DVD Mini Review - The Wedding Song

A (very) few words about The Wedding Song. Karin Albou directs this film with great love. It takes place in Tunisia in 1942. It is the story of two girls who are best friends. Myriam (Lizzie Brochere) is Jewish and Nour (Olympe Borval) is Muslim. But that does not come in the way of their friendship. They live on the same street and their families are friendly too.

But the Nazi invasion changes things. Nour is supposed to marry Khaled (Najib Oudghiri) but since he isn't working her father keeps postponing the wedding. Because of all of the bad things that start happening to the Jews Myriam is forced to marry a man just to help out financially. Raoul (Simon Abkarian) certainly looks a lot older than her so it makes sense that she is not interested. But her mother Tita (played by the director) insists.

I really enjoyed watching this film because we can see that friendship is more important than any cultural differences. Yes, the two girls have many ups and downs - and it is due to the war. But deep down inside they share more similarities than differences. And if we only realized this truth then the world would be a better place. I recommend that you check this film out on DVD or Movies on Demand.

Greenberg and Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Suss

A (very) few words on two films that I saw today. I just don't have much time to write. But I do hope to have my best (favorites) of 2009 posted within the next week.

Greenberg is a good film about a lost soul named Roger Greenberg (a subdued Ben Stiller). He has just gotten out of a mental hospital because of a nervous breakdown. He arrives in LA from NYC and is staying at his vacationing brother's house. He gets involved with his brother's assistant Florence (Greta Gerwig) who is another lost soul. He also tries to mend things with his friend Ivan (Rhys Ifans) and his old girlfriend Beth (Jennifer Jason Leigh).

Writer/Director Noah Baumbach does a good job of making his characters feel real. This must be Stiller's best performance. And Gerwig is a real find. I look forward to seeing what she does in the future. I also liked Ifans. However, Jason Leigh (who is married to Baumbach and who co-wrote the story for the film) has very little to do in an underwritten role - which is too bad because she is a very good actress.

All in all, while not up to the standard of Baumbach's The Squid and the Whale Greenberg deserves to be seen.

Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Suss is a very interesting documentary directed by Felix Moeller. It tells a story that I knew nothing about. German director Viet Harlan was one of Germany's most celebrated filmmakers back in the 30s and 40s. At the beginning he made mostly melodramas. However, with the rise of Nazism he was asked to make Jew Suss, which is one of the most anti-Semitic films ever made.

During the film we see clips from Harlan's films. There are interviews with Harlan's children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews. The big question is did he want to make Jew Suss or was he forced into it with threats? You can draw your own conclusions. In any case, I do recommend this film because it gives us one more piece of history from the darkest period of the 20th century.

Mother and Vincere

Today I had the opportunity to see two excellent foreign films. Although these two films are very different they have in common fantastic female lead performances.

Mother is directed by Joon-ho Bong and is from Korea. The story seems to be a simple one but it is anything but. The unnamed Mother (Hye-Ja Kim) owns a flower/herb shop and she does acupuncture. That is how she makes her modest living. She is always worried about her son Yoon Do-joon (Bin Won). He is a little simple. Mother and son have an abnormally close relationship. When a young schoolgirl is murdered Yoon is immediately convicted as the murderer. Mother does not believe this and she will go all out to prove that he is innocent. Oh, and she really does.

Mother is a most intriguing thriller. It has many twists and turns and it keeps you guessing until the end. And Ms. Kim is just amazing as the Mother.

Vincere (which means win) is completely different but just as good. It is from Italy and directed by Marco Bellocchio (I have see a few of his films and like his style). This film is the story of Ida Dalser (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) who many said was Benito Mussolini's (Filippo Timi) first wife. It was obvious from the start that she was more in love than he was. She got him on his feet. They were supposedly married and she later gave birth to his son Benito Albino. But at some point things fell apart and he married another woman. Ida did not take this sitting down. She let everybody know that she was Mussolini's wife. But there were never any papers found that stated that fact. Eventually she is sent to a mental institution. And when Benito Albino is older he is sent to one as well.

