Mio fratello è figlio unico

English title: My Brother is an Only Child

Genre: comedy drama

With: Riccardo Scamarcio (Manrico), Elio Germano (Accio), Angela Finocchiaro (their mother Amelia), Massimo Popolizio (their father Ettore Benassi), Alba Rohrwacher (their sister Violetta), Diane Fleri (Francesca), Luca Zingaretti (Mario Nastri), Anna Bonaiuto (Bella, Mario’s wife), Vittorio Emanuele Propizio (Teenage Accio), Ascanio Celestini (Father Cavalli), Claudio Botosso (Prof. Montagna), Ninni Bruschetta (Bombacci)

Director: Daniele Luchetti

Screenplay: Daniele Luchetti, Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulli (adapted from Antonio Pennacchi’s novel)

Release: 2008

Studio: Cattleya, ThinkFilm, Warner Bros. Pictures

Rating: R

MBiS score: 8.3/10 

 

A Fascist Can Be Quite Handy Around the House 

 

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Story-line: Italy, 1962. Accio, an impetuous and anguished young man, is looking for a way to channel his energy. Should he become a seminarian? Try as he may, he’s not destined for it. Work in a factory? His father forbids it. Undertake classical studies? It’s OK for his sister but not for him. Frustrated, impatient, he surrenders to a new passion, hard-core fascism, much to the dismay of his left-leaning brother Manrico.

Pluses: good acting from Elio Germano (incredibly enough, he makes fascism look cool!), Riccardo Scamarcio, Diane Fleri and a fine cast, brisk direction, a breathless, no-holds-barred screenplay that twists and turns at a furious pace, lovely cinematography, production values that are gorgeously retro and an atypical ending.

Minuses: none I can think of.

Comments: MY BROTHER IS AN ONLY CHILD, a companion to Lina Wertmüller’s quirky works, makes fun of dysfunctional families and the contradictions of life. It also deals with serious issues – political rivalries, sibling loyalty, among others – in an ironic and incisive way. The adventures of the Benassi family are one more example of how life works in mysterious ways, sometimes for the better. An exhilarating, unpredictable watch for movie buffs! 

 

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Peeping Tom

Genre: horror thriller

With: Karlheinz Böhm (Mark Lewis), Anna Massey (Helen Stephens), Maxine Audley (Mrs. Stephens), Moira Shearer (Vivian), Brenda Bruce (Dora), Pamela Green (Millie), Esmond Knight (Arthur Baden), Shirley Anne Field (Pauline Shields), Michael Goodliffe (Jarvis), Bartlett Mullins (Peters)

Director: Michael Powell

Screenplay: Leo Marks

Release: 1960

Studio: Michael Powell (Theatre) Ltd.

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.5/10 

 

‟Do you want me to act frightened?” 

 

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Story-line: one night in London, Mark approaches a prostitute while filming her with a hidden camera. Without even looking at him, she says, ‟It’ll be two quid” and enters a building. He follows obediently, knowing that he will soon be rewarded with his greatest of pleasures: seeing that woman in a state of deathly fear.

Pluses: excellent acting by Karlheinz Böhm (EFFI BRIEST) as a bruised, conflicted and dangerous character, fine support from Anna Massey and a magnificent Maxine Audley, economical direction, an unusually detailed screenplay (for horror movies) bolstered by strong dialogues and disturbing surprises, modest but efficient production values, fine cinematography and a powerful, tormented musical score by Brian Easdale.

Minuses: this suspenseful film is so creepy that it caused permanent damage to Michael Powell’s career in cinema.

Comments: this suspense film à la Hitchcock is remarkable for its painstaking − and successful − efforts to investigate Mark’s motivations and psychology. It all adds up to a haunting, effective and very gutsy thriller that will astound any movie buff. If you don’t trust me on this, trust Martin Scorsese… he’s a big fan of PEEPING TOM.

