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House of Gucci (2021)
fell asleep
I agree with all the reviews that say it was boring and that LG's performance and accent were seriously flawed.
Make-up and hairstyling did deserve the Oscar nomination.
Best costume also.
Best actress? Absolutely not.
I live in Italy and there was nothing Italian or Patrizia about her performance. It was LG trying so hard to be all of that and mostly, trying very hard to convince us that she is a good actress. It just came off as first year theatre school acting because she really lacks experience and finesse to carry off a lead role and historical character. She can get on stage and flaunt her stuff, but there is too much conquering and not enough humility to ever become a fine actress. Sorry LG.
Stories about family sagas are a dime a dozen in Italy so frankly, it was embarassing to watch this very forced and rigid depiction of the famous Gucci family. A British director may simply not have the Italian flair needed to carry it off.
Into the Wild (2007)
Profound
I watched this film again this year and it sunk in differently than it did years ago when I first watched it. What changed? Well, perhaps the pandemic, climate disasters and political madness helped the world realize that Chris McCandless made complete sense in wanting to escape a system built on hypocrisy. Perhaps he was just way ahead of the curve.
His death served as a) a warning to go into the wild better prepared; and b) to bring attention to what really matters in life. My favorite line in the film is ""Careers are a twentieth century invention and I don't want one."
As for the artistic merit, it was flawless in every way as far as I'm concerned. The acting, the directing, the screenplay, the cinematography, everyone and every aspect pointed towards a horizon that was at the very nucleus of Chris' heart and soul: staying true, sensitized and free from a life that numbs you down to a cookie cutter version of a social citizen.
Ps. Reading other people's reviews that seem to think he was a spoiled rich kid makes me think even more so that he was escaping a destiny that did not reflect his own integrity... and integrity is not something many people have so of course, he would be misunderstood. It is much easier to just suck it up and follow the crowd...
Misha and the Wolves (2021)
Disturbing
I gave this documentary a 10 because of the importance of getting the truth out about the fake Holocaust memoire created by Misha Defonseca. Some people believe she is psychologically unwell, which is true, but after watching the documentary I would say that beyond her questionable psychological well-being, greed was the driving force. Using the Holocaust to prey on people's compassion was her Machiavellian tactic which is why I don't really buy into her excuse that she confused reality with fantasy. I used "disturbing" as the title of this review because while I felt she was lying from the minute I saw an image of her, she she managed to con many people to the point of suing her publisher for millions of dollars. I mean, disturbing, greedy and shameful to boot. I don't undermine her own suffering which I do think was real, but instead of using a truthful path to heal her wounds, she chose to humiliate an entire community. She turned down an appearance on Oprah maybe because she feared Oprah would figure her out? It would be the move that would cause her downfall... Checkmate.
Freud (2020)
A fascinating and creative look at the unconscious
Wow, what an incredible production. I took one star off because some of the scenes were a bit freaky (even though it was actually just a few scenes, horror is not my favorite genre, so it's really just a question of personal taste) but let me say the nine stars were given with full merit!
Beyond the creativity, imagination, amazing directing, sets and of course acting (everyone was fully committed in their role and I further appreciated each performance, the more I watched) was the incredible voyage into the unconscious mind. What was brilliant about it was that nobody seemed to be aware that they were playing out their traumas except for Freud who fearlessly entered their inner worlds, secret corridors and frozen fears to liberate them from their demons. What a hero! And yes that's why there are demons! Fleur (appropriately named) is a gentle soul who has the most common fear: parents controlling their kids. Who can't relate to that! Or the parents wanting revenge and using Fleur to achieve their goal. Well, isn't that more common than we think... Or the police inspector Kiss (another interesting reference in his name) seemingly quiet but intense ... but he roars like the MGM lion at the end! And Freud making love to Fleur, the demon, the mother... and there it is, the Oedipus complex. But there is so much more...
Fleur's "demon" is the powerful and sexualized female that is feared by society. We know the history of female victimization and burning of witches, BUT, that is precisely where inner power comes from. For those who know about spiritual energy, ie "personal power" it lays dormant in a spiral called the kundalini which is at the base of the spine, literally, where the sexual organs are found. And yet, only Freud seems to be intelligent enough to not judge her and understand that once her formidable power gets integrated back into her psyche along with the other shattered fragments caused by her trauma, she will once again be a sane and functioning human being. I liked that at the end, Fleur rides off in her carriage wearing a black veil, as though she is in mourning of a symbolic death, yet on her way to freedom and happily so.
I do think that my interest in psychology and the human psyche and especially, the unconscious mind, allowed me to continue watching as it became clearer to me what was going on. So I understand that if a viewer has no knowledge of Freud or psychology or doesn't live in Europe (Freud was after all, European), he/she may not quite "get" the series. In that case, the theatrics will be just as entertaining. In any case, this series is faithful to Freud in the sense that not everyone is supposed to get him! In my book that's well done!