A Tormented Farce
September 17, 2015
Irrational Man (2015).
D/W: Woody Allen. DP: Darius Khondji. Starring: Joaquin Phoenix/Emma Stone/Parker Posey/Ethan Philips/Betsy Aidem/Jamie Blackley.
Many a critic will say or have said that Woody Allen has lost his touch. Many will endeavor to claim that he never had ‘a touch.’ Regardless where you lie on that spectrum, based on Irrational Man it is safe to say whatever he did or did not have had he certainly has lost now.
The film follows pot-bellied half-drunk slop of a philosophy professor, Abe (Phoenix), as he arrives to teach a summer session at a fictional liberal arts college. He soon befriends chemistry professor Rita (Posey) as well as student Jill (Stone). Through the first half of the film philosophical debates paired with silly love trysts bring the characters to the existential question of murder. Frankly, I think my plot description is better written than this film.
This is Allen’s follow up and reunion with Stone who was the lead in his last film, Magic in the Moonlight, but it is borderline unbearable. Both Jill and Abe provide needless voice-over to the entire story, even describing action that just occurred. Irrational Man functions more as a live reading of a book than a film or maybe something Allen wrote in a scotch induced rant when he wanted to write a novel. At a certain point you must relinquish to the silly.
Allen has given up casting himself as the messy male protagonist who dates women half or more his age. Here he gives us Phoenix in a boring forgettable role, sad as I thought he was fabulous in Inherent Vice. Phoenix lacks chemistry with Stone though you can tell they are trying their best. But Stone’s Jill is an infuriating young woman who in the same conversation flatters Abe for ordering for her yet then wants to assert her own opinions. Stone’s performance in Birdman will probably be her best for awhile based on these choices. And even as much as I like Parker Posey she can’t do much here.
Filmed entirely in Rhode Island, Irrational Man‘s setting is gorgeous. The campus used looks quintessentially American New England liberal arts elite with enough greenery to make you salivate. Some scenes on the shore help to distract from the pomposity of the characters discussion, but they cannot save the film. By the end Irrational Man is a laugh, a farce and another installment in the bad Allen in the vaults of cinematic history.
Get Thee to a Theater!
January 6, 2015
Birdman (2014).
D: Alejandro González Iñárritu. DP: Emmanuel Lubezki. W: Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris & Armando Bo. Starring: Michael Keaton/Naomi Watts/Emma Stone/Edward Norton/Andrea Riseborough/Zach Galifianakis/Amy Ryan/Merrit Wever/Lindsay Duncan.
Leading a formidable and competitive awards season is the much talked about Birdman. Helmed by Alejandro González Iñárritu (2003’s 21 Grams, 2006’s Babel, 2010’s Biutiful), Birdman is a glorious baptism in cinema.
Haunted by his previous commercial comic book film success, Riggan Thomas (ironically played by Batman graduate Michael Keaton) attempts to open a play on Broadway. Adapted, directed, and acted by Keaton’s Riggan the financial and emotional stress of the venture creeps in on him along with the drama that always escalates in the world backstage. But the backstage plot is merely a way to enter the actor’s psychosis that is attempting to face his failures at fatherhood, disconnection with his career, and his ultimate fears.
Keaton is at his best here. Last seen for me in this year’s forgettable Robocop, his washed up Riggan is as real as they get. Iñárritu’s use of long takes and roaming cameras does not leave a lot of room for actors to hide anything. Keaton literally and emotionally bares it all, giving Riggan’s haggard life emotional resonance and a core that allows you to root for him despite it all. Riggan is also plagued by hearing the ghost of his past, a Birdman voice that badgers and sometimes champions him. A difficult conceit to pull off, but Keaton makes it work for laughs and for tears.
Emma Stone plays Keaton’s troubled daughter Sam. Finally her pale skinniness and fretful saucer eyes fit into the role she is playing. She holds her own amidst veterans and her chemistry with Edward Norton is on point. Norton’s Mike is deliciously depraved here and he is excellent sparring partner for Keaton. Regardless if the rumors of this performance being a take on himself as a ‘difficult’ actor, his physicality lifts the script off the page. Not to be forgotten as usual, Naomi Watts brings her shimmer to grateful Broadway newcomer, Lesley. Other than a silly dressing room scene, she’s great. Zach Galifianakis and Amy Ryan also bring in excellent supporting roles that ground Birdman.
