Vultural

An Ideal Husband - 1999 - 6/10

One of the less stagey adaptations of Wilde’s plays.
Lord Goring, bit of an idler, attempts to aid a ministerial friend being blackmailed by one Mrs. Cheveley.
What follows is a dry comedy of manners and delicious dialogue.
The conversations sparkle throughout, yet the tone is standoffish.
None of the characters every really engage one’s sympathy.
(Aside from Mrs Cheveley whom I found enticingly wicked.)
I applaud the production values, as well as cast and direction.
Still, this may be better for fans of the play or playwright.

Suicide Circle - 2001 - 6/10
AKA - Jisatsu Sâkuru // 自殺サークル

Schoolgirls hurl themselves in front of an express train.
Nurses leap out windows. Adults mutilate themselves.
Across Japan, the casualty count explodes, along with the popularity of the J-group, Dessert.
Not much is explained, although sensitive viewers can detect major themes.
Quiet points about disassociation and isolation echo throughout.
Early Sion Sono made a splash and caught the attention of Asia cinema fans.
As with many of Sono’s earlier works, the acting here is less bombastic.

The Groove Tube - 1974 - 5/10

Hit and miss sketch comedy, with far more swishes than hits.
An opening spoof of 2001 is funny, but quality varies thereafter.
Many of the skits are of TV commercials, products now lost to history and almost meaningless.
Some of the players appear in brownface and in blackface.
2 stars if you can guess what a story on planet Uranus will focus on.
Early roles for Chevy Chase and Richard Belzer.

The Curse Of The Jade Scorpion - 2001 - 6/10

Old school insurance investigator trades barbs with new employee who is tasked to reorganize.
In most versions, no matter how stellar, the dinosaur is pushed out for modernity.
This is a comedy, though, and the acid & oil couple are hypnotized into believing they are married.
And then, exploiting their inside-knowledge, they are persuaded into crime.
Old-fashioned comedy has good cast and terrific repartee.
This evokes the 1930’s and 40’s, except the pace drags too much.
Film has its moments, and plenty of them, so this will be good for Allen curious.

Changing Times - 2004 - 6/10
AKA - Les Temps qui changent

Antoine, construction overseer, arrives in Tangier to get a major project back on track.
This is only an excuse, however, to track down an old flame.
The woman in question is in a long term, if stale, marriage
Meanwhile, her son is visiting with his unhappy girlfriend.
The son intends to spend time with his boyfriend.
French fare filled with emotional complications amidst beautiful Moroccan locations.
Deneuve and Depardieu effortless in drama of expectations and obsession.

Sad Hill Unearthed - 2017 - 6/10
AKA - Desenterrando Sad Hill

The allure of place touches us all. From photos to film.
Reason why countless pose on Abbey Road, or outside the flat from Love Actually.
In this curious documentary, enthusiasts unearth and restore the mass cemetery from the finale of The Good, The Bad And The Ugly.
Franco had originally sent troops to build sets and act as film extras.
The now-old men share stories, as do Ennio Morricone and Clint Eastwood.
Mostly, however, it is the local men who create a 50th anniversary group and arduously remove eight inches of top soil, exposing the site.
Before creating grave markers. 5000 of them.
The power of dreams … and obsession.
A must for fans of Leone’s original, one of the greatest films ever.
Subs = https://subscene.com/subtitles/sad-hill-unearthed/english/2983831

Barbarian - 2022 - 6/10

Tess arrives at her rental house in Detroit.
Turns out, the agency mistakenly rented the home to another.
Who offers to share, for the night.
After all, rain is pouring, the hour is late, Tess doesn’t know the city.

Smart move – don’t drink the tea he offers, check his ID.
Bad move – the basement door yawns open.
Look, anytime a basement door opens, that means you flee. Now!
Midway, the film slams into cliché corner, which is solved with an abrupt transition.
Just go with it. This is better than dragging the pace, which 90% of filmmakers would do.

Cheerful Weather For The Wedding - 2012 - 6/10

Unexpected guest arrives at the bride’s family house the day of her wedding.
Her old flame. Invited by the bride.
Love story of the girl who waited, and the boyfriend who waited possibly too long.
Story is laced with regret, longing, errors recognized, and unconfessed feelings.
Large family with identifiable types: those who adore nuptials, those who would rather drink.
Set in 1932 over what seems like less than a year.

The “lovers’” history is told in flashbacks and is shown in golden hour.
Plot never unrolls as expected. One is also left with a question or two.

Not necessarily a chick flick, but enjoyment may depend on one’s tolerance for:

1. It’s my prerogative to change my mind
2. I don’t make a decision until the last minute – sometimes after.
   I live with both types and have been trained to shift gears in an instant.

