Second viewing; first was on May 19, 1990.
A soldier and a nun are, by separate ways, stranded on a deserted island during World War II. The region is a site of naval battles between the Japanese and the Allies.
Interesting drama with good performances and an entertaining story, well directed. The development does not stray much from the predictable issues (romance, religion, survival, etc.), but it is all done with competence.
Rating: 53 (up from 41)
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Citizen X (1995) (TV)
Soviet Union, the eighties. A serial killer is striking in a region near some woods. A forensics examiner is appointed leader of the investigation. The State bureaucracy stands in the way of the investigation.
The film is watchable, but somehow it didn't seem to do its job right. Perhaps the facts it is based on are essentially dull, and that reflected on the dramatization. On the other hand, it is never clear what exactly is going on, how big the region of the murders is, why the protagonist is considered so good at his job as an investigator, what the reaction of the population to the killings along the 8-year period is. Maybe some of the fault lies with its TV-movie budget which did not allow a better production, but I don't know.
Rating: 38
The film is watchable, but somehow it didn't seem to do its job right. Perhaps the facts it is based on are essentially dull, and that reflected on the dramatization. On the other hand, it is never clear what exactly is going on, how big the region of the murders is, why the protagonist is considered so good at his job as an investigator, what the reaction of the population to the killings along the 8-year period is. Maybe some of the fault lies with its TV-movie budget which did not allow a better production, but I don't know.
Rating: 38
To Be or Not to Be (1942)
A theatrical troupe in Warsaw is rehearsing a play about Nazism which is to open after their present season of Hamlet. Husband and wife are the main actors. She has a budding affair with a Polish military aviator. When the Germans invade, everything changes, but the company will cross paths with the flyer yet.
Delightfully mad concoction about actors and Nazis, which exposes the truth about both. A fast film, perfectly directed. The screenplay has perhaps one or two lines which are not funny (e.g. "I would not eat you", etc), and one or two sequences which perhaps seem misplaced or overly repetitive (e.g. the fallen mustache near the end, which by the way seems to be a loose end). Otherwise, it is a film of an astonishing originality and daring.
Rating: 80
Delightfully mad concoction about actors and Nazis, which exposes the truth about both. A fast film, perfectly directed. The screenplay has perhaps one or two lines which are not funny (e.g. "I would not eat you", etc), and one or two sequences which perhaps seem misplaced or overly repetitive (e.g. the fallen mustache near the end, which by the way seems to be a loose end). Otherwise, it is a film of an astonishing originality and daring.
Rating: 80
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Le gamin au vélo (2011)
English title: The Kid with a Bike
A boy of 12 whose only living relative is his father - or so I gather - is placed by the latter under the tutelage of the State. The boy and a young hairdresser whom he meets by chance become gradually closer to each other until she is foster parenting him. But the boy makes some deleterious acquaintances which lead him astray into dark alleys, so to speak. Will the hairdresser persevere in her love for the brat?
The Righteous Brothers are back again, in force. Which means that every step of the plot, every nuance of character, everything in short, is exactly contrived in order to advance their agenda of betterment of the world (or of Belgium in the very least). And in their worldview all the solutions depend on individual love and self-giving. None of that is necessarily wrong, but I'm afraid it also means that the film has no aesthetical independence. It is an educational film. I, for one, am not sure it taught me anything I didn't already know; and if it did, how can one tell that what they taught is correct? What if there is an angle they excluded because it would not serve their purpose?
Rating: 40
A boy of 12 whose only living relative is his father - or so I gather - is placed by the latter under the tutelage of the State. The boy and a young hairdresser whom he meets by chance become gradually closer to each other until she is foster parenting him. But the boy makes some deleterious acquaintances which lead him astray into dark alleys, so to speak. Will the hairdresser persevere in her love for the brat?
The Righteous Brothers are back again, in force. Which means that every step of the plot, every nuance of character, everything in short, is exactly contrived in order to advance their agenda of betterment of the world (or of Belgium in the very least). And in their worldview all the solutions depend on individual love and self-giving. None of that is necessarily wrong, but I'm afraid it also means that the film has no aesthetical independence. It is an educational film. I, for one, am not sure it taught me anything I didn't already know; and if it did, how can one tell that what they taught is correct? What if there is an angle they excluded because it would not serve their purpose?
Rating: 40
Monday, May 27, 2013
My House in Umbria (2003) (TV)
A bomb explodes in a train, leaving the passengers of one compartment wounded or dead. An elderly woman, who is a writer of cheap romantic novels, invites the survivors to spend their recovery in her big house. A police officer appears there and interrogates them.
Reasonably well made and well photographed, but the film doesn't have much to distinguish it; the plot is not very exciting or unusual, the dialogue is pretty standard, etc.
Saw it dubbed in Portuguese.
Rating: 43
Reasonably well made and well photographed, but the film doesn't have much to distinguish it; the plot is not very exciting or unusual, the dialogue is pretty standard, etc.
Saw it dubbed in Portuguese.
Rating: 43
Germania anno zero (1948)
Second viewing; first was on June 18, 1994.
English title: Germany Year Zero.
Two years after the end of World War II, Berlin is still a destroyed city, and the population is starving. Several families live in the building where this story's characters dwell. The protagonist is Edmund, a boy of 12, who has to help his family increase their income. His older brother does not have a ration card because he did not report to the authorities, for fear of being sent to a prison camp. His father is ill, and so cannot work. His older sister's scruples prevent her from becoming a prostitute or even accepting gifts from men. In his wanderings through the devastated city, Edmund meets all sorts of people; among them is a former school teacher who offers him work for a day, and also exposes his worldview to him.
This melodrama did not please me on my first viewing, mainly, if I remember correctly, because I thought its tragic development was the result of contrivances which stretched suspension of disbelief a little too far. I specifically have a hard time believing in child characters as depicted in most movies, and this used to be one of the more problematic cases. I have changed my mind about it, though, and this has to do with the different set of values I work with nowadays. Although I still appreciate credibility in fiction, I do not consider its absence a fatal flaw. As a work of fiction, Germania anno zero is well made and succeeds in its purpose of producing emotional situations. Its limitations are visible right from the outset, when it states in a caption that "ideologies" should not forsake "Christian" values, a typically unsatisfactory response to the complexities of human life.
Rating: 51 (up from 30)
English title: Germany Year Zero.
Two years after the end of World War II, Berlin is still a destroyed city, and the population is starving. Several families live in the building where this story's characters dwell. The protagonist is Edmund, a boy of 12, who has to help his family increase their income. His older brother does not have a ration card because he did not report to the authorities, for fear of being sent to a prison camp. His father is ill, and so cannot work. His older sister's scruples prevent her from becoming a prostitute or even accepting gifts from men. In his wanderings through the devastated city, Edmund meets all sorts of people; among them is a former school teacher who offers him work for a day, and also exposes his worldview to him.
