MIDWEEK MOVIES - THE LODGER

“Murder is like potato chips: You can’t stop with just one.” ― Stephen King 

We watched a thriller last weekend as we wanted something fairly non-intellectual, which required no deep thinking nor emotional investment. We do enjoy a good thriller as an entertaining and escapist “passive activity”, so to speak, but when we started to watch and I saw that the director (and screenwriter) was David Oondatje, I was a little cautious as I have no time for his more famous uncle Michael Oondatje whose infamous “The English Patient” I dislike (I must have started to read that book about five times and started to watch the movie three times, and I was unable to stomach it!)… 

The Lodger (2007) Thriller/Film noir - Director by David Oondatje; starring Alfred Molina, Hope Davis, Shane West. – 6/10

This is an oft-told tale of a serial killer, this time in West Hollywood. The movie has two converging plot lines: The first involves an uneasy relationship between a psychologically unstable landlady and her enigmatic lodger, while the second is about a troubled detective with family issues and unorthodox methods, who is engaged in a cat-and-mouse game with the elusive killer, who is imitating the crimes of Jack the Ripper.

Although the movie was fairly conventional it was watchable at least! The acting was fine and the plot and direction competent, although the movie was a little overplotted and not tight enough. The final twist saved the film, because otherwise it would have been disappointing, especially on account of the rather glib and premature psychological explanation given by Rebecca Pidgeon who played (rather woodenly) the resident psychologist. Nevertheless, an enjoyable enough low octane thriller/film noir good for our wintry Sunday matinée.

MOVIE MONDAY - CRIME FILMS

“He who does not prevent a crime when he can, encourages it.” - Lucius Annaeus Seneca

We live in a society where crime is becoming increasingly common and more widespread. It seems that this is the lot of people living in Western countries where affluence is highly visible and very desirable, as it is equated with “success”. No wonder that there is a huge proliferation of films about crime, criminals and the way “justice” is administered and meted out. A crime story is about a crime that is being committed or was committed. It can also be an account of a criminal’s life. It often falls into the action or adventure genres. It can be crafted in a way that is sympathetic to the law enforcement side and where “crime does not pay”, or increasingly there are films where criminals not only commit the crime, but also get away with it. The various sub-genres are:

Courtroom drama: This subgenre presents fictional drama about law. Law enforcement, crime, detective-based mystery solving, lawyer work, civil litigation, etc., are all possible focuses of legal dramas. Common subgenres of legal dramas include detective dramas, police dramas, courtroom dramas, legal thrillers, etc. Legal dramas come in all shapes and sizes and may also span into other forms of media, including novels, plays, television shows, and even radio programs. A classic example of this sub-genre is Sidney Lumet’s 1957 film “12 Angry Men”.

Detective story: A story about a detective or person, either professional or amateur, who has to solve a crime that was committed. They must figure out who committed the crime and why. Sometimes, the detective must figure out how the criminal committed the crime if it seems impossible. Related to the “Whodunnit” variant below. A classic French film of this sub-genre is Jean Delannoy’s 1958 movie “Inspector Maigret” (Maigret tend un piège), based on Georges Simenon’s detective stories.

Whodunnit: This is a complex, plot-driven variety of the detective story in which the audience is given the opportunity to engage in the same process of deduction as the protagonist throughout the investigation of a crime. The reader or viewer is provided with the clues from which the identity of the perpetrator may be deduced before the story provides the revelation itself at its climax. The investigation is usually conducted by an eccentric amateur or semi-professional detective. The classic Agatha Christie novel “Murder on the Orient Express” is a typical example and it has been committed to film many times, for example the 1974 Sidney Lumet version with Albert Finney as Hercule Poirot.

Gangster: Sub-genre that focuses on gangs, criminal organisations, which provide a level of organisation and resources that support much larger and more complex criminal transactions than an individual criminal could achieve. Gangsters are the subject of many movies, particularly from the period between 1930 and 1960. A revival of gangster type movies took place since the 1990s with the explosion of hip-hop culture. Unlike the earlier gangster films, the newer films share similar elements to the older films but is more in a hip-hop urban setting. William A. Wellman’s 1931 “A Public Enemy” starring the classic gangster actor James Cagney is a good example. One cannot fail to mention Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 “The Godfather” (and its many sequels!) in this sub-genre.

Gentleman thief: Centres around particularly well-behaved and apparently well-bred thieves. They rarely bother with anonymity or force, preferring to rely on their charisma, physical attractiveness, and clever misdirection to steal the most unobtainable objects — sometimes for their own support, but mostly for the thrill of the act itself. Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 film “To Catch A Thief” starring the ultimate gentleman, Cary Grant, is such a movie. 

