Wednesday, June 4, 2008

by Erik

Seen some good stuff lately, and some bad.
 
First film I have to rave about is the recent release of Tarsem Singh's (The Cell) latest film, The Fall, now playing at the Uptown Theatre. Already sick of the glut of mindless, by-the-numbers summer blockbusters? (sidenote: Iron Man was good fun; Speed Racer an inventive, though messy, kids movie; and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the....Oh who cares anyway....A big, slap-myself-over-the-head-stupid, mess of a movie that barely resembles the rest of the series) Want something totally different from your cinema? Then do yourself a favor and check this one out. The less you know about it, the better.

The film is about an injured stunt man (Lee Pace in a great performance) in an LA hospital circa 1927 spinning fantasy tales (via a rather dangerous morphine addiction. Wanna get creative fast, better hit the drugs asap) to a young girl with a broken arm (Catinca Untaru, her first role). What's great about the film is that both the reality and the fantasy work perfectly here, adding depth and emotion with every scene as the film builds to a brilliant -- and extremely moving -- climax. This is a film. Not a movie. I highly recommend this to anyone who loves movies about movies. The real find in the film is the young Catinca Untaru (not even 10 when it was made). Remember that name. This girl has the potential to be a star. She can act, she's adorable without being extremely annoying (Dakota Fanning, ahem), and she absolutely steals this film.

Other things to like about The Fall: Some of the most amazing cinematic storytelling of the last few years (so few directors can tell a story with just images these days), amazing visuals (it was shot in 18 countries), and a great story. Those complaining of a lack of good, interesting and intelligent films for adults out there right now, look no further. There are plenty of good films out there, just gotta know where to look. best places to start: The Uptown, The Lagoon, Edina Cinema (All part of Landmark Theatres Corp.), the Parkway, The Oak St., Bell Auditorium, The Heights, St. Anthony Main, and the Riverview. Support these films. And support these theaters (all of them play different films from those at the multiplexes, and they also put on really great festivals, etc). Never know, you might end up being truly affected by something at the cinema this summer, which is more than most can say about summer blockbuster season.
 
Also, some stuff I've been enjoying on DVD: I must be on a fantasy kick right now, because two days after seeing The Fall, I plopped down on my couch and attempted to recover from a bit of a hangover (thank you beerfest in Uptown), threw on the 2005 film MirrorMask (from Dave McKean and Neil Gaiman), and was blown away again by a truly great fantasy film. Rated PG, and infinitely more intelligent than any kids movie that isn't made by Pixar (they're amazing over there, let's face it), this film is a real treat. This is the perfect film for a family to watch together and experience something along the lines of The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth (Bowie rules!!). Highly recommended to parents who want to enjoy a film as much -- or in this case probably more -- as their kids. And it's filled with all kinds of positive messages (without being overt, sappy, melodramatic tripe) that kids can get a lot out of. This is the kind of film that will stay with your kids, not just another Shrek sequel they'll forget about the next day (though the best thing anyone can do is forget those movies). 

The other film that aided Operation Hangover Recovery for me this past weekend was Teeth. This is another film you want to know as little as possible prior to viewing. I really only need to give you the synopsis (attributed to IMDB), you will know rather fast if this is a movie you want to see or not:

High school student Dawn works hard at suppressing her budding sexuality by being the local chastity group's most active participant. Her task is made even more difficult by her bad boy stepbrother Brad's increasingly provocative behavior at home. A stranger to her own body, innocent Dawn discovers she has a toothed vagina when she becomes the object of violence. As she struggles to comprehend her anatomical uniqueness, Dawn experiences both the pitfalls and the power of being a living example of the vagina dentata myth.

If you're like me, you probably can't wait to see what this is all about. Or if you're a less sensational film goer whose idea of a good time at the movies is not the potentiality of seeing severed penises, you probably already stopped reading. Yeah, I'm sick and twisted I guess, but this movie is a lot of fun. It's a great feminist parable, and it taps in to deep-rooted fears of maybe every single boy and man to ever walk this earth. The only thing I will tell you about this movie is this: whatever twisted images you might have imagined after reading that synopsis, you will see in Teeth. It is quite gory, and not the least bit shy about portraying sex and violence on screen. Now, doesn't that sound like fun times at the movies? I think so.