Movies Watched in August 2005

(*) The Sect ***½

Original title: La Setta
Italy: Michele Soavi, 1991

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(*) 21 Grams ****½

USA: Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2003

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Garden State ****

USA: Zach Braff, 2004

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(*) Suspiria *****

Italy: Dario Argento, 1977

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(*) Mute Witness ***½

Germany/UK/USA/Russia: Anthony Waller, 1994

I reviewed this film a couple of years ago and gave it an 8/10 rating. This is the first time I've watched it since then, and I must admit that it has, overall, come down in my estimation. At the same time, though, other elements stand out as being even better than I remembered them. The primary problem comes in the second half of the movie, when all the simple yet brilliantly executed terror of the first half collapses into a half-baked and unbelievable conspiracy involving a secret international ring of snuff film makers. Still, on the plus side, the whole thing looks incredible, and there is an obvious Argento inspiration in these extremely wide angles, primary colours and tracking shots. There are two stand-out scenes, where Waller absolutely nails the tension. The first is a lengthy sequence in which our heroine plays a terrifying game of cat and mouse trapped in an abandoned film set with her would-be killers, and the second involves the very same killers paying her a visit in her own home. Fundamentally, though, Marina Zudina is absolutely sublime as the lead. Despite playing a mute, she never has any difficulty in conveying her emotions, and just happens to be drop dead gorgeous as well. It's a shame she hasn't done more films. Mute Witness was her only non-Russian project, and she hasn't appeared in anything since 1996.

PS. On IMDB, it states that the film was originally going to be set in Chicago but was moved to Moscow because of the cheaper labour in Russia. I simply can't imagine how this would have worked if set in the US as the language barrier is of such vital importance to the story (and on more than one occasion leads to situations where even those who have their voices might as well be mute, given their inability to make themselves understood).

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(*) The Taking of Pelham One Two Three ****

USA: Joseph Sargent, 1974

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(*) Deep in the Woods ***½

France: Lionel Delplanque, 2000

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(*) Thriller: A Cruel Picture ****

Original title: Thriller: En Grym Film
Sweden: Bo Arne Vibenius, 1974

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(*) Night Train Murders ****

Original title: L'Ultimo Treno della Notte
Italy: Aldo Lado, 1975

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Gladiator: Extended Edition ***½

UK/USA: Ridley Scott, 2000/2005

(Watched with commentary by Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe)

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(*) Non Ho Sonno ***½

Italy: Dario Argento, 2001

I think I like this film less and less each time I see it. Beyond the opening 10 minutes, Argento's usual stylistic flare is pretty much non-existant. Much of this could have been directed for anything, and often looks so flat that it could easily be a run of the mill TV project. Max Von Sydow makes a great lead but he simply doesn't get enough screen time, and his younger counterpart, played by Stefano Dionisi, is introduced too late in the game and turns out to be a supremely boring and uncharismatic protagonist. A big part of the problem is that the earlier murder mystery, which forms the basis of the murders taking place in the film, is far more interesting than the present-day one but is never seen - only alluded to. Still, I'll give the film props for its great Goblin score, some nice special effects from Sergio Stivaletti, and of course the excellent opening 10 minutes. I think this is actually more of a "watch once" effort, whereas Argento's stronger works tend to improve with repeat viewings.

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(*) Sin City ****

USA: Robert Rodriguez/Frank Miller/Quentin Tarantino, 2005

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Team America: World Police ***

USA: Trey Parker, 2004

The hit-to-miss ratio of this film was pretty much balanced equally. While it was very impressive to see big-budget puppet animation done well, the majority of the jokes were incredibly easy, and as with South Park, the satire was so obvious they might as well have had the words "laugh now" appear on the screen.

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(*) Baba Yaga ***½

Italy: Corrado Farina, 1973

This is an interesting film, and one that is wildly uneven but still ultimately watchable. Many of the flaws are admitted by Farina in his interview on the Blue Underground DVD, especially the casting of Carroll Baker as Baba Yaga, which simply doesn't work, but there are other flaws which he doesn't mention. For one, it has that strange quasi-conservative response to sex that tainted the work of many so-called liberal artists of this period. For all its attempts to be daring and original, it always seems to fall back on a relatively conventional framework, culminating in a deeply disappointing ending. It's also full of bizarre non-sequiturs, such as Guido Crepax, author of the graphic novels upon which the film is based, appearing as himself, and Valentina even reading pages from them at one point (pages which seem to feature herself) - had they been handled better, these ideas might actually have been very effective. Still, the film has a jaunty atmosphere and, despite being savaged by the censors, has a suitably erotic undercurrent.

