Stone loves Alexander too Much

Oliver Stone and Spike Lee were two of the most spirited, angry, emotional voices in American film throughout the 1980s. Twenty years can change anyone. Both of them have put out a string of boring films that lack the energy, emotion, and inventiveness of their earlier work. Alexander is depressing precisely because it is so conventional. There are no surprises. Sure there are fine passages and the film isn't deathly boring - although it certainly crosses the line into dull. The biggest non-surprise is Oliver's continued anger towards/lack of interest in women. This misogyny makes Alexander the Great an almost perfect protagonist for Stone's vision - and this may be why the film has more reverence than any other film in the Stone filmography. For once he has taken on a subject that was as distrustful and fearful of women as he himself appears to be. Traditionally the Stone "hero" has had a blindly/blandly supportive wife who usually confronts the hero at some point about how lousy a husband he is because he answers his higher calling at the expense of her (this is the character arc for the female leads in Talk Radio, JFK, and The Doors). This time he gives us a psychotic, manipulative mother (played in what can only be called an extreme performance by Angelina Jolie) and a wife who seems full of spark but seems to bore the director once Alexander sleeps with her. Stone does not have enough faith in his actors. This film will not embarrass any of the actors because they exist only as part of the huge machine. There is little human behavior on the screen, only shouting, fighting, and pontificating. Alexander's motivations are explained in the simplest of Freudian terms, and Stone does not wish to spend much time on any of the supporting characters. Jared Leto is used iconicly as Alexander's soulmate. I laughed every time he was on screen because Stone treats him the exact same way the creators of My So Called Life did during the early episodes of that show's only season. He is an iconic representation of everything pure in Alexander just as he was an iconic representation of everything desirable to Angela in that show. The other time I laughed is when the boy hired to play Alexander as a 10 year old speaks. He has the thickest Irish accent in the film - as if that is supposed to help us forget Farrell's inability to totally lose his brouge. The film is not a total disaster, it is competent and it shows that Stone has paid attention to the works of David Lean. But it lacks any sense of discovery, wonder, or wisdom. And I wouldn't want to watch it again.

Why do I love movies?

I can't say it better than Ebert does here. What I am about to write is a cliche and an understatement, but when Ebert is good he really is very good.

When Will James Toback Be Loved?

James Toback has written some excellent scripts and his directorial debut, Fingers, is one of the very best independent American films of all time. However he also has a reputation for living in extremes, something he gladly admits. He is a noted gambler (rumor has it that his script for Bugsy came about in part as an act of charity by that film's director and Toback's longtime friend Warren Beatty after helped get Toback out of debt), a voracious pursuer of women (shocking he would be friends with Beatty), and a remarkably engaging interview who can tell hilarious stories about moviemaking mixed with astute observations about culture and society (thanks in part to his Harvard education). His most recent films have been mostly frustrating affairs where Toback allows his actors long scenes of seemingly improvised verbal conflict during which he seems to be commenting on his main obsessions - sex, race, sex, class, sex, power, sex, manipulation, and sex. Usually his central character is a very familiar type I like to think of as "TobackGuy". A guy obsessed with his obsessions to the point where he becomes undone because he is unable to control those obsessions and begins harming himself and the people around him. The best of his recent work, Two Girls and a Guy and half of Black and White, work because they either go deeply into the TobackGuy character or because they find a fresh way of addressing the realities of the culture. Which brings us to When Will I Be Loved, a film that in some ways is a departure for Toback. This time around his recognizable male lead is secondary to a woman who is even more selfish and predatory than he is. Played by Neve Campbell the character is a femme fatale in the classic sense - able to control and manipulate everyone around her. What makes her specifically a Toback creation is that she freely admits her interest is in finding out what she can get people to do. Her pleasure in the act itself - be it sex or getting money - is secondary to her need to show off her power over people. The first half of the films contains long dialogue passages that are supposed to establish character, but in fact grow dull pretty quickly in large part because they contain conversations and actions (like group sex in a park) that are overly familiar for any fan of Toback's work. The plot kicks in about halfway through, and it is basically a slight variation on Indecent Proposal. Her boyfriend, played by Frederick Weller from The Shape of Things, sets her up with an Italian media mogul who ends up offering one million dollars to have sex with her. The film is full of conversations that eliminate all of the subtext - the characters freely admit what they want and why they want it - and manages to annoy viewers by keeping classical pieces by Glenn Gould running underneath the most important conversations. The music adds nothing to the scenes and feels like the pretentious equivalent of keeping Kenny Loggins tunes playing during the Bruckheimer films of the 80s. The music does not give the conversations the emotional heft or depth that Toback knows they do not have. So while the film is mostly a misfire, it does hold some interest for those of us who are fascinated by the autobiographical nature of seemingly all of Toback's work. While the Weller character is obviously tha latest incarnation of TobackGuy, he is undone by someone who is even more manipulative than he is. While this could be read as yet another case of TobackGuy misunderstanding the woman (or women) in his life, I actually think the Campbell character represents another aspect of Toback. The woman in this film is Toback's artistic self. As director and writer he is able to control every element of his artistic life - just as she is able to totally manipulate everyone in her path. For me When Will I Be Loved is about Toback admitting to the audience that at this point in his life he cares more for his art than for his more self-destructive influences. Hence her masturbation scene in the beginning is Toback admitting to the world that filmmaking is his ultimate act of self-absorption. While this confession may result in some great films in the coming years, this film will bore most everyone who has anything less than a TobackGuy level of obsession in the ongoing saga of James Toback's life and career.