Hardboiled: This is a genre sharing the setting with crime fiction (especially detective stories). Although deriving from romantic tradition, which emphasised the emotions of apprehension, horror and terror, and awe, the hardboiled fiction deviates from the tradition in the detective’s cynical attitude towards those emotions. The attitude is conveyed through the detective’s self-talk describing to the reader (or - in the film - to the viewer) what he is doing and feeling. Robert Aldrich’s 1955 film “Kiss Me Deadly” based on a Mickey Spillane novel is a good example.

Legal thriller: A subgenre of thriller and crime fiction in which the major characters are lawyers and their employees. The system of justice itself is always a major part of these works, at times almost functioning as one of the characters. In this way, the legal system provides the framework for the legal thriller much as the system of modern police work does for the police procedural. Usually, crusading lawyers become involved in proving their cases (usually their client’s innocence of the crime of which he is accused, or the culpability of a corrupt corporation which has covered up its malfeasance until this point) to such an extent that they imperil their own interpersonal relationships and frequently, their own lives. Tony Gilroy’s 2007 “Michael Clayton” is such a movie.

Murder mystery: A mystery story focussing on one type of criminal case: Homicide. Usually, there are one or more murder victims, and the detective must figure out who killed them, the same way he or she solves other crimes. They may or may not find themselves or loved ones in danger because of this investigation; the genre often includes elements of the suspense story genre, or of the action and adventure genres. Andrew Grieve’s 2000 movie “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” is based on the Agatha Christie novel of the same name.

The Crime genre can become extremely boring and there is only so much crime, detective and lawyers that a poor viewer can take. I find myself tiring of this genre extremely quickly and in order for me to be kept interested there must be seriously good writing, excellent acting and faultless direction, as well as many (entertaining but plausible) plot twists.

MOVIE MONDAY - THE THIRD MAN

“The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.” - Sun Tzu

“The Third Man” is a 1949 British-American film noir, directed by Carol Reed and starring Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles and Trevor Howard. It is considered one of the greatest films of all time, celebrated for its acting, musical score and atmospheric cinematography. Novelist Graham Greene wrote the screenplay and subsequently published the novella of the same name (originally written as preparation for the screenplay). Anton Karas wrote and performed the score, which used only the zither; its title music “The Third Man Theme” topped the international music charts in 1950, bringing the then-unknown performer international fame.

We watched this classic film again last weekend and yet again we were impressed by its merits, making it a film far ahead of its time. The black and white cinematography by Robert Krasker is superb and contributes greatly to the artistic merit of the film. The acting is wonderful, the music perfectly suits the locale, mood and plot, and the direction is great.

Graham Greene’s screenplay concerns an out of work pulp fiction novelist, Holly Martins (Cotten), who arrives in a post war Vienna divided into sectors by the victorious allies, and where a shortage of supplies has lead to a flourishing black market. He arrives at the invitation of an ex-school friend, Harry Lime (Welles), who has offered him a job, only to discover that Lime has recently died in a peculiar traffic accident. From talking to Lime’s friends and associates Martins soon notices that some of the stories are inconsistent, and determines to discover what really happened to Harry Lime.

One of the values of this film, viewed several decades since it was made is as a historical document and a social commentary of post-WWII Europe. The film was set in its own time when made, of course, but now we view it as a piece of history. Viewed superficially, “The Third Man” is a all about betrayal and corruption in a post-war, occupied Vienna; on the other hand, it is giving the audience a glimpse of the mood of Europe after the great war. The uncertainty that the Cold War was to generate is found throughout the film: Holly Martins is constantly trying to figure out whom to trust. Vienna is on the frontier of the new communist bloc. The shadow-filled images of a bombed Vienna are stark, mysterious and create a sense of anxiety and melancholy.

When the film was released in Britain and America, it received overwhelmingly positive reviews. Time magazine said that the film was “crammed with cinematic plums that would do the early Hitchcock proud—ingenious twists and turns of plot, subtle detail, full-bodied bit characters, atmospheric backgrounds that become an intrinsic part of the story, a deft commingling of the sinister with the ludicrous, the casual with the bizarre.” Critics today have hailed the film as a masterpiece. Roger Ebert added the film to his “Great Movies” list and wrote, “Of all the movies that I have seen, this one most completely embodies the romance of going to the movies.”

If you haven't seen this film, where have you been? It is a “must-see” movie for lovers of film noir and a wonderful movie for everyone who likes a meaty, well-made film that doesn’t underestimate the intelligence of the viewer.

