You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger (Woody Allen, 2010) Review

Relationships unfurl and intertwine in Woody Allen's You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger (2010)

There's a distinct air of the familiar to You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger. Let me pitch you the way one central relationship plays out: an elderly couple split up. The man is unable to accept his age and dumps his wife for a younger, tartier, blonder model - but it doesn't work out. He crawls back to her with his life in ruins, but she has fallen for somebody else - a nice, kind, compassionate man. Yep, if you're getting déjà vu then it's because you saw Husbands And Wives (1992) with the characters of Jack (Sydney Pollack) and Sally (Judy Davis). Here they are replaced by Anthony Hopkins and Gemma Jones, both brilliant but somewhat struggling with the dialogue. He may be enjoying his European period, but Allen's artistic voice still belongs distinctly to New York...

Ultimately, and rather sadly, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger is a middling work. It has lots of plot strands, most of which I found engaging, but we've seen them all before in Allen's oeuvre, and done better. It has none of the aesthetic beauty, acerbic wit or budding romance of a Manhattan (1979). None of the acidic, brittle insight of the aforementioned Husbands And Wives. But I think it's perhaps unfair to compare, as so many critics are. The fact is that we have those films - Annie Hall (1977) and Hanna And Her Sisters (1986) included - in the bank. Allen is 76 years old and he's been making at least one film a year for the past four decades. He's explored philosophy and contemporary romance to the degree that anything new will feel old hat and we have the masterpieces on reserve, so we shouldn't be expecting another one every twelve months. Just because You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger doesn't have those qualities, it doesn't mean the film doesn't have qualities of its own, and although the Allen of the past is much missed the present one is by no means bad (unless we're talking about Whatever Works, 2009).

The biggest problem is that there's no spark; everything flows really efficiently and I was entertained by the film but even now, a day later, it has just blended in. The direction (lots of tracking shots) and photography is the work of a complacent craftsman - assurance threatens to slip into laziness but it's so well constructed that you're just absorbed by the film... in terms of visuals it's decidedly workmanlike but confidently engaging. The standout beauty is Freida Pinto as Dia; The Woman In Red. Perhaps that's too obvious a metaphor but she still looks beautiful and it's easy to see why Roy (Brolin) falls for her. That's another thing worth celebrating - the relationships are really believable. Even when Allen is on routine form he is able to craft characters we recognize and relate to. Sally (Watts) falling for her boss is easy to understand when he's as charming and exotic as Greg (Banderas); although his affair with oddly Irish Anna Friel (underdeveloped) isn't explored enough. One of the best scenes in the film, however, is where Sally confronts Greg about her own feelings, revealing repressed layers of desperation that are deeply awkward and emotionally resonant.

As always there's a plot strand that takes things perhaps a bit too far... Roy's friend has recently (and secretly) just completed his first novel, but is involved in a car crash. Roy believes him to be dead so he steals the book and passes it off as his own... naturally the friend is not dead, just in a coma. Allen has made the character deeply human and sympathetic (if cliché) so we feel for him - but in a narrative sense we're rolling our eyes. The film has both friction and warmth and they're balanced with some acutely observed laughs; although they don't come as frequently as you'd like. This is the ultimate saving grace of the film. Allen is now a natural storyteller. He has a sense of rhythm and of pace - he flits between characters on cliffhangers with ease and joins scenes through a style of narration that now marks him as an auteur. The film begins with a Shakespeare quote: "life is full of sound and fury and in the end signifies nothing" and from there he attacks mysticism and fortune telling, the primary theme of Oedipus Wrecks (1989), before rampaging through domestic setups that mark the best of his work. I enjoyed You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger a lot but if you asked me to pick it out from a crowd of Allen films a year from now I probably couldn't, and that's the biggest shame of all.