More on Sideways

So after rereading my post yesterday I realized I really didn't explain what was very good about Sideways. There are moments where Payne shows he has developed as a filmmaker. The first time the four main characters sit down to have dinner together Miles drinks too much wine. The montage of the conversation, the close-ups of Miles growing more and more drunk, and the snatches of dialogue that are heard all add up to a perfect expression of what a wine drunk feels like. A wine drunk is far different than any other drunk (for me at least) and while watching this scene I started to feel the same way I do when I overindulge. Payne managed to physically and mentally put me in the same place with his protagonist and that shows a real humanity and empathy that Payne is often accused (even by me) of lacking. That sequence continues with Miles calling his ex-wife. I've seen the drunken late night phone call to the wife scene at least one-hundred times, but I will say that I think this is the best scene like that ever filmed. Payne chooses to shoot Miles so that as he moves he goes in and out of focus, but I'm fairly sure he is subtly racking focus at the same time so that where he comes in clearly changes during the conversation. This is Giamatti's best scene in the movie, and it shows Payne may grow into a formidable filmmaker - something that coupled with his best scripts may make him the best bet to become the new Billy Wilder (with all apologies to Cameron Crowe who - although devoted to the master - is far too much of a humanist to be like his idol).

Sideways is a step forward

Satire is difficult. One misstep in tone and the delicate house of cards a satirist build comes crashing to the ground making the would-be creator look hapless and/or cruel. This happened to Alexander Payne with his previous film About Schmidt. Payne had nothing but contempt for pretty much every single one of his characters. This was a surprise coming off the pitch-perfect success of Election, a film so scathingly on-point that I have heard people of every political persuasion reading the film as an argument for their side. This brings us to Sideways a film that is certainly a step forward from Schmidt, but still one that poses some difficult questions for Payne's career. This time out Payne is pretty clear about his opinion towards his two main characters, and he allows them their bad behavior without belittling them. Thomas Haden Church is an unappealing lothario, but he certainly is a recognizable three-dimensional person. This however is the Paul Giamatti show. His depressive moping is well-acted, but the fact is this feels like a role any number of talented actors could have played (unlike his first-rate work as Harvey Pekar in American Splendor). The screenplay probably reads beautifully, and Giamatti and Virginia Madsen make every moment of an overwritten exchange about how he sees himself as a delicate grape (they are both way into wine). Although the actors are sharp enough to bring out all of the nuances, there are instances where Payne overplays his hand. A shot that lingers on a men's room sign drives home a point that was made far more subtly in the scene that precedes it. While it may sound like I'm down on this film I truly am not. This is a very small film that I wish went deeper into the the two female characters. It is a very good piece of work. But very good feels like a bit of a let down when expecting great.

