by Sam Juliano
It’s official. The fall season is now upon us, Halloween decorations are displaying, and the baseball playoffs are looming. It’s a time for football fans to fully immerse themselves, and for the Big Apple’s film buffs to avail themselves of one of the most celebrated of all annual film festivals. For opera and classical music fans it’s a time to again be ravishing by some of the world’s most distinguished orchestras and ensembles. And for movie fans across the globe it’s prestige time, when the year’s potential treasures are trotted put for award consideration. In short it’s the time of the year that we all live for.
That extraordinary, incomparable blogger from the midwest continues to weave her magic here on the site’s sideboards. “Dee Dee” as she is affectionately known in these parts has fueled the everyday musical countdown posts with spectacular embellishment, displaying foreign posters, delightful background information, and indellible film clips each and every night as the this remarkable venture incles nearer to the half way point. Sure, she’s a vital part of Wonders in the Dark’s fraternity for pratically the full three-year run of the site’s existence, but her singular contributions continue to raise the bar, and move anyone with a sense of appreciation and dedication. The comment and page view totals for the countdown have not only exceeded expectations, but have broken site records. Just this past week, John Greco’s sensational review of A Hard Day’s Night has attracted about 140 comments as of this writing, and several others have brought in amazing totals. Many thanks to all the readers who have checked out the quality postings, and to those who have taken the time to enter comments. A special thank you to the Three Amigos, Judy Geater, Pat Perry and Jonathan Warner, who have been there each and every day with their special blend of knowledge, excitement and passion. For Judy and Pat, it’s an extension of their ballot involvement and own post writings, not to mention some loving anecdotes from this past experiences in the form from both a vocational and cultural perspective. For Jon, it’s a labor of love, and futher expression of his peerless insights and effervescent personality. A comment from any and all of these three for any writer is really an incomparable treat.
Lucille and I had a busy weekend at the theatres. On Friday evening we brought the three boys to MONEYBALL, a film we had actually seen over this past winter at a sneak “work in progress” preview. On Saturday we really made hay, seeing two films in our local art house multiplex, and then another at the IFC Film Center in the evening. We saw:
Moneyball **** (Friday evening) Edgewater multiplex
The Mill and the Cross **** 1/2 (Saturday afternoon) Montclair Claridge
My Afternoons with Marguritte **** (Saturday afternnoon) Montclair Claridge
Weekend **** 1/2 (Saturday evening) IFC Film Center
In MONEYBALL Brad Pitt gives one of his finest performances as Billy Beane, the quirky off-kilter general manager of the Oakland A’s at a time of player transition. The writing is first-rate, the observations into buying and selling acute, and the chemistry between Pitt and Jopnah Hill delightful. The film’s centerpiece is the thrilling 20 game winning streak in 2002 that stands as an all-time record, which is superbly edited in the film. Certainly, the film is one of the better multiplex offerings of 2011. The British WEEKEND vies with 1996’s “Beautiful Thing” as the best gay-themed film ever made. It’s a splendidly naturalistic and nuanced chamber piece about gay identity that yields surprising emotional power, and it’s mumblecore center is mostly some fascinating discourse and aching discoveries. The two lead performances by Tom Cullen and Chris New are exceptionally affecting, and the director Andrew Haigh (who appeared for a fabulous Q & A after the 7:20 P.M. show) avoids almost all the cliches and commonly held beliefs that surround most of gay cinema. MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITTE may be lightweight stuff, but it delivers on its premise admirably. A platonic relationship develops between a book-reading old woman and a husky illiterate middle-aged working man in a park, who share some of life’s experience amidst some family issues on both sides of the divide. It’s harmless enough and it builds up valid emotion. Gerard Depardieu and Gisele Casadesus are wonderful as those connected by the beauty in literature. THE MILL AND THE CROSS may well be a five-star movie, but I’ll stay in the holding pattern at 4.5 for the time being, so as not to incur the scorn of some who will take issue with two five-star ratings in successive weeks. But Lech Majewski’s visually intoxicating, wholly ravishing look at the nighmare behind the painting “The Procession to Calvary” by Flemish master Bruegel is a maditation on art, religion and speculation that holds one utterly transfized and enthralled for every minute of its running time. There’s really nothing quite like this in the cinema.
Around the blogosphere there’ much quality stuff to behold:
At Darkness Into Light Dee Dee honors Lauren Bacall’s birthday with a re-posting of Tony d’Ambra’s excellent FilmsNoir.net review of “The Big Sleep”: http://noirishcity.blogspot.com/2011/09/happy-birthdayto-actress-lauren-bacall.html
Jon Warner has crafted a brilliant review of Kiarostami’s masterful “Close-Up” at Films Worth Watching: http://filmsworthwatching.blogspot.com/2011/09/close-up-1990-directed-by-abbas.html
John Greco has penned a superlative review of Uli Grosbard’s “Straight Time” at Twenty Four Frames: http://twentyfourframes.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/straight-time-1978-ulu-grosbard/
Part 14 of his film round-p series has found Filmmaker Jeffrey Goodman in top form with capsule reviews on four gems of the cinema: “Poetry,” “Fitzcaraldo,” “Gattaca” and “Mr. & Mrs. Bridge” It’s over at The Last Lullaby: http://cahierspositif.blogspot.com/2011/09/favorite-four-part-fourteen.html
A delightful “watermelon spitting” leading in, brings about the question of saying what you feel at Laurie Buchanan’s Speaking From The Heart: http://holessence.wordpress.com/2011/09/22/spit-it-out/
R. D. Finch has penned a marvelous review of the popular 1948 Cary Grant feature “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House” at The Movie Projector: http://themovieprojector.blogspot.com/2011/09/mr-blandings-build-his-dream-house-1948.html
Tony d’Ambra at FilmsNoir.net has unearthed a modest 1930 Joan Crawford rarity, “Paid” by Sam Wood and photographed by Charles Rosher: http://filmsnoir.net/film_noir/film-noir-origins-paid-1930.html
Samuel Wilson has authored a wholly original and fascinating review of “Drive” at Mondo 70: http://mondo70.blogspot.com/2011/09/on-big-screen-drive-2011.html
Murderous Ink in Tokyo has penned a brilliant historical and political essay on two celebrated Kinoshita featues, “Army” and “Twenty-Four Eyes” at Vermillion and One Nights: http://vermillionandonenights.blogspot.com/2011/09/apron-as-weapon.html
Sachin Gandhi has penned an utterly fascinating piece titled “Navigating a Circle with Terrence Malick” that examines connecting themes, time periods and geographical progression at Scribbles and Ramblings: http://likhna.blogspot.com/2011/09/navigating-circle-with-terrence-malick.html
Judy Geater has penned a wonderful essay on Frank Capra’s 1930 “Ladies of Leisure” at Movie Classics: http://movieclassics.wordpress.com/2011/09/05/ladies-of-leisure-frank-capra-1930/
Scenic wonderments await those who click on the Creativepotager’s blog with teh latest post “Saturna Island in September”: http://creativepotager.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/saturna-island-in-september/
Kaleem Hasan offers up trailer for the upcoming Fincher take on “The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo” at Satyamshot: http://satyamshot.wordpress.com/2011/09/25/the-girl-with-the-dragon-tattoo-trailer-fincher/
Shubhajit Leheri again has penned a superbly dead-on economical piece on the wesatern classic “High Noon” at Cinemascope: http://cliched-monologues.blogspot.com/2011/09/high-noon-1952.html
Craig Kennedy has a marvelous ‘guest podcast’ leading the way at Living in Cinema where he discusses “Moneyball,” “The Maltese Falcon” and “The Life Aquatic”: http://livingincinema.com/2011/09/25/guest-podcast-the-projection-room-episode-18/
An especially lovely post “Roses of Fall” leads up at Patricia’s Wisdom: http://patriciaswisdom.com/2011/09/roses-of-fall/
Stephen Russell-Gebbett has penned a fecund takedown of Pixar’s “Toy Story 3” at Checking on my Sausages: http://checkingonmysausages.blogspot.com/2011/09/toy-story-3.html
David Schleicher has penned a terrific review of “Drive” at The Schleicher Spin titled “Let’s Go For A Drive”: http://theschleicherspin.com/2011/09/19/lets-go-for-a-drive/
At Exodus 8:2 Jaime Grijalba reports on another sad loss with the passing of distinguished Chilean writer Jose Miguel Varas: http://exodus8-2.blogspot.com/2011/09/jose-miguel-varas-1928-2011.html
Pat Perry has posted an excllent review on “Something Borrowed,” a ‘chick’ flick that’s worth something at Doodad Kind of Town: http://doodadkindoftown.blogspot.com/2011/09/on-home-screen-something-borrowed.html
Michael Harford’s collage on “It’s Finally Happening” at the Coffee Messiah’s blog is not news to cherish: http://coffeemessiah.blogspot.com/2011/09/its-finally-happening.html
Jason Bellamy has penned a terrific and scrutinizing assessment of “Moneyball” at The Cooler: http://coolercinema.blogspot.com/2011/09/vorp-of-163-moneyball.html
Marilyn Ferdinand is back on the beat with the Chicago International Film Festival, taking a look at a film titles “Madame X.” As always the observations are well worth exploring at Ferdy-on-Films: http://www.ferdyonfilms.com/?p=11507
