Dad, Music Is My Life

"Shine"

  

Who the heck is David Helfgott?  After watching Shine you will be talking about him to all your friends.  The film is a bio pic about the acclaimed Australian pianist and illustrates his musical talents beautifully.  Geoffrey Rush portrays the adult version of the musical prodigy.  Ever since he was a child, David was extremely talented at playing the piano.  His lessons however came at a price.  David's father, Peter (Armin Mueller-Stahl,) had profound love for his son's talent but was also incredibly strict and abusive towards him.  As David grew so did his potential.  He was clearly destined for greater things.  Against his father's wishes David enrolled at a prestigious music school and studied under the teachings of Professor Cecil Parkes (Sir John Gielgud.)  David pushed himself harder and harder to learn a particular piece by Rachmaninoff to the point where he suffered a mental breakdown and developed schizophrenia.

There is a great amount of passion from director Scott Hicks that can be seen in capturing each stage of David's traumatic life.  We can tell that Hicks put a great deal of time and effort in wanting to bring this man's story to the big screen.  The performance he gets from Mueller-Stahl in the earlier scenes when David is a child and teenager are intense and powerful.  Peter cares deeply for his family because he lost his in the Holocaust.  The problem is he has no idea of how to control his emotions or how to let go of his only son.  The struggle between father and son is sad but never to the point where we categorize Peter as a villain.  He was only doing what he thought was in the best interest of his son and the rest of the family.  

It's only later when David is an adult we see the true repercussions he's suffered from all the pressures of his father and teachers.  Rush is fantastic in his performance.  He really gives us an insight into the afflicted soul of a genius.  Hicks and Rush capture the true passion, emotion, and overall love David has for the piano.  When he sits down at a keyboard, every note he strikes feels like there's real meaning and feeling behind it.  This is also due in part to the way the piano performance sequences were cut together by editor Pip Karmel.

Shine hits all the right beats without ever being overly cliché and ends up being quite engaging on the whole.  It's a success story that is able to strike a chord on a number of levels.  This is a pleasing character driven drama featuring strong performances from Rush and Mueller-Stahl along with seemingly effortless direction from Hicks making this feature wonderful to watch.  The accompanying score by David Hirschfelder accentuated by many pieces from Rachmaninoff (performed by the real David Helfgott) only add to the tension, heartbreak, obsession, and triumph that occurred during the life of this musical savant.

Brotherly Love

"The Darjeeling Limited"

All aboard!  Let's take a trip across India via train with the Whitman siblings.  Francis (Owen Wilson,) the eldest, decides it'd be best if he and his two brothers Peter (Adrien Brody) and Jack (Jason Schwartzman) go on a spiritual journey through India after not having spoken for a year.  The film is written and directed by Wes Anderson so for those of us who are familiar with some of his other delightful works (Rushmore and The Royal Tenebaums) we know what to expect.  There should be quirky characters speaking witty dialogue while looking for some sort of fulfillment from their lives.  The Darjeeling Limited delivers on these expectations on a positive but slightly milder note than Anderson's aforementioned work.

Despite the fact that Francis, Peter, and Jack are all suffering from sort of depression in their lives the three of them remain quite likable characters throughout the film.  That's due to the perfect chemistry the three leads have with each other.  We do believe Wilson, Brody, and Schwartzman are brothers.  There's a certain quality they each bring when on screen together sharing scene after scene.  These guys could've grown up together.  

Each brother has his own set of personal problems but they do band together for this beautiful trek across India in hopes of coming together again and eventually reconnecting with their estranged mother (Angelica Huston.)  Anderson doesn't quite fill in all of the gaps of everything that's happened to these guys but in a story like this we learn just enough about these characters and what they have been through.  Everything that's happened to Francis, Peter, and Jack over the course of one year since their father tragically passed away comes pouring out in ways that only Anderson would know how to express.

