It’s an achingly familiar premise; a group of friends trying to make it in the Big City, hijinks ensue. But even in today’s “golden age” of television, the real art seems to come from taking the familiar and turning it inside out, re-examining it from every angle possible and finding an entirely new take on it. Girls makes no bones about being the brand new iteration of a genre oft-explored – even giving blunt homages to its predecessors – perhaps because it doesn’t need to create a veneer of originality. This show is like everything we’ve seen before, but put together in such a way as to be surprising, delightful, and yes – even new. Twenty-six year old Lena Dunham is the auteur at the helm of the show, appearing in the credits as the director, co-producer, writer, and lead actress. It would be easy for any filmmaker to be swallowed up in all of those titles, but Dunham’s experience as an indie writer/director/producer/actor seems to have prepared her to juggle all necessary hats.
Though Dunham’s accomplishments are enviable to anyone trying to navigate the choppy waters of the current economy, there’s something painfully relatable and shockingly genuine about her fictional counterpart, Hannah Horvath. Like so many post-college twenty-somethings, Hannah is adrift in a big city, the proud owner of a degree that is quickly proving itself worthless and working in an unpaid internship with the hopes of maybe someday being hired. Like the privileged few, she’s also relying on her parents to support her while she writes her memoirs. The show begins with her parents cutting off the funding in an attempt to give her a “final push”. Despite her protestations (“This feels very arbitrary…”), her parents are resolute. She’s been interning with a publisher for a year now, can’t she get a job? But when she goes to her boss to request a paying position, she’s immediately fired.
Hannah’s plight is in stark contrast to her roommate, Marnie (Allison Williams), who is beautiful, stylish, and gainfully employed at a swanky art gallery. Marnie falls asleep in Hannah’s bed watching The Mary Tyler Moore Show just to avoid having sex with her boyfriend Charlie (Christopher Abbott), who she can hardly stand to look at because he’s ‘too nice’…another contrast to Hannah’s own sexual relationship with a seemingly ambivalent actor Adam (Adam Driver) who awkwardly dominates her in bed and plays with her stomach fat after sex. Their younger friend Shosanna (Zosia Mamet) watches reality television all day, categorizes people in terms of Sex and the City characters, refers to her apartment as a “bachelorette pad”, and agonizes over being a virgin. Shosanna’s British cousin Jessa (Jemima Kirke) arrives to further complicate matters with her fauxhemian lifestyle, impending abortion, painstakingly effortless wardrobe, and string of international sexual conquests. Even those who fail to see themselves in these “girls” will still have the feeling of having known them, at least in some capacity.
Perhaps the most striking thing about Girls is its honesty. Yes, it’s another play on a tired theme and yes, it dissects a very limited microcosm, but watching each painfully awkward moment that the characters pass through with very little fanfare at all is both hilarious and intimately familiar. We may not want to see ourselves in all the failed parties, bad sex, awkward job interviews and financial crises, but at the end of the day these things are painfully familiar to many, especially those in the 18-34 year old demographic. As it happens, television really is a fantasy land…and though Girls is a fantasy of its own, it still taps into the neurosis of the age of extended adolescence.
It’s fairly certain that there will be plenty of criticism for Girls. There are many who won’t find it accessible, still others who will be turned off by the blunt, completely unsexy fashion in which many topics are broached and explored before being left ambiguous and unsolved. The internet is already alive with buzz, many accusing Girls of being unrepresentative due to the financial status, race, and sexuality of the characters. However, no work of fiction is capable of representing everyone, and Girls never claims to apply in a broad fashion. As Hannah says in a dubiously drug-fueled confrontation with her parents, she might be the voice of her generation…or, perhaps a voice of a generation. Regardless of whether you can look at Girls and find solidarity, the fact remains that it is a much more honest portrayal of Generation Y than anyone has previously seen on the small screen.
At the end of the third episode of Girls, Hannah is still unemployed. Rent is coming due and she’s just gotten news from the free clinic that isn’t great, but could clearly be much worse. We find her in her room dancing with abandon and watch as Marnie joins her, a beautiful scene that captures the bond between the two of them in a way that feels affirming…despite the unhappiness, uncertainty, and anger displayed earlier in the episode. For all their meandering about, the search for themselves is no less desperate, and for all the jaded affectations they seem to adopt, the emotions behind their wanderings are never far from the surface. It will be interesting to see if Girls will retain all the little elements that make it delightful to watch. For now, the buzz alone has begun an interesting conversation among the opinionated masses…where that conversation goes ultimately depends on the series itself, and how comfortable we are facing our own less-than-glamorous realities brought to light in a highly-visible, critically-acclaimed HBO comedy.
With television and limited animation becoming more prolific through the 1950s, the Golden Age of animation was giving way to the Dark Age of animation. Hand-drawn cartoons were made as cheaply and quickly as possible with the art style ranging from unwatchably bad, to so-bad-it’s good (Clutch Cargo anyone?) to the stylistically good ones showing that sometimes less is more. During this transitional time period, feature TV specials for kids used the limited, abstract animation style while theatrical features stayed with the more detailed, representational style. In the United States, U.S.S.R., and Japan, high fantasy made these theatrical features since, at that time, animation could go where live-action technology couldn’t go.
Something else of note in this period of storytelling is that even though the 1950s are regarded as being a very sexist period in history, there are some very proactive and strong-willed female characters compared to the earlier animated films. Heroines and sidekicks in this batch of movies don’t just pine after their men – they go through the ends of the earth to be reunited with them. They’re not off to the side or along for the ride – they’re in the driver’s seat, moving the plot.
Our Mr. Sun (1956) – USA: Bell Laboratory Science Series
Limited animation, solid colors, and striking design make the cartoon segments of this first of four hour-long science-themed television specials produced when Frank Capra who retired from Hollywood filmmaking and collaborated on educational films with his alma mater Cal Tech and the Bell Telephone Company. The 1950s were a very different – and in some ways less polarized – time period: Capra could have references to God and the Bible in the educational program without his science background being discredited. At the same time, he could bring up the earth being billions of years old and show concern about overpopulation and weaning off fossil fuels, but easily maintain his credibility as a culturally conservative Christian and member of the Republican Party. Notable voice actors in “Our Mr. Sun” include Lionel Barrymore in his last role ever as Father Time, and the prolific Sterling Holloway.
Hemo the Magnificent (1957) – USA: Bell Laboratory Science Series
The modernistic outlook of the 1950s is all over the Bell Laboratory series: the titular “Hemo” character is not the first, and not the last cartoon personification who laments the old days when nature was mysterious, feared, and worshipped, and has to be persuaded by Dr. Research and The Writer that science and progress are good and constructive. The simple animation sequences illustrate the blood circulation system, and the live action scenes are an interesting look at the medical technology of the time period.
The Strange Case of the Cosmic Rays (1957) – USA: Bell Laboratory Science Series
The third Bell Laboratory special is the weakest in terms of its animation sequences, and the emphasis is on graphics more than characters. In the live-action sequences, there are puppets of Edgar Allen Poe, Charles Dickens, and Fyodor Dostoevsky who keep up kids’ attention spans by speaking in stereotypical American, English, and Russian accents, respectively. It is a time period when people were excited about atomic power, and the special is peppered with generic 50s space-age sci-fi sound effects.
The Snow Queen (1957) – USSR: Soyuzmultfilm
“The Snow Queen” (Shezhnaya koroleva) is one of the better-known Soviet animated films to the United States, having been dubbed no less than three times here. The adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen tale has the intrepid girl Gerda trying to rescue her sweetheart Kai from the Snow Queen – who has easily the most striking character design because apparently villains are cool like that. Angel, the robber girl with a heart of gold, has some interesting interaction with Gerda as well. The 1950s dub featured the voices of Sandra Dee, Tommy Kirk and Patty McCormack and it wasn’t the last one. One of the English dubs out there by Cascadia Entertainment is awesomely bad. The characters’ names are changed for some reason, there is 80s pop music thrown in, and then there are the crows… I thought that thing stopped with “Dumbo” in the 1940s, but the 1980s dub actually gives them lines like “Make these feathapluckas stop!”
Unchained Goddess (1958) – USA: Bell Laboratory Science Series
Meteora, the red-haired personification of weather in a little black dress, is probably the closest thing 1950s animation had to Jessica Rabbit. Although here the cartoons don’t interact directly with the live action characters – they cut back and forth between the animation screen and the live-action Dr. Research and The Writer. Like the three science specials before, it is interesting to look at what they knew or didn’t know before. Doctor Research brings up the issue of global warming and the idea that humans may be unwittingly causing it.
Panda and the Magic Serpent (1958) – Japan: Toei
“Hakujaden,” known in the U.S. as “Panda and the Magic Serpent,” is the first color animated feature from Japan. A Chinese fairy tale was chosen for the story, reportedly to help mend relations following World War II. A beautiful, detailed art style defines this film although though the print available in dollar bins shows its age. The story concerns two lovers: the normal guy Xu-Xian and Bai-Niang, a princess who is really a supernatural white snake taking human form. With the help of some cute sidekicks, they struggle to stay together despite the efforts of the antagonist Fa-Hai who is convinced that the princess is evil. Bai-Niang’s character design emphasizes her striking eyes, and she makes a powerful and determined heroine.
