DVD Collectors Online
DVD Reviews => The "Marathon" reviews => Topic started by: Danae Cassandra on March 10, 2016, 07:16:17 PM
-
This is a challenge I took up on Letterboxd. The challenge is to watch 30 films from 30 different countries in the month of March. I didn't get my last world film marathon ever finished, but ...
01. On Each Side - Argentina - 3/5
02. Waltz With Bashir - Israel - 4/5
03. My Winnipeg - Canada - 4/5
04. Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary - Austria - 3.5/5
05. Trances - Morocco - 3.5/5
06. W.R. Mysteries of the Organism - Yugoslavia - 4/5
07. Valerie and Her Week of Wonders - Czechoslovakia - 3.5/5
08. The Book of the Dead - Japan - 3/5
09. Kisses - Ireland - 3/5
10. Ocean of an Old Man - India - 3/5
11. For All Mankind - USA - 4/5
12. Earth - Ukraine (USSR) - 3.5/5
13. Be With Me - Singapore - 3/5
14. Faraw! Mother of the Dunes - Mali - 3.5/5
15. Caramel - Lebanon - 3.5/5
16. Alamar - Mexico - 3.5/5
17. The Last Homecoming - Cyprus - 3.5/5
18. Nostalgia For the Light - Chile - 5/5
19. Le Quattro Volte - Italy - 4/5
20. Kilometre Zero - Iraq - 3/5
21. On the Verge of a Fever - Haiti - 2.5/5
22. Travelers and Magicians - Bhutan - 3.5/5
23. Five Dedicated to Ozu - Iran - 3/5
24. L'Age D'Or - France - 3/5
25. Angel on the Right - Tajikistan - 3/5
26. A New Day in Old Sana'a - Yemen - 3/5
27. Margarette's Feast - Brazil - 3/5
28. The Student of Prague (1913) - Germany - 3/5
29. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring - South Korea - 5/5
30. Persona - Sweden - 5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/72/720229913584f.jpg)
On Each Side (A cada lado)
Year of Release: 2005
Directed By: Hugo Grosso
Starring: Juan Pablo Geretto, Luis Machin, David Olmos, Emanuel Rojas, Amalia Costa
Genre: Drama
Overview:
Evocative and lyrical, On Each Side follows the interconnected lives of several characters who are affected by the building of the Rosario-Victoria Bridge in Argentina – a gargantuan, modern undertaking that links two Argentinean cities.
Building the bridge takes years, transforming lives on both sides of the river. A photographer discovers a key to his past when he meets an unlikely pair: a thief with a curvacious partner in crime. Two sisters experience a sexual re-awakening after they take on a boarder – a German engineer who enjoys clandestine trysts with a transvestite chanteause across the river. A pair of adventurous boys grow into young men as the bridge is constructed above them. On Each Side is the story of a bridge that not only transverses a river but spans the traditional and the modern, the past and the future.
My Thoughts:
This is a film about connections. Connections between cities; connections between people. It's about our desire for true connection, and what keeps us from making that. A son prioritizes work over dinner with his father, losing the opportunity for a last true connection. A man finds that he waits too long to reveal certain things about himself, thereby losing the opportunity to truly connect with his lover. A young man finds himself unremembered; a photographer detached from the community. Even as the bridge promises to bring the communities together, the choices people make drive them apart.
The mostly amateur cast does a good job, though some seem more natural than others. While you can tell the budget was low, the camera work is quite good, especially the parts about the bridge. That interjected documentary footage of the bridge building adds interest to the film, and could be seen as a metaphor for how much work achieving true connection is - and in its destruction of the natural environment how one can cause damage with people as well. It's an interesting film, with some pointed observations; recommended only to regular watchers of foreign films however. For those weaned on a diet of Hollywood blockbusters this film would look cheap, disjointed and dull.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/04/043396300392f.jpg)
Waltz With Bashir (Vals Im Bashir)
Year of Release: 2008
Directed By: Ari Folman
Starring: Ori Sivan, Ronny Dayag, Shmuel Frenkel
Genre: Documentary
Overview:
Inspired by actual events, Waltz With Bashir chronicles one man's descent into his own half-forgotten past. Filmmaker Ari Folman, an Israeli veteran of the First Lebanon War, encounters an old friend suffering from nightmares of the conflict. Ari begins to wonder why his own memories are full of gaps. In an effort to uncover the truth, he reconnects with old friends and dares to confront the horrors of war. Hailed as innovative and devastating, Waltz with Bashir fuses animation and documentary to create an experience unlike anything you've ever witnessed.
My Thoughts:
What is a man's culpability in the face of the horrific? How does a man stand by while others are slaughtered? And how does a man live with the guilt afterward?
A highly personal film, a recollection of traumatic events and the attempt to reconcile with those events years later, this is one of the best films about the horror of war, for all involved.
If the animation isn't the finest I've ever seen, its lack of fluidity fits the subject matter. It's appropriately realistic, somewhat gritty and ugly. Powerful film, troubling, and illuminated at the same time. Highly recommended, but don't expect a feel-good, happy ending.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 4/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/71/715515136112f.jpg)
My Winnipeg
Year of Release: 2007
Directed By: Guy Maddin
Starring: Ann Savage, Louis Negin, Amy Stewart, Darcy Fehr
Genre: Documentary, Drama, Fantasy
Overview:
The geographical dead center of North America and the beloved birthplace of Guy Maddin, Winnipeg is the frosty and mysterious star of Maddin's "docu-fantasia." A work of memory and imagination, the film burrows into what the director calls "the heart of the heart" of the continent, conjuring a city as delightful as it is fearsome, populated by sleepwalkers and hockey aficionados. Take part in Winnipeg's epic annual scavenger hunt! Pay your respects to the racehorses forever frozen in the river! Help judge the yearly Golden Boy pageant! What is real and what is fantasy is left up to the viewer to sort out in Maddin's hypnotic, expertly conceived paean to that wonderful and terrifying place known as My Hometown.