The Shortlist: 6 Shark Jumping Moments

Full feature can be found at MultiMediaMouth: http://www.multimediamouth.com/2011/03/18/the-shortlist-7-shark-jumping-moments/

Summer Wars (Samâ wôzu) (Mamoru Hosoda, 2009) DVD Review

An online war threatens to end all humanity in the brilliant Summer Wars (2009)

Stop me if I sound like a broken record, but sometimes I'm baffled and appalled by UK distribution. Last weekend Mars Needs Moms (Wells, 2011) opened in US cinemas and became one of the most disastrous mega-flops Disney have ever encountered (it may be breaking records at this point). No wonder - it looks banal, broad and borderline condescending. See, kids are smarter than we think, and often films don't do them justice - a recent example of one that did would be Coraline (Selick, 2009), a terrifying and macabre slice of coming-of-age horror, with spindly character animation and foreboding sound design. It's a film which embraces its medium to deliver smarts, thrills and adventure to its young audience, as well as being aesthetically beautiful. Well, you can count Summer Wars in that category tenfold and rank it among the best animations of the last ten years - so how is it that the film is going straight to DVD whereas Mars Needs Moms opens in UK cinemas next month?

It's criminal frankly, that such a unique and visionary cinematic experience should be landing directly in your living room. Hosoda has created two worlds of such depth and beauty that they deserve to be seen on the big screen, but Summer Wars is not just a film of style. It's a film of true heart and humour, presenting a family dynamic and budding romance with all the tenderness and observation of an Ozu picture. The comparison isn't too broad either as most scenes involving the family are shot at floor level around a table of food, recalling many scenes from the master filmmakers oeuvre. There is also something of a twist halfway through - a loss, without wishing to give too much away - which is handled with much care and poignancy, without ever slipping into cliché or sentiment, an appraisal that can be leveled at the other aspects of production. But forgive me - we haven't even established the plot yet...

There is a cyber-universe called OZ at the centre of Summer Wars - an online network that connects everyone in the world from lawyers and doctors to students and teachers. Over half the world has an avatar in OZ including the young Kenji, who has been recruited as the beautiful Natsuki's boyfriend for a family reunion and the 90th birthday of its matriarch. The first forty-five minutes flit between domestic drama, awkward teen romance and a comedy of manners. Kenji - a shy computer geek with low self esteem - struggles to keep Natsuki's lie from the family and fights with his own feelings for her, especially when he embarrasses himself by walking in on her after a bath (he then trembles at the idea of bathing in the same water). The film takes a long time establishing character relations, introducing the rogue element in the form of an adopted son who has been in America for ten years and may have something to do with the A.I. monster 'Love Machine' which has taken over OZ. At first Kenji is framed for the online invasion which has also sent the real world into chaos - traffic jams, fire alerts, train timetables - and could ultimately end in nuclear disaster. This countdown to destruction is what makes up the thrilling second half of the film, and provides some of the most visually stunning animation I have seen in a long time. When 'Love Machine' steals over four million avatars it becomes like a huge version of the smoke monster from Lost, but made up of pixels and with a jaggedly defined mouth, giving it a greater sense of menace.

Also central to the film is a classical vs. contemporary debate, which casts a nostalgic eye over past tradition and a wary one over the rapid advancements in technology, our dependence on it and the fear of nuclear crisis (which, given Japan's current and saddening situation drew a more powerful parallel than was perhaps intended by the filmmakers). This is best exemplified by the men of the family, who speak of the honour and pride in battle. A suit of armour and spears sit as antique tokens in the household and tales are recounted over dinner of armies of 2000 facing off against an opponent of 7000. The house itself is very classically built too, looking more like a preserved fortification. Made entirely of wood, its sliding doors are a reminder of classical Japan - at one point a character even quotes Seven Samurai (Kurosawa, 1954). But ultimately the sensei and his student must fight their battle online, through an avatar, in order to save the world from destruction. It could seem like Hosoda is condemning our reliance on the press of a button to complete a physical action, and in some ways he definitely is, but he also highlights the uniting power that global communication can have. When Kenji and Natsuki's family are at the end of the line and near defeat the rest of the world jumps online to help them - 150,000,000 people. Together, Hosoda is saying, we can do anything. And given that 24-hour news channels, online donation funds and updated twitter feeds are currently informing us and helping us to change the future of a devastated Japan for the better, that has an even greater resonance too.

