The Art of Getting By

"Before life gets in the way, start living."

George, a lonely and fatalistic teen who's made it all the way to his senior year without ever having done a real day of work, is befriended by Sally, a popular but complicated girl who recognizes in him a kindred spirit in The Art of Getting By a clever, coming-of-age film that, while imperfect, has a gifted cast that makes it extremely interesting and watchable. It’s a small film from a first time director (Gavin Wiesen), which came out of the Sundance Film Festival under the original title of Homework. The story centers around a high school senior named George (Freddie Highmore of August Rush and Charlie & the Chocolate Factory fame) who is a slacker. He is extremely intelligent, gifted and a talented artist who struggles with his purpose in life and is accomplished in getting out of having to complete his homework assignments.  The strict, but supportive Principal Martinson (Blair Underwood), against the wishes of his teachers, allows him one last chance to  complete all his assignments from the past year or he will be expelled. At home there is trouble, he encounters a new mentor who begins to inspire him and a romantic relationship develops with one of his few close friends, Sally (Emma Roberts). The Art of Getting By ends up being a thoughtful story of a troubled young man coming to grips with his life laced with a hint of romantic comedy. While some of the subplots are wanting, the film succeeds on the strength its star performances and their chemistry together.  I particularly enjoyed the quiet depth and confused mix of seriousness and dazed confusion that Freddie Highmore brought to George. He is fascinating to watch as his character wins the audience over with his dry wit, troubled expressions, and yearning for understanding far deeper than what lies within many high schools’ walls and students’ minds. Every emotion, fear and desire is just floating off him like a series of misguided emotional auras. Across from Highmore is the beautiful Emma Roberts as Sally who is attracted to George, finding him a kindred spirit. Rita Wilson is excellent as George’s mother, full of sorrow and fear and, later, strength. Blair Underwood is a believably understanding high school principal and  Alicia Silverstone makes an extended cameo as Ms. Herman, the English teacher who sees past George’s excuses and attitude. There are others worth watching and the ensemble works together in spite of the sea of troubles that almost sinks the film. 

It slowed a bit about two thirds of the way through but then picked up for an unexpectedly optimistic ending (sorry if that spoils the suspense for anyone).  Highmore and Roberts shine in the lead roles and exhibit infectious chemistry onscreen. Both are instantly likable and engaging. It is difficult not to root for George.  The film is unusually optimistic for one having such gloomy visual style and a cast of despondent characters. I was glad I sought it out as it was not at my favorite neighborhood theater.

Winter in Wartime

A film by Martin Koolhoven

Martin Koolhoven's film, Winter in Wartime is set in Nazi-occupied Holland, 1945. In a snow-covered village, thirteen-year-old Michiel, son of the local mayor, is drawn into the Resistance when he aids a wounded British paratrooper. Michiel‘s boyish sense of defiance and adventure soon turns to danger and desperation, as he is forced to act without knowing whom to trust among the adults and townspeople around him.  The film generally succeeds in depicting the precarious position of the young boy as the situations he faces become more and more difficult to handle.  The best aspect of the film is the setting,:  the small village, and the foreboding forest that Michiel knows well.  But the forest grows sinister as the danger from Nazi occupiers seems omnipresent.
  The acting, especially by Martijn Lakemeier as Michiel, is excellent and the suspense believable for the most part; although the final section has a few too many close calls.  This does not detract from the overall enjoyment of a dramatic moment in one boys life -- his "winter in wartime".

Delightful Comedy

Kevin Kline has returned to the cinema screen with yet another unique character that can only be described as delightfully quirky. The Extra Man, written and directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini from the novel by Jonathan Ames, is a comedy of manners and antiquarian sweetness. Young Louis Ives, a budding writer and Scott Fitzgerald devotee, moves to Manhattan and rents a room from Henry Harrison, one-time playwright and part-time "extra man". Paul Dano and Kevin Kline (both personal favorites of mine) fill the roles of Louis and Henry with an ease that belies the difficulty of comedic acting. That they succeed is evidenced by my, and the rest of the audience's, continual laughter from one moment to the next in this unusual film. The film plays against your expectations with Henry espousing outrageous opinions that are either antiquated or off-the-wall crazy or both. But, his character is so sincere, and opaque, that you find yourself laughing at statements that can only be described as outrageous. Polite people just don't say things like that, but Henry does.

