Final Thoughts on Yasujiro Ozu

So my friends, December is upon us and with that I will say adieu to my November Spotlight on Yasujiro Ozu. I do hope you've enjoyed my aspects on this great director and perhaps I've inspired a few of you to go and get yourselves a copy of "Tokyo Story", "Late Spring" etc... If you don't want to pay the money just come to my house I'll lend them to you. I can't tell you enough on what this man's films have done to me as a movie fan and as a human being in general. Incidentally a little personal tid bit in my connection with Ozu, I did not find out until just recently but he and I also share the same birthday, we were both born on December 12th, which is also the day of Ozu's death. I know it doesn't mean anything but I was so happy to learn someone I admire so much shares my birthday, hurray for that.

In the meantime thank you and stay tuned for my December Director Spotlight. Who is it you ask? You'll just have to wait until tomorrow when he is revealed.

I Love Amy Adams, and You Should Too!!!

"Enchanted" may be the title of a movie, but it could also be used to describe Amy Adams the star of said movie and the main reason you should see said movie.

Adams plays Giselle, an animated Princess from the magical land of Andalasia who is about to get married to her Prince Edward when she is tricked by an old hag of a women and sent through a portal which brings her literally into the real world of New York. Giselle herself becomes human but still carries her fairy tale sensibility wherever she goes. She searches all over Manhattan trying to find her castle and her Prince, but she is soon found by a cynical divorce attorney named Robert (Patrick Dempsey) and his daughter who take her in. Meanwhile Giselle's Prince (James Marsden in a great clueless performance) finds the portal to New York and intends to rescue her, along with Pip a talking squirrel (although in the real world, squirrels can't talk which causes some problems), and his servant Nathaniel (Timothy Spall who I just saw in "The Last Hangman"). Nathaniel however is secretly working for the evil Queen (Susan Sarandon) the person responsible for sending Giselle through the portal in the first place.

The fairy tale story is sort of an homage of various Disney Princess stories like "Snow White", and "Sleeping Beauty", with a little bit of "Cinderella" thrown in at the end for good measure. Meanwhile Giselle is learning about the real world through Robert, while Robert is learning the world isn't such a bad place after all from Giselle.

You already know where "Enchanted" is headed the moment Adams steps out of the portal, however I must admit there are a few surprises and clever moments I didn't see coming or didn't expect done so well. Mostly the musical numbers were all inspired , particularly the ditty Adams sings when she is cleaning up Robert's apartment with the help of some of her animal friends, which aren't all the cute and cuddly in their real forms. Then there is another show stopper in the middle of Central Park that almost had me clapping in the theatre.

This film isn't just making fun of Disney films like the "Shrek" movies do, but they are also paying homage to them by showing us just what makes them so special in the first place. There isn't a hint of cynicism in this film and that's because we believe in Adams' character so much, she's the one that makes the film work. I would also credit Marsden's Prince Edward who also never loses that sense that he came from an animated world.

I do wish the film makers made up a more creative foil for Giselle rather than Dempsey's straight laced cynical business man type that we've seen so many times before, and the climax with the CGI dragon is just really ridiculous and sloppy, but all and all I was won over by the charm of Amy Adams and the musical numbers, both of which hearken back to Disney's glory days. And Hurray for 2-D animation!!

3 stars out of 4

Beware the Dragon Lady!!!!

"Beowulf" is an odd little extravaganza of a movie. It is a guilty pleasure, it's blunt about its sexual politics and violent nature, it's also very amusing, but though it might pass as entertainment, I hardly found anything memorable about it. "Beowulf" is the newest film to use the innovative computer animation technology, which is what director Robert Zemeckis used before with his "Polar Express", and also with last years "Monster House" which he produced. For the most part, I like this technology but to a point. I thought it worked well with a film like "Polar Express" which added to the dark and mysterious elements, but perhaps the numerous action scenes in "Beowulf" hinder the technology a bit which make the film look more like a high tech video game. No doubt this film will interest people who spend their time playing "World of War craft".

