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8 1/2 |
Have you seen the terrific trailer for Nine, the forthcoming movie musical from the director of Chicago? That new film adapts the 80s stage musical of the same name, which in turn was inspired by this Italian masterpiece from 1963, directed by Federico Fellini. Longtime collaborator Marcello Mastroianni plays a director (based on Fellini himself) facing a creative block, romantic angst and a midlife crisis as he sets out to make his latest film. When critics describe something as 'Felliniesque,' they're basically talking about this part of his career: the freewheeling, carnival-like atmosphere in which reality merges with dreams and fantasies. It's not necessarily an easy film to watch, but it's also admittedly brilliant and absolutely like nothing else. |
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The Class, a gripping look at an ethnically diverse middle school classroom in Paris, won the 2008 Palme d'Or and was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Language film category. The subject has been tackled before, but you would be hard-pressed to find anything as good as Laurent has done here. Francoise Begaudeau stars as teacher Mr. Marin in a role he has played before, since it is his real life teaching experiences that are fictionalized in the film. The challenging and spirited students in his classroom are played by non-professional actors, and many of the scenes were improvised. Mr. Marin is no hero; he is a motivated but frustrated teacher who makes both inroads and mistakes with his students, who challenge his every move. During a grammar lesson, students raise a question about whether learning an antiquated way of speaking and writing is even useful; it's a good question, and Mr. Marin lacks a convincing answer. The classroom and the actors are authentic, and the documentary-style cinematography adds to that feeling. The Class is rife with conflict and doesn't offer easy answers. It's an exhausting, candid, and brilliant portrait. | |
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Professional hit man Leon (Jean Reno), also known as a "cleaner," likes to fly under the radar. He lives alone, does jobs for the local Mafioso and keeps to himself. But he hasn't gone unnoticed by his 12-year-old neighbor, Mathilda (Natalie Portman). When crazed, pill-popping, DEA agent Stansfield (Gary Oldman) takes out her family, including her little brother, Mathilda seeks refuge with Leon. She's been watching him, and knows that there's more to this quiet man than meets the eye. Leon reluctantly takes young Mathilda under his wing, and soon she is begging to be trained in the art of "cleaning" in order to avenge her brother. As Leon teaches Mathilda how to take care of herself and tries to keep her safe, he begins to learn something about himself and his nature. Luc Besson's The Professional is a step above an ordinary action film. Besson balances terrific action scenes with the unlikely relationship between two people who discover they are not alone. | |
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Walter Vale, a humorless, listless and widowed economics professor, sleepwalks through his days until reluctantly agreeing to present a paper at a New York City conference. When he arrives, he finds his apartment occupied by a young couple, Tarek and Zainab, who rented the apartment from a con-man. Walter allows the couple to stay while they find a new place to reside, and a friendship between the two men blooms when Tarek offers to teach Walter to play the drum. Walter undergoes an understated but profound change; he seems to have relocated his sense of joy. When Tarek is arrested and facing deportation, his distressed mother shows up at Walter's apartment. As they each cope with the situation privately and together, a precarious web of human connectedness is revealed. The acting in the film is noteworthy; Richard Jenkins, restrained and genuine, is particularly outstanding, fully deserving of his Oscar nomination. |