Lilting

Lovely sensitive film from Britain about Richard, a young gay man whose lover has just died suddenly and who now reaches out to the mother, a Cambodian Chinese woman who had no other family and is living resentful in an old people’s home.  As Jun (excellent Pei Pei Cheng) speaks no English, Richard hires a translator and little by little the truth stars to be revealed including the fact that Richard and Jun’s son were lovers.  There is also a suitor for the old girl played by Peter Bowles who takes advantage of the translation service too.

This is a film about communication, about secrets and obstacles to communication, about guilt and family responsibility, about cultural differences.  And yet it is also deeply human and says a lot about our emotional intelligence as people.  Ben Whishaw is also excellent in his part as Richard and has some amazingly transparent looks. Hong Khaou has directed the film intelligently even though it might be a tad slow for some.  Photography by Urszula Pontikos is sublime showing a London we recognise but seldom see on screen. I thought this was a small but very well made piece of celluloid.

★★★★ +

Enemy

Denis Villeneuve returns with this new thriller of sorts that is not a million miles away from fellow Canadian David Cronenberg.  Adam, a history teacher discovers her has a double, an actor he sees in a movie.  Obsessed by meeting this man he tracks him down and starts to find out details of the actor’s life – he has a pregnant wife and lives in a nice area, etc.  Meanwhile the actor’s wife suspects that Adam’s calls are related to her husband being unfaithful and that Adam is the grieved husband. It doesn’t take long to work out that not all the characters are real and part of it is taking place in the main character’s head.  But who is who?  There are car crashes, wife swapping, Isabella Rossellini as the mum and giant spiders.  A symbolic puzzle of a movie based on a story by José Saramago.  Say no more.  Intriguing up to a point, very slow moving and somewhat successful in execution.  Internet abounds with forums as to what the film actually means and who knows if we have got it or not.  Does it even matter?  Jake Gyllenhaal is apt in the lead. 

Some will want to watch it again – me not just yet.

★★★

Jamie Marks is Dead

Teen-centred thriller with a certain flair although by the end of things, the scare has gone and the expected ending comes forth.  Jamie is a teenager who dies as a result of bullying.  Adam, the sensitive school jock becomes interested in his fate as does Gracie, a rather eccentric local girl with whom Adam falls in love.  Soon, they start seeing ghosts including that of Jamie and another dead girl Frances who killed her parents.  Jamie has designs on Adam and a problem to resolve and Adam becomes embroiled in this underworld.  Cameron Monaghan and Noah Silver (channelling Harry Potter) are effective in the lead roles and Madison Beaty does a good turn as the crazy Frances. Liv Tyler appears as a paralysed mum.  Good photography and music but overall the film underwhelms a little despite the good atmosphere director Carter Smith creates.

★★+

Words and Pictures

I would like to say that this work by veteran Australian director Fred Schepisi was inspiring.  It takes the subject of words versus images and asks which is more powerful.  It is set in a rich high school in rural East Coast USA.  The main story however is a “romance” between the alcoholic literature teacher and washed up writer, Clive Owen and the arts teacher Dina (Juliette Binoche) who is in semi-retirement thanks to rheumatoid arthritis.  A sort of war on the title topic erupts between them and is also reflected in their gradual getting together.  Owen and Binoche bring plenty of subtle touches to their characters and are worth the price of admission.  Not much else however.  The school scenes tend to be clichéd and the screenplay in general rings false. By the predictable end of the film, we are left wondering what all the fuss was about.  Just an exercise.  Extra half a point for the acting!

★★+

O Som ao Redor

This Brazilian prize winner is not the most conventional work.  It is almost a documentary or reality show style look at the lives of various residents of a Recife neighbourhood.  Francisco is the rich old man who has developed the real estate in the area and obviously hasn’t got where is by being nice.  One grandson Dinho is an arrogant petty thief, the other, Joao has just come back from Germany and is trying to do the decent thing as a real estate agent for his granddad – appearing also in an amusing consortium meeting at one of the blocks.  Joao has a new girlfriend Sofia with whom things seem to be going well but…  Bia is a busy housewife with her kids cooped up inside or packed off for language classes – she is waging war with a barking dog and puffing on joints whenever she can.  And Clodoaldo has come to town to offer a private security service for the street but also has his own motives.

