Columnists
Entries from March 2008
Cinema Retro's David Savage
recently spoke to the cast of Sleepwalking, a new independent film starring and
produced by Charlize Theron, also with Nick Stahl, AnnaSophia Robb and Dennis Hopper.
In Sleepwalking (opening March 14th in the US) Charlize Theron
again demonstrates why her Oscar for Monster (2003) was no fluke. She
repeatedly earns it back with every new film, disappearing into characters that
we as a society find unlovable, unredeemable and worthy of every hard knock
they earn, and instead creates genuine empathy for them. She finds what propels
them forward (“hope†she says), what has nearly killed them and then makes them
wholly credible, crude and compelling.
In Sleepwalking, Theron plays Jolene, a working class single
mother who leaves her 11-year-old daughter Tara (played brilliantly by
AnnaSophia Robb) with her brother James (Nick Stahl) a timid, loner 30-year-old
who is himself on the verge of a nervous breakdown. After become his niece’s
guardian and father-by-default, he takes off with his niece in search of a new
life, but all roads lead home, as more than one movie has revealed. In James’
case it’s the family ranch, which his mean, abusive father (played in almost
gleeful menace by Dennis Hopper) still runs. What was supposed to be a healing
homecoming instead turns into a fatal confrontation with the man who is
responsible for his broken soul.
Far from typical Hollywood star-vehicle product, the film is
almost unrelieved in its bleakness, and unfolds against the grim, winter landscapes
of small industrial towns in the northern Plains states -- cheap motels, diners
on the interstate, and farms fallen on hard times. It’s the kind of environment
where hope and self-actualization would seem only like nice theories. As a
consequence, most likely it will not find a large audience to appreciate its
best merits: strong performances from the principals and a storyline that
champions the primacy of family and personal responsibility. As Theron puts it:
“Just because we have the same blood flowing in our veins, we don’t have to
make the same mistakes.†As Jolene, Theron is to be commended for taking on such unglamorous
fare. She served as the film’s main producer, and was responsible for hiring on
the other talent that got it off the ground.
The climax at the end, between James and his father (Stahl
and Hopper, respectively) feels too late in the game to pack the emotional
wallop the filmmakers had hoped for, but nonetheless, for a sophomore effort screenplay (Zac
Stafford, of The Chumscrubber) and a first directorial effort (William Maher),
it’s nice to see an independent film built on ideas and backed up by strong,
hard-hitting performances.
I asked Theron if she might have an affinity for playing
women with tough backgrounds, based on her roles in Monster and North Country,
as well as her own hard background as a child growing up poor in South Africa.
“I think the connection between these women is resilience. They have faced
tough lives and had to make tough decisions and what keeps them going is hope.
It’s the only thing that fuels their lives,†she said, adding that she doesn’t,
on the other hand, want to pigeonhole herself into such roles, lest they dry up
as fast as they have appeared.
As a native South African, how does she create
women who are such specific American types, recognizable to us by accent,
gesture and demeanor, but surely not so easily to a transplant such as herself?
“I am a keen student of human psychology. I study people all the time. Human
behavior fascinates me. In any walk of life, these types of women are pretty
much the same. Jolene is a passionate woman, but she’s also reckless. I wanted
to show this quality in her, the humanity of it, but also the carelessness of
her.â€
Also turning in a remarkable performance in her first
“adult†film is 14-year-old Annasophia Robb, who recalls Jodie Foster at the
same age: precocious, wounded and possessed of an adult’s perspective too soon
in life. In her scenes with a very scary Dennis Hopper, she is able to carry
her own as an actress of stunning depth and in full possession of her
character. It’s the kind of performance that will surely earn her larger roles
very soon, if not award mentions at the end of this year. -David Savage
Ingmar Bergman Revisited—Performance, Cinema and the Arts.Â
Edited by Maaret Kokskinen. (Wallflower Press, 2008.)
