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Duets (2000)
The Road to Self Acceptance.
In my humble opinion, a masterpiece for the late Bruce Paltrow working with John Byrum and a cast that went the distance. The tale is dark, but then again, so is life.
The director complained that he did not have the time and money to do this the way he would have really liked. I can only wonder what the film would have been with a larger budget. It is amazing what $15,000,000 can't buy these days. I am grateful that the DVD was able to capture the director's thoughts before his passing. I think the product is excellent. After viewing the DVD, I had to hit IMDB and find out more about this film.
The movie is a road story with six paired actors making a journey of self discovery. All the characters are flawed and dealing with those shortcomings in their own ways. There is a deliverance that makes the trip worthwhile.
Designed as a vehicle for Gwyneth Paltrow and Brad Pitt, delays changed the casting -- probably for the better except for box office results. Ms. Paltrow gives a fine performance -- which is what I was looking for while never expecting her vocal talents. Her songs are truly exceptional to my ear -- both her solo of "Bette Davis Eyes" and her duet of "Cruisin'" with Huey Lewis. Lewis gives a very credible performance opposite such a talented icon.
The top performance of the movie would go to Andre Braugher. His sociopath is as lethal as any I have seen of recent time. The mix of that terror with his vast feelings is a true blessing from this film. His odd pairing with Paul Giamatti is the best duet of the film with the later star also giving an excellent performance -- above what I have come to expect from him.
Maria Bello gives the film's second best performance as the self deprecating soul in quest of her dream. Her pairing with Scott Speedman provides perhaps most socially acceptable tandem in a morally corrupt scenario. And they do make a handsome pair. Speedman provides the true heart of the film who helps drive the characters to their fates. Another fine performance.
I am stunned that this film does not have an awards display. Nihilism has been around for a long time and this tale does it a fine turn. I suppose too many are seduced by the darkness to see the light at the end of this story. The director got excellent performances from a bunch of actors and deserves recognition for this result. While the music is not new, it is certainly a pleasure as performed. For the most part, by the stars.
John Byrum has created a dark tale that I would say makes the dark trilogy with Razor's Edge, The (1984) and Inserts (1975). I loved those previous efforts and am very satisfied with this addition to the set. I think anyone who enjoyed either of those films should take a hard look at this movie. I would say that Bruce Paltrow's touch has given this film a slightly brighter turn in this dark world.
I give the movie a 9 for outstanding performances from a large cast, excellent direction and a hard gritty story. It is not an easy movie to sit with, but the tale and performances win if you stick with it. Let the kids do something else while you watch it.
- Michael
The Dancer Upstairs (2002)
You must be able to dance in the political world!
I would expect a movie directed by John Malkovich to be intense and specific. The Dancer Upstairs is that. It is a political movie that while popular in Europe, does not tend to draw well in the United States. Too bad.
The story tells the tale of a lawyer who has left the law looking for a better system. I don't know that becoming a police detective is that much better, but it serves the story. The story is set in a nameless Latin American country -- which also suits the story line.
Detective Lt. Agustín Rejas (Javier Bardem) has left a law firm where he was a junior partner, to join law enforcement -- with a conscious. He can give a break to a traveler whose papers are not quite right and he can be relentless in his pursuit of a terrorist.
Rejas has been victimized by the politics of his country. His father lost his coffee farm to the soldiers. His view of the judicial system has seen a rapist become president of the country. But still, Rejas finds joy in his beautiful dancer daughter and his wife -- who has a political mission of her own. Then he meets the free spirited dance instructor for his daughter.
Rejas works in a corrupt society where the fiscal corruption goes hand in hand with the moral and political corruption. The central government is all too ready to suspend civil rights and to put military law into effect. The military killing innocent people is fine as long as it suits the party.
Rejas attempts to live the just life and must deal with the corruption the best he can. This conflict is the heart of the movie. As he says, he has feelings about his father losing his farm and he is the Gary Cooper type.
