When I heard that the venerable Martin Scorsese would be the executive producer and director of the new HBO show Boardwalk Empire this fall, it got me thinking. What would other directors do with the expanded storytelling capability of television? So I’ve decided to start a new segment dedicated to analyzing what an acclaimed film maker would do with a whole season (12-13 one hour episodes) on HBO or Showtime. I pick those networks because they are the only ones where you can be uncensored like the directors in their films.
Notable Films: Pulp Fiction, Death Proof, Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2, Reservoir Dogs, Jackie Brown, and Inglourious Basterds.
Famous For: Poetically vulgar dialogue, messing with structure, fetishized violence, sympathetic criminal characters, melding genres the average person doesn’t know exist.
The Headless Woman Directed by: Lucrecia Martel Written by: Lucrecia Martel (screenplay) Starring: María Onetto, Claudia Cantero, César Bordón, and Daniel Genoud
I glanced at Film Comment’s top films of 2009 expecting to see the usual: The Hurt Locker, Precious, Avatar, and Up in the Air. Other than the first one, I saw none of them in the top twenty. Occupying the number two slot on that list, which polls many of the countries most prominent film critics, was this unassuming low budget picture from Argentinean director Lucrecia Martel.
The Headless Woman follows Veronica (María Onetto), a wealthy dentist who hits something- maybe a dog, maybe a child- with her car. She stops for a moment on the dusty road, but does not get out. The guilt plagues her, destroying her image of herself and making her an alien in her own life. The premise doesn’t allow for much in the way of story, but this is an excellent character study.
Let the Right One In Directed by: Tomas Alfredson Written by: John Ajvide Lindvist (novel & screenplay) Starring: Kåre Hedebrant, Lina Leandersson, Per Ragner, and Henrik Dahl.
In the age of Twilight, the once mythical mythology of the vampire has been demystified and defanged in order to appeal to tweens and easily-offended soccer moms. Thankfully Tomas Alfredson sticks it to Bella and Edward in this bloody tale of a tween boy and the vampire he befriends.
Let the Right One In is a meticulously crafted work of art. Each camera angle is deliberate in its haunting beauty, and each sentence delves deeper into the characters or the story. Nothing is wasted, a sign of a great independent filmmaker at work.
The story is kept simple, though it is filled with allegory relating to Swedish socialism. Oskar (Kåre Hedebrant) is a young boy who gets picked on at school because he is weak and timid. He has no friends until a girl named Eli (Lina Leandersson) moves in next door and starts showing up after dark to help him solve his Rubik’s Cube. The charm of these early scenes resonate because of their simplicity and also because of the darkness that follows.
Ponyo Directed by: Hayo Miyazaki Written by: Hayo Miyazaki (screenplay) Starring: Noah Cyrus, Frankie Jonas, Tina Fey, Cate Blanchett, and Liam Neeson
For those who love the art of Japanese anime, Hayo Miyazaki is widely considered the God. The man behind such works as Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke delivers his latest, Ponyo, with a wide color palette and unique take on Hans Christian Anderson’s “Little Mermaid.”
It starts off underwater. The young fish we will soon know as Ponyo (Noah Cyrus) makes her way to the surface in an elaborate, beautiful opening sequence. When she arrives, she meets Sosuke (Frankie Jonas), a vibrant and happy five year old boy who rescues her from a glass jar. The fish licks the wound, healing it and binding her DNA with that of a human. She begins to take on human characteristics, learning to speak and sprouting limbs. All the while, her father (Liam Neeson) is keen on keeping her the way she is, and takes her back into the underwater realm. She breaks free, and once liberated, unleashes the sea and makes her way back to Sosuke.
Iron Man 2 Directed by: Jon Favreau Written by: Justin Theroux (screenplay), Stan Lee (comics) Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mickey Rourke, and Don Cheadle
Part of what made the first Iron Man such a breath of fresh air was the devotion to excellence from everyone in the cast, most notably Robert Downey Jr. It wasn’t exactly anything new and original, and was overshadowed by Christopher Nolan’s box-office/critical superior The Dark Knight. This summer, the now-franchise is launching its second installment with no Caped Crusader in sight.
The trailer for the film looks like it will hit all of the summer action bells and whistles. Downey Jr. reprises his role as the man in iron, as does Gwyneth Paltrow as his love interest and assistant. The rest of the cast is mostly new. Don Cheadle steps in for Terrence Howard. Scarlett Johansson arrives, hopefully to give Paltrow a run for her money, but you can’t tell much from the trailer.
The biggest gripe I have in the casting is Mickey Rourke. Based on the trailer alone, his character appears corny, badly written, and has a just plain stupid Russian accent. It may not turn out that way, but it appears that there will be at least one glaring error in the casting.
As far as plot goes, not too much is revealed. Tony Stark is now out of the closet as a super hero, which may offer some unique takes on the genre. He’s out to stop Whiplash (Rourke) from taking over the world or something. The trailer is decent, but the content in it just makes this seem like it will be a typical sequel.
Highs: Downey jumping off an airplane after talking to Paltrow and Downey and Cheadle suiting up together in Iron Man suits.
Lows: Mickey Rourke’s Russian accent/character and the lack of Scarlett Johansson footage.
