ESSIE SPEAKS OF DEEP PICTURES

Well hey there. I'm trying to put a name to the "theme" of the two posts for this week. I'm failing.

See, it doesn't initially seem so but they do have a lot in common. Firstly, they are truly beautiful. The photography, the imagery is exquisite. They are, in a word, beautiful. Albeit in their own very distinct styles. See, the thing is, I think in a strange kind of way we forget that cinema is about the visual side of things. We more often than not get sucked up into the story telling part of it, and forget about the pictures. These two are good reminders of that side of procedings.

But they aren't just pretty faces these two. Oh no. They are a good deal more than that. In fact you're going to have to dig pretty deep under those pretty faces to get the whole story with these two. Because, as you know, I'm all for a bit of simple amusement... That said, cinema should ultimately also make us sit down and think. It should do this and be pretty at the same time, ideally. Seems like a tall order? Here are two pieces that have the brief spot on...

happy viewing,
Essie

FAMILY LIFE - BUT NOT QUITE HOW YOU KNOW... "DISTANT VOICES STILL LIVES"

I know. I know. This is NOT by any way shape or form what I would define as popular family evening entertainment. It is some film studies students scurrying for the hills, much less anyone who just wants a quiet evening and nothing more… That said, here in the UK, the film was recently aired on the BBC. Well, it makes sense really, it is a crystal clear and very emotionally invested picture of what life in the ‘40s and ‘50s was like in the UK. It’s sheer nostalgia value alone would bring in viewers, this I can clearly see (although I am not completely up to date with the ratings for that evening. I don’t want to give a wrong impression or anything). But I reckon this film has more of a universal appeal that one may first think. Let me try and explain.

Distant Voices Still Lives is actually the second (if I’m not much mistaken) film in an autobiographical trilogy by the director Terence Davies. Now, I find it rather hard to describe in the sense of a classic “storyline” – because it sort of has a storyline, but it doesn’t. The film is told in what is almost definitely a series of flashbacks. But the thing is, it isn’t necessarily a linear story. It is more a sense of what it was like to be a member of that family. So I guess what I’m trying to say is that it is less of a “film” and more of a moving, talking photo album. We move from snapshot to snapshot and give a good, long, hard look at each one. The snapshots, needless to say, are very well chosen, beautifully composed and, beneath their appearance of chaos, highly organised. We learn about the despotic father, the meek and mild mother, the three siblings, their relationships with each other and with their various partners later on… Family friends and neighbours come and go…  Do you know what it is like? It's  like sitting around with your siblings or cousins and reminiscing about old days; jumping around from memory to memory, backwards and forwards in time with only the loosest of threads connecting them… That’s exactly what this film is like…

Now, from a cinematic point of view, there are certain dangers to making a film like this. It is, simply put, extremely personal. Some may argue a little too personal. It may well end up meaning absolutely nothing to anyone who wasn’t a member of that family. See, but I’m not so sure this is the case. Davies has, in fact, achieved something that is quite hard to, both cinematically and in real life.

See, this film is largely about family. It is about one family in particular of course, but it gives us countless avenues in which we can consider our own family – hence the universal nature of the story, but I digress. The odd thing about family is that, you know, just to make things run a bit smoother in the outside world, we tend to pretend thing s are a lot better than they actually are. I mean, fair dues, some families are founded on total love and mutual respect through and through and through. There are no skeletons in the closet or “game face” that comes off when all the guests go home. But mostly… To some extent… Call me a bit of a pessimist but I am a firm believer that a LOT of keeping up appearances goes on. And you know the funny thing about that? When you try to strip back the camouflage and explain what it’s really like, it’s actually quite difficult to accurately explain. You have the stock words, stuff like love, hate, anger, but it’s all mixed up in those complicated bonds that form a family – for better or for worse. You try to give examples, try to boil it down to one event or the other, but the thing is it never, never is just one event, is it? It’s just multiple events over the years that bleed into each other and make things just… I dunno, complicated…

Davies does a fantastic job of telling his family story. You have to get past the fact that it is very, very non-linear though and kinda go with the visual beauty of the piece and the emotions that are so very, very clearly depicted. It’ll probably get you thinking about your own family… Regardless of whether you grew up in the UK in the ‘40s… 

YOU'RE SAFE UNDER "THE SHELTERING SKY" - BUT HOW LONG CAN YOU HIDE FOR?

