tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73362668847094088062024-02-19T05:13:10.850-06:00Impressions of a Movie Buff:Films of All Genres, All Countries, and All ErasBen K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.comBlogger31125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-11803090343533664652012-05-30T21:05:00.000-05:002012-05-31T10:37:02.336-05:00The Shaw Brothers Vol. 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79OMm3r2m4b0IysLlkTHecPo8laGLdWmuMJwRoxRPJ28_nSAt066rtFlbjMoVW_FTzSOntNXcSvlqG1WS3TYw8vM4Nz-qSOb-0UC4K-6m2MYS7ReK6rIcJd6wM67Wd6CJKNIdF4fJ9Yga/s1600/shaw1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="166" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj79OMm3r2m4b0IysLlkTHecPo8laGLdWmuMJwRoxRPJ28_nSAt066rtFlbjMoVW_FTzSOntNXcSvlqG1WS3TYw8vM4Nz-qSOb-0UC4K-6m2MYS7ReK6rIcJd6wM67Wd6CJKNIdF4fJ9Yga/s400/shaw1.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">After watching <i>The Raid: Redemption</i> (reviewed <a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/04/great-plotless-wonder.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a>) and <i>The Avengers</i> (<a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/05/avengers-have-arrived.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a>), I decided to delve into some movies that combine elements of both: martial arts, and in a sense, superheroes. This led me to the Shaw Brothers Studio martial arts films. Though I mentioned several kung fu/wuxia films made in the last twenty years that I prefer to <i>The Raid</i>, I felt it necessary to go even further back to the classics of the genre. If you want to see where Quentin Tarantino got most of his inspiration for <i>Kill Bill Vol. 1</i> (2003) and <i>2</i> (2004), this is the place to look. Be aware, however, that not all Shaw Brothers martial arts pictures are created equal. Actually, most of them hit just about every bullet point on the kung fu movie stereotype list. Laughable dubbing (though I highly recommend going with subtitled versions), over-the-top stock sound effects, goofy attempts at humor, and the calling out of special moves like, “Windmill Tiger!” Many of them are a lot of fun though, and a few manage to rise out of the genre's looming shadow. First, I'll take a look at three made in the same year.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnf-E7-9jhOVMW9qpW9BH41ZnT7EgcsH2e8FXvfTIO87R9Fcpb3DGmQddxz0x17uFXLfLXxiLhHx7yqqfht9xJ0bIeXc_e6ZV_JiSkHGTk7U87ptddcsPNBLKhPx2SlxfFyl6gqKj01c6/s1600/shaw3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTnf-E7-9jhOVMW9qpW9BH41ZnT7EgcsH2e8FXvfTIO87R9Fcpb3DGmQddxz0x17uFXLfLXxiLhHx7yqqfht9xJ0bIeXc_e6ZV_JiSkHGTk7U87ptddcsPNBLKhPx2SlxfFyl6gqKj01c6/s400/shaw3.jpg" /></a></div><b>The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978): 7 out of 10</b><br />
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Directed by Lau Kar-leung, this highly entertaining and influential kung fu movie is considered by some to be at the pinnacle of the genre. Lau Kar-leung happened to be a top notch choreographer, often working in that capacity on Chang Cheh's films, and his talents are readily apparent in <i>36th Chamber</i>. This is a refreshing movie because the action sequences do not merely “hold up”, they are arguably superior to most of the unimaginative garbage that passes for action today. The camera moves in dynamic fashion, but the editing doesn't chop everything up, discombobulating the whole endeavor the way Hollywood films often do.<br />
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Our hero is San Te (Gordon Liu), a student whose teacher speaks out against the oppressive Manchu government. San Te becomes part of the rebellion, but when the uprising is squashed, his teacher and family members are murdered. He flees to the secluded Shaolin Temple, where the monks allow him to train in martial arts. He must conquer the temple's thirty-five “chambers”, each presenting a unique challenge that can take months to master. Once he is physically and mentally prepared, he returns to the world from whence he came, to aid the people against their oppressors.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ItI0x_JKwcZI3VLF3B6bJO2NGldn13mmaeeBCyFwpSPyGHPumfwqL1-d3jeGOQXOn59R-QRFsG6QRaomCNUk6IDQgRXylk8AXpWF0NohqmHaDKTrXWME4ctI-T9XzbFcnm8zuZdBpfoD/s1600/shaw2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="231" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ItI0x_JKwcZI3VLF3B6bJO2NGldn13mmaeeBCyFwpSPyGHPumfwqL1-d3jeGOQXOn59R-QRFsG6QRaomCNUk6IDQgRXylk8AXpWF0NohqmHaDKTrXWME4ctI-T9XzbFcnm8zuZdBpfoD/s400/shaw2.jpg" /></a></div>Some pictures are geared toward both sexes, but <i>36th Chamber</i> is clearly a man's movie. Without a trace of romance or even a hint of interest in the opposite sex, the focus is entirely on a man who loses everything, then hones his body and mind into deadly weapons. <i>Rocky (1976)</i> may have come first, but <i>36th Chamber</i> is the quintessential “training” film, and has inspired countless movies in the last thirty-four years. Quentin Tarantino calls it, “the third greatest kung fu movie of all time,” and RZA of the Wu-Tang Clan is fanatically obsessed with Gordon Liu, Shaw Brothers movies, and <i>36th Chamber</i> in particular. I actually think the chamber challenges go on for too long, but in the final act everything pays off. All things considered, this is good stuff indeed.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8IeQQz_XPx6rSGvZaY7Ed9jSD5p17IAPzfb51aAiU5DRK6ks5RLAyPdG-dnHT8hWzUO5rTzDhnBmi0C061MSWZuk5AJOWxSrtdJhm6Erv6PVDCVKKPwS6u0bcfsRA1fIha7XJEuBsUJL/s1600/shaw4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8IeQQz_XPx6rSGvZaY7Ed9jSD5p17IAPzfb51aAiU5DRK6ks5RLAyPdG-dnHT8hWzUO5rTzDhnBmi0C061MSWZuk5AJOWxSrtdJhm6Erv6PVDCVKKPwS6u0bcfsRA1fIha7XJEuBsUJL/s400/shaw4.jpg" /></a></div><b>Five Deadly Venoms (1978): 6 out of 10</b><br />
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This film, moreso than the other two, really blends the superhero and martial arts genres. A superhero, like those recently seen in <i>The Avengers</i>, is a person with a certain skill set (super powers) and a very short list of weaknesses. Five Deadly Venoms gives us a quintet of masked characters with bizarre fighting styles, each based upon a venomous insect/reptile: Centipede, Snake, Scorpion, Lizard, and Toad. The Lizard can defy gravity by walking on walls, for example, and the Toad is invulnerable to any attacks unless they are concentrated on a very small, hidden weak spot.<br />
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The leader of the Poison Clan, as this group of warriors has come to be known, doesn't have much time left to live and he's concerned that some of the clan may be using their powers for evil. Yan Tieh (Chiang Sheng), his young student, is sent to warn a former clan teacher who has collected a fortune over the years through their activities. The clan master fears that his wealth will make him a target of his former pupils. The problem is that even the clan master doesn't know the identities of the students, they all wore masks during training, and some of the students don't know each other because they trained at different times.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3jTkwGM26GVneGsZCvEE7rLvEubZevyi5LRXafw9e_LW2fxDtg7z_1RuFJZX0O6qdK2gcaRfUc9eGpcb6r0JM4-tY62DfXqCXLS9NZ7binlJ4PT5RsjUb63rHGYnLZvt0KFWN6T6skr8F/s1600/shaw5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="398" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3jTkwGM26GVneGsZCvEE7rLvEubZevyi5LRXafw9e_LW2fxDtg7z_1RuFJZX0O6qdK2gcaRfUc9eGpcb6r0JM4-tY62DfXqCXLS9NZ7binlJ4PT5RsjUb63rHGYnLZvt0KFWN6T6skr8F/s400/shaw5.jpg" /></a></div>Surprisingly, this is not a great martial arts showcase, certainly not on the level of <i>The 36th Chamber of Shaolin</i> or <i>Crippled Avengers</i>. It's more of a mystery, and a pretty well made one at that. There are some good fight scenes, of course, but what makes them enjoyable is the intrigue and finding out who's who based on their unique styles. This is actually one of the best screenplays Chang Cheh ever had to work with, if you ask me. Sure, it's a little cheesy, but at the same time it's smarter than it has any right to be. Plus, it's hugely influential, and for good reason. Not only do we see its echoes in Kill Bill's Deadly Viper Assassination Squad and Kung Fu Panda's Furious Five, it is also referenced in the music of Tupac Shakur and the Wu-Tang Clan.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR1mM9o7aMHsabJQMvFHs_646wnYWvMOT-_IoU2a31DT5CmbLRDN_4E5aymGX4fGk1zHpUBVTiouvjcwNmabHNldE89kAHEKB2Vh57mx8iqtZr449dVZRm9jbKtvOHTAhIfQeUD05-a4DC/s1600/shaw6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR1mM9o7aMHsabJQMvFHs_646wnYWvMOT-_IoU2a31DT5CmbLRDN_4E5aymGX4fGk1zHpUBVTiouvjcwNmabHNldE89kAHEKB2Vh57mx8iqtZr449dVZRm9jbKtvOHTAhIfQeUD05-a4DC/s400/shaw6.jpg" /></a></div><b>Crippled Avengers (1978): 5 out of 10</b><br />
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Let's get something out of the way right off the bat: this is an absolutely ridiculous movie. However, as ridiculous movies go, it has to be some kind of masterwork. Most bad movies are just that, offering no redeeming qualities whatsoever, but <i>Crippled Avengers</i> is a different beast. While it's true that cinematic pleasures of a more guilty variety simply do not exist, at least it's a pleasure, right? Not many filmmakers have successfully pulled off the strange balancing act that Chang Cheh does here. It's a surprising amount of campy fun and many people consider this to be the best of the numerous “Venom Mob” films.<br />
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Only four members of the Venom Mob seen in <i>Five Deadly Venoms</i> come back to play here, but that's plenty. In the opening sequence a kung fu master, Dao Tian-du (Chen Kuan-tai), comes home to discover his wife murdered and his son an amputee. Despite killing or crippling those responsible, including their offspring many years later, the seeds of hatred continue to bear fruit as father and son (the latter now outfitted with metal arms that fire darts) terrify the townspeople. The main characters all manage to upset these two, and find themselves punished accordingly. So our heroes are eventually comprised of a deaf-mute, a blind man, a guy with no legs, and an idiot (his head was squeezed in a vice, you see). Together they must put an end to Dao Tian-du's tyranny.<br />
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The production values feel a bit less polished than those in <i>The 36th Chamber of Shaolin</i> and <i>Five Deadly Venoms</i>, but the fight choreography is right up there with <i>36th Chamber</i>, if not better. These guys were all genuine athletes and incredible physical specimens, something we don't quite grasp in <i>Five Deadly Venoms</i>. Here they really get to show what they can do. The hoop fighting sequences are pretty incredible, akin to something one might see in a circus tent. Of course it's all rather goofy, the acting can be lousy at times, and the story has little to recommend it. Having said that, it's almost impossible to find the film boring. Most viewers will have a good time despite themselves.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjsQq6pJwNqa8DR1N1ZEcq83LCbBqjTWN0M8gho86FWTQq2A0wcG487XZUZpJP7WYYXQ9k3_QKWvb61Kh1EtV8tymjveXEJLgu72KBBaXVuPMpYTZhJxdoFhGhIB5AJhcBvt1wA7ajQh1E/s1600/shaw7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="172" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjsQq6pJwNqa8DR1N1ZEcq83LCbBqjTWN0M8gho86FWTQq2A0wcG487XZUZpJP7WYYXQ9k3_QKWvb61Kh1EtV8tymjveXEJLgu72KBBaXVuPMpYTZhJxdoFhGhIB5AJhcBvt1wA7ajQh1E/s400/shaw7.jpg" /></a></div><br />Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-50103875033947990662012-05-14T15:33:00.000-05:002012-05-21T09:59:42.331-05:00The Top 10 Long Tracking Shots<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivQldZ_W66zbyUpHixlrJvUaeI6nY-WIhW7Z9h-Y_IQUrML7Xz1dFbz1bTdZx6rqoDLYXm0Ba63yve2dgSCDosuZtBZA3F2PLNGqbJF8VXpu8ukLAij7vCjnTSLj6KQuAPM_-0WGMajBze/s1600/tracking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivQldZ_W66zbyUpHixlrJvUaeI6nY-WIhW7Z9h-Y_IQUrML7Xz1dFbz1bTdZx6rqoDLYXm0Ba63yve2dgSCDosuZtBZA3F2PLNGqbJF8VXpu8ukLAij7vCjnTSLj6KQuAPM_-0WGMajBze/s400/tracking.jpg" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">In my review of <i style="color: black;">The Avengers</i>, I mentioned the tracking shot that takes place during the final battle. It was very cool, allowing us to see all the heroes fighting their way through New York City in one relatively brief unbroken shot. I wouldn't have tipped my hat if it wasn't good, I openly concede it was a fine piece of work. It wasn't Joss Whedon's first attempt at a tracking shot either, and everyone should check out his even better four-and-a-half minute effort (with one hidden cut) in 2005's <i style="color: black;">Serenity</i>. <br />
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The only problem I have with the terrific success of <i style="color: black;">The Avengers</i> is that youngsters with no knowledge of cinema are pouring out of the woodwork to celebrate the tracking shot I mentioned. Most of them probably didn't even know what a tracking shot was until they read about this one. Frankly, the praise is incredibly over-the-top, and among these kids Joss Whedon is now a visionary cinematic artist on par with Orson Welles. Look, he's talented and I loved <i style="color: black;">The Avengers</i>, but give me a break...<br />
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To counter this foolishness I decided to make a Top 10 list of my favorite tracking/Steadicam shots. I can't objectively say these are the Top 10 tracking shots in cinema history, but I <i>can</i> objectively say that every one of them is better than what we saw in <i style="color: black;">The Avengers</i>. I rated these based on the following factors: shot length, artistry, technical proficiency, the purpose it serves in the film, and what I perceive to be the overall level of difficulty required to pull it off.<br />
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First I will acknowledge some of the tracking shots that do not appear on my list, but have been featured on similar lists. You won't find Brian De Palma here; nothing from <i style="color: black;">Bonfire of the Vanities (1990)</i>, <i>Raising Cain (1992)</i>, <i style="color: black;">Carlito's Way (1993)</i>, or <i style="color: black;">Snake Eyes (1998)</i>. In my view, the Grand Central Station sequence in <i style="color: black;">Carlito's Way</i> is schooled by the shots on my list, and the opening of <i style="color: black;">Snake Eyes</i> had “invisible” cuts that were just too obvious. If I wanted hidden cuts I would put Hitchcock's <i style="color: black;">Rope (1948)</i> on here, though I suppose it would be characterized as a “long take” rather than a tracking shot. De Palma's opening shot in <i style="color: black;">Bonfire of the Vanities</i> is four minutes and forty-three seconds of splendid, must-see Steadicam work, unfortunately marred by some average acting and overall goofiness. Actually, the De Palma shot that almost made the list is one of his most subtle: the ballot pick-up and prom queen announcement scene in <i>Carrie (1976)</i>.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDeR3mq7agr10RAHSDfFilzd7aZc9n8seyT7RVcKuprRZ4hmh7RwwY4cY4c3jYgvUWBqdQ_C8wm7m1uVLEzqBmzaVg_y1tf-KJsMyvohEHb6qURh1OcIjQcQGFiBKsBptRjlCZNgExqo7H/s1600/tracking6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="225" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDeR3mq7agr10RAHSDfFilzd7aZc9n8seyT7RVcKuprRZ4hmh7RwwY4cY4c3jYgvUWBqdQ_C8wm7m1uVLEzqBmzaVg_y1tf-KJsMyvohEHb6qURh1OcIjQcQGFiBKsBptRjlCZNgExqo7H/s400/tracking6.jpg" /></a></div>There is no P.T. Anderson because while I love his tracking shots in <i style="color: black;">Boogie Nights (1997)</i> and <i style="color: black;">Magnolia (2000)</i>, I can't shake the feeling that he's a grand imitator. I see elements in those shots (and his films in general) that remind me too much of Scorsese, Altman, De Palma, and Welles. It bugs me a bit, and his shots aren't necessarily better than any I've listed, regardless. As for Jean-Luc Godard's celebrated sequence in <i style="color: black;">Week End (1968)</i>, I felt the camera there was a bit on the static side, as moving cameras go, simply gliding left to right for nearly seven and a half minutes.<br />
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Kubrick's body of work offers dozens of exquisite examples, but I'm not sure any single shot belongs in the Top 10 (if one did, it would likely be from <i style="color: black;">Paths of Glory</i> or <i style="color: black;">Eyes Wide Shut</i>, not <i style="color: black;">The Shining</i>). Antonioni ended <i style="color: black;">The Passenger (1975)</i> with a fantastic, slow moving long take, but does it really fit the bill as a Top 10 tracking shot? Spielberg has done several, including that rather impressive sequence with the mechanical spiders scanning the residents of an apartment building in <i style="color: black;">Minority Report (2002)</i>. Dario Argento threw a gratuitous one into his film <i style="color: black;">Tenebre (1982)</i>. There's also a fine example in Quentin Tarantino's <i style="color: black;">Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003)</i>, but it sits just outside the Top 10, for me. The brutal fight scene in <i style="color: black;">Oldboy (2003)</i> is topped by a particular entry that made my list, the hospital shootout in John Woo's <i style="color: black;">Hard-Boiled (1992)</i> came close, and the six minute, forty-seven second opening to Johnnie To's <i>Breaking News (2004)</i> actually <i>did</i> make my first Top 10 draft.<br />
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The fact is, there are plenty of exceptional tracking shots in the cinema. There is one in Murnau's <i style="color: black;">Sunrise (1927)</i> that I simply couldn't find a place for, despite how much I love it, but I suppose it's not terribly complex by today's standards anyway (still gorgeous though). I would like to add something by Andrei Tarkovsky, perhaps that brilliant bit with the burning cabin in <i style="color: black;">Mirror (1975)</i> or the final shot of <i style="color: black;">The Sacrifice (1986)</i>, but the former is on the short side while the latter resembles more of a static long take. <br />
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<i>The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)</i> has that terrific shot near the end, and Howard Hawks' <i>Scarface (1932)</i> has a phenomenal one to open the film. There are stunning examples in Hitchcock's work, and in the oeuvres of Mizoguchi, Kurosawa, Renoir, Truffaut, Angelopoulos, Ruiz, Jansco, and Ophuls. Then there is Sergei Bondarchuk's <i style="color: black;"><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2008/08/epic-among-epics.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">War and Peace (1967)</span></a></i>, the greatest epic in cinematic history and one of the most stunning tour de force spectacles these eyes have ever seen. That puppy is loaded with brilliant tracking shots, often in succession. <br />
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All of these filmmakers are easily on the level of those who made the list. Let's face it, a great tracking shot may be worthy of praise, but it doesn't make a movie by itself. Unless one shot <i>is</i> the movie, as was the case with Sokurov's <i style="color: black;">Russian Ark</i>. This claim has been made about a few others, including <i style="color: black;">PVC-1 (2007)</i>, a Columbian film, and a 2010 picture from Uruguay called <i style="color: black;">The Silent House</i> (the 2011 U.S. remake was done in twelve minute takes and stitched together to appear as a single shot). While I'm not a huge fan of <i style="color: black;">Russian Ark</i>, it is the definitive single shot film because it's more complex and elaborate than the others, in addition to being a true single shot.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEGI6fmwK9fd7eNnJDB42wItZ-i2cmWqCyEt81QYdqk2lZUa9qBfdjpe9k07pn98Hu7lymlLJK3UR_0iPM6m7g6lSqpKpFObHwmDcqFfuT2o-VsyI2MPAvoPsRBApC-qMSe6XRSzcJEqej/s1600/tracking3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEGI6fmwK9fd7eNnJDB42wItZ-i2cmWqCyEt81QYdqk2lZUa9qBfdjpe9k07pn98Hu7lymlLJK3UR_0iPM6m7g6lSqpKpFObHwmDcqFfuT2o-VsyI2MPAvoPsRBApC-qMSe6XRSzcJEqej/s400/tracking3.jpg" /></a></div>To be perfectly clear, I have more respect for real tracking shots than those that are patched together from various shots. Believe me, I know <i style="color: black;">Children of Men (2006)</i> is a marvelous technical achievement. I understand how much work went into pulling off those extended shots of the car under attack and the long tracking shot sequence near the end. I also know that neither one was truly a single shot. A 2010 film from Argentina, <i style="color: black;">The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)</i>, has one of the finest looking aerial/tracking shots I've seen, but it was a patchwork job too. Still impressive, certainly, just not <i>as</i> impressive as the real thing.<br />
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For a comparison, I'll go back to <i style="color: black;">War and Peace</i>. What makes it so phenomenal is knowing everything is real. 120,000 soldiers, incredible tracking shots, pyrotechnics, crane shots soaring above vast armies, aerial shots of the battlefield on a scale like <i style="color: black;">Lord of the Rings</i>; all without computer animation. <i style="color: black;">War and Peace</i> wouldn't be <i style="color: black;">War and Peace</i> had it been aided by computers, it simply wouldn't be as jaw dropping. Period. <br />
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With lengthy tracking shots, it's the same concept. What makes them special is the intricate choreography, impeccable timing, complex logistics, etc. that we know to be involved in capturing so much in a single take. The actors and crew realize that if they screw up, it's time to do it all over again, often at great expense. How can I have the same admiration for a shot that “cheats” to get it right? All of the sequences I have selected for my Top 10 were truly captured in a single shot, and with one exception, they each last over two minutes.<br />
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<b>1. Touch of Evil (1958) - 3 min, 11 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg8MqjoFvy4" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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The perfect example of a tracking crane shot that not only baffles on a technical level, but also serves an enormous purpose within the narrative. In just over three minutes of cinematic brilliance courtesy of Orson Welles, we are introduced to the two newlywed main characters (Charlton Heston and Janet Leigh), four atmospheric blocks or so of our setting (a U.S./Mexican border town), and the mystery that must be solved. In addition to putting the entire plot into motion, we have the added drama of knowing there is a bomb that could go off at any time.<br />
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<b style="color: black;">2. I Am Cuba (1964) - Funeral Procession: 2 min, 30 sec - Rooftop/Pool Sequence: 3 min, 22 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=sYFXv6bDIY8#t=101s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch 1</span></a> <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=eOLVm_9UcRw#t=130s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch 2</span></a></b><br />
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Absolutely stunning work from director Mikhail Kalatozov and the rest of the creative team behind <i style="color: black;">The Cranes Are Flying (1957)</i>, another film loaded with fine tracking shots. Though I probably prefer the visual poetry of the funeral procession, I also love the rooftop shot, so I included both. Each is a stunning artistic and technical achievement that inspired a friend of mine to ask, "Were any cameramen injured during the making of this movie?"<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9NCPaUS4cdR2EMbag0a_CH67uGg3rADywDggIkCOfoIawiT8-7ZCk0LOul9MAJLVvnq9l8NGOrWep_CvLsA69mGyuCC9NPlggmgEwGtydb55ZsHU21IsGeLFtd21HMSkNLbhJkx-pmXF/s1600/tracking2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU9NCPaUS4cdR2EMbag0a_CH67uGg3rADywDggIkCOfoIawiT8-7ZCk0LOul9MAJLVvnq9l8NGOrWep_CvLsA69mGyuCC9NPlggmgEwGtydb55ZsHU21IsGeLFtd21HMSkNLbhJkx-pmXF/s400/tracking2.jpg" /></a></div><b style="color: black;">3. The Longest Day (1962) - 1 min, 27 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=fzd1gCc5CO8#t=19s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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It may have the shortest shot length on this list, but it deserves every bit of its ranking. Among action sequences, it arguably remains the finest long tracking shot ever done. Granted, it was filmed from a helicopter, but it still registers as a tracking shot. The level of complexity here is astounding. The timing of everything from cast movements to explosives and squibs, etc. had to be perfect. It's an accomplishment of epic proportions, to say the least. Wow.<br />
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<b style="color: black;">4. Werckmeister Harmonies (2000) - 7 min, 51 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=lRBOnJMJQzE#t=3s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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This beautiful, poignant sequence from one of Bela Tarr's finest films is more than twice as long as any shot I've listed thus far, but it's not as technically complex. This one ranks so highly because it's <i>more</i> than a wonderful tracking shot. It's a lyrical vision of characters going through an emotional catharsis, and it serves a strong thematic purpose within the narrative. One could argue that this scene tells a complete story by itself, almost like a short film, but in the context of the whole picture this shot takes on an even greater significance. Notice Tarr's decision to focus on the sounds of destruction in the hospital, while leaving the victims to suffer in silence.<br />
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<b style="color: black;"> 5. Goodfellas (1990) - 3 min, 3 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCYwcObxl78" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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It took eight takes to nail this; the best and most celebrated tracking shot of Martin Scorsese's career. Though it is full of energy and technical bravado, it also serves as a peek into the privileged mobster lifestyle.<br />
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<b style="color: black;"> 6. The Player (1992) - 7 min, 47 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=0epB5Z6ijpk#t=14s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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This playful, satirical opening shot introduces a number of major characters at a Hollywood studio, and much like the one in <i style="color: black;">Touch of Evil</i>, it really sets the entire story in motion. Fifteen takes were required to get this thing right, and it's clearly a masterpiece of ensemble timing in the Altman tradition.<br />
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<b style="color: black;"> 7. Russian Ark (2002) - 91 min, 27 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=2WSTTKHTpps#t=125s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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Some people love Sokurov's film, others hate it, but we all have to give it credit for doing the seemingly impossible. It's an entire film in a single shot, and it was so well planned and thoroughly choreographed that only two takes were ruined. The third take is the film we see.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjec3SgDTMxx2q1-1E2RBdDAEKSAm7c_wufLcZFDE9FvlQjcnTVNY2j0aM13-QzpS89qbENKQEuHHK82jV5UiAsSignLonBq7i0fKhSy32zgH0hmQZ_9EQxNLyQAuGzHnTDpXCYhr1-kuny/s1600/tracking7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjec3SgDTMxx2q1-1E2RBdDAEKSAm7c_wufLcZFDE9FvlQjcnTVNY2j0aM13-QzpS89qbENKQEuHHK82jV5UiAsSignLonBq7i0fKhSy32zgH0hmQZ_9EQxNLyQAuGzHnTDpXCYhr1-kuny/s400/tracking7.jpg" /></a></div><b style="color: black;"> 8. Atonement (2007) - 5 min - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ--DSeIUZ0" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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Some people have accused Joe Wright, the director, of showing off with this scene. I don't agree, but even if I did the shot might find its way onto this list. <i>Atonement</i> had a $30 million budget, and Wright needed about $4 million more to do the Dunkirk scene as it was written. Permission wasn't granted, so Wright improvised and this shot (the third take) was the result. A big chunk of the budget was spent that day, with all kinds of set decoration, over a thousand costumed extras, horses, etc. It's lovely, superbly choreographed, and even tragic, in its way, which was probably the point.<br />
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<b style="color: black;"> 9. The Protector (2005) - 3 min, 46 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=IM2atZfn87M#t=20s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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It may be the worst overall movie in the Top 10, but this Steadicam shot is absolutely spectacular. I could watch it half a dozen times in a row and still marvel at it. It took a month of rehearsal and five takes to accomplish; one can only imagine the timing and effort required here by everyone involved, particularly the stunt men and Tony Jaa. I even feel bad for the set decorators, who undoubtedly had quite a job fixing the set and replacing props after the four failed takes. This is, hands down, the greatest single shot hand-to-hand action sequence ever filmed. That's why it made the list. It's so incredible on its merits that it doesn't even matter if Tony Jaa is just beating the tar out of people to rescue his pet elephants...<br />
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<b style="color: black;"> 10. Much Ado About Nothing (1993) - 2 min, 39 sec - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=AzNQTJgRioM#t=288s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Watch</span></a></b><br />
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A couple shots on this list begin their respective films, but this shot ends one. It's a gorgeous sequence filled with energy, joy, and jubilation as the cast members dance through a courtyard and garden. All this merrymaking culminates in a masterful crane shot that takes in the scope of the celebration.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcL-eHsawGM7V_UR6LuEi4AOdjmzc-xgKHhwXurTg0niD8xWrzoGGRAydUDJnfFVeTDrLevhjTsNk5fllZMO75zip9tS-irfIDkbw5MFtdtDt1GT8CG9ONky46MEaXuUoJ2309YGYeq4zq/s1600/tracking4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="214" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcL-eHsawGM7V_UR6LuEi4AOdjmzc-xgKHhwXurTg0niD8xWrzoGGRAydUDJnfFVeTDrLevhjTsNk5fllZMO75zip9tS-irfIDkbw5MFtdtDt1GT8CG9ONky46MEaXuUoJ2309YGYeq4zq/s400/tracking4.jpg" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-61542438402302376022012-05-05T09:54:00.000-05:002012-05-08T09:12:31.149-05:00The Avengers Have Arrived<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWP6xyTjFkSMi8wSq8dgpE95UF5kbJ0HFz9Hq0BGyW4RDDzCd50rgX4uSnqUVHuzFPwwuMxAdjmiWns5-S54oG2ilvF9rfZOfAJWubmGDmqVq7zpK2mrH5eI3V5bzonJoQRQmMvmyYF6A/s1600/avengers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWP6xyTjFkSMi8wSq8dgpE95UF5kbJ0HFz9Hq0BGyW4RDDzCd50rgX4uSnqUVHuzFPwwuMxAdjmiWns5-S54oG2ilvF9rfZOfAJWubmGDmqVq7zpK2mrH5eI3V5bzonJoQRQmMvmyYF6A/s320/avengers.jpg" width="216" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">People often wonder why critics tend to beat up on the big, mainstream Hollywood blockbusters. Are they just being contrary and going against popular opinion? No, they do it because these films, if we are “profiling”, tend to have the least respect for the intelligence of their audience. Film critics sit through hundreds of movies a year; they know the landscape, so to speak. They know when they are being fed over-advertised garbage by a film studio that's just out to make a buck. Woody Allen once went so far as to say, “If my films don't show a profit, I know I'm doing something right.” Why? Because like it or not, when it comes to filmmaking Hollywood has a reputation for embracing a calculated assembly line approach. “Groups A and B will like this movie, what else can we throw in there to get Group C on board?” It's a bit insulting. We are people, not cattle.<br />
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Here's the thing though, there's nothing inherently wrong with popular entertainment. It's just that far too many people don't subject these behemoths to any form of discriminating taste, so Hollywood gets a free pass whether the end result is trash or treasure. It's like making no distinction between ten different glasses of wine, you simply take a sip of all of them and say, “They're good enough.” If <i>Battle: Los Angeles (2011)</i> was one of those wines, I would pour it out in disgust. One taste of <i>The Avengers</i>, however, and I'm thinking, “Give me some more of that one!” The difference is palpable. If more Hollywood blockbusters were on the level of <i>The Avengers</i>, critics wouldn't have to bash so many awful ones along the way.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzRmPwg1kAVYIRpGDgmeKjug2uvfoNgce_EkKKdiMrojidSwDRcSBvntTnEi2LD5yELDnKEp7UIwxYvLNo5MFAuMG4I7qLdZwyTH-mIfctjSwLYuORe05C4KNoVLxT7AfIE_0TQnV82Pj/s1600/avengers5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUzRmPwg1kAVYIRpGDgmeKjug2uvfoNgce_EkKKdiMrojidSwDRcSBvntTnEi2LD5yELDnKEp7UIwxYvLNo5MFAuMG4I7qLdZwyTH-mIfctjSwLYuORe05C4KNoVLxT7AfIE_0TQnV82Pj/s320/avengers5.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black;">What makes <i>The Avengers</i> so special? The list is long: character, wit, imagination, epic scope, exciting choreography, you name it. I actually enjoyed most of the characters here even more than I did in their own movies. Hulk (Mark Ruffalo this time around) and Captain America (Chris Evans) were both given short shrift in their pictures, which were average at best, but here they are both quite appealing. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) certainly isn't a complex fellow, but he was more fun to watch than he was last year. We see a lot more of Black Widow (Scarlett Johannson), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), all of whom get to show what they can do after being relegated to smaller roles. Last but not least, Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) can still be counted on to flaunt his extra large ego and let the wisecracks fly.<br />
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The film picks up where <i>Thor (2011)</i> left off, in a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility where Dr. Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard) is trying to unlock the mysteries of the Tesseract, a potential source of unlimited power used by Red Skull and HYDRA in <i>Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)</i>. The Tesseract also functions as a gateway to other realms, and it is through this gateway that Thor's brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), returns after his fall from Asgard. With his trusty new spear he can subjugate his victims, creating servants of Dr. Selvig and the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Hawkeye. Nick Fury escapes with his life, while Loki makes off with the Tesseract.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipReYzEL31I3SAraN7K3d3DYmJB60uyji05MkDlW_HgQv6i-pT_jjoDtGWd3AuHdM_Fyiftmi7C3qhVLZB2cb7HzxOWpZZkynU5xaoy9z_IZkE6j0SDpnYIveCHLW7bQpM3BMbYa2aL_IT/s1600/avengers6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipReYzEL31I3SAraN7K3d3DYmJB60uyji05MkDlW_HgQv6i-pT_jjoDtGWd3AuHdM_Fyiftmi7C3qhVLZB2cb7HzxOWpZZkynU5xaoy9z_IZkE6j0SDpnYIveCHLW7bQpM3BMbYa2aL_IT/s320/avengers6.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="color: black;">Loki's motive? To be worshiped as a god, apparently, the way Asgardians used to be. He feels that humans are a greatly inferior race innately yearning to bow down and be controlled by someone powerful. When he fell from Asgard, Loki ended up in the realm of the Chitauri, a hive-minded alien race looking to possess the Tesseract. Loki makes a deal; the Tesseract in exchange for an army of Chitauri to conquer Earth.<br />
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Unaware of these details, Fury still knows that Loki and the Tesseract are a potentially devastating mix. He decides it is time to put the “Avenger Initiative” into effect. So, from various corners of the world our heroes are brought together, and all but Thor and Hawkeye meet on an advanced S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft carrier that can fly and use “reflection panels” to turn invisible.</span> <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-SOqn-FNJk2T3uFWpwbgLJOxmcdShG2l_i5mRHnKHufXudQbgXl4u2bRy_RJPGxhjV4WGxSjnDFARlOpAQleMVB8-aXk4OxoJ59RjMbFVA4Vh-dmm4cM6j-Gkq9mjYgDQghlJ4i2JnASW/s1600/avengers4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-SOqn-FNJk2T3uFWpwbgLJOxmcdShG2l_i5mRHnKHufXudQbgXl4u2bRy_RJPGxhjV4WGxSjnDFARlOpAQleMVB8-aXk4OxoJ59RjMbFVA4Vh-dmm4cM6j-Gkq9mjYgDQghlJ4i2JnASW/s320/avengers4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Loki's next step is to locate iridium, which must be used in conjunction with the Tesseract to open the huge portal that will allow the Chitauri to invade Earth. He locates the iridium in Germany, where Iron Man and Captain America intercept him. Loki is captured, and on the way back to the carrier, Thor shows up for a few choice words with his brother. This culminates in a fun forest brawl between Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor.<br />
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At this point, not even halfway through the film, it would probably be wise of me to scale back on the details, and simply address what works so well in general. In a film like this, interaction between the key players is priceless, and writer/director Joss Whedon (co-writer of</span> <i><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/04/horror-movies-will-should-never-be-same.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">The Cabin in the Woods</span></a></i><span style="color: black;">) really nails it. I particularly enjoyed the bits between Iron Man and Captain America, two polar opposites who collide like trains. The former is accused of being a self-serving egomaniac, while the latter is as selfless and straight-laced as they come. Maybe though, just maybe, even Tony Stark will prove willing to sacrifice for the greater good.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_IQh1nWqdiZ9FoljhyRV3w6AmtCHlNUx6iIhCDT6x5GjXcXVhXFn8aDI-vJBeatpjXsHzwL2K_gp3z6MlsMtYx9qAUNN75sOl4aV8SyTlFIeJkbu1Pu9ehzRDDYKNB__zQUToZtm98dIc/s1600/avengers10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_IQh1nWqdiZ9FoljhyRV3w6AmtCHlNUx6iIhCDT6x5GjXcXVhXFn8aDI-vJBeatpjXsHzwL2K_gp3z6MlsMtYx9qAUNN75sOl4aV8SyTlFIeJkbu1Pu9ehzRDDYKNB__zQUToZtm98dIc/s320/avengers10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Loki is still a solid villain, as he was in <i>Thor</i>, appearing all the more so as his devious plans come to light. Our heroes, though they never seem to run any genuine risk of biting the dust, at least appear to have their hands full. There are several terrific action setpieces, the best I've seen since last year's <i>Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol</i>, that should be studied by filmmakers who think good action means shaking the camera around while blowing everything up and filling the gaps with CGI.<br />
