The story of one man's journey from Ethiopian idealist to exile and back, and the third of three films in my day at the Columbia City Cinema.
"Teza" isn't quite an epic but over a couple-plus hours it covers a LOT of ground. The Fascists (note to Tea Partiers: here be real Fascists). Haile Selassie. Gangsters, Communists, butchers, and exile in Germany. In Germany, FFS!
And taboot, when's the last time you heard of a historical-political personal journey drama coming out of Ethiopia? That alone makes it worth your time.
I walked out of the Columbia City Cinema after having spent most of the day inside it, and the streetlights perfectly illuminated the drizzle on Rainier Avenue, a quietly theatrical ending to a day spent at the movies.
Showing posts with label theater. Show all posts
Showing posts with label theater. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Date Night
The second film in my all-day Columbia City Cinema Fest, and a charming comedy relief between two Very. Serious. Films.
It doesn't really make it as an action film -- I don't think anyone expected it to -- but plenty of little moments are there for the taking. The reason we're pulling for Phil and Claire is not necessarily because we identify with them, but because we see how they identify with each other, which is much more important. We see Phil come home and slouch into himself without acknowledging his wife, but we also see them entertaining each other at a restaurant when Claire, at Phil's request, makes up outlandish imaginary conversations between nearby strangers.
The idiosyncrasies and personal flaws of others, which we sometimes carry as boredom or annoyance, are also the very key to our connections with each other, and as demonstrated here, a source of comfort when the rest of the world is going to hell.
Plus, I would crawl over melted, Ebola-infected shards of glass atop an undersea oil gusher, just to see Tina Fey deliver lines like this:
"If we're gonna pay this much for crab it better sing and dance and introduce us to the Little Mermaid!"
It doesn't really make it as an action film -- I don't think anyone expected it to -- but plenty of little moments are there for the taking. The reason we're pulling for Phil and Claire is not necessarily because we identify with them, but because we see how they identify with each other, which is much more important. We see Phil come home and slouch into himself without acknowledging his wife, but we also see them entertaining each other at a restaurant when Claire, at Phil's request, makes up outlandish imaginary conversations between nearby strangers.
The idiosyncrasies and personal flaws of others, which we sometimes carry as boredom or annoyance, are also the very key to our connections with each other, and as demonstrated here, a source of comfort when the rest of the world is going to hell.
Plus, I would crawl over melted, Ebola-infected shards of glass atop an undersea oil gusher, just to see Tina Fey deliver lines like this:
"If we're gonna pay this much for crab it better sing and dance and introduce us to the Little Mermaid!"
The Ghost Writer
Roman Polanski is a confessed child rapist who should just own up to the punishment he ran away from three decades ago. Whew, I put off writing about this film for almost two months because I wasn't sure how to begin. Now that THAT'S out of the way...
Roman Polanski is also a brilliant filmmmaker, and "The Ghost Writer" is suspenseful and loaded with terrific acting, pacing and mood. Germany had to stand in for Martha's Vineyard because ... well, you know ... and Germany was up to the task.
Jim Belushi, Timothy Hutton, Eli Wallach and the always amazing Tom Wilkinson surrounded Ewan McGregor's unnamed "Ghost" with all the depth needed to keep the story moving. A story, it should be noted, of an accused criminal in hiding, the unnamed protagonist hired to tell his story, and the politico-media frenzy which surrounds them. The accused criminal in question is a Prime Minister dealing with issues of terrorism, war and national security. And hardly anyone, it seems, gave *him* a free pass....
Unlike some of Polanski's supporters in the film industry, I don't believe that making great films lets him off the hook for his personal life. I also don't think his personal life should disqualify me from seeing what he does with film.
This was the first of Three In A Row, an entire day spent at the Columbia City Cinema doing some catching up.
Roman Polanski is also a brilliant filmmmaker, and "The Ghost Writer" is suspenseful and loaded with terrific acting, pacing and mood. Germany had to stand in for Martha's Vineyard because ... well, you know ... and Germany was up to the task.
Jim Belushi, Timothy Hutton, Eli Wallach and the always amazing Tom Wilkinson surrounded Ewan McGregor's unnamed "Ghost" with all the depth needed to keep the story moving. A story, it should be noted, of an accused criminal in hiding, the unnamed protagonist hired to tell his story, and the politico-media frenzy which surrounds them. The accused criminal in question is a Prime Minister dealing with issues of terrorism, war and national security. And hardly anyone, it seems, gave *him* a free pass....