Sleeping Beauty (1959) – USA: Walt Disney
Visually, this is one of the best Disney films out there, and my personal favorite in terms of its art style. The first few minutes of establishing shots on the way to the palace are jaw-droppingly gorgeous. “Sleeping Beauty” is the quintessential fantasy animated film and set the bar for future sword-and-sorcery cartoons. Yes, Disney had other fairy tales before then, but this one has the whole medieval aesthetic, the dragon fight, and a prince who does more than sit around being blandly charming. Prince Philip teams up with the faeries to have some impressive fight scenes against “all the powers of hell.” Poor Princess Aurora spends a good chunk of the movie being knocked out, obviously, but she has some emotionally intense moments when she is around. Their dads, the two kings, have some funny scenes including their own drinking song. I’ve said it before, but kids’ movies aren’t what they used to be.
Up next: Xerox changed the look and feel of animation in the 1960s, a decade which also saw more feature-length television specials and even theatrical releases based on TV cartoons. More features were produced in Japan, and Disney saw some cinematic competition in the West.
Woman then stands in patriarchal culture as signifier for the male other, bound by a symbolic order in which man can live out his fantasies and obsessions through linguistic command by imposing them on the silent image of woman still tied to her place as bearer of meaning, not maker of meaning.
Washing the dishes. Cooking dinner. Preparing the dinner table. Buying groceries. And meeting with male clients in the late in the afternoon before her son arrives home from school. This is the life of Jeanne Dielman, the protagonist of feminist filmmaker Chantal Ackerman’s 1975 masterpiece Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles. At three hours and twenty-five minutes it is appropriate to label the film as the housewife epic. It is a simple film narratively, but an utterly complex one thematically as Akerman subtlety deconstructs the idea that meaning for women is both found and fulfilled in the role of a homemaker. Jeanne Dielman lives in a small apartment in Brussels with her teenage son who is absent most of the day and only arrives home for only a few hours before his bed time. However even their time spent together is silent. The silence that pervades dinner, nightly walks, and preparation for bed is only disrupted by the boy’s strange questions and confessions about sex right before he falls asleep.
If this sounds difficult, it is. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is probably one of the most trying and laborious films one is ever likely to watch. Akerman takes her time as she follows Dielman’s daily activities, such as skinning potatoes or sending a letter, with lengthy single takes ranging anywhere from five seconds to eight minutes. In one of the films infamous scenes the audience watches her prepare meatloaf as she does the same hand motion of turning the meat loaf over.
And over.
And over.
And over again.
For minutes on end.
Despite the seemingly trite nature of the film, it is much more than just a test of endurance. Every frame is so carefully composed. Every scene builds upon the last. It is a film that demands the viewer’s full attention otherwise the experience is rendered pointless. There is not a wasted second or frame in Jeanne Dielman despite its extreme length. Chantal Akerman and her director of cinematography Babette Mangolte craft each frame carefully and with purpose. For example, each shot is divided into three distinct sections of color and objects. Take a look at just a couple of stills taken from the film below.
Watching the movie is like walking through an art gallery. One should approach each shot like one approaches individual paintings: examine it, study it, feel it, and try to grasp what is being communicated.
What exactly is being communicated? After the first day passes it is noticeable that this poor women denies herself of any pleasure. The primary goal in her life is duty. She must always be active, never worrying about her own well-being. She has a job, a duty to fulfill as a housewife and she mustn’t fail. In one of the few conversations Dielman does have with her son she tells him of how his father and her met. The father was rich and Jeanne needed to find a husband so she married him. Love was never and still isn’t part of the equation for her. It is a struggle for her to write a letter to her sister, but she has to out of duty. She listens to a neighbor talk endlessly, but purposefully never allows herself to express her feelings. She watches a baby for a short period during the afternoon, but simply sets the baby in its carrier on the table leaving the baby by itself until the mother returns. Duty is put above love, relationships, and pleasure.
This way of life that only sustain some one for so long and when the film begins, at first unknown to the viewer, Dielman is on the edge. It isn’t long before it becomes evident. The viewer watches Jeanne performing all these arbitrary chores over and over again so when something irregular happens it is jolting. When she forgets to turn off a light or she lets the potatoes cook for too long or her regular spot is taken at a local coffee house, it sticks out. The cracks are starting to open as societal expectations of women start to take their toll on Jeanne Dielman. This is what Chantal Akerman is indirectly questioning and exploring: the consequences that arise in societies that force women into certain roles as a means of controlling them. She is presenting a vision, perhaps an a bit of a hyperbolic one, of a woman stripped of her individual identity and the consequences of such a theft.
Much like completing the Herman Melville’s 500 plus page novel Moby Dick, sitting through all of this film feels like quite an accomplishment. And also like Moby Dick,Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is an astounding, experimental, and brave work of art.
As I said at the beginning of our AFI Fest 2011 presented by Audi coverage (and once again I apologize for gaps in publishing), this past year was an epic, diverse and must-attend event for all who love cinema. AFI Fest has always been good to us and I hope that we got across of deep abiding love and appreciation for them and all they do. Once more I encourage everyone to spread the word about these films. While some you will undoubtedly love more than others, you’ll never know until you take the leap and give things outside your own comfort zone a chance. Enjoy our final work on AFI Fest, and stay tuned on more to come on 2011 and subsequently 2012 film!
–Matthew Groves
All photos in each part have been provided by AFI Fest 2011 presented by Audi.
RESTLESS CITY
Restless City is a prime example of a film that is visually stimulating, rich with detail, but despite much potential for future growth for a filmmaker, the film falls short. It tells the story of an immigrant from Africa, who has emigrated to New York City to explore his passion: music. He works in mail delivery, but sadly is forced to explore less than legal opportunities on the side. He inevitably falls in with the wrong crowd and falls for the “bad girl” with the heart of gold, which complicates things. It is vastly apparent that this type of plot we’ve seen before, and sadly that’s where the film falls short. The acting is fine and the film in many ways does it’s job adequately. The film is so lush and visually sumptuous, one wishes that more effort could have gone into the writing. The newcomer who falls into trouble or with bad people has been played out far too much and narratively is a bit of cheat –even lazy. When it comes to visual storytelling, especially when there are wordless moments accentuated by music and solid composition of shots, this is where newcomer Andrew Dosunmu thrives as a director. Let’s hope that this is not the last we see his work and that it’s just the first step towards far grander and more ambitious work than this.
–Matthew Groves
A SEPARATION
With echoes of Ingmar Bergman, Kenji Mizoguchi, Sidney Lumet, and other classic cinematic dramatists, Asghar Farhadi‘s multi-award-winning, highly acclaimed film, A Separation, is a film not to be missed. The story starts off simply with a couple, Nader (Peyman Moaadi) and Simin (Leila Hatami) who after being stuck at an impasse between leaving Iran to give their daughter a better life and/or taking care of his ailing father, they decide to divorce. This sets off a chain reaction of events that turn a simple introduction into a complex multi-character moral drama where at each every turn people choices that reflect both their flaws and good intentions, yet still complicate and have consequences for others involved.
There are many strengths to this wonderful film, and one of them is the writing. This is the kind of film where that is key, since if the structure, the characters or the situations aren’t exactly as they should be, a film like this derails very quickly. Farhadi is wonderfully adept at knowing exactly what is needed for a scene directorially and allows moments to play themselves out. It’s the kind of master directing where we don’t notice the camera, the time, and just get sucked into the drama more and more. Also it is not only a character-based moral drama, but an excellent snapshot of diverse modern Iran with studies in class, religion, and how the rigidity of institutions clashes with everyday lives of citizen of Iran.
Asghar Farhadi proves strongly that he more than worth consideration amongst other masters from Iran including Abbas Kiarostami and Jafar Panahi and cinephiles should be alert to what comes next for him. It is easy for us in the West to paint Iranian life, their people, and art as the stereotypes peddled by opportunists hungering for war, but don’t fall for it and give the work of all these filmmakers a chance. I am sure it will deepen your understanding and take you to a place you’ve never been with much to think about long after the credits roll.
The film is about a horse, the horse that according to legend, Friedrich Nietzsche, saw being whipped in the Piazza Carlo Alberto. The horse would budge and the horse’s owner became more perturbed and violent towards the horse. Eventually this became too much for Nietzsche, who wrapped himself around the horse to make it stop and then collapsed to the ground. From that day forward, to his death nearly a year later, Nietzsche never spoken again. Tarr uses this as intro and proposes the question, what happened to the horse? Or the owner and his family, his home? What ensues in the next two and half hours is a dour, but striking final film by a filmmaker who without a doubt has set himself up as one of the most essential and important filmmakers of his day: Bela Tarr, a man whose work more than deserves to live in our collective memories forever.
Tarr’s work without a doubt is in many ways a journey, and one which can be difficult to newcomers or outsiders. His films are slow moving, with long, 10-minute+ takes, gripping, but encumbered by a sad –even wholly depressing tone that is not necessarily inviting. However, all of those factors are his strengths and what truly set him apart. He makes art that much like Andrei Tarkovsky, Ingmar Bergman, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder is not just about plot, literary and philosophical, but uses artistic expression to ask deep questions about humanity.
Tarr even succeeds more than Terrence Malick (which is taking nothing away from his recent masterwork, The Tree of Life) at crafting an enrapturing and compelling work that leaves the audience to think about it long afterward. While the formally rigorous may be hard for some, this epic, apocalyptic tale of existential woe is worth it. For certain this will not be the last Chronicle readers will hear about this film and the rest of Bela Tarr’s canon; for it deserves and will get more consideration on The Alternative Chronicle in the future.
