it for the second time I have to admit that it is stronger and more memorable than I supposed then. The plot is a bit of a dud, no doubt, and with a length of 1 hour 13 minutes it was unlikely to be otherwise. But for as long as it can it draws the viewer into it.
Rating: 53 (up from 39)
Sunday, February 06, 2011
Crossing Delancey (1988)
A bookstore worker has a crush on a novelist. Her grandmother, using the services of a matchmaker, fixes her up with a pickle merchant.
An important topic of discussion when it comes to films which deal with prejudice is the question of how in some of those films prejudice is constructed by the film itself, in order to be subsequently deconstructed by it. For example, Crossing Delancey only works if the viewer accepts that prejudice against a pickle merchant is something which naturally occurs in intellectual circles. One question is whether this assumption stems from social observation or from the same kind of prejudice it tries to fight. Another question is whether the film could not be guilty of the reverse prejudice, that is, prejudice against intellectuals as a class.
If one abandons the above line of analysis, and focuses on individual drama and issues such as loneliness and affective life, the film becomes simpler. Consider the title it received in Brazil: "Love at Second Sight". It's a good indication of how it is perceived, or maybe even of how it is supposed to be perceived. And yet I don't see any love between the bookstore worker and the pickle maker. No, love is probably too wild an assumption to be made based exclusively on what the film actually shows us. Accommodation is more like it. But who would watch a movie called "Accommodation at Second Sight"?
Summing my considerations up, this is a nice little film about accommodations, with little conscience of the social dimension of the drama it presents.
Rating: 51
An important topic of discussion when it comes to films which deal with prejudice is the question of how in some of those films prejudice is constructed by the film itself, in order to be subsequently deconstructed by it. For example, Crossing Delancey only works if the viewer accepts that prejudice against a pickle merchant is something which naturally occurs in intellectual circles. One question is whether this assumption stems from social observation or from the same kind of prejudice it tries to fight. Another question is whether the film could not be guilty of the reverse prejudice, that is, prejudice against intellectuals as a class.
If one abandons the above line of analysis, and focuses on individual drama and issues such as loneliness and affective life, the film becomes simpler. Consider the title it received in Brazil: "Love at Second Sight". It's a good indication of how it is perceived, or maybe even of how it is supposed to be perceived. And yet I don't see any love between the bookstore worker and the pickle maker. No, love is probably too wild an assumption to be made based exclusively on what the film actually shows us. Accommodation is more like it. But who would watch a movie called "Accommodation at Second Sight"?
Summing my considerations up, this is a nice little film about accommodations, with little conscience of the social dimension of the drama it presents.
Rating: 51
Black Swan (2010)
A ballerina is chosen for the leading role in Swan Lake, despite the fact (which no one seems to notice) that she is stark raving mad.
The plot summary above may be disputed by some who will argue the film to be a fantastic tale. Whatever way I look at it, its ideas seem sophomoric and a proof that any half-baked film-school weirdness is Oscar material in these our sad days.
At any rate the leading actress does a good job.
Rating: 37
The plot summary above may be disputed by some who will argue the film to be a fantastic tale. Whatever way I look at it, its ideas seem sophomoric and a proof that any half-baked film-school weirdness is Oscar material in these our sad days.
At any rate the leading actress does a good job.
Rating: 37
Saturday, February 05, 2011
Mr. Majestyk (1974)
A watermelon farmer is unjustly arrested, and gets in trouble with another inmate, a vicious gangster.
Second viewing. I mysteriously didn't like this on first viewing. The fact is that, in strictly formal terms, it is very carefully worked out from beginning to end. I am still not overenthusiastic about some plot details, though. For instance, why does the Kopas character get mixed up with the Renda character? And why is Renda willing to risk so much just to get revenge on Majestyk? Of course, without these choices of behavior there would be no film, or rather not this one anyway.
