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Viva Maria! (1965)
As violent as Thelma and Louise, as romantic as Angelique
I am a big fan of Louis Malle. Especially his "Au revoir les enfants" (1987) is to be recommended. Very touching.
I am not such a big fan however of his comic movies. This applies to "Zazie dans le metro" (1960) and it also applies to "Viva Maria" (1965). Just like Ingmar Bergman ("Smiles of a summernight", 1955) comedy was not the strong point of Malle.
"Viva Maria" is the story of two women, to be more exact two Maria's. These are not ordinary women but the French star actresses Brigitte Bardot (Maria I) and Jeanne Moreau (Maria II).
They can be as violent as "Thelma and Louise" (1991, Ridley Scott) but also as romantic as "Angelique" (1964, Bernard Borderie).
To be honest Brigitte Bardot is in this film less sexy than in other ones, for example in "Et Dieu ... crea la femme" (1956, Roger Vadim).
The film is situated in a vaudeville environment. Maybe Malle was inspired by great predecessors as Ingmar Bergman ("Sawdust and tinsel", 1953) and Federico Fellini ("La strada", 1954).
Strange as it may seem "Viva Maria" was in her turn an inspiration for the Spaghetti Westerns of the second half of the sixties.
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Evading the pitfalls of the tricky horror / comedy combination rather well
The movie theater in my hometown somehow programmed "Young Frankenstein" as a Halloween special. I think there are films with a better fit ("Halloween", 1978, John Carpenter for example) but because the chances to watch "Young Frankenstein" on a big screen are rather limited I grapped the opportunity.
Horror and comedy are a difficult combination of genres. Examples to illustrate this are amongst others "The fearless vampire killers" (1967, Roman Polanski) and "Abbott and Costello meet Frankenstein" (1948, Charles Barton and Walter Lantz).
"Young Frankenstein" evaded the pitfalls rather well I think. It does so in three different ways: (1) good casting (2) memorable scenes (3) taking the horror genre seriously.
The good casting not only includes the major characters of Dr Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) and the Monster of Frankenstein (Peter Boyle, in no way inferior to the famous Boris Karloff who played the same character in the original "Frankenstein" (1931, James Whale)).
It also includes the support actors such as Marty Feldman (playing Igor, Frankensteins assistent) and Cloris Leachman (playing Frau Blucher, the housekeeper of the castle of Dr Frankensteins grandfather). To be honest I am a big fan of Cloris Leachman since I saw her intense performance in "The last picture show" (1971, Peter Bogdanovich).
Next coming the memorable scenes. Most films would be proud if they had one memorable scene, but in "Young Frankenstein" I discoverd at least three.
The first one is the scene in which Dr Frankenstein has to pretend against a cop that the arm of the dead body he stole for his experiment is his own.
The second one is the scene in which the Monster meets an innocent child. In the original 1931 Frankenstein this scene ends tragically, in "Young Frankenstein" there is a really surprising comical twist.
The best scene in my opinion is however the cabaret number in which Dr Frankenstein and his creation are performing "Putting on the Ritz". The improvided screams of Peter Boyle are the icing on the cake of this scene.
The main reason however that "Young Frankenstein" is one of the best horror / comedy combinations is that it takes the genre of horror seriously. Certainly the film is a parody on the original Frankenstein movie, but it does not ridicules it. The themes of the original movie, the beauty and the beast theme relating to the Monster and the arrogance of his creator (playing for God) coming before a fall, have been more or less left intact.
Gravity (2013)
Magical cinematography but meager plot
In "2001, a space odyssey" (1968, Stanley Kubrick) one of the astronauts loses contact with his spaceship and vanishes into the big emptiness of space. It was a scene that always (I have seen the film several times) made a deep impression on me.
The same threat is ever present in "Gravity". Unlike "2001, a space odyssey" "Gravity" is however not philosophical science fiction but much more disaster science fiction. In essence it is about a space ship destroyed by space debris.
The disaster element in the film is quite obvious but multiple opinions are possible about the science fictoin element. The spaceship is not destroyed by some kind of monster, as in "Alien" (1979, Ridley Scott), but by space debris. Director Alfonso Cuaron has admit that the film is not always scientifically correct, but is is clearly based on existing technology. In this sense the comparison of "Gravity" ("Houston I have a bad feeling about this mission) with "Apollo 13" (1995, Ron Howard) ("Houston we have a problem") is maybe the most appropriate one (and this film is not categorized as science fiction).
In making this comparison I must admit that while the cinematograpy of "Gravity" is magical, the story and the tensity of "Appolo 13" was more to my taste.
On first glance this is strange because by a film based on a real event you know the ending. On the other hand the fact that the story is real increases engagement.
I said earlier that "Gravity" unlike "2001, a space odyssey" is not a philosophical movie. The image of a man disappearing in deep space is however not the only image the two films share. "2001, a space odyssey" also has some sequences about the evolution of men. A sequence of the dawn of men at the beginning of the movie and maybe a sequence about the future of men at the multi interpretable end of the movie.
In "Gravity" there are also some sequences that can be interpreted as handling not just about the main character Ryan Stone (played by Sandra Bullock) but about humanity as a whole. I do mean the sequence in which Ryan Stone takes a fetal stance and the ending sequence in which she crawls out of the water onto the earth and ultimately walks away on two legs, just like our predecessors did millions years ago.
The Bespoke Overcoat (1955)
Marvelous acting performances for just a bus ticket and a lunch meal
The director-debut of Jack Clayton, adapted from a story bij Nicolas Gogol. It won Clayton an Oscar for the best short film and was also winner at the Venice film festival in the same category. Pauline Kael called it one of the best short movies ever. I don't know which of these "awards" is the highest honor. It surely helped Clayton kick starting his career, that was continued three years later with "Room at the top", another adaptation of a famous novel.