This melodrama did not please me on my first viewing, mainly, if I remember correctly, because I thought its tragic development was the result of contrivances which stretched suspension of disbelief a little too far. I specifically have a hard time believing in child characters as depicted in most movies, and this used to be one of the more problematic cases. I have changed my mind about it, though, and this has to do with the different set of values I work with nowadays. Although I still appreciate credibility in fiction, I do not consider its absence a fatal flaw. As a work of fiction, Germania anno zero is well made and succeeds in its purpose of producing emotional situations. Its limitations are visible right from the outset, when it states in a caption that "ideologies" should not forsake "Christian" values, a typically unsatisfactory response to the complexities of human life.
Rating: 51 (up from 30)
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Roma, città aperta (1945)
Second viewing; first was on June 17, 1988.
English titles: Open City; Rome, Open City.
Rome, during the Nazi occupation. An engineer in the Resistance manages to escape just in time when the Nazis raid his house. He takes refuge in the house of a Resistance fellow, a typographer, next-door to the latter's fiancée (they plan to marry the next day). Her sister is a performing artist, one of whose co-workers is in a relationship with the engineer and is a morphine addict. The latter's supplier is a Nazi agent. There is also a priest who helps the resistance by running errands and the like.
I tried to analyze its technique with some expectation of finding flaws, but, apart from a couple of really unelegantly edited sequences, I was unable to find anything badly done. On the other hand, a scene which I detested on first viewing -- Pina's death -- impressed me very well this time. I think that on my first viewing I found it lacking in realism, a term which then I understood to refer mainly to behavioral credibility. But the term 'realism' as applied to this film only makes sense in reference to some aspects of its filmmaking procedures, for example, location shooting. Albeit working with some facts from then-recent history, it seems distant from historical accuracy or psychological verisimilitude. Its propagandistic tone is quite evident, and so is its melodramatic quality. From what I read in Wikipedia, I understand the director was a fascist collaborator from the beginning, and all the way to the extinction of the regime, and then adhered to the new one very promptly. For what it is worth: in Roma, città aperta, if I recall correctly, the fascists are almost completely absent, the main conflict being between the Nazis and the Resistance.
Rating: 51 (up from 44)
English titles: Open City; Rome, Open City.
Rome, during the Nazi occupation. An engineer in the Resistance manages to escape just in time when the Nazis raid his house. He takes refuge in the house of a Resistance fellow, a typographer, next-door to the latter's fiancée (they plan to marry the next day). Her sister is a performing artist, one of whose co-workers is in a relationship with the engineer and is a morphine addict. The latter's supplier is a Nazi agent. There is also a priest who helps the resistance by running errands and the like.
I tried to analyze its technique with some expectation of finding flaws, but, apart from a couple of really unelegantly edited sequences, I was unable to find anything badly done. On the other hand, a scene which I detested on first viewing -- Pina's death -- impressed me very well this time. I think that on my first viewing I found it lacking in realism, a term which then I understood to refer mainly to behavioral credibility. But the term 'realism' as applied to this film only makes sense in reference to some aspects of its filmmaking procedures, for example, location shooting. Albeit working with some facts from then-recent history, it seems distant from historical accuracy or psychological verisimilitude. Its propagandistic tone is quite evident, and so is its melodramatic quality. From what I read in Wikipedia, I understand the director was a fascist collaborator from the beginning, and all the way to the extinction of the regime, and then adhered to the new one very promptly. For what it is worth: in Roma, città aperta, if I recall correctly, the fascists are almost completely absent, the main conflict being between the Nazis and the Resistance.
Rating: 51 (up from 44)
Pierrot le fou (1965)
Second viewing, first in color. First viewing, in black and white, was on May 20, 2002.
A married man runs away with the babysitter. They commit a series of crimes and run out of money. She suggests they go to the South of France where she says her brother, a criminal, is.
A playful comedy, much of which owes a great debt to Marx Brothers films and Warner Brothers cartoons. Here, however, literary references are an important part. The extensive use of non-sequitur generates an unusual sort of comicity. The film starts in an angry mood, then switches to a gay one, which is then dissolved in graphic violence and betrayal. References to the Vietnam war seem to be neither here nor there. Very little of the film strikes me as particularly brilliant. The cinematography is remarkable.
Rating: 51 (up from 47)
A married man runs away with the babysitter. They commit a series of crimes and run out of money. She suggests they go to the South of France where she says her brother, a criminal, is.
A playful comedy, much of which owes a great debt to Marx Brothers films and Warner Brothers cartoons. Here, however, literary references are an important part. The extensive use of non-sequitur generates an unusual sort of comicity. The film starts in an angry mood, then switches to a gay one, which is then dissolved in graphic violence and betrayal. References to the Vietnam war seem to be neither here nor there. Very little of the film strikes me as particularly brilliant. The cinematography is remarkable.
Rating: 51 (up from 47)
Saturday, May 25, 2013
O Dia em que Dorival Encarou a Guarda (1986)
Short.
One night, a prisoner asks permission to shower, and is refused. He demands to see a superior officer. And so on.
Good short.
One night, a prisoner asks permission to shower, and is refused. He demands to see a superior officer. And so on.
Good short.
Manhattan (1979)
Second viewing; first was between 1983 and 1986.
Isaac is a middle-aged divorced writer who is in a relationship with Tracy, a 17-year-old high-schooler. Isaac's latest ex-wife left him for another woman. Isaac's best friend is Yale, a married man who is having an affair with Mary, a divorced writer. Isaac is trying to break up with Tracy because he thinks she is too young. Mary in turn is not going anywhere in her relationship with Yale.
I think my understanding of this movie became a little less muddled upon this second viewing. It seems to be developing a thesis which could be stated more or less like -- one should guide one's actions by one's own feelings, not by assumptions about what is better for others, or by what most people think is right; most of all, one should not be opportunistic in human relationships. In the present case, Isaac should not break up with Tracy because of general ideas about age difference improprieties, or implying less age equals less maturity, etc.; furthermore, he should not be in a relationship with a woman who is clearly incompatible with him (namely, Mary), just because the 'opportunity' appears, both are without a partner, and so on.
I am not sure this has anything to do with Manhattan, but then again what do I know about that city? There is a lot of sarcastic cultural references, mainly dealing with feminism and modern art; I think they are somehow meant to represent the city or some slice of it; I do not know how well they do that, but as for the University circuit, they certainly click with some things I read in recent years; and they are funny too.
I couldn't bring myself to give this movie a high rating; the strangeness of its situations and characters still pose something of an obstacle to my enjoyment. Maybe a third (improbable) viewing would bring the matter to a closure.
