= 4 stars

Starring Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Peter Ustinov
Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Synopsis

Slave Spartacus (Kirk Douglas) leads a rebellion against the Roman empire.

The Good

• Amazing set pieces: epic battles featuring hundreds if not thousands of extras, tense gladiator flights, and Spartacus addressing his army in parallel with the Romans readying for battle.
• Core theme of the oppressed and virtuous overthrowing a cruel, undeserving ruling class, plus dramatic irony in the Romans being done in by their own creation of warrior slaves.
• Kirk Douglas as the well-oiled, gruff, and headstrong slave Spartacus, humanized through occasional weakness and difficulty carrying the burden of leadership. Lawrence Olivier plays a deliciously smarmy, pompous Roman general. There’s also an off-kilter appeal in the non-period, Bronx-accented Tony Curtis as a magician / musician, who is nearly seduced in a particularly odd homoerotic bathing scene hinting at the debauchery of the Roman empire.
• Rather bleak ending; but definitely appreciate the makers’ conviction in avoiding a more hopeful conclusion.

The Bad

• Occasionally cheesy in spots: Spartacus’ love interest (Jean Simmons), the old-school soundtrack, glaringly obvious matte backgrounds. There’s little trace of Kubrick’s distinctive directorial style.

Conclusion

Solid entertainment, particularly in the excellently directed battle scenes and classical acting, but don’t expect any Kubrick flourishes. Recommended.

IMDB: Spartacus
Wikipedia: Spartacus
Rotten Tomatoes: Spartacus

= 4 stars

Starring Phillip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

Synopsis

Old time gambler Sydney (Philip Baker Hall) takes John (John C. Reilly) under his wing.

The Good

• Paltrow as smudged cocktail waitress Clementine with a shady second job, and the incomparable Samuel Jackson as aggressive gambler Jimmy. But best is the rock-solid Philip Baker Hall as Sydney, a man whose ragged face and somber demeanor initially indicate world-weary experience, but eventually, something else entirely.
• Gambling as metaphor for life itself — Sydney is a high roller (established in a highly amusing craps scene featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman) not only at the casino but in his personal life, bringing Clementine and John together and dangerously extricating them from a sticky situation.
• Comes together in the last half hour with a complicated feeling of Sydney’s initial alturism, turning his earlier motivation upside down and pushing that gambling = life metaphor to include death.
• Anderson’s amazingly good direction for a first picture: simple techniques communicating plot developments, like a camera zoom in to indicate the formation of thought , a character close up to indicate a particular mind-state, or a long tracking shot when three people sneak out of a motel. I got the feeling Anderson knows exactly what he’s doing with the camera and why.

The Bad

• Plot feels minimal and aimless in the middle; requiring some fortitude to reach the interesting payoff.
• John C. Reilly is a bit overshadowed by the other three performances.

Conclusion

Although the plot falters a bit and doesn’t live up to the darkest film noir, three solid performances and Paul Thomas Anderson’s confident direction kept me watching until the end, where a pretty solid surprise awaits. A character study to savor and remember. Recommended.

IMDB: Hard Eight
Wikipedia: Hard Eight
Rotten Tomatoes: Hard Eight

= 4 stars

Starring Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Hoult
Directed by Tom Ford

Synopsis

Professor George Falconer (Colin Firth) hasn’t forgotten the death of his partner, Jim.

The Good

• Firth is solid as a George, hiding an inner pain, he’s on screen for most of the film, earning our empathy, and there’s the overarching, stifling burden of being a surely closeted gay man in the sixties, leads his sorrow to be necessarily hidden. Also good is Julianne Moore as George’s vivacious best friend, Charlie.
• Early sixties, nostalgic eye candy, from a Bardot-like student, George’s black horn-rimmed glasses, and quick French New Wave cuts.
• Director Ford is a fashion designer, with a superb visual sense leading to some occasionally, visually arresting moments — a little girl in blue introduced through a reflection on a mirrored bank floor, a close-up on a heavily made-up eye while the other remains plain, and George’s grim oral experimentation with a revolver in a bed and shower set to opera.
• Very effective at depicting George’s point of view; you feel like you’re within George’s head, seeing life through is eyes. This doesn’t happen through POV shots, but a pleasant drifting, away from the tasks at hand to an internal world rife with lush sadness and inner turmoil, reflecting a constantly distracted, contemplative professorial mind. Slow motion indicates George’s savoring of particular moments.

The Bad

• Occasionally random direction; Ford finding his footing with the moving image.
• Odd ending plot-wise, although handled tastefully enough that I barely noticed.

Conclusion

Excellent character study featuring a solid performance by Firth, but that’s expected — the surprise is the rare pleasure of a first-time director lending an unusual and fresh visual point of view. I look forward to Ford’s next film. Recommended.

IMDB: A Single Man
Wikipedia: A Single Man
Rotten Tomatoes: A Single Man

= 4 stars

Starring Joel McCrea, Veronica Lake, Robert Warwick
Directed by Preston Sturges

Synopsis

Director Sullivan (Joel McCrea) wants to make a serious film, and decides unwisely to go undercover to experience true suffering.

The Good

• Solid premise laid out in the first scene, resulting in slapstick comedy in the first half, specifically a looney car chase featuring a cook being splattered by food, and sassy dialogue between “The Girl” and Sullivan, specifically when his true identity is revealed.
• Nods to Chaplin’s City Lights and Modern Times.
• Seems to run dry with a half hour left to go, but that’s where things really get interesting. Sullivan’s identity becomes muddled, and he truly experiences the suffering he was looking for. During this stretch, the film’s tone abruptly shifts to a Grapes Of Wrath style document of the poor and downtrodden.
• Mentions the fictional book O Brother Where Art Thou?, which was turned into the Coen brothers film — it’s the movie Sullivan would have gone on to make.

The Bad

• Veronica Lake outshines McCrea to a large degree; could be that iconic wavy hair.

Conclusion

The mind twists after viewing: Sullivan believes comedies help us forget our troubles, but this alleged comedy has staying power because of a really bleak middle stretch, which made me appreciate the surrounding funny parts. The end takeaway is this structure: we better appreciate life’s comedy when we know its sorrows. I may return to later to grant that extra star. Recommended.

IMDB: Sullivan’s Travels
Wikipedia: Sullivan’s Travels
Rotten Tomatoes: Sullivan’s Travels

= 4 stars

Starring George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Judy Greer
Directed by Alexander Payne

Synopsis

After his wife’s boating accident, Hawaii lawyer and land baron Matt King (George Clooney) reconnects with his two moody daughters.

