Safe (1995/Haynes) **** PRO
after several recommendations on RT i finally get to see my first Todd Haynes.
it is a powerful experience indeed.
Julianne Moore is given her best role, and masterizes it with minimalist acting.
the film itself is minimalist and almost cinéma-vérité,
following in every step of her life, a wealthy wife who realizes unconsciously
the boredom of her pointless lifestyle. She gradualy becomes allergic to all
her environment, food, dust, car pollution, spray bomb, chemicals, textile...
while the medical specialists (doctor, physician, psychiatrist) are clueless
and helpless.
this film began in the most socialy and healthy secured environment, where anyone
would feel safe and happy, tragicaly slides into an agressive world of oppression
and permanent hazard, in her head at least, or so everybody thinks. is she nuts
or is the entire world unsensitive to this new "plague"?
i liked the way the film leaves it all up to personal interpretations, without
blaming "profitable sects", "alternate new age cures", "mental
illness", "filthy rich people"... because it paints a real human
drama, even if this woman is overreacting, her system cry out loud that she
cant take it anymore. the world is crazy and the "emotional strike"
is the only possible way to protest, or to lock herself in.
beautiful cinematography, and excelent choices of scene directing, mainly based
on characters interractions in pertinent moments of their lives, never falling
into the narrative cliché.
Samaria (2004/Kim Ki-duk) +++/pro
From an indian tale about a prostitute who converted all her clients to Buddhism,
a korean girl tries to change perverts into better people, her father is a policeman
who discovers it and breaks down. Totally abstract and alledgly poetical...
if such subject can be poetic. Disturbing and thought provokating, both crude
and contemplative.
Sanjuro / Tsubaki Sanjûrô (1962/Akira Kurosawa/Japan) +++/PRO
Toshiro Mifune is a rude and lazy ronin-hobo, a "naked blade", yet
much smarter than a bunch of 9 young bewildered samurais ploting to takeover
the clan commandement, and will walk them through the traps and ambushes. Kurosawa
makes of a classic power rivalery showdown, a witty comedy, on cinemascope where
he lines up 10 lead characters upfront! With an appropriate gloomy noir photography
and swift expert scenes of sheer violence. A moral subtext advice not to judge
a man on his face (deformed, dirty or sympathetic) as a very different mind
might hide behind.
Sanshiro Sugata (1943/Akira Kurosawa) +++/pro
it's a pretty simple story (bordering Karate Kid), but Kurosawa debut directing
in 1943 is brilliant!
Even Ozu declared : "if 100 is the max rating, Sanshiro deserves a 120
! Congrats Kurosawa!" The film was such a popular success a sequel was
immediately projected and directed by Kurosawa in 1945.
The missing parts (replaced by intertitles summary) were suppressed (and later
lost) by the censorship during WW2 for fear of promoting rebellion.
I agree the fight scenes are a bit of an elliptic jumpy trick (discontinuous
camera shot showing only before and after the moves), but the result is as effective,
keeping the film from being a straight action film to focus on the romanticized
drama it's supposed to be.
The story takes place in 1883 in Tokyo, around the life of Shogoro Yano, creator
of the new art of Judo when the old school practized only Jiu-jitsu, the ancestral
japanese martial art. It's funny to see japanese people wearing 3 pieces european
suits in the streets, especially the martial art masters, while in modern japanese
films the traditional kimono is worn by all. The fight tournament is organized
by the police to enroll the best fighters. Due to the rageous rivalry between
the old/new schools these are deathmatches, when the competitors are not killed
in the street during singular duels.
Sanshiro becomes more skillful than his master, after a beautiful poetical ellipse
where we see one of his clogs abandonned in the street when he decided to join
the Judo school, the wind, rain, snow, time pass over the clog, until we meet
again Sanshiro drunken fighting in the streets.
The scene in the pond with the lotus flower is not so obscur... On the contrary
it is probably the best scene in the film. Sanshiro uses his judo unconsiderately,
away from The Way of the Man, which angers his master. Proud and Immature, Sanshiro
shows off and try to commit suicide by standing in a cold muddy pond, stiff
attached to a stick until death. He is in the middle of a dramatic triangle
: the heart (his mates who try to appease the master), the art (the master's
rigorous punishment), the spirit (the monk who preaches to break the silly grudge
in a sarcastic way). Sanshiro alone in the pond thinks hard, and when he looks
at the lotus flower (vivid symbol) shining in the moonlight, remind him the
meaning of life and the vanity of his pride.
The final fight in the wind is highly dramatic indeed. And the romance between
Sanshiro and Sayo is always respectful and tender, never cheesy.
Santa Sangre (1989/Alexendro Jodorowsky/Mexico/Italy) +++/pro
The doppleganger's performance was truly outstanding! I could see these hands
having a life of their own, belonging to someone else, a woman. A couple scenes
are masterpieces like the shot of the crucifixion with the roosters, the 'Birdy'
soul asylum, the elephant funeral, the hands music-hall number! But unfortunately
the film's quality is uneven. I understand this is an glam-exploitation flick
with a "cheap-kitsch" look, but it goes from extraordinary scenes
to really bad shots. The first half hour was so campy I thought I would not
enjoy it. The Santa Sangre Temple and the whole circus episode didn't work for
me, too cheap, even if the sets/costumes were quite inspired. But nothing like
the magical atmosphere of the second part. Really amazing.