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Naysayers have compared the forty minute final battle here to what we saw in <i>Transformers: Dark of the Moon</i> last year. Not a chance. <i>Transformers</i> featured idiotic characters and writing, so by the time Chicago had become a war zone, I was about ready to slice my wrists. Besides, the battle itself was simply not engaging. There was no one worth caring about or rooting for, all I saw were a bunch of computer generated robots laying waste to the city. In <i>The Avengers</i>, even when the Hulk and Iron Man are purely animated constructs, we see them as characters. We like them, we want them to succeed.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl35MUz7zegeuzDGsDF7vPDM1zPUaCvT0lct7UzDZt9aOYvYb1kyLOyMHn9hJK3wr3zUYt-1p-NrVZZDvkPAmzoQ4o_Aje0UnoQ_1RPUSC2D-XfdB30tuu7RPQ8o8ql2DT4Hr0-iP3maLg/s1600/avengers9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl35MUz7zegeuzDGsDF7vPDM1zPUaCvT0lct7UzDZt9aOYvYb1kyLOyMHn9hJK3wr3zUYt-1p-NrVZZDvkPAmzoQ4o_Aje0UnoQ_1RPUSC2D-XfdB30tuu7RPQ8o8ql2DT4Hr0-iP3maLg/s320/avengers9.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Speaking of that final battle, it really should be considered a tour de force of some kind. I mean, it's not the Battle of Borodino in Bondarchuk's </span> <i><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2008/08/epic-among-epics.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">War and Peace (1967)</span></a></i><span style="color: black;">, but my goodness, Whedon and his editors (Jeffrey Ford and Lisa Lassek) are due some credit for managing all the different gears of this machine. There's an awful lot going on, but it never devolves into a chaotic mess. There's computer animation everywhere, buildings getting torn apart, huge alien snakes flying around, explosions galore, and yet the film never loses sight of its heroes. They provide us a focal point, visually and emotionally, which is why this machine emits a hum instead of a hiss.<br />
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There is also an impressive tracking shot in the climactic battle as the camera flies from hero to hero kicking butt around the city without any visible cuts. It's a nice touch, indeed, though I still prefer the craftsmanship of <i>real</i> tracking shots like those found in <i>Touch of Evil (1958)</i> and <i>Goodfellas (1990)</i>. Another fine addition is the humor peppered throughout, with Iron Man and the Hulk getting the most laughs from the audience I saw it with. The stakes are pretty high when you're talking about world domination, but it's still a comic book adventure, right? Whedon understands that lighter moments don't have to come at the expense of the heavier stuff.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ71xAA29-s4rl83BN190y3F59cwRVt3RBwv6l9ql5QsjfM-PO-GZTvNkmNRwqJXKNt_ozLkc68gVU9ZZGcBPfAR4h4tlJx8q0SjpmHspkagOdzEipSH-pdWSm5-H8SFj2RAUk7hvTllhN/s1600/avengers2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ71xAA29-s4rl83BN190y3F59cwRVt3RBwv6l9ql5QsjfM-PO-GZTvNkmNRwqJXKNt_ozLkc68gVU9ZZGcBPfAR4h4tlJx8q0SjpmHspkagOdzEipSH-pdWSm5-H8SFj2RAUk7hvTllhN/s320/avengers2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Ultimately, what we have here is a grand ol' time at the movies, and a splendid example of the Hollywood blockbuster done right. A lot of directors get lazy and complacent when given a $220 million budget, but bundles of cash seem to get Joss Whedon's creative juices flowing all the more. You really see that money up on the screen, and every hero gets their chance to shine, so if you have a favorite, I doubt you'll be disappointed. <br />
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It's not high art, nor will the story win any awards, but <i>The Avengers</i> is better escapist entertainment than every one of the films that led up to it. I call that “living up to the hype”. However, Marvel Studios' success here should also be their gravest concern. With <i>Iron Man 3</i>, <i>Thor 2</i>, and <i>Captain America 2</i> already in the making, they have to be wondering, “How do we measure up to <i>The Avengers</i> with these solo efforts?” Frankly, that's a damn good question.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><b>The Avengers (2012): 8 out of 10</b><br />
<b>Battle: Los Angeles (2011): 1 out of 10</b><br />
<b>Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011): 2 out of 10</b><br />
<b>Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011): 8 out of 10</b><br />
<b>War and Peace (1967): 9 out of 10</b><br />
<b>Touch of Evil (1958): 9 out of 10</b><br />
<b>Goodfellas (1990): 9 out of 10</b></span><b style="color: black;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: black; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqhqQVdZbNGpBn9Vaz73hlkX28Y8m-8QxWTU-hJC7wsPzceZE7LeZvDGyhxeQ5uBjXbu0pudbVxgIndAF-NRQqBV3QNZWXSh9GldVVAOwjTR_uTo9Hw75ZfKuL52LlRyQHXpyWEROyNPe/s1600/avengers3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqhqQVdZbNGpBn9Vaz73hlkX28Y8m-8QxWTU-hJC7wsPzceZE7LeZvDGyhxeQ5uBjXbu0pudbVxgIndAF-NRQqBV3QNZWXSh9GldVVAOwjTR_uTo9Hw75ZfKuL52LlRyQHXpyWEROyNPe/s320/avengers3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-66680176584601859562012-05-03T11:32:00.000-05:002012-05-08T10:39:48.374-05:00The Avengers Are Coming: Part Three<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmZcdL-yYOojbpt2j0kg3813xtY823E6LzSxxCqk99ORzdz_52rKh_bYQmU-b6BBsxb0wrKk8d5zit4L_QEOHCUaEU5SB0art-4g8uwwnrtXpG46m0kBiAQkOEzxig2tMj-RnNUdMU520/s1600/thor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirmZcdL-yYOojbpt2j0kg3813xtY823E6LzSxxCqk99ORzdz_52rKh_bYQmU-b6BBsxb0wrKk8d5zit4L_QEOHCUaEU5SB0art-4g8uwwnrtXpG46m0kBiAQkOEzxig2tMj-RnNUdMU520/s320/thor.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><span style="color: black;"><strong>THOR (2011)</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Who in the world ever thought Kenneth Branagh, an actor/filmmaker best known for adapting Shakespeare, would direct a movie about a superhero from the pages of a Marvel comic? Anyone who says they predicted such a thing simply has to be lying, but here we are. Early on the picture feels particularly un-Branagh-like, with an excess of computer animation; the entire frame seems to be filled with CGI for most of the first twenty minutes. Of course, like <em>Avatar (2009)</em>, they had to create an entirely different world from our own. Asgard is a land of rainbow bridges and golden spires, seemingly surrounded by a vast ocean and then...outer space. The “rules” of this place are never fully understood, it doesn't quite feel fleshed out or real, certainly not compared to Avatar's Pandora, but then again we aren't in Asgard much and most of the action is confined to the palace when we are.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">We begin with a variation on Norse mythology, related in a story by Odin (Anthony Hopkins), the king of Asgard. The tale involves evil beings called Frost Giants from one of the nine realms known as Jotunheim, who once tried to conquer Earth. Odin's forces drove the Frost Giants back to Jotunheim and stole a glowing blue casket that served as their power source. Why do we need to know all this? Because on the day that Odin's eldest son, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), is to become king, the Frost Giants infiltrate the palace in Asgard to retrieve the casket. A huge “Destroyer” robot laser beams them all into oblivion, protecting the treasure room.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRadguf-jZNEtCGE7uq665UIGMXQ2WnKOz_5Z7nOA6LdSb4Rj_Y5eTnYUYAkfhjNgXTM-gpuWyJpQt_08BTjfeu71SSgkHJP1rbLgom6iGEOn7GdyY4xP4dmzUdT_H-m9IeniSLiXEugoJ/s1600/thor3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRadguf-jZNEtCGE7uq665UIGMXQ2WnKOz_5Z7nOA6LdSb4Rj_Y5eTnYUYAkfhjNgXTM-gpuWyJpQt_08BTjfeu71SSgkHJP1rbLgom6iGEOn7GdyY4xP4dmzUdT_H-m9IeniSLiXEugoJ/s320/thor3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Thor wants to take an army to Jotunheim seeking revenge, but Odin is still king, and he disagrees. Recklessly, Thor and a small group of allies, including his brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), go to Jotunheim on their own and engage in a big, over-the-top cartoon battle with the Frost Giants. The movie came very close to losing me at this point, I was simply not engaged or impressed by these silly antics. Odin comes to the rescue, however, and he's so upset that he strips Thor of his power (the hammer), and exiles him to Earth. Like a nice father, he tosses the hammer down to Earth too, just in case someone down there is more worthy of Thor's power, perhaps eventually Thor himself.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It's a good thing Thor landed in New Mexico because they happen to speak in Thor's own ancient Asgardian tongue, a language also known as English. The Frost Giants are fluent, as well. It's an easy Marvel universe to live in, indeed. If Thor had landed in Japan, I guess the movie would have just ended on a hopeless note? Anyway, in New Mexico he meets Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), an astrophysicist, and her teacher, Dr. Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard). This is where the movie hits its stride and reveals its sense of humor. The comedy is based around the fish out of water situation, Thor's goofy comments that sounded just fine back in Asgard, and the fact that he still thinks he is a powerhouse when he's not. Of the five Marvel films leading up to <em>The Avengers</em>, I dare say only the original <em>Iron Man</em> was this lighthearted and funny.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmM6P11tGrICiRcxsswSQQoBzvQLtXN6U2e8c1Cakcl6hL5u5Ewm_SR8ued_tY94e6IBMJ_7hLchGJFokJCbM8b3yU4aaURXoo4DFurXJXt6uilRnsTlmV2w1ARx9KZe4SQ8v2c4GRbTQ2/s1600/thor4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmM6P11tGrICiRcxsswSQQoBzvQLtXN6U2e8c1Cakcl6hL5u5Ewm_SR8ued_tY94e6IBMJ_7hLchGJFokJCbM8b3yU4aaURXoo4DFurXJXt6uilRnsTlmV2w1ARx9KZe4SQ8v2c4GRbTQ2/s320/thor4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Thor realizes he will need his hammer back, but its landing place has been surrounded by S.H.I.E.L.D. No one can remove it from where it rests, much like Excalibur. Thor successfully fights his way in, but even he fails to remove the hammer. In this scene, we are introduced to Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and his crazy bow and arrow, both in the service of S.H.I.E.L.D. He will play a larger role in <em>The Avengers</em>, but for the moment Thor gets interrogated by Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg, his third time in Coulson's shoes). Loki visits his brother when Coulson is out of the room, and we learn shortly that he has betrayed Thor, Odin, and all of Asgard.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Obviously Thor won't remain a prisoner, there will be more butt kicking and his power will return before he takes on Loki. We essentially know these things before we even sit down with our popcorn. Still, <em>Thor</em> is a pretty fun comic book adventure, and a notch better than your average origin story. It's overkill in the beginning, with all the CG “spectacle” and huge, sleep inducing battles, but while they could have been done better, those moments ultimately set the stage for what is to come. Obviously, there are plenty of things that make no logical sense, and there is never any real feeling of danger since Thor seems immortal, pretty much. At one point he is blasted through the wall of the palace in Asgard and plummets about a quarter mile. The next time we see him, he's flying across the rainbow bridge without a scratch.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEOBRgabrBFcDi1_tzoa0VW-A8eS8_oNgxHL3sfWLsckxAnQSqEFHPUPWjdF5RoR2nysKbZsjFMmO5Ku1YLz5_wBK0ntV08e0UQekzBddsnj3lzIM-wEdgMv7FlTcsWnE-ltGhqM1gcXlv/s1600/thor2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEOBRgabrBFcDi1_tzoa0VW-A8eS8_oNgxHL3sfWLsckxAnQSqEFHPUPWjdF5RoR2nysKbZsjFMmO5Ku1YLz5_wBK0ntV08e0UQekzBddsnj3lzIM-wEdgMv7FlTcsWnE-ltGhqM1gcXlv/s320/thor2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;"><em>Thor</em> is also elevated a bit by the character of Loki, the best villain of the five <em>Avengers</em> prequels. I won't go into all the reasons why, because the guy has motives I didn't even explain in this review. Suffice it to say that he's not all bad here. His actions are terribly wrong, no doubt, but his motivations stem from an understandable inferiority complex and a burning desire to look like the better son in his father's eyes. I think it was a hell of a choice by Marvel and Joss Whedon to make Loki the lead villain in <em>The Avengers</em>, and I'm looking forward to how that plays out.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This picture also boasts the best post-credits sequence of the bunch. We see Dr. Selvig under Loki's control, in a S.H.I.E.L.D. building, as Nick Fury reveals an object we will later recognize (in <em>Captain America: The First Avenger</em>) as the Tesseract. “What is it,” Selvig asks. Fury replies, “Power doctor. If we can figure out how to tap it, maybe unlimited power.” Then Loki appears in a reflection and whispers, “Well, I guess that's worth a look.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>Thor (2011): 6 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Avatar (2009): 8 out of 10</strong></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3UDeQPpY_oxromXf8dDj-lTQBCn1xHTHmGBuNDo3BT10f5UxzVrFGYaImfHQWQ5X17YT8Ix6cenBEV7eKml-5trefco1zKOE6vGA4_aLsqmfLmsYrWuaaSxcBHJIsA2j5LH7XkX7xTkP/s1600/captain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3UDeQPpY_oxromXf8dDj-lTQBCn1xHTHmGBuNDo3BT10f5UxzVrFGYaImfHQWQ5X17YT8Ix6cenBEV7eKml-5trefco1zKOE6vGA4_aLsqmfLmsYrWuaaSxcBHJIsA2j5LH7XkX7xTkP/s320/captain.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><span style="color: black;"><strong>CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER (2011)</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Prior to <em>Captain America</em>, Joe Johnston (<em>Jumanji</em>, <em>Jurassic Park III</em>, <em>The Wolfman</em>, etc.) had made only one genuinely good movie called <em>October Sky (1999)</em>. After <em>Captain America</em>, he has still only made one good movie. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The visuals and music here are bathed in nostalgia for “the greatest generation”, Johnston's intent was not lost on me. This romanticized, artificial looking 1940's version of New York City works at first, in the same way that a postcard does. It's nowhere near as impressive as the 1933 New York City seen in Peter Jackson's <em>King Kong (2005)</em>, but it's oddly appealing, up to a point, and shows admirable craftsmanship. Ultimately, it just starts to feel too phony, even for a comic book movie.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWI-vCNSuXs_Q9CQO6Sdq-vrnqNdWhD9P3H9Xie7HPao9zt89Dss5OKaJryPjyAtRojTcC6GPsTl7VH2yDBUpVR1W2DNYlKP2deOeGYOXrUbvwODACnWHaTu0cienViiudq_fhDrMcML0/s1600/captain2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaWI-vCNSuXs_Q9CQO6Sdq-vrnqNdWhD9P3H9Xie7HPao9zt89Dss5OKaJryPjyAtRojTcC6GPsTl7VH2yDBUpVR1W2DNYlKP2deOeGYOXrUbvwODACnWHaTu0cienViiudq_fhDrMcML0/s320/captain2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">What does not feel phony are the effects that transformed the well built, six foot tall Chris Evans into the little shrimp, Steve Rogers. He convincingly looks about five feet tall and less than a hundred pounds, with arms like tent poles. When we first meet the guy, the military won't even enlist him to fight in World War II. Eventually, Dr. Erskine (Stanley Tucci), a German expat who has created a “super soldier” serum, overhears Rogers chatting with his enlisted buddy, Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan). Erskine realizes the kid has heart, and makes him a candidate for the super soldier experiment.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Around this time Tommy Lee Jones shows up as Colonel Phillips, and his chosen candidate for the program is much more physically gifted. He and Erskine test the recruits by tossing a fake live grenade at them, from which the colonel's candidate runs for cover as Steve Rogers dives onto it to save the others. Before the procedure takes place, Erskine informs Rogers that a prototype version of the serum was given to a Nazi officer back in Germany named Johann Schmidt. At this point we have already seen Schmidt and his HYDRA soldiers break into a castle in Norway to steal an object of great power called the Tesseract. “The jewel of Odin's treasure room,” he calls it. This connects the story to <em>Thor</em> and beyond, as the Tesseract is said to play an important part in <em>The Avengers</em>.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIPUzCabLgua9_N3y64tdrbNBdIecwyhHBRH2pUS773r3g-_rcH4U2phPuKMTXCLJ9h6k7MfWc8M4_gYCph-zcyW2-lYgKLMFKkzmOallpeOBXRR09N5GB2FvZODgX9TPCrxskoDMda9FM/s1600/captain3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIPUzCabLgua9_N3y64tdrbNBdIecwyhHBRH2pUS773r3g-_rcH4U2phPuKMTXCLJ9h6k7MfWc8M4_gYCph-zcyW2-lYgKLMFKkzmOallpeOBXRR09N5GB2FvZODgX9TPCrxskoDMda9FM/s320/captain3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Anyway, aided by Erskine and Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark (father of Tony Stark from <em>Iron Man</em>), Rogers becomes a large and powerful super soldier. For a while he just dresses up as a character named “Captain America” and sells war bonds. Then he finds out his friend Bucky has been lost with his squad behind enemy lines, and decides to come to his rescue once Stark outfits him with improved armor and an impenetrable Vibranium shield (this explains how a prototype version of the shield ends up in Tony Stark's office in <em>Iron Man</em>). Eventually Captain America leads an assault on HYDRA and Red Skull (the true form of Johann Schmidt), who are outfitted with all new powers as a result of possessing the Tesseract.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Unfortunately, <em>Captain America</em> never quite comes together the way it should. It's not bad at all, it's just not good either. The new and improved Steve Rogers has a tendency to be somewhat boring compared to the other Marvel characters, and I'm not a fan of Red Skull. He may have been a great villain in the comics, but here he's a dime-a-dozen power mad dictator. The action scenes are hit-and-miss, nothing manages to stand out, and the entire exercise feels a bit stale. Still, this movie does explain how Captain America ends up in the same year as Iron Man, Hulk, and the rest of the crew. He's frozen near the end of the film and gets rediscovered in the future where he's recruited by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson).</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZ2QLI3o0cCqUd0hAxUStequ1x8WAbvaOm-RqZ9YM3XONlLxA7XBXDOiOyhyphenhyphenHXDA1Ep7lFXHhPVOiLNHiJuOsBiqPq8gNexz2jQkwEYtQEjkMhIvZ6wvVc8q_JowgJfCnfMtT4dz2Wbpb/s1600/captain5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZ2QLI3o0cCqUd0hAxUStequ1x8WAbvaOm-RqZ9YM3XONlLxA7XBXDOiOyhyphenhyphenHXDA1Ep7lFXHhPVOiLNHiJuOsBiqPq8gNexz2jQkwEYtQEjkMhIvZ6wvVc8q_JowgJfCnfMtT4dz2Wbpb/s320/captain5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">You know, I might be expecting too much, but another thing I find unfortunate about this story is that Rogers has to be voluntarily injected with an experimental serum in order to become a hero. Granted, even before Peter Parker was bitten by the genetically altered spider, which was not a <em>choice</em> I might add, he was more physically blessed than this kid. Rogers has a knack for strategy, leadership, and personal sacrifice though; traits that would exist without the serum. I realize it's cool to imagine this small fry growing big and strong, otherwise we wouldn't have Captain America. I get it. However, another part of me would find him more heroic if he rose above his shortcomings naturally. I liked the kid better when he was the underdog.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>Captain America: The First Avenger (2011): 5 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Jumanji (1995): 5 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Jurassic Park III (2001): 5 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>The Wolfman (2010): 4 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>October Sky (1999): 7 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>King Kong (2005): 6 out of 10</strong></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1m14MoMbJBKQMfPuVpf-Y5ZQ5no53M9G2Hyxf0xfCm1z13Ki3MVfgBq9SphAw_gWEI4S8gbHi_pbyIs0BIujjSwdgNXmUUbpISmS1dZL-7aQ3pCxLjyfkpeC1jEbi7tUFy9Ctj2plioov/s1600/captain4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1m14MoMbJBKQMfPuVpf-Y5ZQ5no53M9G2Hyxf0xfCm1z13Ki3MVfgBq9SphAw_gWEI4S8gbHi_pbyIs0BIujjSwdgNXmUUbpISmS1dZL-7aQ3pCxLjyfkpeC1jEbi7tUFy9Ctj2plioov/s320/captain4.jpg" width="224" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-30108226847232422812012-05-02T14:54:00.001-05:002012-05-03T00:27:15.243-05:00The Avengers Are Coming: Part Two<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZci9NNVCK3L0u10UcXjV7q6ue25DssGg2adgrtMeyGtGMys2I1U2xYMFYy2JC5eLqxCAGRGZCttcodaYYs20LzMEfkHfBRl05ERyNdXg36hfTkql6W6GZfE-JnCWA-2V1mZNcpGNgQcJJ/s1600/hulk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZci9NNVCK3L0u10UcXjV7q6ue25DssGg2adgrtMeyGtGMys2I1U2xYMFYy2JC5eLqxCAGRGZCttcodaYYs20LzMEfkHfBRl05ERyNdXg36hfTkql6W6GZfE-JnCWA-2V1mZNcpGNgQcJJ/s320/hulk.jpg" width="215" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;"><strong>THE INCREDIBLE HULK (2008)</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">After Ang Lee's <em>Hulk (2003)</em>, Marvel Studios decided to do their own independent version as a better lead-in to <em>The Avengers</em>. In theory, Marvel and Louis Letterier (director of 2010's terrible <em>Clash of the Titans</em>) probably thought they were making a superior film, but <em>The Incredible Hulk</em> is no better than Ang Lee's effort. This one isn't really an origin story, since the “origin” is explained through images in the opening credit sequence. It's basically a chase movie, minus a great deal of the excitement a chase movie usually entails.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">We meet Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) hiding out in the Brazilian shanty town, Rocinha, long after he has been infected by the gamma radiation that causes him to mutate into the Hulk when his heart rate rises. Quietly working at a bottling plant, he has been trying to find a cure for his condition while managing the anger that brings out the beast. A simple accident at the plant causes a drop of Banner's blood to land in one of the bottles being shipped to the U.S., resulting in the death of the person who drinks it (cameo by Stan Lee, creator of three of the four Avengers that got their own movie). The bottle is traced back to the plant in Brazil, and General Ross (William Hurt) mobilizes a team, led by Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth), to bring in Banner.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqdOKthdWp72n3u-ZxN7VKZqmk7M-PC64Sbtf8Tx8v5aIPjOdGxwMTPt3urfflGZallJsqPzzr0nvIs7EMWyQtkYjq3NJzGCRRhOEqg1Hzo6PP652TYuKcHQKN4od9kFeDZGtoi2uEpTes/s1600/hulk3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqdOKthdWp72n3u-ZxN7VKZqmk7M-PC64Sbtf8Tx8v5aIPjOdGxwMTPt3urfflGZallJsqPzzr0nvIs7EMWyQtkYjq3NJzGCRRhOEqg1Hzo6PP652TYuKcHQKN4od9kFeDZGtoi2uEpTes/s320/hulk3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;">Obviously they fail as Banner mutates into the Hulk and annihilates them. Blonsky barely survives, then marvels at the incredible power of the creature he has seen. Ambitious to possess such strength, Blonsky allows General Ross to give him a low dosage of the “super soldier” serum the military has been working on since World War II (the same serum taken by Steve Rogers and Johann Schmidt in <em>Captain America: The First Avenger</em>). In the meantime, Banner has made his way back to the U.S. where he reluctantly meets up with his former lover, research partner, and daughter of the general, Betty Ross (Liv Tyler). The rest of the film features these two lovers on the run, with some big action setpieces worked in.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The action and special effects are actually the highlight here, as the human “story” can barely be called such. We are given just enough to enjoy the proceedings to some degree, and not an ounce more. Banner and Betty are “good people”, the General is a “cold heartless bastard”, and Blonsky is a “power hungry little mongrel”. This wonderful cast is completely underutilized, each one of them could do these roles in their sleep. I've seen worse though, much worse, and as I mentioned...the action scenes aren't half bad. The Culver University showdown is fun, involving enough military firepower (provided by Stark Industries from <em>Iron Man</em>) to take down a small city, though it doesn't even phase the Hulk. The final battle is also rather engaging, as it pits Abomination (a really ugly, massive, mutated powerhouse) against the Hulk in the streets of Harlem.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Ultimately, <em>The Incredible Hulk</em> does enough to be average, but that's about it. If it wasn't part of the build up to <em>The Avengers</em>, I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend it to anyone. Robert Downey Jr. shows up as Tony Stark in the final scene though, explaining to General Ross that “...we are putting a team together.” In a couple more days, we will see how that team turned out.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>The Incredible Hulk (2008): 5 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Hulk (2003): 5 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Clash of the Titans (2010): 2 out of 10</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>IRON MAN 2 (2010)</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Billionaire tech genius Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) returns, at less than maximum potential, in Jon Favreau's blockbuster sequel to <em>Iron Man</em>. Stark is actually dying this time around, ironically caused by palladium in the very core that keeps him alive. This accounts for Stark's antagonistic nature here. At times he's still the witty playboy, but the chip on his shoulder makes him less appealing somehow. To make matters worse, his superhero identity is worldwide news, and the Russian physicist, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), happens to want him punished for the past deeds of his deceased father, Howard Stark.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">One of Tony's top competitors, Justin Hammer (a fitting name given the way Sam Rockwell hams it up), enters the fray as Ivan's secret financial backer, while Tony gets a little help from S.H.I.E.L.D. in the form of Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). We see a lot more of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) this time around as well, including a scene where he sheds a little more light on the "Avenger Initiative”. Don Cheadle takes over as James Rhodes (formerly played by Terrence Howard), and Gwyneth Paltrow returns as Pepper Potts.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><em>Iron Man 2</em> is a slick, well made production like all these other Marvel pics, but it's a step down from the original. Tony doesn't enjoy a character arc comparable to the one in <em>Iron Man</em>, the villains are not particularly special, and the final showdown with Vanko seems to end in the same minute that it begins. The film just isn't as tightly constructed as the first, though there are some great moments, especially the Japanese Garden battle pitting Stark and Rhodes against a bunch of heavily armed Hammer Drones.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">For fans of <em>The Avengers</em> there are a lot of other fun bits here, including another sighting of Captain America's shield in Tony's workshop, and news footage following one of the Incredible Hulk's attacks. The post-credits sequence even shows Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) arriving in New Mexico at the very spot where Thor's hammer landed after he was exiled from Asgard. <em>Iron Man 2</em> is a good time, indeed, just not as good as the first movie.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>Iron Man 2: 6 out of 10</strong></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAKXPeg-0lLYgNC8zlMWb7CHw2DVtVf19UD9y5Tc1uf8VWTFFWe6HM8G8cnD57CVwx6411t8AfO8f7z6iF-CCdoVml9uObhePFG_9jaQIPlj8DBbLHKnaQMnpcp_PpI8S83hj5EhAJaBgo/s1600/ironman2+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAKXPeg-0lLYgNC8zlMWb7CHw2DVtVf19UD9y5Tc1uf8VWTFFWe6HM8G8cnD57CVwx6411t8AfO8f7z6iF-CCdoVml9uObhePFG_9jaQIPlj8DBbLHKnaQMnpcp_PpI8S83hj5EhAJaBgo/s320/ironman2+2.jpg" width="313" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-87623020334842748372012-05-02T11:59:00.000-05:002012-05-02T14:23:42.963-05:00The Avengers Are Coming: Part One<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">Leading up to the May 4th U.S. release of <em>Marvel's The Avengers</em> I will be doing brief reviews of the five films that introduce its major characters: <em>Iron Man</em>, <em>The Incredible Hulk</em>, <em>Iron Man 2</em>, <em>Thor</em>, and <em>Captain America: The First Avenger</em>. Each of these happen to be the only films independently produced by Marvel Studios, which is why they clearly share the same “universe” and tie-in so nicely.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>IRON MAN (2008)</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">You really have to hand it to Marvel Studios, director Jon Favreau, and Robert Downey Jr. on this one. They took a pretty average, unpopular comic book superhero and turned him into a bad ass. It's one thing to bring crowds in droves to see Superman, Spider-Man, or Batman...those guys are well known and enjoy a devoted following. It's another thing entirely to create a superhero's following from a movie, instead of the actual comic. These days, Iron Man and Robert Downey Jr. are so popular that no one can remember why they weren't a big deal in the first place.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Downey Jr.'s greatest achievement here is making the rich, egotistical, narcissistic Tony Stark into a lovable figure, even when he's being a cad. Early on in the film, the guy is just not a good person, but his bountiful charisma makes him a joy to watch. A genius like his father, Tony inherited Stark Industries, a producer of high-tech weaponry that blows stuff up real good in the name of the U.S.A. We meet him in Afghanistan where he introduces his latest creation, the Jericho missile. Unfortunately, his Humvee comes under attack afterward and he's injured, ironically, by one of his company's own weapons in enemy hands. Stark ends up in the custody of a terrorist group called the Ten Rings where another prisoner, Dr. Yinsen (Shaun Toub), manages to save his life by putting an electromagnet in his chest to prevent tiny bits of shrapnel from entering Stark's heart.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwm4Z9pspYA1fhG1s56d3z98J6GE_MZJwL9jc9jig0meuws-ryT1BMHPgaRe-tPSeosDr4_VN_d0mt13okmNB4Uo8E3QSundtuVQtnUT2hDtc1obpPdIsy5OLdbPzuka7OpezARgJWdlhH/s1600/iron2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwm4Z9pspYA1fhG1s56d3z98J6GE_MZJwL9jc9jig0meuws-ryT1BMHPgaRe-tPSeosDr4_VN_d0mt13okmNB4Uo8E3QSundtuVQtnUT2hDtc1obpPdIsy5OLdbPzuka7OpezARgJWdlhH/s320/iron2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;">These terrorists, armed with a bunch of Stark Industries firepower, demand that Stark make a Jericho missile for them. Tony has other ideas, working instead on a miniaturized version of his father's arc reactor to serve as his electromagnet and double as a power source for a large, weaponized iron suit. Stark manages to fool the terrorists about his progress on the missile, and boom go his captors as he makes his escape. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Back in the States, the new Tony wants to focus his efforts on more peaceful technology, which doesn't sit well with Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges), manager of Stark Industries and the former business partner of Stark's father. With only two true allies, his assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and his friend Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes (Terrence Howard), Stark begins to improve upon the suit design until he becomes the superhero, Iron Man.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">As a superhero origin story, <em>Iron Man</em> has few peers. Often these opening chapters are bogged down in exposition as a rather ordinary, flawed person slowly evolves into a fighting force to be reckoned with. Who can forget Tobey Maguire in <em>Spider-Man (2002)</em> running around in his early hero outfit, consisting of a sweatsuit and goofy mask? There is a similar evolution here, not only in Stark's character but in the armor itself, which goes from a bulky gray metal monstrosity to a sleek, “hot rod red” and gold piece of advanced machinery. These two films, along with <em>Batman Begins (2005)</em>, are recent examples of how origin stories should be done.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><em>Iron Man</em> has a pretty hypocritical message though, since Tony wants to rid the world of Stark Industries weapons by building another. He wants to keep weapons from falling into the wrong hands, when some of his own tech falls into the wrong hands both here and in <em>Iron Man 2</em>. Still, for the most part, Iron Man really hits most of the right notes for this type of film. Downey Jr. gives us a character we enjoy, one who goes through trials and achieves a genuine transformation. We get some exciting action sequences peppered throughout, a worthwhile villain, and a satisfying final battle. It's not rocket science, but it's a lot of fun; perhaps even the most pure fun of any comic book movie since <em>Spider-Man 2 (2004)</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Though we see Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg) at various times in Iron Man, stick around after the credits for the introduction of his boss, Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. A confused Tony Stark learns that Fury wants to talk with him about the “Avenger Initiative”, then we fade to black.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>Iron Man (2008): 7 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Batman Begins (2005): 7 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Spider-Man (2002): 7 out of 10</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><strong>Spider-Man 2 (2004): 8 out of 10</strong></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_zlVAO0lnA3GVVb3vH2jQETTVb3pqGcFX32ugODwm7ReaT_lq9ME-ixrDNwPHhd5eNkmPXCSAaheV6XdRp7vgSORW7cmAwP7QEhdc8p8Pwo8Nl58mCne7xH-mc1ToLN1_hNCV2hkE201L/s1600/iron4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_zlVAO0lnA3GVVb3vH2jQETTVb3pqGcFX32ugODwm7ReaT_lq9ME-ixrDNwPHhd5eNkmPXCSAaheV6XdRp7vgSORW7cmAwP7QEhdc8p8Pwo8Nl58mCne7xH-mc1ToLN1_hNCV2hkE201L/s320/iron4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-3325873111768208112012-04-26T14:52:00.001-05:002012-05-30T18:51:21.443-05:00Film Ratings Revealed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoeVv8wB_0ospIaOlze8n1NbuYufqTJBR3xyeJAZtWVzkq0gfFCvxG0esQnhtPs3D9WKW6ZaeNbFJivWcyyvbKkiz0XBS5QC9hIdpy2iIa-QqtfV5WAhgK5uJffIcK-pMWd-uWar05A0Bd/s1600/scores.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoeVv8wB_0ospIaOlze8n1NbuYufqTJBR3xyeJAZtWVzkq0gfFCvxG0esQnhtPs3D9WKW6ZaeNbFJivWcyyvbKkiz0XBS5QC9hIdpy2iIa-QqtfV5WAhgK5uJffIcK-pMWd-uWar05A0Bd/s320/scores.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">People love scores. Out of four, out of five, out of ten, whatever. Sometimes the ratings are done in “stars” or thumbs, other times we just see a number. For a long time I stayed away from scores on this blog, but I have realized that simply isn't a popular decision. Some days a person may not feel like reading the entire review, or maybe that person feels they can't get a proper gauge on my taste without a numerical score.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black;">Truth be told, I always score the movies I see, I simply don't share them. Until now. From this moment forward I will be putting scores within the blog entries themselves. Also, to allow readers to better understand my taste, I have gone back to all the entries I've written thus far, and today I will share the score for every single movie I've ever mentioned on this blog. Even if I just wrote the title of the movie in passing, I will share that score. This will not prevent me from writing in more depth about any of these films in the future, so that's not a concern.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black;">My ratings are “out of 10” and I will be categorizing them by score, then alphabetically. You may notice that there are more films rated over 5 than below. In fact, there are very few 3's and 2's, and not a single film rated a 1. This is simply due to the fact that I don't tend to discuss movies on the blog that are bad enough to garner a 3 or below. I have unfortunately seen and rated hundreds of terrible films deserving of a 2 or a 1, but those will rarely make an appearance on my blog. <em>Only</em> films I have mentioned on this blog to date will appear on this list.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black;">Lastly, I have alphabetically arranged movie titles beginning with “The” by their second word.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br />
</span><span style="color: black;">Enjoy!</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFf8eHFlY3pzDEspcyHJVJJRB6kOEfXVjuyZOFEcM_25ajV1R01ynq-W0f2BkpWeWTAaPG0pmgjWJT87fZZxtukg8AjUoRYw6lZIIuUq0K0soRymCqPQo-MPsLCTv9D25NyIS_2kHRNdHl/s1600/scores3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFf8eHFlY3pzDEspcyHJVJJRB6kOEfXVjuyZOFEcM_25ajV1R01ynq-W0f2BkpWeWTAaPG0pmgjWJT87fZZxtukg8AjUoRYw6lZIIuUq0K0soRymCqPQo-MPsLCTv9D25NyIS_2kHRNdHl/s320/scores3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-size: x-large;"><strong>10</strong></span></u></div><div align="left" style="text-align: center;"></div><br />
<span style="color: black;">2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">A Tale of Tales (1979)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Blade Runner (1982)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Chinatown (1974)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Citizen Kane (1941)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Days of Heaven (1978)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lawrence of Arabia (1962)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Los Olvidados (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Love Me Tonight (1932)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">M (1931)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Markéta Lazarová (1967)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mirror (1975)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">My Darling Clementine (1946)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Napoleon (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Night of the Hunter, The (1955)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Passion of Joan of Arc, The (1928)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Pather Panchali (1955)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Paths of Glory (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Playtime (1967)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Rear Window (1954)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Seven Samurai (1954)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Sunset Boulevard (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tree of Life, The (2011)</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">9</span></u></strong></div><br />
<span style="color: black;">A Man Escaped (1956)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">A Separation (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">All About Eve (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Andrei Rublev (1969)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Aparajito (1956)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Apocalypse Now (1979)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Au Hasard Balthazar (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Battleship Potemkin, The (1925)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Chimes at Midnight (1965)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">City Lights (1931)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Dark Knight, The (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, The (1972)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Exterminating Angel, The (1962)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Godfather, The (1972)</span><br />
Gone With the Wind (1939) <br />