Fracassi, Philip - Don’t Let Them Get You Down

Even with therapy, Peter is taking a long time to recover. One soon wonders if he will ever truly get over the death of his wife two years earlier.
Anxiety attacks and disassociation from his previous normality are increasingly routine.
Peter is a trifecta of bad choices, bad decisions, bad luck. Meds, meant to help, cloud his judgment, impair his physical abilities.
Fracassi’s tale is unsettling, if not downright harrowing, likely to play havoc with grief stricken survivors, or those who have tumbled so deep into their pit that there is no view of the rim.
For all Peter’s missteps and calamities, and they seem to multiply, his character is not necessarily a one-note loser. Again and again, he does take chances. He attempts new directions.
His past, however, his previous life, holds him tight – then tightens.
Despair that overwhelms.
Fracassi’s style is brusque, clinical, almost journalistic. For readers, he does not bother with quotes, leaving them to figure who is talking, or if it is an internal dialogue, or a description.
For me, this is lazy writing. As more and more writers chase fewer and fewer readers, please ask yourself how many books you want to read lacking punctuation.
Yes, I know, artistic license. Or the continuing dumbing down of writing.

Ronin - 1998 - 7/10

The team assembles.
Heist caper, government black op, scorpion betrayal.
Freelance mercenaries are hired to retrieve a suitcase.
Hardly matters what is in the suitcase, only that many want it.
And will kill for it.
Well directed action thriller, powerhouse cast, blistering action sequences.
Sadly, for me, this was the last De Niro starring role I really liked.

Turkish Delight - 1973 - 6/10

Struggling young sculptor begins torrid affair with uninhibited girl.
Her family either disapproves or shrugs.
As ever, can a struggling artist provide?
Youthful hope, marriage, troubles.
Freewheeling story captures the early 70’s before it got all commercialized.
The story consists of numerous flashbacks, so pay attention and stay alert.
Early role for leading man Rutgar Hauer.
Bittersweet love story, extremely erotic and earthy.

Star Wars as Film Noir.
Black and white. Wipe the John Williams score, replace with bluesy jazz.
Diminish the action, focus on betrayals or Fate’s dark hand.
Christensen’s would make the better Noir character.

I Am Afraid - 1977 - 7/10
AKA - Io Ho Paura

The city is reeling from a string of judicial assassinations, and the murder of police.
Inspector Graziano is assigned to bodyguard an old school, honorable judge.
Both are cautious, but keen eyed. Especially after a local murder points to smuggling, then leads to worse.
Italian thriller starts as something akin to a “buddy film” before heading into darker Poliziotteschi territory.
In so many of these stories, everything and everyone is contaminated.
The pervasiveness of dread, of paranoia, builds throughout for Graziano.

OVNI(s) - 2021 - 6/10

An optimist gazes at the stars and thinks, “We are not alone. If aliens arrive, they will surely help us.”
The skeptic thinks, “Encounters between advanced civilizations and primitive ones always spell disaster for the less developed.”
The cynic thinks, “Why come to a backwater planet, where every single creature murders the other?”
Rocket scientist Mathure’s vessel explodes soon after liftoff and he is shunted down to GEPAN.
A tiny government agency investigating UFO reports.
Mathure, who desperately wants back into rockets, is caught between two powerful factions.
One wants him to close the pointless agency, one wants him to prove UFO’s exist.
Set in the late 70’s (the look is spot-on), this light comedy is filled with goofy characters, and very odd moments.
For the Fox Mulders out there, believers, this is for you.

Under Fire - 1983 - 6/10

Journalists in Nicaragua, during the 70’s revolution as the Somoza dictatorship is about to topple.
There are several war journalist films out there, and this is one of the better ones.
Great juxtaposition of remote observing of explosive violence coupled with up-close mayhem.
A brutal regime, rebels, mercenaries, CIA interference, and press deadlines.
In addition, a casual romance which seems more of a distraction.
Casting is pretty much perfect, and several scenes are unforgettable.
Timeless, as the subject may be, the pertinent timeline has dated.
The Nicaraguan revolution is 40 years distant, and the new boss = same as the old boss.

Dirty Pretty Things - 2002 - 7/10

Welcome to England!
Oh, you have no papers? Meaning, you are here illegally?
No worries, we can find you work, only your pay will be less, understand?
Okwe, a certified Nigerian doctor, works as a hotel desk clerk.
Senay, Turkish, a cleaning woman at the same hotel.
The hotel’s sordid side business, organ harvesting, can ease difficulties for both.
Biting moral quandary provides backbone to part message-film, part nail-biting thriller.

Keene, Brian - The Girl On The Glider

This reads as part diary, part writer’s journal.
Keene lives hard by an accident prone road. Fatalities are frequent.
After one deadly mangle, a victim appears to linger.
What follows are Keene’s thoughts and fears on the unusual activity.
Keene is honest enough, confessing he earns his living as a prolific, if mid-tier, author.
This novella comes across as a spec assignment.

