Out of the Past: The Week In Film (x3)

Well my lovelies, what with moving to a beautiful new apartment, the Minneapolis Film Festival and (Gasp) getting married, the past 3 weeks have been hectic and fabulous, meaning I've gotten a bit behind on my cinema coverage. You might have assumed that with all these major events, I was unable to watch any cinema at home. Wrong! In fact, you see, it was quite the contrary (I actually completed two major cinematic trilogies). However, since I am three weeks behind, I will limit what I have to say about everything......

The Banal, the Blah, the Banausic:

1. Sex & the City: The Movie (2008) Dir. Michael Patrick King - US

2. I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988) Dir. Keenan Ivory Wayans - US

3. The Daisy Chain (2008) Dir. Aisling Walsh - Ireland/UK

Guilty Pleasure Cinema:

1. Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1989) Dir. Shinya Tsukamoto - Japan

Astounding Cinema:

10. Crimson Gold (2003) Dir. Jafar Panahi - Iran
9. Red Riding: 1974 (2009) Dir. Julian Jarrold - UK

8. Red Riding: 1983 (2009) Dir. Anand Tucker - UK

7. Peacock (2010) Dir. Michael Lander - US

6. Dead Man's Shoes (2004) Dir. Shane Meadows - UK

5. Pusher III: I'm the Angel of Death (2005) Dir. Nicolas Winding Refn - Denmark

4. Pusher II: With Blood on My Hands (2004) Dir. Nicolas Winding Refn - Denmark

3. Pusher (1996) Dir. Nicolas Winding Refn - Denmark

2. Red Riding: 1980 (2009) Dir. James Marsh - UK

1. White Heat (1949) Dir. Raoul Walsh - US

Theatrical Releases:

2. The Girl on the Train (2009) Dir. Andre Techine - France 8/10

1. The Eclipse (2009) Dir. Conor McPherson - Ireland 9/10

Rewatched Goodies:

1. Crazy on the Outside (2010) Dir. Tim Allen - US 7/10

Sex & the City: The Movie (2008) - Well, the hubby's a fan of the series and film, and an impending sequel comes out this month, so I made a point to finally watch this one. And the most I can say is that while I was far from impressed, I didn't feel the need to castigate. Basically, I found the four women of the popular series to talk and behave a lot like gay men and not very much like women at all (the Kim Cattrall character was my least favorite) and while SJP is one of the most awkward looking ladies I've ever seen, she doesn't offend me (though I must admit, I don't see what anyone sees in Chris Noth's Mr. Big, though my mother and the hubby disagree). The only genuine moment of emotion contained in this 2 1/2 hour epic antithesis is the moment involving Mr. Big and SJP before the marriage---fans will obviously know what I'm talking about.

I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988): While this film may be excellent in comparison to almost everything else the Wayans Bros. have laid their hands on, I couldn't help but find 90% of the humor quite flat---especially after watching 2009's excellent blaxploitation parody, Black Dynamite penned by Michael Jai White. Though props for the use of Antonio Fargas, Jim Brown, Isaac Hayes and Clu Gulager.

The Daisy Chain (2008): This little child horror/drama film never received a theatrical release in the US and I can see why---it's slow moving, dull, and a bit on the silly side. Which is sad for me because I am a Samantha Morton nut---the woman almost always reduces me to tears with her sad, sweet face in fare like Mister Lonely (2007), In America (2004), Control (2007) or The Messenger (2009). While the film most obviously suffers from mis-marketing, it's definitely an item of interest only for those interested in said thematics, cast or director.

Testuo: The Iron Man (1989): A landmark cult classic that is sometimes similar in feeling to Lynch's Eraserhead (1976), Tetsuo tells the tale of a metal fetishist that likes to stick scrap metal into his body, who is run over by another man who in turn starts becoming a piece of scrap metal himself, while the mutating metal fetishist attempts to enact revenge for the hit and run....yeah, it's out there. My favorite part is the pulsating, wonderful soundtrack while the film includes some intense and striking visuals.

Crimson Gold (2003): Iranian director Jafar Panahi was recently arrested and imprisoned in his native country, and since I never had seen any of his work, I sat down to watch this compelling and depressing feature about the social hierarchy in Iran told from the point of view of a pizza delivery man.

Red Riding: 1974 (2009): My least favorite installment of the excellent Red Riding trilogy, 1974 sets up the tale of the serial killer of young girls in West Yorkshire through the eyes of a naive but determined journalist (Andrew Garfield). I think my biggest problem with this installment were some of the directorial choices (I'm not a fan of Julian Jarrold, though I do also like Kinky Boots, 2005, but that's still not excuse for putrid films like Becoming Jane, 2007, or his awful take on Brideshead Revisited, 2008) but it's still a solid film on it's own, though it is both ehanced and integral to the trilogy as a whole. Rebecca Hall, Sean Bean, and David Morrissey add excellent, creepy support.

Red Riding: 1983 (2009): Again, my biggest beef is probably with director Anand Tucker (mostly because he helmed that 2010 drivel Leap Year with Amy Adams) but all in all, a damn fine conclusion to a dense trilogy, with David Morrissey's character coming off as a little more sympathetic than in the previous chapters.

