Here, as promised is the continuation of some of my favorite films that perhaps you haven't see. A heads up, so to speak.
IVAN'S XTC (Bernard Rose)
What a shock this was. I remember seeing the poster for this no budget indie film while in Hollywood at some tiny theatre. It was up against the big blockbusters at the time and I remember feeling sorry for it. That was before Danny Huston's career just exploded. Now, I can see why everyone wanted to cast Danny Huston in all the character roles after this film. At the beginning, as you are watching it, you may feel two things: 1) this is too inside hollywood 2) this is too cheap for it's own good, meaning that the digital photography, dodgy sound and somewhat curious editing might make you dismiss this film. Do not dismiss it. If you are not bawling your head off and think that the last scene in Ivan's xtc is one of the most sublime scenes you have ever seen, you are not human. It's also one of the films I have ever seen about the sleezy life made poetry. I don't know what to think of Bernard Rose. I don't know if he's a genius or if he got lucky, but either way, Ivan's xtc is a brilliant surprise.
A SINGLE GIRL (LA FILLE SEUL) (Benoit Jacquot)
I love how this film is one of the only films in recent memory that shows how obsessed Parisians used to be at playing pin ball in cafes. I remember a time in the late eighties where there was pin ball machine in every cafe from Paris to Marseille. Sadly those days are over. Or maybe that's a good thing. Anyway, apart from the needless trivia, A Single Girl is a film where not only am I in love with the short bobbed haircutted Virginie Ledoyen but I also buy her performance. I realize I have a thing for women with short hair. For the record, the queen of actresses with short hair looking amazing is a toss up between Demi Moore in Ghost and Jean Seburg in Breathless. Anyway, Ledoyen seems to be floating by in most of her performances these days, but this role was made for her. And she has never been as good since. I also buy all the steadicam (moving camera) work as an integral part of the story, unlike some directors who just move the camera because they are bored.
THE MOSQUITO COAST (Peter Weir)
Okay. This is part one of a two parter featuring Harrison Ford as the leading man. My two favorite films of Harrison Ford are not the ones he is known for. The part of Ally Fox in this film would be one of them. I recently talked with Bob Swaim, the director of another prominent adaptation of one of Paul Theroux's novels and he said how difficult it was to make this novelists' characters appealing. They are all dark, and usually, un reedemed. Well, I like that. And who better than Paul Schrader to write a story about a confused, idealistic character hell bent on his own and his family's destruction? The film is a great adaptation and River Phoenix and Martha Plimpton threaten to steal this movie out from under Ford, but not quite. Harrison Ford's performance in The Mosquito Coast proves that if the public would have let him, he could have had a far meatier career than just playing versions of Indiana Jones.
INTERNAL AFFAIRS (Mike Figgis)
Infernal Affairs has taught me one thing: that I really don't like Richard Gere very much in straight leading roles, but I LOVE him as the bad guy. Richard Gere in Infernal Affairs is one of the baddest, meanest, creatures depicted on celluloid. And I will go on record saying that perhaps there has never been a villain, I so solidly despised as Richard Gere, in this film. It is up there with the all time best villains of all time. I also go one record as giving Laurie Metcalf her props in turning, perhaps a thankless role into something interesting. Mike Figgis movies are up and down for me but this is definitely one of his ups. I also love the way it looks and the sleezy Hollywood casting.
FRANTIC (Roman Polanski)
Example of Harrison Ford stretching himself number 2. Roman Polanski's film has always held a special place in my heart 1) for doing a fantastic, moody thriller in Paris (and surprisingly, there are not many of them, I have researched!) 2) for having the balls to use Grace Jones exclusively on the soundtrack and mix it with an Ennio Morricone score that is one of his absolute bests. And finally 3) to see Polanski do what he was born to do, use the camera as a machine for eliciting genuine emotion and suspense and for getting the details of Parisian beaurocracy EXACTLY RIGHT. I love how the biggest obstacle Harrison Ford has in the movie is not the Arab terrorists but French beaurocracy. For a" let it be" Latin culture, there are a lot of rules in Paris. Also Emmanuelle Seigner is super charged in this movie. Very wild. Very spirited. Love the rooftops. Is there a living director more accurate than Polanski? Answer: no.
UNDER THE VOLCANO (John Huston)
It's the Albert Finney show and we're just living in it. Primary reason to go see Under The Volcano: it's Albert Finney's greatest film performance. Reason 2: it's John Huston's last great film. Reason 3: it's got the atmosphere that makes films memorable and it is in no way afraid of the darkness. This film really does represent Mexico as the wonderful place it is. All of its color and all of its darkness. The same darkness that novelists like Malcom Lawry can conjure freely but filmmakers have to apologize for. Well screw that. See Under The Volcano. You will not forget it. Put it on as a double bill with Ivan's XTC but don't kill yourself.
BOYZ IN THE HOOD
When I think of John Singleton, I just want to cry. Why is it, that a man so talented at 23, so on fire with creativity, could have slipped into directing Fast and The Furious? This film for it's depth of tragedy and it's superior performances from Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Cuba Gooding is a miracle. Everyone is burning up in this film. I remember thinking, man, if this guy can write and direct this good at this age, what the hell am I going to do? And if he keeps going, he could be the self contained phenomenon that people like Woody Allen or Pedro Almodovar became. Then came Poetic Justice with Janet Jackson that did not do so well. If I could reverse time, I would go back and see Poetic Justice a million times, in order to justify the box office receipts for John Singleton to go back to personal filmmaking. I know the man could do it. Why does everyone forget John Singleton's Boyz in the Hood? Even bigger question: Why does he forget it?
JACOB'S LADDER (Adrian Lyne)
Realistic horror films are perhaps my favorite things to watch. But no one does them. The film I can think of, close to this vibe, is the Japanese film Dark Water, but unlike this film, Jacob's Ladder has an extra ingredient: the post Vietnam, paranoid thriller, and the two together are an excellent combination. You knew you were watching Flashdance or Two and a Half Weeks because it always looked like someone had a barbecue on set right before filming. Well Jacob's Ladder is the first film where all that smoke was justified. I'm talking about literally employing someone to fill the set with smoke before a take. It might seem silly but does provide a distinct look, and Jacob's Ladder definitely has a distinct look but this is just one of its many features. I also cherish the acting in this film. Under playing it is the only way to go and Elizabeth Pena (another criminally under rated actress) and Tim Robbins do a marvelous job. Effects are blended seemlessly into the realistic locations to provide a genuine sense of horror. It really is that good, and that neglected.
REVENGE (Tony Scott)
I know it's not cool for a film critic to like Tony Scott. Or maybe it is? I don't care. I like Revenge and I will give you two good reasons why 1) Anthony Quinn playing his last great role. 2) Madeleine Stowe earning legendary status in the beauty and charm department. And this was Kevin Costner in his still tolerable stage. You also have Miguel Ferrer as a great bounty hunter towards the last third of the movie that comes out of nowhere. But seriously, before Tony Scott developed ADD, this was a solid thriller made by a man who obviously understands and can exploit the genre of the revenge thriller to the best of his ability. Mexico also comes through a little in the film which is rare for an action movie of this type.
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