Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Monday, November 25, 2013

Battleship Potemkin - Eisenstein (1925)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TgWoSHUn8c

When I was 17 years old, I sat in Facets Multimedia waiting for Seven Samurai to begin.

A very pretty girl walked in and sat down in the row in front of mine. She seemed to be with her mom and another girl.  She looked a bit like the actress Diane Baker.


I was younger, skinny as hell, damn good looking.  Like a young Sal Mineo.


We kept looking at each other.  We made eye contact, she smiled.  She and her friend then looked at a schedule for movies at another 'art film' theater and the girl who looked like Diane Baker said to her friend: "I've never seen the Battleship Potemkin. Let's go there this Wednesday night!" She then turned her head and looked at me.  We made eye contact again. It was a date.

So I thought.

Yes, dear internet voyeur, I went to that venue to see The Battleship Potemkin....but the girl who looked like Diane Baker did not show up.

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!  I grieve to this day.

So I sat there and watched The Battleship Potemkin, which I had seen 16 times on WTTW Channel 11.

Was she evil or did fate intervene?  I will never know.

The General - Buster Keaton (1926)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncapCvkPgVw

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Marat/Sade : Directed by Peter Brook (1967) Written by Peter Weiss


Of all the movies I went to see at the Parkway, this was my favorite.

It is based on a play by Peter Weiss - a German/Swiss writer and artist.

In the play, the Marquis de Sade is in an insane asylum and he writes a play about the assassination of Jean Paul Marat.  The play thus gives Sade an opportunity to present a type of philosophical dialogue between himself and the murdered Marat.

You watch the movie as if you are in the audience of the insane asylum watching the play.

Basically the dialogue concerns whether it is meaningful to take social action to change things that are wrong (among other topics).  de Sade represents a type of hedonism or even pessimistic defeatism (as if there is no such thing as 'social perfection') and Marat a type of idealistic social activism. 

It's a complex play - I am not sure I like everything about Brook's directing.  The movie/acting can seem a bit melodramatic.  I loved the music when I was younger. Overall it's worth watching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJc4I6pivqg

Brother Sun, Sister Moon: Directed by Franco Zeffirelli (1972)


The movie Nazarin made me think of another famous film about a person who really tried to live the life of a 'real' Christian.  In the late 60s and early 70s there was a lot of interest in Jesus because the hippies claimed Jesus as one of their own.  They basically said, "How can you condemn us when we're basically living like Jesus?"  (I think they took lots of drugs though - not sure Jesus was into that :P So they were like Jesus but minus the drugs and sex.)

So there was lots of Jesus stuff in the late 60s and 70s.  You had, for instance, the Broadway musical 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and also the musical 'Godspell.'

Francis of Assisi is often considered one of the holiest or purest of Catholic saints - who seemed to try to emulate the life of Jesus.  He dedicated his life to poverty and lived simply and tried to show kindness to others. He was around in the 1200s and some say he 'saved' the Catholic Church, at that time.  During that period the Church was very corrupt and Francis showed that true Christianity was still possible within the Church.

This movie by Zeffirelli shows the struggles of Francis to be accepted by the church, and at the end (maybe the best part of the film) Zeffirelli seems to imply the church only accepted Francis for 'political' reasons. While Francis became the outward 'face' of the church, and demonstrated Christian values, the power mongers and money guys who really ran the church were able to continue their nefarious business trends. Francis basically became a 'front' for the Catholic Church.

The current Pope is calling himself 'Pope Francis the First' and he is acting as if he is 'the people's pope.'  Yet, it seems that he had a position of responsibility in the Argentinean Catholic Church during the period of time that the military junta there was killing thousands of students and protesters (the late 70s and early 80s).  At that time, Jorge Mario Bergoglio (aka Pope Francis) did not utter one word in protest and seemed to be friends with some of the military dictators who were killing people.  So maybe he has changed or maybe he is a good actor - who knows...who am I to judge? :P

In any case, here's the famous movie Brother Sun, Sister Moon.  There is only one version on youtube - it is in English but it has Spanish subtitles.  Francis of Assisi is the favorite saint in Spanish-speaking Latin American countries because he cared about the poor. That's why the current pope chose the name.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUHrkV7L4R0

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Nazarin by Luis Bunuel (1959)


This is an amazing film by Luis Bunuel.  It is not as well known as his surrealist films, but this has always been my favorite Bunuel film.  It is about a simple priest in a small Mexican village who truly tries to live the life of a Christian - and he experiences the consequences.  A good example of what Dietrich Bonhoeffer called "expensive" as opposed to "cheap" grace.

Unfortunately, there is not just one file for this film on youtube.  You'll have to watch it in 8 or 10 minute chunks, but it is worth it.  You will not forget this film.  The ending is quite thought-provoking.  Why does he initially refuse to receive the act of charity? Why does he ultimately accept the gift?

Please enjoy Nazarin by Bunuel




Raise the Red Lantern, Chinese film directed by Zhang Yimou, Starring Gong Li (1991)



"Educated women are different..." is the initial observation made by "The Master" when Songlian enters his household as the 4th concubine/mistress/wife.  

