"Oh yeah, THAT movie" -Annie Hall

Directed By: Woody Allen Written By: Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman

Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts.

Plot- Alvy Singer (Woody Allen) is a grim social observer who enjoys watching Holocaust movies and feeling guilty afterwards. He has turned his knack for seeing the world into a career as a comedian. The movie revolves around his relationship with the strikingly beautiful, Annie Hall. Tiny observational conflicts are the base of the movie as Annie Hall goes from naïve infatuation to a cultured women looking to get more out of life than Alvy can give her.

This movie gave to neurotics what THE MATRIX gave to nerds. Nerds needed a “Matrix” world of fantasy, where there is actually a fabric of awesome necessity underneath their Best Buy jobs. For neurotics and their closely-related brethren ‘intelligent existentialists who hate the word ‘existential’ because normal people discovered it,” ANNIE HALL is a dose of what can be. The trick here is that, unlike “Matrix,” this can actually happen! That’s right fellow needy/weird people who didn’t get any in High School – be yourself and stick to your wit and you too can one day have a strikingly beautiful quirky girl for a short period of time.

As anyone who has ever tried to balance a relationship with a hunger for the human condition, it can be mighty tricky. Annie starts out as just an optimistic beautiful girl who moved to New York, but thanks solely to Alvy, she begins broadening her mind. Unfortunately, the width of her mind is all that seemed to keep Annie with Alvy, since she eventually chooses to do something different with her life, something pointed out through narration by Alvy at the start of the movie.

The real undoing of their relationship was that Alvy did not take his own advice and continued to stay entrenched in his own persona instead of developing with Annie (A scenario Allen also tackles in WHATEVER WORKS). Even his friend Max, a fellow New Yorker at the start of the movie, emigrates out to LA. You don’t feel completely bad for Alvy though, he obviously has a hard time dealing with the break-up, but at the same time he stays true to himself.

Woody Allen does a wonderful job keeping everything as real as possible, ignoring campy dialogue and seemingly just replaying conversations that have actually occurred in his own life. One thing that I welcomed was the willingness to break the 4^th wall spontaneously, having Alvy explain something to the audience, just in case they missed the point. Including doing this with flashbacks as well.

ANNIE HALL was a great movie, my second Woody Allen film. A much, much better WHATEVER WORKS. The only thing I worry as I venture into more Allen flicks is if the world as a retarded experiment combined with the lust we have as humans is something he can easily stray from. I am sure we will find out as I continue to watch movies that make you go, “Oh yeah, that movie.”

8/10

"Speaking in Tongues" - Terrence Malick

Any one who has heard of Terrence Malick (Terry to his friends, though I wouldn’t know…) understands that not only can his movies be regarded as enigmas, but his person as well.  A director who has been notorious for being evasive of any publicity, Malick’s philosophy professor character (has taught at Oxford and Harvard, no joke) is certainly on display in all of his films, always evoking intellectual, interpretive stimulation with thought provoking characters, story, and most importantly and prominently, imagery.

CAUTION:  NOT FOR EVERYBODY; NARRATION AND CINEMATIC POETRY ABOUND!

Days of Heaven

Oddly enough this used to be my least favorite out of his oeuvre, but I now definitely could regard it as his best.  A pre World War I piece about a meandering couple pretending to be brother and sister (played by Richard Gere and Brooke Adams respectively), this gorgeous (understatement) drama from 1978 shows the class and cultural differences between lowly workers on a farm and their employer.  As the couple attempts to con the owner along with a real sister (oops, forgot to mention Gere’s character’s younger sibling along for the ride), we see beautiful landscapes, visions of biblical plagues, and dialogue extremely toned down in exchange for something intellectual, thought provoking, and altogether exhilarating (if this tickle’s your fancy, the next few movies may work too).

The Thin Red Line

Malick took a small break before making this film, giving some of you the chance to age about twenty years or so… just a tiny hiatus, that all.  But if the time was necessary to bring this quality to the screen, that be ok with me.

