Amigo

2011 in the Movies: most overlooked

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John Sayle's AMIGO

What are 2011’s most overlooked films? The Guard and Take Shelter are on some Top Ten lists, including mine, but they still haven’t gotten the buzz that they deserve.  These are two of the very best films of the year and are not to be missed.

Kill the Irishman is a gritty crime drama with a charismatic lead performance by Ray Stevenson.

Terri is something completely new in a teen mifit movie.

As in most films by the master director-writer-editor John Sayles, the historical drama Amigo intertwines the stories of a large ensemble cast while keeping each character recognizable, distinct and textured.

For a guilty pleasure, I will go with TrollHunter, a hilariously deadpan Norwegian take on the horror genre.

Movies to See Right Now

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INCENDIES

My top recommendation this week is the year’s best film and my DVD of the Week:  Incendies.  Rent it and see it now!

In the theaters, I still strongly recommend, The Guard the Irish dark comedy starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle. Sarah’s Key is an excellent drama starring Kristin Scott Thomas as a journalist investigating very personal aspects of a French episode in the Holocaust. The historical drama Amigo benefits from writer-director John Sayles’ typically excellent juggling of interconnected characters and from a fine cast. The Debt, with Helen Mirren, is a multigenerational thriller that addresses the costs of both truth and untruth. Higher Ground is Vera Farmiga’s provocative take on persons of faith.

Woody Allen’s sweet, funny and thoughtful comedy Midnight in Paris is continuing its long, long run. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are excellent in the romcom Crazy Stupid Love. Despite Rachel Weisz’s performance, The Whistleblower is a misfire – a potentially riveting story clumsily told.

I haven’t yet seen Love Crime or Drive, opening this weekend.  You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

Other recent DVD picks have been Road to Nowhere, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy (1979), Queen to Play, Kill the Irishman, The Music Never Stopped and Source Code.

Movies to See Right Now

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Don Cheadle and Breandan Gleeson in THE GUARD

I went to see The Guard for a second time and it was well worth it.  The Irish dark comedy stars Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle.   Sarah’s Key is an excellent drama starring Kristin Scott Thomas as a journalist investigating very personal aspects of a French episode in the Holocaust. The historical drama Amigo benefits from writer-director John Sayles’ typically excellent juggling of interconnected characters and from a fine cast. The Debt, with Helen Mirren, is a multigenerational thriller that addresses the costs of both truth and untruth.  Higher Ground (I’ll comment tomorrow) is Vera Farmiga’s provocative take on persons of faith.

Woody Allen’s sweet, funny and thoughtful comedy Midnight in Paris is continuing its long, long run. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are excellent in the romcom Crazy Stupid Love. Despite Rachel Weisz’s performance, The Whistleblower is a misfire – a potentially riveting story clumsily told.

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is Road to Nowhere.  Other recent DVD picks have been Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy (1979), Poetry, Queen to Play, Kill the Irishman, The Music Never Stopped and Source Code.

Movies to See Right Now

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Helen Mirren in THE DEBT

My top choice this week is still the Irish dark comedy The Guard, starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle. Sarah’s Key is an excellent drama starring Kristin Scott Thomas as a journalist investigating very personal aspects of a French episode in the Holocaust. The historical drama Amigo benefits from writer-director John Sayles’ typically excellent juggling of interconnected characters and from a fine cast. The Debt, with Helen Mirren, is a multigenerational thriller that addresses the costs of both truth and untruth.

Woody Allen’s sweet, funny and thoughtful comedy Midnight in Paris is continuing its long, long run. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are excellent in the romcom Crazy Stupid Love. Despite Rachel Weisz’s performance, The Whistleblower is a misfire – a potentially riveting story clumsily told.

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.  Other recent DVD picks have been Poetry, Queen to Play, Kill the Irishman, and The Music Never Stopped.

Amigo: Every character counts, making for gripping drama and sound history

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The master writer-director John Sayles delivers a first-class historical drama with Amigo, set in 1900 amid the US occupation of the Phillipines.  One of Sayles’ specialties is intertwining the stories of a large ensemble cast while keeping each character recognizable, distinct and textured.  As in City of Joy and Lone Star, the audience sees events unfold from the perspective of various characters, none of whom know enough to fully understand the others.

Veteran Filipino actor Joel Torre (over 200 acting credits) plays the village headman, who recognizes that he is doomed to disappoint the contradictory expectations of the Filipino rebels and the US occupiers.  Garret Dillahunt plays the well-meaning American lieutenant who is charged to both protect and fight a people that he is not equipped to understand.  Oscar-winner Chris Cooper, DJ Qualls, Dane DeHaan, Spanky Manikan and Ronnie Lazaro also excel among the fine cast.  

Interesting launch of Sayles film

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John Sayles' AMIGO

John Sayles’ new film Amigo is opening this weekend in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Nothing unusual there.  But, in the San Francisco Bay Area, a Sayles film would usually open in the San Francisco, San Jose and Berkeley art houses.  Instead, Amigo, a historical drama set in the Phillipines,  is opening at mall multiplexes in Milpitas and southwestern San Francisco.  Why? It can’t be a coincidence that these theaters are most accesible to the thriving Filipino communities in Milpitas and northern San Mateo County.