The Case of the Missing Spine
The Constant Gardener is about a guy who finally finds a spine. And he’s part of a film that never does.
Tagged: Fernando Meirelles, Politics, Reviews, The Constant Gardener, Thrillers
Movies
When Bad Movies Do Good Things
Errol Morris’ Vernon, Florida has no apparent reason for existing, no message, no discernible structure, and only the faintest of pulses. It’s lazy, mean-spirited, hateful, and tedious. Why, then, is it so valuable?
Tagged: Documentaries, Errol Morris, Reviews, Vernon Florida
Eat the Rich
Is it any wonder the dead are fed up and primed for revolt? Is it any surprise that writer/director George A. Romero is cheering them on in Land of the Dead? And is it so hard to see these zombies as a blunt allegory for racial minorities, the impoverished, the politically disenfranchised? On the final question, apparently so.
Tagged: George A. Romero, Horror, Land of the Dead, Misunderstood Movies, Reviews, Zombies
The Spoiler’s Creed
In the context of my essay on Batman Begins, my wife has asked me to deal with the issue of spoilers. Here then, is my Spoiler’s Creed.
(What’s So Funny ’Bout) Grief, Strife, and Vigilantism?
In Batman Begins, Christopher Nolan uses the superhero mythology to create an epic study of ethics, evil, fear, and justice. It’s a bracing, dark, provocative, and serious work that at last transcends the juvenile roots of the comic-book genre. It’s not just the best superhero movie ever made, but likely also the best mainstream film of 2005.
All My Sins Remembered
The intermingling of the real and unreal as the representation of a mortal battle for the body and/or soul recalls dozens of movies, some of them great or nearly so: Psycho, Carnival of Souls, Jacob’s Ladder, Fight Club, Memento, Mulholland Drive. Clearly in that tradition, The Machinist is frequently fascinating, particularly in detail and in the margins, but at heart it lacks inspiration and has little to say.
Tagged: Brad Anderson, Christian Bale, Horror, Reviews, The Machinist
The Phantom Nuance
The troubles with Revenge of the Sith are large: conception, narrative arc, tone, and pacing, all related to a failure by George Lucas to acknowledge what, exactly, the prequels represent, and to shape the material accordingly. And the raw materials of the movies suggest a startlingly detailed, mature, and nuanced vision, not just a popcorn space opera.
Temptation’s Taunt
Ah, movies about child molesters. Why oh why aren’t there more of them? Probably for the same reason that there aren’t more films about obviously guilty people on death row: because under the cover of trying to illuminate serious social issues they’re naked attempts to humanize rightfully demonized people. The Woodsman doesn’t escape that trap entirely, but it’s surprisingly suspenseful with a strong set of characters.
Tagged: Dramas, Kevin Bacon, Nicole Kassell, Reviews, Sexual Abuse, The Woodsman
A Roller Coaster, for Better and Worse
Carl Franklin’s Out of Time most closely resembles a roller coaster. The first 45 minutes are a long, clunky, and agonizingly dull climb up the hill, and the last hour is all momentum, action, and thrills.
Tagged: Carl Franklin, Out of Time, Reviews, Thrillers
A Live-Action Cartoon
When I think about Sin City, the memory is of watching a cartoon. Not merely a striking approximation of the graphic novel on celluloid, but animation; it seems as if what I saw involved no live actors.
Tagged: Reviews, Robert Rodriguez, Sin City