Vincere is a beautifully shot, old fashioned type of sweeping foreign film. I love the way Bellocchio intersperses old footage into the film. Mezzogiorno is outstanding as Ida. And Timo is terrific as Mussolini and Benito Albino as an adult. This film gives us a real sense of history and shows how Mussolini went to believing in one thing (Socialism) and then turning his back on that for Fascism).

Both Kim and Mezzogiorno give performances that are worthy of Oscar nominations. But we know that will not happen. It is too bad because these are two of the best performances of the year so far. I highly recommend that you see these two films. If you can't see them at the theater then rent them or see them on cable (or movies on demand).

Chloe

Chloe, directed by Atom Egoyan, is based on Anne Fontaine's film Nathalie. And, yes, there are many similarities but it is not the same film.

Catherine Stewart (Julianne Moore) is a successful gynecologist. Her husband David (Liam Needson) is a successful professor. They seem to have a good marriage. Or do they? Catherine thinks that David is cheating. So she decides to hire a prostitute named Chloe (Amanda Seyfried) to lure him and see if he accepts the bait. And boy does he ever. But there is much more to this then meets the eye. I had an idea about what to expect because I saw Nathalie. But the film goes into a different directions as it moves along.

Egoyan is an interesting director and I generally like his films (I loved The Sweet Hereafter). Moore is just wonderful as Catherine and Seyfried is terrific as Chloe. And the two of them have terrific chemistry. I liked Neeson but I thought that he was underused (as was Gerard Depardieu in Nathalie). And I loved the way Toronto was filmed.

Many critics have put this film down but take my word for it - it is a good film. It is erotic and suspenseful and I don't understand the critics. But I don't have to listen to them. I can make up my own mind about what films I see. And so shouldyou.

DVD Mini Review - Captian Abu Raed

I want to say a few words about the wonderful film Captain Abu Raed. It is directed and written by first time filmmaker Amin Matalga. It is a simple story that carries a big punch.

Abu Raed (a marvelous Nadim Sawalha) is a janitor at the Amman, Jordan airport. He is also a lonely widower who greets the picture of his wife every time he comes. At the beginning of the film he keeps to himself. But a strange things happens. He finds an airline pilot's hat in the garbage and takes it home. When he wears it the children of the village think he is a captain (hence the name of the film). He tries to deny it but when the kids insist he gives in. He enchants them with stories of far away places (some of which he got from the books that he reads). But things happen and he finds that some of the children have serious problems - especially in one case. Abu Raed goes out of himself and tries to do what he can to help.

There are some very disturbing things in this film. But it is, in some ways, a very uplifting. It is a very humanistic film. Matalga did a great job for a first time filmmaker. And the shots of Amman are breathtaking. This is a must see.

The Runaways

The Runaways is written and directed by Floria Sigismondi. It is based on the book Neon Angel by former Runaway Cherie Currie.

The Runaways was a group of teenage girls who hit it big in the mid 1970s. And, yes, they were very young (15, 16). Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) always wanted to play rock and roll. She formed a group and got connected to producer Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon). He found their lead singer in the angelic looking Currie (Dakota Fanning).

The film is quite conventional. It follows what happens as the group becomes famous. And, of course, there is all the drug and alcohol use. Just remember how young these girls were. Currie gets most of the attention and some of the other band members are not too pleased with that. But she always had a special bond with Jett.

Stewart, Fanning and Shannon are all good in their roles. Tatum o'Neal turns up in a very small cameo as Currie's mother. Eventually, Currie has a meltdown and leaves the group. Jett went on to become a famous rock and roll singer. And that is that.

The Runaways is not a bad film. Sigismondi manages to capture the feel of the era. But it is just not that special. But I had fun watching how things used to be back in the good old days.