<span style="color: black;">Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, The (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Goodfellas (1990)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Grand Illusion (1937)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Grave of the Fireflies (1988)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">High Noon (1952)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hiroshima mon amour (1959)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hugo (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ikiru (1952)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Intolerance (1916)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">It's a Wonderful Life (1946)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">L'Argent (1983)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Man of the West (1958)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Metropolis (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mouchette (1967)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Naked Spur, The (1953)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">No Country For Old Men (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Pickpocket (1959)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Pinocchio (1940)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Psycho (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Raise the Red Lantern (1991)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ran (1985)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Red River (1948)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ride Lonesome (1959)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Seventh Seal, The (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Shop Around the Corner, The (1940)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Shop on Main Street, The (1965)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Sideways (2004)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Singin' in the Rain (1952)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Singing Detective, The (1986)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Spirited Away (2001)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Stagecoach (1939)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Sunrise (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tall T, The (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tall Target, The (1951)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Thief of Bagdad, The (1924)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Throne of Blood (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The (1948)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Trouble in Paradise (1932)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Unknown, The (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Vertigo (1958)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">WALL-E (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">War and Peace (1967)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Wild Bunch, The (1969)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Wizard of Oz, The (1939)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">World of Apu, The (1959)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Yojimbo (1961)</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgltSoUT3HtFtwB7jU5v33Pc7LwATON9GoKDItACxYDfr-f9yJAH76qU1peA0DcpzGjML2ARB-U-dt1WSA6rJXnOUo_9LgbYTWiVGKvKJRK4p_FO2i745cpD4FD_O7Ei9UaurNBsmnBSb7P/s1600/scores4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgltSoUT3HtFtwB7jU5v33Pc7LwATON9GoKDItACxYDfr-f9yJAH76qU1peA0DcpzGjML2ARB-U-dt1WSA6rJXnOUo_9LgbYTWiVGKvKJRK4p_FO2i745cpD4FD_O7Ei9UaurNBsmnBSb7P/s320/scores4.jpg" width="219" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">8</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">10 Rillington Place (1971)</span></div><span style="color: black;">About Schmidt (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">African Queen, The (1951)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Amadeus (1984)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">An American in Paris (1951)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Artist, The (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Away From Her (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Baraka (1992)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Beauty and the Beast (1991)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ben-Hur (1959)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Bend of the River (1952)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Braveheart (1995)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Brokeback Mountain (2005)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Cabin in the Woods, The (2012)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Closely Watched Trains (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Comanche Station (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Diary of a Country Priest (1951)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Do the Right Thing (1989)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde (1932)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Drive (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Election (1999)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Firemen's Ball, The (1967)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Gone Baby Gone (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hero (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hidden Fortress, The (1958)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">I, Claudius (1976)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Incredibles, The (2004)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ivan's Childhood (1962)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Jaws (1975)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">King's Speech, The (2010)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Kingdom of Heaven: Director's Cut (2005)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Kingdom of the Fairies (1903)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Koyaanisqatsi (1982)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">L'Age D'or (1930)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">La Roue (1923)</span> <br />
<span style="color: black;">Lady Vanishes, The (1938)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Le Million (1931)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The (2001)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The (2003)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Loves of a Blonde (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lower Depths, The (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Man With the Movie Camera, The (1929)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mark of Zorro, The (1940)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Memento (2000)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Michael Clayton (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Narrow Margin, The (1952)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Network (1976)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ninotchka (1939)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Pan's Labyrinth (2006)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Patton (1970)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Peeping Tom (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ratatouille (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Red Beard (1965)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Saving Private Ryan (1998)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Seven Men From Now (1956)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Seventh Heaven (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Shane (1953)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Shoeshine (1946)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Stolen Kisses (1968)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Sullivan's Travels (1941)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">There Will Be Blood (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tin Star, The (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">To Live (1994)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Toy Story (1995)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Toy Story 2 (1999)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Truman Show, The (1998)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Un Chien Andalou (1929)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Up (2009)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Vengeance is Mine (1979)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Virgin Spring, The (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">War and Peace (1972)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Winchester '73 (1950)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">7</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">Applause (1929)</span></div><span style="color: black;">Batman Begins (2005)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Buchanan Rides Alone (1958)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Bullet in the Head (1990)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">City of God (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Dark Water (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Decision at Sundown (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Descendants, The (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Devil's Doorway, The (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Die Hard (1988)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">El Cid (1961)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Enchanted (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn (1987)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Far Country, The (1954)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Fight Club (1999)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Finding Nemo (2003)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Fist of Legend (1994)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Game, The (1997)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Gladiator (2000)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hamlet (1996)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hard-Boiled (1992)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Heat (1995)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hellboy II (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">House of Flying Daggers (2004)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Into the Wild (2007)</span><br />
Iron Man (2008)<br />
<span style="color: black;">Juno (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Killer, The (1989)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Kolya (1996)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Life is Beautiful (1998)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Long Voyage Home, The (1940)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Man From Laramie, The (1955)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Men in War (1957)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Merry Widow, The (1934)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">One Hour With You (1932)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Passion of the Christ, The (2004)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Powaqqatsi (1988)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Princess Bride, The (1987)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Raw Deal (1948)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Red Violin, The (1997)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Rescue Dawn (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ring (1998)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Runaway Train (1985)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Sanshiro Sugata (1943)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Seven (1995)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Slumdog Millionaire (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Spartacus (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Straw Dogs (1971)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">T-Men (1947)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tell No One (2006)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The (1974)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Voyage to the Moon (1902)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">War Horse (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Waterloo (1970)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Wings (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Zodiac (2007)</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKjRrr6rHKY8_y1iHsNbXHEdJyxZMBmdfOYWvaJ1JpUieFyCis9_0OsbGKoLNuZcO30mGYaWnPm99ixhQWtom5mKl1y8qGrXKtceBqgaW6yRxWF-3UNMFlLIIZm82-gQHD-LkWNxGiRkz/s1600/scores5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEKjRrr6rHKY8_y1iHsNbXHEdJyxZMBmdfOYWvaJ1JpUieFyCis9_0OsbGKoLNuZcO30mGYaWnPm99ixhQWtom5mKl1y8qGrXKtceBqgaW6yRxWF-3UNMFlLIIZm82-gQHD-LkWNxGiRkz/s320/scores5.jpg" width="220" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">6</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: black;">A Better Tomorrow II (1988)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Becky Sharp (1935)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Chronos (1985)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Drunken Master II (1994)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Evil Dead, The (1982)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Fall, The (2006)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Fall of the Roman Empire, The (1964)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Furies, The (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Grand Prix (1966)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Help, The (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ju-on: The Grudge (2000)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Mongol (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Noroi: The Curse (2005)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Panic Room (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Police Story (1985)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">REC 2 (2009)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Raid: Redemption, The (2012)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Scream (1996)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Side Street (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Speed (1994)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Three Ages, The (1923)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Troy (2004)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Warrior (2011)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">5</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: black;">Armour of God (1987)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Armour of God 2 (1990)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Broken Arrow (1950)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">City Streets (1931)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Cleopatra (1963)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Cloverfield (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hello, Dolly! (1969)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Heroes of Telemark, The (1965)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hostel (2006)</span><br />
Incredible Hulk, The (2008)<br />
<span style="color: black;">Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">J'Accuse (1919)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Jazz Singer, The (1927)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Love Parade, The (1929)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Murder on the Orient Express (1974)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Naqoyqatsi (2002)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ong-Bak (2003)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Police Story 3: Supercop (1992)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Police Story 4 (1996)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Project A (1983)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Project A 2 (1987)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Protector, The (2005)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Top Gun (1986)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">War and Peace (1956)</span><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5HtAdJNfVvOZiAP_uFp6z6TqAz3LIpHAFk8rgqDo6KJ77MC74Ahz87UPgmH8QLFC3Mi18TZRbKTzTEW417LJzN-X6zy-rqbiyRQH02Cb2wLfIW2IfkOMwJoOvOQfRClitoPQdI3JKdrR/s1600/scores6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid5HtAdJNfVvOZiAP_uFp6z6TqAz3LIpHAFk8rgqDo6KJ77MC74Ahz87UPgmH8QLFC3Mi18TZRbKTzTEW417LJzN-X6zy-rqbiyRQH02Cb2wLfIW2IfkOMwJoOvOQfRClitoPQdI3JKdrR/s320/scores6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">4</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">Alien 3 (1992)</span></div><span style="color: black;">Bad Boys (1995)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Cimarron (1960)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Fast Five (2011)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Friday the 13th (1980)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Hancock (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Happening, The (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Last Frontier, The (1955)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Narrow Margin (1990)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Odyssey, The (1997)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Police Story 2 (1987)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Robe, The (1953)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Transformers (2007)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Turner and Hooch (1989)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">3</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: black;">Cell, The (2000)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Friday the 13th (2009)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ong-Bak 2 (2008)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Ong-Bak 3 (2010)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Tango and Cash (1989)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">2</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><span style="color: black;">Armageddon (1998)</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Lady Vanishes, The (1979)</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><u><span style="font-size: x-large;">1</span></u></strong></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;">None yet.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij-bLwXeD8ZcW074-QwzNFlwkrYhPahq3tCAyW7pkXjNVFidIFo7VzrVc5jNHL4J3iGONN7c58hRplBfUiG8FzxAETR0eFhzoV9yNhPiFAKw2c9l9L57Kf9dggL03fXoY9MGZ-epdK_ufz/s1600/scores2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij-bLwXeD8ZcW074-QwzNFlwkrYhPahq3tCAyW7pkXjNVFidIFo7VzrVc5jNHL4J3iGONN7c58hRplBfUiG8FzxAETR0eFhzoV9yNhPiFAKw2c9l9L57Kf9dggL03fXoY9MGZ-epdK_ufz/s320/scores2.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-16995467965597894652012-04-17T08:49:00.002-05:002012-04-17T08:49:30.981-05:00Hated By the Formatting Gods<span style="color: black;">This is just a quick note to the email subscribers who received my review of <em>The</em> <em>Cabin in the Woods </em>this morning and undoubtedly thought I was an enormous moron. The title of the post shows up perfectly on my blog as, "Horror Movies <strike>Will</strike> Should Never Be the Same". I had to use HTML formatting in the title to cross out the word "Will". I learned after the fact that this does not translate to the email. So all of you received a review this morning with the following absurd title: "Horror Movies Will Should Never Be the Same".</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">My apologies. I have not lost my mind. Thanks for understanding.</span>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-20840434474659345932012-04-16T21:10:00.000-05:002012-05-04T14:15:54.279-05:00Horror Movies Will Should Never Be the Same<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOkfQaoDP8eVVfD3mdc216pw5288QSK9QetDxO6UC-XfBHhVu2Hki2KUpzZahUsKJYH6QUVxzts5j2BCp9QYYV1coYZVFXcr5582moqdHNgKFHKb5W9oP6UflCXggeF8LIoR7MbtyO-fzR/s1600/cabin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOkfQaoDP8eVVfD3mdc216pw5288QSK9QetDxO6UC-XfBHhVu2Hki2KUpzZahUsKJYH6QUVxzts5j2BCp9QYYV1coYZVFXcr5582moqdHNgKFHKb5W9oP6UflCXggeF8LIoR7MbtyO-fzR/s320/cabin.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;">Drew Goddard's <em>The Cabin in the Woods</em> opened on Friday, and people are already saying it changes the face of horror films as we know them. It has been called a “deconstruction of the genre”, reminiscent of Wes Craven's <em>Scream (1996)</em>, which I saw on opening day all those years ago. Even back then, as a teenaged horror fan, I was in on the joke. <em>Scream</em> was about stereotypical horror movie characters and clichés; it picked fun at the way sex was a prelude to death in the genre, and how the killers always come back after we think they're dead. <em>Scream</em> didn't reinvent the wheel, but it delivered a seismic jolt within the industry and made horror movies relevant at the box office following a long hiatus. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">It's important to understand that when people claim <em>The Cabin in the Woods</em> is a new chapter in horror, they aren't saying it reinvents the wheel either. They are saying it picks fun at every little predictable flaw in conventional horror, thus making it harder for studios to continue churning out the same old formula to make a quick buck. One can only hope Goddard's film will promote evolution in a genre that has once again grown stale.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Since much of the film is based on the element of surprise, rewarding its audience with fun twists and turns, <em>The Cabin in the Woods</em> is very difficult to write about. How much should be revealed? That's a subjective question, if ever there was one. I had seen the trailer prior to viewing the film, which I admit makes it look pretty average, but it also reveals a few things I believed were “spoilers”. Until I saw the movie, that is. The trailer actually gives away very little of what makes the film so wild, crazy, and unpredictable. No one will accurately guess what happens in the last twenty minutes of this movie. No one.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Going into it, viewers who have seen the trailer will think the big surprise is that there are people in an underground lab controlling the various horrors at the cabin. I thought it would end up being like a slasher version of <em>The Truman Show (1998)</em>. Maybe a sort of reality show put on for wealthy sickos around the world, similar to <em>Hostel (2005)</em>. Wrong and wrong. Besides, that's not “the big reveal” because guess where the picture opens? In an underground lab. The very first thing we see are these two tech guys, humorously played by the great Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford, chatting over coffee. Just another day at the office.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">We are then introduced to some terribly stereotypical young characters (relax, it's part of the joke). There's the jock (Chris Hemsworth), the smart guy (Jesse Williams), the slutty airhead (Anna Hutchison), the stoner (Fran Kranz), and the virgin (Kristen Connolly). They take off for the weekend in a big camper; their final destination being an isolated cabin that supposedly belongs to the airhead's cousin. They stop at a gas station, which will instantly remind viewers of <em>The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)</em>. They pass through a long mountain tunnel and arrive at a cabin that looks exactly like the one in <em>The Evil Dead (1981)</em>. They swim in a lake that looks just like the one in <em>Friday the 13th (1980)</em>. Even Japanese horror gets hilariously lampooned here, so those who have seen <em>Ring (1998)</em>, <em>Ju-on (2000)</em>, <em>Dark Water (2002)</em>, <em>The Curse (2005)</em>, etc. will be in good shape. The more you know your horror movies, the more you're going to enjoy <em>The Cabin in the Woods</em>.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEMBBVPnPt4lfxExCgOfeTkjWGfOSto20F68fPgrS8vgOo1ea3EvPGJZ0qUNAHt9fqGbRY4n6flOv4FSj9fc_NJ31CTqen2lXwqnb0n3GjuGpXZKYvnsn1nQKHKVvPV4MmepJf5NMeKuiS/s1600/cabin3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEMBBVPnPt4lfxExCgOfeTkjWGfOSto20F68fPgrS8vgOo1ea3EvPGJZ0qUNAHt9fqGbRY4n6flOv4FSj9fc_NJ31CTqen2lXwqnb0n3GjuGpXZKYvnsn1nQKHKVvPV4MmepJf5NMeKuiS/s320/cabin3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;">Eventually, the teens drink and play Truth or Dare just before the cellar door flies open for no apparent reason (as it did in <em>The Evil Dead</em>) and the jock reveals the limits of his intelligence by saying, “Must have been the wind.” They explore the dark cellar and discover all kinds of strange objects that act as triggers for which scenario will play out. Will they be massacred by zombies? Vampires? Werewolves? Witches? An Angry Molesting Tree (another <em>Evil Dead</em> reference)? Deadites (yet another <em>Evil Dead</em> reference)? All of these options, and many more, are seen on a dry erase board in the underground lab where various employees are competitively betting on how these poor teens will die.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The virgin finds an old diary and reads an incantation in Latin, despite the stoner's warning: “I'm drawing a f***ing line in the sand, here. Don't read the mysterious Latin!” The incantation seals the deal (as it did in, you guessed it, <em>The Evil Dead</em>). These teens will die at the hands of the “Zombie Redneck Torture Family”, which Jenkins comically explains is an entirely different kind of threat than regular zombies.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Aside from the stoner, the teens seem oblivious to all the weird stuff going on, they act no differently than characters in any number of silly horror films. Well, it turns out the technicians behind the scenes have laced their hair styling products with drugs and happen to be piping in certain chemicals to alter their behavior. The slut gets extra slutty, and the jock becomes an even dumber alpha male. At one point, mist machines in the forest send pheromones into the atmosphere so we get the obligatory teen horror sex scene. Luckily for the stoner, his love of marijuana reduces the effect of the other drugs, allowing him to discover that things are not quite what they seem.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Anyway, the dead things rise up from the earth and wreak all kinds of havoc. The teens fight back and try to escape, but much like Truman Burbank, they come upon barriers they can't even see. They are rats in a maze, and this maze features redneck zombies.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Tempting as it may be, I can not discuss the film in detail any further without spoiling it. Know this: there are many more laughs to be had, as well as numerous shocks, scares, and surprises. The last twenty minutes are so over-the-top insane that they nearly succumb to overkill. Drew Goddard and co-writer/producer, Joss Whedon (director of the upcoming superhero film, <em>The Avengers</em>), toe a very thin line, but ultimately I was so flabbergasted by what had just occurred, I could only smile and shake my head as I walked out of the theater. These guys showed some real balls, for lack of a better word, in making this movie. They exhibit a real affection for horror tropes, while spitting in the face of every last one of them at the same time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Now, if I were rating this picture on a numerical scale, I would probably go with an 8 out of 10. It simply does not hold up under close scrutiny, and frankly it makes no logical sense. Still, it's so well made, so incredibly amusing, such a blast to watch, and features such a “throw all caution to the wind” last reel that I still believe it worthy of praise. It's an absolute must-see for horror fans, and should be fun for just about anyone who gets the joke and doesn't take it too seriously. When the ending comes, think of it as another way of saying, "Let's get rid of the old formula and give new, original work a chance!"</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>SPOILER ALERT!!! DO NOT READ BELOW THIS LINE IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE FILM:</strong></span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">I would like to briefly explain why I said the film makes no logical sense. I could cite many examples, and here are several. How the heck does this massive cult, with so many members and paid employees, keep their actions a secret from the world at large? How did they successfully capture all these monsters and keep them imprisoned when one little press of a button by the virgin unleashed all hell? If the history of these sacrifices goes back thousands of years, what system was in place for these rituals during less technologically advanced times? If the technicians could see all the teenagers and were monitoring their hearts, how did they fail to notice that the stoner never flatlined? Etc. Keep in mind, I really enjoyed the movie and these issues did not hinder my enjoyment.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>END OF SPOILERS</strong></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hp4Ga53Q5pxMnE8KkJ0pYOQc61Nzk0c4ZBzlSYhG5iIe0xITdkH2DmMNshxmVYnOFvJ6goStZyYCIDmMx9EAd7fK17iFFTDbg_18nrqIKyTnFaSrErovqq4-NEF7O1BK4rAnUSmHqA-A/s1600/cabin6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hp4Ga53Q5pxMnE8KkJ0pYOQc61Nzk0c4ZBzlSYhG5iIe0xITdkH2DmMNshxmVYnOFvJ6goStZyYCIDmMx9EAd7fK17iFFTDbg_18nrqIKyTnFaSrErovqq4-NEF7O1BK4rAnUSmHqA-A/s320/cabin6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-67892725203188741062012-04-13T14:48:00.000-05:002012-05-11T08:18:36.619-05:00The "Great" Plotless Wonder<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCHzXO1dkQD8OWh-KdoMguPVTO288HkGk8UXX96nEnu1c_oUhVcthbhi5283vWJCO9QWxZfgmHkeU_tP3NlIima6-3_jSlw0IRgM8yrKb0sVd2KU6gambyqN6dWNh7jLJWbFDctX0ais14/s1600/raid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCHzXO1dkQD8OWh-KdoMguPVTO288HkGk8UXX96nEnu1c_oUhVcthbhi5283vWJCO9QWxZfgmHkeU_tP3NlIima6-3_jSlw0IRgM8yrKb0sVd2KU6gambyqN6dWNh7jLJWbFDctX0ais14/s320/raid.jpg" width="216" /></a></div><span style="color: black;"><em>The Raid: Redemption</em>, directed by Welshman Gareth Evans, is a shamelessly pure, unadulterated action film from Indonesia. The reviews have been spectacular, some have even claimed it to be the finest all-out action movie in over a decade. At Rotten Tomatoes the film sports an 86% on the Tomatometer (out of ninety-two reviews, seventy-nine are positive) and a 7.6 out of 10 average review score. These are pretty hot numbers folks, numbers that scream, “Get out there and see this movie!”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I was looking forward to <em>The Raid</em> as I enjoy action set pieces in films that get it right. Unfortunately, not many do, and some of the worst action scenes are found in those bloated, massively budgeted Hollywood productions that make millions of dollars. As a teenager, I remember being enraptured when I first came across the films John Woo made in Hong Kong (<em>A Better Tomorrow II</em>, <em>The Killer</em>, <em>Bullet in the Head</em>, <em>Hard-Boiled</em>, etc.). His action sequences were like nothing I had seen in a Hollywood film since Sam Peckinpah's <em>The Wild Bunch (1969)</em>. People referred to his pictures as “bullet ballets” due to that certain beauty and elegance found in his masterfully choreographed carnage. Unfortunately, even some of Woo's best movies are difficult to watch now since they tend to slip into extreme melodrama and cheese, for lack of a better word. In short, Woo's action scenes were better than his films ever were.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This is often the case in similar pictures, like those of Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Tony Jaa, etc. All are graceful physical specimens; it's a joy to watch the poetry of their bodies in motion. Still, great films must give us more than exceptional athleticism. Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Burt Lancaster, and others have proven that thrilling stunts need not be exclusive to average movies. Keaton is actually Jackie Chan's hero, and from the 1980's to the present day, Chan is probably the closest thing we've had to Keaton in the cinema. He's funny and he performs insane stunts; the problem is that his movies just aren't as good. </span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjmakhwH2pq-1WhkesAtvNsKkHx1xYeS27q1BfWGSNqcM8kqgV38lH8TzaAr1Zrajw8uBsKDiVPHNnXz8rz0Ne9odgiVPXHhZ_AM37l9K83pwGK0FtKNaWPsQ9cDzY-wmheLJroIMKKQeU/s1600/raid6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjmakhwH2pq-1WhkesAtvNsKkHx1xYeS27q1BfWGSNqcM8kqgV38lH8TzaAr1Zrajw8uBsKDiVPHNnXz8rz0Ne9odgiVPXHhZ_AM37l9K83pwGK0FtKNaWPsQ9cDzY-wmheLJroIMKKQeU/s320/raid6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">I can enjoy all four <em style="color: black;">Police Story</em> films as much as the next guy, there's a certain goofy charm to the <em style="color: black;">Project A</em> and <em style="color: black;">Armor of God</em> movies, and <em style="color: black;">Drunken Master II (1994)</em> has its moments. These aren't exceptional pieces of filmmaking though, not by a long shot. My favorite Jet Li pictures are <em style="color: black;">Fist of Legend (1994)</em> and <em style="color: black;">Hero (2002)</em>, and while the latter is quite wonderful, it's an 8 for me, rather than a 9 or a 10. As for Jaa, does his <em style="color: black;">Ong-Bak</em> trilogy even begin to enter the “great movie” conversation? How about 2005's <em style="color: black;">The Protector</em> (despite that </span><em style="color: black;">amazing</em> <a href="http://youtu.be/IM2atZfn87M?hd=1&t=20s" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">tracking shot</span></a> <span style="color: black;">that lasts three minutes, forty-five seconds)?Hell no.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Now we have Iko Uwais, born in Jakarta and trained since the age of ten in Pencak Silat, Indonesia's homegrown martial art. In the process of making a documentary about this fighting style, Evans met Uwais, and the rest is history. They made a film called <em>Merantau</em> in 2009, but it's this one, their latest, that has all the fans of martial arts movies drooling on themselves. <em>The Raid: Redemption</em> delivers the goods in terms of action and mayhem, the hype is accurate on that front, but like the films of Woo, Chan, Li, and Jaa, it's a guilty pleasure, not a top tier piece of work.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The plot, so wafer-thin as to seem nonexistent, concerns Rama (Uwais), a rookie cop with a pregnant wife, who finds himself in a hell of day on the job. Basically, he and a group of cops under the command of Sergeant Jaka (Joe Taslim) must launch an attack on a run down apartment building filled with killers and drug addicts. The king of this domain is Tama (Ray Sahetapy), a crime lord who keeps an eye on things via monitors in his fifteenth floor control center. He has two trusted lieutenants, the wild fighting god, Mad Dog (Yayan Ruhian), and the brainy Andi (Doni Alamsyah). Our group of heroes tries to pull off a covert operation, subduing the tenants floor-by-floor, but their half-assed plan is thwarted around the sixth. </span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NHPdl1lsIRxusTAhuEQL11BlCcUV9voV4CHwoPvQFBTCjBapo2DRANMD666KZK7Q4e0p2kgC5RJYiDAFehKzcQHKxv_XFLy5CA5T5L1R3_BzG1bFTE1RQqs1OSjVp2_Jvt89wDSMvzAw/s1600/raid5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2NHPdl1lsIRxusTAhuEQL11BlCcUV9voV4CHwoPvQFBTCjBapo2DRANMD666KZK7Q4e0p2kgC5RJYiDAFehKzcQHKxv_XFLy5CA5T5L1R3_BzG1bFTE1RQqs1OSjVp2_Jvt89wDSMvzAw/s320/raid5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Why didn't they come up with a better idea? Like, say, landing on the roof and knocking on the door of Tama's office? Well, for the same reason that there will be no reinforcements apparently; the raid was not approved by the police department. This was a private job, planned by Lieutenant Wahyu (Pierre Gruno). So the cops find themselves trapped in the building as Tama speaks over the intercom. He offers rent free living to all his tenants if they wipe out the intruders. A bloodbath ensues.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The rest of <em>The Raid</em> is chock full of gunfire, explosions, shattered glass, axe murders, broken bones, writhing bodies, stab wounds, hand-to-hand fighting, machete attacks, and enough sweating and grunting for a dozen porn films. When the ammunition runs low, the fists and blades come out. When a throat needs slicing but knives aren't available, a broken light bulb is used. One unlucky fellow is nearly decapitated by the shredded wood at the base of a door. Let me be even more clear; there are violent movies, and then there is <em>The Raid</em>. After this, <em>The Passion of the Christ (2004)</em> can be re-released under the Walt Disney banner.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I also recommend a bare minimum of thought while viewing this film, lest the fun be entirely spoiled. Don't ask me why all these low life druggies are exceptional athletes and fighters, able to scale walls to the next floor with ease. Don't ask me why the inexhaustible Mad Dog is three feet tall but able to annihilate any mortal human in his path. Don't ask me why Rama hides from four thugs, when he just got through killing twenty. Just try to enjoy the splendid action scenes, that's what you're here for after all.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNnqmNJ52ognmXePzJv7j7I6_nkS3zXhQCqSbRoDNYCPspCZ1psS4mzaBE8qdR6RSa-KdmIOG8nw3OWJLmmWEl30aY6WQy7jcRZCfHkq9413n_bZdFFPLMl2I-1ZCRjlvS4W25owVMJKzx/s1600/raid2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNnqmNJ52ognmXePzJv7j7I6_nkS3zXhQCqSbRoDNYCPspCZ1psS4mzaBE8qdR6RSa-KdmIOG8nw3OWJLmmWEl30aY6WQy7jcRZCfHkq9413n_bZdFFPLMl2I-1ZCRjlvS4W25owVMJKzx/s320/raid2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">In fact, it seems like defibrillators hit the projector every time a fight breaks out; the movie comes to life. The choreography by Uwais and Ruhian is energetic and imaginative, while Matt Flannery's camerawork does a fine job of framing each battle in dynamic, effective fashion. The current trend for action scenes in Hollywood is still the “shaky cam” with rapid fire editing combo, which has lasted far too long. It works for war movies like <em>Saving Private Ryan (1998)</em> because it portrays chaos and confusion, two things we can all do without when the goal is to understand and perhaps admire what is going on. <em>The Raid</em>, like many Asian features, really allows its audience to appreciate the athleticism and ability of the actors. Despite being in perpetual motion, the camera holds everything in medium shot as it dollies around the action with minimal cutting. It's this combination of fine cinematography and choreography that makes the action sequences work, one without the other would be a disaster.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">However, the film slips up by giving us very little to root for. Oh sure, we are supposed to get behind Rama so that he'll make it home to his wife and unborn child. It's about survival, I suppose, but Rama just isn't a very compelling character. We don't get any particularly interesting villains either. Mad Dog is a tough, formidable presence in his fighting scenes, but other than that he's somewhat boring. Sahetapy, as Tama, seems to have responded to a casting call that said, “Look mean and act heartless.” Ninety-five percent of the cast is expendable, their corpses end up littering the hallways of the complex. More than once I was reminded of the Spanish film, <em>REC 2 (2009)</em>, which also featured a team of heavily armed men assaulting a similar apartment complex.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The other obvious comparison is <em>Die Hard (1988)</em>, a more effective version of the “one man army in a building” concept. John McClane (Bruce Willis) was fun and somewhat human, while Alan Rickman did a bang up job as Hans Gruber, a villain everyone loved to hate. It was still an action movie, no question, but with a touch more drama to hold our interest. I think it might be more fun to watch the fight scenes in <em>The Raid</em> as stand alone set pieces, rather than part of the film.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WCdpze3qrUs1cPQz3IkzqjuAnv2werLwdxy87hLa1OpXJbF7TJg8QZv8r6cHxP2J4bCInt2BrEeWGeMNvZGzhMpZnfwcUgLmF0W8bA9P9Xl8nmKrZi63ZAikvS0mYOayHSUcNtaM4BY7/s1600/raid3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2WCdpze3qrUs1cPQz3IkzqjuAnv2werLwdxy87hLa1OpXJbF7TJg8QZv8r6cHxP2J4bCInt2BrEeWGeMNvZGzhMpZnfwcUgLmF0W8bA9P9Xl8nmKrZi63ZAikvS0mYOayHSUcNtaM4BY7/s320/raid3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="color: black;">Having said all that, <em>The Raid</em> makes good on its promises if all you desire is crazy action, booming sound effects, and gore by the bucket load. It's more enjoyable than most silly kung fu/wuxia movies, though there are several made in the last twenty years that I would take over this, including Tsui Hark's <em>Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)</em>, Gordon Chan's <em>Fist of Legend (1994)</em>, Ang Lee's <em>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)</em>, and Zhang Yimou's <em>Hero (2002)</em> and <em>House of Flying Daggers (2004)</em>. I realize these films differ from <em>The Raid</em> in period, setting, and fighting style, but Evans has never made a secret of being inspired by “the Golden Age” of Hong Kong/Chinese cinema. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">At any rate, those interested in a superior action movie made in the last year should look no further than Brad Bird's inventive and fun-filled <em>Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011)</em>. Too bad it can no longer be seen on IMAX screens, the scaling of the Burj Khalifa won't be as effective in home theaters. Please understand, I'm not talking anyone out of seeing <em>The Raid: Redemption</em>, I'm simply recommending alternatives. <em>The Raid</em> is bloodier and more visceral than <em>Ghost Protocol</em>, so if that's how you like your entrées seasoned, then by all means get to the theater immediately.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/UZIpnD8YecY?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-59291090802229593762012-04-08T22:19:00.000-05:002012-04-08T22:19:41.706-05:00ABEL GANCE'S NAPOLEON: THE EAGLE HAS LANDED<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">I returned to Dallas from Oakland six days ago, and have had time now to process what can only be defined as an absolutely extraordinary experience. I was so impressed that I am currently listening to Carl Davis' magnificent score for the film as I write this. Previously I explained that I'm no expert on music, but I have admired Carl Davis for years, nonetheless. I think he's the best composer we have for silent films, and his work for <em>Napoleon</em> was just perfect for the movie. Seeing it performed live was an honor, and one I wish I could have experienced more than once.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">For those who need a little background on what I'm talking about, please see my former post titled <a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/03/eagle-lands-on-april-1.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">“The Eagle Lands on April 1”</span></a>. In short, Abel Gance's five-and-a-half hour 1927 masterpiece, <em>Napoleon</em>, was given four special screenings at the Paramount Theater in Oakland with a 48-piece orchestra, conducted by Carl Davis himself. The last time anyone saw this movie in the U.S. with an orchestra and a theater fully equipped for its spectacular Polyvision finale was in 1981 at Radio City Music Hall. Unfortunately, that version was cut down to four hours by Francis Ford Coppola to avoid paying the orchestra overtime, it also played at the wrong frame rate (24 fps instead of the proper 20 fps), and was scored by Coppola's father, Carmine. Due to legal issues, only that inferior version exists on VHS, and no version is available on DVD or Blu-ray.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">This once-in-a-lifetime experience was made possible by the San Francisco Silent Film Festival's $720,000 investment, but the person most deserving of our thanks is Mr. Kevin Brownlow. He was in attendance on this day, and more than ready to engage anyone in conversation. The man is one of my heroes; he has been the world's supreme champion of rescuing silent films from the realm of the forgotten. As a little kid in England he came across two reels of <em>Napoleon</em>, back when no one even remembered what it was, and came away so impressed that he made it his life's goal to restore the film to its proper form and place in cinema history. He calls <em>Napoleon</em>, “The most innovative film ever made, even moreso than <em>Citizen Kane</em>.” I have to admit, I agree with him.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">When I walked into the Paramount Theater for the first time I realized the venue was going to be an integral part of the experience. Built in 1931, this art deco “movie palace” transported me to another time. A time when movies were genuine events, lines would snake around the block, and the world of the film itself greeted you as you entered the lobby. According to New York Times critic Mordaunt Hall who attended the premiere of Douglas Fairbanks' <em>The Thief of Bagdad</em> in 1924, the theater had, “...a thoroughly Oriental atmosphere, with drums, ululating vocal offerings, odiferous incense, perfume from Bagdad, magic carpets, and ushers in Arabian attire, who during intermission made a brave effort to bear cups of Turkish coffee to the women in the audience.” Those were the days! So, in this old fashioned movie palace environment, it was easy to imagine I was walking into the world premiere of <em>Napoleon</em> with three thousand like-minded individuals. The pictures I took with my iPhone do the place no justice, but believe me, it was a more than worthy compliment to the film.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The picture began promptly at 1:30 PM, and in those two hours before the first intermission I was thoroughly astounded. We first see Napoleon as a child (Vladimir Roudenko) in 1779 at the military school in Brienne-le-Chateau, orchestrating a great victory against a larger group of kids in the most epic snowball fight in cinema history. Throughout this early sequence, Gance is already taking his audience on a ride. The dynamic camera movement is but one treat, we also get rapid cutting, expressive superimpositions, and hand-held shots which all contribute to the intensity and effectiveness of the scene. It was powerful cinema, laced with some humorous bits that come as a surprise following the relatively humorless <em>J'Accuse (1919)</em> and <em>La Roue (1923)</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In class, Napoleon's temper reaches a boil in another funny bit as the teacher reads a rather disparaging description of Corsica and its people. The boy takes great pride in his Corsican roots, but gets picked on by other kids due to his thick accent. Napoleon's only friend at the school is his pet eagle, a gift from his uncle back home, kept in the attic of the dormitory. One evening, two kids decide to open the bird's cage, allowing its escape into the night. When Napoleon discovers his pet is missing, he flips out and rushes down to the bedroom. When none of the boys confess, Napoleon screams, “If none of you are guilty, then you're all guilty!” He starts running from bed to bed, pummeling the other boys until a full-fledged pillow fight has begun. In this sequence, Gance splits the screen into nine frames, giving us a look at the chaos from all directions. Until the instructors break it up, that is, and toss Napoleon out in the snow.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Then a tremendous thing happens. The boy has been reduced to weeping in the cold dark, resting against an old cannon, alone, when suddenly the music changes. It seems to foresee a rise to greatness from these humble beginnings, and then the eagle lands in a tree above Napoleon. The boy smiles through his tears, inspired and overjoyed. The eagle responds to his voice, flying down and landing on the cannon as the music hits another crescendo. It's a magical moment, and with that we are sent off to the year 1792.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Here we join a bunch of revolutionists at a club, including historical figures like Danton, Robespierre, and Marat. It's another memorable scene as we witness the first singing of "La Marseillaise" (the French national anthem), with its composer, Lisle, leading the charge. Our first view of the twenty-three year old Napoleon (Albert Dieudonné) comes from behind, before he turns and thanks Lisle for his effort. Napoleon was of a low rank in the army on that day, but he would soon discover his purpose.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It was the night of August 10 in the same year, when a mob ran the royal family right out of Paris in violent fashion. The film, bathed in a rich red tint during this scene, depicts Danton and his gang of revolutionists hanging a man in front of a large crowd. Napoleon witnesses the event from the window of his room, and we see in his eyes that something has transformed within him. He seems to believe he can unite these disparate groups.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">When Napoleon visits his family in Corsica, Gance films in the actual locations where Napoleon grew up, including his childhood home which still stands. Upon discovering that the island is about to be handed over to the British by the Corsican president, Napoleon defiantly objects, putting he and his family in great danger. On the run for his life, Napoleon eludes capture in a thrilling chase (Gance straps a camera to the back of a horse at one point!), but stops to steal the French flag from the town hall, believing these Corsican political sellouts no longer deserve to display it. When Napoleon finds himself on a boat with no sail and the president's men on his heels, he brilliantly defies them by using the enormous French flag as his sail! “I'll bring it back to you!” he sarcastically yells.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In the rightfully celebrated climax to Act One, Gance cuts dramatically between Napoleon being tossed about in the violent seas, and the chaotic atmosphere of the National Convention in Paris, where the Girondists and Montagnards (two revolutionist groups, one more radical than the other) are at each other's throats. In one shot, waves roar toward the lens, while in the next the camera seems to be on a pendulum, swinging over the heated Convention crowd.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The next day, after Napoleon is discovered alive in his boat, he saves the rest of his family, still in hiding on Corsica. In a bit that had the entire audience rolling, a British ship appears and a young Horatio Nelson asks his captain for, “permission to sink this suspicious looking vessel.” The captain declines, reasoning that the boat is far too insignificant to waste valuable powder to blow up. Those who know their history are aware that Napoleon would later make all his relatives into the kings and queens of Europe. Nelson, at least in Gance's version of the tale, had an opportunity to avoid much future stress by destroying not only Napoleon, but several soon to be kings and queens. Whoops!</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Act Two deals primarily with Napoleon's actions during the Siege of Toulon. Now a captain, he leads a midnight attack through a vicious storm. Drenched soldiers do battle, bodies sink in the mud, arms reach out in desperation. Akira Kurosawa must have been inspired by this sequence when he conceived the rainy final battle in <em>Seven Samurai (1954)</em>. After all, we know he was a fan of Gance, having said of <em>La Roue</em>, it was “the first film that really impressed me.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">After Act Two we had a one hour and forty-five minute dinner break. Several restaurants in the area had special menus for people attending <em>Napoleon</em>, and I ended up going to Picán a few blocks away. They had a fixed price, three course “La Fête de Napoleon” menu from which I selected spring garlic & new potato soup, chicken paillard “Marengo style” (with crawfish étouffée), and brandied black cherries with vanilla ice cream for dessert. It was all rather delicious and fitting for the occasion. Plus, I was in good company. At the same group table sat a fellow silent film aficionado from Florida and a history buff from San Francisco with a special affection for Napoleon. I was pleased to discover that the history buff was blown away by the movie up to that point, despite having no particular love for cinema. Anyway, after dinner I made a mad dash for the Paramount.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Despite much political intrigue, Act Three is concerned, for the most part, with Napoleon's love life as he falls for the beautiful Josephine (Gina Manès). We are treated to several funny scenes illustrating his romantic skills, or lack thereof, since clearly they are not the equal of his efforts on the battlefield. There is also a quite memorable Victim's Ball, where the editing shines and the lack of censorship is apparent. Women lose their tops and their skirts come up to reveal their backsides, but things never feel gratuitous. Heck, it feels like a French party, and these balls, intended for the relatives of those who were guillotined during the Reign of Terror, really occurred at that time in Paris.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Ultimately, Napoleon is promoted based on the leadership he displayed at Toulon. He is wed to Josephine and on the very day of his union, he's lying in the floor of his room planning the invasion of Italy.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In the final act Napoleon heads to Italy, making a stop at the National Convention one last time before leaving Paris. It's a terrific scene; the old building lies empty, but the ghosts of the Revolution remain. Danton and Saint-Just (played by Gance himself, who received a massive applause when he first showed up in Act Three) appear before Napoleon and demand that he remain true to their ideals. The Revolution was intended to bring down the oppressive monarchy, replacing it with the personal freedoms of a democracy. Saint-Just tells Napoleon that should he waver from those principles, the ghosts of the Revolution will oppose him. Obviously, there is some powerful foreshadowing at work here. We all know Napoleon eventually got too big for his britches.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Once he arrives in Italy, an appalling sight awaits him. The French troops stationed there are starving and poorly equipped. Suddenly, the curtains at the side of the screen pull back to reveal two more full-size screens. The finale of the picture, seen on this 82-foot wide panorama, lasts a good twenty minutes. The audience, again, broke into applause for it is here we witness the cinema's first use of widescreen. When Gance created this sequence by connecting three cameras to capture a single shot, Hollywood's “Cinerama” (first seen in 1953's <em>The Robe</em>) was still twenty-six years away. Innovation, folks. It's a beautiful thing.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">In this massive triptych that Gance called “Polyvision”, we see Napoleon up on a hill overlooking his troops. He shouts an inspirational speech, convincing this weakened rabble to find glory on the battlefield. He promises rewards beyond their wildest dreams. The troops, fired up by these words, begin to march with newfound purpose. An eagle spreads its wings eighty-two feet wide. Moved by this, a man to my right began cheering. The music soars, as we see more wide panoramas and intercutting between all three screens. For example, in a quick cut, one might see Napoleon's face at center with flames to the left and right. Eventually, the left screen is tinted blue, the right is tinted red, and the center remains “black and white”. This gives the impression of a massive French flag with images pouring out of it. When the cutting gets fast and furious, with different images on all three screens, it resembles something by Stan Brakhage or even a modern music video (only more rewarding). It's a momentous climax, indeed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Then, alas, it was over. The audience stood up and cheered for several minutes. After five-and-a-half hours (nearly eight if including the intermissions), I still found myself wanting more. I remember wishing that I had seen the March 31 production so that I might stay and view it again on April 1. The word is that <em>Napoleon</em> won't be seen again until late 2013 in London. We have no reason to hope for a Blu-ray release, so there is literally no way to experience this movie again any time soon.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">What made it so unforgettable? Well, the movie itself was a staggering feat, despite being eighty-five years old. It featured a plethora of gorgeous images, wonderful performances, surprising humor, and unexpected subtlety from Gance, along with stupendous camerawork and technical innovations. The Polyvision sequence can never be reproduced to full effect on the home screen, just as IMAX footage will never be the same outside of an IMAX theater. It is a rare thing to see Polyvision done properly, as it requires three specially installed screens and three film projectors.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The aforementioned score by Carl Davis, performed live by the Oakland East Bay Symphony, was nearly worth the price of admission by itself. No offense to the late Carmine Coppola, whose music worked so well in <em>Apocalypse Now (1979)</em>, but Davis has fashioned the superior score for Napoleon. In researching the music of Napoleon's life, Davis worked in "La Marseillaise", Beethoven's Eroica Symphony (which was originally inspired by Napoleon's exploits), pieces by other Napoleon contemporaries like Mozart and Haydn, a tune from Paisiello's “Nina” (Napoleon's favorite opera), three Corsican folk tunes of the period to accompany Napoleon's return home, and some powerful original compositions. It was a dazzling accompaniment, to say the least.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">As I stated, the venue was a part of the experience that will likely never be matched, and for the tinted sequences in the film, the original 1920's dye process was applied to each frame; no computer effects or colorization were added. There was just so much attention to detail, so much love and care that obviously went into this. It was truly the greatest experience I have ever had in a movie theater.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">While it's a shame that Gance was only able to complete the first of a planned six films about Napoleon before he ran out of money, that one film stands far above his others as a testament to his genius. He was a man ahead of his time, and perhaps that is why his film can blow me away today more than a dozen modern Hollywood blockbusters ever could.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-K0Kli11qnhX7D67LlzmfsbbHWfx9NaSGH7vkJtqLWzqz3T8O3EwTMhh34ZyOYpDzzx_CbPDQEEc1jazsA9egQtUBtjIaPxAEj7PevQOcNQ-2zLCMsiTDGR0mNx-TlPl9vpsSKfGiGktR/s1600/napoleon12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-K0Kli11qnhX7D67LlzmfsbbHWfx9NaSGH7vkJtqLWzqz3T8O3EwTMhh34ZyOYpDzzx_CbPDQEEc1jazsA9egQtUBtjIaPxAEj7PevQOcNQ-2zLCMsiTDGR0mNx-TlPl9vpsSKfGiGktR/s320/napoleon12.jpg" width="257" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-38588156001520617212012-03-29T21:32:00.000-05:002012-03-30T21:32:46.718-05:00The Eagle Lands on April 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">The standard of Napoleon Bonaparte's Grande Armée was a staff, atop which sat a bronze eagle. In Abel Gance's 1927 silent film, <em>Napoleon</em>, we see the emperor as a youth with his very own pet eagle. The eagle represented courage, its wings spread wide symbolized a protector. These were traits many associated with Napoleon in his early career, before he became something of a tyrant. Beethoven, for example, was a big fan of Napoleon as a general, but despised him later (even crossing out a dedication to Napoleon on a sheet of music that still exists). Nonetheless, the eagle was a symbol of Napoleonic virtues in his younger days, and Gance's five-and-a-half hour epic tackles the early days of an extraordinary life. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Technically, this eagle landed in the U.S. on March 24, but I will be flying from Dallas to see it on April 1, at the last of only four showings at the Paramount Theater in Oakland. Words can not express my excitement; this has been a dream of mine since the late 90's when I read about the last time <em>Napoleon</em> played in America. The year was 1981, six thousand people crammed into New York's Radio City Music Hall, and by all accounts it was “the cinema event of a lifetime”.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Those unfamiliar with the film may wonder, “What's so special about it?” If you happen to be in that camp, you may think I'm crazy to fly to another city just to see a movie. Hey, Dallas is nothing. People have flown in from London, Paris, Prague, Amsterdam, New York City, Chicago, Miami, etc. Apparently one of my favorite filmmakers in the last two decades, Alexander Payne (<em>Sideways</em>, <em>The Descendants</em>, etc.) saw it last Saturday <em>and</em> Sunday! So if I'm crazy, at least I'm in good company.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Why, exactly, are these four screenings so incredibly rare and special? I'll save the details for my upcoming review, but lets just say <em>Napoleon</em> is an enormous feat to put on. In fact, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival is paying $720,000 to present these four screenings alone. Plus, I last saw the movie about a decade ago on VHS; it was a shorter version with a different score and played at the wrong framerate.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">So why not get the thing on Blu-ray or DVD instead? Well, because that VHS version is still the only version available in America. It's a legal issue. Francis Ford Coppola owns the American rights to <em>Napoleon</em>, and his father, Carmine, composed a score for the film. In the thirty years since then, film historian Kevin Brownlow has discovered more footage, better versions of existing footage, and so forth. He has created two improved restorations since that time, and he wants the world to see them. Unfortunately, Coppola has been a menace at every turn. He wants his cut of the film with his father's score (particularly now that his father has passed on) to be the definitive version.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">In my full review I will delve into all the other reasons I'm so thrilled about seeing this epic film on Sunday. To prepare, I have watched two of Abel Gance's earlier films: <em>J'Accuse (1919)</em> and <em>La Roue (1923)</em>. I had seen the latter previously, but had never caught the former until now. Both films are visually impressive; seldom have I seen so much camera movement and rapid cutting in a picture from 1919, and <em>La Roue</em> improves upon that. There are two sequences in particular, one involving a train crash and the other a speeding train, in <em>La Roue</em> that make me wonder why Sergei Eisenstein gets all the credit for coming up with the montage. His Odessa Steps sequence in <em>The Battleship Potemkin (1925)</em> is legendary, but Gance was doing similar work at an earlier date.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;"><em>J'Accuse</em>, with it's extreme melodrama and not an ounce of subtlety, doesn't hold up as well today as <em>La Roue</em>, unfortunately. There is a clear pacifist message, the first in cinema according to Brownlow, hurtling toward the viewer at every turn. It's worth seeing, but Gance was clearly still developing his talents. When it's good, it's very good, and memorable sequences include Gance's actual World War I footage of the Battle of Saint-Mihiel and especially the climax, where the dead soldiers of France rise up to accuse their wives, friends, family, etc. of not valuing their sacrifice. Gance used real soldiers on leave for this scene, and when they returned to the front lines, eighty percent of them perished.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;"><em>La Roue</em>, the story of an engineer/inventor (Séverin-Mars, also one of the leads in <em>J'Accuse</em>) who rescues an orphaned girl from a train crash, raises her as his own daughter, and tragically falls in love with her somewhere along the way, is a better picture than <em>J'Accuse</em>. It's not entirely free of over-the-top melodrama, to be sure, but compared to <em>J'Accuse</em> it seems there was a sedative added to the wine on set. If memory serves, <em>Napoleon</em> is yet another improvement in that area. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">There are some interesting characters and genuinely striking images in <em>La Roue</em>. One image I can't get out of my head is the engineer's little house with a picket fence sitting right by the railroad tracks. When trains pass in exterior shots they seem to be about six feet from the house, and in interior shots they appear always lumbering by through the windows. It's a long film at four-and-a-half hours, but well worth the effort and great preparation for the five-and-a-half hours (with three intermissions including a dinner break) that await me on Sunday.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Mme7BvDHNNd3xNRM1Imm9ca_OXalM9XYE9XyexQrwZPDT_t0QgqiG1AJbzauZlHX6VAJpz_vkXcw_G3R_uo_Q2ZW9Xtz2BgpVkS_IeQ4R706IjbMDXB2FShvqOxwdZ3xq73hXRrv1b0S/s1600/gance2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Mme7BvDHNNd3xNRM1Imm9ca_OXalM9XYE9XyexQrwZPDT_t0QgqiG1AJbzauZlHX6VAJpz_vkXcw_G3R_uo_Q2ZW9Xtz2BgpVkS_IeQ4R706IjbMDXB2FShvqOxwdZ3xq73hXRrv1b0S/s320/gance2.png" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-70835556854578226872012-03-23T17:15:00.000-05:002012-03-24T13:42:30.260-05:00The Three Kinds of Movies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">My last article spoke about </span><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/03/four-kinds-of-people.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">The Four Kinds of People</span></a><span style="color: black;">, and as a continuation of that idea, I will now discuss The Three Kinds of Movies. First, a little background is in order.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">At around fourteen or fifteen years of age I existed among the ranks of the third and worst of the four kinds of people. In other words, I absolutely loved movies, but possessed a very limited perspective of them. As I stated in my article, </span><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2012/02/tree-hugger-part-1.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Tree Hugger: Part One</span></a><span style="color: black;">, the movie that helped me evolve was Alfred Hitchcock's<em> Psycho (1960)</em>. I rented it begrudgingly, and only when convinced I had seen every new release available at my local Blockbuster. <em>Psycho</em> not only impressed me, it <em>changed</em> me. From that day forward I started watching older American movies. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">A few months later I was at my friend’s house flipping channels on the tube when, suddenly, we found ourselves staring at two bad ass looking Japanese guys with enormous spears. The movie was subtitled, black-and-white, and shot in glorious widescreen. Before we could change the channel on this “foreign garbage”, we both realized how visually striking it was. This was exceptional filmmaking! My friend, as intrigued as I (all the more shocking since he had a “person two” interest in films), pressed the info button on his remote. It was called <em>The Hidden Fortress</em>, released in 1958, and directed by Akira Kurosawa, an influential Japanese filmmaker I had surprisingly heard of in passing. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">My friend and I watched the entire spear battle between Toshiro Mifune and Susumu Fujita, astonished as all hell. That very evening I looked up as much information on Akira Kurosawa as I possibly could, and the next day I rented <em>The Hidden Fortress</em>, <em>Seven Samurai (1954)</em>, and <em>Ran (1985)</em>. Surprisingly, when viewed in full, none of these films were all that great to me at the time. They were above average, I suppose, but nothing tremendous. I decided Kurosawa wasn’t all I had come to think he might be.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">However, I came across a copy of <em>Yojimbo (1961)</em> a few weeks later and pulled the trigger on a rental. I absolutely loved it. To this day I consider it a top notch satire, brimming with action, entertainment, and stunning cinematography. <em>Yojimbo</em> was, for me, second only to <em>Psycho</em> in terms of its immediate impact on my life where motion pictures are concerned. It opened the door to everything <em>Psycho</em> had left out. Foreign films were fair game, even silents seemed legitimate. After <em>Yojimbo</em> I threw out all the fears and prejudices I had unintentionally built up against certain aspects of film history. All films, and I do mean <em>all</em> (with the single exception of porn), were now potential masterpieces. I realized that by restricting myself from viewing these “intimidating” films, I could miss out on seeing some of the greatest films ever made. As a film lover I wasn’t willing to do that, which is why I have issues with “film lovers” who are.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I began watching everything I could get my hands on. Before I knew it, Blockbuster wasn’t cutting it anymore. To get my hands on some of Kurosawa’s lesser known works (<em>The Lower Depths</em>, <em>Red Beard</em>, <em>Sanshiro Sugata</em>, etc.) I found myself driving to rental stores with a better selection or buying the movies outright. In addition to these, and more, I viewed <em>Seven Samurai</em>, <em>Ran</em>, and <em>The Hidden Fortress</em> again a few months into my cinephile revelation period. It was as if a blindfold of ignorance had been removed from my eyes. What had I been watching the first time? Was my mind preoccupied? Perhaps my bias had been more stifling than I realized? What possessed me to believe these films were anything but extraordinary?! That’s when I formed the belief that three kinds of movies exist.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">There are terrible films, of course, and they make up the vast majority. There are also movies one may enjoy on the first viewing that fail to hold up on subsequent viewings. In other words, their impact is immediate, and from there they only get worse. After seeing a film like this, one may leave the theater with a smile on their face. They are often very accessible and well made. Still, they lack that singular ability to grow, change, and improve with each viewing. Their value is entirely on the surface. One does not watch these films multiple times and discover new things each time. It’s like a quart of milk; good for a while, then it spoils. The life span of these pictures is quite short indeed.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Then there are those rare, special films that can range anywhere from average to excellent when first viewed. What separates them from the second type of movie is that each viewing reaps new rewards. If the film was excellent the first time, it only grows more incredible. If it was average at first, one’s eyes open to its brilliance a few viewings later. Like a fine wine, this kind of film gets even better with age. This was the case with <em>Seven Samurai</em>, <em>Ran</em>, and <em>The Hidden Fortress</em>. Though I was blown away by <em>Seven Samurai</em> on my second viewing, it wasn’t until the third that I began to really understand just how masterful it is. Having seen <em>Seven Samurai</em> more than a dozen times over the years, I now believe it's Kurosawa's finest film, and one of the best pictures ever made. <em>Yojimbo</em>, though I loved it immediately, has also grown richer over time. These kinds of films are the true treasures of the medium, and seeking them out may feel like looking for a needle in a haystack.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Another fact that bears mentioning; certain filmmakers may have a style that is more difficult to penetrate. For me, one of the most challenging directors to develop a proper appreciation for is Robert Bresson. He is an acquired taste, to be sure, but the man was obviously a cinematic genius. I don’t care if one has seen many Kurosawa films, Bergman films, Tarkovsky films, Fellini films, or Bunuel films, Bresson’s style can still alienate viewers. He is completely unique and operates as far from the Hollywood formula as possible. Any and everything conventional that can occur in a film does not occur in Bresson. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Directors such as this require a “viewing order” as I call it. One should begin with the filmmaker's most mainstream, though still great, film. Gradually, one can work their way up to the others. For Bresson, I believe the ideal place to start is <em>A Man Escaped (1956)</em>, which also happens to be the favorite Bresson film of the respected critic, Jonathan Rosenbaum. The Bresson style is apparent, but the film isn’t difficult to enjoy for an experienced viewer, and it’s undeniably intense. I also believe that, following that film, one can enjoy <em>Pickpocket (1959)</em>, <em>Mouchette (1967)</em>, and <em>L’Argent (1983)</em>. Then and only then should one attempt to tackle <em>Diary of a Country Priest (1951)</em> and <em>Au Hasard Balthazar (1966)</em>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The point here is, don’t give up on a director after seeing just one or two films he has made. The first Bresson film I saw was <em>Au Hasard Balthazar</em> and that was an enormous mistake. Now, having watched his other movies, I better understand Balthazar, and having seen it half a dozen times now, I find it to be a masterpiece.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">I continue to search for great films, and will for the rest of my life. I strongly believe those who possess the notion that movies are nothing more than entertainment are misjudging reality. Motion pictures, the great ones anyway, are so much more. Films can instill moral lessons, and provide emotional outlets. I read one man’s take on Alain Resnais’ <em>Hiroshima mon amour (1959)</em>, which said he despised the film for years until he saw it again after experiencing a tragic, heartbreaking event in his own life. Suddenly, he understood. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Great films can provide insight into other cultures and humanize the people of countries we may never have thought of or cared about prior. I know that <em>Grave of the Fireflies (1988)</em>, despite being in Japanese, animated, and having nothing to do with atomic bombs, has the power to leave some modern American viewers regretting events that occurred in Japan on the sixth and ninth of August in 1945. And I know that any family, universally, can see their reflection in the films of Yasujiro Ozu. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Humans identify with humans the world over, which means that ignoring those separated from us by a border or an ocean is the easy way out. Cultures that are difficult for us to penetrate, ways of life that we don’t really understand, we choose to define in simple terms. I've heard statements like, “They’re a mixed up race,” or, “Those people have no regard for human life.” Let’s not forget those who immediately chime in with vocal parodies of the languages of other cultures (all the worse considering the pitiful job they do). The only languages one can not parody in such a way are cinema, literature, and music: the universal languages. Like India’s great director, Satyajit Ray, once said of his Apu Trilogy: </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">“The most distinctive feature of my films is that they are deeply rooted in Bengal, in Bengali culture, mannerisms, and mores. What makes them universal in appeal is that they are about human beings.”</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmbTTiBjXo2Xx6_mBFI_i7RGl-7ZRIKO12zdtXlzz7sVeFa2QC513vn7-rscvlU_VKAfP2zMneAIw2S1CE8hjH2ZYYlLO8ZFddaNJ1PenHTO1aDtMhUWe9k-kFDHz3CQ9BVVN6CbK7HeaT/s1600/threekinds5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmbTTiBjXo2Xx6_mBFI_i7RGl-7ZRIKO12zdtXlzz7sVeFa2QC513vn7-rscvlU_VKAfP2zMneAIw2S1CE8hjH2ZYYlLO8ZFddaNJ1PenHTO1aDtMhUWe9k-kFDHz3CQ9BVVN6CbK7HeaT/s320/threekinds5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-27364800516986510252012-03-15T23:00:00.000-05:002012-03-17T13:16:01.589-05:00The Four Kinds of People<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">When it comes to movies there are, by my best estimation, four kinds of people in the world. The first kind considers the motion picture industry to be nothing more than a speck on the map of humanity. These people rarely, if ever, watch movies in any format (theatrically, Blu-ray, DVD, etc.). They feel that they have better, more productive things to do than sit in front of a screen for a couple hours. Ironically, these very same people will generally set aside time to view programs on network television that generally waste the very power and potential this visual medium was created for (HBO's original programming is an often glorious exception). These people probably and unfortunately, in my opinion, represent the majority.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The second kind are those who go to the theater on occasion, know the names of a few actors here and there, and may even be caught discussing a movie with friends. However, while these people may enjoy watching movies now and again, they by no means pretend, or care to pretend, that they are movie buffs. In my eyes, as a nearly fanatical cinephile, this group is alright. Sure, more often than not they may appear to have poor taste, but they don’t pretend to be anything they aren’t. If they’re going to criticize a film, other than the most basic “good movie” or “bad movie” comment, it will probably be related to the fact that there was too much butter on their popcorn or there wasn’t enough ice in their 40 oz. Coca-Cola. In other words, these folks just don’t take movies all that seriously. They can enjoy them, they can discuss them in simple terms, but in the end, movies don’t really mean anything to them, and they can admit it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The third group is the worst of the bunch, and I used to be one of them so I’m speaking from personal experience. This breed fancies themselves to be <em>huge</em> movie buffs. They buy Blu-rays or DVDs often, they discuss movies regularly, and they might even have an extremely nice media room devoted to the experience. The problem is this: they are phonies. How does one spot a pseudo-cinephile, you ask? It's pretty easy. The pseudo-cinephile will limit themselves, willingly, to the point of having no clue what movies really are, or what they can be. They usually refuse to watch silent films even if they’ve never seen any. They rarely, if ever, watch movies in black-and-white, or even in color if produced before 1970. They don’t believe that animation can tell a mature, adult story, as it’s to be used exclusively for “kid’s stuff”. They also fail to understand that motion pictures are a universal language, made in numerous countries of the world. In other words, they don’t watch foreign films, and usually it's because they fear reading subtitles or they’re downright racist. As if that's not enough, having whittled the “worthy” films down to about five-percent of those in existence, these people also pick and choose between genres! Some say they “don’t like horror,” for others it’s, “I don’t like Westerns.” For others still it’s, “I hate romance movies.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Furthermore, these people tend to possess little knowledge of film directors (the movie industry’s equivalent of a novel’s author, a painting’s painter, or a song’s composer) unless their name begins with Steven and ends with Spielberg. Nor have they any clue about cinematographers, composers, writers, etc. These are the people that make a movie <em>happen</em>. For group three, however, it’s usually all about the actors. Don’t get me wrong, I respect actors as much as any film buff, but they are only one piece of the puzzle with a single purpose: to serve the director. Tom Cruise said it best when he admitted, “film is a director’s medium.” Mel Gibson has stated that he prefers directing to acting because it gives him more control to tell the story his way. Moving on to vicious extremes now, Alfred Hitchcock said, “actors should be treated like cattle,” and Robert Bresson’s style treats them as “models” or “puppets”. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Despite their necessary talents, actors are chess pieces to be manipulated by the filmmaker. Proof can be seen in the career of the wonderful Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune. He made well over one hundred films, but his greatest work as an actor was always found in the same place; the sixteen pictures he made with director Akira Kurosawa. Mifune himself said, “I am proud of nothing that I have done other than with him.” Actually Mifune made some pretty good movies with other directors, but Kurosawa was able to make masterpieces (<em>Ikiru</em> in 1952, <em>Ran</em> in 1985, etc.) without Mifune. So who was more important to whom? Great directors make an actor better. Period. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Alas, it is apparent that the people of group three seem to think "the actors make everything up as they go along,” as Joe Gillis cynically states in Billy Wilder’s <em>Sunset Boulevard (1950)</em>. At any rate, trying to talk sense to these people is like trying to help someone who can’t stop gambling or drinking. They are obsessive in the belief that there is nothing wrong with them, and that they are well on their way down the yellow brick road of cinematic truth. Nonetheless, they will forever be the joke that real cinephiles laugh about. My advice to them? Take it to the next level or join group two and stop pretending.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Now for the fourth group: the true movie buffs. Their Blu-ray collection likely spans from the earliest days of cinema to the present time. No country that has ever produced a film is left out. Why? Because in almost every country where films exist, there exist films that are great. Of course, bad films are made around the world too, but that's a given.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Movie buffs don’t pick and choose between genres either. A decent example would be the film <em>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)</em>. Not only is the picture foreign, but it’s also a fantasy created in the Chinese idiom. People seem almost weightless as they fly through the air, walk on tree branches, or run along rooftops in the film’s many spectacular action sequences. This could, potentially, turn off those who are not accustomed to the wuxia genre. However, should one look at Crouching Tiger objectively, it is clearly telling a traditional story in an unconventional way. It is a movie about characters, with the recklessness of youth as a part of the tale, and unrequited love as another. The very same story could have been told in an American fantasy, or even, perhaps, an American drama. Simply because it wasn’t, and because it is, in fact, a Chinese film where people can fly, is no reason, on its own, to dislike it. This is what the true cinephile knows. He/she is open to the styles of other cultures, and is aware that, in the end, humans are humans; any story from any country can, for the most part, be related to by the people of another. That is actually one of the beauties of film, and indeed of any art form; the ability to transcend cultural barriers.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The cinephile also gives credit to the director as the “author” of the film that appears up on the screen. Thanks to the French film theorist André Bazin and François Truffaut, the French director and critic, this was given a name back in the 1950's. They called it "auteur theory" which means that, despite the collaborative nature of filmmaking, the director is the creator and his vision is paramount. Auteur theory has had its critics over the years, including Pauline Kael of The New Yorker, but I am a firm believer in it. There are exceptions, of course, particularly when the directing credit is misapplied. This happened often in the silent era, when the films of Buster Keaton, Douglas Fairbanks, and Harold Lloyd often gave directing credit to others, when all evidence makes it clear these three men possessed, and exercised, full creative control.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">There is simply no more accurate way to determine whether a film may be worth one’s time than to consider the filmmaker. A current favorite of mine is Alexander Payne, the writer/director of <em>Election (1999)</em>, <em>About Schmidt (2002)</em>, and <em>Sideways (2004)</em>. Though his latest film, <em>The Descendants (2011)</em>, is arguably his weakest, it was still quite good. I went into it with certain expectations based on his previous work, and those expectations were met, for the most part. It’s all about track records. Granted, even directors can slip up, they’re only human after all, but this method remains preferable. Seeing a film because of an actor often results in a great deal of disappointment. Let's take Tom Hanks, for example. One can end up at such extreme ends of the quality spectrum as <em>Turner & Hooch (1989)</em> and <em>Saving Private Ryan (1998)</em>. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It’s the same for writers, if indeed the writer isn’t also the director. One can not measure their interest in a film based on the screenwriter, because even the best screenplay can be butchered by a bad filmmaker. Hell, even actress Monica Bellucci, of all people, said, “For me, the most important thing when I make a choice is a director and then, a script. If you have a script that's not great, and a great director, you can make a great movie, but if you have a great script with a director who's not good, never, never are you going to have a good movie. So, for me, the most important thing is the director and their vision."</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">A recent filmmaker with a very unique style is David Fincher. The dark, dank, and perspiring environments of <em>Alien 3 (1992)</em> don’t look very far removed from those of <em>Seven (1995)</em>, <em>The Game (1997)</em>, <em>Fight Club (1999)</em>, <em>Zodiac (2007)</em>, or <em>The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2011)</em>. Also, the way his camera chases victims in the alien’s point-of-view in <em>Alien 3</em>, spinning upside down and gliding along the walls, isn’t far off from his later moves where he sends the camera through walls, ducts, and wiring in <em>Fight Club</em> and <em>Panic Room (2002)</em>. My point is, it's a good thing if one enjoys a director’s personal style since it is their imprint, or stamp (not an actor’s, nor a writer’s, or even a cinematographer’s), one will see on any films they’re involved in. If one enjoys <em>Seven</em>, then one will most likely enjoy <em>The Game</em> and <em>Fight Club</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I mentioned that cinematographers don’t always leave an imprint, and I feel the need to elaborate. Granted, cinematographers are the ones actually shooting what is on the screen. They have a vast working knowledge of the way lighting works and how the right lens can mean the difference between success and failure in a scene. I have an immense respect for cinematographers, just as I do for actors and writers, I don’t want anyone to misunderstand. It was even the legendary Gregg Toland who taught Orson Welles most of the ins and outs of the medium. Sven Nykvist, Gordon Willis, Kazuo Miyagawa, Emmanuel Lubezki, Toland, etc. are some phenomenally talented examples. Still, the cinematographer, like the actor, functions as a tool to be used by the filmmaker. The director sees what he wants, as a picture in his head, and aids the cinematographer in selecting angles, how much light to apply in the scene, and very often what lens to use as well (though I suppose this might piss off a veteran cinematographer). </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">One of the better examples I can think of is the case of Asakazu Nakai and Kazuo Miyagawa, who both worked on Kurosawa pictures at points in their lives. Both are very respected in their field, with Miyagawa often being considered the best ever from Japan. The problem is, Takao Saito, another cinematographer, stated that Kurosawa was extremely easy to work with because he knew exactly what he wanted in every aspect of the shoot. He told the cinematographers precisely what was needed of them, leaving little room to improvise. This is why all of Kurosawa’s pictures look wonderful, regardless of who shot them. In the end, as talented as those cinematographers are, it is Kurosawa’s presence that really creates everything from the quality of the images to the performances of the actors. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Needless to say, it’s the same situation with editors. Even when the director doesn’t do the editing himself, he is either present in the editing room or approving what the editor is doing. For the record, since I seem to be mentioning Kurosawa a lot, he did his own editing most of the time and was considered by many to be the greatest editor in the world. At any rate, the end result, what you actually get on the screen after months of hard work from various collaborators is, without debate, the director’s vision.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Another test to determine the real cinephile from the phony? The real cinephile will get what I'm saying here; the pseudo-cinephile will likely get defensive. The other two kinds of people are off the hook on this one because they probably aren't even reading this. If they are, they likely didn't make it this far because they simply don't care. Not caring at all is fine. It's halfway caring instead of caring all the way that frustrates me.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpKOJjjvDBeOhE8pF_pPbRYhZczhB-W-7SVeoVoWn4PGwTrfq7vF24FY6E3x02q-sEG9Z6lDPwDImcr9SF78fwfmCmaFvk163G-JdB_a_SEZnbkxd0jJSIGqTmMXSTQHUvv7V15YLMPBX/s1600/fourkinds5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdpKOJjjvDBeOhE8pF_pPbRYhZczhB-W-7SVeoVoWn4PGwTrfq7vF24FY6E3x02q-sEG9Z6lDPwDImcr9SF78fwfmCmaFvk163G-JdB_a_SEZnbkxd0jJSIGqTmMXSTQHUvv7V15YLMPBX/s1600/fourkinds5.jpg" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-84473613884294383022012-03-05T22:00:00.000-06:002012-03-08T21:03:55.852-06:00The Mamoulian Touch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">I pride myself on being as unbiased as possible when it comes to movies. For any cinephile worth their salt, the age of the film is unimportant, neither the country in which it was made, nor the genre. Many will say, “I don't like horror movies,” or, “I don't care for romantic comedies.” I'm not one of those people. I have loved films from all around the world in every genre there is. Still, if forced to admit it, at the end of the day, very rarely will I select a musical for my personal enjoyment. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><em>This</em> musical, however, I would watch anytime and with great pleasure. <em>Love Me Tonight</em> is pure magic, even slightly better than <em>Singin' in the Rain (1952)</em>, which had been my favorite musical until I first saw this one. Each time I watch it I am reminded of why I love movies so much in the first place. The songs are catchy, the wit and sexual innuendo in the dialogue remain hilarious today, the characters are great fun, and the love story tops most stuff coming out of Hollywood now.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Set in Paris, the picture introduces us to a tailor named Maurice Courtelin (Maurice Chevalier), who has been outfitting the Viscount de Varèze (Charles Ruggles) on credit. The bill has gotten out of hand around the same time Maurice discovers the Viscount has an awful reputation among Parisian tradesmen for never settling his accounts. Maurice decides to travel to the castle of the Duke d'Artelines (C. Aubrey Smith), the Viscount's uncle, to demand payment. Along the way he has a “meet cute” on a country road with Princess Jeanette (Jeanette MacDonald). He attempts to charm the young widow by singing “Mimi”, but she heads off to the castle unimpressed.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Once Maurice arrives at the castle he is intercepted by the Viscount, who tells him he needs a few days to raise the money. He asks Maurice to stay at the castle, and avoids questions by quickly informing everyone that his guest is a baron. Other colorful characters on hand include a trio of aunts serving as a Greek chorus (and resembling Macbeth's three witches), the Duke's sex starved niece Valentine (Myrna Loy), and Count de Savignac (Charles Butterworth), who fails miserably in courting Jeanette. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">We all know where this thing is going; Maurice falls for Jeanette, much to the chagrin of Valentine, but his false identity is uncovered. Can a princess love a common tailor? If the plot sounds like a mere trifle, well...it is. Still, while the destination is predictable, the joy of <em>Love Me Tonight</em> is in <em>getting there</em>, and in the characters, songs, and humor. A tremendous supporting cast doesn't hurt; Myrna Loy is one of the most adorable women in film history, and Charles Ruggles is one of my favorite character actors of the thirties.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The picture was directed by the Armenian-born filmmaker, Rouben Mamoulian, for Paramount in 1932. Movies from the late twenties to early thirties are a tricky subject. On the plus side, there was still no Hays Code censoring the content. Couples slept in the same bed, sex wasn't a taboo subject, there were nude scenes, the villain was not always punished for their crime, etc. That would all change in July of 1934, so these pre-Code sound films are like glorious, uninhibited little time capsules. Unfortunately, the introduction of sound set the visual art of filmmaking back about a decade, and these early adopters suffer the most. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It was a learning process, and most directors were slaves to the limitations of immobile microphones and other aspects of early sound recording. To get an exciting sequence with dynamic camera movement, directors like King Vidor (in 1929's <em>Hallelujah!</em>) and Lewis Milestone (in 1930's <em>All Quiet on the Western Front</em>) continued to film action scenes silently, dubbing sound in later. In most movies of the time, the camera was stationary, creating a simple frame for the actors to talk in. Pretty boring, especially compared to the brilliantly inventive late-period silents. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of the incredible Japanese director, Yasujiro Ozu, so I'm not bashing austere minimalism as a stylistic choice. Ozu's camera rarely moved; his images were poetic in their simplicity, but he was never bound to that style by technical deficiencies. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mamoulian, always rather adventurous and experimental in his stage directing career, was not content to be held prisoner by technology even at a time when most filmmakers were. For his 1929 feature, <em>Applause</em>, he pioneered the use of two microphones which allowed dialogue to overlap realistically. In the earliest sound films, one heard either dialogue or music, but never both together. Mamoulian's innovative use of sound contributed to the eventual creation of multi-track mixing. With <em>City Streets (1931)</em>, Mamoulian became the first filmmaker to use voice-over in an American picture. In 1932 he made what is still the best version of <em>Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde</em>, and crafted a wildly unique first-person sequence to open the film, putting us right in the shoes of Frederic March's Dr. Jekyll. He directed <em>Becky Sharp</em> in 1935, the first feature-length motion picture to be shot entirely in three-strip Technicolor. Lastly, for what it's worth, he also made the best version of Zorro (yes, even better than the 1920 Douglas Fairbanks original) with 1940's <em>The Mark of Zorro</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">For <em>Love Me Tonight</em>, Mamoulian threw in everything but the kitchen sink, and made it work. It is here we witness the first use of a zoom lens and asynchronous sound, yet even more impressive is just how alive and filled with motion this film is. Practically every frame pulsates with energy and creativity. From top to bottom, the cast and crew knock the ball out of the park, and at least three of the wonderful songs by Rodgers and Hart became standards.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">Taking a page from his stage production of <em>Porgy</em>, Mamoulian casts a spell over the audience immediately. In the opening sequence, Paris awakens. We see Maurice's little neighborhood as music is created through the everyday actions of sweeping, hammering, drying clothes, etc. Maurice rises in his apartment and begins to sing “The Song of Paree” all the way to work (clearly an inspiration for the "Little Town" sequence in the 1991 Disney film, <em>Beauty and the Beast</em>). It's pure joy, but as fantastic as the opening is, it's topped about five minutes later when Maurice sings “Isn't It Romantic”. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">His customer deems the song “catchy” before exiting the shop, and he sings it as he passes a parked cab. The driver starts whistling the tune when he picks up a fare, his passenger catches on and is later overheard singing on a train filled with servicemen. The servicemen march through a field, singing in unison. In this splendid sequence, “Isn't It Romantic” is passed on from person to person across many miles, beginning on that little street in Paris and ending on a palace balcony in the countryside where we are introduced to Princess Jeanette. Now that's cinema.</span><br />
<br />
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<span style="color: black;">The dialogue is a real treat too, with pre-Code euphemisms like, “I fell flat on my flute!” At one point Jeanette faints, and the Viscount rushes to Valentine. “Can you go for a doctor,” he asks. She happily replies, “Certainly! Bring him right in!” </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">Who can resist an exchange like this:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“You know, I had an elder brother who used to faint quite often. He was a nipomaniac.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“A what?”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“A nipomaniac. He used to go around pinching things.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“Oh I had a friend like that, he used to pinch business girls in elevators. They had to send him to a cooler climate.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">Or this one, between Jeanette and the Count she wants nothing to do with:</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“Count, I'm going to bed.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“I just came up to join you.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“Join me?”</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">“Join you in a little chat before dinner.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“Not tonight. I've had another fainting spell and my uncle thought bed was the best place for me.”</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">“I always think that.....if one isn't well.”</span><br />
<br />
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<span style="color: black;">Surprisingly, there are those who believe Mamoulian was all flash and little substance, which seems to me an unfair assessment. He was such an enthusiastic technician that his abilities as an artist have been called into question. His critics see him as something of a grand imitator, apparently, with very little style to call his own. It's true the great Ernst Lubitsch had worked with Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald on <em>The Love Parade (1929)</em> and <em>One Hour With You (1932)</em>, musicals made before <em>Love Me Tonight</em>, and Mamoulian's picture employed the same cinematographer and art director. Many see “the Lubitsch Touch” at work here, and it has been said that <em>Love Me Tonight</em> is the best Lubitsch film Lubitsch never made. As for me, I think it's the best Mamoulian film Mamoulian ever made. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">Film critic Andrew Sarris, as well as the Orson Welles crusader and filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich (director of 1971's excellent <em>The Last Picture Show</em>), both prefer <em>The Love Parade</em>, <em>One Hour With You</em>, and <em>The Merry Widow (1934)</em> over Mamoulian's film. I respectfully disagree. As fond as I am of Lubitsch, I would take <em>Love Me Tonight</em> over any of his musicals. Lubitsch was the superior and more consistent filmmaker, but if forced to choose, I would even select <em>Love Me Tonight</em> over the immortal, non-musical Lubitsch classics, <em>Trouble in Paradise (1932)</em>, <em>Ninotchka (1939)</em>, and <em>The Shop Around the Corner (1940)</em>.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black;">It's just that good.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirQ-jCEbuqdI2z8jxRZ_OweF0Ys6m8HVu1wo_vspH4qwq-iMuxbyx-XOVx9f_MtiDli2Sa5ML-l6ekbN-pQanMijycu3tkui30NSsLBN8FGuCLN863iwZPYcB2X-_JvSsgdP1BGg-n-pMS/s1600/loveme2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirQ-jCEbuqdI2z8jxRZ_OweF0Ys6m8HVu1wo_vspH4qwq-iMuxbyx-XOVx9f_MtiDli2Sa5ML-l6ekbN-pQanMijycu3tkui30NSsLBN8FGuCLN863iwZPYcB2X-_JvSsgdP1BGg-n-pMS/s320/loveme2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-58803416642985316982012-02-20T22:07:00.000-06:002012-04-25T19:29:36.491-05:00Separate but the Same<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black; font-size: small;">Not that I give any credence to
the annual Academy Awards popularity contest, but it's a real tragedy
to see Asghar Farhadi's <em>A Separation</em> nominated in the wrong category.
True, it is a foreign film, but is cinema not among the most
universal of languages? The Best Picture award should, at the very
least, attempt to celebrate the best film of the year, regardless of
origin. Technically, <em>The Artist</em> is French, yet it's the
current favorite to win Best Picture. A British film, <em>The King's
Speech</em>, won <i>last year</i>. <em>Slumdog Millionaire</em>, another British
production with over half its dialogue spoken in Hindi, won Best
Picture in 2008. In the last fifteen years, <em>Life is Beautiful (1998)</em>
from Italy and <em>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)</em> from Taiwan, were
nominated for the Academy's highest honor. <em>A Separation</em> should also
be up for the top prize, or nothing at all, as far as I'm concerned.
If not for <em>The Tree of Life</em>, this would be my favorite film of 2011.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The Academy was right on, however,
in nominating the superb screenplay by the director himself. Easily
one of the finest pieces of writing for the screen in years, I was
struck by the sheer intelligence and economy of this thing. When I
think of the greatest screenplays ever written, including <em>Chinatown
(1974)</em>,<em> Network (1976)</em>,<em> All About Eve (1950)</em>, etc., I recall similar
attributes. Strong characters, great dialogue, spot-on pacing, and an
effective subtext. Typically, I go on and on about film as a visual
medium, but <em>A Separation</em> would make for a crackling good read as
well. Unfortunately it would lack some marvelous acting on the page,
as everyone here is fantastic. </span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;">
</span><span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;">The story, set in Tehran, follows
an upper-middle class couple, Nader (Peyman Moaadi) and Simin (Leila
Hatami), who had planned to leave Iran together with their ten-year-old daughter,
Termeh (Sarina Farhadi). After much procrastination and their visas
set to expire, Nader has decided he must stay to care for his
Alzheimer's afflicted father, who lives with them. For Simin, this
means they must get a
divorce, despite their love for one another, so she can leave the country with Termeh. Nader blocks the
entire process by refusing to allow his daughter to be taken away.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: small;">As Simin prepares to move out of
their apartment in protest, she delays the inevitable
in a lovely scene, giving Nader one last chance to beg her not to
leave. He wants to, we feel, but his pride prevents him. With Simin
at her parents', Nader hires a poor pregnant woman, Razieh (Sareh Bayat), to
care for his father while he's at work. She desperately needs the
job as her husband, Hojjat (Shahab Hosseini), is in a great deal of
debt. Razieh can not tell her husband, however, since it is against
her religion to be alone with another man, no matter how old or
harmless he may be. In a scene that reveals the extent of her Islamic
faith, she wonders if it's a sin to help
Nader's father clean and dress after wetting himself.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: small;">One day when Nader and Termeh arrive home, they discover his father tied to the bed,
abandoned and near death. Later, a heated argument ensues between
Nader and Razieh; he accuses her of leaving to run errands and fires
her, while she insists her sudden absence could not be helped and
demands payment. Nader gives her a hard shove out the door. No one
specifically witnesses Razieh falling down the stairs, but neighbors
rush out after the commotion to see that she appears to have done so.
That evening, Razieh suffers a miscarriage, and her irate husband
finds out what she was up to behind his back. This event sets the
real drama in motion, as Razieh and Hojjat seek justice.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em>A Separation</em> is one of those rare
films that seems never to take a wrong step. There is an awful lot of
dialogue, one might even describe the picture as being “talky” if
every line didn't feel so crucial to the whole. We see all sides of
the story, we understand each character's perspective and motivation.
Nader is clearly a good man, he loves his father, his wife, and his
daughter. He seems a responsible, respectful citizen. He is stubborn
and prideful at times, however, and these traits clash with the
personalities of others. I understood this pride, and fully
sympathized with his situation. Simin loves her husband dearly, but
also wants what is best for her daughter. She
finds that she may have reason to be concerned for her child's
safety, a fear <i>anyone</i> can understand. Razieh's faith is her
strongest attribute, one that guides her every ethical decision. How
can one argue with that? Even the hot-headed Hojjat earns our
sympathy; he's a desperate, depressed man who lost his job with a
family to care for.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I was one hundred percent invested
in this film emotionally. It hooked me not by throwing melodramatics
in my face, but by leisurely introducing people I grew to care about
and placing them in believable situations. No one does anything out
of character. One may not agree with every character's decisions, but
those decisions <i>never</i> conflict with their unique personalities
or convictions. By the end it felt wholly satisfying, honest, and
provocative, almost like a work of fine literature. I couldn't wait
to turn back to the very first page, and I revisited the film a week
later, in fact. Once again, I thought to myself, “What a piece of
work.”</span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieCgMp1iip6zWHw0hyU_WezonCWketx71GgQ8KrxHh9PCeci4EbgjRTPmdgzJSsCL8BZTnQkGLcPn3b6Jt4W4cg2ymX22v-NWB9N9oqoxl4AK1LOhDdoisR_Ja5_D0nYPgDpWGle2xQxn5/s1600/separation5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieCgMp1iip6zWHw0hyU_WezonCWketx71GgQ8KrxHh9PCeci4EbgjRTPmdgzJSsCL8BZTnQkGLcPn3b6Jt4W4cg2ymX22v-NWB9N9oqoxl4AK1LOhDdoisR_Ja5_D0nYPgDpWGle2xQxn5/s320/separation5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;">The film is Iranian, but it is not
political. Tehran is the setting, not the subject. It is a movie
about people, with concerns no different than yours or mine, and
therefore it strikes a universal chord. It could have been made anywhere, and it would have been equally wonderful. Films such as this can help
us to understand that a government is separate from the people, its
ambitions not always reflecting that of the people. Admiring this
film is not a celebration of Iran, but of humanity and some damn fine
storytelling. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">
</span><span style="color: black;">
</span><br />
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I have had the good fortune to
travel quite a bit in the last few years. I've seen a lot of Europe
and Southeast Asia. I am dying to visit Greece and Turkey, but any
further east and my government advises otherwise. We keep hearing
about sanctions and a possible Israeli strike on Iran. There is an
awful lot of fear mongering going on in the American media, which
incidentally ran stories about crazy riots and terrorist threats
sweeping Paris during my stay, scaring my family half to death back
home, yet I saw nothing of the sort...<i>and I was there</i>. All I
know is that if America is involved in a war with Iran in the future,
it will not be the fault of people like Nader, Simin, Razieh, or Hojjat.</span></span></div>
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<br /></div>
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;">Please do attempt to see this film free of prejudice and the influence of propaganda. It's a masterpiece, in any culture or language.</span></div>
<div align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYvkfO3_ByxttP7QeRCubMUT1DR809OTgy6xNLjDi5WvkZV3yEJR95m6BcMleayE2umqOJhw6hk3XYfwOePiaxbR0dSsHWexpjn-i0dgSX8KX8gBOvNAcEaUz8pORNdOn-1oji5_UFPctB/s1600/separation2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYvkfO3_ByxttP7QeRCubMUT1DR809OTgy6xNLjDi5WvkZV3yEJR95m6BcMleayE2umqOJhw6hk3XYfwOePiaxbR0dSsHWexpjn-i0dgSX8KX8gBOvNAcEaUz8pORNdOn-1oji5_UFPctB/s320/separation2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-91885213249123464442012-02-13T22:42:00.000-06:002012-02-15T10:26:39.126-06:00Imperfect Lights<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWZ8bfMvyu6cic9aEjQYPu1-JHumx9dss-_M39Knmy-sEtwnbawiQ01l0kaoyxGQmfQGE_02C1409mt0PH3qXbiQkS2ovMPtJo9EQFJIKqurSc9SW6vKnPcLIv9iqq_muexR99W_iZgFJJ/s1600/citylights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWZ8bfMvyu6cic9aEjQYPu1-JHumx9dss-_M39Knmy-sEtwnbawiQ01l0kaoyxGQmfQGE_02C1409mt0PH3qXbiQkS2ovMPtJo9EQFJIKqurSc9SW6vKnPcLIv9iqq_muexR99W_iZgFJJ/s320/citylights.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
<span style="color: black;"><em>City Lights (1931)</em> is one of those movies with a grand, impenetrable reputation built over many decades, like a <em>Citizen Kane (1941)</em> or a <em>Grand Illusion (1937)</em>. It lives up to that reputation, for the most part. There are those who consider this to be a perfect movie, however, and I simply can't go that far. Some will say, "There is no such thing as a perfect movie," but I disagree. I have favorite films that I would consider perfect or extremely close to it; obviously they may not be the same films that others consider to be perfect.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">For the uninitiated, this silent film directed, written, and scored by the great Charlie Chaplin, was made several years into the talkie era. Chaplin was still the most famous person on the planet, but he believed his iconic character, the Little Tramp, was unfit for sound. Audiences around the world had been made to laugh and cry by the Little Tramp for over a decade, and Chaplin refused to alienate fans of such a universal character. The Tramp spoke through actions, not words. He was understood just as well in France as he was in Japan. Chaplin did not want to choose a language, an accent, or anything else for the Tramp that might push away adoring fans. So it was decided that the Tramp would stay silent in a world obsessed with talkies.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">In <em>City Lights</em>, the Tramp (Chaplin) falls for a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill). When he buys a flower, she hears the sound of a fancy car driving off and mistakes him for a wealthy man. That evening, the Tramp happens upon a drunk, genuinely rich man (Harry Myers), who he saves from committing suicide. After partying all night with his new friend, the Tramp borrows money and the millionaire's Rolls-Royce to impress the girl he loves. He soon discovers how bleak her situation is; living with her mother in a tiny apartment, about to be evicted. When he finds out about an operation that can cure blindness, he believes he can solve all the girl's problems. The millionaire is a long shot, as he only remembers the Tramp when plastered. So the Tramp sets out to find a job.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">As a Chaplin fan since the mid-nineties, I've seen his work for Keystone, Essanay, Mutual, First National, etc., and my first viewing of <em>City Lights</em> came in 1996. I've revisited the film many times over the years. Often I will see a film and think it is above average, perhaps even quite good, but not a masterpiece. Then I will watch it again, successfully gaining a deeper appreciation. This happened to me with Tati's <em>Playtime (1967)</em>, Laughton's <em>Night of the Hunter (1955)</em>, Malick's <em>Days of Heaven (1978)</em>, and so forth. I adore each of those films today, but after a single viewing I considered them to be quite overrated.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">I never considered <em>City Lights</em> to be overrated because I loved it the very first time I saw it. Not to the point of labeling it perfect, though. With each successive viewing it never managed to gain that distinction from me. So, what do I think works so extremely well in City Lights, and what does not?</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Frankly, the vast majority of this movie <i>is</i> so very superb. The opening sequence with the statue and the gibberish talking politicians. The drunken dinner, complete with near-fights and vigorous dancing. The absurd, but quite hilarious (and marvellously choreographed) boxing sequence. Who could forget Myers' suicidal millionaire? He gives half of the film a darker edge, which I enjoyed, for the most part. Of course, the Tramp's relationship with the blind girl is simply beautiful throughout. The ending, which Pulitzer Prize-winning author James Agee called "the greatest piece of acting and the highest moment in movies", is absolute perfection.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">I guess what keeps <em>City Lights</em> from attaining perfection beyond that unimprovable ending, to my eyes, is the episodic feel, one too many coincidences, and some gags that fall a bit flat. These are ultimately minor issues, but I can't ignore them completely.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The swallowing the whistle gag didn't work for me initially, and has never worked for me in sixteen years. I find it a bit too ridiculous to laugh at. The man blowing soap bubbles at the Tramp after believing the soap to be a hunk of cheese was not particularly amusing. The way the Tramp always happens to run into the millionaire, in public, when the latter man is completely inebriated. The way the burglars happen to be in the millionaire's house right when the millionaire gives the Tramp one thousand dollars and conveniently needs a bump on the head to forget his own generosity. Even the way the millionaire remembers and forgets the Tramp based on the level of his blood-alcohol seems a bit much, but I suppose I can accept that.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Being a bit pickier now (too picky, perhaps), I personally dislike when characters get instantly drunk in movies after one or two sips of alcohol. It renders what follows as less believable, somehow, even in a comedy. This same complaint applies to Buster Keaton's <em>Three Ages (1923)</em>, for example. In <em>City Lights</em>, the Tramp has two sips and he's falling all over the place in under a minute.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In my humble opinion, a "perfect" movie should feel, to the viewer, like a consistent whole with no missteps along the way. <em>City Lights</em> is so tremendous overall that even the few elements I consider to be missteps can't bring it down much from the high level it usually maintains. For some, I can easily see <em>City Lights</em> being a perfect movie. I wish I felt the same way, and wrote this simply to illustrate for myself and whoever happens to read it, why I don't quite feel the same level of enthusiasm. I adore the movie overall, just not every one of its eighty-seven minutes.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVOyHYjqz2utSDNLbSqQqVJJ0xwemHxJBt-XcvVycDoZLS32W5IQr8X9mnI0ZWqVupmykn23llYcQj4uepmgzLJijoUolZFU3H99209oqwAHE2z1Zqbjq8SyWxyWz1MQE7V1AQ5ZKnCXV/s1600/citylights2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizVOyHYjqz2utSDNLbSqQqVJJ0xwemHxJBt-XcvVycDoZLS32W5IQr8X9mnI0ZWqVupmykn23llYcQj4uepmgzLJijoUolZFU3H99209oqwAHE2z1Zqbjq8SyWxyWz1MQE7V1AQ5ZKnCXV/s320/citylights2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-64364846673970015652012-02-09T13:23:00.001-06:002012-02-10T10:11:27.613-06:00Tree Hugger: Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">Terrence Malick, true to his reputation as a “devout Episcopalian”, begins <em>The Tree of Life</em> with a quote from the Book of Job: “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?... When the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” An ethereal mass appears on the screen, a glowing composition of light and energy, moving gently in the darkness. We hear birds, waves lapping at a distant shore, and the voice of Jack (Sean Penn). “Mother. Brother. It was they who led me to your door.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Is this image intended to represent God? Is Jack saying that his mother and brother helped him to find God? That is for each viewer to decide. One of the most amazing things about <em>The Tree of Life</em> is how differently it has been interpreted. There are those who claim that it shoves Christian propaganda down our throats with all the subtlety of a snuff film (no, that would be <em>Courageous</em>). Others believe the film is “spiritual”, but not specifically about the Christian God or a Christian world view. People have debated whether the film is theist, deist, or pantheist in its approach to God and the natural world. Some have accused the film of supporting the Big Bang, evolution, etc. and of being a “there is no God” piece of trash propaganda.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Personally, I lean toward the Christian reading of the film. If this ethereal light is meant to be “the Alpha and Omega”, then such a theory is supported by the fact that the movie ends as it began, with this same strange image fading in, then out. “The first and the last”. Throughout <em>The Tree of Life</em>, Malick takes interest in the questions and expectations of mankind with regard to a higher power. This image of God, if indeed we are meant to see God in the image, is suitably mysterious for a being we will never even begin to comprehend here on earth. The vision of God as an old, bearded white man in flowing robes seems to me a rather boring simplification of something which should be glorious, all powerful, and well beyond our ability to fathom. This is, after all, the Creator of the universe.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Job was baffled by a God he worshiped, but failed to understand. He was a good man, a man of genuine faith, who nonetheless endured incredible suffering and had the audacity to ask God, “Why?” God went on to put Job in his place, humbling him, proving that he knew nothing of what it meant to be the ruler of the universe. Job wasn't there when God laid the foundations of the earth, no one was, so what can a man know of such things? God revealed to Job just how tiny he was in the infinite scope of existence.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">With that opening quote and image in mind, we are introduced to Mr. and Mrs. O'Brien (Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain), who have lost their middle-born son. We don't know the cause, and little does it matter. We see these two parents consumed by grief, filled with doubt and regret. Mr. O'Brien, embodying the harshness of nature, questions his actions. Was he too severe? He laments the fact that the time to make amends has passed. Recalling a moment when he criticized his son over a minor infraction, only to witness the boy striking himself over and over, he mournfully realizes, “I made him feel shame. My shame. Poor boy.” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mrs. O'Brien, the epitome of faith and grace, is consoled by her mother-in-law: “Life goes on. People pass along, nothing stays the same... The Lord gives and the Lord takes away and that's how he is. He sends flies to wounds that he should heal.”