The Translators - 2019 - 7/10
AKA - Les traducteurs

The great author, well, the best-selling author, has a new book pending.
Expectations from the fanbase is immense. For the publishing house, this book is make or break.
Nine translators are hired, then whisked to a secured, underground location (old castle, monastery).
Soon enough, a ransom note appears along with a slew of smuggled chapters.
Despite the security, there is a leak.
Taut thriller will appeal to mystery fans and book types.
There are, perhaps, too many characters. Plus, the amount of money at stake indicates the writer is, who, Stephen King, Mary Berry? Money now flows to disposable, repetitive TV shows.
Ignore these quibbles, however, as the twists and turns are diabolical, as is the plotting.

Gould, Glenn (editor Tim Page) - The Glenn Gould Reader

Culled from an untold amount of essays, interviews, liner notes, this collection ranges from insightful, to controversial, to funny.
Many of the musical explorations in the first section were beyond me. Pages of staves and notes support explanations, but those are best for sight-readers.
Gould’s essays on Schoenberg are passionate and persuasive, even though I still have limited appreciation and understanding of this composer.
His position towards Beethoven is far more dismissive, which I gather is genuine and not merely provocative posturing.
Recollections of Stokowski and Rubinstein make for highly entertaining reading.
Other essays are completely off the track. Praising the combo of Petula Clark and Tony Hatch while pooh-poohing the flash-in-the-pan group, The Beatles. Thing is, for me, Pet evokes Swinging London better than any other artist.
The stray interviews with himself prove laugh out loud funny.
Gould also crafted radio plays of which I was unaware. Owing to his articles on “The Idea Of North” and “The Latecomers” I now intend to track these down and give a listen.
Altogether an engaging book and certainly not just for Gould fans or Classical enthusiasts. Gould’s predictions of recording and editing techniques are downright uncanny in their accuracy.

A Soldier’s Story - 1984 - 7/10

During WWII, a black sergeant is murdered in racist Louisiana.
Sent to investigate, a JAG officer. A black JAG officer.
General consensus agrees the murder was committed by the Ku Klux Klan, still a force then.
The JAG captain (excellent Henry Rollins), wants truth, not an easy answer.
In the finest investigative tradition, the captain ruffles everyone’s feathers.
While based on a play, this does not feel stagebound.
Drama predominates over mystery.
Acting uniformly fine (early role for Denzel Washington).

Death Wish - 1974 - 6/10

Probably one on those films that “started things”.
After his family home suffers an invasion, family raped and murdered, Paul turns vigilante.
We watch Paul (Charles Bronson in a career-making role) morph from pacifist to avenger.
Risks increase, though consequences seem slight.
Emotionally manipulative film steps into propaganda at times.
Self-righteous murder seems not only appropriate, but justified.
US fascination with guns assured this was a massive hit with mainstream audiences.

Widows’ Peak - 1994 - 6/10

On first glance, a “chick flick”, a parlor drama, but delve deeper and you’ll find a mystery, laced with comedy.
The flashy, “youngish” widow arrives in the village, and ingratiates herself with the upper crust biddies.
Those who inhabit Widows’ Peak.
A poorer widow, however, takes an instant, almost irrational dislike.
Then we enter maneuverings and village politics, where flash and poverty draw knives.
Funnier than one might expect, with more twists than an acrobat in the final act.
Mia Farrow’s last good leading role.

Childer - 2016 - 7/10

She lives in the isolated cottage with her young son.
Extraordinarily hygienic, overly protective, pushing all visitors away.
Are visitors dangerous, or is she mad?

And as Halloween draws ever nearer, so too do a small group of children.
Strong Horror short, dipping into rustic terror.
The unexplained, well served.

In The Realm Of The Senses - 1976 - 7/10
AKA - Ai no Korīda // 愛のコリーダ

Claustrophobic film of obsession and increasing stakes as thrills diminish.
Retelling the story of Sada Abe, ex-hooker, now servant in small hotel.
The proprietor initiates an affair with her, at once sleazy and torrid.
He discards his wife to increase his time with Sada.
Arthouse film, supposedly meant for the mainstream, yet far too explicit.
Graphic sex will alarm prudes, too much plot and artistic photography will bore pornsters.
The score is memorable, and used to great effect.
Camerawork is filled haunting rain soaked scenes, amidst the rising banner of war outside the hotel.

Stir Crazy - 1980 - 6/10

Two classic bunglers, after being fired – again, decide California is the place to be.
Sure is. In no time flat, they are framed for a bank heist and sent to the slammer for 100+ years.
Inside, they make friends with other convicts (what a great place to make friends).
Then somehow get involved in the annual rodeo competition.
Plot moves quickly, distracting one from how absurd the narrative is.
And believe me, this is one silly movie.
For all that, Pryor and Wilder make an irresistible team, and top comedy makes up two/thirds of the film.