As I continue to view and explore those canonical films of the past I've come to the following conclusions:
1) I wish I had been born forty years earlier (and lived in a culturally active city) so I could have seen the great craftsmen (Kurosawa, Bergman, Goddard, Bresson, etc) and their works when they came out originally.
2) I love films that tackle BIG themes and I wish more would do so in this day and age. There is nothing more fascinating to me than Bergman tackling the idea of religion or Tarkovsky asking what true love is.
And since I can't be born earlier than I was, I want to implore the filmmakers of the cinematic world to start making BIG theme films. Sure we are going to get a lot of crap but were occasionally going to get a great film. The key is to never propose an answer, just set up the question probe the edges a bit and leave us thinking for ourselves. Fellow blogger cinemaromantico just posted a rant on similar themes and gave us this great line "I hold the high the opinion that a movie can only explain the most pertinent, most essential mysteries of life without truly discussing them." (Cinema Romantico)
Three of my favorite films ever all deal with BIG nay HUGE themes, some multiple themes. Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris handles love, memory, and countless other themes. Ingmar Bergman's Winter Light deals with the silence of god, love (again), miscommunication, and I could go on and on. And of course Terrence Malick's Thin Red Line well sweet maria what doesn't it tackle: war, peace, paradise, paradise lost, religion, love (yet again), sacrifice, man, nature and it goes on and on. And I love every one of those movies because they have a thousand points to investigate and you are rewarded with something great each and every time you view it.
As soon as I can make sense of my own thoughts (and probably after reviewing each a couple of times just to remind me how fantastic they are) I plan to rant at length on each of these films. Of course that is a big as soon as, since my mind is a jumble of desire to vomit forth everything I am thinking about each and every scene in these movies. Which would not only bore the life out of all you obligatory readers but would probably make people angry as well.
So I'm here waiting for a movie that will tell a story worth telling and while its going along suddenly I'll wide eyed and smiling realize holy crap its not just about the story, its about ten thousand things more. Its about love and mistakes and the human condition and sweet maria these movie is wonderful. Is that too much to ask?
Friday, September 19, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Haxan
Sweet maria. What the hell did I just watch? Attempting to equate witchcraft of the past with modern day psychological disorders but via a crazy story of witch craft with re-enacted scenes of the most bizarre and strange kind. Benjamin Christensen's strange documentary at times makes use of real documents such as plates from various books on witchcraft and at times uses actors and sets to show either the fear and paranoia of earlier ages or the nature of witch craft practices.
It is at times bizarre, at times strangely comical and at times down right confounding. Most mesmerizing are those scenes of witch ritual often with Christensen himself parading around as Satan and the strangest things occurring. Favorite moment: a skeletal horse walks past the frame and then back again in the background. If you want to see an early experience in crazy cult film style film making, this one tops the list.
It is at times bizarre, at times strangely comical and at times down right confounding. Most mesmerizing are those scenes of witch ritual often with Christensen himself parading around as Satan and the strangest things occurring. Favorite moment: a skeletal horse walks past the frame and then back again in the background. If you want to see an early experience in crazy cult film style film making, this one tops the list.
Broken Blossoms
Apparently Broken Blossoms was a response to his critics about racism. Its story is one in which an Asian man falls in love with a young white woman. She has an abusive father and after a rough night she winds up under the Asian's care. I found the story uninteresting, the blatant attempt to show he wasn't prejudiced makes it obvious that he really was and it lacks the grandeur of his earlier works. Everyone from the girl to her father and the oriental are the most thinly veiled stereotypes that are not interesting.
Intolerance
D.W. Griffith followed up his controversial Birth of a Nation with a an epic tale inspired by Italian cinema such as Cabiria. Intolerance starts stating Griffith's view of the world. Intolerance happens all the time. It resulted in tragedy throughout history, destroyed love and civilizations and he wants to show it is the same now as it ever was. There are four tales in the film. A tale taking place in ancient Babylon, the story of the Passion of Christ, the telling of the slaughter of the Huguenots and a modern day tale of meddling women activists.
Of the four, the passion gets the least screen time in this long movie. Perhaps because it was and is the best known but that made it for me all the more uninteresting and unnecessary. The Huguenots story was also truncated for reasons that make most of that narrative incomprehensible. But the Babylon sequence is rich and full of life and amazing set design and has a decently engaging story of a woman in love with the king of Babylon. Likewise the story of the modern woman and her struggle to raise her child while her husband is in jail and then her baby is taken away is compelling.
As the film enforces its notion of time and returns repeatedly too a fixed image of a woman rocking a cradle we cut back and forth between these stories. Late in the film as the drama intensifies the cuts come faster and faster and it is effective. You feel the pressure of what is happening. As the tragedies start to mount you feel an ever increasing sense of sorrow. Babylon falls, Christ is crucified, the Huguenots are slaughtered.
This builds to a chase sequence of a car trying to catch a train. Can the woman get a gubernatorial pardon before her husband is hanged? I won't say but depending on your notion of movies you might be disappointed or happy. But the Babylon sequence and the modern tale carry the film. It could have been tighter if they had cut the other two sequences but maybe not. It like its predecessor has its fair share of 19th century Southern elitist biases but doesn't come off as overtly troublesome as Birth of a Nation and seems to be and attempt to silence his critics and shows he clearly missed the point of the criticism.
Of the four, the passion gets the least screen time in this long movie. Perhaps because it was and is the best known but that made it for me all the more uninteresting and unnecessary. The Huguenots story was also truncated for reasons that make most of that narrative incomprehensible. But the Babylon sequence is rich and full of life and amazing set design and has a decently engaging story of a woman in love with the king of Babylon. Likewise the story of the modern woman and her struggle to raise her child while her husband is in jail and then her baby is taken away is compelling.
As the film enforces its notion of time and returns repeatedly too a fixed image of a woman rocking a cradle we cut back and forth between these stories. Late in the film as the drama intensifies the cuts come faster and faster and it is effective. You feel the pressure of what is happening. As the tragedies start to mount you feel an ever increasing sense of sorrow. Babylon falls, Christ is crucified, the Huguenots are slaughtered.
This builds to a chase sequence of a car trying to catch a train. Can the woman get a gubernatorial pardon before her husband is hanged? I won't say but depending on your notion of movies you might be disappointed or happy. But the Babylon sequence and the modern tale carry the film. It could have been tighter if they had cut the other two sequences but maybe not. It like its predecessor has its fair share of 19th century Southern elitist biases but doesn't come off as overtly troublesome as Birth of a Nation and seems to be and attempt to silence his critics and shows he clearly missed the point of the criticism.
