ESSIE SPEAKS OF MIXED BAGS!

No no, nothing to do with haute couture, I just meant that after a very long spate of themed and well organised weeks we are back - if only momentarily - mixed weeks. But I mean, it's not my fault, my last deadline looms on the horizon and things are getting very hectic - and tiring - over here. But as always my refuge (and ironically the bulk of my work) are films and the written results are up on the site as we speak. Although I must say I seem to have gone for rather a gloomy selection this week - I am possibly feeling depressed about the mass of deadlines hovering over my head. War, dark insights into the human psyche and other happy topics. Admittedly these are all executed by veteran actors and directors - and while this means the films are of great quality they are also realistic. Which is good but not a "happy" thing if you get my meaning. I'll make a point of writing about something happier for next week. Promise =) happy viewing! Essie

WAR AND SADNESS "IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH"

With 9 / 11 and the subsequent war in Iraq there are more and more films discussing the matter; giving the pros and the cons and the different ideas and opinions as to what is going on. In the valley of Elah is one of these films. I am actually doing my dissertation on war films by the way so over the course of the next couple of weeks you will be hearing about these films quite a bit. I may even do a week on them but more about that later. First let’s take a look at the film in hand. Hank Deerfield (Tommy Lee Jones – one of my favorite actors incidentally) has the misfortune of getting the call every parent who has a son or daughter in the armed forces dread: “your son is missing”. The irony of the situation being that the young man did not get lost on the battlefield but actually back in the United States, when they had just returned from the tour in Baghdad. An ex-serviceman himself, Deerfield is determined to figure out the full truth of what has happened to his son. With the help of Emily Sanders (Charlize Theron) Deerfield starts his own investigation in the face of the apathy of the institutions. First of all, as you may have guessed the story does contain some quite open political overtones and messages. I am not going to get into that – this blog was not set up for politics. So let’s concentrate on the film itself. And the film itself is quite something. First of all, the film is quite brilliant as a crime / murder mystery alone. I mean I grant you, having a single hero – Hank – who just happened to be a retired intelligence officer doing a better job than the entire police force by himself is a bit “old”. But the film does save this particular gimmick by making him a middle aged man with a lot of flaws in his character – he is in fact a rather difficult man all in all. Tommy Lee Jones’s rugged charisma fits the role very well and they go well together with Susan Sarandon who plays his wife. Although there are a few “types” among the characters, but what I really liked about them is the fact that none of them are perfect. And the flaws in their characters do not look slightly off, as they do in some films, some times a flaw is there simply because the writers reckoned the characters turned out too perfect. Here we have very real and realistic people portrayed – the benefits of having an Oscar® winning writer / director (Paul Haggis, director of Crash) on the crew I suppose =) In the valley of elah is, above and beyond everything, a look into the human psyche and the way it reacts under pressure. In the valley of elah is definitely up there in good company along with a series of war films that look at the states of mind and changes in character that occur in prolonged combat. And it is of course very sad and in bits rather hard to watch but definitely worth it. By the way, just found out that Tommy Lee Jones was actually nominated for an Academy award with this role. Well deserved says I.

A TOUCH OF HISTORY AND ROMANCE : "KINGDOM OF HEAVEN"

I heard a lot of bad stuff about this film. The criticism ranged from the political messaging to the lack of originality. I had next to no expectations from it when I had to watch it for course purposes. I have to admit some of the criticism is true for some things but I did still enjoy it, hence I thought it only fair to write it up. Let me try and explain what I mean. Balian (Orlando Bloom – yum!) is a poor blacksmith that has grown up a bastard in a small village. He isn’t very well liked (it is the 12th century after all) and his life has grown even darker after the suicide of his beloved wife following the death of their child. Into his dark world comes a piece of good fortune Balian never expected. A rich baron comes along and reveals that he is Balian’s father. He lives in Jerusalem after the crusades and he is in a position to offer Balian a brand new life in Jerusalem, the chance to start again from scratch, with wealth and power. The problem is, however that this new world Balian is brought into is governed largely by intrigue, greed and the lust for war. Balian only aims to find forgiveness for himself and his wife (whose suicide, it is believed in those days, means she wonders around hell, headless). But will his will to do the right thing by those he is responsible for and for himself prevail over the forces around him? Ok, so you can see the whole pattern coming out already, right. It starts off kinda like Cinderella actually now I come to think of it. Our beautiful and unfortunate hero is delivered from his cruel fate by what is, for all intents and purposes a fairy godmother. Then, the moral side of the story begins. Will Balian be tempted by his position and new found wealth or will he stick to his morals and principals? You can well imagine what the answer is. The film does take an interesting tack though. It is, in my opinion, a bit of a commentary on the wars being fought in the name of religion, the wars that have in fact been fought all through history. Balian is not particularly religious, in fact it is never openly said but implied that he has lost his faith if he ever had faith in the first place. And yet, he is the truly good person in the film, the hero if you will, which I found a tad surprising. It is true that Ridley Scott puts a rather “perfect” ending on the film and Balian ends up being a little too good and moral to be believed, his one major flaw being his lack of faith (which is not even really portrayed or demonized as a flaw come to think of it). The film is good fun though, contains some good emotional moments and made for a good evening’s entertainment all in all. Just don’t expect it to rock your world…

AND THE DESCENT INTO THE HUMAN MIND: "EQUUS"