Songlian takes this action after her father's death, which forces her to abandon her university studies.  The movie is about Songlian's adaptation to the household and the extent to which she gets drawn into the various types of pettiness and malice that pervade the 'concubine' system.  At times she seems totally immersed and embedded in the system, at times she seems to question it, but, she also realizes that she can never leave it. An amazing and very emotional film. 

Please enjoy Raise the Red Lantern!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUZvjPDD4vE

Tokyo Story, Directed By Yasujiro Ozu (1953)


This film is regularly selected as one of the greatest movies ever made.

Ozu was an amazing Japanese director.  His films rarely have overt conflict or violence - they are often very sweet, insightful films filled with interesting characters.

The plot of this film is very simple.  A Japanese mom and dad decide to visit their children in Tokyo to see how they are doing.  The children all have jobs and families and are quite busy, so they cannot spend much time with their parents.  Ironically, the only person who takes a day off from work is their daughter-in-law - the wife of the couple's son (who died in the war).  She becomes a type of hero in this film as she shows an unusual depth of kindness and warmth toward the parents - to whom she is no longer even related.

Lovers of film and film history - as a matter of fact everyone - should see this film.  It's consistently ranked as one of the best ever for a reason. Ozu was a master of subtle but meaningful character development.

Please enjoy Tokyo Story.  This version has English subtitles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLTjojvakf4

Maundy Thursday - Amazing Korean Film, Directed by Song Hae-Sung, Starring Lee Nah Young (2006)


Maundy Thursday is the Thursday before Good Friday (on the Christian calendar).  This film is also called: Our Happy Times.

Lee Nah Young (a beautiful Korean actress) plays an art professor who, as a favor to her Aunt (who is a nun who works with prison inmates), visits a lonely inmate at a prison who has been condemned to death for raping and murdering a woman.  As she continues visiting him, she learns of his life story of economic deprivation, violence and cruelty.  She also learns that he is not completely guilty of the crimes he has been accused of.

An emotional relationship develops between the condemned man and the professor which invites the professor to revisit painful moments in her own life and challenges her to grow.

This is an amazingly beautiful and humane film - one of my favorite films ever.

Please enjoy Maundy Thursday.  Thankfully someone posted this on youtube, but you'll have to watch it in 10 minute chunks.  It's worth it, though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfa41CWhdck&list=PL0DAE6059903CD81B

Le Roi de Coeur (The King of Hearts) Directed by Philippe de Broca, starring Alan Bates (1966)


If there were a list of 'the coolest' films ever made, this would be toward the top.  Phil Jackson, ex-coach of the Chicago Bulls, once showed this 1966 film to the Bulls to inspire them for a game (but I'm not sure how this was supposed to inspire them - I think Jackson just liked this movie and wanted to share it).

Basically it's an 'anti-war' film and much more.  Before leaving a French town (toward the end of WW I) a German General maliciously plants a giant bomb in the town square which is supposed to destroy the town and the English soldiers coming in to occupy the town.  A Frenchman learns of this and contacts the English. He informs them of the bomb, but cannot determine where the bomb is located.



Private Plumpick (played by Alan Bates) is chosen to go into the town and diffuse the bomb.  In the town he finds that there are still people there - inmates from an insane asylum have left their facility and have, in fact, occupied the town. They have shed their asylum clothing and are now dressed as the various town leaders. Plumpick becomes the King of their community as he desperately tries to determine where the bomb has been placed.

Everybody who has seen this film has fallen in love with this film.

Please enjoy it!  I think you have to click on 'closed caption' to turn on the English subtitles for this French film.  Click on the cc box under the movie screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGEqDF6ZMyY

"M" Directed by Fritz Lang, Starring Peter Lorre (1931)


In this amazing film from 1931, a German city hunts down a serial child murderer.

But this is more than a crime/suspense film. Indeed, to some extent, it reminds me of Tolstoy's novel "Resurrection."  The theme of that novel is that we are all, basically, criminals and that we do not have the moral right to judge other criminals.  If judgement occurs, it is for practical and economic reasons, not moral reasons.


In this film we see that, basically, lower-level criminals are the prime 'hunters' of this child murderer.  They hunt this murderer down not because they are appalled by the murders, but because their underground illegal economy is being harmed by the murders.  The police are everywhere and it is impossible for this informal syndicate of criminals to function while the murderer is loose.


At the end of the film the syndicate captures the murderer and puts him on trial.  So you literally have criminals judging a criminal.  (Actually this scene of criminals judging another criminal reminded me a lot of the Illinois Legislature judging Governor Rod Blagojevich a few years ago :P).


We also have the impassioned monologue by the child murderer who claims that he is helpless against the inner demons that drive him.  This is an amazing job of acting by Peter Lorre.


Fritz Lang created some masterpieces while in Germany - Dr. Mabuse, Metropolis, M...


He fled Nazi Germany when he was approached by Josef Goebbels about possibly doing propaganda films for the Nazis.  The story goes that immediately after Goebbels spoke to him he got on a plane and escaped to England.  In Hollywood Lang helped develop film noir.


Kudos must go to Thea von Harbou for writing this amazing screenplay. She has never received full credit for the great and thoughtful work she did. 

Please enjoy "M"






http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM0w1dTNAH0