Redacted
Redacted certainly tries very hard. Based loosely on a real life tragedy in Iraq involving US soldiers who raped a young Iraqi woman and killed her family. Brian De Palma is right filled with outrage. He and we should be disturbed by such actions. We should wonder why such things happen. It is not per se that these soldiers are evil but in tense and hostile situations the psychological effects of war can be massive. And every time I hear about something that should outrage us, I wonder what the army was doing to try to prevent it. Not that I think there are any clear cut answers. And at the very least the film does make you think and does make you question.
Its format is like a cobbled together documentary. Consisting of "found" footage of a French documentary team, a soldier's video journal and various security cameras from bases and check points, we get the fictional narrative of a military unit responsible for a check point. We see what I guess is pretty close to accurate the procedure of a checkpoint and the frustration of soldiers who lose friends to IEDs and attacks. We see the pressure and the attempts to work off the stress.
The trouble is that it doesn't feel like a documentary, it feels forced and contrived. A gimmick. The acting is a little questionable and the primary evil doers don't really get anything resembling fully fleshed out characters. This is not an attempt to understand all sides nor does that need to be the intent but I think it does a disservice to solving problems to paint people as demons. Perhaps that is the historian in me. Near movie's end we get the briefest and oddest confession of one of the culprits about his brother that seems almost out of place.
The film ends with real photos of tragedy in Iraq that are disturbing and unsettling and clearly that is the point. But I ultimately feel a director as talented as De Palma could have shown us he was angry in a much better film.
Its format is like a cobbled together documentary. Consisting of "found" footage of a French documentary team, a soldier's video journal and various security cameras from bases and check points, we get the fictional narrative of a military unit responsible for a check point. We see what I guess is pretty close to accurate the procedure of a checkpoint and the frustration of soldiers who lose friends to IEDs and attacks. We see the pressure and the attempts to work off the stress.
The trouble is that it doesn't feel like a documentary, it feels forced and contrived. A gimmick. The acting is a little questionable and the primary evil doers don't really get anything resembling fully fleshed out characters. This is not an attempt to understand all sides nor does that need to be the intent but I think it does a disservice to solving problems to paint people as demons. Perhaps that is the historian in me. Near movie's end we get the briefest and oddest confession of one of the culprits about his brother that seems almost out of place.
The film ends with real photos of tragedy in Iraq that are disturbing and unsettling and clearly that is the point. But I ultimately feel a director as talented as De Palma could have shown us he was angry in a much better film.
Babylon A.D.
To the base of adoring fans who have waited breathlessly for my review of Babylon A.D. I deeply apologize. Yeah right, as if anyone who is reading this can really barely contain themselves because a self proclaimed idiot hasn't yet expressed his opinion on a end of summer action film. Plot synopsis? Is there even a point? To sum up: dystopian future, weird psychic lady and Vin Diesel. There is something about religion and science but its so boring I find it hard to even care.
This movie is truly and regrettably awful. Vin Diesel has made a career of sorts playing these tough action heroes some he pulls off moderately well (though I still like him best (and it may be the only movie I liked him in) in Pitch Black). Here he is bland and uninteresting and the camera is moving around so much it really doesn't matter what he does, since you will never see it. Let's all agree to a new rule for movies, if your fight sequence has 10583 cuts in a 45 seconds of film then you need to step back and just give us a few damn seconds of sustained shots.
As the film moves it gets increasingly ludicrous and questionable, has an odd cameo by Lambert Wilson (memorable from Matrix Reloaded (one of the few things that was memorable from that movie) but not memorable here. Then rap it up in a nonsensical way and basically forget or show that all that came before is to no purpose. Thanks Babylon A.D. for reminding me why I am ever a bitter person when it comes to movies.
This movie is truly and regrettably awful. Vin Diesel has made a career of sorts playing these tough action heroes some he pulls off moderately well (though I still like him best (and it may be the only movie I liked him in) in Pitch Black). Here he is bland and uninteresting and the camera is moving around so much it really doesn't matter what he does, since you will never see it. Let's all agree to a new rule for movies, if your fight sequence has 10583 cuts in a 45 seconds of film then you need to step back and just give us a few damn seconds of sustained shots.
As the film moves it gets increasingly ludicrous and questionable, has an odd cameo by Lambert Wilson (memorable from Matrix Reloaded (one of the few things that was memorable from that movie) but not memorable here. Then rap it up in a nonsensical way and basically forget or show that all that came before is to no purpose. Thanks Babylon A.D. for reminding me why I am ever a bitter person when it comes to movies.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Chaplin Mutuals
I want to be Charlie Chaplin. Now I say that not really knowing anything about his life. It could have been miserable for all I know. But his screen presence is downright phenomenal to watch. If I thought for one minute I could pull of his strange waddle I think I'd do it all the time. Watching him perform in the Mutual shorts, a series of twelve shorts he made in 1916-1917 for the Mutual Film Corporation which he wrote, directed and produced (and made a gob load of money for doing) one can't help but admire how gifted he is.
The stories are entertaining and filled with amazing stunts all performed with a fluid grace by Mr. Chaplin. I encourage you to watch them if you never have or revisit them if you saw them once. Each is short and the return on your investment is more than generous. I won't describe each one but merely mention some of my favorite moments from the twelve.
The Floorwalker - one word: escalator.
The Fireman - Chaplin's scaling of a building to rescue a damsel in distress is so wonderfully fluid and graceful.
One A.M. - Chaplin playing drunk is fantastic and although the bed gets much attention as it should, the other props are well used as well. I was particularly fond of the spinning table.
The Count - Chaplin on the dance floor while simultaneously fighting off a rival suitor.
The Pawnshop - When Charlie takes apart a clock that was brought into the shop I was in tears from laughing.
Behind the Screen - It had a pie fight, how can I not love it?
The Rink - Every single skating sequence was wonderful.
The stories are entertaining and filled with amazing stunts all performed with a fluid grace by Mr. Chaplin. I encourage you to watch them if you never have or revisit them if you saw them once. Each is short and the return on your investment is more than generous. I won't describe each one but merely mention some of my favorite moments from the twelve.
The Floorwalker - one word: escalator.
The Fireman - Chaplin's scaling of a building to rescue a damsel in distress is so wonderfully fluid and graceful.
One A.M. - Chaplin playing drunk is fantastic and although the bed gets much attention as it should, the other props are well used as well. I was particularly fond of the spinning table.
The Count - Chaplin on the dance floor while simultaneously fighting off a rival suitor.
The Pawnshop - When Charlie takes apart a clock that was brought into the shop I was in tears from laughing.
Behind the Screen - It had a pie fight, how can I not love it?
The Rink - Every single skating sequence was wonderful.
