1218. Field of Dreams

Field of Dreams
1989
Directed by Phil Alden Robinson

Wow, did I hate this movie. I actually had no idea this movie was a fantasy story, I thought it was going to be some underdog tale about triumphing over the rival team on a field where anything is possible. When I realized what this film was, or more accurately, what it was trying to be, I prepared myself for another grueling experience with Kevin Costner.

Ray Kinsella lives with his wife, Annie, and a daughter, Karin, on a farm in Iowa. Ray is troubled that he never reconciled with his father before his death. Above all, Ray's father loved baseball. One day, when he is walking through a cornfield, he hears a voice whisper "If you build it, he will come" and sees a vision of a baseball diamond in the field with Shoeless Joe Jackson standing on it. Ray thinks if he builds a baseball field, Shoeless Joe Jackson, who his father idolized, will get to play baseball instead. He tells his wife Annie about this, and she's on board, because she is a Good Wife. I would be looking into involuntary commitment, but that's me. Anyway, he keeps following the voice in his head in order to encounter more baseball player ghosts.

Well, it was interesting watching this after Dawson City: Frozen in Time, because I actually knew what they were talking about with Shoeless Joe Jackson. That's the only thing that was mildly engaging about this movie. Even the cast was behaving strangely, like they knew it was silly.

I think this was included on The List for its famous line, but now that I've heard the context of the line, I'm not all that impressed. I was right to put this one off until the end. 

RATING: *----

Interesting Facts:

Final film of Burt Lancaster.

The line "If you build it, he will come" was rated as AFI's #39 movie quote (out of 100). 

The Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees were scheduled to play a game on the movie's baseball field in 2020. But it was cancelled because of COVID-19. 

1217. The Wrestler

The Wrestler
2008
Directed by Darren Aronofsky

Well, here we go with the movies I put off until the very end. I really have no interest in anything to do with sports. Then again, is wrestling really a sport? Since it's all fake, seems like some sort of performance art. Although in my experience, men get really defensive if you question whether their passion is a sport or not. So I'll just call wrestling a sport and leave it at that.

Randy "The Ram" Robinson was a wrestling champion in the 80s, but is now past his prime. Now he just wrestles on weekends and works part time at a supermarket. He meets Cassidy, a stripper who works at the strip club he frequents. He becomes enamored with her (who wouldn't? It's Marisa Tomei), and she convinces him to try to make amends with his estranged daughter. But Randy's heart can no longer take his lifestyle or steroid abuse,  and Randy must make a choice about his future.

Like I said, I don't like sports movies, but the sports scenes in this movie weren't that frequent, and the climax didn't involve The Big Game, where everybody had to come together as a team. It was more a drama about a man out of place in the world, which is a feeling we can all relate to. I mostly am familiar with Mickey Rourke through him being the butt of jokes, but he did a really nice job of portraying Randy and his feelings of being lost. 

Now let's see if I click with the next sports movie half as much.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Nicolas Cage was the studio's choice to play Randy, but Aronfsky fought for Mickey Rourke.

All of the wrestling scenes were filmed at real wrestling events in front of live audiences.

Shooting schedule of only 35 days.

1216. Bus 174

Bus 174
2002
Directed by Jose Padilha and Felipe Lacerda

There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, we are now wading through the murky waters of obscure films that lurk at the end of the List. I remember this from last time, and I am pretty sure I sold my first born to obtain a copy of Too Little, Too Late. I should really check on that. Bus 174 is one of those movies that isn't widely available, but I happened to stumble across a copy online. So I get to celebrate by diving into police corruption in Brazil.

In 2000, Sandro do Nascimento held passengers on a bus hostage for four hours. The event was caught on live television, and the film contains much of this footage. The perpetuator was from a poor background, and  the remainder of the documentary examines what life is truly like in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. 

Well, that was certainly moving, to see a real life hostage situation take place. Thankfully, the body count is low. I wouldn't put it past this List to make us watch a snuff film one of these days. Anyway, I had never heard of this event before, so it was illuminating hearing so many accounts of police brutality.  

We took a short break, but we are back to the emotionally traumatic films. 

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Voted one of the ten best films of the year by New York Times.

Directorial debuts of the directors.

1215. Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels

Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels
1998

Directed by Guy Ritchie

After Time Regained, I thought I deserved something a little bit lighter, so I chose to watch what I think is the last remaining comedy on the List. I enjoyed this one, so it was nice way to say goodbye to laughter.

