albertodr07 Reviews

A Single Man (2009)

Isherwood, Ford and Firth, not necessarily in that order

[9/10 · 14 September 2009]

A startling surprise. Tom Ford's debut as a director tells, in exquisite images, a very personal story, based on a short story by Christopher Isherwood. What makes everything fly so high is a fantastic performance by Colin Firth. I've followed Colin Firth career from the very beginning "Tumbledown", "Another Country", "Apartment Zero" where he creates a character never seen on the screen before or since, "Pride and Prejudice" where he reinvented D'Arcy's character, "Fever Pitch" where he showed a new face in riveting tragicomic strokes. So I should have been prepared for something new and special and maybe I was but the effect his performance in "A Single Man" had on me was (is) totally unexpected. It changed my perception of things, it made me look inwards and think of things I had put aside. I can't wait to see it again. I saw the look of love and that look remains knocking in my mind as if to keep me awake and aware. Tom Ford takes enormous visual risks in the telling of his story. It may work for some, some others will certainly dismiss or ridicule. I, for one, stand up and applaud.

American Psycho (2000)

Christian Bale the new Peter Cushing

[9/10 · 6 October 2008]

Now it all makes sense. Christian Bale was born to play horror characters. I couldn't understand why I was so , so, afraid of him even in films like "Velvet Goldmine" He is a poster boy for putrid souls in elegant wrapping. In "American Psycho" - a film that deserves much more attention than it's got - he is absolutely terrific. Totally believable. I could sense his delight in playing a monster of this kind. Interestingly enough this manicured monster seems to be asking for sympathy, imagine the nerve! But Christian Bale succeeds in showing us a face we (I) hadn't quite seen before and yet we (I) accept without question. He should have gotten an Oscar nomination but, fortunately, he didn't.

The Scopone Game (1972)

A Brilliant Dark Fairy Tale

[9/10 · 1 December 2007]

Fairy tales are usually dark but very rarely are this human or that funny for that matter. Bette Davis plays a wealthy American with an addiction to card playing and to winning. She has become an expert on the local card games of different countries around the world where she owns houses. Bound to a wheel chair, the card games are her only close connection with the world of the living. In Rome, the card game is called "scopone" and she summons a married couple to be her adversaries. The couple, a magnificent Alberto Sordi and an unrecognizable Silvana Mangano, are the poorest of the poor, with a family of five children. As soon as Bette arrives to Rome, she calls them and gives them one million lire to play with. Sistematically, every year she will win the million back. Sordi and Mangano spend the rest of the year practicing, dreaming that one day they will win. The building up to the climax is one of the most painfully funny things I've ever seen. Pathetic and uplifting at the same time. Bette Davis is superb as the capitalist torturer/benefactor with a great Alberto Sordi at her side. Try not to miss it.

Don't Waste Your Time, Johnny! (2007)

Looking Back Without Anger

[8/10 · 30 November 2007]

A young man tries to avoid military service by stating that he's the only son of a widow mother. He also needs to prove that he's the only bread winner in the family. Does he have a job? Certainly, he plays guitar with a local band. Does he have a contract? Not quite. We're then propelled into the story of Johnny trying to get a signed contract before the due date expires and in so doing we're living his story like he lives it, as an spectator. He observes and learns and so do we. Fabrizio Bentivoglio, one of, if not the, best Italian actor of his generation, makes his feature film directorial debut with this charming, tender, melancholic tale. He also plays the the man - a formerly famous band leader in decline - who will change, presumably, Johnny's life forever. Bentivoglio is truly terrific, his beautiful face is a seriously comic mask of a life lived without a compass. Very encouraging to find an Italian film with a personality of its own. Among the many pleasures to be had, there is a concert under the rain and a wonderful and unrecognizable Lina Sastri as Johnny's mother. Uplifting, smart and very entertaining. I haven't been able to say that about an Italian film in a very long time. Bravo!