My Thoughts:
Is the truth important? How important is truth to memory? What truly matters: what really happened or how you perceive it and remember it? Are the stories of your hometown important because they are true? Or because you believe them? If they are false, does that make them less true? Maddin's blend of memoir, documentary and fantasy asks these sorts of questions and doesn't exactly provide answers. We all have local legends that will never be proven, we all have memories that didn't happen the way we remember them, we all have embellished family stories. Maddin's ultimate point might just be that all of this is important in how we see the world - just as important as the actual truth.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 4/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/04/043396002692f.jpg)
Blind Spot: Hitler's Secretary
Year of Release: 2002
Directed By: André Heller, Othmar Schmiderer
Starring: Traudl Junge
Genre: Documentary
Overview:
The astonishing true story of Hitler's private secretary coming to terms with working alongside unspeakable evil after remaining silent for nearly sixty years.
In 1942, Traudl Junge was an apolitical 22-year-old chosen from a clerical pool to work as one of Adolf Hitler's private secretaries. Working day-in, day-out for Hitler, Junge viewed him as a surrogate father figure, private and polite, nothing like the crazed rhetorician of his speeches. Shielded from the knowledge of Hitler's acts of atrocity and convinced she was in the center of information, she was actually in a blind spot. As the Nazi regime teetered on destruction and Hitler plunged further into madness, Junge witnessed everything up to the final chaotic days in the bunker.
Completed just months before Traudl Junge's death, BLIND SPOT: HITLER'S SECRETARY is a riveting personal history which demands to be seen by all.
My Thoughts:
Powerful testimonial from the now-elderly Traudl Junge, who served as Hitler's secretary. You might be surprised how much this will hold your attention, since the entire film is just her talking about her memories of that time. Really powerful stuff here, in how monsters are human beings ... and human beings are monsters. That one can be complicit in evil through ignorance, and that perhaps ignorance is not an excuse. What is your culpability, what are your responsibilities, and what is your guilt? Really a story everyone should hear.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/I2/I25E9EB5E9D3F8881f.jpg)
Trances
Year of Release: 1981
Directed By: Ahmed El Maanouni
Starring: Nass El Ghiwane
Genre: Documentary, Music
Overview:
The beloved Moroccan band Nass El Ghiwane is the dynamic subject of this captivating musical documentary. Storytellers through song, with connections to political theater, the band became an international sensation (Western music critics have often referred to them as "the Rolling Stones of North Africa") thanks to their political lyrics and sublime, fully acoustic sound, which draws on the Moroccan trance music tradition. Both a concert movie and a free-form audiovisual experiment, Ahmed El Maânouni’s Trances is cinematic poetry.
My Thoughts:
Music is the voice and soul of the people. Part concert film, part interview, part documentary, Trances is an interesting look at Moroccan culture and music. It's worth seeing for Nass El Ghiwane's music alone, which is really wonderful. If you like folk music, or world music, you need to watch this film (or at least listen to it).
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/71/715515024228f.jpg)
WR: Mysteries of the Organism
Year of Release: 1971
Directed By: Dusan Makavejev
Starring: Milena Dravic, Ivica Vidovic, Jagoda Kaloper, Tuli Kupferberg
Genre: Fantasy, Comedy, Drama
Overview:
What does the energy harnessed through orgasm have to do with the state of communist Yugoslavia circa 1971? Only counterculture filmmaker extraordinaire Dušan Makavejev has the answers (or the questions). His surreal documentary-fiction collision WR: Mysteries of the Organism begins as an investigation into the life and work of controversial psychologist and philosopher Wilhelm Reich and then explodes into a free-form narrative of a beautiful young Slavic girl's sexual liberation. Banned upon its release in the director's homeland, the art-house smash WR is both whimsical and bold in its blending of politics and sexuality.
My Thoughts:
Subversive, anarchic, but also ultimately a product of it's time; this was an interesting watch. It's very much a surrealist film - part documentary, part montage, part narrative, part social critique via music video - it's a weird film. It's also a film that shows its age. It could only be a product of the late 60's/early 70's, for all that it's actual critique is timeless. Some familiarity with Stalinist policies and Communist Yugoslavia is helpful in viewing. Recommended only to serious art film lovers.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 4/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/71/715515148313f.jpg)
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders
Year of Release: 1970
Directed By: Jaromil Jires
Starring: Jaroslava Schallerova, Helena Anyzova, Petr Kopriva, Jiri Prymek
Genre: Fantasy, Horror
Overview:
A girl on the verge of womanhood finds herself in a sensual fantasyland of vampires, witchcraft, and other threats in this eerie and mystical movie daydream. Valerie and Her Week of Wonders serves up an endlessly looping, nonlinear fairy tale, set in a quasi-medieval landscape. Ravishingly shot, enchantingly scored, and spilling over with surreal fancies, this enticing phantasmagoria from director Jaromil Jireš is among the most beautiful oddities of the Czechoslovak New Wave.
My Thoughts:
Firstly, let me say this is one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen. You could take just about any still from this film, toss it in a frame and hang it on the wall of a gallery. The cinematography, costuming, lighting, all of it is simply gorgeous. Valerie is worth seeing simply for it's visual beauty alone.
It's also a somewhat impenetrable surrealist film. The plot, such as it is, features Valerie, a young woman on the cusp of womanhood, threatened by vampires and religious authority, envied by her grandmother for her beauty, and flirting with an erotic relationship with a young man who may be her brother. I'm of the opinion the film is really allegory about Valerie's sexual awakening upon getting her first menstrual period. Recommended for lovers of art films - this is film as art, not as storytelling.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/69/698452206134f.jpg)
Book of the Dead
Year of Release: 2005
Directed By: Kihachiro Kawamoto
Starring: Kyôko Kishida, Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, Rie Miyazawa
Genre: Romance, Fantasy, Anime
Overview:
In this ravishing film of mystical beauty, master animator Kihachiro Kawamoto's tour de force adventure tale tells the story of a young noblewoman in 8th-century Japan who leaves her home to follow the apparition of an executed prince.