Past, present and future collide in Lynn Ramsey’s distressing new film We Need to Talk About Kevin. The film is a stream-of-conscious nightmare grappling with motherhood, parenting, and coming face to face with what may or may not be pure evil. Whatever expectations one may have walking into the theater; they will probably be subverted at some point in the movie.
The film tells the story of Eva, played by the marvelous Tilda Swinton, a mother of two whose teenage son goes on a violent rampage at his High School killing numerous students. Yet the film isn’t about this event, despite the audience knowing it’s coming. Instead Ramsey delves into the life of Eva, from her own subjective memories. There are images of Eva in her single life, her first sexual encounter with her soon-to-be husband, her struggle to rebuild a shattered life after the killings, and of course raising the troubled child into an even more troubled adolescent. We Need To Talk About Kevin carefully undermines one’s expectations for a movie with this type of subject matter. Kevin is not the protagonist and the actual school massacre takes up little screen time. Neither is it a careful psychological analysis explaining why events such as these take place.
This refusal for explore the obvious questions and provide cookie cutter answers makes it difficult for the viewer for grasp onto what Lynn Ramsey is driving home. Why is Kevin like this? Why the jumbled chronological order? How much of this actually happened or just took place in our erratic narrators head? And what about that ending? After my much thought my guess is that Kevin is exploring the terrifying mysterious nature of motherhood and perhaps even the cruelty of fate.
As cinema We Need To Talk About Kevin is first-rate. The eerie sound design and the foreboding colors are never overbearing or heavy-handed like they easily could have been. The use of the color red is especially chilling in it presence through out often creating either a full on hellish mise-en-scene or a subtle reminder of the deaths that connect Kevin and Eva.
With a flat-out amazing performance from Tilda Swinton, the aesthetically chilling and ambiguous We Need to Talk About Kevin creates not only a unique perspective of our present day issue of school shootings, but of the timeless issues such as motherhood, depravity, and the unreliable nature of memory.
Being the obsessive completist that I am, it’s taken me a while to catch up on everything and make enough tweaks to be sure I have the most mind-blowing list I possibly could! Once again, I aim to prove that the metal scene is alive, kicking, and the people with an open enough mind and most well-adjusted musical tastebuds will recognize it as the greatest, most diverse and powerful music genre to ever grace this earth.
Despite Dave Mustaine‘s loose tongue and all the backlash he’s received from the metal community as of late (from backing Rick Santorum to debatably bigoted statements), the worst thing you can say about the band Megadeth is that they’re still making good music. This might be their best release since 1997′s Cryptic Writings, perhaps with the exception of 2004′s The System Has Failed. They even swung a Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance for the above song.
Týr’s classic folk metal attack has officially developed to be one of the best in the genre. Each song sounds like it was written by ancient pagan bards and preserved through the ages to be played only once the proper technology could manifest it.
#18) Sorcier Des Glaces – The Puressence of Primitive Forests
The abrasive, overly gratuitous nature of black metal tends to turn me off to it. However, there are the occasional bands that incorporate enough feeling, melody, and atmosphere with their extremity that I totally just…get it. Sorcier des Glaces’ sound attacks like the icy chill of a winter storm, but without feeling like you’re drowning in a blizzard.
Brutal death metal mixed with classical, meaning: never before has your face been melted with such elegance. Listening to this feels like your veins have been wired to an adrenaline factory. The filthy, ripped tuxedos the band wears in that video are very appropriate.
Keep in mind Opeth is probably my favorite band (at least in my top 3). That being said, some will ask why this is so low on my list…and other classic Opeth fans might ask why this is on my list at all. As one of the most influential bands in the world of Progressive Metal and I’d argue one of the most unique and talented bands of all time (perhaps The Beatles of heavy metal), they’ve more than just set an example. The brilliant Mikael Åkerfeldt (lead vocalist/guitarist) never settles for his music being predictable or falling in with any set trend, so with this latest album, Opeth wanted to throw out their old sound for a fresher, more “earthy” approach. Unlike their past records (with the exception of Damnation, their first non-metal album), this is the first one to be devoid of Åkerfeldt’s death growls, and really any heaviness at all, beyond what the style naturally invokes. Stylistically, their 70′s prog roots are much more prominent here, making this feel like a cross between Jethro Tull and early Sabbath with a Moody Blues-ey edge. These guys can do practically no wrong in my eyes, as Opeth have always been at the forefront of inspired innovation when it comes to metal. This release may not be as strong or emotionally deep as the Opeth we all know and love, but it’s still damn good music.
Admittedly, Scar Symmetry’s initial sound is a bit of a turnoff for me. I’m beginning to get sick of the *heavy verse* // *clean, catchy chorus* // *solo, breakdown* structure, yet I believe most trends are rooted in things good and pure. Something hooked me on this record, which I can’t quite put my finger on. My theory is that SS plays around with their structure just enough to make their sound (at least as represented on The Unseen Empire) consistently tight, and technical enough to prevent any yawns from me. It’s pleasantly modern, and sufficiently genuine.
I’m ashamedly no expert on this veteran metal band’s discography, but my current perception is that Anthrax’s heavy-thrash legacy is no less potent than their strongest efforts with this comeback album (their first in 8 years), and the return of singer Joey Belladonna proves the new(/old) Anthrax to be powerful competition against the modern metal world. Mind your bones when moshing.
Some are deeming this one of the greatest melo-death releases ever; I’m not sure I’d go quite that far, but it’s most definitely a standout metal release for 2011. Fans of atmospheric melodic death metal (e.g. Insomnium, Swallow the Sun) will most definitely enjoy this. There’s much more flavor, variation and power in this record than the band’s past material, and perhaps a great introduction for anyone who is unfamiliar with the genre.
#12) Primordial – Redemption at the Puritan’s Hand
An anomaly in the pagan metal scene, Irish extreme metallers Primordial offer a sound more distinguished sounding than black metal, but definitely darker than typical folk metal. The intelligibility of A.A. Nemtheanga’s vocals, for one thing, add an extra layer of poetic accountability to mesh with his raw lyrical emotion. Primordial live up to their band name: they reek of something old and classic (the Celtic influence is strong, yet subtle), but their specific sound seems to have never been truly replicated.
This aptly-named extreme doom metal act combines the sounds of epic doom, funeral doom, and experimental/progressive elements to drown you in powerful, heavy ambience. This epic yet dense, brooding 2-disc, 90+ minute album (with the average track clocking it at around 15 minutes) is a great one for me to listen to when I desire some “me time” of thorough relaxation and contemplation. Perhaps if you’re my kind of melancholy, it’ll strike a chord with you as well.
The Vikings have had their reign upon metal for long enough…now its time for the Pirates to have their say! Are you ready for some Drunken Pirate Metal? Alestorm’s approach to the folk metal genre is unabashedly elementary, but you can tell that they’re having so much fun it’s impossible not to play along. With tongue in cheek tracks like “Scraping the Barrel”, these fellas make fun of the fact that they’re not doing anything incredibly original, so (as they imply) you can listen and enjoy…or just suck it, and start your own damn band!
Perhaps they should change their name to Hope for the Dying Christian Metal Genre. Hope For the Dying’s debut LP features face-melting shreds and smashing melodies galore – for the energetic metal fan, this is satisfying from beginning to end. Despite traces of metalcore, each track manages to carry itself with enough dignity (via the heavy influence of classical & classic metal acts) to avoid thoughts of emo hair and hardcore dancing (…sorry for even bringing it up), and features enough flavor to perk up your ears while your head bobs and your fingers air-strum.
This is the third year in a row Amorphis is making my list, and with each mature step in my mind they’re steadily climbing towards being one of metal’s most under-appreciated bands. The Beginning of Times knows exactly when to be heavy, when to be soft, and when to build appropriately on either end just enough to evoke the proper emotions. This is modern “heavy metal” the way it should be: it’s new, without being “nu”, heavy yet serene and soothing, melodic yet ballsy, not overly technical but not insultingly repetitive or simplistic. Behold: Amorphis evolved to its strongest incarnation yet.
Unmistakably among metal’s most consistently brilliant minds is Devin Townsend, and since his “clean comeback” (overcoming his addictions to alcohol, drugs, etc.) a couple years back, the man seems to not even rest between releasing solid material. Featuring more than a dozen cameos from great musicians worldwide, whether its the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, or members of Opeth, Between the Buried and Me, Gojira, Cynic, Meshuggah and the like, Deconstruction may be Townsend’s most ambitious work. His ambient album Ghost, which was released around the same time, is also worth a listen by any music enthusiast.
Native Hungarian band Thy Catafalque proves to nary explore uninteresting places, since their sound varies from track to track, often drawing from the influences of folk, black metal, industrial, and doom. I don’t think I’ve ever heard an album like this – which, when it comes to progressive metal especially, usually means mission accomplished. Not to say I was unfamiliar with the road this band was taking me down, but its destinations were different from what I was expecting. This is the first album by this band I’ve had a chance to hear yet, but there’s not a weak track to be found here.
