09/31/03 (Theatre) (First Viewing)
Cinemania (2003) - At first this documentary about four self-titled "cinaphiles"seems rather comical- until it dawns on you how serious these people are about their movies.
They spend all day, every day, all year, rushing from film screening to film screening in New York City. They don't have a social life, their homes are a nightmare, and their film
knowledge unbelievable. One man comments how once he saw over 1,000 films in an eight month period of time, another admits he'd miss going to a wedding, funeral or seeing a
loved one in the hospital if it coincided with a film screening. You think "why don't these people get a life?," but that's the point of the film- these people have created a life for
themselves through the magic and illusion of film, and are largely unashamed of the fact. It's not always as compelling as it could and should be, but overall this documentary is a
fascinating look at how a pleasurable pastime can become a consuming obsession.
09/31/03 (DVD) (First Viewing)
The Bishop's Wife (1947) - I just knew going into this one I wasn't going to like it, but sometimes for Fixing you have to play through the pain. Aside from the awesome
boy's choir (in probably the best scene in the movie), there's not much here that's of interest to anybody not a fan of these types of classic Hollywood comedy/romances. Cary
Grant plays Cary Grant as an angel, David Niven is a crusty Bishop trying to build a new cathedral, Loretta Young is Niven's suffering wife who just wants her loving husband back,
etc., etc. Just a little too corny for me.
10/01/03 (VHS) (First Viewing)
A Face in the Crowd (1957) - This is sometimes described as on of Kazan's early masterpieces, so naturally I was interested. But like Network which would follow two
decades later, this serious-minded media expose just failed to grip me in any way. The always excellent Patricia Neal is good as always, and though too over-the-top for my tastes,
Andy Griffith makes an effective media-made monster. Just a little too earnest, a little too long, just overall not as good as I had hoped.
10/02/03 (Theatre) (First Viewing)
Une femme de menege (The Housekeeper) (2003) - This is a rare film I had absolutely no reaction to- I neither liked it or disliked it. It's mildly amusing French fluff
with a sexy edge to it, but its quickly forgotten (I think most of it was gone by the time I reached my dorm room twenty minutes after it ended).
10/03/03 (VHS) (First Viewing)
Muriel (1963) - My first reaction was that of major dissapointment- I couldn't help think that my man Alain Resnais had lost his touch after his masterful Last Year at
Marienbad. But then I spent about an hour researching it, and the effort revealed an intricate masterpiece that I wasn't expecting. It's so perfectly structured that every word, action,
edit, color, etc. had a specific and deliberate meaning and role. It all basically reinforced what it is that I love so much in Resnais' work. Though I'd rank it fifth out of the six films
that I've seen from Resnais' filmography, I'd have no problem calling it a masterpiece, or at least as close to one as one can get.
10/06/03 (VHS) (First Viewing)
Hud (1963) - If I'm perfectly honest, it's not quite as great as I had hoped (or expected), but it's still a darn good film. Paul Newman is one of my three favorite actors, and this is
without a doubt one of his best performances. But he's outshone by Patricia Neal, who rightfully won an Oscar for her performance. It's the most totally carnal performance I've
seen since watching Simone Signoret in Room at the Top several months ago. Melvyn Douglas is great as the moral force in the film, Brandon de Wilde is so painfully bad that you
begin to like him after a while. Great performances, Bernstein score, sense of time and place. Looking forward to its DVD release in the next several months.
10/08/03 (DVD) (First Viewing)
Lord of the Flies (1963) - I was never required to read the book for school, and what little I knew about it didn't compel me to read it on my own. For those reasons, I went
into this film with little expectations, and certainly not expecting the film of great emotional power that I found. It has some problems with coherance (sometimes motivations and
actions seem completely random), but the images get to you (the riot around the fire in the dark has to be one of the most surreal nightmares I've ever encountered in film). The
shocking contrast of the innocence of young boyhood contrasted with the harshness of the environment. Is violence, revenge, and others crimes against humanity something inborn,
a reaction when faced with survival, or caused by something different all together? Am now eager to read the book (currently out in my library) to see how they compare.
