Globetrotting Mini-Reviews

Globetrotting Capsule Reviews

(Whoa, looks like we accidentally took a little post-Oscar vacation there. Hope we didn’t lose your attention. We are back with a vengeance and will be bringing our long-lost top 10’s of ‘07 in the next couple of days.

Incidentally, I’d like to put in a strong recommendation for the new Google Reader service – reader.google.com – it organizers every blog and feed you read into a fairly awesome, email-like format. Very convenient and easy to use. Sign up and subscribe to cinemafive.wordpress.com today!)

Today, capsule reviews from around the globe. These could be either still in theaters or on their way to DVD depending on where you are, so keep an eye out. First stop: Taiwan, by way of China by way of the US, or something.  (Reviews by Sean on 3/8/08)

Lust/Caution, directed by Ang Lee, Taiwan, 2007.

Snubbed from the Best Foreign Film category at the Oscars due to an obscure twist in the submission rules, Ang Lee’s masterful Lust/Caution would’ve otherwise been a shoo-in for the gold. Easily the match of Lee’s previous masterpieces Brokeback Mountain and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Lust/Caution created quite a stir after being heavily censored in mainland China. The buzz on the film was so strong that Chinese Lee fans were regularly flying to Hong Kong to see the full version in all its pseudo-pornographic glory. Indeed, the film is probably the most sexually explicit drama I’ve ever seen; however, Lee uses sex to create a sense of desperate, stifling intimacy that’s as offsetting as it is unexpected. Wei Tang plays Wong Chia Chi, a young student swept into a radical anti-government movement. When the group is able to get close to Mr. Yee (Tony Leung Chiu Wai,) a powerful politician, Chi is assigned to seduce Yee until he can be assassinated. As the matter grows more and more complex, Chi is forced to spend years as Yee’s mistress, constantly trying to keep the performance up and avoid love, all while constantly fearing for her own life. Lee’s great skill is using film to say something about love that can’t be put into words; at his best, it is as if he’s composing a visual symphony that taps into something indescribable. The now sadly iconic scene at the end of Brokeback Mountain, where Heath Ledger breaks down while clutching his dead lover’s jacket, achieves this; several key scenes throughout Lust/Caution do as well. Also of note is a fine performance from (Twin Peaks alum!) Joan Chen as Mrs. Yee. Fans of Lee’s previous work certainly should not miss Lust/Caution; I’d go ahead and highly recommend it to anyone else, as well.

Rating: 4 Screens (out of 5)

Next: France, by way of Iran et al…

Persepolis, directed by Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi, France 2007

Even after nearly a century of animation, adults at the multiplex are still usually limited to finding the deeper meaning in Pixar or swallowing their pride and taking in a Japanese import. Persepolis, then, is a breath of fresh air. Drawn in a simple and evocative black and white style, the film tells the life story of Satrapi, growing up in the midst of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Satrapi begins as a precocious child playing revolutionary, and matures as the conflict heightens, witnessing family members executed and homes destroyed before she turns eighteen. An attempt to build a normal life in Europe doesn’t fare much better, and Satrapi returns home to an Iran that hasn’t markedly improved. The film suffers some pacing problems, dragging too long in moments of low drama, but Satrapi (voiced by Chiara Mastroianni) is consistently likable and engaging. It’s not perfect, but it bodes well for the future of animation for grown-ups, and is definitely worth a look.

Rating: 3.5 Screens (out of 5)

And finally: France, by way of, umm, France.

La Vie en Rose, directed by Olivier Dahan, France 2007

It doesn’t matter if it’s Ray Charles, Johnny Cash, or Edith Piaf – long biopics of troubled singers just aren’t that fascinating. The standard ingredients are present in La Vie en Rose – troubled childhood (orphaned, raised in a brothel,) humble beginnings (singing for change on Montmarte streets,) discovery and a big break (a new name and new songs,) and the trappings of fame (a nearly Lohanesque disregard for dignity and a dramatic affair with a pro boxer.) Piaf being some time dead now, La Vie en Rose can at least cobble together an ending, but the makers of this and similar films have yet to notice that there is a marked difference between a dramatic narrative and a life story. While certain segments are captivating and the musical performances convey the allure of Piaf’s songs, the film as a whole can’t come close to garner 140 minutes of your attention. All this makes the performance of Marion Cotillard as Piaf all the more impressive, however. Even without much of a film to rest on, Cotillard is in a league of her own with this performance, depicting Piaf at every stage of her life, from her teens to her death, with an almost transcendent dedication and honesty. La Vie en Rose may well be worth watching just for Cotillard.

Rating: 2.5 Screens (out of 5)