DVD Mini Review - The Blue Butterfly

The Blue Butterfly, directed by Lea Pool, is based on a true story. And although it is sometimes obvious which part are made up The Blue Butterfly is still a compelling film.

Ten year old Pete Carlton (Marc Donato) is suffering from terminal brain cancer. His great dream in life is to see and capture a blue butterfly. He is so determined to do this that he convinces his mother Teresa (Pascale Bussieres) to take him to a lecture by the noted insect expert Alan Osborne (William Hurt). He tries to talk Osborne into taking him to the Costa Rican rain forest so that he can see his butterfly. At first Osborne refuses but he eventually gives in and this is the start of a great adventure of self discovery.

I will not say more about the plot. One or two of the plot devices seemed a bit contrived. But, hey, this is a movie. The cinematograpy by Pierre Mignot is breathtaking and that alone is reason to see the film. But the film also restores one's faith in miracles. And that is certainly another reason to see this film.

If you want to bring some inspiration into your life check out The Blue Butterfly. I think that you will be happy that you did.

DVD Mini Review - Whatever Happened to Dolly Bell?

I am a great fan of Bosnian director Emir Kusturica. I looked on Netflix to see what films of his they had available that I hadn't seen yet. This early work was on that list and I watched it tonight.

Whatever Happened to Dolly Bell is a simple story. It takes place in 1960s Sarajevo. This was long before that bloody war. Tito was in power and Communism was the way. Young Dino (Slavko Stimac) is greatly influenced by his father. He is also involved with some criminals who ask him to hide a prostitute named Dolly Bell (Ljiljana Blagojevic). He soon falls in love with her.

The film basically follows around Dino in his day to day life. It also shows ordinary problems such as waiting (forever) to get a new apartment. In addition, there is a musical aspect to this as Dino and some other young people form a band. Kusturica always uses music to maximum effect in his films. That is not surprising because he is in a band.

This is a wonderful little gem of a film. We can see just how great Kusturica's potential is even at this early date. Unfortunately, he is not that well known in the US. His Cannes winner Underground is a masterpiece. Other terrific films of his are When Father Was Away on Business (another Cannes winner), Arizona Dream (in English and starring Johnny Depp) and White Cat, Black Cat. Shamefully, Life is Miracle has never been released in the US - not even on DVD. But I found his latest film Promise Me This listed on Netflix and I added it to my list.

If you like films that are interesting and different go out and rent some of Kusturica's films. I think that you will be happy that you did.

P.S. The DVD includes a very interesting interview with Kusturica. He has quite a lot to say about cinema.

This is England

Writer/director Shane Meadow's latest film This is England is powerful and impressive. It is a real slice of life film and shows us a group of people that are usually invisible.

The time period is 1983. The place is in midlands England (which is a very working class area). Margaret Thatcher is in charge and the war in the Falklands rages. The film starts off with a montage from that time period with Toots and the Maytals singing in the background.

It is the last day of the school year. 12 year old Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) is off to school. But things don't go well for him. He is constantly being picked on. He doesn't have anyone to confide in. His father died in the Falklands war and his mother has her hands full just trying to keep things together. Shaun is befriended by a group of skinheads and he finally feels that he is accepted. But when one of their members, Combo (Stephen Graham), returns from jail things take a turn. Combo splits the group. He blames immigrants for the high unemployment rate and he wants to take his frustration out on them as well as other minorities. It is well known that some skinheads were considered neo-Nazis. Combo takes Shaun under his wing and because he is looking for a father figure Shaun decides to stay with Combo. But it doesn't take him long to find out what Combo is really about.

This is England is based on Meadows' own experience. It shows how he has matured as a filmmaker (I remember his first film 24/7, which was good but a bit rough around the edges).
I look forward to seeing what he does in the future. The whole cast is good with the above mentioned young Turgoose and Graham being especially outstanding.

This is England is playing in a few theaters around the country. But it is also on IFC on Demand.
That is how I saw it. If you have this cable service then definitely rent. Otherwise, rent it when it comes out on DVD. You won't be sorry that you did.