The film is a slice of Brazilian city life (or developing world city life for that matter) and has its fascination in that respect as a piece of social film making.  It is also a thriller in that at least two storylines will lead to unpredictable ends.  Kleber Mendonca Filho does a very good job in this debut work and in line with the title uses sound to good effect.  All in all, a film that merits respect and a keen wait for the follow-up.

★★★★

Fading Gigolo

John Turturro’s latest film as a director has a very Woody Allen feel to it partly because Woody himself acts in it (reasonably restrained) as a failed book shop owner turned pimp who arranges for Turturro to become a stud for the lonely housewives.  This allows stars like Sharon Stone and Sofia Vergara to appear.  But the real story here is his character’s relationship with Avigail, (Vanessa Paradis) a young Jewish mother and widow who realises that Virgil’s healing hands are what breaks her self-imposed isolation and mourning.  In the middle of this are the Jewish orthodox police, in particular neighbour Dovi (Leiv Schreiber) who has his eyes on the widow.  It has its moments but rarely takes off despite the talent involved.  Still, the point about us all needing love and intimacy is well conveyed.

★★+

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Wes Anderson’s latest is a competent chase come spoof about the people involved in a grand European spa hotel between the wars.  As usual, it is entertaining enough with a great cast of top actors in cameo roles and a rather obvious line in gags which get somewhat obvious.  There are also touches of other films and other times but by the end it is all closer to an exercise than real creativity in my opinion.  Good photography and sets and Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori and Saoirse Ronan hold the centre together effectively.  OK.

★★★

The Kings of Summer

This film was lauded at Sundance and while it is nothing great or that new in its subject matter, it does have a freshness and some real assets that ends up making you take notice.

Three boys are each fed up with their home life and when one, Joe finds a secluded forest glade, they end up building a house there and going bush.  The house is all too well built for their age and even though they forage from fast food joints, there is an unreality about the whole set up.

Nonetheless, this scenario provides the basis for an exploration of many issues – principally the idea of coming of age in modern societies which lack the initiation ceremonies of old, the need to compromise and accept the reality when living in community AND keeping one’s dreams alive at the same time.  With some beautiful natural photography, there are some lovely moments in the film and while there are bits which don’t get properly explored and the odd awkward line, the film is gorgeous to watch.  Nick Robinson, Gabriel Basso and Moises Arias are great in the main roles, especially Arias as the weird boy Biaggio. The adults also have great humorous parts and Megan Mullaly as Patrick’s mother and Nick Offerman as Joe’s father shine.

All in all, a pleasant surprise.

★★★+

The Best Offer

A film of strong and not so strong points.  This English language debut by Giuseppe Tornatore features the compelling Geoffrey Rush as Virgil Oldman, the doyen of art auctioneers who is a stuffy and rather sad megalomaniac.  Intrigued by a call to value the contents of an old villa by an elusive young agoraphobic woman, he becomes embroiled in mysteries and a love affair which turn his world upside down.  Jim Sturgess is a competent support.  Better still are the music by Ennio Morricone and the cinematography of Fabio Zamarion.  For all its intrigue, the story has some plot holes and the screenplay is distinctly awkward in English at times.  Entertaining and good to look at but no masterpiece.

★★★+

Adult World

This is one of those films that seem to lack much raison d’etre.  Why did Scott Coffey make this work about a spoiled university poetry graduate who thinks she’s great but is in fact of much more limited talent and as John Cusack’s character calls her – ignorant?  I don’t know what is more insufferable: the character Amy as she is written or Emma Roberts’ playing of her.  Anyway, we have a slightly more interesting cast around her as she ends up leaving home, getting thousands of rejections and finds a job in a porn store – being a virgin.  This is supposed to be a comedy but I found it quite sad as people harbour unrealistic dreams.  John Cusack is by far the most interesting person here as a rather difficult writer who started young and is now quite cynical.  Armando Riesgo as the drag queen Rubia is also surprisingly good along with Evan Peters as the love interest/work companion.  Not much else to retrieve.

★★