Not that any of my reviews are that well thought out, or interesting, but I’ll admit I’m pretty lackluster about this film, so this review may be a little ass-y.  And I’ll note that I did have a pretty intense cold when I watched this that made me very impatient and grumpy.  I didn’t really find much of value in Carl Theodor Dryer’s Vampyr.  I had trouble following the narrative, the poor production values (I’ll backpeddle in a bit) really distracted me, and I didn’t really care what was happening in the film.

Now, I’ll admit, I have never been one for old movies.  I’m trying to correct that with mild success, but Vampyr is clearly out of my grasp for now.  Complaining about production values may make me seem like a jackass.  And I respect that.  I hope it doesn’t come across that I can’t appreciate anything that has a budget over one hundred million dollars.  The chintzy music and poor cinematography had me straining to discern characters and plot directions, and hoping that the seventy minutes would end already.

As for the freak-out factor (which I can only assume Dreyer was attempting to create), it was almost non-existent for me.  The one moment that did kind of have me on edge was this moment:

Yes, whoever that girl is, she can certainly make me uncomfortable with her face contortions.

The script was adapted for the big screen by Aronofsky and Hubert Selby Jr., and is based on Selby’s book of the same name. It closely examines a small group of people and their addictions.  There’s Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto), his mother Sara (Ellen Burnstyn), Harry’s girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly, and his best friend Tyron (Marlon Wayans), among others.  Harry, Marion, and Tyron are recreational drug users that decide to start pushing in order to finance other dreams.  Sara is blissfully ignorant about her sons indulgences, and chooses food as her fix.  Her obsession with becoming thins leads her to an addiction to uppers in the form of weight loss pills.

The film is most definitely too intense for some.  The film premiered at Cannes, and quickly after was given an NC-17 rating for a particularly aberrant sex scene.  It’s holds an extremely harsh view of the drug scene and seeks to make that clear at every point.  A lot of Selby’s original seventies’ slang is kept intact, and it makes for some fantastic dialogue.  Every performance is spot on, especially Ms. Burnstyn who received an Oscar nom.

Aronofsky’s specific style for the film is mesmerizing.  Requiem has over 2,000 cuts, as opposed to the normal six or seven hundred.  The whole thing is coupled with one of the most haunting and beautiful scores that’s been made for a film in a long time.  Yes, the film is incredibly bleak, but this is one of the best examples of the power and magic of film making.

4 out of 4 stars

The film was written by Joel and Ethan and is their second feature film, after their Sundance movie Blood Simple became a hit.  Why, in God’s name, they would choose to make this movie when so much hinged on it, is beyond me.  And that is why I am not in the moving making business.  Raising Arizona has a certified fresh rating of 89% on RottenTomatoes.com (although, it only received 50% approval from top critics–only six reviews counted).

I did not understand the humor for the most part.  The only actor who illicited an audible laugh was Holly Hunter, whom I thought was marvelous.  The rest of the cast, Nic Cage (technically this was the time he was using his entire first name), John Goodman, even Frances McDormand didn’t really do much for me.  Since I’ve seen all these actors in other films, and I’ve been quite pleased by their performances, I’d have to blame my dislike of the film on the script by the Coen brothers.  It’s simply not to my taste.  And when the bounty hunter, motorcycle man of death came on the scene, I pretty much mentally checked out.

I just didn’t get it.

I will say, that it took me three viewings to finally jump on board The Big Lebowski.  I don’t remember hating that film as much as this, but I will reserve final judgemental until I’ve seen Raising Arizona one more time.  Until then, I’m going to stick with the Coens’ dramas.

1 out of 4 stars

The film is directed by infamous Billy Wilder, and written by him and I.A.L. Diamond.  It stars Jack Lemmon, Fred MacMurray and Shirley MacLaine.  It follows insurance company employee C.C. Baxter (Lemmon).  He’s ambitious, but a doormat.  He allows his superiors to commandeer his apartment in order to cheat on spouses in secret.  In return, they recommend him for promotions.  He becomes interested in Fran Kubrick (MacLaine), and tries to juggle a romantic life, with the frequent and inconvenient occupation of his apartment.  Trouble ensues when it seems his boss Jeff Seldrake (MacMurray) is shagging MacLaine in his apartment.  Fran attempts suicide and since Seldrake is married, he can’t very well be involved with the situation and leaves it all on Baxter.

I was disturbed by the content at first.  The issues of the ‘good old boys club,’ sexual harassment, suicide and adultery were treated so lightly in a comedy made in 1960!?  It really shocked me.  And I found myself getting really uptight about it all between the laughs.  It made me really grateful for laws now in place to protect the workplace.  Seriously.  I got pretty angry at the whole situation.  Once I moved past that, however, I was completely entertained.  The script was quite funny, and kept up a pace that never left be bored.  It was certainly work to put my disdain for the characters on the back burner and focus on the film itself, but once I could, I found it to be a refreshingly honest comedy that, I hope, lost no significance in the fifty or so years it’s been out.  The performances were all very fine, and the dialogue was endlessly entertaining.  I would highly recommend this movie.

3.5 out of 4 stars