Paul Dano's character, Louis Ives, is an everyman who tries to unravel Henry's persona with little success. But, what really sparks Louis’ imagination is his new home life. He rents a room in the ramshackle apartment of Henry Harrison (Kevin Kline), a penniless, wildly eccentric and brilliant playwright. When Henry’s not dancing alone to obscure music or singing operettas, he’s performing – with great panache -- the duties of an “extra man,” a social escort for the wealthy widows of Manhattan high society. The two men develop a volatile mentorship, which leads to a series of urban adventures -- encountering everything from a leaping lion to a wildly jealous hirsute neighbor to drunken nonagenarians to a shady Swiss hunchback.

Along his exploration into the heart of New York City, Henry and Louis have unexpected influences on each other and form a memorable bond that bridges their differences. In part, Paul takes on part of Henry's personality, through a sort of osmosis of character. I found both Louis's imagnative journey and Henry's eclectic character made an entertaining film.

L'Etranger

"And I can say that at the end of the eleven months that this investigation lasted, I was almost surprised that I had ever enjoyed anything other than those rare moments when the judge would lead me to the door of his office, slap me on the shoulder, and say to me cordially, 'That's all for today, Monsieur Antichrist.' I would then be handed back over to the police." (Camus, L'Etranger, Part 2, Chapter 1, pg. 71)



Albert Camus’s first and most famous novel L'Etranger (The Stranger, or The Outsider) was published on this day in 1942. This was the same year as the movie Casablanca was released; the most reproduced photographs of Albert Camus show him looking like Humphrey Bogart — overcoated, cigaretted, and attractively worn-out. More interestingly, people like Victor Laslo, the Resistance leader that escaped Casablanca taking Rick's one and only with him, did so with the help of people like Albert Camus. Camus was Algerian-French, and too tubercular to join the army; instead he while he convalesced on a farm, during his trips to Saint-Etienne he helped the underground railway that shipped Jews and political refugees from southern France to Oran, then west across Morocco to Casablanca, then Lisbon and out.

Another remarkable parallel is that The Stranger also managed to slip by the Nazis. With the paper shortage, getting a book published in France during WWII was difficult enough; getting clearance from the Propaganda Ministry was an even larger obstacle. The Nazis of 1942 were not the avid burners of a decade earlier, but the prohibitions were systematic and effective: nothing against Hitler and Homeland, nothing for Jews, nothing subversive or, in Nazi Newspeak, “inflammatory.” That the watchdogs of totalitarianism should judge The Stranger to be harmlessly apolitical may be one of the larger ironies in the history of publishing and censorship.


The Stranger by Albert Camus. Vintage Books, New York. 1954 (1942).

Six Moral Tales:
Claire's Knee

“We trifle when we assign limits to our desires, since nature hath set none”

- Christian Nevell Bovee

As the decade of the 1960s ended Eric Rohmer was more than halfway through his group of films refered to as Contes moraux (Six Moral Tales). The fourth of these (third in order of production) was the classic Ma Nuit Chez Maude which is among my favorite films of all time. Rohmer followed this with a discourse on desire titled Le genou de Claire (Claire's Knee). While this does not resonate with me the way Chez Maude did it is a powerful and evocative film.