Ed Howard has a superlative review of “Rango” leading the way at Only The Cinema: http://seul-le-cinema.blogspot.com/2011/09/rango.html
At the Film Doctor’s place a fantastic essay on “Drive” awaits readers: http://filmdr.blogspot.com/2011/09/red-noir-8-notes-on-nicolas-winding.html
At Movies Over Matter Jason Marshall names “The Apple” as one of his favorite “bad” movies: http://moviesovermatter.com/2011/09/17/hes-so-eager-to-believe-and-so-easily-deceived-like-a-baby-watching-magic-hes-so-gullible-its-tragic-the-apple-my–favorite-bad-movies/
James Hansen has written an outstanding essay in defense of “Drive” at Out One Film Journal: http://www.out1filmjournal.com/2011/09/shadowing-spotlight-nicolas-winding.html
At Radiator Heaven J.D. has a terrific review leading up on an 80’s James Woods feature, “Cop”: http://rheaven.blogspot.com/2011/09/cop.html
Srikanth (Just Another Film Buff) offers up a fascinating capsule on Wim Wenders’s “Pina” at The Seventh Art: http://theseventhart.info/2011/09/24/ellipsis-47/
Roderick Heath at “This Island Rod” has penned a towering essay on “Thor”: http://thisislandrod.blogspot.com/2011/09/thor-2011.html
TCM’s Greg Ferrara announces October plans at Cinema Styles: http://cinemastyles.blogspot.com/2011/09/cinema-styles-october-coming-soon.html
Tony Dayoub’s marvelous new “X Factor” post at Cinema Viewfinder examines the popular franchise, or the most recent film in it: http://www.cinemaviewfinder.com/2011/09/x-factor.html
Steven Morton talks about Bob Dylan’s “Ring them Bells,” which he notes is his favorite song at Petrified Fountain of Thought: http://petrifiedfountainofthought.blogspot.com/2011/09/ring-them-bells.html
Craig at The Man From Porlock has penned a superlative positive assessment of “Drive”: http://themanfromporlock.blogspot.com/2011/09/revved-up-drive.html
Hokahey at Little Worlds has penned a wonderful and hugely favorable review of “Moneyball”: http://hokahey-littleworlds.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-can-you-not-be-romantic-about.html
At Not Just Movies the relentless Jake Cole offers up three terrific capsules on “Lola,” “Safety Last” and “Recreation–Season One”: http://armchairc.blogspot.com/2011/09/capsule-reviews-lola-1961-safety-last.html
Record Club #4 – The Dirty South” is leading the way at Elusive as Robert Denby, and proctor Troy Olson has quite a comment thread to show: http://troyolson.blogspot.com/2011/08/record-club-4-drive-by-truckers-dirty.html
Kevin J. Olson has an excellent capsule on “Summer of Slash-The Final Terror” up at Hugo Stiglitz Makes Movies: http://kolson-kevinsblog.blogspot.com/
The saddest of times for Jeopardy Girl as she movingly relates at The Continuing Story of Jeopardy Girl. Wonders in the Dark extends it’s deepest condolences to our friend up north: http://jeopardygirl.wordpress.com/2011/09/11/gone/
Adam Zanzie has penned an astonishing marathon essay on his most recent findings on Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds” at Icebox Movies: http://iceboxmovies.blogspot.com/2011/08/inglourious-basterds-2009-two-years.html
Dave Van Poppel at Visions of Non-Fiction has posted a terrific review of the documentary “Project Nim”: http://visionsofnonfiction.blogspot.com/2011/08/project-nim.html
Andrew Wyatt has a terrific review of George Sluizer’s 1988 “The Vanishing” up at Gateway Cinephiles: http://gatewaycinephiles.com/2011/09/07/the-vanishing/
Well, the Phillies finally snapped their losing streak. I’m really worried about them limping into the playoffs – though the starting pitching has still been top notch regardless of their streaky, injured and tired offence and bullpen. I guess Halladay, Lee, and Hamels will just have to throw complete game shutouts to get them another World Series victory.
That being said – somehow MONEYBALL just doesn’t look intriguing enough despite all the great reviews. It’s just one of those films I don’t feel a need to rush out to see – though I might see it eventually.
On DVD I watched –
The Strange Case of Angelica – ***1/2 – Not sure what to say about a film directed by a man over 100 years old. Magical and melancholy – beautifully framed like a work of art – though slight in the narrative department and transmitted at a snail’s pace. I almost think it would’ve worked better as a short film.
WIN WIN – a pleasant **** (maybe ****1/2) surprise for me. This is a wonderful rebound for Tom McCarthy who I felt went off the deep-end into preachy didacticism with his previous film The Visitor. This is a nice return to the Jersey-fresh character-driven comedy-drama area he quietly conquered previously with The Station Agent. This might make my year-end list.
And then of course, the season premier of BOARDWALK EMPIRE on HBO did not disappoint. I don’t know what else to say except that I love this show – the music, the setting, the acting – and most importantly – the writing. Top shelf stuff.
Well David, the Phillies may be limping, but the Yankees are roaring and are making prospects most interesting. But though I am a lifelong Yankee rotter, I see your Phils as the odds-on favorite because great pitching wins in the playoffs. But there are several other division winners here as you know that stand an excellent chance.
I liked MONEYBALL, and suspect you will too. The components are quite good. But it won’t make any ten-best list or anything like that.
I set the narrative slighness in ANGELICA aside for precisely teh reasons you praise it for. I know the director is now 102, but this adds to the miraculous aspect that something like this was even made at all.
I also loved WIN WIN for all sorts of reasons, and will have it in my own Top 10 as well.
I hear ya on BOARDWALK EMPIRE. I will definitely get to it at some point.
You had a great week David. Thanks so much for the terrific report as always!
Wow, David, I wonder if the season premiere means the box set of the first season of ‘Boardwalk Empire’ will be available soon? I’ve been waiting for that for ages, since in the UK the series was only shown on a satellite-only channel (Sky Atlantic), and my family has cable! Sadly, it looks as if they will shunt the next series of ‘Mad Men’, my absolute TV obsession, off into the same obscure channel now that the BBC has lost the rights to it. But anyway, I am still looking forward to BE and would think my wait will be over soon – and in some ways it may be better waiting, since at least I won’t have ad breaks every five minutes!
I’m a bit perplexed as to why the first season isn’t out on DVD yet. I thought they would’ve done that right before launching the second one.
Maybe they are waiting for Christmas?! I hope they hurry up, anyway.
Sam, thank you very much for the plug and the outrageous praise – hmmm, someone else comes to mind who has been leaving enthusiastic comments on every musical countdown post, quite apart from all those he is writing himself. Whoever could it be?! Anyway, your comments are much appreciated, all round!
I went to the cinema with my daughter, who was visiting home this weekend, and saw a rom com she chose (I’ll blame her, anyway), ‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’. We both thought it was dire, despite having a good cast, headed by Steve Carell and Julianne Moore – it just wasn’t funny at all, with a plot which lived up to the “stupid” tag, and seemed to go on forever. The biggest joke was the money we paid to get in. Meanwhile my son and husband went to a rerelease of ‘Jurassic Park’, which was definitely a better choice.
At home I saw ‘Brigadoon’ on DVD, which I’d failed to see again in the run-up to the countdown – I left a very belated comment in the thread under Kevin’s review, but will also post it here:
“I’ve just belatedly watched this again – had seen it years ago but didn’t really remember it very well – and must agree with both Samuel and Sam that I really liked Van Johnson, whose cynicism is a welcome antidote to some of the over-sweetness at times. It’s a really strange scene near the end where the two men return to 1950s New York and are suddenly almost in the world of ‘Mad Men’, drinking heavily in a bar and bitching about office politics! I still don’t really see this as a great musical, and agree with Dennis that it could do with some more darkness in the mix, but it has some great moments, especially Gene Kelly singing ‘The Heather on the Hill’.”
I also watched Lubitsch’s little-known pre-Code First World War drama ‘Broken Lullaby’, aka ‘The Man I Killed’, which I’ve been wanting to see after watching his pre-Code musical comedies recently – I thought this was brilliant, with a great performance by Lionel Barrymore and astonishing camerawork by Victor Milner. Yet another not-on-DVD masterpiece.
Thanks again for the flattery, Sam, and I hope you and all at Wonders have a great week.
Judy, Broken Lullaby is on DVD in France and Spain.
Thanks, Allan. Sorry, I did know that, though the Spanish release has subtitles you can’t remove – do you know if that is the case for the French one too?
Sorry, someone told me that the Spanish DVD had subtitles which can’t be removed, but I just checked another site and it looks as if that wasn’t true, so scrap that question. Thanks again, anyway, Allan.
My advice, Judy, is get the French DVD, It has subs that aren’t removable, but if you have DVD Shrink, all you do is copy it on receipt and when doing the copy untick the subs in the menu on the right. Then use the copy to watch and you place it inside the box on the left hand side. 🙂
I do the same with foreign films without Eng subs but which I have Eng subbed prints of to slip inside.
Thanks for the advice, Allan.
Judy—
So sorry for the late response here. I’ll admit those musical reviews have been consuming my time, but I was figuring that to happen. I love teh comment you make after after seeing CRAZY STUPID LOVE:
“The biggest joke was the money we paid to get in.”
