Aquarius

Movies to See Right Now

by
Isabelle Huppert in ELLE
Isabelle Huppert in ELLE

The best reason to go to the movies is to see Isabelle Huppert in the wowzer Elle, which has opened at the Embarcadero in San Francisco and will open more widely in the Bay Area on the Thanksgiving weekend.  Here are top choices that are easier to find:

  • The Korean period con artist movie The Handmaiden is gorgeous, erotic and extraordinarily entertaining.
  • Sonia Braga is still luminous in the character-driven Brazilian drama Aquarius.
  • John Travolta, Ethan Hawke and Jumpy the dog sparkle in the spaghetti western In a Valley of Violence.
  • Mascots is the latest mockumentary from Christopher Guest (Best in Show) and it’s very funny. Mascots is playing in very few theaters, but it’s streaming on Netflix Instant, too.

Also in theaters or on video:

      • Despite a delicious performance by one of may faves, Michael Shannon, I’m not recommending Nocturnal Animals;  I’m writing about it tomorrow.
      • Arrival with Amy Adams, is real thinking person’s sci-fi. Every viewer will be transfixed by the first 80% of Arrival. How you feel about the finale depends on whether you buy into the disconnected-from-linear-time aspect or you just get confused, like I did.
      • The remarkably sensitive and realistic indie drama Moonlight is at once a coming of age tale, an exploration of addicted parenting and a story of gay awakening. It’s almost universally praised, but I thought that the last act petered out.
      • Not much happens in the talented and idiosyncratic filmmaker Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women, but it’s well-acted and feels real.
      • If you are entertained by the epically disgusting, you can catch the horror comedy The Greasy Strangler before it hits the midnight cult movie circuit. The Greasy Strangler can be streamed from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
      • The end of the thriller The Girl on the Train (starring Emily Blunt) is indeed thrilling. But the 82 minutes before the Big Plot Twist is murky, confusing and boring.

I’ve written farewells to actor Robert Vaughn and musician Leon Russell, who died earlier this week.

My Stream of the Week is the documentary The Lovers and the Despot, the story of a crazy dictator’s kidnapping of a movie director and his movie star wife – and how they escaped and proved that it really happened.  The Lovers and the Despot is now available streaming from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube, Google Play and cable and satellite TV on demand.

On November 23, Turner Classic Movies plays a groundbreaking cinéma vérité documentary from 1968. Salesman is as revealing a depiction of the sales life as Glengarry Glen Ross, and just as heartbreaking – you can’t have capitalism without winners and losers. Imagine selling Bibles door-to-door.

SALESMAN
SALESMAN

Movies to See Right Now

by
THE HANDMAIDEN
THE HANDMAIDEN

We’re diving into a very promising Fall movie season . Critical favorites Moonlight, The Handmaiden, Certain Women,  Aquarius, and Loving are already out. Arrival (already an Oscar favorite along with Loving) and The Eagle Huntress open today. Top choices:

  • The Korean period con artist movie The Handmaiden is gorgeous, erotic and extraordinarily entertaining.
  • Sonia Braga is still luminous in the character-driven Brazilian drama Aquarius.
  • John Travolta, Ethan Hawke and Jumpy the dog sparkle in the spaghetti western In a Valley of Violence.
  • Mascots is the latest mockumentary from Christopher Guest (Best in Show) and it’s very funny. Mascots is playing in very few theaters, but it’s streaming on Netflix Instant, too.

Also in theaters or on video:

  • The remarkably sensitive and realistic indie drama Moonlight is at once a coming of age tale, an exploration of addicted parenting and a story of gay awakening. It’s almost universally praised, but I thought that the last act petered out.
  • Not much happens in the talented and idiosyncratic filmmaker Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women, but it’s well-acted and feels real.
  • The indie drama Men Go to Battle is an insightful tale of two brothers that exceptionally illustrates the QUIET of pre-electric and pre-motorized North America. Men Go to Battle is available to stream from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
  • If you are entertained by the epically disgusting, you can catch the horror comedy The Greasy Strangler before it hits the midnight cult movie circuit. The Greasy Strangler can be streamed from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
  • The end of the thriller The Girl on the Train (starring Emily Blunt) is indeed thrilling. But the 82 minutes before the Big Plot Twist is murky, confusing and boring.

My Stream of the Week is the emotionally affecting and authentic indie drama Five Days in Maine, the impressive debut of writer-director Marin Curran. I saw Five Days in Maine at the San Francisco International Film Festival. It’s now available to stream on Amazon Instant, Vudu, Google Play, YouTube and DirecTV.

On November 13, Turner Classic Movies is screening two very different but wonderful movies from the same director, Richard Fleischer. First, there’s the overlooked film noir masterpiece The Narrow Margin (1952), a taut 71 minutes of tension. Growly cop Charles McGraw plays hide-and-seek with a team of hit men on a claustrophobic train. Marie Windsor is unforgettable as the assassins’ target. It’s highly recommended on my list of Overlooked Noir.

Then, TCM brings us the 1973 cult sci-fi classic Soylent Green, which was utterly under appreciated until the past decade or so. Set in a dystopian future (like those so popular in today’s sci-fi), humans have pretty much destroyed the environment and most are impoverished, even homeless. The dietary staple is a green pellet provided by a mega-corporation. Charlton Heston is surprisingly effective as a jaded and solitary cop, whose investigation leads him to a horrifying discovery. The cast is very good, including Edward G. Robinson in his final performance. Soylent Green was directed by the versatile Richard Fleischer, 21 years after The Narrow Margin.

