Saturday, September 12, 2009
DVD Review: Smart People
I have to say that I never had a professor like Lawrence Wetherhold (great pretentious name) during the process of getting my bachelors in English Literature. And thank God. Wetherhold (Dennis Quaid in wonderfully smug performance) is one of those professors that are so self-involved he can’t even remember student’s names who have been in his class consecutive terms. First time director Noam Murro and first time writer Mark Poirier understand that when dealing with pretension caricature has a tendency to mutate your comedic intentions; both Murro and Poirier sidestep the pitfalls of movies like this and instead of hitting me over the head with the obviousness of their satire, they reminded me more of the subdued, cerebral satire of academia found in films like Sideways and The Squid and the Whale. Smart People is not a perfect movie, but it has its moments and deserves mention next to the wittiest of intellectually dysfunctional family satires.
Lawrence is having trouble getting a book about postmodern something or other published, and his dreadful, dreary existence is alleviated by the appearance of his adopted brother Chuck’s (the always wonderful and breath-of-fresh-air Thomas Haden Church) surprise visit. Lawrence doesn’t want his life to change, though, and it isn’t until a stupid attempt to get his car from an impound lot goes awry resulting in a concussion that he has to rely on Chuck to chauffeur him around for 6 weeks. While at the hospital Lawrence is smitten with his doctor, Janet (Sarah Jessica Parker), a former student of his – of course he doesn’t realize that until he’s told by the neurologist.
The Wetherhold family is not the happiest, and there are some great moments that occur around the dinner table where little by little new insights about the family are brought to light. For instance Lawrence’s kids Vanessa (Ellen Page) and James’ (Ashton Holmes) brother-sister relationship, which is icy at best as Vanessa (and her dad) look down on James because he doesn’t strive to be their definition of a “smart person”. James goes to an art school and easily fools his dad into believing credit card charges from a bar are actually charges for art books at a book store. Murro is making an obvious commentary here that Lawrence is intelligent, but he’s not that smart. However, there’s a sad reality that occurs late in the movie where James has a poem published in The New Yorker, and then it appears that because of this Lawrence has a new found interest in his son.
Vanessa obviously cares for her dad as she plays house mom in between school and young Republican meetings; she cooks and cleans and does laundry because she feel she has to pick up the slack left by her mothers death. However, with Chuck’s arrival things begin to change as the two share a joint, watch Spanish soap opera, and go to a bar to celebrate her getting into Stanford. It appears that Vanessa’s icy exterior is beginning to thaw, but then something happens at the bar with her and Chuck that changes things.
Naturally a relationship blossoms between Lawrence and Janet, but it doesn’t go in the directions you think it will at first. Lawrence isn’t a nice person, and I like the way that Murro just shows Janet coming over for Christmas dinner after having second thoughts about sleeping with Lawrence instead of showing us the cliché scene where they argue about their problems. However, this particular storyline is the most banal thing about Smart People, and it takes up a good chuck of the story. There’s absolutely zero chemistry between Quaid and Parker and I felt like it was trying to do the Sideways thing where you have an intelligent outsider go out of his realm to win over a smart and sexy woman that is out of his league.
There’s a lot of stuff to admire here: the way Murro lets the intelligence of his characters act as both their best quality and what makes them so unappealing. He understands that the wacky adopted uncle character could have sunk the movie, and instead with the aide of Church, makes Chuck into the most likable and memorable character of the movie (he’s also in some way the smartest), instead of being an annoying, loud-mouthed blowhard like so many of his character types are.
Which brings me to perhaps Murro’s greatest achievement: the first time director handles the subplot of Lawrence’s deceased wife with a subdued clarity. There aren’t false moments or cheesy epiphanies, here; no, instead what we get are subtle clues as to what probably happened to Lawrence’s wife, and Murro installs a nice little motif throughout the film that leads us to this assumption as we see throughout various scenes that Lawrence refuses to ride in the passenger seat of a car because he gets nauseous.
Dennis Quaid is a really good casting choice as Lawrence. He plays him with that smugness that is laughable, but scary at the same time. His intellectual-bully exterior softens a little bit by the end of the film, but it was great to see nice gut Dennis Quaid from all those Disney sports movies play mean. Thomas Haden Church steals the show, though…just as he did in Sideways. Every scene he enters isn’t a showy moment for him to distract us from the dower scholarly malaise that envelops the Wetherhold house – in fact Chuck just kind of stands around on the periphery a lot of the time, eats his food and minds his own business, occasionally offering up the only sane bit of advice in the film. It’s the type of role we’re going to start associating with Church, and he’s perfect in it.
Smart People could have easily devolved into a ridiculous parody; instead it has a keen eye and sharp perspective on how the aesthete operates. Church provides a few laugh out loud moments, but the bulk of the humor is cerebral -- where 30 minutes after the fact, still thinking about the movie, you laugh. One of those moments is where Lawrence is going to change a grade to a ten year old paper that Janet’s written (this coming after a botched first date where all he did was talk about how smart he was), and in a hilarious moment where convention tells us he will change from a C to an A to show the err of his ways, deliver it to her at her work and win her back…he changes it from a C to a B-.
