Wednesday, July 30, 2014

`Blue - Season 2, Episode 3, Parts 1-5



Make Yourself at Home

"He said you're better than 10 sets of regular parents. And then he had to stop, because he said he was starting to sound like that other asshole, like that other guy." 


Old Habits Die Hard

"For a changed man, you haven't changed much." "You have no idea what this is about." 


Doubling the Equation

The dialogue is simply a delay tactic, but it builds the romantic tension between Josh and Francesca.


Are You Clean?

"Go wash your hands, and put the towel in the trash can." So goes an intense, frightening, and surreal bout with a sociopathic client.  


In the Running

"Apparently being assertive burns calories." So perhaps for Blue, not being so assertive - that is, being reserved - is a matter of conserving energy. 

Monday, July 28, 2014

`Blue - Season 2, Episode 2, Parts 1-5



Glue and Lubricant

"Men only have two channels: Find it, eat it.  And find it, fuck it.  Women are more complex... Women keep it together, and keep it going." 


Wow, Wow, Wow

"She gets her strength from you, you know." "You're a very special person." "What, me?" "You're a real friend." ("Dumbass.")


On my Own

"It's subtle. Everyone thinks he's cool, humble, big humble jock, star.  But it's bullshit.  And he's vain... and the worse part, he's got everyone fooled into thinking so, too.  He's a prick, and a crybaby." 



The Truth Hurts

"You're a recovering alcoholic, and you're married to a bartender. That is so fucked up." "Yes, doctor."



A Man's Permission

"Blue, if it turns out that the man is the father, and he finds out about it, he'll have to be reckoned with. When it comes to their children, anyone is capable of anything."

Friday, July 25, 2014

`Blue - Season 2, Episode 1, Parts 1-5



See and Be Seen

"I see my friends with their husbands. I don't want to do that, I don't want to be a caretaker.  Most men suck the life's blood out of a woman. It is the cheapest, most available fuel."


What Kind of a Name is Blue?

"Do you have any idea, how painful it was for Harry to have to hear that he came from bad sperm. Who says that, who talks like that? Who raises a child like that?"


It's Just a Crutch

"You talk about how you feel... You talk about that boy, why he upsets you so much... The whole therapy thing is so self-indulgent."


Everything is a Test

"I needed to pay my debts to Vera. So, yes, from that point of view, I wanted you to leave. Later I realized how much I wanted you to stay."


How Do You Do?

"Francesca is a pretty name." "Oh, shut up."  

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

`Blue - Season 1, Episode 2, Parts 1-6



Paying for Sex

Josh is a smart but geeky young man: "You got anything else going on, or you're just a brainiac?" "Well, I design and build my own kites." 



A Decent Girl

"You're a natural at making people feel good. You're not condescending or aloof, you're not threatening. You're warm, appealing, approachable. Just a regular girl."



That's my Drug

"You know that look on men's faces, when you undress... like they're floating on air... Walter looks at me like that. That look is my drug." 



Star Student

"He's also very charismatic, and a good reader of people.  It's a powerful combination for such a young person."


You Lie To Me, Too

"Josh, how would you describe me as a Mom?" "What?" "Be specific." "What kind of Mom do you think you are?"


Give an Old Man a Break

A dramatic, mysterious turn to end Season 1: "Is that boy my son, Blue?" "No." "Don't lie to me. I never lied to you."

Monday, July 21, 2014

`Blue - Season 1, Episode 1, Parts 1-6



Mom

Off the bat family life intrudes into the "office" for Blue, and the past crashes the party for her and a former classmate.  Nice volley between them.  


Son

The theme of Blue's work - sex - comes home with her, as she and her son carry the volley in a more personal vein.


You Rule

Sex morphs further into matters of gender equality, personal teasing ("Lavagina"), and family struggles. Tensions amp readily, even between friends.


Long Day, Blue?

"Hear that band? They're gonna set this house on fiyyyah!" "Ooh, looking good, grandma!" "That boy is gold. He's the best thing that's happened to you."


You're Good

"Sometimes I think about you. Not about little antics here, but about what your life must be like out there. I have theories. You want to hear them?" "Sure."


Jack, the Ripper

"Did he call you?" "No, I found him on Facebook." "We have a deal." "Which one?" "You know goddamn well which one." "Look, was it a deal or a rule?"

I am writing a play, and I am simply building more of an ear for character development, plot development, and dialogue construction.  Writer and Director Rodrigo Garcia is superb on all counts.  

More to come, next.

Friday, July 11, 2014

Weighing in on `Monster's Ball




`Monster's Ball tells the tale, in part, of three generations of Grotowski men (played by superb actors) - Buck (Peter Boyle), Hank (Billy Bob Thornton) and Sonny (Heath Ledger) - each of whom had stints as Corrections Officer at the Georgia State Prison.  


Racism courses through their blood, and their demeanor is rough around the collar.  In light of racist and bullying scandals in sports over the past several months - surrounding Donald Sterling, PK Subban, and Richie Incognito - I cringe to hear inflammatory remarks in the script, especially from Buck, and outright discrimination against two Black boys and their father.  In any event, Sonny is the least like the elder Grotowskis, and his more tolerant disposition and his violent suicide unhinge their racism.