Frozen River
Ray Eddy (Melissa Leo) is mother of two whose husband has just run off with their savings and left her with the bills and debts and all on only a part time job at a discount store. She is the epitome of the working poor. When she seeks out her husband she discovers his car has been co-opted by a local Indian woman, Lila (Misty Upham) who uses it to smuggle illegal immigrants into the US from Canada. Desperate for money and unable to get ahead in her regular work, Ray forms an uncomfortable alliance with the Mohawk woman to use her car to smuggle immigrants.
This requires the two to drive across the frozen river that separates the US from Canada carrying two immigrants in a trunk. Ray has suspicion in general of Lila and Lila doesn't think too highly of white people and there first few encounters are ones of distrust and racism. In addition Ray has to keep up appearances for her youngest son while trying to keep in line her older son who recognizes the hardship they are in. Her fear of being caught and her anxiety about potentially letting terrorists into the country are outweighed by her crushing need for money.
Overall the film is a fairly devastating character study of a working poor single mother who is fighting against odds stacked against her. The problems of simply feeding her kids is frequently at issue and Ray seems to get no breaks. But in addition it develops a very fascinating relationship between Lila and Ray who overcome there distrust and come to a decent understanding of each other's life.
Melissa Leo carries the story for the most part. The ending might be a bit forced and there are two points in the film that I thought a bit much but overall it was well done. We first see Leo crying at movie's open and you get from moment one a real sense of the mountain she is caring on her shoulders. She never surrenders or gives up despite how hopeless it all seems.
This requires the two to drive across the frozen river that separates the US from Canada carrying two immigrants in a trunk. Ray has suspicion in general of Lila and Lila doesn't think too highly of white people and there first few encounters are ones of distrust and racism. In addition Ray has to keep up appearances for her youngest son while trying to keep in line her older son who recognizes the hardship they are in. Her fear of being caught and her anxiety about potentially letting terrorists into the country are outweighed by her crushing need for money.
Overall the film is a fairly devastating character study of a working poor single mother who is fighting against odds stacked against her. The problems of simply feeding her kids is frequently at issue and Ray seems to get no breaks. But in addition it develops a very fascinating relationship between Lila and Ray who overcome there distrust and come to a decent understanding of each other's life.
Melissa Leo carries the story for the most part. The ending might be a bit forced and there are two points in the film that I thought a bit much but overall it was well done. We first see Leo crying at movie's open and you get from moment one a real sense of the mountain she is caring on her shoulders. She never surrenders or gives up despite how hopeless it all seems.
Elegy
Ben Kingsley plays David Kepesh an aging professor who is facing the reality of old age. He has been for much of his life a perpetual bachelor seducing young women at his university and trying to act younger than he is. He has a good friend played by Dennis Hopper and friend with benefits that he sees every couple of months played by Patricia Clarkson. As the film begins he becomes interested in new student Consuela (Penelope Cruz). The film follows their relationship and Kepesh's struggle with his sense of getting older.
There seem to be a great deal of films dealing with aging professors coming out of recent. Some are better than others and although I should not try to judge a movie based on another I can't help but think the themes here have been done much better. Part of it may be that I don't care about Kepesh as a character. He isn't compelling. His problems are not universal and he's largely immature. And since I don't care what happens to him what is the point of caring about the movie?
There is present a sense of old age and growing old but its shallow and rarely at the front and center. There is nothing to suggest any real issue of age. He is not ailing in health. His mind is sound. Its merely his own perception that he is not the young seducer that he once was. I prefer Peter O'Toole's lecherous old man in Venus to Kingsley's Kepesh in terms of insight into old age and performance. And as far as aging intellectuals and problems that are real last year's Starting Out in the Evening is a better investment of your time.
There seem to be a great deal of films dealing with aging professors coming out of recent. Some are better than others and although I should not try to judge a movie based on another I can't help but think the themes here have been done much better. Part of it may be that I don't care about Kepesh as a character. He isn't compelling. His problems are not universal and he's largely immature. And since I don't care what happens to him what is the point of caring about the movie?
There is present a sense of old age and growing old but its shallow and rarely at the front and center. There is nothing to suggest any real issue of age. He is not ailing in health. His mind is sound. Its merely his own perception that he is not the young seducer that he once was. I prefer Peter O'Toole's lecherous old man in Venus to Kingsley's Kepesh in terms of insight into old age and performance. And as far as aging intellectuals and problems that are real last year's Starting Out in the Evening is a better investment of your time.
Man on Wire
According to Phillipe Petit, he wanted to wire walk across the gap between the Twin Towers even before they were completed. With a goal like that and a seemingly uncrushable spirit and belief that nothing is impossible one can only be amazed at the audacity of the stunt and the compelling nature of its execution. Man on Wire the new film that documents Petit's journey from wire walker obscurity to an amazing feat of human determination is everything I could want in a documentary.
Petit previously had exploits of wire walking between the spires of Notre Dame and across the Syndey Harbor Bridge but those as the film presents it were only amateur practice runs to the difficulty of the stunt he desired to perform. Taking a narrative approach that evokes a great heist movie (and I suspect this would have made an amazing fiction film) we are introduced to the dream, the players who helped make it happen and the journey from youthful dreams to accomplishment of the seemingly impossible.
The story is compelling. The interviews are interesting and heartfelt. The archival footage of Petit and crew planning in France, training and discussing the problems is all wonderfully explored. Dramatic re-enactments are used at times to hint at the anxiety of those moments that are undocumented particularly those inside the towers. But tying this all firmly together and what kept me smiling most of the film was Phillipe Petit.
He is so full of life that one can't help but admire and laugh. Frenetic and excitable he recalls his memories of youth and his dreams so vividly that I'm not sure one needs the re-enactments. Its not hard to imagine a young Petit coming up and asking you "would you like to help me out" and in his enthusiasm finding yourself sneaking into a large building to help him walk a high wire. And it is Petit who is so interesting and lively that is the heart of why this film is so entertaining and heartfelt.
So much so that you can just sense how heartbroken he must have been on 9/11/2001. More recent events are wisely kept out of the film but Petit's dream and realization and the ever present imagery of the Twin Towers cannot help us the viewers from thinking about it. And that makes it all the more poignant. See it, you won't regret it.
Petit previously had exploits of wire walking between the spires of Notre Dame and across the Syndey Harbor Bridge but those as the film presents it were only amateur practice runs to the difficulty of the stunt he desired to perform. Taking a narrative approach that evokes a great heist movie (and I suspect this would have made an amazing fiction film) we are introduced to the dream, the players who helped make it happen and the journey from youthful dreams to accomplishment of the seemingly impossible.
The story is compelling. The interviews are interesting and heartfelt. The archival footage of Petit and crew planning in France, training and discussing the problems is all wonderfully explored. Dramatic re-enactments are used at times to hint at the anxiety of those moments that are undocumented particularly those inside the towers. But tying this all firmly together and what kept me smiling most of the film was Phillipe Petit.