MOVIE MONDAY - FILM NOIR

“Look in the mirror. The face that pins you with its double gaze reveals a chastening secret.” - DianeAckerman

For Movie Monday today I’ll deal with a classic movie that I watched again at the weekend for after many years since I saw it first. It is Roman Polanski’s “Chinatown” of 1974. It is the story of Los Angeles detective Jake Gittes who is hired by Mrs. Mulwray to spy on her husband, whom she suspects of infidelity. Shortly after Gittes is hired, a second woman, who proves to be the real Mrs. Mulwray appears in his office threatening to sue if he doesn’t drop the case immediately. Gittes pursues the case and discovers a trail leading to corruption, murder and terrible family secrets.

This is a wonderful movie of the “film noir” type set in Los Angeles of the 1940s. It is full of atmosphere, boasts excellent acting and masterful direction. Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway are perfect in their roles and the director John Huston who plays Mrs Mulwray’s father proves he can act as well as he directs. The setting and prop details in this movie are painstakingly recreated and the whole effect is that of a classy homage to the famous film noir films of the 1940s. If you haven’t seen this movie, it is well worth seeing, especially if you like thrillers and intelligent, well-made, film noir.

Film Noir (literally ‘black film or cinema’) was coined by French film critics (first by Nino Frank in 1946) who noticed the trend of how ‘dark’, downbeat and black the looks and themes were of many American crime and detective films released in France to theatres following the war, such as The MalteseFalcon (1941), Murder, My Sweet (1944), Double Indemnity (1944), The Woman in the Window (1944), Laura (1944), The Blue Dahlia (1948) and D.O.A. (1950). A wide range of films reflected the resultant tensions and insecurities of the time period, and counter-balanced the optimism of Hollywood’s musicals and comedies. Fear, mistrust, bleakness, loss of innocence, despair and paranoia are readily evident in noir, reflecting the ‘chilly’ Cold War period when the threat of nuclear annihilation was ever-present.

The criminal, violent, misogynistic, hard-boiled, or greedy perspectives of anti-heroes in film noir were a metaphoric symptom of society’s evils, with a strong undercurrent of moral conflict, purposelessness and sense of injustice. There were rarely happy or optimistic endings in noirs. Classic film noir developed during and after World War II, taking advantage of the post-war ambience of anxiety, pessimism, and suspicion. It was a style of black and white American films that first evolved in the 1940s, became prominent in the post-war era, and lasted in a classic ‘Golden Age’ period until about 1960 (marked by the last film of the classic film noir era, Orson Welles’ Touch of Evil (1958).

Strictly speaking, film noir is not a genre, but rather the mood, style, point-of-view, or tone of a film. It is also helpful to realise that film noir usually refers to a distinct historical period of film history (the decade of film-making after World War II), similar to the German Expressionism or the French New Wave periods. However, it was labelled as such only after the classic period - early noir film-makers didn't even use the film designation (as they would the labels ‘western’ or ‘musical’), and were not conscious that their films would be labelled noirs.

Very often, a film noir story was developed around a cynical, hard-hearted, disillusioned male character [e.g., Robert Mitchum, Fred MacMurray, or Humphrey Bogart] who encountered a beautiful but promiscuous, amoral, double-dealing and seductive femme fatale [e.g., Mary Astor, Veronica Lake, Jane Greer, Barbara Stanwyck, or Lana Turner]. She would use her feminine wiles and come-hither sexuality to manipulate him into becoming the fall guy - often following a murder. After a betrayal or double-cross, she was frequently destroyed as well, often at the cost of the hero’s life. As women during the war period were given new-found independence and better job-earning power in the homeland during the war, they would suffer, on the screen, in these films of the 1940s.

MOVIE MONDAY - SHANGHAI

“One should rather die than be betrayed. There is no deceit in death. It delivers precisely what it has promised. Betrayal, though ... betrayal is the willful slaughter of hope.” - Steven Deitz
 
The Film Noir is a genre of movie that is characterised cynical heroes, stark lighting effects, frequent use of flashbacks, intricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosophy. The genre was prevalent mostly in American crime dramas of the post-World War II era. Early examples of the noir style included dark, stylised detective films such as John Huston’s “The Maltese Falcon” (1941), Frank Tuttle’s “This Gun for Hire” (1942), Otto Preminger’s “Laura” (1944), and Edward Dmytryk’s “Murder, My Sweet” (1944).
 