Oscar Handicapping

According to Variety Leslee Dart was fired from her job as president of one of the most prestigious public relations firms in Hollywood. While I would normally not bother to spend much time thinking about something this inside baseball, the fact that this is Oscar campaign season and this woman has been responsible for orchestrating successful Oscar campaigns for Ron Howard, Anthony Minghella, Tom Hanks and Jonathan Demme - and she was orchestrating the campaign for Scorsese's The Aviator, Mike Nichols' Closer, and Wes Anderson's new film. If you are handicapping the awards season, all three of these films (3 that however great they may or may not be are difficult enough to need help in this department) just saw their odds become less favorable.

Sweeping Up the Ratings

Like Rolling Stone - in Cleveland, all the nudes that's fit.

The other 30% claimed they were made to feel Compulsively Homicidal

According to Variety:

"A previous InsightExpress study looked at consumer attitudes toward DVDs that feature ads or trailers that can't be fast-forwarded through and found 54% were frustrated by that feature; 16% said they were angry."

Truthfully, I'm amazed these numbers aren't higher.

Yet another stumble by the Academy on the documentary front

From Variety:

Variety is reporting today on the twelve films that have become basically semi-finalists for the Best Documentary nominations. While Super-Size Me is deserving there are some great films that have not made the list. While some fine films were turned down for having played on television overseas - the biggest crime was the decision to cut off a pair of very interesting films that were eligible.

Metallica: Some Kind of Monster is not only my favorite documentary of the year, I think it is certainly one of the ten and maybe one of the five best films of the year. This would seem to be a snub of the subject matter. The other shameful exclusion was the documentary about the Z channel.

Consider this the first of many many posts over the next few months that will deal with the Oscars and year-end awards - a topic I have an obscene fascination with.

A video worthy of the original song

For those who are not aware of it's existence, The Grey Album was an underground release by the DJ Danger Mouse where he remixed tracks off the Beatles' White Album (one of my five favorite records of all time) and mixed it with the vocal tracks off of Jay-Z's Black Album. Some very enterprising filmmaker has created a video for one of the songs. While I'm no fan of sampling - I admit the record and the video are very creative works that actually make Jay-Z listenable.

Thanks to Jason for the link.

What Alfie Is All About

I finally caught up with the remake of Alfie this weekend. While the performances are all good, and the film looks fine, this is an example of a poor screenplay that is undone by bad casting. I'm a big Jude Law fan. He is a remarkably talented actor, but he is cursed with the looks of not just a leading man but of an international male supermodel. When Michael Caine's Alfie ends the film very much alone it is easy to believe that he may stay that way for the rest of his life. When Jude Law's Alfie ends the film alone, one gets the sense that he could get any woman to pay attention to him with little more than a smile and a wink. The film has lots of easy charm. Alfie spends much of the film addressing the audience by looking directly into the camera. This technique, a holdover form the original, shows how appealing a presence Jude Law is. The problem is that he is so winning and charming that I kept thinking about another charming rogue who addressed the camera about the joys of living life. Basically this film is "Ferris Bueller Gets Off". And while that might make for a good film, this movie plays as if it is much more deep and meaningful than it actually is.

And here is a more polished review of The Incredibles.

Just another reason to be thankful for TIVO

For those who thought only ESPN2 showed pointlessly unathletic events like this, FoxSports is going to outdo them this December.

The Fox Sports Net broadcast of the 2004 Rock Paper Scissors International World Championships will take place at 8:00 PM December 10th, 2004. Tune into your local Fox Sports Net station for all the action.

Triple Crown

An everyday player in baseball wins the triple crown by leading the league in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in. Rock stars win the triple crown by putting out the best album, the best single, and mounting the best tour in a given year. Green Day has done it. I grant I don't attend nearly the number of concerts I used to, but I can't remember an experience quite like the one I had Saturday night at Cobo Hall. Everyone knows that when a band plays songs off the new album at a concert you can see lines of people headed down the steps toward the bathrooms and the beer concessions. The crowd at the Green Day show not only stayed put during the songs off of American Idiot, they sang along. The band, obviously encouraged by the overwhelmingly positive response to the new material, tore through pretty much every song a fan could want to hear as well as covers of "We Are the Champions" and "Shout." This was a blistering rock show that would have done Dewey Finn proud.

