Blind Mountain (2007)

4/5

Beginning from an incredibly simple concept that is fully explored, this film crushes its audience with its power. In the 1990's, a Chinese girl goes to the rural countryside with a businessman and another girl in the belief that she can make some money by helping them sell medicine. Once there, she wakes up the next morning to find out that she has been kidnapped and sold as a wife to one of the men of the village. She tries to escape many many times, and is punished after every attempt. The sense of torment, entrapment, torture, and utter desperation is evoked precisely, and the camera that records it is unflinching and effective. You, the audience, are in her shoes and there is no escape for you. Throughout the movie there are episodes of foreboding, an unquiet calm, tension peppered with action. The movie ends after an emotionally exhausting nightmare, and it is so good. The audience started cheering before they even knew it was over, proof that Li Yang knows how and when to end his movie.

The acting and story and emotions on display were exceptional, if the dialogue was a bit lacking. The simplicity of the story denied a huge depth of analysis, but it never felt too simple or boring/repetitive. Some of the characters in the movie were given short shrift; I never really felt I got to know some of the minor characters. The music was nonexistent (or at least felt that way if there was some), but I don't think it would have helped the movie increase the tension if it were played up. This movie is exceptional and should be seen as soon as possible if you're interested, and after all your friends have raved about it if you aren't.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1020972/

The Piano (1993)

4/5

This movie is emotionally complex, well-shot and well-edited, with richly developed characters, amazing acting (Anna Paquin as the daughter in by far her best performance), and a wide variety of potential analytic paths. The movie deals with a woman who chooses not to speak a single world (played beautifully and poetically by Holly Hunter), but loves to express herself through playing the piano. She is married off by her father to a man in the middle of nowhere, but falls in love with another man after giving him "piano lessons." The finale is filled with incredible emotion and suspense--while watching it, I had no idea how it would end, which is a testament to the film's ability to create a world that is wholly its own. It is not predictable because we have not really seen a movie quite like it before.

It does have some problems though, as with any movie. There are a lot of loose ends that are never tied up, minor characters that are never really fleshed out, and a manner of speech that take a little while to get into. Characters' actions are never fully explained, leaving us as the audience the task of figuring out why they do certain inexplicable, provocative things that they do. Even so, it is highly recommended if you like romances, but not if you don't.

Note: This film played with French subtitles in place of English subtitles where signs were shown or the Maori language was spoken. Even so, I understood about 90% of those subtitles and they did not hinder my enjoyment of the film. It was also shown on the beach, so there may have been audiovisual distractions from time to time.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0107822/

The Mugger (2007)

2/5

Beneath crisp cinematography lies a hollow entry into the Critic's Week. The Mugger follows the exploits of an old man as he tries to steal money from schools. It is shot in a quasi-documentary, hand-held style, which makes it a bit more frightening because it seems more real. Except for about three moments of intensity and excitement though, the idea that started off interesting, unique, and mysterious became old quick and boring faster, despite its 70 minute running time. There is no explanation for the character's actions, and no consequences. It is, in a sense, a document of certain moments of time with no depth behind it or analysis. So really, why did I see the movie? What did I get out of it but about three minutes where my blood pulsed slightly more rapidly? The answer, I felt when leaving the theater, was nothing.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1006823/

My Blueberry Nights (2007)

4/5

I waited for two hours to see this movie, and I was not disappointed. It's quite good, but I'm going to write about what I didn't like about it first to get that painful stuff out of the way. Norah Jones's acting was atrocious in the beginning; it seemed amateurish, ditzy and unreal, as if she were reading a script, and reading it poorly. After a while I got more used to it and it fit in with her character better. Also, she looked A LOT like Hilary Swank, and I just couldn't get that fact out of my head while watching it. Jude Law was a bit unnatural too. The cinematography looked beautiful, but it played not so well. It was a bit edit-heavy and the lovely slow-motion shots in his earlier films no longer had their "cool" effect; instead it ended up being just excessive and annoying.