The Book of the Dead takes place as Buddhism is being introduced to Japan from China. Iratsume, a woman of noble desent, becomes obsessed with this mysterious new religion. One night, in a rapturous trance, she sees a luminous vision that she believes to be the Buddha, compelling her to leave home and journey to a sacred temple. Once there, she sees Otsu, a young prince who was executed 50 years earier. While Iratsume mistakes the prince's spirit for the incarnation of the great Buddha, the ghost mistakes Iratsume for the last woman he saw at the moment of his death. As an act of great devotion, she decides to make a giant shroud for the prince to heal his soul, after which he begins to haunt the young woman and those around her. The pair embark on an impassioned battle of wills, one longing for the material world, the other striving for the spiitual.
This strange story of outherworldly romance is the work of stop-motion animator and puppet-maker Kihachiro Kawamoto, a former student of the master Czech animator Jiri Trnka. Already a legend in his own right, with The Book of the Dead he has created an intricately detailed magnum opus, a summation of themes explored in all of his work: the transience of existence, the ambiguity of human behavior, and the search for perfection and beauty in an imperfect world.
One final note for animation buffs: The film also features the work by the acclaimed Russian animator and director Yuriy Norsheteyn, who was involved in The Book of the Dead as a "guest animator."
My Thoughts:
This would be a better film if any of the stories here got resolved. The model work, the stop motion animation, the visuals of the film are simply gorgeous. I mean, seriously beautiful. But the strands of stories here - the men who wish to court Irartsume, her quest for enlightenment, the desires of the ghost for release and an heir, none of this ever feels truly resolved. The closest any of them come is Iratsume - her weaving that depicts the Bodhisattvas feels like movement toward Buddhist enlightenment, but the ending doesn't really confirm this either. I'm guessing the filmmakers ran out of money, and rushed a finish. It's too bad, because there was so much potential here. Recommended for lovers of stop-motion animation - you'll want to see it just for the work put in. It's a beautiful but ultimately frustrating view.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/89/896602002999f.jpg)
Kisses
Year of Release: 2008
Directed By: Lance Daly
Starring: Kelly O'Neill, Shane Curry
Genre: Drama
Overview:
Kisses is the story of Kylie and Dylan, young runaways living on the fringes of Dublin who discover both beauty and danger in the big city. Kylie lives with five siblings and an overworked mother. Next door, Dylan is growing up with an abusive father and the memory of his runaway brother. After a violent altercation with his father, Dylan and Kylie flee. Together they make their way to the magical lights of downtown Dublin to search for Dylan's brother and hope for a new life. Dublin, as shown through the innocent eyes of our young protagonists, is a kaleidoscope of magic, wonder, and mystery. But as the night wears on, the city takes on a darker character, and the two must rely on the kindness of strangers and sagely wisdom of Bob Dylan to persevere. Featuring incredible breakthrough performances by Shane Curry and Kelly O'Neill, Kisses is a tale of two children who test the limits of what life can become, and learn what they can do for each other.
My Thoughts:
Sad, bleak little film about the cycles of poverty and abuse and the inability of children to escape them. Here we have two children, fed up with their abusive homes, striking out on their own, only to find the streets even more terrifying. Yet the truly bleak part, to me, is that when they approach a police officer all that occurs is the return to their homes. No hope of relief is offered from authority. The only scrap of hope they have is in their bond with each other.
Kisses is obvious in its low budget, but they make the most of what they've got with creative use of black and white vs. color cinematography and an effective use of music montages to take the viewer through their adventure in Dublin. At first Kelly O'Neill came off very stiff to me, but once the scene with her uncle occurred, she really impressed me with how much she was able to convey in body language and expression and my appreciation for her performance continued through the rest of the film. Shane Curry did a credible job as well. Recommended with caution. This isn't a feel-good film.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/84/844667025514f.jpg)
Ocean of an Old Man
Year of Release: 2008
Directed By: Rajesh Shera
Starring: Tom Alter
Genre: Drama
Overview:
In the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and amid the stunning natural beauty of India's Andaman and Nicobar islands, an elderly British teacher struggles to run a small primary school despite the loss of many of the islands' children to the recent tragedy. Ignoring the overwhelming grief that washes over the islands, he continues to teach his few remaining students until a government official delivers a relocation order to all residents, causing him to embark on a heartbreaking search for his missing students, convinced they must still be alive.
Blending exquisite vistas with the ubiquitous sound of the ocean to convey the precarious balance between human life and the inexorable forces of nature, Rajesh Shera's debut feature quietly unfolds as a delicate meditation on grief and loss.
My Thoughts:
This is a nearly wordless meditation on grief and loss. How does one cope in the aftermath of unimaginable tragedy? How do you go on, seeing the empty spaces once inhabited?
This is the first movie filmed in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, and it's a good thing that the setting is beautiful, because this is a slow, slow film. It held my attention, but I enjoy a story that plays out slowly. Not that there's much of a story here. It's really more of a study of this teacher trying to deal with the loss of his family, his young pupils, his home, as well as the future and an entire way of life.