10/08/03 (Theatre) (First Viewing)
Casa de los Babys (2003) - This was my first John Sayles film, and to say I was dissapointed would be a massive understatement. Putting the likes of Rita Moreno, Marcia
Gay Harden, Darryl Hannah, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Lili Taylor, Mary Steenburgen into a situation like foreign adoption problems, you'd think there'd be some interest generated.
Sadly, this was not the case. Within minutes of the introduction of all the major characters, I could tell I was not going to like this movie. Casa de los Babys has an unmistakable
structure: b*tching, the revealing of a (largely unenlightening) character flaw, a big monologue, lots of tears, b*tching, the revealing of a (largely unelightening) character flaw, a big
monologue, lots of tears, etc. And every once in a while there's some incoherant social critique thrown in for good measure, represented by the storylines of the homeless boys. Rita
Moreno is a bright spot, and the monologue by the Mexican maid generates some true emotion, but other than that I found this film full of uninteresting characters and even less
interesting dialogue. Even more irritating was the revelations Sayles through in every few minutes that serves no purpose and doesn't propel the plot. For example, in a 30 second
clip we see Mary Steenburgen admitting to a group of Mexican citizens that she's an alcoholic. This is supposed to be shocking, as Steenburgen is the "born-again" and "religious"
member of the group, but nothing ever develops regarding Steenburgen's religious convictions other than a few passing comments, and the alcohalism is never mentioned again. And
I'm supposed to care?!? I can honestly say that I can't remember the last time I've been so completely bored in a movie. It was so bad I wanted to rip my eyeballs out. How people
call this good, let alone a masterpiece, is way beyond anything I can comprehend. One of the worst of the year. I'm still deciding whether or embarrassing stupidityand ineptness of
A Guy Thing outranks the sheer awfulness of Casa de los Babys in the 2003 race. It's a close call.
10/08/03 (DVD) (First Viewing)
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) - I'm not sure how somebody could resist the charms of the movie. On one hand it's a schlocky classic Hollywood love story with an
unconventional twist, but the beauty of Gene Tierney and her chemistry with the brash Rex Harrison, the whimsical tone, the coastline cinematography and above all the marvelous,
uncharacteristic Bernard Hermann score elevates this one above the rest. Definitely one of the best of 1947 that I've seen at this point.
10/10/03 (VHS) (First Viewing)
La Double Vie de Veronique (The Double Life of Veronique) (1991) - Though I can't admit to knowing what was going on most of the time, I can't deny that this
is an incredibly beautiful film. Irene Jacob (who I think strongly resembles a young Ingrid Bergman in this film) is fantastic in fleshing out her dual characters. Quoting the RT
poster Nostalghic, Veronique "beautifully integrates the visuals/style of Blue and the themes (of connectedness) from Red." Even in the muddy VHS copy I watched (I really hope
to see a Trois Colours like DVD treatment appear soon), it's obvious Veronique is stunner on the visual level, and Kieslowski's incorporation of music is virtually unparalleled in my
book, with only his own Bleu the major competition. The single sequence where all these elements (performance, music and visual inventiveness) come together is
during Veronique's dramatic opera scene, and it's one of the single most dazzling sequences I've encountered in cinema.
10/11/03 (DVD) (First Viewing)
Dani and Nico (Krampack) (2000) - Definitely one of the best coming-out-age movies I've encountered as of late. It effectively captures the heightened emotions, confusion
and awkwardness of the pivitol teenage years. Very honest in its treatment of teenage emotional turmoil and sexuality. It's rather slight in style and tone that hurts its overall
impact, but Nico and Dani is a highly enjoyable little film.
10/11/03 (Theatre) (First Viewing)
Under the Tuscan Sun (2003) - It was this or The Fighting Temptations to spend a night out with friends, and I'm very glad they were smart enough to opt for this one.
Much better film than I expected, though it basically amounts to a mundane chick flick/woman fantasy film wrapped up in exquisite Italian wrapping paper. This film does for
Tuscany what To Catch a Thief did for the Riviera- which means it'll make you half-seriously contemplate selling everything you own to buy a plane ticket as soon as humanly
possible. Diane Lane is radient, the rest of the cast is pleasant but not exactly distinctive. Good fun, though admittedly slight.
