No End: Krzysztof Kieślowski

Many people seem to like Krzysztof Kieślowski's No End. But unfortunately I can't count myself among them. What should be the story of one woman’s grief presided over by the metaphorical and literal specter of her husband is repeatedly waylaid by the late husband’s court case. Kieślowski flounders, failing to mix the spiritual and political as seamlessly as his great early triumph Camera Buff (1979). In fact, the entire court case--which dominates the second half of the film--seems deliberately crammed in to try and force a political angle. The film feels misdirected and scattershot. Thankfully Kieślowski would get his aesthetics straight in later films.

6/10

The Scar: Krzysztof Kieślowski

Despite being only his second fiction film, Krzysztof Kieślowski's The Scar demonstrates his proclivity for darkness. Entire rooms are washed out in shadows which swallow all colors. The outdoors seem muted and washed out. The most interesting thing about The Scar is its visuals. There are brilliant cinematic flourishes: wet pictures being slapped onto a bathroom mirror; a static montage of trees being cut down for a forest; Party members feeding a deer a cigarette. But by and large, The Scar doesn't have any real fire in its belly. Intellectually sound, it doesn't have a drop of emotion anywhere in it. And unfortunately, its occasional beauty can't salvage its sterility.

6/10

Spectre: Sam Mendes

Sam Mendes' Spectre is a perfectly competent installation in the James Bond series. But that's sorta the problem, isn't it? The previous James Bond film Skyfall (2012) ranks as one of the best films in the entire series while Spectre is just...okay. For one thing it isn't as visually impressive as Skyfall: three of the major location set pieces (Mexico City, Rome, Morocco) have almost identical color palettes. Only the stark white Austrian Alps provide any real variety. The most visually striking sequences are the opening ones taking place at the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico City (notice the impressive opening crane shot). But my biggest complaint is that the third act of the film needed another screenplay draft. Characters become rock-stupid idiots (Why, oh why, did Dr. Madeline Swann leave James Bond's protection in London? I'll tell you why: because the screenwriters needed for her to get kidnapped so she could get rescued by Bond...again...), Ernst Stavro Blofeld becomes effectively immortal--surviving both a catastrophic explosion and a fiery helicopter crash--and the film can't quite decide if the eponymous criminal cabal is a gathering of super-criminals interested in profit or an anarchic "New World Order" organization.

7/10

Skyfall: Sam Mendes

I was quite leery at the thought of a James Bond film where we dove deeply into the character's past. Bond always struck me as a character that worked best in the present tense. Any attempt to explain his "origin" would be superfluous and reductive. Imagine my amazement when Sam Mendes' Skyfall proved that a film could be about his past and be a fantastic piece of filmmaking. I honestly think Skyfall is the best Bond film in decades--certainly the best Daniel Craig film. Imaginative, metaphorical (I love how it all ended at Skyfall ranch with Bond and M's pasts literally coming back to hurt them), and above all else BEAUTIFUL, Skyfall proves that established series can still be fresh and innovative. Wait, did I mention how good this film looks? I can't remember the last time a film made me pause due to its beauty. Scenes of Bond fighting the assassin in the glass skyscraper in front of a giant jellyfish...Bond going to a Chinese gambling den that looks like a temple...Bond fleeing from the fires of Skyfall...here is a film of light and silence, shimmering in splendor, harrowing in intensity.

9/10

The Musketeers of Pig Alley: D. W. Griffith

Many of the elements that would come to define the gangster movie can be found here in D. W. Griffith's The Musketeers of Pig Alley, the film widely considered to be the first of its genre: the shocking, sudden violence; men driven by machismo motives concerning power and respect (notice the one scene where a man gets shooed away from the chair of one of the more powerful hoods); a nearly Shakespearean plot of chance, fate, and redemption. The middle part drags a bit, though--it's comprised mostly of large people walking menacingly in back alleys.

