Call Me By Your Name (2017)

I’ve seen lots of Italian Films in my day. From Neorealism to Giallo, I’ve taken in some of the best Cinema that boot-shaped country has to offer. Yet, as "sensual" as that country truly is, that is not the word I would use to describe their films. Luca Guadagnino is the exception.

Unlike his countryman Paolo Sorrentino, I don’t feel a slavishly self-conscious debt to the operatic camera movements and emotions of Fellini, Visconti, or Leone. From the enveloping soundtrack of insects and wind through trees, to the sun-soaked photography that is so bright it warms you with refracted light off the screen, every artistic decision here is intended to make you feel as though you are actually in the north of Italy, in the early 80’s, during summer. There is no need to beat us over the head with heighten emotions in desperate hope of making us feel something/anything. We are already/immediately right there. We are taking everything in with all five senses simultaneously. We can smell the sweat, taste the food and feel the caresses. We are living it. We are living the good times...and the sad times, too.

Desert Hearts (1985)

I’m pretty sure that the idea of "love at first sight" was invented by a writer. As someone who has attempted screenwriting, I can tell you definitively that it takes a lot of pages to make characters believably fall in love. Love at first sight is a shortcut that allows the filmmakers to get to what they were really trying to make a film about. But what if your film is entirely and exclusively about the slow dance of falling in love? That is what Desert Hearts is. It’s a short movie, but it takes its time building that love story. Like Cay, it is single-minded in its pursuit. Everything else just falls away. The whole world falls away. All that is left is the beauty of the desert, and these two women, falling in love. You really have to admire the simplicity.

Monster (2003)

This film is much more than Charlize Theron’s excellent performance. If this movie had been directed by a man, that director’s filmography would absolutely be longer than two feature films in fourteen years. Patty Jenkins gets so much out of such a short runtime. AND SHE WROTE IT TOO! Meanwhile, people like Josh Trank and Colin Trevorrow are just handed millions of dollars after debuts with nowhere near the same tonal complexity as Monster. How Patty Jenkins didn’t go on her own rampage during the past fourteen years is completely beyond me. Well at least Trank and Trevorrow got fired from huge gigs while she is gonna make a huge payday for the second Wonder Woman. Now if only we could get Hollywood to consider Ms. Jenkins as something other than a fluke...

Phantom Thread (2017)

Though it was the Scorsese-like, visual gymnastics of Boogie Nights and Magnolia that caught the eye of the Film School Kids, we must remember that the principle influence on Paul Thomas Anderson’s debut film Sydney (aka Hard Eight) was Melvin and Howard. Instead of opening with a whole lot of whiz-bang, both films begin with protracted conversations between two characters. At his core, this is who Paul Thomas Anderson is as a filmmaker.

Of course he played around with all the fancy toys on his next couple of films (who wouldn’t?), but as early as Punch-Drunk Love you can sense a filmmaker casting aside all of the bravura in favor of a simpler, more character based cinema.

For all its fire and fury, There Will Be Blood is the story of three people in the desert. The Master is a love story between Freddie and Lancaster. Even with all the Pynchonian intrigue, Inherent Vice is really just the story of Doc, Bigfoot and Shasta Fey. Phantom Thread is Anderson’s minimalism taken to its logical end-point.

It’s not shot on antique, large-format cameras and most of it takes place in small rooms. It’s not about Capitalism or Religion or any other “important” issue. The only maximalist element in the whole thing is Johnny Greenwood’s wonderful score.

It’s taken him many years and films to get to this point, but Anderson has successfully pruned away that which is not essential, held on to a few handy tricks, and returned to where he started. But this is no ending. This is a new beginning. And I cannot wait to see what comes next.

Southside with You (2016)

I can't remember what podcast it was on, but a while back I heard someone doing a bit about how only the most well-known black people get biopics (Malcolm X, 42, etc) while any-old white person can get one (Joy, Flash of Genius, etc). That bit kept cycling through my mind while I watched Southside With You. This is that premise stretched out to a ludicrous degree. Do you think this film would have been made/admitted to festivals if it hadn't been about the then-current POTUS and FLOTUS on their first date? Richard Linklater has made three films like this about random, fictional, white people. But this one had to be about the early years of the First Family in order to get Sundance attention. That's some bullshit.