The film that might be the most accessible as it is understandably labeled a war film, The Thin Red Line is truly unlike any other.  With a remarkable cast, massive vistas, and breathtaking natural lighting and settings, Malick has used the same style from Days of Heaven here, to create what may be the most cerebral war film ever made; it not only deals with the conflict between soldiers, but ostensibly with human nature, the environment, and God himself.

The New World

What has appeared to me as his least appreciated film by general audiences, the retelling of the Pocahontas cartoon features most of the same enigmatic and yet natural style featured in Malick’s previous film (so if you’ve made it this far, you MIGHT make it through the sometimes annoying romance story on display here). 

…At this moment (after recently viewing it for the first time), in simple terms, it is Pocahontas meets John Smith, the story that most in the United States already have learned as younglings.  It truly is beautiful, complete with narration and a lack of on screen dialogue (essentially MALICK), yet filled with dealings of a love triangle I have trouble avoiding a “scoff cough” at (the love triangle in Days of Heaven is much more enticing).  That’s not to say it isn’t an enthralling picture; it truly is an amazing look at the first encounter between two worlds (see his other films for more class/culture clashing).

Final note:  I LOVE MALICK

P.S.- left out important and well regard Badlands… because I have not yet seen it; will soon.

P.P.S – look for Malick’s new film Tree of Life this April!

Just mostly dead ...

Hey dudes and dudettes!

There is something lurking over the horizon ... I am not saying Cine-a-Tech is back, but it may be resurfacing as something new in the near future.

You see, me and my pal Ed (Check out his slick blog The Talking Ed if you are so inclined) and another associate are planning something. "What?" You may ask ... frankly we don't really know yet either.

But whatever it is it will be going down soon, of that I am sure. I'll be sure to keep everyone of you posted as something more solid comes to fruition. Expect something soon!

As per usual when it comes to movies, watch responsibly. Don't Uwe Boll and drive!

"Speaking in Tongues" - Roman Polanski

Ok, we’re totally getting into this, hardcore, all go no quit, Harry Stamper style.  Hopefully from this moment forward, for at least 40 years, we won’t have massive breaks in the talky talk on this page like we just did (unless Roland Emmerich was right about 2012, in which case I’m out to join up with a limo service).

Some peeps should be helping soon, making this place as rich and diverse of a cinema café as Roman Polanski’s filmography.  SPEAKING of which:

“Speaking in Tongues” – Roman Polanski

 

NOTE:  “Speaking in Tongues”, a fine Talking Heads song, refers to some sort of series to watch based on people involved, commonalities, or another aspect - in this case, a glance inside a director’s oeuvre; look for this often, as I quite enjoy discovering the themes and styles of filmmakers throughout their work.  This time, it’s the man who’s no longer allowed in America ever since his rape charge in the early 70’s…. but let’s not delve into this little side note (his interesting and slightly tumultuous and tragic life could take a while) and instead look at the MOVIES!

I decided to take a look at some of the films he made between the 60s and 70s.  Even though Polanski was fairly young at this point, these could be regarded as some of his greatest works, and some I have to admit I am fairly enamored with.

Repulsion

 The most enigmatic of the bunch, Repulsion represents the Polish director’s first English language film.  Catherine Deneuve stars as a shy, isolated woman undergoing the titular action, apparently terrified by the opposite sex.  After her sister leaves for a trip, she conjures up frightful images of home invaders and violent acts in her apartment, all of which are completely imagined… or are they?  Don’t expect clear answers in this psychological thriller, as it appears to be less about plot and more about suspense (of which there is plenty).

Rosemary’s Baby (aka "The other one about an isolated woman in an apartment")

People always have asked for a “really” scary movie around Halloween, something that will entertain their desire to get freaked out and then proceed to act like they didn’t.  Had I seen this movie before the last time I was asked this, it would’ve been one of the prime recommendations.