Ok, gentle reader, be warned. This film is most definitely NOT for the faint of heart or stomach. And yes, there are some – truly very few – gory scenes in it but I do not mean you need to be strong of stomach. Although that does help. It is strong of mind, able to well handle deep psychological stuff and a serious interest in this kind of film that you need. If you feel you tick the boxes read on. Have I got a treat for you. Now if the name seems familiar to you, it is because this film was actually adapted by a Tony award winning play of the same name. It is the story of Martin Dysart, a psychiatrist (played rather superbly by Richard Burton). One day a rather unusual patient is brought to him. His specialty is troubled adolescents but this young man has blinded six horses in a rather horrendous way and Dr. Dysart needs to figure out why he has done that and if the boy can be cured. There are, however, some dark truths that are altogether better off staying in the dark. Dr. Dysart is indeed able to delve into the young man’s psyche and come face to face with his demons but will he be able to safeguard his own sanity in the process? A couple of things about this film. Firstly it is more suited for a mature audience in all senses of the word. Sex and sexuality come into it, as does religion and very dark obsessions. None of these are, of course, easy topics, this coupled with the darkness of madness makes for something strictly suited to adults. But when you get over the difficulties of the subject-matter the film does make for fascinating viewing, especially if, like me, you are interested in human psychology. Think of it like some sort of crime drama. Only it is not the who but the motive, the real story that we are trying to piece together. And in the process we delve deep into the human mind and uncover its rather terrible potentials… An interesting idea to ponder is the whole matter of Dr. Dysart’s own sanity, what is happening to him and why – it was one point in one of my essays funnily enough - as you can probably deduce it is almost as if Allan’s (the name of the young man who I seem to have omitted before for some reason) particular form of madness is almost “catching”. But is it that simple? Is there some underlying message there? I know a lot of people do not dissecting their films to death but every once in a while you are hit with a movie that responds so well to this kind of thing you cannot resist. If you study film studies you kinda do it automatically anyway. “Enjoy” may not be quite the right word for this one. But the film was incredibly exciting, you become wrapped up in it very, very quickly and watch it breathless until the end. I mean ok, it has the potential to give you nightmares but still… I reckon its worth the risk if only to enjoy the award winning acting.

ESSIE SPEAKS OF BRIAN DE PALMA

Good morning folks! I did tell you I live in the U.K now right? Ok. So there is a tentative hint at summer here these last couple of days. Every person from Mediterranean countries I know is thrilled. Some of my more northern friends are complaining because it is too hot. I didn't even have the time to poke fun at them however because the moment is already passing, once again there are clouds in the sky, oh well. This week my studies meant I had to steep myself in the works of Brian De Palma. It is a thing I haven't done in a while. I seem to have missed out on quite a bit. Ok, I do see that he has a bit of a penchant for boxing and crime and more than a bit of penchant for soppy endings. I do get what you mean. But still the films are exciting, the storylines are brilliant and I won't even go into the technical side of it because I would bore you to death (and I attempt to do so a bit further down anyway so why kill you twice, hehe) Enjoy! Happy viewing! Essie

A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY AND THE "CASUALTIES OF WAR"

Ok, so, there is actually a very good reason why a lot of my film theory books point out that the Vietnam war was one of the most “televised” wars in history, not necessarily in the same sense as the First Gulf War when we first got “live action” warfare but in the sense that there were many, many films made about it. I always am rather careful when I suggest war films. My dissertation topic means I have to watch a fair number of them (long story) but this has made me see that the good ones are very very good. The bad ones are horrid. Which complicates things even further because the “horrid” ones mean that sometimes very valid themes are put to one side as “oh been there, done that”. But they are actually truly worth talking about. Especially since this film about the Vietnam War and Brian De Palma’s latest film on the war in Iraq Redacted share, despite their many differences in theme, share some key scenes. Which means to me that despite time going by war is still war and we have a lot to learn… But enough philosophy, let’s get to this week’s fare. Casualties of War is, sad to say, a true story. Private Eriksson (played by Michael J. Fox who I haven’t seen around for years after is illness – I hope he’s doing alright…)is a new arrival in Vietnam. His squad seems to be an average group of guys. Their Sergeant, Meserve (played superbly by a young Sean Penn) is a bit rough but charismatic and an excellent soldier. His fellow soldiers seem an average group of guys. Until the squad is sent on a mission deep into the jungle. Angered by the recent death of a comrade and pushed to the brink by the horror of war, the squad decides to take their frustration out on the Vietnamese, or rather on one particular Vietnamese girl who is kidnapped from her village and taken with them as “portable r & r”. Eriksson cannot believe that his squad could be serious about this until the girl is actually among them, but once she is there Eriksson’s quest for justice in one of the locations he is least likely to find it begins. Like I said, the topic is not new. It isn’t new because stories like this, true stories, happen in every war. We are horrified to hear it yet a little jaded for having heard the story so many times before. For the victims however, the horror is very new. It doesn’t matter if they heard the story before. It is the first time they are witnessing /experiencing such a thing. And this is why the stories need to be told. Over and over if necessary. Until we figure out that war is a terrible thing. DePalma may well be accused of being overly emotional, the soaring, “typical” Hollywood scores and the emotional dialogue are all of a certain type of film. I am not a massive fan of his endings either (with the exception of Redacted – watch this space for the review on that one), they tend to be a little too “flowery” for my liking, a little too “fairy tale”. But Casualties of War is a good film. It is a very good film indeed. Don’t fall into the trap of saying *yawn. Another Vietnam film, let’s give it a miss.* The messages it has are universal.