Rating: 50 (up from 37)
Isaac is a middle-aged divorced writer who is in a relationship with Tracy, a 17-year-old high-schooler. Isaac's latest ex-wife left him for another woman. Isaac's best friend is Yale, a married man who is having an affair with Mary, a divorced writer. Isaac is trying to break up with Tracy because he thinks she is too young. Mary in turn is not going anywhere in her relationship with Yale.
I think my understanding of this movie became a little less muddled upon this second viewing. It seems to be developing a thesis which could be stated more or less like -- one should guide one's actions by one's own feelings, not by assumptions about what is better for others, or by what most people think is right; most of all, one should not be opportunistic in human relationships. In the present case, Isaac should not break up with Tracy because of general ideas about age difference improprieties, or implying less age equals less maturity, etc.; furthermore, he should not be in a relationship with a woman who is clearly incompatible with him (namely, Mary), just because the 'opportunity' appears, both are without a partner, and so on.
I am not sure this has anything to do with Manhattan, but then again what do I know about that city? There is a lot of sarcastic cultural references, mainly dealing with feminism and modern art; I think they are somehow meant to represent the city or some slice of it; I do not know how well they do that, but as for the University circuit, they certainly click with some things I read in recent years; and they are funny too.
I couldn't bring myself to give this movie a high rating; the strangeness of its situations and characters still pose something of an obstacle to my enjoyment. Maybe a third (improbable) viewing would bring the matter to a closure.
Rating: 50 (up from 37)
Friday, May 24, 2013
Mulher de Verdade (1954)
A nurse gets involved with two of her patients, of distinct social classes. She marries them both, bigamously, and uses her profession as an alibi for her double life.
Unsuccessful comedy, with a script that has some good plot ideas but is severely lacking in its finer details. The film is noticeably better directed than the Brazilian average, though.
The audio was severely problematic, with dramatic loudness variations, I do not know whether from a bad sound recording or from deterioration of the physical support, or what.
Rating: 31
Unsuccessful comedy, with a script that has some good plot ideas but is severely lacking in its finer details. The film is noticeably better directed than the Brazilian average, though.
The audio was severely problematic, with dramatic loudness variations, I do not know whether from a bad sound recording or from deterioration of the physical support, or what.
Rating: 31
Bus Stop (1956)
Second viewing; first was between 1983 and 1986.
A cowboy who has no experience with women has to leave his ranch to contend at a rodeo in another town. Over there he meets a cabaret singer who, as they say, has been around. But he does not know that he cannot impose his will regardless of others.
It is funny to watch this man who is like a natural disaster. But the joke wears out at midfilm, and it becomes a little too obvious and even a little dull. It is a passable film, saved by the excellent male lead, and by a competent direction.
Rating: 51 (down from 69)
A cowboy who has no experience with women has to leave his ranch to contend at a rodeo in another town. Over there he meets a cabaret singer who, as they say, has been around. But he does not know that he cannot impose his will regardless of others.
It is funny to watch this man who is like a natural disaster. But the joke wears out at midfilm, and it becomes a little too obvious and even a little dull. It is a passable film, saved by the excellent male lead, and by a competent direction.
Rating: 51 (down from 69)
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Desk Set (1957)
A consultant (here called a "methods engineer") is advising a large company (which has "broadcasting" in its name, so it must be a TV or radio company, or both) in its computerization process. A certain chemistry arises between him and the head of the Research Department, who is already in a complicated relationship with her boss.
Making a fun comedy about such a theme as the effect of computers on the unemployment rate increase is not supposed to be an easy task, and yet Desk Set does not come off too badly at that. I had a hard time trying to figure out exactly who were the users of the Research Department, but, after several more-or-less plausible hypotheses, I gave up on a positive answer. But the major problem of the movie, if you choose to call it a problem, is that the romantic subplot does not have much relation with the, say, sociological one (I mean the installation of the computers and the effect on the company's personnel), and so you have a double-headed monster. Most films are that way, I suspect, so let us not raise hell about it. I guess the main thing is that it is very ably written and directed, and is entertaining enough.
Rating: 55
Making a fun comedy about such a theme as the effect of computers on the unemployment rate increase is not supposed to be an easy task, and yet Desk Set does not come off too badly at that. I had a hard time trying to figure out exactly who were the users of the Research Department, but, after several more-or-less plausible hypotheses, I gave up on a positive answer. But the major problem of the movie, if you choose to call it a problem, is that the romantic subplot does not have much relation with the, say, sociological one (I mean the installation of the computers and the effect on the company's personnel), and so you have a double-headed monster. Most films are that way, I suspect, so let us not raise hell about it. I guess the main thing is that it is very ably written and directed, and is entertaining enough.
Rating: 55
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Tora no o wo fumu otokotachi (1945)
English title: The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail
A disgraced general is being hunted by his brother the Shogun. The general and his six samurai disguise as monks and go through a mountain path. They are stopped at a control guard post.
Naive tale very much in the line of a folk story. The comic relief is provided by a baggage porter who is played in a very histrionic way. Watchable but a little too primitive for my taste.
Rating: 41
A disgraced general is being hunted by his brother the Shogun. The general and his six samurai disguise as monks and go through a mountain path. They are stopped at a control guard post.
Naive tale very much in the line of a folk story. The comic relief is provided by a baggage porter who is played in a very histrionic way. Watchable but a little too primitive for my taste.
Rating: 41
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Week-end à Zuydcoote (1964)
English title: Weekend at Dunkirk
In 1940, France is suffering heavy German bombing; in a beach near Dunkirk, Sgt. Maillat tries to get embarked to England, but this proves very difficult. He and his friends spend their time protecting themselves from the bombs and making small talk; Maillat meets a young woman in a house in town and tries to convince her to abandon the place.
Realistic portrayal of a specific moment and place in World War II. The film is very well directed, and, while not possessing a strong storyline (it is basically a series of episodes), it is enjoyable.
Rating: 59
In 1940, France is suffering heavy German bombing; in a beach near Dunkirk, Sgt. Maillat tries to get embarked to England, but this proves very difficult. He and his friends spend their time protecting themselves from the bombs and making small talk; Maillat meets a young woman in a house in town and tries to convince her to abandon the place.
Realistic portrayal of a specific moment and place in World War II. The film is very well directed, and, while not possessing a strong storyline (it is basically a series of episodes), it is enjoyable.
Rating: 59
Scener ur ett äktenskap (1973) (TV miniseries)
First integral viewing; theatrical version viewed on February 4, 1990.
English title: Scenes from a Marriage
Johan and Marianne are seen as a happy couple, but one day this image falls apart: Johan tells Marianne he is leaving her for another woman.