Unlike some of Polanski's supporters in the film industry, I don't believe that making great films lets him off the hook for his personal life. I also don't think his personal life should disqualify me from seeing what he does with film.
This was the first of Three In A Row, an entire day spent at the Columbia City Cinema doing some catching up.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Crazy Heart
My first trip this year to the Columbia City Cinema, the day after the Academy Awards, to soak up Best Actor Jeff Bridges.
Completely unrecognized by the politico-industrial-awards machine were Robert Duvall as a small-town bar owner, and Colin Farrell as a country music superstar. Maybe because they were each playing a role you might expect from the other? And maybe that's how they were able to make the character work for them.
I just watched this other film recently and couldn't help but notice the parallels.
Completely unrecognized by the politico-industrial-awards machine were Robert Duvall as a small-town bar owner, and Colin Farrell as a country music superstar. Maybe because they were each playing a role you might expect from the other? And maybe that's how they were able to make the character work for them.
I just watched this other film recently and couldn't help but notice the parallels.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Cirque de Calder
A 19-minute short film directed by Carlos Vilardebo, documenting the work of artist/sculptor/inventor Alexander Calder, projected as a film-to-video transfer on a very large interior wall of Seattle Art Museum as part of their Calder exhibit, "A Balancing Act." I wondered whether to consider it a "theater" experience - tinny, overmatched speaker system...giant wall...dark room...endless video loop...yeah, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.
Calder appears to have been a very busy man. When he wasn't inventing the mobile or forging industrial-sized objects, he would handcraft small wire figures which could be mechanized simply by pulling a few strings. A weightlifter snatches a barbell, an elephant stands on its hindquarters, cowboys buck, wirewalkers glide, trapeze artists fly, chariots race. All of this would be in small shows he would put on for his friends. His wife would play records as a soundtrack while he would stammer his best carnival-barker French.Immediately after coming home from SAM, I checked to see if this short film was available on YouTube, and it is. The following is a test to see if the embedding code works ... the low-quality, small-screen constraints make it difficult to distinguish all the details (and there seems to be an extra layer of English-language commentary), but if this works it'll be 20-plus of your minutes well-spent...
That seems to have worked OK ... if the one or two of you who see this could let me know whether it seems to work for you, I'd much appreciate it....
Monday, January 18, 2010
Monsieur Hulot's Holiday
The first film I've seen in a theater this year, and the first film I've seen at SIFF Cinema since their Grand Opening Janus Films Fest a couple of years ago. Wow, been a long time.
The debut of Jacques Tati's anti-hero Monsieur Hulot, featuring dogs, boats, and firecrackers. Having already seen "Mon Oncle" and "Playtime" on DVD, I finally got to the source by seeing this one on a big screen.
Bowing, halting, succumbing, M. Hulot absorbs what happens around him but never quite adapts. He bows so frequently that he seems to perpetually tilt forward even when standing still. And he never drops the pipe.
A door opens and closes, each time making some sort of loose rubber-band twanging sound. Why? Because, that's why.
Changing a car's flat tire somehow morphs into a memorial service for ... someone, we're not sure who. Does it really matter?
Nominated for an Oscar for Best Screenplay, as was 2001: A Space Odyssey, and just like that there's little dialogue to speak of. Sounds, action, adventure, yes. Script? Jacques Tati don't need no freakin' script.
I like to wait until several months into the year to start picking favorites, but this is an early favorite.
The debut of Jacques Tati's anti-hero Monsieur Hulot, featuring dogs, boats, and firecrackers. Having already seen "Mon Oncle" and "Playtime" on DVD, I finally got to the source by seeing this one on a big screen.
Bowing, halting, succumbing, M. Hulot absorbs what happens around him but never quite adapts. He bows so frequently that he seems to perpetually tilt forward even when standing still. And he never drops the pipe.
A door opens and closes, each time making some sort of loose rubber-band twanging sound. Why? Because, that's why.
Changing a car's flat tire somehow morphs into a memorial service for ... someone, we're not sure who. Does it really matter?
Nominated for an Oscar for Best Screenplay, as was 2001: A Space Odyssey, and just like that there's little dialogue to speak of. Sounds, action, adventure, yes. Script? Jacques Tati don't need no freakin' script.
I like to wait until several months into the year to start picking favorites, but this is an early favorite.
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