Stuck and Savage Grace

What better way to spend a gloomy, humid Saturday then to see two disturbing films.
And both are based on fact.

I saw Stuck at the only theater in NYC that it is playing at. Although it is based on fact the way it ends is not true to what really happened. Brandi (Mena Suvari) is a nurses aid and she is up for a promotion. After a night out with her boyfriend Rashid (Russell Hornsby) the very high Brandi drives home. She hits the newly homeless Tom (Stephen Rea) and he is stuck in her windshield. Tom is not a drug addict or bum. He is a down on his luck guy who was downsized. He is looking for work but his landlord kicked him out because he couldn't pay the rent. After she hits Tom, Brandi does not call for help. She is afraid of not getting her promotion.
She keeps her car and Tom in her garage in the hopes that he will die.

Stuck is a good fim. It is well directed and well acted. Stephen Rea finally gets to use his great acting ability (he has recently made some duds). The scene in the employment agency is worth the price of admission. Suvari is also terrific as the selfish Brandi. Hornsby and Rukiya Bernard as Brandi's co-worker and friend Tanya are also very good. The film is very bloody and although I understood why it had to be that way I had to close my eyes several times. However, I thought that the graphic scene in the nursing home involving and elderly man should not have been in the film. It added nothing. But that is only a minor complaint. Gordon's horror nightmare film shows us the depths to which humans will sink and the amount of cruelty that they are capable of. Stuck may not be for everyone but for those of you who can handle it I say check it out!

I saw Savage Grace on Movies on Demand. It is the true story of Barbara Baekeland (Julianne Moore) wh came from an ordinary background and married the wealthy Brooks Baekeland (Stephen Dillane). Barbara has a stange personality and her husband has a wandering eye so things do not go smoothly. They have one child - Tony (played as adult by Eddie Redmayne). You can tell right away that Tony does not have healthy relationships with his parents. He seems confused and I got the impression that he doesn't know what to do with his life. Later on we learn that it is worse than that.

The Baekeland's travel around a lot and have homes all over the world. But does this make Barabara happy. Certainly not - and especially not when Brooks leaves her for a younger woman. I found the film interesting but I think that it had the potential to be much better. I blame Tom Kalin's direction for making the movie seem choppy and the screenplay for leaving things out that we should have known about (I don't what they are but I am sure there is plenty). Moore is wonderful as Barbara. Despite the previously mentioned flaws she gives the role her all. All of the other acting is good too. And it was nice to see Anne Reid, Belen Rueda, Unax Ugalde, Abel Folk and others in small roles. Savage Grace was not a great film but it held my attention and recommend it to anyone who wants to see a great performance by the talented Ms. Moore.

DVD Mini Review - The Violin

Francisco Vargas's The Violin is a wonderful little film from Mexico. It is the story of a young boy, his father and grandfather who are traveling musicians. Father Genaro (Garardo Taracena) plays the guitar and grandfather Don Plautarco (Angel Tavira) plays the violin. Young Lucio (Mario Garibaldi) is there to collect the money (if there is any). However, these musicians also smuggle weapons to the rebel army that is fighting the soldiers (and government) who have taken away everything that they own.

The film starts off with a bang - a soldier is torturing one of the rebels. There is some violence that is difficult to watch - but there are only a few scenes of that. All of the acting if great but Tavira is outstanding. He is really a violinist. And his face shows everything. The scenes between him and Garibaldi are extremely touching. The moral is - greed and ambition rules the world and is ruining the world as well.

This film had a limited release and now is the chance to catch it on DVD. I highly recommend it to those of you who love good world cinema.

Reprise

Reprise marks an impressive directorial debut from Joachim Trier. The story is about two friends in their 20s - Phillip (Anders Danielsen Lie and Erik (Espen -Klouman-Hoiner). They are both writers and they have both written books. On their first try Phillip gets his book published but Erik's is rejected. However, a little while after his book is published Phillip has a breakdown. It appears that his obsessive relationship with his girlfriend Kari (Viktoria Winge) is part of the problem.

There are moments in the film where you are not sure if what is happening is actually happening or not. The film certainly keeps you on your toes. It is very well shot and there is a lot of good music throughout. It has a certain youthful energy to it. But it is also intellectual without being pretentious and shows us how two emotionally immature young men deal with writing, romance and growing up. All of the acting is spot on.

I recommend this film people who are open to this type of film. Not everyone in the audience at the screening I attended liked this film. So read a bit more about it and see if it is your cup of tea. But for those of you who like this type of film will not be disappointed.