2 Days in Paris

2 Days in Paris is a lovely confection of a film. And it was the perfect film to see after viewing the heavy No End in Sight.

Julie Delpy wrote and directed the film. Delpy plays Marion who lives in NYC with her boyfriend Jack (Adam Goldberg). The couple has just been in Venice and is now in Paris to pick up Marion's cat Jean Luc from her parents. During their time in Paris Jack gets to meet some of Marion's friends, which include several ex boyfriends. Jack just can't help being jealous. He doesn't understand that the French attitude towards sex is much different than the American attitude.

The film is not plot heavy but it has a lot of charm. That is what makes it work. Besides the romantic story there are numerous political punches thrown in the mix. The dialog is very smart.

In a very nice touch Delpy's mother and father are played by her real life parents Marie Pillet and Albert Delpy. Even Jean Luc is played by Delpy's real life cat Max (and what a beauty he is!). Delpy's sister Rose (it seems that she lives at home with her parents) is played by Alexia Landeau (Marion's apartment in Paris is right above her parents' apartment). And there is a strange but interesting cameo by Daniel Bruhl as Lukas (I won't say anything about his character).

I must say that I found it strange that Marion would take her cat to Paris so that her parents could take care of him while she was in Venice. But that was part of the story and I accepted. I wasn't crazy about it when the family sat down to a consisting of rabbit but I know that this is typical French cuisine. And the trip to the market was a bit revolting to a devout vegetarian like me (this included dead pigs and large tongues that were cut out of animals). But again, that is what most French people eat. But all in all, I thoroughly enjoyed 2 Days in Paris. I would recommend it to anyone looking for an intelligent romantic comedy (with some very frank language) that is made for adults instead of teenagers and 20 somethings.

No End in Sight

Charles Ferguson's No End in Sight was absolutely raved by the critics. It is a fact filled documentary telling us about the bungling that happened before and during the war in Iraq. In a nutshell, the film tells us why we are losing the war.

No End in Sight focuses on some of the failed policies of Donald Rumsfeld. There are interviews with people like Richard Armitage and others who participated in the Bush administration. Now, I think that this is a good film for Republicans and others who were for the war to see. However, I would not call it an anti war film.

One of the things that bothered me greatly about the film was the constant reminder that we should have had more troops in Iraq. Even though Ferguson briefly touches on the fact that Sadaam did not have anything to do with 9/11 he still doesn't come out and say that the war was a mistake.

As a film I found No End in Sight rather dry (I know that some people don't like Michael Moore but his films are always entertaining). It mainly consists of interviews and there is also some jarring images for the war torn country itself. Although I knew most of the facts that were presented I did learn a few things. I wasn't surprised to find out that Bush didn't read a number of executive reports that were made up for him.

I doubt that this film would have been made if we were winning the war in Iraq. I do not regret seeing No End in Sight. But I am disappointed in the execution of the film as well as its message.

DVD Review - Anna Karenina

I am in the middle of reading Leo Tolstoy's classic Anna Karenina. In fact, I am almost finished with it. I have seen a few filmed versions of the book. The 1997 version with Sophie Marceau as Anna is pretty decent. The BBC mini series with Helen McCrory (she played Cherie Blair in The Queen) is very good. But I wanted to see a version that I haven't seen so I selected this 1935 film that was directed by Clarence Brown.

In this version of the story Anna is played by the luminous Greta Garbo. In my opinion Garbo was born to play Anna. She falls for the dashing Vronsky (Frederic March). And it is easy to see why. Anna's husband Karenin (Basil Rathbone) is as cold as can be. But she is conflicted because she doesn't want to leave her son Sergei (Freddie Bartholomew).

I liked the film but it only tells part of the story. And several things were changed around. The book also focuses on Levin & Kitty and Stiva & Dolly. But here it is almost as if they are extras. But I guess that there is just so much you can do in a 95 minute film.

The film is beautifully shot in black and white by William Daniels. As I said before, Garbo is wonderful. And so is young Bartholomew. And there is wonderful Russian music throughout the film.