Ha! Good one!!! Excllent re-appraisal there of BRIGADOON, which is certainly fair enough!
I haven’t seen BROKEN LULLABY, but happy to read what Allan says about availability.
Congratulations on taht fantastic essay on MY FAIR LADY!
Have a great week my very good friend!
Thanks very much, Sam, and I’m impressed you have found time to reply to people in this thread as well as writing all those essays!
Beautiful Thing and Weekend – ahead of Brokeback and Happy Together? Hmm…
To these eyes, yes. I love BROKEBACK, and think HAPPY TOGETHER is very fine, but these two rate ahead of either. To be honest I’d also have Moodysson’s SHOW ME LOVE and a few by Jarman ahead of the two you broach here.
I’d also take SHOW ME LOVE over BROKEBACK… and I don’t think it’s even close (in my eyes).
They’re already climbing all over themselves about Pitt getting the Oscar for MONEYBALL (I think it’s too early to predict).
Read a great review for DRIVE by Petet Travers in ROLLING STONE and he likened Albert Brooks performance to perfect menacing perfection. He went on to call the film one of the very best of the year and praised the director and Ryan Gosling to high heaven.
Looks like the fall film season is really heating up!
Dennis–
I also thought Brooks was perfection, but a few bloggers I respect are taking isse with his work, not accepting his radical casting, and suggesting that he doesn’t convince.
Yeah it’s too early to figure on that Best Actor race, but Pitt will surely be nominated.
Thank you, Sir.
Sam,
Thanks again for the shout out! We seem to be pretty close in agreement with MONEYBALL Locally, the Tampa Bay Rays are hoping for the wild card spot as they have been creeping up on the faltering Red Sox who are now only a 1/2 games ahead of them after splitting a doubleheader with the Yanks yesterday. Looks like the Yanks and Rays finishe the regular season down here starting tonight.
My film week was an active one.
Drive (****1/2) Full speed ahead in this deliciously stylish neo-noir thrill ride of a film. Ryan Gosling’s Driver isn’t much on words; they almost have to be dragged out of him. His character is reminiscent of Eastwood’s man with no name, plopped into the 21st century. But it is director Nicolas Refn who is really in the driver’s seat here with shades of Mann, Tarantino and Scorsese steering the film on wild ride through the streets of neon lit Los Angeles powered by a great music score. Refn has created an idiosyncratic and stylish crime film.
Moneyball (****1/2) Smart script two wonderful performances from Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill make this a good start, at least for me, as we head into the fall movie season with this film and DRIVE. Both of these guys do some of their best work here. Also on board is the ever reliable Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (****) W.C. Fields meets his match in wooden Charlie McCarthy in this hilarious tale of, chicanery, cheats and the circus life. Fields as Larsen E. Whipsnade has to stay one step ahead of the law and two steps ahead of McCarthy’s verbal abuse. Fields films don’t much depend on story and this one is no different. What is different is the film is almost split into two parts. Part Fields, part Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.
It’s a Gift (*****) Arguably, one of W.C’s best! Running slightly over an hour, there is not a weak spot in the film. Fields meets his match multiplied by ten because there is hardly a nice person in the film. Starting with his nagging wife from hell to a nasty blind man, to the incorrigible Baby LeRoy, Fields faces one battle after another with his usual crusty outrage. Brilliant!
My Little Chickadee (***1/2) West and Fields tame the wild west, ah yes! The film is sort of a mixture of their two styles that does not always work. A bit of a mess but both Fields and West have their share of laughs that make it worthwhile.
I’m No Angel (****) “When I’m good, I’m very good. But, when I’m bad…I’m better.” There are so many great lines in this pre-code gem, I seem to continually discover new ones every time I watch it. One of Mae West best!
Born Yesterday (****) Judy Holliday shines in this Garson Kanin comedy directed by George Cukor. William Holden basically plays the straight man to both Holliday and Broderick Crawford’s corrupt millionaire.
Death Race 2000 (***1/2) Paul Bartel’s dark comedy about a futuristic cross country drag race where the score is based on how many people you kill. Satirical look at our never ending lust for blood in sports and entertainment.
John—
The Yankees “cooperated” beautifully last night by tumbling to the Rays, and thereby delighting the most impassioned Red Sox haters. With two games left, one must seriously entertain the prospects of a Tampa playoff appearance!
What a fabulously written lot of capsules you provide the readers with this week! Love the one on DRIVE exceedingly, and couldn’t agree with you more. Yes we aren’t very far apart on MONEYBALL either. I see you had a fabulous Mae West and W.C. Fields bonanza there! I just saw I’M NO ANGEL at the Film Forum about six weeks ago and was throughly smitten. But yes, IT’S A GIFT is the real masterwork here, though SUCKER and CHICKADEE are wonderful entertainments. Also loved Judy Holliday’s work in BORN YESTERDAY, and always was entranced by DEATH RACE’s satirical underpinnings.
Another fabulous week my friend!
Sam, thanks so much for the wonderful mention.
It’s such an exciting time of year as a slew of good movies make their way to the screen. I’m really looking forward to catching some that you have already seen, as well as some of the ones due out very soon.
This week I saw THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO, GATTACA, DRIVE, and THE REMAINS OF THE DAY. I was extremely happy to see them all, but I have to single out GATTACA as the one affecting me the most. It felt like somewhat of a companion piece to A.I. and an unusual installment in sci-fi cinema. Of course, Nyman’s score deserves special mention, as well as Niccol’s peculiar handling and tone. I liked it far more than I expected.
Here’s to another awesome week, Sam. Thanks so much for all that you do!
Jeffrey—
The prestige time of the year is indeed upon us, with only the task of compiling a ten best list becoming more problematic! Ha! But the problem is a gleeful one.
I have indeed seen your great insights on GATTACA at THE LAST LULLABY, and as you know I concur fully with you here. Michael Nyman’s piercingly beautiful score is one of my favorites, and the film is a compelling study of mortality and genetics. It’s a captivating hybrid that I voted as my favorite film of the 80’s. You are definitely dead-on too what you say about it’s kinship to A.I. The piece is moody and elegiac.
I like THE LAST DAYS OF DISCO, but absolutely love DRIVE and THE REMAINS OF THE DAY for all sorts of reasons.
As always thanks so very much my friend for the wonderful round-up and kind words.
Saw Moneyball on Saturday. Definitely as entertaining a film as I’ve seen this year. It’s lightweight, and it doesn’t make you think too much, but it’s a load of fun. Beane seems to have been painted as more eccentric than he is in real life.
Speaking of baseball, the Yankees are poised for a great one. I wouldn’t be crowning the Phillies just yet.
Got your e mail on The Mill and the Cross. Would you be planning to see this again anytime soon?
Frank–
Yes, Beane did come off as exceedingly eccentric, but I know little about him other than the way he’s presented in this film. I bet the book shed more light on this.
The Yankees are indeed flying high, but as you know a short series is so unpredictable, and there are some terrific teams in the mix.
I may indeed be most interested in seeing THE MILL AND THE CROSS again very soon. I’ll keep you abreast my friend.
Many thanks as always.
The praise given to The Mill And The Cross is duly noted Sam. I will check it out this week if I have a chance. I’m also interested in the Michael Shannon starring film Take Shelter which is getting some great reviews. Like David above, I considered the Boardwalk Empire premier to be highly effective last night. After Scorsese’s pilot, I found most of season one to be disappointing. Some of the latter episodes from last year’s installment did significantly improve enough that I’ve decided to keep watching. What I saw this week…
Drive *****
Win Win ****
The Criminal (60) ***
Blow Out *****
Little Dieter Needs To Fly ****
The King Of Kong ****1/2
Obviously there was enough discussion of Drive last week to last a lifetime. I watched my Criterion copy of Blow Out (my favorite De Palma) and after this third viewing, I now consider it a masterpiece. I always had it rated pretty high, but this third viewing convinced me that perhaps I didn’t have it high enough. The movie is rich with meaning, and proves that De Palma can infuse a film with loads of substance to mingle with his considerable style. Dressed To Kill is next on my reexamination list.
Losey’s The Criminal still doesn’t completely work for me. I have the Anchor Bay dvd, and decided to watch it again after remembering Allan’s essay on it. The jazz score seems completely miscalculated and deflates all the tension within the film. It’s like a square peg in a round hole that was lifted from the wrong picture. I also found the script to be derivative and cliched. Not bad, but not really great either.
I liked Win Win, and consider it a huge improvement over The Visitor. David Schleiscer is my go to guy this week, as his opinion on that latter film is eerily similar to my own (which I once described as a soppy bag of PC shit). Another busy week for you Sam, which will surly be followed by many more as we enter the best period for American films.
Maurizio,
I also saw Blow Out this week but didn’t appreciate it as much as you did. Yes it has loads of style, but I found the screenplay was quite a stretch for me. I wanted to like it more.
This has always been my favorite from this director. But I need to see this new blu-ray for an updated opinion.
I’m with you Peter. I actually think the script and how De Palma handles the material is the best part of the film. You can see a highly complex personal message contained inside, that the filmmaker is extremely invested in. The usual De Palma aesthetic almost takes a back seat to his narrative concerns here.
Maurizio – “a soapy bag of PC shit” – LMAO! I don’t feel that harshly about The Visitor – but, yeah – pretty close. Glad you are enjoying Boardwalk Empire as well – I think they aim to entertain this season, so it should be good.