Thank God for unexpectedly long bursts of free time. I had been waiting for one of those for quite a while. This is one to be taken in your stride folks. It’s a two hour – ten minute monster with some heavy duty messages about the human condition very cleverly mixed in. I am told the book is even better – and having read a few excerpts online I will probably be heading to my nearest Waterstones asap to get my grubby little paws on a copy, but in the meanwhile, this will do more than fine. Ok, it’s not exactly “easy watching” but hey, not everything in life is. Right?

Our protagonists are Port (John Malkovich ) and Kit (Debra Winger) Moresby. They are two artists from New York who have lost well… Everything that matters. Namely their love for each other and their love of life. Port, a composer, hasn’t composed a thing in years and Kit’s fame as a writer stems from one play she wrote a number of years ago and that got mixed reviews anyway. So they do what most people with too much money do. They decide to go on a journey in the hope of finding the “selves” they once lost. Kit is a more conventional soul but she lets herself be convinced by Port to travel to North Africa and the desert. Kit does not like the desert. In fact she is positively terrified of it. Port however, throws himself into desert life with gusto… The real question remains however, is what they are looking for really in the desert? In fact, is it anywhere they can physically go and “seek it out” of? Aaah, if only life were really that simple…

One must always be cautious when it comes to the film adaptations of books. History – and the internet – overflows with tales of writers positively enraged by the film adaptations of their books. Now, I’m not quite sure what Paul Bowles made of this fellow. But personally, I would find it hard to complain. Bertolucci’s stunning, and by stunning I mean, let me re-re-iterate that, STUNNING photography and the kind of acting that got Malkovich and Winger nominated for and made them winners of quillions of awards come together to form a piece of art you would have to actually be made of stone not to appreciate. It is one of those rare films you could literally stop at any random point and have a brilliant potential poster right there.

That said, I must say I do agree with some of the criticism as well. Maybe not completely, but in part. A lot of people who wrote bad reviews for this film criticised it for being too obscure, and that anyone who hadn’t read the book would struggle to understand what it is truly about. Now, I can’t comment on that part. I also have to admit, however, that even for someone who likes hunting down obscure meanings and symbolism in films, this is a tricky one. Then again, I wouldn’t say that all meaning is completely lost. I mean, for example, let’s take a quote from the film (and book as it happens) and let’s go for the one that gives the film its name. I cannot find it written verbatim at the moment – and I really want to get my reviews up online asap – so I’m going to have to paraphrase. Namely, Port says that the sky shelters us from what lies beyond it. When Kit asks what that may be, Port answers that he is not sure, but it’s probably just darkness and night… Now, you don’t need to have a degree in social sciences to figure out what particular part of the human condition this refers to.

Unfortunately, not everything in the film is this clear. Then again, it is rather a beautiful film all in all; there are multiple layers of delicately structured meaning, foreshadowing and… The desert. The desert with all its infinity… And whether this sense of infinity scares us like it does Kit or pushes us to leap into the heart of it and explore like Port… I am confident this film will provide you with something to ponder on…

ESSIE SPEAKS OF SOMETHING OLD AND SOMETHING NEW

I actually love the couple these two films make. 

One is a classic "oldie". But a goldie. Come on, it's Hitchcock. I'm sure you love Hitchcock, who doesn't? Especially if it's got a good old dose of romance and suspense without the gore factor. 

But the second is something new. A documentary to be precise. But it's a documentary about something that "happened" mainly fifty years ago. It just nearly went unheard and unnoticed. Luckily, it was "caught". Because it would have been a shame if we had missed it. I don't know you have to watch it to see what I mean... 

Happy veiwing folks, and have a great sunday!

