LogOct05.html

Films Seen in October
Note – I’ve tried time and time again to offer up brief reviews of every film I watch, which by now I have to confess is an impossible chore for me stay on top of. To keep myself somewhat dedicated to this site, I’m going to at least try to offer reviews of all the recent films I see. So anything I see made within the last 3 years, plan on finding a review in this log.
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Set entirely in the underground transit system of Budapest, this slick thriller follows the alternately comical and horrific exploits of a group of ticket inspectors who struggle to maintain “control” over the various commuters. A model for ultra-low budget filmmaking, film students could benefit greatly to look at the ways in which Antal overcomes his budget limitations by allowing his pre-existing settings to figure heavily into the narrative, relying on their deeper metaphorical implications to give his story substance. It’s a technique that works, but the film is so bent on being a success, that it fails to live up to the "art film" status it strives to attain. To ensure that nobody goes home unhappy, there is a touching romance thrown into the mix and a murder mystery to boot, meaning if you aren’t entertained in some form by this, then you probably should stick to watching television.

In his last two films, Roman Polanski has been cruising along on auto-pilot, allowing the material of his films to speak for themselves, and inserting very little of the nightmarish paranoia that we have come to associate with his work. This is not so much of a bad thing—both this film and The Pianist are worthy enough films in their own right—but I have to express a yearning for the darker, more twisted Polanski of old. That having been said, you have to commend the painterly compositions and careful handling of the material that is on display here. Like The Pianist, this is a story which holds a rather personal connection to the filmmaker, whom at the age of 10 was orphaned when the Nazis hauled off his parents, and who like Oliver Twist, was left to lead a life drifting in and out of various residences. What could have easily been yet another tired adaptation of classic Dickens, is instead a rather personal piece of filmmaking, utilizing a familiar text, intent on revealing a warmer side of the filmmaker’s heart. In this sense, the film is an overwhelming success.

07. Warriors Two (1978, Hong Kong) Sammo Hung - *** a must see

08. Murders in the Rue Morgue (1932, USA) Robert Florey - ** worth seeing

09. The Leopard Man (1943, USA) Jacques Tourneur - *** [2nd viewing; no change in rating]

10. The Ghost Ship (1943, USA) Mark Robson - *** a must see

11. Cat People (1942, USA) Jacques Tourneur - 3rd viewing -see 1942 Top Ten list

12. Curse of the Cat People (1944, USA) Robert Wise & Gunther von Fritsch - *** a must see

A group of teens at an upscale prep school take a Halloween prank too far when they invent a masked killer that may actually turn out to be for real. It’s a pretty silly movie, not a horror film, but a disappointing mystery, that sacrifices every bit of bloodshed in order to exploit the dollar of the PG-13 market. The filmmaker Jeff Wadlow won a contest to “direct his own feature film,” and this is the million-dollar result. From a business perspective, it seems like a decent time to refresh the I Know What You Did Last Summer plot structure and I admit the film is successful at giving the audience a lot of play at guessing who the killer may be, but there is far too much build up at work here. By the time the payoff rolls around, it should be fully apparent that the guise of a horror film was what this movie used to get audiences into the theater, and even the dramatic plot twist at the end couldn’t distract me from feeling had. Aptly titled Cry_Wolf, I suppose I shouldn’t fault the film when I find myself asking, “Where the fuck is the wolf?”

For those who like their films with a heavy dose of cynicism, then this is the picture for you. Nicholas Cage stars as a suave and unapologetic arms dealer who tries to rationalize the “need” for his profession to we the audience. Writer/director Andrew Niccol can be either brilliant (cf. his script for The Truman Show) or hopelessly laughable (cf. The Terminal), and this movie falls somewhere in between the two. Niccol is working double time here with his role as director, and it’s obvious that he is out to entertain first and make a point second. Every time the film threatens to take a turn towards ‘seriousness,’ along comes Jared Leto (in an obnoxious performance as the doped up brother) to add some comic relief. Cage plays the role with a deadpan seriousness, and combined with Niccol’s script (when it’s working in high gear) there are several harrowing sequences worthy to remember, like the opening CGI long take that shows the manufacturing and ultimate harrowing fate of a single bullet. For the most part however, I just couldn’t take the film on any serious level, and its use of ironic music grew tiresome, very fast, almost like a feature length version of the end credit sequence of Dogville. This is about as risky as mainstream cinema can get, and it’s commendable for this, even if it cannot escape the fact that it is mainstream cinema.

