uhmartinez-phd Reviews

Apartment Zero (1988)

A Single Man

[10/10 · 30 January 2010]

After seeing "A Single Man" a film for which Colin Firth will, most likely, get his first and richly deserved Oscar nomination, I felt the urge to see "Apartment Zero" again. I remembered it as a film that opened my eyes to certain aspects of my own nature and thought/felt that Colin Firth was actually playing me. I hadn't seen the film since because that kind of experience is unrepeatable and I could never imagine that the experience could live up to my memory of it. Well,it did. More than that, I discovered so much more than I didn't remember or that, possibly, I didn't get at the time. Colin Firth's performance is infinite. Strange word to describe a performance but seems very apt to me now. He moves within his closeted universe like someone who knows every inch of it and therefore we become as familiar with it as he is. Frightening, sad and, at times, hysterically funny. A masterpiece. Now years later I can actually call it that. A masterpiece. A film that has revealed other layers with the passing of time. I'll be rooting for Colin Firth at the Oscars 2010 and I'll be thinking of his Adrian LeDuc.

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

A Rip Roaring Yarn

[8/10 · 7 October 2009]

An fun, engrossing, beautifully crafted piece of nonsense, the likes of which we hadn't seen in a long long time. The silliness of the story is marvelously camouflaged with great dialogue and some superb performances. Christoph Waltz must be thinking already about his acceptance speech. What a performance! The civilized monster, polyglot, refined and deadly. He gets us going from the first, sensational scene. Brad Pitt is also wonderful. Was he putting a Mussolinni chin while impersonating (hilariously) an Italian? I thought so. His character's name sounds like Aldo Ray and I'm sure that's no accident. The film is full of movie references. Another character is named Fenek, as an homage to his 1970's sexpot, Edwige Fenech. What is already one of Tarantino's trademarks is his sure step along the most immediately recognizable bits of pop culture. He's clearly not a cultured man but a pop expert, king in a world where people get their news from TV, don't read, other than magazines and comics, etc. That's how it happens, to be in the right place at the right time. For better or worse this are Tarantino times.

Religulous (2008)

Oh Jesus, Mary and Joseph

[7/10 · 5 October 2008]

Yes, it is funny. Just like when Bill Maher is funny. Often but not always. One of the things I like about Maher is that behind every derogatory outburst there is, usually, a real thinking process. In his "Religulous" he commits a startling mistake. He doesn't allow the possibility of "faith" as a positive not even by mistake. Agree that organized religion has been monstrous in so many different instances that it is a bit of a miracle that it survives but there is also the other side, the positive strength that faith provides and it does in so many different and powerful ways. The one sided views are always annoying and "Religulous" sins of that. I did laugh though, God forgive me.

Fight Club (1999)

A Pretty Looking Nightmare

[5/10 · 5 December 2007]

David Fincher is terrific with his camera. Visually his films are a wonder. Unfortunately the contents are so thin that the interiors of his tale vanish very quickly. What remains is "the look" and the promise, no matter how unfulfilled the promise remains. Edward Norton is sensational, especially in the first 20 minutes of the movie. Brad Pitt, already a film icon, does his thing, and that, of course, is a plus. Helena Bonham Carter surprised me big time with a facade I had never seen. The slow motion of the smoke coming out of her mouth as Fincher introduces her to us is a work of art in itself but, and that "but" is a real problem, nothing remains because deep down there is nothing there but a fantastic eye for and to startle and amaze. I'm sure that sooner or later David Fincher will come out with something that is as powerful inside as it is outside.

Teorema (1968)

An Angel With Terence Stamp's Face

[9/10 · 29 November 2007]

Angel or demon? In any case, things are never going to be the same again. The arrival of the stranger as a catalyst and in Pier Paolo Pasolini's hands, eyes and heart a socio-sexual political fable as profound as it is outrageous. The idea of the creature that breaks into the deepest corners of our existence has been told countless times with different objectives in mind. Here, an indictment (even if hopelessly affectionate) of the new upper classes. The operative word is "new" due to the fact that we're in Italy and the "upper" classes have always been so for centuries at least. A past of Emperors, Princes and Popes. The new ones have an American slant in as much as they are determined by financial power. Terence Stamp is an angel/demon of extraordinary beauty and sexual might. Nobody will be indifferent to him and he will have in hand the handle to the door leading up or leading down. From the Industrialist/Head of the family, a superb Massimo Girotti, to the servant, a fantastic Laura Betti who's character is as submissive as it is allegorical will open up (physically and emotionally) to the stranger. Silvana Mangano, dressed in Valentino and Pucci since the early morning demeans herself in a moment that it's pure Pasolini. It is bizarre, in 2007, to imagine audiences flocking to see a movie like this but specialized audiences brought in main stream audiences to this wonderful rarity. A film with a voice, an intellectual document of its day. For fearless adventurers this film is compulsive viewing.