Javier Bardem is excellent in the pivotal role. Juan Diego Botto does a very credible job as Detective Sgt. Sucre. Laura Morante is intoxicating as dance instructor focal point of the story.
I give this move a 9 for great story and suspense, excellent direction and fine acting. There is no sex and very brief nudity. The violence does tend to be horrific and there are depictions of cruelty to animals -- both central to the plot. This is far less than the typical Jason or Chainsaw movies gore.
I consider this an excellent direction debut for John Malkovich and look forward to his next feature film effort. It feels like Malkovich will fill a role similar to Robert Redford in films he has directed.
Troy (2004)
A War about the Beauty of a Woman -- Still told 3200 Years Later.
Wolfgang Petersen has made a true match for "Das Boot" (1981). Give him a serious war and he will give you a serious film. This is the shortest 163 minute movie I have ever seen.
Perhaps a little short on the Iliad legend, the movie carries a lot of punch. From a film full of stars, three excel. Peter O'Toole gives Priam one of his best performances in the last 20 years -- since his Oscar nominated role in "My Favorite Year" (1982). His scene with Brad Pitt pleading for the body of Hector is pure power.
Brad Pitt as Achilles brings back memories of Kirk Douglas as another doomed hero in "Spartacus" (1960). Am I really comparing Brad Pitt to Kirk Douglas? Unlike the wacky Jeffrey Goines character in "Twelve Monkeys" (1995), this hero had to be fleshed out. I felt his disdain for Brian Cox's Agamemnon, his camaraderie with Sean Bean's tricky Odysseus, his rage with Eric Bana's Hector, and eventually his compassion and tenderness with Priam are more push than I have ever seen him give.
The personal hit with me was Eric Bana's Hector. This pivotal role was fleshed out in the finest heroic tradition. To my reading, Hector is the true unsung hero of the Trojan war who is overwhelmed by events and super heroes. This film makes the dedication and heroism clear. Bana does a knock down job.
I have singled out these few of the many stars of the film. Cheers has to be given to Wolfgang Petersen for finding the performances from so many competing egos.
There is a lot of combat, but nothing like Saving Private Ryan (1998). This was war fought by warriors, not soldiers. Even the weakness shown by Achilles in his revenge against Hector is restored to strength in his chivalry towards Priam.
There are a few bare asses, but nothing to stop the kids from seeing this harshly "R" rated movie. Eating a heart would have been an interesting "R" touch -- but omitted in this film. This is a classic movie about a classic legend.
I give the movie a 10 for action, story, direction and stars.
My only disappointment was the cinematography and effects. Perhaps it was a hard movie to film due to the logistics, but I would have hoped for more in this area.
- Michael
Identity (2003)
Memento with an Identity Crisis
"Identity" is a surprise powerhouse.
John Cusack and Amanda Peet drew me to the movie. I was not prepared for the experience. James Mangold has created another film that is, at the least, consistent with his previous "Girl, Interrupted" (1999) and "Heavy" (1995).
Ten guests arrive at a "Bates" type motel and start dying. It sounds like the Agatha Christie classic "And Then There Were None" (1945 & 1975) a/k/a "Ten Little Indians" (1959, 1965 & 1989). . . but then it suggests that very theme. This is not the umpteenth remake, but rather a nice twist on the theme.
Who is the killer? Why are they being killed? What is going on? Sounds like Memento meets Christie. To my thinking -- it works on several levels. This is a film that you have to be ready to participate in . . . otherwise, save it until you have the energy.
John Cusack and Ray Liotta give very fine performances as would be expected. I think this is the best I have ever seen Amanda Peet. I hope director Mangold adds her to his acting company. Mangold has drawn another stellar performance from Pruitt Taylor Vince, who did such an excellent job in the Mangold's earlier referenced "Heavy" (1995).
It doesn't look like a $30 million movie, but it delivers much more. I suspect the budget was for the acting company that includes Cusack, Liotta, Vince and Clea DuVall. The acting troupe works!
Good direction. Very good acting. An excellent story. It is time to add James Mangold to my list of favored directors.