Peacock (2010): Receiving a very limited theatrical run and suffering from a gross mis-marketing campaign, this directorial debut from Michael Lander is an intriguing and subtle little oddity about gender identity, split personalities, and childhood abuse. Cillian Murphy (who also made a pretty girl in one of 2005's best films, Breakfast on Pluto) stars as a bank clerk that has a secret personality named Emma that assumes control when he is at home. When a train accidentally crashes into his front lawn (they are in rural Nebraska) his secret is on the verge of being exposed as he suffers stress from a difficult boss (Bill Pullman), a mayor (Keith Carradine)that wants to use the train wreck as a launch for his campaign, and his wife that befriends Emma (Susan Sarandon), while a strange figure from his past (Ellen Page) come looking for help. Marketed as a horror/thriller, this unsettling film is more of a psychological drama that has some emotional significance. Definitely one of those eerie little films that falls through the cultural cracks only to be resurrected with a cult following decades later. Definitely worth discussion.

Dead Man's Shoes (2004): A revenge thriller/drama, Shane Meadow's Dead Man's Shoes is all about atmosphere and also packs an emotional wallop. Paddy Considine (who co-wrote) stars as a soldier returning to his home town to exact revenge on the mugs involved in the homicide of his developmentally disabled younger brother. As the past unfolds in grainy black and white to meld with the bloody happenings of the present, you can't help but be engrossed, perhaps horrified, and definitely entertained at Considine's hell-bent character.

The Pusher Trilogy

Pusher (1996)

Pusher II: With Blood On My Hands (2004)

Pusher III: I'm the Angel of Death (2005): In truth, I couldn't decide which entry in Nicolas Winding Refn's Pusher trilogy I liked the best, so they're ranked in chronological order. They get increasingly more fraught with tension and violence as the series goes on, each entry dealing with a different character involved somehow or other in the Danish drug underground. The first entry stars Kim Bodnia (an eerie dead ringer for Tom Sizemore) as a drug pusher who has the bad luck of being involved in a bad drug bust (or two). The second film focuses on his co-worker and "friend" played by Mads Mikkelson, as one of the most disgusting characters I've ever had the opportunity to feel empathy for. And the third film, perhaps the most sensational, focuses on Milo the drug lord (Zlatko Buric) as he struggles to cater his spoiled 25 year old daughter's birthday extravaganza, attend sessions of Narcotics Anonymous and also exact revenge on some dudes that screwed him over with a fake batch of ecstasy. I loved every minute of Refn's trilogy and am eagerly anticipating sitting down to watch my copy of Bronson (2008) while I am absolutely kicking myself for not making more of an effort to see Valhalla Rising (2009) at last year's Toronto Film Festival (I think if I had made it that would have been a six movie day).

Red Riding: 1980 (2009) - Director James Marsh gets credit for what I thought was the most innovative and intriguing portion of the Red Riding Trilogy with his middle segment starring Paddy Considine. Creepers Eddie Marsan and Warren Clarke ratchet up the tension as Considine is brought in to helm the investigation, discovering a network of police corruption, while an adulterous relationship with a fellow investigator (Maxine Peake) also adds additional tension. By far, the most engaging part of the trilogy, and the most cinematic (for my tastes, that is).

White Heat (1949): The number one film from three weeks worth of cinema goes to this James Cagney classic directed by Raoul Walsh. One of the best (and influential) gangster flics ever made, Cagney stars as a hot tempered asshole with one of the ickiest mommie complexes on the masculine side of Norman Bates. Virginia Mayo and Edmond O'Brien co star in this white hot little yarn that has an explosive ending to rival Kiss Me Deadly (1955).

The Girl on the Train (2009): Andre Techine's latest offering gives us a chance to see Catherine Deneuve as the mother of an intensely passive young woman (Emilie Dequenne) that lies about being attacked on the subway for being Jewish. Of course, the film offers an unorthodox set up as we see our young protagonist become wrapped up with a wayward youth (the creepy creepy creepy Nicolas Duvauchelle) and keeps us completely in the dark about where, when, and what is happening, making for a compelling and uncomfortable film. The gorgeous Israelian born actress Ronit Elkabetz also stars.

The Eclipse (2009): I've been wanting to see this ghost story/romance since Ciaran Hinds won Best Actor at the Tribeca Film Fest last year---and I wasn't disappointed. Aidian Quinn costars as an egocentric, alcoholic author, while the object of Hinds' affection is none other than Iben Hjejle (who I haven't seen in a film since High Fidelity, 2000, and who I totally blinked out in Cheri, 2009). Hinds stars as a widower tasked with taking care of two children and lots of bad dreams. Convinced he starts seeing ghosts, he becomes entranced with Hjejle, an author of a best selling ghost story currently in Ireland for a literature convention (Hinds drives all the authors around as a chauffeur for the convention). There are several instances where I jumped in my seat, but this isn't, overall, that kind of film. It's very subtle, and it's one of the films that is meant to be watched several times. While it's received some lukewarm press, it's definitely worth a look, if not several, at least for a very good performance from the very talented and underrated Hinds.

Crazy On the Outside (2010): Ah, it doesn't really get any better on a re-watch, but I still insist that Tim Allen's directorial debut is worth watching solely for a very cute and funny performance from Sigourney Weaver playing Tim Allen's sister. Sadly, rewatching it made me realize how lackluster or stale the remainder of the cast is (specifically a very unpleasant and awkward romance between Tim Allen and Jeanne Tripplehorn). Oh well. See it for Siggy.