Rosemary Woodhouse (never knew Mia Farrow was ever that young) just moved into a nice apartment with her film-star-wannabe husband, has some nice neighbors, and wants to have a baby: sounds primo, except that her neighbor might be satanic… just details?  Not for Rosemary, who’s suspicion of a conspiracy centered around her and her unborn child grows throughout this truly, TRULY, creepy and chilling film.

Chinatown

 All three of these films are primarily listed in chronological order (1965, 1968, and 1974 here) but I would add the secondary order of quality: if the first two films were a 7 and 8 respectively, this would be a well-deserved 9 (maybe 10).  Polanski comes back to the U.S. just close to 5 years after his wife’s brutal murder to make this film noir with his signature European style.

Jack Nicholson stars as Jake Gittes, a private eye who very much seems like an anti-hero, but continually comes to surprise the audience and other characters as he assists the recently widowed Mrs. Mulwray (Faye Dunaway) in discovering the truth behind her husband’s murder.  Without giving too much away, it involves disturbing family relations, crazy director cameos, a plethora of water, sliced noses, and Little Italy…. I mean Chinatown. 

What really gets me, without belaboring on this subject, is that I had no idea where this film was going, how it would end, and above all, how completely enthralled I was in this original story from more than 35 years ago.  It’s old but still fresh, and yet Hollywood can’t find anything to compare or compete; time to yell “Yah!!!” if you’re a fan of the Ouija board becoming a movie (and if you did just yell, shame on you).

All three of the early films by the diverse director cement his ability to create a fantastic thriller, among other things (for recent proof of this, see Ghost Writer).

“Memories Can’t Wait” – Irreversible

A story that involves characters preparing for nightlife, speaking on the subject of interpersonal relations, engaging socially at a party, undergoing tragic happenstances, and committing acts of vengeance, might reek of simplicity, familiarity, and the unforeseen universe in which Woody Allen directs a “Death Wish” movie.  And how negative can it get when the film ends with two main characters getting arrested….OOPS, I forgot the mandatory SPOILER ALERT!!!!...or did I?

If one has ever heard about this visceral tour de force, it would not be without the fact that it proceeds in reverse order.  Unlike in “Memento” where ostensibly the viewer has memory depravation ala the main protagonist and a story that can proceed backwards chronologically with the end truly acting as the finale, here exists a narrative that seemingly does begin with the third act leading to the first act.  However what we truly get (after certain mysteries are resolved) is the prescience to see the “irreversible” actions the characters commit which lead them down the disturbing path they unknowingly take.  In essence, we helplessly see their fates.

Full of flowing camerawork with a gritty flavor, the film truly proceeds from hell to heaven; if you can get through the first half, you’ll be completely fine with the last. That’s not to say it’s easy; with a relentless centerpiece displaying a brutal sexual assault in one continuous shot, this film will make watching “Requiem for a Dream” like viewing “Telletubies”. This is not a film you informally suggest to the gal pals, the fam, the significant other, the church group; difficult to suggest watching it with anyone really, let alone YOU! It is a film you must be prepared for.

Some will argue that this film teeters on becoming utter cinematic trash with its flowing, nauseating camera work constantly examining the cultural gutter of Paris with displays of seemingly constant violence. Reportedly even a total of 200 people walked out of the premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, which may be due to the added effect of a 28khz sound that can be felt but not heard (said to cause a feeling of discomfort and is also associated with earthquakes). This appears to be all a part of director Gaspar Noe’s plan (who just recently released his first film since this, “Enter The Void”), giving the audience relief and peace eventually towards the end (beginning) of the film. Throughout we receive every emotion, and perceive a grandiose nature of the inevitable events that take place for these characters in one night.   

Calmer situations occur as the movie progresses, which seem to be in some instances lacking in vitality.  Overall the movie is truly unique and effective in driving home emotions.  This film may only ever have one viewing by me, but that does not detract its value; one may only be able to give it just that.