Banned in occupied countries during the war, these films became available throughout Europe beginning in 1946. French cinephiles admired them for their cold, cynical characters and dark, brooding style, and they afforded the films effusive praise in French journals such as “Cahiers du Cinéma”. French critics coined the term “film noir” in reference to the low-keyed lighting used to enhance these dramas stylistically, although the term would not become commonplace in international critical circles until the publication of the book “Panorama du Film Noir Americain” (1955) by Raymond Borde and Étienne Chaumeton.
 
The style began to go out of fashion in the mid-50s and it was not until the 70s and 80s that occasional homages and references to film noir started to be more common. Perhaps the best contemporary examples of the genre are Curtis Hanson’s “L.A. Confidential” (1997), a bleak story of corrupt cops, and Joel and Ethan Coen’s “The Man Who Wasn’t There” (2001), a similarly dark story inspired by the crime novels of James M. Cain. Both films are presented in classic film noir style, the latter in black-and-white.
 
We watched Mikael Håfström’s 1940s period piece made in the film noir tradition, “Shanghai” of 2010 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1092634/) starring John Cusack, Li Gong and Yun-Fat Chow. This film was a somewhat troubled project, with its making being blocked just weeks before production was scheduled to begin. The crew and actors were relocated to Thailand and London, followed by delays on its release date.  The film is an acceptable neo-noir spy story set in 1941 in Shanghai. The story unfolds in a more or less natural and realistic way while conceding to the elements of film noir. It’s hard not to make comparisons with films like “Casablanca” and “The Third Man” because the screenwriter and director were obviously inspired by such films.
 
The film is a “spy versus spy” story, set against Shanghai in 1941, where the city has yet to fall to the Japanese, and thus becoming a hotbed of intrigue, espionage, wild entertainment and home to a burgeoning resistance movement. The many foreign residents still in the city have set up their own protective enclaves and trouble brews when one nationality ventures into another’s sector. John Cusack plays the lead character, Paul Soames, a naval intelligence agent sent to Shanghai to investigate the death of his good friend Connor (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). A series of intriguing events unfold, dealing with crossed loyalties and opportunistic alliances. Going under the cover of a journalist with pro-Nazi sentiments, he works his way to the upper echelons of German society in the city, and from there, linking himself up with the Germans’ new ally, Japan. Paul is on the verge of discovering something big, but human relationships and unrequited love get in the way of the real business of war.
 
Local triad leader Anthony Lan-Ting (Chow Yun-Fat) and his wife Anna (Gong Li) become associated with Paul. Tanaka, a Japanese intelligence officer (Ken Watanabe) becomes suspicious and wants to find out the truth behind Anna’s flirtatiousness and Paul’s seeming infatuation with her. Meanwhile on the world stage, bigger things are afoot...
 
We enjoyed the film, although it was not as meaty as we would have liked it to be. It is a good B-grade film noir and has extremely talented actors acting well in costumes and settings that are believable, in a homage to the film noir genre. It is entertaining but lacks real depth and poignancy.

MOVIE MONDAY - FASTER

“Violence isn’t always evil. What’s evil is the infatuation with violence.” - Jim Morrison

We had a very beautiful Spring day yesterday so it was good to go out and enjoy the sunshine a little. There was definitely a warmth in the air, the sun was shining and the Spring flowers have really started to put on a show. Nevertheless, we managed to see our movie as well, which proved to be just the thing after our walk, although it turned out to be quite a dark and sombre film.

It was the 2010 George Tillman Jr movie, “Faster”, starring Dwayne Johnson, Billy Bob Thornton, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Carla Gugino and Maggie Grace. It was the typical “dick flick” genre with some elements of film-noir thrown in for good measure. In any case, there was lots of action, car chases, double-crossing, double dealing, violence, drugs and a tale of vengeance and betrayal. It was also quite intelligent and had a moral.

The plot centres on Driver (Dwayne Johnson, “The Rock!”) who after serving 10 years in prison for bank robbery, has only one mission in life, to avenge the murder of his older brother who was executed in front of his eyes when they were double-crossed after the heist. Driver obtains the names and addresses of the double-crossers, and begins to get rid of them systematically. There appear to be nothing on earth that can stop him from killing all of them, except two people that are hunting him. A veteran cop (Billy Bob Thornton) only days from retiring and a young hit man (Oliver Jackson-Cohen). The plot is pretty simple, but relies on the action mainly (OK, and a couple of twists)…

Dwayne Johnson I believed has potential as an actor, however, his choice of roles has been pretty dismal since he left the world of wrestling. “The Scorpion King” was bad enough, but when one considers “The Tooth Fairy”, well, what can I say? In this film, Johnson shows that he has what it takes to play a serious tough guy role, playing it well and with restraint. He is cast perfectly as the vengeful Driver, out to deliver justice to the killers of his brother. Billy Bob Thronton is also cast well as the sleazy, drug-taking cop, while Oliver Jackson-Cohen is also good as the pretty boy killer who seems to be in it for the thrill of it rather than the money. Carla Gugino plays the tough woman cop well and Maggie Grace looks mainly decorative.

