Every year there are themes or styles which seem to resonate
between the films, no matter how disparate.
The past remains popular with the 1920s and 1960s/1970s being the most
prevalent. This year the trends are
movies which look like art – every scene is like a painting in a museum, even
when the subject matter is ugly. That
being said this year’s batch of films are not always intelligible. Storylines are misty and muddled, disjointed. Timelines are unclear, narrators are
unreliable. The films this year seem to
be more about metaphor and symbolism than clear-cut stories. Endings are sometimes enigmatic as are characters. Dialog is minimal and cameras pan over faces
full of emotion (or not). Smiles hide
feelings the viewer is never quite sure of.
It’s a hazy, distanced view of the world, as if we are all inside of our
own prisons, looking out at something we can’t reach. If there is an impact from the isolation of
Covid on the art world, this is it. It’s
not a gloomy bunch of films but there is little connection to anything palpable
with the exception of the three family films:
Belfast, CODA and King Richard.
Being the Ricardos – There is a lot of positive
things to say about this film. It’s a
great concept and a very good story.
It’s well-written and beautifully directed. The supporting cast is terrific and there are
significant points made about women in a male-dominated industry. On the flip side, there will be a struggle
for those who loved I Love Lucy, and Lucille Ball, as it shows
this icon at her worst and pulls back the veil to see an underbelly to the
hugely popular series. The fatal flaw,
however, is in casting. Hollywood
insists on names for leading roles. And
so we get Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem.
They aren’t bad. Actors this good
can’t be bad, and Bardem impresses with his musical skills. If this had been purely a fictional tale they
would have been fine. But it’s not. They are recreating incredibly well-known people. Kidman and Bardem fail at truly inhabiting
these two “greats.” You never forget
that it is not Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz on the screen. This is driven home when they recreate famous
scenes from the I Love Lucy show, like the grape-squishing
scene. It just reinforces the idea that these
two actors are fine but they are no Desi and Lucy. It’s enjoyable as a film, its only mistake is
in not creating something which feels true.
Belfast – This absolutely lovely black and
white film is a study in contrasts.
There are everyday childhood dramas mixed with “The Troubles” of
Northern Ireland, loving parents who don’t love each other, a broken home which
is hard to leave. It’s simple but not
dumbed down. Palpably real this speaks
to anyone who had that crystalized moment in their childhood when the world
beyond the playground became clear. It’s
just frickin’ brilliant.
Black Widow and Shang-Chi and the Legend
of the Ten Rings – These Marvel movies don’t move too far out of the
box but Black Widow has a nice Bond feel. Florence Pugh is an excellent addition to the
franchise and David Harbour is absolutely hysterical. Shang-Chi is fresh with yummy
lead Simu Liu. Awkwafina as the
girlfriend is an awesome choice. I
really like her in everything. The
return of royalty like Michelle Yeoh gives it gravitas and the Asian motifs,
particularly in the final battle, are lovely.
Worthwhile ways to spend a few hours if you aren’t totally over the
Avengers yet.
CODA – Young Emilia Jones is proving to be
quite the triple threat. In multiple
projects at the same time she can act, sing, hide her British accent and spent
nine months studying ASL to perform this role authentically. Authenticity is the key here. This is a family. Like all families, there are issues. Marlee Matlin, in describing the issues
Emilia’s brother has with her, signs that “it’s complicated.” And it is.
There are layers upon layers in this lovely, sad, sometimes funny
film. Kudos to the entire cast for
working together so seamlessly and to the director/writer for making it clear
that deafness is only one aspect of the dynamics which make up a family.
Don’t Look Up – With a star-studded cast this
one is billed as a comedy but it’s not funny.
It’s hugely sardonic and takes swipes at enough contemporary villains to
get an appreciative grunt here and there but it’s not a laugh-fest. And the ending. Oh my.
It also runs almost two and a half hours which makes you feel a bit like
being hit over the head with “the point”.