  

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Fontane Effi Briest

English title: Effi Briest

Also known as: Fontane Effi Briest or Many People Who Are Aware of Their Own Capabilities and Needs, yet Acquiesce to the Prevailing System in Their Thoughts and Deeds, Thereby Confirm and Reinforce It

Genre: psychological drama (in black and white)

With: Hanna Schygulla (Effi Briest), Wolfgang Schenk (Baron Geert Instetten), Ulli Lommel (Major Crampas), Lilo Pempeit (Mrs. Briest), Herbert Steinmetz (Mr. Briest), Ursula Strätz (Roswitha), Irm Hermann (Johanna Paaschen), Barbara Lass (Mrs. Kruse), Karlheinz Böhm (Wüllersdorf), Andrea Schober (Annie), Rainer Werner Fassbinder (the Narrator)

Director: Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Screenplay: Rainer Werner Fassbinder (based on the novel by Theodor Fontane)

Release: 1974

Studio: Tango Film Produktion, Nummer Drei

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.4/10 

 

Ambitious Aristocrat Seeks Dutiful Trophy Wife for Long-Term Relationship 

 

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Story-line: Hohen-Cremmen (Germany) in the late 1800s. Effi Briest, an attractive and impetuous 17-year-old, catches the eye of Geert Instetten, a nobleman who had courted her mother twenty years before. A marriage is proposed, approved and promptly arranged. Congratulations, Effi and Geert!

Pluses: solid performances by Hanna Schygulla, Wolfgang Schenk, Ulli Lommel and a gifted cast, sober direction, a packed, clinical and dialogue-driven screenplay that carefully examines the increasingly awkward relationship between Effi, Geert, his staff and friends, strong production values evoking the moods and settings of the era, pretty cinematography that dares to be unusual when circumstances warrant.  

Minuses: this complex psychological drama may seem slow, episodic and literary to some viewers but I felt that the story in itself, supported by R.W.F.’s informative narration, moves along at a reasonable clip. If quirky details are your cup of tea, keep an eye out for Mrs. Kruse and her pet hen.

Comments: EFFI BRIEST is a quiet and thoughtful study à la Bergman in which characters who do not abide by a stifling social code risk being embroiled in compromising situations. In this intimidating little world, mirrors are ubiquitous and their use is especially revealing: characters will gaze into one to check their appearance (a sign of vanity, embarrassment, insecurity?) or to discuss issues without facing other people directly, unwittingly showing how hard it is for them to express their feelings or reach a common understanding. Although deliberate and restrained, Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s work satisfied me from its opening frames to its disturbing ending. As Effi acknowledges late in the movie, ‟l was old enough to know what I was doing.” 

 

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Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru

English title: The Bad Sleep Well

Genre: corporate and psychological drama (in black and white) 

With: Toshirô Mifune (Kôichi Nishi), Masayuki Mori (Iwabuchi, VP of Public Corporation), Kyôko Kagawa (Yoshiko, Iwabuchi’s daughter), Tatsuya Mihashi (Tatsuo, Iwabuchi’s son), Takashi Shimura (Moriyama, Administrative Officer), Kô Nishimura (Shirai, Chief of contracts), Takeshi Katô (Itakura), Kamatari Fujiwara (Wada, Assistant Chief of contracts), Ken Mitsuda (Arimura, President of Public Corporation), Someshô Matsumoto (Hatano, President of Dairyu Construction)

Director: Akira Kurosawa

Screenplay: Hideo Oguni, Eijirô Hisaita, Ryûzô Kikushima, Shinobu Hashimoto and Akira Kurosawa

Release: 1960

Studio: Toho Co., Ltd., Kurosawa Productions

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.7/10 

 

If You Find One Cockroach, There’s Bound to Be More 

  

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Story-line: what was supposed to be a happy day at the Public Corporation for Land Development – the wedding between Yoshiko, the Vice President’s daughter, and Nishi, an up-and-coming executive – is marred by regrettable events. (1) Scandal-seeking journalists are on hand, looking for clues of corruption between PCLD and a construction firm, (2) one of its senior managers, Wada, is arrested by the police, (3) the bride’s brother makes an off-key speech at the banquet and (4) an anonymous prankster sends a second wedding cake that could be seen as a warning to the corporate brass. As Shakespeare would say, ‟Something’s rotten in the state of Japan”.

