After a chance encounter at a cementary celestial viewing party, Dell, a cynical, very intelligent 20-something, quickly becomes infatuated with Kimberly. After some reluctacy from Kimberly, a tempestuous love affair begins. Sam Esmail's Comet is an unconvential narrative that unfolds like a puzzle, painting a rather effective portait of the effect love has on the human soul. Chronicling the long, troubled relationship between Dell and Kimberly, Comet jumps all over the place, capturing various signifcant moments in their relationship that give a sense of each individuals shortcomings, hopes, dreams, and desires. While the cosmic aspect does feel completely unnecessary, almost like a gimmick, Comet is certainly tells its story in a one-of-a-kind way. As far as love stories go, Comet is more Blue Valentine than 500 Days of Summer, providing an engaging and honest portrait of relationships, with neither individual being demonized or celebrated. If I had one complaint about Comet, and it is a pretty big one, it would stem from the film's dialogue, which is incredibly over-written at times, spelling out key moments that don't need to be explained in an exposition type of way. The script almost feels at war with itself because of this, convoluting a simply film about love and loss, destroying its potential elegant evocation of love. This is expecially unfortunate given the film's visual prowess, being an impressively designed film that evokes emotion, offering a window into the characters emotions. While undoubtebly flawed, Comet showcases a strong amount of talent from its peformances to its cinematography, making it closer to truly great romance films than most generic romantic comedies.
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Based on the real life story of Alan Turing, Mortem Tyldum's The Imitation Game is a conventional oscary-type film that manages to succeed more than it fails thanks to Alan Turing being such a unique, unconventional man. The primary narrative of the film centers around Alan Turing joining Britain's top-secret Government Code and Cyper School during World War II. Tasked with breaking the unbreakable German code, Enigma, Turing's introvert, unconventional personality clashes with many of his fellow code-breakers. Centered around Turing's monumental achievement, The Imitation Game gives a relatively well-rounded portrait of this unique man, showcasing his early days of grade school, as well as his arrest and charges for 'gross indecency', centered around Britain's absurd criminal laws against homosexuality. Many have criticized The Imitation Game because they believe it glosses over Turing's sexual orientation but I vehemently disagree with this assertion. The Imitation Game instead opts to show how truly important Turing was for humanity, showing how his incredibly intellect lead to saving the lives of millions. Turing is a man who ended up having to wrestle not only with sexual discrimination but also the weight of morality, and The Imitation Game exposes the absolute absurdity of Britain's anti-homosexual laws by simply showing how important of man Turing was. Sure, the film could have certainly explored Turing's hidden homosexuality potentially created his loneliness and narcissism towards the world but Cumberpatch's performance does capture this to a degree. As far as these types of films goes, Mortem Tyldum's The Imitation Game is one of the better films of its kind. Naomi Murdoch, a small-time actress, has been estranged from her family for many years. One night after a show, Naomi receives a letter from her youngest daughter, asking that Naomi attend her play. Moved by the heartfelt letter, Naomi reluctantly returns home to this small town, attempting to reconnect with her family that she ran out on so long ago. Douglas Sirk's All I Desire is an extremely well crafted melodrama featuring strong performances all around, most notably Barbara Stanwyck, who delivers one of the most soulful performances of her career. Douglas Sirk is one of my favorite filmmakers for his ability to capture melodrama in a way that never feels overly sentimental, with All I Desire being another great example of this. With a story that sounds downright smultzy from synposis alone, Sirk deconstructs small-town America, capturing the sheltered mindset and underlying dark corners that exist. That being said, Sirk hasn't created a seething commentary but a balanced study of domestic life, showcasing the allure of this world, while contrasting small-town america vs. the big city life. From a characer perspective, All I Desire is engaging and emotoninally resonant, following this woman whose absense from her children has led to division among them. While Naomi's youngest daughter idolizes her mother's big city actress life style, her oldest daughter despises her for jettisoning her family. Sirk explores these relationships in such a soulful way, creating a beaitufiuly realized portrait of a woman having to face her past mistakes. All I Desire is a stunning film as well, with perfectly designed compositions and staging that is remarkabe, especially consiidering this is a film from the early 50s. Douglas Sirk's All I Desire is a rich thematic film, exporing small town vs. big city, the balance between personal goals and family, among other things, being another example of why Sirk is such a celebrated filmmaker. Lance Pool, a decorated Native American soldier who recently recieved the Medal of Honor, returns home to his tribe's land after