The film definitely has some flaws (like the whole Janet character, even though it leads to some semi-touching moments of realization for Lawrence, and some unnecessary added punch lines to scenes that should have remained subtle), but overall I think it succeeds at poking fun at the pedantic, know-it-all types who take themselves waaaay too seriously. Murro is saying that it’s okay to be smart, in fact it’s good (and encouraged) to be smart (you have to be in order to understand some of the jokes in this film), but you definitely need some balance in your life. It’s the appropriate message for a film that is really hard on its main character. I liked Smart People, a lot; at only 93 minutes it hardly felt like it robbed me of my time, and even if I can’t totally buy that ending, it’s forgivable because it’s an impressive debut for this writer and director who show an amazing amount of restraint and comedic instinct for first time filmmakers. I'm excited to see what comes from their next collaboration which is due out in 2010.
Lost Just South of Zombie Adventureland
I found this picture over at a new hang out of Jake Kotze's and other Merry Entities called the Tinker Team.... It was accompanied by a picture of Dunst of course and then these words.
Kristen Stewart in Adventureland and Kirsten Dunst in Crazy/Beautiful both associated to the Ferris Wheel. Kirsten/Kristen means Christian, the sun/son of God. As a circle divided into sections, like representaions of the year, time and stellar cycles, the Ferris Wheel is very solar.
I myself had had many "run in's" with the Ferris Wheel that was discussed in And Around We Go. However after seeing Jake's addition I started to notice Ferris Wheels joining another concept that I have yet to make heads or tails of but we share with you now....Southland Tales was discussed in the older post mentioned above and shows the Ferris Wheel highlighted above between The Rock and Mr. JT.... Like Adventureland Southland puts the Wheel in close proximity to the word land.The newer movie Zombieland also seen with a Ferris Wheel this one also joined by a roller coaster. Not to long ago my MoM called me with a story of a dream she had.... She said that she dreamt of a Ferris Wheel that turned into train tracks and then into a DNA strand.... This taught me that all are connected through there connotation to to being on a unalterable path. Once again we find the Wheel on a poster marking the "Land" which is a word of course with the letters DNA hidden within.In the movie Land of The Lost(LL) during the "Important Scene" in which we first get to see the new world we find the Ferris Wheel smack dab in the middle of the screen... What happens to be closest to it is the enigmatic word Land visibly cut out on the adjacent hillside....
Interesting... Jesse Eisenberg is in both Zombieland and Adventureland... Go figure.
james (:{0)>
Kristen Stewart in Adventureland and Kirsten Dunst in Crazy/Beautiful both associated to the Ferris Wheel. Kirsten/Kristen means Christian, the sun/son of God. As a circle divided into sections, like representaions of the year, time and stellar cycles, the Ferris Wheel is very solar.
I myself had had many "run in's" with the Ferris Wheel that was discussed in And Around We Go. However after seeing Jake's addition I started to notice Ferris Wheels joining another concept that I have yet to make heads or tails of but we share with you now....Southland Tales was discussed in the older post mentioned above and shows the Ferris Wheel highlighted above between The Rock and Mr. JT.... Like Adventureland Southland puts the Wheel in close proximity to the word land.The newer movie Zombieland also seen with a Ferris Wheel this one also joined by a roller coaster. Not to long ago my MoM called me with a story of a dream she had.... She said that she dreamt of a Ferris Wheel that turned into train tracks and then into a DNA strand.... This taught me that all are connected through there connotation to to being on a unalterable path. Once again we find the Wheel on a poster marking the "Land" which is a word of course with the letters DNA hidden within.In the movie Land of The Lost(LL) during the "Important Scene" in which we first get to see the new world we find the Ferris Wheel smack dab in the middle of the screen... What happens to be closest to it is the enigmatic word Land visibly cut out on the adjacent hillside....
Interesting... Jesse Eisenberg is in both Zombieland and Adventureland... Go figure.
james (:{0)>
Lost Just South of Zombie Adventureland
I found this picture over at a new hang out of Jake Kotze's and other Merry Entities called the Tinker Team.... It was accompanied by a picture of Dunst of course and then these words.
Kristen Stewart in Adventureland and Kirsten Dunst in Crazy/Beautiful both associated to the Ferris Wheel. Kirsten/Kristen means Christian, the sun/son of God. As a circle divided into sections, like representaions of the year, time and stellar cycles, the Ferris Wheel is very solar.