Rohmer's films invariably concentrate on intelligent, articulate protagonists, who nevertheless frequently fail to own up to their real desires. The contrast between what they say and what they do fuels much of the drama in his films. This is true in Claire's Knee as the protagonist Jerome, at the instigation of his writer friend Aurora, manages to flirt with a teenage girl and then reach the brink of desire with her sister Claire. What impressed me most was the power and suspense that Rohmer was able to build into the climactic scene where Jerome caresses Claire's Knee. This scene reminds me of the power of Hitchcock who could build suspense and horror without showing the actual act of murder. It is no surprise that Rohmer had collaborated with Claude Chabrol on a study of Hitchcock earlier in his career. The impact of the discussions of Jerome's desire with his friend Aurora and his momentary brush with the culmination of that desire is tremendously moving. As in his other films Rohmer's tendency to spend considerable time in his films showing his characters going from place to place, walking, driving, bicycling, or boating is evident in Claire's Knee. His flirtation with Laura occurs while hiking in the mountains and the climax occurs when his kindness in giving Claire a ride into town is interrupted by a rain storm. The contrast of serious discussion and the wide open expanses of nature (almost every scene is outdoors) adds to the appeal of the film and suggests that Jerome, who is headed off to be married, and Claire who is reconciling with her boyfriend Gilles at the end are indeed doing what nature intended.

Young Orson Welles

"Me and Orson Welles"

Everybody denies I am a genius - but nobody ever called me one!
- Orson Welles

I thoroughly enjoyed Richard Linklater's new film "Me and Orson Welles" at the Webster Place 11 Theaters. It brought to life the young Orson Welles during the week before his exciting premiere of "Julius Caesar" at the newly formed Mercury Theater in New York City. He was already well-known as a radio personality but this is well before his triumph at RKO with Citizen Kane and other films (there is a neat moment of foreshadowing his future film interests when he reads from Tarkington's The Magnificent Ambersons to young Richard Samuels while riding in a cab). The film time is set in post depression era New York where the young student Richard (Zac Efron) goes to New York to get a start in the theater and bluffs his way into Welles' (Christian McKay) Mercury Theater, getting the role of Brutus' slave Lucius. During this week Richard will find romance with a worldly older woman, become immersed in a creative experience few are afforded and learn the downside of crossing the imperious, brilliant Welles. The film only hints at the multi-talented character of the man who created the grand-daddy of media hoaxes, directed films that re-directed the path of world cinema and was a fantastic magician, but Christian McKay's portrayal energizes the film as he becomes Welles. The other members of Welles' Mercury Theatre, Joseph Cotten, George Coulouris, Norman Lloyd And John Houseman were all present in this lovely film. Ben Chaplin's performance as George Colouris was particularly good as he almost has a nervous breakdown moments before going on stage as Mark Antony. Of course, Welles and his whole troupe share an immense triumph on the evening of the premiere, but the show really belongs to Orson Welles alone, while young Richard learns some lessons in life and love in the process. This was a lovely entertaining film that I heartily recommend to all.

Paris

If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast.

- Hemingway

I viewed the film Paris at the Century Centre Cinema yesterday evening. Cedric Klapisch directed and wrote the film Paris featuring Juliette Binoche and Romain Duris in the two most prominent roles. Paris provides a beautiful overview of both the people and panorama of the city. Romain Duris' character, Pierre, is a dancer who has been diagnosed with a serious heart disease. He must spend his days reasting and from his apartment window he views the city and its people. Klapisch presents some of these people and their stories in this mosaic of a film. With the support of his sister Elise (Binoche) Pierre manages to cope with his deteriorating health. One of the most touching moments in their relationship is a Christmas Eve dinner at his apartment with Elise and her children. Pierre holds the youngest in his arms as they look out at the brightly lit Eiffel Tower and the night lights of Paris.

There were moments in the film when the panoramic views of Paris were reminiscent of similar views of Berlin in Wenders' Wings of Desire; while the enclosed life of Pierre led him briefly to yearn for the possibility of romance with a young woman in a neighboring apartment in a moment that reminded me of Jimmy Stewart's voyeurism in Hitchcock's Rear Window. Those moments aside, the energy and delight of the film came from the experience of the real people and streets of Paris throughout the film. That energy overcame the darkness of Pierre's disease, and culminated in a party scene held with all of his old friends with whom he danced almost to his death. The film ends as it begins with views of people in silhouette staring at the Parisian skyline. It is a tribute to the spirit of Paris that made this film a joy to experience.