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Big Fish ***

USA: Tim Burton, 2003

I must admit to being decidedly unimpressed by this effort. Burton's usual gothic visual flourish is more or less absent, the tone is inconsistent, and Ewan McGregor sports the worst Southern accent I've ever heard. The ending sort of redeems it, but by and large I just wasn't that entertained.

There's not really much else I can say about this film. Doesn't inspire a 10,000 word essay from me, ya know?

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(*) Trauma ***

USA: Dario Argento, 1993

(Watched with commentary by Alan Jones)

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Kagemusha ****

Japan: Akira Kurosawa, 1980

Apparently I started with the wrong Kurosawa film, and I can well believe it: Kagemusha is confusing and heavy-going, and it took me a few sittings to get through it, but luckily I had the excellent commentary on the Criterion DVD, by historian Stephen Prince, to keep me on track. While I wouldn't exactly say it was a film I "enjoyed", I was pretty mesmerized by the visual artistry (some very Suspiria-esque colours on display here) and the sheer scope of the piece. Prince mentions in the commentary what a good thing it is that the film was made before the days of CGI extras and battles, and I can only agree.

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Stagefright ****

Original title: Deliria
Italy: Michele Soavi, 1987

Michele Soavi's directorial debut may not boast the world's most original story or plot twists, but this giallo/slasher hybrid is executed so competently that I can't help loving it. For a first-timer, Soavi shows almost as much skill behind the camera as his mentor, Dario Argento, in his debut, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, and although Argento's work is clearly a major influence on Stagefright, Soavi manages to carve his own niche, creating an impressive style that he could continue to hone with his later efforts. Filled with over the top characters, vicious gore, nail-biting stalk sequences and an amazing score by Simon Boswell, Stagefright is an envigorating, campy and very enjoyable piece of work.

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(*) Problem Child 2 ***

USA: Brian Levant, 1991

Those of you who know I love the original Problem Child (and I do, no matter what the naysayers might say) will no doubt not be surprised to learn that I get just as much of a kick out of its sequel. It's completely stupid, of course, and it abandons all of the original's half-hearted attempts at providing genuine social satire, but it's uproariously entertaining. Once again, young Michael Oliver continues to be the worst child actor in the business, with his over the top hand gestures, and the supporting cast (especially Jack Warden and Gilbert Gottfried) continue to make the piece a riot to watch. Arguably once of the most lewd "family" comedies ever created, this "masterpiece" features projectile vomiting, pizza fights, plastic surgery and dog excrement galore! What's not to like?

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(*) The Perfume of the Lady in Black ****

Original title: Il Profumo della Signora in Nero
Italy: Francesco Barilli, 1974

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(*) The Card Player ***½

Original title: Il Cartaio
Italy: Dario Argento, 2004

(Watched with commentary by Alan Jones)

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(*) Salem's Lot ***

USA: Tobe Hooper, 1979

Although the version that I saw, the truncated European theatrical version (as opposed to the original two-parter that aired on American TV), loses a number of its subplots and subtleties, there is still much to appreciate in this chilling tale from Tobe Hooper. The Master is genuinely disturbing, and there are a huge number of superb iconic images, the best being the dead child floating outside his friend's bedroom window. I feel that time may have robbed this film of some of its power, as it is easy now to point to its "fakeness", but this is still well worth seeing.

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The Emperor's New Groove **½

USA: Mark Dindal, 2000

An off-beat, wacky comedy in the vein of Aladdin, The Emperor's New Groove comes across as a poor imitation of that particular film, and suffers from a distinct case of "too many cooks" syndrome (it is well known that the film was repeatedly savaged by Disney management and bears virtually no resemblance to the original concept). There are some very witty one-liners and some nice bits of animation, but otherwise the whole thing feels completely insubstantial and at times becomes infuriatingly annoying with its smug self-awareness.