I myself had had many "run in's" with the Ferris Wheel that was discussed in And Around We Go. However after seeing Jake's addition I started to notice Ferris Wheels joining another concept that I have yet to make heads or tails of but we share with you now....Southland Tales was discussed in the older post mentioned above and shows the Ferris Wheel highlighted above between The Rock and Mr. JT.... Like Adventureland Southland puts the Wheel in close proximity to the word land.The newer movie Zombieland also seen with a Ferris Wheel this one also joined by a roller coaster. Not to long ago my MoM called me with a story of a dream she had.... She said that she dreamt of a Ferris Wheel that turned into train tracks and then into a DNA strand.... This taught me that all are connected through there connotation to to being on a unalterable path. Once again we find the Wheel on a poster marking the "Land" which is a word of course with the letters DNA hidden within.In the movie Land of The Lost(LL) during the "Important Scene" in which we first get to see the new world we find the Ferris Wheel smack dab in the middle of the screen... What happens to be closest to it is the enigmatic word Land visibly cut out on the adjacent hillside....
Interesting... Jesse Eisenberg is in both Zombieland and Adventureland... Go figure.
james (:{0)>
Kristen Stewart in Adventureland and Kirsten Dunst in Crazy/Beautiful both associated to the Ferris Wheel. Kirsten/Kristen means Christian, the sun/son of God. As a circle divided into sections, like representaions of the year, time and stellar cycles, the Ferris Wheel is very solar.
I myself had had many "run in's" with the Ferris Wheel that was discussed in And Around We Go. However after seeing Jake's addition I started to notice Ferris Wheels joining another concept that I have yet to make heads or tails of but we share with you now....Southland Tales was discussed in the older post mentioned above and shows the Ferris Wheel highlighted above between The Rock and Mr. JT.... Like Adventureland Southland puts the Wheel in close proximity to the word land.The newer movie Zombieland also seen with a Ferris Wheel this one also joined by a roller coaster. Not to long ago my MoM called me with a story of a dream she had.... She said that she dreamt of a Ferris Wheel that turned into train tracks and then into a DNA strand.... This taught me that all are connected through there connotation to to being on a unalterable path. Once again we find the Wheel on a poster marking the "Land" which is a word of course with the letters DNA hidden within.In the movie Land of The Lost(LL) during the "Important Scene" in which we first get to see the new world we find the Ferris Wheel smack dab in the middle of the screen... What happens to be closest to it is the enigmatic word Land visibly cut out on the adjacent hillside....
Interesting... Jesse Eisenberg is in both Zombieland and Adventureland... Go figure.
james (:{0)>
Reverend's Reviews: Sing, Silver Screen, Sing!
In the wake of the recent Broadway closings of the cinema-inspired musicals The Little Mermaid (from all reports an artistic debacle) and 9 to 5 (unspectacular but enjoyable), Neil and I here at Movie Dearest thought we would put our film- and theatre-loving brains together and identify what we consider the best and worst stage musicals adapted from movies. There have been many over the years, and they seem to be hitting the Great White Way with increasing frequency; Minsky's (which had a promising LA tryout run earlier this year), The First Wives Club and Blazing Saddles, among others, are reportedly still to come.
I certainly haven't seen every musical based on or inspired by a movie, and in fairness am not considering those I haven't seen. But here in my opinion are the greatest and least of those I have seen to date either on Broadway, on tour or via a local production ...
THE GREATEST:
A Little Night Music: Not only the finest musical adapted from a film (Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night) I've ever seen, but my favorite musical period. Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler add alternately beautiful and witty music, lyrics and dialogue to already-superior source material, and not only don't diminish it but expand on its themes and characters. This is how these things should be done.
Little Shop of Horrors: Low-budget movie producer Roger Corman was probably more surprised than anyone to see his cheesy 1960 sci-fi spoof become a major success on stage beginning in 1982. Indeed, the original off-Broadway saga of a boy and girl brought together by a malevolent, man-eating plant from outer space was such a smash it became a big budget, big screen movie in 1986. Both showcase a great score by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman and the fabulous Ellen Greene as Audrey I.
Hairspray and Cry-Baby: The films of cult filmmaker John Waters seemed unlikely candidates for mainstream musicalization, but the Tony Award-winning Hairspray is one of the most appealing in the genre. I found Cry-Baby, which had a too-short run on Broadway and — criminally — hasn't received a cast recording to date, to be even funnier and more in keeping with Waters' off-color sensibilities from its opening "Anti-Polio Picnic" number on! Could Serial Mom be next?
Kiss of the Spider Woman: While its primary source is Manuel Puig's novel, the Oscar-winning 1985 film is really this musical's main point of reference for most. Between that and the cinematic fantasies of gay window dresser Molina, it is a movie-inspired piece through and through. Kander & Ebb's score is one of their best, and seeing the fabulous Chita Rivera in the title role will always be one of my fondest Broadway memories.
The Phantom of the Opera: Similarly, most people aren't as familiar with Gaston Leroux's 19th century romantic-horror tale as they are with its many film versions starring everyone from Lon Chaney to Claude Rains to (gulp) Robert Englund. Andrew Lloyd Webber mined them all to spectacular musical and visual effect, with a strong assist from master director Harold Prince and the original stage Phantom, Michael Crawford.