The Good

• Clooney shows more heart than usual as the stressed-out, disconnected father, but there’s also a surprisingly strong counterweight by Shailene Woodley as eldest daughter Alexandra. Expect Oscar nominations.
• Thought provoking, zen-like ambiguity — the best Hawaii private schools produce spoiled and entitled children, disconnected from the surrounding paradise. Matt’s seemingly petty hunt for a real estate agent unites the family. Matt worries about spoiling his daughters, while his wife’s accident points out how you can’t take things with you. And layered over everything is the grander implications of the land sale — it would set up the entire family and extended relatives for life, but at what cost — to the family, or the state of Hawaii, that has enough golf courses, subdivisions, and tourist traps. Every choice for these characters has unintentional consequences; there is no right path.
• Gets its wealthy slice of Hawaii largely right, particularly in comparison with movies focused on surfing and Waikiki. The open-air houses are accurate, as is the Bishop Street businessman wardrobe (subdued aloha shirts, khakis, and loafers), compact cars, and lackadaisical dispositions.
• As with Payne’s other movies (About Schmidt, Sideways) the Hawaii setting is a character in its own right, and is a part of Matt’s psyche — he’s unable to get in a car and drive away to Napa to escape, nor must he embark on an extended journey to reconnect with family members he barely knows. That everyone is trapped on several islands within close proximity means Matt must deal. And what becomes of the family’s slice of paradise is a major question.
• The best scenes contain a simple power that washes over a few moments afterward — someone caught on camera at their worst at the bottom of a pool, Matt and his daughter in a confrontation — and united in a common cause, they finally look like a family, and a non-family member saying the things no relative was able to say.
• Eschews a soundtrack of emotionally manipulative strings for authentic Hawaiian music.

The Bad

• Although he provides solid laughs, Alexandria’s friend Sid is rather superfluous and is reduced to over-qualified baby sitter.
• The upper-class slice of Hawaii is a bit too segregated to provide a personal wish for an honest depiction of Hawaii life — even Punahou grad Obama hits up shave ice instead of ice cream. Also lacking is ethnic diversity — Brian Speer could have been a local instead of the guy from Scooby Doo.
• Some plot quibbles regarding serendipity, and lacks a cathartic moment before the final frames — or, I didn’t realize which scene was “that moment” until the credits rolled.

Conclusion

I grew up in Hawaii and found it difficult to stay objective during these flickers of my childhood. But The Descendants reaffirms a supressed feeling that I’d have to return to Hawaii to figure some things out before I die — I’m not sure exactly what, but it’s there, trapped between mountain and beach in a rainy, green valley alternately lit by glorious sunshine. My purpose is unclear, but the destination eternal. Recommended.

IMDB: The Descendants
Wikipedia: The Descendants
Rotten Tomatoes: The Descendants

= 4 stars

Starring Paul Giamatti, Hope Davis, James Urbaniak
Directed by Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini

Synopsis

Grumpy Cleveland file clerk Harvey Pekar (Paul Giamatti) writes autobiographical comics based on his ordinary life.

The Good

• Pekar’s strong, irascible personality, but things really get going when we meet the surrounding characters in Pekar’s life: underground cartoonist Robert Crumb (James Urbaniak) who helps Pekar with his first comic, Toby the bizarro super nerd (Jodah Friedlander), and oddball wife Joyce (Hope Davis).
• Real life, comic books, and movies overlap in interesting ways: real Harvey, Toby, and wife Joyce appear.
• Truth is stranger than fiction: Pekar meets his future wife through comics, Toby appears on MTV, Harvey fights with David Letterman, and battles cancer.

The Bad

• Some of the comic art animations are a bit much, and unnecessarily interrupt the story’s dramatic flow. There should have been enough faith in the story and acting to carry things.
• Fades in momentum during the latter third and fails to reach a wholly satisfying conclusion.

Conclusion

Great comic book adaptation; I just wish the makers trusted the story enough to forgo a few cutesy gimmicks. Still, recommended. Pekar is a “character” in more ways than one.

IMDB: American Splendor
Wikipedia: American Splendor
Rotten Tomatoes: American Splendor

= 4 stars

Starring Donald Sutherland, Sally Kellerman, Elliott Gould
Directed by Robert Altman

Synopsis

Chaos reigns in a mobile military hospital during the Korean War.

The Good

• Delicious contrast between the bloody seriousness of war and a frat-boy party atmosphere — One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest + Duck Soup + Platoon. Someone has prescribed comedy to dull the horrors of war. The claustrophobic, bare-bones environment destroys privacy, and there are several jokes involving folks knowing and getting into everyone else’s business.
• Several serious actors playing nut-ball characters: Donald Sutherland as “Hawkeye” Pierce sports deft, subtle comic timing, but also notable are Elliot Gould (“Trapper” John) and Sally Kellerman, whose aloof “Hot-Lips” Houlihan becomes the brunt of pent-up, juvenile curiosity and pranks. Her one, insane rant to a superior officer is worth the rental alone.
• Altman’s exhilirating, chaotic direction makes full use of the messy, claustrophobic locations with bizarre camera positions, nonsense editing, and endless number of zooms. Surely inspired Paul Thomas Anderson.

The Bad

• Just before the climactic football game, some indoor shots resembling a staged television show took me completely out of the movie. Yes, this movie inspired a long-running television show, but it didn’t premiere within the movie itself.
• The point “war sucks and so does authority” is evident within the first half hour, and it’s rammed home repeatedly via numerous blunt jokes.

Conclusion

My prescription: clear your memory of the television show before viewing. Concentrate on Altman’s organized-chaos direction. Only then will the cynical humor, bizarre characters, and crappy environment retain their rebellious bite and provide relief.

IMDB: MASH
Wikipedia: MASH
Rotten Tomatoes: MASH

= 4 stars

Starring Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep
Directed by Michael Cimino

Synopsis

In a small Pennsylvania town, just-married Steven (John Savage) leaves for Vietnam with friends Michael (Robert De Niro) and Nick (Christopher Walken).

The Good

• Raw yet solid performances from a young Walken, De Niro and Streep. De Niro is uncharacteristically reserved until exploding during an insane round of Russian roulette.
• From the start, we know bad things are in store for the young men just in how the small town is presented: a trailer near a gruesome metal factory marring the skyline, a character sees a reflection in a cracked mirror, an alcohol-fueled wedding featuring a pregnant bride features a few drops of red spilling on her dress, and a silent Green Beret who can only say “Phuket.” These working-class lads have little concept of how Vietnam will affect them, considering it a variation on their regular deer-hunting trips.
• The early camaraderie is shattered by a shocking second act, where the friends end up prisoners of war, stripped of their humanity. Each reacts in different ways to the prospect of sudden death.
• The first American movie to tackle the then-taboo subject of Vietnam, paving the way for superior efforts like Apocalypse Now.
• The third act covering the aftermath plays out like The Best Years Of Our Lives, with each character adjusting to life back home with decidedly mixed results.