In a film of only 36 minutes the subjects of poverty, friendship, justice and professional pride are covered. All these subjects are illustrated using an overcoat as the immediate starting point. Amazing! As was te be expected in a story by Gogol these subjects are covered with a touch of lightness.
The film is very stage-like but the camerawork is perfect. The actors are the same as on stage, and they did their job for a busticket and a lunch-meal. After all the budget of the project was only 5.000 pound, which was even then extremely low budget.
Baisers volés (1968)
Antoine Doinel between an adolescent and a man
In "Les quatres cents coup" (1959) Francois Truffaut introduced the character of Antoine Doinel ((Jean Pierre Léaud), than 14 years of age.
In subsequent years this character re-appeared several times in his films:
"Antoine et Colette" (1962). Antoine is 17 years old and has his first love. This short film is an episode of the feature length film "L'amour à vingt ans".
"Baisers volés" (1968) in which his future love Christine Darbon (Claude Jade) is introduced.
"Domicile comjugal" (1970). Antoine and Christine are married.
L'amour en fuite" (1979). Antoine and Christine are divorced.
In "Baisers volés" Antoine is in between an adolescent and a man. He is still experimenting to find out more about himself. This experimenting relates to both jobs and women.
With regard to jobs Aontoine eventually becomes an assistent privae eye, in which he turns out to be not very good (to say the least). This gives the film a flavor of comedy.
With regard to women it is obvious to everybody except Antoine that Christine is the love of his life. A situation slightly reminding of "When Harry met Sally" (1989, Rob Reiner). This gives the film a flavor of romance.
Putting his relationship with Chrisitine in jeopardy Antoine falls for the flirtations of a much older woman, Fabienne Tabard (Delphine Seyrig), the wife of his boss. A situation reminding (and not so slightly) of "The graduate" (1967, Mike Nichols), without however achieving the same level of quality than this classic movie.
A scene that stayed in my mind for a long time was the one in which Antoine talks, ever more agitated , to himself in a mirror. Eight years later Martin Scorsese included a similar (but much more famous) scene into "Taxi driver" (1976). The "You talkin'to me?" scene.
"Baisers volés" was released in 1968, a turbulent year in the history of France. The opening scene refers to what is called the "Affaire Langlois". Langlois was head of the Cinémathèque (The French Film museum) and was under political pressure. He was supported by various directors, under which Truffaut. The opening scene shows images of the Cinémathèque with a sign "closed" on the gates.
Au coeur du mensonge (1999)
A perfect double bill with "Jagten"
In "Au coeur du mensonge" (literal translation "At the heart of the lie", English titel "The color of lies") a 10 year old child is killed at her way home from drawing lessons. Because the painter that gives these lessons (René Sterne played by Jacques Gamblin) is the last who saw the child alive he is the main suspect of not only inspector Frédérique Lesage (played by Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) but also of the rest of the village.
"Au coeur du mensonge" fits in the tradition of films in which people are condemned by a crowd in stead of by a judge. An old example of such a film is "Fury" (1936, Fritz Lang) but a more recent example (even younger than "Au coeur du mensonge" itself) is "Jagten" (2012, Thomas Vinterberg).
Initially I found the similarities with "Jagten" very strong, and it was only on closer inspection that I discovered some not unimportant differences.
In "Jagten" there is no real crime, only an accusation. The filmviewer knows this but the people in the village of course not. In "Au coeur du mensonge" on the other hand there is a real crime but no specific accusation. René Sterne is suspect because he is the last one who has seen the victim alive.
In "Jagten" the crowd turns violent on the accused. In "Au coeur du mensonge" the village "only" secludes the suspect.
In "Jagten" the conviction if the crowd is independent of the criminal authorities (just like in "Fury"). In "Au coeur du mensonge" the two run far more parallel because the new inspector Lesage is very eager to solve the case quickly in order to promote her own career.
From the first difference it follows that in "Jagten" it is clear from the very beginning that the accused is innocent while in "Au coeur du mensonge" the innocence of the suspect is in doubt until the very end, also for the viewer. After all Claude Chabrol was not called the French Hitchcock for nothing.
In "Jagten" Mads Mikkelsen gives a brilliant performance, In "Au coeur du mensonge" the performance of Jacques Gamblin is not inferior. His character René is a man that has acquired scars in an earlier phase of life. He tried to find a quiet life at the coast of Brittany and now is unable to defend against unspoken suscipions.
By the way the coastal landscapes of Brittany with their occasional fog greatly enhances the mood of this film.
Om det oändliga (2019)
Hybrid art form between film and paintings
Roy Andersson has been active as a director for decades.
I have been active as a film buff for decades. Nevertheless I never had heard of Roy Andersson until the teacher at a flim course mentioned his name and showed a clip from his film "Songs from the second floor" (2000).
The first film I watched from Andersson was his most recent one "About endlessness" (2019). The style of this film is very idiosyncratic and in line with his previous films. "About endlessness" consists of 31 "tableaux vivant". One sometimes even wonders if this still can be called film or that it is some hybrid art form between film and paintings.
The mood of the tableaux vivant is however slightly different. In his previous films they were sometimes disturbing. In "About endlessness" they are some mixture between:
comedy (isn't it funny to start with calling a film of 78 min. Running time "About endlessness"?).
Loneliness (A man entering a bar asking a woman iif she is Lisa Larsson. The woman denies after which her husband returns with two beer. The man, evidently having a blind data, leaves the bar with his bouquet of flowers).
Tenderness (A man ties the shoes of his daughter in the pouring rain).