I Fidanzati (1962)

Stylistically this film hits a real sweet spot for me. It's a perfect balance between the Neo-Realism of early Rossellini and the over-the-top stylings of late Fellini. It is a beautiful portrait of mid-century  Sicily that relishes in the subtle details of day to day life, but with its very particular shot choices and radical cutting patterns, it is also extremely constructed. The leaps forward and backward in time, and the way they are tied together by the dancehall sequence is masterful and predates Nicolas Roeg by several years. And thanks to the "stranger in a strange land" narrative as well as the primarily silent protagonist, the digressions into the particulars of finding lodging and getting a late night meal do not feel extraneous. Ermanno Olmi is capable of making the extremely difficult seem effortless. For him, it probably was.

Chasing Amy (1997)

To many, liking the work of Kevin Smith is grounds for having your cinephile card revoked. Even I will concede that his most recent work (Tusk, Yoga Hosers, etc.) is near impossible to defend. But doesn't anyone remember those early years? Lately, I've been thinking a lot about Chasing Amy. Smith's tale of a hetero man who is unable to accept his girlfriend's fluid sexuality was more than a decade ahead of it's time. Long before terms like "pansexuality" were able to enter the broader pop cultural lexicon via celebrities like Miley Cyrus or shows like Broad City, there was Joey Lauren Adams as Alyssa Jones delivering impassioned monologues about refusing to conform to what heteronormative society thinks is proper and insisting on loving whomever the hell she wants to love. Sure this message would have been more authentic and nuanced coming from a Queer filmmaker rather than from Smith, but because it came from him, it was able to reach a whole lot of immature boys who just wanted to hear dick and fart jokes. I know this because that's how I found my way to this film. I like to think that in some small way, Chasing Amy helped to move me towards becoming the ally that I try to be. And that's why I paid money to see Cop Out in a theater.

Love & Friendship (2016)

If I had to sum up acting and directing in a single word, that word would be "nuance." Words on a page can be delivered in so many different ways. This is why high school kids hate Shakespeare. Read alone for homework, Romeo and Juliet can be pretty dry stuff. With the right actors and directors it can become a laugh riot. The same goes for the work of Jane Austen. Throughout Love & Friendship I found myself imagining a David Mamet version of this same story with actors merely reciting the script and giving zero inflection. Thankfully, Whit Stillman and his actors chose to wring every possible drop of comedy out of this material. I predict this film will fast become a favorite for substitute teachers to show English classes.

The Grandmaster (2013)

The past plays a huge role in the work of Wong Kar Wai. His characters are haunted by friends, lovers and eras both long and recently departed. Wong's cinema recognizes that the passage of time is inevitable. Nothing can stop it. In this film in particular, characters are literally fighting the future via exquisitely staged kung fu battles. Yet, no matter who wins any particular match, history marches on. It is a wave that cannot be stopped. Some things are allowed to endure. Others are pulled out to sea in a rip current. Those are the cold, hard facts. Yet unlike other Wong Kar Wai films which tend to focus on the person in mourning, this film gives voice to the one being mourned as well. Nobody gets an easy break.

Marie Antoinette (2006)

Though I never hated this film, I've really warmed to it over the years. It's a boldly subjective take on material that many find as boring as...well...a history lesson. This film has no interest in the political. It is 100% focused on the personal. Sofia Coppola's sole aim is to put you in Antoinette's fabulously ornate shoes. How long is a carriage ride from Austria to France? Long! How fun is a masquerade ball? As fun as grooving to Siouxie and the Banshees. And in spite of all the decadent decor and fashion, the camera work is pretty unobtrusive. With the soft, natural light, much of the film feels like home movies...from Versailles. And that final shot of the smashed chandelier is a thing of absolute, heartbreaking beauty. No chyron needed. We know how this ends. It all came crashing down.