The Bad

• Often drawn-out and sometimes tedious direction, with disgustingly graphic war scenes — reminiscent of Herzog’s worst attributes.
• The final stretch wasn’t as satisflying as the start; wanted some dialogue trying to make sense of it all.

Conclusion

Although overlong, the contrast between three acts and great performances by Walken, De Niro, and Streep make this worth a spin — of a DVD, not a gun barrel.

IMDB: The Deer Hunter
Wikipedia: The Deer Hunter
Rotten Tomatoes: The Deer Hunter

= 4 stars

Starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Claude Jade, Hiroko Berghauer
Directed by Francois Truffaut

Synopsis

Now married to Christine (Claude Jade), Antoine (Jean-Pierre Leaud) struggles with domesticity.

The Good

• Some truly romantic scenes: Antoine and Christine visit their parents’ for dinner, in the same wine cellar as Stolen Kisses, Antoine busts through a wall to expand the apartment and faces Christine’s wrath, Antoine asks Christine to put her glasses back on, and constant shots of Christine’s legs are tellingly replaced with someone else’s.
• References to previous installments: the aforementioned cellar, Christine asks Antoine about “the girl from the youth concerts,” — certainly Colette, and Antoine’s book about his rough childhood, documented in The 400 Blows.
• Now married, the characters deal with the fraying of young, blind love through arguments, a baby, and affairs. The decision to stay together despite it all reflects a hard-worn maturity.
• Humor sprinkled over everything lightens serious events; Antoine’s American, French-mangling boss, Christine and Antoine’s interactions through two windows within their apartment, and an eclectic cast of neighbors: an older woman constantly propositioning Antoine, an opera singer, and a creepy subletter soon nicknamed “The Strangler.”
• Antoine’s struggle between domestication and his random, jokey misbehavior from The 400 Blows. We could be watching “Bed and Bored” — as Antoine claims he’s never bored, but his attempts to entertain himself outside of his marriage indicate otherwise.
• Based on the borderline racist portrayal of the Japanese in other 60s films (Breakfast At Tiffany’s, You Only Live Twice), I expected the worst when a cadre of Japanese visit Antoine’s workplace, but the treatment here is mostly sensitive and respectful.

The Bad

• One awkward bit with animated, stop-motion flowers and Christine in Madame Butterfly style makeup.
• Abrupt ending, even for my taste.

Conclusion

There’s a point in great films where the characters come to life and essentially become real people whose fates I care for, deeply. Antoine Doniel’s moment began from the final frames of The 400 Blows, through two films and into this one, during simple moments like a tossed tube of toothpaste and walking up a spiral staircase. Recommended.

IMDB: Bed and Board
Wikipedia: Bed and Board
Rotten Tomatoes: Bed and Board

= 4 stars

Starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Marie-France Pisier, Patrick Auffay
Directed by Francois Truffaut

Synopsis

Continuing misadventures of juvenile delinquent Antoine Doniel (Jean-Pierre Leaud), now an independent teenager working in a record factory, looking for love. Sequel of sorts to The 400 Blows.

The Good

• Simple yet effective camera techniques in service of story: drifting squares to indicate a flashback, dissolves indicate a passage of time.
• Some amazingly effective scenes with a minimum of elements: When Colette first catches Antoine’s eye, his eyes flit back and forth, and one downward glance focuses on her leg, summing up his youthful, naive attraction. Later, in a movie theater, a short, wordless interaction between two ancillary characters sum up the entire film.
• Captures the essence of early, doomed, youthful romance, where love is based more on attraction and idealization than anything concrete. At times, Antoine comes across as a stalker, that seems forgiven due to his age.
• Some modern fascination in Antoine’s job at record company, stuffing albums into sleeves and pressing them. He tries to leverage a shared musical taste with Colette, as they attend the same concerts and he gives her an album — the same grab at commonality as “You like the Smiths.” The more things change, the more they stay the same.

The Bad

• Too short.

Conclusion

I remain amazed by Truffaut’s imaginative, efficient directing wielding the simplest of tools, yet evoking a complex mix of sentiment and heartache. The next Antoine Doniel installment is in the queue.

IMDB: Antoine et Colette
Wikipedia: Antoine et Colette

= 4 stars

Starring Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore, Jason Robards
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

Synopsis

The lives of several San Fernando Valley residents intertwine as they search for meaning in their empty lives governed by circumstance.

The Good

• Several strong performances: Tom Cruise makes full use of his trademark screaming talents as a sexist motivational speaker. Also tops are Julianne Moore and Philip Seymore Hoffman as a slack jawed nurse, caring for a dying Jason Robards who was actually suffering from lung cancer during filming. Anderson gives each actor space to breathe and shape memorable characters.
• Anderson’s bold directorial choices: a constantly-moving camera, breathtakingly long takes, devilishly quick edits, nods to Scorsese and Altman, and askew film jokes like a character saying “this is the scene in the movie where…”.
• Songs from the Aimee Mann album Bachelor No. 2 weaved throughout in odd ways — a gutsy musical interlude featuring characters singing along to “Wise Up” and one character speaks the lyrics of the song “Deathly” (Now that I’ve met you, would you object to never seeing each other again?).
• The relationship between the sprawling Altman-esque cast of oddball characters is revealed in a tantalizingly slow manner, hinting at a greater power guiding things.
• A constant tension built from that “something is going to happen,” feeling, a cop’s gun, a girl constantly snorting coke, a quiz show, two men with terminal cancer, and a plodding score.
• Final strech is pretty amusing — a broken key in a lock symbolizing a wrong that can’t be undone.

The Bad

• Less interesting are William H. Macy’s lovelorn has-been facing oral surgery, and Thomas C. Riley’s sheepish, love-lorn cop.
• The initial dark humor fades; and the ultimate ending isn’t completely satisfying. The manner which the pieces fit together is literally, a wet mess, although it explains why those early scene cards contained weather updates.

Conclusion

Magnolia reaches for greatness, panning over the ultimate loneliness of human existence. Parents pass baggage to their kids, we’re only truly ourselves during our worst moments, and the jury’s out on coincidence vs. destiny — all summed up by the dying man who confesses his life’s regret to a son who arrives too late to hear.

Flawed, but due to a few standout performances and aggressive — sometimes amazing — directing: recommended. When it comes to Paul Thomas Anderson, I’ll be on the sidelines, watching the show.

