In his visually dizzying assault on the senses director
Yorgos Lanthimos has created a film that may draw on its distant ancestry the tale of Frankenstein. There is the doctor and his reanimated creation, from that point on they have little in common. In the intervening 92 years since the original dramatic film, many have had a crack at this story. But nothing compares to this latest iteration, peppered as is with several truly hilarious scenes. The doctor, Godwin Baxter expertly played by a scarred up Willem Dafoe and his creation, Bella Baxter in a bravura performance by Emma Stone who really carries the entire film on her daunting shoulders, her trust in the director evident in her performance.
Her name rivaled only Daisy Domergue (Hateful 8)
It’s the tale of her emancipation through a bewildering world she has little understanding of and has through her rapid development has to learn the ropes VERY fast in order to survive. Surrounded by conniving opportunists, in particular a wealthy lawyer Duncan Wedderburn played by Mark Ruffalo who initially enamored with Bella tires of her unpredictable rebellious ways. When she predictably leaves, his life collapses. Bella immune to human emotional frailties soldiers on to her next adventure, hardly aware of his absence. There are other passing dalliances, a stint as a prostitute in Paris run by a kindly empathetic madame, which have little impact on Bella’s adventures, absorbing her experiences into the file of her consciousness. The only relationship she seems to respond to is that of her creator, who she calls god and towards the end of the film after all of her experiences she returns to his dying bedside. The sets dozens of them each more jaw droppingly ornate and fantastical in their detail come at you faster than your brain can process the images. Same with his use of lenses, what used to be called fisheye wide angle, each shot style different and yet related to the last.  The eerie unique soundtrack adding to the sensory overload. I got the sense that this director got his vision onto the screen pretty much in tact with not much interference from the producers (unlikely)  or regard for what the audience might think of his visual style or presentation. 633 stars

 

 

Oppenheimer .

Given the two possible options presented to me this weekend I decided on the gloomy retelling of the Robert Oppenheimer story. Given that Pink is my least favorite color. This also marks after a several year hiatus my return to an actual movie theater.
Presented by accomplished and talented director Christopher Nolan. This epic historical retelling of the famed nuclear scientists brilliantly gifted, complicated and contradictory life runs for just over three hours. Nolan leaves few stones unturned in his portrayal of the man, the times and turmoil scientific and political that he lived in.  Rivetingly played by Cillian Murphy.  Robert Downey Jr also spellbinding as political snake Lewis Strauss. Matt Damon as the military chief Leslie Groves is quietly memorable. Emily Blunt as Oppenheimer’s sometimes fiery wife. Florence Pugh’s impact is outweighed by her brief appearances as Oppenheimer's sometimes moral conscience and lover. The political lynching that he endured towards the end of his career while important and dramatic to the story seemed overly drawn out. Overall it is a credit to Nolan and his crew that he pulled of this daunting project with such accomplished finesse and care.
A technical point I was struck by the dull flat digital (the new norm) projection on the screen. It’s a shame that after all the trouble that Nolan went to shooting this epic on 65mm film, that  what we are presented with is these lifeless images on the screen in the in the name of economic expedience.

 Asteroid city.

In the immortal words of Nigel Tufnel the rocker from Spinal Tap. Referring to the volume knob on his guitar amp         “These go to Eleven”
Which is what Wes Anderson has dialed up on the weirdness scale in his  new film Asteroid City.                                       Anderson perhaps the newest  addition to the list of modern American director’s who’s cinematic work can be readily identified with them. He has not so much carved out his own niche as created his own particular visual world. Asteroid city adds to and continues his explorations into his peculiar universe. Working with what has become in. Certain cases his repertory group of actors in including ,Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton,  Edward Norton, Bryan Cranston, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Steve Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie.
In this multi layered fantasy set in the 1950’s Anderson has constructed a play, shot in black and white set on a stage is purposely one dimensional, hosted by a serious commentator. This then morphs into a film set in desert town of 87 complete with crater left behind by an asteroid.  A gifted stylist Anderson has managed to make the movie part of the film mesmerizingly strange with its bleached pastel colors, (apart from Scarlett Johanssons lips) startling dolly shots and meticulous production design.
The child actors cast are all perfect and brilliant.                      
The star studded cast are….star studded, in their goofy magnetic Anderson way. It seems that the director is increasingly comfortable with the unusual worlds he creates. We are all in some way the beneficiaries.