Green Zone

Although it has not done well at the box office I must say that Green Zone is a pretty good film. Paul Greengrass has directed the film in his distinctive style. The screenplay was written by Brian Helgeland from a book written by Rajiv Chandrasekaran. The title of the book is Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone.

The film follows a soldier named Miller (Matt Damon). The time is 2003. Miller is very gung ho about finding weapons of mass destruction. But after several raids there are no weapons. In due time he finds out the truth about this illegal war.

The film is made well and held by attention. However, the last action sequence was too long and should have been cut. The film clearly belongs to Damon. Brendan Gleeson, Greg Kinnear and Amy Ryan are there for support but there characters are not very well developed. It doesn't matter because this film is not about characters and acting. It is about finding the truth. And that is why I wish more people were seeing Green Zone. Don't they want to know more about the truth? I do but I guess that most people just don't care. They rather go see such drivel as Teh Bounty Hunter. What can I say? It is the way of the world.

DVD Mini Review - The Stoning of Soraya M.

The Stoning of Soraya M. has a powerful message. The film is directed by Cyrus Nowrasteh and written by him and his wife Betsy Giffin Nowrasteh and it is based on a book which is a true story. It is about how women are treated in the strict Muslim world - the law of Shariah. In this world a woman who cheats on her husband will be stoned to death. Even if it is not true they make things up so they can stone her. What happens to the man involved in this. Nothing. So you can see what this is about.

Shoreh Aghdashloo gives a terrific performance as Soraya's aunt Zahra. She tries her best to help her niece. Mozhan Marno is also very good as the poor Soraya. Soraya's husband Ali (Navid Negahban) goes to prostitutes (no punishment for him) and wants to marry a 14 year old. He wants to divorce Soraya but she is giving him a hard time. So what better way to get rid of her than to make up a story about her. This way he doesn't even have to pay her. He even turns their sons and father against her. Jim Caviezel has a small role as the writer who Zahra tells the story to.

While this is not outstanding cinema it is good and it held my attention. And it has an important message. The only thing that made me wonder was when one of the characters tells Zahra that things not the way they were when the Shah was the ruler. I wonder if that means somehow that someone connected to this film was pro Shah. Well, he was certainly not good. There were many political prisoners in the jails during his reign. And the US installed him and overthrew a popular leader.

In any case, The Stoning of Soraya M. is worth checking out. Just me aware that the stoning is very graphic, very bloody and very hard to watch.

Oscar Nominated Shorts

If you have Movies on Demand (I have it on Time Warner Cable) you can see the Oscar nominated Live Action and Animated Short films. Each set is only five dollars. I only just discovered them and watched them over the weekend. I wish I saw them before the ceremonies (perhaps next year) but they are very well worth watching.

I hope to have my best of 2009 posted soon. I really wanted to get this done before the Oscars but other things were more pressing. So, my list should be ready in a week or two (I hope).

The Yellow Handkerchief

The Yellow Handkerchief is a lovely little film directed by Udayan Prasad. The film is based on a short story by Pete Hamil with a screenplay by Erin Dignam. The story is updated to the time shortly after Hurricane Katrina. William Hurt plays a man named Brett who was just released from jail. He meets up with two young people - Martine (Kristen Stewart) and Gordy (Eddie Redmayne). Both of them have their own issues.

The three of them take a sort of short road trip. During the course of the film we see flashbacks of Brett and his wife May (Maria Bello). Later on we find out what happened with May and why Brett was in jail.

The Yellow Handkerchief rolls out at a leisurely pace. I knew how the film would end but that didn't matter because I still had tears in my eyes. Redmayne's character got on my nerves a bit but Stewart was okay. Bello was very good. She is certainly an underrated actress. And Hurt was wonderful. He once again proves what a fine actor he is.

So, if you can't find this small film in your local theater rent it when it comes out on DVD.

A Prophet

A Prophet is the third foreign film nominee (for this year) that I have seen. And despite almost unanimous raves I have to say that it is the one that I liked the least.

