Discrète (La)

Genre: romantic drama
With: Fabrice Luchini, Judith Henry, Maurice Garrel
Director: Christian Vincent
Release: 1990
Studio: Productions Lazennec, Sara Films et al. – MK2 International
Rating: -
MBiS score: 8.1/10


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Story-line: after being dumped by Solange, Antoine, a disenchanted writer and civil servant, accepts his editor’s proposal to seduce another girl strictly out of revenge.
Pluses: exemplary acting and direction, Fabrice Luchini at his sarcastic best, clean production values, great music by Schubert.
Minuses: none whatsoever.
Comments: schemes about love have often been depicted in the movies, with mixed results overall. Nevertheless, when treated with good taste, this premise has produced some marvellous works like LA DISCRÈTE and René Clair’s LES GRANDES MANOEUVRES. In its own way, Christian Vincent’s film is a treacherous watch because you mustn't let Antoine’s meanness put you off. Life, as always, is full of surprises.


MBiS

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Monster's Ball

Genre: psychological drama
Director: Marc Forster
Release: 2001
Studio: Lee Daniels Entertainment, Lionsgate – Lionsgate
Rating: R
MBiS score: 8.2/10


The Widow and the Widow-maker


While Lawrence Musgrove (Sean Combs) spends his last days on death row at Jackson Penitentiary, his wife Leticia (Halle Berry) and their son Tyrell (Coronji Calhoun) are understandably devastated and uncertain about the future. In an unusual way, Lawrence’s fate will also change the lives of Hank (Billy Bob Thornton) and Sonny (Heath Ledger) Grotowski, a father and son team of prison guards assigned to escort him to his execution. With Peter Boyle (Buck Grotowski, Hank’s father, himself a former prison guard).

Although Albert Camus once wrote ‘It is the job of thinking people not to be on the side of the executioners’, MONSTER’S BALL focuses as much on enforcers of the death penalty as on a woman and a son indirectly subjected to it. In this sense, Marc Forster’s work speaks of issues not covered by DEAD MAN WALKING and other prison films but, like them, it is patently grim, achingly raw and psychologically demanding, especially at first. Eventually, it gains in humanity in the aftermath of Lawrence’s execution as it allows its characters to experience disillusion and want, reflect on the tribulations of life and move a step or two forward on the road to rebirth. Judging from reviews I had read beforehand, I had a distinct feeling that this movie would be heavy-handed and implausible but, thanks to a masterful screenplay by Milo Addica and Will Rokos, it unfolds in a logical and considered way. As you will discover, MONSTER’S BALL tackles violence, capital punishment and ingrained racism head-on and succeeds unequivocally because of its complete candidness.

Of course, a feature such as this would not have carried without a strong cast and superior acting. Halle Berry earned her Oscar nod as a woman faced with a brutal future and Billy Bob Thornton provided her with solid support; one special scene between them will take your breath away (you’ll know which one). Production values are irreproachable. The story here was paramount and nothing was done to compromise it.

Honestly, I have little else to add about MONSTER’S BALL, a film that deserves recognition for its seriousness and fine craftsmanship. As it demonstrates with gut-wrenching eloquence, there are neither easy answers nor pat solutions in life but there is hope, even if it seems scant or fragile.


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

White Palace

Genre: romantic comedy drama
With: Susan Sarandon, James Spader, Jason Alexander
Director: Luis Mandoki
Release: 1990
Studio: Double Play Productions et al. – Universal Pictures
Rating: R
MBiS score: 7.9/10


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Story-line: Max and Nora may be from opposite sides of the tracks but, sometimes, opposites attract.
Pluses: fine acting, good direction, a somewhat raunchy tone and some quirky moments.
Minuses: none really.
Comments: the basic story driving this movie is not the most original on earth but its refreshing treatment and humanity make for a compelling watch. I’ll always remember Nora’s face when Max gives her that special, heartwarming present…


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

To Die For

Genre: black comedy
Director: Gus Van Sant
Release: 1995
Studio: LH Productions, Laura Ziskin Productions, Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group – Sony Pictures Releasing
Rating: R
MBiS score: 8.1/10


Frankly, It’s The Weather Girls I Check Out, Not Their Satellite Maps


A huge commotion has engulfed the small burg of Little Hope, New Hampshire: Suzanne Maretto (Nicole Kidman), the vivacious weather girl on local TV, has been charged with murdering her husband Larry (Matt Dillon). With Dan Hedaya (Joe Maretto, Larry’s father), Illeana Douglas (Janice Maretto), Joaquin Phoenix (Jimmy Emmett), Casey Affleck (Russell Hines), Alison Folland (Lydia Mertz), Wayne Knight (Ed Grant, WWEN manager), Kurtwood Smith (Earl Stone, Suzanne’s father); Holland Taylor (Carol Stone), Susan Traylor (Faye Stone), Maria Tucci (Angela Maretto), Tim Hopper (Mike Warden), Michael Rispoli (Ben DeLuca), Buck Henry (Mr. Finlaysson), Gerry Quigley (George), Joyce Maynard (the lawyer) and David Cronenberg. Music by Danny Elfman.