Essie

THE TRUTH IS ALMOST ALWAYS STRANGER THAN FICTION... "SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN"

It’s funny, when you get multiple movie buffs together; generally there are as many opinions as there are people – if not more. We do tend to be an emotional lot. But when I talked to various different movie buff friends of mine, they all concurred on one point. The best film of 2013 so far was without a shadow of a doubt Searching For Sugar Man. Admissions that I had not got round to it yet were met with unfeigned amazement tinged with horror – and I claim to be some sort of amateur expert! I got the message pretty quick – I also got a tad annoyed because I’m an Aries. And while I’m all for taking direction and advice, we are, as a zodiac sign, generally more comfortable telling OTHER people what to do. Hence the blog. Ehm. However, never let it be said that I ignore advice and refuse to take direction so I dutifully set off on my quest to find sugar man this week. My, oh my… I was not disappointed.

Searching for Sugar Man is the story of Rodriguez. There’s a strong possibility you never heard of him. Unless, that is, you come from South Africa. Rodriguez is an American signer who released two albums in the ‘60s, was a complete flop as far as anyone knew, and sort of vanished into the ether. His songs were highly political, almost Dylan-esque and anti-establishment. The spirit of the sixties at its best, topped off with real musical talent. Most of the world went on to forget Rodriguez completely. Except one very unlikely country… In South Africa, at the time almost a pariah country because of the apartheid regime, Rodriguez became the voice of the revolution, of the entire anti-establishment movement. He was bigger than Elvis and everyone  who was anyone owned his records. The thing was though; no one had ever seen him live. No one even knew his full name. The record sleeves were very cagey when it came to information and there were outrageous reports circulating that he was dead – most of  the urban legends pointed to some form of suicide, the most popular story being that he had set fire to himself on stage.  A couple of South African fans, however, were not content to let things go. They wanted, no needed, to discover the truth behind all this legend, even though it may lie thousands of miles away. The road would be frustrating and full of obstacles…  But when they finally got to the bottom of the mystery… The truth would truly prove stranger than anything any screenwriter could dream up…

I love the way the style of this documentary fits in so well with the wonderful story it tells. It seems, on the surface, your common or garden “talking heads” type documentary with scenic shots and a little animation thrown in here and there to jazz things up a bit. You don’t explain a lot from it. You definitely don’t expect to be completely blown away, swept off your feet, shaken to the core type results. Yet, what you need to understand is, that this documentary is not “plain” per se. It simply rids itself of all unnecessary frills and bows. It just, says it like it is. Pretty much the way Rodriguez did in his songs. The simplicity of the documentary makes you concentrate on the message, the story and this is what draws you in. And the story is such a strong one that you know what? You don’t need the frills. You don’t even miss them. And THAT is one in the eye for some more “commercial” production if I ever saw one.

I am so grateful to this documentary. No, I really am. Firstly, the music – almost exclusively original songs by Rodriguez – is AMAZING. Why this man never became an icon of his age is beyond me. And ironically, these days it’s almost impossible to find an actual album so, this film is actually the largest collection of his songs you can probably find. Mind you, I’m sure this film will have a soundtrack released, right? Right? God I need to check on that actually. But apart from the music – though I find it truly difficult to set the music aside all together, you will also get to know about a truly extraordinary artist. The kind of person I am genuinely relieved to know still exists. If you think I’m simply bending over backwards to not give spoilers, by the way, you are wrong. I’m just… Staying true to the story. The mystery needs to stay. You need to take the journey yourself. Well… What are you waiting for? Start walking!... 

OF DREAMS AND MONSTERS... "MARNIE"

Ok, I know you guys kinda prefer me writing about the newer things out on the cinema screen. I respect that. This is why this week is about compromises. Something old and something new. Nothing borrowed but my pyjamas are blue so that should count for something. Ehm. Moving on.  Now I picked this film because it has a little bit of something for everything I think. You may have seen the name “Alfred Hitchcock” and automatically assumed “crime and gore” well, here’s some good news for you : Not every film Hitchcock did was a derivative of Psycho. Oh no. Mr Hitchcock was a man of many, many talents not a one trick pony. So this is, in fact, a top notch psychological thriller with some romance and drama thrown in. You’ll like it. I know you will.