 

 

 Three Thousand Years of Longing.


It was Tilda Swnton that drew me as she has many times before to the various intriguing projects that she has been involved in in her acting career, to this mystical tale.  As Alithea Binnie a narratologist (someone who studies narrative structure and its influence on society). who discovers a strange bottle while doing research in Istanbul. While cleaning the bottle, Alithea comes to find out that it contains a Djinn, a mystical spirit engrossingly played by (Idris Elba).  Accidentally releasing it in the middle of her hotel room. The Djinn grants three wishes to Alithea, insisting that he is under the control of whomever frees him until they make their wishes. While Alithea is hesitant, acknowledging that many Djinn stories are cautionary tales, the Djinn attempts to convince Alithea that he will truly grant whatever her heart desires by telling her stories of how he was imprisoned three different times. Directed by George Miller of the Mad Max Franchise and The Witches of Eastwick among others.   Based on a A. S. Byatt's short story.  Even in this lushly produced fantastical tale of magic, illusion and dreams. Along with the fine supporting cast, it is Swinton’s presence and acting skills as with all of her appearances holds your attention. I stayed up much longer than intended to see the romantic end of this engrossing film.

                                                    
 

 

  Secretary

 

It was because of my reading of her new work of fiction in current New Yorker that caused me to revisit this 2002 film. Her story called Minority Report was in itself an expanded revisit by her of her original story in her book of 1988 Bad Behavior.  The film itself is a slick tidied up version, of  the original story that has not, unlike Ms Gaitskill herself aged well. This is not to diminish the performances of its two lead characters. Maggie Gyllenhaal as Lee Holloway who is undoubtedly the star of the film and James Spader as her boss, Mr Grey in his weirdly decorated office  giving a compellingly repressed performance. Her mother, played by Leslie Ann Warren trying her best to be compulsively normal in her decidedly dysfunctional family adds to the strained off kilter tone of the film. In the midst of the current  #MeToo movement the film seems trite and titilating, glamorizing sexist behavior. The corny happy ending ruins whatever pertinent social lessons might have been gleaned from this imperfect but worthy film.

 

 

 

Living.


Full disclosure: I’m a long time fan of Bill Nighy’s acting. So it was with great anticipation that I was looking forward to his latest film. In which he plays a leading role. Indeed the film was created with him in mind. With a screenplay by prizewinning writer Kazuo Ishiguro (Remains of the Day, Klara and the Sun).  A faithful indeed rigorous adaptation of the 1952 film Ikiru by Akira Kurosawa. Like that film it tells the tale of a downtrodden civil service bureaucrat who after spending most of his life in meaningless work, becomes aware only after a diagnosis of terminal cancer what a waste his life has been. This revelatory jolt ignites a desire to at last do something meaningful with his remaining days. At first unable to imagine what or how that might be accomplished. He enlists the help of a young girl (played by Amy Lou Wood)  who works in his office, not yet smothered the bureaucratic quicksand that all the other employees have sunk into and is about to leave. Her very existence unsullied by what he has allowed to happen to him, spurs him into a final burst of action achieving at least a small victory against a governmental tsunami that has overwhelmed him his whole life, up until the death sentence he has just been handed. So with such an inspiring story gifted writing talented directing (Oliver Hermanus) arresting authentic visuals and Nighy at the helm of a solid cast why was I so disappointed? So much so that I went back for a second look to the 70 year old Kurosawa’s film for a clue. At the end of the nearly 2 1/2 hour film I had my answer. What was missing from the new version was emotion. All the tragedy, joy, revelation, sadness, regret and quiet triumph has been squashed out of the new version, under the guise of 1950’s British stiff upper lippedness, which I’m sure was an accurate portrayal of the times and demeanor of these bureaucrats. These vital elements on easy view in the Kurosawa version is what I missed. This is not to take away anything from the new film. The fact that they made a worthy update shows bravery, courage and talent of all those involved.  And my fandom of Mr Nighy has not been dented one bit.

  

 

 

Women Talking.

