Since the Bourne films, Tony Gilroy has apparently lost interest in telling a linear story. Michael Clayton left people befuddled well into the third act, and his latest, Duplicity is about the same. Events happen that seem to make no sense, but a flashback 15 or 45 minutes later makes things sensical.
The star driven Duplicity works surprisingly well. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen are alternately perplexing, infuriating and fascinating. The question of trust--or lack thereof--hangs like a thick fog over the entire film. This adds intrigue to the mix, and Roberts and Owen are particularly adept the banter that Gilroy has crafted for them.
Make no mistake, this is a star vehicle. But the supporting performances--especially Kathleen Chalfant, Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti--are what elevate the film above typical mid-winter toss offs.
The story is consistently engaging even though it's late into the film before you have a sense of what's going on. It's also clear from the audience reaction that it clicks at different times for different people and even then not always accurately.
Michael Clayton was dark and complex. Duplicity plays more like a variation on a theme: part romcom, part corporate thriller, part J. Roberts star vehicle. But it works well.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Mel on the Reader
I saw The Reader finally, and it's still tormenting me. I think it's a good film with excellence in it. Of course, Kate Winslet is truly extraordinary and deserving of the Oscar she received. But in my view, David Kross gives an even more exceptional performance as 15- to 21- year old Michael Berg that makes the first two-thirds of the film far stronger than the last third, in which Ralph Fiennes gives a competent performance as the older Michael. The last act is saved more by a wonderful performance by Lena Olin than by a satisfying conclusion.
The Reader has multiple complexities that make it hard to either digest or weigh its point of view. There's the affair between a 15-year-old boy and a 30+-year old Hannah. There's the subsequent discovery that Hannah was a guard at Auschwitz. There's the trial, in which the antagonism and set-up from her co-defendents leads one to sympathize with Hannah. There are no easy questions or answers here.
In the end, though, the film is more perplexing than thoughtful. By the time Michael connects the dots to discover a critical piece of information about Hannah's life, his feelings have been buried so deep the film seems aimless. This creates an almost impossible task for Fiennes.
Dissertations will probably be written on the affair between Hannah and Michael. Is the affair another manifestation of her inhumanity? Is it as simple as a first-love for a boy with a women who has put her past behind her? Is it a tribute to the beauty and power of sex? Certainly, it is beautiful. Both Winslet and Kross are beautiful and generally naked and in bed for a good chunk of the film.
David Hare and Stephen Daldry did fine work with The Hours, but as troubling and complex as The Reader is, it misses.
The Reader has multiple complexities that make it hard to either digest or weigh its point of view. There's the affair between a 15-year-old boy and a 30+-year old Hannah. There's the subsequent discovery that Hannah was a guard at Auschwitz. There's the trial, in which the antagonism and set-up from her co-defendents leads one to sympathize with Hannah. There are no easy questions or answers here.
In the end, though, the film is more perplexing than thoughtful. By the time Michael connects the dots to discover a critical piece of information about Hannah's life, his feelings have been buried so deep the film seems aimless. This creates an almost impossible task for Fiennes.
Dissertations will probably be written on the affair between Hannah and Michael. Is the affair another manifestation of her inhumanity? Is it as simple as a first-love for a boy with a women who has put her past behind her? Is it a tribute to the beauty and power of sex? Certainly, it is beautiful. Both Winslet and Kross are beautiful and generally naked and in bed for a good chunk of the film.
David Hare and Stephen Daldry did fine work with The Hours, but as troubling and complex as The Reader is, it misses.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
TV Updates
My travel schedule and competing demands for Thursday night television (damn you Fox for moving Bones to Thursdays resulted in a DVR full of shows I hadn't been able to attend to. Now that Burn Notice and The Closer have ended their seasons, I had an opportunity to do a few catch-up marathons. Here are some thoughts.