Birdman‘s sound editing and score are exceptional (score by Antonio Sanchez). The drum solos alone are fabulous and harken back to another excellent film of this year, Damien Chazelle’s Whiplash. Emmanuel Lubezki’s camera work is exuberant, New York City looks glamorous and dirty all at the same time. The long takes allow the story to breathe and provides a great pacing to the film so that when cuts do come they re-energize you. Ultimately, Birdman is not to be missed and for a story about a washed up actor that is even more astounding.
Tis the Season for a Comic Book Crush
July 9, 2012
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012).
D: Marc Webb. DP: John Schwartzmann. W: James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent & Steve Kloves (based on the Marvel comic books by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko). Starring: Andrew Garfield/Emma Stone/Rhys Ifans/Denis Leary/Martin Sheen/Sally Field/Chris Zylka/Embeth Davidtz/Campbell Scott.
Over the fourth of July holiday, movie theaters everyone got the booming cash flow they needed as The Amazing Spider-Man hit their screens. Not only has the film raked in money domestically and over-seas, but as a re-launch of a franchise it has surpassed monetary expectations. So the true question is, really…did it match our expectations of quality? (And did we even have any?)
Firstly, much must be said of lead Andrew Garfield. Inheriting the Peter Parker role from Tobey Maguire, Garfield wasn’t an obvious choice though he boasts great credits. Seen in 2010’s The Social Network and Never Let Me Go, British Garfield has proven himself as a young dramatic actor. He even worked alongside Heath Ledger in the actor’s final film, 2009’s The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. Here as Peter Parker, Garfield’s genuine charisma shines through. He carries the body language of a teenager well, boosts an adorable grin, but also manages to pull you into the inner workings of a teen in search of his own identity amidst an already grief-stricken young life. Thankfully this script emphasizes Parker’s intellect and gift for science, which more logically supports his eventual understanding of his transformation into Spider-man and the gadgets he then creates.
Luckily Garfield has an excellent partner in crime in Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacey. Uncharacteristically blonde, Stone is enjoyably pert and just as smart as Garfield’s Peter. Their chemistry is evident and the script is strongest here. Their scenes feel genuine, age-appropriate and lack the gloss and smooth lines some writers give high school characters. Being just as supportive are Sally Field and Martin Sheen as Parker’s aunt and uncle. Their family dynamic roots the film in a real familiar context and thankfully never feels hokey. What can feel a bit silly is Rhys Ifan’s reptilian transformation (not giving anything away as this is clearly the story in the preview.) However, how do you create creatures and monsters without them feeling a bit goofy? Especially when the creature needs to be seen in close up? And be a clear character transformation? Regardless of audiences’ temperament for the big lizard, it is great that Ifan’s character doesn’t lose his memory through this change and the script gives his actions clear purpose, conflict and topical context.
Director Marc Webb was a risky, yet thrilling choice here. His previous work consists mostly of music videos, but he waltzed into people’s radars with his directorial debut in 2009’s 500 Days of Summer. I say risky, because this is not only a high profile big budget studio film, but it is also the re-boot of an already successful franchise. The previous trio of films, all directed by Sam Raimi, were monetarily successful, but lacked a sense of darkness or depth. In a post Christopher Nolan Batman reboot world, it is easy to look back and be very critical of Raimi’s Spider-man interpretation. But we must remember that Batman Begins didn’t premiere until 2006, when Raimi’s final Spider-man was already in production for its eventual release in 2007. This is not mentioned to credit Nolan with being solely responsible with changing the way comic-book heroes and stories are interpreted. But rather it cannot be ignored that Nolan’s success with a more realistically darker approach to Batman has influenced other studio franchises to not be weary of that approach. This being said, Webb handles the Spider-man story well with the film having a consistent look, great scope of character, and far better acting than its predecessors.
Ultimately, where The Amazing Spider-Man needed work was in its story. With three writers contributing, things get a bit clunky and there are a few tangents that create gaping holes in the plot. This by no means ruins the film, but instead disrupts the balance and good components of the script. For example, the script refreshingly focuses on Parker’s identify struggle and his desire to be honest and present with Gwen. Thankfully this allows the action and inevitable final battle sequence to be secondary to the character developments it causes. However, key injuries mysteriously disappear, the 3D is barely noticeable, some point of view shots feel very gimmicky, and as mentioned whole tangents just drop off. Yet The Amazing Spider-Man is an enjoyable ride, and begs a lot of questions of Peter Parker’s identity that audiences will surely want to know more about.