IMDB: Magnolia
Wikipedia: Magnolia
Rotten Tomatoes: Magnolia

= 4 stars

Starring Charlie Chaplin, Virginia Cherrill, Harry Myers
Directed by Charlie Chaplin

Synopsis

The Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) is smitten with a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill) but keeps getting sidelined by his new friend, a drunk, wealthy millionaire (Harry Myers).

The Good

• Constant visual inventiveness, mostly in humorous situations (the opening sequence featuring the Tramp battling with a sword-weilding statue), but also the communication of plot. The flower girl’s introduction is amazingly efficient despite the absence of sound — we learn of her blindness, the tramp’s infatuation, and how she comes to mistakenly believe he’s wealthy.
• Some poetry that a film without sound features a character who cannot see. I guess the flower girl didn’t attend the premiere.
• The touching yet open-ended conclusion may be one of the most romantic sequences ever.

The Bad

• The parallel plot of the Tramp performing odd jobs (pretty ridiculous situation of a mustachioed stable guy swallowing soap, and a boxing match), and some antics with a wealthy friend, are less interesting than the central, romantic plot.

Conclusion

While some of the slapstick nonsense in the middle proves a bit much, the opening sequence and the final one are so great, the fiddly bits in the middle are (rightly so) forgotten. Yet another classic film I waited far too long to see.

IMDB: City Lights
Wikipedia: City Lights
Rotten Tomatoes: City Lights

= 4 stars

Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Cindy Williams
Directed by George Lucas

Synopsis

It’s 1962, and four recent high-school graduates bum around their small town, wondering what the future holds.

The Good

• Loving, nostalgic look at the innocent year 1962, before Kennedy, race riots, and Vietnam, when “trouble” involved drinking and driving classic cars. Lucas’s camera maintains a safe distance and gritty realism; nothing becomes too maudlin.
• Real actors acting. The Star Wars movies gave Lucas a rep of over-reliance on special effects to the detriment of the actors, but this Earth-bound adventure contains solid performances and an uncharacteristic reliance on dialog. A young Richard Dreyfuss contributes a central role, worrying about leaving this small, homey town for college, while pining for a mysterious blonde in a white Thunderbird. Also neat are Ron Howard (yes, the director), Cindy Williams (yes, Shirley), and Mackenzie Phillips as a precocious twelve year old cruising with in an older guy, a situation which would give parents ulcers today, just underlining how innocent that time was.
• A sometimes bizarre, career-spawning mish-mash of seventies television: actors from Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Star Wars (Harrison Ford), and One Day at a Time.
• Heavy use of a soundtrack of popular period songs to frame dramatic moments, and the final “postlude” of text explaining what the gang did afterward.
• Filmed around Petaluma, California and the notable landmark Mel’s Drive-In.
• Was completed indie-style for a low budget and a month of shooting, yet became a monster hit. The profits would fund Lucas’s risky space opera Star Wars.

The Bad

• Has been imitated enough times over (soundtrack of popular songs, a faceless radio deejay, the final “what happened” montage, endless nostalgic television shows) that it may come across as cliche — just remember; this is the original.

Conclusion

Released in 1973 and filmed using the cinematic realism of the time, American Graffiti’s nostalgic look at ten years before underlines the drastic social upheaval of the sixties. The result is a film closer to how it really was, as opposed to the melodramatic (yet successful in other ways) Rebel Without A Cause. Between the dehumanizing science fiction of THX1138 and Star Wars — Lucas shows a surprising sense of directorial restraint and humanity. Highly recommended.

IMDB: American Graffiti
Wikipedia: American Graffiti
Rotten Tomatoes: American Graffiti

= 4 stars

Starring Zooey Deschanel, Paul Schneider, Danny McBride
Directed by David Gordon Green

Synopsis

In a small southern town, womanizer Paul (Paul Schneider), takes a liking to his friend’s younger sister, Noel (Zooey Deschanel).

The Good

• Strong dramatic performances by actors seen elsewhere — Deschanel displays more range than what I’ve seen elsewhere, and I’d only seen the serious yet emotionally vulnerable Schnieder as the sarcastic husband in Lars And The Real Girl, and here he capably takes the lead. But the real surprise is the usually buffoonic Danny McBride as dorky friend “Bust-Ass”.
• The “real” in the title could refer to the overall treatment of the usually maudlin subject matter of love gained and lost — naturalistic dialog is delivered with convincing emotion. When characters argue, it looks and feels like things real people would say vs. Hollywood greeting-card contrivances.
• Soon got used to the languid pace and began to realize some smart directorial things going on — there is room for the actors to breathe, interesting editing with different music over a clown party, use of voice over when a character fights with his mother, and a simple visual poetry: an image of a chain, later two side by side. A bowling alley dance foreshadows the characters’ relationship to come — he’s chasing her as she looks the other way. The space between events lends symbolism and greater meaning to visuals and dialogue, whether intentional or not.
• Social commentary of a small rural town that has seen better days, people falling back on dead-end jobs and drinking at the local bar, and everyone knows each other.

The Bad

• Simple minded characters and story may fail to hold interest. Likely too subtle for most, and sort of fizzles out at the end. Certainly for fans of indie films like Wendy And Lucy.

Conclusion

Well-acted, believable characters plus capable direction make an ordinary situation well worth watching. Recommended.

IMDB: All The Real Girls
Wikipedia: All The Real Girls
Rotten Tomatoes: All The Real Girls

= 4 stars

Starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson
Directed by Dennis Hopper

Synopsis

Captain America (Peter Fonda) and his sidekick, Billy (Dennis Hopper) journey from Los Angeles to New Orleans on really cool motorbikes in the late 1960s.

The Good

• Hopper as the perpetually stoned hippie, turning in amusing rants that preceded those in Apocalypse Now and Blue Velvet.
• The bikers’ stoned aimlessness and childlike wandering is echoed in the film’s structure and direction, which wanders aimlessly, framed only by the pair riding bikes in blinding sunshine creating shimmering lens flares — it’s all refreshingly loose. It could be anti-establishment French New Wave techniques applied to hippie subculture; a perfect match.
• Highly amusing acting, Fonda as the relatively more grounded partner to Hopper’s eccentricity, and Jack Nicholson appears as a nutball drunk. His one drink of liquor is nearly worth the price of admission alone.
• Dating from 1969, the cultural shift from 1959 moviemaking is breathtaking. Nearly every element from acting, direction, music, dialogue has changed. The burst of intolerance — a confrontation between rural and hippies — underlines the enormity of those social changes.