Summer Wars is a very special film. It's visually accomplished, exciting, dramatic, romantic and funny, but none of these elements feel crowded. You'll care a lot about these characters and will want to see good prevail - if anything you'll want to spend more time with them. It's a beautiful film and in years to come will surely be seen as something of a classic.

Extras: A fine selection including an interview with director Hosoda at Locarno, a stage greeting, cast interviews and all of the original trailers, teasers and TV spots.

Summer Wars is released on DVD and Blu Ray on March 28th.

Alamar (Pedro González-Rubio, 2009) DVD Review

Natan Machado Palombini and Jorge Machado star in Alamar (2009)

The Mexican Coral Reef of Banco Chincorro (the second biggest reef barrier on the planet, the closing title card tells us) provides the setting to a kindhearted story of father and son bonding in Alamar, a beautifully meditative film that portrays parental affection without ever succumbing to sentiment or cliché. It owes something to the docu-fiction school of Robert Flaherty (Nanook Of The North, 1922) and many of the locations recall his ill-fated project with German Expressionist F.W. Murnau on TABU: A Story Of The South Seas (1931); although that was entirely fictionalized. This is director González-Rubio's first standalone effort after co-directing 2005's Toro negro (Carlos Armella), and he also serves as cinematographer and editor. If there's any notional danger of the filmmaker spreading himself too thin then it is quickly dispelled. The film has a cinéma vérité style which absorbs us into the lifestyle of these simple fisherman - the middle section is spent almost entirely at sea and I never would have guessed - as somebody who has tried and failed at fishing themself - that I would have been so captivated by a pastime I myself find boring.

It's truly to the credit of Machado and Palombini that I don't find this boring, as they etch a loving and selfless portrait of a father and son relationship; their dynamic is simple but their love infinite. Their performances (if they are performances) are incredibly naturalistic and largely dialogue free, with emotions existing in their physical interactions - as they befriend a white egret the father and son become even closer. He teaches the boy how to gain the trust of the bird and how to treat it with care. The egret rests on Jorge's hand as he tries to get it to walk onto Natan's arm. The bird avoids the boy but they persist anyway. It is clear that Jorge wants the best for his son and wants him to experience nature and the wild while he has the opportunity - their time together will be short lived as Natan will soon be going to live with his mother in Rome. The fact that their farewell is inevitable makes it all the more powerful.

The film has no score except for in the opening and closing credits, and therefore the music composed by Diego Benlliure has been ignored by most reviewers. Which is a shame, because it's a really lovely piece of work which serves the story well. González-Rubio obviously wanted the film to feel observational; non-diegetic music often feels false in informing emotion and mood so the director has bookended his picture with music rather than editing it together with the images. It may be minimalist but Alamar is packed with feeling and actually engaged me much more than I expected it to. The central relationship is really believable and heartwarming, the pace lyrical - Alamar is like a hymn to the ocean and family. It's languid and tranquil; the diving scenes are bathed in a beautifully deep blue and the pink evening skies illuminate the native shacks that root themselves in the water. The film is honest and informative, and at 73 minutes it's a trip I'll enjoy taking again...

Extras: Only a trailer.

The Screening Room: Episode 2

Listen to my appearance on the MultiMediaMouth podcast The Screening Room here: http://a7.video2.blip.tv/10760008038030/Multimediamouth-TheScreeningRoomEpisodeTwo609.mp3?brs=87&bri=4.6

Larks On A String (Skřivánci na niti) (Jiří Menzel, 1969/1990) DVD Review

Václav Neckár and Jitka Zelenohorská in Larks On A String (1990)

Although it was shot in 1968, Jiří Menzel's sociopolitical comedy Larks On A String didn't actually see the light of day until 1990, when it premiered and won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. Censorship had been lifted in Czechoslovakia for a short period, resulting in a fleeting burst of liberalization, especially for filmmakers - but the freedom was soon crushed by the invasion of Soviet tanks, which restored Czechoslovakia's oppressive regime. Communism once again held a vice-like grip over the country, and Menzel's film (which had finished shooting) was banned. It now receives its UK debut courtesy of New Wave promoters Second Run, and it's great to find the film in such brilliant condition.