This version of Anna Karenina is a very pleasurable film experience. Just see it as a film and do not compare it to the book (it is a good idea to remember this whenever you see a book to screen adaptation. They are go entirely different mediums).

Moliere

Laurent Tirard's Moliere is a wonderful film. Moliere (Romain Duris) was a well known writer of plays - mostly comedies. At the beginning of the film he and his acting troupe return to Paris after years of playing all around the country. He is going to perform for the king. He wants to write a tragedy but the king only wants to see a comedy. While thinking about what to write Moliere thinks back to what happened many years ago.

At that time Moliere was broke and was arrested because he had a debt that he couldn't pay. He is rescued from jail by wealthy man by the name of M. Jourdain (Fabrice Luchini). Jourdain wants help with writing a play to win over a young widow named Celimene (Ludvine Sagnier). Oh, I should mention that Jourdain is married to Elmire (Laura Morante). Helping Jourdain along with his romantic quest is his best friend Dorante (Edouard Baer). While living with Jourdain Moliere develops a strong bond with Elmire.

And that my friends is all I will say about the plot. The film is funny but it also has a serious side to it. It is absolutely beautiful to look at. And the acting is terrific. I have never thought that Duris was a great actor but he is really good in this film. Baer and Sagnier have some fine moments in the film as well. But the top acting honors goes to Luchini and Morante. They are outstanding in their roles.

Moliere may have written comedies but they were sometimes tinged with tragedy. And the same could be said about tragedies that are tinged with humor. And that is what life is like - sometimes bitter and sometimes sweet. In any case, I highly recommend this film to those of you who love good period pieces.

Arctic Tale

Arctic Tale is a beautifully documentary directed by Adam Ravetch and Sarah Robinson. It is basically the story of a young polar bear and her family and a young walrus and her family. Nanu the polar bear and Seela the walrus are born at about the same time. The film shows how they and their families struggle to stay alive. This is something that is hard to do because the layer of ice melting each year at a faster rate.

The directors did a fantastic job of photographing this magnificent wilderness. I am sure that it wasn't an easy task. Queen Latifah's narration was warm and fuzzy and I liked it more than I thought I would. The narration was co-written by Kristen Gore (daughter of Al).

I was happy to see children in the audience. They need to know how this will impact their future. Arctic Tale has a message for all of us. If the polar bears and walruses disappear then humankind will not be far behind.

DVD Review - The Lookout

Screenwriter Scott Frank has made an impressive directorial debut with The Lookout. It is an intelligent thriller that is also a good character study.

Chris Pratt (Joseph Gordon Levitt) is a down on his luck janitor. A few years ago he was in a bad car accident. He was left disabled and two people died. He was in a coma and has trouble remembering things. He lives with a blind man named Lewis (Jeff Daniels) who he met at a rehab center. Chris is a janitor at a bank and he would like to work at something else. But whenever he tries to talk to his boss he gets the brushoff. One day he meets a man named Gary (Matthew Goode) at a bar. He also meets a woman named Luvlee (Isla Fisher) who he falls for. Gary offers a way out of the doldrums. He offers him the opportunity to be the lookout when Gary and his friends rob the bank that Chris works for.

I won't tell you anything more about the plot. Some of it is suspenseful and some of it is predictable. Some have compared it to Memento but the latter is a better film. The acting by Levitt, Daniels and Goode is top notch. And the film held my interest. The film got raves when it played in theaters earlier this year. And while not as good as some of the critics have said (especially Richard Roeper) I still think that The Lookout is worth a look on DVD.

Blame it on Fidel

Julie Gavras first feature film is wonderful. Based on a book by Domitilla Calamai with a screenplay by Gavras and Arnaud Cathrine, Blame it on Fidel takes place in 1970s Paris.