A story about a teenage boy who is addicted to his thumb and his gradual mental unwinding as he attempts to give up his childhood addiction, this is not your typical American indie film with big name actors and contrived story bent on revealing a darker side to American suburbia. Instead, this is a pointed critique of the overmedicated/-mediated American culture that seems to be rearing its ugly face these days. Not a Tom Cruise rant on the negatives of antidepressants, Mike Mills’ film is instead a poignant look at the consumerist need that these drugs can often fulfill (ever seen those commercials at 2am “Are you feeling sad? Alone?”). You could just as easily supplant antidepressants for any number of things – television, fast food, recreational drugs, dieting, etc – because the point is the personal comfort we gain by displacing the most natural of human fears and anxieties onto the most trivial of consumerized items, and how we allow these to rule our very lives. I would have hated this film when I was 17, which is exactly the age of the audience that Sony Pictures has been marketing this to.

A very capable Hollywood film, directed without the slightest auteurist sensibility by Curtis Hanson, who is now a sure thing for studios everywhere looking for “hired help.” Following up his work on 8 Mile and Wonder Boys, Hanson has proven he can approach just about any project, and regardless of whether he is invested in the material or not, he seems to always be able to grind out a well made and well-acted film. Based on the novel by Jennifer Weiner, who was obviously aiming for the “Sex in the City” crowd, the story chronicles the relationship between two sisters—one a shy workaholic (Toni Collette) and the other an extroverted mess (Cameron Diaz)—who have a falling out and in their loneliness discover a grandmother (Shirley MacLaine) they didn’t know they had. The real standout here is Collette who turns in a subtle piece of acting, and who may finally get the recognition she’s always deserved. How well this film works for you however, depends largely on how well you stomach stories about people undergoing life-changing transformations and live happily ever after, and if like me you find them trite and forgettable, then you certainly can afford to skip this.

This was a rather hard film for me to assign a rating to. Park obviously has a formal control of over the medium that is beyond criticism, and in this sense the film is some kind of a masterpiece. Does this technical achievement trump the fact that W&G lose some of their magic when adopting feature length running time and I couldn’t help but feel like I was sitting through a protracted short? Laurel and Hardy for example, who clearly are a considerable influence on W&G, made some of their best work when sticking to the short film. Perhaps Park should do the same? In spite of these criticisms, you probably shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to soak up some of the most extraordinary art-house aesthetic and imaginative comedy to grace shopping-mall screens this year. Just don't be shocked if you are checking your watch by the end.

The term “fanboy” seems applicable when trying to rationalize some of the overwhelming praise this has been receiving. I’ve not seen the original series “Firefly,” but I suspect it’s better than this big-screen adaptation, which never feels like anything other than a filmed television show. Although Whedon brings several refreshing elements into the mix – witty dialogue, well drawn out characters, ACTUAL locales over CGI reconstructions – it never manages to create that dense and original world that typically characterizes great fantasy serials. Instead, it feels like a glam soap opera, utilizing leftover Star Wars props and costumes with nothing more than cheesy entertainment on the agenda. In this sense the film is a success, but to call it visionary is a joke.

This works even better the second time around when you can prepare yourself for the laughable final act (which really is just plain awful). I’ve learned to forgive Aja’s messy ending because minute for minute, the first 45-minutes of this have to be some of the sharpest, most visceral horror cinema of the decade. Here’s hoping that he can stick to his guns on his next project, a remake of Craven’s The Hills Have Eyes.

As much as I wish I could run to Kim’s defense in the face of some of the harshest criticisms this side of Vincent Gallo (see Tony Rayns in Film Comment), there is simply no way to stick up for a film like The Bow. Kim fires one metaphor heavy image after another at the viewer, and the result although beautifully photographed, is flat out laughable. Keep in mind this is not El Topo and surrealism is not on Kim’s agenda. He actually wants us to buy into this story about an old fisherman who keeps a beautiful young girl on his boat under lock and key until she is old enough to marry. It works up to a point, but eventually the strained art that Kim tries so hard to achieve, winds up beating us over the head one too many times, and by the end I actually found myself embarrassed for this filmmaker. This untimely failure and the Tony Rayns backlash is enough to ruin a career, let us hope that’s not the case, as Kim is a lot better than this.