Long time friends Eddie, Tom, Soap, and Bacon put together £100,000 so that Eddie,  a card sharp, can buy into Hatchet Harry's high stakes poker game. Unfortunately, the game is rigged, and Eddie ends up in massive debt for £500,000. Wanting to keep all their appendages, the group comes up with a plan. Eddie overheard his neighbors planning to rob some local cannabis growers soon. The group decides they will rob the neighbors after they pull off the heist. Naturally, things don't go according to plan.

There were actually a lot of players to keep track of here, which was confusing at first, but ultimately rewarding. I really liked this movie. I thought the cast had great chemistry. All of the relationships were believable, and my crush on Jason Statham has not wavered. The dialogue was funny as well, and I was excited that it took place in London, a city I miss very much.

An unusual take on heist movie, and I definitely enjoyed it more than I thought I would. 

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Statham's film debut.

The word "fuck" is used 125 times.

Of the 44 speaking parts in the movie, 17 are played by people who have never acted before.

1214. Le temps retrouve

Le temps retrouve

Time Regained
1999

Directed by Raul Ruiz

A little awhile ago, I watched The Captive, which was loosely based on the fifth book in In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. I innocently though "Huh, a Marcel Proust novel would be hard to adapt." Little did I know that we would soon be watching a movie that attempts to cover the entire seven volumes of Proust's novel. Poor Marcel, he has to be the center of attention for nearly three hours.

This is a difficult film to summarize, but to put it succinctly, Marcel reminisces about all the strange characters he has met over the years, with the most prominent figures being Albertine and Gilberte. Marcel is a fairly awkward guy who doesn't seem to belong to the wartime era. His inability to get what he wants out of relationships dominates the story. 

Well, I said "poor Marcel" but perhaps I should have said poor us, for having to endure this movie. I just don't think this masterpiece translates to film well, and we should all just leave it alone as a novel. The transitions, the quirky characters, the music of the language: none of these things worked as well as they did in the book. Instead, it was mostly a long plodding trek from one memory to the next, with Marcel barely participating. 

I respect what the filmmakers were trying to do, but I think the vision was just too big.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Third time that Chiara Mastroianni acted alongside her mother, Catherine Deneuve.

1213. Distant Voices, Still Lives

Distant Voices, Still Lives
1988
Directed by Terence Davies 

As we get closer to the end of the List, the remaining titles tend to fall into two categories. One segment consists of films so obscure, they seemingly only exist on one film roll in Dawson City. The other category contains movies I am putting off because I have absolutely no interest in the subject matter (stay tuned!). This film falls into the former category, but I happened to stumble upon an online version. It reminded me that obscure movies are usually that way for a reason.

The movie focuses on a suburban working class family in 1940s Liverpool. It doesn't follow a plot so much as it flutters from memory to memory. The three siblings, Maisie, Tony, and Eileen, all experience abuse at the hands of their father, but they have different recollections of certain events. It's also not a musical per se, but music is a constant presence in the story, and seems to be the only source of a joy for a few of the characters.

This was a very odd movie that didn't quite settle with me. It felt very artificial to me, which is strange, because the movie was semi-autobiographical so you would think it would feel very real. I guess the style was so strange that it prohibited the actors from doing anything that felt authentic.

A non-musical musical I could have lived without.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Pete Poslethwaite didn't believe Terence Davies' father (on whom his character was based) could have been so vile to his family. Davies finally asked his sister to tell him about being beaten in the cellar by their father (as shown in the movie) that he accepted it was true. Um fuck you Pete. Why would you presume to know how much of a dick his father was?

The film had a very low budget and was shot intermittently over a period of two years.

1212. Gomorrah

Gomorrah
2008
Directed by Matteo Garrone

When I first started my 1001+ movie journey, I was a cad about town, and wasn't doing the responsible thing, like keeping track of what I had watched, or what I still had to watch. So when I finally sat down and gathered the data, I realized I had one missing movie, and I had no idea what it was. It turned out to be Gomorrah. Sorry Gomorrah. 

Gomorrah focuses on the Scampia feud, which was a feud between the Camorra gangs in Naples. The fight was between the Di Lauro clan, and a group of secessionists who tried to overthrow them in the drugs and prostitution racket. The movie opens with the murder of gangsters in a tanning salon, and then sections off to tell the story of five people affected by the violence of the gang war.