Maurizio—
Thank you so much for the extraordinary wrap! And if we can agree on a date I would be willing to see MILL AND THE CROSS again, as I know some others like Dennis are game. Perhaps Joel will even be in town while it’s still in NYC at either the Film Forum or somewhere else. I am also most intrigued at seeing TAKE SHELTER and of course BOARDWALK EMPIRE. Your gloriously delineated position on DRIVE has been a highlight of this past week’s threads, and I couldn’t agree with you more while still marveling at your astute insights. Your position on WIN WIN is fair enough for sure. As you may remember it’s one of my favorite American films of 2011. I like Losey’s THE CRMINAL more (by the way I am scrambling to complete a review of Losey’s DON GIOVANNI for a late night posting later this evening, and I have been reviewing in my head the director’s full diverse output) but you may have a valid point with the uneasy mix of that jazz score.
I agree with you on BLOW OUT and also feel DRESSED TO KILL is exceptional. You frame it superbly here.
Your rating of LITTLE DIETER is close to mine (*** 1/2) so I can’t argue there, but I don’t think I have seen THE KING OF KONG to this point.
Yes this is the time of the year for the true movie lovers to make plans, and I hope to meet up with you and the othersd a few times during this run.
Thanks as always my very good friend for the stellar wrap!
Sam, I saw the Mill And The Cross at Film Forum. I must admit I was not as enthralled by the movie as you were. It is a visually ravishing picture that would of been better as a thirty minute short. I felt like the last hour dragged and was rather aimless at times. It reminded me a little of Meek’s Cutoff where nothing happens for long stretches. Majewski also lingers on scenes for way too long, and at times the film feels stagy as opposed to cinematic. I like the thematic aim of the filmmaker when it comes to the belief that religion can be destructive as well as redemptive. The notion (stressed with the grain miller replacing god in the painting) of persecution on earth creating a void from biblical teachings that followers claim to adhere too is a worthy subject. I just think the pace and rhythm at times goes flat and the direction is erratic. For instance, the tracking shot at the museum at the end goes on forever. The scenes of children playing could also use some editing. And the musicians dancing around like a Monty Python sketch are goofy and unintentionally funny. Overall I give it ***1/2 for the visual look and solid narrative theme.
Maurizio—
I do feel that the stagy quality had more to do with the perceoved confines of the paiting rather than any decision on the director’s part to open things up aside from that vital visual scheme aimed at emulating a painting. Personally I was so mesmerized by what I was watching that it could have gone on another hour and I would have continued to be immersed. I didn’t feel it dragged at all, but I can respect you for feeling that way. You certainly offer up a very fair reaction and acknowledge the aspect that had you enthralled the most, and that of course was the technique. I loved teh idea of speculative cinema, especially when it offers the intellible prospect of crossing forms. But I know this will not work for everyone and I’m thrilled you went with my recommendation partially out of respect for my own taste. I am sorry you didn’t like it even more, but you pen a great response in this fair enough assessment.
Now I am leaving the house with Lucille and my daughter Melanie to see THE LAST PICTURE SHOW at the Film Forum.
Well it has stayed in my head even a day later, with certain aspects of the film playing out in my mind’s eye. I could possibly see myself bumping it up to **** after a second viewing. The movie is lovely to look at and has a great narrative concept. I don’t think I will ever proclaim it a masterpiece, but my appreciation for it could rise somewhat.
Funny enough I just went over to Rotten Tomatoes and looked up The Mill And The Cross. It has a rating of 70% with both sides of the aisle basically echoing our own opposite reactions (though I would not give it a negative appraisal, but more of a muted positive or half and half).
Your praise and excitement for “The Mill and the Cross” is more than heartening. I’ve seen some screen captures of this on line. I was wondering if there was any new process use to allow the photography to look so painterly? Is this a first of it’s kind?
Fred—
That’s a very good question (or questions). There was indeed a special process employed here but I am presently at a loss to give you a specific name. I’ve yet to make my way through reviews, but I will very soon. I believe that what was done here was a first.
Many thanks my friend.
Sam, the football temptation is really starting to cut into my weekend movie viewing. There were quite a few nail-biters on the professional side to distract me, but I did manage between games and reviews to watch the Criterion DVD of Satyajit Ray’s The Music Room, an elegiac satire, if that’s possible, of an Indian aristocracy of aesthetes. It leaves you wondering whether to condemn the protagonist as a clueless spendthrift or mourn him for the art-for-art’s-sake high culture Ray makes him represent, and the divided verdict actually does honor to Ray’s vision. I also managed to squeeze in Gerry DeLeon’s Women in Cages, another of Pam Grier’s early Philippine vehicles, this time with her as a wicked warden. It’s little more than a knockoff of Jack Hill’s definitive Big Doll House, and it shows. On the literary front, I picked up an anthology of Western short stories and read the originals of Stagecoach (Ernest Haycox’s “Stage to Lordsburg”) and High Noon (John M. Cunningham’s “The Tin Star”). Stagecoach is a reasonable approximation of Haycox, with additions (most notably the drunken doctor), while High Noon strays pretty far from Cunningham, whose hero, a widower, dies saving a deputy who, having first told the sheriff he would quit, finally takes up the star. It all makes you wonder how things get changed so drastically in Hollywood.
Samuel—
You are excused for your gridiron indulgences provided of course you are a fan of either the Jets or Giants, and not one of the Buffalo Bills! Ha! But yes, a few nail-biters indeed.
Ray’s THE MUSIC ROOM is one of the director’s supreme masterpieces, and I must say I love that ‘elegiac satire’ framing and agree it’s hard to judge the main character. Perhaps it’s a bit of both, but either way your astute analysis is a joy to read.
I haven’t seen WOMEN IN CAGES, but will take note, but those volumes of STAGECOACH and HIGH NOON sound terrific. Your subsequent enlightenments on the Western genre and how filmmakers either show fidelity or stray from their source materials are essential for the genre fans at least. I read Alan Le May’s “The Searchers” and always revel in discussions comparing the book to film.
Anyway, terric additions here as always my excellent friend!
I tracked down the recently released “Manhunter” blu ray, and found myself a little surprised to discover that it was the original theatrical version of the film, and not one of the several different editions that it’s existed in on television and DVD over the years, and that’s even before you factor in Michael Mann’s personal director’s cut (the one with scenes that look like bad Betamax). Some of my favorite missing bits are back in on the blu ray (the modern-art elevator, that silent shot of Graham and Crawford at the docks), a few good scenes are missing (a “Miami Vice” team-member’s cameo as a realtor, Graham and wife’s hotel room rendezvous), and there’s even an extra additional bit at the end I didn’t even know existed (Graham talking about the killer’s probable traumatic childhood). And here I thought this was going to be the version with Betamax.
Well, Bob, I’m sure the producers of the blu-ray saw the opportunity to make the release special in more ways than one, but for whatever reason (s) this is great news for those who have even a fleeting interest in the film. At some point I’ll take a look myself, as I have fair regard for the film.
Many thanks my friend!
Bob have you heard about the film that Michael Mann’s daughter just directed? Its called Texas Killing Fields. It’s getting a limited release very soon in our neck of the woods. Looks like a cross between Manhunter and Seven.
Apparently it was originally set to be directed by Danny Boyle, who backed out saying it was too dark to get made. That’s unfortunate. Both he and Mann (the elder) have gravitated to video in recent years, but he’s already got an individual style of his own. The story sounds interesting, but I would’ve liked to have seen Boyle’s take on the serial-killer genre. That would’ve made it a real draw.
Boyle doesn’t really interest me either way. His not partaking in the making of Texas Killing Fields doesn’t lessen whatever interest I have/had in seeing the movie. At this early point, the film is getting mostly positive reviews (though not stellar). I’ll definitely check it out.
I like Boyle. He’s not a supreme favorite of mine, but he’s always worth checking out. “Slumdog Millionaire” has given him a bad rep among the more jaded Oscar critics out there, but he’s got a great energy to him. I loved “Sunshine”, even if its ending act was mostly horrible. I was even able to dig “127 Hours”, despite loathing James Franco with every fiber of my being.
Sam,
Thanks very much for the high praise and the mentions. I’ve definitely been enjoy the countdown immensely and engaging in the dialogue with people. It helps me think through WHY I like something, rather than just accepting things the way they are. As always, the insights in the countdown by all the reviewers are amazing. I myself had a busy week with news of my nephew being born and visiting my dad in the hospital who had a bloodclot form in his leg. Thankfully he’s doing better now. I’m also now traveling for work so it’s been a crazy few days.
My movie-watching took a bit of a hit because of this, but a few things of note:
Jane Eyre (2011) – Wanted more from this. The book is one of my favorites, and I found the second half of the film just went too fast by the plot points that I wanted to linger on. Felt rushed.
Meek’s Cutoff (2010) – Loved it. This one was right up my alley though. I love Reichardt’s films and Michelle Williams is my fav. But, I love the meditation on quiet desperation and the film really puts you there and doesn’t let you leave. I know you didn’t like it.
The Tall T (1957) – My favorite Boetticher so far. This one was really solid and the supporting cast was great. It surprised me with how it got better as it went along.