Have you ever dreamed of becoming a TV personality? Or wondered what it takes to make it in the media? If so, you may have realized that a career in the public eye requires hard work, talent, ambition and luck… in proportions dictated by circumstance, personal goals and mindset. Case in point: the fetching Ms. Maretto. Suzanne is no Christiane Amanpour but an assertive and pretty lady, a whirlwind and a snappy dresser she certainly is. In other words, she packs more than enough to charm any red-blooded TV exec and score a ton on the Nielsen ratings. Moreover, she’s a great character on which to build a biting satire about the media world… and Gus Van Sant has treated her to a fine, shiny showcase.

Let’s not beat around the Bushes… TO DIE FOR shows solid craftsmanship, from its faultless direction, sprightly editing and lively pace – except for a fifteen-minute lull midway through – to its mad, mad screenplay based on Joyce Maynard’s novel and penned by Buck Henry. Acting-wise, its whole cast is note-perfect but I truly marveled at Nicole Kidman’s delicious, bubbly and multi-faceted turn as Suzanne; I also loved Matt Dillon as Larry, a man who may have dreamed of Hannah Storm but wound up with Desert Storm, Wayne Knight as a wily TV type, Illeana Douglas as Suzanne’s acerbic sister-in-law, Buck Henry as an authoritarian teacher and Joaquin Phoenix – already a fine actor then – as an intense and vulnerable young man who will learn a lot about life in a very short spell. But remember… TO DIE FOR’s raison d’être is comedy and it does deliver some devastating laughs along with a strong, well-deserved payoff.

So move over all of you Janes, Barbaras, Katies and Oprahs, Suzanne Maretto is already staking her claim to fame. And if Marshall McLuhan has posited that the medium is the message, I may add that, nowadays, it emphasizes image and self-promotion. Here’s to a fun and waggish time for movie buffs!


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

Chiens (Les)

English title: The Dogs
Genre: mystery
With: Victor Lanoux, Gérard Depardieu, Nicole Calfan
Director: Alain Jessua
Release: 1979
Studio: AJ Films, AMS Productions et al. – World Marketing Films
Rating: -
MBiS score: 7.8/10


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Story-line: after moving in from Paris, Doctor Féret notices that dogs and crime are omnipresent in his new town.
Pluses: good acting, a strange story, a creepy mood à la Hitchcock.
Minuses: none whatsoever.
Comments: you will enjoy this little-known flick featuring the versatile Victor Lanoux and Gérard Depardieu as a less than charming fellow. As a lure, I will add that LES CHIENS, aside from a few good chills, delivers three outrageous gags that you will long remember. The French never turn away from a good laugh, even in the oddest of circumstances… and this is one reason why they’re so endearing.


MBiS

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Zandy's Bride

Genre: settler drama
Director: Jan Troell
Release: 1974
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures – Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution
Rating: PG
MBiS score: 7.9/10


A Settler Can Always Use Good Cattle… And Sometimes A Wife


The Big Sur region of California, circa 1880. When Alexander ‘Zandy’ Allan (Gene Hackman) arrives in town to pick up his mail-order bride Hannah Lund (Liv Ullmann), his disappointment clearly shows. The spinster from Minnesota is much older than he had anticipated… and he wonders what other lies she may have told him to secure a marriage. With Eileen Heckart (Zandy’s mother) and Susan Tyrrell (Maria Cordova).

I really don’t know what were Jan Troell’s dramatic ambitions in making ZANDY’S BRIDE and I don’t care to find out. What I do know is that he has fashioned a film that will please both sadists and masochists. Not unlike THE JERK, Troell's work will make you squirm at first, then giggle in shame before wholly surrendering to whatever demon inspired such wickedness.

Now don’t get me wrong! ZANDY’S BRIDE is not one of those films so atrocious they unintentionally deliver a few good yuks. It boasts fine production values, irreproachable acting by bona fide stars and a pretty solid screenplay… but all of that is overshadowed by the sheer cruelty unleashed onscreen. It is mind-boggling to see the indignities the great Liv Ullmann (of Bergman fame!) was subjected to for our viewing pleasure. And if you think Gene Hackman was a tough customer in THE FRENCH CONNECTION, wait till you see him as Zandy the ‘loving’ husband. As I write this review, it comforts me to know that photos taken by Bob Willoughby during filming show Liv and Gene smiling in each other’s presence, proof positive that showmanship – and not malevolence – drove their every action in front of the camera. So there really was method to this madness after all!

Enough said for now… we all need surprises in life, especially as movie buffs. Whatever your mood, I do recommend ZANDY’S BRIDE, a matrimonial ‘drama’ played with straight faces and unchristian gusto. I hope feminists won’t hold it against me… love expresses itself in so many ways.