Written and directed by the same talent as Vice and The
Big Short it has the same snarky tone but this being more fictional it
takes on a darker edge. Using possible
world-wide destruction by a comet as a metaphor for climate change and making a
clear comparison to the gross in competence of our former Baby-in-Chief, the anger
is palpable with several characters devolving into open screams. The President and her sycophantic son are too
involved in politics to deal, the news is too focused on entertaining to address
real news (particularly if it is negative) and the public is more interested in
their Social Media streams than on impending world destruction. Mark Rylance gets a shout-out here for his
portrayal of a stilted, ineffectual billionaire. Other than that the movie is not subtle, and
despite the tremendous cast and heavy marketing, it’s not wonderful. Sometimes rage doesn’t play well even if it’s
justified.
Dune – There has been a lot of talk about how
they finally made a decent Dune film.
There have been more than a few tries.
On a personal level, I like the miniseries and found the biggest deficit
of the 80s version was the times rather than the production value. So, here we are, 2021 and the tech has caught
up, the audience more accustomed to a complex, layered narrative. Yes, this is Science Fiction. It is also politics and religion and
sociology and a bunch of other things.
And yes, this film is good.
Timothee Chalamet, who is usually pretty awesome, has tremendous balance
here. He’s grown up since his early
work. And it shows. There is a ton of depth as his character
works through the overwhelming challenges he faces. The relationship between him and his mother
is as difficult and unusual here as it is in the book. The biggest downside is that, of course, to
get payoff you are going to have to see the second film. I won’t mind.
The Eyes of Tammy Faye – This tremendously
kind look at a well-known figure helps to take the cartoon out of the woman and
show the real person behind all the mascara.
It’s a worthy effort even if it isn’t a great film. Writing, etc is weak, but Jessica Chastain
may have my vote for best actor. Even
knowing it was her I couldn’t see her. I
only saw this big woman who was, in a strange way, a real feminist. The film made me think, which is saying
something. And I came away with a sense
of dimensionality although I can’t respect what she and her husband did and am
not sure I buy the whole “too innocent to realize it” excuse. No matter.
She was a real person with a real life.
This film, glossy though it might be, shows us that it wasn’t all joy
and rapture.
House of Gucci – Director Ridley Scott is
going to do what he’s going to do.
Taking historical events and twisting them to sell the story he wants to
tell is kind of his thing. And so we
have a significantly less-than-historical version of the relationship between
Maurizio Gucci and his wife, Patrizia Reggiani.
Well-framed images don’t make the motives clear. With the exception of Lady Gaga (who is very
good) and Jared Leto (who is outstanding) there is a surprising lack of passion
and focus for the characters. Adam
Driver, typically a gifted actor, is left swimming in poor dialog. You are never quite sure of what he wants,
why he wants it, or who the character really is. It seems to change from one scene to the
next. He's not the only one. This thing is a really long mish-mash. It’s yet another star-heavy film this year
which focuses on powerful white people but has very little to say.
King Richard – Engaging, well done on every
level and hugely watchable. The
relationship between Richard and his wife, the family dynamics, it’s all delightful. Given that the Williams sisters are Executive
Producers on it, the film is a little on the sweet side, glossing over the
dark, but in this case that’s okay. It’s
a feel-good piece which says what it needs to say. Brava, Bravo.
Licorice Pizza – I really looked forward to
seeing this. Every year there is some
small budget film which gets a lot of attention and this time it’s Licorice
Pizza with all the chatter.
Unfortunately I found myself bored and ancy. It’s yet another 1970s reflection of growing
up. Unlike The Tender Bar I
didn’t find it charming. More like a
random collection of snapshots. The
scenes don’t have any kind of through-line, and the protracted scenes with
Bradley Cooper playing Jon Peters are, well, kind of pointless. For me anyway. Even the title is unconnected to the
plot. Too much inside baseball. It might have meaning for those who lived it
but I wasn’t able to connect.