The Bad

• The violent ending was a bit too random and cruel for my taste.
• My attention wandered during the lengthy LSD graveyard scene — you’re confused and disoriented on acid; we get it already.

Conclusion

Easy Rider had me contemplating the definition of the American dream — the stereotypical, societally acceptable route of marriage, kids, a mortgage, and spending your whole life in the generally the same place. But America is also supposed foster freedom — of religion, thought, and lifestyles. One of the best things about this country is its geographical real estate — the freaks and nuts can find their niche, somewhere, if not in a city or town, out in the wilderness. That one character is named “Captain America” seems spot on.

IMDB: Easy Rider

Wikipedia: Easy Rider
Rotten Tomatoes: Easy Rider

= 4 stars

Starring David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright
Directed by Matthew Longfellow

Synopsis

Documentary on the making of the Pink Floyd classic concept album, Dark Side Of The Moon, featuring interviews with band members David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright, Nick Mason and other music experts.

The Good

• Some necessary pre-Dark Side history, starting with Syd Barrett’s insanity and the largely instrumental, experimental yet melodic second side of Meddle (Echoes).
• Despite the band’s rocky history, all four members appear in interviews and — surprisingly — agree on the album’s concept: the pressures of modern life. Gilmour and Waters briefly pick up instruments to recreate some of the songs. Mastermind producer Alan Parsons mans a mixer to recreate some of the iconic effects on the original tracks, namely the perfectly timed vocal delay on Us And Them and the natty tremeloed guitar of Money.
• Insights galore: Roger Waters wrote all the lyrics. Keyboardist Richard Wright contributed the odd yet integral jazzy chord progressions of Breathe, The Great Gig In The Sky, and Us And Them (which has its roots in an instrumental from the film Zabriskie Point). The analog synths of On The Run were intended to cover up an unsuccessful track. The female vocals for The Great Gig In The Sky were improvised by Claire Torry, saving another track. Money, written by Waters has an unusual 7/8 time signature, but changes into 4/4 during the guitar rock solo to make things easier for Gilmour. Also tells the story behind the characters interviewed for the spoken-word parts.

The Bad

• No interviews with Dick Parry, saxophone player, and the female vocalists — Claire Torry in particular.

Conclusion

Does justice to one of the most amazing albums ever recorded. Recommended.

IMDB: The Making Of The Dark Side Of The Moon
Wikipedia: The Making Of The Dark Side Of The Moon

= 4 stars

Starring Ben Lee, Rose Byrne, Miranda Richardson
Directed by Tony McNamara

Synopsis

Placid Lake (Ben Lee), with suburban hippie parents and a nerdy best friend Gemma (Rose Byrne) just doesn’t fit in — until he decides to do something about it.

The Good

• The decidedly odd Placid, played by Australian musician Ben Lee, eventually won me over, as his primary motivation is merely to be accepted, rather than angry-youth rebellion. Rose Byrne, sporting black-rimmed glasses, is solidly amusing as nerdy best friend Gemma, described as “Doris Day the scientist.”
• What begins as a teenage high-school dark comedy takes a refreshingly odd turn, when Placid starts working at an insurance company and things morph into an askew workplace parody. The new, corporate job deeply offends Placid’s hippie parents garnering amusing results.
• Surreal, quirky humor: a gang of bullies exposed by a film, a father determined to shape his daughter into a brainiac, and a co-worker amusing herself during a long-hoped for phone call.

The Bad

• The knotty plot makes it difficult to gather loose ends at film’s end. Thankfully, the too-tidy ending doesn’t overstay its welcome.

Conclusion

Placid Lake follows those who don’t fit in, and the price we all pay for acceptance. Everything about the movie is as awkward and strange as Placid himself, resulting in refreshing unpredictability as to how it will all turn out. Recommended.

IMDB: The Rage In Placid Lake
Wikipedia: The Rage In Placid Lake
Rotten Tomatoes: The Rage In Placid Lake

= 4 stars

Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Tom Sturridge, Bill Nighy
Directed by Richard Curtis

Synopsis

Set in 1966, a group of anti-establishment DJs broadcast banned rock records to the shores of England.

The Good

• Skewed plot and structure; we’re thrown on a pirate ship with motley crew of oddball characters, with little context of their motivations or reason for being there — but this actually becomes a positive as developments turn increasingly unpredictable.
• The most interesting character turns out to be Carl (Tom Sturridge), a shy young boy who doesn’t know his real father, whereas the rest of the crew seems preoccupied with trying to get laid. Works as a sex comedy of sorts, as a rotation of groovy sixties chicks climb aboard, including one for the resident lesbian (Katherine Parkinson).
• Amusing performances from the always dependable Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, and an uncharacteristically suave Rhys Ifans. But the special personal treat is two cast members from the IT Crowd (Chris O’Dowd and Katherine Parkinson) plus January Jones from Mad Men in a particularly surreal sequence set to The Turtles’ Eleanor.
• Amusing soundtrack containing hits by The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, Procul Harum, The Beach Boys, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, and the Moody Blues.

The Bad

• Visually jumps all over the place, leaving to little time to contemplate what’s transpiring. Particularly silly are the random shots of people ashore dancing and clapping around radios, without any introduction or reason to care.
• Kenneth Brannagh overstays his welcome, while Emma Thompson’s time is far too short.

Conclusion

Doesn’t completely work as a rock and roll homage, but definitely delivered as an unpredictable coming of age sex comedy set in a very unusual location. Personally, the scene with Roy and Betty Draper on a bed was a particularly odd visual treat — needing no influence of era-specific hallucinogenics. That to me is the definition of rock and roll, and I liked it.

IMDB: Pirate Radio
Wikipedia: Pirate Radio
Rotten Tomatoes: Pirate Radio

= 4 stars

Starring Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey
Directed by Duncan Jones

Synopsis

Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) has spent the past three years mining helium from the dark side of the moon for the Lunar Corporation, and is about to return home.

The Good

• Rockwell is essentially the only actor, playing off of robots and eventually, himself.
• The twisted plot hinges on whether Sam is schizophrenic, and what’s really going on was fairly satisfying and keeping in line with classic, thought provoking science fiction. Comments on the dehumanizing isolation of space and ethical use of technology.
• Takes cues from other science fiction classics, 2001, Silent Running, Solaris, and even a little Firefly (note the Korean Hangul characters scattered about the base’s infographics).

The Bad

• Ending could have used one last twist, a little more oomph or the bizarre to shift into epic sci-fi.

Conclusion

Thought provoking science fiction, plot twists, and Rockwell’s solo performance aside, Moon eventually proves emotionally affecting in an odd way, considering the cold technology and isolated location. Technology minus humanity is worth very little, and humanity may be the only thing that lends technology genuine meaning.

