Business of Strangers (The)

 

Genre: psychological drama

With: Stockard Channing (Julie Styron), Julia Stiles (Paula Murphy), Fred Weller (Nick Harris), Mary Testa (the receptionist), Jack Hallet (Mr. Fostwick), Marcus Giamatti (Robert)

Director: Patrick Stettner

Screenplay: Patrick Stettner

Release: 2001

Studio: Headquarters Post, i5 Films

Rating: 14A

MBiS score: 7.5/10

 

Come Up for Your Comeuppance

 

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Story-line: Julie Styron, a mid-level employee for a tech firm, is trapped in a nightmare. Having just arrived in some city for a meeting with prospective clients, she learns that her boss is flying over to join her. Assuming she’ll be sacked, she contacts a recruiter right away to find a new job. Then, at the meeting itself, she realizes that Paula Murphy, who was due to assist her with her presentation, hasn’t shown up yet.    

Pluses: fine performances, notably by the very talented Stockard Channing (boy, can she deliver a good slap!), an original screenplay dealing with modern work, ambition, stress and sexual politics, capable direction and adequate production values.

Minuses: none I can think of. Some reviewers have criticized this film as less daring than IN THE COMPANY OF MEN but I won’t go any further since I haven’t seen both movies.   

Comments: it’s a bit difficult to explain what THE BUSINESS OF STRANGERS really is without revealing too much of the plot. Story-wise, it’s a small-scale but tricky film à la David Mamet; it follows one tangent and, once you’ve found your groove, it veers off on another tangent and traps you with unexpected twists. I will admit it’s no masterpiece… but it doesn’t pretend to be one either. Kudos to Patrick Stettner and crew for this fresh, interesting and competent picture about real people with real problems.

 

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 Flic (Un)

English title: A Cop

Genre: crime thriller

With: Alain Delon (Police Commissioner Édouard Coleman), Richard Crenna (Simon), Catherine Deneuve (Cathy), Riccardo Cucciolla (Paul Weber), Michael Conrad (Louis Costa), Paul Crauchet (Morand), Simone Valère (Paul’s nervous wife), André Pousse (Marc Albouis)

Director: Jean-Pierre Melville

Screenplay: Jean-Pierre Melville

Release: 1972

Studio: Euro International Film and Oceania Produzioni Internazionali Cinematografiche  

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.6/10 

 

Too Much Crime-fighting Can Be Hazardous to Your Health 

 

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Story-line: in addition to their regular jobs, Simon, Paul, Louis and Marc share a lucrative sideline as thieves and traffickers. On this particular day, the quartet travels to a coastal town and pulls off a bank robbery mostly as planned… except that Marc is seriously injured in the process. While the gang figures out what to do, Police Commissioner Coleman begins his investigation.   

Pluses: a fine cast fully exploiting its star power (and there’s plenty of that with Alain Delon, Richard Crenna and Catherine Deneuve on board), a chilling, wily and suspenseful screenplay enriched by spare but precise dialogues and useful minor characters, economical but very dynamic direction, superb cinematography by Walter Wottitz, faultless production values and Michel Colombier’s discreet but purposeful musical score.

Minuses: in French as in English, the title says very little… but the movie itself is quite eloquent.    

Comments: the flawless UN FLIC begins with a breathtaking 11-minute recount of the ill-fated robbery in St-Jean-de-Monts and forges ahead unsparingly (along the way, you will witness a second caper, even more hair-raising than the first). On a quieter level, those close-ups of Alain Delon staring blankly into the camera are also something to behold. Trust me, movie buffs… this is the kind of big-time, riveting cinema we all live for. 

 

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 L’Innocente

Genre: romantic drama

With: Giancarlo Giannini (Tullio Hermil), Laura Antonelli (Giuliana, his wife), Jennifer O'Neill (Countess Teresa Raffo), Rina Morelli (Tullio's mother), Massimo Girotti (Count Stefano Egano), Didier Haudepin (Federico, Tullio’s brother), Marc Porel (Filippo d’Arborio)

Director: Luchino Visconti

Screenplay: Suso Cecchi D'Amico, Enrico Medioli and Luchino Visconti (based on Gabriele D'Annunzio’s novel)

Release: 1976

Studio: Rizzoli Film, Les Films Jacques Leitienne, Imp.Ex.Ci. et al.

Rating: R

MBiS score: 8.7/10

  

“I never wanted this. I loved him.”