Mo' Better Blues (1990)

The first time I saw this movie I knew next to nothing about jazz. Though I still know absolutely nothing about chords and blue notes, my jazz collection now numbers more than 2,000 tracks. I don't really understand the music on a technical level, but I love it. I love the expressiveness of it. I love how it can be one thing for one person and a different thing for another. There's dixieland, swing, big band, be-bop, modal, free, fusion, etc. and it's all still jazz. It's loud, it's quiet, it's classical, it's experimental. While I still hope for Spike to make a movie that's really "about" jazz (perhaps a period film?), I think with Mo' Better Blues he was able to succeeded at making a film that mirrored the style of jazz. There are quiet moments, there are loud moments. There are moments that look like they could be set in the 50's (complete with questionable ethnic stereotypes) and then there are the moments that are distinctly set in the late 80's. There are also the more conventionally shot scenes that butt right up against the more show-boaty "solo" shots with cranes and actors on dolly carts. Even Spike's tendency to cram in an excess of ideas contributes to the overall jazz stew feeling. Every time one of his pet themes shows up in the film, it's like when a theme comes back around in a song. While it's extremely far from perfect and audience interest wavers here and there, I defy you to find fault with that coda. Underscored by John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme, Pt. I – Acknowledgement" it is absolute cinematic perfection. Is it coincidence that this film ends with one of the greatest beginnings in jazz? I wouldn't bet on it. Ya dig? Sho' nuff!

Sabrina (1954)

Looking through the filmography of Billy Wilder, this film seems to be a bit of a left turn after the overwhelming darkness of the films that preceded it. To follow up alcoholism, murder, betrayal, opportunism and prison camps with a Cinderella story? Perhaps this was Wilder's attempt to lighten up. But as they say, it's pretty hard for a leopard to change its spots. While we love to focus on Audrey Hepburn in her Givenchy gowns swaying go La Vie En Rose, that is to ignore the fact that this film begins with a suicide attempt. It's also a film with an extremely cynical take on class and Capitalism in America. "I like to think of life as a limousine. Though we are all riding together, we must remember our places. There's a front seat and a back seat and a window in between." No matter how pink you make the glass of that window, it will always be there.

The Theory of Everything (2014)

This one really surprised me. The trailer (which I saw a million times leading up to its release) had me thinking this would be A Beautiful Mind 2: Quantum Boogaloo. But in the back of my mind there was the fact that Stephen and Jane ended up divorcing. How would they reconcile that? Expertly is the answer. This film does not soft-pedal any of the prickly issues. It addresses the atheism and polyamory head-on. So much so that it's really the point of the whole picture. I'm certain the studio would have preferred to downplay these aspects (in order to get Red State, Blue Hairs to buy tickets) but thankfully the filmmakers held strong to the facts as they occurred. This is a great antidote to the type of brilliant man/shrewish wife films that were so expertly mocked in Walk Hard. This is an honest film about people and it does some interesting visual things to keep things from becoming too rote. Very well done. Bravo!

The Duke of Burgundy (2015)

There are only so many stories that can be told. I know this might sound weird but: with the gradually shifting power dynamic of the dominant and submissive switching places in this film, I found myself constantly reminded of Annie Hall. And while I can't think of a particular example, I'm 100% certain that many people told this same story long before Woody Allen. Probably Shakespeare and/or the Greeks. So now that we've established that nothing is original, how do we make a story new again? By telling it in a style we have not seen it in before. Take that old skeleton, drape it in lush/fetishistic cinematography, surround it with haunting music, then tie it up and sit on its face. What was once old, is now new again. Gotta do something to keep the romance alive, right?

Days of Being Wild (1990)

Unlike so many other ensemble pieces, Days of Being Wild doesn’t proclaim itself as such from the onset. There’s no rapid montage introducing us to all the various characters we will meet along the way. When we start, we are certain that Leslie and Maggie Cheung’s characters are going to be our protagonists. Yet before you know it, one character is jettisoned for another and it is their film, for a while…

A full year before Slacker, Wong Kar-Wai was already excelling at the type of narrative Richard Linklater would be praised for with that film. It’s a daisy chain structure where one character introduces us to another who in turn introduces us to another. Everything loops back eventually but not in the configurations you were expecting. In the end, you get these weird combinations of characters you never thought would end up together, but that’s life. You never know who is going to enter the picture next or return from the past. You can really tell what an influence this film had on Pulp Fiction.