A Bullet for the General: Damiano Damiani

I usually try to review movies within a day or two of watching them. But sometimes I lose track of things and don't end up reviewing them until weeks later. Such is the case with Damiano Damiani's A Bullet for the General. But unlike most of the movies that I wait too long to review, I can still remember the film very well. I guess that speaks to its power. For me personally, the film has two major endearing qualities. The first is its exquisite widescreen cinematography. The second is the fact that nobody in the film is innocent. Everybody is a bastard to some degree. I particularly liked Klaus Kinski's warrior priest ("In the name of the Father--" *BOOM* "--and the Son--" *BOOM* "--and the Holy Ghost!" *BOOM*). Also...that opening scene with the man tied to the train tracks? Brilliance.

8/10

The Adventures of Dollie: D. W. Griffith, G. W. Bitzer

It's largely all here: many of the thematic elements that would come to dominate director D.W. Griffith's career can be found in this, his first film The Adventures of Dollie. His woeful presentation of race (evil Romani kidnap a white child) is matched only by his preoccupation with women in danger from beastly/sub-human men (the woman in this case is a baby girl, but still...). His framing and pictorial compositions are about as rudimentary as they can get, but I have to admire his ability to cram so much story into so little time.

Criminal Activities: Jackie Earle Haley

To read this review, go to: http://theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-review-criminal-activities/67409.

6/10

His Trust: D. W. Griffith

I have a hard time believing that so much happened in the 14-minute run-time of D.W. Griffith's His Trust. More happened in this one-reel film than I've seen in many blockbusters. It's basically an entire Civil War drama: a Confederate man goes off to war, trusts his home and family to an elderly slave, dies, has his mansion and property raided and destroyed by Yankees, and has his trust vindicated by the elderly slave who rescues his wife and daughter, saves his prized saber from the conflagration, and even dutifully sleeps outside while the wife and daughter sleep in a paltry shelter. And yes, the film is horribly racist: the elderly slave is in blackface (as are all of the black characters), he is unquestionably subservient (one uncomfortable scene involves the daughter riding him on his back like a mule), and all of the "black" extras act like performers in a minstrel show. But Griffith's ambition is stunning. He juggles full battle scenes, hordes of extras, and decent sized sets. It's a marvel to behold, if also an uncomfortable one.

Those Awful Hats: D. W. Griffith

Well here's a delightful and unexpected surprise: a short comedy film by D.W. Griffith that is actually funny! Those Awful Hats is a roughly two minute short that deals with a common problem experienced by early movie-goers: women with absurdly large hats. In the film a group of people are at a cinema watching a movie (and I'll be damned if I can figure out how Griffith managed to depict the film screen that dominates the upper left-hand corner of the frame which was obviously added in post). When a group of ladies with gigantic hats enter, a massive crane lowers from the ceiling and plucks one woman's hat off before returning to snatch a second be-hatted woman whole. It's an impressive effect and I'm curious to see how Griffith pulled it off.

Two Tons of Turquoise to Taos Tonight: Robert Downey Sr.

God bless whatever Criterion copywriter managed to smuggle the word "thingamajig" into their official description of Robert Downey Sr.'s Two Tons of Turquoise to Taos Tonight. And "thingamajig" it truly is for the thing can hardly be described as a "film." It's more of a nearly hour-long conglomeration of meaningless skits and sketches strung together with only shared actors and actresses in common. Watching the...thing...is tremendous: barely a scene goes by and you've already  completely forgotten what just happened. Well, that's not entirely true. There was one bit where a man asks a woman for food that I think I will always remember. In response, she peels off her panties and shoves them into his mouth. He chews for a moment and asks for more. She then pulls down a second pair of panties revealing a third underneath.

Censored Voices: Mor Loushy

To read this review, go to: http://theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-review-censored-voices/67335.

7/10

The Man Who Could Work Miracles: Lothar Mendes

In addition to being a pure delight, Lothar Mendes' The Man Who Could Work Miracles is one of the most British films that I've ever seen. This film is so British that when its protagonist gains god-like powers he still shows up for work on Monday. This film is so British that when its protagonist wants to "disappear" a constable giving him trouble, he sends him to the second worst place he can think of: San Francisco. I kid, I kid, but The Man Who Could Work Miracles is a wonderful USA/UK co-production mingling fantastic talent from both sides of the Atlantic. One of the most interesting parts of the film is how it doubles as a harsh political allegory against classicism. The fact that it came out only 3 years before the beginning of World War Two also gives it an uncomfortable prescience. And, oh, aren't the special effects just charming?