This was a violent movie, but oddly, quite entertaining too. The action and violence were not mindless and although the main theme was vengeance, this was counterpointed with forgiveness and redemption. The dialogue is sparing and there are some excellent one liners delivered with great aplomb by Thornton mainly. Original Music by Clint Mansell is very good and the cinematography by Michael Grady excellent. Overall, a good movie.

MOVIE MONDAY - NIAGARA

“Every murder turns on a bright hot light, and a lot of people... have to walk out of the shadows.” - Albert Maltz
 
Niagara Falls is the collective name for three waterfalls that straddle the international border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York. They form the southern end of the Niagara Gorge. The three waterfalls are the Horseshoe Falls (largest), the American Falls and the Bridal Veil Falls (smallest). The Horseshoe Falls lie on the Canadian side and the American Falls on the American side, separated by Goat Island. The smaller Bridal Veil Falls are also located on the American side, separated from the other waterfalls by Luna Island.
 
Located on the Niagara River which drains Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, the combined falls form the highest flow rate of any waterfall in the world, with a vertical drop of more than 50 metres. The Horseshoe Falls is the most powerful waterfall in North America, as measured by vertical height and also by flow rate. The falls are located 27 km north-northwest of Buffalo, New York and 121 km south-southeast of Toronto, between the twin cities of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and Niagara Falls, New York. More than 168,000 cubic metres of water falls over the crest line every minute in high flow. Niagara Falls are renowned both for their beauty and as a valuable source of hydroelectric power. Managing the balance between recreational, commercial, and industrial uses has been a challenge for the stewards of the falls since the 19th century.
 
We visited the Falls many years ago when we were on a road trip from New York City to Toronto via Buffalo. We loved our time there and were amazed by this spectacular wonder of nature, finally understanding why their fame is so well-deserved after seeing them with our own eyes. That Niagara Falls has a long and rich history and tradition in both  native American and white North American culture is not surprising.
 
We watched the Henry Hathaway classic 1953 film noir “Niagara” at the weekend as I got the DVD on special from our DVD store. It starred Marilyn Monroe, Joseph Cotten, Jean Peters, Max Showalter and Richard Allan, and was based on a classic love triangle story, co-written by another triangle of writers Charles Brackett, Walter Reisch and Richard L. Breen. The film was shot in glorious technicolour, no doubt because of the scenic beauty of the setting (the director lost opportunity of showing us several rainbows as a consequence!).
 
The story centres on Rose and George Loomis (Monroe and Cotten) who are going through a rough patch in their marriage and are holidaying on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. Arriving at the holiday spot are Polly and Ray Cutler (Peters and Showalter), who are a young couple who have come to Niagara for a delayed honeymoon. Upon their arrival, they meet Rose and George, who are over-staying in their time in the Cutlers’ reserved cabin. Shortly after they arrive, Polly sees Rose passionately kissing another man (Richard Allan). Rose angers her husband by playing a love song (“Kiss”) on a record player a few other couples are dancing to, pushing George to destroying the record in his hands. The dysfunctional Loomises have arrow and it become apparent that something serious is amiss. Murder ensues and the ones left behind have to battle for their own survival.
 
The film is a nostalgic look at the 1950s and without being over-sentimental it highlights Marilyn Monroe in what has become an iconic typecast role for her: The sultry temptress of questionable morals who will stop at nothing to get her own way. She nevertheless plays this role with great gusto, supported well by Cotten who plays the psychologically disturbed husband with aplomb. An excellent performance is given by Jean Peters who manages to devote her considerable acting resources as the supporting female lead, not at all overshadowed by Monroe. The performance of Showalter is quite pedestrian, although his role is quite an annoying one to begin with. Richard Breen as the lover has a very minor role providing the beefcake factor in the love triangle. Overall the movie is competently made and despite its age stands up relatively well to scrutiny nearly 60 years after its production. One can still watch it and be entertained, although it is obviously dated in many ways.

MOVIE MONDAY - ALL GOOD THINGS

“Every unpunished murder takes away something from the security of every man’s life” - Daniel Webster

The Film Noir genre describes stylish Hollywood crime dramas, which highlight cynical attitudes and sexual motivations in a whodunit setting. The classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s. The term “film noir” is French for “black film” and was first applied to Hollywood films by French critic Nino Frank in 1946. It was a term unknown to most American film industry professionals of the classic era.

Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key black-and-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. Many of the stories and much of the attitude of classic noir are derived from the school of popular crime fiction that emerged in the USA during the Depression. Cinema critics defined the film noir retrospectively. Before the term was widely adopted in the 1970s, many of the classic film noirs were referred to as melodramas.

Though the film noir genre was originally identified with American movies, films now customarily described as noir have been made around the world. Many pictures released from the 1960s onward share attributes with film noirs of the classic period, often treating noir conventions in a self-referential manner. Such latter-day works in a noir mode are often referred to as neo-noirs. It is an easy genre to parody and many successful comedies are based on a film noir premise.

We watched a neo-noir film at the weekend, the Andrew Jarecki 2010 movie “All Good Things”, starring Ryan Gosling, Kirsten Dunst and Frank Langella. This is based on the true story of real estate heir Robert Durst who was suspected but never tried for killing his wife Katie who disappeared in 1982. The screenplay by Marcus Hinchey and Marc Smerling attempts to fill in gaps. Although the movie doesn’t use real names and the press notes say it’s “inspired” by the Durst case, it seems to follow many of the facts rather closely, while mixing in some provocative speculation.

Robert Durst, the scion of a very prominent Manhattan real estate family was charged with murder in Texas.  Durst, arrested while disposing of a neighbour’s dismembered body and dressed in drag, hadn’t been seen since 1981. That’s when authorities identified him as a suspect in the disappearance of his wife, Kathie, who was declared legally dead in 2001.  Durst was acquitted in the Texas killing on grounds of self-defence. He has never been charged in his wife’s disappearance, or in the murder of his best friend, in California, at about the same time as his neighbour’s death. It was a messy, complicated case and there was much that was hidden, while speculation abounds that Durst got away with multiple counts of murder.

The film strongly suggests that Robert Durst killed his wife, that his now deceased father may have helped dispose of the body and bought off the Westchester district attorney and that Durst murdered the Texas neighbour (Philip Baker Hall), who killed the California friend (Lily Rabe) at his behest because of blackmail demands. It is not surprising that the Durst family has threatened to sue over this movie, which was sold back to Jarecki after the original distributor, the Weinstein Company, got cold feet over its release.

Mr Durst said he actually liked the movie, parts of which made him cry. He is living on $65 million gained in a settlement with his family, splitting his time among homes in Houston, Los Angeles and Harlem. Douglas Durst, Robert’s younger brother, who contends that the film maligns the family real estate company, the Durst Organization, which he now runs, and his dead father, Seymour Durst, the patriarch who is played by Frank Langella. The Durst company that orginally vowed to sue when the film is released, pulled back on that threat. Douglas Durst said that: “Fortunately this movie will be seen by so few people that litigation would be superfluous.” It is interesting the company has raised no objection to the portrayal of Robert, who has been estranged from the family for many years…

The film refer to Robert’s childhood in a motherless home; his psychological problems; his whirlwind romance with Kathy, 19, a dental hygienist who seemed to offer an escape from the pressures of his life. The couple married and moved to Vermont, where they opened a health-food store, “All Good Things” – hence the punning title of the film. However, under pressure from Robert’s father, Seymour, they returned to Manhattan to join the family business and, once there, the marriage began to falter.  Robert did not want children. Kathie ended up having an abortion and began to assert her independence. She started medical school and was soon complaining to friends that Robert was rough with her. In 1981 she spoke to a divorce lawyer, though she never filed. The following year she disappeared one night after a fight at the couple’s weekend home in South Salem, N.Y.  Robert did not report her missing for four days and told police that she had taken the train home to their West Side apartment. Someone matching her description was seen there by several people. The film then speculates n what really transpired and hence the controversy that it gave rise to.

Frank Langella gives a great performance as the tough father who drives his family in the quest of power and wealth. Ryan Gosling offers a strong performance of the psychologically unstable “David” (i.e. Robert) who changes many faces and behaviours through the film. Kirsten Dunst gives a wonderful performance as “Katie” (= Kathie), the simple bright girl whose life is quashed by a powerful family’s demands and dysfunctional relationships. The rest of the cast is very good, including the performances by Philip Baker Hall and Lilly Rabe.

This is a challenging and confronting film, especially as one knows that it is based on real people and that there has never been an “official” explanation of the mysterious murders at its core.