Pluses: remarkable acting by Toshirô Mifune, Masayuki Mori and a very adept cast, flawless direction by a world-renowned helmer, a brilliant and devilish screenplay, excellent cinematography, fine production values, a varied musical score attentive to every circumstance and a potent finale.

Minuses: this movie is rather long (at 150 minutes) and doesn’t reveal its big secret until the 80-minute mark… but what a captivating watch it is from beginning to end!

Comments: having seen a few period dramas by Akira Kurosawa, I was astounded by THE BAD SLEEP WELL, a modern film noir inspired by the American movies he loved so much. And this picture is so intense, evil and tragic that some reviewers have compared it to HAMLET. It’s the kind of story in which every character ends up damaged in some way, either by the excesses of corporate culture, the injustices of life or a love that goes awry. This one’s very close to perfection!

  

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Unagi

English title: The Eel

Genre: psychological drama

With: Kôji Yakusho (Takuro Yamashita), Misa Shimizu (Keiko Hattori, the suicidal girl),  Fujio Tokita (Jiro Nakajima, the parole officer), Mitsuko Baishô (Misako Nakajima, the parole officer’s wife), Show Aikawa (Yuji Nozawa), Ken Kobayashi (Masaki Saito, the neighbourhood nuisance), Sabu Kawahara (Seitaro Misato), Akira Emoto (Tamotsu Takasaki, a former convict), Tomorô Taguchi (Eiji Dojima, Keiko’s ex-boyfriend)

Director: Shôhei Imamura

Screenplay: Shôhei Imamura, Daisuke Tengan and Motofumi Tomikawa (based on Akira Yoshimura’s novel)

Release: 1997

Studio: Eisei Gekijo, Groove Corporation, Imamura Productions et al.

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.4/10 

 

‟He listens to what I say. He doesn’t say what I don’t want to hear.” 

 

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Story-line: in the summer of 1988, Takuro Yamashita, a trader for the Hinode Flour Corporation, makes a huge mistake after discovering his wife’s secret. Eight years later, having paid his debt to society, he endeavours to build a new life for himself in Sawara with the help of his parole officer and the pet eel he adopted while behind bars.

Pluses: fine acting all around, attentive direction, a slightly odd but ever thoughtful screenplay that develops its characters fully and measuredly through astute dialogues and interplay, appropriate production values, beautiful cinematography, a sweet musical score and a very charming ending.

Minuses: long ago, when I first heard about this movie, I thought it depicted some weirdo love affair between a guy and a fish… but nothing is further from the truth! THE EEL is a straightforward drama about redemption and doing the right thing. As for the eel itself, the more you look at it, the more you’ll understand Yamashita: that quiet bugger in the aquarium is likeable indeed. On the negative side, the film suffers from a lull after its first act but picks up very nicely halfway through when it sheds new light on the protagonist’s past and personality. 

Comments: as Yamashita finds out what to do with his life, you can feel his wariness and doubts: he wants to start anew and isn’t looking for trouble. His new surroundings, however, will bring back dark memories and muster new threats that he must avert as best he can. Modest, short on flash and long on humanity, THE EEL is a curious and refreshing film that warms your soul with its inherent tenderness. 

 

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L’année dernière à Marienbad

English title: Last Year at Marienbad

Genre: psychological drama (in black and white)

With: Delphine Seyrig (the brunette), Giorgio Albertazzi (her pursuer), Sacha Pitoëff (the other man), Françoise Bertin (a hotel guest), Luce Garcia-Ville (another hotel guest)

Director: Alain Resnais

Screenplay: Alain Robbe-Grillet

Release: 1961

Studio: Cocinor, Terra Film, Cormoran Films et al.