Directed by Jacques Audiard the film is about a young man named Malik (Tahir Rahim) who has been in various juvenile detention centers. Now that he has become of age he is sent to a regular prison. He is an Arab so right away there are problems. He is approached by Luciani (Niels Arestrop) and his gang of thugs. He is to kill another Muslim and he does not do so Luciani will kill him. Well, you can guess what his decision is.

The rest of the film shows how Malik deals with prison life and how he eventually goes to the top of his game. The film is very rough and very violent but that is how a prison film would be.

I thought that the film was well directed. Audiard captured the essence of prison life in a very realistic way. Rahim is terrific as Malik and and he is truly an actor to watch. And Arestrop is unbelievable as the wicked Luciani. All of the other actors were very good as well. However, the script written by Audiard and Thomas Bidegain does not bring anything new to the film. We have seen all of this before. And while the film is never boring it could have been a little shorter (it is two and a half hours).

I do recommend this film to people who want to see all of the Oscar nominees and who also want to support foreign language film (these days foreign films need all the support that they can get). But it is not as good as Ajami and certainly not as good as The White Ribbon (which I thought was outstanding). I haven't seen the Oscar winner The Secret of Their Eyes but I will in May and I am certainly looking forward to it.

DVD Mini Review - Amreeka

Amreeka is a wonderful film written and directed by Cherien Dabis. It is the story of Muna Farah (Nisreen Faour) and her son Fadi (Melkar Muallem). Muna has two degrees and has worked in a bank in Palestine for many years. She is divorced. Fadi would very much move to America and when the opportunity presents itself they leave for "greener pastures." They go to live in suburban Illinois with Muna's sister Raghda (Haim Abbass) and her family. The time is when the Iraq war is getting started.

Muna and Fadi think that things will be better in the US but they are anything but. Muna cannot get a good job so she has to settle for work in a White Castle. Fadi has trouble in school because of anti Arabic sentiment. But there are some who lend a hand - including the school principal Mr. Novatski (Joseph Ziegler) who just happens to be Jewish.

Amreeka is a warm film with a big heart. It shows that even with life's ups and downs there is always room for laughter. The cast is wonderful and Faour really shines. And what can one say about Abbass - she is one of the best actresses working today. As for Dabis, I can't wait to see what she does in the future.

Check Amreeka out on DVD. You won't be sorry that you did.

Oscar Winners 2010

· Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
· Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
· Best Actress: Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
· Best Actor: Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
· Best Foreign Language Film: El Secreto de Sus Ojos, Argentina
· Best Film Editing: Bob Murawski and Chris Innis, The Hurt Locker
· Best Documentary Feature: The Cove
· Best Visual Effects: Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Beneham and Andrew R. Jones, Avatar
· Best Original Score: Michael Giacchino, Up
· Best Cinematography: Mauro Fiore, Avatar
· Best Sound Mixing: Paul N. J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett, The Hurt Locker
· Best Sound Editing: Paul N. J. Ottosson, The Hurt Locker
· Best Costume Design: Sandy Powell, The Young Victoria
· Best Art Direction: Rick Carter, Robert Stromberg and Kim Sinclair, Avatar
· Best Supporting Actress: Mo’nique, Precious
· Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
· Best Adapted Screenplay: Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious
· Best Makeup: Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow, Star Trek
· Best Live Action Short Film: Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson, The New Tenants
· Best Short Subject Documentary: Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett, Music by Prudence
· Best Animated Short Film: Nicolas Schmerkin, Logorama
· Best Original Screenplay: Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
· Best Original Song: Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett, ‘The Weary Kind’, Crazy Heart
· Best Animated Feature Film: Up