This is a very low budget film, but it really doesn't need more money. Tom Alter does an excellent job conveying the depth of the teacher's grief and his increasing desperation to find any of his missing pupils. In many ways what The Old Man and the Sea should have been, in that here you see everything instead of it being told by a narrator. Recommended only if you have a background in slow film however.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/71/715515044318f.jpg)
For All Mankind
Year of Release: 1989
Directed By: Al Reinert
Starring: James A. Lovell Jr., Russell L. Schweickart, Eugene A. Cernan, Michael Collins
Genre: Documentary
Overview:
In July 1969, the space race ended when Apollo 11 fulfilled President Kennedy's challenge of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth." No one who witnessed the lunar landing will ever forget it. Al Reinert's documentary For All Mankind is the story of the twenty-four men who traveled to the Moon, told in their words, in their voices, using the images of their experiences. Forty years later, it remains the most radical, visually dazzling work of cinema yet made about this earthshaking event.
My Thoughts:
Excellently done film about the early years of the space program, and the moon landings. Simply told by the astronauts themselves using footage from them, this is documentary filmmaking at its purest state. Here are the events, make of them what you will.
I feel like this is a film that was meant to be inspiring. Look at our achievements! Look at what these men did! They went to the moon! There is so much passion, excitement and courage in their words and achievements that you can't help but admire these people.
Yet I felt an overwhelming sadness watching this film. Where have our dreams gone? Once they were big. Once we reached for the stars. It seems like all our dreams are gone these days. We haven't landed a manned mission on the moon in 44 years. For all our technological advancement, what have we done with it? We have more computing power now in our pockets then they did to go to the moon, and we do nothing of any import with it. It doesn't feel like we look to the stars, to the future, to the greater good of mankind any longer.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 4/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/I4/I48D546B3C8697F51f.jpg)
Earth
Year of Release: 1930
Directed By: Alexander Dovzhenko
Starring: Stephan Shkurat, Simon Svashenko, Julia Solntseva, Ellen Maximova
Genre: Drama
Overview:
One of the undisputed masterpieces of the cinema, no single viewing of EARTH will ever reveal all of its poetic brilliance. The third in a triptych of films by Ukranian director Alexander Dovzhenko (after Zvenigora in 1927 and Arsenal in 1928), EARTH is strikingly simple in plot.
On the eve of collectivization in the Ukraine, an old farmer dies peacefully in bed. His grandson Vasil has a new vision: the village council will buy a tractor to be shared among the farmers. Struggling against the superstition, rich landowners and nature itself, Vasil is ultimately the victim of a tragic murder, but the dawn brings forth a new life and the promise of prosperity to the poor village.
The story itself is secondary to the visually stunning images that Dovzhenko creates. His love for the Ukranian people and land intoxicates the viewer with the sensual splendors that fill the screen.
My Thoughts:
Looking at the beautiful vistas captured in this film, it's easy for me to imagine what Dovzhenko might do with today's technology. It's a poetic, stunning little film. The thin plot - conflict between richer landowners and collectivist peasants culminating in murder - is political propaganda, but Dovzhenko isn't really concerned with that here. His film is really a love letter to the land and the people of Ukraine. Still, I wish the plot had been fleshed out a bit more, and the actors could use some work. That aside, this is an important film just begging for a high quality restoration. It seems criminal this is only available on a disc with two other films, and the other films in this trilogy are completely unavailable in an R1 release. I'd love to see a company like Criterion pick up Dovzhenko's entire Ukraine Trilogy for a bluray release.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/61/616892803621f.jpg)
Be With Me
Year of Release: 2005
Directed By: Eric Khoo
Starring: Theresa Chan, Chiew Sung Ching, Lawrence Yong, Seet Keng Yew, Ezann Lee, Samantha Tan
Genre: Drama, Romance
Overview:
Be With Me is a tapestry of three stories woven around the themes of love, hope, tragedy and redemption. Although the main characters come from different backgrounds and lead different lives, they are bound by one common desire – to be with their loved one. Unbeknownst to them, these different souls will share the same stage in a play written by Fate. The protagonists in the movie are fictious bar one – Theresa Chan, a courageous deaf and blind woman whose life story inspired the film.
My Thoughts:
This is an interesting but somewhat frustrating film. It had a lot of potential - but it would have been better if Khoo would have focused on either the stories of the two lonely people (the overweight security guard's story and the increasingly desperate break-up girl's story) OR the story of the blind/deaf woman and her interactions with her social worker and his father. Both could have been good films, but joined together they just don't fit well. I'm still rating it above average because the pieces were good, but it could have been a lot more.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/IE/IE6516CE8DE9CB136f.jpg)
Faraw! Mother of the Dunes
Year of Release: 1997
Directed By: Abdoulaye Ascofaré
Starring: Aminata Ousmane, Safiatou Mahamane, Safiatou Mahamane
Genre: Drama
Overview:
FARAW! recounts twenty-four hours in the life of a woman in Songhoi country. Zamiatou, the mother of three young children, is fighting for survival in a town in northeastern Mali, on the edge of the desert. Her husband is to weak to work and her children are exasperated by their situation of poverty. Life is very hard in this devastated, almost desolate region haunted by the specter of drought. Zamiatou endures many ordeals, refuses to put her daughter into prostitution and finally gets help from her old friend, Morou, who lends her a donkey and a few water skins....
My Thoughts:
A powerful and moving portrait of one woman's indomitable determination and strength of will. As George Monbiot once said, "If wealth was the inevitable result of hard work and enterprise, every woman in Africa would be a millionaire." Zamiatou is the embodiment of that quote. She isn't afraid of difficulty or hard labor. Indeed, that is her life and she accepts it. She is unwilling to take the easy (but morally repugnant) way out, but instead holds her head high and clings to her honor and her faith. If you don't admire her character by the end of the film, you have no soul.
The casual misogyny of her two sons toward their sister, and Zamiatou's acceptance of that, is less easy to accept, and mars this otherwise excellent film. That may be my Western bias speaking. I'm rather sad that no one else on Letterboxd has logged this film, as it's well worth seeing.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/03/031398228615f.jpg)
Caramel
Year of Release: 2007
Directed By: Nadine Labaki
Starring: Nadine Labaki, Yasmine al Masri, Joanna Moukarzel, Gisele Aouad
Genre: Drama
Overview:
A Beirut beauty salon becomes a treasured meeting place for several generations of women, from various walks of life, to talk, seek advice and confide in one another.