31. May (2003, USA) Lucky McKee - *** [2nd viewing]

32. King of the Ants (2003, USA) Stuart Gordon - *** [2nd viewing]

33. Enter the Dragon (1973, Hong Kong) Robert Clouse - ** worth seeing

34. Xala (1975, Senegal) Ousmane Sembene - *** a must see

35. Hercules in the Haunted World (1961, Italy) Mario Bava - *** a must see

36. The Fly (1986, USA) David Cronenberg - **** Masterpiece [3rd? viewing; rating up from ***]

37. The Garbage Pail Kids Movie (1987, USA) Rodney Amateau - * has redeeming facet (childhood nostalgia I’m sure.)

38. Dreamer (2005, USA) John Gatins - ** worth seeing

39. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943, UK) Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger - **** Masterpiece

40. Kuroneko (1968, Japan) Kaneto Shindo - *** a must see

41. Stray Dog (1949, Japan) Akira Kurosawa - **** Excellent

42. The Last Man on Earth (1964, Italy/USA) Ubaldo Ragona and Sidney Salkowin - ** worth seeing

43. Land of the Dead (2005, USA) George A. Romero - **** Excellent [second viewing]

Cameron Crowe, are you making a film or a fucking music video? Your soundtrack is horrible, your lead actor worse. Please understand that inserting a song in every sequence cannot hide the fact that practically every character and action in your movie rings false. You have made a film so overblown and condescending and you deliver it with such superficial aplomb to attain that “feel good” effect, you actually left me feeling angered and depressed. Thank you.

45. Solaris (1972, Soviet Union) Andrei Tarkovsky - **** Masterpiece

46. Dr. Phibes Rises Again (1972, UK) Robert Fuest - * has redeeming facet

47. Proof (2005, USA) John Madden - *** a must see

48. The Funhouse (1981, USA) Tobe Hooper - *** a must see

49. Domino (2005, USA) Tony Scott - * has redeeming facet

50. Tale of Tales (1979, Soviet Union) Yuri Norstein [short] - **** Masterpiece

51. Alone in the Dark (1982, USA) Jack Sholder - ** worth seeing

52. Street Trash (1987, USA) James Muro - ** worth seeing

53. Le Retour à la raison (1923, France) Man Ray [short] - [umpteenth viewing]

54. Emak-Bakia (1926, France) Man Ray [short]

55. L'Étoile de mer (1928, France) Man Ray [short]

56. North Country (2005, USA) Niki Caro - * has redeeming facet

57. The Fly (1986, USA) David Cronenberg - **** Masterpiece [4th viewing]

58. Habit (1997, USA) Larry Fessenden - *** a must see

59. Heaven Can Wait (1943, USA) Ernst Lubitsch - **** Masterpiece

60. Danger: Diabolik (1968, Italy) Mario Bava - **** Excellent

61. Hondo (1953, USA) John Farrow - **** Excellent

62. Les Mystères du château de Dé (1929, France) Man Ray [short] * has redeeming facet

63. Rubber Johnny (2005, UK) Chris Cunningham [short] - *** a must see - obviously great, but I need to not see this as a shitty Flash file.

64. Niagara (1953, USA) Henry Hathaway - ** worth seeing

65. Phantasm II (1988, USA) Don Coscarelli - * has redeeming facet

66. Camera (2000, Canada) David Cronenberg [short] **** Masterpiece [6th viewing] gets better every time

67. Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe (1980, USA) Les Blank [short] **** Masterpiece [4th viewing?]

68. Rize (2005, USA) David LaChapelle - *** a must see

70. Rubin and Ed (1991, USA) Trent Harris - *** a must see

71. The Narrow Margin (1952, USA) Richard Fleischer - **** Masterpiece

73. A Shot in the Dark (1964, USA) Blake Edwards - **** Excellent

74. Encounter in the Thrid Dimension (1999, USA) Ben Stassen [IMAX movie] no rating

75. The Adjuster (1991, Canada) Atom Egoyan - *** a must see

76. Could This Be Love? (1973, USA) Abel Ferrara [short] - the best of his early stuff, but still nothing special

77. Combat Shock (1986, USA) Buddy Giovinazzo - ** worth seeing

78. Delirium: Photo of Gioia (1987, Italy) Lamberto Bava - * has redeeming facet

79. To Sleep With Anger (1990, USA) Charles Burnett - **** Masterpiece

September Screening Log - TIFF '05