Cinefile

whalestails

Here is Ready Freddy Films submission for the Windie City Shootout. We had three days to make write, shoot and edit a short film. Check it out:

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

Enter the Void

If you've seen Gaspar Noe's Irreversible, then you know the director isn't shy about sex and violence. In fact, he lays them on so thick that your liable to choke. While brutality is pulled back in Enter the Void, sexuality is doubly pervasive, managing to find it's way into practically every nook and cranny of the film. I'm all for liberating sexual identity and action in film, but there were many times where I felt the sex actually got in the way of telling the -story-. You know, like porno.

Of course, the main draw of the film is it's epilepsy-enduing, kaleidoscopically lush visuals. Never have I seen a film before that so consistently (and effectively) incorporates swaths of lights, colors, computer animation, and luminous set pieces throughout the entire experience. From start to finish, the movie is an unforgettable drug trip. From the first-person and omniscient camera angles to the muffled sound to the endless parade of flashing lights and swirling colors, Enter the Void launches into a deep, prismatic space of it's own. 

In this space you're forced to contemplate the long journey of Oscar, from his death in a club bathroom to his supernatural observation of his sister. The film goes into full flashback mode for a good 30 to 40 minutes, then resurfaces at the present, tacking on another 45 minutes to finish out the story. 

Frankly, it's just too long. The visuals are fantastic but they don't justify the slogging pace that the film adopts halfway through. This is also the point where the overabundance of blatant, sleazy-cool sexuality kicks in. It makes the movie almost tiring to watch.

It's a shame that the pace and subject matter can't match the absolutely brilliant visual design of the film. Otherwise, Enter the Void could have been a full-blown classic, rather than just a special effects benchmark.

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

The Girlfriend Experience

I wasn't expecting to be totally thrown for a loop when I watched Steven Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience, but loop I was indeed thrown for. This is experimental storytelling on extremely concise levels. Sasha Grey's turn as the diminutive and plain escort, Chelsea, is framed well by Soderbergh's revolving door of impressionistic camerawork and unstructured narrative. 

The movie was made in two weeks for under $2 million and it shows. There is a very rapid, seat-of-the-pants tone to the film, even with the shots tend to linger and refuse to focus on it's primary subjects. Through this aesthetic, Soderbergh shows a relationship in turmoil - Chelsea and her personal trainer boyfriend, Chris, continually move away from each other as she takes on more clients. She becomes obsessed with one client in particular, sounding the death knell of her relationship with Chris.

The structure of The Girlfriend Experience is scatterbrain, but you can tell that the brain it came from was an intelligent one. The rich and glamorous world that Chelsea's clients live in has been threatened by the recession and that's basically all they can think about it. Soderbergh's unorganized snapshots show a world of financial uncertainty, but a world still requiring companionship. 

The unorthodox structure actually serves to smooth over the delivery of such real-life concerns. Reality encroaches and has something to say, but it never takes over the heart of the movie. 

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

Black Swan

Going into this movie, I already had my reservations. Director Darren Aronofsky never exactly rubbed me the right way with his previous films such as Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain and Pi. They all boast a striking visual tone, but when it comes to storytelling, his films dive into a deep end of bullshit - namely self-importance. Of course, when I saw The Wrestler, it was a total turn-around. I was wondering if I was watching the same filmmaker. The story was cohesive and it didn't rest on some cheap shock to the system to illicit a response.

Unfortunately, Black Swan pushes the director's head somewhat back up his ass. There are just too many trite plot twists and horror image cliches peppered throughout to consider the film as "important" as it desires to be. A lot of people have talked about how Natalie Portman's performance is just so amazing, but all I saw was a mediocre actress reacting as best she could to a cinematic world she isn't normally affiliated with. I feel it's one of those situations where the environment around the actor or actress is so evocative, that practically anything they do will be considered great or interesting by comparison.  

