It took me so long to watch The Salesman, I think I had it at my house for over a month (ugh) and I wish I could say me delay or wait was rewarded with an inspiring or moving film...and I wasn't. The Salesman was surrounded by controversy because it was an Iranian film and the President of the United States (god that makes me gag) signed an order banning citizens from Iran and six other Muslim countries, and director Asghar Farhadi threatened not to attend (and he did not). In 2012, Farhadi's film A Separation won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film (I liked A Separation much more than this film). The main characters are Emad and Rana, a married couple who are acting together in a production of Death of a Salesman, which is supposed to act as a frame for the film. Rana is raped by an unknown assailant, and in addition to the stigma of being raped, Rana has to deal with Emad trying to find her rapist. I found the utilization of the play to be a distraction and unnecessary to tell the story. I didn't think this was the best foreign film of the nominees, I think Land of Mine, A Man Called Ove or Tanna were better.
8/19/17 Alice in Wonderland, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, 2010
Tim Burton makes movies that are wonderful to look at, sometimes he makes movies that are also fun to watch, and Alice in Wonderland is one such movie. The visual components are so striking that they can overwhelm the story, but I don't think that's true here, it's close, but the Lewis Carroll's story of that impertinent Alice and her friends in Wonderland is engaging, with fun and sometimes nonsensical dialog. Mia Wasikowska is Alice; Johnny Depp is the Mad Hatter, decidedly over the top, eccentric and definitely mad; Helena Bonham Carter (one of my favorites) is the tantrum-prone Red Queen; Anne Hathaway is the White Queen; Crispin Glover is the Knave (Jack) of Hearts the late Alan Rickman is the Caterpillar; Stephen Fry is the Cheshire Cat; and that's just some of the cast. I will admit that sometimes I get distracted trying to keep track of who is doing what voice, but that's not just for this movie. Alice is desperately unhappy about the imminent proposal of Hamish Ascot to be his lovely, quiet and well-behaved wife, and she is lucky to escape down the rabbit hole where she meets the above mentioned cast of characters and has many mind altering adventures. The actors seem perfect matches for their roles; it's hard to imagine anyone else but Johnny Depp as the Hatter or Rickman as the voice of Absolem. I think Lewis Carroll and Tim Burton were made for each other. If you're looking for a family night movie, and you haven't seen this in a while, or at all, I recommend making a double feature with this and Alice through the Looking Glass which did not fare as well critically, but I liked it.
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| Alice in Wonderland display at Minnesota State Fair 2017 |
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| Alice in Wonderland display at Minnesota State Fair 2017 |
8/19/17 Saving Private Ryan, Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography, Best Director, 1998, #71 AFI, National Film Registry
Here's another film that I'm a little behind the times on, like twenty years or so, but in fairness to me, I have tried on and off for the past three years to watch it, but either the DVD wouldn't play or some other reason. Anyway, the good news for YOU is that I finally watched it and it's off of three lists. BAM! Being serious for a second, I felt more compelled to watch Saving Private Ryan, directed by Steven Spielberg, after my disappointment with Dunkirk. I definitely got what I was hoping for in this case. The movie opens with US forces landing on Omaha Beach as part of the D-Day invasion in Normandy, France. Tom Hanks stars as Captain Miller of the 2nd Ranger Battalion, Tom Sizemore as Sergeant Horvath, and a cast of familiar faces, including Giovanni Ribisi, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper and Vin Diesel. The first 27 minutes are incredibly intense and chaotic and you get some small (very small) sense of what it was like to be on that beach. It was interesting to read some of Spielberg's comments about how he decided to film those shots. Once the men get to relative safety, Captain Miller is given another assignment, to find Private James Ryan (Matt Damon), who has been airdropped but nobody is sure where he is, and bring him back so he can be sent home. This is in response to his three brothers being killed in action. The movie follows Miller and his hand-picked team as they move across France, encountering different obstacles along the way; almost like Odysseus and his men. Spielberg paints a pretty horrific picture of battle, nothing is sugar-coated, men, boys really, cry out for the moms as they are dying on the battlefield; men vomit with nerves, seasickness; death is not some peaceful endeavor, although it gives a permanent respite to the bullets and bombs. The acting was more of an ensemble piece as opposed to a starring vehicle, even though Hanks was probably the biggest name in the cast, and Damon doesn't show up until over an hour into the movie, but you really needed all of the different characters to tell the story. I'm glad I finally watched it, and not just because of the lists.