KISSES AND BANGS

“Humour is perhaps a sense of intellectual perspective: An awareness that some things are really important, others not; and that the two kinds are most oddly jumbled in everyday affairs.” - Christopher Morley



We watched a strange film at the weekend, one that wasn’t quite what we expected, but which we nevertheless enjoyed in the end. It was Shane Black’s 2005 “Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang”, which certainly had a lot of kisses and a lot of bangs in it. I chose the film as I read in the back jacket of the DVD the scanty write-up of the plot which described it as an action thriller. They had left out the bit about the black comedy! This best describes the film, which was quite a funny spoof of a film noir. One word of warning: If you are likely to be offended by piquant language, this is not the film for you – the film-makers have gone out of their way to “offend the viewers of the Midwest” as they confess in the last few minutes of the film! I am not a fan of blue language in films, but I did not particularly mind it in this film, it was about the dregs of society living in L.A. after all, it was to be expected that this was the way they spoke (OK, maybe I live a sheltered life)!

In a nutshell, the film concerns itself with a petty criminal in New York who, in order to escape the police who is chasing him ends up in an audition room and gets selected to take part in a film being made in L.A. He runs across his high school sweetheart who is now an aspiring starlet in Hollywood and gets involved in murder and conspiracy quite by chance. There is also a gay detective, a jaded Hollywood director up to his dirty tricks, identity theft, murder, car chases, incest, murder, a hungry dog (oh no!), and some quite original comedic devices that are very effective (did I mention murder?)

The actors do a fantastic job, with Robert Downey Jnr giving a great performance as the idiotic, gauche Harry, the petty thief. Val Kilmer is “Gay Perry”, the detective with the faultless grammar (the recurring joke bad/badly, adjective/adverb is very funny), while Michelle Monaghan plays Harmony, the aspiring young starlet. The supporting actors were also all very good and there is great chemistry amongst the leads. Once the initial few minutes of this film were seen and digested and the caricatures of the pulp film noir are appreciated, one can sit back and enjoy the humour and clever dialogue. At the same time I should stress that it’s not slapstick, and the ludicrous situations that develop are mainly because of the ineptitude of Harry as the “detective-in-spite-of-himself”.

The director, Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, Last Boy Scout, Long Kiss Goodnight) wrote the script based on an idea based on the novel by Brett Halliday “Bodies Are Where You Find Them”, but he has imbued it with his own brand of tongue in cheek humour, fast-paced dialogue and sick ideas. Incidentally, the title is from the Japanese description of James Bond movies! Good fun all round…

MOVIE MONDAY - SECRET WINDOW

“There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them.” – André Gide

On Sunday we watched a Johnny Depp film, the 2004 thriller “Secret Window”, directed by David Koepp. It is based on a Stephen King novel and is another of these films where one turns the brain off and spends 96 minutes vegetating on a little mindless escapist entertainment. I must admit that I like a good thriller or film noir, an intelligent horror movie, but cannot stand the “Friday 13th” type of drivel or “Nightmare on Elm St” type of horror flicks that are essentially produced for the pajama party or drive in crowd and calculated to produce the most screams per minute by scattering the most blood and gore across the screen per unit time.

Johnny Depp is not one of my favourite actors although he has been in many successful films. He tends to pout a lot in this film and spends a lot of time tousling his hair and looking like stunned rabbit. He also seems to sleep a lot (and not in his bed). The cast includes John Turturro, Maria Bello, Timothy Hutton and Charles S. Dutton. They all act in a rather woodenish way and they are good caricatures of the typical suspense/thriller movie. The twists and turns of the plot are rather predictable and the ending is less than satisfying.

In short, the plot has as follows (don’t worry, I won’t give anything away by peppering it with spoilers): After a bitter separation from his wife (Maria Bello), the famed mystery writer Mort Rainey (Johnny Depp) lives alone at his remote lake house. He is unexpectedly confronted there by a dangerous and mysterious stranger named John Shooter. Claiming Rainey has plagiarised his short story, the psychotic Shooter demands “justice”. When Shooter's demands turn to threats (and subsequently murder) Rainey turns to a private detective for help. But when nothing stops the horror from spiralling out of control, Rainey soon discovers he can't trust anyone or anything.

There is a very horrific scene in which a dead animal is featured, so if you are squeamish about it, then this is not the film for you. I disliked it particularly as it didn’t contribute to the story. The scene could have been easily deleted. Philip Glass was responsible for part of the score but “Psycho” it’s not, although there are some Hitchcock tributes in the film.