He is so full of life that one can't help but admire and laugh. Frenetic and excitable he recalls his memories of youth and his dreams so vividly that I'm not sure one needs the re-enactments. Its not hard to imagine a young Petit coming up and asking you "would you like to help me out" and in his enthusiasm finding yourself sneaking into a large building to help him walk a high wire. And it is Petit who is so interesting and lively that is the heart of why this film is so entertaining and heartfelt.
So much so that you can just sense how heartbroken he must have been on 9/11/2001. More recent events are wisely kept out of the film but Petit's dream and realization and the ever present imagery of the Twin Towers cannot help us the viewers from thinking about it. And that makes it all the more poignant. See it, you won't regret it.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Running Tally - Part 8
Well this month has been very productive for movie viewing if for nothing else. Granted there were a few really awful movies endured in the course of things but there were also some really refreshing ones as well. And from a disappointing showing of only 7 films last month, I managed a whopping 15 this month. Some were even free. And as the summer movie season ends and the cinematic hope of Fall movies dawns us, I'll maintain my cinematic idealism that there will be films as good this year as last. Though my personal cynicism suspects it won't happen. But fingers crossed. Plus this was the month for documentaries
Month Recap:
The Wackness - largely forgettable
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - the Yetis putting their arms up like American football goal post judges still infuriates me about this awful movie.
Swing Vote - Very weak political satire
Pineapple Express - I laughed a few times, the action sequences were poorly done, and the last act is just terrible and unconvincing.
Gonzo: The Life and Works of Hunter S Thompson - I thoroughly enjoyed this doc on the late Hunter S Thomspon. It was entertaining, educational and heartfelt.
Tell No One - well done and entertaining thriller with its sole big action piece being very well done.
Encounters at the End of the World - Soulful, beautifully shot and asking those deep, difficult, unanswerable questions that I love so much. Fantastic, best film I've seen so far this year.
Tropic Thunder - Not for me. Felt like a parody of a parody of Hollywood. Downey, Jr. was good. Tom Cruise did not impress me.
Vicky Christina Barcelona - if I could afford it right now I'd probably see this one. Allen directs wonderfully and the leads are great. Again it has all that great questioning that I enjoy.
Bottle Shock - Terrible, just terrible.
Death Race - If you can on occasion just sit and watch a mindless action flick this one does well. It doesn't even try to develop its characters and just brings on the gore and explosions.
Man on Wire (review forthcoming) - A fantastic story that feels like a crime caper and is helped along by the sheer vivacity of Phillipe Petit.
Elegy (review forthcoming) - There have been way better tales about people dealing with old age, one of my favorites from last year "Starting Out in the Evening" being notable.
Frozen River (review forthcoming) - Very well done film about a desperate working poor mother.
Babylon A.D. (review forthcoming) - I suppose it was right to leave the summer season with a really terrible summer action film.
And now what you've all come to see, meaningless statistics.
Films Remaining: 28
Days Remaining (As of September 1): 122
Average Number of Films per Day to achieve goal: 0.23
Average Number of Films per Week to Achieve Goal: 1.56
Month Recap:
The Wackness - largely forgettable
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - the Yetis putting their arms up like American football goal post judges still infuriates me about this awful movie.
Swing Vote - Very weak political satire
Pineapple Express - I laughed a few times, the action sequences were poorly done, and the last act is just terrible and unconvincing.
Gonzo: The Life and Works of Hunter S Thompson - I thoroughly enjoyed this doc on the late Hunter S Thomspon. It was entertaining, educational and heartfelt.
Tell No One - well done and entertaining thriller with its sole big action piece being very well done.
Encounters at the End of the World - Soulful, beautifully shot and asking those deep, difficult, unanswerable questions that I love so much. Fantastic, best film I've seen so far this year.
Tropic Thunder - Not for me. Felt like a parody of a parody of Hollywood. Downey, Jr. was good. Tom Cruise did not impress me.
Vicky Christina Barcelona - if I could afford it right now I'd probably see this one. Allen directs wonderfully and the leads are great. Again it has all that great questioning that I enjoy.
Bottle Shock - Terrible, just terrible.
Death Race - If you can on occasion just sit and watch a mindless action flick this one does well. It doesn't even try to develop its characters and just brings on the gore and explosions.
Man on Wire (review forthcoming) - A fantastic story that feels like a crime caper and is helped along by the sheer vivacity of Phillipe Petit.
Elegy (review forthcoming) - There have been way better tales about people dealing with old age, one of my favorites from last year "Starting Out in the Evening" being notable.
Frozen River (review forthcoming) - Very well done film about a desperate working poor mother.
Babylon A.D. (review forthcoming) - I suppose it was right to leave the summer season with a really terrible summer action film.
And now what you've all come to see, meaningless statistics.
Films Remaining: 28
Days Remaining (As of September 1): 122
Average Number of Films per Day to achieve goal: 0.23
Average Number of Films per Week to Achieve Goal: 1.56
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Cabiria
A dear friend decided to watch films in chronological order to educate herself on early film and to watch the progression of film from its origins to the present day. She compiled a list of films from numerous sources stretching from the silent age to the present. I admit I am jealous that I never thought of this and I am amazed at her thoroughness in compiling the list. She was kind enough to share it with me and I have myself began to explore films from this list.
Cabiria was released in 1914 and directed by Giovanni Pastrone. It tells the story of Cabiria a young Roman girl who is lost by her family during an eruption of Vesuvius. She winds up in Carthage to be sacrificed to one of their gods. A Roman spy named Fulvius Axilla in Carthage entwines his fate to her's and rescues Cabiria. Thus we see partially through the eyes of a Roman commander the great Punic War waged between Carthage and Rome from 218 to 201 BCE.
The story if solid if a bit jingoistic and the national fervor of Romans defeating Carthaginians is easy to read as referencing the Italo-Turkish war that occurred a couple years before. But it is entertaining nonetheless for its side stepping history and telling a story within the time frame. The sets are fantastic and I was particularly pleased with the Temple of Moloch sequence. In fact as far as early cinema is concerned it is impressive that such long narrative is maintainable with no dialog and sparse inter-titles.
I've already mentioned the temple of Moloch sequence which is worth repeating. The sets for the temple itself are wonderful, the sacrifice room is so well decorated. Then the escape sequence which is at times a bit slapstick but nevertheless riveting. Later in the film Roman soldiers make a human stair to let Fulvius gain access to a town and it is wonderful to watch and a marvel to think of accomplishing. It is these little moments and the realization that no one had done these things much before that really stay with you.
