The Wrestler

Not a bad character study, but lacks distinction.  I thought the theme of people past their prime in their chosen professions (the equally ridiculous worlds of wrestling and stripping) was interesting, especially with the meta-ness of Rourke and Tomei being former stars beyond their glory years, but not developed fully enough.  The film hinges on Rourke’s performance, which to his credit is excellent.  A genuine and relatable portrayal of a character that I probably wouldn’t care for in other hands.  However, my interest started to wane as the movie wore on, just not quite enough meat on these bones, and nothing too surprising develops.  Still, an engaging film with a few nice touches.  Rating: Good

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Kiss Me Deadly (rewatch)

I didn’t care for this a whole lot when I first watched it 4 years ago.  In the meantime I’ve developed a tremendous appetite for noir, this is widely considered one of the greats, and the guys on the “Out of the Past” podcast gushed over it.  So I took the plunge and bought the Blu-Ray.  I think my earlier complaints are for the most part no longer an issue.  Originally I praised the beginning and ending but found the bulk of the film repetitive and dull.  Now I still would like more plot development to be going on, but realize that the devil is in the details… it’s not so much what is happening, but how it’s happening, this journey through a world of paranoia and violence.  I made an aside about Hammer being a douchebag, but as I suspected, this is entirely intentional, with neither the director nor the screenwriter caring for the character.  This is really a non-issue anyway, there’s nothing wrong with an anti-hero.  My other comment was about the acting, but now I find the performances quite memorable (especially being familiar with many of the character actors) if not entirely “good” in the modern sense.  The film still doesn’t really grab me, but I understand better the charm it holds for others.  I’m going to keep it around for a later viewing and try to have more of a gut reaction.  Rating: Good

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The Blues Brothers (rewatch)

Dan Aykroyd is now a UFO kook and John Belushi overdosed and left behind a crappy brother, but they did do one thing very, very right: they made The Blues Brothers.  Although there have been occasional (usually lame) attempts in the past 30 years, this is really the last great entry in the genre of musical comedy… and probably the only one to engage in such enthusiastic, rampant destruction.  It’s true that many of the jokes have lost their punch after some 15-20 viewings, and the movie is proof that just because you’re a great musician doesn’t mean you can act.  But it’s such a gleeful, exuberant, infectious film.  My heart leaps with joy when I watch it, particularly during the musical performances.  Never mind that it taps into 30-year-old nostalgia for me, it’s just wickedly fun from the opening stings of “She Caught the Katy” to the fading notes of “Jailhouse Rock.”  They don’t make them like this anymore.  Rating: Masterpiece

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Memory for Max, Claire, Ida and Company

King takes his camera inside a Jewish nursing home, and focuses on a group of residents with varying degrees of dementia and Alzheimer’s.  Although Dying at Grace deals with the end of life, I found this much more depressing.  Perhaps too depressing, as these people struggle with their own lack of recall.  When Claire repeatedly forgets that her best friend has died, she has to relive the sorrow of that discovery over and over again.  The staff at the facility seem to be doing the best they can, but there is little you can do to alleviate the confusion and suffering of a deteriorating mind.  There are some happy moments (Fay’s unbridled joy over a visit from her son, who crassly boasts about the value of the watch he’s given to her) but overall this was more uncomfortable than poignant.  However, it left me with empathy for these people and their loved ones.  I very much liked the social worker who the film seems to pivot around.  Rating: Good

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Dying at Grace

Like the other King docs, there is no narration, no interviews, no explanatory title cards except at the very beginning.  Just the profoundly intimate documenting of people in their private moments… in this case, five terminally ill patients in palliative care at Toronto Grace Hospital.  The film is, in a word, devastating.  I haven’t wept so much in a long time.  A couple of the patients seem hopeless from the outset, the others start out fairly vibrant but gradually deteriorate into despair, resignation, and finally barely functional bodies.  Although we see them at their most helpless and dependent, at the height of their suffering, the feeling aroused is not pity but heartfelt compassion for them and their loved ones.  Most moving of all is Lloyd, whose brain tumor leaves him practically speechless, but the devotion of his lover is deeply affecting.  A powerful, shattering piece of work.  Rating: Great