Something to Talk About
August 23, 2011
The Help (2011).
D: Tate Taylor. DP: Stephen Goldblatt. Starring: Viola Davis/Emma Stone/Octavia Spencer/Bryce Dallas Howard/Jessica Chastain/Allison Janney/Ahna O’Reilly/Cicely Tyson/Anna Camp/Sissy Spacek/Mike Vogel/Chris Lowell. (NOTE: Based on Kathryn Stockett’s 2009 of the same name.)
About two months ago I wandered into my local Barnes and Noble and was once again seduced by the smell of fresh paper and new stories for my deprived imagination. That afternoon I went home with Kathryn Stockett’s novel, The Help. And like many an avid bookworm, I soon gobbled it up and started peddling it to my nearest friends. Because you should read it. And now, you should definitely see it.
The Help, for those unfortunate few who have not read it, will catch you off guard. Not only because it is a movie of quality with a release date in August, but also it demands that its audiences listen, feel and join in. Like the novel, there is no true central character to the film. Rather it is held up by a core group of excellent female performances. The spark of the plot is ignited by young Eugenia or rather, Skeeter (Emma Stone), finally home from her four years at Ole Miss. Bright and quirky, Stone is as good as ever, but also has tremendous support in her co-stars. Viola Davis makes an unforgettable turn as maid Aibileen. Davis gives Aibileen all of the quietness, strength, and calming warmth she has in Stockett’s book. Her scenes with most recent “white baby” Mae Mobley make your heart burst and your gut wrench all at the same time. I could have only asked for more screen time for the pair.
Davis is offset by fellow maid Minnie (Octavia Spencer) whose more active approach to showing her dislike for her boss soon gets her in trouble. Spencer’s Minnie is just the right amount of spark, oomph, and integrity she should be. And thankfully, Spencer is able to never cross that line into hokey or caricature. Truly allowing all the maids’ personalities to shine through these womens’ performances and giving Stone’s attempt at writing her book of their stories some actual weight. But, Spencer has the unfortunate luck to have worked for Miss Hilly Holbrook, brought to life by Bryce Dallas Howard. Apparently hidden within Howard was this performance waiting to happen. Her quaffed appearance and icy delivery is just the window dressing on the sheer menace and danger Howard gave to her Hilly. She pulls her all her weight here and truly shines.
Yet, the surprise star of the film is Jessica Chastain whose incarnation of Sugar Ditch’s Celia Foote will break just as many hearts as the rest of the film. Although her more eccentric moments from the novel are left out, Chastain truly allows Celia to be three dimensional. My only qualms with the film were certain detailed omissions and different emphases the film made over the novel. The pie gag was tediously overplayed in the film, Stone was not isolated enough from her Junior League ladies, and there needed to be a splash more darkness outside of Howard’s character. However, those will appear merely nit picky compared to the range of emotions The Help brings up and the importance of the stories it tells.
Lastly, one cannot watch this film or read the novel without addressing many issues. Let me be completely clear on my standpoint with this. I believe that regardless of what opinion you have on the racial representation of the work, the marketing of the book (down to its placement in bookstores) or the right of certain “groups” to tell stories based around other “groups,” in which they do not belong, that the achievement of this book and film is that these discussions are happening. Hostility towards this book (and by extension the film) from certain literary groups, authors, and readers could possibly be routed in the lack of discussion or recognition of the problematic nature of its content. Let me be more direct.
Although this is fiction, The Help‘s historical context and discussion of a black American experience would possibly have isolated the novel in a African-American fiction section of a bookstore, had the book been written by a black woman. However, it was not. Due to its prominence elsewhere (and quality, as I believe it has a load of that) it was able to gather a lot of attention. I am not saying this is what happened, but merely conjecturing on my own observations. This theory in itself would agitate anyone, as did the idea of a white author writing about the civil rights movement from a black woman’s perspective. However, in response to that, I must maintain my opinion that the work is fiction and this issue is directly tackled by the author in her afterword. Being aware of the significance of her the story she is telling, tells me that the author recognizes the difficult context in which she is in. Yet, as I said in the beginning, I believe the spark and outbursts about these issues can only be good. Until we, as in all social groups, recognize the significance of these stories in our own lives how can we begin to understand them? Because, truth be told, we are all part of this story. It is part of American history. Part of woman’s history. And although our own lives may never lead us to be able to claim certain stories as our own, that does not mean we can not explore them through fiction. And thankfully The Help does just that.
