Silent Nights: The Cabinet of Dr Caligari

The Cabinet of Dr Caligari
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

Announcing the return of Silent Nights @ the Rena Villa.

Sunday, March 6 @ 7:00pm there will be a showing of the German Expressionist classic The Cabinet of Dr Caligari -1919. Click on the title of this post for a link to a description of the film. Hope to see you there!

Another Year of Disappointment

Marty
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

Once again, Marty did not win the Academy Award, and I was denied the chance to see him accept his award through the tears in my eyes. I tend to have very little respect for the Academy Awards, the reasons are too numerous to mention, yet I know how badly Martin Scorsese would love to win one, and it breaks my heart that he has once again been denied the honor. Even more so when you consider that people like Kevin Costner, Mel Gibson and Ron Howard have been honored with the Best Director Award!

As you know I am a strong supporter for Clint Eastwood's direction of Million Dollar Baby, in fact I think it surpasses his work on Unforgiven, but since he already has one Oscar, I would not be sad if he didn't have a match. Marty is my idol, his passion for film inspires me to no end. I only pray that the next time around it is his. And my tears will be even more sweet.

Grand Illusion

Grand Illusion
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

"THE ABSURDITY OF WAR". Whenever I hear that phrase used to describe a film, I groan, then chuckle. I mean, who needs a film to tell them that war is a waste? That being said, I must talk about one of the greatest Masterpieces in the history of histories, Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion.

Jean Renoir was Genius enough to make a film about War, that instead of showing the Brutality of War showed us the Humanity of the people involved. Set during "The War to End All Wars" WWI, in German POW camps, there's practically no violence in the movie at all, which seems almost impossible considering the subject, yet it is far more moving than any other film on the subject I have ever seen. The first time I saw this movie I must admit, I fell asleep in the theater. But, I really place all of the blame on the fact that I had been up since 4:00 am working at Starbucks, than the film boring me to sleep. I was so angry with myself, especially since the final reels of the film were so moving, and I had no idea how the characters got to be where they were.

The Characters, Oh dear God, the Characters! First off the central character is the charming and rakish Jean Gabin as Lieutenant Marechal, he is joined in his adventures by Pierre Fresnay as the aristocratic Captain de Boeldieu, Marcel Dalio as Rosenthal -a wealthy Jewish POW who feeds his fellow prisoners with the elaborate packages he receives from his family, and last but not least "The Man You Love To Hate" Erich von Stroheim as Captain von Rauffenstein. Each are played to perfection! I should also mention the wonderful Renoir regular Julien Carette who steals each of his scenes as the horny, vulgar, lovable actor, who helps entertain his fellow POWs.

A World War reduced to snowball fights, drag shows, and a little German girl who wants to eat baby Jesus for Christmas, these are a few of the grace notes that give this film life, and will live with me forever.
You Must Watch This Film -several times,
Derek

Grand Illusion

Grand Illusion
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

Here are a few of the men of Grand Illusion.

Simone Simon

Simone Simon
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

Just last night I watched Jean Renoir's La Bete Humaine, starring Jean Gabin and Simone Simon. I had been meaning to watch it for years, but didn't get around to renting it until yesterday. As I watched, I couldn't help notice how lovely and beguiling Simone Simon was in this film. I think the only other film I have seen her in is Cat People. I was shocked and saddened today to find that she died only yesterday. What crazy timing! She will be missed, yet she will live forever in the films she made. The title of the post is a link to a short bio.
This week has been big for Hollywood Obituaries, with the deaths of Sandra Dee, Dan O'Herlihy & Hunter S. Thomson.

3 Women

3 women
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

I would like to take a moment to talk about what I consider one of Robert Altman's most enigmatic films, 3 Women. It's a pretty strange film. It's surprising that there was ever a time when a major American studio (20th Century Fox) would allow a film like this to be made on their dime. How things have changed! Altman claims to have actually dreamt the film, including the title and cast, while staying in the hospital with his ailing wife. This accounts for the feeling the film has of watching a fever dream. Strange, yet fascinating.