I especialy enjoyed all the early cinema references : Freaks (in the circus),
the Marceau pantomime (Les Enfants du Paradis), Birdy (in the psychiatric hospital),
Mélies (in the "disappearance of the mommy" number), the cemetary
scene with the living deads, Mandrake (comics)...
Really a powerful film, with a very personal inspiration, symbols and imagery.
What a great freudian allegory for the Oedipian complexion, if I've seen any
: The son whose mother literaly inhabits his body, screams "Get out of
my life" when he tries to starts his sentimental love-life with his childhood
love...
The identification of Fenix to his father, Orgo, is central here, like if was
doomed to grow up as a macho womanizer molesting/raping/killing women, like
his father-figure. The overwhelming weight of the gene pool, and the parental
education, so mindbending that it drives him crazy, even long after both his
parents are dead. Meaning we never escape the active or passive upbringing of
our parents, like Freud said. The circus environment is particularly telling,
as it's were you "adopt" wild animals (wild but also innocent and
free) then tame/train/condition to mimic behavior alien to their nature. The
scene of the young deaf-mute girl is forced to walk a cable on fire is significative.
Fenix has been educated like an animal in a circus, by abusing, delirious parents.
His mother, a bigoted religious fanatic, is no better. Religion is dominating
life and education, especialy in Mexico, where the population (especially women)
is living by the religious calendar : church, pilgrimage, devotion to shrines,
absurd miracles all around the place... (that you call hypochrisie of religion
101)
So Jodorowsky turns into real life aspects the nightmarish phobia of being the
reincarnation of the father: tatoo, cowboy costume... which is the physical
interpretation of Fenix's mental alienation, which split his persona into the
good mommy's boy and the boy become man like his father, both being inconciliable
and terribly obstructing for his sexual life. His attraction for the transexual
half-Schwarzzy half-princess shows his confusion searching to reconcile the
2 extreme ends of his desire.
I believe Orgo is an american coming from the United States, right? There is
an interesting political statement here too. Eagle+cowboy = yankee.
the "Begging Him to Break my Arms/War with Controlling Mommy theme"
is also interesting : Mommy = mummy in the theatre trick (and I hadn't figured
the mother was dead by then! )
When he paints white his missed "brides" to call the white of his
childhood love the deaf-mute girl, expresses the overwhelming everlasting print
of the first lovestruck over all subsequent love affairs, striving to find the
perfect woman as innocent and pure as the child-love, and trying to forge each
new conquest into the idealised model, which failure causes fatal death. Death
of love, skipping to the next affair, but in Jodorowsky's world, leads to literal
murder.
Saraband (2004/Bergman/Sweden) ++
Made for TV, projected at digital venue only. A follow up of the story of Marianne
and Johan, divorced couple of Scenes from a Marriage (a made for TV epic).
Very stagey direction cut in a dozen sequences featuring a different combination
of protagonists by pair. Opened and closed by Liv Ullman's frontal-camera monologs
contemplating a life in photographies. Film dedicated to Ingrid Thulin, deceased
last year.
Sayat Nova / Color of Pomegranates (1968/Armenia/Parajanov) ****/PRO
i cant say i understood all the symbolism (which is the only obscur aspect),
but the storyline is rather simple, and the intertitles explains all u need
to know.
i suppose to read the author's poetry and know more about armenian culture would
enhance the comprehension of the film. but as an ethnologic film on a foreign
culture (the religious ceremonies, the traditional rituals, the education, the
social life, the market, the sacrifice, the marriage) is told by images, we
dont really need commentaries.
quite simply this is the biography of this poet. from birth to death. i thought
there would be more citation of his poetry and more insights in his work. i
was frustrated too (i was victim of my expectations ) i really wish i had the
quotes written to read them again afterward.
but the power of the film is to translate the meanings of this poet's inspiration
and style through the symbolism and photography of the images used to tell the
story. hence the sometimes surrealist situations that obviously takes distance
with his REAL life. it's like a visual poem he would have written on his own
life. from what i gethered, the guy wrote this kind of poems (from the qotes),
about love, social life, education and all, things taken from traditional life
and from his own experience. so in a way, the film does justice to his memory
and his work.
some scenes are truly masterful and compare with Tarkovsky's best shots in Zerkalo
or Nostalghia...
the boy lives among books in his childhood, and his grand father who is a literate
respected man gave him the taste for words and literature. he grows up, bathed
in the armenian culture, traditions, religion... becomes a menestrel, go to
the court, then to a monastery, get married, lose his relatives and spiritual
father... and leaves on the road before dying himself.
this isnt too hard to follow throughout the film, even without the intertitles.
althought i believe the same actor plays the poet adolescent, and his bride...