By the way some episodes / tableau vivant are still disturbing. What about the father mourning by the dead body of his daughter he just killed to protect family honor?
Most of the episodes are unrelated with the exception of the episodes about the priest who has lost his faith. Does Andersson with these episodes refer back to his great countryman Ingmar Bergman ("Winterlight", 1963)?
Most of the episodes are shot in one take with a static camera. This reminds of Bela Tarr, except that Tarr's movies are not funny at all. In the movies of Bela Tarr the Eastern European misery is grounded in deep poverty. Roy Andersson shows in "About endlessness" that in the rich welfare state of Sweden life can also be sad.
Two concluding remarks about style.
In the first place, as a debutant in watching a Roy Andersson movie, I was struck by the fact that most of the characters are middle aged and overweight.
In the second place I tought to notice some kind of symmetry at the beginning and the end of the episodes. There is a flock of geese in the first and the last episode. The second and penultimate episode are about the childhood friend Sverker Olsson.
Monpti (1957)
Young Horst Buchholz and Romy Schneider are a convincing romantic couple
The German cinema had her glory days with the German Expressionism of the '20s and '30s and became relevant again not earlier than with the "Neue Deutsche Welle" in the '70s. At least that is the general opinion in film history. In my opinion there were also made worthwhile films in the meantime. In this respect I have a guilty pleasure for the films of Helmut Käutner and Wolfgang Staudte. Maybe not all of them classics but pleasant entertainment nevertheless.
"Montpi" (abbreviation for "Mon Petit") is no exception.
Special attraction are the lead actors, who were still at the beginning of their careers.
Horst Buchholz would become, at least for my generation, synonymous with inspector Derrick form the TV series in later years.
Romy Schneider is in "Montpi" not so demure as in the "Sissi" trilogy (1955, 1956, 1957, Ernst Marischka) but certainly not so worldly and cynical as in "La piscine" (1969, Jacques Deray). In fact she is beautiful and for 1957 standards very sexy.
At the beginning of the movie Buchholz plays a very clumsy boy. For a moment I was afraid of a slapstick kind of movie like "They're a weird mob" (1966, Michael Powell), the film I saw before this one and that disappointed me very much. Happily this phase doesn't last very long. At the end of the film you even wish for a more happy ending.
In between the film is a very pleasant romance. Paris is portrayed as it often is in films of the '50s: the romantic capital created for young people who live in shabby attics but are lucky in love. See for example also the opening scene of "An American in Paris" (1951, Vincente Minnelli).
As comic counterpoint to the Buchholz / Schneider romantic couple there is also a rich, bored and cheating couple.
In the appartment building of the Buchholz character we see various little sideplots through the windows of his neighbours. A feauture Käutner has copied from "Rear window" (1954, Alfred Hitchcock).
They're a Weird Mob (1966)
A late and disappointing Powell and Pressburger
I have an eleven DVD collection box of the work of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
"They're a weird mob" (1966) is one of their last collaborations in time and one of the last DVD's in the box I watched. Some time earlier I saw the rerelease of Michael Powells "Peeping Tom" (1960) in the cinema.
All this made watching "They're a weird mob" a real disappointment. Powell and Pressburger could do and had done much better.
What makes "They're a weird mob" so disappointing? I think there are a couple of reasons.
In the first place the acting is over the top. This is best illustrated by a few scenes featuring someone drunk.
Secondly the message is rather unclear. The film is about an Italian who emigrated to Australia and encounters some adjustment problems. The portrayel of these adjustment problems can be divided into three phases.
In the first phase the Italian is portrayed as clumsy.
In the second phase you ask yourself if the problems are not also due to the strange customs and slang of the Australians. Particularly the frequent use of slang is overdone.
In the third phase the (somewhat didactic) message is that, how strange the Australian habits may be, adapting yourself is the best way to do.
In the film the message seems rather patronizing to me (from a 2024 perspective) but the book by John O'Grady, on which the film is based, was a big hit in those times. A few years before Michael Powell Gregory Peck attempted to acguire the rights on this book.
Apart from the ones described above there are a few other minor defects about the movie I must mention. The happy ending of this movie is predictable and artificial at the same time. The few musical intermezzo's of the movie would be well suited in a real musical but are rather out of place here. It takes a director such as Lars von Trier to integrate musical elements in a non musical movie, as he did in "Dancer in the dark" (2000).
Sherlock Jr. (1924)
Mostly gags, but brilliant gags
Recently I have started with a Buster Keaton project, the reason being that I have seen many Charlie Chaplin movies but almost none Buster Keaton movies. As a film buff I thought I had to close this gap.
I started the project with "Sherlock jr", one of Keatons most famous pictures from 1924. Although I can't judge by myself at this stage of the project, according to some reviews I read this film contains a couple of standard Keaton ingredients such as:
A loser competing for a girl (and getting her in the end of course).
Use of dream sequences.
In "Sherlock Jr" the dream sequence takes the form of a film in a film. Keaton plays a film operator dozing off after he started the film. In his dreams he steps into the film.
The introduction to this stepping into is that the sleeping Keaton steps out of his own body. This is visualised with the help of double exposure, a technique that was also used for example in "The phantom carriage" (1921, Victor Sjöström).
After stepping into the film Keaton is confronted with ever changing backgrounds. He sees water and wanted to dive into it but the moment he does the backgroud changes into a winterlandscape with snow. The shooting of this scene required very precise timing. It reminded me of the work of Jacques Tati, who also was capable of (and had enough patience for) such precise timing.
At the end of the film Keaton the film operator wakes up again and finds out that the girl is no longer angry at him. However in stead of rescuing her (as in the film dreaming himself being Sherlock Jr) the girl has found out herself that other people had accused Keaton unjustly.