Passion: Sondheim's second adaptation of a movie, in this case Ettore Scola's fairly obscure Passione d'Amore. Despite winning Tony Awards for Best Musical, Actress (Donna Murphy), Score and Book, Passion has, in my experience, many more critics than fans. I was completely taken, however, by its intelligent rumination on the definition of love. I highly recommend the DVDavailable of the original Broadway production to those who have never seen it.
The Lion King: Out of the seemingly endless string of Disney animated films translated to Broadway (Pinocchio is still to come), this remains not only Disney's best stage production but one of the most inspired pieces of theatre of our modern era. Julie Taymor's cultural sensitivity and skill with puppets elevate this kid-oriented "Hamlet on the Savannah" to near-operatic heights.
The Producers: The only musical comedy to leave me gasping for breath from laughing so hard. Mel Brooks' 1968 movie, which simultaneously spoofed the Broadway biz and the Third Reich, was funny on its own and won an Oscar for its screenplay. It can't hold a candle to the stage version, though, thanks to Susan Stroman's clever direction and choreography and the hysterical original cast headlined by Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, who also star in the fine 2005 film of the musical.
A Man of No Importance: Probably the least seen of any of my picks, greatest or least, this is an intimate gem based on an equally little-seen 1994 film. The movie stars Albert Finney as a repressed Irish bus driver in love with his young, male assistant as well as the works of Oscar Wilde. The musical's lovely score is by the Tony-winning pair Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens (Once on This Island, Ragtime), and playwright Terrence McNally authored the sweet, sensitive book. If you can't find a production of it, stage one!
Reefer Madness: A delightfully campy take on one of the worst movies ever made, a 1930's propaganda piece about the evils of marijuana. The stage version is great, and not just because Jesus has a supporting role! Even better is the made-for-Showtime 2006 movie adaptationstarring gay faves Christian Campbell, Alan Cumming and the hilarious Ana Gasteyer.
THE LEAST:
I'm grateful I could only come up with five, and none of them is awful. Not having seen the reviled-at-the-time Carrie (not yet, anyway; Neil tells me he's found most of it online), these are the most unsuccessful musicals based on a movie that I could recall seeing:
Sunset Boulevard: Lloyd Webber's score is very good, but it's hard to draw an audience to a story with no likeable characters. I saw Petula Clark play Norma Desmond on tour. Her voice and performance were good, but physically she was hardly the larger-than-life character Norma needs to be. Glenn Close, Patti LuPone and Betty Buckley were all better received in the role.
Footloose: The first real bubble-gum movie to become a bubble-gum stage production. I remember Walter Bobbie's staging and the energetic choreography to be quite good ... but that's all I remember apart from the songs previously made famous by the more enjoyable movie.
Monty Python's Spamalot: Again, not so much bad as overrated. I just recently saw this tuner inspired by the absurdist cult favorite Monty Python and the Holy Grail for the first time during its Los Angeles premiere and, while I enjoyed much of it, I still can't believe it won the 2005 Tony for Best Musical over the superior, haunting The Light in the Piazza.
Victor/Victoria: The splendid 1982 film arrived on Broadway nearly 15 years later. By that point, Julie Andrews was more than a little long-in-the-tooth and no longer in the best vocal condition to resurrect her Oscar-nominated performance. Leslie Bricusse padded his score for the film with one very good song — "Louis Says" — and one not very good song, "Paris Makes Me Horny." The latter was performed on Broadway by Rachel York, who will soon be starring as the immortal Cruella DeVille in a stage musical version of 101 Dalmatians (!).
Grand Hotel: Often referred to by pundits as "Grim Hotel," this musical adaptation of the star-studded 1932 Best Picture Oscar winner features depressing characters and a thoroughly forgettable score. A touching, Tony-winning performance by the late Michael Jeter as a terminally ill man was the Broadway production's one bright spot.
Tune in tomorrow for Neil's best and worst from screen to stage, and feel free to weigh in with your reactions and/or your personal picks in the comments section below!
Article by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and the Orange County and Long Beach Blade.
I certainly haven't seen every musical based on or inspired by a movie, and in fairness am not considering those I haven't seen. But here in my opinion are the greatest and least of those I have seen to date either on Broadway, on tour or via a local production ...
THE GREATEST:
A Little Night Music: Not only the finest musical adapted from a film (Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night) I've ever seen, but my favorite musical period. Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler add alternately beautiful and witty music, lyrics and dialogue to already-superior source material, and not only don't diminish it but expand on its themes and characters. This is how these things should be done.
Little Shop of Horrors: Low-budget movie producer Roger Corman was probably more surprised than anyone to see his cheesy 1960 sci-fi spoof become a major success on stage beginning in 1982. Indeed, the original off-Broadway saga of a boy and girl brought together by a malevolent, man-eating plant from outer space was such a smash it became a big budget, big screen movie in 1986. Both showcase a great score by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman and the fabulous Ellen Greene as Audrey I.