Young Anna de la Mesa (Nina Kervel-Bey) lives with her father Fernando (Stefano Accorsi) who is a lawyer, her mother Marie (Julie Depardieu) who works for a magazine and her younger brother Francois (Benjamin Feuillet). They live a nice life in a good neighborhood and have a lovely house. But when Fernando's sister and niece come fr0m Spain to live in Paris things change. His brother-in-law was murdered because he working against Franco. Fernando quits his job and takes time off to think. He and Marie travel to Latin America. Upon their return Fernando decides to help dissidents and joins a group that is working towards the election of Salvador Allende in Chile. This means moving to smaller living quarters. Anna is attending Catholic school and wants to remain there despite her parents now anti-religious stance. She is allowed to stay but cannot attend religious instruction.

The film is a series of small events all told through Anna's perspective. She doesn't like or understand what is going on. She feels that her parents are neglecting her because of their devotion to their causes. She gives them a hard time. By contrast, Francois is much more accepting and is much more easy going. Anna even hates the new way they eat (it wasn't clear what type of food it was but I was wondering if it was vegetarian).

In all honesty, I could understand that Anna was upset because she felt that her parents were neglecting her. Sometimes that happens and I think that the parents should have made an effort to spend more time with their children. But I also can relate to how they felt about their work. The acting is all on target. I am a big fan of Gerard Depardieu and it was nice to see his daughter Julie in this film. But he film belongs to young Kervel-Bey. She is absolutely sensational. She shows as much emotional range as actors who are much older than she is.

I must also say something about Gavras. It is obvious that she picked up the knack of political filmmaking from her father Costa Gavras. He made a number of excellent films. And now his daughter is following in his footsteps. I can't wait to see what Ms. Gavras does next. In the meantime, make sure that you see this film. It is only playing in a few theaters. But it will eventually be out on DVD so if you can't catch it on the big screen rent it on DVD.

The 2007 New York Film Festival Lineup

Here is the official lineup for the NY Film Festival. About half the films screened at Cannes (that is the way it usually is). I would love to go to the No Country screening but I think that it will be almost impossible to get a ticket (never mind the price). Besides No Country there are several films I would love to see - but I will see them when they come to the regular theaters. Some of the films on this list I want to see are: 4 Months, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The Flight of the Red Balloon, I'm Not There, and The Orphanage. I am also very interested in the new films by two old masters - Rohmer and Chabrol. Margot at the Wedding Might be good but I am not sure. And the Darjeeling Limited...well, we shall have to see. I am not a Wes Anderson fan (although I liked The Royal Tennanbaums).

OPENING NIGHT
The Darjeeling Limited Wes Anderson, US, 2007; 91m
Screening with Hotel Chevalier Wes Anderson, US, 2007; 12m

CLOSING NIGHT:
Persepolis Marjane Satrapi & Vincent Paronnaud, France, 2007; 95m

CENTERPIECE:
No Country For Old Men Joel and Ethan Coen, US, 2007; 122m

4 Months, 3 weeks, 2 Days Christian Mungiu, Romania, 2007; 113m

Actresses Valeria Bruni-Tedeschi, France, 2007; 110m

Alexandra Alexander Sokurov, Russia, 92m

The Axe in the Attic Ed Pincus & Lucia Small, US, 2007; 110m

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead Sidney Lumet, USA, 117m

Calle Santa Fe Carmen Castillo, France, 2007; 163m

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly Julian Schnabel, France/U.S., 2007; 112m

Fados Carlos Saura, Spain/Portugal, 2007; 92m

The Flight of the Red Balloon Hou Hsiao-hsien, France, 2007; 113m

A Girl Cut In Two Claude Chabrol, France, 2007; 115m

Go Go Tales Abel Ferrara, Italy/US, 2007; 96m

I Just Didn’t Do It Masayuki Suo, Japan, 2007; 143m

I’m Not There Todd Haynes, US, 2007; 136m

In the City of Sylvia Jose Luis Guerin, Spain/France, 2007; 90m

The Last Mistress Catherine Breillat, France, 2007; 114m

The Man From London Béla Tarr, Hungary/France/Germany, 2007; 132m

Margot at the Wedding Noah Baumbach, US, 2007; 93m

Married Life Ira Sachs, USA, 2007; 90m

Mr. Warmth, The Don Rickles Project John Landis, US, 2007; 90m

The Orphanage Juan Antonio Bayona, Spain, 100m

SPECIAL EVENT
The Other Side of the Mirror: Bob Dylan Live at the Newport Folk Festival, 1963-1965Murray Lerner, US, 2007; 80m

