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Dancing At Lughnasa Directed by Pat O'Connor Starring Meryl Steep, Michael Gambon, Catherine McCormack Distribution: Sony Pictures Classics *** / B |
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Based on the award-winning stage play and opened up considerably for the screen, this pleasantly agreeable if somewhat emotionally-muted picture focuses on a tightly-knit clan of five Irish sisters in the 1930s confronted by a series of financial tragedies as the film progresses. While the episodic familial dilemmas are competently wrought, the picture's core lies with the dynamic between the female quintet, as well as the various men in their lives -- young "love child" Michael and his father Gerry, and most intriguingly, the sisters' elder brother Father Jack, returned home from a journey to Africa in an addled state. In this respect, the terrific ensemble cast shines: Meryl Streep is notable as the stern, shrewish schoolteacher who acts as the head of the family (she could be in line for a probable Oscar nomination had her role been a less reactionary one), while Kathy Burke is particularly vivid in a vivacious turn markedly different from her Cannes-feted work in Nil By Mouth. (Catherine McCormack continues to make indelible impressions, as does Sophie Thompson.) Aided by a solid score by Bill Whelan and filled with Irish jigs and tunes, the picture stumbles on its final, somewhat abrupt, note, but it's a solid piece of wistfulness.
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A Simple Plan Directed by Sam Raimi Starring Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Bridget Fonda Distribution: Paramount **** / A |
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A smashingly gripping thriller which keeps ratcheting up the tension, this is a remarkably restrained outing from Sam Raimi -- only a single sequence immediately struck me as indicative of his unmistakable signature visual style. Adapted from his bestselling novel by author Scott B. Smith, it's both conventionally straightforward and visually inventive -- the clever opening and closing shots of Bridget Fonda are a delight. The engrossing picture is also remarkable in the amount of suspense it elicits from both standard thriller conventions and seemingly inevitable plot developments, while also playing intriguingly as a morality study. The performances in the film are uniformly great, with Billy Bob Thornton commanding the screen in an award-worthy turn, and Bill Paxton doing some of his career-best work as the picture's protagonist; a mortified reaction employed in an exchange with Mr. Thornton is outstanding. And in spite of her good-girl screen persona, Ms. Fonda is the right actress to play the scheming wife; that perpetual twinkle in her eye is put to more sinister use here. While it's inevitable that snow-bound comparisons to Fargo will abound -- filing out of the theatre, I'd already overheard several mentions -- they're completely unwarranted: these are very different pictures. (For one, Fargo is a comedy -- and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.)
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God Said, "Ha!" Directed by Julia Sweeney Distribution: Miramax ** ½ / B- |
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Given the film is comprised entirely of an interrupted monologue (save for one pregnant pause at a poignant moment) delivered on a sparse set, one's final reaction to this film is almost completely dependent upon one's attuned with the humour of comedienne Julia Sweeney. I've always found her comedy harmlessly pleasant; as such, this picture, based upon her stage show, is a little charmer: a gentle-spirited, humorous recounting of her family's ordeal when cancer struck both she and her younger brother Michael. Shifting smoothly between ironic humour and touching solemnness, it's always engaging and breezy while playing it very safe -- there's not a bit of risqué black humour to be found, and many of the laughs are elicited from familiarity, as Ms. Sweeney candidly riffs about her parents' various idiosyncracies. (Given the tragic and intensely personal nature of the film's subject matter, one feels almost heartless, even Grinchian, to point out deficiencies.) The picture is so visually static (it's a quintessential wall-to-wall talking head flick) that otherwise-inobtrusive camerawork inherently calls attention to itself.In attendance: director/star Julia Sweeney
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In The Winter Dark Directed by James Bogle Starring Brenda Blethyn, Ray Barrett, Richard Roxburgh, Miranda Otto Distribution: none ** / C- |
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A major disappointment despite the presence of some of Australia's premiere actors, this murky mystery is an atmospheric, technically finely-crafted but ultimately overwrought drama. The moody, ominous picture challenges the audience to piece together the unfolding backstory of the rural quartet of protagonists (Brenda Blethyn, Ray Barrett, Richard Roxburgh, and Miranda Otto) as the fragmented narrative smoothly leaps back and forth in time, but it's a demanding film which doesn't pay off; In The Winter Dark is a tragedy which fails to unsettle.In attendance: director James Bogle, actor Brenda Blethyn
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The Celebration Directed by Thomas Vinterberg Starring Henning Moritzen, Birthe Neumann, Ulrich Thomsen Distribution: October Films *** ½ / A- |
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If this were any indication of the typical expected quality of a Dogma 95 picture, I'd muse that the powerful, vivacious The Celebration might prove to be a trendsetter in world cinema -- unfortunately, the word out of Cannes on Lars von Trier's similarly-dogmatic The Idiots was less than kind at best, and outright hostile more often than not. For those of you that blinked, the notorious Dogma 95 manifesto is one brought forth by Thomas Vinterberg and Mr. von Trier, calling on directors to take a stylistic vow of chastity in order to return to a 'purer' style of filmmaking -- location shooting, exclusive use of sync sound, handheld cameras only, no directorial credit, no background music, no filters ... no phone, no lights, no motor cars, not a single lux-ur-y. The adherence to these stringent rules obviously lends an extremely spontaneous, gritty tone to The Celebration which immediately commands attention, though it was surprising how quickly the audience grew acclimatized to the jittery camcorder visuals and the consequent graininess (exacerbated during the nighttime scenes and virtually any sequence with a low level of lighting, and rendering the onscreen action near-indecipherable) and was absorbed by the film's story -- at its climax, I marvelled at how the audience was stunned into total silence. Although Mr. Vinterberg later ruminated that the film's streak of nasty black humour in its opening half hour would only be of particular relevance to fellow Danes, I disagree -- this picture has an extremely funny screenplay, particularly in its opening half, although the film grows at turns more sobering and more outlandish as it proceedes to uncover dark familial secrets. Set during what must be considered The Birthday Party From Hell, the action centres around a would-be festive evening celebrating the 60th birthday of Helge Klingenfeldt and the delightfully ill-timed toasts from eldest son Christian, who accuses his father of repeatedly raping him and his twin sister Linda (who committed suicide shortly before the events in the film) as children. While much of the immediate interest is captured by the jovial overtones in which these shocking claims are addressed -- the scandalized guests politely act oblivious to the turmoil brewing around them, the parents are slightly ruffled, while Christian's outcast-but-eager-to-please, tempermental brother devises increasingly violent ways of ejecting him from the premises (Christian's escapes and sheer stubborness eventually play as little triumphs) -- the picture quietly builds a relentless intensity which is cumulatively harrowing and draining, yet satisfying (and shrewdly doesn't undermine the proceedings with an undeserved happy ending). While The Celebration is a great kernel of an idea exploited to its fullest potential, and benefits from a terrific ensemble (I particularly enjoyed Thomas Bo Larsen's indelible work), its adherence to the Dogma 95 standards also yields a couple of visual gems -- the dreamlike sequence with Linda has an ethereal beauty in its sheer simplicity, and the submerged, rippling closing credit sequence is truly gorgeous.In attendance: director Thomas Vinterberg, actor Ulrich Thomsen