Kyle XY
I'm okay that this series has ended its run. I enjoyed it (a guilty pleasure, to be sure). I saw every episode. But this season seemed to reinforce the idea that the writers had run out of ideas. Instead of intrigue and action, we got teen angst that came across only as irritating and inauthentic.
A word on the last episode. Clearly it was designed to be a season cliffhanger rather than a series ender. But ABC Family might have given us a few more minutes of closure. If the show actually had a following, people would be screaming about the crappiest series finale ever.
Desperate Housewives
Marc Cherry has used some of the most creative ideas to revitalize this series. His trouble seems to be sustaining it over a season. This season remains lots of fun, but it's largely unmemorable. The death of Edie this week might revitalize once again and take us to an exciting season finish. I'm still recording on my DVR.
Grey's Anatomy
It just keeps getting worse and worse and worse. I couldn't take it, so it's all gone from the DVR, it's no longer recording, and I just couldn't take most of the cast any longer. The likables are minor and the dislikables rule. Buh Bye!
Law and Order
This has always been a DVR show for me. I like it, but I tend to watch it when nothing else is on. The cast shifts have been good, and the writing remains strong. The formula is a bit tired, but the election for DA has added a bit of sass to the proceedings. I'm still recording on my DVR
Saturday Night Live
The election episodes were amazing, and the January 10 episode with Neil Patrick Harris rates among the best ever. But SNL is definitely a show to record. You need to be able to skip through the endless commercials and the 50 percent of sketches that are unbearable to watch. But the one's that connect are terrific.
Ugly Betty
The best of the lot at the moment, Ugly Betty has simply gotten better and better. I was a quiet fan through the first couple of seasons, but the current season ranks as its best and one of the best on the air this year. I watched eight episodes in a row, and felt it hit a wrong note only once. The characters have evolved in ways completely consistent with their histories. Betty has a boyfriend who clicks (and who I hope stays for awhile). Occasionally, the show has given Justin his own episodes, and it's time to do that again. The guest stars (Bernadette Peters, Christine Baranski) fit perfectly. I'm glad to reconnect right as the show goes on extended hiatus, but I'll be there when it returns in a couple months. Must Watch TV!
And before I go, a word about Better of Ted. It will take me a few episodes to determine whether this is one of the most inspired shows since Wonderfalls or totally stupid. My initial reaction to the pilot, which I'm about to watch for the third time, is the former. Stay tuned.
Kyle XY
I'm okay that this series has ended its run. I enjoyed it (a guilty pleasure, to be sure). I saw every episode. But this season seemed to reinforce the idea that the writers had run out of ideas. Instead of intrigue and action, we got teen angst that came across only as irritating and inauthentic.
A word on the last episode. Clearly it was designed to be a season cliffhanger rather than a series ender. But ABC Family might have given us a few more minutes of closure. If the show actually had a following, people would be screaming about the crappiest series finale ever.
Desperate Housewives
Marc Cherry has used some of the most creative ideas to revitalize this series. His trouble seems to be sustaining it over a season. This season remains lots of fun, but it's largely unmemorable. The death of Edie this week might revitalize once again and take us to an exciting season finish. I'm still recording on my DVR.
Grey's Anatomy
It just keeps getting worse and worse and worse. I couldn't take it, so it's all gone from the DVR, it's no longer recording, and I just couldn't take most of the cast any longer. The likables are minor and the dislikables rule. Buh Bye!
Law and Order
This has always been a DVR show for me. I like it, but I tend to watch it when nothing else is on. The cast shifts have been good, and the writing remains strong. The formula is a bit tired, but the election for DA has added a bit of sass to the proceedings. I'm still recording on my DVR
Saturday Night Live
The election episodes were amazing, and the January 10 episode with Neil Patrick Harris rates among the best ever. But SNL is definitely a show to record. You need to be able to skip through the endless commercials and the 50 percent of sketches that are unbearable to watch. But the one's that connect are terrific.