SOME MURDER MYSTERY WITH : "THE BLACK DAHLIA"

Ok, back to civilian life now. Well, in fact, not quite. Anyone vaguely familiar with the work of Brian De Palma will know that he is mighty fond of his cops and robbers. Now the robbers we are all very much aware of, Scarface, Carlito, they have all gone down in history as the biggies of their time. So let us turn our attention to the cops for a second. If only because none of them has even come close to achieving the notoriety that Al Pacino has given the bad guys mentioned above. Los Angeles, 1940’s. Two ex-boxers Bucky (Josh Hartnett) and Lee (Aaron Eckhart) are partners in the police force. But they have quite a bit more than their careers tying them together. They are known as Mr. Fire and Mr. Ice; Lee; Mr. Fire is the emotional, out-going and gregarious one of the two, also a heavy-weight boxer and the one with more of a “glistening” career. Mr. Ice, Bucky, is calmer, quieter a lightweight (literally) and the more junior cop of the two. But all their differences don’t stop them forming a bizarre ménage a trois with Lee’s girlfriend Kay (the enigmatic Scarlett Johansson). Their private arrangements are a little strange (I will let you discover them precisely as the film goes along) but they are good at what they do and have quite average lives until the “Black Dahlia” murder. Lee becomes slowly obsessed by the murder, ignoring duty and Ray and devoting all his time to obsessing about it. All Bucky can do is follow in his wake, the thing is, he must be very, very careful as he navigates his way; both Lee’s past and the Black Dahlia murder contains more dark secrets than he can possibly imagine. The end credits inform us that the murder that takes place in the film really happened but the film itself is a concoction of this and a novel by James Ellroy named The Black Dahlia. This is one of the things I like the most about Brian De Palma. A lot of his film tell a story that is – or at least contains an element of – true life. I’m not quite sure why this is such an important thing for me, but I truly feel that life is often much stranger than fiction and it enriches me to find out the most I can about it. The Black Dahlia is a true – blue nail biter. Stylistically it is brilliant. And even though it is a full two hours long, the minutes will, I promise you, fly by. The only thing is, the story does get a tad convoluted here and there.De Palma does give clear explanations and reminders but if, for example, you watch the film when you’re feeling rather tired and preoccupied (as I did) you will have a few “Wait, what?? Well who was… Oh… Right.” Moments. And again, the ending. *Sigh*. I mean, it’s ok. It is Hollywood I guess. You know what, in fact I need to say this, the film is so close to perfect I shouldn’t nit-pick. There. Enjoy.

"SNAKE EYES" - THE HOUSE WINS

Ok, actually let’s stick with the theme of cops and robbers. Only this time the cops and the robbers are far more intertwined than before. Brian De Palma has a certain liking – and a flair – for convoluted stories where nothing is quite what it seems and surprises lurk around every corner. I find that his films start out like oh, any old film you can slap on after a tiring day at the office and chill to. Er no. You have to be alert and have your wits about you for this one. Not least because if you’re not following it, you will miss more than half the enjoyment, the best part of it for me is the way it all comes together. Ritchie Santoro (Nicholas Cage) is living the good life. He is a cop, with a wife, a son and a girlfriend. He has grown up in this town. He does what he likes, he rules the block, everyone knows him, life is basically one big day out, a really good time. Then, it is the night of the big fight. Not only is the fight itself big – it’s the world heavyweight championship – but it’s also big because the U.S. Secretary of Defense is attending the fight. And Ritchie’s childhood friend Kevin Dunne (Gary Sinse of CSI fame) is in charge of the security. It actually seems to be a party night like any other but then, an attempt is made on the Secretary of Defense’s life. Kevin seems to be in trouble because as the head of security he is the one whose career will be in line for this. This is when Ritchie steps in, to save his friend. But the deeper he gets into this affair the more convoluted everything around him seems to become. Evidently high politics and murder are an explosive mix… Ok, I loved this film on many different levels, but technically alone it was just brilliant. The opening tracking shot for example is quite legendary, it goes on and on for about ten minutes without a cut and is a joy to watch – if this kind of thing affords you joy that is, and to me it does. Secondly, De Palma doesn’t fail to amp up the suspense at any point. My particular favorites are flashbacks of different characters that are presented directly from the points of view of the character so when the switch happens you are never entirely sure whose point of view you are looking from until you here a chance remark or pass an opportune mirror. The energy of the film is absolutely mind-blowing and technically it is absolutely brilliant. I mean yeah, it’s the age-old story, good against evil etc. – and I still maintain that Mr. De Palma’s endings are a little too Hollywood for my liking but still. The film has so much going for it, it even cancels out this pet peeve =) P.S. For those confused by the title - it's a line from the film. The boxing match takes place in a large casino, hence the reference...