My Thoughts:
This is a warm, romantic tale of love - love attained, love lost, love forbidden, mutual love, one-sided love, the hope of new love, the bitterness of dying love. It's also, and perhaps even more primarily, a tale of female friendship, a tale of women who stick by one another and support each other through the good times and the bad. The film starts quite slow and takes a while to get going. But if you give it a chance, about half way through you really start to connect with these women and really care about their lives. It's very much an ensemble, slice-of-life film, and recommended if you like that sort of film.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/61/616892081210f.jpg)
Alamar
Year of Release: 2009
Directed By: Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio
Starring: Jorge Machado, Roberta Palombini, Natan Machado Palombini, Nestor "Matraca" Marin
Genre: Drama
Overview:
Jorge has only a few weeks before his five-year-old son Natan leaves to live with his mother in Rome. Intent on teaching Natan about their Mayan heritage, Jorge takes him to the pristine Chinchorra reef, and eases him into the rhythms of a fisherman's life. As the bond between father and son grows stronger, Natan learns to live in harmony with life above and below the surface of the sea.
My Thoughts:
This is a lovely and touching portrait of the relationships between father and son, mostly the bonding between Jorge and Natan, but also touching on Jorge's relationship with his own father, and the relationship between the grandfather and Natan. There's not much plot here - it's all about the characters and the story of these few months Jorge has with his son before he leaves for Italy with his mom. It's also about the beauty of Banco Chinchorro, and the seemingly timeless way of life of Jorge's people. It's a very gentle film, a film about feelings rather than action, like a tone-poem almost. Recommended for the natural beauty and the loving relationships depicted here.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/65/658769934038f.jpg)
The Last Homecoming
Year of Release: 2008
Directed By: Corinna Avraamidou
Starring: Stavros Louras, Popi Avraam, Dimitris Xystras, Christopher Greco, Maria Kitsou, Christodoulous Martas
Genre: Drama
Overview:
During the course of what seems to be an idyllic Mediterranean summer, a Greek Cypriot family are asked to re-evaluate their relationships, as compelling desires and needs are beginning to unfold. Passions, infidelities and betrayal emerge, while political mumblings are heard in the distance. The year is 1974. Soon their world is about to change forever.
Alexandra and Orestes, a handsome young couple, arrive from Athens to spend the summer holidays with Orestes' family at the beautiful seaside town of northern Cyprus, Kyrenia. The year is 1974. Phaedra, Orestes' mother is a passionate Greek literature teacher who decides to mount a performance of Euripides' "Trojan Women" with the help of the family and the townspeople. Her husband Yiannis is a silent observer as her old lover Manolis follows closely her every move. The political turbulence of the time is manifested as Manolis, a right-wing nationalist, dreams of the unification of Cyprus with Greece stating that the "Greekness" of the island is under threat by Turkey. Nevertheless, the Turkish Cypriot gardener and neighbour Aziz and his deaf daughter Nellin are the closest friends of the family, having shared a life-time next to each other. Meanwhile, Stefanos, Orestes' brother, who is a journalist and a political left-wing activist, also arrives at the house. The differences between the two brothers are obvious. Alexandra's restless nature leads to an inevitable attraction between her and Stefanos, while the whole community comes alive with the preparations for the play. As the play climaxes with a triumphant opening night, Stefanos and Alexandra resolve to the urgency of their passion and Manolis takes part in the coup to overthrow the president Makarios – bringing to a climax the complex forces at play. A superbly produced epic drama about love, loss and betrayal.
My Thoughts:
The Last Homecoming reminded me a lot of A Summer in La Goulette. Like the Tunisian film, it's about a group of neighbours who are good friends despite ethnic/religious differences, who are living their lives at the cusp of political turmoil. Here, what we see is a family on the verge of falling apart - long-married couples with underlying difficulties, a young couple without a strong connection. The family's difficulties are a mirror of the country's. The older son supports one political cause, his mother another, his father and brother want nothing to do with politics and just want to live in peace. Despite their hopes, things will come to a head, and solutions are not found. It's really quite a good film, but avoid if you cannot take an ambiguous ending.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/85/854565001367f.jpg)
Nostalgia for the Light
Year of Release: 2010
Directed By: Patricio Guzmán
Starring: Gaspar Galaz, Lautaro Núñez, Luís Henríquez
Genre: Documentary
Overview:
The legendary Chilean filmmaker Patricio Guzmán (THE BATTLE OF CHILE) travels to the Atacama Desert, where atop the mountains astronomers gather to observe the stars. The sky is so translucent that it allows them to see right to the boundaries of the universe.
The Atacama is also the driest place on earth, and the harsh heat of the sun keeps human remains intact: those of Pre-Columbian mummies; 19th century explorers and miners; and political prisoners, killed by the Chilean army after the military coup of September, 1973.
So while astronomers examine the most distant and oldest galaxies, at the foot of the mountain women, surviving relatives of the disappeared whose bodies were dumped here, search for the remains of their loved ones, hoping to reclaim their families' histories. Melding the celestial quest of the astronomers and the earthly one of the women, NOSTALGIA FOR THE LIGHT is a gorgeous and moving odyssey.
My Thoughts:
A powerful and moving portrait of man's search for meaning and answers in life, Nostalgia is the story of our struggles with memory and time. This is one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. I'm not exaggerating, Nostalgia's cinematography is absolutely gorgeous. This is also one of the few films that after I had finished it, I could have watched it again. Immediately. Highly, highly recommended.