This week is L’ecclise, La Notte, Cul-de-sac, and Ride Lonesome. Have a great week my friend.
Jon, if you’re seeing L’Eclisse and La Notte for the first time, how I envy you. Especially La Notte. But be forewarned; they’re very slow works and La Notte, like most modern art, has no plot. None. But it’s my favorite film in the Antonioni trilogy. I’m eager to hear what you think.
Mark actually not for the first time no but taking a revisit. I love Antonioni from this period and up through Red Desert was the best stuff he ever did. Including Red Desert, I think it would make a quadrilogy, but it sounds kind of clumsy to say that.
Jon—
You’re intense involvement has been a joy to all the writers here. I know you’ll soon be entering the writer’s circle yourself, and I anticipate some glorious discourse.
My best wishes to your father for that lamentable hospital stay. I am very sorry he had to endure this, but I am sure you are relieved all be will be well. And congratulations on the birth of your new nephew!! I remain amazed at your ability and willingness to participate in the countdown, and eternally grateful for your generous spirit. But your father is the main concern here.
We rarely disagree drastically, but this is one of the weeks with JANE EYRE (which is presently contending for my Best Film of the Year honors) and MEEK’S CUTOFF, which you rightly note I am not a big fan of. But I respect and appreciate your excellent arguments. Of course I am 100% with you on the Boetticher. You have some great stuff planned for this week, led by those two Antonioni masterpieces.
Best Wishes to your father, I’m sure all will be well, and have a great week my excellent friend!
Sammy, I’d say Pitt is having a banner year with ‘The Tree of Life’ and now ‘Moneyball.’ Is there a gilded eunuch in his future, a matching bookend to Angelina’s statuette (which she didn’t deserve; the Oscar belonged to Chloe Sevigny for ‘Boys Don’t Cry)?
Well, ahem, I saw it and I wonder —
In ‘Drive’ Ryan Gosling gives the best impersonation of a vacuum since Martin La Salle did it in Bresson’s ‘Pickpocket’. Gosling’s driver doesn’t even have a name (he’s a clean cut, urban version of Tonino Valerii’s My Name Is Nobody, based on an idea by Sergio Leone), and his performance is an almost complete erasure of emotion. Because he’s a superior stunt driver and a getaway virtuoso, thus a tempter of fate, Gosling becomes an existential figure of the void at the core of post-modern man. He doesn’t even let himself fall for his neighbor, a pretty waitress played by Carey Mulligan, a girl who seems to attract him (Gosling is so stoic it’s hard to tell and he seems sexually passive — Mulligan grabs HIS hand during one of their nocturnal drives). Vaguely suicidal, perhaps he senses, maybe even wishes, his life will not be a long one.
This taciturn and mysterious opening, in which Gosling has a chance to break out and race professionally, doesn’t last long before director Refn explodes his film into over-the-top violence, so epically sanguinary it’s almost cartoonish, like Refn is trying to out-Guignol diPalma and Tarantino; the girl’s heading exploding in blood or the hit man’s face stomped into the elevator floor with bone-crunching sound effects. It’s here that ‘Drive’ transforms itself into a Mob revenge-and-betrayal flick, a prime example of the Murphy’s Law of Crime Film; whatever can go awry will, with predictably stomach-churning results (Tarantino is good at this). The movie turns into an overpopulated bloodbath and we are denied the pleasure of watching Gosling become a hotshot race-car driver.
I was sad to see ‘Driver’ go all bleak because Gosling is such a likable, attractive fellow and because Carey Mulligan doesn’t deserve the raw deal she’s handed here. ‘Drive’ opts for despair and death when it could have been the story of an aimless young man drifting toward doom redeemed by his unusual innate abilities and the love of a decent young woman. Nothing corny; just a legitimate happy ending. And the splendidly nefarious Albert Brooks could have lived on as Gosling’s sponsor. But the withholding of any kind of pleasure is Refn’s modus operandi, and Brooks expires face down in his own blood, a dead Jew in the parking lot of a Chinese restaurant. What a bummer.
Guys, I’m not opposed to downbeat endings, God knows, but ‘Drive’ seems to be progressing toward a parable of salvation for two lost individuals (Gosling isn’t strapped inside those muscle cars for nothing; they’re a symbolic trap/escape) when it takes a U-turn into spatter and gore and angst and the film just drizzles away. I wish I could have liked it better.
It’s a matter of taste on ‘happy’. I see the end of DRIVE as pretty god damn happy. He gets to drive around in that car until the hole in his gut bleeds him out, it’s one of the greatest realized eventual deaths since Van Gogh painted his field that he’d lay (and bleed) in.
The asexuality is an important part of the story too, his not getting the girl in the end is more akin to Travis Bickle and the teenage prostitute (meaning it’s a protection not a protraction). There is a real romance hinted at there for sure (elevating it a bit beyond TAXI DRIVER’s narrative. Plus Brooks’ is used to push the connection further), but it’s the stuff of moments and ends, not infinities and happy endings pushed into the endless horizon. Romance is something that exists in time and not beyond it, it’s foolish to think otherwise.
Well, maybe not a conventionally happy ending, but something more satisfying; who knows what kind of a life Mulligan and Gosling would have had together, married or otherwise; and to watch Mulligan lose two men to violence is such a downer. So you think the implied romance is just a plot device to give Gosling a gloss of humanity, because otherwise he’s nothing but a cipher or a sociopath, an empty hole at the center of the movie?
Yeah, but Travis is already reaching for Cybil Shephard, remember, who becomes the primary motivation for his jealous obsessions and near-conspiratorial quest against Palantine, and that reaching of his is unquestionably a sexual one, albeit one that’s rendered through a stunted kind of emotional growth (he takes her to a porno movie theater thinking it a meet-cute date). He’s already reaching for an appropriate, adult sexual outlet in her. Jodie Foster’s there as an emblem of twisted innocence (something like him?) that he’s trying to restore and protect.
The Driver, on the other hand– all he really has is Mulligan, and she’s more interesting to him as a maternal figure, probably, given that he spends more time interacting with the kid. It’s interesting to look at both the Driver and Travis as stunted-growth childlike monsters, each with their own strangely paternal instincts of sorts, but at the same time it’s kind of a dead end for me. I’m also not sure if I can take the idea of his “eventual death” seriously– yeah, maybe he’s like the end of “Shane”, with the slumping forard that Kevin Spacey and Samuel L. Jackson argue about in “The Negotiator”, but at the same time he seems like a guy who could brush off a mere stab to the gut, like the mountain-man samurai from “13 Assassins”. Given how robotic his performance felt to me, that ending made me think Gosling could be the next “Terminator”
Yeah, I’m thinking, My God, how long does it take a person to bleed to death? He’s stabbed about midday (that long Bressonian close-up on Gosling’s profile with his eyes shut made me think he was dead already); and then he’s shown driving the nightime streets again, like he’s suffering from no more than a stomach ache.
His eyes were open, actually, and I kept hoping it’d cut to black (that would’ve been a bleak ending), but I figured he’d blink eventually. Reminded me of Jim Caviezel rising from the tomb in “Passion of the Christ”, all that fuss about the crucifixion posing no more trouble than getting beat up outside a bar and spending a weekend in the hospital. There were titters of laughter all through that long close-up in the audience, too. Maybe that’s intentional, but by that point I was just numb.
As for Gosling and Mulligan’s hypothetical happy-ending life together– I dunno. Their relationship seems to consist entirely of making eye-contact and sharing moments of silence together, pauses that last so long they’re not just pregnant, but overdue. Maybe they’re communicating via telepathy, in which case, they can still have a happy ending after all.
Well it could take a while, depending on damage to internal organs. The death I speak of above (Van Gogh) was a self-inflicted gunshot to the chest and that took 29 hours (!). So anything is pretty open in that (incredibly large all things considered) window.
And no, he isn’t a empty void in the middle of the film, rather, he’s an empty void before and after the film (but within the film he’s an active driver and receiver of plot points). Unlike most films it isn’t one that expressed a ‘before’ and an ‘after’ which is more akin to a personal philosophy I agree with. It’s a finite world, with everything in it finite as well.
Bob, in your hurry to be negative Nelly on DRIVE you either didn’t read or understand what I wrote (“meaning it’s a protection not a protraction”). Where you ‘disagree’ with me by essentially restating what I just did (“Jodie Foster’s there as an emblem of twisted innocence (something like him?) that he’s trying to restore and protect.”). Baffling.
I’m agreeing with your point on the bit with Foster being asexual. But in “Drive” there’s no equivalent for the Cybil Shephard character, and Travis’ relationship with her is certainly more of a sexual one, albeit unrequited. Mulligan is closer to Foster than Shephard, in the film.
Hence why I’m saying it’s a better film. It has no love story and doesn’t really seek one (and this is consistent with its shown views). You’re saying it’s worse off by not having one or seeking one, but that it should be a film that doesn’t play to normal romantic cliche (which would be to implant an unnecessary love story). Again, it’s a circular almost nonsensical sort of line, with is consistent with your views on the film since day 1.
Jamie, I’m not making a qualitative statement here on the love story, or lack thereof, at all here. Just pointing out a difference with the “Taxi Driver” comparison (something I thought about mildly during the film). At the same time, there’s also plenty of big fans of the film who are arguing that there is a love story of sorts between Gosling and Mulligan, despite the lack of chemistry between them, so it can be read either way.