IMDB: Moon
Wikipedia: Moon
Rotten Tomatoes: Moon

= 4 stars

Starring Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, Kristen Wiig
Directed by Drew Barrymore

Synopsis

Teenager Bliss (Ellen Page) joins the Hurl Scouts, all-girls roller derby squad, without her parents’ permission.

The Good

• Strong, confident women at the center of attention, expressing themselves without shame and beating the crap out of the few men present — those hapless men are largely relegated to supporting roles — stereotypically reserved for women. The initial thought that a roller derby consists of scantily-clad women ogled by beer-soaked men is completely absent — this is women kicking ass and looking great for the fun and camaraderie.
• A romantic subplot is refreshingly given the finger partway through, further reinforcing the women-don’t-need-men feeling.
• Barrymore proves a capable director, sporting a brassy confidence and humor layered everything. The final, obligatory “big game” sports movie ending contains a decent amount of suspense.
• While not as snarky and moving as in Juno, Page is solid, and even the dryly sarcastic Juliette Lewis makes a decent good villain as “Iron Maven,” leader of rival team. Gotta love those names — Bliss’s alter ego is “Babe Ruthless.”

The Bad

• Of course Bliss’s parents uncover the roller-derby lie, and come around to acceptance after some foot-stomping, and Bliss gets to strut her stuff during a championship.

Conclusion

Has enough “f-u-n” coursing through, that the routine sports flick and lie-that-gets-bigger situations were largely overwhelmed and forgotten. By the end, I just enjoyed watching Babe Ruthless kick ass, running circles around my usual movie criticisms. Recommended.

IMDB: Whip It
Wikipedia: Whip It
Rotten Tomatoes: Whip It

= 4 stars

Starring Cher, Nicolas Cage, Olympia Dukakis
Directed by Norman Jewison

Synopsis

Widowed bookkeeper Loretta Castorini (Cher) is engaged to marry Johnny Cammareri (Danny Aiello), and is asked to make peace with his estranged brother Ronny (Nicolas Cage).

The Good

• Cage as the frankly bizarre Ronny Cammareri, a wronged opera-loving brother who works in a bakery basement sporting a wooden hand. Cher is solid as Loretta, a sour 37 year old, still living with her parents, feeling enormous pressure to get married to anybody. In some sense, she’s a straight man to Ronny’s nonsensical quirks, and her a dourness may explain why she falls for him.
• Great supporting cast, namely Olympia Dukakis as Loretta’s mother (who when suspecting her husband of infidelity, asks several men “why do men chase women?”) and John Mahoney as a student-dating NYU professor who is repeatedly dumped at the same Italian restaurant in essentially the same manner.
• The plot moves towards of a big confrontation as one brother returns from Italy to find the other stealing his fiance.

The Bad

• The quirky family / ethnic humor feels like a lesser My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and the dramatic conflict resolves a bit too easily.

Conclusion

Worth seeing for solid performances by Cher and Cage. Recommended.

IMDB: Moonstruck
Wikipedia: Moonstruck
Rotten Tomatoes: Moonstruck

= 4 stars

Starring Adriana Caselotti, Lucille La Verne, Roy Atwell
Directed by David Hand

Synopsis

Princess Snow White is chased into the scary forest by her wicked step-mother, the Queen, and shacks up with a septuplet of crazy dwarves.

The Good

• The animation is all around, incredible. It’s difficult to believe this was all done by hand without any computer aid. While none of the individual drawings are that impressive, the wonder is the movement, which always seems fluid and natural, while retaining weight and solidity. Most impressive are Snow White and many animal’s initial entry into the dwarves’ house, and the dancing, yodeling party scene. I think I was watching a remastered version, which means the colors and soundrack have an amazing clarity which nearly brings it on par with animated films of today. Still, it’s easy to see why this animated film from 1937 solidified Walt Disney’s reputation: it’s still mesmerizing all these decades later, as ground breaking as Toy Story would be for computer animation.
• Watching this as an adult ads a new edge — the evil queen reminds me of Norma Desmond while Snow White takes some cues from Lillian Gish’s over-emotive, silent film traits of Birth Of A Nation. Also more appealing are the darker aspects — the shadowy attack of the Queen’s henchman, the primal fear of a scary dark forest, the Queen’s dark magic transformation into an old hag, and the choice to not show Snow White biting into the apple, as if some sort of carnal indiscretion. A balancing dose of humor is introduced by the dwarves, which are infantalized old men with each of their personalities might be facets of one individual.
• Memorable songs: Someday My Prince Will Come, Whistle While You Work, and the dwarves’ Heigh-Ho.

The Bad

• Pacing is a little tedious, namely a middle section where Snow White makes the Dwarfs wash, watching the dwarves sleep, and hearing “Someday My Prince Will Come” four times.
• As a fuddy-duddy grown up, lacks the emotional relevance of other Disney classics Pinocchio, Bambi, and Dumbo.

Conclusion

Enchanted pokes fun at Disney conventions like a naive princess that bursts into song while befriending forest animals. It’s worth returning to the source of all that enchantment.

IMDB: Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
Wikipedia: Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
Rotten Tomatoes: Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs

= 4 stars

Starring Gregory Peck, Mary Badham, Robert Duvall
Directed by Robert Mulligan

Synopsis

In a small Alabama town during the Great Depression, Lawyer Atticus Finch (Gregory Peck) represents Tom Robinson, a man accused of rape. Based on an autobiographical novel.

The Good

• Really odd characters that could have only been drawn from real life — in this case, it’s the childhood of Harper Lee, friend of Truman Capote. In particular is Boo Radley (Robert Duvall), a slow fellow the neighborhood kids are scared of.
• Largely filmed from a child’s point of view, namely Atticus’ tomboy daughter Scout and wimpy friend Dill (based on the aforementioned Capote), capturing that period of childhood where the few blocks around your home encompass the entire world of comforts and fears. Key bits of adult knowledge seem like gospel, and distasteful elements of the adult world are painfully introduced through small situations that seem larger through a child’s eyes — watching your father shoot a rabid dog, or finding a box of treasures hidden in a tree.
• Gregory Peck’s no-nonsense solidity as Atticus Finch, a lawyer asked to represent an African American accused of rape. The town wants this man dead and Atticus becomes guilty by association. But he stands up for what he believes is right, even when the town threatens to turn against him. In some alternate universe, Peck would have made a perfect Clark Kent / Superman.

The Bad

• Not much distinctive regarding Mulligan’s direction.

Conclusion

The story, characters, and Peck’s steeely performance make this recommended viewing.