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

My Fair Lady

Genre: musical comedy
With: Audrey Hepburn, Rex Harrison, Wilfrid Hyde-White
Director: George Cukor
Release: 1964
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures – Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution
Rating: -
MBiS score: 8.6/10


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Story-line: Professor Henry Higgins bets he can turn a cockney flower girl named Eliza Doolittle into a sophisticate.
Pluses: wondrous acting, enduring show songs, fine direction and excellent production values.
Minuses: none whatsoever.
Comments: for a long while, I avoided old classic films on the pretense that they were ‘old’ but I later realized why they are called ‘classics’. Who could resist such humour, intelligence and indestructible music presented in a glorious and colourful package? No one, of course… which is why the Academy awarded MY FAIR LADY a Best Film and a Best Actor Oscar in 1964. Come on, Dover!


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

Blue Car

Genre: psychological drama
Director: Karen Moncrieff
Release: 2003
Studio: Peer Oppenheimer Productions – Miramax Films
Rating: R
MBiS score: 8.1/10


School of Hard Knocks


It’s a good thing Meg Denning (Agnes Bruckner) has a penchant for writing because, in other respects, her teenage life is hopeless at best. She still aches from her parents’ divorce, has to work part-time outside of school and also cares for her needy little sister Lily (Regan Arnold). As if that wasn’t enough, her English teacher (David Strathairn) is so impressed with her writing that he thinks she should enter a poetry contest. With Margaret Colin (Diane, Meg’s mother).

Seeing a bunch of films one after another is often a dangerous proposition. Comparisons can clog up your mind, tiredness may affect your judgment and, when your last viewing experience has been particularly potent, the next feature will usually let you down. As fate would have it, I saw BLUE CAR right after 21 GRAMS and, logically, Karen Moncrieff’s modest film should have been crushed by such a powerhouse… but it held its own without straining. Let this be a lesson for all of us: though they attract less attention in the movie universe, small films frequently offer good and even great value.

I’ll admit that BLUE CAR doesn’t look like much from afar but, once you sit down to watch it, you’ll discover that it has a lot going for it: daunting issues rooted in contemporary life, interesting characters that are very realistic and a set of circumstances both tragic and painful. Luckily for us, Ms. Moncrieff’s screenplay doesn’t try to sensationalize Meg’s problems but depicts them with a prudence and thoughtfulness that better reflect her inner turmoil. The film’s effectiveness is enhanced by good acting, especially by Agnes Bruckner and David Strathairn, a thespian known for restrained performances, and also by solid production values. Without a doubt, this movie is as sound as they come.

An enigmatic title doesn’t guarantee quality entertainment but it definitely does so in this case. Do watch BLUE CAR, a movie about one brave girl and the scars that life has prematurely inflicted on her. Once you’ve seen it, you will understand.


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

400 coups (Les)

English title: The 400 Blows
Genre: adolescent drama
With: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Albert Rémy, Claire Maurier
Director: François Truffaut
Release: 1958
Studio: Janus Films, Films du Carrosse, Sedif – Kino International
Rating: -
MBiS score: 8.8/10


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Story-line: Antoine Doinel is one turbulent young man, growing up by himself while his parents are busy elsewhere. Is there any hope for him?
Pluses: a good mix of drama, humour and irony, solid acting, an original and personal story by one of the best auteurs and directors in the business.
Minuses: none whatsoever.
Comments: some films are notable for their timing, impact or innovativeness. LES 400 COUPS is considered a milestone in French cinema: it was Truffaut’s breakout film, his first work featuring alter ego Antoine Doinel, his first collaboration with Jean-Pierre Léaud and one loud salvo fired by the Nouvelle Vague movement of the 50s. This is the stuff movie legends are made of.


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved

21 Grams

Genre: psychological puzzle
Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Release: 2003
Studio: 21 Films, This Is That – Focus Features
Rating: R
MBiS score: 8.4/10


So Close To My Heart


Paul Rivers (Sean Penn) is a very sick man and doctors give him no more than a few weeks to live. Cristina Williams (Naomi Watts), a former drug addict, now lives happily with her husband Michael Peck (Danny Huston) and their two daughters. Jack Jordan (Benicio Del Toro), an ex-convict, has turned to religion and struggles mightily to be accepted in society. Paul, Cristina and Jack… three different people, three separate paths that would never have crossed if it weren’t for fate’s unpredictable ways. With Charlotte Gainsbourg (Mary, Paul’s wife).

If you choose to watch 21 GRAMS (and I strongly urge you to do so), remember the plot points above because the movie was deliberately edited helter-skelter and you may not make sense of it otherwise. Yes, for two hours, you will be bombarded with scenes taken almost randomly from the end, the beginning or the middle portion of the story… but all of these snippets fit together beautifully to create a very serious and finely tuned spectacle.

Basically, the film’s story-line revolves around three people to whom life has given a second chance (or even a third) but such a blessing comes with a price tag: forced meetings and required violence. Intensity is the movie’s key feature, especially in its sharply written dialogues and its acting; the cast assembled here displays a diversity of talents seldom seen in a full-length motion picture. In all other respects, 21 GRAMS won’t shortchange you, I guarantee. By the way, its title refers to a physiological phenomenon I will not reveal for now.

What more can I tell you about this film? Not much. For movie fans, 21 GRAMS is another excellent work by the man behind the glorious AMORES PERROS. And for those who take their cinema seriously, it doubles as a master class in acting, editing and drama. Do see it!


MBiS

© 2010 – All rights reserved