Monday, March 3, 2008

by Ari

My Blueberry Nights hits US theaters some time next month, but has already been released in Europe and Asia. I talked to a friend recently who was "underwhelmed" by Kar-Wai's latest effort, calling it "his worst film" and "atrociously performed". And it seems that everyone agrees that the dialogue is the main issue. The recent trailer didn't help my level of excitement either. However, one of our readers, 'Piro', left a comment that lifted my spirits a bit, and it's this comment that sustains my anticipation for the film.

It's a really sweet and personal drama. A very touching movie if you ask me. The story seems a bit hard to follow at first but as it goes on you get used to it........The dialogue didn't sound even the least out of place to me as I watched the movie. I haven't seen any trailers so I don't know if they had been poorly cut or something...

Technically speaking it's a really impressive movie. All of you seem to have problems with the casting....Let me assure you that it's fine. Norah Jones is doing well enough. Yes, there are one or two weaker moments in her performance but all in all she did a great job. Having seen the movie it's absolutely impossible for me to imagine Portman in a different role but that's partly why she is considered one of the best actresses out there. All in all the actors did extremely well.

In conclusion... Congrats to Mr.Wong for this movie. It's truly impressive piece of work. As I promised I will not spoil anything but there are two particularly great things about this movie that I haven't mentioned yet.....One is the title... It's the perfect title for this film....Second is the ending which I totaly loved. I have to say that there are a few films out there that succeed to surprise me with the ending in a pleasant way nowdays and that was one of them."

It's interesting that so many critics and audiences seem to be complaining about the dialogue. Now, I haven't seen the film yet, so I have no idea if I'll agree or disagree, but after rewatching Chungking Express last night, I have to say that dialogue isn't exactly Kar-Wai's supreme talent. Chungking Express is a brilliant movie, but it's a fantasy in a way. None of it is very realistic or believable, but in the end it doesn't really matter. There's a charm to the story and an innocence to the characters that effectively serve the romantic tone of the movie. You want to believe it's possible for romance to happen that way, and the stylish filmmaking and sweet performances help convince you that a lonely cop could fall in love with a sexy criminal at first sight, or that a cute oddball like Faye Wong could rearrange Tony Leung's apartment on a daily basis without him realizing it. The film is absurd, but it's beautifully absurd. That's Kar-Wai's touch.

It looks like My Blueberry Nights is attempting something similar. For example, take some of the dialogue from that recent trailer: "I always had the feeling I could say anything to you. At the end of that night, I decided to take the longest way to cross the street" or "Enclosed is a bill I've created for you, in memory of our time together. Sometimes we depend on other people as a mirror, to define us and tell us who we are".

That type of voice-over is no different than the dialogue in Chungking Express. It's no worse than Takeshi Kaneshiro talking about going for a jog "to release the water from his body so there's no more left for tears". Or how the password for his voice-mail is "undying love". Or comparing the expiration dates on cans of pineapple to his last relationship (not to mention using "do you like pinneapple" as a pick-up line at a bar). And there's all sorts of silly dialogue in the second half of the film. But like I said, it doesn't matter because it somehow fits the tone of the story. I'm not sure if My Blueberry Nights does this as successfully, but I'm also not sure if it's as much of a departure from his previous work as some critics have been complaining. We'll see. I'm still looking forward to it.