Sean Combs, as Lawrence Musgrove, is sentenced to death, making `Monster's Ball the second film I've seen in recent weeks to portray capital punishment.  `The Life of David Gale is the other.  Some people decry brutal stoning in the Middle East, and overlook the barbarism of putting anyone to death here in the US.  Personally I do not agree with capital punishment, and in fact with any form of killing: from murder and self defense, to suicide and euthanasia, to war and terrorism.  It simply is not in our purview to take our own and each other's life: That is only God's.  The fact that we can, admittedly, does not mean we ought to.


Halle Berry is truly a fine actress, but my wife and I wonder how she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for this role.  At times her performance as Leticia Musgrove seemed stilted, even overly dramatized.  Apparently her hot and heavy, extended sex scene with Thornton cinched it for her.  Eroticism aside, I do agree that this scene was her best effort in an otherwise mediocre acting.

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Creative Threads Woven into `Gone Girl



I'm intrigued by the creative person and process behind the blockbuster novel "Gone Girl"... 


Gillian Flynn so immersed herself into her characters, that she wasn't quite sure what was going to happen...


"I have a soft spot for losers, and dopes, and people who do the wrong thing... They're fun people to write."

(image credit)
Flynn was also inspired by this dark, brutal novel. Legendary Clint Eastwood directed the 2003 film. 

Gillian Flynn and Reese Witherspoon
Reese Witherspoon was so taken by "Gone Girl," that she bought the rights and is co-producing the film.


David Fincher directed many films I love, including this one. He directs the upcoming "Gone Girl," too.

Monday, July 7, 2014

Enthralling Piano Duet from `Stoker



A conversation on a most enthralling piece (Duet, by Philip Glass) in a most enthralling film (`Stoker):
My favorite scene from the movie. And not to mention one of the best and tastefully done "sex" scenes ever. And yet, it's so wrong.
How is it sexual?
if you notice, when the scene begins, she's fantasizing about her uncle. This movie is basically about her coming of age. The piano duet represents intimacy between the two of them. The piano is her domain, but then he joins her. Notice how close their fingers become as they share the keys on the piano for the first time. When he crosses over from bass clef to treble clef (and has to basically wrap his arm around India) it's very arousing to her. Notice the way she crosses her legs tighter and tighter beneath the piano. At the end, it's as if she was anticipating his kiss, but he didn't oblige, either because it was her fantasy and he wasn't actually there, or because it was simply part of his plan. Charlie was able to awaken a part of her that had been dormant. He unofficially helped begin her transition to womanhood. If you look at the rest of the movie, she's in competition with her mother for his affection, but little does her mother know he is only interested in India anyhow.
Wow, that was really deep! Thanks, I completely understand now!
sure! You're welcome.
Very well-said! It's a coming-of-age for India, that's complicated by loss, grief and suspicion. There was an Electra Complex at play with her father, which, after considerable disruption and tension, re-emerged with her uncle. Her mother was the unfortunate odd-woman-out. This piano duet is so enthralling! I agree that India is probably in bed having an erotic fantasy, but Park Chan-wook keeps us delightfully guessing. That is as much Charlie's longstanding fantasy, and he's methodic at capturing India's heart and body. Ironically, they seem made for each other: Both are odd birds, acutely sensitive, and positively ruthless.
YES! Elektra complex all the way! I love the way you think. And what's unfortunate about her mother is that she feels threatened by her own child! Granted, India has a taste for blood, but she had every chance to kill her mother (or let good ol' uncle Charlie do it for her) but she didn't take it. I want a sequel. LOL
Many thanks! Evie wasn't much of a threat in this complex, as India was clearly the intellectual and psychological superior. The bond between father and daughter was clearly the most powerful in the family, which was also probably a cause for bitter envy for Charlie. But again Park Chan-wook threw in an irony: Charlie misjudged (or overestimated) any desire on India's part to off her mother. I hope there's a sequel, too :) 

Friday, July 4, 2014

The Disturbingly Plausible `Silence of the Lambs



This 1991 film swept all five top honors at the Academy Awards, and my personal take is resoundingly in concert:  Superb script and acting, well-filmed and well-edited, and disturbingly plausible story.  If we feel that what we are watching can somehow happen to us, that film has a psychological impact.  I am in awe of people (characters) who are so perspicacious as to see right through and inside you and so cunning as to manipulate you and bring you to your knees (rf. Iago, from `Othello).  Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) is such a person (character).

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

The Penetrating Louis Cyphre in `Angel Heart



My wife and I just watched the 2003 film `The Life of David Gale, and learned that the same man directed a 1987 film so gripping and disturbing as to stay with me: `Angel Heart.  Private investigator Harry Angel (Mickey Rourke) meets Louis Cyphre (Robert De Niro) for the first time, and the tête-à-tête has creepy  written all over it.  The dapper man wears a penetrating look and pointed, manicured fingernails.  He is of course Lucifer, and he forges one of the most frightening devil films I know.