The story is of course based on the epic poem which since I have not read can only assume follows that plot faithfully. Beowulf comes to a kingdom in order to slay the local monster Grendel. Grendel attacks the people in a merciless manner cutting off their limbs and tearing them apart ( I think it's important to note that had this not been classified as an animated movie, this would no doubt be an R-rated film). But as the story goes on, we find the real monster isn't Grendel, but it's in fact Grendel's mother a dragon who has that canny ability to turn into Angelina Jolie. This is lucky for all the males watching the movie, but bad for Beowulf. Grendel's mother seduces Beowulf with promises of power, wealth, sex with her which he guesses is too hard to pass up, but of course all this could not end well.

"Beowulf" tells us nothing new about men's greedy nature when it comes to power and women, but I guess the story itself is one of the oldest to tell us this so I won't blame the movie. The film is very tongue and cheek and even pokes fun at Beowulf's tendencies to exaggerate his exploits, which had me laughing more than I thought I would in this film. It was good to see a film of this nature not take itself too seriously and decide to have fun. It doesn't try to be smarter than it is and for that it does work as a guilty pleasure. However by the end the action seemed to take too much of a video game approach and I lost what little feeling I had for the characters. I was reminded of the climactic ending of "Transformers" where that just turned into a bunch of CGI robots fighting it out. It's true the new technology is able to do what real life performers can't, but the line was crossed where it interfered with the human element thus losing my interest. If I wanted a role playing video game I'll play "World of War craft", but I don't really want to play that game and maybe that's another reason "Beowulf" didn't work for me.

On a final note, I realize kids today probably are used to seeing R-rated movies anyway but do we have to make it so easy for them by making this film PG-13? This maybe a win less debate but really, this isn't a kid's movie and shouldn't be marketed as one.

2 and a half stars out of 4

Ozu's Muse :Setsuko Hara

Like many directors Yasujiro Ozu had the habit of using many of his same actors. Probably his most frequent actor is Chishi Ryu who's roles would range from the biggest part to the smallest. However I wanted to focus more on one of Ozu's most frequent leading ladies, and that was the luminous Setsuko Hara.

There isn't much written about Hara, as far as I know she is still alive and living privately in Japan. She retired from acting in 1963 not soon after Ozu's death. There has been some speculation as to her relationship with Ozu and whether or not they carried on an affair, but I do not want to pry. Because of Hara's sudden retirement and disappearance from the public eye, she has been called "Japan's Garbo". She was a big star in Japan upon her retirement and unpset many fans and industry people alike when she left. She had said that she never liked acting and only did it to support her family, and once she could support them, she felt it was no longer necessary for her to keep doing it. In addition to the numerous classic Ozu films she appeared in, she also starred along side Toshiro Mifune in Kurosawa's "The Idiot".

I have not seen much of Hara's work other than her Ozu films, but I must say her performances in those films have me mesmerized. I have a reputation of easily falling in love with actresses that I like, and I don't think Hara is any exception. There is something about her that appeals to me. I first saw her in "Tokyo Story", where she plays the the former daughter in law to the elderly couple. In the film she is the only one who is decent to them even when their own children aren't. She always carries a certain sadness in her eyes in that movie, but she's hardly ever seen without a smile in her face. She has a heartbreaking scene near the end of the film as she is talking to the old man played by Chishu Ryu, where she tells about how guilty she feels for not thinking about her dead husband more than she should. All through the film she was not aloud to show her true feelings, and in this scene you can see it all come pouring out.

I think my favorite performance by her is in "Late Spring" where she is playing the daughter of an old widower (Ryu again). She is being pressured into finding a husband before she gets too old, but she is perfectly happy living with her father, however he does not want her to grow old alone. The relationship between father and daughter is very touching, it's a love story between them and not the man she must marry. The relationship is not shown in an obscene way but one very natural and beautiful. He has lost his wife, she has lost her mother, all they have is each other.

Hara did a remake of "Late Spring" years later with Ozu entitled "Late Autumn", this time Hara is the mother who marries off her daughter. This can be considered a remake, but in some ways I always thought of it more as a sequel. Hara could very well be the same character a few years older, but either way in both films, she always has this wise beyond her years look in her face, and a sad knowing of the inevitable.

Setsuko Hara captured me as an actress with grace and class, she had a very girl next door quality to her, but what catches me every time I see her is her sadness. In every Ozu film she's in, she always seems to be on the verge of tears but instead shows us a brave smile, and by doing that she lets her strength shine through.

