Thursday, August 23, 2012

The Deserted Station, by Alireza Raisian (2002)

   The movie is based on a story by Abbas Kiarostami. So countryside dusty roads, and people talking in cars should not be a surprise.

   The beautiful Leila Hatami is also there

...

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Trafic, by Jacques Tati (1971)

   A symphony of images about traffic and modern society. The dance-like piece on drivers picking up their noses is a beautiful catch of this staple of modern life.

   There is something very special on Tati's movies. Something that seemed to exist in silent cinema and that was lost over time. Maybe only cartoons can sometimes have this freedom now.

   He doesn't get too caught up on dialogues, and the use of sound is superb. An example: When he is following a fellow man in search for a gasoline station, the soundtrack is the noise of the container being beaten.

    Most importantly, for a movie composed of short situation sketches, your eyes are never bored. There is always something to catch your attention in every scene. Superb!

L'enfant, by Dardenne brothers. (2005)

   Here we meet the same actor from A Promise, by the same directors. The story also includes a small motorcycle. As if the restriction on the vocabulary of these movies is used to enrich the story.

   Another example is the presence of the excellent Olivier Gourmet. He shows up on A Promise and The Son. So even with a short appearance, he has depth.

   The motivations of the young man are hard to understand. He seems to be making the wrong choices based on sketchy information and paying back double.

   Beautiful film, as everything these brothers do.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Visions of Light: The art of cinematography (1992), by Arnold Glassman, Todd McCarthy

The Son, by Dardenne brothers (2002)

   A man, instructor of carpentry, shows unexpected interest in a new student. After some time of watching his following the young man. We find through the man's dialogue with his ex-wife, that the boy was the killer of their child some four years before the movie action takes place.

   The nervous camera, and chest and above shots with handheld camera, give the movie a very tense mood. The man's enigmatic stare is always deformed through his thick glasses. Until the very end, we don't know what he'll do. Neither does him, as he says is the most meaning-full 'I don't know.' that I can recollect on cinema.

Secrets & Lies, by Mike Leigh (1996)

The eel, by Shohei Imamura (1997)

Friday, March 23, 2012

Fanfan la Tulipe, by Christian-Jaque (1952)

With Gina Lollobrigida, and Gérard Philipe (Fanfan). Fanfan is the three musketeers in one! Nice action movie on the time of Louis XV. Funny all-french main character and nice irony on how war is managed.