Hairspray and Cry-Baby: The films of cult filmmaker John Waters seemed unlikely candidates for mainstream musicalization, but the Tony Award-winning Hairspray is one of the most appealing in the genre. I found Cry-Baby, which had a too-short run on Broadway and — criminally — hasn't received a cast recording to date, to be even funnier and more in keeping with Waters' off-color sensibilities from its opening "Anti-Polio Picnic" number on! Could Serial Mom be next?
Kiss of the Spider Woman: While its primary source is Manuel Puig's novel, the Oscar-winning 1985 film is really this musical's main point of reference for most. Between that and the cinematic fantasies of gay window dresser Molina, it is a movie-inspired piece through and through. Kander & Ebb's score is one of their best, and seeing the fabulous Chita Rivera in the title role will always be one of my fondest Broadway memories.
The Phantom of the Opera: Similarly, most people aren't as familiar with Gaston Leroux's 19th century romantic-horror tale as they are with its many film versions starring everyone from Lon Chaney to Claude Rains to (gulp) Robert Englund. Andrew Lloyd Webber mined them all to spectacular musical and visual effect, with a strong assist from master director Harold Prince and the original stage Phantom, Michael Crawford.
Passion: Sondheim's second adaptation of a movie, in this case Ettore Scola's fairly obscure Passione d'Amore. Despite winning Tony Awards for Best Musical, Actress (Donna Murphy), Score and Book, Passion has, in my experience, many more critics than fans. I was completely taken, however, by its intelligent rumination on the definition of love. I highly recommend the DVDavailable of the original Broadway production to those who have never seen it.
The Lion King: Out of the seemingly endless string of Disney animated films translated to Broadway (Pinocchio is still to come), this remains not only Disney's best stage production but one of the most inspired pieces of theatre of our modern era. Julie Taymor's cultural sensitivity and skill with puppets elevate this kid-oriented "Hamlet on the Savannah" to near-operatic heights.
The Producers: The only musical comedy to leave me gasping for breath from laughing so hard. Mel Brooks' 1968 movie, which simultaneously spoofed the Broadway biz and the Third Reich, was funny on its own and won an Oscar for its screenplay. It can't hold a candle to the stage version, though, thanks to Susan Stroman's clever direction and choreography and the hysterical original cast headlined by Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, who also star in the fine 2005 film of the musical.
A Man of No Importance: Probably the least seen of any of my picks, greatest or least, this is an intimate gem based on an equally little-seen 1994 film. The movie stars Albert Finney as a repressed Irish bus driver in love with his young, male assistant as well as the works of Oscar Wilde. The musical's lovely score is by the Tony-winning pair Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens (Once on This Island, Ragtime), and playwright Terrence McNally authored the sweet, sensitive book. If you can't find a production of it, stage one!
Reefer Madness: A delightfully campy take on one of the worst movies ever made, a 1930's propaganda piece about the evils of marijuana. The stage version is great, and not just because Jesus has a supporting role! Even better is the made-for-Showtime 2006 movie adaptationstarring gay faves Christian Campbell, Alan Cumming and the hilarious Ana Gasteyer.
THE LEAST:
I'm grateful I could only come up with five, and none of them is awful. Not having seen the reviled-at-the-time Carrie (not yet, anyway; Neil tells me he's found most of it online), these are the most unsuccessful musicals based on a movie that I could recall seeing:
Sunset Boulevard: Lloyd Webber's score is very good, but it's hard to draw an audience to a story with no likeable characters. I saw Petula Clark play Norma Desmond on tour. Her voice and performance were good, but physically she was hardly the larger-than-life character Norma needs to be. Glenn Close, Patti LuPone and Betty Buckley were all better received in the role.
Footloose: The first real bubble-gum movie to become a bubble-gum stage production. I remember Walter Bobbie's staging and the energetic choreography to be quite good ... but that's all I remember apart from the songs previously made famous by the more enjoyable movie.
Monty Python's Spamalot: Again, not so much bad as overrated. I just recently saw this tuner inspired by the absurdist cult favorite Monty Python and the Holy Grail for the first time during its Los Angeles premiere and, while I enjoyed much of it, I still can't believe it won the 2005 Tony for Best Musical over the superior, haunting The Light in the Piazza.
Victor/Victoria: The splendid 1982 film arrived on Broadway nearly 15 years later. By that point, Julie Andrews was more than a little long-in-the-tooth and no longer in the best vocal condition to resurrect her Oscar-nominated performance. Leslie Bricusse padded his score for the film with one very good song — "Louis Says" — and one not very good song, "Paris Makes Me Horny." The latter was performed on Broadway by Rachel York, who will soon be starring as the immortal Cruella DeVille in a stage musical version of 101 Dalmatians (!).
Grand Hotel: Often referred to by pundits as "Grim Hotel," this musical adaptation of the star-studded 1932 Best Picture Oscar winner features depressing characters and a thoroughly forgettable score. A touching, Tony-winning performance by the late Michael Jeter as a terminally ill man was the Broadway production's one bright spot.