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(*) The Beach ***½

USA/UK: Danny Boyle, 2000

Although much maligned by the critics, I found myself enjoying The Beach overall. It has its share of problems, but it remains engaging throughout and serves as a nice little parable about the dangers of wanting to keep a perfect little corner of the world for yourself. I can't deny, though, that the script is seriously flawed: characters are introduced simply to provide quick conflict and are then sidelined as soon as they've served their purpose (most notably Étienne and Bugs, the men who Richard antagonizes by sneaking off with their respective girlfriends, who simply disappear from the scene despite it being impressed on us how angry and/or upset they would be if they found out). Oh, and that video game segment was just embarrassing. Still better than Boyle's subsequent 28 Days Later, though.

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Prozac Nation **

USA/Germany: Erik Skjoldbjærg, 2001

Not very good at all. This might be worth seeing for Christina Ricci's performance, which is among the best she's ever given, but the film itself is duller than ditchwater and fails to offer us any way to relate to the characters. Depression is a difficult subject to successfully capture, no doubt, but Ricci's character comes over as nothing more than a self-obsessed little whiner who throws temper tantrums when she doesn't get her own way. Best avoided.

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(*) Sex and Lucía *****

Original title: Lucía y el Sexo
Spain: Julio Medem, 2001

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(*) King Arthur (director's cut) ***

USA/UK/Ireland: Antoine Fuqua, 2004

(Watched with commentary by Antoine Fuqua)

I'm struck by the richness of the colour palette of this film. Considering that it's set in the UK, a country usually associated with grey skies and pale faces, it's remarkably saturated. The colours don't really start popping until the film reaches around the half-way mark, but once they do, oh boy! On a side note, it occurred to me just how hideous the dialogue in this movie is. Absolutely cringe-worthy.

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(*) Gangs of New York ****

USA: Martin Scorsese, 2002

(Watched with commentary by Martin Scorsese)

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Churchill: The Hollywood Years ***

UK: Peter Richardson, 2004

When taken in the right spirit, this is a pretty enjoyable film, but it has its share of problems nonetheless. Sold as a parody of the way Hollywood tends to treat actual historical events, it doesn't really live up to its promises as it only occasionally does a decent job of lampooning its subject matter. When it does, it's very funny - my favourite exchange being (paraphrased) "It's up to the Americans to save the day again!", "God, I wish I was an American!". The rest of the time, though, it seems content to simply be a wacky slapstick comedy that gets its laughs from making prominent historical figures look a little ridiculous. Sometimes this works - I adored Neve Campbell's performance as Elizabeth, as well as her hilariously overdone accent... in fact she's probably the best part of the movie - but other times it doesn't, for example with Goering and Goebbels. It also has a habit of making its jokes too obvious at times, as if writer/director Peter Richardson was afraid that audiences wouldn't get it: it's not enough for Churchill's fellow GI, an African-American, to be relegated to the role of the stereotypical black comic relief character, he actually has to point this out to us.

Nonetheless, it's a fun movie, although I suspect that it will go down better with British audiences than American viewers. Provided you're not expecting sophisticated comedy or subtlety of any kind I expect you'll have fun.

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(*) American Psycho ****

USA/Canada: Mary Harron, 2000

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(*) Problem Child ***

USA: Dennis Dugan, 1990

Look, I can't defend this movie as a great work of art, but I enjoy watching it. So sue me. Yes, it's true that the acting and the plot are absolutely risible, but the film is constantly entertaining, and that's something that you can't say about most of the garbage Hollywood spews out. The supporting characters are what make this film - Big Ben, Mr. Peabody, the Bow-tie Killer - they're all hilarious. Rounding it all off, naturally, is John Ritter, who plays the biggest sap in movie history.

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Occhi di Cristallo ****

Italy/Spain/UK: Eros Puglielli, 2004

Despite being in Italian without any English subtitles, I thoroughly enjoyed Eros Puglielli's Occhi di Cristallo. In fact, this could be the best giallo since Opera. It's great to see another Italian director attempt a modern-day giallo, and to be honest, Puglielli's effort is actually a couple of steps above even Argento's recent output. To me, this proves that, contrary to popular belief, the genre is not dead at all and is simply in hibernation, waiting for a new visionary to lead it into the modern era. Judging by Occhi di Cristallo, Puglielli could be the man for the job. Look for a full review of it soon.

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