09/23/2002 Entry:
"Various"

In the midst of this large update, some brief notes on other things I've seen recently.

Time Without Pity - Joseph Losey (1956)
I taped this off IFC just because it looked vaguely interesting, and it was actually somewhat more than vaguely interesting. While its really at its heart a B-movie, it is stilll a very well done one. Great photography and some really great shots, most of them involving mirrors of one sort or another. Its been a few weeks since I saw this so some of my details are hazy. I read some review complaining about the ending, but I actually quite liked it. Its a bit melodramatic sure, but it wasn't predictable and it fit the character. My only problem was did it really solve the problem? How did the setup prove that Robert was really the murderer of Agnes? It only proved that he murdered Alec. Still I recommend seeing this some time, and now I get to go invesitgate Losey and see if any of his other films are worth seeing.

Faraway, So Close! - Wim Wenders (1993)
This is no Wings Of Desire, thats for sure. While it brings together many of the main characters from that film, it wraps them up in a gangster plot that ends in a way too melodramatic way. The beginning is actually quite promising, with the angel Cassiel deciding to join his friend Damiel on Earth. However, Willem Dafoe's character, whose purpose or origination is never quite properly explained, seems to push him onto a course towards his own destruction, which doesn't really make sense and never feels quite fulfilling. I guess I can see the point, this one angel came down and made a wonderful life for himself, and another can come down and go a totally different direction, but this seemed really forced and hollow. Nice cameo by Mikhail Gorbachev though, good performances throughout, more great photography around Berlin. Mostly though, this just made me want to watch Wings Of Desire again.

Midnight Cowboy - John Schlesinger (1969)
I don't know, maybe I just hate Nilson but this really didn't hit me. I mean, I read all the arguments for the film and I understand its place in history and why it was such a major picture in the context that it was made. But it just didn't connect with me somehow, in ways I can't quite put into words. I had a discussion about it with Bethany afterwards, and I lost every point I put forth, so about the best I can say is it just wasn't my thing. Which really is pretty odd, since I generally love Dustin Hoffman from this period (he was very good in the role.) I was pretty into the scene where they end up at The Factory. I don't know, maybe I should give this a re-viewing.

Leila - Dariush Mehrjui (1996)
An very very good film from Iranian director Dariush Mehrjui. It reminded me a lot of Late Marriage mainly through the subject matter, parents forcing their kids (or stepkids) into things they feel just aren't right for them, although the reactions and intentions of the kids are completely different. In Late Marraige, the main character seems just as happy allowing himself to be pushed, whereas in this film both the leads seem torn apart by the fact that it is happening. It was difficult to watch the inevitable spiral downward as the movie progresses, although a couple light scenes in a car after meeting prospective wives gave you the false hope that perhaps things would work out for the best. Most notably, this is the first Iranian film I've seen that didn't take place amongst the poor in the countryside. It followed a middle class couple living in the city, driving their car, buying things. It was a new view of a country I've seen portrayed only through their downtrodden in the desserts, and in many ways it served to underscore the ways in which another culture's lives are so similar to ours. I have several friends planning weddings right now, and keeping the peace with the in-laws when they desperately want their traditions upheld is no laughing matter regardless of where you live. However, if there is one lesson to be learned from Leila, its that every once in a while you just need to tell your family to go fuck themselves.

Replies: 1 Comment

Welcome back! I liked MIDNIGHT COWBOY; I really did. (I also really like Harry Nilsson.) But I can't help but think that it was the AMERICAN BEAUTY of its time, if that makes any sense. That it captured a time and a place and feeling at just the right moment (which is what people responded) to), but, years later, appears a bit overdetermined, a bit too...written. Too "just so". (I like AMERICAN BEAUTY as well, for the record.) Kent M. Beeson Posted by Kent M. Beeson @ 09/25/2002 11:08 AM CST