so it's quite confusing when they are wearing traditional costumes.
and each period of his life is not depicted in a descriptive way, pragmatic
and factual. they are told poeticaly, through symbols and images that best express
his feelings and the source of his inspiration for his art.
the colorful traditions and craftwork (rugs, paintings, costumes, market, religion),
the education (religion, books, initiation), the oral culture (tales, poetry,
songs, music, sacrifice, rituals). even without knowing them, or understanding
why they do it, we get the gist of this people's identity... it's not too far
from more famous cultures : turkish, arab, russian, indian.
i thought the marriage ceremony looked very indian!
and there isnt much more to understand from it. it's merely a testimony of the
"lost" heritage of the armenian people who suffered oppression and
banishment through the ages, and a massive genocide in 1915 (1.5 million killed)
by the Ottoman empire (Turkey).
the surrealist scenes are easy to connect with poetry. not more complex than
Buñuel's, Tarkovsky's, Cocteau's, Has', Maya Deren's, Quay Brothers',
Svankmajer's or Lynch's films...
it's about poetic images collision, word associations, subconscious, abstract
inspiration, pure aesthetism. there is nothing rational to understand or to
analyze. just let it flow and float with the wind.
The Sea **
Festen revisited by an icelandic fisherman! funny and thick. script a little
weak but good pieces of acting and truthful presentation of a small industry
in a lost island.
Searching for Debra Winger (2002, Rosanna Arquette, USA) -
Rosanna Arquette interviews her friends from the movie business about the status
of actresses in Hollywood, compared to actors, and around the question "how
an actress can work while being a woman, a mother and a wife?"
I never heard of Debra Winger before, but she is presented like a landmark in
the trend of aging actresses retired from work for family duties.
Featuring Patricia Arquette, Emmanuelle Béart, Katrin Cartlidge, Laura
Dern, Jane Fonda, Teri Garr, Whoopi Goldberg, Melanie Griffith, Daryl Hannah,
Salma Hayek, Holly Hunter, Diane Lane, Kelly Lynch, Julianna Margulies, Chiara
Mastroianni, Samantha Mathis, Frances McDormand, Catherine O'Hara, Julia Ormond,
Gwyneth Paltrow, Martha Plimpton, Charlotte Rampling, Vanessa Redgrave, Theresa
Russell, Meg Ryan, Ally Sheedy, Adrienne Shelly, Hilary Shepard, Sharon Stone,
Tracey Ullman, JoBeth Williams, Debra Winger, Alfre Woodard, Robin Wright Penn
... and Roger Ebert (the only male!)
The bulk of insights are mandatory for participants in the Female archetypes
debate, as the moral pressure on actresses to look beautiful (with forceful
plastic surgery) and limited to supporting the lead male role for simplistic
dichotomy without grey areas between the horny teenager and the ugly mother.
Their conclusion is unanimous there aren't any good roles for females in their
40ies, and very few for Oscar winners oldies.
An interesting glimpse of behind the scene non-P.C. thoughts of famous actresses.
Unfortunately it doesn't go very deep beyond the well known clichés ("is
she fuckable?", "plastic surgery bad", "kids are my first
priority"...)
Rosanna is too easygoing and flaterring with her interviewees "I love your
work, You're my inspiration, You're still sexy, You're beautiful" so this
chat at dinner tables sounds like girl's night out gossips. And doesn't make
real life actresses look smarter than their scripted roles...
Only the older actresses (Rampling, Stone, Redgrave, Fonda, Winger) have a meaningful
look back on their career choices and the business environement. Which alone
makes the documentary worthwhile.
The part when they talk about child education is especially pathetic, making
actresses look like the naive bourgeoisie of motherhood amazed at the fancy
of raising real life children : how tragic it is to go to work leaving a child
behind, stealing that moment when peeking at a sleeping child, compromising
their career for their kids and husband, being mom full-time...
Anyway it's a wide range of stars criticizing the male-driven society in the
film industry, where only perfect women fit in and aging mothers are alienated
for ever.
Rosanna once asks "Why did Debra Winger have to quit? What can we do about
it? Should we raise a revolution?"
The girls talk a lot, complain a lot, but finally don't come up with any solution
and obviously condone the male-centric system by accepting weak roles or giving
up to a private family life altogether.
Seisaku's Wife / Seisaku no tsuma (1965/Yasuzo Masumura/Japan) ++/pro
Superb B&W scope cinematography, with a couple glorious key scenes showing
off a brilliance of composition and dynamics (love making, capture). Unfortunately
the oversignificant screenplay is essentialy dialogue-delivered with redundant
lines, and a hasty introductive plot exposition skipping through 3 funerals
in 5 mins (!). Although by showing nothing but newspaper headlines from the
1905 war against russia fought by a couple of villagers, the film translates
the oppressing disconnection of the countryside with the front line. Interesting
portrait of a re-married widow alienated by an intolerant population.
