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Louise__UK
Reviews
The Piano (1993)
An honest and courageous exploration of women's sexuality...
I completely agree with the many others who have commented that this film tells a story of love and passion. It is extremely therapeutic to watch a Victorian woman overcome the moral dogma of a repressive society, so vivid to us in all those Victorian novels we still love today!
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!
I liked the scene where Ada nearly drowns but makes the choice to save herself...I felt Jane Campion was rewriting the fates of all those tragic, stoic, Victorian fallen angels who were, ultimately, unable to save themselves.
But what captivated me the most was how honest and insightful Jane Campion is in her depiction of Ada's growing realisation of her sexual power. Ada does something that the Victorian heroines rarely did...she recognises the sexual power that she can hold over men and takes a lot of pleasure in it, without guilt or shame. Maybe 'Jane Eyre' unconsciously hints at this, and Estella in 'Great Expectations' has been reared to manipulate lovelorn young men mercilessly.
MILD SPOILER!
But Ada is different because she gets to be happy at the end of it all. She isn't made a victim and held up as an example of feminine cruelty and sexual transgression for ever more. Campion acknowledges that her heroine is playing with fire, but happily doesn't judge, just lets her get on with it, to dramatic effect. As a result, the film depicts people who can be passionate, loving, cruel, violent, tender, loyal and selfish; as ambiguous as real people are.
Hard Men (1996)
I loved it! It's dark, disturbing, funny, and very compelling...
Kristian's comparison to A Clockwork Orange is spot on. This film has far more in common with that than anything Tarantino has done. I'm guessing J K Amalou worships that film because Hard Men (without stealing ideas as some have suggested) is like an impish little brother for the original. Like A Clockwork Orange, it portrays another, detached reality, far away from the bubble world of middleclass complacency and boredom. In this world everyone is messed-up, hostile, alone and paranoic. Like Alex and his droogs, Tone and co wreak havoc on the seedy, corrupt, rotting world around them with sadistic glee. The cartoon style of the violence puts us surely in the realm of the surreal, and the bizarre and colourful costumes fuse retro influences with 90s night life in London. This lends the whole thing a feeling of timelessness. Like A Clockwork Orange, it will probably age well.
The characterisation is good and the acting is great. Vincent Regan portrays Tone with a sensitivity to the paradox of a man who squashes the city lowlife as if they were flies about to defecate on his dinner, but loves his little daughter so much that in one scene he actually glows. I challenge you to decide whether you like or despise this man. Lee Ross is wonderful as Speed, a coke-fuelled, buzzin, cotton-wool-for-brains, obnoxious teenager. He is amazingly irritating, and is clearly about to burn-out or explode with self-loathing. Ross Boatman puts in a solid performance as Bear. He is not as compelling as Regan or Ross, but his character does not have the emotional depth of Regan's, or the high caricature of Ross's.
The dreamlike quality of the film is also supported by some gorgeous cinematography. The bright cartoon colours of cheap clothes, city lights, and mugs in numerous cloned cafes are shocking against the drab, dirty buildings. There is a scene at a deserted docks; it is mesmerisingly beautiful...a perfect setting for the final resolution of events.
Admittedly, I do have the feeling this film has imbedded itself like a hatchet in my psyche, a not entirely pleasant sensation. But, if you're not into facile, candyfloss cinema, and you enjoyed the battering A Clockwork Orange and Fight Club gave you, then you're gonna love this!