Like any distinctive Coen brothers or Woody Allen pic you can also tell you're watching a Wes Anderson flick.  He has a very specific way of writing characters and banter that make it so you either love or hate his films.  The Darjeeling Limited is limited in plot but unbound by its character development.  It's always the characters Anderson creates that we grow to like and remember.  The Whitman brothers are full bodied figures that fit perfectly into this story.  This is a story that takes us on an emotional excursion touching upon what it means to be content, dealing with loss, love, pain, and unity.  That seems like a lot of ground to cover in only 90 minutes but somehow Anderson and his actors manager to charm us.

The Darjeeling Limited may only cater to certain audiences that understand Anderson's type of humor and storytelling abilities but it does please us on a number of other levels as well, particularly those who like character driven pieces.  This is a film that features some gorgeous photography from Robert Yeoman as well as splendid performances from its three leads, especially Wilson.  The Darjeeling Limited isn't going to turn any heads but it does come together quite nicely and further compliments Anderson's body of work.  Having siblings who are also brothers would probably further the appreciation for the picture but is not a requirement.     

 

Happy House Hunting

"Howard's End"

"I do wish you'd give us Howard's End."  This line from James Ivory's Howard's End spoken by Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson.)  What's preventing Ms. Schlegel from moving into the picturesque English manor?  She is of the middle class.  It's all about what social class you are a part of.  This is the central theme of this lavish period piece.  Margaret and her two siblings Helen (Helena Bonham Carter) and Tibby (Adrian Ross Magenty) are on the verge of losing their house due to future construction.  After a brief but meaningful association with Mrs. Ruth Wilcox (Vanessa Redgrave) who is of the wealthiest of classes, their friendship leads to Margaret inheriting the elegant estate.  This leaves Mrs. Wilcox's husband Henry (Anthony Hopkins) and their children in a state of dismay.  Together they decide to destroy the piece of paper with Mrs. Wilcox's last wishes; never letting Margaret and the rest of the middle class Schlegel clan have Howard's End.

Howard's End is a tricky film to pin down.  It's due primarily to the screenplay.  What's there on screen isn't careless, clumsy, or cheap.  But also the script doesn't quite reach the heights of coming off as a particularly moving, gripping, or impressive piece of storytelling.  When we reach the end of the nearly two and a half hour picture there's a sense of emptiness that sweeps over us.

Like any James Ivory film the production values and acting skills are high.  Margaret plays the part of a dutiful wife to Henry after he asks for hand in marriage.  However, she also has loyalties to her siblings as well, especially Helen.  Helen has a particular attachment to a gentleman who is of the poorest classes which upsets Henry.  Thompson’s performance is eloquent, cordial, and complex.  Margaret wants to make everyone happy in her life but it's certainly hard considering who she's married to.  Hopkins is very precise in his portrayal of man who seemingly looks down his nose at almost everyone, specifically those who have nowhere near as much wealth as he does.  Henry is so cold and unsympathetic with little redeeming qualities to him it really makes you wonder why Margaret accepted his proposal in the first place. 

Ivory does create an extravagant atmosphere with all the meticulously designed sets and costumes.  The time and place feel right.  It’s our brain though that's left to play catch up with our eyes.  There's something hollow about the screenplay.  We aren't emotionally attached to the characters because they are from a society that has a different set of moral values than our own.  The whole societal class struggle comes off as monotonous.  These characters are unwilling to change because their social classes won't allow them to.

Howard's End can't be viewed as just another period piece.  In order to truly enjoy this film you really have to be a fan of early 20th Century England.  It's quite easy to get swept up in the aesthetics of the picture but the greater challenge is the appreciation for the plot and the characters.  For the casual viewer or even serious film fanatic Howard's End is at times difficult to digest.  Ivory has put together a piece of cinema that falls into a specific division of filmmaking.  Die hard devotees of the novel or of Ivory's work will enjoy it.  As for everyone else, we're left in the aisles with the rest of the poverty stricken popcorn munchers.      