ESSIE SPEAKS OF DOCUMENTARIES

Good morning folks! Sorry I'm a little late with the update. But it is technically Thursday morning - even though I did recently get into the habit of updating wednesday nights. Essays are a large part of my schedule these days. You're going to have to bear with me until the end of may. And in the meanwhile I thought, you see, as I seem to be learning so much, I should give you the chance to do the same. That plus the fact I actually like documentaries. A lot. It's just that I haven't got round to seing that many really good ones. And most of David Attenborough's stuff we've all seen anyway. But here are three exceptional, touching, interesting documentaries for your delectation this week and not a wildlife topic in sight. Well maybe in one, ever so slightly. You'll like it though. Really. happy viewing! Essie

A TRUE STORY ABOUT THE DEEP AND SCARY THINGS IN LIFE : "INTO THE ABYSS"

Werner Herzog has always been a filmmaker I have greatly admired. I am especially impressed by his documentaries and the original way he approaches rather original and out of the ordinary topics. I had watched Grizzly Man with these feelings and so was looking forward to watching Into the Abyss that, on a primary level appealed to my (admittedly rather bizarre) love of true crime, and on a secondary and far more important level was, as you can either guess or already know, a consideration on capital punishment, a subject I feel strongly about (as in I am strongly against it). I was, therefore, interested in seeing the take Herzog had chosen on the topic, even though I could well imagine it wasn’t going to exactly be a “happy” filmgoing experience… And I must say, Into the Abyss could not be more aptly named. The “topics” of the documentary are two young villains; Jason Burquett and Michael Perry. Their crime, murder of three people, one woman and two 16 year-old boys. The motive? The theft of a car. Yes, the only reason three innocent people had to day was that Burquett and Perry wanted the red Camaro belonging to a woman they barely knew. It would, in this story especially, be very easy to argue a case for capital punishment in the face of this rather senseless triple homicide. When we talk to the surviving family members, the devastation brought upon them by the loss and their pain, we cannot help but sympathize. But then, we turn to look at Burquett and Perry’s lives. The two young men were about 18 at the time of the murder. 10 years have gone by when the documentary is being filmed. Jason Burquett is serving a life sentence without parole for at least 40 years, Michael Perry has been sentenced to death, and has literally days left to live – all channels of appeal have run out. Burquett comes from a broken home in a poor neighborhood, his father is a habitual criminal, his mother is disabled and can barely look after him and his siblings. Of course this is no excuse for the crime, but you can see quite clearly that the chances of his growing up to be a lawyer or an engineer were pretty darned slim. Burquett is a little more frank about all that has happened. Perry claims to the last the murders were Burquett’s doing and he had no knowledge of it – even though DNA evidence claims otherwise. Herzog backgrounds all of this against testimonies from the prison chaplain and an ex-captain of an execution team and in the end leaves us, staring into what is in effect an abyss of hard lives, wrong choices and the unnecessary loss of innocent life that is followed by great pain… Herzog himself is quite frank about his sentiments on the matter right from the first moment of the documentary. He doesn’t like Perry – he says this to his face in an interview. And yet he is strongly against the death penalty. And he does a wonderful job of showing us why. One of the most touching testimonies comes – somewhat surprisingly – from Jason Burquett’s father. Mr. Burquett Sr. is in the same penitentiary as his son – although in different units – and is serving what is, in effect, a life sentence. Jason’s older brother Chris is also in prison. Mr. Burquett Sr. tells us how much he regrets not having been a proper father to his children. He talks of the day he testified for his son during the sentencing and recalling a moment when he was handcuffed to his own son so they could be both transported he points out of his own accord that “one doesn’t sink much lower than that”. On the other hand we have the testimony of someone like ??, the mother and sister of two of the victims. Their death was the last straw in a series of family tragedies that have shaken her so fundamentally that I cannot begin to imagine how she will ever be completely healed, and for what? Simply the theft of a car… The prison chaplain’s testimony makes up the “prologue”. I will not give too much away on that, but I will say this much; you have to have a heart of stone not to cry at least a little… And the end of the film shows the “nitty gritty” of an execution as told by the former execution team captain; former, as a nervous breakdown forced him to leave the job at the cost of his pension – he had started off life accepting capital punishment as just another fact of life, but had ended up vehemently opposed to it… So what is the solution? What is the answer? These are all, of course, questions to be debated in discussed in all countries that still have the death penalty. But Into the Abyss is a frank look at the pain that surrounds this sad affair and reminds us quite clearly that the whole thing is a tad more complicated than “some people just don’t deserve to live”.

ALTERNATIVE LIVES AND A PERSONAL HISTORY : "THE GLEANERS AND I"

Those of you who are interested in French New Wave cinema (and yes, I realize there are not many of us out there) will recognize the name of Agnes Varda as one of the forerunners of the movement, and a very original artist. Apart from being one of the only female directors in the movement, Varda has a very particular outlook on things, an outlook that I find has become more and more openly expressed in her later works. Personally I enjoy her later films better. Semi-autobiographical documentaries in style, most of them are recorded accounts of a perspective on life and everyday things that you would never capture without taking the trouble to step into Varda’s shoes. The gleaners and I is just one such documentary. Basically, the gleaners and I is a documentary about “gleaning”. Now if you are as lost as I initially was as to the meaning of this, let me explain it to you before we progress any further. Usually after farmers gather their crops there are some left in the fields, for whatever reason. The produce may not have been selected because it is overly ripe, not the right size, sheer negligence… Or alternately, a lot of large companies, after sorting through vegetables or fruits in factories, discard a lot of the produce for reasons such as shape and size. This discarded produce is usually dumped back into the fields. It is people’s legal right (as Varda demonstrates with the aid of lawyers in case there are any cynics out there) to come and take this produce free of charge. The practice varies slightly from place to place and region to region and of course like everything it has changed a good deal over time. Varda examines gleaning and its history in the countryside first, then moves on to the city, examining topics as varied as dumpster diving and the homeless, Varda sets about tracking down the gleaners of the big cities and uncovers a whole host of various life stories in the process. I know what you’re thinking. I know because I initially thought it too. This had the potential to be fascinating, but it also had the potential to be categorically deadly. There was an inherent risk to sitting down and watching it. I, sadly (or in fact happily as it turned out) had no choice. It was obligatory viewing for a module at university. I could try and briefly chronicle all the life stories Varda shows us in the documentary, but even that would not capture its flavor. I could tell you how the rambling journey of the camera crew is interspersed with Varda’s musings on life, old age and even her own mortality. But that would not capture Varda’s spirit. You really have to sit down and watch this. You will learn, you will laugh and you will think about things that never occurred to you before. A true little gem if there ever was one.