This is however not the end of Keaton's problem. The girl may not be angry anymore, but how to woo her? Again the film provides the solution. Keaton copies everything the main characher, who is wooing a girl onscreen, does. When the main character appears with two babies on his lap Keaton however starts to doubt.
Whereas the tramp of Charlie Chaplin depends to a great extent on his body language, Buster Keaton trusts in his fysical gags. These gags are not only brilliant but to a large extent also self performed, without stuntmen and of course without computer generated images.
The story largely is only a vehicle for these gags, and in some instances (such as in the scene with the ever changing backgrounds descriped above) there isn't even a story at all.
Winterschläfer (1997)
Colors used as Leitmotifs
"Winterschläfer" is about the romantic adventures of four young people. It is also about a car accident resulting in a dead girl and a father eager for revenge. Between these stories there are linkages of which most of the characters are unaware.
According to the Internet Movie Database "Winterschläfer" is both a romance and a thriller. It is not very difficult to guess which genre is attribitable to which storyline. Maybe it is surprising that the romantic storyline has the upperhand. Although the car accident happens very early in the film, both storylines only begin to intertwine towards the end. The film is based on the novel "Expense of spirit" by Anne Francoise Pyszora, and in this book the thriller storyline is missing altogether.
The prominence of the romantic storyline is not the only way in which director Tom Tywker is misleading his viewers. There is also a film quotation towards "The Omen" (1976, Richard Donner) that never becomes a MacGuffin.
By the way one character in the film is having problems with his short term memory and tries to solve these problems with the help of photographs. Sounds like "Memento" (2000, Christopher Nolan)? Yes, but of course this logically can't be a quotation.
Most remarkable in the film to me was the use of colors. Wagner used in his operas sometimes "leitmotifs", music associated with particular characters. In "Winterschläfer" important characters are associated with colors.
Red for the romantic and fickle Rebecca (Floriane Daniel)
green for the more balanced and calm Laura (Marie Lou Sellem)
blue for the egocentric and opportunistic Marco (Heino Ferch)
"Winterschläfer" was the beginning of the international career of Tom Tykwer, who would later direct films such as "Run Lola run" (1998) and "Perfume" (2006). Recently it has become rather silent with respect to this director.
El Buen Patrón (2021)
A film slightly out of balance
In "El buen patron" / "The good boss" Julio Blanco (Javier Bardem) is the CEO of a company producing industrial scales. His company has been nominated for an award of excellence. Julio wants to win this award very much, as is obvious from a speech he gives to the employees at the beginning of the movie. In this speech Blanco often uses the word "family" and seldom uses the word "employee".
Quickly the question rises how sincere this familiarity really is?
At first Blanco seems really interested. He supports an employee with marital problems.
However, cracks soon begin to appear in this mask of friendliness. Traces of opportunism and manipulation appear. Loyalty is expected but not given ("I hate to take this decision, but I have no choice").
The unmasking of Blanco is however (and this is a great compliment for the performamce of Javier Bardem) not 100%. There remains a part of sincerity that gives the character a touch of subtlety. In one review a comparison was made with the character of Michael (Al Pacino) in "The Godfather, part II" (1974, Francis Ford Coppola). Michael howver changes over time from a nice guy to a monster. Blanco is a nice guy and a monster at the same time, the film dissecting his two different faces mercilessly.
While lead actor Javier Bardem gives (as indicated above) a very subtle performance, the film as whole misses this subtlety. It seems as if the director was afraid to choose between an all out comedy and an ironic social drama, accepting the danger in the last mentioned genre that some viewers would overlook some subtle jokes.
As it is some elements of the film are in my opinion over the top, most notably the one night stand between Blanco and a young intern. I do not mean that a character like Blanco would not be capable of such an affair, but he certainly would do it more diplomatic.
Being a factory in scales, an old model of a scale is shown at the entrance of the building. Much to the annoyance of Blanco this model is out of balance during the whole film. Figuratively speaking the same can be said about the film itself. The only one who is in perfect balance is (the performance of) Javier Bardem.
Le feu follet (1963)
Both based on and inspired by a (different) literary novel
In "Le feu follet" (1963, Louis Malle) a man in his early thirties (Alain Leroy played by Maurice Ronet) is about to quit the alcohol rehabilitation clinic. One day he visits some of his friends from the period when he was stil in his twenties.
This is more or less the full story of "Le feu follet". One might think that the film is about alcohol addiction like "The lost weekend" (1945, Billy Wilder), but that is not true. In fact the film is more about the suicide that Alain has on his mind.
The central question of the film is why Alain is contemplating suicide? Objectively speaking he doesn't seem to have a motive. He has no lack of money, no lack of female adoration and his health seems to be rather good.
There are a few possibilities.
In the first place Alain might be afraid of returning to the normal society after staying for a while in the protected environment of the rehabilitation clinic. This possible motive reminded me of the character of Brooks Hatlen in "The Shawshank redemption" (1994, Frank Darabont) who failed to adapt to life outside the prison.
Another possibility is that Alain is disappointed in his generation who has lost their ideals. This possibility is more prominently illustrated in films like "Return of the Secaucus Seven" (1980, John Sayles) and especially "The big chill" (1983, Lawrence Kasdan).
The final possibility is more or less a varation on the second one. Alain is disappointed not because his genearion has lost its ideals but because they have become so grown up and so dull. During the visits multiple hints are given that in the past Alain used to walk on the wild side with this friends, who now indeed have become very much middle class (Alains former lover Solange (Alexandra Stewart) has not only become very middle class but also very beautiful). This possibility reminded me of the character of Holden Caulfield from the famous novel "The catcher in the rye" (1951, J. D. Salinger).