Now, onto the good stuff! I loved the Strathairn/Weisz segment and the Portman segment. It was back to the good old Wong Kar Wai I know and love, and in perfect form. The acting was flawless, the characters unique and full, the story touching and meaningful, and the emotions/tensions high. The dialogue was much much better than the Law segment(s) and had a much richer analytic framework. The music choice was always awesome, although sometimes its presence might have been a bit overpowering and too ever-present for my tastes. I especially liked the musical homage to In the Mood for Love at the end of the movie. I left the theater thankful for my experience, despite the long wait in the sun and the flaws in the movie. It is well worth watching for any Wong Kar Wai fan.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0765120/

Bikur Hatizmoret (2007)

4.9/5

Bikur Hatizmoret, which translates to The Band's Visit, is an Israeli movie by Eran Kolirin, and it is definitely my favorite film so far of the entire Cannes Film Festival. (It is up for Un Certain Regard.) It is a 90 minute long comedy that follows an Egyptian police band as they arrive in Israel for a concert. When the car doesn't come to pick them up, they try to take a bus, but they go to the wrong place, where they have to stay the night. This movie is so funny; it is like an Israeli Little Miss Sunshine but with more heft and weight and authority in its filmmaking. The editing is flawless for pitch-perfect comedic timing. The cinematography is breathtaking; every shot is like wow. The acting was amazing as the awkwardness of a stranger in a strange land was palpable. The story had depth, emotional power, heart, and feelings. There were fleshed out characters, characters that were so well-defined that they weren't changed in that one night to give us the happy ending we wanted.

Even so, it seems like there were a few bizarre things added in for comedy and not much else, like the guy who was waiting by the phone for his girlfriend to call. This isn't a big complaint, but it's startling to see in contrast to the rest of the exceptional film. Also, a lot of people fell out of love with the movie after the actions of two of the characters at the end of the film, but it didn't bother me so much. But like I said, this movie is amazing, and I will be the first to see it with you if/when it gets released in the States if you want me to.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1032856/

He Fengming (2007)

2/5

This movie's title is translated as Fengming, A Chinese Memoir, and that's really exactly what this movie is, unfortunately. Here is the setup for this three hour long movie: A woman talks about her life. And voila, we have a movie at the Cannes Film Festival. Disgraceful! There are only three camera movements in this entire movie, all of them worthless. The rest of this movie is a static head-on view of an old Chinese woman talking for three hours. In Chinese. Which meant I read her story for three hours. That's exactly what I feel this movie should be, a written memoir for people to read. There is nothing filmic about this movie in the least--it is simple videography. I almost feel as if the director just took the cheapest, laziest, quickest route possible and thought it would be hailed by those who love "artsy" stuff. An ambitious, dedicated, or at least competent director would have actually made a movie out of the story she is telling.

Even so, her story was moving and quite engrossing. I didn't actually look at my watch (disgruntled) until around 2 hours in, which is a testament to her story, I suppose. There are two or three emotionally crushing parts, and her voice--the way she trembles, stops, and cries--is incredibly important at getting across that message. Even so, this should be a book (or at least an audio recording), not a movie. I would not recommend watching this, but if you are interested in China's Cultural Revolution and anti-rightist movements, her story is very appealing and, according to the woman, she is writing a book about her history, so you should probably check that book out and not this movie.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1032880/

The Mosquito Problem and Other Stories (2007)

2/5

This is a unique type of free-form documentary. The people talk to the camera as if they are taking direction and what they are saying is not what they normally would. It feels not like an interview but a reading. However, this style adds to the humor. While this documentary is not what anyone would consider a funny movie, it definitely has its moments and has a quirky, witty way about it that made me laugh, chuckle, or at least smile more than once. Unfortunately, I think that is also a problem. It is reflecting the director's viewpoint and quirks and not that of the citizens of Belene, which I don't think was its intention. At any rate, the cinematography was beautiful, the editing seamless, and the music amazing. At the end of the movie, everything is tied back together and seemingly random bits and pieces finally have bigger meaning.