Independent Spirit Award Winners

* BEST FEATURE: Precious
* BEST DIRECTOR: Lee Daniels for Precious
* BEST FEMALE LEAD: Gabby Sidibe for Precious
* BEST MALE LEAD: Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart
* BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE: Mo’Nique for Precious
* BEST SUPPORTING MALE: Woody Harrelson for The Messenger
* BEST FIRST FEATURE: Crazy Heart
* JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD: Humpday
* BEST SCREENPLAY: Scott Neustadter, Michael H. Weber for 500 Days of Summer
* BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY: Geoffrey Fletcher for Precious
* BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Roger Deakins for A Serious Man
* BEST DOCUMENTARY: Anvil!
* BEST FOREIGN FILM: An Education
* ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD: Directors and Cast of A Serious Man
* PRODUCERS AWARD: Karen Chien (The Exploding Girl, Santa Mesa)
* SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD: Kyle Patrick Alvarez for Easier With Practice
* TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD: Bill Ross, Turner Ross for 45365

North Face

A few words on North Face, which I saw earlier today.

This German film is very exciting and quite gripping. It is based on a true story which takes place in 1936. The Nazi propaganda machine is trying to get its mountain climbers to scale The Eiger. So far no one has been able to make it to the top and this would be a feather in their cap.

Two reluctant climbers - Toni (Benno Furmann) and Andreas Florian Lukas) - decide to give it a try. Enter Luise (Johanna Wokalek) who used to live nearby. She now lives in Berlin and works for a newspaper. She and Toni have some sort of relationship and at first she is excited by the prospect of them climbing the mountain. But she eventually has great doubts about it. She and her boss Henry Arau (Ulrich Tuker) cover the story for their paper. But Arau is much more interested in the story than the fate of the men.

Director Phillip Stolzl really had me on the edge of my seat. I kept waiting to see what would happen to these men (as well as two climbers from Austria). If you want to see a really good adventure film then North Face is for you.

The Art of the Steal (MOD)

I saw Don Argott's interesting documentary The Art of the Steal on IFC on Demand. It is a very worthwhile film.

The doc is the story of Dr. Albert Barnes. Dr. Barnes did very well with his practice and helped find a vaccine for VD. However, his real passion was art. He spend his money building up a fabulous collection (Matisse, Picasso, Van Gogh, Dali, etc). He did not do this to make money. He did it because he wanted to educate people about art. He set up his center in a suburb of Philadelphia. It was a school but sometimes people were allowed to just see the art. He was a New Deal Liberal and preferred to help the little guy rather than the art elite. And that made some people angry.

One thing that Barnes was very adamant about was that his collection should never me moved out of the center. After his death his assistant remained faithful to his wishes. However, after her death the scavengers came out of the wooodworks. The last part of the film shows the battle between the people who wanted to move the artwork to Philadelphia and those who wanted to keep it where it was.

If you like intelligent documentaries that make you think then check out The Art of the Steal.

DVD Mini Review - The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

Rebecca Miller makes quirky little films that are not for mainstream audiences. I liked her previous film The Ballad of Jack and Rose which boasted a terrific performance by her husband Daniel Day-Lewis. But it was not a film that took off. The same is true of her most recent film The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. Robin Wright (then know as Penn) gives a great performance but the film is not for everyone.

Pippa is married to Herb (Alan Arkin) who is thirty years her senior. They move to a retirement complex in Connecticut. Pippa seems a bit out of place there but she tries to make the best of it. But she is having a very quiet nervous breakdown. She and Herb spend a bit of time with their friends Sam (Mike Binder) and Sandra (Winona Ryder). But things aren't as they appear to be. In addition, a strange man named Chris (Keanu Reeves) moves next door with his mother.

During the film we see flashbacks of the young Pippa (Blake Lively) with her mother Suky (the marvelous Maria Bello). This gives us some understanding of why Pippa is the way she is. We also find out how she met Herb.

Miller adapted the script from her novel of the same name. In addition to the above mentioned actors there are cameos by Julianne Moore and Monica Bellucci. It is an interesting film and I quite liked it. But it certainly is not heavy on the plot and, as I said before, it will be too quirky for many.