Review Revue: Duck Season. Bubble. V for Vendetta.
Hola Blogarinos!
Apologies for the absence. I promise to make it up to you with a trio of reviews, for your eyes only. While film criticism may be in a downward spiral, 2006 is shaping up to be a rather notable year at the movies.
Apologies for the absence. I promise to make it up to you with a trio of reviews, for your eyes only. While film criticism may be in a downward spiral, 2006 is shaping up to be a rather notable year at the movies.
While the cat's away, the mice will play. Goals for 14 year old best friends Moko (Diego Cantano) and Flama (Daniel Miranada) are to play X-Box, drink Coke and eat pizza. 
Inevitably, the unsupervised boys end up doing nearly everything but that in this Stranger Than Paradise-like debut by Mexican filmmaker Fernando Eimbcke. Blackouts, broken ovens, a pizza delivery man and suspicious brownies keep our protagonists away from their plans of being lost in a virtual reality. Filmed in glorious black-and-white with a colorful soundtrack, Duck Season leisurely plays out over the course of a Sunday when time passes with an enjoyable laziness that will be fondly forgotten and treasured forever. Eimbcke sucks you into this very vibe with a surprising ease that evokes the very best of "hangin' out" auteur Richard Linklater. Like Linklater, Duck Season keeps it talky, where characters find insight from each others' words. Moko and Flama are growing up and growing apart, but despite the presence of producer Alfonso Curon, Y Tu Mama Tambien this is not. Where Curon took his characters on the road to find themselves, Eimbcke keeps them at home, perhaps revealing more about growing up in contemporary Mexico in the process. Duck Season is an immensely lovable film that is tough to deny, even when it opts for stoned insight, which we don't know yet whether to chalk up to a light-minded filmmaker or a budding observationist. Judging by the contact high received by Duck Season it's tough to tell, but right now I'm siding with the latter.
Inevitably, the unsupervised boys end up doing nearly everything but that in this Stranger Than Paradise-like debut by Mexican filmmaker Fernando Eimbcke. Blackouts, broken ovens, a pizza delivery man and suspicious brownies keep our protagonists away from their plans of being lost in a virtual reality. Filmed in glorious black-and-white with a colorful soundtrack, Duck Season leisurely plays out over the course of a Sunday when time passes with an enjoyable laziness that will be fondly forgotten and treasured forever. Eimbcke sucks you into this very vibe with a surprising ease that evokes the very best of "hangin' out" auteur Richard Linklater. Like Linklater, Duck Season keeps it talky, where characters find insight from each others' words. Moko and Flama are growing up and growing apart, but despite the presence of producer Alfonso Curon, Y Tu Mama Tambien this is not. Where Curon took his characters on the road to find themselves, Eimbcke keeps them at home, perhaps revealing more about growing up in contemporary Mexico in the process. Duck Season is an immensely lovable film that is tough to deny, even when it opts for stoned insight, which we don't know yet whether to chalk up to a light-minded filmmaker or a budding observationist. Judging by the contact high received by Duck Season it's tough to tell, but right now I'm siding with the latter.
Indulgent is usually the best word to use when describing Stephen Soderbergh's more experimental works like Schizopolis or Full Frontal. For every Ocean's 11 under his belt, Soderbergh has a Solaris or Gray's Anatomy, where he uses every worn film-school technique to varying effect. More often than not, these "experiments" fail to produce a complete narrative, but do sometimes yield results in individual scenes. With Bubble, a funny thing happened on the way to closing the theatrical-to-DVD window. Soderbergh's Hi-Def video shot film, employing non-actors in a loosely-plotted murder mystery involving a characters who work at a creepy doll factory, is actually his least indulgent feature. Perhaps the marketing got it right this time by calling it a "Stephen Soderbergh Experience." By maintaining his distance, the Out of Sight-director creates a compelling view of the American working class. 