This film felt so episodic that I am not surprised it spawned a television spin off six years later. Obviously, they picked a fascinating subject and it took some balls for Robert Saviano to write the novel this film was based on.

Like most movies that choose to segment themselves in this way, it had its stronger sections, and it's not so strong sections. My favorite story was the Roberto storyline, with my least favorite being the one pictured above. My reasoning is probably fairly obvious.

It was interesting watching a movie about the Italian mob that didn't involve Martin Scorsese or Al Pacino. Sorry again Gomorrah for forgetting about you.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Saviano is under permanent police protection after getting death threats for exposing the activities of the Camorra.

Because the film is spoken in heavy Neapolitan dialogue, the film had to be subtitled for Italians. 

1211. Diva

Diva
1981
Directed byJean-Jacques Beineix

My surgeon let me know that it is well documented phenomenon that nerve pain gets worse at night, although nobody knows why. So I try to take advantage of my non night pain time, and then when the Night Hurts arrive, I'll distract myself with a movie. This time the distraction movie was Diva, which I knew just from looking at the poster was going to be a cult classic. 

A young Parisian postman is obsessed with the opera. In particular, an opera singer named Cynthia Hawkins, an American soprano who has never allowed her voice to be recorded. Jules attends one of her recitals and surreptitiously makes a recording, and steals a gown from her dressing room. Some fan. Meanwhile, Jules also becomes involved in a prostitution and drug racket, after a desperate woman drops a damning cassette in his postbag moments before she is murdered. 

Most of the movies that were added/cut from my edition of the List are from the 2010s era, so it's interesting to go back a little further. I'm old movie starved, and I guess we are getting to the point where the 80s are considered really old. Or, at least, I must pretend they are to keep up my guise of youth.

I really enjoyed this movie, I thought the plot was exciting and the characters were intriguing. The idea of an opera singer who can't stand to hear herself sing sounds like a writing prompt, and I was just as fascinated by her as Jules was. I wouldn't steal her gown though.

It was also nice to see a French movie with a bit more color.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Wilhelmenia Fernandez did her own singing for the film.

Based on a book by Delacorta. 

1210. United 93

United 93
2006
Directed by Paul Greengrass

I was dreading watching this movie, for obvious reasons. But we are nearing the end of the List, and that means doing things you don't want to do, like watching your 74th Scorsese film, 3rd Toy Story sequel, or an upsetting deep dive into the events of 9/11. 

The film shows us the hijacking of United 93, pretty much in real time, right to the bitter end. It's incredible how brave the passengers were in that situation. They were able to get over paralysis and denial, and actually revolt. I was shocked by how little the people on ground were able to do in the situation. I don't know what I imagined they did, but I thought it was more than what was shown. 

The actors did a great job of portraying the kind of terror those people must have been in that day. Just thinking about it breaks my heart, so I'll move on from this entry quickly.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

Families of the 40 passengers and crew members killed on United 93 cooperated with production, which gave Paul Greengrass details to use about the passengers, such as the clothing they wore, or the snacks they brought.

The flight crew is played by real pilots and flight attendants.

The actors who played the hijackers and the actors who played the passengers were kept in separate hotels during filming.

1209. Hana-bi

Hana-bi
Fireworks
1997
Directed by Takeshi Kitano

I think we are all familiar with the retired police cop trope, when the former detective has some dark past but can't give up the job. I was ready to settle into a comfortably cliche movie, but it actually took a very unexpected turn.

Yoshitaka Nishi was a police detective, until a violent workplace incident forced him to retire. Now he spends most of his time taking care of his wife, who is dying from leukemia. Nishi had to borrow money from the yakuza to pay for his wife's care, and is now having trouble coming up with the cash to pay them back. Meanwhile, the other survivor of the grisly incident copes with his own health troubles/PTSD as well.

Like I said, this film did some unexpected things. Amidst all the violence, and there was quite a bit of it, the movie managed to sneak in some really serene moments. I enjoyed the juxtaposition between peace and bloodshed, and the ending really captured that dichotomy perfectly.

A surprisingly beautiful film, and I'm starting to enjoy these movies more as we get closer to the end. 

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

The first Japanese film released in Korea since World War II. 

Remade in Canada in 2009.

