>>>FILM 
Every week, the ŏracult provides you with a definitive guide to the best in the latest releases as well as old classics. We're no experts, we just have incredibly good taste that's all.
La double vie de Veronique, Krzysztof Kieslowski
25 December
don bobbo 2003
I saw it for the second time, finally.. after much toil
in looking for the rare DVD. One of my favourite films, certainly Kieslowski's
best but I would say
Irène Jacob was slightly more mature in the film Rouge. Her
performance in La double vie de Véronique, too, is wonderfully nuanced to
the final touch.
Here I go again. What stands out is her, the music, and the imagery. That is it,
and there isn't a single flaw. The experience, that's what it's all about. The
light, the color, the sound - THAT is what film is! And seeing this film is what
made me realize this! It does not matter whether it is set in the paranormal
with reference to the metaphysical. This is done with precision, absolutely no
pretentiousness - pure class. I don't want to get incredibly gushy about the
whole thing, but I will truly cherish this film in my mind forever. Kieslowski
takes a simple idea – the notion that each one of us has an identical twin
somewhere in the world, and turns it into a wonderfully profound and captivating
story - no, an experience. There are layers and layers and layers of detail in
this film underneath that basic theme, it is like a dream - Why? because an
attempt to make sense of what is going on in the film would be futile, there is
no need. The cinematography, the music, the story, Irene Jacob, all fit together
like an impeccable work of art. On one hand this film is a magnificently
abstract tapestry - but on another, it is a captivating piece of cinema which
will leave an indelible impression on anyone who watches it. Words cannot
express it for sure. Anyone who hasn't, do watch this film.
Irene herself is a dream in this movie as she portrays two gifted look-alike musicians, sharing the names Veronique (in France) and Weronika (in Poland). They share the same ill-health, destiny and sadness. And they share an unknown effect on each other's life, despite being worlds apart. The inexplicable depression that Veronique feels when Weronika dies while performing on a stage, makes you ponder 'whether in my life I too wasn't depressed for some or other inexplicable reasons?' 'Is there another I somewhere concerned about me?' 'Is that why I was sad during that time?' 'Is someone else sharing my sorrows being somewhere in this world?' 'Will I meet him/her sometime? Somewhere?' Yes, unanswerable questions, inexplicable feelings and surrealistic thoughts. That sums up this movie.
Perhaps there is a double life in each of us. The life we lead and the life we might have led. In this superbly crafted film the late director Kieslowski poses a series of questions about why we became who we are. It seems that ultimately we are creatures subject to the vagaries of fate, destiny and random chance. Irene Jacob is simply superb in the dual-role lead. Kieslowski was at his probing, questioning best as he mapped out this journey that compels us until the very end. "La Double Vie de Veronique" is a film more about suggestion than substance.
Like life itself, it hints at mysteries for which there are no answers.
La Double Vie de Veronique is art of a high order.
Kill Bill Volume 1, Quentin Tarantino
11 December
don bobbo 2003
Cinematically and stylistically, absolutely no flaws in this film - he's created another thoroughly enjoyable experience - plus a great score and a larger than life Uma Thurman.. (Bloody) awesome, really. But.. In one scene in the beginning, as Thurman brutally stabs and murders a young woman, Tarantino quickly cuts the scene to the victims small daughter who is watching the carnage. This is surely a hint at the consequence of witnessing a violent act, but isn't that ironic? The scene moves on with the movie uninterested in the damage it does to that young girl, why even hint at it then? What is Kill Bill? what is it's purpose, it's point of view? It's made to be a comic book neo-violence with one sole purpose - to exhilarate and commit to the aesthetics of violence. but somehow to me Tarantino's blithe view on the subject is disturbing and uncalled for... especially his hint I mentioned to the repercussions of violence. once he's hinted it, why does he ignore it? that's what sucks about this film even though it is so not the point of it. And that's my point - the scene was unneeded. They either should have elaborated on that theme or not even touched it. That is my only critique of this film, and it's a big one. The movie should have headed in the stylistically fantastic direction all along, it should never had made even a reference to the theme a la consequences of violence. I'm confident that minor flaw will be completely eradicated once I get geared up to see vol. 2, wipe the blood of my face, and go back for another round in February ...