 

Sun, Sun, Sun Here We Come

"Sunshine"

Director Danny Boyle has a knack for giving each of his films a certain visual flare that enhances the story.  His visuals don't ever make or break the film though.  In the end it's the screenplay that we should be paying more attention to anyways right?  Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours are two of his films that have solid screenplays with his fantastic imagery to amplify the cinematic experience.  In Sunshine we are treated to some very impressive shots of the solar system as a group of heroic scientists race towards a dying sun.  Their mission is to reignite the sun by hurling a stellar bomb into it.  And that's about all there is to this film.  Not even Boyle's depictions of space can save it.

The screenplay feels like it's the first draft of something bigger.  This was probably only supposed to be a pitch to the producer.  Instead he thought it'd be best to make an entire film out of this very thin premise.  There really isn't a whole lot going on in this film.  Oh sure the crew aboard Icarus II does face a number of problems, but we never seem to care.  Also, little to no science is actually apparent throughout this film let alone any explanation to why the sun is about to expire.  There doesn't need to be some long drawn out scientific answer to why our sun is on its way out but any sort of plot development leading up to mankind's impending doom would have been nice.

The characters are thinly drawn and the relationships they have with one another are barely established.  Understandably Sunshine is more of plot driven film but when your plot is on the verge of bursting into flames hopefully the audience can latch on to the characters for support.  Unfortunately at no point during the film does that ever happen.  Considering these characters are a group of scientists they make some pretty brainless decisions.  Instead of sticking to the mission they venture off course to inquire about their sister ship, Icarus I, which failed to deliver its payload seven years prior.  This is where things really start to go downhill.

The sequences of peril the characters put themselves in come off as being incredibly unbelievable.  Even though this is a science fiction film there's only so much suspension of disbelief one can tolerate before realizing what's happening on screen would never ever occur in real life.  Who are these people and why should we care what happens to them?  We aren't emotionally invested in these characters.  Did the screenwriter actually give any to how this would look on screen?

Maybe that's the real problem here.  Everyone involved was more concerned with how the film would translate cinematically.  That must have been the reason why Boyle was hired for the project.  The producers figured that if they put a visually oriented director on the film then that would mask the deficiencies of the screenplay.  Ultimately all of Boyle's strengths as a director do not come together for this piece of work.

The third act of the film is particularly frustrating because it brings a new element of suspense that comes out of left field and completely changes the tone of the film.  All the visuals mesh together for a spectacular mess of a finale.  Boyle's visuals were a perfect marriage to the storytelling in his two previously mentioned pieces of work but as for Sunshine, this one ends in divorce.  There isn't enough SPF in the world to save you from this sun burn.

Time Is Not On My Side

"Dead Man Walking"

 

Every year there are films that have some sort of political agenda that's either going to play to your sympathies or make your blood boil.  The topic of Tim Robbins' Dead Man Walking has to do with the death penalty, enough said.  Now given the fact that Mr. Robbins and his two lead actors, Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon, are of a certain political persuasion one would think that this film would be rather one-sided.  When Louisiana convicted murderer Matthew Poncelet (Penn) reaches out to a  nun, Sister Helen Prejean (Sarandon) during his final week on death row and tells her he was only an accomplice to the crime, we get the feeling it's going to be "another one of those movies."  The court system is broken; a man is put to death for a crime he didn't commit.  These big time Hollywood movie stars are bringing out their soap boxes and just trying to push their liberal agenda down our throats.

These assumptions are for the most part though incorrect.  Robbins gives us both sides of the coin.  All the pain and anguish suffered by the families of the two slain teenagers are also brought to our attention. This allows our convictions towards the characters and the overall subject matter to really go either way.  Sister Helen is caught in the middle.  Everything is told through her pure, innocent eyes as she looks at the matter as more than just an issue of life and death but more a question of salvation of the soul.  There's no question that Matthew's crime (regardless of the lengths of his involvement) was truly monstrous.  Is he however able to accept what he did and understand all the pain and suffering he caused on to others?