1208. Todo sobre mi madre

Todo sobre mi madre
All About My Mother
1999
Directed by Pedro Almodovar

It's a shame that so many Pedro Almodovar movies have been cut from the List. I am really enjoying him as a director. I felt like he had a bigger vision for this film, even though it came before Volver. 

Manuela is an Argentine nurse living in Madrid. She oversees donor organ transplants at a hospital, and is a single mother to Esteban, a teenaged boy who loves "A Streetcar Named Desire" a little too much. After a life changing night, Manuela travels to Barcelona where she reconnects with old friends and meets some unforgettable new faces as well. 

Apologies for another vague description, but Almodovar tends to immediately throw the viewer into the action, which makes spoilers tough to avoid. I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as Volver, which I felt had more vibrant characters. But once again, Penelope Cruz left a strong impression and it was clear she has star quality.

All of the actresses involved gave great performances and it's nice to see more female-centric stories on the List.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

The movie is dedicated to Bette Davis, Gena Rowlands, and Romy Schneider.

All of the authors mentioned in the movie are famously gay writers.

1207. Volver

Volver
2006
Directed by Pedro Almodovar

I realized that there are two Pedro Almodovar movies left on the List and decided to knock them all both at the same time. My first watch was Volver, and while I didn't love every moment of it, I thought it featured great performances and a fascinating story.

Raimunda and Sole are two sisters living in Madrid whose parents died in a fire a few years before. It's a bit hard to reveal any more plot details without giving away spoilers. Suffice to say, Raimunda will do anything to protect her daughter, and Sole returns home for a funeral and starts to see visions of her mother. 

I always love generational stories, where there isn't necessarily a protagonist. In these stories, a character's position in the family is often more important than who they are as an individual (which is a very unAmerican idea and is interesting to observe as an outsider). I was shocked by some of the twists in the plot and Penelope Cruz is always enchanting.

I think this movie brought some much needed color to this List, and I'm looking forward to watching the other Almodovar movie.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Cruz is the first Spanish actress to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar. 

Cruz is dubbed for the singing scene.

1206. Cache

Cache
Hidden
2005
Directed by Michael Haneke

This is the last Michael Haneke on the List, and probably his most accessible movie. I think I accidentally started with his hardest works. I also think there are more men named Michael on this List than there are women present. 

Anne and Georges Laurent, an affluent married couple, discover a videotape left on their property that shows hours of footage of their residence. At first they believe it is a practical joke, possibly involving their young son Pierrot. But then a second tape arrives, this time with a childlike drawing that would make me immediately pee my pants. Georges has a theory about who might be behind it all, but he's not willing to share his hunch with Anne, causing further strain in an already tense situation. 

I always avoid spoilers, but I don't mind saying the ending is ambiguous, which I really liked. I think there's an answer in there if you can find it, but if you're left as mystified as the characters, that's not such a bad thing either. I thought Georges was a fairly fascinating character. It was interesting watching when he was obstinate and when he crumbled.

I very much prefer this to White Ribbon, and I think Haneke would be disappointed in me for that.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

There is no music, except for the theme on George's show and the background music at Anne's publishing party.

Included in Roger Ebert's Great Movies List.

1205. Entre les murs

Entre les murs
The Class
2008
Directed by Laurent Cantet

Thank heavens there are people in the world who want to teach teenagers. I really couldn't think of a worse task and would probably be in tears within minutes of taking a stab at it. I was fully prepared for some sort of Dead Poets Society sentimental movie, where the white teacher would teach inner city kids that rap and Shakespeare aren't so different after all. What we got was a little more interesting. 

Francois Marin teaches mostly foreign born students the French language, and has to deal with the requisite problem children. But Marin himself isn't the saintly fearless teacher that we are often presented with in fiction.

I really enjoyed just listening to the conversations that happened in the classroom. It wasn't some free-wheeling place where everybody is able to express themselves without consequence. It actually reminded me of Philip Roth's The Human Stain a bit, as it examined the outcome of a well-intentioned teacher forgetting their audience for a moment, and having to pay a heavy price.

So an interesting film I was happy the List introduced me to.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

The translation of the French title is "Between the Walls."

The classroom conversations were largely improvised.

1204. Anvil! The Story of Anvil

Anvil! The Story of Anvil
2008
Directed by Sacha Gervasi

I am shocked that I didn't listen to Metal on Metal when I was following the 1001 Album List, as that project was heavily dominated by metal music, much to my chagrin. I guess the 1001 Movie List was eager to fill in that gap. But I would much rather watch a documentary about a metal band than listen to their music. 