Marnie (Tippy Hedren) is many things for many people. She is not a “lady of the night” nor is she a special agent – she is, in fact, a secretary. But she is not exactly content with the life or salary of a secretary. She makes her “real” living changing identities and moving from job to job, robbing the safes of the companies she works for as she goes. And she has got quite a nice little side line going in this way until she stumbles into Rutland Coop. Now the dashing young owner of the company, Mark Rutland (Sean Connery) takes a shine to her. He takes a shine to her in a big way. So much so, not only does he want to “make her his” – which is easier said than done, believe you me – but he also wants to cure her of her thieving and lying. What starts as something cross between a love affair and an interesting project for him and a minor inconvenience for Marnie will end up taking the couple on an eventful journey, both psychological and physical, that will lead to more and greater discoveries than either of them could possibly imagine.

Now this is an interesting one. Firstly, it’s a Hitchcock classic as far as suspense goes. This is undoubtedly a voyage of adventure and discovery. And the added benefit? No blood or gore. That’s good news for those of you who are weaker in the stomach area. Mom, yes, that means you too. The chase this time takes place largely in the human psyche. And I have always said, our minds can dream up monsters and horrors greater than anything the “real” world can provide. Of course the construction of the story is picture perfect and you are just chomping on the bit trying to figure out where the whole thing is going, not least because Mr Hitchcock is not exactly renowned for his happy endings. He invented the concept of killing of the lead character mid plot, remember (yes, that was Hitchcock, NOT Game of Thrones).

But why is it, I pondered as I watched, that we get so enthralled in the fates of this typically good looking movie couple ? I am a romantic at heart, but it takes more than “beautiful people” and some /any premise that they are together for me to root for them. Then I did a bit more deep thinking and worked it out, well I worked out my perspective at an answer anyway. See, the film taps into what we all really, deep down inside want in life. At a certain age, we have all got hang ups, old wounds, battle scars… Things that have hurt us, that makes us suspicious or over-protective or whatever your own particular Achilles heel might be. Now, we may or may not voice it openly, as we know this is a rare occurance, but deep down, yes we would love a beautiful stranger of the gender and sexual preference of our choice to sweep us off our feet, fall madly in love with us, face up to all our excess baggage, not shy away or be daunted by it at all, and “cure us” of the baggage. Thus we emerge, perfectly healed, at peace with our past and madly in love. I mean yes, in this particular piece the couple are very “typical Hollywood” – blond beautiful woman with a set of problems clearly (and unabashedly) taken straight from Freud’s own textbooks (at least Hitchcock has the integrity to slip Freud in there too) coupled with a tall dark and handsome Sean Connery who just happens to be a millionaire and an amateur scientist (and thus in possession of the means and knowledge to cure her). I mean the premise is as unrealistic as they come, yes, bosses fall for their secretaries but it is rare that they actually stick around to “cure” them. In fact, like most people, they probably shout “excess baggage” and bail if they have as much baggage as Marnie. Then again, you are so enthralled in the story you can easily put yourself in Marnie’s shoes and have your own “dream relationship” for two hours. This, my friends is the beauty of cinema. Maybe not therapy per se, but catharsis guaranteed… 

ESSIE AND HER INNER CHILD

Ok, you guys have probably figured this out for yourselves, but I am coming to terms with a  certain fact. My lifestyle has changed. It is now vastly impractical for me to update the blog on thursdays. Weekends work infintely better. You will have noticed. I sure have. Let's just accept the fact that the blog is updated on weekends now. Sunday night being the latest. Come Monday morning, blog will be updated. Follow me on social media (@Essie_Tweets for Twitter) and I'll let you know when the new stuff is up. Or, you know, you can do the old fashioned thing of just checking the webiste. Whatever gets you through the night.

So what do we have this week? It's animation time! You know by now, it's one of my week spots. And as you all probably know, there have been a number of very interesting films coming our recently, it's high time I spoke about it. But as you know, just because I'm a fan, I'm not going to ignore any faults I find. So scroll down to see me rant and / or gush, but more importantly connect to my inner eight year old.

happy viewing,
Essie