Shelley Duvall and Sissy Spacek play the lead characters. I really love both actresses very much, and this film features each in top form. Sissy Spacek is Pinky Rose, a young, simple wide-eyed Texas girl, who is employed as a nursing home attendant in a small town in the California desert. Shelley Duvall plays Millie Lammoreaux, a kooky, over-chatty, nursing home attendant appointed to train Pinky Rose. Millie lives an almost imaginary life as a sophisticated 1970's single woman, at least the way she sees it portrayed in Cosmopolitan, and Mc Call's Magazines. She is almost like a bizarre combination of both Mary and Rhoda. Millie will make a huge impression on Pinky Rose, and eventually takes Pinky in as a Room-mate. Slowly, Pinky Rose begins to assume Millie's personality, and identity, and things get pretty unusual.

The film is beautifully photographed, The interior scenes are under-lit with the blazing California sun creeping through the windows (you can always sense the desert is near, yet you only occasionally see it in this film), giving many scenes a dreamy almost hallucinatory feeling. Then there are the paintings. The third woman if you were wondering, is less a character and more a motif Janice Rule is Willie Hart, a pregnant painter and saloon keeper, who seems to spend all of her time painting enormous nightmarish murals. The paintings dominate the scenes they are in and also add to the discomforting feeling the film has.

The film is also full of humor, if you were feeling that it was sounding a little too dramatic.

I Highly Recommend this film.

Breaking the Waves

Breaking the Waves
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

I have this habit of hating things irrationally. Many cases it has to do with the way something is presented to me, like if someone I consider a disgusting Pig creates something and calls it brilliant, I might boycott it and have nothing to do with it from then on. As far as film goes the only two people I have sworn off are Kevin Smith & Lars von Trier. As far as Kevin Smith is concerned, I felt violated by Mallrats, and just can't stand the man in general, and plan to never face watching anything he directs again. Lars von Trier on the other hand is violently despicable in interviews. His ego is like a black hole swallowing the universe. His claiming to channel the spirit of Carl Theodor Dryer while making Medea, is only a prime example of why he disgusts me. This is why I have spent the past nine years avoiding Breaking the Waves, against the strong persistence of certain friends of mine who have suggested my watching it. Well, I would like to take this moment to say, I was wrong.

I really didn't want to like it, even just for the self satisfaction of knowing all these years that it was pretentious garbage and I was better without. To my chagrin I was faced with a film that I found the work of a genius. Every aspect of the film was with merit, the exquisite photography, the beautifully tragic story, the brilliant performances -particularly Emily Watson, and the wonderful 1970's soundtrack. I couldn't find fault with the picture. I guess Lars von Trier is a genius, and as with other genius' Josef von Sternberg, Erich on Strohiem & Prince I will no longer be bothered by his knowing it. I look forward to watching his other films. As for Kevin Smith, I will continue to hate him.

Worth A Million!

High On the Hog
Originally uploaded by livingfilm.

Okay, I'm Back. I've been meaning to give you kids another dose of my opinion, for almost a week now, and I'm just now getting around to it. I hardly know where to start. I guess I will start with a film I watched last night.

Million Dollar Baby I'm sure you have heard of it by now, and from the reaction of most of the people I've talked to, you are possibly skeptical. Well, if my endorsement means any thing to you, Take It! I found this film to be skillfully directed, beautifully acted, and very satisfying to watch. I love Clint Eastwood granted, and I also have a great love for boxing movies (actually so does Crystal, though I don't think either of us have watched Rocky), but I really don't think that either of these biases are necessary to be moved by this film. I don't want to give too much away, but I will just say that, I was really surprised at how little this film satisfied the conventional expectations you would have from it. Many times the story, would reach a familiar point, then suddenly the film would recede into an unexpected shadow. I know as soon as I say this, I will hear complaints from people that claim they saw right through the story, and knew exactly what was going to happen (Some people are just naturally Crabby). But, to that I can very easily point out the beautifully realized characters. Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman and Hillary Swank, each give wonderful performances. Enough actually, to carry a lesser film. I really felt these people had a history, and veins full of blood. Clint Eastwood's direction on this film, is truly something to be studied. It is economical and simple, never fancy yet very effective. I would compare the direction to the work Budd Boetticher, a director of Westerns, who was known for distilling a story to its essential elements, and creating very simple and entertaining films (not to mention short, most of his films were about 72 minutes long). Some critics claim that all of Eastwood's films are essentially Westerns, and I would say that is true for many, including Mystic River, yet for Million Dollar Baby, the only comparison to a Western I would find, would be its poetic simplicity.