8/10

Men Without Women: John Ford

To read this review, go to: http://theretroset.com/b-roll-john-fords-men-without-women-1930/.

4/10

The Legend of Hell House: John Hough

John Hough's The Legend of Hell House is a delightful, devilish little piece of pulp. Only a few minutes into the movie we're already in the eponymous haunted house. Not even twenty minutes in there's a ghostly possession. There's something charming about horror movies about the supernatural that just drop all pretense from the get-go and tell us that, yes, the monsters are real. The actual set used is one of the best haunted houses I've ever seen: dark, gloomy, and full of sinister nooks and crannies. Hough and cinematographer Alan Hume do a fantastic job keeping things visually interesting with tilted cameras, switched-up depths of field, and off-kilter frame compositions. The story doesn't quite make sense, particularly the sub-plot about the one researcher who refuses to believe in the supernatural after personally witnessing several literal hauntings. But the film is so much fun that it hardly matters.

7/10

Condemned: Eli Morgan Gesner

To read this review, go to: http://theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-review-condemned/67104.

8/10

Arthur Christmas: Sarah Smith

Sarah Smith's Arthur Christmas was an incredible surprise.  Simple, honest, earnest, and happy, it deserves to become a Christmas classic. I love how there isn't a villain, just well-meaning people with different approaches towards solving the same problem. The humor is surprisingly snappy and original ("We need to head South!" "This is the North Pole! Everywhere is South from here!"). I really don't have much more to say, mostly because I've already expressed my thoughts on this movie in an article for my church's newsletter.

8/10

All These Women: Ingmar Bergman

To read this review, go to: http://theretroset.com/b-roll-ingmar-bergmans-women-1964/.

6/10

Maidstone: Norman Mailer

If I had wanted to watch a two hour ego trip, I would have watched an Orson Welles film. At least then the film would have been artistic, interesting, and had a point. The same can't be said for Norman Mailer's Maidstone which, unless I've missed my mark, has primarily gained notoriety since its release for its general terribleness. Only in the world of Art could a bad film be valorized as a good film just because it had a significant director. Maidstone is just two hours of self-indulgent film vomit. Even the infamous fight between Norman Mailer and Rip Torn can't redeem this film. Am I the only one who thought it was kind of sick to include footage of his wife and kids freaking out and wailing over him getting attacked?

2/10

Innocence Unprotected: Dušan Makavejev

The true brilliance behind Dušan Makavejev‘s Innocence Unprotected comes from the fact that it’s unclear whether or not the film mocks or celebrates its subject, Dragoljub Aleksić‘s 1941 film of the same name. The first sound picture made in Serbia, it is nevertheless patently absurd and ridiculous. Essentially, Aleksić‘s film centers on how awesome, brave, mighty, and sexy Dragoljub Aleksić is as he saves a fawning damsel from a brutish rapist. Typical for Makavejev, he interjects scenes from the movie with documentary footage of the Nazi Occupation and Aleksić and his film crew in the modern day. The result is a portrait of an unapologetic narcissist in all his past and present glory. So is the film making fun of him or championing him? Perhaps both. But certainly not neither: Makavejev isn’t that kind of filmmaker.

8/10

Kung Fury: David Sandberg

David Sandberg's Kung Fury is to Richard Park and Y.K. Kim's Miami Connection (1987) what Miami Connection is to Miami Vice. It's a ludicrous, over-the-top piece of nonsensical ridiculousness more suited to be chopped up into tumblr gifs than it is to be actually watched as a piece of cinema. And you know what? That's the point. David Sandberg lived the dream and created the kind of thing most people like to think up after a long night of video games and action movies with friends. In short: I never want to see it again. Make no mistake, I'm glad it exists. But it was too much for me.

Blind Chance: Krzysztof Kieślowski

To read this review, go to: http://theretroset.com/taking-blind-chance-krzysztof-kieslowski/.

8/10

Flutter: Giles Borg

To read this review, go to: http://theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-review-flutter/66924.

