Dogs Bark

It's A Sled, Ya’ Moron! - - There Will Be Blood (2008) - - 26 Jan 2008

Recommended. Is Bill Gates miserable? Lonely? Full of hate? Trump may be a jerk, but he seems happy. But there must be a few Mr. Potters out there. There Must Be Blood begs that question. Is big business/religion a sad and soul-less realm? Unfortunately Paul Thomas Anderson's story is not up to these big issues, evincing a shallow take on such things, especially religion. Paul Dano's character is irritating and hackneyed. Daniel Day Lewis returns to the Five Points in an exciting . . . but unrevealing . . . performance. However, there's much to like about this film. The opening five minutes, dialog-less, is a faithful recreation of the bone-breaking toil of wildcat prospecting. It begins a masterful work of cinematography by d.p. Robert Elswit. Jonny Greenwood, of Radiohead, composed the score - - sometimes distracting, sometimes brilliant. Yes, lots to like . . . but the center does not hold.

A Comrade Of Ours - - Eastern Promises (2007) - - 27 Jan 2008

Strongly recommended. My major complaint with The History Of Violence was its reliance on tired, dumb Mafia stereotypes played by tired, unconvincing William Hurt. In contrast, Eastern Promises delivers fresh and rings true. Director David Cronenberg's conjuration of the vor v zakone criminal milieu evokes a Tod Browning horror movie. Viggo Mortensen hits that balance of melancholy and passion that signifies Russia to most Westerners, then reveals a deeper ethos that wins us (ironically like the aforementioned Hurt in Gorky Park!) This is one of the more sleeper-subtle performances of the year. He is nicely balanced by the reliable Naomi Watts, fierce, yet affecting, and Armin Mueller Stahl, who unearths his absolute evil slowly . . . cleverly. The infamous and brutal battle in the steam bath does not disappoint. All said, a very well made, well paced, and effective thriller.

Not Forsaken - - Away From Her (2007) - - 19 Jan 2008

Strongly recommended. This movie sat top of on the TV for a long time. Every time I tried to watch it, I turned back. I began a crush on Julie Christie, when I was ten. You might say I’ve her loved for more than forty years, about the same as the marriage of Fiona and Grant. To see her play Alzheimer’s is hard. Her complete beauty at sixty-six, her poetic interpretation, well balanced by co-stars, Gordon Pinsent, Olympia Dukakis, and Kristen Thomson, are astonishing but her veracity only increases the pain - - my one and only marriage, interrupted by divorce, finalized by death. So I guess I can’t really review this film. All I can offer is the ending, where Fiona briefly returns to lucidity and gives her husband a glimpse of that person he adores, a gift of crystal compassion for him . . . and for us.

Where is John Connor? - - Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Episodes 1 and 2 - - 14 Jan 2008

Not recommended. As most of you know, I’m a little conflicted here. Despite that, I maintain that the initial fifteen minutes of Episode 1 - - where the title line apparently was cut (along with my son's Golden Globe) - - terminates believability. The pace is quick but one wonders if a whole season of hand held will be a bit much on the stomach. Lena Headey (Sarah) is clearly a MILF, despite the fact she's young enough to be my high school bastard. Nevertheless, her whining is going to grate by . . . dunno, episode three? Iron Maiden, played by Summer Glau, is adorably unconvincing as a killing machine; however, I did like her in the cholita make-up. The only other thing I liked was the play on mother/girlfriend tensions. I doubt this will evolve into anything interesting.  Finally, Thomas Dekker? Talented, cute . . . but he’s no Konahuanui.

Felix Et Al. - - 7 Faces of Dr. Lao (1964) - - 10 Jan 2008

Recommended. In 1964, I was entranced by this minor masterpiece, almost never shown nowadays. After revisiting it, I understand why it persisted. In addition to an exuberant performance by Tony Randall  - - in seven faces, the movie came from the minds of several Twilight Zone alumni. Scripter Charles Beaumont was also responsible for some of the strangest and most memorable TZ episodes (Perchance to Dream, The Jungle, The Howling Man). Bill Tuttle won an Oscar for the make-up and was the genius behind Nightmare at 30,000 Feet, The Masks, and Eye of the Beholder. In addition, several brilliant TV character actors also appear, Royal Dano, Noah Beery, and John Qualen. Some sugary moments are scattered about the pic but balanced by good humor and a devotion to the weird. Finally, my ex-Boy Scouts, if you always wanted to see Barbara Eden in full heat . . . this is your movie.

 

Please, Some Sympathy - - Before The Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) - - 05 Jan 2007

Not recommended. OK . . .  My props to Sidney Lumet. Network, 12 Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon. Wonderful films.  But Before The Devil Knows Your Dead is, sadly, below that bar. The petty annoyances are legion.  Phillip Seymour Hoffamn’s bizarre make-up. Carter Burwell’s one-note, obtrusive score. One-note can also be applied to much of the acting. Ethen Hawke drips a monotony of snot- nosed agony; Albert Finney’s slack jaw never leaves the floor. Finney’s final scenes are spectacularly unbelievable. But, despite all this disarray, it’s really the script that did me in. In some sort of Rashomon homage, the events of the botched robbery are offered in a series of flashbacks. However there is NO insight offered by this distracting affectation - - in fact, it covers up a poverty of intrigue or narrative logic. The one grace, Marisa Tomei at 44, and naked. They are spectacular!

Marriage, Anatolian-Style - - Head-On (Gegan die Wand)(2005) - - 03 Jan 2008

Strongly recommended. Contrary to Hollywood formulae, love redeems no one. Love between self-destructive people usually just makes them crazier. People get redeemed all by their lonesome; love just gives you a place to crash. This seems to be the theme of Fatih Akin’s brutal and brilliant study, Head-On (Gegan die Wand), a Turkish/German movie of vibrancy and passion. Passion arrives in two actors, Birol Ünel, as an aging Hamburg punker and Sibel Kekilli, his wife of convenience, then reality. A stock device - - certainly - - but this ain’t Hanks and Ryan. Ünel’s marvelously rumpled face flails between impotence and lethal anger. Kekilli uses her porn star career to fashion an authentic and deeply affecting, sometime bedmate, demonstrating that untrammeled sexual expression still marginalizes women in any culture - - East or West. The ending is ambiguous but refreshingly true, allowing these characters to live in our heads long after the credits roll.