December 19, 2008
The 39 Steps (1935) ****
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Apparently, this is the film that allowed Hitchcock to break through from directing B-level British films to future mainstream success.
Decades before hits like Psycho, Vertigo and The Birds, Hitchcock clearly showed his potential as a director in this fun crime thriller.
Similar to North by Northwest, The 39 Steps explores that old story about the man wrongly
accused who must go to extreme lengths and fight overwhelming odds in order to vindicate himself and prove his innocence.
No surprise, the plot is all over the place, and unfortunately, there are a few twists that are so far-fetched that I
couldn’t forgive them.
The first involves a convenient flock of sheep that stand in the middle of the road, allowing our protagonist to escape from the clutches of dangerous villains.
The other has the same man break out of a police station by jumping through a front window.
In this sequence, handcuffs are shown secured on his wrists, and then the camera switches to the front of the police station to see the man escape.
How he got free in the first place is never shown.
That being said, The 39 Steps is a whole lot of fun, with great performances by its two main characters played by Robert
Donat and Madeline Carroll.
The best scene in the film begins with the two of them handcuffed to each other in a hotel room.
At this point, they can’t stand the sight of each other.
The sexual chemistry between the two which comes across later during these scenes is therefore a welcomed surprise.
Hitchcock’s direction is truly above and beyond what you’d expect from a film so modest.
Even though The 39 Steps stands well on its own, I was most fascinated by the fact that I was watching a milestone in the development of possibly the greatest director of all time.
Labels: 1930s, Four Stars, Filmspotting Hitchcock Marathon, Thriller, Wiseguy DB Marathon
The Visitor (2008) *****
Directed by Thomas McCarthy
Richard Jenkins gives such an amazing performance that I will be sad if he does not receive an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. At this point, I believe it can go either way. Jenkins has been a reliable, talented character actor for a long time, and as such, it is breathtaking to witness a truly grand breakout performance. He plays a jaded professor who simply goes through the motions since his wife died. Early in the film, we see him updating the syllabus for his course by simply whiting out the semester and the year. He’s pretty much stuck on autopilot until he finds two illegal immigrants, who are also boyfriend and girlfriend, squatting in his New York apartment which he owns but almost never uses. He lets them stay as they search for another place, and in doing so, he befriends both of them. One of the immigrants named Tarek introduces Jenkins’ Walter to the world of world drum music, which begins to rekindle the flame in Walter’s soul—a flame that went out with the death of his wife. Sadly, Tarek is unjustly arrested in a subway station and placed in an immigrant prison where he is not given access to basic legal rights which we take for granted as Americans. Walter tries all he can to help, including looking after Tarek’s girlfriend Zainab, hiring a lawyer and eventually allowing Tarek’s mother Mouna to stay with him since she wants to be as near her son as possible. Walter’s growing relationship with Mouna brings a new, unexpected layer of meaning to his existence. The Visitor is an infuriating indictment of our country’s unjust ways of dealing with detained immigrants. Beyond that, it’s also a glorious meditation on the love that’s necessary in order to live truly fulfilling lives. These two explorations marry each other perfectly thanks to the direction and writing by Thomas McCarthy, who directed another wonderful film called The Station Agent, and the universally excellent performances by Jenkins, Haaz Slieman as Tarek, Danai Guiria as Zainab and the lovely Haib Abbas as Mouna. The subject matter of The Visitor is too serious and important for there to be a clean, happy ending. Though heartbreaking, the conclusion hits the right notes which allows this treasure of a film to really stick with its audience. See this one!
Labels: 2008, Five Stars, Drama
Kung Fu Panda (2008) ****
Directed by Mark Osborne & John Stevenson
What a charming animated film! This is another one of those underdog (or underpanda) stories about an eager hero who doesn’t believe in himself at first, but ultimately proves that he has what it takes to defeat the bad guy. The voice characterizations by Jack Black and others are a lot of fun, and refreshingly, there aren’t any musical numbers or trendy pop culture references. Also, I was treated to one of my favorite movie characters of the year—the noodle making duck who is the panda’s father. I might just have to get an action figure and place it next to my computer. Like WALL-E, Kung Fu Panda rests on the power of its story. Unlike WALL-E, however, the animation itself is disappointing. With so many animated films released each year, it’s hard to make them all as visually impressive as films like Toy Story or Finding Nemo, both of which took over three years to realize. The computerized animation looks too much as if it came all too quickly from a computer. If only another year was allowed in order to really make the animation awe its audience, then this could have been described as a timeless masterpiece. Still, it’s rare that movies come along more charming than Kung Fu Panda.
Labels: 2008, Four Stars, Animated Film
The Constant Gardener (2005) ****
Directed by Fernando Meirelles
Rachel Weisz deservedly won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as an activist who takes on some dangerous and powerful enemies ultimately resulting in her death. Her husband, played by the great Ralph Fiennes, dedicates his life to finding out the reason why his wife was killed. There are two very different intentions at work in The Constant Gardener—one a spy thriller and the other an expose on some of the dehumanizing injustices in Africa. I think the film delivers in both ways, but unfortunately, they don’t cohabitate seamlessly. The Constant Gardener is also a very tricky movie in the sense that the reins are handed over from Weisz to Fiennes about an hour into the film. As such, we the audience must adjust very quickly to a new main character, and in this regard, I think screenwriter Jeffrey Caine and director Fernando Meirelles succeed brilliantly. Overall, The Constant Gardener is a very moving and enraging cinematic experience.
Labels: 2005, Four Stars, Thriller, Drama, Wiseguy DB Marathon
Boy A (2008) **1/2
Directed by John Crowley
Boy A is an overdirected, pretentious art house joint with quite a bit going for it, and yet, it doesn’t ultimately deliver satisfaction to the viewer. Andrew Garfield’s role as a young man who must begin a new life with a new name after he is released from prison is a tricky one. The crime he committed as a young boy is truly heinous, resulting in the horrific death of a young girl. Therefore, if anyone finds out who he really is, then his second chance at a normal life is over. Garfield tries to show his character’s inner struggles all too blatantly. Sure, his character must adjust to the outside world which he hasn’t been a part of since before he hit puberty. Yes, he’s not sure if it’s okay to forgive himself and if he can accept himself as loveable. I guess I wanted to see more nuanced acting rather than Garfield’s reliance on strange facial twitches to show us what his character is going through. Garfield is certainly a talent to keep your eye on—he was one of the very best things about the disappointing movie Lions for Lambs. However, the best performance in Boy A is given by Katie Lyons as the young man’s girlfriend. She falls in love just as we the audience fall in love with her as well. When a major obstacle comes between her and her boyfriend, we are left to wonder at first whether or not she would have accepted him had he told her the truth about his past when he met her. Unfortunately, Boy A’s stupid ending answers this for us, or maybe I should say that we get the answer that’s in the young man’s mind. I felt cheated that the final scene actually concludes the story. I’d personally have appreciated an open ending where I could contemplate what ultimately happens next. Further, the subplot with his surrogate father and that man’s biological son feels tacked on and disingenuous. Don’t get me wrong… Boy A is far from terrible. It’s simply extremely disappointing, and its direction reeks of far too much ambition. There are effectively disturbing moments, most of which take place in flashback, though we are given glimpses that even as an adult this young man might be a danger to society. Certainly Boy A allows us to ask interesting questions regarding rehabilitation and whether or not certain criminals do or do not deserve a second chance to be beneficial members of society. I simply wish these questions came out of a more focused and a more humble movie.
Labels: 2008, Two and a Half Stars, Drama