Les Sentiments (2003/France/Noémie Lvovsky) ***
with a delicious Nathalie Baye, an ever enjoyable Jean-Pierre Bacri, a full
frontal nudity Isabelle Carré, and Melville Poupaud.
a nice little drama-comedy, without great ambitions, but some good scenes and
truthful character performances.
a young couple (Carré+Poupaud) move in next door to replace an country
doctor who wants to retire (Bacri+Baye). While the hubbies talk about the trade
transmission, the women share their feelings at home. Soon, Bacri falls in love
with Carré which makes him act funny and make him feel young again. this
adultary affair is well played :). When they are busted, the wonderful friendship
between the 2 couples is broken... and the couples have different reactions
to overcome this accident.
the film is punctuated by a sort of antic choir: a choir class filmed separately
who sings the various episodes of the story. but the art direction on set is
dreadful! blah. apparently someone likes red in the crew, as well as silly clothes
with bright colors and shapes...
Shadows 1959 - USA - B&W
directed, written & edited by John Cassavetes
co-produced by Seymour Cassel
with : Lelia Goldoni, Ben Carruthers, Hugh Hurd (also in Woman Under the Influence)
cameo of John Cassavetes and Seymour Cassel
Cassavetes' jazz-scored improvisational film explores interracial friendships
and relationships in Beat-Era (1950's) New York City.
Benny's a hipster, moving in and out of Manhattan's beat scene, aimless, maybe
close to trouble. His sister Lelia, who looks less African-American than White,
is vulnerable and about to fall in love. Hugh, their older brother, is a struggling
singer whose agent, Rupert, may be the only person with faith in his talent.
The story moves back and forth, like jazz, among the three of them and what
seems at first to be separate lives. Lelia meets Tony, and lets herself hope
this is true love. Then he meets Hugh and prejudice gives Tony an excuse to
cut and run. Can family and friendship bring solace for her hurt, purpose for
Benny, and belief in Hugh? Is life more than shadows? ( from IMDb)
a very intimate piece of cinéma vérité, based on improvized
scenes around a theme, long uncut plan sequence of dialogued interaction between
actors impersonating a character in difficult scenes. a tight atmosphere, desribing
the parallel prejudices and taboo on jazz music, black people, generation gap,
sex, fame...
Leila Goldoni is outstanding, a late teen, torn apart between her black roots
and family, and the dreams of her young age to break of from all discriminations
and live a "normal" life, meet true love with a white man, and give
in her virginity. but the social context stands in the way for a light skinned
black girl, and good looking apparences can burst into oblivion when her ethnicity
surfaces.
the tone is very personal and the character studies is existencialist.
Shoah (1985/Claude Lanzmann/France) ++++
Monumental documentary work lasting 9 1/2 hours based on interviews of first
hand witness (jewish survivors and SS supervisors) of this wordless thing which
was the systemic extermination of every last european jew by Hitler's Final
Solution. An evil secret fiercy defended by the nazi. For the first time, full
details of the despicable procedure for this oiled death machine are revealed
to the world. The architecture of the film moves from shapeless suggestions
to the most sordid detail without any archive footage, entirely shot on location
around the death camps of Auschwitz, Treblinka, Chelmno and Belzec. Lanzmann
was present to debate his film with the audience. Complete review coming up...
Sirocco d'Hiver / Winter Wind (1969/Miklós Jancsó/Hungary)
-/CON
I hope the famous Jancsó masterpieces are better than this because it
was dreadful under any possible standard... Despite a nice red-tinted color
throughout (I'm not sure if it's the original color), and the camerawork efforts
to warp up a plan sequence per reel (about 8 or 10 plans in 80 min) this drama
around the 1930ies civil war across Hungary-Serbia-Croatia trying to express
a paranoid atmosphere of treatchery, bribery, political corruption, summary
executions, and made-up martyr to serve the cause, fails all the way. Actors
are literaly spining around before the camera, with horses and a dog, in and
out of the building, in the snow, in the bath tub... long pauses and silly dialogues
(3 languages all dubbed in french don't help either).
Sin noticias de Dios- Don't tempt me/No News From God (spanish,
french, italian, mexican/2002) Agustin Diaz Yanes ***
2 angels one from Hell, one from Heaven come down on earth, embodied in the
shapes of Penelope Cruz and Victoria Abril to fight over the soul of a poor
dying boxer. the original spin is they dont chase around, and slam eachother
with super-powers, but only use human feelings and trick. besides they live
together, well aware of the stakes, at the boxer's apartment. cynical interpretation
of Dante's inferno too ;)
Six et demi onze / 6,5 X 11 / Six and half eleven (1927/Epstein/100')
***
Silent Black&White (without music)
Photo : Goerges Périnal
cast : René Ferté (Harry Gold), Suzy Pierson (Marie), Edmond Van
Daële (Jérôme de Ners), Nino Costantini (Jean de Ners)
Scenario : Marie Epstein
Story : Jean is young and impetuous, and leaves his wealthy older brother, Jérôme,
alone without a note. He drives to the coast with his beloved fiancée,
Marie, a beautiful singer, and by her a magnificent villa "The Castle of
Delight", with immense gardens and fountains and steps going down to the
sea. Jean buy a camera and take plenty of pictures of her. (6,5 by 11 is the
format of the professional film negative).