Cannes Film Festival 2008 Winners

Palme d'Or: "Entre Les Murs" ("The Class"), directed by Laurent Cantet

Grand Prix (runner-up): "Gomorra," directed by Matteo Garrone

Prix de la Mise en Scene (best director): Nuri Bilge Ceylan for "Three Monkeys"

Prix du Scenario (best screenplay): Jean Pierre and Luc Dardenne for "Le Silence de Lorna"

Camera d'Or (best first feature): "Hunger," directed by Steve McQueen
special mention: "Ils mourront tous sauf moi," directed by Valeria Gai Guermanika

Prix du Jury (jury prize): "Il Divo," directed by Paolo Sorrentino

Prix d'interpretation feminine (best actress): Sandra Corveloni for "Linha de Passe"

Prix d'interpretation masculine (best actor): Benicio del Toro for "Che"

Prix de 61st Festival de Cannes: Catherine Deneuve ("Un Conte de noel") and Clint Eastwood ("The Exchange")

Palme d'Or (short film): "Metron," directed by Marian Crisan
special mention: "Jerrycan," directed by Julius Avery

Also taking prizes at the 61st Festival de Cannes:

UN CERTAIN REGARD
Prix Un Certain Regard: Sergey Dvortsevoy's "Tulpan"
Jury prize: Kurosawa Kiyoshi's "Tokyo Sonata"
Other winners: Andreas Dresen's "Wolke 9" (Heat Throb Jury Prize), James Toback's "Tyson" (The Knockout of Un Certain Regard) and Jean-Stephane Sauvaire's "Johnny Mad Dog" (The Prize of Hope).

The Edge of Heaven

When I saw Fatih Atkin's previous feature film Head-On I was blown away by it. And I can now say the same thing about his new film The Edge of Heaven.

Like Head-On, The Edge of Heaven takes place in Germany and Turkey. And both films take on the sometimes difficult relationship between the two cultures.

There are six main characters in the film. Najat (Baki Davrak) is a professor at a university in Hamburg. His father Ali (Tuncel Kurtiz) lives in Bremen. Ali starts to go to a prostitute named Yeter (Nursel Kose) and he finds himself developing feelings for her. On a visit to his father Najar meets Yeter. She conveys the fact that she really misses her daughter Ayten (Nurgul Yesilcay) who she hasn't heard from in a long time. Ayten is living in Istanbul and is political activist. When she gets into trouble she decides to go to Germany to look for her mother. When she has no place to go a student named Lotte (Patrycia Ziokowska) takes her in. Lotte's mother Susanne (Hanna Schygulla) is suspicious of their relationship and of Ayten in general. And that my friends is all I will say about the plot.

The Edge of Heaven is a fantastic film. It is plot and character driven. By the end of the film you feel as if you know these people. And you see how they are all connected in one way or another. Atkin knows these two worlds because he is part of both of them. One might think that this film would be hard to follow but it is not at all. Everything is perfectly laid out. And we see how each piece of the puzzle fits. The last scene of the film is absolutely stunning.

Akin deservedly won a best screenplay awards at last year's Cannes. I can only wonder what he will do next. Whatever it is I look forward to seeing it. The Edge of Heaven is in very limited release. If you can't see it in the theater then make sure you see it on DVD. I hope that in the not too distant future Mr. Akin will be able to get wider releases for his films because they are what cinema is all about.

Cannes Update

Both The Class and Il Divo have gotten good reviews. Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York seems to be liked but thought too odd for mainstreams audiences.

The Festival is almost over and the awards will be handed out on Sunday. Stay tuned.

DVD Mini Review - Che, Kontrol on IFC TV, Cannes Update

Because of time constraints I am going to post a few words about the above mentioned items.

I saw the DVD of Che with Eduardo Noriega in the title role. I had wanted to see this for a long time and it was finally released on DVD here. I was surprised that the film was in English. I guess I never noticed that in imdb. I took it for granted that it was in Spanish. Noriega was good but the dialog was bad and the film was not well directed. Mark Evans seems like a student filmmaker. But despite some big flaws I found interest was held most of the time. The fact that the film is only 80 minutes long helps. The wonderful Italian actor Enrico Lo Verso plays Fidel. I felt that he was miscast - I wasn't convinced at all. The story is good but the storytelling isn't. After all this time I am glad that I saw this film despite the fact that it is disappointing.