Insomnium never settles for mediocrity in the least. After their last album implemented clean vocals for the first time, this one continues in that tradition, and fortunately keeps from over-using such techniques, purely focusing on harnessing the emotion found within the proper melding of melody and heaviness. Similar to Kalmah, this is one unwaveringly consistent melo-death act that has survived since their genesis in the early 2000s without meeting a single subpar release, unlike many other bands who white-wash their sound and slip into the bland and generic (*cough*In Flames*cough*). At this point, I’ll just say it: Insomnium is the best melodic death metal act currently in existence. Keep it up, fellas!
#4) Moonsorrow – Varjoina Kuljemme Kuolleiden Maassa
Moonsorrow’s 2003 record Kivenkantaja (incidentally the only album title of theirs I can confidently pronounce) still remains one of my top 10 metal albums of all time. These pagan/folk/black(/we refuse to be called “viking metal” cus we’re Finnish) metallers opened my world to the incredible potential behind this genre, and solidified my decision of what soundtrack I’d want to use if I ever needed to pillage. Their latest album (translated: As Shadows We Walk In The Land of The Dead) is perhaps just a notch below Kivenkantaja in my book. Everything that made me love Moonsorrow to begin with is present here: incredible, arcane atmosphere, enduringly powerful riffs, and a consistently solid “epic” presence through-and-through. To those already familiar with their sound, it may not be anything new…but by golly, is it great!
One of the most provocative albums of the year, but also one of the very best, comes from Swedish newcomers Ghost; a band that re-introduces the world to a very potent late 70′s style heavy metal, lyrically sprinkled with early black metal and Satan-centered themes that will cause many religious folk to shake their head and roll their eyes (meaning yes, I did as well…but this album has me under its spell). The catchy but polite riffage and soft-clean vocals occasionally make me think the Beatles got beaten up by Black Sabbath and sent to hell.
Though many, including myself, were very sad to see Tarja Turunen depart Nightwish several years back, we all eagerly awaited their new direction. Despite naysayers’ complaints of Anette Olzon’s less operatic, more poppy vocal style, Dark Passion Play was a fantastic album, featuring some of the most interesting songwriting the band had ever seen up to that point. Imaginaerum goes even further, with each track sounding unique from one another, showing more diversity and songwriting maturity than ever before — including more appropriately demonstrating Anette’s true talent and vocal range, and making Dark Passion Play look like an amateurish warmup for greater things. Another masterpiece for symphonic metal, and perhaps, music in general (according to Metal Underground, “this album easily ranks in the top albums of 2011 and represents one of the finest works of music of all time.” ) I now wait in wavering anticipation for the film which will accompany this album, and we shall soon all find out whether or not this should’ve just remained in musical form.
Despite their long legacy, Iced Earth has never struck me as a particularly important band to the world of metal, but this album has made me heavily reconsider. Stu Block (from Into Eternity) has now taken the vocal helm, and his incredible range contributes a new-found power, teamed with a fresher, more straight-forward, and focused songwriting structure than ever before. That combined with the dystopic science-fiction theme tying heavily together with recent frightful trends in politics and government give the band’s voice a significant political appeal which has never been as potent as it is now, and yet amidst the cynicism they present a tone of hope in the human spirit, as represented in their “Anthem.” Easily my favorite record of theirs yet, Dystopia is solid heavy metal, wall-to-wall, and the quintessential metal album of 2011.
RUNNERS-UP
Alphabetically, by artist:
Amon Amarth – Surtur Rising (viking-themed death metal)
Amoral – Beneath (old school heavy metal)
Animals as Leaders – Weightless (progressive instru-metal / djent)
Battlelore – Doombound (folk metal)
Blackguard – Firefight (melodic death metal)
The Black Dahlia Murder – Ritual (brutal melodic death metal)
Dragonland – Under the Grey Banner (power metal)
Dream Theater – A Dramatic Turn of Events (progressive heavy metal)
Falconer – Armod (folk metal)
Hibria – Blind Ride (speed / power metal)
Powerwolf – Blood of the Saints (power metal)
Red Descending – Kingdoms (melodic black metal)
Scale the Summit – The Collective (progressive instru-metal)
Suidakra – The Book of Dowth (melodic death/folk metal)
Sylosis – Edge of the Earth (melodic death metal)
Trollfest – En Kvest for Den Hellige Gral (folk metal)
Turisas – Stand up and Fight (viking/folk/symphonic power metal)
Within Temptation – The Unforgiving (symphonic gothic metal)
OTHER THOUGHTS
Most Disappointing Album: Iconoclast by Symphony X
Symphony X used to lead the way when it came to progressive metal. When Dream Theater started to go downhill, this band was there to pick up the slack. It seems like this is the case no longer. They certainly don’t suck, but nothing sets them apart anymore; this latest album is just generic prog metal. I’ll stick with The Divine Wings of Tragedy or The Odyssey, thank you.
Most Over-rated Album: The Hunter by Mastodon
Mastodon is a good band, don’t get me wrong, but the praise this one has received –particularly the Grammy nomination –seems overblown, especially considering how great Crack the Skye was a couple years back (which makes this album just seem very standard in comparison). There are far too many superior metal acts from 2011 for me to let this slide without saying anything.
Best Non-Metal Album by a Metal Band: Evinta by My Dying Bride
Nothing spells gloom like My Dying Bride, a band that has been at the forefront of the doom metal genre since their inception in the early 90′s. Though emotionally and thematically very much in the wake of their past material, Evinta rids itself of guitars and all other typical instruments in favor of classical instruments, creating a powerful, epic, atmospheric, expansive (3-disc) ambient/neo-classical experience.
Most Metal-Sounding Song Title: “Destroyer of the Universe” by Amon Amarth
You know it.
Biggest Guilty Pleasure: Amaranthe’s self-titled album
Look up any music video from these guys and you’ll think you’re watching an MTV reject band, but all their songs are so damn catchy! Lacuna Coil, eat your hearts out. Also, how smokin’ hot is that singer?!
Most Unique Genre-Bending: “Cardiac Rebellion” by Becoming the Archetype
Progressive Death Metal mixed with…Ska?!?! This song features Dennis Culp from Five Iron Frenzy on trombone (welcome back, guys!!)
Best Cover Song: “Holding Out for a Hero” by Emerald Sun
Typically, action movies try to impress and amaze with ear-shattering explosions, insane car chases, chaotic mano-a-mano fistfights, and giant robots punching buildings in half. They’ll also give the illusion of non-stop action by having the hero run a lot. The Raid is not typical though. It’s fast, brutal, bloody, and unflinching in its depiction of head-slamming, ass-kicking violence.
Written and directed by Welsh filmmaker Gareth Evans, the film is a showcase for the Indonesian martial art, Pencak Silat, and the first in a trilogy featuring star Iko Uwais as special forces policeman, Rama. Apart from an opening scene showing Rama preparing for the day and saying goodbye to his pregnant wife (you know, easy emotional stakes), the film takes place entirely within a fifteen-story apartment building run by vicious crime lord, Tama (Ray Sahetapy). Rama and his team are sent on a covert mission to take control of the building. Soon after entering the building, their cover is blown and Tama offers life-long sanctuary to the myriad of killers, thieves, and low-lives that live in the building in exchange for the team’s lives. Now Rama must use all his skill to fight through fifteen floors of hell to complete the mission and escape with his life.
That’s about all the story required to enjoy this frenzied fight fest but it does have a few touches to make it seem a bit less shallow. Rama’s estranged brother Andi (Doni Alamsyah) is a resident of the building and there is some of the usual police corruption and double-crossing. Like most martial arts films, these things are largely inconsequential to the larger part of the movie: the action. And when you have a lackluster story, you better damn well make up for it in some way. This movie more than does so. Almost from the get-go, it throws you into a headlock and refuses to let you go until the end. The action rarely lets up and when it does, you’re thankful for the breather so you can prepare yourself for the next incredible action sequence.
Evans and his team of choreographers know exactly how to set up their fights for maximum impact. You won’t find any quick cutting here. Fights are allowed to play out in long takes and every bone-crunching hit is seen clearly. One-on-one, three-on-one, six-on-two, ten-on-three, and everything in between are here. They also make excellent use of the location. Fights take place in cramped hallways, apartments, stairwells, equipment rooms, elevators, and a spacious drug manufacturing warehouse. And the weapons and fighting styles are just as varied. Machetes, pistols, knives, axes, assault rifles, hammers, shotguns, and just about anything else found lying around. All of these are thrown into the mix and used with or against each other like a deadly game of rock-paper-scissors.
Now, if you aren’t convinced that you want to see it by this point, you won’t find any other reasons for going. Obviously, if you don’t like violence stay far away from this. These are specially trained police against a sea of conscienceless baddies. Neither side is in it to disable. Phasers are NOT set to stun here. This is one of the bloodiest martial arts films I’ve seen in quite a while. Faces are smashed, throats slashed, bodies bullet-ridden, and bones broken. And if you like your movies with more substance than style, you might want to save that $10.
Those who crave a good head kick, though, will be more than satisfied. Those of you who cheer at an expertly choreographed take-down or let out a girlish squeal as a guy gets thrown into a wall, will absolutely love this film. The fights are king here but the cinematography, music, pacing, and direction are all fantastic as well. This is not just an excellent action film, it may in fact be one of the best action films of all time. You won’t find a more jaw-dropping, ass-kicking, breathlessly intense, gloriously violent movie than The Raid.
Side Note: Somebody at the studio apparently decided that the original title, The Raid, wasn’t good enough so they added the nonsensical “Redemption” to it. There is no redemption in this story and I have no explanation for why the title was changed.