The Passionate Thief (1960)

A Blonde Magnani In A Masterful Comedy

[10/10 · 26 November 2007]

New Year's Eve in Rome. Three lonely character who lie about their solitude to everyone even to themselves. Deep down is that solitude and a a sense of rejection what throws them together. Magnani, as a blonde film extra that has Kim Novak as her model, Totò as a pathetic, old petty con-man and Ben Gazzara as a young, good looking and relatively inept thief, will join forces at cross purposes in a film that is, simultaneously, outrageously funny and deeply moving. Anna Magnani had already won an Oscar for "The Rose Tattoo" and this was a return home and a a new chapter in her collaboration with her old friend Antonio De Curtis, known as Totò. They are magic together and Mario Monicelli knows how to choreograph the sequences for this two amazing artists. The crowded scenes inside a Hotel Restaurant during the party leading to midnight and a new year are absolutely sensational. Not to be missed.

Conversation Piece (1974)

Interiors

[9/10 · 23 November 2007]

This is Luchino Visconti's first feature film after his almost fatal heart attack. He was in a wheel chair and his left side was completely paralyzed. Enrico Medioli's original story about a man who's facing the end of his life, whether consciously or unconsciously seemed very close to the knuckle. I've read a lot of material and talked to people connected to the production before actually seeing the movie. Nothing had prepared me for what the film presents to the audience and I wondered if the film that ended up on the screen was the film that Visconti intended. Starting from the cast: the first rumors that Visconti was ready to go back to work, announced the film with Laurence Olivier and Audrey Hepburn in the roles that went to Burt Lancaster and Silvana Mangano. Anne Marie Philipe and Martin Donovan (the director) in the roles that went to Claudia Marsani and Stefano Patrizi. For what I gather, Olivier was sick at the time and couldn't accept. Audrey Hepburn turned it down, Donovan and Philipe found themselves outside the co-production regulations where two Italian nationals were required for those roles. Helmut Berger was the one who survived all the changes and I'm tempted to say: unfortunately! His character is the one who doesn't ring true. Clearly, Lancaster's character would have seen through Berger's. There is nothing in his character that made me believe Lancaster would feel attracted and fall for. Berger is a prissy, emotionally flabby, pretty boy. He is also unbelievable as Silvana Mangano's lover. The film as a whole takes place in Lancaster's dark and elegant apartment. Against his better judgment he rents the upper floor to this new, rich, beautiful and vulgar family. His world is going to start to collapse under the weight of the young invaders without soul. Solemmn, sad and a bit static the film however has a masterful center that makes it compelling viewing. Two brief cameos by Dominique Sanda as the mother and Claudia Cardinale as the dead wife bring some unexpected oomph to the grim proceedings. Even if I sound a bit down on the film I'm actually recommending it.

Ironweed (1987)

Grim And Wonderful

[9/10 · 20 November 2007]

Cold, desolate in the surface and an uncomfortable warmth in the inside. Meryl Streep leads in a way that is difficult to explain. She provides a truly magic movie moment when she sings "He's My Pal" for her supper. For a moment we live her fantasy. Her moment is our moment, that's why as the song and the fantasy ends something inside me cracked. I felt tears running down my face and, I swear, I wasn't ready for that. The humanity of Meryl Streep, the actress, filters through the devastating circumstances of her character. Circumstances that, by the time we meet her, are already a way of life. At the beginning of the film, when somebody asks her how is she, her reply is "Delightful". Trying to adjust to this character I listen to her stained, tired voice, trying to be heard and I did, heard her. I love Meryl Streep.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

A Diamond , No Matter How You Look At It

[10/10 · 19 November 2007]

Imperishible like a diamond, sharp, stunning, priceless. The rough and tough Howard Hawks knew how to establish contact with his feminine side and when he did, wonderful things took place. "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" is a perfect example of that. One of the rarest. The women, as made abundantly clear by Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, are divided in two very specific categories: blonds and brunettes. The blonds are always trying to find new places where to wear diamonds, the brunettes may fall for the wrong guy just because love gets in the way. The men are old rich predators, sneaky pros or children, no matter how old. The film goes by at an incredible pace and you can't help but surrender to the charm, the beauty and the knowing innocence of this masterpiece.