Drag Me to Hell Directed by: Sam Raimi Written by: Sam Raimi & Ivan Raimi (screenplay) Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, and Adriana Barraza
Horror comedy may be the most difficult genres to mix together successfully. You wouldn’t think that, as these days horror movies like the Saw series are laughable and the endlessly cliched comedies become more horrendous. Sam Raimi, however, has proven himself a master of the genre.
Before he “sold out” (brought life) to the first two Spider Man movies, he was nothing more than a low-budget director of horror comedies that collected a cult following that included some unashamed critics. With Drag Me to Hell marking his return to that genre, consider me one of the recently unashamed.
Not only is this one of the funniest films of 2009, it’s also one of the grossest and even scariest. With most directors, you either lean on the horror or the comedy, but Mr. Raimi walks the tight rope of both and succeeds admirably. His film is relentlessly entertaining.
A History of Violence Directed by: David Cronenberg Written by: Josh Olson (screenplay), John Wagner & Vince Locke (graphic novel) Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, and William Hurt
When David Cronenberg decided to direct this brutal, idealistic masterpiece in 2005, it was snubbed royally by both the Academy Awards and general public. As time wore on, though, and the end of the decade lists needed to be made, A History of Violence rightfully appeared on them.
Once you see the movie, the title will evoke Howard Zinn’s People’s History of the United States. That’s how definitive it is on the subject. Cronenberg knows that violence is a part of human DNA, whether we want to acknowledge it or not. He uses this to create a visually stunning, relentlessly violent assault on the typical American family.
The Stahls are that family. Once the film moves past it’s brutal introduction, we see that almost too perfectly. They banter carelessly, the children are obedient stereotypes, and the couple are hopelessly in love. Thankfully, Croneneberg doesn’t stay there for long. We see Tom (Viggo Mortensen) and Edie (Maria Bello) engage in wildly erotic, kinky sex after the kids are gone. We see their son Jack (Ashton Holmes) do well in gym class and then almost get pummeled.
St. Patrick’s Day is one of the biggest drinking days of the year, whether it be the Irish invading the pubs in numbers larger than usual or other people dressing in green and dousing themselves in beer. If you’re looking to avoid the St. Patrick’s Day alcohol binge, here are some movies that pay homage to Irish heritage without focusing on beer.
Image courtesy of Hollywood Jesus
1. Gangs of New York– Martin Scorsese’s 2002 epic lands us right in New York City in the mid-19th century. Irish-Americans face discrimination from the loyalist party, who are also facilitating a takeover of the city while everyone else is fighting the Civil War. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Amsterdam Vallon, an Irishman who tries to take revenge on Bill the Butcher (the ever-superb Daniel Day-Lewis) for murdering his father. Not only will you get a dose of Irish-American history, you’ll also get one of the great film epics of the 2000’s.
Image courtesy of Cinematic Intelligence Agency
2. Once– This beautifully made musical follows two people in Dublin as they write and record music. Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglovás star as the two, and the chemistry they share is revelatory. The film surprisingly won the Oscar for Best Original Song the year it was released. That song, “Falling Slowly,” is one of the most gorgeous songs ever recorded in a musical, let alone a movie. Don’t miss your chance to experience this film.
Big Fan Directed by: Robert D. Siegel Written by: Robert D. Siegel (screenplay) Starring: Patton Oswalt, Kevin Corrigan, Michael Rapaport, and Marcia Jean Kurtz
We all have our obsessions. Whether it be a sport, a hobby, a person or all three, each of us has something in our lives that we couldn’t get out of it if we wanted to.
This is the subject of Robert D. Siegel’s excellent, truthful, and unflinching Big Fan. You may know Siegel’s previous writing work from 2008’s The Wrestler. He doesn’t let the sympathy that partially diluted his character in that film interfere with his work here. By keeping the camera low-key and the subject front-and-center, Mr. Siegel creates a portrait of obsession that is hilarious, sad, and disturbing.
Patton Oswalt, a comedian further showcasing his acting talent, plays Paul Aufiero, a die-hard New York Giants fan. He and his friend Sal (Kevin Corrigan) go to Giants Stadium for every home game, not to go inside and watch but to sit outside their clunker car and listen to it on the radio.
Green Zone Directed by: Paul Greengrass Written by: Brian Helgeland (screenplay), Rajiv Chandrasekaran (book) Starring: Matt Damon, Greg Kinnear, Amy Ryan, and Brendan Gleeson
It’s too bad The Hurt Locker just cleaned up at the Academy Awards a week ago. This film’s glaring conformity to the “Political war film” genre would be less obvious, and the suspense it does generate wouldn’t look so pathetic in comparison to Kathryn Bigelow’s mastery.
That being said, what is here isn’t terrible. Paul Greengrass is one of the good action directors we have, and he films this with the breakneck pacing he did in the last two Bourne movies. If that turned you off, stay clear of Green Zone.
Another thing aiding this conformist military drama is the ensemble cast. Headed by Matt Damon as the soldier looking for answers and backed up by the excellent Greg Kinnear as a slimy government official, both actors score knockouts. Brendan Gleeson also excels as the CIA agent butting heads with Kinnear. It’s too bad the great Amy Ryan is reduced to the background in a role that is covered up the same way the Iraq invasion is in the film.
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