 

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Story-line: as a member of Roman aristocracy, Tullio Hermil enjoys a charmed life devoted to his fencing skills, his wife Giuliana and his mistress Teresa…but his days of bliss may have come to an end. Teresa, tired of sharing him with another woman, has asked him to commit exclusively to her.  

Pluses: forceful acting by the intense Giancarlo Giannini (as a macho, stubborn Tullio), Laura Antonelli (his fragile wife) and Jennifer O’Neill (the passionate Teresa), masterful direction, cinematography and editing that bring out the more essential elements of the story, an accomplished screenplay and luxurious production values (sets, costumes, period detail and music).

Minuses: none I can think of.   

Comments: this last work by the great Luchino Visconti (1906-1976) is remarkable for its character interplay and an ultimately pathetic story that proceeds leisurely but determinedly towards its intended goal. Using a palette of passion and coldness, innuendo and jealousy, double standards and changing personal dynamics, L’INNOCENTE presents a serious and spellbinding essay on love, loss and the volatility of human emotions.   

 

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Marathon Man

Genre: suspense

With: Dustin Hoffman (Thomas ‟Babe” Levy), Laurence Olivier (Christian Szell), Roy Scheider (Babe’s brother, ‟Doc”), William Devane (Peter Janeway), Marthe Keller (Elsa Opel), Fritz Weaver (Professor Biesenthal)

Director: John Schlesinger

Screenplay: William Goldman (based on his novel)

Release: 1976

Studio: Paramount Pictures, Robert Evans Company

Rating: 14A

MBiS score: 8.5/10

 

 

What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger

 

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Story-line: Babe Levy, who studies at Columbia University and trains as a long-distance runner, gets tangled up in a sinister affair when an elderly German he doesn’t even know perishes in a car accident.

Pluses: stellar performances by Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier (in an Oscar-nominated turn) and cast (including that old Parisian in a brilliant cameo), a cold, cryptic and complicated screenplay that generates much anxiety, danger and one unbearable chase scene, strong direction that sustains mystery, a chilling musical score and advantageous production values.

Minuses: although logical, the plot may confuse you at times because it covers a lot of ground.

Comments: MARATHON MAN is another fantastic entry from American cinema’s most productive and prestigious period. It also boasts a very likeable hero in Babe Levy, a young man who has faced emotional trauma as a child and now finds himself in a nightmarish situation over which he has no control. One note about the dialogues: although much emphasis is placed on the catchy line “Is it safe?”, my favourite is Janeway’s “We provide”, a euphemism that all politicians should add to their repertoire.    

  

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 House of Strangers

Genre: family drama (in black and white)

With: Edward G. Robinson (Gino Monetti), Richard Conte (Max, his favourite son), Luther Adler. Paul Valentine and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (Gino’s three other sons, Joe, Pietro and Tony, respectively), Susan Hayward (Irene Bennett), Debra Paget (Maria Domenico, Max’s fiancée), Hope Emerson (Maria’s mother, Helena Domenico)

Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Screenplay: Philip Yordan (with help from Joseph L. Mankiewicz), based on a novel by Jerome Weidman  

Release: 1949

Studio: Twentieth Century Fox

Rating: PG

MBiS score: 8.4/10

  

A Family in Name Only  

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Story-line: when Max Monetti returns to his father’s bank, which is now managed by his brothers Joe, Tony and Pietro, he’s in no mood to fraternize. He wants compensation for his seven years in jail… and it’s not Monetti money that will make him forgive and forget.     

Pluses: memorable performances by Richard Conte, Edward G. Robinson, Susan Hayward (what a great actress!) and a sturdy cast, a perceptive screenplay peppered with snappy and sometimes hilarious dialogues, tight direction by a renowned helmer, impeccable production values and a musical theme both ominous and sexy.

Minuses: none really.

Comments: the highlight of this busy, engrossing and powerful drama is the fiery, almost perverse relationship between Irene and Max, who is already engaged to Maria; every time those two face each other, they talk tough and enjoy every minute of it. Simply put, HOUSE OF STRANGERS is old-time moviemaking at its best; it shows heart, intelligence and lots of craftsmanship instead of the gimmicks, superheroes and defective plots that Hollywood often dishes out today. Catch this one, movie buffs. You’ll thank me for it!    