</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">After crossing a relatively small span of time, we find ourselves in a more modern period, with Jack, the eldest son of the O'Briens. He wanders through his home, which looks about as sterile and disconnected as his marriage. There are no children, both man and wife appear to be focused solely on their careers. Taking a seat at the kitchen counter on what must be the anniversary of his brother's death, Jack lights a blue candle and remembers. “I see the child that I was. I see my brother. True. Kind. He died when he was nineteen.”</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Jack, who we infer is an architect based on the blueprints he alters, appears equally disoriented and depressed in the workplace. He finds himself daydreaming about his childhood. This world of glass, steel, concrete, and office cubicles jammed together reminded me of Jacques Tati's <em>Playtime (1967)</em>, which focused on the absurdity of it all. In <em>The Tree of Life</em>, it's about the isolation. Nothing natural exists here, nothing of God or a higher power, this is all man-made, and Malick seems to believe this distances mankind. From what, exactly? </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In my view, Malick is saying this modern metropolis puts a wider gap between man and the Garden from which he has been expelled. In Genesis, when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they were banned from the Garden by God and denied the fruit of the Tree of Life, which granted immortality. Christians, as well as people of other faiths, believe immortality can still be earned, however. Life, essentially, becomes a quest for immortality, The Tree of Life, the Holy Grail, whatever you want to call it. Most people, including Jack, seem to be getting further and further away from it. In a physical sense, Jack's world of skyscrapers is far removed from the natural world of God's Creation.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In fact, we see a close-up of a lonely tree planted at a construction site in the moment when Jack says, “How did I lose you. Wandered. Forgot you.” Jack has lost sight of God and everything the Tree of Life represents. We discover later that his brother was, for him, a gateway of sorts. A guide. This too was lost. We hear his brother's voice, “Find me.” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Jack imagines himself in his parent's home shortly after his brother's death. Mr. O'Brien closes the key lid on the piano; did he stop playing after the death of his child? “How did she bear it,” Jack wonders of his mother. He caresses her hair by the window. We hear her cry out in grief.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Despite all consolation, all words of encouragement, Mrs. O'Brien struggles mightily to accept the tragedy of her son's passing. What did God gain, she wonders, by taking him away from her. “Was I false to you,” she asks. She finds herself questioning God, as Job did. We see the strange mass of light and energy again as she gives voice to her plight. “Lord, why? Where were you?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">At this moment the screen goes dark, and one of the finest sequences in recent film history begins. As the score turns to Preisner's “Lacrimosa”, we witness the birth of <em>everything</em>. The universe itself. A celestial tapestry of beautiful nebulae, planets, stars. We see the young earth, a primal landscape of shifting masses and opposing forces; water and fire. It seems the world is taking baby steps of its own; growing, learning. Soon, the first signs of life: a lovely view of jellyfish, predatory sharks, and yes, dinosaurs. This cycle of existence (birth, growth, death, extinction, rebirth), of nature and grace, on such a vast scale serves to humble us as it humbled Job. In the infinite ocean of time and space, even a Caesar or a Napoleon may be lucky to register as a speck on the canvas. Our lives pass by in a cosmic flash, seemingly important to only a select few individuals, and even then for the briefest of instants.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Again, we hear Jack's voice. “You spoke to me through her. You spoke with me from the sky, the trees. Before I knew I loved you, believed in you. When did you first touch my heart?” If Jack asks this of God, then his answer comes almost immediately. We see Mrs. O'Brien's pregnant belly, as Mr. O'Brien places his hand upon it. Then, in a surreal moment Bunuel would have adored, a fully clothed child swims through an underwater bedroom, passing through the door (a symbolic birth canal) that will deliver him into loving arms. Welcome to the world, Jack.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In another fine montage, we see all the simple little moments that shape every being on this planet. Learning to walk and talk. Fear of the unknown, when the toddler is afraid to venture into the attic. The child hiding behind his mother from a barking dog. “Are you afraid,” she asks. The introduction of boundaries, as Mr. O'Brien draws an invisible line in the grass between their yard and the neighbor's. Mrs. O'Brien reads Peter Rabbit to the youngsters, “You may go into the fields and down the lane, but do not go into Mr. McGregor's garden.” Selfishness, when Jack yells at his grandmother, “It's mine!” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Jealousy, of course, rears its head for baby Jack when his brother is born. Unable to monopolize the attention of his parents, he shows his frustration by toppling a box of his brother's toys. Echoes of Cain and Abel, perhaps? People often desire attention and favor, not only from parents, lovers, friends, and co-workers, but from their Heavenly Father, as well. We would like to believe we are that important, as Job did, and Malick is certainly not done ramming this point home.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The boys grow older in this perfectly rendered small southern town (Smithville, TX standing in for Malick's hometown of Waco), under two very opposed parental influences. Nature and grace at war, if you will. Even the tiniest scenes add to this conflict; notice the way the mother playfully wakes her children with ice cubes, while the father storms into the room and rips their bed sheets off. We see playful summer days, but we also notice how carefully Jack (brilliantly played as a youngster by Hunter McCracken) maneuvers around his father at the dinner table, as if one wrong move may set him off. Mrs. O'Brien tries to compliment Jack, but her husband interrupts. He's more interested in Brahms, whose music plays on the record player.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">The boys learn what happens when boundaries are crossed. Two men in chains are shoved into a police car. Mrs. O'Brien, instead of passing judgment, gives one of the condemned men a drink of water. The youngest brother asks, “Can it happen to anyone?” Jack prays for the Lord to make him good, but receives a conflicting message from his own father. “Your mother's naive. It takes fierce will to get ahead in this world. If you're good, people take advantage of you.” As an extension of this lesson, he teaches the boys to fight one day in the yard.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mr. O'Brien is one of those men who had big dreams, he was going to be "a great musician”, but now finds little to be passionate about in life. He speaks about men of whom he is surely envious. He talks about how company executives got where they are (“floated right down the middle of the river”), and about a friend who owns half the real estate in town, despite modest beginnings. He is condescending toward a wealthy neighbor who inherited his fortune. Again, he influences the boys: “Wrong people go hungry, die. Wrong people get loved. World lives by trickery. If you want to succeed you can't be too good.”</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">Jack sees his father's hypocrisy. He is told not to put his elbows on the table, but his father does. He is told not to interrupt or insult others, but his father does. He is told to be good, then advised otherwise. Jack can not help but question why he should be a good kid when his own father, between occasional bouts of affection, seems a liar and a villain. When the children witness the drowning of another young boy at the river, Jack asks these same questions of his Creator, “Where were you? You let a boy die. You'll let anything happen. Why should I be good if you aren't?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The other boys respond to death in their own way. The youngest son asks, “Was he bad?” The middle son, whose question resonated the most with me, asks his mother, “Will you die too?” In church, the middle son sees an image of Jesus in a stained glass window as the pastor asks, “Is there nothing which is deathless? Nothing which does not pass away?” The implication being, as I see it, that Jesus is both eternal and the doorway to eternity.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">I was seven years old when my father died. Death was something I had heard about for years, I had seen it on television. At that age, one can know of death without having the faintest comprehension of it. This was my wake-up call, when it struck my own family. I instantly discovered that my father was mortal. This could only mean my mother was too, as was I. The shock of this revelation at the time when it occurred can not be stressed enough, and these scenes really spoke to me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Not long after the boy's death at the river, a fire destroys another boy's home. He survives, but will forever bear the physical scars. Again, Jack is dismayed by the calamities God allows to strike his children. He begins to rebel. The seeds of sexual awakening are planted when he eyes a woman hanging clothes in her yard, washing her bare feet with a hose. She gives him a drink. Later he watches her through a window.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">We hear Mr. O'Brien bragging to his children, “Twenty-seven patents your father has, it means ownership, ownership of ideas. You gotta sew 'em up, get 'em by the nuts, if you pardon my French.” He portrays himself as an important man, a man deserving of recognition, reward, and wealth. However, we see Mr. O'Brien in a courtroom failing in his endeavors. “We'll get 'em next time,” his lawyer says. As he's leaving, he reassures himself, “I'm not done yet. Can't say I can't.” Disappointed, he walks alone down a hallway of the courthouse as we hear Jack ask, “Why does he hurt us? Our father?” This question seems to be directed not only at his father on earth, but also his father in Heaven.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In the very next scene, Mr. O'Brien arrives home, showing tenderness initially to the boys. “He lies. Pretends,” Jack says, as he distorts the beautiful music on one of his father's prized records. Then at dinner, Mr. O'Brien's resentment and frustration erupt. He takes his anger out on his children, and later on Mrs. O'Brien. “You turn my own kids against me. You undermine everything I do.” As noted earlier, it would ultimately take the passing of his son to make Mr. O'Brien realize that the shame his children felt was his own.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">When Mr. O'Brien leaves on a lengthy business trip, the children celebrate, enjoying a tranquil respite with their mother. We see moments of happiness, boys at play, carefree days filled with laughter, as the mother's grace takes hold. “Help each other. Love everyone. Every leaf, every ray of light. Forgive.” Unfortunately, Jack can not resist the other temptations his father's absence permits. So begins an adolescent rampage that Mrs. O'Brien seems ill-equipped to stop.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">With a group of boys from the neighborhood, Jack blows up eggs in a bird's nest, throws rocks through window panes, launches a frog into the air on a firecracker. When his mother tries her hand at discipline, the other boys taunt him. “They're just trying to scare you. Keep you ignorant.” As Jack succumbs to peer pressure, we hear his thoughts, “Things you got to learn. How can we know stuff until we look?” Though Jack is particularly rebellious, this is a natural progression, more or less. Our parents told us not to do things, we did them anyway, and we learned from our mistakes. We hope our children won't make the same bad decisions, but they always do. Such is life. I'm reminded of a Delmore Schwartz quote, “Time is the school in which we learn, time is the fire in which we burn.” Only the passage of time can grant us wisdom, and once wise, we die.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Jack sees his mother washing her bare foot in the yard sprinkler. This reminds him of the woman who gave him a drink that day. He walks to her house, spies on her from behind a tree, then enters the home after she leaves. Inside, he goes to her bedroom and holds her hairbrush, touches a mirror, picks up a pearl bracelet. He removes a nightgown from her drawer and places it on the bed. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In the next scene, Jack is outside running with the gown, desperate to hide it. Clearly terrified of being caught, he sends it down the river. There is a strong implication here that Jack did something resulting in “evidence” being left on the gown. The first couple times I saw the film, I thought, “Surely not.” Now, I firmly believe this is exactly what occurred. When Jack returns home with a guilty conscience, he wants to confess but can not bring himself to do so. Unable to bear his mother's piercing look which seems to have a direct line to his soul, he tells her, “I can't talk to you. Don't look at me.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It is clear Jack fears his own immorality. “What have I started? What have I done?” He begins to notice and resent the relative grace of his brother. In Jack's eyes, the middle son is favored by his parents. In a lovely, earlier scene we see Mr. O'Brien playing the piano as the middle son, sitting out on the patio with his guitar, picks up the tune and plays it himself. Mr. O'Brien stops, takes notice, and appears pleased. Jack's brother also enjoys painting; he has the artistic connection with his father, and the graceful demeanor of his mother.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;">So it happens that Jack begins to test his brother. They race and wrestle in the yard. Jack sees him painting at the kitchen table and pours water all over the paper. His mother demands that he come back and apologize. “No!” Jack screams. “I'm not gonna do everything you tell me to. I'm gonna do what I want. What do you know? You let him run all over you.” Jack knows he is doing wrong, and does it anyway. “How do I get back where they are,” he wonders.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">When his father returns, Jack can no longer run wild and free. Mr. O'Brien says, “There are things you can't do? Well, there are thing I can't do either.” When Jack talks back and gets shot down, he says, “It's your house. You can kick me out whenever you want to. You'd like to kill me.” He asks his mother, “Why was he born?” Later, he sees his father working underneath the car and considers pulling out the jack. “Please God, kill him. Let him die. Get him outta here.”</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">Finally, Jack's descent culminates in a betrayal of his brother as they are out shooting a BB gun in the forest. “Put your finger over it. Come on.” Hesitant, but trusting, the boy places his finger over the muzzle. Jack fires, and his brother runs off to cry alone in a field. Jack explains, in a direct reference to Romans 7:15, “What I want to do I can't do. I do what I hate.” Later he hands his brother a board and says, “You can hit me if you want to.” Instead, his brother does not answer violence with violence, he simply forgives. “I'm sorry,” Jack tells him. His brother, standing over him, gently touches his hand, then his shoulder, and finally the top of his head.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">At that moment, we see a strong, healthy tree in the yard. Jack has taken a step toward grace. We see the river, once after the betrayal and again after the act is forgiven, which links us to a similar incident in a distant time. This river, much more shallow during the Creation sequence, was the site of a moment of grace within nature. A dinosaur came upon a weaker, wounded dinosaur lying on the rocks. The dominant dinosaur stomped on the weaker dinosaur's head, then relented. In a surprising turn of events, the dominant dinosaur did not destroy the weak one. He simply walked on, and let him be.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">“What was it you showed me,” Jack asks. “I didn't know how to name you then. But I see it was you. Always you were calling me.” In another simple, poignant moment we see Jack playing with the neighborhood boy scarred by the fire. They are hopping on cans tied with rope, but the scarred boy's rope comes loose. As the boy tries to fix it, Jack intervenes, repairing it for him. Then he tenderly places his hand on the boy's shoulder, as his brother had done to him. Afterward, he returns home and helps his father in the garden. Jack is moving toward a state of grace, following in the footsteps of his mother and brother. We already know that once he grows older, he will become distant, he will forget. This is what he lost along the way, and what he wishes to find again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mr. O'Brien too begins to see the error of his ways. The plant where he works is closed down, and his only option is a transfer to an undesirable job in another city. “I wanted to be loved because I was great. A big man. I'm nothing... ...I lived in shame. I dishonored it all and didn't notice the glory.” Sitting outside on the curb, lost in thought, Mr. O'Brien still wonders how it could have happened to him. “I never missed a day of work. I tithed every Sunday.” When he tells Jack he knows he has been tough on him, Jack replies, “I'm as bad as you are. I'm more like you than her.” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The boys mourn, all three together and separately, knowing they will be saying goodbye to the only home they have ever known. A small Texas town that was, for them, the universe. As their grandmother said, “Nothing stays the same.” The universe is in constant flux. The house is empty, someone else will move in. Left behind are only echoes, memories. Buried mementos under the tree in the yard. Their mother offers a parting message, “The only way to be happy is to love. Unless you love, your life will flash by.” Human lives, for all their brevity, are made meaningful and worthwhile through love, family, acceptance, kindness. We hope these are the echoes future generations will hear.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It may seem that I have summarized most of the film, that I've “spoiled it”, perhaps. Not so. I have seen the picture four times now, and I'm still picking up on things. There are countless riches I have not revealed here. This is an intensely visual film whose images mean different things to different people. I can only offer my reading of the <em>The Tree of Life</em>, I can not predict yours. The “plot” of the film can not be spoiled as there isn't one. One can not point to this movie and say it is about anything specific. It is, quite honestly, about everything. It's about what everything means to <em>you</em>. Your outlook on life? Your religion? Your lack of religion? These factors can make your eyes see <em>The Tree of Life</em> differently than mine, and therein lies its beauty as a work of art.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">As I mentioned in my last article, those who do not see film as anything more than simple entertainment will not be ready for The Tree of Life. This is a picture that expects much from its audience, one's mind must prepare itself for that rare thing in a movie theater: intelligent thought. Even though I see <em>The Tree of Life</em> as a Christian film, I'm not sure many Christians will appreciate it. Christians have been inundated for so long with bad art, bad music, etc., I can not help but question whether they will recognize something that isn't spelled out for them. I think too many Christians place a value on the intent, as opposed to the result. For example, if a song praises God in an obvious manner, then it is great by default. I disagree. I think God deserves better music, better films, and so on. <em>Courageous</em> was spoon-fed to a specific audience, but <em>The Tree of Life</em> is an infinitely superior film that can speak to all humanity.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Keep in mind as you watch the final scenes, where characters throughout the film meet again on a seashore; they are only as trite as you choose to interpret them. If you see this as a vision of Heaven or the literal afterlife, then yes, it may follow that, “Malick dropped the ball here.” Personally, I am convinced this is not Malick's vision of Heaven. This is Jack's reverie, after passing through the doorway, and metaphorically completing his journey. For me, this is where all the people who were part of that life's journey, from the most inconsequential to the most instrumental, have gathered. Loved ones, in an ageless state, are reunited. Young, old, there is no time in this place. Notice the hand, aged and withered, becomes young again. It is here that Jack finally understands his mother's resolve. Her heart healed. She gave her child to God, willingly. This is the culmination of one man's spiritual journey through memory, reflection, and introspection to find God and eternity in a world filled with contradictions.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In the end, we see something surprising from this man who, until now, has seemed so cold, so lost. We get a little smile. We see a bridge spanning a river. One state of mind has been left behind, another has been attained. It is accomplished.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1oTCMAznEk5UoYDBVkIbgtdif-phLVlqcOkzaWE7s-hXyCOdsZMx8YzrhyxeC9vQqxyiHsoa1Hr3oWxA1F8xKl7hRb8ZxB4mQCEfrx-v-t5uvyNzK2wa1dkhP5UdvwXEj-rh3AoVUe_T/s1600/PDVD_021.BMP" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf1oTCMAznEk5UoYDBVkIbgtdif-phLVlqcOkzaWE7s-hXyCOdsZMx8YzrhyxeC9vQqxyiHsoa1Hr3oWxA1F8xKl7hRb8ZxB4mQCEfrx-v-t5uvyNzK2wa1dkhP5UdvwXEj-rh3AoVUe_T/s320/PDVD_021.BMP" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-72321620456482791262012-02-01T12:34:00.000-06:002012-02-24T18:13:07.721-06:00Tree Hugger: Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">For me, Terrence Malick's <em>The Tree of Life</em> was the best film of 2011. When I saw it last May in a quiet, well-mannered screening for local critics, I immediately leaped onto my Facebook page and posted:</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">“There will not be a more ambitious movie this year than <em>The Tree of Life</em>, and it's almost inconceivable that there could be a better one. The subject is existence itself, in just two hours and twenty minutes. It lived up to my expectations, based on Malick's previous films. How often does a movie come along affording religion, science, and human nature equal respect?”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Shortly thereafter I wrote a review, going into detail and sprinkling praise all over the place. However, at one point I said, “Some will claim the movie is disjointed, people may walk out of the theater annoyed, there may be laughter and general confusion when the credits roll. I'm reminded of Stanley Kubrick's brilliant <em>2001: A Space Odyssey</em>, which experienced these same reactions back in 1968.” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Well, that turned out to be true. In fact, seeing the film again in June, I experienced a restless audience first hand. It was downright uncomfortable, and I got the feeling that ninety percent of them had no idea what they had gotten themselves into. They came for Brad Pitt, perhaps? Maybe they wanted another <em>Fight Club</em> or <em>Troy</em>? Regardless, I think I was onto something in the last line of my review, when I claimed, “<em>The Tree of Life</em> should probably be playing on a loop at the Vatican Museums instead of local multiplexes.”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This is the most polarizing motion picture in many a moon, hands down. I've never seen anything like it. Critics adore it, <em>The Tree of Life</em> appears on more 2011 Top Ten lists than any other film, and captured the number one spot on the most lists as well. It received the top award from the Chicago, Denver, San Francisco, and Toronto critics associations, as well as the African American critics association and the Online Film Critics Society. It won the Palme d'Or at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival. Surprisingly, it even got a Best Picture nomination at the Academy Awards, and Madonna (an Academy member) has already revealed that it has her vote. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Audiences, on the other hand, do not share this level of enthusiasm. Only 61% of users at Rotten Tomatoes liked the film. It averages a rather low 7.1 out of 10 score among users at the Internet Movie Database, while <em>Warrior</em> currently sports an 8.2 and <em>The Help</em> is sitting pretty with an 8. Things only get worse when glancing at more mainstream sources (the people who rent movies but probably don't care enough about them to visit film websites). At Netflix, with 154,117 user ratings in, the film averages a 2.7 out of 5 score. Among those who rented it at a Redbox kiosk, 1,079 “reviews” were written, 732 of which awarded <em>The Tree of Life</em> half a star, the worst possible score. It averages just over one star on a five star scale. Wading through the fine criticism, one will come across intellectual gems like, “Too bizzar. Had to shut it off half way through” and my current favorite, “Horrible!!! I would rather what a bug on the wall!!!!”</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I have personal anecdotes to illustrate this extreme divisiveness, as well. I recommended the film to three friends of mine. One thought it was the worst movie he had seen, another thought it was the best movie ever made. The third believed Malick took a deist approach as opposed to a theist one, and promoted the theory of evolution, which was not to his liking. Again I am reminded of <em>2001: A Space Odyssey</em> and Roger Ebert's story about the 1968 premiere. It was a restless audience, a lot of people walked out complaining, including Rock Hudson, who apparently went right past Ebert's seat asking aloud, “Will someone tell me what the hell this is about?” These days, <em>2001: A Space Odyssey</em> is widely considered one of the greatest films of all time.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">So what is behind all this madness? How can the very same movie be transcendently amazing to some and absolutely godawful to others, with very few opinions landing anywhere between those extreme ends of the spectrum? I believe it comes down to what an individual expects from a film. Obviously not every critic was enamored with <em>The Tree of Life</em>, nor was every average Joe a hater. In general, though, we have two camps: the critics/film buffs and the mainstream audience. Both camps approach films differently.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">At the risk of sounding condescending, I must admit I firmly believe, as a viewer of over four-thousand films, that the more movies we see the more prepared we are to formulate an educated opinion on the subject. Much like studying history lends itself to informed political or military decisions (think Patton studying Rommel). These opinions need not be the same, I am not condoning groupthink, it's simply about having an opinion and fully understanding <em>why</em> you have it. Kenneth Turan of the L.A. Times and the New York Observer's Rex Reed did not care for <em>The Tree of Life</em>, and they can intelligently explain why. They possess the ability to draw upon their experience and illustrate reasons the picture was not to their liking. On the other hand, a failure to understand the film is not a legitimate criticism, such a statement says more about the viewer than it does about the film (unless the movie objectively makes no logical sense). Saying it is “too bizzar” or that you would rather “what a bug on the wall” may actually convince others to love the movie, if only to avoid being in your company.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Perhaps I'm being too harsh. There is certainly no shame in caring little for film, in general. Not everyone responds to the moving image the way I do, and I respect that. I'm that way with music, so I can relate. I enjoy music, but know relatively little about it. I have no favorite “groups”. I couldn't tell you in any worthwhile fashion why I prefer one piece of music over another. I have appreciated music that others have labeled “simplistic” or “trite”. Well, fine. I don't pretend to be something I'm not. I don't engage in deep conversations about music. Inevitably, I would wind up in someone else's wheelhouse and find myself skewered by a contrasting opinion. By that same token, there is nothing more annoying than a so-called “film buff” whose amassed cinematic knowledge begins in 1980. That's like claiming to love literature without reading Tolstoy, Dickens, or Twain.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The fact is, one's taste primarily evolves through experience. Life experience, certainly, but also experience with the medium in question. About sixteen years ago, I only watched new releases. I thought "old movies" were pretty useless, and would have scoffed at the idea of watching a movie made in Hungary. I could view a black-and-white film in school (1962's <em>To Kill a Mockingbird</em>), entirely overlooking the quality because my biased mind was predisposed from the get-go. Alfred Hitchcock's <em>Psycho (1960)</em>, which I rented after exhausting all the new releases at the local Blockbuster, was the film that changed my attitude. A few baby steps later, Akira Kurosawa's oeuvre had consumed me, in Japanese with English subtitles. At that point, I was blissfully lost in it all. A kid in a brand new, massive candy store.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Usually the first misconception to fly out the window is the idea of film as “simple entertainment”. One begins to appreciate that motion pictures, as a medium, are capable of so much more. They helped me realize, for example, that most human problems, desires, etc. are universal, from New York City to Tehran. Relegating this power to a simple diversion is, unfortunately, a rather common attitude among people (thanks in part to Hollywood blockbusters and marketing). If one sees film as a relatively simple medium, one's expectations are understandably in a different place than a person who walks into the theater hoping for something rich, deep, and thoughtful. If one's mind is fixed upon seeing some computer animated battles, a car chase or two, and Megan Fox's ass, then an intellectual treatise on God, humankind, and the universe may very well induce a siezure.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">We have been programmed to expect certain cues, certain rhythms if you will, from mainstream Hollywood movies. We expect a certain pace, a narrative flow, a climax of sorts, plenty of dialogue, and so forth. People always ask, "What's the movie about?" We expect not only a plot, but a plot which can be summarized in a sentence or two. "Well, it's about a cruise ship taken over by terrorists, but there's a couple on their honeymoon who happen to be cops!" I'm sorry, but sometimes the very best movies aren't specifically <em>about</em> anything at all. Character is always, in any form of storytelling, more important than plot. Still, we enter the theater expecting these things and when we get something different, all the little alarms start going off in our heads. "Weird!" "That's it?!" "Why is nothing happening?!" "Why don't these people talk more?" "T<span style="font-size: small;">rès </span>bizzar!"</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This has been the curse of <em>The Tree of Life</em>. Malick's film does not satisfy all the big studio bullet points. People weaned on modern Hollywood movies often lash out at films that are so defiantly anti-Hollywood. Why do most critics love, or at least appreciate, the movie? Because they have more perspectives from which to observe it. They have seen older films, foreign films, films in color, black-and-white, films with a soundtrack, films without a soundtrack, etc. A critic/film buff understands that movies have not always been made the way they are today, and in some instances still aren't. Movies did not always have these overly familiar rhythms and this breakneck pace to which we have grown accustomed. The visual language was often sophisticated, an audience was expected to absorb story and character through the image, not just the dialogue. Frankly, the critic expects <em>more</em>, not less, from a film. It is more, not less, that the mainstream viewer negatively reacts to. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Again, at its core, this disappointment is simply about shattered expectations. I am reminded of the woman who sued the distributor of <em>Drive</em> last year. She expected something like <em>Fast Five.</em> Instead she got a film with very few car chases and a European sensibility courtesy of Danish director, Nicolas Winding Refn. She also got a <em>better</em> movie than <em>Fast Five</em>, but that didn't stop her from complaining. She expected one thing, and got something else. It is no different with <em>The Tree of Life</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Allow me to reiterate, I'm not saying that the only people who could dislike <em>The Tree of Life</em> should be fitted for dunce caps and probably eat with corks on the end of their forks. It is not my intention to come across that way. There are critics and film buffs who do not like the film, as I've stated. Still, the incredible divide between the overall critical opinion and that of the general audience is a direct result of different expectations and levels of cinematic experience. Before my own transformation sixteen years ago, I concede <em>The Tree of Life</em> would have been prime one star material for me as well.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In Part 2 I will analyze the film further, in a new review.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1rl3v83LdSovGsS29LVxpSQcFmTwDz4P2QvEwlnePZ8kK4IBFPtWEiiz9gacKc60x_UvaUlLmrjFfJF1qOcahWFs67ZHlE44UXbQbqIbHJT632XSQncU7T8YHcNHVBldtVqOlAx_idhL/s1600/tree5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU1rl3v83LdSovGsS29LVxpSQcFmTwDz4P2QvEwlnePZ8kK4IBFPtWEiiz9gacKc60x_UvaUlLmrjFfJF1qOcahWFs67ZHlE44UXbQbqIbHJT632XSQncU7T8YHcNHVBldtVqOlAx_idhL/s320/tree5.png" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-27450234014272505502012-01-23T11:32:00.001-06:002012-01-23T12:48:08.607-06:00Suffer the Little Children<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">Made in Mexico in 1950 by the great surrealist filmmaker Luis Buñuel, this is <em>still</em> the hardest hitting movie about youth forged through violence and poverty. <em>Los Olvidados</em> is the film <em>City of God</em> could have been back in 2002, had a priority been placed on substance over style. In fact, many movies have plumbed this subject matter in the last sixty years, trying to do Buñuel one better, but none have succeeded thus far. The fourth season of <em>The Wire</em> brilliantly tackled similar material, it should be required viewing for all adults, but there were twelve hours to tell that story while <em>Los Olvidados</em> got it done in eighty minutes.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">When I called this movie hard hitting, I wasn't kidding. Upon release it lasted only two days in theaters before being banned. There were some who wanted Luis Buñuel deported. The authorities were concerned that the movie made Mexico City look like a terrible place to live. In truth, this story is universal. There are kids growing up in these situations in every culture and big city of the world, whether it's Dallas or Los Angeles, Brussels or Beijing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Inspired by <em>Shoeshine</em>, Vittorio De Sica's 1946 neorealist film, Buñuel took to the streets in ragged clothes to research his subject firsthand (<em>Sullivan's Travels</em> anyone?). He was relatively new to Mexico, being born in Spain and having directed his earliest pictures in France (1929's <em>Un Chien Andalou</em> and 1930's <em>L'Age D'or</em>). After meeting real children living like the ones we see in his film, Bunuel knew more of Mexico City's dark underbelly than did most of its middle to upper class citizens. Even better, despite a low budget and a miniscule three week shooting schedule, he was determined to expose it.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This isn't really a “message movie” though. Buñuel offers no solutions. He paints a very bleak portrait, and doesn't pretend anything will be done about it. Nothing has, after all, and perhaps nothing will. Even worse, perhaps nothing can. I guess this is why I remain doubtful when a politician comes up with a “solution” to a problem. There are no new problems. The fundamentals have not changed in decades, perhaps centuries. When I read Dostoyevsky, for example, I'm always shocked at how little has changed in this world over the last century and a half. People have invented solutions to the very same problems for time immemorial, and yet, the problems are still here. So what good were these “solutions”? Then again, what does it say about us if we don't try? If the illusion of progress disappeared, what then? It would be like giving up.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Buñuel was wise to focus on children here. We expect an adult to be responsible, which makes them easier to judge. If a man's family is starving, we say he needs to get a job. If his teenager is causing problems, it is his responsibility to rectify the issue. Simple enough, we would like to think. But what of the children born into homes where this doesn't happen, for whatever reason, and those reasons are beyond the child's control?</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">What of the youngsters like Jaibo (Roberto Cobo), the villain of this piece if there is one, who never knew his parents and grew up on the streets. He beats and robs the blind and handicapped because it's what he knows. Living like a stray dog in the slums, he learned to survive as an animal would; treating his environment as a jungle and its people as his prey. He's a predator, and the movie treats him as such, but did he have another option? The main character, a boy named Pedro (Alfonso Mejía), wants to be a good kid but falls in with the wrong crowd. His young mother resents him each day for being the living, constant reminder of a rape she suffered at age fourteen. Another boy, Ojitos (Mário Ramírez), is told to wait for his father's return at the marketplace, but his father never comes back. Alone and afraid, the boy is taken in by a “generous” man, who turns out to be a pedophile.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">The actual title of this movie is “The Forgotten Ones”, and that's what these kids are. Forgotten by family, forgotten by society, left to roam aimlessly, defining survival as the acquirement of food or money through bloodshed. The ones who live long enough to reach puberty will likely be tomorrow's rapists, and barring abortion, we end up with another unwanted child like Pedro.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Those familiar with Buñuel's surrealist pictures, including <em>The Exterminating Angel</em>, <em>The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie</em>, and the two I mentioned earlier, may be surprised by his technique here. It's as if he took the Italian neorealist style of De Sica and Rossellini, and gave it a surrealist flourish. For the most part we see honest, painful realism, but then Buñuel springs a dream sequence on us that would feel right at home in even his strangest film. Pedro's dream amplifies the themes of the picture with bizarre sounds and imagery; chicken feathers fall like snow, Pedro's mother seems to walk on air before offering him a huge slab of raw beef, intercepted in desperation by the monster under his bed, Jaibo.