AND FINISH OF WITH SOME WORLD HISTORY : KHODORKOVSKY

I think quite a few of us have at least heard of Mikail Khordorkovsky, once up and coming businessman in Soviet Russia, now infamous convict and buzzword for civil rights campaigners. If taken at complete and utter face value, the man’s story has nothing really original about it; some big businessman who, in the face of Russia’s budding capitalist system, thought he could get away with skimming some taxes – and failed. But German filmmaker Cyril Tuschi takes a closer look at Khodorkovsky’s life story and begins to realize that there are – or surely must be – some things in this story that are not quite as they seem. You see Mikail Khodorkovsky didn’t start life off as the perfect communist – and you would think he well may have done, growing up in Soviet Russia. However this was definitely not the case, he was a member of the youth league in university. He then switched to business. He was shrewd, a born leader and businessman and over the years became one of the richest men in the world. Then, scandal broke out. A lot of people around him were arrested, others had to flee abroad. On a trip to America Khodorkovsky was informed that if were to return to Russia, he too would be arrested. He returned as scheduled, despite this knowledge. ?? ‘s reason for filming the documentary is to try and understand why Khordakovsky did this. I mean, surely the man didn’t actually choose to go to prison… Did he?... Ok, I have to admit, this is a bit of a specialist subject. I mean, documentaries in general are supposed to involve – in popular culture at any rate – animals or feats of nature. This is a strictly economics and politics kinda deal. And it may, to some, border slightly on the side of the “conspiracy theory”. But then again, it is a well-known fact that politics and business go hand in hand in the real world – even though we like to pretend it doesn’t – and this is even more the case in post-soviet Russia. There is a lot to learn here; Khordakovsky is a straightforward account of an affair that risks being oversimplified. I must stress that you don’t need any kind of “specialist knowledge” to be able to follow the documentary; but an interest in the topic will help (I studied International Relations in my stormy youth, and it has had lasting effects on my tastes and outlook on things). In my particular case I knew categorically nothing about the man or the events surrounding his arrest, I was taken in by the blurb and the time slot in the Istanbul film festival fitted my schedule. And personally, I felt I learnt a lot. Highly recommended.

ESSIE SPEAKS OF GREAT DIRECTORS - AND TWISTS

Hey there! I almost didn't see you! My "fin de siecle" (end of a century) feelings of last week have, you may (or may not) be glad to hear have largely abated, if only because I simply don't have the time for feelings and such like at the moment. Essays, my dissertation, deadlines of all shapes and sizes loom dangerously close on my horizon like storm clouds. But surrounded as I am with danger, I will never neglect you guys, so here is this week's fare... This weeks theme was going to be just great directors. Ok, admittedly Nuri Bilge Ceylan is not exactly a household name, but I think he's great and more to the point so does the Cannes film festival. So there. Kim ki Duk and Carlos Sorin, I doubt anyone will have an argument against. The twist bit came in at the last moment, when I realised that all the directors in all these films somehow took something that looked pretty ordinary - be this a genre, a plotline or something else, and put quite a different angle on it. I think they go quite well together. I have also noticed that none of my films this week is in English... But you won't let that put you off... Right? happy viewing! Essie

A CRIME DRAMA WITH A TWIST: "ONCE UPON A TIME IN ANATOLIA"