American Splendor, Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Harvey Pekar is the ultimate little guy -- not just in the comics world, where
his American Splendor has been an underground phenomenon for decades, but
in real life, as he has held down a steady gig as a file clerk in a Cleveland VA
hospital since the beginning of the known universe.
Pekar's life story -- his daily misery and misanthropy resulting from standing
in long lines, listening to idiots on the bus, and impatiently waiting for his
own death -- has been chronicled in the autobiographical comics, and now those
comics (plus outtakes from the rest of Pekar's life) have been turned into an
incredibly clever and surprising movie of the same name.
In Splendor, we track Pekar through the bulk of his life, but earnestly
we follow his life as a young adult through his retirement. Terminally pissed,
he scowls his way through the work day, saving money by patching up his coat
with glue and dreaming of success as a comic book creator. He's got
straight-outta-real-life stories galore, but the problem is he can't draw a
straight line.
A friendship with famed comic artist Robert Crumb results in the creation of
American Splendor #1, and the comic slowly grows a fan base in the 1970s
underground. His tales of hypochondria and the horrors of daily life don't
exactly resonate with the mass media consumer, so Pekar never earns enough money
to quit his VA job or move out of his apartment. But he does manage to attract
an equally odd wife (played admirably by Hope Davis) and become a minor
celebrity, appearing regularly on Late Night with David Letterman.
Pekar would probably be the first to agree that his story isn't so thrilling,
but the way it is told to us is. Part documentary, part biography, part animated
fantasy, the film weaves among genres smoothly and curiously, always baiting us
with a quirky tidbit to discover in the next scene. Paul Giamatti is a treasure
as Pekar, nailing his perpetual sneer and hunch (though unfortunately it's
impossible to replicate the real Pekar's broken voice). You can compare for
yourself of course when Pekar appears in one of the film's many candid interview
sequences -- shot during the taping of Pekar's reading of the film's voice-over
on weird, dreamlike sets.
Even more successful than Giamatti are Davis as wife Joyce and the inimitable
Judah Friedlander as Toby Radloff, a Pekar co-worker and self-professed nerd
whose monologues on jellybeans and Revenge of the Nerds rank as some of
this year's cinematic highlights. Friedlander's portrayal is so over the top
that just when you're ready to dismiss him as a total caricature, poof, out pops
the real Toby Radloff in one of the behind-the-scenes sequences, proving
just how exact Friedlander's performance is. The man deserves an Oscar.
The rest of the film hinges on its self-referential, circuitous storytelling
method, which is fascinating and groundbreaking, but which ultimately masks the
fact that Pekar's story is as simple and plain as he has always proclaimed. Even
though much is made of his fall from grace on Letterman and his bout with
lymphoma, these are but a few short vignettes in a life that makes you wonder
why it was turned into a movie… except that it is easily mocked by the audience.
The film will be far more rewarding to viewers that have some familiarity with
Pekar and his work, but otherwise Splendor's message is simplistic to the
point of nearly becoming trite: If Harvey can make it, the film tells us, then
anybody can. If you're looking to feel good about your own miserable life, well,
this is the movie to see.
In the Cut, Jane Campion
The less said about this film, the better ... but Jane Campion is entitled to a mistake. We'll let it go.
Fear and loathing in Las Vegas (DVD), Terry Gilliam
All books are unfilmable. I was neither drunk nor on drugs when I watched it yet enjoyed it as a cinematic experience. It isn't simply a curiosity, the cinematography plus the acting deserves praise - and it entertains whilst ignoring almost every technicality you expect in a film. It wouldn't even qualify as a good movie technically speaking but its more about the enjoyment. The whole concept is absurd - there is no concept, what makes it a masterpiece isn't it's filmic brilliance - its the lack of it. Terry Gilliam completely exploits the phenomenon of having absolutely no pressure. Freedom.
It's crazy. Gilliam has made a gonzo film meant to get
you in the rumble seat, riding along with Duke and the doctor. Admittedly, their
adventure peters out after the novelty of trashing hotel rooms and spotting
celebrity cameos wears off (this happens at about the halfway mark). By then,
Fear and Loathing has gone over the edge, losing us in
its bid to become just another drug movie, only one made Gilliam style.