Aronofsky does improve in some areas, though. The visual composition of the film - the cinematography, set design and costumes - was fantastic. This has actually continually improved and impressed me throughout his career. His movies always look interesting. It's just that you've got this great visual artist, whose constantly dogged by a mediocre storyteller. The storyteller needs to make everything little thing feel more important and "shocking" then it actually is, and thus, trivializes any power the visuals elements had conjured. 

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

Vengeance

Vengeance is Johnnie To's unbalanced and strange take on the revenge story. The film tells the story of a father seeking retribution against the men who killed his daughter's family. Sounds pretty typical, and, for the first third of the film, it is. Daughter's family dies, asks father for revenge, father vows to avenge her. However, the movie quickly runs off the rails and blows apart in just about every conceivable direction.

The dialogue is painfully simplistic and it's delivered in the most awkward, mechanical fashion possible (it doesn't help the film is in three languages at once). The action is a big grab-bag, that unfortunately has far more candy corn then it does Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. It's really strange because there are some sequences that are riveting and dynamically choreographed, but there are other sequences that will literally put you to sleep. Yes, action sequences that put you to -sleep-. You know that's a bad sign.

I had this simultaneous feeling of boredom, excitement and bewilderment throughout the entire experience. I'm not exactly sure how that was achieved, but if that was your goal Johnnie To, my hats off to you. 

video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXLKpiAZw8g

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Got around to seeing the first film in the adaptation of Stieg Larsson's book trilogy. Honestly, it's hard to pinpoint exactly how I feel about the movie. The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo is a Swedish mystery film that seems to be riding a wave of contradictions in it's execution. At one moment, you have these intricate, evocative scenes that are pure arthouse gold, then the next, you're bombarded by a slick Hollywood-esque "let's do this sweet fucking research" montage. There's several points in the movie where scenes end or transition away abruptly and pointedly not in the artistic sense, but in that "awkwardly cutting the fat" sense.

Some of the narrative elements, like Lisbeth's rape at the hands of her parole officer and her subsequent revenge, seem a little far-fetched and thrown in for effect. You almost feel the scenes might work in a different circumstance or formulation of the story, but, like with Lisbeth's rape, it just seems like a loose strand left to sloppily frame the character's motivations.

Still, Michael Nyqvist and Noomi Rapace deliver taut performances in their lead roles. It is an exciting and intriguing film to watch - it just suffers from trying to unnecessarily bridge a gap between the distinction of arthouse and the convenience of Hollywood. 

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Movie Review

Days of Being Wild

The other night I got around to seeing Days of Being Wild, Wong Kar-wai's 1990 feature, years before he'd tackle the prismatic romances of Chungking Express and Fallen Angels. Not being a fan of the director's later work (In the Mood for Love, 2046) I decided to head in the other direction.

While Days of Being Wild is no mountainous victory for Kar-wai, it does stand as an intriguing little nook of filmmaking. It's the early '60s personified by bubblegum doo wop, sordid romance and slicked-back hair. You can see some of Wong's best ideas starting to take formation in the film - the woozy usage of pop music, character reflection visualized by slow/fast time-elapsing - but it's all rudimentary in Days of Being Wild. The director was clearly still finding his footing.

All in all, it's a heat-soaked slice of jilted love and missed connections. While the film is fairly straightforward, Kar-wai does play around with the visual style - turning cryptic lingering into cherished moments you never want to see end. 
 

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

Recently watched "Chungking Express" with my girlfriend after about a year and a half from seeing it for the first time. The movie is just as beautiful and vivid this time around. I kind of wish Wong Kar-wai stayed within this particular mind-frame of filmmaking - it's just so well balanced between style and story.

video

Login to post a reply.     Share

whalestails

I've been cruising through the newly released Red Riding Trilogy. Have watched 1974 and 1980 thus far. It's just plain fantastic, I can't wait to watch 1983. Anyone who loves stylish, cerebral murder mysteries will be right at home here.

 

video

Login to post a reply.     Share