IMDB: To Kill A Mockingbird
Wikipedia: To Kill A Mockingbird
Rotten Tomatoes: To Kill A Mockingbird

= 4 stars

Starring James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Harry Carey
Directed by Frank Capra

Synopsis

After a senator’s death, idealistic neophyte Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) is appointed as his replacement.

The Good

• Capra’s usual jokiness and levity is balanced by a cynical portrayal of Washington, as wholly corrupt, plagued by gridlock and selfishness. Even Smith’s appointment reflects this; a newcomer should be easy to manipulate and control. He’s also quickly smeared by the media, and soon finds himself in over his head when his suggestions conflict with entrenched business interests.
• Stewart is perfect as Smith, the entry point for the average American. His final speech containing gobs of common-sense morality, gains conviction and determination from Stewart’s performance.
• Some insight into arcane government functions and rules, the convoluted process of a bill turning into law, and Smith’s climactic move to hold the floor as long as possible.
• Amusing similarities to It’s A Wonderful Life, with the American institution of Christmas swapped out for patriotism — both the Christmas spirit and government seem ruined until average-joe Stewart comes along, jerking tears from us all.. An effective montage with Smith seeing various national monuments for the first time, demonstrates his deep love for his country and intent to do the right thing.

The Bad

• Some not-so-transparent, maudlin pandering: Smith as a Boy Scout leader, and young, powerless boy are shamelessly used to gain our sympathy.
• Personal preference for the other Capra / Stewart pairing It’s A Wonderful Life.

Conclusion

I’ve lost much faith in government to put the interests of average Americans before politics and corporate interests. This movie is wish-fulfillment: that an average citizen politician, calling out the corrupt career politicians and getting them back to doing what’s right for the common man, could magically get things moving again. It’s a naive, populist fantasy, but much to Capra’s credit, one you almost believe during the film’s final scenes.

IMDB: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Wikipedia: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
Rotten Tomatoes: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington

= 4 stars

Starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, Marilyn Monroe
Directed by Billy Wilder

Synopsis

Musicians Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon) witness a mob hit, and go into hiding as women in an all-girl jazz band.

The Good

• Very successful cross-dressing movie. Curtis and Lemmon do pass for homely women, and oddly, the more masculine, gruff Curtis looks better.
• Inventive comedy based on contrast: Starts with a funeral parlor which has a partying speak easy hidden inside. Men acting as women, smart people being made to look stupid. All the fun, light romantic comedy is underlined by impending doom when the mobsters arrive. Then there’s the contrasting comedic styles between the frenetic Lemmon and Curtis. Spastic, nervous Lemmon fires off crazy lines a mile a minute, while Curtis, mostly playing things more seriously, is throroughly annoyed at prentending to be a woman, but also contributes a very funny Cary Grant impersonation.
• Special mention to Marilyn Monroe. Her smoldering sexuality underlines how while Lemmon and Curtis can do their best to act like women, they can’t capture that basic animal magnetism. With her every scene, her physicality alone says: this is the genuine, feminine article.
• Great lines that still evoke a chuckle: “Jello-O on springs,” “fuzzy end of the lollipop,” and Curtis’ threat: “No pastry, no butter… and no sugar.”
• Mobsters all over the place, add some needed chaos in the final act.

The Bad

• Ties itself into so many knots that the abrupt ending — like a shoulder-shrug — can’t quite satisfy.

Conclusion

Several elements add up to a solid comedy: Tony Curtis as the most reluctant lady, his Cary Grant impersonation, and the smoldering Marilyn Monroe. Recommended.

IMDB: Some Like It Hot
Wikipedia: Some Like It Hot
Rotten Tomatoes: Some Like It Hot

= 4 stars

Starring Henry Fonda, John Carradine, Jane Darwell
Directed by John Ford

Synopsis

During the 1930s, ex-con Tom Joad (Henry Fonda) returns home to find his sharecropper family destitute and leaving Oklahoma for a better life in California.

The Good

• Documents the effects of the dust bowl and the Great Depression on a farm family. The hard economic times force average Americans in direct competition with each other — the family arrives in California only to find other farmers exploiting their cheap labor for personal gain. The desperation of being out of both work and options is underlined by moody, deep black tones that threaten to swallow characters whole.
• Dramatic contrast between rich and poor, farmers and city folk, tradition and new technology, the past and the future.
• Tom Joad (Fonda), to these younger eyes, resembles Willem DaFoe crossed with Jack Nicholson and Jimmy Stewart. Joad is compellingly conflicted, as an ex-convict charged with homicide, and economic circumstance pushes him toward breaking the law to protect his family. Eventually, he threatens to strike back against the powers of oppression.
• Some amusement in California presented as a land of opportunity; today the Okies have a much shorter drive to the new destination state (Texas).
• Works as road picture, but a particularly bleak one — some moments are more like the Seventh Seal, in particular the look on the family’s faces as they enter a migrant worker camp, and slowly realize the opportunity they hoped for won’t prove that easy to come by as their plight is shared with so many others.

The Bad

• One possible ray of hope is a government-run “New Deal” labor camp, or forming a worker’s union. In today’s political climate, both would be rejected on the grounds of socialism, and unions are slowly being dismantled. The film’s answers — which may have seemed within the realm of possibility in 1940 — now come across as unintentionally fantastical.

Conclusion

Even in 2010, the American economy remains saddled with foreclosures, exploitative banks, and long-term unemployment due to hard economic times — and it seems we have even less solutions than before. All we can do is ask free-market capitalism to solve its own failings. Recommended.

IMDB: The Grapes Of Wrath
Wikipedia: The Grapes Of Wrath
Rotten Tomatoes: The Grapes Of Wrath

= 4 stars

Starring Kevin Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow, Robb Reiner, Tiziana Arrigoni
Directed by Sacha Gervasi

Synopsis

At 14, guitarist and singer Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow and drummer Robb Reiner formed the heavy metal band Anvil, with dreams of conquering the world. They’re still trying –thirty years later.

The Good

• Anvil was biggest during 1984, touring with other metal bands like Whitesnake. Unfortunately, they never made it into the big time when their style of music was at its most popular. This movie takes place a few years ago, with Steve working in meals delivery, touring with the band during his precious few vacations. Their European tour is a complete (yet hilarious) mess with the band missing several trains only to play at cramped clubs to very few people and even less money. It’s a real-life Spinal Tap, plus the heartbreak of The Wrestler in seeing over-the-hill folks making one last, possibly futile stab at a dying dream.
• Anvil is pretty darned good. Drummer Robb employs tons of time shifts and fills, and Steve sings and plays lead guitar simultaneously.
• Long-time friends Steve and Robb have silent understanding of each other and sometimes seem like the same person. Some of the film’s best scenes contain them talking, riffing off each other in ways beyond music.
• Actually got a little emotional at the very end — seeing the two metal heads wrapped in the depths of Tokyo was pretty cool.