Bechdel Test: N/A
Overall: 5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/73/738329078621f.jpg)
Le Quattro Volte
Year of Release: 2010
Directed By: Michelangelo Frammartino
Starring: Giuseppe Fuda
Genre: Director
Overview:
Le Quattro Volte (The Four Times) is an ineffably beautiful meditation on the mysterious cycles of life. Set in Italy's mountainous region of Calabria, it traces the path of one goat herder's soul, as it passes from human to animal to vegetable to mineral. Director Michelangelo Frammartino was inspired by Pythagoras' belief in "four-fold transmigration" of souls, but his film is far more physical than philosophical. In gorgeous long takes, he captures the daily routines of the herder, a baby goat, an imperious tree and a humble charcoal kiln. Plus there is a scene-stealing cameo from a stubborn sheep dog, who hilariously interrupts an Easter Procession. Working as both a spiritual investigation and a documentary of Calabrian life, Le Quattro Volte's placid surface hids a complex understanding of humanity. Everything is connected in Frammartino's sublimely mystical universe in which he finds both humor and pathos in the hypnotic rhythms of everyday life.
My Thoughts:
A meditation on the interconnectedness of life and death; of men, animals, plants, and minerals; of the natural world and the civilized world; of one soul to another. It's as much philosophy and poetry as film, and its questions and message are universal. There is a deep empathy and understanding for all life.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 4/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/72/720229913089f.jpg)
Kilometre Zero
Year of Release: 2005
Directed By: Hiner Saleem
Starring: Nazmi Kirik, Eyam Ekrem, Belcim Bilgin, Ehmed Qeladizeyi
Genre: Drama, War
Overview:
The first Iraqi film to be chosen to compete in the prestigious Palme d'Or competition at Cannes, KILOMETRE ZERO is a darkly humorous story about a Kurdish soldier and an Iraqi taxi driver who join together to return the body of a fallen soldier to his family, on the other side of the country. Featuring Belçim Bilgin, an ELLE cover girl in Turkey.
My Thoughts:
Here we have a common road movie trope: two men from disparate backgrounds forced on a trip together. So often with that trope the two men come to understand and appreciate each other and become friends. It's actually refreshing, and more realistic, that here they do not. A few days does not relieve years of bigotry.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/I3/I3FE20CAC5ED8A933f.jpg)
On The Verge of a Fever (Le gout des jeunes filles)
Year of Release: 2004
Directed By: John L'Ecuyer
Starring: Lansana Kourouma, Uly Darly, Mirelle Metellus, Koumba Ball
Genre: Drama
Overview:
Against a backdrop of poverty, fear, and the brutal dictatorship of Haiti in 1971, ON THE VERGE OF A FEVER (Le Gout des Jeunes Filles) tells the story of Fanfan, a 15-year-old boy who wants to experience life for huimself with his street-wise friend Gégé. Having lived a sheltered life with his overprotective mother, Fanfan experiences a bizarre, terrifying incident with Haiti's secret police, the Tonton-Macoute. He decides to hide out at the house of his beautiful neighbors. There, he is trapped between his fear of getting caught and his desire to fulfill his deepest fantasy. This colorful drama is based on Haitian novelist Dany Lafèrriere's Le Gout de Jeunes Filles.
My Thoughts:
Fanfan, a 15-year-old Haitian boy, sneaks out of the house and runs into trouble with the Tonton Macoute (the government's enforcers). On the run, he takes refuge in the house of several prostitutes he has admired from afar. Despite the interesting setup, I couldn't connect with this film. Fanfan was really the only developed character - everyone else was either just roughly sketched out, a stereotype, or both. There were subplots that were brought up - such as Miki's relationship with the photographer - and dropped with no resolution. The affectations of the film (on screen words, Dany Laferrière's overdubbed voice for poetry, the fourth-wall breaking) also really take away from the film experience. If they had left those out and only focused on Fanfan's story, and developed the other characters and their lives a bit more this could have had a lot of potential. As it stands, it's disappointing.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 2.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/79/795975107235f.jpg)
Travellers and Magicians
Year of Release: 2003
Directed By: Khyentse Norbu
Starring: Tshewang Dendup, Sonam Kinga, Lhakpa Dorji, Gomchen Penjor, Deki Yangzom
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Overview:
Mystical journeys of spiritual discovery are set against the spectacular, evocative landscape of the remote kingdom of Bhutan in Travellers & Magicians. Young government official Dondup (Tshewang Dendup) dreams of escaping to America while stuck in a ravishingly beautiful but isolated village. But when he misses his bus to the city (and an awaiting visa), Dondup is forced to hitchhike with an elderly apple seller, a sage young monk, and old man, and his beautiful daughter (Sonam Lhamo). Along the way, the mischievous monk tells Dondup a story of another young man who sought a land far away: a tale of lust, jealousy, and murder that holds up a mirror to the restless Dondup and his blossoming attraction to the innocent young woman.
Directed by Khyentse Norbu (AKA Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, one of Himalayan Buddism's most revered lamas), this critical and box-office hit magnificently interwines twin love stories for an enchanting unforgettable film that is filled with heart, hope and humor.
My Thoughts:
A young man's dreams of an exciting life with more money lead him on a journey toward the US, but along the way he keeps company with a monk whose stories may help him realize that the grass isn't always greener. If that sounds a bit cliche, it is. The ending isn't as clear cut, leaving us to wonder if he will leave or stay. Bhutan is gorgeous though, and the film is almost a meditative fable. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it's for slow film lovers.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/69/698452204833f.jpg)
Five Dedicated to Ozu
Year Released: 2004
Directed By: Abbas Kiarostami
Starring: nature
Genre: Documentary
Overview:
Acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami (A TASTE OF CHERRY, THROUGH THE OLIVE TREES) pays homage to Yasujiro Ozu, the brilliant Japanese filmmaker whose spare but evocative style has been a major influence on Kiarostami's work. Canny and sublime, the 74-minute film is comprised of five long, apparently single takes of a beach on the Caspian Sea, all focusing on the ocean, comprised of virtually no camera movement and enveloped in rapturous natural sound.