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Come on Children

After interviewing hundreds of teenagers whose main frustration was being under the thumb of adult supervision, King sequesters five boys and five girls away in a farmhouse to do as they will.  What unfolds is pretty much what you’d expect.  They hang out, do drugs, hang out, play music (especially Alex, who would later become part of the megapopular and megaboring prog band Rush), hang out, hook up, and hang out.  Those hoping for “Real World” style fireworks will be disappointed… the most dramatic it ever gets is some mild bickering about kitchen chores.  There are a few interesting scenes, for example John talking about his former speed use, or a visit from the families where Alex’s parents ironically fret over his future.  But for the most part, it’s pretty mundane fare with only a couple of standout personalities.  If there’s a message to this, it’s that when kids are left to their own devices they’ll probably do a decent job taking care of themselves (as long as someone else is footing the bill) but that’s about it.  Rating: Fair

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A Married Couple

Like a documentary version of Scenes from a Marriage, this is a stunning portrait of a couple falling to pieces.  Billy and Antoinette allow King and his cameraman into some of the most private moments of their lives.  The usual questions arise about how much the participants are putting on a show for the camera (they’d have to have some exhibitionist qualities to even agree to this) and apparently some of it is not in chronological sequence, but ultimately I feel that what we’re getting is real, even if perhaps slightly heightened.  The fact is that their arguments often greatly resemble ones I’ve had with my wife, which perhaps doesn’t bode well for my own marriage (I love ya, honey!) but it definitely has the sting of truth to it.  Ridiculously small disagreements become massive battles under the weight of buried, and not-so-buried, resentment.  Which is not to stay that it’s always war in the Edwards household… they have their tender moments.  But perhaps some relationships cannot be salvaged.  A very intense, gripping film that drew me in completely.  Rating: Great

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Warrendale

Allan King’s first feature documentary is a look inside a home for troubled kids, kids who tend to lash out.  At Warrendale, they practice a bizarre “holding” technique where children are physically restrained by one or several adults, sometimes when there’s no obvious need for it.  I question the effectiveness of this… yes, it stops them from hurting themselves or others, but how do you not get panicky when someone much larger is clutching you in a vise grip, or even lying on top of you?  When children protest, the staff seems puzzled that they wouldn’t want someone’s hands and arms and legs all over them when they’re trying to have an emotional moment.  And the staff often seem to be giving mixed messages, trying to calm children down while simultaneously screaming orders at them to express their feelings.  I got the impression that these guys, although well-meaning, had little idea of what the hell they were doing, putting blind faith in various feelgood philosophies and the healing power of overbearing physical contact.  But I must say that in general the kids seemed used to the treatment, and there are even a couple of apparent breakthroughs.  At any rate, it’s an intense, intimate piece of documentary filmmaking (or “actuality drama,” as King calls it), with moments that can leave you gasping for breath, and genuinely moving scenes.  Rating: Very Good

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Black Peter

This brought to mind Closely Watched Trains, another early Czech New Wave film about a teenage apprentice who’s none too excited about his work.  Both are coming-of-age comedies with some moments of awkward teen romance.  This film (Forman’s first feature) actually predates Menzel’s, and has more of a freeform, anecdotal structure.  Although not explicitly a commentary on Communism, Petr’s distaste for spying on customers clearly has some political implications.  The film has a gentle, naturalistic pace with scenes that have a nice attention to detail.  Ladislav Jakim struck me as a fine young actor, and I liked how the rival boy gradually developed into a more sympathetic character (particularly during the dance scene, which was my favorite part of the movie).  Jan Vostrcil, the wonderful lead in Firemen’s Ball, perhaps lays it on a little thick as the overbearing father, but it’s a somewhat humorous performance.  Although the comedy is quite mellow and subdued, there are a few laugh out loud moments.  Unfortunately, the Facets DVD sports an ugly transfer, and woefully incomplete subtitles.  Entire swaths of dialogue went by without translation.  Rating: Very Good

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The Sea Hawk

Fun swashbuckling adventure on the high seas (and on land) with a little comedy, a little romance, some political intrigue, and lots of action.  I feel like I enjoyed this more than Robin Hood or Captain Blood, but I saw those a long time ago and maybe I’ve just developed more of a fondness for Errol Flynn.  At any rate, he’s terrific here, perfect leading man material, and his final storming of the castle is classic stuff.  A lot of the other performances are kind of lackluster, but I really loved Flora Robson’s sly, almost flirty portrayal of the queen.  The film moves swiftly without any significant dead spots, and my interest was held throughout.  Curtiz had a real gift for framing, always seeming to find a visually exciting composition.  Also noteworthy is Korngold’s stirring score, and a coda which does the patriotic wartime call to action better than a lot of other films of its time.  If there’s a weakness, it’s the romance between Flynn and Brenda Marshall, which feels rather perfunctory, even though it’s a significant plot element.  Some people seem to have a problem with Marshall’s performance, but I think she simply wasn’t given enough to do.  Rating: Very Good

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