All the performances from every actor are emotionally investing.  There are so many layers and complexities to each character that each scene slowly begins to creep under the skin.  Robbins is another one of those filmmakers who's an actor first and a director second.  The work that he and Penn do to create the character of Matthew is interesting because on first impressions we think we've got his character pegged.  As the film progresses his character wants us to feel any sort of sympathy towards him by revealing more about himself, his family, and the night of the murders.  Sister Helen is there to remind us though that Matthew  got to where he is because he was convicted of the brutal crime. 

The screenplay attempts to get inside the head of a cold blooded killer and find out what makes him tick, kind of like Truman Capote's In Cold Blood.  The film is a great character piece that delves into a controversial issue that leads us to believe the death penalty is more than just a black and white issue.  Dead Man Walking allows its audience to feel a range of emotions including the faith and spiritual based but never being overly pious.  It also shows the compulsive, animalistic nature that can lead a man to a life on death row.   

Robbins and his actors put together an emotionally powerful piece that is going to strike a chord in you one way or the other.  The film walks a very fine line with its handling of such a disputed topic.  And that's a pretty good reason to like it for that it never cushions the blow or leads you down one particular path.  Robbins' work here as director pays off because he has a capital understanding of how to present material this heated material.  As a director he never punishes the audience into thinking there is only one right and wrong way of thinking.    

A Man and His Puppet

"The Beaver"

Are you feeling blue?  Do you feel your life has no more meaning?  Have you given up all hope?  This is how Walter Black (Mel Gibson) feels for a majority of Jodie Foster's The Beaver.  Depression is a sickness that affects millions of people year after year.  The remedy for this sickness isn't as simple as saying, "just snap out of it" or suggesting to pop some pills.  No, depression is a feeling that consumes your life and hits you at the pit of your soul.  It also affects everyone that is close to you. 

After inheriting his father's toy company along with a series of other events in his life, the man that is Walter Black seems to gradually deteriorate and he has no intentions of putting his life back together.  Walter's solution: sleep a lot.  This everlasting gloom takes a toll on Walter's wife Meredith (Jodie Foster) and their two sons Porter (Anton Yelchin) and Henry (Riley Thomas Stewart) over the course of several years.  Meredith eventually divorces him.

Gibson has been the subject of ridicule due to his questionable and crazy personal life over the past seven years.  In fact up until recently he hadn't appeared in a feature film for the past eight years.  Is he now trying to make a comeback?  Perhaps The Beaver was the right choice for him at this time in his life.  Gibson is perceived as being a crazy person and coincidentally so is Walter after he finds a beaver hand puppet in a dumpster.  This beaver becomes a part of him.  By having Walter wear the beaver, the puppet acts as an extension of his personality.  The beaver takes on all the good characteristics Walter once had.  From that point on Walter is gone and there is only the beaver.  

Meredith and the kids are unsure of how to react to the newest member of their family.  Porter is most disturbed by his father's recent behavior.  This comes at a time in Porter's life where he is finding out who he is, like most high school seniors.  One thing Porter doesn't want to turn into though is his father.  He is able though to have a relationship with star cheerleader and valedictorian Norah (Jennifer Lawrence) who has her own set of emotional problems.  

Meredith struggles to come to terms with her husband’s current state of mind and yearns for the way he used to be.  The relationship Foster and Gibson have is realistic and believable.  There are moments throughout the film where we do care about each of their characters and understand the struggles each of them are going through.  This is something that the screenplay does quite well.

Another reason the characters seem so believable to us is because of Ms. Foster's direction.  She is an actor first and a director second.  She gets fantastic performances from all actors.  This is by far the best performance Gibson has given in recent memory.  Everyone seems so natural and unrehearsed giving us a realistic portrait of a broken family coping with a very heavy family matter.  

It's too bad the screenplay doesn't give us a proper introduction to what the family was like before Walter's depression.  Clocking in at a brisk 90 minutes The Beaver could have used a decent first act by actually showing us the events of Walter's steady decline that ultimately led to his depression.  Instead we're already in a free fall with him just before he hits rock bottom.  We also get bogged down in the side story of Norah not dealing with the loss of her older brother.  It feels like the screenplay was originally only 60 pages long but then the writer had to throw in Norah's story to pad the film out to feature length.  The film loses its focus in these scenes and pretends to connect the dots into having it relate to the other themes and issues that are being dealt with on screen.