Based on actual events in a Mennonite community, the film is a recreation directed by Sarah Polley adapted from the novel by Miriam Toews.  With actors Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley and Rooney Mara giving powerful performances in leading roles.
Given the subject matter of sexual abuse by men in a patriarchal organisation, its not surprising that these oppressed women rebel. Their microcosm displays the chinese puzzle that they find themselves in when caught between their faith and the moral path they must take in deciding their future. This is where the talking occurs. The romantic sequences of the children's lives seem out of place too, given the tone of the story, maybe to contrast whats in store for them. The other thing I found odd is that the men who committed these crimes are given no screen time, perhaps to make them more terrifying, faceless demons. The film was shot in desaturated color adding to the gloomy look of this fraught drama.
I am not going to attempt any deeper analysis of the film or subject. If you are interested in an expert opinion by a brilliant writer who’s insights and intellectual rigor I simply do not possess. Click the link below. It was only after reading her post I decided to see the film at all.

https://marygaitskill.substack.com/p/women-talking

 

 

 My Brilliant Friend.

From the pen of  Elena Ferranti  This adapted epic TV series  with three seasons of eight episodes each running almost an hour this series is a marathon, but one worth running.
It follows in great detail the friendship of two young girls growing up in an impoverished neighborhood in Naples just after the second world war. Their mean meagre and sometimes brutal upbringing in which children were often treated as burdens produced by unwanted sex by men who considered their wives as property and servants, is the harsh deprived backdrop that these two young girls were brought up in and were drawn together for protection as much as anything else. As girls their future was mapped out for them at an early age, to follow their mothers miserable lives as producers of offspring and to stand by as their philandering  husbands. Any aspirations for self betterment or education of any kind was scorned on and stamped out by parents and society as whole. The only way forward being the continuation of their existing lives. The two protagonists, Lila a firebrand from the start and Elena the more introverted of the two. Both outstanding scholars in elementary school. It’s only Elena who is eventually allowed to capitalize on her intellect through an understanding father. Much to her mothers disgust. Lila equally bright has her ambitions crushed from the start by her brutish family. Her only way forwards is through a possible eventual union with the gangs and loan sharks that control m much of the ‘neighborhood’ in which they both live. This is a character driven drama, there are no ‘stars’ as such and most of the characters are memorable, their performances stark and riveting. The production is top rate the attention to detail mind boggling the locales are authentic. This is an entirely Italian enterprise and it shows, in the best sense. The two lead protagonists, Lila and Elena are played by three sets of actors following their childhood lives into adulthood.  
Elisa Del Genio plays the adult Elena  Ludovica Nasti plays the adult Lila.   An enormous supporting cast turns this series into an engrossing adventure.   
468 stars.  HBO

                                                         

 The Lost Daughter.

In which a middle aged professor Leda,  (Olivia Coleman) goes on what she thinks and hopes is a quiet holiday only to be disappointed on many levels. As was I. Despite her formidable acting prowess, I think Coleman is completely miscast in this role. Her dour English manner (which might be intentional in casting a pall over the narrative) The contrast she displays is too stark, overpowering and unsubtle,  completely out of step with the rest of the cast members.  Her hope for a quiet restful environment is shattered with the arrival of several family groups with small children at the same location, along with an invading group of noisy disruptive teenagers. It is the temporary disappearance of one of the children (Who she finds). Along with the child’s beloved doll that also mysteriously ends up in her possession but does not immidiately return, causing the child unending hysterical misery. Finally returning the doll to the astounded mother, causing her justifiable outrage. This general upheaval rekindles her own memories of a compromised marriage and the temporary  abandonment of her daughters. The film comes to a sad limp unresolved ending.  This film had many obstacles to overcome. I think being a American adaptation, having recognized stars in leading roles, (both doing good work). Ed Harris and Peter Sarsgaard. The editing works against the film every step of the way, the cuts never letting the scenes deliver their full impact. Directing her first feature the talented actor Maggie Gyllenhaal has missed the mark. Even when the mark was written by Elena Ferranti.       Netflix

                                               

The Lying Life of Adults.