Our three subjects are doll factory co-workers Martha (Debbie Doebereiner), Kyle (Dustin Ashley) and newbie Rose (Misty Dawn Wilkins). Martha is the den mother, who drives Kyle to and from work and claims him as her best friend. Kyle is a young man who lives at home with his mother. Rose is a single-mother working at the factory to spend more time with her daughter. Never do these characters feel fabricated nor embellished, and that mainly has to do with employing Ohio natives in roles that may seem eerily fitting, like Debbie Doebereiner who managed a KFC for nearly 20 years. It never feels like stunt casting, but a refreshingly honest choice to help draw viewers into the film. But, Soderbergh never draws us in far enough to establish what it is we're really looking for here. Already a scant 73-minutes in length, Bubble's narrative doesn't get kicking until nearly the hour mark, after imbuing viewers in the mundane world of its characters. Robert Pollard's fantastic score punctuates perfectly an already haunting atmosphere. In the end, though, Bubble feels like minor Soderbergh -- an interesting footnote (or perhaps side project?) in a consistently interesting career that continues to be vital.
Our three subjects are doll factory co-workers Martha (Debbie Doebereiner), Kyle (Dustin Ashley) and newbie Rose (Misty Dawn Wilkins). Martha is the den mother, who drives Kyle to and from work and claims him as her best friend. Kyle is a young man who lives at home with his mother. Rose is a single-mother working at the factory to spend more time with her daughter. Never do these characters feel fabricated nor embellished, and that mainly has to do with employing Ohio natives in roles that may seem eerily fitting, like Debbie Doebereiner who managed a KFC for nearly 20 years. It never feels like stunt casting, but a refreshingly honest choice to help draw viewers into the film. But, Soderbergh never draws us in far enough to establish what it is we're really looking for here. Already a scant 73-minutes in length, Bubble's narrative doesn't get kicking until nearly the hour mark, after imbuing viewers in the mundane world of its characters. Robert Pollard's fantastic score punctuates perfectly an already haunting atmosphere. In the end, though, Bubble feels like minor Soderbergh -- an interesting footnote (or perhaps side project?) in a consistently interesting career that continues to be vital.
V for Vendetta, the latest dystopia film, ends up getting an A for effort in my book. Those looking for a searing portrait of our contemporary landscape need look elsewhere. Instead, we are offered a broad painting of fascism, not unlike those found in George Orwell's 1984 or Terry Gilliam's Brazil -- albeit this one's more a liberal/conservative than fascism/democracy dichotomy. 
But, is this the most subversive film of the Bush II-Dubya-era? Hardly. V for Vendetta openly critiques totalitarian governments -- something, I think, we're all against. Now, certainly the idea of rooting for a terrorist is a liberal fantasy that plays to its base (i.e. me). But, is the masked V (Hugo Weaving) really a terrorist? Look a little closer. He's more a crazed mad man. He has no actual ideology, he belongs to no organized group nor is his goal freedom (but he does like Cat Power). It's personal, his goal is primarily revenge. After all, this is V for VENDETTA, not R for REVOLUTION or L FOR LIBERATION (although, I'm holding out for the sequel!!). However, all of that said (including the ineffectiveness of its visible lead, the hot one...with Michael Stipe's head) V for Vendetta is a rousing comic book fantasy that proclaims bigger ideas it can't always live up to yet somehow succeeds. "Governments should be afraid of their people," is a huge weight for the movie to truly uphold, and at moments it does -- like the stirring finale where the Guy Fawkes masks reveal the people of England who have now stood up with V. But, the moment is too brief to be genuinely chilling. Then, there are the unexpected dashes of humor that while funny, lead the movie into a silly territory that I'm not sure it should occupy (Natalie Portman's dressing like a child, V's penchant for alliteration, and an undeniably brilliant Benny Hill-style romp). V for Vendetta maintains its strengths thanks to a cast that knows the depth of the material. John Hurt as the Hitler-esque dictator is a stroke of sheer genius. By having the former 1984-lead in a now inverted role, 