Ugly Betty
The best of the lot at the moment, Ugly Betty has simply gotten better and better. I was a quiet fan through the first couple of seasons, but the current season ranks as its best and one of the best on the air this year. I watched eight episodes in a row, and felt it hit a wrong note only once. The characters have evolved in ways completely consistent with their histories. Betty has a boyfriend who clicks (and who I hope stays for awhile). Occasionally, the show has given Justin his own episodes, and it's time to do that again. The guest stars (Bernadette Peters, Christine Baranski) fit perfectly. I'm glad to reconnect right as the show goes on extended hiatus, but I'll be there when it returns in a couple months. Must Watch TV!
And before I go, a word about Better of Ted. It will take me a few episodes to determine whether this is one of the most inspired shows since Wonderfalls or totally stupid. My initial reaction to the pilot, which I'm about to watch for the third time, is the former. Stay tuned.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Cindy's Bus Tour
Here's a quick video of my bus tour of Savannah last month. It's narrated by Cindy, our driver and a true Georgia woman with an amazing accent.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Watchmental
After seeing some of the violence and reading some of the reviews, I was hesitant to see Watchmen. I despised 300, so Zack Snyder wasn't a draw. I'm not a fanboy of Alan Moore's graphic novel. But hey, not much is opening until May and it's on the IMAX. If you're going to really appreciate the violence in a movie, it should be on a screen five stories high.
That said, although the film is fundamentally flawed, it has much to recommend. The 3 hours definitely feel like 3 hours, but this is due to a considerable amount of time devoted to the backstory of each of the Watchmen before the plot kicks into full gear. The art direction is stellar in its own right, and it does a fine job of referencing the style of the novel. The story is dark and compelling, a worthy adaptation.
The violence is, in fact, over the top. Like 300, the violence in Watchmen is mostly stylized. It is also gory and intense. And in all honesty, as much as I was dreading it, the violence largely works. Largely. Snyder is not above a little gratuitous violence.
The soundtrack was, for me, the films biggest misfire. Watchmen, for the two of you who don't know, is sent during Richard Nixon's fourth term in the mid-1980's. The cold war is at its peak, and superheroes are hardly tolerated. Watchmen creates an alternate reality, but Dylan and Simon and Garfunkle seem out of place. And the backstory on Dr. Manhattan, the one superhero with super powers, is accompanied by various moments from Philip Glass's score for Koyaanisqatsi.
Watchmen is not getting its just due from the critics, but judging from the sold-out show I attended and the huge lines as I left, people are showing up. Not everyone is liking it--it's hardly likable--but its leading to some great discussions about the nature of heroism, the darkness of our times, and humankind's salvation.
That said, although the film is fundamentally flawed, it has much to recommend. The 3 hours definitely feel like 3 hours, but this is due to a considerable amount of time devoted to the backstory of each of the Watchmen before the plot kicks into full gear. The art direction is stellar in its own right, and it does a fine job of referencing the style of the novel. The story is dark and compelling, a worthy adaptation.
The violence is, in fact, over the top. Like 300, the violence in Watchmen is mostly stylized. It is also gory and intense. And in all honesty, as much as I was dreading it, the violence largely works. Largely. Snyder is not above a little gratuitous violence.
The soundtrack was, for me, the films biggest misfire. Watchmen, for the two of you who don't know, is sent during Richard Nixon's fourth term in the mid-1980's. The cold war is at its peak, and superheroes are hardly tolerated. Watchmen creates an alternate reality, but Dylan and Simon and Garfunkle seem out of place. And the backstory on Dr. Manhattan, the one superhero with super powers, is accompanied by various moments from Philip Glass's score for Koyaanisqatsi.
Watchmen is not getting its just due from the critics, but judging from the sold-out show I attended and the huge lines as I left, people are showing up. Not everyone is liking it--it's hardly likable--but its leading to some great discussions about the nature of heroism, the darkness of our times, and humankind's salvation.
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