Hanna Free

“Woman is a miracle of divine contradictions”
- Jules Michelet


In ancient Greece Aristophanes described the myth that we are each one half of a whole and it is the need to complete that whole that is love. This myth was never better demonstrated than in the film Hannah Free written by Claudia Allen and directed by Wendy Jo Carlton. The film tells the story of Hannah and Rachel who grew up as little girls in the same small Midwest town, where traditional gender expectations eventually challenge their deep love for one another. Hannah becomes an adventurous, unapologetic lesbian and Rachel a strong but quiet homemaker. Weaving back and forth between past and present, the film reveals how the women maintained their love affair despite a marriage, a world war, infidelities, and family denial.
Featuring a luminescent performance by Sharon Gless as Hannah and a strong cast with Ann Hagemann as the adult Rachel and Jacqui Jackson as her granddaughter both outstanding in their important supporting roles. Many of the scenes in this intimate film were both touching and memorable as it lovingly depicted a small town romance between one woman who is always leaving and the other who is home-bound, until the final chapter of their lives together when the roles are reversed. This is a beautiful small film that deserves a very large audience.


Hannah Free by Claudia Allen. Wendy Jo Carlton, dir. Gene Siskel Film Center, Chicago.

"In a game of seduction never fall in love."

-Colette

Last night I viewed the Stephen Frears' film Cheri. It was a beautiful adaptation of the novels Cheri and Le fin de Cheri by Colette. Capturing the beauty of the "Belle Epoque" Frears had the help of Michelle Pfeiffer who looked younger than her real age as the aging Courtesan Lea de Lonval. Pfeiffer and Kathy Bates as Madame Peloux, the mother of Cheri, are excellent in their roles.
Cheri is played well by a photogenic Rupert Friend who I have previously seen as Joan Plowright's young friend in Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont (a film I would also highly recommend). I must also recommend the musical score for Cheri by Alexandre Desplat who has won awards for several of his previous film scores including The Queen and The Beat that my Heart Skipped (another of my favorite films). Overall this film version of Colette's novels is a delightful film that I enjoyed so much I will probably see it again.

Little Ashes

Little Ashes chronicles the relationship between Frederico Garcia Lorca, Salvador Dali and Luis Bunuel. Lorca and Dali eventually become intimate and that intimacy is at the core of this film. It is an impressionistic view of their lives with scenes from various locations and brief moments of the lives punctuated by newsreel-style interludes that provide a broader background.

Madrid in 1922 was a city wavering on the edge of change as traditional values were challenged by the dangerous new influences of jazz, Freud and the avant-garde.
Salvador Dalí arrived at university at the age of 18 years old, determined to become a great artist. His bizarre blend of shyness and rampant exhibitionism attracted the attention of two of the university’s social elite — Federico García Lorca and Luis Buñuel. For a while they are an active, decadent and formidable trio, the most ultra-modern group in Madrid. However, as time passes, Salvador feels an increasingly strong pull toward the charismatic Federico — who is oblivious to the attention he is getting from his beautiful writer friend, Magdalena. But it is Frederico who seems to be the one who, once prompted, leads the way in their dalliance. Finally, in the face of his friends’ preoccupations — and Federico’s growing renown as a poet — Luis sets off for Paris in search of his own artistic success. The film has gorgeous settings and evocative Spanish guitar music. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Doubt

I was reading a poem by Wislawa Szymborska early this morning that reminded me, in part, of thoughts I have had after my recent viewing of the film version of John Patrick Shanley's play, Doubt. Here is the poem:

IN PRAISE OF SELF-DEPRECATION

The buzzard had nothing to fault himself with.
Scruples are alien to the black panther.
Piranhas do not doubt the rightness of their actions.
The Rattlesnake approves of himself without reservations

The self-critical jackal does not exist.
The locust, alligator, trichina, horsefly
live as they live and are glad of it.

The killer-whale's heart weighs one hundred kilos
but in other respects it is light.

There is nothing more animal-like
than a clear conscience
on the third planet of the Sun.