Last night I saw Kontrol on IFC TV. It was a bizarre but wonderful film. It is directed by Nimrod Antal and it takes place in Busapest. The story focuses on security men who ride on the subways making sure people pay their fare. They are a motley crew to say the least. The protagonist is Sandor (Csanyi Bulcsu) who is an odd duck. He has bad visions/nightmares and sleeps on the subway platforms. He and his colleagues are engaged in a battle with a rival gang of security employees. Throw into the mix a mysterious woman in a bear costume and a hooded man who pushes people to their deaths in the subways and you have a very unusual film. I highly recommend this film for those of you who like quirky foreign films.

Steven Soderbergh's Che epic screened today and, for the most part, the reviews were not great. I never thought that Soderbergh was the right person to direct this film.
I am sure that Benicio del Toro is great as Che. But it sounds like this film might need some editing. In any case, whatever the reviews might be I will see it when it comes out.

Brief Cannes update

James Gray's Two Lovers has gotten some good notices at Cannes as did an Italian film entitled Gomorra. And Clint Eastwood's The Changeling has gotten raves. Indiana Jones has gotten mixed notices.

Tomorrow the Che epic screens. I have no doubt that Benicio del Toro is terrific as Che. But will the film(s) be good? I am most anxious to find out.

More updates soon.

Cannes Update

I can't say that I've heard a lot about the films at Cannes. As I said before, Waltz with Bichar has gotten some great reviews. Leonera, Un Conte de Noel, The Three Monkeys an Linha de Passe have all gotten some good reviews. But at this point there isn't a clear frontrunner for any of the awards. We still have a week to go and many more films. It is appearant that Blindness will probably not be in the running.

In the non-competition category the animated Kung Fu Panda has gotten some good press. Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona has gotten mainly very positive notices. And Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz in particular are supposed to be terrific. I am not surprised. I can't wait to see this film.

Before the Rains

Director Santosh Sivan (who is also the cinematographer) has created a lush film based on a short story by Dany Vert (Cathy Rabin wrote the screenplay). It is somewhat reminiscent of the style of David Lean. It is a sweeping story of forbidden love.

The tale takes place in 1937 in Kerala, India. Henry Moores (Linus Roache) is a planter. First he planted tea and now he wants to plant spices. By his side is his loyal helper TK (Rahul Bose). TK comes from a nearby village where most of the residents want the British (like Henry) out of India. In the meantime, Henry is carrying on an affair with his married cook Sajani (Nadita Das). Things get a bit complicated when Henry's wife Laura (Jennifer Ehle) and son Peter (Leopold Benedict)
arrive from England.

I will not say what happens but rest assured it is not good. As they say, passion has a price. The story is compelling. The acting is good all around. I have liked Roache for a long time and this is a good role for him. But the real standout is Bose. Just look at his face if you want proof. And the scenery is magnificent.

Do check this film out and try to see it on the big screen. It is a real beauty.

Cannes Update

Today was the first day of the Cannes Film Festival. Fernando Meirelles's Blindness opened up the festival. Unfortunately, most of the reviews have not been good. I doubt that this will wind up winning anything at the end of the festival. However,
Julianne Moore has been widely praised for her performance in the film. Despite these reviews I will see the film. There are many times that I do not agree with the critics. And I loved the book so I am curious to see the film. But I knew that it would not be easy to adapt.

The next film in competition is an Israeli animation entitled Waltz with Bashir. I have heard that it is generating positive buzz. One person was quoted as saying that it is better than Persepolis. Now, that is saying a lot. We should know more about this film soon.

DVD Mini Review - Head in the Clouds

John Duigan's Head in the Clouds is a most interesting film. The overall theme of film is destiny. In the early 20th a young girl is told her fortune by a palm reader and what she is told comes true.

The story continues in 1933. Gilda (Charlize Theron) is a flighty rich girl who "accidentally" meets student Guy (Stuart Townsend)in England when she needs a favor. The two fall for each other and soon move to Paris. There they have a bohemian life filled with many ups and downs. They share an apartment with Gilda's close friend Mia (Penelope Cruz) who is from Spain. Gilda is trying to get ahead with her career so she is not always loyal to Guy. She and Mia also share a past.

Mia's presence reawakens Guy's feelings about fighting the Fascists in Spain. The two of them eventually go to Spain to help out - Guy to fight and Mia to work as a nurse. Gilda has no interest in such things. I will not say more about the plot except that Gilda and Guy do meet up again.