The movie has a lot of problems though, one of which is a difference of expectations, perhaps as a result of its title. The movie doesn't really talk about the mosquito problem that much, instead it focuses on the Bulgarian city of Belene and its inhabitants, quirks, and ups and downs. However, that generates the question; so now what? What was the point? What did I get out of this movie. And sadly, I think very little. Don't bother with this movie unless you are interested in a small Bulgarian city named Belene or a director named Andrey Paounov.

Note: This was the second film I saw in the Critic's Week selection and there were only French subtitles (but the subtitles were not the problem, the movie was).

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1043510/

Wild at Heart (1990)

4/5

Wild at Heart is so funny. I was laughing the entire time. I would love to see this movie with Sameer; he would laugh with me at literally every single word that is spoken and action that occurs. But there are two different reasons one might laugh. You can laugh because you think it's just a bad movie, but I am fairly certain that it is not. It is in fact cleverly mocking bad movies. It is a satire and a spoof, and a shallow exploitation film set in the late 80's. It is like Rodriguez's Planet Terror except set in a more realistic world (although thinking about it, not that much more realistic) with more sexploitation than horror zombie flick. In the first five minutes of the movie, there is excessive violence, cursing, nudity, and sex. The movie loves its shallowness; Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern speak their lines with the most effective faked fervor I can remember.

All that being said, it is what it is. A stupid, cheesy, exploitation 80's grind house film. Even though it is a satire of that genre as well, it fits the mold perfectly and cannot sit outside of it. It is funny, but not very fulfilling or meaningful. You walk out of the theater and think about something else.

Note: I saw this movie as part of the Cannes retrospective series on the beach, so there were many distractions (although I think I tuned them out pretty well).

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0100935/

The Milky Way (2007)

4/5

This Brazilian movie was the opener for the Critic's Week at Cannes, and I was so glad to be there watching it. The movie is basically a very simple relationship drama, but a heartfelt one that is deeply emotional. The director chose to use physical incidents to show somewhat ethereal feelings that would be otherwise hard to depict on film, which makes for a more visceral experience than you might at first think. And it rings true, with cute flirting in the beginning and misspoken words and other mistakes in the end. It is both funny and powerful, although the ending did seem a bit excessive. The acting was really good, and the director didn't feel the need to dumb down most of the movie. The film was, all in all, effective. It does the job it set out to do, and does it quite well.

The scenes where the two people first meet each other was a bit excessive and almost gratuitous in the nudity and sexuality. And while the movie as a whole didn't feel too long, because of its structure it sometimes felt a bit repetitive. (But I like how you learned more about the story with each similarity, so there was some value in it.) There were a few unexplained things at the end, but I actually enjoyed it because it gave you more to think about after watching it; it's not so simple that you are able to just watch it and then immediately afterwards digest it. Highly recommended if/when you get a chance to see it. I hope to see the director's future works as well, as she will definitely go far if she continues like this.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt1058027/

Ocean's Twelve (2004)

3/5

Ocean's Twelve was an enjoyable comedy/heist movie. The heist elements were pretty subpar for the most part with a couple cool things thrown in here and there, but I thought it was just so funny. My expectations were so low because everyone came out disappointed (because the first one was so good) that I actually had a really fun time watching this. The acting as always was great, the laughs consistent and solid, and the directing light and fun. There are cameos and big names like nothing you've ever seen before. And, for the most part, it just works. You let go of small inconsistencies because you're entertained.

However, the plot was pretty pitiful, a fact that cannot go ignored; it felt like it was trying to construct a story around the actors' schedules and not the other way around. Because of that, I was actually impressed when all the actors were on the screen together. But the story's limitations really hinder it, considering it's a crime movie with more than twelve main characters in it. Each character really should have some fundamental role in the narrative, and they don't. They're merely accessories. This is what is lacking in this movie that people seemed to love about the first one. Anyway, I greatly enjoyed myself while watching it, and if you're interested you should definitely check it out.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0349903/