The Lost Daughter – Echoing the other films
this year this movie is more about being atmospheric than it is about
storytelling. Tinged with a sense of
isolation and loss we watch Olivia Coleman’s character, Leda, try to enjoy a
vacation while being inundated with a large family which reminds her of the family
she left behind. It is part of a handful
of films which are exploring the idea that motherhood is not innate to women
and that many women who become mothers feel trapped and unfulfilled. It’s not about judgement but about
reality. It’s good but lengthy. As good a Coleman is I was more impressed and
interested by the actor playing her younger self. That’s the part where the character’s
impossible decision is made. The rest is
just reflection.
The Matrix Resurrections – There is nothing
new here. Like a TV show that has run
out of juice it plays like a clip show with way too many references to the
previous films. It’s a sign that they
don’t have anything new to bring to the tale.
Jessica Henwick and Neil Patrick Harris are fun and Jonathan Groff is
terrific (dude, it’s Jonathan Groff, he’s always terrific) but that’s about
it. The two-and-a-half-hour film feels
much longer.
Nightmare Alley – This star-studded film noir
runs long and feels like it. Not that it
isn’t entertaining. If you are into this
style of film it’s kind of brilliant. A
dark morality play which goes where you figure it will go but is visually
engaging and full of colorful characters.
It was enjoyable, but for me not particularly memorable.
No Time to Die – Not a huge Bond fan I stopped
watching the films long before Daniel Craig’s turn at bat. So I was pleasantly surprised at this really
layered, deep and emotional film. I
mean, yes, there are all the familiar Bond tropes but they are wrapped in good acting,
a complex script and a real story. Of
course, there is a strange villain trying to destroy the world from an island
(with a bunker which looks a LOT like the one from Indiana Jones and the
Last Crusade). The narrative,
however, plays into love and loss and choices.
It makes the whole thing just a teensy bit relatable. Before the inevitable explosions and
such. It’s worth the bulky two hours and
forty-five minutes which flies by.
Passing – Any attempt to describe this
layered, twisty film would fall flat.
It’s art. It’s poetry. It’s depression and grief and love and hate
and jealousy and so many other things.
The weight of the emotional burden falls on actor Tessa Thompson. In the dialog-light film the camera lingers
on Ms. Thompson time and time again. She
is a figure in the background who is framed or blocked by objects in the
foreground. One stares at her tightly
drawn face as she works through an uncounted number of emotions. None of them are simple and none are
clear-cut. The sometimes-fuzzy point of view
is that of her character. The editing
jumps from one point in time to another making the film feel like jagged snapshots
of a life. You are never quite sure of
when and where you are but have an overwhelming sense of atmosphere. Ruth Negga, who has gotten the lion-share of
attention for her work here plays the flirtatious, fatalist flapper. Her deception is the focus of the title but
only a small part of a much bigger story of lives lived unfulfilled. The enigmatic ending nags and pulls at
you. What does it all mean? I’m not sure and viewers will undoubtably
debate about it. One thing I do know
that you will be just a touch haunted long after the movie ends.
The Power of the Dog – This must be the year
when films aren’t what they seem to be.
This is not a western. Not
really. It’s a psychological drama which
happens to be set in Montana in 1925.
So, yes, there are horses and cattle and that’s important to the
storyline, but it isn’t what this film is about. With a surprising number of similarities to Passing
this one focuses on people and their relationships with each other. Some of those relationships are toxic. Also told in snapshots without a clear
timeline the vistas impress and the camera work by Jane Campion is as amazing
as ever. And yes, there is a piano
although it is only an element of the tale and not the primary driver of
action. It’s a brilliant film but not an
easy one. And, just a warning, it will
make some viewers cringe from time to time (mostly vegetarians). That being said it’s my expectation that this
one will be walking around with a good deal of hardware at award time.
Respect – I love Jennifer Hudson. I always have. That being said, a biographical film is
always a challenge. You are asked, in
two and half hours or so, to encapsulate the totality of a complex and often
very well-known life. Jennifer Hudson is
probably one of the few people out there today who can do justice to Aretha Franklin’s
singing as copying the style and intonation of another singer is hugely
hard. Unfortunately the engaging singing
is where any value to this film stops.