Paranoid Park Gus Van Sant, US, 2007; 85m

Redacted Brian DePalma, US, 2007; 90m

The Romance of Astrea and Celadon Eric Rohmer, France, 2007; 109m

Secret Sunshine Lee Chang-dong, Korea, 2007; 142m

Silent Light Carlos Reygadas, Mexico, 2007; 142m

SPECIAL EVENT
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Runnin’ Down a Dream Peter Bogdanovich, US, 2007; 238m

Useless Jia Zhang-ke, Hong Kong, 2007; 80m

Live-In Maid

Live-In Maid is a little gem of a movie from Argentina. It is the feature film debut of director Jorge Gaggero and it is quite a debut indeed.

The story takes place in Argentina in the early 2000s. This is the time period in which many people suffered from serious financial woes. Beba (Norma Aleandro) is an upper middle class woman who is on a downward slide. She is no longer with her husband (who isn't doing that well either) and is having trouble paying her bills. She hasn't paid her maid Dora (Norma Argentina) for many months. Dora is thinking of leaving Beba and getting a job closer to her home outside of Buenos Aires. Also of note - Beba's daughter lives in Madrid and seems to want very little to do with her mother. We find out a piece of information about the daughter later on in the film that might be a bone of contention with the mother.

Live-In Maid is a wonderful portrait of two women who are struggling but manage to survive. There are very few films about older women with financial problems. Aleandro, as usual, is wonderful. I have seen her in many films and she always gives a terrific performance. Argentina is also outstanding. And she is not an actress but a woman who has worked as a maid.
Gaggero has a casting call for maids - he really wanted his film to be authentic. Cinematographer Javier Julia does an amazing job of capturing the emotions of the women by giving us beautiful shots of their faces.

Gaggero is a filmmaker to watch and I eagerly await his next film. I wonder if Argentina will be in another film. I hope so. She is a very talented woman (and she looks real as does Aleandro).
Live-In Maid has a small distributor so I don't know if it will play in many theaters. I was thrilled when it opened up at my local art theater after playing at only one or two theaters in Manhattan. But if you can't manage to see it in the theater then do yourself a favor and rent it when it comes out on DVD (according to Netflix it will be released in December). You will be in for a cinematic treat.

DVD Review - Apocalypto

There is no doubt that Mel Gibson's Apocalypto is great filmmaking. It is beautifully shot by cinematographer Dean Semler. Some of the scenes are outstanding. I can only imagine what the film looked like on the big screen.

And it certainly an original film. After all, how many films do you see about the Mayan culture?
And Gibson doesn't shy away from making films in old (and dead) languages. I certainly give him thumbs up for all of this.

However, Apocalypto is so unbelievably violent. And I don't think it need to be this way.

The film starts off with a few hunters gathering around their kill. They go back to their camp and try to just live their lives. But a Mayan gang (for lack of a better word) takes over their turf and kills some of them and takes the rest of them to their king. The men will be sacrificed. But one of them survives - that is the film's protagonist Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood). The rest of the film (which I think is the best part) focuses on his journey back home to the pregnant wife and child that he left behind.

Gibson has been criticized for his portrayal of the Mayans. The film makes them out to be bloodthirsty savages. In reality, they probably were violent but they were also very cultured. In the making of film on the DVD Gibson said that he wanted to show the contradiction of these people.

I have already stated that the film was too violent. I don't mind some violence a film but this was overdone. And there was violence to animals in the film but I didn't see a disclaimer at the end. I hope that no animals were harmed and since I haven't heard anything about that I assume that everything was okay. But if the violence towards animals was bad the violence against humans was even worse. Edit: My friend just sent me an article about the tapir that starred in the film (his name is Scooter) and it stated that no animals were harmed in the making of the film. Now I feel better.