Tune in tomorrow for Neil's best and worst from screen to stage, and feel free to weigh in with your reactions and/or your personal picks in the comments section below!
Article by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and the Orange County and Long Beach Blade.
Friday, September 11, 2009
DVD Review: Married Life
Ira Sachs’ Married Life seems at first like a perfect mixture of Douglas Sirk and Alfred Hitchcock. But then something funny happens towards the end of the movie…there’s happiness. Well that doesn’t sound too much like Hitch, and it definitely doesn’t sound like Sirk. Married Life is an interesting film. I’m not sure if I love it or if I’m totally indifferent towards it. I imagine this is how a lot of people speak of Sirk’s films: so cold and detached – unwilling to compromise its purpose for the sake of conventions. I may not be sure about the movie as a whole, and what it has to say or how it says it, but I am sure that the film has multiple scenes that are interesting enough to seek out, and boasts two great performances by Chris Cooper and Patricia Clarkson.
We get a hint early in the film that this film takes place in the 40’s/50’s as Cooper’s Harry asks his best friend Richard (Pierce Brosnan) out to lunch. At lunch they smoke and drink. Yup, this is definitely a different era, and director Sachs gets a real sense of authenticity with the way he shoots his film – evoking those noir pictures of the 40’s, and the melodramas of the 50’s – and also the art direction is superb here as the Diner’s and cabins and cars are all beautiful to look at.
Harry has it all planned out…see he’s leaving his wife Pat (Patricia Clarkson) for a younger blonde siren, Kay, played by Rachel McAdams who is channeling Kim Novak with her looks, here. Richard is smitten from the onset, and what you have here is a classic storyline filled with jealousy, adultery, and yes even attempted murder. The way these are handled, though, are subdued and delicate. This isn’t a crazy noir where the attempted murder takes precedence over the rest of the story; no, Sachs takes his time with everything, focusing more on demeanor, mannerisms, and the courtesies of the day. Those are the things that slow down Harry’s attempt to kill his wife (the only thing that will truly allow him and Kay to be happy together), and the time it takes for the events to unfold is time where new angles pop up, and harsh truths are revealed.
The acting is first-rate in the film. Chris Cooper again proves that he’s one of our best actors working today. He doesn’t have the "it" factor that a lot of casting directors are looking for say in a Clooney or Pitt, but I challenge anyone to point to someone more consistent than Cooper. With is role as Harry, always teetering between being the well-mannered businessman and the romantic, he again creates another character who seems on edge throughout as he juggles all of the issues and schemes in his life (he did the same thing in 2007’s brilliant Breach, Cooper’s best performance).
Pierce Brosnan is just getting better and better since retiring from Her Majesty’s Secret Service. His roles in The Tailor of Panama and especially in the brilliant and criminally underrated The Matador show an actor who seems to free from what is expected of him…he’s been unleashed as an actor and the results have been fascinating characters. There’s nothing really “fantastic” about Richard, but there’s something about he way he ushers us through the story via his narration where we’re never quite sure until those final moments whether or not this man is a reliable narrator.
The two female roles in the film are good, too. McAdams plays the bombshell well as she has the perfect look for this kind of role where the red lipstick just pops off of her lips. The real stunner though is Clarkson. She plays Pat as the seemingly loyal housewife, but as we know now from shows like Mad Men, if there was one thing to understand about housewives from the 50’s it’s that they weren’t as inept as the husbands thought they were, and often times were one step ahead of their cheating husbands. There are some secrets that are never quite fully handled in the film, and the way Clarkson goes about fooling Richard and Harry is something to behold. Just a wonderful performance.
The look of the film goes for that noir look where women wear lots of red lipstick and men walk the streets in fedoras. I was never doubting that what I was looking at was a brilliant film; however, the film is a meager 100 minutes – a perfect length for the type of melodrama its claiming to be – and I just wish there would have been a little more that was stated. Sometimes it can be a bad thing to be all understatement, and this film is so reserved, that if you’re not ready for it, 10 minute chunks of the film will fly by without you even noticing.
I like films that rely on the viewers attentiveness…I mean I adore Jean-Pierre Melville’s films, but there is also a downside to that, and really the characters in Married Life didn’t interest me enough to keep my attention during certain stretches of the film. These are very typical melodramatic character archetypes we’re dealing with here, and although I loved some of the subdued, cerebral moments and understated attempts at dark humor; and even though I adored the performances (especially Cooper who steals the whole thing with a scene towards the end) – I was never really in doubt of what was going to happen by the time the film ended. It lacks the melodramatic punch Far From Heaven had (and Sachs probably isn’t trying to make that kind of melodrama, so I could be off with that statement) and really loses its way in the middle. There seems to be a lot going on beneath the surface of this film, but I just didn’t care enough to go excavating for it. Check it out on cable, though, if nothing else to see four great actors at work surrounded by great art direction.