The passion is short... Marie falls in love with a famous dancer and drives
away in his fast sportcar. Jean is devastated and commits suicide.
Later Marie, neglected by the dancer, gets a "lack-of-attention-sickness"
and falls in love with the doctor, who happens to be Jérôme!!!
but neither of them know of their connection with Jean.
It's only when the personal belongings of Jean are returned that Jérôme
goes to the villa and find the film negative...
a somptuous cinematography making clever use of surimpression, mirrors and objective
screens. the cars in the movie bring long travelling and panorama. multiple
eyes overlaping emotional scenes with psychologic dilemna.
the circular romance, with repeating tragedy sits the narration in a romatic
avant-garde.
The Sleeping Tiger (1954/Losey/UK)
a psychiatrist is stalked by a poor uneducated mugger, although his military
career helped him to control the young thug, and makes a deal with him : to
follow a 6 month therapy rehab to save him from jail. of course the young is
smart enough to accept and play the game. despite his rebutal and fake answers,
the psychiatrist believes inherant violence of small crooks who had an unfortunate
upbringing can be cured by therapy, and will persist and pursue his trust in
this moral pact.
the psychiatrist lovely wife feels abandonned by her overworked husband who
neglects her because of his endless conferences. incidentaly the young thug
(Dirk Bogarde) is attractive and charming in a rough kind of way, a wild appeal
that seduces this posh housewife with a weak heart.
just like Hitchcock's Spellbound (or Marnie), and Huston's Freud, Losey develops
a menage à trois love conflict through the textbook analysis relationship
: fatherly figure, aggressive/affective transfer, counter-transfer,
trustful bound, faithful relationship.
the one scene where teh wife is facing a choice crisis before denouement, shot
with a ceiling-camera looking down on her walking the bedroom with anxiety is
especially powerful!
Sleuth (1972/Mankiewicz/USA) ++
Outstanding duo performance in a dialogue driven intrigue, well written for
the stage, but not so impressively adapted for the screen. The frequent inserts
of automates close ups get annoying after a while.
Snow in spring / Shunsetsu (2004/ Hiroshi Toda/Japan)
++
A psychiatrist after working with senile patients affected by alzeihmer, makes
this first film with friends and members of his staff. A poetical portrait of
a young family dealing with the grand father degrading health. A symbolic dream
sequence in a temple articulates the dreadful conclusion to abandon the old
man in the snowy mountain.
Soilers (1923/Ralph Ceder/USA) Short 0/CON
lame gold rush slapstick with kicks and fist fight. Featuring a gay cowboy!
Ye ban ge sheng / Song at Midnight (1937/MA-XU weibang) B&W/130'
****
a troup of actors arrive in a derelict theatre to play an opera in a remote
village, and find out it is haunted by a ghost of a famous opera singer. the
old stage manager has a hunchback and long finger nails, just the thumb and
the little finger, and drag himself across the dusty theatre à la Max
Shreck! (excellent). the lead singer encounters the "phantom" who
helps him to rehearse his part, and confess his secret...
before being an opera star the phantom was a revolutionary (connection back
to the chinese culture agenda ), who was persecuted by the imperial army and
sold out by the jealous foreman who jealouzed his affair with the beautiful
daughter of the local warlord. result : the girl is gone mad, and listens to
a love song coming from the theatre every full moon night for the last 10 years.
the new lead singer will become him to help the disturbed girl, and eventualy
carry out his revolutionary plans by reviving the old subversive opera.
a chinese avant-guarde "thriller" largely inspired by The Phantom
of the Opera (Julian/Chaney, 1926) and Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931), as
a mix of scenes from the 2 stories (with the ever revolutionary background concern,
only illustrative).
an astonishing cinematography, a mise en scene, and acting direction reminiscent
of Murnau's Nosferatu, a quite awkward and amusing influence of the western
culture on chinese cinema.
Soldier of Orange (1979/Paul Verhoeven) +++/pro
WW2 seen from Holland, collaboration, antisemitisme, resistance, cooperation
with UK where the queen of Holland (the Orange family) is exiled. Rutger Hauer
plays a freshman protected by a senior student (the first episode shows humiliating
hazing like in If...), 6 of them will go through the war together or on their
own, according to their characteristics (jew, german, engaged to a girl, or
hidden). Great WW2 movie.
Songs from the Second Floor / Sånger från andra våningen
(2000 /Roy Andersson/Denmark/Sweden/Norway) **** PRO
98 min / ratio 1.66:1 / 35 mm / Color
Written, Directed, Edited and Produced by: Roy Andersson (swedish)
Cinematography by : István Borbás, Jesper Klevenas, Robert Komarek
Original Music by : ABBA's Benny Andersson
Awards: Cannes 2000 Jury Prize (tie)
A film poem, surrealist, existantialist, inspired by the Peruvian Communist
poet Caesar Vallejo "Beloved is he who sits down", and Dostoievski's
Notes from the Underground. A story about our need for love, our confusion,
greatness and smallness and, most of all, our vulnerability. In a nameless unidentified
(scandinavian) city, many characters, among them a father and his mistress,
his youngest son and his girlfriend. It is a film about big lies, abandonment
and the eternal longing for companionship and confirmation.