Rating: 55 (formerly 39)
Second viewing. I mysteriously didn't like this on first viewing. The fact is that, in strictly formal terms, it is very carefully worked out from beginning to end. I am still not overenthusiastic about some plot details, though. For instance, why does the Kopas character get mixed up with the Renda character? And why is Renda willing to risk so much just to get revenge on Majestyk? Of course, without these choices of behavior there would be no film, or rather not this one anyway.
Rating: 55 (formerly 39)
He Was Her Man (1934)
A thief rats on his partners and flees. One of them escapes and wants revenge. He travels to a fishing village with a woman who is engaged to a fisherman. The place looks like the perfect hideaway for him.
Mostly it's a good film. The final section is especially good. The characterization of the Portuguese family is not so good, especially in what concerns the accent. And they have an Italian name, for Christ's sake (Gardella). Cagney is sublime (I'm beginning to think that he always is). On the whole, an engaging story about the ironies of fate. Or, if one prefers, about nothing at all, and engaging all the same. Understanding the dialogue, once again, was a problem for me.
Critic Dale Thomajan's 10th entry on his 1934 top ten.
Rating: 56
Mostly it's a good film. The final section is especially good. The characterization of the Portuguese family is not so good, especially in what concerns the accent. And they have an Italian name, for Christ's sake (Gardella). Cagney is sublime (I'm beginning to think that he always is). On the whole, an engaging story about the ironies of fate. Or, if one prefers, about nothing at all, and engaging all the same. Understanding the dialogue, once again, was a problem for me.
Critic Dale Thomajan's 10th entry on his 1934 top ten.
Rating: 56
Wednesday, February 02, 2011
Death Proof (2007)
A deranged stunt man uses his car to kill young women.
I suspect that down deep it's a self-referential film that promotes second unit to first, using women as a metaphor for the transition from victim to empowered. This reminds one of what Guillermo Cabrera Infante, the renowned novelist who also wrote the screenplay of Vanishing Point, said in an interview:
What the spectator sees on the screen is the mirror image of my screenplay. Vanishing Point is my script as seen on the white mirror of the screen, in De Luxe color, at an aspect ratio of 1:85, running at twenty-four frames per second, in stereo sound—much more than I ever wrote or could write. That’s a movie. I just wrote the screenplay. Thanks to John Alonzo, a cinematographer of genius, my screenplay is now a piece of Americana, a cult film, and a very successful movie. I wrote a motion picture about a man with a problem in a car. My director made a movie about a man in a car with problems. Cars in the film are actors and the movie may be taken as a paean to cars or to death by car. By the way, I don’t drive.
According to Gore Vidal, another renowned novelist who wrote movies, the decline of the importance of screenwriters which happened in the late sixties coincides with the rise to eminence of cars and car chases, replacing human beings, on the big screen.
I guess one can't blame postmodernists for growing up in exciting times.
Rating: 40
I suspect that down deep it's a self-referential film that promotes second unit to first, using women as a metaphor for the transition from victim to empowered. This reminds one of what Guillermo Cabrera Infante, the renowned novelist who also wrote the screenplay of Vanishing Point, said in an interview:
What the spectator sees on the screen is the mirror image of my screenplay. Vanishing Point is my script as seen on the white mirror of the screen, in De Luxe color, at an aspect ratio of 1:85, running at twenty-four frames per second, in stereo sound—much more than I ever wrote or could write. That’s a movie. I just wrote the screenplay. Thanks to John Alonzo, a cinematographer of genius, my screenplay is now a piece of Americana, a cult film, and a very successful movie. I wrote a motion picture about a man with a problem in a car. My director made a movie about a man in a car with problems. Cars in the film are actors and the movie may be taken as a paean to cars or to death by car. By the way, I don’t drive.
According to Gore Vidal, another renowned novelist who wrote movies, the decline of the importance of screenwriters which happened in the late sixties coincides with the rise to eminence of cars and car chases, replacing human beings, on the big screen.
I guess one can't blame postmodernists for growing up in exciting times.
Rating: 40
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