Richly poetic and shot on a hand-held DV camera, the film features five extended, apparently single-take sequences:
1. The camera accompanies a piece of wood with which the waves are toying, at the beach.
2. People are walking along, by the seaside. Older people stop, look at the waves, then walk away.
3. Indistinct shapes on a beach in winter. A group of dogs. A love story.
4. Ducks noisily cross the frame in one direction, then the other.
5. A pond. Nighttime. Frogs. A chorus of sounds. Then, a storm, and finally, dawn.
My Thoughts:
This is a tough film to review, and it definitely has a limited audience. I tried to describe it to a friend and he was like "I'm not seeing a point here." It's a visual meditation, an exploration of time - day moving to night, the timelessness of the sea contrasted with the finite span of living things. If that sounds interesting to you then watch this film. I thought it was beautiful.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/73/738329038823f.jpg)
L'Age d'or
Year of Release: 1930
Directed By: Luis Buñuel
Starring:
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Overview:
Poetic, absurd, erotic, visionary and scandalous, L'ÂGE D'OR can still "provoke, baffle and delight" (New York Times) more than seventy years after its creation. "Contriving effronteries so offhanded you can't believe you've actually seen them' (Village Voice), L'ÂGE D'OR showcases the incomparably obsessive cinematic imagination of Luis Buñuel at its beginning and the celebrated surrealism of Salvador Dali at its peak.
In 1930, following their short film triumph UN CHIEN ANDALOU, Buñuel and Dali created an hour long avant-garde tour de force that1s both an aesthetic avalanche of boldness and a withering attack on a society that elevates pious morality over sexual freedom. As scorpions battle, partisans (led by famed surrealist painter Max Ernst) stumble and the forces of middle-class righteousness repeatedly interrupt two neurotic lovers, L'ÂGE D'OR delivers a gleeful fever dream of Freudian unease, bizarre humor and shocking imagery that once experienced cannot be forgotten. Skewering everything from Catholic piety to sexual fetishism, the film provoked riots, was denounced by Mussolini's ambassador, earned its backer a threat of excommunication and was banned by the French Police all within two weeks of its release.
A cherished inspiration for six decades of filmmakers from Hitchcock to David Lynch, Fellini to Monty Python, this justifiably lionized and excoriated masterpiece of 20th century cinema is now available on DVD to challenge, arouse, unnerve, amuse and galvanize the uninitiated for generations to come. Whether parody or polemic, artistic experiment or lurid shaggy-dog charade, L'ÂGE D'OR 'reassures us that as long as we have eyes, we will still be susceptible to shock' (New York Times).
My Thoughts:
Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood for this film. It's a series of vignettes, loosely strung together by following a man and woman who can't seem to manage to get enough privacy to have sex. There's a cow in the bed. She fellates a statue's toes and french kisses her father. It just gets weirder from there. It's a surrealist film, a collaboration with Salvador Dali, so that's not surprising. I didn't really enjoy it, and I usually appreciate this sort of thing, so I'll give it another try later on. Definitely not for those who want a linear story.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 2.5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/72/720229911597f.jpg)
Angel on the Right (Farishtay Kifty Rost)
Year of Release: 2002
Directed By: Djamshed Usmonov
Starring: Uktamoi Miyasarova, Maruf Pulodzoda, Kova Tilavpur, Malohat Maqsumova
Genre: Drama
Overview:
10 years after leaving Tajikistan, the Moscow-based gangster Hamro is tricked into returning to his home village, where he must confront old foes, debts, his tradition bound mother and a son that he didn't know he had. After seducing a beautiful nurse and finding legitimate work, Hamro has a chance to make good.
According to Islamic folk legend, an angel on a man's left shoulder records his bad deeds and the one on his right records the good, and these will be weighed on Judgment Day. Which angel will Hamro listen to?
My Thoughts:
This is an interesting character study of a pretty unlikable man. Hamro is a hard, unsympathetic man, but we do glimpse the economic reality that has made him that way. It's also a glimpse into the culture of a country that many people have never heard of. It's a grim, bleak little film - but there is a tiny ray of hope that Hamro may, someday, be a good man (by way of his relationship with the boy).
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/64/643519119896f.jpg)
A New Day in Old Sana'a
Year of Release: 2006
Directed By: Bader Ben Hirsi
Starring: Nabil Saber, Dania Hammoud, Paolo Romano, Sahar Al Asbahi, Redha Khoder
Genre: Romance, Drama
Overview:
In this achingly romantic tale, handsome young Tariq is about to marry Bilquis, eldest daughter of a prominent and powerful judge. But as he wanders the ancient city of Sana'a late one night, he spots a beautiful young woman dancing in the street and falls madly in love with her. Before long, the young groom must choose between following his heart and protecting his family's honor. Filmed entirely on location in the ancient city of Sana'a, this exquisite film is the first feature ever to come out of Yemen.
My Thoughts:
This is a sad, romantic film that's a tad on the melodramatic side. The plot is pretty standard and a lot of the characters are very one-dimensional. At the same time it's a fascinating look into Yemeni culture, and the old city of Sana'a is beautiful. That beauty makes the current situation in Yemen all the more heartbreaking.
I'm ambivalent about the character of the Italian photographer. I understand the purpose he serves here, as both someone for an outside audience to relate to and as a reason for Tariq's temptation to break with tradition, but he's also the least interesting character and ultimately doesn't matter to the plot. I would have much rather spent the time with the Yemeni characters. I also didn't like the duality of the ending. I would have rather seen Ines granted the same dignity of honor as Tariq.