The film does not choose between the possibilities given above, but in my opinion the last one is the most probable.
Not many films touch upon the topic of suicide, but the ones who do often treat it (understandably) as something negative or a moral problem. Remarkable about "Le feu follet" is that it seems to treat suicide in a more neutral way, although I am not completely sure about this. Lets look at the title of the movie and how it is translated into different languages. In French the title is "Le feu follet" which literally translates into "The will-o'-the-wisp". This is also the German translation ("Das Irrlicht") and seems to convey a negative connotation. In the United States however "Le feu follet" was translated as "The fire within", which conveys a more neutral connotation.
In one review of this film I read the remark that films based on literary novels are sometimes inferior to films inspired by literary novels because film language is a different language with different strengths and weaknesses than written language. I agree and with respect to "Le feu follet" can add that it was both based on a novel ("Will O' the wisp", 1931, Pierre Drieu La Rochelle) and inspired by a novel ("Babylon revisited", 1931, F. Scott Fitzgerald). As indicated above is the film in my interpretation also inspired by "Catcher in the Rye".
"Le feu follet" was an important film for director Louis Malle. He was not satisfied with his career until then and had the impression that he was being overtaken by the "Nouvelle vague" directors. So just like main character Alain Leroy he was somewhat frustrated. I dont know if at that time Malle was thinking about suicide but happily he didn't do it and instead made a lot more beautiful films.
Lead actor Maurice Ronet had already collaborated with Malle in "Ellevator to the gallows" (1958) but wasn't cast for "Les amants" (1958) because of overweight. Just like Robert de Niro for "Raging bull" (1980, Martin Scorsese) he had to lose a lot of weight to get his part in "Le feu follet". This slimming down both got him the figure that made the interest of women credible as the exhausted expression of someone who has just finished a detoxication program.
The Stepford Wives (2004)
Not suitable for the comedy genre
"The Stepford wives" (2004) is a remake of the original movie from 1975 (Bryan Forbes).
One question I always ask in relation to a remake is its added value. With respect to "The Stepford wives" (2004) this question is very hard to answer. For a long time the story is very faithful to its 1975 predecessor. Only the ending is very different, about which more later.
Of course the "faithful" part of the remake is not identical image for image, but the differences are in the details and are not always a lucky choice. The addition of a gay character for example seems more inspired by the wish to update the movie than that it contributes something meaningful to the story and/or theme.
The main difference with the 1975 film is that this was a horror movie whereas the 2004 version has more comedy elements. Apart from the fact that some scenes that are intended as comic are outright tasteless (the scene in which a woman is used as an ATM), there is something more fundamental wrong with this approach.
In my opinion by making it a comedy the remake suggests that it does not take the theme very seriously and think this theme is outdated. I don't think so, and I think in one scene the film contradicts itself. In the 1975 version we saw men that were uncomfortable by the thought that their wive had a job of her own. In the 2004 version we see men frustrated by the fact that the career of their wives outshines their own.
As I said earlier the ending of the 2004 version is very different. I wondered if this ending was added for its surprise value or introduced a new aspect to the theme. The so called tradwives movement came to my mind. I think however the ending was primarily added for its surprise value. The tradwives became only prominent on the social networks after 2015.
Arabesque (1966)
The plot is just a vehicle for spectacular action scenes
With "Arabesque" (1966) Stanley Donen remained in the style of his previous film "Charade" (1963), and so indirectly in the style of Alfred Hitchcock.
In "Charade" the romantic couple consisted of Gary Grant and Audrey Hepburn. In "Arabesque" it consists of Gregory Peck and Sophia Loren.
In the style of Hitchcock is the way a secret message in hieroglyphs is used as a MacGuffin that keeps the story going. The final manhunt using agricultural machinery and a helicopter is clearly inspired by "North by Northwest" (1959, Alfred Hitchcock).
The style of "Arabesque" is however much more playful as a Hitchcock movie. It evidently doesn't take the plot very seriously. The plot is no more than a vehicle enabling to generate spectacular action scenes. In this respect the film resembles the episodes of the James Bont franchise. The last romantic scene between Peck and Loren just accentuates this resemblance.
I was talking about spectacular action scenes. There are a lot of them. I just mention a hunting scene in a Zoo (the water in the aquariums distorting the images) and a scene in which the Gregory Peck character has been drugged, also visualised in a very peculiar way. Yes these scenes are spectacular, but all of them last a little bit too long.
"Arabesque" was made in the American period of Sophia Loren's career. During the seventies she returned to Italy. It is remarkable that in the sixties American actresses such as for example Jean Seberg in "Breathless" (1960, Jean Luc Godard) were very much in vogue in European films, while on the other hand in American films European actresses such as Sophia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida were in high demand.
Pulp Fiction (1994)
The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men
With "Reservoir dogs" (1992) Quentin Tarantino showed that he was a promising director. With "Pulp fiction" he entered the ranks of the arrived directors. A film that is re-released to celebrate its 30th anniversary can not be called anything else than a classic.
The same is the caricatural use of violence and the frequent references to popular culture, most prominent: films and the 50's. Brilliant is the scene in the 1950's theme restaurant with references to film posters on the wall, stars as waiters and waitresses and oldtimers as dinner tables.
Better is the more complicates story with multiple storylines put together in a non chronological order (a character shot dead in an earlier sequence re-appears later in the movie).
The movie is a classic but in my opinion not a masterpiece. I did like the John Travolta storyline better than the Bruce Willis storyline.
Talking about John Travolta, Pulp fiction was his come back after his successes in teenage movies like "Saturday night fever" (1977, John Badham) and "Grease" (1978, Randal Kleiser), followed up by disappointing movies such as "Look who's talking" (1989, Amy Hackerling) and its sequels.