Almost abstract and pure, Andersson draws a social study of modern times in
a doom & gloom fashion, where guilt and humiliation weights on every step
of our lives, deconstructing the unconscious process of despair, sadness and
mental pain.
The pictures involve insurrance fraud fire, street offense, crucifixes traffic,
haunting ghosts, cab-driving poet depression in a mental hospital, self-flagellation
parade, week-long traffic jam, children trial and children sacrifice off a cliff,
sing-along opera by a group of subway fares, mass exodus at the airport...
Clearly influenced by Luis Buñuel (The Discrete Charm Of The Bourgeoise),
Beckett, Kafka, this movie recalls the universe of Gilliam's Brazil, Monty Pythons,
Coen bros' The Hudsucker Proxy, P.T.A's Magnolia,
It took Andersson 4 years to complete the shooting. 46 scenes, plan-sequence,
all but one with a static frame, wide angle, large focus depth, on a set composed
to the smallest detail. The characters who show white painted faces, between
clown and japanese theatre, that impersonate a uniform human kind, struggle
without any apparent coherance to escape self-destruction of a mindless, emotionless,
bureaucrat society. Most of them are non-professionnal actors selected for their
bleak or odd look.
technicaly, the direction is very complex. Andersson spent months to compose
each sets individualy, shooting over and over those long plan-sequence to reach
perfection. sometimes he even shot again the whole scene, rebuilding a new set,
calling back all the cast, because he changed his mind and needed to fix the
wrong detail.
if the result looks simple and pure, it's because all the up-stream work has
been seamlessly integrated. editing and camerawork were an artistical choice.
maybe u dont like how it looks, but i dont think it was specificaly detrimental
to this type of movie. on the contrary, as far as he composed his film in successive
(almost independant) events, and claimed to create stand-alone pictures within
the film, like windows openning on a surrealist situation, the minimalist motion
is fully coherant.
i found this sometimes tiresome indeed. but i wont say that my boredom was an
evidence of the artwork failure... the topic is tough, the viewer's commitment
is not eased with bite-size digested commentaries. the film requires more attention
span than the average film, i thought that Andersson's decision was partly motivated
by this idea.
it forces our eyes to explore the frame during the long silences, and put us
in the shoes of voyeur helpless witnesses! we are forced to watch, like Alexander
de Large in A Clockwork Orange. remember the scenes from Irreversible (i.e.
rape), or Haneke's Funny Games (i.e. manslaughter scene)
the color chart, and photography shouldnt influence your opinion on the characters
and the storyline. i think the characters were meant to be presented in a very
distant, bleak, unattractive way. the discontinuity of the lead role focus in
each frame, prevent us to "care" or project ourselves in one or the
other of the characters... i think the point of Andersson was to put us in front
of the TV of a possible world, and see what could happen to us if our social
behaviors were taken to an extreme. so instead of the classic (hollywood) transfer
on an identifiable central character and his/her whereabouts, we are witnesses
of a symbolic world presented like an absurd fable.
Andersson started by a few 30 filmed (35mm!) tests to build the set, piece after
piece, define the frame, ajust the light, place the characters (80 people on
screen!). there is a painted wall in the back to complete a fake perspective.
the footages are proejected to the crew so they can correct the errors.
when Andersson feels the scene is "exact", after a few filmed rehearsals,
about 15 takes of the full plan-sequence are filmed.
this precision and dedication to the work on set is admirable!
of course this method is very expensive (film processing, studio location, crew)!
but Andersson is his own producer, he owns his camera and a mini-studio with
stages and all the necessary technology. and he funds his feature film by shooting
ads videos for TV (he made lots!)
Soy Cuba (Russia/Cuba/1964) Mikhail Kalatozov ****
just awesome! the greatest black and white photography i ever seen, whitewashed,
with a dark sky, makes the lively carribeans look like siberia...
4 chapters to tell the story of Cuba from the dictatorship of Batista to the
popular revolution led by Fidel Castro.
typical communist propaganda in teh likes of Eisentstein, with innovative camera
shots (plan sequence)
Spellbound (1945/Hitchcock) ••••
Hitchcock just loves it : impredictible tortured minds, murder investigation,
and love combined in the same character. the psychiatric development is a little
superficial and relies on widely known clichés (heavy emphasis on a single
graphical element that is appropriate to cinematic experimentation like the
red color in Marnie), although the psychanalitic involvement is far deeper than
in other movies of the kind. and Hitchcock plays with it, while using a practicaly
educational approach.
the dream sequence designed by Salvador Dali himself is outstanding! this is
a faithful 3D impersonation of Dali's art. for this piece alone, the film becomes
a masterpiece! even if the investigatory narrative is sometimes weak. Hitchcock
+ Dali + Freud = magic!