But I’m making a comparison to a specific relationship in TAXI DRIVER not the WHOLE of TAXI DRIVER’s relationship(s). (Besides the Cybil relationship in TD is almost an intentional non-starter/irrelevant plotline)
The Foster/Mulligan comparison is apt, but the part necessarily implicates the whole, in degrees (remember that in TD Brooks, who you point out, is a part of the Shephard/political storyline). At any rate, I find the unrequited-love aspect of the Scorsese film is far from irrelevant– in fact, it may be the key to its own brand of psychotic fantasy– though it is certainly an intentional non-starter, a dead end.
Yeah, Bob, you’re right, his eyes are open for a vey long time, but the point is I thought he was dead and the picture would end there.
To those who refer to ‘Taxi Driver,’ I don’t see any connection between the two films; just the superficial data that both protagonists drive cars for a living. DeNiro hates his job as a cabbie, but Gosling lives to drive. Both men are obviously unbalanced. DeNiro’s rage may have its origins in the Vietnam War (I fought to defend this filth?). DeNiro’s ex-marine wants to save Foster from a life of whoring; he’s been fulminating against scum throughout the picture (which is why I’ve never fully understood why he takes Shepherd to a Times Square grindhouse, though it’s a funny scene). But who knows where Gosling went awry. His bursts of sadism are startling because they seem to come out of nowhere. Where did he learn to become such an ruthless, efficient killer? He’s an existential symbol, superior to the norms of morality (a Neitzschean Everyman?). A schizophrenic film, I think.
Meaning, I suppose, that ‘Taxi Driver’ is much superior to ‘Drive’.
I can’t see how anyone could read Gosling’s outbursts as ‘out of nowhere’. He’s highly moralistic, as is Travis Bickle. Both are clearly attempting to wipe the scum out of the earth to right ‘wrongs’ they see. The fact that this is pretty much impossible is central to both characters unraveling.
I also think to a large degree Bickle likes his job, and likes that it gives him something to do to spend his lonely days and nights.
Both characters had unraveled well before they became urban crusaders, so neither film is a drama about a psychic disintegration, though ‘Taxi Driver’ goes much deeper into its protagonist’s pathology than ‘Drive’ does, which is why the Scorsese film is good and Refn’s film is an enigmatic mess.
Both men had unraveled well before they became urban crusaders, so neither film is the drama of a psychic disintegration, though ‘Taxi Driver’ goes deeper into its protagonist’s pathology than ‘Drive’ does — which is why Scorsese’s film is good and Refn’s is an enigmatic mess.
Well if DRIVE isn’t about a character unraveling how can its not showing this make it a bad film (or in this case a ‘mess’)? It’s the Bob critique: it’s bad because it isn’t what it isn’t, or it doesn’t do what it doesn’t set out to do.
Marc—
It took me much too long to get back to your original comment, but as you see you’ve been greeted by many responses from the very best of the WitD fraternity. I must say I can’t add anything to come close to someone like Jamie, who has presented the favorable side of DRIVE better than anyone else I’ve read online. I can well understand why you’d opine that the violence is cartoonish, and why in the end the film failed to reonate with you, but it all comes down to how you approach this. I bought it as an existential tone poem, and though the excessive use of slow motion was a brilliant choice to navigate this terrain, and was left with a strong elegiac feel. You have as always presented your case beautifully, it’s just a question of personal connection.
Your presence on this entire sub-thread has been magnificent.
Jamie, I’m not saying “it’s bad because it isn’t what it isn’t, or it doesn’t do what it doesn’t set out to do”. Would the film work a little better if it followed up on the promise of its opening getaway scene? Sure. Would it help make up for the dramatic stiltedness, the wooden performances, the tonal schizophreny or the stylistic derivativeness or the utterly sacharine sentimentality? Maybe. Right now, the very best that can be said about it is that it’s an acquired taste, and even for those who acquire said taste, it’s going to be different things, open to interpretation. That can be a good thing, sure, but this air of objective empiricism doesn’t really float with it. You look at Gosling and Mulligan and see something more like Travis and Jodie Foster from “Taxi Driver” than an actual love story, and I’m inclined to agree with you. Others, however, have gone on and on about how romantic it is, either in a genuine or ironic sense. Even people who like this film can’t quite agree on all the details, so it’s by no means a given that people who dislike it will do the same.
It doesn’t need to follow up on the promise of the opening scene because Refn shows us Driver’s competence behind the wheel, and then moves on to other concerns. Bob you want a bang em up big budget car chase film that luckily didn’t transpire. God knows there are plenty of those around to please the mainstream. The movie works just fine as is. It doesn’t need to follow your guidelines of filmmaking 101 to be a success. You can keep bringing up your talking points, like a robotic Sarah Palin all you want, but its not going to change anyone’s opinion. You and Mark keep mentioning what would of made the picture better, but your suggestions seem cliched and formulaic. If we all lived in a WITD vacuum, readers would think that this was a very divisive film. The truth is that your reservations on Drive are in a extreme minority. Most people see the freshness presented, and applaud with enthusiasm. You want the status quo… hang on, Hollywood will oblige.
Mauriz– yeah, there’s plenty of car-action movies out there that Hollywood pumps out. Most of them are shit. That doesn’t mean that all of them are, or that you necessarily have to be reductive and status-quo by following through with what you set up. Imagine, say, “Heat” without its midpoint shoot-out bank robbery. You don’t necessarily need it– the opening heist sets up the team’s competence as criminals, and the movie can then move on to other things. It would still be a fine drama, maybe, but without that epic centerpiece, it just doesn’t work.
Now, there is a centerpiece car-chase sequence in “Drive”, but it’s a sloppy, incoherent mess, a huge step down from the polished, taut sequence that opens the film. Refn spends all his time sweating the details of the threadbare story, the limp tone-poetry and the hand-me-down style, and channels all the rest of his action instincts into the wrong direction. At very best, “Drive” is like “Heat” with the bank robbery cut out and the same scene from “LA Takedown” spliced in. The action is the juice, and here, it’s stale.
For me Drive is a love story that isn’t concerned with sex or the traditional notions of romance. Its like a dark fairy tale where the hero must break out of his shell to become human (even if for a short period). He has no past (or future), because the film is only concerned with the moments that lead to his emotional epiphany and how they affect him. He tells Mulligan that meeting her was the best time of his life. He is not interested in the standard affections of normal people, because he is like a knight in shiny chrome armor who saves the girl and then moves on to a world outside celluloid. In some ways, he is like a more violent Edward Scissorhands. Instead of cutting blocks of ice for eternity, he drives off into the endless sunset savoring his fleeting encounters to combat his existential loneliness. Mark’s wishes for a standard love story is as opposite as possible to what Refn is going for. A happily never after is more apt, where a doomed Driver can at least know momentarily what it’s like to feel. This of course is just my take. Jamie and Sam seem to see things somewhat different. This is not a problem. Great art promotes diverse opinions, and not one rigid explanation.
The shootout in Heat is not essential for me to love the film. I actually prefer many other scenes over it. The fact that you seem to suggest that Heat wouldn’t work without that action centerpiece, only proves that your looking for the splashy big budget spectacle over drama. Drive is not a summer blockbuster action film. Deep down I feel like that is the real problem for you. Perhaps its not your fault, since the trailers did seem to suggest something different (more action heavy). Drive is essentially a moody noir/art film when we get right down to it… closer to Klute than The French Connection or The Driver.
I can’t speak for mark, Mauriz, but my problem with the love story (if you want to call it that) isn’t the ending– downbeat’s fine, and perfectly expectable for this kind of drama. My problem is with the meat of it– Gosling and Mulligan share such scant, minimal interactions throughout the course of the film that it’s hard for his claim of his time with her being so great having any real weight. It can work as a parody of love stories, but on its own it’s hard to take seriously. It’s not just asking you to read between the lines– there are no lines to read between.
Anyway, as for “Heat”– its drama is definitely better than “Drive”, and that centerpiece is certainly not the only asset the film has to offer. At the same time– yeah, without it, it isn’t nearly as great a work. It’s what makes the difference between a solid piece of dramatic genre storytelling and an absolute classic. It raises the stakes of the film to the absolute epic, and earns all the self-mythologizing grandstanding that its characters and the direction indulge in.
‘Drive’ is bad because Refn’s protag is an effing blank.
Travis Bickle is fascinating — repulsive, but fascinating.
Jamie,
I’m really not a reader of film reviews anymore, so I was surprised to discover most in the blogosphere are wetting their panties over ‘Drive’. Once again I find myself in the dissenting minority. Only Rosenbaum found it ‘disgusting’ and ‘offensive’.
By the way, I know you’re a big Pinter fan, especially the AFT version of ‘The Homecoming.’ Saw it last night and was absolutely knocked out by its brilliance. Pinter is indeed a master of the English vernacular and ‘The Homecoming’ must surely be his masterpiece.
yeah Mark S I am aware of the Rosenbaum piece, he might be my favorite critic so I took his umbrage with it quite seriously. Though, it’s a film I could have said with a high degree of certainty that he’d hate before I even saw his review.