this movie is made that much richer. Not to mention, it is a great performance. "But, the real heart of the film lies in gregarious English personality Stephen Fry, playing brilliantly with his public persona of his very open sexuality. It is in his turmoil that we see the emotional strain and physical damage this regime has reeked on its people. In a parallel back story, we learn of another homosexual who was violently oppressed in the first days of the totalitarian regime's rule. It is in these two stories that the clearest line to our present day is drawn and that V for Vendetta soars to the heights many have proclaimed it. Color this subversive. In its end, though, V for Vendetta subverts its own subversive tendencies by being a violent action genre pic with a cliche showdown, complete with bullet-time knives, with the villain -- and things getting blowed up real good. The London landmarks that are obliterated here are reduced to hollow signifiers that mean next to nothing. Also reduced to nearly nothing is the actual Guy Fawkes' cause -- he was a Catholic revolutionary not a spokesperson of the English proletariat. It doesn't feel like a cheat, but a bit of a cop out. V for Vendetta could be a great film, but instead settles for merely being an entertaining one. Albeit, one with an ageless message that it shouts out loud to be heard today: power to the people.
But, is this the most subversive film of the Bush II-Dubya-era? Hardly. V for Vendetta openly critiques totalitarian governments -- something, I think, we're all against. Now, certainly the idea of rooting for a terrorist is a liberal fantasy that plays to its base (i.e. me). But, is the masked V (Hugo Weaving) really a terrorist? Look a little closer. He's more a crazed mad man. He has no actual ideology, he belongs to no organized group nor is his goal freedom (but he does like Cat Power). It's personal, his goal is primarily revenge. After all, this is V for VENDETTA, not R for REVOLUTION or L FOR LIBERATION (although, I'm holding out for the sequel!!). However, all of that said (including the ineffectiveness of its visible lead, the hot one...with Michael Stipe's head) V for Vendetta is a rousing comic book fantasy that proclaims bigger ideas it can't always live up to yet somehow succeeds. "Governments should be afraid of their people," is a huge weight for the movie to truly uphold, and at moments it does -- like the stirring finale where the Guy Fawkes masks reveal the people of England who have now stood up with V. But, the moment is too brief to be genuinely chilling. Then, there are the unexpected dashes of humor that while funny, lead the movie into a silly territory that I'm not sure it should occupy (Natalie Portman's dressing like a child, V's penchant for alliteration, and an undeniably brilliant Benny Hill-style romp). V for Vendetta maintains its strengths thanks to a cast that knows the depth of the material. John Hurt as the Hitler-esque dictator is a stroke of sheer genius. By having the former 1984-lead in a now inverted role, 
this movie is made that much richer. Not to mention, it is a great performance. "But, the real heart of the film lies in gregarious English personality Stephen Fry, playing brilliantly with his public persona of his very open sexuality. It is in his turmoil that we see the emotional strain and physical damage this regime has reeked on its people. In a parallel back story, we learn of another homosexual who was violently oppressed in the first days of the totalitarian regime's rule. It is in these two stories that the clearest line to our present day is drawn and that V for Vendetta soars to the heights many have proclaimed it. Color this subversive. In its end, though, V for Vendetta subverts its own subversive tendencies by being a violent action genre pic with a cliche showdown, complete with bullet-time knives, with the villain -- and things getting blowed up real good. The London landmarks that are obliterated here are reduced to hollow signifiers that mean next to nothing. Also reduced to nearly nothing is the actual Guy Fawkes' cause -- he was a Catholic revolutionary not a spokesperson of the English proletariat. It doesn't feel like a cheat, but a bit of a cop out. V for Vendetta could be a great film, but instead settles for merely being an entertaining one. Albeit, one with an ageless message that it shouts out loud to be heard today: power to the people.
posted by jason.jackowski | Friday, March 24, 2006
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