Cabiria was released in 1914 and directed by Giovanni Pastrone. It tells the story of Cabiria a young Roman girl who is lost by her family during an eruption of Vesuvius. She winds up in Carthage to be sacrificed to one of their gods. A Roman spy named Fulvius Axilla in Carthage entwines his fate to her's and rescues Cabiria. Thus we see partially through the eyes of a Roman commander the great Punic War waged between Carthage and Rome from 218 to 201 BCE.
The story if solid if a bit jingoistic and the national fervor of Romans defeating Carthaginians is easy to read as referencing the Italo-Turkish war that occurred a couple years before. But it is entertaining nonetheless for its side stepping history and telling a story within the time frame. The sets are fantastic and I was particularly pleased with the Temple of Moloch sequence. In fact as far as early cinema is concerned it is impressive that such long narrative is maintainable with no dialog and sparse inter-titles.
I've already mentioned the temple of Moloch sequence which is worth repeating. The sets for the temple itself are wonderful, the sacrifice room is so well decorated. Then the escape sequence which is at times a bit slapstick but nevertheless riveting. Later in the film Roman soldiers make a human stair to let Fulvius gain access to a town and it is wonderful to watch and a marvel to think of accomplishing. It is these little moments and the realization that no one had done these things much before that really stay with you.
Andrei Rublev
Nine months ago I discovered the wonderful world of Andrei Tarkovsky. I found his first feature film Ivan's Childhood so starkly beautiful that I proclaimed it one of the most beautiful film I had ever seen. (http://movieidiot.blogspot.com/2007/11/ivans-childhood.html). And I can still recall what I found to be the most beautiful shot in the film vividly. But not only was the film so wonderful to view for its cinematography but it also had a dark and wonderful story of a boy of lost innocence in war. Unfortunately Tarkovsky's second film Andrei Rublev was far more difficult for me to get through. It was long and I only got about half way through before giving up and returning it. And so now nine months later I re-rented it and attempted round two.
The titular character was an icon painter in 15th century Russia and the story follows him as he goes through his life. But at times he is not the central character but rather an observer and practically invisible for sections of the film. It is an impressive manipulation of narrative. Admittedly I found the story less interesting than his first but one must respect that same attention to detail. The fact that he really wants to push the boundaries of what story telling can do. Tarkovsky is a film maker like we don't really see anymore. One who is constantly pushing at the edges shwoing what can be done with images, symbolism, narrative.
The fact that the titular character disappears at times reveals that the real protagonist is Russia itself. From the grandeur of painting cathedrals to the horror of Tartar hoards destroying and pillaging a town one cannot help but be intrigued. And the film concludes with a long narrative about a boy who is set on making a bell despite knowing nothing about how to do so. The climax of that sequence is poignant and amazing. I admit that this one didn't enthrall me that much but I could never deny that I was watching a genius work and that in all likelihood I was missing something. But enduring it is worth the effort.
The titular character was an icon painter in 15th century Russia and the story follows him as he goes through his life. But at times he is not the central character but rather an observer and practically invisible for sections of the film. It is an impressive manipulation of narrative. Admittedly I found the story less interesting than his first but one must respect that same attention to detail. The fact that he really wants to push the boundaries of what story telling can do. Tarkovsky is a film maker like we don't really see anymore. One who is constantly pushing at the edges shwoing what can be done with images, symbolism, narrative.
The fact that the titular character disappears at times reveals that the real protagonist is Russia itself. From the grandeur of painting cathedrals to the horror of Tartar hoards destroying and pillaging a town one cannot help but be intrigued. And the film concludes with a long narrative about a boy who is set on making a bell despite knowing nothing about how to do so. The climax of that sequence is poignant and amazing. I admit that this one didn't enthrall me that much but I could never deny that I was watching a genius work and that in all likelihood I was missing something. But enduring it is worth the effort.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Death Race
Well what can one really say about Death Race. Ever so loosely based on the 1975 Roger Corman produced classic Death Race 2000, the film proudly displays Corman's name at the opening titles. Jensen Ames (Jason Statham) is a former professional race car driver who has just been laid off in the ever increasingly bad US economy. He's framed for his wife's murder and sent to Terminal Prison, a modern day Alcatraz run by a greedy corporation and supervised by Hennessey (Joan Allen). The pride and joy of Terminal Prison is "Death Race" a grueling, kill or be killed race over three days. The winner of five races gets released from prison.
The star of Death Race "Frankenstein" has been killed and Hennessey needs a replacement driver. The racers are characters themselves, notable Tyrese Gibson as Machine Gun Joe a driver with a grudge against Frankenstein. Then there is the pit crew with notable Ian McShane as "Coach". And blah, blah, blah. Honestly do you even care? I saw the movie and I can't say I cared. What do you need to know? Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson you should probably know that. He's direct a fair amount of horrible films and a fair share of watchable if not in any way great films. Hot busy women? check. Fast cars and race sequences? check. Gratuitous violence and gore? check.
In the end the film was mindless but at times mindless can be good. I can barely recall any major plot developments. There were a fair amount of silly scenes that aren't worth repeating. But you get the races and the blood and it doesn't take itself that seriously. You can easily scarf down a bag full of popcorn and not feel like you've lost that much of your life. I do want to stress it is not a "good" action film. It just happened to make me chuckle a few times and I didn't walk out filled with a desire to set fire to something (not that any movie has ever done that).
The star of Death Race "Frankenstein" has been killed and Hennessey needs a replacement driver. The racers are characters themselves, notable Tyrese Gibson as Machine Gun Joe a driver with a grudge against Frankenstein. Then there is the pit crew with notable Ian McShane as "Coach". And blah, blah, blah. Honestly do you even care? I saw the movie and I can't say I cared. What do you need to know? Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson you should probably know that. He's direct a fair amount of horrible films and a fair share of watchable if not in any way great films. Hot busy women? check. Fast cars and race sequences? check. Gratuitous violence and gore? check.
In the end the film was mindless but at times mindless can be good. I can barely recall any major plot developments. There were a fair amount of silly scenes that aren't worth repeating. But you get the races and the blood and it doesn't take itself that seriously. You can easily scarf down a bag full of popcorn and not feel like you've lost that much of your life. I do want to stress it is not a "good" action film. It just happened to make me chuckle a few times and I didn't walk out filled with a desire to set fire to something (not that any movie has ever done that).
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Fall Movies
As the summer winds down and the blatant blockbusters are replaced by the blatant Oscar seeking films a warm feeling comes over me. Because even if the year isn't as great as last year, I have confidence that at least one or two gems will surface and its films like that which keep me driving on and hoping to find that great classic. EW just released its Fall Preview issue and having read through it I am interested in the following upcoming films.