I have seen that Pinter you speak of (I actually own the dvd) and must concur 100% on its brilliance. It is his masterpiece in my eyes but he has about a half dozen that are pretty close. If you ever have the chance to find BETRAYAL with Jeremy Irons and Ben Kingsley watch it. It’s late era (1980 or so) but it’s his manic ferocity and language gymnastics given the proper treatment of middle age. Plus it uses a backwards narrative (ala MEMENTO) but it’s no gimmick– it leads to a gut wrenching close.
Harold Pinter is the epitome of brilliance in my eyes. I bow at his alter.
While we are at it Rosenbaum also hated TAXI DRIVER if I recall correctly! Or rather he hated it, but begrudgingly recommended it.
I’m not really interested in getting into another discussion about Drive for a long time. The one thing I feel I need to mention is that I’m glad Mark S was not the screenwriter for Drive lol. All his ideas for how things could of turned out in Drive seem less interesting and powerful to me than the end result.
Yeah, it turns it into TRANSPORTER 1, 2, or 3, as that is how all those films ended.
I will say Mark you’re dead on for seeing it as more a DePalma piece then a Mann or Lynch one.
Sam –
I don’t know why, I can’t exactly put my finger on it, but the verbal picture you painted of AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITTE has really tugged at my heart. Maybe it’s the way you ended, “…connected by the beauty in literature.” Regardless, it’s now on my list.
The review you wordsmithed for WEEKEND, equally so. With descriptors such as “naturalistic,” “emotional power,” and “aching discoveries,” it holds the same allure for me.
Autumn has definitely made its presence known in our neck of the woods, as well. Today the wind was whipping the leaves off the trees, turning to give a sly wink, and then sashaying away with a wicked grin. Naughty girl, before we know it, she’ll present herself in a tall, pointed hat on halloween, and then it’s but a blink until winter.
Thank you, as always, for tipping your hat toward Speaking from the Heart.
Laurie—
There is no question whatsoever in my mind that MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGURITTE will float your boat, but well it should as it deftly combines wry humor and poignancy, and features the talents of one of the cinema’s most beloved European thespians. But the film avoids sacchaine resolutions, and even the ending is well-earned. It would bring a smile to the face of the hardest of hearts.
And yes the deeply affecting WEEKEND, which is one of the year’s best films, would I believe, have you most impressed.
Ahaha, Laurie that is the most descriptive and exhilarating description I’ve heard on autumn in a very long time! But like you I love the season!
Have a great week my excellent friend!
Thanks Sam. And a very nice, pithy, well-written intro to my link – how do you do it? 😉
Seriously, this was a fun entry to do but it also ended up taking longer than almost anything else I’ve done. I’m not sure why, should have been simple, but it ended up taking forever. A couple of the entries (Love Exposure & Son of Man specifically) I probably would not have seen without Allan pointing a finger in their direction (and there are others I knew of, but which were elevated in my viewing queue thanks to the decade & genre countdowns or other Wonders pieces).
I watched Son of Man this past weekend for the first time, just before posting the list, and it was fantastic – the best adaptation I’ve seen of the life of Jesus, certainly the most powerful (it outpaces the standard Biblical epics by a million miles, and to my eyes is far more effective than the Pasolini or Scorsese too, though even Allan will probably disagree with that given that the first placed on his 60s countdown and this didn’t show up until the Obscuro. But I’ll stick by it at least until I see the Pasolini again). Blakely is just fucking phenomenal. And this was considered blasphemous in England? Ah yes, how blasphemous not to make Jesus a blonde blue-eyed clean-cut picture postcard to hang on your wall but rather a charismatic wild man who actually makes you think and feel…
Joel–
Ah ha! How do I do it indeed? Well, there’s a little bird on my shoulder doing some professional dictation!
As I explained to others I have been so immersed with those musical reviews that can’t even get to e mails or do much else in the house. That date you are heading in by the way is perfect, and so is that Sunday weekend, and the Monday that follows is a day off from school (Columbus Day). I wlso have those additions an dwill move to secure them if possible.
SON OF MAN is great stuff and I’m not at all surprised you really like it.
Thanks as always my excellent friend!
Oh yeah, I forgot about Columbus Day. I hope everyone can do Sunday, though I might by tired from the extended night before, nothing could keep me away from apocalyptic Godard…
Ha Joel!
I am hoping the group can and will convene for Sunday night. I will forward an e mail to the others and hope we can click for sure.
Hello Sam and everyone! Thanks for featuring an entry that I wish I didn’t really make at all,.specially since it gave “new” life to my blgo which has remained dormant for quite a while. Anyway, October is coming, and as you mention, Halloween as well, and my new yearly tradition of seeing and reviewing a horror film a daty for all October, films that I see that same day, which has prooven to be stressful, but enjoyable.
Anyway, you had a week full of new releases! On my side, I can’t wait for Moneyball, for the actors, for the directors, because of the theme itself…. not so sure about that last thing, since I can’t fully grasp what baseball is all about.
On my behalf, I’ve had a week shockful of stress, with a test on friday, some dissapointments I already talked about on tuesday, a shoot on saturday, and that same day the birthday celebration of my girlfriend, so yeah, I’ve been in motion and this is just starting.
My week, movie wise:
– The Descent (2005, Neil Marshall) ***** One of the best ensemble casts, one of the best central female performances, one of the best horror films of the past decade, and maybe in history, this film is a little splendid gorgeous marvel, and it’s about the third or maybe fifth time I’ve seen it, but this time I looked at the scenery and then read that it was all FAKE! No cave or rock was real, and that is astounding.
– The Kid with the Bike (2011, Dardenne Bros) ****1/2 These filmmakers are like the reverse Bresson, whose cinema was minimalistic and it gradually substracted things from it as his career advanced, these two actually add more things to their style, in this one, short periods of musicalization and more info than we may need. But it’s still a gorgeous film and incredibly acted.
– Son of Godzilla (1967, Jun Fukuda) ***1/2 For some it may be silly, and sometimes it is, but it’s well constructed and the plot makes sense inside its little insane universe, which is filled with cries of help that interfere communications, and many many other little things that could bring anything down, but the charm of the relation between Minja and Godzilla is unbreakable.
– Marisa (2009, Nacho Vigalondo) **** Short film from the spanish oscar nominated director that made one of the best musicals of all time and a time travel movie that I have yet to see. This one plays with the sci fi elements of space and time, actually putting some thought into it and making it a worthwhile watch.
– Pina (2011, Wim Wenders) **** Dance dance dance, interpretive dance documentary that actually makes sense even if it’s just pure dance and almost zero context. It fails to make up to the awesomely edited and made “Le Danse”, but it gains its accolades due to the incredible framing, and mise-en-scene.
Thanks again Sam and have a good week!
Jaimie—Sorry for the late and shorter response than usual, but alas the exceeding demands of the musical countdown have eaten up almost all of my time in the past several days, when a bunch of essays are scheduled to appear in such a short time.
Happy Birthhday to your girlfriend Carol Brito. Sorry otherwise you had a trying week. October and Halloween are great times of the year, and I know you really get into the posting. I’ll be watching to see what horror films you put up there!
Marilyn Ferdinand just saw that Dardennes film at the CIFF, and has already written a review of it at FERDY-ON-FILMS:
http://www.ferdyonfilms.com/?p=11563
But you provide aterrific capsule there! Can’t wait to see the film.
Yes THE DESCENT is absolutely terrifying and I can’t blame you for giving it that highest rating! That’s as claustrophobic a film as I’ve ever seen. And it holds up on repeat viewing!
Fair enough on SON OF GODZILLA, but I still haven’t seen PINA and MARISA.
Have a great week and thanks as always my excellent friend!
Sam thank you as always for shining a light on Creative Potager. I have asked my sweet husband to ad THE MILL AND THE CROSS to our movie request list. It does seem like one I would most enjoy. On our own movie watching adventures I offer up a kind of strange mix even for me 🙂
LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD (1961) Director Alain Resais. This was our choice to take with us on our vacation. A fascinating movie that seems to have sparked much discussion and disagreement about what is really about from the time it was released. Of course I have my theory… and David has his. I will leave those who haven’t seen it to develop their own. Truthfully, I was probably more intrigued by the filming than I was the plot. Gorgeous black and white.
LESSONS OF DARKNESS (1992) Director Werner Herzog’s documentary about the burning Kuwait oil fields impressed me with its lack of blaming and a quality of “baring witness” on the shortsightedness and distructiveness of humans. The spiritual quality of much of the music and the pure gut-wrenching scope of the disaster which still held a certain landscape beauty hit home. Of the three films we saw – this is my “must see” recommendation.
HANNA (2011) Director Joe Wright. Saoirse Ronan and her Spock-like personality as Hanna carried this film for as far as it went. I was disappointed in the amount of character depth and development around an issue which I think haunts many of our waking nightmares – tampering with human DNA. Possibly the robotic behaviours of all but the kindly Grimms – dragging in the most violent of fairy tales and a connection that was not lost on me – is a reminder that for humanity to be humane is not a given but a conscious deliberate intention. I sighed at the end of the film feeling it fell short into the swirling pit of action thrillers when it could have been more… I could see glimpses of more. But alas – it is what it is. For those that like action thrillers… it will not disappoint.
Well, that is all from the little corner of the world known as Mayne Island. Best of the week everyone!
Terrill—
I did think of you immediately after watching THE MILL AND THE CROSS, and was spurred on to write a group e mail, as you noted! Ha!