Charlton Heston in SOYLENT GREEN
Charlton Heston in SOYLENT GREEN

Movies to See Right Now

by
THE HANDMAIDEN
THE HANDMAIDEN

We’re at the beginning of a very promising Fall movie season.  Critical favorites Moonlight, The Handmaiden and Certain Women are already out.  Aquarius, Mel Gibson’s Hacksaw Ridge and, possibly, Loving open today in theaters.  Arrival (already an Oscar favorite along with Loving) and The Eagle Huntress open in a week.  Top choices:

  • The Korean period con artist movie The Handmaiden is gorgeous, erotic and extraordinarily entertaining.
  • Sonia Braga is still luminous in the character-driven Brazilian drama Aquarius.
  • John Travolta, Ethan Hawke and Jumpy the dog sparkle in the spaghetti western In a Valley of Violence.
  • Mascots is the latest mockumentary from Christopher Guest (Best in Show) and it’s very funny. Mascots is playing in very few theaters, but it’s streaming on Netflix Instant, too.

Also in theaters or on video:

  • The remarkably sensitive and realistic indie drama Moonlight is at once a coming of age tale, an exploration of addicted parenting and a story of gay awakening.  It’s almost universally praised, but I thought that the last act petered out.
  • Not much happens in the talented and idiosyncratic filmmaker Kelly Reichardt’s Certain Women, but it’s well-acted and feels real.
  • The indie drama Men Go to Battle is an insightful tale of two brothers that exceptionally illustrates the QUIET of pre-electric and pre-motorized North America. Men Go to Battle is available to stream from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
  • If you are entertained by the epically disgusting, you can catch the horror comedy The Greasy Strangler before it hits the midnight cult movie circuit. The Greasy Strangler can be streamed from Amazon Instant, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
  • The end of the thriller The Girl on the Train (starring Emily Blunt) is indeed thrilling. But the 82 minutes before the Big Plot Twist is murky, confusing and boring.

My Stream of the Week is Meet the Patels, a documentary funnier than most comedies. Meet the Patels is available to stream from Netflix Instant, Amazon Video, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

On November 7, the eve of the Presidential election, Turner Classic Movies brings us two brilliant political documentaries:

  • Primary documents the Wisconsin Democratic primary election campaign in 1960. This was a key stepping stone in John F. Kennedy’s road to the White House because it was a chance for him to demonstrate that he appealed to voters outside the Northeast. Kennedy’s rival Hubert Humphrey was favored because Wisconsin neighbors Humphrey’s home state of Minnesota. Primary is both a time capsule of 1960 politics and an inside look at the Kennedy family unleashed in a campaign. There’s an amazing scene where Humphrey appeals to a handful of flinty farmers in a school gym – he’s giving his all and he ain’t getting much back. Only 60 minutes long, Primary has been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry. The great documentarian D.A. Pennebaker, who went on to direct Monterey Pop and The War Room, shot, edited and recorded sound for Primary.
  • The Times of Harvey Milk – the documentary Oscar winner from 1984. It’s the real story behind the 2008 Sean Penn narrative Milk – and with the original witnesses. If you pay attention, The Times of Harvey Milk can teach you everything from how to win a local campaign to how to build a societal movement. One of the best political movies ever. And watch for the dog poop scene!
THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK
THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK

AQUARIUS: spirit, thy name is Sonia Braga

by
Sonia Braga in AQUARIUS
Sonia Braga in AQUARIUS

In the Brazilian character-driven drama Aquarius, Sonia Braga plays Clara, the last owner of a beachfront condo who hasn’t sold out to a developer who owns the rest of the condos.  The conflict is between Clara, who refuses to sell and those her want her to.  But Aquarius is really about Clara, and it takes its time setting up her character; it’s 26 minutes before we even see the developers.   We must understand her to understand her motivation – and her will.

Aquarius moves through scenes with a lifeguard at the beach, with girlfriends at club, at family parties,  not to move the plot, but to invest in revealing aspects of Clara’s character.  Having conquered cancer, lost her husband, raised children and built an artistic career, Clara has some mileage on her – enough to know what she wants and needs. Having earned the authority to live her life as she pleases, Clara is a wilful free spirit.  And, as everyone finds out, she is absolutely fearless.

It’s a career-capping performance for Sonia Braga, still luminous 40 years after Donna Flor and Her Two Husbands.  Mid movie, there’s a scene when Clara’s adult children try to have an awkward conversation about the financial benefits of selling the apartment.  She doesn’t make it easy for them, and their long-submerged feelings about their father and their mother surface.  With piercing observations and cold-eyed disappointment, Clara is as masterful over her children as when they were infants.  It’s hard to imagine a better movie scene this year.  Braga is brilliant.

The young Brazilian television actor Humberto Carrão is exceptional as Clara’s ever smiling foil Diego, whose youth and punctilious civility mask a capacity to engage in any tactic, even very dirty tricks.

I viewed Aquarius at the Mill Valley Film Festival.

Aquarius is critical of the political status quo, and the Brazilian government’s refusal to submit it for the Best Foreign Language Picture Oscar has created a controversy detailed in this New York Times article.