The Beaver touches upon a subject matter that no one likes to talk about.  And for the most part it does a passable job of getting a message across about what living with depression is really like.  It does get rather extreme and ridiculous by the third act and the resolution of conflict seems all too sudden for the characters to arrive at.  Maybe those extra thirty minutes should have been devoted to some more character development instead of giving us a “b” story that felt like a tacked on distraction. Nonetheless, the backbone of the film is Gibson's strong performance as a man struggling to get his life back on track and fix his broken brain.  Maybe we'll see a talking puppet in Gibson’s future too.

Hitting High and Low Notes

"Gigi"

Some musicals leave you in a state of cheerfulness, some leave you in a state of depression, and then there are ones that leave you feeling emotionless and unfulfilled.  Vincinete Minnelli's Gigi happens to fall into this third category.  From 1958 - 1968 the Academy of Motion Pictures awarded the best picture statue to five films that fell into the musical genre.  My Fair Lady, The Sound of Music, West Side Story, Oliver, and Gigi were those five pictures.  Of those films Gigi stands out in the bunch as being the weakest entry.  There's just something about the film that makes it unable to measure up to rest.

Gigi (Leslie Caron) is a young, high spirited, beautiful Parisian who is in need of some refining if she is ever to marry some rich, suave, debonair gentleman.  Gaston Lachaille (Louis Jourdan) is a family friend of Gigi's that fits all of those characteristics.  Gaston has been unsuccessful in his attempts of securing a wife.  His reputation is plagued by scandals from past romances.  After a weekend get away with Gigi and her grandmother Madame Alvarez (Hermione Gingold,) Gaston realizes that he could have a potential future with Gigi.  This is also realized by Madame Alvarez and her sister Alicia (Isabel Jeans.)  Alicia has been part of the high society scene for quite some time and gives Gigi daily lessons in becoming a courteous young woman.  Much to everyone's delight Gigi flourishes into her own and is then asked for her timid hand in marriage. 

Despite its aesthetic qualities and fine acting from everyone involved Gigi leaves us feeling disappointed.  Sure the film has exquisite production design, eyeful cinematography, and lovely costumes but at its core is a story with characters that just aren't as interesting as all the beauty that surrounds them.  In some ways Gigi's story is similar to My Fair Lady.  Both screenplays were written by the same person.  Even though Gigi came out six years earlier, My Fair Lady is the more well known title.   While the similarities aren’t necessarily a bad thing you can't help but draw a connection between the two of them.  My Fair Lady did it better.  

Caron is delightful as Gigi while Jourdan's Gaston proves to be somewhat unlikable.  In My Fair Lady Eliza had Professor Higgins and in The Sound of Music Maria had Captain Von Trapp.  Each of these actors had good chemistry with each other because of the way their characters were written and because of what each of them brought to their scenes.  Even though Caron and Jourdan each play their parts well, their scenes together lack the spark that the two other couples had.  Gaston doesn't change enough for us especially when compared to Gigi's metamorphosis.  

It was mentioned in the review of The Sound of Music that Rodgers and Hammerstein did an excellent job of transitioning us from one song to the next.  Gigi doesn't bridge those gaps quite as well.  The songs don't feel forced but the way the characters arrive at them comes off as unnatural.  Gigi's character doesn't have to say she enjoys singing like Maria's character did but every time she or someone else sings it seems contrived to the plot.

Gigi is an hour shorter then My Fair Lady and The Sound of Music that might be its biggest problem of all.  The story doesn't have the depth and complexities as the other films do.  We aren't as engaged in the characters or what happens to them for that matter because the film never allows us to be.  The opening sequence gives us a sense of what time period we're in but it doesn't give us a sense of what we should be feeling towards its characters.  Gigi is by no means an inadequate piece of work and could even be perceived as laying the groundwork for its successors.  Unlike its successors though, Gigi comes off as nowhere near as memorable.