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The Raid: Redemption is currently in limited release. Click here to find out when it will be playing near you.
There are specific filmmakers that provoke a response from an audience, whether that be by their antics outside filmmaking or their films themselves. One such a filmmaker is Lars von Trier. For the most part, we here at the Chronicle are big fans, and really value him as a filmmaker, in spite (or perhaps because of) him being a firebrand that always engenders an intense response. A few years ago his last film Antichrist set the critical and cinephile communities ablaze with his shocking portrait of depression, gender, sexuality, etc., with many of his detractors lobbing some of the same accusations as before (albeit pretty empty ones in my estimation, as I’ve stated in my review). But what was so striking and interesting about Antichrist that many I think ignored was how much von Trier struck out in an entirely new direction with a grace and ease, even with the frame of a messy, disturbing horror shocker. Von Trier has always been somewhat of a person who challenges himself to do something different and new for himself, and he does that even more and vastly succeeds with his newest film, Melancholia.
Melancholia is the second in a new trilogy of films, at least structurally and stylistically. It tells the story of two sisters, Justine (Kirsten Dunst) and Claire (Charlotte Gainsbourg). Justine is getting married to Michael (Alexander Skarsgard) but not all is well with her. She is filled with depression and in many ways is forcing her way through the event and trying to be happy, but she is ultimately unable to. At the same time, a planet known as Melancholia is heading towards the Earth with many surmising that it will collide and destroy Earth. I will say no more about the premise, because Melancholia needs to be experienced purely by watching the film, not reading about it in a review.
The most impressive thing to me is how von Trier is able to filter his misanthropic tone into a film that is oddly more broad, commercial, and specifically genre-based than anything he’s ever done. Antichrist was an aesthetically rougher film, though brilliantly by design: in a way it was the audience being locked in von Trier’s unconscious without a filter. But by contrast Melancholia is the opposite, and echoes to many things found in Tarkovsky’s The Sacrifice, and Bergman’s films, Cries and Whispers, and The Silence. The score is swelling, the look of the picture is stunning, and the writing and acting are impeccable at drawing the audience in further and further. He makes a grand film about the end of the world, but keeps that dramatic intimacy at the film’s core. Dunst and Gainsbourg are excellent and are accompanied by a great supporting ensemble cast, that even in their smallest roles make a memorable mark. Lars von Trier has made film that even his largest detractors can come to appreciate. It makes one such as myself excited and wonder where von Trier will go next and how the end of this trilogy will stack up to other trilogies he’s done like The Europa and Golden Heart trilogies. Without a doubt it would make a very different and interesting double feature with Terrence Malick‘s The Tree of Life!
–Matthew Groves
Miss Bala
Gerardo Naranjo’s newest feature, Miss Bala is a prime example of an artist who has grown so much from one film to another. Naranjo’s last feature, his youthful twist on the New Wave was a solid and promising work, but this time around he has far and above succeeded that film and blazes a path as a prime filmmaker to watch.
The film follows Laura Guerrero (Stephanie Sigman) a young girl who works with her family and wants to be in the beauty pageant for Miss Baja. She and a friend get in, her friend goes to a nightclub and the club is shot up. She goes to the police to report it and the cop is corrupt and led by a frightening and imposing soldier in the Cartel, Lino Valdez (Noe Hernandez). She is slowly sucked into a living nightmare of drugs and violence, desperately trying to survive and hopefully escape.
Miss Bala is a shocking, unnerving piece of tense thriller filmmaking. It is a propulsive film that is a wonderful example of cause and effect filmmaking, making the all the action seem real and authentic. Structurally, the film is built by a chain of events which create a realistic sense of escalation for the protagonist. This kind of structure gives the film a gripping quality from start to finish. Sigman and Hernandez are wonderful in their roles and amongst some of the best of 2011, although sadly Hollywood is not good acknowledging roles such as these.
From a technical level Naranjo who wrote, directed, and edited the picture has grown so much. I see a bright future ahead of him. He tackles the controversy of the drug war shows how each side is entrenched ready to go and that there is deep corruption on both sides and a lot like Laura, the rest of the Mexican population is caught in the middle. It is a powerful work that hopefully can open people up and provoke discussion and action.
For anyone who’s heard of or seen the work of Nuri Bilge Ceylan, without a doubt you’ve been transfixed at his ability to craft an image with great writing, pacing turn something that may be familiar into something that is transcendent or sublime. Ceylan continues this in his latest, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia.
The film follows a doctor, a prosecutor, a number of police officers, and two murder suspects as they search for the body of the victim in the countryside in Anatolia. The suspects were inebriated and it was late at night so they don’t remember what happened and where, therefore the search is long and exhaustive. As the search goes on these men who really have little prior knowledge or relationships start to develop over the time. The story resembles more of an old story of an epic journey than a usual procedural of finding a body, booking the prisoners, doing an autopsy, etc.
Without a doubt some may have to take some time to get used to/comfortable with the style of filmmaking, but I think it is well worth it. Ceylan like Sokurov is a master at the image, no matter how mundane or ordinary, they take you on a cinematic journey. Also, Ceylan makes films where the meaning and depth sneak up on you and wondrous revelations come to pass. While obviously he is a filmmaker many times his work feels more poetic or literary and Once Upon a Time in Anatolia is no different. I will say too, his films are rich with meaning and purpose and therefore I feel many may have to see this film more than once, to unlock all the mysteries and richness of the film, but that in no way diminishes from the experience of seeing it for the first time. While Ceylan’s Climates may be easier to connect to (and is a good introduction to his work) I think Anatolia over time and hopefully with more of an audience can be just as respected, appreciated, and well known as his other work. When the film releases domestically in the States, don’t pass up this opportunity!
–Matthew Groves
Pina
Pina is Wim Wenders’ full-length 3-d dance film. It’s a documentary dedicated to the gifted Pina Bausch, whose unique coaching and dancing inspired and changed many lives. It truly is the definition of a bittersweet film. There is much sorrow and sadness embedded in the DNA of the film, yet the celebration of beauty is also ever present through out.
Wim Wenders and Pina’s dance company shot the film shortly after the sudden death of Pina from a brain tumor, so everyone is still in mourning. The film itself feels like a funeral of sorts. It can be seen as a catharsis for those who deeply loved her and as a celebration of an artist who was supremely gifted.
For the introduction of the film Wim Wenders discussed how he and Pina had always talked about putting her dances on film. He said he just could never find the right way to translate her dancing for cinema until he saw the U2 concert in 3-D, after which he knew how. The 3-D in Pina is not cheap, it does not dull the colors, but rather makes the film a visual feast. Wenders understands the technique of 3-D filling the foreground, middle ground, and background to show audiences what truly great 3-D can be.
The dance sequences, of course, are astounding. At first one may be hesitant to watch a film where 85% of it is just dancing, but have no fear, for Wenders never lets the material get stale or boring (which would be difficult to do anyways simce Pina’s choreography features some of the most unique pieces of expressionist dance I’ve ever seen). Similar to another film I saw at the festival, Carnage, the odds against them are very high. How will these auteurs translate something that was designed for the stage into something cinematic?
For Wim Wenders the answer was simple: set Pina’s dances in the outside and natural world.
It is said by some of the dancers in her company that Pina loved incorporating the earthly natural world into the performances thus it makes perfect sense taking the dancing made for stage and placing them in real natural environments.
Needless to say Pina is quite a unique movie. The audience is not only privy to creative, energy-filled dance, but to real, fresh mourning of a lost friend. The result is a beautiful, haunting, and utterly unique cinematic experience.
–Andy Motz
Play
Play opens with a voyeuristic establishing shot, slowly zooming in and shifting between two groups of kids in a Swedish mall. The style, you can tell immediately is cold, distant, and impersonal – much like actual the film itself. From a technical standpoint, Play seems very influenced by edgy semi-provocateurs such as Gus van Sant and Michael Haneke, but pushing a message that would likely make those two directors shudder in their boots. It feels a bit like a hostage film, as it follows (and basically demonizes) a group of young black boys who stalk and bully a few kids of a lighter racial persuasion. The film feels like it wants to provoke and raise dialogue about the dangers of unbridled immigration policies, but it does so in a rather poor, xenophobic, and arguably racist fashion. It may most optimistically be described as a unique (yet derivative) counter-example to the Swedish stereotype of extreme liberalism, but ultimately it’s not nearly as nuanced as it thinks it is. It’s not only a dud, but a bit of a disgrace.
–Andrew Bowcock
Rampart
Sometimes a central performance in a work can transcend the material, despite all the things working against it. Films of this type can be narratively messy and overstuffed, making the viewer thankful for the lead, but wishing that the film that the lead inhabits wasn’t such a frustrating brew. This properly describes the Oren Moverman 1990′s-set crime corruption film, Rampart.
Rampart is about a Dave Brown (Woody Harrelson). Brown is a veteran cop, a hard-ass, former Vietnam vet, and he’s corrupt (which may be too kind of a phrase in his case). Despite his meager earnings he lives with his two upper middle-class ex-wives, Barbara and Catherine (Cynthia Nixon and Anne Heche) and his daughters, Helen and Margaret (Brie Larson and Sammy Boyarsky). He is hard to live with, constantly doing everything on and off the job to live a life of his choosing and resembling more of criminal than a cop. But his days may be numbered, in light of the huge scandal that rocked the LAPD from the infamous Rampart Division, Brown’s shenanigans are catching up to him quickly. Will he survive or will he get buried under the weight of the mounting evidence of his and other LAPD corruption? Well, you’ll have to see for yourself…or not.