But it was a very different Travolta that we saw. He didn't look great anymore (gaining weight) , but he proved himself a serious actor. He went on to play serious roles in for example "Primary colors" (1998, Mike Nichols).
The title "Pulp fiction" refers to novels printed on cheap paper from writers such as for example Raymond Chandler and James M. Cain and thus indirectly also to the 50's and film noir. In "Pulp fiction" a mysterious suitcase spreading light when opened plays an important role, a movie quotation to "Kiss me deadly" (1955, Robert Aldrich).
One of the gems of "Pulp fiction" is the dialogue. It does little to move the story forward, but it does a lot to delineate the characters. See the conversation that Vincent Vega (John Travolta) and Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) have in the beginning of the movie. They are talking about food massage and the name given in France to a quarterpounder. By the way both are professional hitmen and on their way to their next job. One would almost think about the "banality of evil" of the philosopher Hannah Arendt. She used this term however in relation to a bureacrat like Adolf Eichmann and not to hitmen not thinking to much about their job. By the way at the end of the film Jules Winnfield, who was in the habit to recite a Bible quotation before shooting his victim, finally starts to think about the meaning of this quotation.
Portrait of Jennie (1948)
There is no life, my darling, until you love and have been loved. And then there is no death.
In "Portrait of Jennie" a man (Eben Adams played by Joseph Cotten) falls in love with a ghost (Jennie Appleton played by Jennifer Jones). At the time of release the film was a box office failure, but over time it has become a classic.
Given the story it is nearly impossible not to compare "Portrait of Jennie" with "The ghost and Mrs Muir" (1947, Joseph L. Mankiewicz) from a year earlier. Also in this film a human being falls in love wit a ghost.
The main difference is however that in this film the human being is a woman (Lucy Muir played by Gene Tierney) while the ghost is a man (Captain Daniel Gregg played by Rex Harrison).
There are other differences too:
"Portrait of Jenny" is more serious and romantic while "The ghost and Mrs Muir" frequently has a touch of comedy.
The endings are nearly opposite. While in "Portrait of Jennie" the lovers are ultimately seperated they are in "The ghost and Mrs Muir" re-united.
A resemblance seems to be that in both films a work of art conects the two lovers, a novel in "The ghost and Mrs Muir and a painting in "Portrait of Jenny". This is however only so on the surface. In "The ghost and Mrs Muir" the woman is the ghostwriter of the ghost (what's in a name). In "Portrait of Jennie" the ghost is the inspiration and Muse of the human being.
Thinking about it there is a strange relationship between "Portrait of Jennie" and Alfred Hitchcocks "Vertigo" (1958) ten years later. In "Portrait of Jennie" a ghost inspres the making of a painting. In "Vertigo" a painting inspires thinking up a ghost.
In "Portrait of Jennie" we encounter Jennie Appleton at different ages, but they are all played by Jennifer Jones. The character and her age is made believable by way of clothes, camera angles and different voices. Very well done.
In the beginning of the movie Central Park (New York) playes an important role. It is photographed very beautifully. These scenes of the movie are nearly as much a declaration of love to the city of New York as Woody Allen's "Manhattan" (1979).
The film did receive an Oscar for Best special effects. This is due mainly to the scenes at sea towards the end of the movie. Taking into account that "Portrait of Jennie" was made more than 50 years earlier as for example "The perfect storm" (2000, Wolfgang Petersen) the Oscar is well earned.
De noorderlingen (1992)
Funny incidents without overarching story
"The Northerners" (1992) is the second feature length movie of Alex van Warmerdam after "Abel" (1986).
It is never a simpel task to give a follow up to a successful debut, and "The Northerners" is no exception. It is vintage van Warmerdam, but in my opinion "Abel" was the better movie.
In "The Northerners" there are a lot of weird characters in a very clear and sober environment.
This environment consists in a just build but not quite ready district (the film is situated in the early 60's when the reconstruction after the Second World War was not yet finished) on the one side and a nearby forest on the other side.
The set pieces that shape this environment are in my opinion the strongest point in the film. In the district there is a lot of social control and keeping up appearances. The forest is much more mysterious. In the forest the unconscious motivations of the characters get the upper hand.
I already said that "The Northerners" lacks the quality of "Abel". The main reason is that the (weird) characters are causing a lot of seperate funny incidents, but the film lacks an overall storyline.
There is the situation of a man being sexually frustrated because his wife becomes a religious fanatic and a woman being sexually frustrated because her man's infertility has made him afraid of sex. This situation has storyline potential, but van Warmerdam makes no optimal use of it.
Peeping Tom (1960)
Peeping at a voyeur can feel uncomfortable
I am a big fan of the films of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, having many of their films on DVD. The release of the documentary "Made in England" (2024, David Hinton) was for some cinemas and art houses in the Netherlands a reason to program a retrospective of their work.
Part of this retrospective was "Peeping Tom" (1960), although strictly speaking not a Powell & Pressburger production but the sole work of Michael Powell. I always shunned away from this film because of the nasty subject, being a story of a serial killer.
At the time of release the film was very badly received. It killed the career of Michael Powell, which was already in decline because of the rise of the "Kitchen sink" movement. Of course I knew that later the film had increased in appreciation, mainly due to the efforts of Martin Scorsese.
With the current retrospective I felt it was now or never regarding watching "Peeping Tom". It became "now", and I was pleasantly surprised at least.
The question is why was "Peeping Tom" so badly received at the time of release compared to a film such as "Psycho" (Alfred Hitchcock) from the same year in which sexual frustration also created a serial killer?