The film Doubt directed by John Patrick Shanley who adapted his original play for the screen is a powerful drama whose story line reminded me of one thing that makes humans different from the animals in the above poem - our ability to doubt. Shanley succeeds in creating questions, and yes - doubt, in the mind of the viewer. In spite of a slight feeling of being manipulated, he impressed me with his message. The story, set in 1964, centers on a parish and school - St. Nicholas in the Bronx. A priest, Father Flynn, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote), is trying to upend the schools' strict customs, which have long been fiercely guarded by Sister Aloysius Beauvier, played with her usual supreme acting ability by Meryl Streep, a Principal who believes in the power of fear and discipline. Political and cultural change is changing the community, and the school has just accepted its first black student, Donald Miller. The story hangs on the actions of Sister James, who I found to be the most interesting character of all, played by Amy Adams. She appears as an innocent who is buffeted by the strong wills of the Priest and the Principal, and shares with Sister Aloysius her guilt-inducing suspicion that Father Flynn is paying too much personal attention to Donald. With this bit of information Sister Aloysius sets off on a personal crusade to unearth the truth and to chase Flynn from the school. She pursues her goal without no evidence besides her moral certainty. The ensuing battle of wills between Priest and Principal results in changes in lives and the community and ultimately raise doubts for the participants and audience alike. I found the film to be a thoughtful exploration of the nature of truth, certainty and doubt - one which like all good films left me with questions to ponder in my own mind.

Sounds, Feeling, Thoughts: Seventy Poems by Wislawa Szymborska, trans. by Magnus Krynski and Robert Maguire. Princeton University Press, 1981.

Milk

While I am in the midst of reading at the beginning of the new year I also take time to view some of the spate of fine movies released in time to qualify for annual film awards.
One of these is Milk, Gus Van Sant's biopic tribute to the gay San Francisco politician and activist, Harvey Milk. Sean Penn gives another of his fine acting performances (see Mystic River, Dead Man Walking et. al.). The film effectively captures the time and place of San Francisco and gay activism in the seventies. Great supporting performances included those by Denis O'Hare, James Franco, Joseph Cross and Lucas Grabeel (escaping from Disney). It is a tribute to Van Sant that he was able to make this uplifting and moving tribute to a man and a movement.

Slumdog Millionaire

A rare number of "feel-good" movies are truly great films. Slumdog Millionaire is one of those films.
With a screenplay written by Simon Beaufoy (from the novel by Vikas Swarup) and directed by Danny Boyle (and Loveleen Tandan in India) it is a cinematic rags to riches story of a boy, Jamal Malik (effectively played by Dev Patel) who wins the Indian television version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?". When arrested after correctly answering all but the last question and detained overnight, he narrates a tale of life and love, telling how he came to this point in his young life. His story, shown in flashbacks, provides a panorama of Indian life at the turn of the century and shows his rise from the slums to a job in a modern high-tech call center and his love of the beautiful Latika (Freida Pinto) that his the central passion. I was impressed with the acting of Irrfan Khan as the Police Inspector (as an actor he has been exceptionally busy with more than twenty films in the last two years, but I remember his performance as the father of Gogol Ganguli in The Namesake from 2006).
There are many aspects of Slumdog which deserve praise; just a few of which include the effective pacing with contrasting scenes of the young boy's rough early life with the near celebrity of his TV appearance, the death of his mother at the hands of a mob, the conflict between Jamal and his brother Salim, timely humorous scenes that relieve some of the tension that accumulates as the story progresses, and the overriding passion of Malik's love for Latika to which she only slowly responds. The combined effect of the story, the scenes of India, and the reverberating beat of Indian music are dazzling. This is a film to sit back and enjoy both in the theater and afterward as memories of exciting emotional moments continue in your mind.