Rating: -

MBiS score: 8.8/10 

 

I Sure Hope You’re Right, Fella!

 

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Story-line: a woman staying at a posh European hotel is hounded by a man who claims to have met her somewhere before. Was it in Marienbad? Or is the guy plainly mistaken?

Pluses: self-conscious and stilted acting (at times laughably so), amazing direction that delivers several highlights (notably the opening 13-minute set-up and one intense dance scene at the 70-minute mark), a disjointed, supremely cryptic screenplay that generates little action (except on a psychological level) yet remains astonishing throughout, dialogues both literary and impressionistic, aesthetically-minded cinematography, sumptuous production values and an oddly used, expansive and omnipresent musical score featuring romantic strings but mostly a thunderous, quasi-apocalyptic organ.

Minuses: this dry and meditative movie is definitely not for everyone. Viewers will need perseverance (or tight buttocks) during the last act. Generally speaking, if you choose to watch this film, put aside everything you know about cinema.

Comments: yes… my review sounds like an oxymoron at times but it truly reflects what L’ANNÉE DERNIÈRE À MARIENBAD is all about. Alain Resnais’s work is so different, hermetic and daring that it can only be described as an anti-movie, in a vein similar to HIROSHIMA, MON AMOUR and Marguerite Duras’s INDIA SONG. It basically involves three characters – the woman, the pursuer and the woman’s husband – while extras stand around like wallflowers or wander about aimlessly. This abstract, arty and strangely mesmerizing oeuvre has garnered nominations at several festivals – winning the Golden Lion in Venice – and is universally considered a masterpiece. So, will the guy finally get the girl? I won’t tell… it’s the whole payoff! 

 

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Il gattopardo

English title: The Leopard 

Also known as: Guépard (le)

Genre: period drama

With: Burt Lancaster (Prince Fabrizio Salina), Alain Delon (Tancredi Falconeri, his nephew), Claudia Cardinale (Angelica Sedara/Bertiana), Paolo Stoppa (Don Calogero Sedara, Angelica’s father), Rina Morelli (Princess Maria Stella, Fabrizio’s wife), Romolo Valli (Father Pirrone), Lucilla Morlacchi (Concetta), Terence Hill (Count Cavriaghi), Pierre Clémenti (Francesco Paolo), Serge Reggiani (Don Francisco Ciccio Tumeo)

Director: Luchino Visconti

Screenplay: Suso Cecchi D’Amico, Pasquale Festa Campanile, Enrico Medioli, Massimo Franciosa and Luchino Visconti (based on the novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa)  

Release: 1963

Studio: Titanus, Société Nouvelle Pathé Cinéma, Société Générale de Cinématographie

Rating: PG

MBiS score: 9.1/10 

 

‟For everything to remain the same, everything must change!” 

 

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Story-line: the battle to unify Italy – pitting Garibaldi’s Redshirts, King Victor Emmanuel and other patriots against occupying foreign forces – has now reached the island of Sicily. While local aristocrats fear for their lives, Fabrizio Salina, the aging owner of a vast estate and the head of a well-endowed family, has decided to hang on, convinced that life won’t change much for his clan.

Pluses: a majestic performance by Burt Lancaster (as the flawed but increasingly likeable Salina), superior support from Alain Delon (the opportunistic Tancredi), Claudia Cardinale (as intriguing as she is lovely) and an excellent cast, immaculate direction that deftly strings together the pivotal elements of the story (the Battle for Palermo, Salina’s picnic in the country, the family visit to Donnafugata and an enthralling 47-minute ball sequence), an atmospheric and exquisitely written screenplay that distills drama, humour, romance and class politics through subtle twists and incisive dialogues, sumptuous production values (sets, costumes, rugged exteriors) and magnificent cinematography, Nino Rota’s sublime, quasi-operatic musical score and an understated, bittersweet ending.