Anvil never achieved the same level as success as the bands they headlined with during the Super Rock festival in Japan in 1984, including Scorpions, Whitesnake, and Bon Jovi. The documentary follows their attempts to continue to perform and churn out music, despite their financial difficulties and disagreements between band members. 

I am actually in a bit of a hurry today, so I will just say that I enjoyed this documentary. I don't watch many music documentaries, but I like that the director had a genuine passion for the band he was following. Just don't expect the other Rob Reiner to make an appearance. I was disappointed by that.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Sacha Gervasi was once a roadie for Anvil.

1203. Jo-eun nom nappeun nom isanghan nom

Jo-eun nom nappeun nom isanghan nom
The Good, The Bad, and The Weird
2008
Directed by Kim Jee-woon

I inadvertently seemed to have left all the really sad foreign films for last, so I'm delighted that there is still an action comedy to stumble upon among my remaining titles. I feel like this refreshed me, and now I am ready to go back to watching solemn monks, starving children, or whatever else the List has to throw at me during my home stretch. 

The film takes place in Manchuria on the brink of World War II. Park Chang-yi is the Bad, and enjoys cutting people's fingers off. He is hired to acquire a treasure map of a Japanese man traveling by train. His plan of stealing the map is thwarted by Yoon Tae-goo, the Weird, who gets to the map on the train first. In all the chaos, Park Do-Won, the Good, appears, who wants to claim the bounty on the Bad's head. Enough violence ensues to make Tarantino proud.

Well, a lot of this movie was watching action scenes, and if you're not the type to enjoy that, you might find this film rather dull. The ploy may be thin, but it's also exciting and energetic. I liked the homage to Westerns with a distinctly Eastern twist. 

And the last twenty minutes of the move provides great pay off. 

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Kim Jee-woon refers to this as a "kimchee western," because it's spicy and vibrant, like Korean culture and people.

Most expensive film in Korean history.

1202. Das weiße Band, Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte

Das weiße Band, Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte
The White Ribbon
2009

Directed by Michael Haneke

I didn't realize that we would be diving into Michael Haneke's work to this extent, but I'm glad we are. Even if I haven't always liked the result, he's a director with remarkable range, and each of his movies has been unique from the others. If I wasn't striving for 100% completion of the List, I would only have associated him with Funny Games. What a fool I would have been!

The story is set in Eichwald, a fictional German town that is hovering on the brink of World War I. The town is pretty much ruled by the pastor, the doctor, and the baron, each of whom inflict their own brand of evil on the townspeople. Terrible, unexplained things begin to happen in town. This actually sounds like a summary for the M. Night Shyamalan, but I promise it's better than that.

So of course patriarchal oppression gets me down, but this film goes even deeper than that, to the very heart of how Nazism can take over a group of people. Sort of like that scene in Lord of Rings when the orcs are being born from the mud.

It's definitely my favorite Haneke film so far, although the more I think about Amour, the more I like it.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

More than 7000 children were interviewed during the six month long casting period.

The scenes were altered in post production to be black and white.

1201. Des hommes et des dieux

Des hommes et des dieux
Of Gods and Men
2010

Directed by Xavier Beauvois

It's exciting to be so close to the end of the second part of this journey, with only 32 movies to go. Actually, now that I write that down, it still seems like a lot. Oh well, onward and upward, and this time we are really in for a treat. Personally, I can't think of a subject more fascinating than French monks.

French monks live a peaceful existence in Algeria, providing medical assistance to the community and performing daily rituals where they find their salvation. The threat of an Islamic terrorist group looms in the background, but the monk's leader, Christian, declines protection from the local corrupt civil authority. The monks are divided about whether to stay or go, but they feel a strong moral pull to stay. 

I am not a religious person, and watching these men martyr themselves wasn't fun for me. And some of these scenes really dragged; I don't know many people that could make it through that "monks listening to classical music" scene without twitching. It was also very uncomfortable knowing where the film was going for its entire length.

Another arguably important film that I didn't enjoy at all.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Mostly shot in an abandoned monastery in Morocco. 

Once the screenplay was finished, it was sent to the relatives of the real monks for approval.