Miracle at St. Anna - Spike Lee can make a really good movie and I'm interested to see how he tackles the WW2 genre.
Burn After Reading - I'm a bit wary of Cohen Brothers comedies but I'm giving them a chance to wow me in comedy they way the wowed me in drama last year. (Interesting side note: while viewing a trailer last night of this film in a crowded theater, everyone seemed unsure and uneasy about it until they saw the Cohens named and then they thought it looked really good and funny. Power of a name for you)
Appaloosa - Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen as strong silent type cowboys in the old school style. Sounds similar to Open Range a few years back and I always love a good traditional western.
Righteous Kill - Mainly its the fanboy in me, hoping for great things from the pairing of DeNiro and Pacino.
The Duchess - Kiera Knightly is pretty and she's actually been fairly impressive as an actress in her last few dramatic roles plus Ralph Fiennes.
Elite Squad - reference was made to City of God which was an excellent film although from all I can tell the only connection is that both films are Brazilian.
Body of Lies - Ridley Scott directing DiCaprio and Russell Crowe in a thriller (yeah expectations are high but these guys have earned it)
RocknRolla - I've never seen the disaster that was Swept Away or the recent critical bomb Revolver but Guy Ritchie still has a place in my cinematic heart thanks to Snatch and especially Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels.
W. - I'm just intrigued by what Oliver Stone will do with it.
Synechdoche, New York - Philip Seymour Hoffman, Katherine Keener and Charlie Kaufman (again just a hope I'm not let down by that promise)
Brothers Bloom - from the director of Brick (which was excellent) plus Mark Ruffalo
The Road - I just started reading this and in one day I'm halfway through. Its surprisingly compelling as a story. Viggo Mortensen feels like pretty good casting from what I can tell.
The Soloist - Joe Wright impressed me with Pride and Prejudice, underwhelmed me with Atonement (though he floored my friend Nick) and I'm eager to see what he has up his sleeve next. Throw Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr into the mix and my interest is peeked.
Quantum of Solace - I enjoyed Casino Royale quite a bit and am interested in returning to the new Bond.
Revolutionary Road - I'd probably see it just to see DiCaprio and Winslett act circles around everyone but it actually sounds really intriguing as well.
The Curious Case of Benjamen Button - David Fincher really impressed me with Zodiac
And of course I'm hopeful of a rare gem of a foreign film along the way as well.
Miracle at St. Anna - Spike Lee can make a really good movie and I'm interested to see how he tackles the WW2 genre.
Burn After Reading - I'm a bit wary of Cohen Brothers comedies but I'm giving them a chance to wow me in comedy they way the wowed me in drama last year. (Interesting side note: while viewing a trailer last night of this film in a crowded theater, everyone seemed unsure and uneasy about it until they saw the Cohens named and then they thought it looked really good and funny. Power of a name for you)
Appaloosa - Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen as strong silent type cowboys in the old school style. Sounds similar to Open Range a few years back and I always love a good traditional western.
Righteous Kill - Mainly its the fanboy in me, hoping for great things from the pairing of DeNiro and Pacino.
The Duchess - Kiera Knightly is pretty and she's actually been fairly impressive as an actress in her last few dramatic roles plus Ralph Fiennes.
Elite Squad - reference was made to City of God which was an excellent film although from all I can tell the only connection is that both films are Brazilian.
Body of Lies - Ridley Scott directing DiCaprio and Russell Crowe in a thriller (yeah expectations are high but these guys have earned it)
RocknRolla - I've never seen the disaster that was Swept Away or the recent critical bomb Revolver but Guy Ritchie still has a place in my cinematic heart thanks to Snatch and especially Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels.
W. - I'm just intrigued by what Oliver Stone will do with it.
Synechdoche, New York - Philip Seymour Hoffman, Katherine Keener and Charlie Kaufman (again just a hope I'm not let down by that promise)
Brothers Bloom - from the director of Brick (which was excellent) plus Mark Ruffalo
The Road - I just started reading this and in one day I'm halfway through. Its surprisingly compelling as a story. Viggo Mortensen feels like pretty good casting from what I can tell.
The Soloist - Joe Wright impressed me with Pride and Prejudice, underwhelmed me with Atonement (though he floored my friend Nick) and I'm eager to see what he has up his sleeve next. Throw Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr into the mix and my interest is peeked.
Quantum of Solace - I enjoyed Casino Royale quite a bit and am interested in returning to the new Bond.
Revolutionary Road - I'd probably see it just to see DiCaprio and Winslett act circles around everyone but it actually sounds really intriguing as well.
The Curious Case of Benjamen Button - David Fincher really impressed me with Zodiac
And of course I'm hopeful of a rare gem of a foreign film along the way as well.
Bottle Shock
In 1976, the year of the US Bicentennial, a British oenophile staged a contest between French wines and California wines as a stunt. It was like a shot heard round the world when the winners of the tasting by French professionals was not French wine but Napa Valley wine. The film based on a true story attempts to tell this tale. Attempts I say because although it is certainly a important point in history and does seem worthy of a tale, I'm not convinced this was it.
People will think of Sideways when they hear or see this, not because it is anything like that film but because its about wine and has lots of wine lingo interspersed in its dialog. Whereas that film had interesting characters and nice driving plot, Bottle Shock flounders in mediocrity and one dimensional characters. It feels unnuanced, seems more interested in building a boring subplot of a love triangle than anything else and has inexplicable leaps in sense.
Bill Pullman plays a perfectionist asshole wine maker, Chris Pine plays his lazy, hippie son and so on and so on. It doesn't have any real laughs, the agonizingly forced love triangle which gets no interesting resolution and a climax that is already a known and forgone conclusion and thus totally uninteresting. It basically feels like a mess of lazy film making and writing in hopes of making a few dollars off other people's success.
People will think of Sideways when they hear or see this, not because it is anything like that film but because its about wine and has lots of wine lingo interspersed in its dialog. Whereas that film had interesting characters and nice driving plot, Bottle Shock flounders in mediocrity and one dimensional characters. It feels unnuanced, seems more interested in building a boring subplot of a love triangle than anything else and has inexplicable leaps in sense.
Bill Pullman plays a perfectionist asshole wine maker, Chris Pine plays his lazy, hippie son and so on and so on. It doesn't have any real laughs, the agonizingly forced love triangle which gets no interesting resolution and a climax that is already a known and forgone conclusion and thus totally uninteresting. It basically feels like a mess of lazy film making and writing in hopes of making a few dollars off other people's success.
Vicky Christina Barcelona
When Woody Allen is on his game, he can make a deeply satisfying movie. When he isn't on his game, watching his work is excruciatingly painful. It was deeply satisfying to watch Vicky Christina Barcelona. It is perhaps not a complete masterpiece but it is one of his better films in some time. Its well acted, well constructed and searches deeply to the answer of some interesting questions about love and companionship.
Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is logical, reserved, happily engaged and seeking to finish a thesis on Catalan Identity in Barcelona. Christina (Scarlett Johansson) is irrational, free spirited, single and seeking art and semi hedonism as she accompanies Vicky. As the two explore Barcelona they meet Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem) a passionate painter who speaks directly and has a good share of emotional issues relating to his life and ex-wife. The three have a complicated relationship throughout the film. Vicky is torn between the comfort of her boring fiance and the excitement of the wild Juan Antonio. Christina sense a similarity of spirit in Juan Antonio. He sees compatibility in Christina but something intriguing in Vicky.
In the mix is Juan Antonio's ex Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz). Maria Elena is a fireball of emotion with a love and conflict with Juan Antonio. The film revolves around these people as it tries to find a particular form of love and companionship. Their actions feel real and unforced. There are moments of pain and joy and it all is very effective. It is all set to the backdrop of the beautiful Barcelona. Allen uses a narrator for much of the film and I am typically angered by voice over but here it has purpose. He advances the story through the mundane details and we therefore experience a summer and life in interesting vignettes.
There are excellent performances by the leads here. Bardem's Spanish lover is nuanced enough that he is not just a stereotype and while you will get no overtones of his rule following sociopath of last year's No Country For Old Men you can see he is in fact an excellent actor. Penelope Cruz is wonderful doing well in both Spanish and English as the fiery passion and art inspiring whirlwind. Woody Allen has a talent for finding roles that are perfect for the somewhat limited ability of Scarlett Johansson. Rebecca Hall just is utterly charming to watch. Her uncertainty mixed with her unrestrained moments are just so much fun. She's beautiful and smart and I confess to having a crush on her very early in the film as she tries to rationalize away her own feelings.
And kudos to Allen for doing what so few in film are willing to do. Sometimes things don't turn out well in the end. Sometimes we don't learn from our mistakes or we don't reach a new understanding. Sometimes we end up right back where we started and we have to start all over in hopes of finding the answer. The end of this film was so great for me. It felt right and natural and yes a little depressing but perfect.
Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is logical, reserved, happily engaged and seeking to finish a thesis on Catalan Identity in Barcelona. Christina (Scarlett Johansson) is irrational, free spirited, single and seeking art and semi hedonism as she accompanies Vicky. As the two explore Barcelona they meet Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem) a passionate painter who speaks directly and has a good share of emotional issues relating to his life and ex-wife. The three have a complicated relationship throughout the film. Vicky is torn between the comfort of her boring fiance and the excitement of the wild Juan Antonio. Christina sense a similarity of spirit in Juan Antonio. He sees compatibility in Christina but something intriguing in Vicky.
In the mix is Juan Antonio's ex Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz). Maria Elena is a fireball of emotion with a love and conflict with Juan Antonio. The film revolves around these people as it tries to find a particular form of love and companionship. Their actions feel real and unforced. There are moments of pain and joy and it all is very effective. It is all set to the backdrop of the beautiful Barcelona. Allen uses a narrator for much of the film and I am typically angered by voice over but here it has purpose. He advances the story through the mundane details and we therefore experience a summer and life in interesting vignettes.
There are excellent performances by the leads here. Bardem's Spanish lover is nuanced enough that he is not just a stereotype and while you will get no overtones of his rule following sociopath of last year's No Country For Old Men you can see he is in fact an excellent actor. Penelope Cruz is wonderful doing well in both Spanish and English as the fiery passion and art inspiring whirlwind. Woody Allen has a talent for finding roles that are perfect for the somewhat limited ability of Scarlett Johansson. Rebecca Hall just is utterly charming to watch. Her uncertainty mixed with her unrestrained moments are just so much fun. She's beautiful and smart and I confess to having a crush on her very early in the film as she tries to rationalize away her own feelings.
And kudos to Allen for doing what so few in film are willing to do. Sometimes things don't turn out well in the end. Sometimes we don't learn from our mistakes or we don't reach a new understanding. Sometimes we end up right back where we started and we have to start all over in hopes of finding the answer. The end of this film was so great for me. It felt right and natural and yes a little depressing but perfect.
Tropic Thunder
Tropic Thunder presents four actors trying to film a war movie. These actors run the gamut of Hollywood: aging action stars, funny men desperately trying to earn respect as actors, method actors who go overboard for a role and so on. When problems have the production in trouble, the director decides to direct a guerrilla movie in which his actors don't know what is coming. When something goes wrong and the actors are actually in danger, most of them are so self involved that they don't even realize they are no longer playing at games. The group of actors has its run in with local drug lords in the jungle and try to survive.
Beyond its send up of the action flick, the movie is also heavily focused on sending up Hollywood itself. The actors are all as initially conceived one dimensional. They have ridiculous agents and there is the studio head who is a gruff s.o.b. who swears and yells and threatens to succeed. There is Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) whose action films are not grossing as much any more and whose attempt at critical praise was panned. There is Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) who made a career on fat suits and fart jokes and has a massive drug habit. He too is looking for some critical praise. And then there is the multiple award winning method actor in extreme Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, Jr.) who has undergone a medical form of black face to play an African American soldier.
Each of these portrayals has the makings of humor and certainly the trailers that represent their careers at the opening of the film are over the top but quite humorous. Sadly the promise fizzles out quickly. Much praise has been thrown out for Tom Cruise (called unrecognizable in his makeup) as the obstinate head of the studio. I was at best uncomfortable in most of his scenes (too be sure it could have been the point) and after seeing Cruise's interview with Matt Lauer, imagining him as an asshole isn't much of stretch and so I'm not terrible impressed with his ability to play one.
In fact the whole attempt to satirize the movie industry seems to have been done better by others. Bowfinger was loads of fun. Wag the Dog even had a fair amount of Hollywood satirizing going on. This film doesn't feel like its satirizing Hollywood but rather a hollow image of what the filmmaker thinks we the viewers think Hollywood is. (Got that?) Most of what had potential for humor is sucked out by crude jokes, stupid humor or at its worst focusing the scene on the wrong thing. Notably is the discussion between Downey, Jr and Stiller about playing mentally handicapped people in movies that is interesting but ruined by the repeated and unfunny use of the word "retard."
The movie degenerates pretty quickly especially in the final act as explosions and action set pieces are played up and the actor dilemmas get increasingly ridiculous and uninspiring. Attempts to ground the potential mindfield of the Downey, Jr's character is a real African American constantly pointing out the absurdity of Downey, Jr's portrayal. At times this works and at times it falls as flat as most of the movie. I can scarcely recall laughing at all in this "comedy". Mainly I was just bored and felt it insulted my and the movie goer's intelligence.