Â
Cinema lost one of its towering giants last year with the
death of Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman.Â
Bergman not only had a long career in motion pictures, but he was a
well-respected theatre director as well.Â
Koskinen’s book contains a variety of essays and recollections by
prominent international critics, authors, and academicians. The pieces fall within the book’s three main
sections (“Music, Stage, Film—Between the Artsâ€; “Picturing the Self—Between
Words and Imagesâ€; and “Picturing the World—and Beyondâ€), and is preceded by a
heartfelt Prologue by Bergman’s longtime collaborator and onetime lover, Liv
Ullmann. The book is decidedly more of a
scholarly and analytical study of Bergman’s themes and methods rather than a fannish
celebration of his career. Nevertheless,
it is a valuable and worthwhile addition to a cinephile’s library, and it especially
belongs in the collection of any student of the Swedish master. Click here to order from the Cinema Retro Amazon Movie Book store TCM International Film Guide—2008 (44th Edition). Edited by Ian Haydn Smith. (Wallflower
Press, 2008.)
            Â
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This annual publication began in 1963 and is arguably the
most authoritative and respected source of information on world cinema, as well
as the numerous film festivals that are held around the world. Now with Turner Classic Movies acting as a
sponsor, the book is even better than ever. This 44th edition encompasses the films and festivals of 2006
and 2007, and all major motion picture releases from around the world. New features include coverage of five
“Directors of the Year†(in this case, Faith Akin, Suzanne Bier, Guillermo del
Toro, Paul Greengrass, and Jia Zhangke), a focus on the German film industry,
the growth of DVD production, and a study of documentaries. Full of color stills, trivia, and
comprehensive listings, the International
Guide is a must for serious film fans.Â
An art house patron’s delight!
Click here to order from the Cinema Retro Amazon Movie Book store Click here to visit www.raymondbenson.com
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Cinema Retro columnist David Savages tells us why some twice-told tales should have only been told once. Like Norman Bates perhaps, in my head there is always an
argument raging. One is the Voice of Reason, of disinterested analysis: It’s always best to reserve judgment until
one sees the finished product. The
other is the Voice of Combat, emotional, and defensive: What the hell? I can see them now, a couple of twentysomething,
backward-cap-wearing Starbucks rats tapping out the ‘remake’ on their laptops. If
they jettison the batty old bird expert in the diner I’m going to track them
down and kill them!
Hm, maybe I care a little bit too much. Even Hitchcock would
probably be shrugging at this point, lighting a cigar. I allow the Voice of
Reason to prevail: This might be
interesting. Naomi Watts is an interesting actress. Let’s see what she can do
with the role of icy, poised Melanie Daniels.
But just when my pulse returns to normal, my eyes fall on
this item: “Forthcoming remake of The
Women…with a script by Diane English, creator of Murphy Brown…starring Meg Ryan…and Eva Mendes. Eva Mendes? Yup, it’s true folks. From what I can gather, the
forthcoming remake of The Women, the
legendary, all-female, cats-in-a-cage comedy originally directed by George
Cukor, has been 12 years in the making and features a veritable tonnage of
award-winning talent, from old vets like Bette Midler, Annette Bening, Carrie
Fisher and Cloris Leachman, to a younger generation of comic actresses like
Debra Messing (Will & Grace),
Jada Pinkett Smith and Eva Mendes. This doesn’t look good. For starters, let’s
compare the original’s tagline with the remake’s:
(1939): The Female of
the Species…when the men aren’t watching!
(2008): The Women is about friends and mothers and daughters. It’s about breaking up and
finding your way back. It’s about reinventing yourself. It’s about walking
through fire for what you believe in. It’s about Women.
I guess the cats have been declawed, shorn of their furs,
and made to mouth
post-feminist-self-empowerment-pink-ribboned-Vagina-Monologues-era bromides
instead.
Instead of icy martinis, we’re being served steaming mugs of
Celestial Seasoning tea.
Apparently the original Anita Loos screenplay (which was
based on Clare Booth Luce’s stage play) has been thrown out. This version will
positively ooze Contemporary Relevance. No more of the mink-draped Countess De
Lave, that would offend animal rights activists. No more tiaras, that’s
objectifying to women. This will be about Living, Loving, and Learning. Sounds
hilarious doesn’t it?