When the film was released it did not get great reviews and I skipped it when it played at my local cinema. However, I thought that it was quite a good film. It had an intriguing plot and it really held my interest. Theron and Cruz were wonderful. Townsend was good but I think that a sturdier looking actor might have been better. There are some wonderful sex scenes, too.

All in all, I think this is a good film to rent. I'm more than glad that I gave it a chance.

Cannes 2008

I'm a little late in posting this but here is the official selection for The Cannes Film Festival 2008. The Festival runs from May 13 -25.

In Competition

ADORATION directed by Atom EGOYAN
BLINDNESS directed by Fernando MEIRELLES
CHE directed by Steven SODERBERGH
DELTA directed by Kornel MUNDRUCZO
ENTRE LES MURS (THE CLASS) directed by Laurent CANTET
ER SHI SI CHENG JI directed by Zhangke JIA
GOMORRA (GOMORRAH) directed by Matteo GARRONE
IL DIVO directed by Paolo SORRENTINO
L'ÉCHANGE directed by Clint EASTWOOD
LA FRONTIÈRE DE L'AUBE (FRONTIER OF DAWN) directed by Philippe GARREL
LA MUJER SIN CABEZA (THE HEADLESS WOMAN) directed by Lucrecia MARTEL
LE SILENCE DE LORNA (LORNA’S SILENCE) directed by Jean-Pierre et Luc DARDENNE
LEONERA directed by Pablo TRAPERO
LINHA DE PASSE directed by Walter SALLES, Daniela THOMAS
MY MAGIC directed by Eric KHOO
PALERMO SHOOTING (PALERMO SHOOTING) directed by Wim WENDERS
SERBIS directed by Brillante MENDOZA
SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK directed by Charlie KAUFMAN
TWO LOVERS directed by James GRAY
ÜÇ MAYMUN (THREE MONKEYS) directed by Nuri Bilge CEYLAN
UN CONTE DE NOËL (A CHRISTMAS TALE) directed by Arnaud DESPLECHIN
WALTZ WITH BASHIR directed by Ari FOLMAN

Un Certain Regard

A FESTA DA MENINA MORTA (THE DEAD GIRL'S FEAST) directed by Matheus NACHTERGAELE
AFTERSCHOOL directed by Antonio CAMPOS
DE OFRIVILLIGA (INVOLUNTARY) directed by Ruben ÖSTLUND
HUNGER (HUNGER) directed by Steve MCQUEEN
JE VEUX VOIR directed by Joana HADJITHOMAS, Khalil JOREIGE
JOHNNY MAD DOG directed by Jean-Stéphane SAUVAIRE
LA VIE MODERNE (MODERN LIFE) directed by Raymond DEPARDON
LOS BASTARDOS directed by Amat ESCALANTE
MILH HADHA AL-BAHR (SALT OF THIS SEA) directed by Annemarie JACIR
O' HORTEN (O' HORTEN) directed by Bent HAMER
OCEAN FLAME (OCEAN FLAME) directed by Fen Dou LIU
SOI COWBOY directed by Thomas CLAY
TING CHE (PARKING) directed by Mong-Hong CHUNG
TOKYO SONATA (TOKYO SONATA ) directed by Kiyoshi KUROSAWA
TOKYO! directed by Michel GONDRY, Leos CARAX, Joon Ho BONG
TULPAN (TULPAN) directed by Sergey DVORTSEVOY
TYSON directed by James TOBACK
VERSAILLES directed by Pierre SCHOELLER
WENDY AND LUCY (WENDY ET LUCY) directed by Kelly REICHARDT
WOLKE 9 (CLOUD 9) directed by Andreas DRESEN

Out of Competition

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL directed by Steven SPIELBERG
KUNG FU PANDA directed by Mark OSBORNE, John STEVENSON
MARADONA BY KUSTURICA directed by Emir KUSTURICA
SURVEILLANCE directed by Jennifer LYNCH
THE CHASER directed by Hong-Jin NA
THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD directed by Jee-woon KIM
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA directed by Woody ALLEN

Main Competion Jury

President of the jury
Sean PENN, Director
Members of the jury
Jeanne BALIBAR,Actress
Rachid BOUCHAREB,Director
Sergio CASTELLITTO,Actor
Alfonso CUARON,Director
Alexandra Maria LARA,Actress
Natalie PORTMAN,Actress
Marjane SATRAPI,Author, Director
Apichatpong WEERASETHAKUL,Director

Fatih Akin is head of the Un Certain Regard jury.