I have, I am pretty sure, written about Nuri Bilg Ceylan before. I have said, if I recall that his art is very much an acquired taste. Back in the day, I hated his films; they seemed to me rather pretentious, without much content, just one of those films that perhaps win so many awards because people cannot really understand what’s going on and thus assume whatever it is, is deep. The thing is, what is going on IS deep. It is just not immediately obvious to the untrained eye. The same goes for all brands of minimalist cinema. It’s a bit like plunging straight into Goethe’s Faust the moment you learn German. However, once you have acquired said taste this film is definitely the one for you. Or even if you just want to try something a little different. I have seen quite a few of Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s films – if not all of them – and I personally feel that this is his best film yet… Our setting is a small town in the middle of central Anatolia. The steppes stretching out seemingly endlessly look very much like one another, life is tough and the men living there are even tougher. Two cars are driving through a dark, unlit night. But nothing two shifty is afoot. Two men, brothers, have been convicted of murder. The older brother – seemingly more intelligent than his rather “slow” younger brother anyway – has confessed to the murder, all this is fine but there is one small problem. They seem to be unable to locate the body. The suspect claims he buried it somewhere out of town so the police chief, the coroner, the prosecuter (increasingly irritated by the whole affair dragging on so late) the gendarmes and the suspects are rattling on through the night trying to make sense of the older brother’s rather vague description of where the body was buried. “I had had a bit to drink” he mutters apologetically. This is not so much a murder mystery - or rather not the kind of murder mystery you think it is, but I’ll let you discover that as you watch the film – but an occasion to take a closer look at the hearts of men, life in small towns and how very ordinary people cope with extraordinary things that happen in their lives. These lives are not exactly populated with extraordinary happenings, thus the coping mechanisms developed can be… Well you’re going to have to watch and see. First of all, rest assured, there is nothing neither gory nor sinister and supernatural about this film. Well, nothing more sinister than the contents of the human soul and that, I have to agree, can be pretty bad at times. The poignancy with which Ceylan paints emotions and the unexpected places and contexts in which these emotions emerge in all their glory is quite amazing. Of course this poignancy is partly due to Ceylan’s own experience, he himself is a small town boy, the son of a government official so I assume this coupled with his powers of observation warrant largely for poignancy of the film. And something simply has to be said about the cinematography. Ceylan was originally more interested in taking photographs and this is very, very obvious from the beauty of some of the scenes and the framing. There are haunted, beautiful portraits of Anatolia dotted among this very human tragedy. The secret of watching and enjoying this film is to not get stuck on the whole murder thing. Of course the murder (or murders, but like I said I don’t want to give too many details on that one) are important but they are far from being the main thing. Focus on what is going on around them, the characters, their reactions, the mood created. If you do, a whole different film is going to emerge for you, and you will be able to follow the “real” story as it were. I concede that it is slightly hard going, almost 2 and a half hours long and in Turkish but I sincerely hope you give it a spin. There really was a reason for it winning the Grand Prix at Cannes…

A FILM OF TWISTS : "BAD GUY"

I seem to be all about famous auteurs with questionable reputations these days. Kim ki-duk is, without a doubt one of them. Then again we can say the same thing about South Korean cinema in general. Korean cinema tends to be something you either like or you don’t I find. Then again, it’s my personal opinion that if you can get used to the idea of doing things a little bit differently, Korean cinema can be your friend. One has to be open to have one’s preconceptions challenged though. Even more so if you are going for a director like Kim ki-duk. Bad guy is the story of… Well seemingly what is a very bad guy indeed. Han is seemingly mute, although his toughness and fighting skills makes him a feared and revered figure in Seoul’s red light district. He and his two friends help run and “protect” a particular brothel in this region. One day, as he saunters through the park, Sun, a twenty one year old, beautiful student catches his eye. The thing is, he doesn’t just think she’s sexy, he actually falls in love with her. In a stage managed robbery gone-wrong,Sun is forced to start work in the brothel Han helps manage. Adaptation his hard, Sun refuses to accept her fate at first; but then as time goes by, she slowly begins to adapt to her new life. The question is however, will she adapt enough to actually fall in love with Han ? Now, if you watch a few of Kim ki-duk’s films, you cannot, in my opinion, avoid noticing that there are a few tropes that he loves using over and over again. And one of them is definitely the “Stockholm Syndrome” that we also see here. In many films, the characters are kept, often as not from birth, in isolated conditions, away from the world (Think of The Bow or Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter and Spring). At some point they start fighting against the conditions they’re in. Then they accept them. And in fact they reach the point where they grow to love and defend these conditions. I’m not saying that the conditions are always necessarily as “bizarre” (for lack of a better word) as Bad Guy (or The Bow) but still. When you get over how disturbing the whole thing actually is, it is interesting to consider the body’s defense mechanisms under these circumstances. Ki-duk actually unites this, in quite a few of his films, with the concept of fate. It is as if the acceptance of the characters is more or less due to the fact that this is the way things were meant to be. This was what was meant to happen all along. It goes as far as throwing a bit of the supernatural into the mix (and often when we expect it the very least). And, again as often as not, the endings are happy. Or can be considered happy. I mean, I found the end of Bad guy profoundly disturbing, but hey, the characters seem quite happy… Bad guy and Kim Ki-duk in particular, will definitely give you something to think about. I strongly suggest you give it a go, if only for the sake of having a different experience.

A THRILLER WITH A TWIST : "THE CAT VANISHES"