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;"><em>Los Olvidados</em> is a tough movie, but also a great one. It shows us that certain social problems have no boundaries in the form of time or culture; they remain persistent and universal. It reveals the vicious cycle of poverty; laying bare the way violence begets violence. In one shot, deep in the distance, we see a busy highway. From the slums, this bridge and everything it represents (progress, civility, balance, order) appears to be light years away, like another world. Society's reaction is to make sure these people remain on the fringe of civilization, like a colony of lepers, neither seen nor spoken of. Again, forgotten.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">This brings me to another issue I have with <em>City of God</em>. In that film, our “hero” is just as poor as the other kids, and equally inundated with violence. Somehow, he resists. Instead of taking an active part in gang violence, he starts taking photographs of the slum wars in Rio. He sends these pictures into the newspaper, becomes a famous photographer, and lives happily ever after. He's the anomaly, the exception. The one who got out. By making him the centerpiece of the story, we turn all this madness and destruction into a story of inspiration. We see him and think he's proving everyone wrong, like Rocky Balboa. The underdog wins (or the “slumdog” in Danny Boyle's <em>Slumdog Millionaire</em>), and of course, “if he can do it, anyone can!” The only problem is, most of them can't. Most of them never escape. So in the process of patting one boy on the back and leaving the theater with smiles on our faces, we make it easier to ignore the millions of kids still trapped in an endless cycle.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj80xVcQx_dhn66BN0fQQJVbm0h7BGrrt9sFJJiVhxp2kxvzLuYP6maMThIn9dqwYufD6MlCvr6HtPouqe59xeC_N5O8jaM9dEsymYo4X4xGE-vdeMCGTB-M6euZybxDHS6eDwQNgMqYmx/s1600/olvidados5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj80xVcQx_dhn66BN0fQQJVbm0h7BGrrt9sFJJiVhxp2kxvzLuYP6maMThIn9dqwYufD6MlCvr6HtPouqe59xeC_N5O8jaM9dEsymYo4X4xGE-vdeMCGTB-M6euZybxDHS6eDwQNgMqYmx/s320/olvidados5.jpg" width="270" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-42975233100048851342012-01-17T17:37:00.002-06:002012-03-12T09:58:58.653-05:00The Silent Treatment<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">My very first post in this blog back in 2008 (</span><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2008/07/wall-e-return-of-visual-storytelling.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">“WALL-E: The Return of Visual Storytelling”</span></a><span style="color: black;">) was about visuals taking a backseat to dialogue in cinema. This is not always the case, but so often it is, many have lost their ability to <em>read</em> images. <em>WALL-E</em>, inspired by the great silent comics, may have been low on dialogue, but it was loaded with visual invention. The images told the story. Furthermore, <em>WALL-E</em> was a satire about where our world is headed; remember the overweight people zipping around on comfy electronic chairs, sucking nutrients through straws as they watched futuristic televisions? Technology had reached a point where humans were no longer required to <em>act</em>, so they became passive.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">That is precisely what the majority of television shows and movies have done to the masses. We have gotten used to being babied, spoon-fed everything through expository dialogue. Viewers are content to be passive, as only rarely are they asked to exercise their brain at the theater. I am reminded of the captain in WALL-E who struggled to walk; his legs were like jelly because he had never put them to use! So when a film comes along demanding an <em>active</em> viewer, requiring those brain cells to kick-start and get moving, scores of people inevitably dismiss it off-hand. It has become a burden to think at the movies. After all, it is much easier to line the coffers of Michael Bay (<em>Bad Boys</em>, <em>Armageddon</em>, <em>Transformers</em>, etc.), whose entire reputation depends on an audience averse to intelligent thought.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The visual language of film may have been developed during the silent era, when images <em>were</em> the language, but the two were never mutually exclusive. Sound was not intended to be the death knell of visual storytelling; film is an inherently visual medium, after all. Screenwriters used to live by the rule, “Never say it if you can show it.” The first five minutes of the 1954 Alfred Hitchcock film, <em>Rear Window</em>, offer a textbook example of how it should be done.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">The camera pans across an apartment courtyard, giving us a voyeuristic peek at various characters going about their business; a man shaving, a sexy woman dancing, kids playing in water across the street, etc. Eventually, we pull back to see James Stewart at rest in his apartment, sweat beading up on his forehead. It's a <em>hot</em> day. The camera continues downward, revealing his leg in a cast. We see a busted camera on a nearby table, and several pictures of a car crash at a big race. In one of them, the airborne car seems to be coming directly at the cameraman. Another frame holds a negative print of a woman, Grace Kelly, while the positive print adorns a fashion magazine cover nearby.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Not a single word is spoken in that first five minutes (save for a brief radio advertisement), yet we are told so much. We know the heat is stifling, we know Stewart is a photographer who was injured at a race, we know his wife or girlfriend works for a fashion magazine, and we have been well acclimated to the voyeur's role we will assume for much of the film. For a more recent example of perfect visual storytelling, look no further than </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GroDErHIM_0" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">this four-and-a-half minute montage</span></a><span style="color: black;"> in Pixar's 2009 film, <em>Up</em>. Filled with character and raw emotion, despite lacking one word of dialogue or a single sound effect, Pixar could make an amazing silent film were they so inclined.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">With the power to reveal so much, it's a shame when an image reveals so little. There was a time when the positioning of characters within the frame would indicate almost everything about their relationship. There was a time when a character's mood would be subtly reflected in the way shadows fell across the screen, a time when changes in the weather foretold something ominous, joyous, or anything in-between. When people watched Citizen Kane they understood the symbolism of the massive windows when Orson Welles walked deep into the frame; he was losing his vast media empire and felt as miniscule as those windows suddenly made him look (see above). Audiences knew when a character felt lost or isolated in their life, they knew when a marriage was falling apart. They understood that a shot of a train entering a dark tunnel, moments after a couple's passionate embrace, meant penetration of another sort was going on.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Despite the current state of mainstream filmmaking, there are always a handful of movies a year determined to buck the trend. In 2011 we got several, including Terrence Malick's <em>The Tree of Life</em>, Lars von Trier's <em>Melancholia</em>, etc. Two films, in particular, were crafted as “love letters” to the innovative magic of early, visual cinema. Like <em>WALL-E</em>, Michel Hazanavicius' <em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzNhyZlTNAg" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">The Artist</span></a></em> and Martin Scorsese's <em><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnt6K7kwOVY" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Hugo</span></a></em> are absolutely indebted to and passionate about silent film.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;"><em>The Artist</em> <em>is</em> a silent film, in fact, with an original musical score by Ludovic Bource (the 2012 Golden Globe winner for Best Score). Hazanavicius went all out with his homage, filming in black-and-white, 22 frames-per-second, and the 1.33:1 aspect ratio (a frame only slightly wider than it is tall). He cheats a bit, playing the song “Pennies From Heaven” over a montage and including two other instances of sound. Still, for all intents and purposes, this is a brand spankin' new silent picture.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The use of Bernard Herrmann's iconic 1958 <em>Vertigo</em> score has proven much more stupefying than any intrusion of speech or sound effects. Hitchcock fans will notice immediately, but I strongly disagree with </span><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2085242/Vertigo-Actress-Kim-Novak-takes-page-magazine-ad-rape-Oscar-contender-The-Artist.html" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">Kim Novak's argument</span></a><span style="color: black;">. The rest of <em>The Artist</em> is clear evidence, Hazanavicius simply adores the classics. The <em>Vertigo</em> music was a temporary track, which ultimately could not be improved upon for the scene. There is no cause for alarm, <em>The Artist</em> will not replace <em>Vertigo</em> in anyone's memory. Herrmann's music is still about the love and obsession Scotty Ferguson feels for Madeleine Elster.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><em>The Artist</em> begins in 1927, an amazing year for silent pictures (<em>Sunrise</em>, <em>Metropolis</em>, <em>The Unknown</em>, <em>Seventh Heaven</em>, <em>Wings</em>, etc.), and for the world's first sound film, <em>The Jazz Singer</em>. We meet George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), a silent star in the mold of Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino, as he attends the Hollywood premiere of <em>A Russian Affair</em>, the latest in his seemingly endless string of box office hits. Afterward, a lively aspiring actress in the crowd, Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo), stumbles into Valentin for a “meet cute” and the press eats it up.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Valentin runs into Peppy again when she comes to the studio for an audition, and convinces his boss (John Goodman) to give her a small role in their new movie. Unfortunately, sound features are all the rage, and Valentin refuses to change with the times. Instead, he goes independent, sinking his own fortune into a new silent film. From here we get echoes of <em>Singin' in the Rain (1952)</em> and <em>A Star is Born (1937, 1954, 1976, take your pick)</em>, with Peppy rising fast as Valentin takes a fall.</span><span style="color: black;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><em>The Artist</em> is filled with lovely moments, including a nod to <em>Citizen Kane's</em> justly famous </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u43Y3HoTXbE" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">breakfast table montage</span></a><span style="color: black;">. Peppy has an adorable scene with Valentin's coat, and the dog is just adorable, period. Valentin's nightmare is inventive and humorous, as the simplest of sounds are magnified, causing him to scream in terror. At one point, Valentin passes Peppy on a flight of stairs. It's almost a throw-away moment, but those who take notice of the scene's dynamics will receive a simple, visual reinforcement of the film's theme. The final line of the movie is a nice touch, succinctly explaining Valentin's reluctance to make sound films, but then again, it makes me wonder if Maurice Chevalier existed in this version of Hollywood.</span><br />
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</span><span style="color: black;">There are those who have criticized Hazanavicius for making a silent, they like to cry “gimmick”. Others accuse <em>The Artist</em> of being a poor substitute for the films it imitates. The gimmick claim is bogus; silent films are a unique medium, in my opinion. What's wrong with using a vastly different method to tell a story? In a perfect world I believe we would still have silents and more black-and-white films being produced, along with the latest blockbusters. I concede, however, that I would take dozens of old silent films over<em> The Artist</em>. In no way does that comment berate Hazanavicius' film, it simply reflects the incredible quality of the real deal.</span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><br /></span><span style="color: black;">Still, when I walked out of <em>The Artist</em> I felt reinvigorated. It was a packed house, yet a pin could be heard dropping in there. The audience was enraptured by the film, bursting into applause at the end. By virtue of being new and shiny (winning the Golden Globe for Best Picture and Best Actor won't hurt), <em>The Artist</em> has successfully drawn crowds to what is essentially a nostalgia piece. Hopefully, those in attendance have been inundated by one thought: “Hey, these silent films are pretty damn good!” If <em>The Artist</em> inspires just a few people to look back at the classics with an open mind and newfound respect, its duty would be done. Something tells me it will be more than “a few”.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Filled with all the latest tools of the trade (slick 3D, seamless computer animation, etc.), <em>Hugo</em> takes an entirely different road to reach the same destination. It celebrates one man in particular; the great cinematic pioneer, Georges Méliès. Based on Brian Selznick's book, <em>The Invention of Hugo Cabret</em>, the story takes place in and around a Parisian train station in 1931. A young orphan, Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield), operates the station clocks as his drunken uncle had done. He is regularly on the run from the station inspector (Sacha Baron Cohen), and occasionally steals a few items from a toy maker who happens to be Méliès (Ben Kingsley). Hugo needs these mechanisms to repair an automaton his father (Jude Law) had been working on before he passed. He believes a hidden message has been left within.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"><strong>SPOILER ALERT:</strong> The big mystery that Hugo and his friend Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz) solve is that of Méliès' hidden past. It is historically accurate that once Méliès' star faded, the French army took about four hundred of his original film prints and melted them down to create boot heels. Méliès also burned a bunch of the negatives in a rage, believing them worthless. In his later years he ran a toy shop in the Montparnasse train station, where we meet him in Scorsese's film. The children discover all of these secrets and come across a man whose greatest inspiration is Méliès. Together they convince Méliès that his work was vital and glorious. The entire film, and it's a very good one, boils down to the healing of one man's heart.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;"></span><span style="color: black;">Film fans will love the recreation of Méliès studio, made of glass so the sets could be properly lit. There are those of us who will instantly recognize the films being made there, including <em>Kingdom of the Fairies</em> from 1903. What a great touch it was, seeing the primitive camera filming an underwater scene through an aquarium, with lobsters being dropped in the foreground. It's a simple illusion, but at a time when the medium was so young, it seems positively ingenious. Méliès was a magician prior to making films, and his pictures are like little miracles. Narratively, they are not on the level of later silent films, but if any one man invented the language of cinema before D.W. Griffith, it was Méliès.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">After watching <em>Hugo</em>, I hoped to see a renewed interest in Méliès', and my wish came true! For a few weeks following Hugo's release, </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Georges-Melies-Wizard-Cinema-1896-1913/dp/B0013K8J90/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326840409&sr=8-1" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue;">this DVD set</span></a><span style="color: black;"> of his films was sold out everywhere. The company responsible for the DVDs had to issue an apology, they simply were not prepared for the sudden increase in demand. I imagine that, for Martin Scorsese, this reward tasted even sweeter than his Golden Globe for Best Director.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Both <em>The Artist</em> and <em>Hugo</em> are incredibly refreshing in this day and age. They are distinctly visual films that go well beyond the superficial, special effects-laden definition of “visual”. They are family friendly (the undeserved PG-13 rating for <em>The Artist</em> shows the absurdity of the MPAA). One is a French film, the other takes place in France. Each has a strong admiration for silent cinema, and indeed all cinema.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Generally I'm not big on 3D (now <em>there</em> is a gimmick), but I must say Scorsese and his cinematographer, Robert Richardson, get it right. There was magic in the air when Scorsese gave us the moon. For one hundred and ten years the “face of the moon” in Méliès <em>Voyage to the Moon</em>, one of the most iconic images in film history, has been locked away in two dimensions. For one brief, exhilarating moment that very moon breaks free of the screen. Right then, the smile on my face could probably be seen from the moon too.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdiwDhsGQeeTbydumkc20JV8hZlqL-qXA5aZ1ps6A8gJnOVrHHzRcizsVvajZCbjJY2mTbTXOIMZpIH4jOhtPbRbaW06vCRD7xGun6ymSPHYMsSsDiUuwB5n3Eahc_Bog56e3jBGBgRWFD/s1600/silent8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdiwDhsGQeeTbydumkc20JV8hZlqL-qXA5aZ1ps6A8gJnOVrHHzRcizsVvajZCbjJY2mTbTXOIMZpIH4jOhtPbRbaW06vCRD7xGun6ymSPHYMsSsDiUuwB5n3Eahc_Bog56e3jBGBgRWFD/s320/silent8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-50164247076489964732012-01-12T14:58:00.000-06:002012-01-14T21:24:40.836-06:00Gettin' Medieval on Your Ass!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: black;">Along with Tarkovsky's <em>Andrei Rublev</em>, <em>Markéta Lazarová</em> is arguably the greatest film ever made about medieval times. Is there any real competition? <em>Shadows of Our Forgotten Ancestors</em> by Sergei Paradjanov, perhaps? I suppose Bergman's work, specifically <em>The Virgin Spring</em> or <em>The Seventh Seal</em>, might get the war drums pounding at my statement. Undoubtedly, Orson Welles created one of the genre's finest battle scenes in <em>Chimes at Midnight</em>, a terrific picture indeed. Then we have Dreyer's <em>The Passion of Joan of Arc, </em>a bona fide masterpiece, but its 15th century world is enclosed by churches, courtrooms, and torture chambers. <em>Markéta Lazarová</em>, on the other hand, runs as wild and free as the black wolves it depicts in stark contrast to the pure, white snowscape.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It may not rank among the most prolific nations in filmmaking, but a number of classics were born in Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic. Miloš Forman, the director of <em>One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest</em> and <em>Amadeus</em>, is a Czech export who gained international recognition after making <em>Loves of a Blonde</em> and <em>The Fireman's Ball</em> in his native land. Other wonderful Czech films include <em>The Shop on Main Street</em>, <em>Closely Watched Trains</em>, <em>Kolya</em>, etc. Released in 1967, <em>Markéta Lazarová</em> may be the best of the lot, and was actually named the greatest by a group of Czech critics in 1998.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The story, based on a 1931 novel by Vladislav Vančura, concerns the Kozliks and Lazars, two rival 13th-century clans. Mikoláš Kozlik (Frantisek Velecký) and his one-armed brother, Adam, attack a group of men along the road, one of whom happens to be the son of a Count. This angers the king, who sends his top man, Captain Beer (Zdenek Kryzánek), to take care of the situation. Mikoláš tries to convince the Lazars to join in the conflict, but gets beaten to a pulp by them instead. The only bright light in all this is young Markéta (Magda Vásáryová), Lazar's daughter, a virgin who will soon become a nun. Knowing of her unspoiled innocence and her father's plans for her future, Mikoláš exacts revenge by kidnapping her.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Unlike <em>Braveheart</em>, where the Middle Ages are populated by beautiful people who appear to bathe twice a day, brush their teeth after each meal, receive their wardrobe each morning from the prop department, and make love beneath a moonlit sky as James Horner's score plays in the background; <em>Markéta Lazarová</em> is more concerned with reality. These people are plain and dirty. Their daily quest for survival transcends any thought of vanity. They act more like beasts than men. In fact, one of the clans in the movie superstitiously believes a legend that they descend from a line of werewolves.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Living conditions are awful, even for the nobles. Bandits murder hapless travelers while opportunists lie in wait to loot the fresh corpses left behind. There are incestuous relationships, more common in those days than Hollywood would have us believe. A young virgin woman is promised to the church, but after she is raped by a pagan, her own father and the local nuns reject her. As a prisoner, survival instinct compels her to fall in love with her own rapist; the alpha male and the only thing protecting her from getting raped by everyone else.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">In case I have not been clear, a romantic vision of lords and their ladies fair this is not; more like dog eat dog and survival of the fittest. There is a very convincing depiction of the world of paganism on the one side, and Christianity on the other; both being seen as equally hypocritical and corrupt thanks to the ever present vices of mankind (greed, lust, thirst for power, you name it and it's probably here).</span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">All of this was researched so thoroughly and captured with such authenticity that, like Kurosawa's <em>Seven Samurai</em>, it feels as though a movie crew traveled through time and rolled their cameras as these events transpired. There are no big stars. No Australian (Russell Crowe), playing an ancient Roman, while speaking English. No concessions whatsoever to Hollywood storytelling, heroes and villains, plot twists, or gratuitous spectacle.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The director, František Vláčil, spent years on this project and exercised a Kurosawa-esque obsession with detail. On the set of <em>Throne of Blood</em> in 1956, Kurosawa had an entire 16th-century fortress set torn down and rebuilt when he discovered the carpenters used steel nails in its construction. Even in the front row of the theater no one would have seen the nails, but Kurosawa could not stomach such inaccuracy.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">For <em>Markéta Lazarová</em>,<em> </em>Vláčil insisted the costumes and sets be created in the same manner, with the same available materials, as they would have in the 13th-century. For a couple years, he made his actors live as hunter-gatherers in the woods to better understand the lifestyle. Even the language was stripped down to its primitive roots, and the composer of the wonderful score, Zdeněk Liška, fashioned several of his instruments from materials discovered in the wild. This passionate devotion is expertly captured through Bedřich Batka's brilliant Cinemascope images and Miroslav Hájek's sure-handed editing.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Perhaps best of all, <em>Markéta Lazarová</em> is one of those rare historical films that smartly refuses to view the past through a filter of modern morality. Vláčil does not pass judgment on these characters, he simply lets them exist. We have the benefit of hindsight when it comes to the wrongs of slavery, for example, but if we lived when it was common practice ninety percent of us would have nothing to say about it. This movie does not impose current attitudes on the lifestyles of 13th-century people; to do so may be politically correct by our standards, but it would also be complete bullshit.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">I should probably admit that the first time I watched <em>Markéta Lazarová</em> in 2007 I found it nearly incomprehensible, due to the way the narrative jumps around, but the second time everything clicked. Plenty of movies reward multiple viewings, but here it is practically <em>required</em>. If you plan to watch this film just once, I recommend you do not even bother. If Pauline Kael were still alive, I would be frustrated to no end by her stubborn refusal to watch any film twice. If she ever saw <em>Markéta Lazarová</em>, she probably didn't like it. I was wrongly convinced, four years ago, that I didn't either.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0dR81d2AKek7EQkYF2GpLaTbMr2RNhhDTZhsMAkvZgH2yTHc-Ds2T9GVy_jQ3pyuip0CtKNh5Rb-nR0aQkDC500VFFHPj8yLKiHC2jaxCVnPahDR0Sc_0NT0HkqKegqsWjp6xhQY5fBU_/s1600/marketa3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0dR81d2AKek7EQkYF2GpLaTbMr2RNhhDTZhsMAkvZgH2yTHc-Ds2T9GVy_jQ3pyuip0CtKNh5Rb-nR0aQkDC500VFFHPj8yLKiHC2jaxCVnPahDR0Sc_0NT0HkqKegqsWjp6xhQY5fBU_/s320/marketa3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-35804532118738190412012-01-08T20:12:00.004-06:002012-01-16T17:06:29.183-06:00Targeting Another Mann<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbfUwfKJ0XKvbLi3mnZDfXNxiQyKipZP0RisjJhGvkAsJtujQD62wxPOaHqgTOaojHAm5EhbgXuiMhFcnXMUStWFUIHx_ucM801wI1oiAkQiI6Yd2kkB9k3OKzwnyAC7qi2pbgik4Kr0Cz/s1600/talltarget.jpg"><span style="color: black;"></span><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695482317762995346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbfUwfKJ0XKvbLi3mnZDfXNxiQyKipZP0RisjJhGvkAsJtujQD62wxPOaHqgTOaojHAm5EhbgXuiMhFcnXMUStWFUIHx_ucM801wI1oiAkQiI6Yd2kkB9k3OKzwnyAC7qi2pbgik4Kr0Cz/s400/talltarget.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 360px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 235px;" /></a><span style="color: black;">Exactly three years have passed since my last entry in this blog on January 8, 2009, time enough to grow older and perhaps wiser. My posts were few and far between, ending in a two part analysis of the Westerns of Anthony Mann. When I decided to continue this blog, it became a personal goal of mine to update more frequently. Speaking of Mann, I decided to link my past efforts with the new by looking at <em>The Tall Target</em>, a criminally underrated Mann picture whose acquaintance I made recently. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Before my lengthy hiatus, I blogged (</span><a href="http://film-impression.blogspot.com/2008/08/all-aboard.html"><span style="color: blue;">"All Aboard!"</span></a>)<span style="color: black;"> about <em>Transsiberian</em>, an exciting 2008 release directed by Brad Anderson. In the same piece I mentioned <em>Runaway Train</em>, <em>The Lady Vanishes</em>, and <em>Murder on the Orient Express</em>; films with similar settings. Well, I loved train movies then, and I love them now. Make no mistake, <em>The Tall Target</em> is one hell of a train movie and ranks among Mann's finest achievements. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Released in 1951, it claims to be based on a forgotten historical conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln on the way to his inauguration. Apparently this was an alleged plot where nothing ended up happening, but security measures were indeed taken to protect Lincoln aboard a night train to Washington D.C. in March of 1861.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Mann's version of events, smartly scripted by George Worthing Yates and Art Cohn, gives us a protagonist in the form of New York detective John Kennedy (Dick Powell). Kennedy, who served as Lincoln's bodyguard for two days prior to the election, recently caught wind of the plot and filed a report which no one on the force takes seriously. Why would they? It seems many people wouldn't mind seeing Lincoln on the receiving end of a bullet. As one man states, “I'd inaugurate him with a stout rope from a White House chandelier!” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It could not be clearer, <em>The Tall Target</em> takes place in a divided nation. People are concerned about war on the horizon once Lincoln takes office. Waiting to board the Night Flyer Express, a woman says, “Mr. Lincoln must take a firm stand against slavery once and for all”. With a sour expression, another passenger retorts, “As far as I'm concerned madam, the new president is Jefferson Davis of Mississippi.” This disgusts the first woman, who yells, “Secessionist!” The train essentially functions as a microcosm of the United States a century and a half ago, with tensions running high between the northerners and southerners aboard. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Forced to give up his badge, Kennedy boards the Night Flyer to thwart the plot himself. Things get off to a poor start when he discovers his friend, an inspector who wished to see him off and give him his ticket, has been murdered. Upon returning to his seat, Kennedy realizes he is being impersonated by a man, perhaps the murderer, who has his missing ticket. Luckily, Colonel Caleb Jeffers (Adolphe Menjou) is on board to vouch for Kennedy. A race against the clock begins as Kennedy must find his friend's killer, and discover who else is involved in the conspiracy.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">The contrast between <em>The Tall Target</em> and many more recent films is staggering. The other day I sat through <em>War Horse</em>, Steven Spielberg's latest, and found myself pummeled into submission by yet another booming John Williams score. The music was so abusive, I expected Nigel Tufnel to charge in from the wings. Let's face it, we live in an era of big Hollywood spectacle and “louder is better” musical scores. How refreshing, then, is a movie like <em>The Tall Target</em>? Mann gives us a taut, tremendously crafted thriller with no bloated Hollywood moments and no score whatsoever. The setting comes to life brilliantly through sound effects alone, and the tale is so gripping even the most savvy viewers would be hard pressed to notice the lack of music. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Performances are nicely done all around, particularly those of Powell and Menjou, who despite his many roles continues to exist in my head as the Major General in Kubrick's <em>Paths of Glory</em>. A very young Ruby Dee (Mother Sister in Spike Lee's 1989 film, <em>Do the Right Thing</em>) plays a slave girl raised more like a sibling to her owner, Ginny Beaufort (Paula Raymond). Even the train conductor, played by Will Geer, manages to stand out. Truth be told, he happens to be involved in one of my favorite exchanges in the picture. When offered a drink by Colonel Jeffers, he declines as he is on duty. “Come on, come on, this is a tonic,” Jeffers insists, as the conductor takes a nervous look around. “Here, I'll get you some water,” Jeffers adds. The conductor quickly takes the straight tonic and responds, “Let's not dilute its medicinal value.” </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Films of this type often live and die by their period detail, and <em>The Tall Target</em> gets it right. From the beginning, I believed these events were taking place in 1861. I absolutely loved seeing the Flyer dragged, by horses, through the city of Baltimore to prevent the engine smoke from polluting the city (a real law at the time). I also enjoyed seeing the Capitol Building under construction. Some have complained that Powell's suit isn't accurate for 1861, but I never noticed or cared. Credit simply <em>must</em> be given to Cedric Gibbons' art direction and Edwin B. Willis' set decoration. They were a talented pair, working on other fine MGM productions such as <em>Singin' in the Rain</em>, <em>An American in Paris</em>, and <em>The Wizard of Oz</em>.</span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">About nine months after <em>The Tall Target</em> was released, Richard Fleischer's film noir, <em>The Narrow Margin</em>, came out. Like Mann's picture, it is a thriller set on a train, it uses no musical score, and the similarities don't stop there. <em>The Narrow Margin</em> has a contemporary setting, however, and tells the story of Walter Brown (Charles McGraw), a detective assigned to protect a mobster's widow (Marie Windsor) en route to California where she will testify before a grand jury. It's an exciting, well crafted movie (remade as the lackluster <em>Narrow Margin</em> starring Gene Hackman in 1990). </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">Unfortunately, producer Howard Hughes was so impressed with this “little B-movie that could”, he held up its release and planned to reshoot it with an A-list cast and budget. His wish never came true, and despite being completed before <em>The Tall Target</em>, the public saw Fleischer's film last. I have no idea whether or not Mann knew of <em>The Narrow Margin</em> or had insiders who ripped it off. Both films are wonderful, and stand on their own. Still, if forced to choose, I would cast my vote in favor of <em>The Tall Target</em>. I'm not fond of some of the twists in <em>The Narrow Margin</em>, and I prefer the character and atmosphere of Mann's picture. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black;">It is always nice to come across a splendid, forgotten movie. Mann's work, I suppose, isn't so much forgotten as it is undervalued. The films are there, readily available in most cases, and just waiting to be seen. Cinema history does not seem to appreciate him as much as Ford or Hawks, but I certainly do. Three years ago I discovered his Westerns, a couple noirs, and a few epics. Now I come across a gem as substantial as this? I can not recommend Mann's work highly enough, and <em>The Tall Target</em> is as good a place to start as any.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0Txn6VmF0a9paiyFZeoKOtvScgLjKR9vIDXL7vZEhg6x-H8fBJqqw3IJt_iIVQBmY4aY-TR23t1D6b87G3Dokp3llYN4dO8WBnoLWrcubxUtqiA16nGa4e1J8uGbNyBXy0GWdZ7nKnVB/s1600/talltarget3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0Txn6VmF0a9paiyFZeoKOtvScgLjKR9vIDXL7vZEhg6x-H8fBJqqw3IJt_iIVQBmY4aY-TR23t1D6b87G3Dokp3llYN4dO8WBnoLWrcubxUtqiA16nGa4e1J8uGbNyBXy0GWdZ7nKnVB/s320/talltarget3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-44636390265709470292009-01-08T13:31:00.040-06:002009-02-08T09:06:27.378-06:00Forgotten Mann: Part 2<span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Far Country (1954)</strong></span> <div><span style="color:#000000;"><br /></div></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289916985931805906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 225px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZEbYhrL3kL4Eu_S7EMPr0leuJDqBlserTIpE8BwvAIJpMcqq4AscnLTvlYLbGrgKgjQi02xItgyUyKSQRE6gTrt_d6k_0GJRMnUr_qlLCIgwMiNRdMkElIVjOS-YAXMLz8BcniQv063ia/s400/farcountry.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">This Western marks the third and final collaboration between the trio of screenwriter Borden Chase, actor James Stewart, and director Anthony Mann. It is also the weakest of the three, but still a pretty solid picture. One of the notable things about it might just be Stewart's emotionally distant character, Jeff Webster; arguably the most bitter person Stewart ever played on-screen. Jeff is a genuinely unlikable man who plainly appears to care only for himself. It is quite an achievement that Mann, Stewart, and the rest of the crew managed to make this "hero" watchable.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The year is 1896. With the gold rush in full swing, Jeff and his partner, Ben Tatum (the wonderful character actor Walter Brennan), plan to take a herd of cattle north to capitalize on the high demand for beef. Unfortunately, this means they have to travel through the town of Skagway, where they accidentally interrupt a public hanging and manage to get on the wrong side of the "law". Gannon (John McIntire), the one man sheriff, judge, and jury of Skagway, confiscates their herd as punishment.<br /><br /></span><div><span style="color:#000000;">In a scheme to retrieve his cattle, Jeff decides to help Skagway's saloon owner, Ronda Castle (Ruth Roman), get to the town of Dawson safely so she can open a new one. He outwits Gannon along the way, manages to recapture his herd, and then sells them for top dollar to Ronda because the desperate locals simply can't match her price. With the wealthy Ronda set up in town, monopolizing the business of catering to the miner's vices, it doesn't take long for Dawson to become another Skagway. Jeff doesn't seem to care, until Gannon and his men commit an atrocity he can not ignore...</span></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289916985617535170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 370px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBIW4onNKXa2GpboB5GlAaYWT_CagNpw4PLYvvgCIVMmyfbB2MtCeFl8XuQ6AciOXUBC5xF-pLoKwW2q9s_NJxAAHmI9zk2JRbrc7RXJZqudNHRX8LeJV2Mxayxvq05dgXkSw7wbA8mHbR/s400/FarCountry3.jpg" border="0" /><span style="color:#000000;">Beautiful Alberta, Canada stands in exceptionally well for the Yukon here, and the cinematography by William Daniels captures the natural environments effectively. As usual, Stewart does a fine job, and it is always nice to see Walter Brennan as far as I'm concerned. Their relationship and the future they hope for, symbolized by the little bell on Stewart's saddle, holds everything together. However, it is John McIntire who steals the show, or at least every scene that he's in. His Gannon, while not a very complex character, is a tyrant with a sense of humor that oozes corruption out of every pore, and he remains one of the more memorable villains in a Mann Western. The women don't fare quite as well. Ruth Roman plays a bad girl that doesn't seem bad enough, and Corrine Calvet is so cute and innocent she borders on boring.<br /><br /></span><div><span style="color:#000000;">All in all, The Far Country is a good Western. Some of Stewart's icy reactions to events and the cynical dialogue that comes out of his mouth may have viewers in shock if their exposure to him has been limited to Frank Capra films. This movie has the ringing bell alright, but no angels will be getting their wings.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Man From Laramie (1955)</strong></span><br /><br /></div><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289074475413618322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 263px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeQVIdNjA0HgJqOA5wLVw82JTatgzNKZfQ6lc8b3EBZDMOUpAs_Z8qvHNWpduUYv8KcTkB_7QGTxMHOilFIqF63_53hlT7zxIWN9rKGpcmtovIafzennq3nfnsDtOnymoxLeXZp-oEieI1/s400/laramie3.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Mann's first CinemaScope Western, and his last picture to star James Stewart, tackles many of his usual themes; revenge, obsession, failed patriarchs, and so forth. Moreso than any other, however, The Man From Laramie has echoes of Shakespearean tragedy (King Lear to be exact). While it was certainly not the first time Mann had imbued his pictures with a mythical or Shakespearean tone, this one could almost be called “The Bard of the West”.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The story begins with Will Lockhart (James Stewart), a man on a mission less simple than it appears. On the surface, he looks to be a delivery man, willing to take his wagon train of goods through dangerous Indian country. In truth, he is an ex-cavalry officer, and his genuine motive is discovering the party responsible for selling repeating rifles to the Apaches, who in turn used them to kill his brother and several other soldiers.</span><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289070096905976402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 180px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-QmC29Qu3raWWqqWWcWA7iyVFbAYtwOUV8RBUnBzZsTs31zyAkfNei3uq16wpS0mx-Qo8o3AhN5KO12b89N3NwG-3Dn6Qf7HcwwB6wIpgOlsbtZo1lLiDj2_gPGyo6NLcPbgXLKg_mySo/s400/laramie.jpg" border="0" /> <span style="color:#000000;">After delivering the goods to Barbara Waggoman's (Cathy O'Donnell) store in the town of Coronado, Lockhart decides to load up the wagons with salt to sell after the journey back. This gets him involved in a bloody dispute with Barbara's crazy cousin, Dave (Alex Nicol), since the salt lagoons are on his family's land. Dave's adopted brother, Vic (Arthur Kennedy), is seemingly more level headed and tries to keep the peace. All of them, and practically everyone else within “three miles in any direction”, answers to their father, the rich and powerful Alec Waggoman (Donald Crisp). Alec offers to compensate Lockhart for any losses his son caused, but Lockhart refuses to leave town, and thus becomes inexorably tied up in the Waggoman's affairs.