Man on Wire

When done properly the documentary is a beautiful and moving cinematic work of art. Yesterday I saw an example of just that in Man on Wire, currently being shown at the Landmark Century Theaters.
Man on Wire was mesmerizing in its retelling of the story of Phillippe Petit, the wire walker. It is a look at his daring, but illegal, high-wire routine performed between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 1974, what some consider, "the artistic crime of the century." Artistic it certainly was and while a crime, albeit a relatively minor one, it was presented in a masterful way in this documentary directed by James Marsh. Marsh previously directed the award-winning documentary Wisconsin Death Trip (1999) and he wrote and directed the excellent independent film, The King (2005).
The story of Phillippe's walk was told in the format of a traditional heist movie and the suspense built until the moment early on the day in 1974 when Phillippe completed his dream by stepping out on the wire between the towers. The film provided biographical background for Phillippe and showed earlier walks that were almost as dramatic at Notre Dame Cathedral and a bridge in Sydney Australia. The majesty of each of those successful walks only served to heighten the accomplishment at the World Trade Center. Not since the beautiful documentary Louis Kahn: Silence and Light in 1995 have I been so moved. I found the film truly exhilarating ultimately moving me to tears with the beauty of Phillippe's achievement. This film is worthy of recognition with major awards.

Portraits of Love

Chris & Don: 
A Love Story

Having read and enjoyed many of Christopher Isherwood's books over the years I was eagerly anticipating this cinematic memoir of his 34-year relationship with the much younger Don Bachardy. I was not disappointed as this documentary is a moving account of their relationship. After a brief introductory section on Christopher's life before his move to California and meeting Don, the film focuses on their story and, interestingly, more and more on Don Bachardy's own development as an artist. From the shy boy who is overwhelmed by the Hollywood stars in Chris's world Don develops a life of his own. A life of his own of a sort, since he owed so much of his development to Chris. How Don and Chris worked this out over the years and stayed together was fascinating. In its portrayal of this story the film was sensitive to both lives and provided a beautiful portrait of the love that kept them together until Chris's death in 1986. Perhaps most touching were the almost daily portraits of Chris that Don created during the final six months of Chris's life. Definitely a documentary worth seeing again.

Brideshead Revisited

Brideshead has never been so magnificent as it is portrayed in the new cinema version directed by Julian Jarrold. Emma Thompson is scintillating in her portrayal of Lady Marchmain in an Academy award worthy performance. Standing out among the major roles are Michael Gambon as Lord Marchmain and Matthew Goode as Charles Ryder; but the whole cast is excellent.
The film highlights the plot from the book with an ultimate focus on temptation; and the world between the wars, through eyes clouded by longing. The action of the book is compressed and intensified by the time limits of film, but with very few exceptions the story and character of the book are honored by this version. The adaptation is very creditable - it certainly shows the appeal of the story. Those who are really entranced by it ought to go and read Waugh's book and rent DVD's of the Granada miniseries--which was one of the best things ever produced for television. In Jarrold's film the youthful infatuation of Charles and Sebastian is portrayed somewhat more intensely and explicitly than the book, but not in any way other than what might be imagined by any truly empathetic reader. I am also willing to forgive the conflation of including Julia with Charles and Sebastian on the visit to Lord Marchmain and his mistress in Venice. The film is able to convey the overarching feel of decay and the themes of Catholicism and the oppressive relationship of Mother and children. While these themes are certainly important, I was more impressed by the beauty of the many scenes, especially Brideshead which was captured frozen in time as a sort of shrine, chapel and mausoleum for the family and their world. The overall vision of the director was stunning in every detail. As always, read the book, but in this case it is also worthwhile to see the film version.

Tell No One



I have slowed in my postings, as it has been a week since my last, but life continues and yesterday I saw a film that is worth noting. I am a fan of the French cinema so I try to see French films when they open at my neighborhood cinema.