Carlos Sorin has always been a director I have greatly admired. I loved the subtle humor and emotion in his Argentina trilogy. I was therefore incredibly excited to see that his latest film, The Cat Vanishes would be gracing the big screen during the Istanbul film festival. I hadn’t seen that much by Sorin to be honest, but I had really enjoyed every single thing I had seen. I was therefore pleasantly surprised – but maybe not so surprised as all that – to find out that Sorin is a master of suspense and thrillers, just as he is when it comes to more day to day emotions… Luigi, a middle-aged university lecturer, has just had a psychotic break with reality, which has meant he has been in a mental institute for a number of months. But now, thankfully, all is well again, and his doctors deem him fit for the outside world once again. His extreme jealousy and possessiveness when it comes to his work and his paranoia and animosity concerning his former assistant seem to have subsided. Thus, his wife of a number of years, Betty, comes to pick him up, excited and in hope that they can start their life together from where it broke off so abruptly. But the thing is, there is something… Not quite right about Luigi. Betty simply cannot put her finger on it, on the surface he is just as he was and everyone, their children, neighbors and Luigi’s former students are all adamant that he looks fine, that she is rightly nervous due to the unpleasant events of a few months back. The only “person” who seems to agree with her seems to be the family cat Donatello, who refuses point blank to even go near Luigi, hissing and spitting, even scratching him when Luigi attempts anything. It is when, a few days after Luigi’s arrival, Donatello vanishes that Betty begins to worry. And not only about Donatello’s wellbeing, her own as well… But is she right to do so?... What I loved about this film is the way the suspense and the humor had been mixed. Sorin keeps his audience guessing about the nature of the film right to the end. What is going on in Luigi’s head? Is he really cured? Or is Betty the problem? Has she been so traumatized that she is now imagining this, projecting her worries onto her innocent husband? Speaking of innocence, what has happened to the cat? I mean, it’s just a cat, surely he’ll turn up… Coincidences do happen… Just sit back and relax, it isn’t until the last minutes of the film that Sorin reveals what the real story is all about. Until then we zig-zag between horror, suspense and comedy of errors, our decision changing almost every fifteen minutes with each new plot-twist. And the brilliant thing is that all these little plot-twists are conveyed without resolving to anything “big” as it were. All this psychology and suspense is very neatly and cleverly meshed into the couple’s day to day life with such perfect realism that I defy you not to become ever so slightly paranoid about the sanity and intentions of your own family members after watching this… Really exciting and great fun right to the end…

ESSIE SPEAKS OF TRUE STORIES

Hello there! As I write this post I have literally, minutes ago, finished the last lecture of my masters degree. I feel slightly wierd and "end of an era" if you see what I mean and I fully intend to immerse myself in A LOT of films under the pretence of researching stuff for my degree. But life goes on - and so does cinema. And I have for you quite an interesting group of films this week. This week's group might, for example, be considered in the "Oscar nominees" group. You will probably have heard of Brad Pitt's latest feature "Moneyball". And, probably "In Darkness", Agneiszka Holland's extraordinary World War 2 story. But this is not what linked all three. Again, we could have called it "Female Directors Week" (note to self, actually have one of those); two of the most successfull female directors of our time, Agnieszka Holland (as I just mentioned) and Chinese director Ann Hui grace these pages with their work (and make me very proud to be a woman with their success!) but this is not what links them either. What links all three of these incredible, touching stories is that they all really happened. They say "there's nothing as queer as folk"; maybe it should have been "there's nothing as queer as life", eh? I sincerely hope you enjoy these films as much as I did... happy viewing, Essie

A FEELGOOD TRUE STORY : "MONEYBALL"

I am, as I write this entry (though probably not as you read it, if you get what I mean) back in my home country for a well-earned Easter break. Back home for Easter means, as we all pretty much know, spending time with the family and doing all those things we miss doing together. For me and Mom this is, specifically, shopping for DVDs. As we wondered down the aisles of the DVD store, desperately trying to limit our selection Mom actually pounced on this. “Oh look, this was an Oscar® film. And there’s Brad Pitt in it, I like him.” Pretty much a keeper. I silently questioned the wisdom of buying a film about a sport I know categorically nothing about, but the whole point of the exercise was to spend time together so I didn’t go all film theory on her. Thus when we sat down to watch the film, I had literally no expectations from it other than providing an excuse for me and Mom to exchange opinions concerning Brad Pitt. Now, up to a point, I wasn’t that wrong. There were bits of the film I understood categorically nothing about. But I don’t blame the film for that if you see what I mean, for a sports film to be a sports film there has to be a goodly amount of sports in it, I can accept that. The important bit is, however, that there was a large and emotionally engaging bit that I did understand, and here is a summary of that bit: Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) is the general manager of the Oakland Athletics baseball team. It is not a job to be envied. The team is literally the bottom of the pile with very little in the way of funds and a whole set of scouts and managers whose opinions date from the previous century. The way things are going, the team is pretty much two steps away from being wiped off the map. And things seem pretty much set to go as they always have, that is in everyone’s opinion except Billy’s. Billy is a high-school graduate who has worked on nothing but baseball, but unlike the rest of the managerial team, he can spot a good idea when he sees it. And the good idea comes in the form of 25 year-old Yale graduate Peter Brand. Peter has some pretty interesting ideas as to how he and Billy can turn the Athletics around. If they can get literally everyone else to act on their ideas that is… They will, as we now know, end up changing baseball as we know it… Now what, I hear you ask, differentiates this film from your common or garden “one man against the system” film. Well, in my opinion it’s its realism and honesty. I mean, yes, the film is based on a true story. But you have true stories and true stories right, and then you have padding to make the characters look good. Not so here. Beane’s flaws and his erroneous decisions are openly portrayed here. Pitt gives Beane a certain quiet, yet dogged and determined character, the Beane Pitt portrays is not a man of many words, but once he is on to something he is not going to let go of it, pretty much like a “terrier on a trouser leg”. Then there is the unlikely team they bring together. You cannot help feeling for the guys, I don’t want to give too much of the plot away but hey, they are a minor team with not much money, you can imagine what kind of players they can afford – though mind you, there is a lot of method in their perceived madness. I am so glad that Hollywood, in some cases anyway, can give all we love about Hollywood (a good, uplifting story, big name stars like Brad Pitt and Philip Seymour Hoffmann who plays one of the biggest obstacles in Beane’s path) without actually whitewashing the place. If you see what I mean. Like I said, my lack of knowledge concerning baseball was more than a bit of a hindrance, but the producers had obviously thought of that because I could follow the plot even if I didn’t know the intricate technicalities of the matter. So I say go for it. Even if you don’t particularly like baseball. And definitely go for it if you do like it…