Very uneven, ranging from brilliancy to straightforward soap-opera to mere opaqueness. The intelligence of some of the dialogue is admirable, but the drama as a whole is not as convincing as I thought on my previous viewing (of the theatrical version). Also, it is rather tiresome due to the absence of action; everything is shown through dialogue. It goes beyond the simple chronicle of a specific marriage; it intends to be a summing up of all marriages. The evidences for this ambition are multiple, but listing them would make this review too long; suffice it to point out that Marianne's second marriage only repeats the patterns of the first, implying that all marriages follow them. Several behavioral oddities defy credibility; the last episode is entirely absurd.
Rating: 60 (down from 87)
English title: Scenes from a Marriage
Johan and Marianne are seen as a happy couple, but one day this image falls apart: Johan tells Marianne he is leaving her for another woman.
Very uneven, ranging from brilliancy to straightforward soap-opera to mere opaqueness. The intelligence of some of the dialogue is admirable, but the drama as a whole is not as convincing as I thought on my previous viewing (of the theatrical version). Also, it is rather tiresome due to the absence of action; everything is shown through dialogue. It goes beyond the simple chronicle of a specific marriage; it intends to be a summing up of all marriages. The evidences for this ambition are multiple, but listing them would make this review too long; suffice it to point out that Marianne's second marriage only repeats the patterns of the first, implying that all marriages follow them. Several behavioral oddities defy credibility; the last episode is entirely absurd.
Rating: 60 (down from 87)
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Damsels in Distress (2011)
Violet is in college, and she is a sort of leader to a small group of girls whose ambition is to exert a good influence on their school environment, especially through their work in the Suicide Prevention Center. A new student arrives in college, and Violet and her friends take her under their wings. Their involvement with boys adds new complications to their well-being and mutual friendship.
Interesting comedy, which avoids dramatic patterns and formally opts for a sketchy development. The dialogue is very prominent in it, and is usually intelligently written. Very early on, it becomes clear that the film's universe is not realistically fashioned, and this becomes even more evident as the film progresses. All of the acting (and all of the casting too, it is important to mention) is exemplary.
It should be commended for its courage to be personal, but I think its inspiration seemed a little trivial at times. For example, was the best that they could think of for the 'sambola' a compilation of other known dancing styles? Another thing I am not sure I understood: if missing kindergarten is the explanation for Thor's particular knowledge lacuna, are we to conclude that he is not stupid?
Apart from the example in the previous paragraph, and although this is not a psychological drama, I think there is a good deal of consistency in the characters; for example, Lily accuses Violet of being attracted to doofi (and thus accuses Fred of being one) and yet she, Lily, is the one who displays an abnormal tolerance to being exploited. The implication is that real doofi cannot see in the first place that they are the real doofi.
The film's title may be a wicked reference to the untruthfulness of another film's title (The Virgin Suicides), by way of a certain point made in Pepi, Luci, Bom y otras chicas del montón.
Rating: 59
Interesting comedy, which avoids dramatic patterns and formally opts for a sketchy development. The dialogue is very prominent in it, and is usually intelligently written. Very early on, it becomes clear that the film's universe is not realistically fashioned, and this becomes even more evident as the film progresses. All of the acting (and all of the casting too, it is important to mention) is exemplary.
It should be commended for its courage to be personal, but I think its inspiration seemed a little trivial at times. For example, was the best that they could think of for the 'sambola' a compilation of other known dancing styles? Another thing I am not sure I understood: if missing kindergarten is the explanation for Thor's particular knowledge lacuna, are we to conclude that he is not stupid?
Apart from the example in the previous paragraph, and although this is not a psychological drama, I think there is a good deal of consistency in the characters; for example, Lily accuses Violet of being attracted to doofi (and thus accuses Fred of being one) and yet she, Lily, is the one who displays an abnormal tolerance to being exploited. The implication is that real doofi cannot see in the first place that they are the real doofi.
The film's title may be a wicked reference to the untruthfulness of another film's title (The Virgin Suicides), by way of a certain point made in Pepi, Luci, Bom y otras chicas del montón.
Rating: 59
Friday, May 17, 2013
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask (1972)
Second or third viewing. Latest was on April 8, 1989.
A series of comical sketches, each entitled with a question regarding an aspect of sex.
A very good film, which offers a sort of panorama of sexuality. The first episode ("Do Aphrodisiacs Work?) is perfect as an introduction, stating how in the past repression was explicit and consequences were physical; in such times guilt was not an issue, or rather it had a merely legal aspect. Moving on to modern times, we find that more than one episode are centered on the theme of Sex vs. Culture; two of them deal with it more or less straightforwardly: the zoophile ("What Is Sodomy?", an inaccurate title) and the crossdresser ("Are All Transvestites Homosexuals?"), another one shows the ambiguity in the aforementioned duality ("Why Is It So Difficult for a Woman to Reach Orgasm?"), in which sexual fulfillment is inextricably entangled with cultural repression; yet another reverts surrealistically the expectations on this theme ("What Are Sex Perverts?"), with an insight into the 21st century and its culture of trivialization and self-exposure. In "How Accurate Is the Scientific Knowledge About Sex?", there is an analysis of science-fiction films, from the vantage point of sex. The final episode ("What Happens in Ejaculation?") covers the biological aspect, and is in certain ways the most ambitious of the lot. Even though the humor displayed in this film is not always all that groundbreaking, I think overall it is a remarkable work.
Rating: 71 (down from 78)
A series of comical sketches, each entitled with a question regarding an aspect of sex.
A very good film, which offers a sort of panorama of sexuality. The first episode ("Do Aphrodisiacs Work?) is perfect as an introduction, stating how in the past repression was explicit and consequences were physical; in such times guilt was not an issue, or rather it had a merely legal aspect. Moving on to modern times, we find that more than one episode are centered on the theme of Sex vs. Culture; two of them deal with it more or less straightforwardly: the zoophile ("What Is Sodomy?", an inaccurate title) and the crossdresser ("Are All Transvestites Homosexuals?"), another one shows the ambiguity in the aforementioned duality ("Why Is It So Difficult for a Woman to Reach Orgasm?"), in which sexual fulfillment is inextricably entangled with cultural repression; yet another reverts surrealistically the expectations on this theme ("What Are Sex Perverts?"), with an insight into the 21st century and its culture of trivialization and self-exposure. In "How Accurate Is the Scientific Knowledge About Sex?", there is an analysis of science-fiction films, from the vantage point of sex. The final episode ("What Happens in Ejaculation?") covers the biological aspect, and is in certain ways the most ambitious of the lot. Even though the humor displayed in this film is not always all that groundbreaking, I think overall it is a remarkable work.
Rating: 71 (down from 78)
Eu Tu Eles (2000)
English title: Me You Them
In a poor rural place in Brazil, a woman makes somewhat unconventional arrangements with several men (amongst them her husband) in order to get on with her life as best she can and raise her children (who keep coming).
Poorly staged. Seems too infatuated with the landscapes. Passable storyline. Mostly competent cast.