Rampart is a prime example of the everything included in a kitchen sink kind of film. If one can exploit it, it’s in there: from Brown’s racism, sexism, homophobia, penchant for booze, alcohol, sex clubs, killing to cover up crimes, trying to have sex with either or both his ex-wives, and the list could go on for days. The problem is that despite throwing all this content in, Moverman seems far less adept at making it a coherent, structured journey and just throws the audience another loop, after loop, after loop. The film just piles on the cliches and then twists it by just adding more. The film is over-edited, paced far too fast to develop anything beyond the surface, and it is packed with too many fine actors whose roles are far underwritten, making them do the hard work of pulling any kind of competent performances out of this chaotic, bang your head against the wall kind of train wreck.
It’s a truly a shame because Harrelson is excellent as the lead. He’s always been a master of playing characters on the edge, dangerous, and a bit scary. He is a commanding presence, a consistent force despite inconsistencies all around him or present in the DNA of the film. Rampart also at first feels like the beginning of Abel Ferrara’s classic, Bad Lieutenant, but uses that only as establishment and then goes on its quick decline from there. While Ferrara’s film is about the soul of a broken man, Moverman’s is about a supremely evil, unlikable, corrupt man who is nothing but a bunch of surface sketches crafted by Moverman and James Ellroy (who you would expect better from) to trick the audience with the same tricks we’ve seen so many times before. In short, Moverman is no Ferrara.
Lastly, if you are a Harrelson completist, check it out for his performance and don’t let the mind-numbing nature of the rest of the film get to you. A better investment of your time however would be to check out the series, The Shield, starring Michael Chiklis as corrupt cop, Vic Mackey; that show also is based on the Rampart Division scandal, and over seven seasons masterfully shows the heart and soul of a cop we despise, but a human being that we care about nonetheless. The Shield is a far superior work on every level and actually pays attention to story, giving every wild turn time to develop as it would in real life, and not smashed into less than two hours.
I sat on the rough rock staring out onto the ocean. The sun warmed by face, arms, and legs as a light breeze caressed my face. The waves were calm as they pressed up against the rocks, the ebb and flow was peaceful. I looked at the rock I was sitting on and pondered the small crevices and the crabs hiding within them. There was and still is something very unique about the ocean and the beaches its water washes up on. At times it can be harsh and violent yet at others so peaceful and soft. It is a place of mystery.
The waves, the water, and the rock combined reminded me that I wasn’t the only one whose mind had been drawn to this natural mystery. This section of the world also intrigued Ingmar Bergman it seems. This is evident by the numerous ocean and beach settings within his works. As I sat on that rock that sunny Sunday afternoon I pondered the different images of the shore Bergman evoked and what they meant for him, for me, and for the films they are apart of.
What is it about the beaches of Ingmar Bergman?
Persona on the surface (there are many, many layers) is about two women: an actress who has ceased speaking and the young nurse who is charged to take care of her. As a form of therapy the nurse takes the actress to an isolated beach cottage in hopes that she will regain her voice. They don’t go to the mountains nor do they journey to the desert. No, Bergman sends his two female protagonists to the beach.
It’s rocky, jagged, and pointed. The stormy weather leaves puddles everywhere. It is a devastating wasteland. In the most telling scene the nurse wonders out loud to her patient if life has any purpose. While describing existence without meaning Bergman cuts away from the two women and shows the audience images of the barren beach using it as a visual metaphor for existence. By taking a place and stripping it of not only its preconceived beauty, but also of its basic meaning Bergman has given the viewer insight into the meaning of this demanding film.
Through a Glass Darkly is the first film in Ingmar Bergman’s unofficial trilogy of faith. Each of the films have very distinctive settings: Winter Light is set in a small isolated village while The Silence is set in a maze-esque hotel. Through a Glass Darkly takes place on an island surrounded by rocky beaches; there is no sand to be found here either. In fact it feels even more dangerous that the one found in Persona with old wooden docks and the remains of a shipwreck.
The weather is chilly, the water is dark, and the violently shaped rocks are loose making it hard for a character to have solid footing. The opening images of the film are shots of murky choppy water. If one strains they can see the world below. This simple yet profound visual recalls both the title and the theme in which Bergman is exploring through out the film. As humans we are bound to struggle with God who can never be fully known, we strain and struggle but we still only see the world ‘through a glass darkly’. The film then cuts to the introduction to Bergman’s troubled characters, rising out of the ocean and onto the beach. It’s reminiscent of the evolutionary image of sea animals slowly growing legs and venturing out onto the new world. These people protrude out of the smooth darkness of the ocean and find themselves on the bright, but unstable beach.
Finally there is Hour of the Wolf. Ingmar Bergman’s “horror” film takes place on an island and some of the most mysterious scenes occur on the beach. The beach is where darkness resides. Darkness in all its allure and in all its terror. A tortured artist confesses to his estranged wife not only his affair with another woman on the beach, but also his killing of a small boy on the beach.
The scene of seduction is significant because it is the first time out of the films mentioned so far where there is a sense of actual warmth. The sun is out, the waves are calm, and the woman is beautiful. Isolated and drawn in the husband gives into adultery.
The murder of the young boy however occurs on an entirely different section of the beach. Once again it is rocky, mysterious, and elusive. While the husband, Jonas fishes a young boy slyly crawls along the rocks getting closer and closer to the unaware Jonas. He attacks and bites Jonas; in defense Jonas smashes the boys head into the rock. In hopes of washing away this nightmare he then shoves the boys body into the ocean, the scrawny pale body floats just below the water until disappearing into the darkness.
The beach is a place where this artist goes to be alone, but consequently it is this isolated state that opens him up to the figurative demons on the beach.
The typical picture that comes to an American’s mind when the beach is mentioned is one of crowds, sunshine, and group activities. Ingmar Bergman throws that image association in the garbage. He replaces it with images of emptiness, danger, and fear. Yet his beaches reveal truth. It is a place where his own questions are displayed, where his characters true colors come out no matter how deeply buried. There is hope to be found in this honesty no matter how dark or despairing it may be for it awakens one and Bergman’s characters from what John Patrick Shannely describes as the “dead habits of the mind” and opens up the possibility of journeying towards true understanding.
Note: There are many other beach scenes in Bergman film such as The Seventh Seal or Shame. Focusing on these three striking films however one gains a clear understanding of Bergman’s questions, struggles, and brilliant filmmaking.
All pictures are taken as stills from DVD copies, courtesy of The Criterion Collection and MGM Home Entertainment.
The Duplass Brothers represent a rising subculture of indie comedy called “mumblecore”: a low budget, often obnoxious and pretentious mixture of late French New Wave and modern, hipster-ized comedy. As one might easily glean from my description, I’m usually not taken in by such antics. However, the Duplass’ last film, Cyrus, branched out a little further into the mainstream, which I felt was actually a healthy move, since it utilized the talents of great, experienced actors like John C. Reilly and Marisa Tomei to bring the realism to life — that, and a script that just clicked. Unfortunately, Jeff Who Lives at Home is a lackluster step backward. Jason Segel plays Jeff, an unemployed, stay-at-home slacker, with a pension for trying to find deep meaning in every little event that crosses his path in an attempt to validate his perceivably lame existence. His dealings with his mother (Susan Sarandon) and brother Pat (Ed Helm) tether constant frustrations between all the characters involved, as Jeff tries to encourage his brother with various sophomoric haikus during his attempt to help Pat track down his wife, whom they suspect of being less than faithful.
The ideas and concepts within the film are nice, but they are executed in a very imbalanced fashion. It’s one of those cases where the comedy isn’t funny enough, nor the drama genuine enough to work on either end, thus it ends up being a semi-“sweet” film with little depth, and simply doesn’t earn any of the emotions it wants. Mark and Jay Duplass apparently adapted this from a short film of theirs, and claim it’s the only script they’ve written where they didn’t have the actors in mind beforehand, an issue which might be responsible for the film’s ultimately forced, uninspired mediocrity.
–Andrew Bowcock
JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI
Japanese philosophy is an attractive thing to many people, as it focuses heartily on simplicity and dedication. No area of their culture demonstrates this better than the crafting of one of their trademark foods: sushi. Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a documentary about Jiro Ono, one of the world’s leading sushi chefs. Jiro is 85 years old, and in addition to holding the Guinness world record for the oldest constantly working chef, he has been doing the same job for over 75 years. Initially the film follows Jiro’s daily processes of sushi-making, demonstrating his immense perfectionism, and having food critics from all over describe him as the best, mainly because he does the same thing every day, yet always strives to improve his craft (the lush cinematography makes it very difficult not to stay hungry while watching this).
Eventually the film becomes more people-driven, as we begin to interact with Jiro’s sons, and concentrate on the dynamic relationship that has evolved over many years, causing one son to leave and start his own restaurant, and the other to stay behind and help Jiro manage his. By the end, this delightful little doc is just as much about family as it is about food.
Kill List is an example of a pulse-pounding hybrid between horror and hit-man crime film, an anomaly of a “genre” film. There seem to be but a few good genre filmmakers who mix and match influences to create a stamp of their own (one great example being Nicolas Winding Refn). Ben Wheatley isn’t quite at Refn’s level, but as we I can tell by first feature, Down Terrace, as well as this film, he is well on his way.