Minuses: if you’re not familiar with the political context of the times, the above synopsis should suffice... just remember that Southern Italy was in a state of flux and local players were jockeying for position in the social order to come. A word of advice: don’t shy away from THE LEOPARD because of its length... those 186 minutes are entirely worth it.

Comments: the opening travelling shot of Salina’s domain in all its fading glory – notice that partially defaced statue in the garden – sets the tone for this grand story about the decaying of aristocracy and the shifting sociopolitical landscape in Italy circa 1860-1861. THE LEOPARD paints a marvellous portrait of Salina, whose regal sternness slowly gives way to an acceptance of change and a mellowing of opinions... a man’s evolution within a revolution. And Burt Lancaster, who achieves a delicate balance between pride, humility, amusement and disappointment, cuts an especially fine figure as Salina; his dance number with Angelica is so remarkable that other revellers ooh and aah with regret when they finally part... a scene that will etch itself into your memory for all time to come. This very special oeuvre by Luchino Visconti – a Palme d’or winner in Cannes – is a true masterpiece, grandiose and historically powerful, unanimously revered by critics, moviemakers and fans alike. This spectacle of beauty and surprising heft must be seen at least once by all movie buffs. 

 

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Des hommes et des dieux

English title: Of Gods and Men

Genre: religious drama  

With: Lambert Wilson (Christian), Michael Lonsdale (Luc), Olivier Rabourdin (Christophe), Philippe Laudenbach (Célestin), Jacques Herlin (Amédée), Loïc Pichon (Jean-Pierre), Xavier Maly (Michel), Jean-Marie Frin (Paul), Abdelhafid Metalsi (Nouredine), Sabrina Ouazani (Rabbia), Abdellah Moundy (Omar), Olivier Perrier (Bruno), Farid Larbi (Ali Fayattia), Adel Bencherif (the terrorist)

Director: Xavier Beauvois

Screenplay: Étienne Comar, with adaptation (dialogues) by Xavier Beauvois

Release: 2010

Studio: Why Not Productions, Armada Films et al.

Rating: PG-13

MBiS score: 8.2/10

 

 

‟We are the birds and you are the branch. If you leave, where will we land?” 

 

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Story-line: a group of French Catholic monks living their faith and doing social work in the Algerian countryside feel threatened by mounting radicalism and hostility towards foreigners. 

Pluses: admirable acting by Lambert Wilson, Michael Lonsdale and a capable cast, a solemn, sincere and unhurried screenplay that conveys the basic simplicity of monastic life and gives meaning to every word, silence or sigh, calm and considerate direction, lovely exteriors and cinematography, sober production values.

Minuses: none, except that this movie may be too quiet for some viewers. 

Comments: DES HOMMES ET DES DIEUX, which delves into the personal and spiritual challenges faced by the Tibérine monks in 1996, avoids the questions and political issues that their story eventually raised in France. By restricting themselves in such a way, Xavier Beauvois and crew present an intimate, meditative and realistic portrait of religious men whose loyalty to God was tested in the most radical way. Here’s to a fine and thought-provoking film.  

 

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Smultronstället

English title: Wild Strawberries

Also known as: Fraises sauvages (les)

Genre: psychological study (in black and white)

With: Victor Sjöström (Dr. Eberhard Isak Borg), Ingrid Thulin (Marianne Borg), Bibi Andersson (Sara), Gunnar Björnstrand (Dr. Evald Borg), Jullan Kindahl (Agda the housekeeper), Folke Sundquist (Anders), Björn Bjelfvenstam (Viktor), Naima Wifstrand (Mrs. Borg, Isak's mother), Gunnel Broström (Berit Alman), Gertrud Fridh (Karin Borg, Isak's wife)

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Screenplay: Ingmar Bergman

Release: 1957

Studio: Svensk Filmindustri

Rating: -

MBiS score: 9.0/10 

 

One Day in Your Life, Your Life in One Day 

 

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Story-line: at 78, Professor Isak Borg can look at his world in a philosophical light. ‟I have a son, also a doctor, in Lund. My mother, although old, is still alive. My wife Karin has been dead for many years. I am lucky, I have a good housekeeper.” While he suspects that death is not far off, he still has things to look forward to. Tomorrow, he will travel from Stockholm to Lund − a 300-mile journey with his daughter-in-law Marianne − to receive an honorary degree.