With the "critic's choice" recommendation of the Chicago Reader in my pocket I went to see Tell No One (Ne le dis a personne) directed and written (from a book by Harlan Coben) by Guillame Canet. It was a suspenseful and well-acted film that managed to start with an impossible situation, an e-mail message from someone supposedly dead for eight years, and continue to build suspense until the final piece falls into place very close to the end of the film. The story focuses a pediatrician, Alexandre Beck, who misses his beloved wife Margot who was brutally murdered eight years ago when he was the prime suspect. When two bodies are found near where the corpse of Margot was dumped, the police reopen the case and Alex becomes suspect again. The mystery increases when Alex receives an e-mail showing Margot older and alive. When a photographer is killed and Alex is framed he is on the run for much of the second half of the film - trying to elude the police and find out why his wife is alive and has been missing for eight years. Canet respected the author's original work (which I must consider reading) and the cast is absolutely excellent ! François Cluzet (with a resemblance with Dustin Hoffman) is a perfect Dr Beck. Kristin Scott-Thomas, André Dussolier (can be a naughty character too), Jean Rochefort and the others are great as well. I highly recommend this as one of the best films, French or otherwise, that you will see this year. Tell everyone!

Oedipal Cinema

Savage Grace
a film directed by Tom Kalin

"One of the uses of money is that it allows us not to live with the consequences of our mistakes." - Antony Baekeland
One of the current films at the Landmark Century Cinema is an adaptation of a true story titled Savage Grace. This is the story of the beautiful and charismatic Barbara Daly (played convincingly by Julianne Moore, whose performance in Far From Heaven was one of the best I have ever seen), who married above her class to Brooks Baekeland (searingly portrayed by Stephen Dillane), heir to the Bakelite plastics fortune.
The film, based on the book by Natalie Robins,  is narrated by Eddie Redmayne playing the role of their only child Antony; he is a failure in his father's eyes, and as he matures he develops gradually from a beautiful boy with doting mother to handsome young homosexual whose escapades do not receive his mother's approval. She attempts to cure him with disastrous consequences as he slowly slides into madness, a separate universe of his own making (interesting ironic touch in his use of 'backwards writing' in his journal modeled after Leonardo da Vinci). The film documents both the oedipal struggles of young Eddie alongside his father's weakness as a man incapable of handling what remained of the family fortune. Through it all Barbara seems on the edge balanced between both unfulfilled erotic and artistic dreams. The director, Tom Kalin, effectively portrays the world of the wealthy who manage to elegantly while away their life doing nothing. It is a thought provoking film for those who ponder the state of oedipal desires at the end of the twentieth century.

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont

I should have known when my friend Anne Marie recommended this film that it would be good, and when I found that it starred Joan Plowright that it would be very good. But seeing the film, based on the novel by British author Elizabeth Taylor (whose novels I have neglected, at my regret), I find myself in awe at the warmth and love that is displayed by this simple story of a woman, no longer young, all but abandoned by her family in a London retirement hotel. About to be overwhelmed by loneliness the woman strikes up a curious friendship with a young writer and discovers a new life in this friendship. Beautifully acted as I have come to expect from Dame Joan Plowright, this film exudes the feeling of sentiment without being sentimental. The situations depicted are both heart warming and emotionally wrenching. I enjoyed every detail in the lives of the characters and ended the film with a feeling that life is good.

Les Invasions Barbares

The Barbarian Invasions is a masterful and moving film written and directed by Denys Arcand. I am sorry that I missed the film when it was released and won the Oscar for best foreign film in 2004. Fortunately a friend recommended it to me and like most films, both good and bad, it is available on DVD and it is eminently worth renting and watching. I was impressed by the craft of the director as well as the acting, particularly of the central son and father, Sebastien and Remy, played respectively by Stephane Rousseau and Remy Girard. Girard, like several of the other actors had participated in Arcand's earlier film, The Decline of the American Empire, which touched on some of the same themes although not as deeply or with such perspicacity.

Barbarians impressed me with its demonstration of ideas more than its discussion of them, which was somewhat superficial. The ability of the son who was the ultimate capitalist and polar opposite of his father, a trenchant socialist intellectual, to put aside years of estrangement was the core of the film for me. His sensitivity to his father's needs and ability to get things done eventually broke down the barriers between them and led to some of the most emotionally powerful scenes in the movie. Yet the film presented complex issues like sex and love and drug addiction in an objective realistic fashion that transcended the normal stereotypes. This film is one that I will return to and think about for a long time.