the Civil War only to discover that his people are being victimized by Verne Coolan, a crooked lawyer. Coolan is master manipulator, using completely legal means to seize the fertile tribal land,, turning the population against the tribes as a way to get what he wants. With the law unable to grant justice to the Native Americans, Lance becomes a renegade, intent on righting the wrongs of the imperialistic white men. Anthony Mann's revisionist western, Devil's Doorway, is an incredibly poignant study of racial discrimination that marked a turning point among Hollywood Westerns. A film heavily influenced by Mann's Noir aesthetic, Devil's Doorway is one of the most visually impressive Westens, effectively creating tension through visual cues alone. An intelligent script that is unquestionably ahead of its time, Devil's Doorway was one of the first films to not blindly paint the white man as a protagonist, offering a much more in-depth analysis of morality. Aesthetic and Intellectualism aside, Devil's Doorway is a tense, action-packed experience that is sure to entertain as much as it stimulates the mind. Filmed over three years, J.P. Sniadecki's The Iron Ministry is an intimate and naturalistic look at China, a country that is rapidly expanding both industrially and culturally. Taking place entirely on China's railways, The Iron Ministry is an observational study of the Chinese people, with the train being a microcosm of greater China as a whole. This is a film that does an excellent job at immersing the viewer into this world, capturing the anxieties and excitment of the Chinese people as they experience China's rapid transformation. The film is full of interesting ideas, touching on Chinese imperalism, the growing desire for democracy among its people, and social class struggles, but The Iron Ministry only scratches the surface, never willing to dig deep enough into any of these issues. The social class aspect of the film is the most compelling, with the train serving as a metaphor for the growing divide. Caputring the great class disaparity as it pertains to the conditions on the train, The Iron Ministry showcases this divide in a visual way. Given the film was shot over the course of three years, The Iron Ministry doesn't provide much visual reference to this rapidly changing environment, relying far too heavily on the conversations of the trains passengers to supply the commentary. Fascinating at times, The Iron Ministry is an observational study of the chinese people, documenting their lives as they adjust to a changing China. After losing their home in Algeria, three brothers are separated and go to different places of the world. Messaoud is a soldier in the Indochina war, Abdelkader fights for his freedom but quickly is put in jail; while Said is more interested in making money and running a boxing gym. After a peaceful protest goes wrong, their father is killed and Said and his mother move to France. Adbedelkader is released from Prison and Messaoud returns home from the war. Adbedelkader is a dreamer, and quickly becomes a leader in the Algerian independence movement, where Messaoud finds his place as Adbedelkader's enforcer. Said, on the other hand still shows no real interest in fighting the cause, showing an affinited for making money running nightclubs. Richard Bouchareb's Outside the Law chronicles the Algerians fight for independence through the underground organization FLN. This film has a rather epic scope, taking place in various countries, spanning many years. It plays out similar to a gangster saga as we watch Adbedelkader and Messaoud go toe to toe with the French's special terrorist unit, The Red Hand. Its a good film, but I don't think it really says anything that hasn't been said 100x before in other films which tackle similar themes. It touches on the emotions of these brothers, capturing the struggle the face as they do whatever it takes for freedom, but I only really found myself caring about Messaoud's struggle, never really being emotionally affected by the other two brothers stories. I wish the film spent more time developing the inner-relationships of these three brothers, exploring their family dynamics. Rachid Bouchareb's Outside the Law is a powerful film about the struggle for freedom but unfortunately it doesn't have anything all that interesting to say. Wallace, a prominent podcaster, makes a good living with his crude podcast which primarily focuses on strange stories and funny internet videos. On his latest trip to Canada, Wallace comes up empty-handed when he discovers his interview subject unexpectedily committed suicide. While sulking over his wasted trip, Wallace discovers a strange note on a bathroom wall written by Howe, a man who claims to have lived an adventurous life. Hoping Howe's stories can serve as an adequate replacement for his podcast, Wallace sets off to interview Howe but Howe's true intentions are much more macabre than Wallace could ever expected. Kevin Smith's Tusk is an absolutely absurd, strangely endearing horror/comedy about a demented man in Howe who wants to surgical transform a human-being into a Walrus. Yup, you read this correctly, but Tusk works way better than I expected thanks to Kevin Smith's ability to embrace the absurdity of this concept. Tusk is a film that gets off to a rocky start, with an abundance of cringe-worthy moments, but as the film progresses it becomes clear that Kevin Smith is fully embracing the campy aspect of this tale. The horror bits of Tusk are