Films I Watched - February, 2005
Submitted by lbangs on Fri, 02/04/2005 - 11:12
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- 2/25 - The Godfather - I have reviewed this one several times before, so I will only add that it gets better with each viewing. Still, the second film is better... ****
- 2/24 - Fahrenheit 9/11 - Michael Moore dances about the Bush administration, finding weaknesses and jabbing with abandon. Unfortunately, he never quite delivers a unified attack, and when he closes in towards the end with his knockout punch, even the viewers nodding along throughout the film are likely to pause and to have some doubt. It is easier to plug away at a specific and expect people to believe you’ve proved a generality than it is to actually prove the larger thesis. Still, Moore has passion, and that passion gives a certain solidity to the body blows he does connect. He also owns a patented style, and while that style was better served with Bowling for Columbine, it still helps keep this incendiary documentary on its feet throughout the match. Ultimately, Moore cannot win the fight, either theoretically or in reality, as the last presidential election proved, but he definitely can claim some sort of victory; this film raked in dough few documentaries even dream of ever seeing, and this work marks one more entry into his genre-defining work, shaping documentaries from a fly-on-the-wall, seemingly objective format into full-barrels-blazing attack essays. The innuendo may not deliver the wallop the facts do, but Moore, obviously genuinely roused by his subject, stays standing proud throughout the match. ** 1/2
- 2/19 - The Man Without a Past - Perhaps my love of dramas about ordinary people rages beyond all control, perhaps I am a sucker for a leisurely, atmospheric pace where the silence speaks as loudly as the words, or perhaps the echoes of Hal Hartley’s Amateur bit into my leg too deeply, but I completely fell for Aki Kaurismaki’s quiet film with complete abandon. The deadpan humor often had me laughing aloud, the early rock and roll soundtrack had my toes tapping, and the moving tale of a man without memory making a way in a downtrodden, poverty-ravished world engaged me fully. This is the type of film many will see and label over-rated, but I lost myself to its charms. It is a quiet, under-heralded masterpiece. ****
- 2/17 - Spider-Man 2 - The first film captured all the flavor and excitement of a third-rate comic book. For this installment, Sam Raimi aims for the top tier, and to my disbelief, he largely scores. The drama that frankly redeemed the silly Spider-Man comic book is unleashed with a vengeance, with issues of personal desires fighting with responsibility ladled on with melodramatic abandon. Peter Parker emerges as a much more interesting character, and even Kirsten Dunst handles Mary Jane Watson much better than in the first installment. J.K. Simmons nails J. Jonah Jameson, and the entire cast must have had a good sit-down with the director to calibrate the feel of this film. The color palette is amazing, perfectly reproducing the hues one would expect from this comic book brought to life. Sure, the computer animation is still iffy, rendering a few climatic battle scene disappointing, but the crux of this film is in the drama, and a few bad scenes of a CGI web slinger cannot ruin the intensity of the truly pivotal scenes. In keeping with what seems to be a fixed rule of superhero films (see Superman 2, X2, etc.), Spider-Man 2 is a sequel that dwarves the original, and it offers oodles of delights in the process. *** 1/2
- 2/13 - Star and Stripes Forever - Clifton Webb, who will probably always be Waldo Lydecker in my mind, tackles the role of John Philip Sousa here, and he does a much better job than the material demanded. In fact, this is a fun cast, with the incredibly sexy (especially for an early-50s Technicolor musical!) Debra Paget, the talented Ruth Hussey, and the grown-up Boy Scout Robert Wagner impressing. The music also soars, booming and bouncing Sousa marches with a buoyant joy. The script, however, is rather commonplace, and while the dialogue is charming enough, the drama rarely materializes. This is not enough to ruin this film, of course, but it does keep it rather chained to earth when it frankly might have soared. ** 1/2
- 2/11 - Bad Education - Pedro goes late Hitchcock, while mixing in film noir and his own patented style of melodrama. The results are visually hypnotic, leaving the audience riveted to the bravura performances by the incredible cast (I said it years ago, and I repeat it now: Gael Garcia Bernal is destined to greatness). The style is not the only tribute to the suspense master, though, as the screenplay runs through twists and turns that Hitch would not only be proud of but might even envy. The time frame shifts, the characters shift, and the viewpoints shift. Good luck keeping your firm footing! As all the delights spin about and leave one dizzy, a certain uneasy emptiness settles in a bit. For a film that is adamant about emotional filmmaking (note that ending), an odd amount here seems a bit like sparkling cotton candy. In other words, this film that defends passionate filmmaking seems oddly lacking in passion. Still, there is plenty here to glue you to the screen, and Almodovar leaves little doubt that he is one of the more talented and surprising directors around. *** 1/2