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 Big Short (The)

 

 

 

Genre: financial drama

With: Ryan Gosling (Jared Vennett), Christian Bale (Dr. Michael Burry), Steve Carell (Mark Baum), Tracy Letts (Lawrence Fields), Marisa Tomei (Cynthia Baum), Rafe Spall (Danny Moses), Hamish Linklater (Porter Collins), Jeremy Strong (Vinny Daniel), John Magaro (Charlie Geller), Finn Wittrock (Jamie Shipley), Brad Pitt (Ben Rickert). Cameos by Margot Robbie, Anthony Bourdain, Dr. Richard Thaler and Selena Gomez

Director: Adam McKay

Screenplay: Charles Randolph and Adam McKay (based on the book by Michael Lewis)

Release: 2015

Studio: Paramount Pictures, Regency Enterprises, Plan B Entertainment

Rating: 14A

MBiS score: 8.5/10

 

Nobody Likes Naysayers

 

 

Story-line: in 2005, a money manager based in California takes a critical look at the real estate market and concludes that it is headed for collapse. When he acts on his discovery and bets heavily against the market, the financial establishment mostly disbelieves him but a few investment pros take notice.

Pluses: terrific turns by Ryan Gosling (the crafty Vennett), Christian Bale (Burry the maverick), Steve Carell (the angry, vindictive Baum), John Magaro and Finn Wittrock (the young guns from Brownfield) and other cast members collectively, a cynical and psychologically truthful screenplay that dares to use tough talk, a mountain of facts and gut-wrenching drama to convey its message, inventive, adrenalin-charged direction, high-calibre production values and a motley, driving soundtrack.

Minuses: the movie uses confusing financial lingo but most of it is explained through entertaining cameos; on this issue, my best advice to you is to go with the flow. Ditto for the movie overall, which is so jam-packed and unrelenting that you won’t be able to catch everything.    

Comments: based on the terrible but unfortunately true events that led to the financial crisis of 2008, THE BIG SHORT is especially effective in its depiction of the roller-coaster, pressure-laden and brutal world of traders and money managers. Theirs is a dog-eat-dog business in which they risk their physical and mental health as well as tons of money but the scariest facet of their story is that, even if these workaholics may not be very likeable, our whole economic system – our way of life, actually – rests in their febrile hands. As it illustrates one of those times when the system failed us, Adam McKay’s film begins with hubris and thundering noise and ends with a wreck and Led Zeppelin’s regally slow When the Levee Breaks. If you’re anything like me, you’ll stay glued to your seat, half-stunned and half-horrified, until the final credits have vanished from the screen. THE BIG SHORT is a front-row seat to financial disaster.  

 

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Merchant of Venice (The)

 

 

 

Genre: period drama 

With: Al Pacino (Shylock), Jeremy Irons (Antonio), Joseph Fiennes (Bassanio), Lynn Collins (Portia), Zuleikha Robinson (Jessica), Charlie Cox (Lorenzo), Kris Marshall (Gratiano), Heather Goldenhersh (Nerissa), Allan Corduner (Tubal)

Director: Michael Radford

Screenplay: Michael Radford (based on the play by William Shakespeare)

Release: 2004

Studio: Movision, Avenue Pictures et al.

Rating: PG

MBiS score: 8.4/10

 

 

“If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge.”

 

 

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Story-line: in 1596, there is great animosity between Venetian Christians and Jews in general and between Antonio and Shylock in particular. Antonio, a wealthy shipowner, despises Shylock the moneylender while the latter doesn’t take kindly to Antonio’s habit of lending without interest. Their mutual disdain only worsens when a friend of Antonio, Bassanio, needs financing for a risky enterprise and Lorenzo, another friend, feels love for Shylock’s daughter, Jessica.

Pluses: mesmerizing acting by Al Pacino in a pyrotechnic role, worthy performances by Jeremy Irons (as the austere, less conspicuous Antonio), Joseph Fiennes and especially Lynn Collins (whose intonation, dramatic sense and lilting voice make her an ideal Shakespearean actress), a bracing story featuring richly developed characters and dialogues (obviously, with the Bard!), attentive direction that softens the story’s more abrasive elements with touches of comedy, sumptuous production values that lend a distinctive costume and musical theme to each character.

Minuses: some dialogues are quite disparaging to Jews, Christians and Blacks but reflect the socio-cultural context of the times.

Comments: I really don’t know what was Shakespeare’s frame of mind when he wrote The Merchant of Venice but it certainly is a rancorous story. And Michael Radford’s movie version does justice to the play with its full menu of ill-advised dealings, greed, defiance, disguises, romantic intrigue and religious conflict… not to mention that gruesome request for a pound of flesh. To each his own, I guess…  

 

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