Children of Men

So, I watched Children of Men Saturday night and even though I started it at 11 p.m. or so I was completely sucked in and amazed.

First of all, this movie has set decoration like no movie I have seen in a long time. The detail was incredible and the variety was ridiculous. Michael Caine (who was ridiculous, and I'll get to that later) had a house in the middle of nowhere that was full of knick-knacks and nature-y things, which contrasted absolutely beautifully with the drab, dirty, monochrome set that was London and the harrowing warzone/refugee camp, where the film's last 20 minutes took place. The difference between all of these gave the movie a very intense, gritty feel. A particularly stirring (read: awesome) scene that comes to mind: Clive Owen is running from gunshot cover to gunshot cover, and there are dead bodies everywhere. He eventually just dives into a pile of bodies behind a barricade. All three of the people in my room watching were startled (audibly) to find out that the bodies were actually alive (they reacted angrily to being dove into). That's how engrossed we were.

Back to Michael Caine. If the man suffers from any career pitfalls, he suffers from being typecast as Alfred Pennyworth (seriously, did anyone else come to mind when you heard they were updating the Batman franchise?). Not anymore. He was hilarious, tragic, and spot on as Jasper Palmer, the old hippie who actually told a guy with a gun in his face to pull his finger.

Also, I have to say that the production crew in this movie is incredible. During one scene in the warzone/refugee camp where Clive Owen is frantically looking for the girl and the baby, he walks through several floors and around several corners. The thing is,, this scene, which was several minutes long,, was done with a single camera - it was one long take full of explosions and gunshots and reactions, which would have required an incredible amount of strict coordination.

Children of Men was gloriously dark, and please don't think I'm crazy/emo. The mood was beautifully conveyed by every aspect of the movie. It was just really good, and very sobering.

Dial M for Murder

The more Alfred Hitchcock movies I watch, the more I wonder why he is most remembered for Psycho. I'd rank it last of the ones I've seen.

Here's how engaging Dial M for Murder was: I didn't realize until I heard it mentioned in the special features that the entire film takes place within the same apartment.

Grindhouse

So, Grindhouse was pretty much everything it was expected to be. Ridiculous, contentless, but pretty funny because things were out of control and it was funny to see good actors in random, goofy roles. I wasn't disappointed by this one because I wasn't expecting anything. Meh. Not worth seeing again.

All I have to say is, if I could do whatever the heck I wanted with a movie... it wouldn't be this.

The Lives of Others

Today I saw two (technically three) movies, and the first of those three was The Lives Of Others. What an amazing movie. My roommate put it very well when she said that she forgot that she was reading subtitles. It's completely true. You will have no idea, watching this movie, that it's in a different language than you are used to.

The Lives of Others is about love, duty, and sympathy. It comments gracefully and empathetically on the lives of Germans living in East Berlin - Germans who wanted to believe that their system was working and also those who were ready to rebel. It dealt with how people had to sell themselves to preserve their art, and give up some dignities to preserve what they loved the most. The movie is sad at times and tense at others. It is absolutely gripping.

Supposedly Pan's Labyrinth losing the Oscar to this movie was the year's big (also, only) upset at the Academy Awards, but I beg to differ. The only reason people think that is because The Lives of Others was lesser known. The Lives of Others is on par with any and all movies in the Best Picture category of what I would consider an excellent year for movies.

Looking forward

First of all, may I just say that I am about eight movies behind and one of these days when I don't have a ton of news stories in progress I WILL get completely caught up.

Secondly, I just need to say that I am really, really excited about Revolutionary Road, a movie coming out in 2008 starring... Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet!!!! This is awesome for two reasons - 1) duh, Titanic reunion. Although cheesy, this movie's impact is undeniable. 2) Look how much these two have grown since then! They have eight Oscar nominations between the two of them and six of those have come since Titanic. Sam Mendes is directing, and it's going to be good.

Run, Lola, Run

I believe this is my first post of a movie I had already seen. It was also the first movie I watched using Netflix's "watch now" feature, so that was pretty cool. I rarely rewatch movies anymore, but it had probably been five years since I first saw this one.

Lola's boyfriend calls her saying he needs 100,000 marks (they're German) in 20 minutes or he's a dead man. Thanks to writer/director Tom Tykwer, she gets three, instant replay style attempts to save him. Each time through illustrates, in no subtle fashion, how large an impact minor things can have. For example, if Lola is delayed by two seconds, it can be the difference between catching up to someone or missing them entirely.

Run, Lola, Run is nearing it's 10 year anniversary, but it still pops with bold originality and earns its spot in the IMDb top 250 (currently #163 all-time).

Mysterious Skin

This is a movie that completely flew under the radar. I didn't even stumble across it on IMDb or because of a Netflix recommendation. It was mentioned on Ebert & Roeper as they were discussing Joseph Gordon-Levitt possibly becoming one of our next great actors. After watching this and Brick I am inclined to agree. Gordon-Levitt has continued working steadily since 3rd Rock from the Sun but without, apparently, taking any role just to get a paycheck. He's choosing risky, challenging stuff.

Mysterious Skin is a disturbing character piece following two young men who happened to be on the same Little League team ten years earlier. One has become obsessed with UFO's, convinced he was abducted as a child, the other, Gordon-Levitt, has become a gay male prostitute. The former's search for answers leads him back to his Little League days and his old teammate. This is a spectacular movie, but is not for everyone, earning its NC-17 rating for explicit sex and pedophilic scenes.

A quick side note - as a Kansan, I was excited to learn that the novel this movie is based on was written by a 1985 Little River graduate who was born in Hutchinson. The movie is set in Hutch, with the characters taking a couple trips to Inman.

Chungking Express

I first heard of Chungking Express several years ago. I think it was actually a trailer on my VHS copy of Pulp Fiction. It is a film by Wong Kar-Wai whose work I previously enjoyed with In the Mood for Love and 2046. 2046 instantly became one of my all-time favorites. It's hard to explain Kar-Wai's style, you just have to experience it. It's simultaneously realistic and surrealistic; gritty and lighthearted.

I might rank Chungking Express third of the movies of his I've seen, but he's becoming one of my favorite working directors. His next project, My Blueberry Nights, stars Jude Law, Ed Harris, Natalie Portman, Rachel Weisz, Tim Roth, David Strathairn, and Norah Jones.

It's always refreshing to realize that even though we have all the crap that Hollywood shoves in our faces, there is still a whole world of filmmakers producing quality work. If it weren't for movies like Chungking Express, something like Dukes of Hazzard 2: The Beginning might be cause for suicide.

A Quick Note on Bergman and Fellini

Sweden's Ingmar Bergman (not to be confused with Casablanca's Ingrid Bergman) and Italy's Federico Fellini have one important thing in common: their films are first and foremost about people. The story takes a backseat and, in some cases, doesn't exist at all. No matter the character, they make sure you will find something about them that you identify and empathize with.

The problem is they are often more patient with their characters than I am prepared to be. I need a story to keep me going. So, as talented as these directors are, it is hit or miss as to whether I like their films. I didn't really care for Fellini's 8 1/2 or La Dolce Vita but did like La Strada. I've had better luck with Bergman. I really liked both The Seventh Seal and Wild Strawberries though I wasn't as impressed with Persona (which I just watched this morning, prompting this post). Bergman himself aptly referred to Persona as "poetry in images." That sounds wonderful enough, but you can guess where I found it lacking - in story.

If you're into movies you should definitely explore these two artists. Just have some caffeine ready.