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The American

If Albert Camus was a film director then perhaps The American is a film that he would have made. In Anton Corbijn‘s second feature he creates an inaction film which is about waiting and watching and being patient. George Clooney is very quiet in the film and at the beginning there is so much silence that you may think that something has gone wrong with the soundtrack, but it’s all part of the plan which is to create a world where you look and listen for the smallest detail. When Clooney first speaks it is surprising as I realized that he’d been silent for a long time.

The American focusses on the times between the action as Clooney waits and prepares for a job that he wants to be his last. He interacts with people in the small Italian village where he is in seclusion and we watch as he gets closer to those in the village without revealing much about himself always aware that people are looking for him. With large, open frames and precisely-composed shots it’s lovely to look at and with a few action sequences thrown in for seasoning it’s a different sort of film that reworks the action film as an visually poetic existential drama.

December 30, 2010 2010, film, review, the american

I Am Love

Tilda Swinton is stunningly beautiful and utterly captivating in the deliciously melodramatic I Am Love. In Luca Guadagnino‘s film she is the fire that burns at the heart of it. Playing a Russian emigre who has married in to a wealthy Italian family, she speaks Italian with a Russian accent as she begins to question her life and happiness and finds herself.

Sensuously shot with music that is over the top and operatic, the film slowly exposes the small dissatisfactions and secrets within the family that grow as she becomes increasingly in touch with her own feelings. The complex family drama is integrated in to her story as the parallels and contrasts grow throughout the episodic story. Everything in the film is meticulous and beautiful from the shots to the locations to the clothing to the food. It’s a tragic treat to watch and savour.

December 30, 2010 2010, film, i am love, review

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

Ghosts aren’t attached to places, but to people.

My favourite film of the year and probably one of the decade would be Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives. Apichatpong Weerasethakul wrote and directed the film which is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The entire film is infused with a meditative quality and has a Zen-like discipline. While it could be a pretentious art film, it combines all of the elements with a gentle joy and love of the images and sound. The title provides an overview of the plot which is really just a loose structure to build indelible images and sounds with interesting characters. The titular character (played by Thanapat Saisaymar) is dying of kidney failure and returns to where he was born to spend time with loved ones in his last days.

It’s a somewhat indescribable film in how it made me feel almost every possible emotion from elation to boredom to happiness and sadness. The tones are mixed and matched in unpredictable ways and at times it seems as if the film is inducing a trance. The film is an experience with different acting and shooting styles and moves from naturalistic styles, to magic, to horror, to humour and long, lingering shots. From families remembering their past to ghosts appearing or people having sex with fish, it’s a film that creates a unique world that explores the idea of transformation and blurs all borders between categories.

The film really shouldn’t work but with the characters providing a way in to the film it accepts the magic in the world as being normal. The unique and almost ecstatic part of the film is how the mundane and the magical are blended together seamlessly. When a ghost appears it is a bit shocking for those around, but then they start talking about what she’s missed and then show her some pictures of her funeral. It’s a very ordinary and lovely reaction to something extraordinary. This throws you off balance and the skill of the film is the way it blurs all of the lines and transports us into a different place that stays with us for days or weeks or months. If you have a chance to see this in a theatre you will not see any film like this for a long time.

December 29, 2010 2010, film, review, uncle boonmee

Fish Tank

Andrea Arnold wrote and directed Fish Tank, which is about a 15-year-old young woman who is struggling to figure out who she is. Set in housing projects in Essex, it’s a gritty naturalistic slice of life as we follow Mia (played remarkably by Katie Jarvis) through her days in the summer as she practices dancing and wanders around the neighbourhood. The plot and characters slowly emerge and there is a verité feel to the film. Beautifully shot and with bold supporting performances by Kierston Wareing as Mia’s mom and Michael Fassbinder as her boyfriend it skirts along an uncomfortable edge in all the relationships. The film lays the groundwork and then lets us watch as the characters deal with circumstances with no clear or logical way out.

We see the different roles that Mia has with herself, her mom, her sister and her classmates from school as we as how she deals with men and her own sexuality and identity. It’s compelling to watch and is a subtle and powerful portrait of a woman who is seeing the world and herself in a new way.

December 28, 2010 2010, film, fish tank, review

The King’s Speech

The King's Speech

In the modern world the idea of a monarch who has supreme power over people is a bit of an anachronism, but with the prospect of an upcoming royal wedding, it appears that there still remans a bit of interest in that type of thing. I’ve never been much of a fan of the Merchant-Ivory school of historical dramas. Too much rich person angst for me. The dynamic, self-effacing, anarchic UK of Monty Python, Billy Bragg and Russell Brand appeal to me more than the dry lamentations for a lost empire. That could be why I’m not so keen on Harry Potter, so while I was anticipating The King’s Speech, I knew that there was the chance that it would go down the road of the safe historical drama.

But it wasn’t that at all. From the very first shots it had me. Using wide lenses, shallow depth-of-field and off kilter framing, the film provides a very human and accessible version of history and historical figures. At times I was surprised as I recognized historical figures. I hadn’t seen them as future kings or queens, but as people, which is a testament to the filmmaking skills of Tom Hooper.

There is an amazing chemistry between Colin Firth (as King George VI) and Geoffrey Rush (as his speech therapist) and the entire film subverts expectations with scenes that cut just before what we expect to see and focusses on the very human aspects of the characters. It’s a lot of fun and also moving as we watch someone struggle with a personal challenge. Even with a more conventional treatment the story itself would be interesting, but with a bold approach it transcends the genre and makes for a memorable film that is fun and moving at the same time.

December 20, 2010 2010, film, review

Winter’s Bone

Winter's Bone

I went to see Winter’s Bone not knowing anything about it and was quite amazed at the film. It’s a low-buget beautifully-shot drama set in the Ozarks directed by Debra Granik. The heart of the film is an amazing performance by Jennifer Lawrence as the 17 year old woman who is looking for her father who disappeared. His skpping out on bail puts the family home, woods and her brother and sister at risk since the land and house were put up for his bail. His daughter needs to find him or lose the house and the woods that surround it.

Shot in a naturalistic style with a subtle and casual pacing, it gradually reveals details of the community and family as the mystery unfolds. It’s a gripping drama with characters that feel authentic and don’t follow the standard Hollywood conventions. One of the great things about a drama where the actors aren’t easily recognized is that there is an uncertainty introduced as you aren’t sure which characters are good or evil or even if those concepts have much meaning. It’s a story of courage, survival, family and community and provides a bracing glimpse into life in rural America.

December 19, 2010 2010, film, review, winter's bone

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