The Bad

• Wanted more scenes with just Steve and Robb, the band playing, and more of the totally straight-arrow relatives that doesn’t understand, yet continues to support the band.

Conclusion

Anvil is great because it made me care about a potentially uninteresting subject. I grew to like these sad-sack metal heads and hoped for their success. They put their heart and soul into their music, and this movie grants them a little of what they always deserved, but never achieved.

IMDB: Anvil
Wikipedia: Anvil
Rotten Tomatoes: Anvil

= 4 stars

Starring Humphrey Bogart, Katharine Hepburn
Directed by John Huston

Synopsis

In deep World War II Africa, loner steamboat captain Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart) reluctantly takes missionary Rose Sayer (Katharine Hepburn) on as an unwanted passenger.

The Good

• Bogart (before his shave) is a gritty, harried mess, with Hepburn not much better. Both seem intentionally dirtied up to place us squarely in the thick, humid African jungle.
• Bogart and Hepburn’s skillful performances make everything work, and it must, as their interaction while trapped in a tiny boat is often all we have to hold our attention. Bogart is a gruff, insensitive cad, while Hepburn is completely unsuited for the wild, but with her higher calling, she pushes Bogart to be a better man than he would alone.
• Huston’s efficient direction; a drinking scene concludes with a perfect camera pan up to empty gin bottles floating in the river, and there’s another skillfully tense scene involving leeches.

The Bad

• Silly, predictable plot. Rose’s idea to ram a German boat with self-constructed torpedoes is completely ridiculous, only surpassed by the silliness of Charlie agreeing to the plan. And this ridiculously mismatched couple expectedly falls in love during the stressful journey.
• Noticeably poor special effects: obvious green screen, and some swarming mosquitoes aren’t much more than static on screen.

Conclusion

Only two reasons to watch this flick, the caddish rough performance by Bogart, and the always solidly dependable and oddly charming affectations of Hepburn. Although they’ve been better elsewhere, together, this odd couple makes this rough ride worth enduring until its end.

IMDB: The African Queen
Wikipedia: The African Queen
Rotten Tomatoes: 100%

= 4 stars

Starring Donatas Banionis, Natalya Bondarchuk, Juri Jarvet
Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky

Synopsis

Soviet astronaut Kris Kelvin (Donatas Banionis) is sent to investigate strange goings-on abord a space station orbiting the watery planet Solaris.

The Good

• The planet Solaris’ true nature is kept deliberately enigmatic. “Guests” invading the crew’s consciousness might be alien attempts to understand humanity, or something else entirely. The ending is likewise, enigmatic and open to interpretation, inspiring a return to the beginning.
• Some surprises and plot twists better left unsaid, but their power lies in how suddenly they arrive after long periods of languid drifting. We’re taken from silence to sound, coolness to flame, color to black and white, peace to bloody wounds.
• It’s personally amazing when a director demonstrates the ability to anticipate and manipulate his audience. At the end of part one, the camera drifts across details of Kris’s wife’s dress as he contemplates his next move, then later glances to her shawl draped over a chair, echoing his lingering thoughts of what just transpired.
• The chilling settings, contrast, and simple yet intelligent camera techniques help the film reach an otherworldly, metaphysical height that the Soderberg version and also Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain could not.
• Few trappings of American science fiction — no robots, heroic Western-like action, or laser guns. This sub-genre could be “psychological sci-fi.”

The Bad

• Limited special effects — was made in the early seventies, some questionable spaceships and ordinary technology hardware that now looks severely dated.
• Slow pace; Kris doesn’t reach the Solaris station until the second half. There’s also an overlong, almost unnecessary driving sequence on highways with then-contemporary cars, and less-than-futuristic sound effects.

Conclusion

Often compared to Kubrick’s 2001, and for good reason. The plot outline is similar: astronauts’ attempts to comprehend alien life becomes a comment on humanity itself. But while 2001 arguably falters tad with an final, incomprehensible sequence of sights and sounds, Tartovsky provokes further contemplation through a final, Mobius-strip ending.

I was left feeling that exploration of outer worlds may not be truly meaningful until we truly understand our inner ones. Kris voyages across the galaxy only to find himself exploring his most intimate, earthly-bound relationship. And how can we hope to understand an alien race when we do not understand ourselves, or the workings of our own minds? This trip was personally, well worth taking, despite some tedious moments along the way.

IMDB: Solaris
Wikipedia: Solaris
Rotten Tomatoes: Solairs

= 4 stars

Starring Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, Sylvia Miles
Directed by John Schlesinger

Synopsis

Texan Joe Buck (Jon Voight) moves to New York to become a “hustler,” mooching off of wealthy women, and soon forms an unlikely partnership with sickly loser Rats Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman).

The Good

• Confident editing made mostly of fast, furious, and often random cuts. You could draw a line through this film from French New Wave to Danny Boyle’s jazz-like Slumdog Millionaire.
• Nostalgic look at New York of the late sixties. The relaxed, documentary-style camera presents how things really were. The background is constantly filled with Manhattan eccentrics, most notably during the Warhol Factory-esque party scene.
• Two iconic performances: Rats Rizzo, who as Benjamin Braddock’s near opposite, established Hoffman as a character actor, and a handsome, nearly Redford-esque Voight as the wide-eyed Joe Buck. The two create a sort of cult, urban parody of Butch and Sundance.
• Must be noted for its groundbreaking treatment of adult subject matter: sex, homosexuality, drugs, foul language.

The Bad

• Too many flashbacks to Joe Buck’s past life (several before Joe even gets to New York), and crazy sequences showing Joe’s inner mental state — in particular his relationship with past girlfriend Crazie Annie. These sequences get progressively tiresome as each hits your eyes like a hammer.
• That damned theme song (Everybody’s Talkin’ by Harry Nilsson) plays a thousand times over.

Conclusion

I watched Midnight Cowboy twice, with a few months between, to get my brain around it. The first time, I had a hard time getting beyond the crazy editing, but on try #2, I was able to focus on the Joe and Rizzo, the two weirdos that somehow manage to form a queasy friendship. There’s a solid, sincere heart, sometimes obscured by the visual experimentation of that decade past.

IMDB: Midnight Cowboy
Wikipedia: Midnight Cowboy
Rotten Tomatoes: Midnight Cowboy (1969)