All that aside, I'd still recommend it to lovers of world cinema, since this is likely the only Yemeni film you're going to be able to see for a very long time.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/72/720229911825f.jpg)
Margarette's Feast (A Festa de Margarette)
Year of Release: 2002
Directed By: Renato Falcao
Starring: Hique Gomez, Ilana Kaplan, Carmen Silva
Genre: Comedy
Overview:
A modern silent masterpiece using the style and techniques of Brazil's cinematic past, Margarette's Feast tells an allegory of Brazil's social struggles without words while making dazzling use of exhilarating Brazilian music. After losing his job, goodhearted but penniless Pedro comes into possession of a miraculous suitcase that never runs out of money, allowing him to throw an extravagant birthday party for his wife.
My Thoughts:
This is an absurd silent comedy which is ultimately tragic. A poor man with a good heart and a happy family dreams of finding a suitcase full of money, which he uses to give his wife a grand birthday celebration. Along the way he shares his wealth with his fellow poor people and eludes the gangsters and authorities who wish to relieve him of his fortune. Ultimately it is, of course, a dream. The man is left with naught but the grocer's bill. It's still mostly a very amusing film, and recommended if you enjoy the style of silent comedy, but the ending brings us back to reality.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/08/089218441294f.jpg)
The Student of Prague (Der Student von Prague)
Year of Release: 1913
Directed By: Stellen Rye
Starring: Paul Wegener, John Gottowt, Lyda Salmonova, Grete Berger
Genre: Drama, Horror
Overview:
Balduin (Paul Wegener) is a penniless student in 19th century Prague who, in a chance encounter, rescues the beautiful Countess Margit Schwarzenberg and becomes romantically obsessed with her. Scapinelli, the sorcerer, lures the student with a bargain - 100,000 gold pieces - a vast fortune - in return for which "...he shall take from this room whatsoever he chooseth for his own use..." and Balduin hastily signs the contract. Much to the student's astonishment, the old magician approaches a large mirror, extracts Balduin's reflection and departs with it! Intoxicated with his new-found wealth, the student is unaware that he is now doomed to a horrific fate.
With its Faustian theme, 1913's The Student Of Prague is one of the first "horror" movies and a true classic of German expressionist cinema. Alpha Video is pleased to present this landmark film with an original score by Paul David Bergel and completely restored title cards.
My Thoughts:
Early though this film may be, there's still a disquieting, uneasy atmosphere to it. The concept of the doppleganger is still frightening, and the scene where he is drawn out of the mirror is haunting. It's unfortunate that only Baldwin is well-developed as a character, and that the plot is only loosely held together. Also, as good a job as Paul Wegener did playing his character, he is really too old to be convincing as a student. That seems to be an issue for early films like this (Elmo Lincoln as Tarzan comes to mind here). Recommended if you like silent films, especially German Expressionism (as this is a precursor). The story concept is intriguing, and I look forward to watching the 1926 remake at some point in the future.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 3/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/04/043396041271f.jpg)
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (Bom yeoreum gaeul gyeoul geurigo bom)
Year of Release: 2003
Directed By: Kim Ki-Duk
Starring: Oh Young-Su, Kim Ki-Duk, Kim Young-Min, Seo Jae-Kyung, Ha Yeo-Jin
Genre: Drama
Overview:
A tiny Buddhist monastery floats on a raft amidst a breathtaking landscape, tended to by a solitary Monk. Into this serene setting comes a young child, who will become the Old Monk's protégé... and so begins a lifelong journey of hope, despair, passion and redemption in a film hailed as "a triumph of sheer cinematic craft," (Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald).
From the brash actions of youth, through the dawn of adolescence and the fullness of adulthood, one man's life lessons are learned as seasons pass, his emotional inner life changing as the landscape around him. Award-winning Korean writer/director/editor Kim Ki-duk has crafted a lushly exotic, yet universal story about the human spirit and its evolution, from Innocence to Love, Evil to Enlightenment, and ultimately to Rebirth that Elizabeth Weitzman of the New York Daily News calls "a beautifully composed canvas, the sort of film one falls into, resurfacing at the end with great reluctance."
My Thoughts:
This gorgeous Buddhist fable might be the film I've enjoyed most this month. It's a meditation on the seasons of the year, the seasons of life, and the price of wisdom. The old monk watches, seemingly impassive, as his apprentice makes mistakes. Only after does he work on lessons from the mistakes, showing the younger that his actions have consequences he must accept. But only through those mistakes, consequences and responsibility does wisdom come. Wonderful film for anyone wishing to know more about Buddhism, or for anyone walking a Pagan path. Highly recommended.
I now also want to visit Juwangsan National Park, because where this was filmed is spectacular.
Bechdel Test: Fail
Overall: 5/5
-
(http://www.invelos.com/mpimages/71/715515113410f.jpg)
Persona
Year of Release: 1966
Directed By: Ingmar Bergman
Starring: Bibi Andersson, Liv Ullmann
Genre: Drama
Overview:
By the midsixties, Ingmar Bergman had already conjured many of the cinema's most unforgettable images. But with the radical Persona, this supreme artist attained new levels of visual poetry. In the first of a series of legendary performances for Bergman, Liv Ullmann plays a stage actor who has inexplicably gone mute; an equally mesmerizing Bibi Andersson is the garrulous young nurse caring for her in a remote island cottage. While isolated together there, the women perform a mysterious spiritual and emotional transference that would prove to be one of cinema's most influential creations. Acted with astonishing nuance and shot in stark contrast and soft light by the great Sven Nykvist, Persona is a penetrating, dreamlike work of profound psychological depth.
My Thoughts:
There's not much I can add to the conversation on this magnificent film. So much has been said already. This is a true masterpiece of cinema, a complex and layered piece of work that will require multiple viewings to peel back the strata. Be prepared for an intellectual film, but this is a must-see for cinephiles.
Bechdel Test: Pass
Overall: 5/5