The Circle of Friends Award
Sadly this has nothing to do with Minnie Driver and Chris O'Donnell...what it does mean though is that J.D. from the fantastic Radiator Heaven has tagged me with another award. J.D. has always been one of the most frequent visitors to this blog, always supplying great comments along the way, and I'm glad he thinks enough of my blog to bestow it this award. It always feels good when people recognize your work, whether that be through comments or things like this. I don't know if this is a meme or what, but if you're reading this, or you see your name over on the right side of my blog then consider yourself a recipient of this award, too. You all make my movie-watching life so much better. Thanks. Now let us join hands in a circle...
reflection
here is a link to the sync-rider who best understands today.
reflection
here is a link to the sync-rider who best understands today.
Reel Thoughts Interview: Who Left the Lights On?
Daniel Pace’s mysterious drama, The Appearance of a Man, has earned numerous awards and nominations at festivals in Europe, Egypt and the US, but its mix of spirituality, psychology and sci-fi will hold special meaning to Arizona audiences. Set in March of 1997, the film explores the impact of the strange lights that appeared over Phoenix and the coinciding appearance of a handsome man who may be some sort of messenger.
Father Michael, brilliantly played by Michael Tassoni, is a progressive priest who is battling both the small-minded church hierarchy (sound familiar?) and debilitating headaches and visions. Richard Glover plays Jimmy, a man riddled with regret and indecision who spots the mysterious stranger (Slade Hall) and is sure that he must be related to a similar man who saved him in Vietnam. He becomes obsessed with finding the man for reasons he doesn’t even understand.
Meanwhile, Father Michael finds himself embroiled in gossip and innuendo tied to a too-attentive (and unhappily married) parishioner (Katherine Stewart). He seeks guidance from his former mentor, Father Daniel (Tom Basham), who has relocated to Mexico.
The film is very atmosphere-driven, only giving you bits and pieces of the puzzle, and fascinating you with its use of Phoenix locations and landscape and skillful building of suspense. The film has been developed and shot over a five-year period, which allowed director Pace time to perfect the vision he had for the story, although he continues to refine the project and re-cut it, even including the version I viewed. If you lobotomized the movie and put it on steroids, you might get the Nicolas Cage action downer Knowing, but The Appearance of a Man has a much more hopeful outlook.
I had the opportunity to meet with the charismatic lead Michael Tassoni, who co-produced the film, and he explained why the film means so much to him.
Tassoni admits that it was surreal to walk off stage at the San Diego Film Festival with Pace after Pace won the Heineken Red Star Award (for Best Filmmaking) to find that he won for Best Actor as well. “It’s just like everyone said,” Tassoni explained. “It’s very quick, and there were literally like thirty paparazzi cameras going nuts. Thank God we won the Heineken Award because then I got a beer right away.”
Tassoni was living in LA when the famous bright lights appeared over Phoenix, but Pace lived here and was fascinated by the stories he kept hearing on talk radio and from people who had various experiences. “Once I read the script, (I thought) it was brilliant. We both grew up Catholic, so his use of the Bible to try and explain what these lights are is a work of art. Because it’s never been done, using the Bible verse or using UFO sightings as more of a spiritual event. What we’ve seen from audiences from San Diego to France to New York to even Egypt, it’s really touching people’s hearts big time. You know, the talkbacks are like an hour long — people have so many questions after the film. This movie’s really going under people’s skin. It’s really challenging people to think differently in terms of what these lights are about, why they’re visiting, if they’re here.”
You don’t have to be religious to enjoy The Appearance of a Man, in fact, having a healthy skepticism may make the film’s fate-driven, science-meets-spirituality storyline even more satisfying. Tassoni, who has married (his wife appears in the film), had a daughter and has a son on the way, all during the filming and release of The Appearance of a Man, is eager for a larger audience to see his own labor of love.
Clearly, from its response, you don't have to be from Phoenix or to even know what the Phoenix Lights are to enjoy the film, but all of the local settings and actors make the film a special pleasure to watch. Tassoni is excited for Phoenix audiences to explore the mysteries in The Appearance of a Man.
The Appearance of a Man opens today exclusively at Harkins Valley Art Theatre. Click here to watch the trailer.
Interview by Neil Cohen, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Phoenix's Echo Magazine.
Father Michael, brilliantly played by Michael Tassoni, is a progressive priest who is battling both the small-minded church hierarchy (sound familiar?) and debilitating headaches and visions. Richard Glover plays Jimmy, a man riddled with regret and indecision who spots the mysterious stranger (Slade Hall) and is sure that he must be related to a similar man who saved him in Vietnam. He becomes obsessed with finding the man for reasons he doesn’t even understand.
Meanwhile, Father Michael finds himself embroiled in gossip and innuendo tied to a too-attentive (and unhappily married) parishioner (Katherine Stewart). He seeks guidance from his former mentor, Father Daniel (Tom Basham), who has relocated to Mexico.