somewhat effective but what makes it all work is the absurd comedy and camp, with Johnny Depp completely stealing the film as a bumbling homicide detective, who feels like an homage to Inspector Clouseau. This is seriously one of Depp's best performances in years, tongue and cheeking it up in a way that feels incredibly refreshing, given his ability to sleepwalk through most of his recent roles. Featuring a few gleefully twisted moments, Tusk is a flawed but entertaining film that works cause it never takes itself too seriously. Taking place over the course of one night and the subsequent morning, Rodrigo Sorogoven's Stockholm is a piercing portrait of gender relations, capturing a "battle of the sexes" in a fascinating and unique way. the film is centered around El, a smooth, charming man, who becomes instantly infaturated with Elle, a beautiful woman, who he catches a glimpse of at a bar. Confident, El is persistent in his courtship of Elle but she is reluctant to give herself over to his charms. As the night progresses, Elle begins to fall for El, but when the morning arrives everything has changed. Featuring a stellar screenplay, much of Stockholm plays like an incredibly well thought out romantic comedy, think the Linklater's Before trilogy, with two characters expressing their emotions, feelings and desires for one and other. As the night fades away and the sun comes up Stockholm takes a dramatic shift, becoming a poignant study of gender dynamics, with both El and Elle having a very different perspective of their relationship. Stockholm is a film that deconstructs the differences in emotion centered around the notion of love, providing a fascinating psychological study of a man and a female who each share an attraction. This is not a film interested in picking a side between El and Elle, that is far from the point, Stockhold instead captures the psychological fragility that love and emotion can create. Being subtle in approach, Stockhold captures how Elle is a emotionally damaged individual, somewhat shattered due to her shortcomings at finding love. Rodrigo Sorogoven's Stockholm is a film that is best enjoyed knowing very little, being as much about thedestructive power of love as it's about differing gender dynamics. The United States is in ruins and Vampires are a widespread epidemic. Martin, a teenage boy, witnesses the death of his entire family but is saved by a vampire hunter of sorts, who throughout the film is known as Mister. Martin becomes Mister's protege and is trained by Mister to kill vampires. Jim Mickle's Stake Land is a fun vampire flick that dabbles in the grotesque, being a fun if not somewhat forgettable vampire film. Sure to annoy vampire purists, Stake Land focuses more on the grotesque when it comes to the design of these Vampires, making them more monstrous than the classic victorian style. Stakeland is basically a road movie for long stretches, folliowing these two characters as they attempt to survive in this dark world. The film takes an interesting turn in the middle, centered around a religious group who believes the vampires are part of god's plan. This subplot is unique but definitely hit-and-miss, taking away from the forward momentum of the protege narrative. The character of Mister is easily the most memorable in the film, carrying it for stretches, dishing out a large amount of violence and badassary to anyone or anything that gets in his way. Jim Mickle's Stake Land is better than some vampire flicks but it isn't one of the best ever, being a strong if not flawed film that's a lot of fun. Angela Schanelec's Afternoon is one of the most pensive character studies I've seen in a long time, peering into the human soul as it deconstructs the human condition certered around hopes, dreams, and emotion. The film is centered around Irene, a self-absorbed actress who returns home. Everything at home feels stagnant, with her son Konstantin completely intent on living in the area for a long time as eh sets his sights on being a successful writer. As Irene attempts to settle back into the normalcy of her life she begins to realize how truly different things have become. Afternoon is a film that spends no time on exposition, throwing the viewer directly into the story with no explanation about its characters. This is a film that firmly believes in less is more, slowly revealing its characters without giving the viewer anything easily. Borderline uncomfortable, the viewer finds themselves in intimate situations between these characters and it's quite frankly remarkable how poignant of a study this film becomes. As the film progresses I found myself truly understanding Irene & Konstantin, among others, having an acute sense of who they are, where they came from, and what possibly made them this way. While the first hour of the film is very exploratory for the viewer, for reasons mentioned above, the second half is an incredible portrait of damaged, stagnant souls, who have drifted into the hopelessness. Konstantin is a complacent character who without knowing it is weighed down by the vast unknown of life, while Irene is a character who long ago lost her ability to feel empathy for others. Angela Schanelec's Afternoon is a meticulously photographed study of hopeless individuals, being the latest example that reconfirms that Angela Schanelec is one of the finest contemporary filmmakers working today. |
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June 2023
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