Soderbergh's self-proclaimed "final project" did not disappoint on the levels the director is known for: stylish direction, dynamite acting, and a more than serviceable, if not particularly impressive script. But when in the hands of a prolific master such as Soderbergh and with the talents of Douglas and Damon, who needs the best script in the world (these days, some of the scripts considered the best around rarely make the best movies...)? Instead, what he provides is a shockingly good time, a drama that manages to cut to the core about what made Liberace so magnetic... and hopelessly desperate and vile. Just like it's subject, the film bursts with energy while still reminding the viewer that any second, Liberace could pull a tonal 180 and abandon those he loves (and are willing to love him back) most. Toss in a particularly noteworthy supporting turn by Rob Lowe (whose penchant for subtle, character-driven comedy has really shown how big its wings are in these past few years), and what we get is a 2 hour film that breezes by; that major studios refused to release it due to a fear that it was "too gay" may have been a blessing in disguise: HBO is the perfect platform for such a fun, stylish biopic to reach the audience who can appreciate it on it's own cinematic merits without disregarding it due to its subject matter.
9) Blue Jasmine - Gravier Productions - Directed By Woody Allen, Starring Cate Blanchett
Woody Allen's latest through his audience a serious curveball in this tale of a former New York debutante in the middle of a nervous breakdown. I remember seeing it in theaters and finding myself on the edge of my seat for reasons unexpected. I also recall the mostly geriatric crowd in attendance walking out at the end in disgust: Midnight in Paris this was not: Here, Allen uses the supreme talents of his lead actress to a very dark tale about a woman who is her own worst enemy - and thus cannot help but pitiable, even when she is treating lower class citizens like, well, lower class citizens (in the worst way possible). It doesn't hurt that every other member of the cast brings out their A-game, not hard to do when working with Woody but still impressive nonetheless. As two very different yet structurally similar men, Bobby Cannavale and Andrew Dice Clay stand out on the supporting side of things, using their brooding physical presences combined with dynamite comedic timing to create characters that seem like the type of people I spent far too much time around in college (down in Miami is all that needs to be said there...). Through their performances, however, they make them enjoyable, relatable, and even manage to make an old-fashioned blue collar attitude into something laudable. At the age of 78, not only does Woody still have it, he is sharper than 99% of filmmakers out there, and has enough self-awareness to let his dialogue and talented actors do the talking, maintaining a casual visual approach that does wonders to the slow boil that is Jasmine's self-destruction.
8) Prince Avalanche - Dogfish Pictures - Directed by David Gordon Green, Starring Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch
I'll admit it: I'm enamored with anything David Gordon Green touches. From his work as an emerging young talent in George Washington and Undertow to his more mainstream fair such as Pineapple Express and Eastbound & Down, I simply believe the man can do no wrong (I'll ignore Your Highness, which I see as simply a great excuse for a bunch of friends to hang out under someone else's dime). In this minimalist gem, however, he finds himself back in full force, depicting what is essentially a two-fer with a confidence rarely seen today. Because of his keen eye for the wilderness, the film breezes by even in its quietest moments, and perhaps more so because of them. Of particular interest to me is an encounter Rudd's character has with an elderly woman whose house burned down - an encounter that was apparently real and completely improvised. Other stand-outs are the two stars' conversation over their bad luck with women, and a magnificent montage showing just how far they've come in accepting one another for who they are. At once curiously low-key and beautifully moving, this is one of the few films of the year I see myself coming back to month after month, needing a taste of the world everyone involved created - at once terribly relatable but wonderfully outside the realm of my imagination, in terms of the feelings discovered within and the lack of emotional manipulation that makes a film like this resonate with so many viewers - at least those lucky enough to know about it and see it.
Mads Mikkelsen is an imposing physical force. If it wasn't clear from his filmography throughout his career, from Pusher to Valhalla Rising, the man contains a certain something that can not be taught or gained, no matter how much work one puts into their job. He simply is such a large man with such a robust face that one cannot help but be magnetized by his presence. What a surprise, then, to see the man playing a victim, and a terribly tragic one, at that. In this stunning, intense, and emotionally intelligent drama, Mikkelsen plays a teacher dealt the biggest blow anyone can imagine: being accused of sexually assaulting a child. But while the subject matter of the film sets the viewer up for one thing, it gives them something completely different - that being an examination of how once a lie is told, even if it is refuted almost immediately, the seeds of judgement are already planted so deep that everyone's perception of the accused and the accuser are forever altered. Instead of asking whether the protagonist committed the atrocities he is accused of, Vinterberg instead focuses on the backlash even an accusation can have, and takes it to its logical extreme, ostracizing Mikkelsen's "Lucas" to the point that even his innocent, almost non-present child is abused for things his father may have done. It culminates in a gritty, cinema verite-esque sequence in which Lucas reaches his last legs of tolerance, having been asked by his local supermarket to disdain from shopping there. With visual nuance that is absent from major American Productions today, Vinterberg manages to make a story that could have been nearly impossible to watch unfold the way it does into a tense, dark, and uniquely alluring tale of how a community can turn on a trusted member at the flip of a coin - or a slip of the tongue.
If Derek Cianfrance's second feature Blue Valentine was exemplary of moody, independent filmmaking, then his third might just be ready to go down in the annals of history as a sign of just how potent American Films can still be. Aiming for the moon and not quite reaching it, Cianfrance tells an epic tale of fathers and sons, cops and robbers, and the generational bonds that keep this world turning in the same direction. At once deeply intimate and radically ambitious in scope, this film contains some of the most powerful cinematic moments of the young decade, and perhaps of the 21st century on a whole, heightened immensely by Sean Bobbit's stunning cinematography and Mike Patton's perfectly modified score, pinpointing exactly what makes this powerful on so many levels while never treating the audience like people who need to be told what to feel in each moment. Also of note are the wonderful supporting performances of the always forceful Ben Mendelsohn and the rising talent Dane Dehaan, who both take what could have been dreary characters and lift them to alluring levels of palpability and screen presence. Ultimately, though, no one character or actor stands out, leaving the man behind the camera to reap all the credit for telling a raw, emotional story and never letting anyone, least of all the audience, off the hook, reigning us in with a taut first-act that renders whatever occurs afterwards instantly compelling. The fact that it manages to add so many layers to that first act is just a testament to Cianfrance, his writers, and his cast, seemingly bolstered by the commitment to hard, artful work that Ryan Gosling brings to his best projects (this according to an interview with Cianfrance himself). Combine this and Prince Avalanche (above) and you have what might be the two most identifiabe American auteurs at the top of their game. I cannot way to see what the future holds for both of them (surely great, impactful things - hopefully enough audiences are willing to explore these unique talents).
Part 2 to come later...
No comments:
Post a Comment