Apocalypto is not exactly my kind of film but I can't deny that it is a good one. It is certainly much better than The Passion of the Christ. But I really do wonder about Gibson. He has made some good films but most of the time he has such an incredibly violent vision. I guess that it goes along with his alcohol induced tirades against Jews, women, etc.

Apocalypto is not everyone's cup of tea. And there are those who will not see his films because of some of his views. Everyone is entitled to do what they want. But despite Gibson's sometimes deranged comments I will continue to see his films because they are, for the most part, worthwhile for a film fanatic like me.

Becoming Jane

Director Julian Jarrold has created a lovely film about the life of author Jane Austen. I don't know how true to life the film is but as a work of cinema I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Jane (Anne Hathaway) loves to write but her mother (Julie Walters) wishes that she would get married. Jane's family is not rich and her mother hopes that she will settle for someone with money. Her father (James Cromwell) understands that Jane doesn't want to settle for someone that she doesn't love. But things weren't so easy for single women in those days. Lady Gresham (Maggie Smith) has a nephew that is available but Jane has no interest in him. Then one day Tom Lefroy (James McAvoy) comes to stay with relatives in town and Jane is immediately smitten. The only problem is is that Tom doesn't have any money.

I don't have to tell you the rest of the story. But even if you can guess what happens the film is worth seeing. The story is actually quite heartbreaking. Hathaway finally comes into her own as an actress. She is very good as Jane - her English accent is flawless. McAvoy is good and, of course, Walters, Smith and Cromwell are wonderful. It was also a pleasure to see Anna Maxwell Martin as Jane's sister Cassandra (she was terrific on PBS's Bleak House) and the late Ian Richardson as Tom's uncle. The cast alone is worth the price of admission.

I love period pieces and romances. Someone said that the film was a bit soap operaish. Well, guess what - I like that too. Maybe this is more of a woman's film than a man's film. But maybe not. I hope that there are still men out there who are romantics. In any case, if you want two hours of pleasure Becoming Jane is the film for you.

Interview

Steve Buscemi directed this remake of the late Theo van Gogh's Dutch film of the same name. The screenplay was written by Buscemi and Theodore Holman, who also wrote the original screenplay.

Buscemi plays Pierre, a political reporter who has had a falling out with his boss. His new assignment is to interview Katya (Sienna Miller) an actress that makes B movies and soap operas. Pierre is resentful and feels that this is a step down for him so he treats Katya with disdain. She doesn't much like him either. But circumstances keep them together for a long night and things happen - but not what you might think. But I certainly won't tell you what they are - you will have to see the film for yourself to find out.

Interview is what Roger Ebert would call a "smart" film. It is dialog heavy because most of what happens is between these two characters and it all has to do with words. The film has just the right mixture of comedy and drama. There are a number of surprises to be found. Buscemi does a great job directing the film and both he and Miller are wonderful. At the beginning of the film we get to see Buscemi's real life brother Michael play his screen brother Robert. My only complaint is that they should have changed one of the names. Miller can pass as a Katya but Buscemi just doesn't feel like a Pierre (Peter would have been better).

I would love to see the original Interview but I didn't find it on Netflix. Perhaps it will be released here on DVD now that the American remake is in theaters. I liked this film a lot but I have to say that it is not for everyone. However, if you like films where the characters have the chance to really express themselves then Interview is for you.

Venice Film Festival

A list of the films in competition for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, which will run Aug. 29-Sept.8:

"Atonement," by Joe Wright, Britain-U.S.

"The Darjeeling Limited," by Wes Anderson, U.S.

"Sleuth," by Kenneth Branagh, Britain-U.S.

"Heya fawda (Le Chaos)," by Youssef Chahine, Egypt

"Redacted," by Brian De Palma, U.S.

"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," by Andrew Dominik, U.S.

"Nessuna qualita agli eroi," by Paolo Franchi, Italy-Switzerland-France

"Michael Clayton," by Tony Gilroy, U.S.