Rating: 45
In a poor rural place in Brazil, a woman makes somewhat unconventional arrangements with several men (amongst them her husband) in order to get on with her life as best she can and raise her children (who keep coming).
Poorly staged. Seems too infatuated with the landscapes. Passable storyline. Mostly competent cast.
Rating: 45
West Side Story (1961)
Second viewing; first was on January 16, 1987.
Two youth gangs, one of whites and the other of Puerto Ricans, fight for dominance in the New York West Side; a Puerto Rican girl falls in love with a white boy.
I didn't have a bad time (re)watching this, and I think this is overwhelmingly due to the music (and, in most cases, also the lyrics, I should add). The choreography is OK, I suppose, but there just isn't enough in it to justify the praise it has received over the years (but mind you I am talking about the movie, not the play,which I haven't seen). The dramatic side is not without flaws, but the basic plotline and a few scenes I found moving, even knowing that in many aspects it is not realistic.
The excellent "Officer Krupke" lyrics is mind-blowingly appropriate to the historical moment that my country is going through, even with the caveat that these kids are way nicer than Brazilian young hoodlums.
Rating: 65 (up from 50)
Two youth gangs, one of whites and the other of Puerto Ricans, fight for dominance in the New York West Side; a Puerto Rican girl falls in love with a white boy.
I didn't have a bad time (re)watching this, and I think this is overwhelmingly due to the music (and, in most cases, also the lyrics, I should add). The choreography is OK, I suppose, but there just isn't enough in it to justify the praise it has received over the years (but mind you I am talking about the movie, not the play,which I haven't seen). The dramatic side is not without flaws, but the basic plotline and a few scenes I found moving, even knowing that in many aspects it is not realistic.
The excellent "Officer Krupke" lyrics is mind-blowingly appropriate to the historical moment that my country is going through, even with the caveat that these kids are way nicer than Brazilian young hoodlums.
Rating: 65 (up from 50)
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Pillow Talk (1959)
Second viewing; first was on January 24, 1995.
A womanizer and a single woman share a phone line (a "party line" is what they call it) between themselves, and dislike each other intensely. He sees her by chance in a public place and from then on can only think of getting her to bed.
Funny comedy, with some very sophisticated screenplay aspects, and a few others which are sillier but still are very funny. The whole film is splendidly directed.
The songs Doris sings are terribly uninspired, though. The ending, too, is unsatisfactory, I think.
Rating: 73 (down from 77)
A womanizer and a single woman share a phone line (a "party line" is what they call it) between themselves, and dislike each other intensely. He sees her by chance in a public place and from then on can only think of getting her to bed.
Funny comedy, with some very sophisticated screenplay aspects, and a few others which are sillier but still are very funny. The whole film is splendidly directed.
The songs Doris sings are terribly uninspired, though. The ending, too, is unsatisfactory, I think.
Rating: 73 (down from 77)
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The Wrong Box (1966)
Second viewing; first was on April 23, 1989.
Based on the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, first published in 1889.
A lottery is established which takes as participants several children and has as a rule that the last survivor among them shall be the winner. It so happens that many years later two brothers are the only two living remnants, and this causes some anxiety in one of them, as well as on two inheritors of the other.
A funny film from start to finish; the humor may not be of the most intellectual kind, but it is certainly effective, and I was rarely without at least a smile on my face while watching it (and this, if I remember right, on both occasions).
Rating: 65 (down from 70)
Based on the novel by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, first published in 1889.
A lottery is established which takes as participants several children and has as a rule that the last survivor among them shall be the winner. It so happens that many years later two brothers are the only two living remnants, and this causes some anxiety in one of them, as well as on two inheritors of the other.
A funny film from start to finish; the humor may not be of the most intellectual kind, but it is certainly effective, and I was rarely without at least a smile on my face while watching it (and this, if I remember right, on both occasions).
Rating: 65 (down from 70)
Monday, May 13, 2013
O Mandarim (1995)
English title: The Mandarin
Supposedly, this should work as a filmic essay on the life of Brazilian singer Mário Reis.
Do not waste your time on this. Seek information about this great singer by other means. This film is a fine example of how money is wasted in Brazil on projects of little worth. For the sake of fairness, it should be said the main actor's professionalism seems misplaced in this.
Rating: 11
Supposedly, this should work as a filmic essay on the life of Brazilian singer Mário Reis.
Do not waste your time on this. Seek information about this great singer by other means. This film is a fine example of how money is wasted in Brazil on projects of little worth. For the sake of fairness, it should be said the main actor's professionalism seems misplaced in this.
Rating: 11
The Rat Race (1960)
Second viewing; first was on June 2, 1990.
A saxophone player from Milwaukee comes to New York City to live and work there. He ends up sharing an apartment with a taxi-dancer.
(1) I hugely overrated this on my first viewing.
(2) Although I do not know the play, the film has every characteristic of a hugely bowdlerized text.
(3) It is still not a bad film, if you just relax and enjoy it (what am I saying?). Anyway I confess to having a crush on Debbie.
(4) This is not much of a review. Would it fix it if I said that the screenplay is only so-so, but it is so well directed one kind of gets carried away?
(5) What's with the sentence numbering?
Rating: 57 (down from 87)
A saxophone player from Milwaukee comes to New York City to live and work there. He ends up sharing an apartment with a taxi-dancer.
(1) I hugely overrated this on my first viewing.
(2) Although I do not know the play, the film has every characteristic of a hugely bowdlerized text.
(3) It is still not a bad film, if you just relax and enjoy it (what am I saying?). Anyway I confess to having a crush on Debbie.
(4) This is not much of a review. Would it fix it if I said that the screenplay is only so-so, but it is so well directed one kind of gets carried away?
(5) What's with the sentence numbering?
Rating: 57 (down from 87)
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
In this musical fiction which usurps the name, work titles and a few geographic data from the famous Danish writer, Hans is a cobbler from a small town who likes to tell stories to children. He goes to Copenhagen and gets involved with a ballet troupe.
The attempts at establishing a connection with its real-life referent are pitiful and ultimately render the movie incomprehensible. I didn't care much for the songs either. When taken in isolation, some dramatic sequences are effective. The Little Mermaid ballet is well done, the decor is particularly impressive.
Rating: 33
The attempts at establishing a connection with its real-life referent are pitiful and ultimately render the movie incomprehensible. I didn't care much for the songs either. When taken in isolation, some dramatic sequences are effective. The Little Mermaid ballet is well done, the decor is particularly impressive.
Rating: 33
Saturday, May 11, 2013
The Wolf Man (1941)
Second viewing; first was on August 9, 1997.
Larry comes back from America to his home town in Wales. He falls in love with a woman who is already engaged. Larry is bitten by a wolf, or at least that is what he thinks.
