sursubbu Reviews

Breaking the Waves (1996)

I just couldn't swallow it...

[5/10 · 7 December 2003]

***WARNING*** This review may contain plot spoilers

It's probably a case of one man's food being another man's poison, but there was a distinct part in the film where I felt my all my interest and involvement in it completely snapping off, where I thought, despite its concerted attempt to be a palpably credible, sensitive emotional document, it came across as a shallow and exploitative piece. Unfortunately this was the main turning point of the film's narrative. This offbeat character drama is divided into several titled chapters based on what the director feels is the dominating event/theme of the chapter. The plot centers on Bess (Emily Watson), a girl who comes of a suffocatingly closed and ascetic coastal community that frowns upon all worldly attachments including mundane emotional ties, believing in complete surrender to a stern uncompromising God. Bess is intensely high-strung and child-like, the product of innate psychological disorder and an abnormally religious upbringing where being 'good' in the eyes of God is the sole raison d'être. She is shown indulging in regular conversation with divinity where she supplies voices for herself and 'God'. Life takes a significant turn when she marries Jan (Stellan Skarsgard, unrecognizable from his turn as the persecuted conductor in Szabo's 'Taking Sides' which I have talked about previously), an off-shore oil-rig worker and ardent young husband. Bess believes the fruits of marital pleasure to be God's reward for her being 'good' and even sighs thanks to the Lord in her moment of carnal bliss. She is intensely attached to Jan's physical presence and grows alarmingly distraught when he leaves for his extended work schedules on the oilrig. Bess fervently prays to her God to send Jan back early. Jan does arrive early.but as the victim of a terrible accident that has left him almost completely paralyzed from neck down. Bess is stricken with sorrow and consuming guilt and watches obsessively over Jan. Jan, on the other hand, is caught up with the idea that without going through the act of making love to Bess, he will surely die. He wants Bess to sleep with other people and relate her experience as a means of reliving their passionate marital life. And this is where the film lost me. It's not because the idea came as a shocking surprise because I'd heard about the film's premise. It's not because the film dips into pornography; no, every effort is taken to maintain a realistic, non-titillating, even sordid touch in the scenes of Bess's misguided promiscuity. It's just that the entire idea seems to me presented in such a pat manner as to suggest that everything in the film up to that point was just filled in to reach that turn. Nothing in Jan's character till then indicates that he would have any such predilection and even the vague references as to how his injures and prolonged exposure to medicinal drugs would affect his mind seem very ham-handed. From the turn the narrative took from this point on, despite what goodness the film may have possessed in terms of specific acting and directorial touches, I could not shake off the idea of it being a cheesy melodramatic and ultimately exploitative flick. That's just my opinion and I respect the view of those who would disagree on this issue Trier aims to achieve a grainy, off-color documentary style look for his film and it works quite fine although I could have done with less of the jerky hand-held camera movements. Each chapter in the film is heralded by a post-card coastal scene accompanied a track from the classic rock era (My ignorant self could only specifically identify 'Blowing in the Wind', 'Cross-Eyed Mary' and 'Child in Time', I'm sure others would do better). The film's leading light Emily Watson does a sincere and often affecting turn as Bess, bringing across the pathological devotion to her husband, which leads her to acts of perversion and ultimate tragedy. I wish the film had been more fully deserving of her efforts.

Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972)

Heart of Darkness

[24 November 2003]

**Review May Contain Some Spoilers**

Just do a google for this film and you will find it on a lot of respected top ten's and endless reams have been written on the insane level of perseverance that Herzog demanded of himself and his crew in the making. The plot, as it may be, follows the path of a 16th century Spaniard expedition into the South American jungle in search of the fabled El Dorado (city of gold). Any number of parallels have been drawn between the story of the expedition and the actual shooting of the film for which Herzog herded a crew of 500 into unexplored wilderness, facing similar difficult conditions, including allegedly the possibility of starvation. The extent of this is evident right from the first take which shows a train of men and animals moving down a narrow mountain trail, a majestic fog swirling in the background. The film is shot with cameras normally used for documentaries, necessitated, I suppose, by the need for extreme flexibility in their handling, since quite a few shots appear to be taken from precarious angles, including a shaky raft in the river rapids. Along with the use of natural sound, it creates a credible documentary-esque ambience.

This party is an arm of the main Spanish conquest led by Pizarro, delegated to ascertain the existence of El Dorado and return immediately to the mainstream. It is led by Don Pedro de Ursua with Aguirre as second-in-command. After seeing no signs of El Dorado in the period allotted to them, Ursua decides to return to Pizarro, but Aguirre has other ideas. He instigates the men into mutiny and wounds Ursua. Naming the burly champion Fernando de Guzman Emperor of El Dorado, he exhorts the party into casting off their allegiance to the Spanish crown and joining him in the quest for the new land. Herzog's favorite actor Klaus Kinski plays Aguirre as a handicapped yet arrogant figure determined to crush the forest into submission and establish his own dominion. The men accept his will giving in to fear for their lives and greed for the gold, thus embarking on a quest that will eventually cost them their lives and their sanity.

The film moves throughout in a purposely leisured step, mimicking the pace of the raft traversing still water. All around the forest (and its inhabitants) appears to be draw them into its trap, quietly mocking all their attempts to subdue it until they are done in by their own foolhardiness, leaving only Aguirre with his long-unhinged claims of coming down on the land like the Wrath of God.