The film tells the story of an rag-tag group of ex-bourgeoisie, including a saxophonist and professor, who are sent to work at an industrial junkyard in order to 'rehabilitate'. We find them at the beginning of a workers strike, struggling against a union rep trying to dissuade them from their actions. Meanwhile a group of female prisoners are serving a year sentence in the scrap yard for trying to defect, and under the careful eye of a recently married guard one of them falls in love with the largely silent chef. Their tale of love spins out from under a larger tale of uncontrolled chaos, which paints the lowest sector of Czechoslovakia in a shade which sits comfortably between realism and silliness - a peep show ends in a pratfall, for example, but in the midst of intellectual discussion about the difference between Iran and Iraq.

In terms of landscape the film reminded me of another 1969 title, Richard Lester's The Bed Sitting Room - although that was an apocalyptic farce. The comparison exists in the idea of a group of disparates banding together in a desolate, scrap-filled wasteland - the characters inThe Bed Sitting room are in this place, which is of that state, because of the end of the world. The characters in Larks On A String are there because of Communism, which lends the film a depressing pragmatism intentionally missing from Lester's film. The environment, shot by DoP Jaromír Sofr, is like a labyrinth of dulled greys and rusting bronzes, but all shot through the same kind of light filter that gives Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders ( Jireš, 1970), for example, such a dreamy, aesthetically rich texture. It's hard to describe but the film almost looks... like a memory.

A couple chasing each other around a room toying with light switches recalls the playful lightness of Godard's Une Femme Est Une Femme (1961), but the images have a gloominess which reminds us of the dump just outside, inhabited by those who were once chefs and philosophers. The comedy in Larks On A String has been described as "stinging" but there are actually some very charming and whimsical moments that serve character more than politics, which there is also a fair jibe at. The performances are largely superb and the actors are perfectly cast, especially Jaroslav Satoranský as Guard Anděl and Václav Neckár (also in Menzel's Closely Observed Trains, 1966) as Pavel, whose wide-eyed lust is endearing, and his chemistry with the other actors, including Vlastmil Brodský and Vladimir Ptáček, is spot-on.

By turns powerful and humorous in the way it pokes fun at the appalling condition of then-contemporary Czechoslovakia, Menzel nonetheless always shows a deep understanding of character. In the accompanying special feature, an interview titled Jiří Menzel: 7 Questions, he says that the difference between films of the past - like the films he made - and contemporary films, is that contemporary films lack compassion. That's certainly not something we could accuse Larks On A String of. Based on a short story anthology by Bohumil Hrabal, it has compassion in spades and now we hope that a whole new generation will uncover and feel that compassion and celebrate a long lost work that was wrongfully banished when it should have soared...

Extras: The aforementioned interview with Menzel, Jiří Menzel: 7 Questions, in which the filmmaker discusses the Prague of his youth, the grip and effect of Communism, the making of the film and the disappointment he felt upon in being banned... indeed the director shows a great sadness when talking about the film, and realizes the effect its banning had on not just his career, but his entire life. It's an informative and moving interview, bound to be of interest to fans of the film. There is also an accompanying booklet featuring an essay by Larks On A StringDoP Jaromír Sofr, charting the history of the film in a political and technical context and also detailing the latter years of Menzel's career.

The Shortlist: 10 Criterion Titles Every Film Fan Should Own

Full feature can be found at MultiMediaMouth: http://www.multimediamouth.com/2011/03/11/the-shortlist-10-criterion-dvds-every-film-fan-should-own/