This is a modest film, and arguably perfect within its ambitions, except for the werewolf's costume, which by today's standards is not very impressive. This is the kind of story which allows endless readings. On a trivial level, Larry is simply a homicidal maniac. The film is disturbing because within its frame of reference he is just as much a victim as the ones he kills. As a consequence, no one is really guilty of anything; thus, the concept of responsibility is wiped out from the film's moral universe. This is in tune with dominant modern worldviews, especially Freudian-shaped ones.
Rating: 51 (up from 46)
Larry comes back from America to his home town in Wales. He falls in love with a woman who is already engaged. Larry is bitten by a wolf, or at least that is what he thinks.
This is a modest film, and arguably perfect within its ambitions, except for the werewolf's costume, which by today's standards is not very impressive. This is the kind of story which allows endless readings. On a trivial level, Larry is simply a homicidal maniac. The film is disturbing because within its frame of reference he is just as much a victim as the ones he kills. As a consequence, no one is really guilty of anything; thus, the concept of responsibility is wiped out from the film's moral universe. This is in tune with dominant modern worldviews, especially Freudian-shaped ones.
Rating: 51 (up from 46)
Cuba, une odyssée africaine (2007) (TV)
English title: Cuba, an African Odyssey.
Documentary about the Cuban role in the political struggles in Africa in the sixties, seventies and eighties.
For me, this was an excellent source of information, and very enjoyable too.
I am not in the position to judge the accuracy of all the information it delivers; for example, a quick web research shows there is some dispute about the movie's depiction of Kabila's role in the Congolese rebellions.
On the whole, I found it reasonably unbiased and well made.
Documentary about the Cuban role in the political struggles in Africa in the sixties, seventies and eighties.
For me, this was an excellent source of information, and very enjoyable too.
I am not in the position to judge the accuracy of all the information it delivers; for example, a quick web research shows there is some dispute about the movie's depiction of Kabila's role in the Congolese rebellions.
On the whole, I found it reasonably unbiased and well made.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)
Second viewing; first was on June 3, 1990.
Inspired by events in the life of the famous American president.
A beginning lawyer with humble origins accepts to defend two brothers accused of murdering a man. This lawyer is a very cunning man, and has great rhetorical ability too.
This is basically a courtroom drama, with a prologue telling a little of the lawyer's previous life. The reason for this prologue is obviously the intention of rising up to the movie's title. In fact, the two parts of the movie, albeit both good, do not connect a great deal with one another. I have never been a big fan of biopics because of this type of "impure" structure. But I cannot decide whether Young Mr. Lincoln is a worse film because of that; anyway I am sure it has a refined script and a very intelligent central performance. I am not much of a reviewer, and thus could not instantly write anything that even remotely would do justice to the many facets of the film. If, however, I am allowed to pick an angle, I will say that the stupidity of the masses (which never changes) against the intelligence of one man is an important theme of this film; I would go further and say that the intelligence of one man consists mainly of acknowledging the stupidity of the masses (and that it never changes).
Rating: 85 (unchanged)
Inspired by events in the life of the famous American president.
A beginning lawyer with humble origins accepts to defend two brothers accused of murdering a man. This lawyer is a very cunning man, and has great rhetorical ability too.
This is basically a courtroom drama, with a prologue telling a little of the lawyer's previous life. The reason for this prologue is obviously the intention of rising up to the movie's title. In fact, the two parts of the movie, albeit both good, do not connect a great deal with one another. I have never been a big fan of biopics because of this type of "impure" structure. But I cannot decide whether Young Mr. Lincoln is a worse film because of that; anyway I am sure it has a refined script and a very intelligent central performance. I am not much of a reviewer, and thus could not instantly write anything that even remotely would do justice to the many facets of the film. If, however, I am allowed to pick an angle, I will say that the stupidity of the masses (which never changes) against the intelligence of one man is an important theme of this film; I would go further and say that the intelligence of one man consists mainly of acknowledging the stupidity of the masses (and that it never changes).
Rating: 85 (unchanged)
Never a Dull Moment (1950)
A successful Broadway composer marries a cow rancher with two kids from his late first wife. She faces difficulties adapting to the life of a housewife, and a rural one to boot.
I read this was elected at its time as the dullest movie of the year, and, although it is certainly not true, I can see why an organization made up -- exclusively, I guess -- of urban people would make such a pick. The film did not appear realistic to me, but afterwards I read it is based on a semi-autobiographical novel, so I think I too must be a little prejudiced. Modern audiences would possibly frown at the sight of what they would see as the self-effacement of a talented woman.
All that being said, the film is watchable, although it does fall short of being credible in its premise, and is a little too trivial in its development, not to mention too abrupt in its ending.
Saw a dubbed copy, a detail which usually affects my assessment negatively, but I do not think it did in this case.
Rating: 36
I read this was elected at its time as the dullest movie of the year, and, although it is certainly not true, I can see why an organization made up -- exclusively, I guess -- of urban people would make such a pick. The film did not appear realistic to me, but afterwards I read it is based on a semi-autobiographical novel, so I think I too must be a little prejudiced. Modern audiences would possibly frown at the sight of what they would see as the self-effacement of a talented woman.
All that being said, the film is watchable, although it does fall short of being credible in its premise, and is a little too trivial in its development, not to mention too abrupt in its ending.
Saw a dubbed copy, a detail which usually affects my assessment negatively, but I do not think it did in this case.
Rating: 36
Thursday, May 09, 2013
Moonraker (1979)
Second viewing; previously seen in 1979 or 1980.
British agent Bond investigates a certain Drax after one of the space shuttles he manufactures is stolen.
It is probably one of the weakest of the series. The word that comes to mind to describe this film is "tidy". All seems to obey a rigid formula, both in terms of script and direction. Creativity is nowhere to be seen.
Rating: 33 (unchanged)
British agent Bond investigates a certain Drax after one of the space shuttles he manufactures is stolen.
It is probably one of the weakest of the series. The word that comes to mind to describe this film is "tidy". All seems to obey a rigid formula, both in terms of script and direction. Creativity is nowhere to be seen.
Rating: 33 (unchanged)
It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
Second viewing. First was on December 15, 1990.
There is a big banker who wants to wipe George Bailey's father's small bank out from the face of the Earth. George is not attracted to banking and has many plans as a young man, but, as Robert Burns once said to a mouse about best-laid plans...
There is a great film inside It's a Wonderful Life. It is the life of George Bailey, mostly as it is told in the movie. The story of a man who feels that he hasn't lived the life he wanted, who somehow feels his potential is being wasted, is a great story, full of rich meditations. The screenplay has many intelligent solutions, which are rendered into magnificent sequences. Perhaps it could use a little more sobriety here and there; just to give an example, in the scene where George and Violet are talking at a busy avenue, in my version there would not be a crowd coming out of the blue and making a lot of fuss about their private conversation. Above all, I would lose the proto-Twilight Zone angle, that is, all mention of supernatural creatures such as angels, gods, etc would be dumped. Would George kill himself in the end? I do not know. It would probably be best to leave that out of the movie, a suicide does not tell much about a person's character at any rate. What the hell, you could eliminate the whole episode of Billy losing the money and Potter stealing it. You could even soften Potter's villainy. You don't need to outdickens Dickens by making a common thief out of your Scrooge.