This film is about two hitmen Jay (Neil Maskell) and Gal (Michael Smiley). Jay is married with a kid and has been out of work since the last job went wrong back in Kiev. Jay’s wife, Shel (MyAnna Buring) has been pressuring him to take more work because money is running thin and this is an endless source of conflict. Jay and Shel, while they love each other, are always verbally at each other’s throats. Gal is single, the cooler head of the two, and is kind of Jay’s conscious through it all. Gal sets up a job with a creepy individual who gives them a list of three people to kill…but as they go along they get more than they bargained for and with every twist and turn things get weirder and exceedingly dark.
Wheatley pulls upon the rich horror tradition of his native England to craft a film that is tense, unnerving, and thrilling from start to finish. The overwhelming creepiness of the entire film is quite impressive. Visually he makes a giant leap forward from Down Terrace (his kitchen sink drama/The Sopranos/The Godfather-style character study) which was far more standard and straightforward. Since one of the primary joys of this film is the overall experience, you’ll want the mysteries intact, so go into this one as fresh as possible. While the film has divided people, I think this is exactly what you want to do when you make a genre film. Go down your path and set your distinctive stamp through music, visuals, acting, and mood. Wheatley does this beautifully and crafts a compelling dark gem that honestly deserves to be seen and talked about. But don’t take my word for it, find it and check it out yourself!
–Matthew Groves
THE KID WITH THE BIKE
I’m still pretty new to the Dardenne Brothers, but I’m already taken by how magnificent of a pairing they are. The sense of naturalism they bring to the table is something to be envied by any amateur filmmaker, since their style is often emulated, but rarely matched. The Kid With the Bike features one of the greatest child performances I’ve witnessed in a long time – by Thomas Doret, who plays Cyril, a young boy in a disillusioned pursuit of his father. Cyril’s somewhat of an orphan, since his father refuses to care for him and he’s supervised by a state-mediated youth farm. Cyril’s floundering status leads him by random circumstance to Samantha, a hairdresser who takes on a fondness for him and agrees to be a weekend foster parent. However, Cyril’s ruthlessness may be too much for Samantha to handle.
So far one of my favorite films this year, The Kid with the Bike pushes us into realistic territory, striking a powerful balance that doesn’t require excessive grit or schmaltz. The documentary-style techniques that the Dardennes utilize create art that isn’t “pretty,” but it’s immensely beautiful.
–Andrew Bowcock
LAW OF DESIRE
One of the gala presentations at the recent AFI Fest 2011 was a screening of Pedro Almodovar’s classic 1986 film Law of Desire. Due to Pedro Almodovar being the artistic guest this year at the festival it makes perfect sense why they choose this film. Law of Desire put both Almodovar and star Antonio Banderas on the map as serious talented artists.
The story involves the promiscuous Pablo, a filmmaker, who one night picks up a young man named Antonio (Antonio Banderas). Unbeknownst to Pablo, Antonio is a bit of a psychopath and a stalker who will stop at nothing until Pablo is his. Murder, betrayal, family secrets, sex, and obsession fill the film as the viewer watches a not entirely likable protagonist fend off the dangerous young man. At times resembling an unrestrained version of Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train and at others a homosexual version of Fatal Attraction.
Viewing the film in regards to Pedro Almodovar’s body of work, Law of Desire is a fascinating work of art. Nevertheless the film itself is a bit uneven. The mix of dark drama and light comedy doesn’t always gel. In recent years Almodovar has mastered the art of melodrama, but here it feels a bit cheap. The characters never feel like living breathing human beings who are dealing with life’s complexities. The visual style constantly wrestles in-between an eighties aesthetic and Almodovar’s own artistic vision.
However if one has seen more Almodovar it is easy to recognize the seeds planted in this flawed work that are fully-grown in later films. Law of Desire contains troubled pasts, transgender characters, the idea that family is so much more than just the “American” nuclear family, an honest approach to the power of desire in our lives, and the strong bond between mother and son. All of which are explored and pondered with much greater tact, skill, and subtlety in later works. Still there is always so much to learn from different auteur’s earlier films such as Law of Desire, Mean Streets (Scorsese), and Shadows (Cassevettes). It is a pleasure to see how they have grown and harnessed their craft. Plus Law of Desire is still one entertaining and crazy film despite its problems.
–Andy Motz
THE LONELIEST PLANET
Julia Loktev without a doubt made a splash last decade with her film, Day Night, Day Night. The film follows a woman whose name we never know, as she prepares and attempts to carry out a suicide bombing in New York City. Obviously from the very subject matter it was hotly discussed film, but also for the film’s overt minimalism at the core of it all. Day Night, Day Night was an impressive debut; the minimalism within and its style seemed very typical of other art/indie films of the 2000s and while an interesting debut, it didn’t full work for me. But without a doubt, she marked herself a as filmmaker to watch who she would develop into. If her latest, The Loneliest Planet is any indication of what is to come, Loktev is certainly on the right track and appears to be a compelling voice in the cinematic landscape not to be missed.
The film follows three characters, a couple Alex (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Nica (Hani Furstenberg) and their guide through the Georgian countryside, Dato (Bidzina Gujabidze in his screen debut). It tells of their hiking journey and how these characters shift, change, reveal certain things under the exterior and show their true colors and intentions. It is hard to talk about this one without going into detail and giving anything away. Let’s just say there is a feeling and a mood you have about these characters, but an event happens that shifts and changes everything, and from there the characters spiral and we see that there is more to each and they can’t easily be pinned down.
The film is much like Kill List but more in the vein of a mystery. It’s deliberately paced and has long, drawn-out sequences that also contain interludes of music with them walking throughout the countryside. I know it sounds very boring and for some it may be but I found it quite gripping. Loktev has a way with character study and a real eye for framing: the overall cinematography and choices of shots is impeccable.
There is a feeling that the film is highly indebted to films like Gerry or the works of Bela Tarr and Kelly Reichardt. But even so Loktev tells this mysterious story that is a wonder and consuming in its own right. So much is predicated on the actions that characters take and how they respond to things, both physically and emotionally. It is a film that requires study and thought and one that even after a first viewing leaves you with a lot to think about, process, and figure out. The Loneliest Planet is a prime example of what cinema can and should do: present the audience with a situation and see how characters respond and what conclusions we can come to from that. If one is interested in the slow and meditative, I implore you to check out the film.
I would like to begin by apologizing to the readers. This was meant to come in quick succession after the first part of our coverage, but circumstances came up and so unfortunately we did not get it up in a timely manner. Do not fear though, this will be followed in the next few days with the rest of our coverage! Enjoy and feel free to comment and spread the word!
Literary adaptations are littered all over the cinematic landscape these days. But really they have always been there, especially when it comes to classic literature. Sometimes it can get overbearing or too much or it just makes you want to say “STOP.” But thankfully when done right such adaptations can be taken to a whole other level and make the viewer want to dig into that source material even more. Such is the case with Alexander Sokurov‘s adaptation (and winner of Golden Lion, top prize @ Venice Film Festival) of the Johann Wolfgang von Goethe classic, Faust.
Faust begins with a beautiful wide shot looking at the earth from the heavens. Slowly but surely we descend to the earth, it is the 19th Century and we are thrown into the muck and mire from the beginning. It is laid out how hard, primitive, and unforgiving life is at this time in Germany. We are introduced to our lead Faust (Johannes Zeiler) who is doctor/mortician. He is a true thinker and man of science but has been beaten down by the harshness of life and has been filled with despair. This lays the foundation for the local Moneylender a.k.a Mephistopheles (played masterfully by Anton Adasinsky) who slowly but surely lures Faust into his grasp with the object of Faust’s desire the young beautiful Gretchen (Isolda Dychauk).
One thing that makes Faust so inviting and welcome is the fact that Sokurov tells his own story. Yes, the basic story of Faust is intact, but he makes it his own (a mark of a step in the right direction when adapting any work). Despite the crisp writing, and solid acting, the greatest treat lies in the sumptuous, beautiful visuals. At times it is a matter of contrasts between the ugly and disturbing and the picturesque and beautiful. Sokurov and director of photography Bruno Delbonnel paint a glorious and epic depiction of a relatively known and somewhat conventional story. Much like with Russian Ark, Sokurov pulls the viewer in further and further, so that despite a lengthy running time, the audience is transfixed in the moment whether that is narratively or visually.
Adasinsky plays Mephistopheles so well; he is so creepy and unnerving, but we do understand after awhile how a man beaten down by life could eventually be sucked into his madness. Zeiler is also wonderful, and his occasional voice-over narration fills in an overall feeling of dread, despair, confusion, and a desire for more out of life that draws us all in further.
It goes without saying that if you are aware of anything Alexander Sokurov, whether Russian Ark, his recent trilogy or other films that he is both masterful storyteller and visual artist whose work deserve more credit and appreciation. Despite the fact that this film won top prize @ Venice, expect that it will get a very small and short run, so please if given an opportunity, go see the wonder that is Faust!
–Matthew Groves
FOOTNOTE
For some reason even in more the independent or art film world, there are films that truly are less than satisfactory, but they continue on a path with praise admiration and recognition that they do not deserve. Obviously that is a very subjective point, but I think we all have films that we feel like are praised yet when you actually see them and break them down yourself you find that most praise is kind of grasping at straws. They are writing articulately about an engaging piece of work, but it doesn’t aptly describe the given film. This is sadly the case with Joseph Cedar‘s Footnote.