This is Funny…
August 5, 2011
Crazy Stupid Love (2011).
D: Glenn Ficarra & John Requa. DP: Andrew Dunn. W: Dan Fogelman. Starring: Steve Carell/Ryan Gosling/Julianne Moore/Emma Stone/Marisa Tomei/Analeigh Tipton/Jonah Bobo/Joey King/Kevin Bacon/Josh Groban.
Although considered another entry in the rom-com category for the year, Crazy Stupid Love actually holds its own and gives audiences an engaging, balanced, relationship driven comedy.
The film opens with Steve Carell’s Cal being told by his wife, Emily (Julianne Moore) that she wants her dessert a la a divorce. Visibly distraught and in shock, Carell later pitches himself out of their moving car and gives into Moore’s request. The rest of the film chronicles Carell’s messy journey to discover what went wrong in this relationship and build an identity that allows him to fight for what he wants. Carell ultimately grounds the film and provides the thread through which audiences experience the ups and downs of relationships. Currently the king of likable comedy, Carell is the perfect blend of apathy, normalcy, and humor all in one. Moore is a good screen partner for him, but the laughs are with her screen husband.
Yet what really works to the film’s benefit is its structure. Carell maybe be the main storyline, but the film also follows his son Robbie (Bobo), whose crush on his babysitter (Analeigh Tipton) is not only complicated, but charming. The film also spends sometime with Moore and young lawyer-to-be Hannah, played by Emma Stone. Stone’s scenes are some of the best, and although rail thin now her husky voice and delivery marks her as a great real young comedic talent. Her best scenes are with slick dynamo Jacob (Ryan Gosling). Gosling’s main relationship in Crazy Stupid Love though is with Carell. He “humbly” takes Carell under his wing and teaches him the ins and outs of picking up women (and getting laid). What is memorable about Gosling’s take on Jacob is that he never takes himself too seriously and allows the slick bravado to come from a real place that never feels pastiche or forced. And ladies, he’s not too bad to look at either.
The success of the film is ultimately due to Dan Fogelman’s script. Having enjoyed last years, Tangled, it is only surprising that a heavily Disney/animated screenwriter can give us something so strong and enjoyable. My only critique is that it does lose a bit of steam, but is able to end well and everyone leaves happy. Fogelman clearly represents talent that can cross genres and I only hope he does not get locked in anywhere, especially in the rom-com category.
10 Spring Must Reads for Moviegoers
March 3, 2011
1. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. Out in April, this adaptation will star Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon. Hoping that it will be both better than the Twilight series for Pattinson and better than the 2004′s Vanity Fair adaptation Witherspoon was in, we can all breathe a bit easier knowing how well put together the book is. Also, there is an actual reason to have an elephant in this one.
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. Really is this necessary? I don’t care how prolific it wants to be, lets put it to rest. Just like Austen. Let’s have a generation that learns the book before the film. Still mad at Jamie Bell.
3. Atlas Shrugged (Part 1) by Ayn Rand. Set for an April 15th release. Such a massive undertaking with a somewhat unknown director. Still on my to read list, but safe to say itll be a slog as they are cutting the book into more than one film.
4. Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part II by J.K. Rowling. In theaters this summer. No argument needed. If you haven’t read any, you have a couple of months before the first part of the final chapter comes out. Get on it. Now.
5. Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Roald Dahl. June 17. If you didn’t read this as a child, you truly missed out. I don’t know how I feel about the story changes and the casting of Jim Carrey, but the only way to know is to see it.
6. One Day by David Nicholls. Set for a July release, this film stars Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess as former college sweethearts who visit each other every year to see where they are in their lives. On my to read list. But shot in London, Edinburgh and Paris…hmmm.
7. Snow Flower & The Secret Fan by Lisa See. July 2011. Also still on my to read list. Hugh Jackman stars in a story set in 19th century China and centered on the lifelong friendship between two girls who develop their own secret code as a way to contend with the rigid cultural norms imposed on women.
8. The Help by Kathryn Stocket. Set for an August 2011 release starring Easy A‘s Emma Stone, who can also be seen in the next Spiderman film.
9. On the Road by Jack Kerouac. In post production.
10. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. David Fincher is directing the first American-Hollywood version of this series starring Rooney Mara of Social Network craziness.