DVD supplements include three commentary tracks (Jesus!) from Gilliam; producer
Laila Nabulsi, Depp, and Del Toro; and the man himself: Thompson as
semi-interviewed by Nabulsi. Gilliam and Thompson have all the good dirt of
course, but to some degree all three commentaries are worth listening to.
Deleted scenes, storyboards, correspondence between Depp and Thompson, footage
of Thompson's visit to the set and cameo in the film, and various other errata
-- including a commentary about the little-known dispute over the writing
credits for the film.
I don't normally think much about packaging and menus, but I have to say that
Fear and Loathing has one of the most impressive exteriors
I've encountered on a DVD. An airbrushed, transparent plastic case holds the
actual DVD set, which itself includes a couple of essays from Thompson and some
overblown Thompson historian (who uses words like mise-en-scene) who
Hunter would probably castrate if he got the chance. Even the DVD menu is a
curiosity: Ralph Steadman is videotaped (arms only) spelling out the title of
the film in his trademark neo-gonzo illustrative style. Kooky. Gonzo.
Le Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain
After only a few films have I been
left with an indelible sense of wonder and amazement. After watching the
stunning and beautiful Amelie,
I've been struck again. This is truly a touching, honest, emotional roller
coaster ride, equipped with powerful but subtle scenes of unrequited love,
comfortable loneliness, visual wonder, imaginary worlds, and phantom
characters guarding the hearts and souls of their mental caretakers.
Amelie
delivers the goods on all levels, with crafty
storytelling, superb acting, and clever directing. The film follows the
exploits of the young Amelie (Audrey Tautou), a shy, introverted
girl with a dysfunctional past who lives alone in a small apartment in
Paris. Amelie spends her days working at a local Parisian café,
pines for the love of a strange boy who stalks the instant-photo booths of
the Metro, and silently observes the lives of her neighbors.
One day, Amelie discovers a small tin box in the wall of her
bathroom filled with a young boy’s playthings, marbles and metal racecars.
She decides to return the box to its original owner, thus returning the
childhood memories held in the box to their rightful purveyor. In turn,
the box acts a catalyst for Amelie’s interactions with her
neighbors. As she emerges from her self-inflicted emotional shell into
their world, her imaginary friends -- in full CGI glory -- watch
vigilantly over her as she ventures into the world of temptation,
compassion, and unrequited love. The humor is sharp and witty, the
characters speak not with words but with long, calculated movements, and
the greatest joys are not always found in the greener pastures across the
valley but in your own backyard.
Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet is no stranger to making odd and wonderful
films (with fellow co-director Marc Caro), such as the delectable
Delicatessen and the inventive The City of Lost Children. Back in 1997,
though, Jeunet headed for Hollywood, directing the abysmal Alien -
Ressurection. Rest assured that Amelie
proves Jeunet is back on top. Jeunet’s
camera work veers between the sudden urgency of a caffeine-induced fit to
the lackadaisical wanderings of a lost child. The CGI effects bring to
life the animated characters of Amelie’s mind and emotional states.
But the real find of the film is without question Audrey Tautou. Her
bright, wide eyes, full of perception and passion, drive the intoxicating
allure of the film. In numerous subtle glances, Tautou convinces us of the
planes she inhabits -- the imaginary and the physical.
Amelie
stands as a testament that film, as an art form, can
deliver both entertainment and enlightenment to the masses. Jeunet’s
simple story of an innocent girl with a big imagination whose only wish is
to be loved is as powerful as they come. Highly recommended.
The
Amelie DVD is a fantastic two disc
set, full of extras that the film's legion of fans will eat right up (no
pun intended). Highlights include Tautou's screen test, a "making of
Amelie" short which actually focuses on the making of Tautou's
hairstyle, a few outtakes/goofs, dozens of trailers and TV spots, and
countless interviews. A few other highlights show the making of all the
little sub-stories in the film, from the gnome's worldwide adventures to
the 15 orgasms to the countless photo booth pictures. Highly recommended.
>>upcoming reviews
21 Grams
Les Invasions Barbares
Cold Mountain
Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King