 

Italians are not like us. Their world view and sensibilities are different. This is one of the main reasons this new six part television series so engrossing to watch. It follows the life of an emerging teenager Giovanna magnetically played by Giordana Marengo.  As the surrounding comfortable life she has been living with her middle class Neapolitan  family begins to come into an increasingly unpleasant focus. Moody and irritable she appears to have no focus of her own. The catalyst for the beginning of her new awareness coming when she eavesdrops on a conversation her parents are having about her, Mainly centering on her failures in school and her unappealing nature. Hearing the alarming realization by the father she adores that he thinks she might be taking on not only the physical  but mental characterization, his is estranged and despised sister Vittorio, a woman she has never met, Wonderfully played by Valeria Golino.  Upset by what she feels is her parents real unfiltered opinion of her is  she retreats to her friends with this revelation of ask if they think it is valid. After a series of machinations her father in an effort to rekindle his daughters trust agrees to take her to see his reviled sister. Despite a hostile initial meeting Giovanna eventually warms up to her on subsequent visits and her free spirited amorous world view, mainly because of its contrast to the one her parents have created and are living in. This tale is lengthy and sometimes looses its way with side stories especially in episodes 4 &5, but never its mission of Giovanna's passage.  The final episode regaining its footing. 
It’s worth mentioning that the 3 1/2  minute opening sequence in episode 4 with its reverse action clips is startling in its own right.  Even if this is not an original subject. It  a great story told in a engrossing way, a terrific cast lead by the aforementioned Giordana Marengo and deftly directed by Edoardo De Angelis  from a story by the gifted celebrated writer Elenor Ferranti  

 500 stars.          Netflix

 

 

 

 

                                      

 

The Banshees of Inisherin

On the face of it I wouldn’t have thought the Irish have much in common with the Swedes. But the first 30 minutes of this bleakly morose tale could have been directed by the master of gloom   Ingmar Bergman.
The story revolves around two men living in a tiny village on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland in the 1920’s.
The two protagonists are superbly played by Brendon Gleeson (Colm) and Colin Farrell(Pádraic).   
Colm the elder of the two decides to break off their friendship
he has found to become stifling, to the unending mystification of the younger Pádraic, who cannot see the reasons for the rift due to the limitations of the world he inhabits, even after its is explained to him numerous times by various people in the community. This is at the crux of this tale.
Colm finally resorting to drastic means in order to convince Padraic he wants to be left alone does nothing to deter him.
Being Irish men in the early 1920’s with no twitter, facebook or video games, only a landline and Guinness to lubricate their communication, it’s no wonder that even with brutal tactics from them both  there is no solution to their dilemma .
On the plus side it is a tribute to the acting skills of the two leads as well as the direction by Martin McDonagh spare and powerful it is, that this film of nearly two hours can hold you attention until the end without any modern trickery. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful at every turn, even the interiors.
This is an old school film in which actual on screen talent carries the entire project aloft.  
A musical comedy this is not, but you knew that.    198 stars     HBO MAX

 

 Tár

In which Cate Blanchett plays Lydia Tar a world famous conductor at the pinnacle of her career, trying to negotiate the shifting sands of fame and celebrity. Aloof imperious autocratic ruthless in her self preservation, except to a favored few intimates and even these relationships are transactional. It is one of these relationships and its tragic ending that precipitates her downfall. Kept in power by her musical gifts and and fawning political supporters. A dry lifeless and overly long film. Supported by equally sterile visuals. Almost completely devoid of the emotional powers that she urges her students to bring to their musical efforts.  
Ms Blanchett plays her character with expert ease. Unfortunately her character does not generate any sympathetic empathy when her eventual inevitable downfall with its comic ending occurs. Which might be the point.  Nina Hoss and Sophie Kauer give notable performances. Director Todd Field  (In the Bedroom; Little Children) could  have taken 40 minutes out of this 2hour and 38 minute marathon without any ill effect.
Mahler would not have been happy  46 stars  (20 to Ms Blanchett)         Peacock TV

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Menu

 

A brilliant satire on the exclusive high end foodie world. In which a group of so called connoisseurs and celebrities are ferried to a private island to sample the latest offerings of a renowned chef, masterfully played with evil glee by Ralph Fiennes.  The foodie glamouristas eventually get sucked into much more than they bargained for.  Only one guest who was a default invitee, rebelliously played by Ann Taylor-Joy rises above  as well as adding to the eventual mayhem, cheeseburger in hand. The invisible deft direction (the best kind) by Mark Mylod strengthens the impact of the film. All the supporting cast are all worthy and clever. There is a distant glancing homage to Louis Bunuel's 1962  masterpiece Exterminating Angel.
Brilliantly written with enough unexpected turns and drama to keep the pasta on your fork from ever reaching your mouth.

250 stars    HBO MAX