Footnote is about a rivalry between a father, Eliezer and a son, Uriel. They both are in Talmudic studies and within a very small subset of scholars in contemporary Israel. Uriel is highly recognized and appreciated, the Eliezer is less so and seen almost as a pariah, not that his work isn’t valuable but inner politics amongst the small group of scholars has made him an outsider. As it turns out Eliezer has always wanted the Israel Prize, one of the highest honors to be awarded to an Israeli. And finally he gets a call and finds out for this year he has won it. But things are not as they seem.
While this material seems potentially ripe with dramatic tension. The film is very thin, in writing, direction, acting, all the way through. Cedar tries his best at using stylistic, screenwriting, and “artsy” tricks, but they are to no avail. The film tries its best to be quirky and amp up comedy, but it really just devolves into thin characters arguing about minutiae. Cedar seems to want to elevate this small world and make it epic and have stakes when really it has none. It all just seems to boil down to something relatively petty, selfish, and a bunch of people arguing over nothing. It tries to be smart, but it is too scant of a story and has little dramatic thrust. Unfortunately the film has been praised and even received a Best Foreign Language film Oscar nomination, which is kind of a slap in the face in a year with so much great work by many foreign and arthouse directors. Don’t waste your time on this, the film is slight, of little consequence, and most likely will result of a maddening viewing experience than anything else. Maybe you’ll find a chuckle or clever thing here or there, but for the most part, Footnote is an almost non-visual, exasperatingly dull affair.
–Matthew Groves
GREEN
Sometimes you see a film that starts off with your interest perked and you enthralled and waiting to see where it will go. But then you are sadly disappointed to find that the film is merely mediocre, goes over familiar territory and doesn’t branch out or take many chances beyond its setup. Such is sadly the case with Sophia Takal’s Green.
The film follows a couple from NYC, an intellectual (as the film description says, don’t know what exactly makes her that, but that’s beside the point) Genevieve (Katie Lyn Sheil) and her egotistical journalist boyfriend, Sebastian (Lawrence Michael Levine). The two urbanites move to a rural town so that Sebastian can trying sustainable farming for 6 months and write about it for a piece he’s working on. Unsurprisingly there is very little to do around and so Genevieve looks for a friend and finds it in a local working-class girl, Robin (played by writer/director Takal). Sebastian also seems to strike a friendship with her and what follows is a series of Genevieve’s thoughts and fantasies that may be all too real that Robin and Sebastian may be getting too close.
It is a premise that gets one involved. Sure there are various films about this subject but as we know in any art form, various topics have been done over and over again, it is all about the presentation or how it is done differently. And that seems to be the fatal flaw with Takal’s film. It brings very little insight and/or anything new. It feels far too short (clocking in at a 75 minute running time) and undeveloped dramatically and otherwise. It seems like with more time, thought, shooting, and such this could have turned into something very different. The acting is fine, everyone is about average and does what the middle of the road writing asks of each character. The visuals while having their moments seem pretty standard and some time even bland. One highlight is Genevieve’s dreams, fantasies, nightmares about Robin and Sebastian potentially having an affair, but those elements could have been taken to a more striking artistic level and even those moments become repetitive or mixed. The highest thing I can say about the film is that it is a good premise that seem to just peter out and become something mediocre and unmemorable. Not a horrible film by far (it isn’t as empty as The Color Wheel) but with such rich subject matter, one would hope Takal could have done more. Here’s to hoping that will happen with her next film.
–Matthew Groves
HAYWIRE
There are several filmmakers who, no matter what, create in me great anticipation when a new film of theirs is released. One such filmmaker is Steven Soderbergh. He has been able to jump through genres and different types of cinema whether more mainstream or experimental/arthouse ever since his debut back in 1989, Sex, Lies, and Videotape. Soderbergh’s output in the last few years has become incredibly quick as well as high quantity, and one reason for this is that Soderbergh has said after only a small handful of films he plans on retiring within a few years. So obviously for a Soderbergh fan like me, each and every film is one to see/experience.
His latest, Haywire, is a blend of various previous films of his. First off, it is written by Lem Dobbs, who he collaborated with one of Soderbergh’s best, The Limey, so that film obviously feels like a cousin to it. Also the film in parts is a bit of a cross of Out of Sight and the Ocean’s films. Finally, with Gina Carano (a mixed martial arts fighter by her usual trade) plays Mallory Kane, a former black ops soldier who works for a military contractor and is double-crossed and decides to get revenge on each and everyone responsible, is similar to the casting of Sasha Grey as a high priced escort in The Girlfriend Experience. With all that being said the film is mostly works.
Without a doubt it is very slick, fun, and Soderbergh lets the action play out without a lot of editing tricks. One of the joys of the films is seeing Carano in her element and really kicking ass. When she gets in fights throughout the film it is compelling and makes you feel like every hit, punch, kick are realistic and close to how it would look in real life situations. That being said, dramatic and acting-wise most everyone is flat, which is saying something when you have a cast full of talented actors including Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor, and more. In the short time he’s onscreen Fassbender is pretty solid, proving once more that no matter the role he can always leave a positive and lasting impression. Bill Paxton (who plays Mallory’s father) can be a mixed actor, but in this he is given a place to really shine. All that being said and while this film is most definitely a welcome answer to Angelina Jolie films and it is slick, stylish, and fun, the film with more time could have been much more. If you’re a Soderbergh completist like I, then definitely see it, but if not I would say seeing the superior Contagion is much more of a priority.
–Matthew Groves
HEADHUNTERS
Far too often in my estimation there are various films that come over here to the state’s from other countries that are really just loud, dumb, mindless copies of what we get in the mainstream. Oddly enough too many audiences and some critics fall for the fact that it is a foreign film in which the irritating and predictable film is delivered therefore, the film gets praised and gets distribution even though to be honest it is far from deserving it. This is an apt description of the new Scandanavian import, Headhunters.
Headhunters tells the story of Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie), a rich prick who lives with his supermodel-looking wife, Diana (Synnove Macody Lund) and he works has a headhunter for a company by day and a high-price art theft on the side. So basically he is living the criminal privileged, selfish and borderline misogynist’s dream. But things get thrown for a loop when an ex-soldier Clas Greve (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) crosses Roger’s path as a headhunter and owns a priceless piece of art that Roger wants.
But you know what there is no real need to go further than that. The film just devolves to an immature, loud, violent/bloody film with plenty of sex too. As a thriller it doesn’t go anywhere you haven’t seen numerous times over and honestly it is all too tired and predictable. At a certain point this all becomes risible and the twists and turns just become tedious.
To be honest I don’t see what the appeal was besides the base level of violence and sex. The lead is supremely unlikeable just like everyone else in the film. The film is not fun or riffing upon anything and just feels far too familiar. I guess this is a way to bridge the gap between cultures and just give people a dumb, mindless action film once more. I hope people are smarter than that and don’t fall for the charms (or lack thereof) of Headhunters, and if so I think you’ll be more frustrated with how much of a waste of time the film is.
–Matthew Groves
INTO THE ABYSS
Much like I said with Steven Soderbergh, Werner Herzog is another director that no matter what, I’m there, no matter what film. This is especially the case for me with his documentaries. He has always taken the form to unique places that I have always highly appreciated not just on a technical level, but as a deep lover/consumer of documentary cinema. Herzog was @ AFI Fest just last year with his wonderful and stirring 3D cave painting documentary, Cave of Forgotten Dreams. This seemed to be a jump in an different direction when it comes to Herzog and documentaries. Usually his docs are more staged, semi-fictional, and are used as tools to reinforce his philosophical view of the world and nature. But interestingly enough, despite the film being about nature, Herzog came to the last film with a love of nature and with wonder, fascination, and tapped into vein of spirituality a little bit. He seems to be more focused on the soul or spirit of man whether that is at the height and brilliance of prehistoric artistic achievement or the lowest and more dark nature of man, like in his newest film, Into The Abyss.
Into The Abyss is probably Herzog’s most straightforward and conventional, but in this case that is not a bad thing by any means. The film is about the death penalty in the US, specifically following a few criminals on death row in Texas and exploring all aspects of the surrounding town, the victims, the perpetrators and everyone else who has been affected by the tragedy. Werner Herzog really does the hard work and explores this subject with as much of a journalistic eye as possible. He does come out in the beginning saying that he believes one of the perpetrators is a human being and he doesn’t believe in capital punishment, but that he doesn’t have to like or approve of what he has done. This admittance early on I think is notable and welcome and how he takes such care to lay out all of the figures and even show and allow those who are victim’s families speak candidly about support of capital punishment is a high mark for Herzog.
The film of course is very heavy, sad, and shows a breakdown in society, but it is touching and beautiful as well. I truly hope that the film finds an audience and begins a discussion about the topic. Herzog looks into the human soul and finds value in each and every person and their story. It is a film that just presents and makes the audience have to wrestle with the larger conclusions to be drawn. To me this film could be talked about for hours, but I will say no more because there is nothing like the experience of seeing and then discussing the film. Herzog has done some great work that is almost comparable to his last film and from what I have heard, this has spawned a whole series of documentaries that he plans on doing about the subject further called Death Row. So if you get a chance I implore you to check out this essential documentary and look out for the rest of his work in the upcoming Death Row series.