The film is very atmosphere-driven, only giving you bits and pieces of the puzzle, and fascinating you with its use of Phoenix locations and landscape and skillful building of suspense. The film has been developed and shot over a five-year period, which allowed director Pace time to perfect the vision he had for the story, although he continues to refine the project and re-cut it, even including the version I viewed. If you lobotomized the movie and put it on steroids, you might get the Nicolas Cage action downer Knowing, but The Appearance of a Man has a much more hopeful outlook.
I had the opportunity to meet with the charismatic lead Michael Tassoni, who co-produced the film, and he explained why the film means so much to him.
Tassoni admits that it was surreal to walk off stage at the San Diego Film Festival with Pace after Pace won the Heineken Red Star Award (for Best Filmmaking) to find that he won for Best Actor as well. “It’s just like everyone said,” Tassoni explained. “It’s very quick, and there were literally like thirty paparazzi cameras going nuts. Thank God we won the Heineken Award because then I got a beer right away.”
Tassoni was living in LA when the famous bright lights appeared over Phoenix, but Pace lived here and was fascinated by the stories he kept hearing on talk radio and from people who had various experiences. “Once I read the script, (I thought) it was brilliant. We both grew up Catholic, so his use of the Bible to try and explain what these lights are is a work of art. Because it’s never been done, using the Bible verse or using UFO sightings as more of a spiritual event. What we’ve seen from audiences from San Diego to France to New York to even Egypt, it’s really touching people’s hearts big time. You know, the talkbacks are like an hour long — people have so many questions after the film. This movie’s really going under people’s skin. It’s really challenging people to think differently in terms of what these lights are about, why they’re visiting, if they’re here.”
You don’t have to be religious to enjoy The Appearance of a Man, in fact, having a healthy skepticism may make the film’s fate-driven, science-meets-spirituality storyline even more satisfying. Tassoni, who has married (his wife appears in the film), had a daughter and has a son on the way, all during the filming and release of The Appearance of a Man, is eager for a larger audience to see his own labor of love.
Clearly, from its response, you don't have to be from Phoenix or to even know what the Phoenix Lights are to enjoy the film, but all of the local settings and actors make the film a special pleasure to watch. Tassoni is excited for Phoenix audiences to explore the mysteries in The Appearance of a Man.
The Appearance of a Man opens today exclusively at Harkins Valley Art Theatre. Click here to watch the trailer.
Interview by Neil Cohen, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Phoenix's Echo Magazine.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
The Long Riders (Walter Hill)
How appropriate that fresh off a viewing of Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds I sat down to watch Walter Hill’s The Long Riders. Two totally different movies made by two totally different filmmakers actually have one thing in common: they take their liberties with history. However, Tarantino does it in a way that fleshes out fictional characters while providing factual situations as a backdrop – filling in the peripheries of his altered take on WWII with historical figures. Hill just says “damn the torpedoes” and chucks the whole James-Younger gang mythology into the trash. Tarantino’s film compounds on history – using it as a spring board (and tweaking it along the way) for a more interesting film; Hill’s film demystifies the legend of the James-Younger gang by simply making a film of nothing by bullet points, rushing along through every scene until the viewer is left wondering “that’s it?” when the credits role. The only interesting thing about The Long Riders is how badly it fails.
Labels:
Decisions at Sundown,
Film,
The Long Riders,
Westerns
Nisha Kothari Hot Pics, Nisha Kothari Wallpapers, Hot Photos, Images
Born Nisha Kothari
November 30, 1983 (1983-11-30) (age 25)
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Other name(s) Nisha Kothari, Amoga
Occupation Bollywood actress
Sagittarian Kothari was born in Kolkata, and grew up speaking English,Gujarati, Bengali, and Hindi. She moved to New Delhi while in she was in grade 10 and got her degree in Chemistry from Delhi University at Dayal Singh College. Her father is a chemical businessman, her mother a home-maker, and she has a married elder sister.
After College, Kothari became a model and appeared in a few adverts. She moved into films with Jay Jay, a Tamil movie, as Amoga. She got her break through with actor Madhavan, who recommended her for an audition after viewing her photographs. She made her Bollywood debut in the films James and Sarkar (which came out first), both by Ram Gopal Varma. She then went on to do The Killer with Emraan Hashmi and the Bhatts. She has gone on to do some insignificant films and roles.
November 30, 1983 (1983-11-30) (age 25)
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Other name(s) Nisha Kothari, Amoga
Occupation Bollywood actress
Sagittarian Kothari was born in Kolkata, and grew up speaking English,Gujarati, Bengali, and Hindi. She moved to New Delhi while in she was in grade 10 and got her degree in Chemistry from Delhi University at Dayal Singh College. Her father is a chemical businessman, her mother a home-maker, and she has a married elder sister.
After College, Kothari became a model and appeared in a few adverts. She moved into films with Jay Jay, a Tamil movie, as Amoga. She got her break through with actor Madhavan, who recommended her for an audition after viewing her photographs. She made her Bollywood debut in the films James and Sarkar (which came out first), both by Ram Gopal Varma. She then went on to do The Killer with Emraan Hashmi and the Bhatts. She has gone on to do some insignificant films and roles.
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