Old and New: Broadcast News, A Raisin in the Sun, Green Book and Capernaum

All I can say is, it's a good thing I have a day job.

4/27/19 Broadcast News, National Historic Film Registry, 1987

Unfortunately for Broadcast News, Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor was also released in 1987 and won 9 Academy Awards in the same season, many in the same categories. The movie stars William Hurt, Holly Hunter and Albert Brooks as members of a newscasting team (it reminds me of an early version of the tv series The Newsroom). At times, it made me nostalgic for the old days of three channels, landlines and typewriters. Written and directed by James L. Brooks, the script is fast paced and smart, topical for its time, and yet if you updated the technology, it could be set today. 


5/8/19 A Raisin in the Sun, National Film Registry, 1961

I was prompted to bump A Raisin in the Sun to the top of my list after watching a documentary about the author/playwright, Lorraine Hansberry on PBS. To me, the fact that a black woman wrote a play that was nominated for Tony awards in 1960 is astonishing, then that she insisted on writing the screenplay as well, is groundbreaking. The story features a black family in the late 1950s, early 1960s, who are trying to decide what to do with the inheritance from their late father. The matriarch (Claudia McNeil) wants to buy a house (the family are sharing a very cramped apartment) and live the American dream; her son, Walter Lee Younger, (Sidney Poitier) has his own ideas of what to do with the money, like some pie in the sky investments with some questionable characters; Walter's sister has the radical idea of going to medical school and was hoping to take some of the inheritance money to pay for medical school. Walter's wife, Ruth (Ruby Dee) also has her sights set on a new house where their son can grow up and not sleep on the sofa. Once the decision is made to buy a house, the Younger family has to deal with the fact that despite the fact that their new neighbors don't really know them, they are politely asked not to move in. It's polite, but not very subtle that the white neighbors are not excited to have a black family in their midst. This was not fiction, but reality for many young black families of that time and even now, if we're honest. The movie is very well acted, and it's fun to see a young Poitier and Dee. The only thing that kind of bothered me, and I've noticed this when I've watched other plays turned into films, is that the dialog doesn't seem as natural; it seems stilted. I don't know if I would have noticed it if I didn't know it was based on a play. It didn't detract from the message of the story or the performances, but it's just something that caught my ear. It seemed odd to me that A Raisin in the Sun wasn't nominated for any Oscars, but it has been added to the National Film Registry.

Green Book, Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay, nominated Best Actor, Best Film Editing,  2018

I don't think I am qualified to discuss all the controversy surrounding Green Book, whether it is about director Peter Farrelly's past; the true nature of the relationship/friendship between Dr. Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali, in another Oscar winning role) and Tony Vallelonga (Viggo Mortenson); or the 'white savior' complex. Before I saw the movie, I said it was Driving Miss Daisy in reverse, and was reluctant to see it, but of course, it was nominated and won several Oscars. So, I saw it and tried to be objective. It was a good movie; I think Mahershala Ali is an amazing actor who has the ability to transform himself from a violent drug dealer to a thoughtful and innovative pianist; I like a good buddy movie, seeing two people learn about one another, dealing with their quirks, but finding common ground; and having Vallelonga witness the discrimination and harassment that Shirley experienced and eventually sticking up for him. They learned from each other. I still think it was a reverse Driving Miss Daisy with condensed timeline and a little edgier script. I thought it was a good movie, but I didn't think it was great, or the best of the year; my hope was Black Panther, which might have been a long shot, but I think it ticked so many boxes; my other thought was Roma, but given the anti-Netflix bias, that probably wasn't going to happen.

6/1/19 Capernaum, Nominated Best Foreign Film, 2018

Some people like getting scared watching movies, others like to pee themselves laughing, and others like to have a good cry. One of the best feelings for me after watching a movie is feeling like I've been sucker punched, that I've watched something that blows me away and leaves me feeling raw. That's how I felt after I finished watching Capernaum. The star of the film, Zain Al Rafeea, was a Syrian refugee living the slums of Beirut, will break your heart. His character's name is also Zain, and he is a little boy of 12 years old who has to help support his family by selling, stealing, working and protecting. It's a lot to ask of a grown up, much less a kid. The movie is told in flashbacks, which threw me for a minute, but is a great way to tell the story of how he wound up in court suing his parents for being born. Zain is defiant and strong, but also shows that he will do anything to take care of the people he loves, whether or not they are family. Zain meets Rahil, an illegal immigrant with a young baby, who works jobs under the table and asks Zain to watch her baby. Zain and Rahil make an unlikely pair, but they come to rely on one another. I will hold off on telling you any more of the plot, because there are a few twists and turns that you should experience for yourself. Capernaum is like Roma in that it tells the stories of the unseen in their respective communities; people you know are there, but they are ignored or shunted aside when their perceived value may be gone. Both films also used non-actors in the main roles. They also both make you think. They are also both foreign films, which can sometimes turn people off. This is one of those times I am going to ask you to put aside your fear of subtitles and watch Capernaum (and Roma while we're at it) and take a chance on Zain and Rahil.