Change Your Image
chelmhoz
Reviews
Enter the Void (2009)
the emperor has no clothes
I used to kind of like Noe because he seemed to be a challenging filmmaker with a provocative style and antagonistic things to say - but I was always puzzled as to how big a part of it was the interesting visual style and explicit subject matter, and how much it really was the filmmaker's illumination behind it all - exploring themes he addresses in his movies - Irreversible and I Stand Alone were provocative, visually brilliant, but thematically inconclusive; Enter the Void, however, proved that the emperor has no clothes - a shallow extravaganza with nothing really to say, using a clever disguise and camera technique / special effects as stand-ins for actual human beings and their emotions, conflicts, etc - that simple conceit of the parents dying (SPOILER ALERT) doesn't do much to shore up interest or sympathy for the "uber-cool" android main characters, devoid of real life and story.
It's a shame, because the first 20 minutes were great - but if you really want to take a risk, you need to advance further into Tarkovsky, Lynch, Bunuel, or Bunhattee - or whatever other exploratory filmmaking territory - this film remains a sophomoric effort to translate Tarantino into philosophy (Tibetan Book of the Dead??? Puh-leaze - why? Because of so many top angles and white pulsating lights ?!?) , while still trying to be a box-office attraction - and super-shallow at that.
Noe is best at reproducing visuals and adding some shock-value to it - like his porn-music videos - but he doesn't have a clue about real human drama, characters, and emotions - especially about the characters he tries to portray. Sex can be beautiful and also repulsive, depending on the context - but based on what Noe shows in this film, he comes off as closet right-wing Republican (sex is rape and ugliness and abortion etc) - he entered the void alright, should've stuck to them music videos - slick visuals, but all else is pretense without substance.
Zenith (2010)
Brilliant
If you have read about it, forget the online meta-something story lines which accompany the film, the conspiracy and warning signs, and go see this film with a fresh mind - but don't blink! It is so dense with information and visuals that if you go for popcorn you will have a hard time to connect all the dots. It asks the audience to be alert and to participate in the movie, but it's worth it. Zenith obviously references/ is influenced by a lot of cult films, from Memento to Donnie Darko, with nods to La Jetee and Fight Club among others, but it is thoroughly original and unique.
The film is not really about conspiracies, it is about power and lack of it, and how we relate to it, and by extension, what choices we make. The director has repeated the concept of the experiment - beginning the film with the Milgram experiment, which is not a conspiracy but a test of obedience to authority (SPOLER ALERT) repeating the experiment in the middle of the film, referencing the experiment twice by a doctor toward the end of the film, and even the director is credited as "experiment supervisor." Peeling layer after layer of intense visuals and narrative threads, the film becomes an allegory on what it means to be human. Jack, or "dumb Jack as they call him" recites into the camera about consciousness and the states of the mind (and mind you, he is an epileptic).
Power corrupts, weather it is political, or the power that a parent can wield, and it is when the political becomes personal that we have to make a choice, as simulated in Milgram's experiment and as shown in Zenith. Jack doesn't give up, although he is doomed to lose. I don't think that I have ever seen a film like this, and couldn't stop thinking about it afterward. If your idea of a 'good movie' is based on Hollywood or even Indy films of the last decade, you will probably walk away unimpressed. But, as one of my favorite characters in Zenith rants into the camera, judging things without contributing or making something yourself can be self-defeating. Productionwise, the acting is superb, the look and camera-work amazing, the directing masterful, and the amount of complex philosophical questions squeezed into a 90 minute joyride (with sex and violence and suspense) makes Zenith a unique brilliant film.
The Limits of Control (2009)
Brilliant but under-appreciated
Jarmush's "Limits of Control" is probably a masterpiece (future will tell) but certainly a masterful allegory on aesthetics and politics, which overall doesn't take itself all too seriously, playing with an ironic re-interpretation of cinema clichés. In this context even the relentless cameos of famous movie actors are logical.
Doyle's cinematography and the locations are unforgettable, as is the zen-like storyline that keeps repeating itself through various incarnations and characters. The neglected allegory concerns the main character, who is an assassin in western clothing, following the cliché of the hit man. After executing the hit (aimed at a very obvious American bad guy - probably the only unsympathetic character in the film - even though played by the always sympathetic Bill Murray), the assassin changes back into his African clothes. A first world/third world parable? Among other things.
In the end, this film tells as much about its audience - if not more - than about the filmmaker and film itself. A few decades ago, when going to the cinema meant a search for originality and new meaning, this film would've easily been looked upon as a tremendous achievement - in an age where formulas and mediocrity are hailed as masterful, "Limits of Control" can appeal only to a tiny minority, which still dares to have an open mind.