8/10

Zorns Lemma: Hollis Frampton

And so I come once again to the bane of my cinematic existence: structuralism. Unlike many films of its ilk, Hollis Frampton's Zorns Lemma has an actual point--or at the very least an underlying intention: to reveal language as an arbitrary system of ontological building blocks. The nature of its alphabetic cycling lulls one into contemplative meditation. Unfortunately, like most structuralist films it collapses under the weight of its own importance. Why the bizarre prologue and epilogue? Why was the alphabet quickly reduced to twenty-four letters? The likely answers are because and why not? I think I'll give the same answers when I'm next asked why I don't like structuralism.

Emotion: Nobuhiko Ôbayashi

Nobuhiko Ôbayashi's Emotion is a four-dimensional, maybe-Dracula love/lust story of Oedipal anxieties. Joycean in complexity, it's a Japanese story borrowed from Europe, translated into English, then re-translated back into Japanese. Ôbayashi seems more interested in testing the durability of cinema's plasticity than in telling a "story" about "characters." If anything, the Dracula character is a red herring used to lure the audience into a state of complicity for Ôbayashi's filmic gymnastics. There are many shots that stuck with me: a Japanese Dracula swallowed in fog and bubbles; two young women frolicking in a forest with the camera flipped upside-down so it appears they're cavorting on the frame's ceiling; a man lying on his back in a pile of hay with a banana squirting its way out of his mouth.

The Grandmother: David Lynch

I can't remember the last time I've seen so many shades of black. David Lynch's The Grandmother is an oneiric miasma of impenetrable imagery, animation, and make-up effects. The idea of an abused boy growing a grandmother by planting a seed on his bed (which he notably wets over and over again) makes me jealous as an artist and writer. Much of the film seems deliberately opaque and unintelligible. In fact, the film that it reminds me the most of isn't Eraserhead (1977) but Inland Empire (2006). The sound editing becomes a character all of its own, as well. The Grandmother boasts a nearly flawless harmony of sound and image.

Addams Family Values: Barry Sonnenfeld

On the one hand, I like how Barry Sonnenfeld's Addams Family Values manages to up the character development of the titular Addams Family from the first film. Once more Christina Ricci steals the damn show as Wednesday, proving once again that her character is the heart and soul of these movies. The scene where she is locked along with Pugsley and Joel Glicker in a cabin in the woods and forced to watch Disney movies and musicals for hours on end was the highlight of the movie...as well as Wednesday's "attempt at perkiness." But on the other hand, the plot sorta mimics the first film, only this time Fester is the one being conned instead of the one doing the conning. And can I just say: Joan Cusack as Debbie Jellinsky was pure magic.

6/10

Fail Safe: Sidney Lumet

To read this review, go to: http://theretroset.com/b-roll-sidney-lumets-fail-safe-1964/.

10/10

The Addams Family: Barry Sonnenfeld

Screw the haters: I loved Barry Sonnenfeld's The Addams Family. It's silly, campy, over-the-top, ridiculous, preposterous, and occasionally inane. But that's because it wanted to be. I remember catching glimpses of this film when I was a child. Unfortunately, I only remember a handful of scenes. I wonder what the television version of this film really was like: the original version is shockingly graphic and sexual. But the film's charm comes from the fact that the Addams are a highly functioning family that legitimately loves one another despite the fact that they're constantly trying to kill each other. If they truly hated each other the whole thing would fall apart.

6/10

Lost in the Sun: Trey Nelson

To read this review, go to: http://theyoungfolks.com/review/movie-review-lost-in-the-sun/66560.

7/10

The Ghost of Yotsuya: Nobuo Nakagawa

Nobuo Nakagawa's The Ghost of Yotsuya was a film that I first encountered years ago while staying at my aunt's house in California. I had rented it from the local college campus' film library and was eager to watch it. However, the VHS copy was highly deteriorated and after a minute or so I had to give up in frustration. But now, serendipitously, the Criterion Collection has released the film for free on Hulu for Halloween! And, quite frankly, the film was worth the weight. It's one of the best ghost stories I've seen in a long time. It uses a curious elliptical framework for its narrative, jumping spaces of several years in-between edits. Because of this--and the fact that there are two similar looking male protagonists who go after two similar looking sisters--the film can be a bit difficult to follow, particularly in the first half. The film's a slow burn which is oddly refreshing for the genre: when the sh!t hits the fan in the last 20-30 minutes, it feels genuinely earned instead of forced.

8/10