The Ignorant Fairies (2001)

The Turkish Director And His Italian Fairies

[8/10 · 17 November 2007]

"His Secret Life" is the unimaginative American title. The Fairies in the original title is referred to a painting, what else? Margherita Buy, the central character in this surprising modern melodrama is a revelation, at least for me. She doesn't look like anybody else and at the same time she reminded me of several women I know. So middle class. Elegant without meaning too. Very difficult to sort out, describe or shake up. She takes the revelation of her husband's past as a British woman would, with a remarkable stiff upper lip. I mean, she is shocked, hurt, disturbed but she carries of all that in her eyes. She doesn't collapse with hysterics. The weakest link in this almost perfect fairy tale is the leading man Stefano Accorsi - Apparently a big star in Italy but I thought he was difficult to warm up to. There is a petulance there that I couldn't quite overcome so, as a consequence, I didn't care about him. I cared about Serra Yelmaz , a wonderful and truly original character. I also cared about Erica Blanc as the ultra sophisticated, lonely and wise mother of Marherita Buy's character. I also cared about Gabriel Garko because I think, he is the character, Ferzan Ozpetek, the director, cared about the most. At least Garko has the best, the most beautiful loving close ups of the entire film. Recommended

Death Dreams (1991 TV Movie)

Believing The Unbelievable

[9/10 · 16 November 2007]

I found myself on the side of the absurd, believing thoroughly, because Marg Helgenberg in a surprising and astonishing performance made me believe. I was so taken by her own conviction that I saw things the way she saw them. "Death Dreams" was made for Television but it's told with a ravishing cinematic language, look and feel. It doesn't respect any of the accepted rules of the genre but what is its genre? A ghost story? A supernatural thriller? A psychological whodunit? Yes, I think it could be all of that but above it all is a character driven drama dealing with the most unbelievable thing in the most believable way. The truth is not in the events themselves (I'm trying not to give anything away) but in the actor's faces. I completely forgot that Christopher Reeve was Christopher Reeve and that in itself is kind of extraordinary. I was afraid of him. Marg Helgenberger, long before CSI, shows an incredible dramatic range. A beautiful woman unafraid to show the signs of her torment. Look at the ravages of pain in her smiling face when her daughter's body is exhumed. Human, strange, fascinating. Waiting for the DVD.

Compulsion (1959)

The Strange Case Of Dean Stockwell

[9/10 · 15 November 2007]

Watching this 1959 Richard Fleischer confirmed something I've always known. Dean Stockwell is a superb actor and an extraordinary presence on the screen. So, I think it's strange that he's not regarded as one of the greatest actors that ever lived. He started as a kid. He was Gregory Peck's son, twice. He was in musicals with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra. He was directed by Elia Kazan. He made allegorical movies like "The Boy With Green Hair" directed by black listed Joseph Losey. He was Edmond in "Long Day's Journey Into Night" sharing the screen with Katharine Hepburn, Ralph Richardson and Jason Robards. No to mention his work in "Sons and Lovers" or the movies with Wim Wenders and David Lynch. Here, in "Compulsion" his performance is worthy of an Oscar and in fact he go the accolades at the Cannes Film Festival sharing the acting honors with Orson Welles and Bradford Dillman. But, looking at it now he is the one that comes out as the one who passed in triumph the test of time. His performance is so rich so perfectly modulated that you go straight into the human center of his sick, appalling character. "Compulsion" deserves to be rediscovered and Dean Stockwell's performance should be the main reason.

Boccaccio '70 (1962)

Luchino Visconti dresses Romy Schnaider plus other stories.

[8/10 · 14 November 2007]

The one thing I remembered about "Bocaccio70" was Romy Schnaider getting dressed in front of a mirror, in front of us. The film in his 4 segments has much more, but nothing better than Romy Schnaider in the Visconti segment. She is exquisite of course but in Visconti's hands she is superlative. Visconti, like George Cukor, knew how to guide actresses to their best. In the Monicelli episode Renzo and Lucia search for their privacy and Monicelli, a remarkable director, today 92 and still at work, manages to give the most straight forward, no frills segment. Fellini goes overboard with a 50 feet tall Anita Eckberg and a rather clumsy indictment at middle class morality. The De Sica episode has Sophia Loren, virgin and whore. When Sophia Loren was in De Sica's hands she was at her best. Her sympathy here takes over the episode and it becomes a joyful tale of nonsensical innocence. But, just as I remembered Romy Schnaider and Visconti are responsible for making this lightweight oddity really worth while.

American Beauty (1999)

Close To Perfection

[10/10 · 12 November 2007]

The intention is so clear that everything else falls into place, perfectly. Kevin Spacey's suburban husband and father reminded me of his character in "The Ref" and that could only be a good thing. Annette Bening and her giggle works wonders here. Their marriage is a tabloid version of a "Who's Afraid To Virginia Woolf" Which means very close to someone we know. The biggest surprises in the film. besides the amazing dexterity of Sam Mendes at his first outing behind the camera, are West Bentley. Chris Cooper, Thora Brch and Allison Janney. As I'm writing this 8 years after its first release, the Oscars and the whole hullabaloo, I'm very surprised that West Bentley hasn't become a major star. He is amazing in "American Beauty" the complexities of his character are based on recognizable human stands, the hardest to face up to and I went where he went. Thora Birch is lovely as the object of his attention and the film, I believe, is here to say.