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Knowing (2009)
A rewrite of Arthur C. Clarke's novel
SPOILERS HERE - In very many ways this is a rewrite of "Childhood's End." If you're familiar with the novel, the aliens in the movie are the Overlords, who, as caretakers of a dying Earth, await the final moments of the planet's existence to take the world's children to another place. It is not Eden (definitely not Clarke's intent). And, similar to "2001: A Space Odyssey," also based on Clarke's writings, the children are prepared to master a new home, one they will be able to understand and prosper in. The film can be interpreted in many ways--one of its great strengths--and though wings can be imagined by the wispiness of the aura surrounding the aliens, these individuals are but representatives of a culture intent on, if you will, protecting life and intelligences. That the children are willing to go--and Dad senses the deeper meanings of all of it--points to a pervasive, yet silent communication to humans (or many of them) by the Overlords. Remember, too, that people in many parts of the world were, in one way or another, preparing for the space ships; many of them left Earth at the same time. The non-Eden place featured alien plants, and a tree with nary an apple. The bunnies gave comfort to the children, and, symbolically, pointed to a rapid and gentle population soon to appear. A superb film.
Lady in the Water (2006)
I think most are missing the concept.
(///Spoilers follow.///) This is the story of, well, story. Not Story, the female character in the film, but all the surrounding ideas of --story--, the stories we heard as children, especially. It is an allegory, not to be taken literally. It represents how stories form places of comfort when we really need them; bedtime, adulthood, when challenged by life and its apparent unfairness.
Paul Giametti is the child we all were, once upon a time. His character's name is Cleveland Heep. (Cleveland means a place of high cliffs or precipices (the apartment complex here)...and Heep refers to Uriah Heep from Dickens' David Copperfield. Uriah, early in Dickens' tale, was one who did anything for anyone, a servant, a toady, a shy yet hurt man with something very sad in his past.) Briefly: Cleveland Heep is a servant of sorts, a maintenance man. He is burdened by the loss of his family and his inability to express grief. The power of the memories of a story that he once knew (that we all once knew in one form or another), brought back to mind by the allegorical insights and help of those near him, allows him to reassemble the power stories can have. Thus Cleveland is able to release his guilt, his overwhelming sadness, his sense of loss...and regain personal comfort, happiness, thankfulness and a sense of purpose.
The two key scenes in the film are when Story find Cleveland's diary, and then when he reclines on the couch -- lowering himself ever so slowly as he returns to the shelter of a "remembered" warm bed to hear his "remembered' story once again.
The other characters in the film represent the elements of the story he (we) knew/know. Scary monsters, happy friends, grownups we can't understand, grownups we love, silly situations, jokes we don't get as kids, jokes we still don't comprehend, dialog that sounds like code...and the try-and-try-again effort story characters go through to reach a happy ending.
This is a powerful and essential film, the best yet from this writer/director. It points directly to Cleveland Heep's personal demons (and ours), and how --story-- can help lift the weights age and self doubt bring to every person.
The Village (2004)
Does almost everyone miss the point?
It seems that most reviewers (the press and we amateurs) miss the sub-text of this worthwhile and engrossing film. (Spoilers coming): This -is- a monster movie. The monsters in question are the "Elders" of the Village, prohibiting the residents their freedom and an understanding of the world they actually inhabit. All of the people who live in the Village, save those controlling Elders, believe they are living in a world threatened by horrid forest-monsters, but it is the human monsters that actually threaten and control them. The Elders have kept everyone blind to the reality of life as it exists outside of the fence that corrals them in a Nature Preserve. That a blind girl has to venture to that world in order to get medicines only guarantees that the truth will never be revealed. She could not see the truth -- she can not reveal the truth. The Village is an allegory, a fantasy, a comment on control. Are we, as an audience, similarly controlled (by political and entertainment "Elders") so much that we can not see the full story in this movie? "The Village" deserves a cautious and careful re-viewing.
Road to Perdition (2002)
Moody, pensive -- a quietly powerful story of family
Here is a Depression Era gangster movie with all stops out. It captures the time, the mood and the power of the lords of liquor and guns of those days, and adds a powerful story of many "family" situations on top. Very strong performances by everyone.
The Mole People (1956)
A hit in Suffern, New York!
This film played on a double-bill with "Curucu: Beast Of The Amazon," during the summer of 1956. I was an usher at the time, and, along with a friend (Leo Tonkin), used to memorize movie dialog during the week or two that a film was presented at the theatre. In the case of "The Mole People," we had more fun lip-synching the actor's lines from the back of the house.
This is not a really bad movie, simply a low-budget film representative of the time...and it was fun to see for a teenager. On seeing it recently (on American Movie Classics TV), I was almost amazed at how banal were the text and the acting. I guess you had to be there in 1956 to appreciate this one. Nonetheless, if you get a chance to see it, do so -- it shows how both story and presentation have developed little in the intervening years.
What we've gained is the power of convincing special effects...not improved stories.
Timescape (1991)
One of the great "lost" films
No one I know, outside my family of 4, has ever heard of this film; what a tremendous loss that is to science fiction, ideas, thoughtful and intelligent stories, and old-fashioned entertainment. The film is based on a fine old short-story, "Vintage Season," which, like the movie, is probably not reprinted in any current anthology. I am happy to have the tale in print, and happy to own a copy of this well made film created from it (I taped it 2 or 3 years ago from, I believe, HBO). Search this one out--perhaps it'll be on one of the premium cable channels again one day?--and enjoy clever, witty, and surprisingly memorable movie-making. You'll ponder the end of this one for weeks, guaranteed.
Shirley Valentine (1989)
Funny, surprisingly charming British comedy....
This delightful film is a warmhearted look at a 42 year old woman's escape to her always-young inner self. When Shirley Valentine decides its time to leave the dull routine of her lackluster home, and her domineering (yet morose) husband whose sharp edges and coarse routines keep her locked in boredom, she finds that she's quite the interesting and free spirited "young" woman. At times hilarious, the film comes from the same folks who produced "Educating Rita." Recommended.