IN MEMORIAM - AND "IN DARKNESS"

Yes, I know. Yet another Holocaust film. Now, I’m not dissing the Holocaust or anything commemorating it; but it is true that there are, well, rather a lot of films of the same genre floating around. It is normal considering the great and continuing trauma the horrific event caused in the collective memory of the world, but the profusion of material of the same ilk means that we become “desensitized” if you like to a certain breed of film. This is why I find director Agnieszka Holland particularly successful in this film. Firstly, she has taken an event that has been gone over with a fine-toothed comb and found an amazing true story that is unlike all the rest of the equally unbelievable WW2 stories, and secondly she has been made a film that, despite all the desensitization on the topic, touches one, to the core of one’s soul. In Darkness takes place in that Jewish Ghettos formed by the occupying Nazis in WW2 Lvov. Leopold Socha is a sanitation inspector – which basically means he works in sewers. He doesn’t like the Nazis particularly but is not really moved by the plight of the Jews enough to actually do something in the vein of resistance until runs into a group of escapee Jews in of all places, the sewers. The group comes from the ghettos and they have made a tunnel in an attempt to escape the oppression they live under. This tunnel comes in very handy when the Russian army starts advancing and the Nazis start ransacking the ghettos. A large group of men, women and children escape into the sewers and Leopold agrees to guide them to safety and procure supplies – all for a daily fee of course. Both his wife and his colleague tell him what he is doing is wrong and / or dangerous. But Leopold continues, first purely for economic reasons and then, when the money runs out, out of the goodness of his heart – for he is a kind man for all his bluster. The problem is, the war is evidently coming to an end and desperation is growing in the German camp. Will the little group living In Darkness make it to the end of the war? First of all, let me say this. If you actually make it to the end of this film without crying once, I’m pretty sure you’re made of stone. The darkness of the sewers and the direness of the group’s living conditions, forced to live like rats under the city streets is enough to upset one. But then there is the sheer “reality” of the film and the characters. In this kind of film one finds, to various degrees that the goodies are “saintly” while the baddies are “evil”. Not so here. Leopold is gruff, uneducated and has many faulty. I was quite annoyed by him at the beginning. But as time goes by, it is not so much that he changes that much, but we get to know him. In the same way, the Polish officer – Leopold’s friend – who actually collaborates with the Nazis, is evidently not a bad sort at heart. Leopold’s wife and young colleague / apprentice react very badly at Leopold’s plans at first but they are obviously not really bad people either. The Jews are also very real, with their flaws and their virtues. Thus we are able to thoroughly emphasize with the characters, all the characters, and that simply means an emotional rollercoaster from beginning to end. Basically, you are invested in the film from the word go, it’s a real challenge not to be touched by it. I think this is a good thing. After WW2, the world said “never again”, and yet the atrocities keep on coming thick and fast. Getting some emotions involved may be, in the long run, the only way of stopping them…

QUIET CONTEMPLATION AND "A SIMPLE LIFE"

Here once again, we are able to observe the clear difference of the Asian point of view to the Western. In this film we have a quiet, understated, yet beautiful story, told in a quiet, understated and beautiful way. Some might say that there is “no story here”, but one must remember that it is the little things that happen in everyday life that make that big old life of ours worth living, heck, our lives are made up of little things anyway… This is why I quite agree that they should be honored. Ah Tao is an “amah” a nanny and servant. She has been working with the same family for 60 years, she has helped bring up several generations of the same family and thus she is almost part of the family now. The only thing is of course that most of her family has moved from Hong Kong to the United States. She keeps up the family home and looks after Roger who is now a successful television producer. And then one day, old age comes to her as it does to us all and she has a stroke. She lets the family knows that she wants to retire and be placed in an old people’s home. The family respects her decision and Roger, of whom she has taken care for almost all his life, decides to foot the bill. This in itself is a nice gesture but it is only the beginning of a different story. As Ah ?? does her best to adapt to her new surroundings – and all is not as rosy as she may have first imagined – a new relationship has started up between her and Roger. Because although he has the option of leaving her there and getting on with his life, he decides that now the old and faithful servant who was a second mother to him is poorly, it is time for the roles to be reversed and for him to look after her… Like I said, there is no grand story to this film. Or at least it looks as if there isn’t. Yet again, when you think about it, in our days of fast-living and self-serving, acts of kindness and looking out for one another is actually big news. It is also interesting to consider the whole “parental” relationship through this lens. In the film it is clear that Roger’s relationship with his mother is a pretty typical one where they love each other dearly but do not know each other that well and in fact Roger begins to get quite annoyed by the little things she does. When Ah Tao moves out however, he is lost. Firstly because of very basic things, he doesn’t know how to work the washing machine or the oven. But then it is her benign presence, hovering over him, scolding him and keeping him company that he begins to miss. Ah Tao may not be his biological mother, but she has mothered him in every other sense of the word, more so probably than his own mother did – it is quite obvious that the family is well off. Sade bir hayat is a quiet, placid, contemplative film whose slow, sedate pace allows for a lot of rumination on what are in reality complex emotions that are overlooked in day to day life. Well worth taking time out of your busy schedule to think about it.