</span><br /><div><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Fortunately, Lockhart finds an ally in Kate Canady (Aline MacMahon), a rancher living nearby who used to be engaged to Alec. He does some work for her while digging up what he can on the Waggomans, who deal with their own interfamilial conflicts in the meantime; will the keys to the kingdom be left to the more capable man or the natural born son? Not surprisingly, Lockhart discovers there are ties between the Waggomans and the Apaches going way back, and he starts picking up the scent of the people partly responsible for his brother's demise.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289070103148118642" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 201px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmr1cddfttQXE2Zo6rpul-qm1ajWQtTNow59NaImNqAjMTqM7XNXNMe6OhN7oC8tyxjir2G8ocED_GMf9KpgUBm7nWPXFi_j0pWRS5RSEp31ymz7yWTvHd_5nAIS7RY_qZh3jEFqUbUOpH/s400/laramie2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Made on-location in New Mexico, the film is beautifully photographed by Charles Lang, who worked on many a classic, including four pictures by the great Billy Wilder. It is based on a 1954 Saturday Evening Post story by Thomas T. Flynn, and adapted for the screen by Frank Burt and Philip Yordan. Most importantly, it is quite a good movie, though it could do without the hokey ballad during the opening credits, and Alec's far-fetched dream foretelling the coming of Lockwood. Most of the performances are solid though, aside from Alex Nicol as Dave. He overplays a character that is already too mean, too dumb, and too whiny as written. There is just something a bit embarrassing about a forty year old man saying “I'm gonna try Pa, I'm gonna try to be like you want me from now on!” Then moments later, “I just want to be able to stand on my own feet, Vic won't let me!”</span></div><br /><span style="color:#000000;">This may also be Mann's most violent Western, with the famous “hand shooting” scene, a scene where Stewart is dragged through a fire, and another where donkeys appear to be blown away at point blank range. The violence is never gratuitous though, which can not often be said for more recent pictures. The Man From Laramie is an ambitious film, indeed, and there is an awful lot to like here. Perhaps a few people would even name this as their favorite of the Mann and Stewart Westerns, but for me it isn't quite on the level of The Naked Spur, Bend of the River, or Winchester '73.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Last Frontier (1955)</strong></span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289074480482944114" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 244px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 348px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDdAYajJxzAh8Ld3IN7cKCqoKetJ0bVYBMQvk2xuw4IQj3xvaJiY7mfMmenNEyHDUGCMc48G5GnsQ6EEJRi2kGooh-lkxOIy1Ldoy3ZmPgEigGITB9w6RNtm82CgEVqHGAK7_STm_wd-J4/s400/last+frontier+2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Here we have it, arguably the weakest of Anthony Mann's Westerns, unless one counts Cimarron, but aside from the impressive "Land Rush" sequence, that one rarely even feels like a Western (Mann creates miracles on-location, but far too much of Cimarron was done on phony looking sound stages). I'm not sure what Mann thought of Cimarron, but he did say, “As far as I'm concerned, The Last Frontier is nothing but a dud.” He attributed this to the fact that he was never left alone, and “there were too many people involved in the project” who kept getting in his way. He loved the theme, he simply couldn't bring it to the screen in the manner he desired. For what it's worth, there are plenty of lesser filmmakers who would surely have loved a picture like The Last Frontier to be in their credits.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Adapted from The Gilded Rooster, a Richard Emery Roberts novel, The Last Frontier takes place during the Civil War and stars Victor Mature as an uncivilized mountain man named Jed Cooper. On a typical day that finds he and his fellow trappers out in the wild doing their thing, they are surrounded by Indians and all of their goods, weapons, and horses are taken from them. According to Chief Red Cloud, this was done because they are upset about the nearby Union fort on their land. Seeking compensation for their loss, the trappers go to the fort, and suddenly find themselves employed as scouts for the army.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289070109440601762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 166px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWXBor41G9Zd8uwHTy3-mlYy2MEXzGB-aVHS7qBOeEMImqe1clh8hA-waYyIthBmvVANNbJg1RBpDGjIvKduo6f7SS68TIt-AdLI3YkykEozK5Vup6FtKwdbIclfYxBkDnItzKduLa4jK/s400/last+frontier.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">From there, Jed decides he wants to earn a uniform, but his uncouth ways lead to his falling in lust with Colonel Frank Marston's wife, Corrina (Anne Bancroft in her pre-Graduate days). As it happens, going after another man's wife isn't so bad as long as the husband is as nutty as the Colonel (apparently modeled after history's General George Custer). Supposedly more intelligent and civilized than Jed and his buddies, the Colonel is the ideal model of a poor leader. Having already led his men into a massacre at the Battle of Shiloh, he decides to do it all over again, charging headfirst into Indian territory. Jed must save the day, and prove there is still a place in the world of encroaching civilization for his primitive skills.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">It is almost a shame that so much of the film takes place at night, as it was shot on-location in rather picturesque country. The Last Frontier is definitely easy on the eyes. I only wish I could say the same for Victor Mature as the lead. He really got on my nerves in this one with his goofy demeanor, and I much preferred his performance as Doc Holliday in John Ford's My Darling Clementine (1946). Then again, the dialogue was pretty silly at times, so the writers deserve partial blame.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color:#000000;">Thankfully, right when things are getting a bit dull, Mann throws some excitement our way. Throughout his career, Mann always handled action sequences expertly, and the major one here is no exception (it pleasantly reminded me of the action bits in Devil's Doorway). Still, while The Last Frontier has moments that rise above the rest, it can not be recommended as a great film.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Tin Star (1957)</strong></span> </div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289070115109894306" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 225px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheyy8dtImwaB8zdbt_a_jhXdPpGt1w8PzNELvXGUlKykD1QSUwSofPF6YGg6R1zeqxNHzRc_-7IHv6534OnJVYrE-f8e_IdIdFc_O35od7VlFT1nkBtK97VXkb9QweFkRn53mJy7V0pTsi/s400/tinstar2.jpg" border="0" /><span style="color:#000000;">Almost as little known and underrated as Devil's Doorway, The Tin Star may be a touch formulaic compared to the greatest Mann Westerns, but it remains a good film regardless. It was a production that represented many firsts in Mann's career. For instance, this was the first and only film he made with actors Henry Fonda and Anthony Perkins. It was the first and only time he worked from a screenplay by Dudley Nichols, the screenwriter responsible for many John Ford pictures including Stagecoach (1939), The Long Voyage Home (1940), and The Fugitive (1947). 1957 also marked the first year Elmer Bernstein composed music for a Mann picture, including this one and Men in War. Furthermore, The Tin Star was a return to black & white for a Mann Western, last seen seven years earlier in The Furies.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The story takes place in a small town where the sheriff has recently been killed, and his daughter's boyfriend, Ben Owens (Anthony Perkins), is the replacement. Despite being as green as they come, Owens is determined to fill the boots adequately, but his girlfriend demands he quit after seeing what happened to her father. Setting the drama in motion, a bounty hunter named Morg Hickman (Henry Fonda) arrives with an outlaw's corpse in tow, determined to fetch the reward. Getting Morg his money turns out to be a lengthy process, however, and since the local hotel is afraid to give him a room he decides to stay on the outskirts of town with a young widow (Betsy Palmer) and her son, who are also outcasts. Her boy is half Indian, so the townspeople look down upon her.</span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289070111121443442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 225px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVzGszUYHkrha1tKDwrv0Xb0u8uYbj57irgvan6HE0PQaQSvGc04nyA2fmQP9RkXA4t_CPeU0mKuQ3uyaC6i8fv6ObE7NCFjnvJkhVQigXoxAN4Yde7MQjSzOernozAEoXQtbQZzIAhSIG/s400/tinstar3.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The rest is pretty straightforward, it must be said, while always remaining interesting and well made. Morg gets closer to the widow and her son during his stay, and as an ex-sheriff himself, he teaches Ben how to be worthy of wearing that titular “tin star”. There is a conflict that rears its head, obviously, and Ben must step up and prove to the town that he is strong enough to enforce the law. As is par for the course in Mann Westerns, rocky hills and terrain are used to great effect in a nicely done action sequence near the end. The most memorable scene, however, has to be the one where a murdered man arrives by horse-drawn carriage to his own birthday celebration. Scenes such as this make it difficult to imagine anyone accusing Mann of sugarcoating or shying away from disturbing and violent images.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Truth be told, while the performances are fine all around, Henry Fonda could do this role in his sleep and very well may have. Perkins as the apprehensive young sheriff seems to be warming up for his role as Norman Bates in Hitchcock's Psycho (1960). There is also a decent amount of sermonizing, and this seems to be one of Mann's talkier pictures. Nonetheless, The Tin Star is still a movie I would recommend. It is, at times, lovely to look at, and it certainly has a heart.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>Man of the West (1958)</strong></span></div><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289074485798068898" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 224px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWse9we3bJqwcizBirg2Ib1hE-crQNloGk91PcKLNx9srZbqzTaR0CSEho5HZ74H-T2oND-7fkLju419bzbNuX47OsVE9S8EWx2wIHDsxeexSF8H9F7de6Tlj6Sxf8lnCom7BkX5r6i7ax/s400/manofwest2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Though Gary Cooper got his start in silent era Westerns, one can not help but think of Fred Zinneman's High Noon (1952) when “Gary Cooper” and “Western” are mentioned in the same sentence. This is a bit unfortunate as it seems to come at the expense of another wonderful Cooper Western, and one of Anthony Mann's finest films; Man of the West. Expertly adapted for the screen by Reginald Rose from The Border Jumpers, a 1956 Will C. Brown novel, Man of the West deals primarily with a character who, like countless Western heroes, can not escape his past. In this instance, the hero is forced to embrace those old ways one last time before he can be purged of them forever.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The “man” of the title is Link Jones (Cooper), a former outlaw, entrusted by the people of his little town with the task of traveling to Fort Worth to find a suitable school teacher. To accomplish this goal, Link carries payment with him, a bag of gold coins gathered by the townspeople. Despite Link's past, the members of his community see him as a changed man; a married man with two children and a kind disposition. For Link though, this job still represents his right of passage from outlaw to ordinary law abiding citizen. He has the trust of the people, and he must honor that trust.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Unfortunately, the train to Fort Worth is held up as several of the passengers are helping to gather wood for the engine. During the attack, the lone guard fights back and manages to get the train moving again, but Link and two other survivors are left behind. Stuck in the middle of nowhere with Sam Beasley (Arthur O'Connell), a cowardly card sharp, and Billie Ellis (Julie London), an attractive woman who works in low-class dancehalls, Link decides their only chance is to find shelter at a nearby farmhouse he lived in as a young man.</span> </div><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289074497214640866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 180px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEire7VnKa5fRqgl2zKxRvc0GNdrVx0zKo7Xso1WFdcXIws-v8bXfzDCwITLMnTV3OaL8BvhK6mZq7JiqzSTxx5CQJbySssST_vwzNPaMPRY30OZmi5F1xthAvLL0a4WUmw62CY3P3AznmFT/s400/manofwest3.jpg" border="0" /><span style="color:#000000;">To Link's surprise, the house is still populated by the gang he used to run with, and the failed train attack was their doing. Dock Tobin (Lee J. Cobb), Link's uncle and the leader of the gang, gives an angry, yet nostalgic speech about how he cared for the orphaned Link years ago, trained him to be his best man, and was subsequently abandoned by him. Despite this, Tobin remains foolishly optimistic that Link has returned to the gang by choice. This provides Link some room to navigate hostile but hopeful waters, as he tries to keep himself and his two companions alive. To do so, he must convince the gang of his loyalty, while resisting the seductive pull of the murderous lifestyle he used to enjoy. Making matters rough, Tobin wastes no time putting his next plan into action; he intends to cross over to Mexico, robbing a bank in a town called Lassoo along the way.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Shot in splendid CinemaScope by Ernest Haller, this is one of Mann's most visually impressive films, but also one of his most unflinchingly brutal, especially considering the time when it was made. There is London's humiliating forced striptease while Cooper has a knife at his throat, an outdoor brawl that makes the famous bar fight in Shane (1953) look like an enjoyable tussle between friends (it seemingly influenced the fight in the third season of Deadwood as well), and even a rape that occurs off-screen. The striptease has been unfairly compared, on more than one occasion, to the rape scene in Sam Peckinpah's Straw Dogs (1971). I suppose one could argue that Mann's scene may be titillating to the male demographic, but the key difference is that London's character never shows any outward signs of enjoying what she is doing. In Straw Dogs, Susan George's character resists her rapists early on, but then seems to derive pleasure from the ordeal. Frankly, the scene in Straw Dogs works thematically for that picture, but the comparison is neither accurate nor fair.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">When it comes to the casting of Man of the West, it seems the detractors and fans alike have mixed feelings. Some have claimed Gary Cooper is too old for the part, others have expressed dismay about Lee J. Cobb's “overacting”. Personally, I have no issues with the casting and I think Cobb does a solid job. Cooper's age here in relation to Cobb's character (the older in real life playing the significantly younger man here), is not as unbelievable as a forty-seven year old Robert De Niro playing a twenty-eight year old the first time we see him in Scorsese's Goodfellas (1990). Both still give great performances within great films.</span></div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289074489325883858" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 171px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkkhMOmU9lRLl7Zbksf6Xnq1jRDwo3kz1W0Zq43u4LBhZjeVNYQ3NjLaJNB89EZxgV0nlOPYzKSddQRdf-fK7OO31CxMtcLWRXELJ_kjQovUfncTY8Tw3qFzrRDqHaX-Nk2nbYe5XC_s9t/s400/manofwest.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Then there is the finale, an exciting showdown handled as brilliantly as anything Mann ever did. I would go so far as to say it feels somewhat like the “model” other Western filmmakers followed after, including but not limited to Sergio Leone (whose The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly and Once Upon a Time in the West seem heavily influenced by Mann). This sequence really adds perspective to the comment, “When the camera pans, it breathes,” offered by the famous French film critic Andre Bazin in reference to Mann's filmmaking. It is an exemplary scene, without question.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">While I would choose The Naked Spur as Mann's best film, Man of the West is probably second. I say “probably” only because I have a soft spot for Bend of the River that few people share. The bottom line is, this is a fantastic Western, and a must for all Western fans, Cooper fans, Mann fans, and/or fans of great films in general.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>ADDITIONAL NOTE:</strong></span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289080380075838146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHALqNw3LfwI4jnlqCfyslZhIkw5wVRxWCaAVCKLKeBtloOyUmkbF8cejo_9QdkgPpCaISTRIwG18WikwBc7agkPcuLEcF646bYFzbZcfwziFVh4964wsOBptRrILdp8c4ZxEkLTsSHqRb/s400/boetticher.jpg" border="0" /><span style="color:#000000;">The recently released Films of Budd Boetticher DVD box set should be required viewing for Western fans. Five films are included: The Tall T (1957), Decision at Sundown (1957), Buchanan Rides Alone (1958), Ride Lonesome (1959), and Comanche Station (1960). All of them were quickie Westerns, low-budget B-pictures made on tight schedules of a few weeks, at best. Each was directed by the colorful Budd Boetticher, an American who became a bullfighter before moving into filmmaking, and the star of each was Randolph Scott, one of the great Western heroes as far as I'm concerned.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">What makes these films special, particularly the ones written by Burt Kennedy (all but Decision at Sundown and Comanche Station), is the way they manage to rise so far above their humble roots. Boetticher may have had B-movie schedules, financing, and talent to work with, but he was never actually making B-movies. Everyone was at the top of their game in these pictures, and over the years it has become clear they surpass many a larger budgeted Western epic.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The best of the bunch, in my view, are The Tall T and Ride Lonesome, with the former being particularly surprising in the raw brutality of its villains, somewhat like Man of the West. The set has a nice documentary included about Boetticher, film introductions by the likes of Martin Scorsese and Taylor Hackford, and three separate commentaries. It is fascinating to see what a talented filmmaker can do on budgets nowhere near what Anthony Mann, John Ford, or Howard Hawks had for their pictures. The Tall T and Ride Lonesome are right up there with some of the best Westerns ever made, and those who enjoy them should also pick up Seven Men From Now (1956), another Boetticher/Scott Western available as an individual DVD release.</span>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7336266884709408806.post-66425889398141459732008-12-01T16:43:00.033-06:002008-12-09T16:02:32.827-06:00Forgotten Mann: Part 1<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWEoysITQZwh1Gg2F0ndCbnSoM6d7PWc-31paIWl-eLyqdnlJwdNMRCDoNOqA5aFfxkAQORHaUw48cT0Dyk4y7ztjtza9tm9PYox1TWSy4179R9mT8CVcPj9ih8s2JC_hyphenhyphenmghpNmhyphenhyphenZKe/s1600-h/AnthonyMann.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274968109458686562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 281px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWEoysITQZwh1Gg2F0ndCbnSoM6d7PWc-31paIWl-eLyqdnlJwdNMRCDoNOqA5aFfxkAQORHaUw48cT0Dyk4y7ztjtza9tm9PYox1TWSy4179R9mT8CVcPj9ih8s2JC_hyphenhyphenmghpNmhyphenhyphenZKe/s400/AnthonyMann.jpg" border="0" /></a> <span style="color:#000000;">No, I'm not referring to Michael Mann, Terrence Mann, or Thomas Mann. I'm talking about Anthony Mann, one of the great Hollywood filmmakers of the 1950's who never quite gets his due. As a fan of James Stewart and a lover of good Westerns, I am embarrassed to admit that I was not familiar with Mann's work until fairly recently. To be perfectly honest, I find it baffling. After all, I've seen the films of Bela Tarr, Theo Angelopoulos, Krzysztof Kieslowski, Satyajit Ray, Ousmane Sembene; one can name just about any notable filmmaker, and chances are I'm familiar with their work. Adding insult to injury, Mann is an American director, which can only mean I was so busy staring at all the mountains in the distance that I missed the one I was standing right on top of. So in the last few months I've been busy remedying that problem, and doctoring my bruised ego.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Though he worked in several genres throughout his career, including historical epics (El Cid and The Fall of the Roman Empire), war movies (Men of War and The Heroes of Telemark), musicals (Moonlight in Havana, My Best Gal, Nobody's Darling, etc.), and film noir (T-Men, Side Street, Raw Deal, etc.); his Westerns are the best remembered, and for good reason. I strongly believe Anthony Mann deserves to sit alongside John Ford, Howard Hawks, Sam Peckinpah, Sergio Leone, Budd Boetticher, and Clint Eastwood in the pantheon of great Western directors. In fact, most of his Westerns are of such high quality that it is difficult to choose the finest among them. This amazing period in Anthony Mann's career began with...</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>Devil's Doorway (1950)</strong></span><br /><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274970346092322466" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 348px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGXPaSw94T9ztKo-096L_s29im3-Kj1zTNP8zrhT3J8I9LBpA4gwv0lCfceTQvTOT5dEOr4DV3_R_Z_5Rn63xHCQqFhF2C3oiyy8LVEBr0y_NXctB5RWOwaGWuDLdZ4NgaYb5Ot1TIXggK/s400/mann11.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Though it was not released until September of 1950, after both Winchester '73 and The Furies, Devil's Doorway was Mann's first Western. The controversial subject matter made the studio nervous, so it sat on the shelf until about two months after another Indian sympathizing film came out and made waves at the box office. That film was Delmer Daves' Broken Arrow, starring James Stewart, which told the story of a white man and an Apache chief who dared to create a peace treaty between their people. Broken Arrow got the accolades, while Devil's Doorway sat in its shadow, garnering neither the box office success or critical acclaim of Daves' film. These days, however, it seems abundantly clear that Devil's Doorway was, and is, the superior movie.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The plot follows Lance Poole (Robert Taylor), a Shoshone Indian who fought valiantly for the Union in the Civil War and expects to live in peace on his tribal lands after returning home. Unfortunately, he discovers that Indians have no right to their own land, they must settle instead for the reservations provided them. Poole decides to hire a lawyer, Orrie Masters (Paula Raymond), to defend his legal rights to the land, which homesteaders intend to come in and claim as their own. According to law, however, those rights simply do not exist for men like Poole. Masters risks her reputation in an attempt to change the law in Poole's favor, as he prepares for a last resort life or death showdown. He would rather die than give up his land, the “soul” of his people.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Some have expressed dismay at the casting of a very Caucasian Robert Taylor in the lead role, but he actually does an admirable job. Of course, it doesn't hurt that he was backed up by an able supporting cast, John Alton's exquisite cinematography, an intelligent script by Guy Trosper, and Anthony Mann's confident direction. The film possesses a look and feel that are both distinctly noir-like, and Devil's Doorway represents, along with The Furies, the last time Mann would employ such a style in his Westerns.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">While Devil's Doorway may not be the most celebrated of Mann's films (it remains one of the hardest to find), it deserves to be counted among his better pictures. The preachiness of Broken Arrow is avoided here, and the plight of the Indians is dealt with in a more brutally honest and respectful manner. It is an effective story, well told, and deserves much better than the occasional airing on TCM with no DVD release in any region.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>Winchester '73 (1950)</strong></span><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274970751028297474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 319px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 250px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKJERKCU1cZ5GIktxO9RlL9qWN5_3_NyjOm5cNenXUkshsVcDIgcUz-mQpwHhViF4NMF-OUdwighR3stE-LDLG2IlWwstuxvKTDOm5Eca3j8SnGd1xGFcWXHaUXexO2rSXo4_FOb_yEJvP/s400/mann1.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">A beautifully photographed black-and-white Western, Winchester '73 marks the first collaboration between James Stewart and Anthony Mann, who would go on to work together on seven more films, four of them Westerns. Thanks to a wonderful screenplay courtesy of Borden Chase (Oscar-nominated a year prior for his work on Howard Hawks' Red River), they couldn't have asked for a better start. Like Rene Clair's 1931 musical, Le Million, or 1997's The Red Violin and a number of other pictures, Winchester '73 follows a prized item as it changes hands, moving from owner to owner. Here, instead of a winning lottery ticket or a flawless violin, the object of desire is a perfect “one-in-a-thousand” Winchester Model 1873.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The story begins in 1876, when such a rifle is being awarded to the winner of a shooting competition in Dodge City. Knowing it will bring the interest of outlaw Dutch Henry Brown (Stephen McNally), our heroes, Lin McAdam (James Stewart) and High Spade (Millard Mitchell), descend upon the town. Lin enters the contest, narrowly defeating Dutch Henry, with whom he obviously has a bad history. After taking possession of the Winchester, Lin is jumped in his hotel room, and Dutch Henry flees Dodge with the prize. A short time later, with Lin in hot pursuit, Dutch Henry is forced to sell the rifle to a trader, but he has every intention of getting it back. The Winchester's journey has only just begun...</span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274971302971680882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 325px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 244px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPO1J23A_2MrynOGw1eGd2XRlVYwGibC4QvS-yNJ6jPvbMSt7XTargrraWV-EEcZ_wMNXp15UzbbRqZ9MB4CknGs0UETe3z3vYLfxroEVFhRZ0Xv_-0bl54ysLkTdHAXOkF-ToZ-L6ohS/s400/mann2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Despite the rifle's ever shifting ownership, the story remains focused on its pursuit, and the major characters themselves, which go on to include Steve Miller (Charles Drake) and his girlfriend, Lola Manners (Shelley Winters). Despite some rather distracting cameos, including Rock Hudson as an Indian chief (who approved that casting?) and Tony Curtis as a random cowboy, Winchester '73 has solid performances all around. Unfortunately, the final “twist”, if one can call it that, is pretty obvious early on, and feels a bit anti-climactic when finally revealed. Still, the film is well crafted from beginning to end, and deserving of its reputation as a classic Western. The final showdown is wonderfully executed; no fast draw cliches, just two foes locked in a bitter, ugly, and desperate struggle to be the last man standing.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Furies (1950)</strong></span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274971631123855026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN4r0qtxW1m0oYcgQmbwajhvtOxWMbnZonavYwtufh7f8BVpT6Ps1oD_NFD7bBOC5AdOdaO5cQGBwRCIV1966FtxdHZ4UOEe6u1r8-nknmZn_uZeJNdUByawL0NnAv6AhoZKNQ-TYSrJPv/s400/mann3.jpg" border="0" /> <span style="color:#000000;">Mann's third Western remains the most noir-like of his career, with Victor Milner's cinematography clearly resembling John Alton's work in the earlier Mann films, T-Men, Raw Deal, and Devil's Doorway. The low-key lighting and moody interiors will have most viewers looking around aimlessly for private detectives in fedoras. James Stewart is also missing here, but The Furies still has a rather formidable cast including Barbara Stanwyck, Walter Huston (in his final role), and Wendell Corey.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Based on the novel by Niven Busch, The Furies is the story of an old widower, T.C. Jeffords (Huston), and his daughter, Vance (Stanwyck), as they love each other, grow apart, and eventually seek to destroy each other in 1870's New Mexico. T.C. runs the Furies, a vast expanse of ranch land, as if it were an “empire” and he its “feudal lord”; a comparison noted in the opening titles. Alas, having accrued incredible amounts of debt over the years, T.C. has resorted to paying them off with his very own currency, worthless bills egotistically referred to as T.C.'s.</span><br /><span style="color:#000000;"></span><br /><span style="color:#000000;">A west coast banker agrees to a sizeable loan, but only if T.C. can get rid of all the squatters living on the Furies, including the Herrera family that Vance grew up with and cares for dearly. In addition, Vance falls for Rip Darrow (Wendell Corey), a man who despises T.C. over a land dispute and the murder of his father. When T.C. offers Darrow his daughter's fifty thousand dollar dowry if he will forget about her, he accepts. Thus, the seeds are planted for a battle between father and daughter.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">This is a well acted, handsomely made, and all around worthwhile film. Unfortunately, it also tends to feel a bit like a soap opera at times. The Furies is a rich and rewarding experience, on the one hand, but it may also be Mann's most flawed Western aside from The Last Frontier (1955) and Cimarron (1960).</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>Bend of the River (1952)</strong></span><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274977450301846674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHOBG1PcuXkCJuE_DPDgNk8wkIt9dMu56M3QQnfW-aUhdbp6ErhVJkoLriQPZhu2Hi9susoygq8eWEYj3pqp0rG4gxF7rRUbZ3qvs-j2le6XNT9VhpKWIoN59KUG-OsAOZmmmA-07VYAbr/s400/mann5.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">This superb, underrated Technicolor Western easily ranks among the finest ever made. For their second collaboration, working again from a Borden Chase script, Anthony Mann and James Stewart surrounded themselves with another splendid cast and crew. The story, like many Westerns at their core, is about starting anew; leaving the past behind in favor of a fresh start.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">The year is 1847 and a wagon train of simple farming families, led by Jeremy Baile (Jay C. Flippen), cuts across the landscape toward Oregon Territory, seeking an escape from constant violence near the Missouri border. Their guide, Glyn McClintock (James Stewart), has even more at stake: he can not simply run from violence, for it is the violence within his very soul which must be put to rest. Unbeknownst to the families who place their trust in him, Glyn was formerly a raider no different from those they flee.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">One evening, after the wagon train stops to make camp, Glyn rides into the nearby hills and comes across a small group of men preparing an execution. Glyn rescues the victim, who gratefully introduces himself as Emerson Cole (Arthur Kennedy), an ex-border raider. Given their similar pasts, Glyn and Cole quickly hit it off, even teaming up to hunt down some Shoshone Indians who attacked the wagon train and injured Baile's daughter, Laura (Julie Adams).</span><br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274977227765740834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6qDvHtLvYWpQNeXM5eU4yQh1bkrrxwx5UW4xSV_6bqK2efK1sCqFNW7vuzcdyqNhR226yXsNIMduwNxW0Pw15jvShQn1Q6RPUbU2IjuOZUGVCJo1fQz-dIUx9C8fvtZNgzxvPKuWtuI8a/s400/mann4.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Arriving in Portland, where the farmers intend to charter a steamboat and head upriver, they are enthusiastically welcomed by the owner of the town saloon, Tom Hendricks (Howard Petrie). Laura's arrow wound is tended to while the farmers buy food for the upcoming winter, with Tom's assurance it will be shipped to the settlement by the end of the month. Only, the shipment never comes...</span><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><br />To save their new community, Glyn and Baile head back to Portland, only to find that greed is at the root of their troubles. With the discovery of gold nearby, people have flooded into Portland, raising the price of food and supplies. Hendricks refuses to give them their goods at the price they paid, offering a refund instead. Glyn won't back down, and with the help of Cole and Trey Wilson (Rock Hudson), he flees to the steamboat where Baile has overseen the loading of their goods. Tom Hendricks and his posse pursue them in their race to get food back to the settlers.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Aside from being a grand adventure, with generous production values and fine performances, Bend of the River is more intimately concerned with the moral makeup of Glyn and Cole, two characters who see their reflection in the other. Baile believes that no bad man can change; he knows of Cole's past and hates him for it. Cole warns Glyn that if the farmers ever discover the truth about him, he would be equally despised. With that terrible prospect already hanging over Glyn's head, the journey back to the settlement is fraught with peril, temptation, and betrayal; constantly threatening to bring out the worst in his nature.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">In short, this is an exciting, well written, and sumptuously photographed Western that doesn't get the credit it deserves.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;"><strong>The Naked Spur (1953)</strong></span><br /><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274972610047392066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKhiFqm_dWiIsi12eN2_hq8jQJXhitA-ZHz3w433Am5T_KP9ah-_rM6DOGZQsP2VSvi7UU9zt9may9kqm8QUNH82NDm17hb7lgvygG1yfgWvQmEo4ERzU2wMh2oCqNombFBlQLOrXsemx/s400/nakedspur.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Despite only five speaking roles and no built sets, Anthony Mann made a masterpiece in The Naked Spur, and it remains the film most would argue to be his greatest achievement (though Man of the West has a loyal following for that honor as well). This intense, psychological character study takes place in the vast wilderness of the Rocky Mountains, where nature itself seems to mirror what goes on in the character's minds. Cascading boulders, heavy downpours, caves teetering on collapse, and raging rivers all have their say, revealing an environment as tumultuous as the human conflict playing out within it. It is no coincidence that one scene has Howard Kemp (James Stewart) commenting on the “music” made by the rain. Perhaps it resembles the primal, elemental music of his soul as he struggles to suppress his humanity; the only hope he has of completing his mission.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">In 1868, Kemp has relentlessly tracked the murderer of a marshal in Abilene, Kansas, all the way to Colorado. The accused killer, Ben Vandergroat (Robert Ryan), was an acquaintance of his, now wanted dead or alive for a bounty of five thousand dollars. Betrayed by his love, and desperate to buy back the ranch she sold while he was off fighting in the Civil War, Kemp seeks the bounty without fully grasping the means to that end. Though he attempts to justify his actions by telling himself and others what a terrible man Vandergroat is, he can not escape the fact that the fertile lands in his future would forever be tainted by another man's blood. As Jesse Tate (Millard Mitchell) says in the film, “He's not a man, he's a sack of money!” The problem is, he is a man first...</span> </div><div><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274973419006471458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ1ca339p1lAjDSis5QJa-5W9DLDvnnZrm83UAUi1akgPHI9tJgT9MLy1XeFFKwrRnZEZN6zfMIuqirAK7DqagbuvTDErpDjnOYeRTYNLB8XS0KndLruRdo4czLQfge4s4POCqPsErIBGy/s400/mann6.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">After losing Vandergroat's trail, Kemp comes across Tate, a down on his luck prospector who has recently discovered the remains of a campfire in the hills. Kemp, content to be mistaken for a lawman and making no mention of the reward money, offers Tate just twenty dollars to lead him there. Back on the scent, they eventually discover that Vandergroat is hiding on a mountain nearby. Lured by the sound of gunfire, a dishonorably discharged soldier named Roy Anderson (Ralph Meeker) shows up, and the three men eventually capture the target together.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">Knowing he is bested physically, Vandergroat immediately begins a clever assault of another kind. He informs Tate and Roy that Kemp is no lawman, and he was just using them to get a five thousand dollar reward for himself. With no other options, Kemp agrees to split the reward three ways if they work together to get their quarry back to Kansas.</span><br /><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274974852461152834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 303px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqdy4IGg_zDso5b1NzK5yDEy1yjG-QrcBODKQadnuae-Fl7z-IKo6VPE6Bjqzm1KuNjWkSfShIkC4re0W20yvdliSRtfzZEchCIt-X4PMlLWj2WLlvgu35QeTmL_7mGdP-QDF5WieyTynb/s400/mann13.jpg" border="0" /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">As it happens, Vandergroat is accompanied by a young woman named Lina Patch (Janet Leigh); he is all she has left since her father, a close friend of his, was killed in a bank robbery. The loyalty she feels toward Vandergroat, a surrogate father of sorts, is strong. She believes him innocent of the crime he is accused of, and Vandergroat exploits this knowledge to his advantage. Lina becomes a piece on the chessboard he uses to manage his escape. He uses Lina's sexuality the same way he uses Tate's desire for gold; having Lina create jealous rivals in Kemp and Roy, while he tries to convince Tate of the existence of a nearby gold mine. Though he is a prisoner, Vandergroat wields considerable powers of persuasion, indeed. As greed and mistrust begin to tear the group apart from within, one can not help but be reminded of John Huston's Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000000;">This is a brilliant Western that stands tall among the very best in the genre. With fine performances all around, a terrific Oscar nominated screenplay (by Sam Rolfe and Harold Jack Bloom), wonderful on-location cinematography, and a rich psychological subtext, one simply can not go wrong with this one. The ending has been heavily criticized and may very well be the film's weakest element, but I would argue it isn't terribly unbelievable, given Kemp's characterization up to that point. Opinions on the ending notwithstanding, The Naked Spur is a must.</span><br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274974340730605394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 245px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 237px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjma1cZgOfBR3K42SskVEwSv5ioFEFK7KM1XSdNYe9bpQTRtglm02kMOuVj8uEOEmwBuQA5CFuBkzTPh22MyaXgLVmbHG6mMREf35FqVzsx3WfN4NePgnoBcq_hyphenhypheng7sOgsPgH1nkv_YaoUf/s400/mann12.jpg" border="0" /></div></div>Ben K.http://www.blogger.com/profile/18080985340122917100noreply@blogger.com5