We’ll see how Diane English’s version fares at the box
office and with the critics. I guess remakes serve a larger purpose in our
culture. They introduce new generations to old stories, told in new ways. They
break in young, ambitious directors. They employ young, rising stars and aging
character actors (who were in the original’s principal roles). They give
critics the chance to bloviate on the originals’ superior merits. They keep the
machinery going. Besides, championing a ‘hands-off’ policy toward classic films
risks entombing them. Given the success rate of most remakes (poor to
middling), it only underscores why the originals are considered classics in the
first place. You see, everyone wins!- David Savage
Since I hate winter and am looking so forward to the start
of spring I thought I would do a bi-weekly feature on my favorite '60s beach
movies to help get us in the mood for the balmy weather ahead. First up:
BEACH BALL (1965)
Edd Byrnes (Dick Martin), Chris Noel (Susan), Robert Logan
(Bango), Aron Kincaid (Jack), Mikki Jamison (Augusta), Don Edmonds (Bob),
Brenda Benet (Samantha), Gail Gilmore (Deborah), James Wellman (Bernard Wolf),
Anna Lavelle (Polly), Dick Miller (Police Officer #1), Lee Krieger, Jack
Bernardi (Mr. Wilk), Bill Sampson (Announcer), John Hyden (Police Officer #2),
Rita D’Amico (Wendy). Also: Lee
Krieger. Guest Stars: The Supremes, The
Four Seasons, The Righteous Brothers, The Hondells, and The Walker
Brothers. Not credited: Bart Patton, Sid
Haig, Ron Russell, and Brian Cutler.
Beach Ball (one of
two beach films financed by Roger Corman) was the last surf movie to be
released in 1965 and it was one of the best.
The producing-directing team of Bart Patton and Lennie Weinrib adapted
the AIP formula to good effect. Four
college dropouts living at the beach (Edd Byrnes, Aron Kincaid, Robert Logan,
and Don Edmonds) secure a student loan for tribal music studies when in fact
they need the money to pay for their rock group’s instruments about to be
repossessed. When the brainy girls at
the college union (Chris Noel, Gail Gilmore, Brenda Benet, and Mikki Jamison) realize
that they have been bamboozled, they rip up the check, remove their eyeglasses,
tease their hair and head for the beach to try to entice the guys to return to
school.
Despite the drubbing from the critics and some beach movie
fans it received when released, Beach
Ball is arguably the breeziest and most enjoyable of the Beach Party clones. It is also the most blatant rip off throwing
in everything from surfing, skydiving, and hot rodding to a battle-of-the-bands
contest and the guys in drag to match the zaniness of the AIP beach
movies. The film works well because it
is fast-paced, nicely photographed in color, has some funny moments, lots of
beach scenes, a healthy-looking cast, and an excellent roster of musical
performers most notably the Supremes, the Righteous Brothers, and The Four
Seasons who are interspersed throughout the movie.
As for the cast, unlike Annette Funicello in the Beach Party movies or Noreen Corcoran in
The Girls on the Beach, perky Chris
Noel and the other girls are not afraid to show off their shapely figures in
very revealing bikinis. Pretty blonde
Anna Lavelle in particular dons the skimpiest swim suits and has some funny
moments as the guy’s addled-brained beach groupie Polly. The movie boasts perhaps the most curvaceous
set of lead actresses in any surf movie from the decade. For boy watchers, the guys’ sport nice
physiques particularly handsome Robert Logan and blonde Aron Kincaid who gives
a droll performance as ladies man, Jack.
Edd Byrnes is definitely too long in the tooth to make a believable
college guy but he does look swell in his swim trunks.
Surfing is limited to the opening stock footage of surfers
riding huge swells and as with most beach-party movies when the actors emerge
from the ocean it is calm without a big wave in sight. There are however plenty of scenes of the
gang frolicking on the beach. A scene
with the kids playing “Keep Away†with a football on the shore is nicely
photographed and scored. The film’s
major asset is the music from the catchy instrumental entitled “Cycle Chaseâ€
heard throughout to the songs lip-synched by Kincaid and the others as the
Wigglers to all of the numbers performed by the rock acts. The standout is definitely seeing the
Supremes singing “Come to the Beach Ball with Me†and “Surfer Boy.†Though the Motown songwriters did not come
close to capturing the authentic surf sound (hell they were from Detroit and what did they
know about surfing anyway?), the girls sing the catchy tunes well. Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson look great
but Diana Ross is a fright with her chipped tooth and big beehive wig. Her close-ups are truly scarier than anything
found in The Horror of Party Beach—another
reason why Beach Ball is a must to
see. Though unfortunately it is not
available on DVD and is rarely shown on TV anymore but may pop up once in a
blue moon on American Movie Classics. Catch it if you can.- Tom Listanti
For more about Tom Lisanti and the film books he has
written, visit his web site www.sixtiescinema.com.
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