I got a bit sick of Depp and his hair very early on in the movie and his impression of a village idiot fails to satisfy. I got a few laughs out of the movie (unintentional, to be sure, the scenes were meant to be scary!) and watched till the end, even though it was quite lame. This is a B-grade TV flick to be seen during a pizza night with a few good friends and relaxing and joking about it. I would not go out of my way to find it and see it, but if its on TV, send out for a pizza and ring a couple of friends…

RED LIGHTS

“No good movie is too long and no bad movie is short enough." - Roger Ebert

We watched an interesting French movie yesterday and in some ways it was reminiscent of the classic film noir genre, but also there were elements of modern expressionism and psychological thriller overtones in it. The film is “Feux Rouges” (Red Lights) by Cédric Kahn, based on a book by Georges Simenon (of Inspector Maigret whodunit fame). The film is based on some amazing performances by the three leads, Jean-Pierre Daroussin (the husband), Carole Bouquet (the wife) and Vincent Deniard (the hitchhiker).

Antoine and Hélène seem to be a typical married couple in the opening frames of the film and they begin their summertime drive to South France to pick up their kids from a holiday camp. The road traffic is heavy and the atmosphere becomes tense. Antoine stops at almost every bar they meet and becomes increasingly drunk the further they progress. After a fierce argument Hélène leaves Antoine at a bar and decides to take the train to Bordeaux. They each have an experience that changes their life forever.

The film is a wry study of the middle-aged male psyche and all of the attendant misfortunes that the prospect of incipient old age brings with it. Here is the dissection of the life of a man who has reached a crisis point and finds himself doubting his worth, his virility, his position in society and his diminishing sense of innate worth. He believes his professionally successful wife has a lover, he sees his children become distant as his job absorbs his energy and time and he believes that alcohol is his only solace. A dangerous situation that ticks away like a time bomb set to explode that very night.

There are similarities in this film to some of Hitchcock and Kubrick. The director plays with the audience like a cat with a mouse and we squirm as we witness Antoine’s descent into the depths of night, a dark night of the soul in which his alcohol-steeped nightmares seem to become a mind shattering reality. We are left to doubt what we see through Antoine’s eyes as his world is one that is full of horrific fantasies, weird illusions and almost demented and cruel actions of impotent wish-fulfillment.

The cinematography is very good and the opening sequences with the quasi geometric shots of modern city architecture from a great height set the scene wonderfully by dwarfing the people and making the concrete shapes alienate the flesh and blood in a way that is prophetic for the film’s heroes. The music score is by Frenchman Debussy, whose “Nuages” provide an interestingly serene and dispassionate counterfoil to the raw emotions of the characters.

Red Lights is a good film, brought to life by the magnificent acting of Daroussin, who gives his all in a brilliant character study that is disguised as a thriller. Antoine is both hero and anti-hero and although he is not at all likable, he still manages to make us feel for him, and we empathise with his predicament. As Alfred Hitchcock says: “Always make the audience suffer as much as possible.” And then your film is successful…

MOVIE MONDAY - THE WAGES OF FEAR

For Movie Monday today, a classic film from France. It is Henri-Georges Clouzot’s 1953 film, “Wages of Fear” (“Le Salaire de la Peur” ). In the Central American jungle supplies of nitroglycerine are needed at a remote oil field in order to put out an oil well fire. The oil company offers big money to drivers who will take the dangerous cargo of high explosive in two trucks. Nitroglycerine is susceptible to self-detonation from jolts, so potentially, the drivers could blow themselves up to smithereens if they drive recklessly over the 300 miles of bad, winding, mountain roads. Nevertheless, four men take up the offer to deliver the supplies of explosive in two trucks. A tense rivalry develops between the two sets of drivers and on the rough remote roads the slightest jolt can result in death.

The characters are less than admirable, more anti-heroes than protagonists, but one cannot help but sympathise with them as they begin their terror-filled journey. It is one of the most renowned of suspense thriller movies, the suspense not one of mystery but rather one of impending doom. A Damoclean sword hanging by a thread over the head of the drivers. It is a fascinating film and Clouzot proves his talent as he craftily manages one suspenseful scene after another.

Yves Montand and Charles Vanel are excellent in their roles and the whole movie must have pleased Georges Arnaud (the author of the novel the screenplay is based on) greatly. If you haven’t seen this film, it’s well worth your while to ferret it out and have a look at it. It’s tense, dark, thrilling, well-made and has an important message about freedom and the lengths to which people will go to attain it. Just be careful, though that you do not by mistake watch the lamentable 1977 remake also called “Wages of Fear” (or “Sorcerer”). This latter one is an abominable film not worth the celluloid it’s made on.

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