"Night Watching," by Peter Greenaway, Canada-France-Germany-Poland-Netherlands-Britain
"En la ciudad de Sylvia," by Jose Luis Guerin, Spain

"In the Valley of Elah," by Paul Haggis, U.S.-Morocco

"I'm Not There," by Todd Haynes, U.S.

"Taiyang zhaochang shenqi (The Sun Also Rises)," by Wen Jiang, China-Hong Kong

"Bangbang wo aishen (Help Me Eros)," by Kang Sheng Lee (Kangsheng Li), Taiwan

"La graine et le mulet," by Abdellatif Kechiche, France

"Se, jie (Lust, Caution)," by Ang Lee, China-U.S.

"It's a Free World...," by Ken Loach, Britain-Italy-Germany-Spain

"L'ora di punta," by Vincenzo Marra, Italy

"Sukiyaki Western Django," by Takashi Miike, Japan

"12," by Nikita Mikhalkov, Russia

"Il dolce e l'amaro," by Andrea Porporati, Italy

"Les Amours d'Astree et de Celadon," by Eric Rohmer, France-Italy-Spain

A number of these films will be screening in Toronto as well. And many will be released in the US this fall. There are quite a few that I want to see - especially I'm Not There. It is also nice to know that Eric Rohmer has made a new film.

I will post updates on Venice, Toronto and New York and other festivals as soon as I can.

DVD Mini Review - Poison Friends

Emmanuel Bourdieu has directed an intriguing little film entitled Poison Friends. It won an award in Cannes.

The film starts off slowly but by the middle of the film I was totally involved. It revolves around a graduate student named Andre (Thibault Vincon). He befriends a group of other students who are one year behind him. They become enthralled with his knowledge. He tries to "form" them by putting them down. He is a real know it all. Eloi (Malik Zidi) in particular is obsessed with Andre. But Andre is a pathological liar. I will not say more about the story but it is certainly a good study of a certain type of person. You will find out why the film is called Poison Friends.

Poison Friends may not be an outstanding film but it is a good one that will give you food for thought (about people that you know - and we've all known someone like this). And it is certainly worth checking out.

Some notable passings

The last week and a half has seen the passings of a number of several greats in the world of film and television. I want to say just a few words about each of them.

The first person to leave the planet was the great German actor Ulrich Muhe. Muhe played the Stasi agent in the Oscar winning foreign film The Lives of Others. That was my pick for the best film of 2006 (although it was officially released in 2007) and Muhe was my pick for best actor. Muhe was actually spied on by his ex wife. His death was a shock because I had no idea that he was ill. He died of stomach cancer at the young age of 54. He leaves behind a wife and two children.

This past Monday saw the death of the greatest filmmaker of all time - Ingmar Bergman. There will never be anyone who could depict life, love, faith, death and all of the complications of being human like Bergman did. I have seen most of his films and there is not one that I didn't like. He used some amazing actors in his films (for example Live Ullman and Max von Sydow). His films were challenging and made you think. They kept you on your toes. When his last film Saraband was released the critic in the Village Voice commented that it was "minor Bergman." But even "minor Bergman" (if there is such a thing) was oh so much better than the majority of what is released these days. I would love to have the time to revisit all of his films. Perhaps one day I will be able to. Bergman was 89 and died peacefully in his sleep.

Another old time master died the same day as Bergman. I am speaking of Michaelangelo Antonioni. Antonioni had quite a varied career. He made a number of wonderful films in Italian but also made some popular English language film. He seemed quite comfortable in both languages. My favorite film of his is Blowup. There is no other film that captures swinging mod London in the 60s like this film does. In the last several years Antonioni suffered ill health due to a stroke. But he continued to work sporadically. His last work was a short film that was part of a three director film entitled Eros. He was 94 when he passed away.

From the world of television we lost Tom Snyder. Snyder was the host a several highly intelligent talk shows. The first one was before we ever heard of Charlie Rose (whom I like). Snyder didn't deal with nonsense or gossip. I always liked the way he handled his guests. For the last few years Snyder had been battling leukemia. He lost his battle earlier this week. He was 71.

I will surely miss all of these men. They certainly enriched the world with their gifts. May they all rest in peace.