Beyond its send up of the action flick, the movie is also heavily focused on sending up Hollywood itself. The actors are all as initially conceived one dimensional. They have ridiculous agents and there is the studio head who is a gruff s.o.b. who swears and yells and threatens to succeed. There is Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) whose action films are not grossing as much any more and whose attempt at critical praise was panned. There is Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) who made a career on fat suits and fart jokes and has a massive drug habit. He too is looking for some critical praise. And then there is the multiple award winning method actor in extreme Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, Jr.) who has undergone a medical form of black face to play an African American soldier.
Each of these portrayals has the makings of humor and certainly the trailers that represent their careers at the opening of the film are over the top but quite humorous. Sadly the promise fizzles out quickly. Much praise has been thrown out for Tom Cruise (called unrecognizable in his makeup) as the obstinate head of the studio. I was at best uncomfortable in most of his scenes (too be sure it could have been the point) and after seeing Cruise's interview with Matt Lauer, imagining him as an asshole isn't much of stretch and so I'm not terrible impressed with his ability to play one.
In fact the whole attempt to satirize the movie industry seems to have been done better by others. Bowfinger was loads of fun. Wag the Dog even had a fair amount of Hollywood satirizing going on. This film doesn't feel like its satirizing Hollywood but rather a hollow image of what the filmmaker thinks we the viewers think Hollywood is. (Got that?) Most of what had potential for humor is sucked out by crude jokes, stupid humor or at its worst focusing the scene on the wrong thing. Notably is the discussion between Downey, Jr and Stiller about playing mentally handicapped people in movies that is interesting but ruined by the repeated and unfunny use of the word "retard."
The movie degenerates pretty quickly especially in the final act as explosions and action set pieces are played up and the actor dilemmas get increasingly ridiculous and uninspiring. Attempts to ground the potential mindfield of the Downey, Jr's character is a real African American constantly pointing out the absurdity of Downey, Jr's portrayal. At times this works and at times it falls as flat as most of the movie. I can scarcely recall laughing at all in this "comedy". Mainly I was just bored and felt it insulted my and the movie goer's intelligence.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Forthcoming
Recently I've been thinking of trying to write essays on films and why they are so magical to me. So along with my reviews I will try to write said essays much as my cinematic arena essay on The Diving Bell and the Butterfly:Fathers and Sons.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Encounters At The End Of The World
The greatest thing about writing a review about a documentary? No plot synopsis. Encounters at the End of the World is the newest documentary from Werner Herzog. Simply put its about Antarctica. But nothing with Herzog is every simply put. Herzog journeys to the continent of ice inspired by underwater photography but it is not simply a documentary about sea creatures under the glacier. In fact the film touches on several researches going on there including volcanology, seal and penguin studies.
Herzog is not just interested in nature, he is interested in mankind as well. What drives man to do what he does. And Antarctica provides a unique possibility for finding some of those answers. What drives men and women from all walks of life to arguably the most inhospitable place on Earth? The film is filled with absolutely gorgeous photography of icy landscapes, exotic alien undersea life and enduring colonies of penguins and volcanoes and anything else you can imagine. By contrast there is the particularly jarring return regularly to McMurdo station a sprawling eye sore of industrial human presence in a virtually unspoiled landscape.
Inside the industrial nightmare are a menagerie of adventurers and scientists. Herzog takes time to put some of these men and women before his camera and to investigate what drove them to come to this land. They are ultimate dreamers. It is a sad realization that most of us will never go to places like Antarctica, many of us will never leave our home countries and some will never leave their home states. But here at the end of the world are people who escaped despotic oppression or threw off societal collars and came to live in a wonderland of fantasy.
Herzog is so good at contrasting man and nature and the drive of human beings. His film feels like a philosophic dissertation on man. To be sure it is scattered. It does not focus on one thing. It seems clear that you could make a documentary about almost any one of the many things going on at the strange southern continent. But the scattering gives both a broad view of the many marvels of an exotic land and feels fitting as one searches for the answer to a question that is by its nature perhaps unanswerable.
There is even a since of regret that such great natural places were not left untarnished. A short discourse on man's need to claim and conquer the final frontier brings on a melancholy to Herzog, emphasized by an interview with a glory seeker who wishes to hop on a pogo stick to the South Pole. It is enormously satisfying to watch a film whose concern is the human condition without the wider worries of our everyday world. There is little mention of global warming in this picture not because it isn't a serious threat but rather because the foregone conclusion of the film is that humans life will end in one way or another.
This film may well inspire some to throw off constraints of their lives and seek out Antarctica themselves. But even if it doesn't you should at least see it and for two hours explore a world you can't quite imagine and ask questions you can't easily answer. It is an experience you won't regret.
Herzog is not just interested in nature, he is interested in mankind as well. What drives man to do what he does. And Antarctica provides a unique possibility for finding some of those answers. What drives men and women from all walks of life to arguably the most inhospitable place on Earth? The film is filled with absolutely gorgeous photography of icy landscapes, exotic alien undersea life and enduring colonies of penguins and volcanoes and anything else you can imagine. By contrast there is the particularly jarring return regularly to McMurdo station a sprawling eye sore of industrial human presence in a virtually unspoiled landscape.
Inside the industrial nightmare are a menagerie of adventurers and scientists. Herzog takes time to put some of these men and women before his camera and to investigate what drove them to come to this land. They are ultimate dreamers. It is a sad realization that most of us will never go to places like Antarctica, many of us will never leave our home countries and some will never leave their home states. But here at the end of the world are people who escaped despotic oppression or threw off societal collars and came to live in a wonderland of fantasy.
Herzog is so good at contrasting man and nature and the drive of human beings. His film feels like a philosophic dissertation on man. To be sure it is scattered. It does not focus on one thing. It seems clear that you could make a documentary about almost any one of the many things going on at the strange southern continent. But the scattering gives both a broad view of the many marvels of an exotic land and feels fitting as one searches for the answer to a question that is by its nature perhaps unanswerable.
There is even a since of regret that such great natural places were not left untarnished. A short discourse on man's need to claim and conquer the final frontier brings on a melancholy to Herzog, emphasized by an interview with a glory seeker who wishes to hop on a pogo stick to the South Pole. It is enormously satisfying to watch a film whose concern is the human condition without the wider worries of our everyday world. There is little mention of global warming in this picture not because it isn't a serious threat but rather because the foregone conclusion of the film is that humans life will end in one way or another.
This film may well inspire some to throw off constraints of their lives and seek out Antarctica themselves. But even if it doesn't you should at least see it and for two hours explore a world you can't quite imagine and ask questions you can't easily answer. It is an experience you won't regret.
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