Rating: 63 (unchanged)
There is a big banker who wants to wipe George Bailey's father's small bank out from the face of the Earth. George is not attracted to banking and has many plans as a young man, but, as Robert Burns once said to a mouse about best-laid plans...
There is a great film inside It's a Wonderful Life. It is the life of George Bailey, mostly as it is told in the movie. The story of a man who feels that he hasn't lived the life he wanted, who somehow feels his potential is being wasted, is a great story, full of rich meditations. The screenplay has many intelligent solutions, which are rendered into magnificent sequences. Perhaps it could use a little more sobriety here and there; just to give an example, in the scene where George and Violet are talking at a busy avenue, in my version there would not be a crowd coming out of the blue and making a lot of fuss about their private conversation. Above all, I would lose the proto-Twilight Zone angle, that is, all mention of supernatural creatures such as angels, gods, etc would be dumped. Would George kill himself in the end? I do not know. It would probably be best to leave that out of the movie, a suicide does not tell much about a person's character at any rate. What the hell, you could eliminate the whole episode of Billy losing the money and Potter stealing it. You could even soften Potter's villainy. You don't need to outdickens Dickens by making a common thief out of your Scrooge.
Rating: 63 (unchanged)
Tuesday, May 07, 2013
Les amants naufragés (2010) (TV movie)
Based on the novel Les veufs (The Widowers), by Boileau-Narcejac, first edition 1970.
Stanislas is a young writer who does dubbing jobs to make a living. He anonymously submits his novel to a literary contest. Stanislas is in a relationship with Mathilde, a model and struggling actress, and both suffer because of his constant jealousy. He suspects she is having an affair with her employer, a fashion designer.
The plot is ingenious, and the film is competently written and directed. Not bad for a TV movie.
Rating: 51
Stanislas is a young writer who does dubbing jobs to make a living. He anonymously submits his novel to a literary contest. Stanislas is in a relationship with Mathilde, a model and struggling actress, and both suffer because of his constant jealousy. He suspects she is having an affair with her employer, a fashion designer.
The plot is ingenious, and the film is competently written and directed. Not bad for a TV movie.
Rating: 51
Monday, May 06, 2013
La ilusión viaja en tranvía (1954)
English title: Illusion Travels by Streetcar
Two tramway workers "kidnap" a tram wagon, experiencing several incidents along the way.
Not much to say about this. It is not intensely funny, and the ending narration raising doubts about the interest of it all is possibly a valid self-criticism. But it is easy to watch, and agreeable, with a gentle humor which is not devoid of social observation.
Rating: 52
Two tramway workers "kidnap" a tram wagon, experiencing several incidents along the way.
Not much to say about this. It is not intensely funny, and the ending narration raising doubts about the interest of it all is possibly a valid self-criticism. But it is easy to watch, and agreeable, with a gentle humor which is not devoid of social observation.
Rating: 52
Sunday, May 05, 2013
Cluny Brown (1946)
A young woman is sent to a country manor to work there as a maid. A foreign writer who is in England fleeing the Nazis is staying there as a guest. Both had met before and get along very well. She is somewhat unconventional and he has a libertarian worldview.
It starts out as a screwball comedy, but loses some of its energy along the way. I suppose it was meant to cheer people up after World War II (although the book was written before the war was over), but seen with today's eyes some of it is rather silly, especially the Belinski character. Most of the cast does well, but I am not sure Jones achieves the right amount of zaniness her part requires. Overall I think it is an enjoyable film, but overrated.
Rating: 55
It starts out as a screwball comedy, but loses some of its energy along the way. I suppose it was meant to cheer people up after World War II (although the book was written before the war was over), but seen with today's eyes some of it is rather silly, especially the Belinski character. Most of the cast does well, but I am not sure Jones achieves the right amount of zaniness her part requires. Overall I think it is an enjoyable film, but overrated.
Rating: 55
Angel (1937)
Second viewing; first was on February 22, 1989.
The wife of a League of Nations delegate meets a man in Paris and has a one-day romance with him. Back in London, she meets him again, now in the company of her husband.
A moderately charming picture, a bit moralistic in the end but with well-written dialogue, a coherent plot, and some funny bits too. The performances are all decent. Can't quite explain my previous antipathy for it, unless it was the moralistic aspect that put me off.
Rating: 52 (up from 33)
The wife of a League of Nations delegate meets a man in Paris and has a one-day romance with him. Back in London, she meets him again, now in the company of her husband.
A moderately charming picture, a bit moralistic in the end but with well-written dialogue, a coherent plot, and some funny bits too. The performances are all decent. Can't quite explain my previous antipathy for it, unless it was the moralistic aspect that put me off.
Rating: 52 (up from 33)
Valdez Is Coming (1971)
A sheriff of Mexican ethnicity enters in conflict with a rancher on account of the latter's refusal to contribute 100 dollars to the widow of a man who was wrongly killed.
Western with a complex -- and, I confess, slightly bizarre -- plot. It is sort of a compilation of liberal themes (as they existed in the time it was made), which somehow make for a sufficiently engaging narrative.
Rating: 50
Western with a complex -- and, I confess, slightly bizarre -- plot. It is sort of a compilation of liberal themes (as they existed in the time it was made), which somehow make for a sufficiently engaging narrative.
Rating: 50
Saturday, May 04, 2013
Union Pacific (1939)
Second viewing; first one was on February 07, 1989.
U.S.A., after the Civil War. The project of a railroad from Omaha to California is approved. A banker hires an unscrupulous businessman in the field of entertainment to distract workers from their duties. His purpose is to delay the construction of the railroad and thus profit from his financial speculations.
As a narrative, it is childish from start to finish. Within these constraints, it has some amount of narrative inventiveness and a good deal of mise-en-scène competence to deliver its goods.
Rating: 58 (down from 62)
U.S.A., after the Civil War. The project of a railroad from Omaha to California is approved. A banker hires an unscrupulous businessman in the field of entertainment to distract workers from their duties. His purpose is to delay the construction of the railroad and thus profit from his financial speculations.
As a narrative, it is childish from start to finish. Within these constraints, it has some amount of narrative inventiveness and a good deal of mise-en-scène competence to deliver its goods.
Rating: 58 (down from 62)
Razzia sur la chnouf (1955)
English title: Razzia
A man known as "Le Nantais" (which means someone from the French city of Nantes), who had been working in the U.S. in the drug business, is called back to France as some sort of CEO for the drug dealing operation in Paris, with the mission of increasing profits. They set him a front business as a bar owner.