Apparently this film didn’t do very well upon initial release. From what I gather, there was supposed to be a follow-up film which is hinted at in the final scene. But after the poor box office reception, those plans were scrapped. Yet, rather than make this film feel like some sort of vestigial appendage of a larger creature, the inclusion of that final scene inadvertently solidifies what makes this movie so wonderful. There’s always someone new, waiting in the wings, ready to enter the story of your life. Where will they end up taking you?

Never Let Me Go (2010)

As a huge fan of Mark Romanek's music videos and as someone who had already seen One Hour Photo, I went into this movie with a lot of preconceived notions visually. Like Steven Soderbergh or Stanley Kubrick, Romanek is known for making beautiful yet sterile images. This preconception combined with the sci-fi premise of the source material had me anticipating a dystopian future with a cool color pallet and lots of mechanically precise camera movements. This movie is none of those things. Outside of the premise and the occasional little scanner thingy, you get no indication that this is science fiction. Rather than focusing on the apparatus of this dystopian future like some crappy YA film, Romanek instead focuses on the characters. His principle concern is to make them real and to show us their souls. We can relate to them. And as the cruel truth of this world dawns on them, it dawns on us as well. No matter what we say or do, no matter who we love or what we believe, in the end, we all have the same fate.

Belle (2013)

Belle is the story of a young woman named Dido Elizabeth Belle, the daughter of Royal Navy Captain who grew up being raised by her aristocratic relatives. She is bright, wealthy, and beautiful, and by all rights should have the whole world open to her. The catch? She's illegitimate, and her mother is black. She finds herself caught between two worlds, facing prejudice from the ignorant world outside her door, and trying to follow her instincts to her ultimate happiness. 

Can we talk about how lovely Gugu Mbatha-Raw is for a second? I can't think of anyone else who would be better in this role. She has a spark that can't be denied. The rest of the cast is great too; familiar faces include Tom Wilkinson, Emily Watson, Draco Malfoy I MEAN Tom Felton (playing a racist a-hole, of course), Penelope Wilton, Miranda Richardson, and Matthew Goode. In addition to being a Jane Austen-esque love story (you know, stolen glances, verbal sparring that means they're obviously in love, all that stuff I can't get enough of), it's about social issues too, notably the Zong massacre of 1781. It's an interesting touch to what is otherwise a pleasant if unexceptional film. I really loved this movie and after watching it alone one night I watched it again the next day with my sister, and I kinda want to watch it again...

It's currently streaming on HBO, and if you're a fan of period films or love stories (or both!), I definitely recommend it. If nothing else, give props to Miss Mbatha Raw for her mirror scene. So moving, so powerful. I've definitely got my eye on her. 

Ever After > Cinderella

It's silly to compare such different movies, but this is just for fun. And this will likely turn into a rant! 1998's Ever After is all about the "real" story of Cinderella, so it lacks all the pumpkin-into-carriage and mice-into-horses bits that the new live-action Cinderella wanted to capture. This year's version is basically a (barely) updated version of the 1950 animated film, magic intact. Since I am both a 90s girl at heart and have an unshakable aversion to CGI, it's kind of a given that I prefer Ever After. But let's compare the two anyway, shall we? Spoilers abound!

 

Danielle vs Ella
Okay, Drew Barrymore's accent is all over the place. And Lily James is undeniably lovely. But COME ON. Danielle blows Ella out of the water in the personality department. "Have courage and be kind"? That's nice and all, but Ella basically would have been satisfied to sit in her attic singing forever while slowly starving to death. Danielle speaks up! She gets things done and she PUNCHES HER STEPSISTER IN THE FACE. Having a Cinderella (made in 2015! Come on!) take so much abuse and just wait around for someone to rescue her is ridiculous.

The Stepsisters
I actually enjoyed the stepsisters from the new Cinderella. They were funny (wonderfully acted by Sophie McShera and Holliday Grainger) and totally over the top. But what I really like about Ever After is that one of the stepsisters (played by the always amazing Melanie Lynskey) is really sweet. She is pushed aside by her mother for her more beautiful and shrewish sister (Megan Dodds) and really feels for Danielle, becoming a valuable friend and ally to her. Sisters helping sisters, I love it!