Look What's Coming

There is so much you can say about The Coen Brothers' masterpiece "No Country for Old Men". It was so nice to see such a rich, multi-layered, lyrical film that masquerades as a run of the mill suspense yarn. Of course you can say that about any number of the Coens' films, but I think they have never been so blunt on the nature of violence like they have in this picture.

The story is based on the Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name, and follows the plot pretty faithfully but with a few of the Coen's own interpretations thrown into the mix. When Llewelyn Moss (2007's busiest man in Hollywood Josh Brolin) is out hunting, he stumbles upon a bloody aftermath. Dead bodies are scattered around a Texas valley with a truck full of drugs. When Llewelyn investigates further he finds a case full of money that is now left unclaimed. When Llewelyn decides to take the money, we find it leads to even more trouble. Enter Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) a hired killer with no conscience who would kill someone at the flip of a coin. His sadistic weapon of choice is a cattle gun which is handy when shooting off locks to a door as well as people in the head. Anton has been brought in the capture Lewelyn and get the money, but pretty soon he becomes a loose canon not caring who gets in his way. Another major character is the local Sheriff Ed Tom (Tommy Lee Jones) who's trying to catch up with Llewelyn and trying to make sense of this violent world he now finds him in.

All the usual genre stuff of money and drugs really don't matter much in this film. Much like the Coen's other masterpiece "Fargo", we never get a clear answer as to what happens to the money and by the end of the movie it doesn't really matter. What this film does, I think very successfully is comment on how violence is ongoing, and once it starts it's unstoppable. I have been squeamish in the past about violence in movies, especially ones who claim to be commenting on it but mostly exploiting it for mindless reasons. "No Country for Old Men" gets it right all the way through, in fact as the film's violence becomes more and more senseless, the less of it we see. The two most significant deaths in the film happen off camera and only one of those shows us the aftermath. This makes the deaths even more disturbing and sticks with you.

But what also makes this into a great movie is the Coens' immeasurable craft. These guys may very well be the best filmmakers alive today. The use of how they build suspense and atmosphere is brilliant. There is hardly a note of music through the whole film, but the images are so powerful you don't even notice it. The addition of lighting and sound effects make up some of the best most suspenseful moments in film history. One such scene includes the unscrewing of a light bulb and the sound of a telephone ringing and that is all I'm going to say.

As for the performances, let's just say I don't think they could be better. Bardem is already getting some Oscar buzz as Chigurh and he makes this character frightening each time he's on screen, I almost closed my eyes more than once when he appeared. Brolin has a great everyman quality in the part of Llewelyn and for once, he's not playing a bad guy, but he is someone who is in over his head. Then there is Tommy Lee Jones, some one who already gave a great performance with "In the Valley of Elah", but with Sheriff Tom, Jones has found a kindred spirit, and his performance is really the heart and soul of what this film is about, his final speech in the film leaves you with the kind of disillusionment his character feels.

I can go on and on about this film, it is definitely a great one. I think I'll write more about it later, but until then I'll just leave my four star rating and tell you to go see this movie.

4 stars out of 4

Roger Ebert's Top Ten of 2006

After taking part of the year off due to illness, Roger Ebert has been making up for lost time by reviewing films from last year that he missed. He must've finished though because I'm glad to see that he has his annual top ten list from last year finally available. You can all check out http://rogerebert.com to see his list. There are even a few there I haven't seen yet like "Bubble", and "Perfume". Quickly now to the video store!!!!

Can't Get Enought of Bobby and The Beatles

Two of the greatest artists of all time are getting a resurgence of sorts (As if they needed one) this year on both the big screen and on DVD. If you haven't gone to see Julie Taymor's visually impressive Beatles musical "Across the Universe" which has polarized its audience, I very much recommend it, but if you want the Beatles themselves then you can go to the DVD store and pick up their classic film "Help". Directed by Richard Lester, it's the band's follow up to "A Hard Days Night", and even though I wouldn't say this film is up to par with their earlier one, it's still full of great humour and great music.

Also Todd Haynes experimental biopic "I'm Not There" is yet to open wide so I haven't been able to see it, but it's been getting some great critical response, and if you're aching to see Dylan on film then a new DVD which chronicles his performances at the Newport Folk Festival has just been released. Entitled "The Other Side of the Mirror", this was the famous folk festival where Dylan went electric.

The release of of "Across the Universe" and "I'm Not There", plus these DVDs just goes to show, that good music never fades away.