- Michael
Basic (2003)
Telling the Story Right
It has the names . . . and they work like a charm. John McTiernan is at his best in this action mystery tale. The twists begin with victims in vinegar and intensify from there.
The question is who done it. The issue is why. The story follows a pattern not unlike the classic "Rashômon" (1950) and its American remake "The Outrage" (1964). Each time the tale is told it comes out different. When is it going to be told right?
The cast includes a very hot teaming of Connie Nielsen & John Travolta with all electricity and no vulgarity. Samuel L. Jackson brings his solid energy to the latest bad a** drill instructor. McTiernan refers this casting back to the excellence of Louis Gossett Jr. in "An Officer and a Gentleman" (1982). I would go back even further to Jack Web in "The DI" (1957). Jackson brings his booming voice to the intensity of the earlier castings to create a new icon character.
I, for one, would like to see these characters come back in another film. The 98 minutes was full and solid . . . and too little time with such talent.
I rank this at the top of the solid list of McTiernan suspense hits that include "Die Hard: With a Vengeance" (1995), "The Hunt for Red October" (1990), "Die Hard" (1988), and "Predator" (1987).
I give this movie a ten for story, suspense and acting. For this one, an all star cast and director paid off . . . with a vengeance. - Michael
Insomnia (1997)
It's all downhill . . .
Erik Skjoldbjærg has created a provocative look into the dark side of a murder detective. A well drafted and crafted film. The midnight sun of Norway is the backdrop for a man who has spent his life working with the dead. There is no rest for the experienced, infamous detective as he duels with an intelligent meticulous criminal. I give it a 9.
Hannibal (2001)
It just gets better!
Ridley Scott and David Mamet bring the Thomas Harris novel and horror to life and to the screen. What would you expect from this group teaming up? Whatever the expectation, it will be met!
Mason Verger (Gary Oldman) is an old cannibal victim who is angry that Dr. Hannibal Lecter has been removed from the "ten most wanted list". The FBI was satisfied to leave our favorite meat eater in retirement, but . . . money can buy almost anything. Verger wants revenge and will go to any means to catch his prey. Be careful what you ask for!
Anthony Hopkins reprises his Academy Award winning role as Hannibal the cannibal with the same calm coldness as in "The Silence of the Lambs". Here, we get to see more of his personality as he is the central character of this film.
Julianne Moore may not be as good at playing Clarice as Jodie Foster, but she holds her own in the smaller role in this story. In a reversal of fortune, Clarice seems to be in the cage most of this movie while Hannibal gets to play in historic, classic, cultural Florence.
I doubt that Julianne will follow Jodie's path at the Academy Awards, but there should be a few nominations for this Dino De Laurentiis film. I would think that Hopkins may be challenged for the repeat by Oldman's -- man of 1000 faces -- performance. Nominations for direction, screenplay and supporting actors would also seem to be forth coming -- if this film is not forgotten at nomination time.
It was great seeing Giancarlo Giannini (as Rinaldo Pazzi) in a pivotal role in a major American movie. The star of "Swept Away" and "Seven Beauties" from a generation ago brings depth and experience to his protagonist role in the search.
My favorite parts of the novel have been brought to the screen in a visual terror befitting the director of "Alien" and "Blade Runner". True, there is significant blood on the screen, however the real horror is reserved for our intellectual discovery of the sociopathic mind. Would you expect less from David Mamet?
This film is more like the first Hannibal movie "Manhunter" then "Silence of the Lambs". In this series, it seems that each sequel gets better.
Five Stars. I can not wait to see it again.
The Cider House Rules (1999)
Who writes the rules
Charming film of life in a Maine orphanage around time of World War II. The tale of a doctor who has created his own world of refuge for those who are misplaced elsewhere. His nurturing provides shelter for many lost children of the time -- princes of Maine, kings of New England. One such child - Homer Wells -- is especially taken to heart after two failed adoptions. Dr. Larch fathers and mentors young Wells into a responsible young adult trained in the art of healing. The story shows Homer's quest for his place in this world and the rules he must follow.