I will post updates when I can and I will post the winners as well.

Roman de Gare

Roman de Gare is a delicious new French thriller from Claude Lelouch. It focuses on a successful writer named Judith Ralitzer (Fanny Ardant) who has a secret. Thrown into the mix is her secretary Pierre (Dominique Pinor) and a woman that he meets by accident Huguette (Audrey Dana). Oh, there are many other characters in the film as well and they all are pieces in this puzzle.

Sorry to say I can't say more about the plot. That would be spoiling things. The film is Hitchcockian and I enjoyed it very much. The cinematography is beautiful and the acting is terrific (especially Pinor). But that is all I can say. I recommend the film to those of you who your films filled with suspense.

DVD Mini Review - Bella

Bella, written and directed by Alejandro Gomez Monteverde is a good little film. It won an audience award at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival.

It is the story of two lost souls who help each other. Jose (Eduardo Verastegui) was a world champion soccer player and riding high. But something happens and spins his life out of control. When we meet him he is working at his brother Manny's (Manny Perez) restaurant in New York. Nina (Tammy Blanchard) is a waitress who works there. When she finds out that she is pregnant her world is also turned upside down.

This is a simple story and yet it is really quite complicated. It is based on emotion more than anything else. We will eventually find all of the missing pieces and then things will make sense. Along the way we get to meet the rest of Jose's family. They are very warm and wonderful. One of the best things about the film is its portrayal of Latinos. No one is a drug dealer or thief. The film has been called pro life and I suppose that it might be. But I think that it is even more about redemption and friendship.

Bella was a surprise hit at the box office (considering its size). I saw it on DVD which was just find. I think that it is certainly worth checking out.

Young @ Heart

Young @ Heart is director Stephen Walker's wonderful documentary about a group of senior citizens in Northampton, MA who sing in a chorus. The age range is from the 70s to the 90s. But these folks don't sing show tunes or standards. They sing rock and roll and punk songs. And they tour all over the place bringing their special brand of love and inspiration.

Chorus leader Bob Cilman (who is younger at 53) does not pamper these folks. He treats them like he would treat younger people. He is tough and wants them to learn their songs. He has assembled a nifty band to accompany the chorus. Some of the songs they sing are - Should I Stay or Should I Go, Forever Young, Dancing in the Dark, I Want to Be Sedated, I Feel Good and many others.

The main focus of the film are the rehearsals for a show in their home town. They have to learn several new songs. We also get to see them perform some songs at that show as well as a special concert at a local prison. There are many laughs in the film. But there are also tears. Tragedy befalls the group while they are getting ready for their show.

I truly love this film. It made me laugh and cry. I would love to see the chorus perform if they came to my home town. It shows that older people have a lot of life and a lot to give to this world. In this youth obsessed culture we need more movies to show older people in a positive light. I highly recommend this film. So congratulations to the filmmakers and a special congratulations to the Young @ Heart chorus. May you stay forever young!

XXY

XXY is a marvelous Argentinean film by first time director Lucia Puenzo (who also wrote the screenplay). It is a sensitively told story of 15 year old Alex (Ines Efron) who is a hermaphrodite. Her parents (Ricardo Darin and Valeria Bertocelli) have taken her away from Argentina to a rural town in Uraguay in order to help her cope. Her mother has invited a well known doctor Ramiro (German Palacios) and his wife Erika (Carolina Pelleritti) and son Alvaro (Martin Pirayansky) to visit and see what can be done for Alex. But her father doesn't even know why these people are coming. It is because of the possibility of the doctor performing an operation to make Alex into one sex (probably male). Alex has stopped taking the hormones that are supposed to actually make her more of a female. The film also touches, although briefly, the plight of endangered species (Alex's father is a marine biologist).

The story is told without judgment. I felt so sorry for Alex. There is no room in this cruel world for people like her who are different. Several events happen and one of them is life changing for Alvaro, who develops a fondness for Alex. All of the acting is terrific. Darin is a favorite actor of mine and he does wonderful work here as Alex's sensitive dad. And you Efron is just amazing as Alex. She and Puenzo have won several awards at festivals and the film won the top prize at Critics Week at last year's Cannes Film Festival.

The film is playing only at one theater in NYC. It is a very small release. But the distributor told me that the DVD will be released in November. So make note of that and put it on your list of DVDs to see (because seeing it in the theater will be tough) when it comes out.