Pluses: magnificient acting by Victor Sjöström as the stern yet increasingly mellow Isak Borg, perfect support from Ingrid Thulin and an excellent cast, masterful direction by one of the greatest names in cinema, a serious, kind-hearted screenplay that rolls along efficiently and fully develops its characters with the aid of dark or whimsical flashbacks, spot-on dialogues and flashes of humour, a musical score attuned to the various moods of the story, very pretty cinematography and ravishing production values (detailed sets, attractive costumes and pertinent sound effects).

Minuses: if you find the movie uninspiring at first, take note that it all comes together − superbly so − in the last act. We’re dealing with one of cinema’s masterpieces here!

Comments: like several other films by Bergman, the exquisite WILD STRAWBERRIES does evoke mortality as a movie theme but focuses much more on relationships, reminiscences and the ups and downs of life. In this Swedish version of a road movie, characters come to see themselves and others in a different way, personal conflicts are examined and hopefully resolved, time is spent meeting new people and human frailty is accepted or at least tolerated. And the film left me with an implicit lesson that is well worth remembering: you can feel young whatever your age!

 

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Gravity

Genre: science-fiction drama

With: Sandra Bullock (Ryan Stone), George Clooney (Matt Kowalski), Ed Harris (Mission Control), Orto Ignatiussen (Aningaaq), Phaldut Sharma (Shariff), Amy Warren (Explorer Captain), Basher Savage (Russian Space Station Captain)

Director: Alfonso Cuarón

Screenplay: Alfonso and Jonás Cuarón

Release: 2013

Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures, Esperanto Filmoj, Heyday Films

Rating: PG-13

MBiS score: 8.4/10 

 

‟Mission abort. Repeat: mission abort. Initiate emergency disconnect from Hubble.” 

 

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Story-line: at 600 km above planet Earth, astronaut Ryan Stone is making repairs outside the Explorer Space Shuttle, accompanied by Shariff Dasari and veteran Matt Kowalski. Generally speaking, things are going smoothly and Mission Control informs the three spacewalkers that the programmed destruction of a satellite some distance away won’t cause any problems since the cloud of debris it has created is not orbiting on the Shuttle’s trajectory. Even so, is caution warranted, considering that outer space is the most hostile environment possible for human beings?

Pluses: a scintillating performance by Sandra Bullock (who literally carries the movie) and excellent support from George Clooney, seasoned and focused direction, an ingenious and informative screenplay featuring genuine-sounding dialogues, very strong production values, Emmanuel Lubezki’s striking cinematography, remarkable special effects, meticulous editing (by Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger) and Steven Price’s effective, sometimes terrifying musical score.

Minuses: in the first few minutes, dialogues feel pat and one line in particular is insensitive to Indian culture.

Comments: this two-character movie hailed by cinema circles everywhere is a sensory experience, a spectacular, technically perfect film that clearly demonstrates how tragedy strikes as treacherously in the silence of outer space as on our noisy planet Earth. For all its suspense and technical prowess, however, it does not match 2001, A SPACE ODYSSEY or SOLARIS, two movies whose impact is more profound and universal. It is basically a disaster movie – a cosmic version of THE IMPOSSIBLE, for instance – that lacks somewhat in humanity. Thus, GRAVITY deserves a lower general score (8.8 for technical merit, 8.4 for acting and overall production and 8.0 for story and other elements). In spite of my slightly critical tone, Alfonso Cuarón’s fine film is worth your time as it makes you appreciate the talent (and risk-taking) of the people involved in our space programs and in the movie industry generally. 

 

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