The best film of the decade

On sale in DVD stores around the country today is the best film of the decade, Richard Linklater's Before Sunset. The link takes you to my AMG review - I really can't add anything to it.

And for those with a taste for the classics, the Marx Brothers first five films for Paramount have been packaged together in a superb set. These are among the best screen comedies of all time.

Later - a review of the Green Day concert from last Saturday.

The Incredibles

Don't have much time today but just wanted to assure everyone that The Incredibles deserves all of the positive press it is getting. Pixar is the most reliable production unit in Hollywood right now. They have yet to make a bad film. Their sixth film, The Incredibles is a constant joy getting laughs from outstanding animation, beautifully designed sound, and delicately drawn characters. Director Brad Bird is arguably the finest animator working today, and he deserves serious consideration for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his vocal work in the film. The film cannot match the emotional depths of Finding Nemo and Toy Story 2, but pretty much every film animated or live action fails in that regard so that it even comes close is quite an achievement. Do not be afraid to go see this movie without a child in tow, you will be missing out on one of the most entertaining films of 2004.

Sherry Lansing

What makes some movie executives better than others? Is it just about box office success? Only in the sense that being a professional baseball player is about batting average. If you get that good, odds are you are going to produce some big hits. No, the mark of the best movie executives is a love of films. Sherry Lansing, the soon to be former head of Paramount, announced her retirement this week. She is one of the most fascinating Hollywood figures of the last few decades. She attained the Presidency of 20th Century Fox in the late seventies, leaving when the higher-ups did not see the value in the films she was making. She then formed a successful partnership with Stanley Jaffe. They produced Fatal Attractions among other hits of the eighties. She has run the production side of Paramount since 1990. Fourteen years is an eternity in Hollywood and she earned her time with a series of quality films as well as gargantuan box office hits (most especially Titanic - which no matter what you might think of the film was a putting all the chips on one number bet if ever there was one). I will miss Sherry Lansing because at her best she understood how to balance commerce and art - and it is that conflict that has often produced the best that Hollywood has to offer.

Coming soon: Reviews of The Incredibles, Alfie, and Birth - as well as Green Day's saturday night performance at Cobo Hall in Detroit.

Saturday Night's Alright for Repeats

Elton John is preparing a situation comedy about a rock star. I think it will last longer than dr. vegas. For the full story click here, but for my purposes I want to share a sentence from the Variety article about the proposed show:


"John said the show wouldn't be based necessarily on himself but
rather a mix of other "male divas" like Rod Stewart, Mick Jagger, Freddy
Mercury and David Bowie."


"Male Divas" -- translation: Other musicians Elton has slept with. Full credit to Matt for the linguistic brilliance.

Ray

The appropriately named Taylor Hackford has spent his entire career trying to bring back the anonymous studio look of the majority of forties and fifties Hollywood product. Supposedly Hackford spent nearly two decades trying to make a film about Ray Charles, but after watching Ray there is no way to tell he feels any passion at all for the material. The film looks outstanding and Jamie Foxx gives a star-making performance, but every decision the director makes shows that he has no trust in his audience to understand what is happening to the main character. What interest the film can garner from Foxx’s superb performance and the incomparable music dissipates repeatedly when Hackford shows himself to be the hack that he has always been. The film hits rock bottom when, after being arrested for heroin possession in Indiana, the cops interrogating Ray let reporters and photographers into the jail cell to take his picture. The audience is treated to a slow motion shot from Ray’s point-of-view consisting of the camera flashes firing off and the reporters leaning in to yell questions at him. This is a manipulative and false sequence because the film wants us to feel sympathy for the character for experiencing something Ray never experienced. For all those who have forgotten, Ray Charles was blind. There can’t be a point-of-view shot from his POV unless it’s a black screen. Had Hackford chosen to do that at different points in the film it would have made for an interesting way to get the audience to feel “with” Ray as opposed to feel “about” Ray. And Hackford makes that same decision, to admire Ray instead of get to understand him, at just about every turn. Ray Charles life should make for a superb film, but Ray is not it.

Christmas idea

If you are curious what to get the moviegeek in your life this holiday season may I suggest this?

Later today: A review of Ray.