Hitchcock can be ironic and blame his intrigue for its naive and shallow treatment
through the critical look of Dr. Brulov who slap Dr. Constance Peterson (Ingrid
Bergman) on the hand like a little child (metaphoricaly) because love alter
her scholar judgement on the danger of a schizoid subject.
this romantic adventure is very pleasant to watch between Bergman and Peck.
the mysterious quest into the unconscious is even more exciting.
Spring in a small Town / Xiao cheng zhi chun (Fei Mu/China/1948)
B&W/85' ***
it's a surprise to see this kind of couple psychology development in a chinese
film of this era (i dont know if there are many of this kind...), like Ouyang
Feng so cleverly pointed out, it is the same setup as in the later In The Mood
For Love.
2 young teens (16 yold), Zhang and Zhou, living in the same town fell in love
but the traditional puritan society didnt allow their union in an easy way,
and the war with Japan split them apart, as the boy leaves without any hope
to see eachother again.
the girl, Zhou, marries Lao, a rich owner, whose wealth will collapse because
of the war. the film begins with Lao in his garden, surrounded by demolished
walls, and suffering from a mysterious disease (tuberculosis?). there is no
love between them and they hardly talk to eachother.
then an old friend of his comes back after 10 years away on the front, he is
doctor, and doesnt know his best friend married his childhood love.
both decide to hide their love to the ill husband and struggle to refrain their
attraction out of respect for him. although the husband is ashamed to see his
wife unhappy and unsatisfied.
in this love triangle, messed up by faith, honor, friendship, respect, unspoken
love and lust, the young sister of the husband, a 16 yold, becomes a potential
wife for the doctor...
great scenes depicting frustration, internal conflicts, contradictory thoughts...
a classic melodrama, without outstanding cinematography tho. great performances,
and subtle plot construction
Spring Silkworms / Chun can / Les Vers à Soie du Printemps
(1933/China/CHENG Bugao) Silent B&W **
A poor family struggling with depts of the last season, is working hard to farm
their silkworm to make a good harvest. The cotton trade, cheaper and more abundant,
make the silk prices go down in this world depression context. the foreign silkworm
eggs are very expensive too, the family father contemplates the decision to
take, to make the best of a small farm or buy foreign eggs and loan money to
buy more leaves to feed them. he is a lone father, with 2 sons and 1 daughter.
one son is lazy and secretly in love with the neighbor's girl.
The film is a great documentary on a traditional silkworm farm (interesting
for who never knew about it), punctuated by a rather classic romanced story
on top.
the adjacent farms meet on the small river banks, to clean stuff and cross the
river on the bridge. that is where all the gossips start. the neighbor's girl
is considered bad luck for whatever reason, so everyone tend to avoid and mock
her, so the curse doesnt bring them a bad season.
the film is about the reward of hardworking, despite all economical problems,
and beyond all the traditional curse and bad luck fears that are counter-productive.
Stavisky... (1974/Resnais) •••
a more classical format for Resnais in this historical film portraying a french
criminal from the begining of the 20th century who changed his identity to build
his own empire (theatre, press, bank). unfortunately, he is betrayed, and hunted
down as soon as he becomes an obstacle to the new political power. a great Jean
Paul Belmondo performance in the title role! and a quite rich story digressing
around power (finance, bribery), money (frauds, gambling), politics (Trosky,
Front Populaire), love (womenizer, free-love)...
Stranger on the Prowl / Encounter / Imbarco a mezzanotte (1951/Joseph
Losey/Italy) ***
very interesting noir interpretation of italian neo-realism... The Bicycle Thief
meets The 400 Blows.
a day in the life of a reckless boy, Giacomo, and a desperate bum (Paul Muni
- Scarface) in post war Roma. Giacomo is raised with a sister by his lonely
mother, a launderer. He likes to play marbles for money in the street with his
friends, and loses the milk money, so he steals the milk at the dairyshop. Earlier
that day he watched his best friend, an old horse he used to ride, taken to
the butcher. its owner lied to him when he said he would sell it to a far away
farmer to retire in peace.
meanwhile a stray bum arrives in town and is pushed around by the police, everyone
looks down on him and feels no pity for his condition. he used to be a decent
worker but lost everything and was forced to go away from his home and family.
they meet at the dairy shop where the bum in rage kills the dairywoman to eat
a piece of cheese. the police comes around and Giacomo believes they look for
him because of the stolen milk. when the bum catch him as an hostage and a guide
in the ruins of the city, Giacomo thinks the bum will help him escape the police.
and the bum let him believe that way, until the police corner them on the roof
of building. the film pleads redemption for desperate crimes perpetuated by
starving people in the lowest misery. it's also the story about a boy who needs
a father figure to look up to and how he learns the cruelty of life and the
sacrifices it costs.
typical neo-realist narrative cinematography, with a nice B&W photography.