The amazing cinematography and the amazing production design are possibly the high points of this French policier. The film has lots of ambiance, being overall sufficiently entertaining. There is a certain amount of hypocrisy in its concept, which exploits the attraction toward sordid environments that it ostensibly condemns, but I think this is no big news for anyone who has watched a film or two. Also, more than 50 years after its release, the state of the world in regard to drugs places its proposition in a somewhat dubious light.
Rating: 51
A man known as "Le Nantais" (which means someone from the French city of Nantes), who had been working in the U.S. in the drug business, is called back to France as some sort of CEO for the drug dealing operation in Paris, with the mission of increasing profits. They set him a front business as a bar owner.
The amazing cinematography and the amazing production design are possibly the high points of this French policier. The film has lots of ambiance, being overall sufficiently entertaining. There is a certain amount of hypocrisy in its concept, which exploits the attraction toward sordid environments that it ostensibly condemns, but I think this is no big news for anyone who has watched a film or two. Also, more than 50 years after its release, the state of the world in regard to drugs places its proposition in a somewhat dubious light.
Rating: 51
Friday, May 03, 2013
Charley Varrick (1973)
Second viewing (first one: July 16, 1989).
A small-time gang robs a small bank and is surprised to find that they have stolen an enormous amount of money. They begin to fear for their lives, as they suspect the money belonged to the Mafia.
This belongs to a type of film (or, more generally, of fiction) that might be called "the smarter guy", and it seems it would achieve its highest popularity in the 90s, e.g. with The Usual Suspects.
The main problem with this type of film is that it depends on some arbitrary parameters, since the screenwriter can ultimately decide how smart the main character's opponents will be. Charley Varrick does not come off too badly when this is taken into account. Varrick's opponents are made to have a reasonable amount of intelligence, well above plain stupidity, but also safely below the protagonist's brilliance.
The middle section of the movie is not as good as the rest of it. Some scenes seem too gratuitous and borderline incomprehensible (e.g. a woman being slapped in the face and then going to bed with her slapper; Varrick, an utterly unattractive guy, succeeding in going to bed with an attractive woman he just met; etc.). I think these bits have annoyed me somewhat disproportionately on my first viewing.
Overall it is a well-made film, with an very good first act, which develops into an entertaining cerebral story, only slipping now and then into some poorly conceived narrative solutions.
Rating: 60 (up from 50)
A small-time gang robs a small bank and is surprised to find that they have stolen an enormous amount of money. They begin to fear for their lives, as they suspect the money belonged to the Mafia.
This belongs to a type of film (or, more generally, of fiction) that might be called "the smarter guy", and it seems it would achieve its highest popularity in the 90s, e.g. with The Usual Suspects.
The main problem with this type of film is that it depends on some arbitrary parameters, since the screenwriter can ultimately decide how smart the main character's opponents will be. Charley Varrick does not come off too badly when this is taken into account. Varrick's opponents are made to have a reasonable amount of intelligence, well above plain stupidity, but also safely below the protagonist's brilliance.
The middle section of the movie is not as good as the rest of it. Some scenes seem too gratuitous and borderline incomprehensible (e.g. a woman being slapped in the face and then going to bed with her slapper; Varrick, an utterly unattractive guy, succeeding in going to bed with an attractive woman he just met; etc.). I think these bits have annoyed me somewhat disproportionately on my first viewing.
Overall it is a well-made film, with an very good first act, which develops into an entertaining cerebral story, only slipping now and then into some poorly conceived narrative solutions.
Rating: 60 (up from 50)
Thursday, May 02, 2013
För att inte tala om alla dessa kvinnor (1964)
English titles: All These Women; Now About These Women.
A critic is writing the biography of a cellist, and spends some time in his house. In there he gets acquainted with several women who have some kind of relationship with the musician.
This arguably should give a famous author of comedies some comfort for his alleged frustration at not being able to be convincing as an author of grave dramas. Because in this film his artistic idol proves that he in turn is not capable of comedic lightness.
The film works mainly as a libel against critics, from the point of view of artists. The film implies that critics are parasites. The contempt and hatred held by the author toward the central character is so strong that he refuses to give the film its correct title, which should be something like Now About This Critic.
The author's central thesis -- the distinction between artist and critic -- is built from images that ridicule the critic at the utmost. He does not once show the musician. Perhaps he is afraid of tainting the image of purity that he associates with him (and perhaps with Music as an art). He builds that ideal image by avoiding any real image.
The film is a denial (which, like all denials, when duly analyzed is actually an affirmation) of the ambiguous relationship between an artist and his audience (and a critic may be seen as a representative of that audience). It is a love-hate relationship. The artist cannot exist without his audience, but he somehow wished he could.
The film chooses the vantage point of the artist; when it allows the critic to expose his, it does so in a satirical way. Aesthetically, this bigoted worldview translates into dull and awkward comedy, made marginally interesting by its agreeable production design and the correct performances by its actors.
Rating: 32
A critic is writing the biography of a cellist, and spends some time in his house. In there he gets acquainted with several women who have some kind of relationship with the musician.
This arguably should give a famous author of comedies some comfort for his alleged frustration at not being able to be convincing as an author of grave dramas. Because in this film his artistic idol proves that he in turn is not capable of comedic lightness.
The film works mainly as a libel against critics, from the point of view of artists. The film implies that critics are parasites. The contempt and hatred held by the author toward the central character is so strong that he refuses to give the film its correct title, which should be something like Now About This Critic.
The author's central thesis -- the distinction between artist and critic -- is built from images that ridicule the critic at the utmost. He does not once show the musician. Perhaps he is afraid of tainting the image of purity that he associates with him (and perhaps with Music as an art). He builds that ideal image by avoiding any real image.
The film is a denial (which, like all denials, when duly analyzed is actually an affirmation) of the ambiguous relationship between an artist and his audience (and a critic may be seen as a representative of that audience). It is a love-hate relationship. The artist cannot exist without his audience, but he somehow wished he could.
The film chooses the vantage point of the artist; when it allows the critic to expose his, it does so in a satirical way. Aesthetically, this bigoted worldview translates into dull and awkward comedy, made marginally interesting by its agreeable production design and the correct performances by its actors.
Rating: 32
Wednesday, May 01, 2013
La marche de l'empereur (2005)
English title: March of the Penguins.
Documentary about the reproductive habits of the Emperor penguins.
This film is a feat, no arguing about that. Also, the zoological facts it narrates are interesting and entertaining. However, it possesses some stylistic traits which I simply do not care for, chief among them the new-age-ish musical score.
Documentary about the reproductive habits of the Emperor penguins.
This film is a feat, no arguing about that. Also, the zoological facts it narrates are interesting and entertaining. However, it possesses some stylistic traits which I simply do not care for, chief among them the new-age-ish musical score.
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