There is a veritable haunting quality in the visuals and the concluding scene showing Aguirre stranded on the ravaged raft with only a pack of (Death's Head) monkeys as audience to his raving is one of cinema's memorable moments. On the negative side most of the characters other than Aguirre are, in my opinion, weakly developed, even nondescript, and take significantly away from the film's emotional strength. Attempts to infuse a fatalistic humor (like a soldier who falls mouthing "So long arrows have come into fashion", and the head that finishes its last word after being severed) come off badly. At certain moments the film even struck me as an aesthetic non-gory "Cannibal Holocaust", but taking into account its many strengths, this is a fine and even memorable effort from the much-admired Herzog.

Macbeth (1971)

Violent, Macabre, Cinematic

[23 November 2003]

MACBETH - Roman Polanski

Considering the immense cinematic power of the films that have been made on this particular work, it's almost difficult to believe that Shakespeare meant it to be stage-bound enterprise. The most radical and celebrated of the Macbeth films is, of course, Kurosawa's version 'Throne of Blood' which eschews the bard's romantic prose for a more brutal, primeval tone and succeeds immensely in its gamble.

Poanski's version is far more faithful, retaining the original dialog and milieu. A wide-screen canvas brings alive the scenario of medieval England with its dreary stone castles, gray cloud-smothered skies and mist-covered hills. The exposition of the entertainments and social mores of the 'noble' gentry adds tremendous cinematic flavor to an otherwise (well-paced and well-performed) dialog-driven narrative.

The film kicks into high gear with the scenes following Banquo's murder. Polanski is in his element with the surreal phantasmagoria that details Macbeth's disturbing vision of Banquo's ghost and subsequent nightmarish experience in the witches' lair. This is stuff that will gladden the heart of any true-blue horror fan, yours humbly in the forefront. The rest of the film sustains the energy and the climax featuring a savage duel between Macbeth and Macduff is nail-bitingly good. The killing of Macbeth is depicted here with a violence that rivals the demise of his Japanese counterpart in the Kurosawa film.

Polanski made his version of Macbeth in the aftermath of the brutal murder of his pregnant wife Sharon Tate by the deranged Manson cult and this may well have bearing on the explicitly violent and gory tone of the film. Thankfully, this is never in an exploitative vein, but serving to brilliantly embody the macabre and savage aspect of the original play.

Incidentally the film was financed by 'Playboy' publisher Hugh Hefner, probably to indicate that he had interests in the 'freedom of artistic expression' that went beyond (profitable) depiction of naked women.

The Seventh Seal (1957)

Incredible, simply incredible

[10/10 · 23 November 2003]

Far be from it for me to even think of trying to comment or judge this film, I can only say that it's one of the most incredible, awe-inspiring and mind-blowing experiences I have had. Like other films of Bergman that I have seen, this again is a reflection on death and its relevance to life. Taking the context of plague-ridden medieval Europe Bergman discusses various aspects of human existence - religion, happiness, faith, god - against the backdrop of omniscient death. There's really no point in trying to give you the plot summary and stuff like that because this is not about story or characters or drama, it's essentially an illustrative discussion of Bergman's existentialist philosophies and has to be actually seen and absorbed in toto to

be at all understood in the right perspective. Which is not to say that I claim to understand it completely (I could never feel confident enough to say that about such a magnificently erudite piece) but even the slight glimpses I get of superbly constructed theological questions that Bergman raises through his film are overwhelming enough for this sadly lesser mortal.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)

It was nice knowing you...

[12 August 2003]

Consider this proposition: a movie that's the second sequel in a franchise now totally dated, a movie that comes a full 12 years after its predecessor - a period in which the main star has aged significantly and lost the level of popularity he had in his salad days, a movie that went through endless hassles in writing and pre-production and was likely to generate interest only in the most rabid fans.how would you expect such a movie to turn out? Entertaining? Witty? (Dare we say) Intelligent? Take heart then, for Terminator 3 is all of these. Its also the perfect adieu to this now venerable series. Full credit for this goes to the team of writers (John D. Brancato, Michael Ferris III and Tedi Sarafian), for the first time the action sequences are not the meat of the film but supplement to a deviously clever script. There are tons of tongue-in-cheek references for Terminator fans to catch (Arnold's trademark entry is given a delicious twist), and a sense of satire is quite evident, but the spoofing never goes overboard and is done in a spirit of affection and respect for the series. There is also a good deal of ironic humor, even a Woody Allen-esque moment with the psychiatrist character from the earlier movies. The action sequences are done with the usual pyrotechnics but seem to have a deliberate Tom-and-Jerry flavor (most evident in the crane chase scene). The film neatly draws in the sparse threads of narrative that fueled its predecessors and steadily powers its way to the climax. And what a climax! Without spoiling it for people who haven't seen the film, I would consider it ironic in the most wonderful sense that a franchise whose worth has mostly been measured in terms of the mindless thrills it offered concludes itself in this surprisingly sophisticated way. I was really quite satisfied with this film, the only nit I have to pick is with the character of the villain, the T-X (Kristanna Loken) which was played out in a very colorless manner.

The Terminator leaves us on a high note. Let's hope he doesn't come back.