Stromboli (1949/Rossellini) **
a cute Ingrid Bergman, in a cute italian island, with a somptuous photography,
unfortunately in a messy narration, with very classic studio acting and a heavy
handed story quite simple about the intolerance of a small commmunity lost on
the sides of an active volcano.
could have been great, but the directing is uninspired or inexisting and the
symbols arent subtle at all.
a fantastic sequence on the traditional tuna fishing, and some beautiful pics
of the volcano and an irruption.
Struggle (2003/Ruth Madder) Color 76'
A woman from Poland is literaly imported to Austria in a coachfull of slave
labor for the summer season of strawberries hand-picking job. Her little daughter
accompaigned her on site, sleeping in a site contstruction cabin with everyone
else. On the way back they run away before the border in the hope to find a
job in Austria and live there. We follow the bleak, tiresome, stressful lives
of illegal immigrants who are exploited by the careless employeers of the "free-market"
capitalist world...
Almost no dialogue and no music in this contemplative film, only sounds of the
daily life, work repeatitive gestures, lack of communication between workers,
or with the boss. This is a overwhelming ritual. Everyone know they can't complain,
or they'll lose their meagre daily salary. This is a beautiful study of the
lowest class of workers in our economical system, showing the alienation of
men to make a living, with lengthy silent plan-sequence where we observe people
picking strawberries under the rain, riping open turkeys in a food-factory,
cleaning stuff... In parallel we follow the equaly boring life of an male austrian
real-estate agent who seek excitement in his weekly night-out to sex orgies
with his best friend to experiment all sorts of sex practice. The film is never
obscene but portrays the vain and pityful intimate lives of people within the
struggle for a social status. The mise-en-scene only, with a meaningful control
of time lapses, tell us all about the weight of this heartless industrial world
dehumanizing individuals to the barest tool unit.
The woman filmmaker (30 years old) was in attendance and presented her film.
She shows a skillful mastering of film techniques and an inspired vision of
the ensemble. Her personal style, unconventional, challenging narration with
no dialogue and music, is impressive for a debut feature! This film was her
final work at university, she used a script from Barbara Albert (Nordrand, Free
Radicals), who also presented 2 films at the festival.
Ruth Mader already made 5 shorts and 2 documentaries. Her short Zero Deficit
was presented in Cannes 2001.
filmography :
Struggle (2003)debut feature
Null Defizit (2001)short / DOC / Cannes 2001
Gfrasta (1999)short
Kilometer 123,5 (1994)short
Gatsch (1993)short
Endstation obdachlos (1992)short
Stupeur et tremblements - Fear and Trembling (France/Japan/2002)
Alain Corneau ***
exploriing the hierarchical society of a multinational firm in Tokyo. Ambition
and endless respect to the superiors are the rules to go by in the obscur world
of business in japan.
a young belgium woman born in japan, takes a job as translator in one of the
biggest company. but her position as newbie and foreigner, throw her in some
sort of sadist initiation from her superirors and colleagues. repeatitive useless
work, filing, xeroxing, cleaning the toilets... she will find out that people
place their career above all, and only seem friendly for personal interest.
Stupeur et Tremblements is the adaptation from the eponymous autobiographical
novel by french best seller Amélie Nothomb, who actually lived in Japan
in her childhood many years, so her understanding of japanese culture and its
clash with the western world and France in particular is insightful.
Sylvie Testud's performance is impressive indeed, she actually learnt some japanese
for the part (no phonetical dialogue delivery). It is really about the workplace
and xenophobia heavily tinted with sexism. The struggle of a qualified woman
to claim her place in a world excluding her for discriminative prejudice.
It's also the inner reflexion of a resilient woman able to abstract herself
from this work slavery and ponder over human identity and relationships.
The inner voice (voice over) narration further emphasizes this subjective point
of view with introspection.
The film is very speechy, and intellectual too. The light atmosphere and the
occasional delirious sequences make it rather delightful. The quality of contemplative
images is also a strong point.
The selective portrayal of the supporting charcter is cleverly partial and exagerated,
to give us clear-cut antagonists to the title role, with an interesting balance
of power playing both sides. It's a cynical critique of the hardworking japanese
society with a lot of self derision on Amélie's part.
However this extreme situation, is only a disguised satire of the underestimated
condition of european and american women. The message of the film strikes back
in our face.
It was also a poor turnout in France... Although Sylvie Testud won the Best
Actress César (french Oscars).
Summer Clouds (1958/Mikio Naruse)
I was surprised how familiar with Ozu's family drama this film is. Or is it
just that every other post war japanese film is about arranged marriage and
a propagandist discourse to bend the conservative mindset of elder generations
in favor of the free-minded youth opened to western lifestyle?
I felt the mise-en-scene was too dependant on dialogue delivery, with an off-beat
reverse shot edit, not much inspired cinematography overall, but a nice color
photography in a surprisingly green countryside environment right outside Tokyo.
Swimming Pool Ozon ***
exciting parody of classic british crime movie. with a delicious Ludivine Sagnier
and an unexpected clumsy Charlotte Rampling. interesting end twist. the story
is a bit dull but the atmosphere is just crispy!