The storytelling is weak, the script even more so. Ms. Franklin goes through huge changes in
this tale but there just isn’t enough meat on the bone to explain how she grows
and comes into herself. Dark moments are
glossed over, Jennifer Hudson goes from being shy to self-assured in a jarring
instant. When the credits roll at the
end and you see the real Aretha Franklin, it’s a relief. That’s not a good thing.
The Tender Bar – I get fidgety these days
while I’m watching TV. That wasn’t the
case with this film. From the beginning,
when dialog is minimal, I felt myself roped in.
Every word was loaded, every expression hugely telling. A look provides a dozen emotions. It’s not a “grand” tale, just slices of very
normal, everyday life. But it’s sweet
and a little funny. It’s tremendously
real. Characters are hugely engaging,
including name-actors who manage to just melt into the roles and leave ego
behind. It’s a quiet story which is very
well written, well shot and well told.
Brava, Bravo.
tick … tick … BOOM! – A tiny, lovely jewel in
this year’s film offerings I can’t say it’s the best (impossible to compare
apples to oranges) but I can say it struck a (literal) chord with me and is a
true favorite. I thought I knew the
Jonathan Larson story. I didn’t have a clue. This film, based on Mr. Larson’s second play
(Rent was his third), is a biographical piece with a
lovely fusion of brilliant songs and remorseful stand-up style monologues. It’s just down-right endearing. Snaps to Andrew Garfield who manages to step
aside and let the character shine through and to Alexandra Shipp, who is effervescent
in her role of partner/lover/ex for the Larson character. Don’t blink as there are notable (like,
really, really notable) cameos throughout, particularly in the “Sunday in the
Diner” scene. And yes, that is really a
tape of Stephen Sondheim leaving a message on Jonathan Larson’s answering
machine. A close look at a life too
brief, a man whose gift we only began to understand before he was taken.
The Tragedy of the (Scottish Play) – I’ve seen
a lot of Shakespeare. A LOT. So I’m picky.
This is visually stunning. Art
with a capitol “A”. It’s a
surrealist/Dali-esque portrayal of the famous play. The big “but” here is that pretty-to look at
doesn’t necessarily make for a brilliant production. Joel Coen directs and I have some
issues. His heavy (heavy heavy) use of
the “Z axis” is interesting at first but becomes wieldy and distracting. Many of the lines are delivered in an almost
deadpan way. Emotion is muted. Sentence after sentence is delivered in a
whisper. When Mr. Washington’s character
has to make his tortured, fatalistic choice, he has the emotional equivalent of
picking out white blinds or beige. When
asked by his wife to return the bloody knives to the sleeping bodies of King’s
men, his general attitude is “ehh?” He
finally seems to wake up about half-way through but by then I have long since
stopped caring. I can’t help but feel
that the actors were directed this way.
Early on there is some exposition and the film pivots to a mime of the
action being described. To me, it said that
the director didn’t trust the words, which is critical for Shakespeare. Also early on Alex Hassell gives a throwaway
line great import but the rest of his speech is monotone. Corey Hawkins was making it work as Macduff
until his character’s family is killed.
And he goes flat. I didn’t get
it. I also didn’t get the bizarre and
distracting fake eyebrows on Bertie Carvel, who played Banquo. A few actors were able to rise above. Kathryn Hunter entrances with her gorgeously unique
take on the witches. Frances McDormand is
a study in sly subtlety and steals every scene she’s in (which is saying a lot
given that her scene partner is Denzel Washington). Stephen Root made the most of his comic
cameo. Moses Ingram is absolutely lovely
and grounded and real in her one scene.
The sad thing is, however, that this film as a whole is lacking in sound
and fury and in the end, signifies nothing.
West Side Story – This is simultaneously a
lovely homage to the original as well as a beautiful updating of a classic
film. Slightly longer than the 1961
version the songs and dancing are still there but this time there is more
context, more foundation, to explain the inherent racism of the times. Sadly this film still speaks to our current
times where Americans are pitted against each other and have retreated into
tribes. It’s a wonderful adaptation and
worthy of watching.
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