- 2/11 - Vera Drake - Most American moviegoers have yet to embrace Mike Leigh, and I doubt they ever will. Mr. Leigh is not interested in giving that group anything it wants. His films are usually talky affairs lacking in gunpowder or the even higher explosive quality of star power. He usually does not spend an entire film focused on beautiful people; most of his casts look like people you see on the street. He treats the audience like adults, not as if they were adolescent boys. He expects you to sit down, shut up, and pay attentions without having to twirl bright baubles before your eyes. Have I mentioned I am a Leigh nut, or that he is probably one of the greatest true auteurs working in film today? Why? Here is your proof. Vera Drake is a long film featuring a slew of folks you have never heard of playing out a drama about an incredibly controversial subject that never once dips to political propaganda or characters spotting out position papers disguised as dialogue. In fact, it is shocking how little the film spends any time discussing the morality of abortion. A few people vent briefly over it, but by the end of the film, nobody has changed his or her mind about it. The lens will not let the character escape our view, and those characters are incredibly true to life. They, and not the subject matter, are the point here, and it is incredible how Leigh never forgets that. This is subtle yet strong stuff, which means it is exactly the style of creative soil in which this writer and director flourishes. ****
- 2/8 - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Harry gets a new director, Alfonso Cuaron, and as one might suspect, this finally works major mojo magic on the series. For the first time, the adventures of Mr. Potter and his friends find the proper balance of wonderment and wickedness, while Cuaron’s natural interest in adolescence fits the story like a form fitted T-shirt. The plot is a bit more on the ball this time as well, with a detour towards the end that deliciously wraps up the entire affair. Luckily, Cuaron is not a slave to the book the way Columbus was; this shorter, zippier film breaths life like a real movie should. It has blood, unlike the oddly waxen creations the former director carved from the novels. I am always thrilled when a big budget blockbuster actually delivers on the elements that made the template so successful in the first place. This installment of the Harry Potter series finally does just that; it wows us while remembering that the eyes grow bigger when the heart is still pumping. *** 1/2
- 2/4 - Friday Night Lights - Peter Berg must have been intent on delivering something other than the typical sports drama, and this film benefits greatly from that decision. The acting is pretty good, and the directing is fine, if not too exciting. In the end, though, the film is not nearly as involving as one might hope; in fact, the supplemental material following up on the athletes years later is almost as moving as the movie itself. Still, this is infinitely better than most sports film, and it is one that even non-sports fans might find entertaining. ** 1/2
- 2/3 - Million Dollar Baby - The average quality of the screenplay simply sets the acting and directing shining by contrast. Eastwood not only works the lighting and framing of each shot with subtle yet undeniable skill, he also provides one of his finest performances ever as Frankie Dunn, a boxing trainer who is needled by Hilary Swank's Maggie Fitzgerald into taking on his first female fighter. As for Swank, heck, just go ahead and give her another Oscar; she earns it here, proving that she is one of the best actors working in Hollywood today. While that script is riddled with some clunky problems, Eastwood's sure hand and the cast's work do wonder to gloss over nearly every one of them, and the final film is more moving and involving than Paul Haggis' screenplay really has any right to be. A word to the wise: This is an Eastwood film, and anybody who has been following the man's work recently have probably already guessed that the advertising for this flick does not really represent the actual film. This is the man who directed Mystic River. Rocky this ain't. *** 1/2
Author Comments:
I'm rating the films on a zero to four star basis. ** 1/2 is average.
My thoughts exactly on Prisoner of Azkaban. I'm always shocked when I meet someone who preferred one of the Columbus movies (and I meet a lot of such people, so I spend a fair amount of time dazed and confused). I'm hoping with Goblet of Fire Mike Newell can clear the bar set by Alfonso Cuarón, but frankly (and sadly) I think chances are slim.
I mentioned earlier today that I am a notorious non-fan. Fans tend to like what they like as they like it (or something like that). Columbus filmed the books, nearly page for page as I understand, and fans love that. AC filmed a movie, and I love that.
I also have doubts about Newell, but I also have some hope.
Surely the series cannot keep getting better with each film forever...
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
I've never seen a Leigh film, but methinks I'd love him. What are your other favorites of his?
I would love to see Hilary Swank get another Oscar. Hopefully (haven't seen MDB) because she earns it, but that she's not a hottie in her winning roles (or so much in realy life, imo) is icing on the cake.
It is hard to go wrong with Leigh; while I have not quite seen every film of his, I have yet to see one I didn't like to some degree. Of his films, besides Vera Drake, I'd suggest watching High Hopes, Life Is Sweet, Secrets & Lies, and Topsy-Turvy (which is sorta the odd man out here). Many of his earlier made-for-television films are terrific, as well.
If Swank swipes the Oscar, believe me, she will have earned it, and this is coming from a guy who really does not find her very attractive. I am nearly ashamed to admit that I had a much tougher job keeping my eyes off of Helen Coker, who plays a bit part as a policewoman in Vera Drake. Guys do love a gal in uniform, ya know!
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
To each his own. I prefer 'em out of uniform.
;)
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
Well, I wasn't convinced your shelf life was up with Finding Neverland, but now I am. :-)
Nah, just kidding. As evidenced by your great Bad Education review, you've got plenty of time left in you.
I am very glad you seem more convinced of that than I am!
Thanks for the compliment on Bad Education. It is a very arresting film; it may not be my favorite of last year, but it should certainly be on most film lovers must-see list for 2004.
Shalom y'all!
L. Bangs