1200. Jodaí-e Nadér az Simín

Jodaí-e Nadér az Simín
The Separation
2011
Directed by Asghar Farhadi

1200! Thankfully, we get to celebrate with the best movie I have seen in a long time. I watched this at approximately 3:30 am, because that's when my pain alarm clock woke me up. This proved to be a compelling watch that was able to distract me until pain medication kicked in. 

The movie begins with Simin begging a family court judge for a divorce from Nader, who refuses to let her leave Iran with their eleven-year-old daughter Termeh. Nader doesn't want to leave his father, who is suffering from Alzheimer's, and won't agree to Simin taking Termeh away from him. The court denies her request, and deems the couple's problems unworthy of divorce. At this point, I thought this would be a story about an abusive husband, and a woman trapped in a country where she has very little rights. Instead, the plot shifts when Simin moves back in with her parents. Nader needs somebody to look after his ailing father, and employs Razieh, a deeply religious woman, who thinks washing a old man after he peed his pants is a sin. I suppose I will stop there so as not to provide any spoilers.

I think it is important that not every foreign film you watch be some gruesome tale about the local atrocities that took place there. While those stories are clearly important, they dehumanize the people living in those countries to some extent. We start to feel like they aren't really people, but just a collection of tragedies that we are helpless to fix. We get a plot here that doesn't revolve around war crimes, even if it does showcase some horrors of living in Iran.

I was really into this plot and it almost felt like Rashomon, with every character giving their side of the story and keeping the audience guessing. Highly recommended.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

First Iranian movie to win an Oscar. The news of winning was mentioned only once on Iranian television.

Considered by Roger Ebert to be the best movie of 2011.

1199. Le Havre

Le Havre
2011
Directed by Aki Kaurismaki

I saw somewhere that this film was described as "sunny," so I was excited to watch it. I could use some cheering up lately. Well, it was certainly more upbeat than our tour of human misery has allowed for lately, so I was happy it came along.

Marcel Marx has given up his dreams of becoming an author and is currently living in the port city of Le Havre. He works as a shoeshiner and lives with his wife, Arletty. Arletty starts to get sick (having just watched Amour, I had a really bad feeling about this). At the same time, Marcel comes across an underage illegal immigrant from Africa. Along with his neighbors, Marcel attempts to hide him from the police.

As you can probably surmise from the description, it's heartwarming watching somebody attempting to help a stranger at great risk to himself. We haven't exactly been treated to a lot of heroes lately. My favorite parts were the interactions between Marcel and Idrissa, and I almost wish we had more dialogue between them to sink our teeth into. As is, the movie is fairly enjoyable.

So thank you Le Havre, for bringing a little bit of sunshine to this blog.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Laika the dog also had a role in La Vie de Boheme.

1198. La grande bellezza

La grande bellezza
The Great Beauty
2013

Directed by Paolo Sorrentino

I was intrigued by another Paolo Sorrentino film on this List, The Consequences of Love, but honestly, that movie feels much tamer in comparison to this. It was trying really hard to be something and I'm not quite sure what that is. I really should have been content with the one Sorrentino movie.

Jep Gambardella is a 65 year old journalist and theater critic, who can cut you down and pull off a suit jacket better than anybody else. He is the author of one book that he hates, and can't seem to find it himself to pen another. He mostly drifts through Roman parties with his superficial friends. Life eventually forces him and his friends to stop being so frivolous, but at least human misery is good for writer's block.

I realize that wasn't the best summary, but I had a hard time keeping track of everything going on here. The director seemed more interested in showing off than telling a coherent story. I think I would have been more fascinated by this character in literary format; I couldn't really get a good read of him here.

Not the most memorable films of late, but we've had worse.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

First cut of the movie was 183 minutes.

1197. Saul fia

Saul fia

Son of Saul

2015
Directed by Laszlo Nemes

Good lord, and I thought reading A Day in the Life Ivan Denisovich was depressing. Our quest to find the most joyless films in the world continues with the Son of Saul. I would venture to say this is the saddest movie we have left, but they like to creep up on me. 

Saul Auslander is a Jewish-Hungarian prisoner in Auschwitz. His job is to salvage valuables from those killed in the gas chambers and to prepare the chamber for the next massacre. Saul witnesses the killing of the boy who somehow survived the gas chamber, and wants to give him a proper Jewish burial. I'm not surprised that our recent List movies have taken inspiration from Greek tragedies. Anyway, Saul must search for a rabbi who can perform the proper rituals. Saul also becomes involved with a potential uprising against the SS guards.