LAST YEAR AT MARIENBAD is a masterpiece of world cinema in my eyes, so I applaud your commentary here. Yes, it’s an exceedingly difficult film that will always have viewers coming up with their own interpretations. Obviously it’s an exceedingly enigmatic film that blends truth and fiction and it’s a consumate study of character.
I agree completely with your conclusions on Herzog’s film, which left a most disturbing impression for the obvious reasons.
Like you Terrill, a was a minority dissenting voice on HANNA. I can just about agree with every point you make there too! At some point I’ll take a second look but I found this largely style over substance, and a frustrating style at that. Good score and Ronan is quite good though.
Thanks as always Terrill! Have a great weekend!
Best of the weekend to you too Sam and I am glad to not be alone on my experience of HANNA. Thought maybe it was just me:)
Thanks Sam for the mention, and sorry for joining in a bit late.
The Musicals countdown is indeed going very well with one superlative write-up after another being posted. I haven’t participated much in the countdown, but I’ve kept myself reasonably updated throughout the countdown so far.
I’ve managed to watch just 3 movies over the last week – Kubrick’s marvelous anti-war movie Paths of Glory, Truffaut’s much loved The Last Metro, and an old Bengali movie called Chowringhee (which, by the way, is the name of a major thoroughfare in Calcutta).
Ah Shubhait, it’s never late here my friend. I know you’ve been following along with the musical countdown, and likewise I feel the quality of teh writing throughout has been stupendous. The site hits and comments too have been through the roof. I much appreciate your attention and great interest as always.
PATHS OF GLORY is one of the greatest anti-war films of course, and I also count myself as a fan of Truffaut’s THE LAST METRO. I don’t know that older Bengali film, but perhaps I’ll see something posted at CINEMASCOPE.
Thnaks as alway smy very good friend and have a great week!
Sam, I read your weekly activities and the activities of everyone else here and I feel like life is passing me by. I spent the past week pretty damn ill and am still getting over it. Just the thought of getting on the computer made me feel even more nauseous. And I couldn’t even watch any movies. I had Le Corbeau sitting by my DVD player for the whole week, but passed it up in favor of light sitcom entertainment like Bewitched, Scrubs, and The Golden Girls, the only things I could wrap my head around. (I finally did get to Le Corbeau which I loved.)
I have been trying to follow the musical countdown, but there are very few musicals that excite me so I have been less than active. Now when you get to the comedy countdown, it will be a different story.
Jason—
I am very sorry to hear you have been under the weather! You’ve had such a tough time in past months that I can’t help but think that things will reverse themselves soon. I know you” like LE CORBEAU quite abit and hope you’ll soon be in some theatres. You deserve so much better my friend and I regret this bad stretch.
Yep you will be one of the centerpieces of that comedy countdown, as well you should be that area.
Thanks again my friend! Hope you have a very good week!
Hi Sam….I’m loving the musical countdown, I actually had to stop reading and post up – for the last two/three weeks life has been hectic. And every time I’ve come to posted over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been distracted by a new post. The site is very sticky. Anyway, I am going either explore a year or a director and just zing, a film a day – if possible. Fellini, Becker and clouzot are the ones to choose from. Anyway, I saw
Young Winston*** Richard Attenborough
A very accomplished biography with an excellent sense of the period and clever use of film technique. They even get away with asking awkward questions, from the subjective point of view of an off-screen Times journalist. Made within a decade of Churchill’s death, it portrays him in a positive light.
Le Corbeau** (1943) Henri-Georges Clouzot
A marvellous little mystery with dim echoes of ‘Green for Danger’ – what with it’s hospital setting, array of suspects and twisty ending. There are at least two bravura sequences, one in a church with a new piece of fluttering paper and another in a funereal procession that comes to a halt.
Juliet and Her Spirits**** Fellini
A first viewing of this. Fellini’s first film in colour and after ‘8 & 1/2’ – it’s joyous, exuberant and jaunty, with marvellous use of colour. I think one of the factors that make it such a success is that the fantasy dream sequences are braced by the cruel reality of an erring husband. It’s an incredible tightrope to walk along, but the result is an audacious masterpiece.
Planet Dinosaur**
Nearly a decade and a half after the accliamed ‘Walking with Dinosaurs’ comes this sequel from the BBC that uses the same CGI technology but at a third of the cost. An enjoyable diverion.
Le Trou**** – Jacques Becker
Four men trying to escape a prison in 1947 have a new young inmate installed in the cell. should the trust him?
This for me was too much, after the Fellini classic to have another magnificent, towering, staggeringly breath-taking film of this ilk was too much. Whilst watching it, the words Bresson and ‘A Man Escaped’ passed by. Though I was impressed that film and it’s hypnotic, spell-binding technique – the ending didn’t have much of a frission. This one goes one better. It’s is absolutely brilliant thought out. The first half – every jarring hammer smash is shown, he never cuts away. It’s bloody brave, even lean cut a famous scene in ‘Lawrence of Arabia’ because he lost his nerve, but Becker shows the astonishing lengths these men go to – to get out. But it never bores, the sounds pierce. Every journey down a tunnel is shown, it feels like it taking place real time. Then from the moment that the men make a sand dial to measure the time they are underground, Becker starts using dissolves. Their invention of a time piece has allowed cinematic time! The then there is the young inmate’s visit by his wife’s younger sister (the two have had an affair) – it’s the only time that artful glamour shadows are used in the lighting. It says something subliminal! Add to that, the multiple meanings of ‘Le Trou’ – the hole – they are digging a hole, the spy through one and if the youngster is unreliable – they could have one in their midst, in their comradeship. It may also be one of the finest statements of the class system. The upperclasses, the warden and the young inmate are feckless and parasites, the prison guards represent the middle-classes and the four men doing the hard graft, ingenuity and inventiveness are the working classes, in a prison where no harsh treatment is meted out to them, they must escape to a freedom that is denied to them by the artificail construct of brick and mortar that imprisons them. The warders even have them beat up two other prisoners for stealing from them. The workers kept split from each other and antagonistic. Extra, Extraordinary. It’s up there with ‘The Apartment’, ‘Psycho’, ‘Spartacus’ and other classics from it’s year
Anyway, we are having a second wind of beautiful sunshine, it turning into a bit of an Indian summer!
Bobby—
I hear ya! Ha! This place has really been turning them over as of late with the six-day-a-week musical countdown postings leading the way. But when you add in the Fish Obscuro, Getting Over the Beatles mega-series and the marvelous work from Jim Clark, Bob Clark, Maurizio Roca and Dee Dee it’s really abusy place. And that’s not even including the Diary.
But I have been thrilled with the enthusiasm and outstanding writing in regards to the musical countdown.
Bobby, you have me smiling from ear to ear with that glowing assessment of YOUNG WINSTON which I reviewed two years ago (in July) at the site here:
Since we are in musical mode I will copy one short passage from my review here to supplement the link:
“It should not at all be underestimated that the film’s score, composed and conducted by Alfred Ralston, sets the proper archival mode, with a lovely, nostalgic and inspirational title theme, one of the best of its kind ever written for a film. It it a fitting aural testament to the military heroism and political ascendency present in Churchill’s early years, and it is altogether stirring. Ralston also uses various pieces from Edward Elgar to wonderful effect throughout the film.”
Anyway I really am thrilled you gave teh film that high rating, as I know a few others -including Allan- have been less complimentary.
Yes, JULIET OF THE SPIRITS, that ultimate of phantasmogoric films is indeed an audacious masterpiece, and I am with you as well on LE CORBEAU, which is a neat thriller. Oh that funeral sequence is a gem.
I agree with the two star rating for LE DINOSAUR and am fascinated with your effusive praise and deft analysis of LE TROU, which is also a favorite of mine. But I still like Bresson’s A MAN ESCAPE more, as that film for me is the greatest prison drama of all-time.
But what a discussion there! That’s a real keeper my friend.
Thanks as always for the spectacular wrap. You have been deeply missed on this thread!
Sam,
Thanks very much for the mention. You have clearly given up on your blog link diet.
I’ve just watched the trailer of The Mill and The Cross. It looks striking and is of course an intricate exercise but I’m not sure that taking a painting’s look and putting it straight on screen will have the same impact. Two different art forms mean different ways in which the audience approaches things, I think. We’ll see…
I’m enjoying the Musical Countdown and anything else that appears here even if I don’t comment on them. By the way, I suppose you passed the page view milestone (1million) a few months ago.
Stephen—
Ha! I know I keep threatening to pull back on that front, but I’ll somehow managed to keep the status quo. I basically take it one week at a time, and will surely be challenged this coming weekend when I have a late Saturday night musical essay due up. I didnt even start it as I had to work on and complete the one that is going up tonight. So, as I say I could still be stymied this weekend. I’m not sure.
Thanks do very much for following the musical countdown and the activities at the blog. You have been terrific right along and I can’t say how much you valued here. Yes THE MILL AND THE CROSS makes some daring artistic decisions, but I’d say the blending of forms was successful against all odds. But I await your own verdict when you get a chance to see it.
I just now followed up what you have observed about site views at WitD and in wordpress it says we are presently at 1, 499, 651. So that means we are about 350 views away from one and a half million total views. So many people including yourself have been responsible for these totals. Many thanks my very good friend!
Wow. That is impressive.