I think the main reason is that in "Peeping Tom" the viewer is more or lessed forced to identify with serial killer Mark (Karlheinz Böhm) and this feels uncomfortable. This identification proces is realized by the following aspects of the movie:
Mark is clearly the main character of the movie, Norman Bates in "Psycho" is a less dominant character.
Parts of the movie we see through the eyes (or more precisely the camera) of Mark.
As Mark is a voyeur, we are in fact peeping at a voyeur, suggesting that we partially share his disorder.
Despite the fact that Mark is a serial killer we can't help to sympathize with him a little, being so shy with women and so traumatized in his youth.
Regarding the female characters Moira Shearer is without any doubt the most well known as Vivian. She was a regular choice of Michael Powell. A pleasant suprise to me was the performance of Anna Massey as Helen, the love interest of Mark. Anna isn't exactly a beauty but she has a very expressive face, which in my opinion is much more important (and certainly much more lasting).
Bambi (1942)
Adapted from one of the first environmental novels
"Bambi" is a movie from the classical Disney period. It seems to reflect also a typical American morality with father as head and guard of the family and mother taking care of the children. See the final images of the film, in beautiful autumn colors.
Much to my surprise the film is based on the novel "Bambi, Eine Lebensgeschichte aus dem Walde" (1923) by the Austrian writer Felix Salten.
Knowing this source material it is also possible to interpret the movie in a much more ecological way. Men is never seen in this movie, but his (bad) influence is felt the more. Men is the only source of evil, while in the forest all animals live together harmoniously. In some interpretations the big forest fire stands for the Second World War (raging during the production period) but now I am much more inclined to interpret this also in an ecological way.
More than 50 years later the Disney studio's more or less remade "Bambi" under the name of "The Lion King" (1994). This film has a more complex story, but in my opinion "Bambi" illustrates the "circle of life" more perfectly. The scene of the death of Bambi's mother is still dramatic (certainly for children) and the scene in which Bambi and his friends Flower and Thumper fall in love one after another is still funny.
"Bambi" at times comes dangerously close to sentimentality, but just like Charlie Chaplin knows how to balance sentimentality and comedy, Disney in this film knows how to balance sentimentality and drama.
Leave No Trace (2018)
A subtle film about a complex daughter father relationship
In the opening scene of "Leave no trace" we see two persons camping in the wilderness. The efficieny with which they prepare a meal gives away that they are not on holiday but that this is their way of living.
There are films about the conscious choice of a family to go back to nature. Examples are "Captain Fantastic" (2016, Matt Ross) and "A new kind of wilderness" (2024, Silje Evensmo Jacobsen). "Leave no trace" is not one of those films.
Using subtle hints the director Debra Granik makes clear that father Will (Ben Foster) suffers from PTSD. Daughter Tom (Thomasin McKenzie) cares more for her father that the other way round. In this respect the film shares the theme of a child bearing more responsibility than is normal at her age from the earlier Granik movie "Winter's bone" (2010).
In "Winter's bone" the responsibility is mainly in relation to younger brothers and sisters, in "Leave no trace" it is in relation to her father. Her father will take care of his daughter, but cannot. This is illustrated in a beautiful scene. The father tries to make a fire to cook with wet twigs. When he doesn't succeed he becomes tense. Tom recognizes these signals flawlessly and takes over.
This does not mean however that the relationship between Tom and her father is normal or healthy, and the film illustrates that very well, again by giving multiple subtle hints. Father Will wants to continue moving through the forrest while daughter Tom likes to settle and meet other people (of her own age). In the second part of the movie we see how Tom balances the responsibility she feels for her father with her desire to start her own life. ("The same thing that's wrong with you isn't wrong with me.").
The lead actors in "Leave no trace" are brilliant and this applies both te the experienced Ben Foster as to the newcomer Thomasin McKenzie.
Shooting took place mainly in the Eagle Fern Park in Oregan. Not many American films are shot in Oregan, but those who are (for example "Stand by me", 1986, Rob Reiner) never fail to impress me about the magnificent landscape.
Hope and Glory (1987)
Pure coming of age, coincidentally situated in a war period
"Hope and Glory" begins with the declaration of war of King George VI to Nazi Germany, the main event of "The King's speech" (2010, Tom Hooper). Not long thereafter the father of the famlly joins the army, leaving mother Grace (Sarah Miles) in charge of raising the children.
A "Mrs Miniver" (1942, William Wyler) kind of film seems to be lurking. The story is however told from the perspective of the 10 year old Billy (Sebastian Rice Edwards), representing no doubt the youth experiences of director John Boorman himself. This way the film much more resembles "Belfast" (2021, Kenneth Branagh). Where "Belfast" is a mix of coming of age and war, "Hope and glory" is more or less pure coming of age, coincidentally situated in a war period.
The danger is that in such an approach war is treated as trivial and thus disrespectful. This is however never the case, because the viewer is constantly aware of the fact that he is watching events through the eyes of 10 years old boys. Yes houses burned down by bombs are an exciting playground and there is a burst of joy when the local shool is hit ("Thank you Adolf" ) but these scenes never become indelicate.
Coming of age films often are connected with sexual awakenings, but the main character of "Hope and Glory" is just too young for that. Not however his older sister. Her hormones are activated somewhat premature due to the large presence of handsome soldiers. She gets good advice from mother Grace, who recommends her to follow her heart. By then we know she didn't do it herself.
Although the main character is a boy there is a lot of lady's talk in the movie. During a shopping event one woman says that she likes having the bed to her own now her husband is away. The responses of the other women indicate that they don't agree!
Nicholas and Alexandra (1971)
Too long, too slow, but very gorgeous
In 1970 director Franklin J Schaffner made "Patton", in 1973 he made "Papillon". In between these two successful movies he made "Nicholas and Alexandra" (1971). "Nicholas and Alexandra" was nominated for a lot of Oscars and won those for best art direction and best costume design. Nevertheless it wasn't a box office hit. Why?