Well, a quick gander at that plot summary will tell you how many times you'll be smiling while enduring this movie. It's one of those films that seems important to watch, but might ruin your day if you let it. I have to hand it to the director for his technique while filming this. We stuck by Saul's side for the entire film, which was a cool literary twist on the medium. 

So another really great movie that I wish I hadn't seen.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Laszlo Nemes made a pact with the cinematographer and production designer that the film would not look beautiful or appealing. They also decided the camera must follow Saul the entire runtime. 

Nemes cited Come and See as his inspiration. Well, that figures.

The son of Saul is actually played by twin brothers. 

1196. Jackie

Jackie
2016
Directed by Pablo Larrain

I'm surprised that Natalie Portman didn't win Best Actress for her performance in 2016. I would think portraying Jackie Kennedy would be uniquely challenging, as we have so much footage to compare to Portman's performance. On the other hand, it probably gave Portman plenty to work with while researching the role, making it easier in some ways. She does a fantastic job of inhabiting the role of Jackie, even if I didn't love the movie.

The film focuses on the period immediately after JFK's assassination, when Jackie is coping with her husband's death. As her old life collapses around her, Jackie tries to protect her children and deal with her trauma.

God, being a First Lady would suck. You're just there for the photographs while your husband cheats on you constantly and men tell you what to do all the time. It would have been fascinating if the film went back farther into JFK's presidency, but this movie is about Jackie, so I understand why they chose the timeframe they did. It was moving watching Jackie attempt to make sense of things with the eyes of the world on her.

I actually thought the interview scenes with the journalist seemed out of character for her. She was much harder and more defensive in those scenes. I guess it just shows how the events of her life hardened and changed her. I enjoyed her conversations with the priest the most, when she was at her most vulnerable.

Definitely an Oscar worthy performance, I have words for the Academy clowns regarding this one.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

The only character that doesn't possess a real life counterpart is the priest.

JFK has about one minute and forty seconds of screentime.

1195. Toni Erdmann

Toni Erdmann
2016
Directed by Maren Ade

I have been complaining lately about the lack of comedies on this List. This is considered a comedy/drama, but I just read that the director doesn't think it's a comedy, and that she aimed to make it as sad and serious as possible. So it's a comedy, List stylez.

Ines works as a business consultant in the oil industry, and doesn't have much time for her family or a personal life. I know this sounds like the beginning of a romantic comedy, but it's not. Instead, the movie follows her relationship with her father, who decides to reconnect with her after years of semi-estrangement. After several failed attempts at connecting with Ines, her father decides to present himself as Toni Erdmann, and naturally Ines recognizes him immediately. However, she chooses not to let on, and in the course of doing so starts to let her hair down.

So the comedy here didn't really translate for me. I don't find pranks that amusing and if somebody ever jumped out on me from a closet when I thought I was alone, I would still be in the ICU. But as the director indicated, the comedy isn't really the focus of the movie. Instead, the relationship between Ines and her father takes center stage. It's really interesting watching the ripple effect of their relationship and how it influences other aspects of their lives in very strange ways.

And the naked party was strangely memorable.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

120 hours of footage was shot.

Maren Ade would typically do 20-30 takes of each shot, but sometimes took up to 60 to get it right.

1194. Ali Zaoua

Ali Zaoua
2000
Directed by Nabil Ayouch

This was a difficult film to track down. I was interested in seeing a Moroccan movie, but I knew not to expect a comedy or any kind of light-hearted fare. I was actually quite pleased to see that this film falls under the category of magic realism, which is a genre I love to read. 

At the beginning of the film, it's established that four boys have left a large street gang of children to do their own thing. They are confronted by the gang they abandoned, and unfortunately, nobody breaks into song and dance numbers. Instead, somebody throws a rock and one of the boys, Ali Zaoua, is killed. The other three boys launch an Antigone style crusade to give him a proper funeral.

My favorite parts of this movie were the magic realism bits, when the boys would let their imagination run wild. But for the most part, the pacing was a bit slow, and I don't necessarily think it was worth the trouble to take to find it.

If you ever come across this movie, you might enjoy it. But you probably won't see this pop up on Netflix anytime soon.

 

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

In 1785, Benjamin Franklin was the richest person in the United States. Okay, I know that has nothing to do with this movie, but I couldn't find anything.