Baroness Rodmilla de Ghent vs Lady Tremaine
Anjelica Huston versus Cate Blanchett. How can I choose? Okay, Lady Tremaine definitely gets the fashion points (although I do love the Baroness's ball outfit). Truth be told, Cinderella's costumes were the primary reason I went to see this film at all. They both act the hell out of their roles, and I cannot choose. We'll call this one a draw. I have to give a Sick Burn Point to Huston for her delivery of this line: when Danielle asks if she ever loved her, she responds "How can anyone love a pebble in their shoe?" OUCH.

The "Fairy Godmothers"
Ella's fairy godmother doesn't show up during any other hard time in her life. She just shows up to let her go to a dance. Danielle's "fairy godmother" is Leonardo Da Vinci, and they have a friendship throughout the film. Yes, he helps her get out of a tough spot, but she ultimately does her own rescuing. The winner here is obvious.

 

The Princes
Princes are princes. They're generally boring, and they're boring in both of these films. However, Ever After's prince at least gets in several meetings with her before they run off and get hitched. She throws an apple at him, he's annoyed. She shows up at court, they share words, he's intrigued. He meets her again while she's swimming like a lovely water nymph. And then they have a wonderful all-nighter where they fight and then befriend gypsies, and talk about books and life goals and then kiss and fall in love. Ella has one conversation with her prince in the forest, and then he pretty much has his mind made up that SHE'S THE ONE. And of course she feels the same way because she's totally sheltered. Sigh.

The Dress!
Cinderella's costumes are pretty breathtaking. While I was originally a little underwhelmed by Ella's blue dress, it's definitely grown on me.  However, lovely as it is, it's your fairly standard ball gown. Danielle's dress has wings! WINGS! And let's talk about the shoes for a second. I'm sorry, but no human foot could comfortably fit in Ella's shoe. That thing looks like fetish wear.

The bottom line:
I'm not trying to dismiss all fairytales or all love stories. I can somewhat accept a passive heroine back in the 1950s. But in 2015, with renewed interest in building up our girls to be more than just pretty faces, I'm looking for my princesses to pack a little punch. Ever After shows that a girl can suffer through abuse and survive, go to the ball, and get her prince, and still be strong and outspoken and do her own rescuing. Ella, you're nice and pretty but you've got a LOT of growing up to do.

Bay of Angels (1963)

Never has there been a more funny, stylish and frustrating cinematic depiction of "that couple". You know the ones. The co-dependent ones who will dance forever on the edge of oblivion yet somehow never fall in? There are probably a couple of them in your life. When things are good they are great. When things are bad they are the worst. And it can switch back and forth numerous times within the span of a minute. Continually chasing the highs despite the lows. Love junkies, if you will. I bet if you showed them this film they would be all, "Oh my God what's wrong with these people?" It's kind of hard to see the forest for the trees, especially when good luck is surely waiting just around the corner...

Marty (1955)

Sometimes a film doesn't need spectacle or high drama to touch the heart. Sometimes all it takes is a simple story with a genuine performance by a talented actor. That's the case in Marty, a love story for anyone who's given up hope.

Marty (Ernest Borgnine) is a butcher in his 30s, unmarried and living with his mother. Despite being friendly and likable, he has pretty much given up on finding his special someone. In his words, he's "a fat ugly man" and he has resigned himself to being the extra guy when going out with his friends. Then one night at a party, he meets Clara (Betsy Blair). She's shy, sweet, and according to his friends, "a dog." But it's quite possible that they might be perfect for each other. 

This is not a flashy story. It's a story of boy-meets-girl, with a knockout performance by Borgnine who was never sweeter or more vulnerable. He absolutely breaks your heart...you just want to jump into the screen and give him a hug. You feel for him, you root for him, you want him to take control of his life and you want him to go for it! In spite of the story's simplicity, this film took home the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Writing (Screenplay). With the usual Academy Award trend of big movies getting the big prizes, it's refreshing that this film was able to be so successful during award season. 

This film is currently streaming on Netflix, so check it out if you're in the mood for something sweet. Enjoy!