"Nicholas and Alexandra" covers the period 1905 - 1918 and events such as the Russian - Japanese war, the First World War, the Rasputin affair, the Bolshevik revolution and the end of the Romanov family. As such it covers partially the same period as "Dr Zhivago" (1965, David Lean).
Probably poducer Sam Spiegel would like to have made "Nicholas and Alexandra" with director David Lean, but their relationship was troubled since Spiegel had put perfectionist Lean under pressure to meet a deadline in the production of "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962). He did manage however to recruit cinematographer Freddie Young of "Dr Zhivago" (and "Lawrence of Arabia").
Returning to the question posed earlier I see two possible reasons why the film didn't do wel at the box office (and fell into oblivion thereafter).
The first reason may be that the age of big epics was over. Also the David Lean picture "Ryan's daughter" (1970) was not so well received as her predecessors around this time.
The second reason may be that Czar Nicholas actualy is a rather mediocre main character, however royal he may be. Until the very end he doesn't seem very aware about the grave mistakes he has made and their consequences.
I go for the second reason. Yes this film didn't deserve the nominations for best film and best actress in a leading role. But it did deserve the nomination for best cinematography and it did deserve to win an Oscar for best art direction and best costume design. It may be too long and too slow, it is also really gorgeous.
Quo Vadis, Aida? (2020)
Quo Vadis, Thom Karremans?
"Quo Vadis" is about the civil war in former Yugoslavia in the '90s of the last century between Serbians and Bosnians. More specifically it is about the massacre in Srebrenica where more than 8.000 Bosnian men were killed by Serbian soldiers led by general Mladic.
Today it sometimes seems that this war is almost forgotten. In relation to the war in Ukraine from 2022 onwards I sometimes hear that it is the first war on European soil since the Second World War. No its is not! After watching "Quo vadis, Aida" you wonder how it is possible that this terror was forgotten so quickly.
"Quo vadis, Aida" in the first place tells the story of Aida (Jasna Djuricic), a translater for the Dutch battalion of the United Nations UNPROFOR mission that was supposed to guarantee that Srebrenica would be a safe haven. The character of Aida is based on Hasan Nuhanovic, who wrote a book on his time as translater in Srebrenica.
In the second place, and especially for Dutch viewers, "Quo vadis, Aida" is also the story of Thom Karremans (Johan Heldenbergh), the leader of the Dutch battalion that failed to prevent the massacre. This failure is a trauma in Dutch politics that even resulted in the resignation of a cabinet.
As a local resident Aida has a much more profound understanding of the dangers of the situation than the Dutch soldiers. She does her utmost for the Bosnian refugees. When the situation is constantly getting worse the efforts of Aida concentrate more and more on her man and two sons.
Is this ethical? That depends on your point of view. It is of course arbitrary that one man escapes the massacre because his wife has connections and the other man not. On the other hand what is more natural than trying to protect your loved ones? When a CEO abuses his position for a private financial gain, I am the first one to condemn. My identification with and even admiration for Aida remained intact during the whole movie.
And now Karremans. After Srebrenica he got a very bad reputation as a coward. This reputation was based on his statement that he was "only the pianoplayer" and pictures of him toasting with Mladic. In "Quo vadis, Aida" the dutch soldiers are displayed in shorts vis a vis fully armed Serbian soldiers. The "negotiations" between Karremans and Mladic in the film are not really negotiations, Mladic belittling and intimidating Karremans and his team all the time.
In an interview director Zbanic is of the opinion that Karremans could and should have taken a tougher stance. I doubt if this could have prevented the massacre. Karremans did forsake the Bosnian refugees he was supposed to protect. The United Nations however did forsake Karremans by not delivering the promised air support. If Karremans would have taken a tougher stance he had to rely on two assumptions. In the first place that Mladic would not have dared to kill UN soldiers. In the second place that air support would have been delivered as soon as the lives of UN soldiers are at stake. I have my doubts by both assumptions.
Edipo Re (1967)
Both the Oedipus myth and the Oedipus complex in one movie
During his whole career Pier Paolo Pasolini has had a fascination with ancient stories. He adapted a Biblical story ("The gospel according to Sint Matthew", 1964), two stories from the Middle ages ("The Decameron", 1971 and "The Canterbury tales", 1972), an Arabian story ("A thousend and one nights", 1974) and last but not least two stories from Greek mythology ("Oedipus Rex", 1967 and "Medea", 1969).
This review is about "Oedipus Rex".
The name of Oedipus is not only linked to a Greek play written by Sophocles but also to a psychological complex described by Sigmund Freud. The movie contains both of them.
The story opens in pre war Italy with a baby suckling on the breasts of his mother. Because of this the father becomes jealous on his son. This sequence clearly has a Freudian background, although to my (little) knowledge of the Oedipus complex it is the son becoming jealous on his father's lovemaking with his mother and not the other way round.
After this relatively short sequence the film jumps to ancient times. In the middle part (which covers the vast majority of the film) the story of Sophocles is told in a rather faithful way. The style of "Oedipus Rex" (and some other films of Pasolini situated in ancient times) reminds me very much of the style of Sergei Parajanov.
At the end, the film returns to 20th century Italy. I have struggled with the interpretation of this last sequence, but did not find a satisfactory answer yet. Also many other reviews remained silent on this part of the movie.
The connection between the modern and the ancient story is in my opinion that in neither one the main character is master of his own destiny. In the ancient story he (and other human beings) are defenseless against the whims of fate. They are merely puppets in the puppet theater of the Gods.
In the modern story characters are also defenseless, but this time against their sexual urges.