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Elizabeth (1998)
Stunning Cate Blanchett
I resisted to watch this film for nearly two years. Altough the scenes that I had watched particularly between Rush and Blanchett struck me as really good. My descision to not watch the film was based in my truly dislike of the "costume film" genre, wich I find 98% of the movies boring and uninteristing, disguised by costumes and set decorations as true art. But I shall also comment that I have seen very good period films like "Quills" to mention a recent example, that have a story and are interesting in all their aspects wether they are based on historical facts or fictional,so I always try to leave a tiny door open to see some period films.
I recently saw Cate Blanchett in "The Gift" and was amazed at her performance. I saw her before in supporting roles in "Talented Mr. Ripley"and "Pushing Tin", and tought she was great. So I decided to rent some of her other films to look at her work. I rent "An Ideal Husband" and this film,the oscar nominee "Elizabeth". Blanchett was robbed the academy award for her performance. She is a delight, a powerful force. Even if she is not in the screen, you FEEL her presence She has the demanding task of portraying Elizabeth I through her many changes, from a young naive girl learning to be a queen to a secure woman in total charge of a country. Through all of the changes Blanchett is completely believable. Apart from her perfect english accent(she is australian)and body language, she uses in her performance something that is almost dissapeared in film acting today. Her face, through her face she conveys so many emotions from sweetness to anguish and really express the feelings of Elizabeth. There is a point in her performance that only by seeing her face, you KNEW what Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen was feeling at that moment. In a year that also saw nominations to Emily Watson and Fernanda Montenegro for their powerful performances. Is was Blanchett who should have taken the statuette insetead of Gwyneth Paltrow for her insipid performance (but she was the only hollywood actress of the lot,so the academy again kept the award between their own comunnity)
Geoffrey Rush was nominated in supporting actor category for "Shakespeare in Love" but is in "Elizabeth" that he shines as Elizabeth´s slightly malicious principal advisor. Joseph Fiennes, the lead man in "Shakespeare"is also better here as Robert Dudley, Elizabeth´s lover Apart from those performances the movie is really, really good. Shekar Kapur did a great directing job, using close ups and monologues to explore more the internal lives of the caracters, the cinematography is a very interesting palette of dark and bright colors. The story does take some historic liberties, but in compensation reveals the internal battles and conflicts of it´s principal character more profoundly that any historic film will do. But the film becomes weak in it´s last half hour. It seems like Kapur and crew became tired in the making of the film and decided to give it a rapid ending without any construction and even coherence. Kapuer direction, so interesting and distinctive in the first hour and half becomes conventional and melodramatic and nearly ruins the picture.On the other hand that "unconventional" half of the picture may have been why Elizabeth lost all the 7 academy awards nomination it had,deserving much of them (certainly along with The Thin Red Line it was the best picture in that year´s best picture race)and going instead with the conventional costume picture that "Shakespeare" was, however the only unforgivable thing about the academy and Elizabeth is Paltrow winning over Blanchett (I would keep repeating that, im offended!!) Is for that weakness in the conclusion of the film that I rate "Elizabeth"a 9, if the movie would have kept it´s style, It would had become one of my favorite "costume films" of all time. Still I strongly reccomend it for the first 90 minutes and the stunning work of Blanchett.
Annie Hall (1977)
overrated
this movie is great, no question about it but as a Woody Allen fan I think has been highly overrated. I don´t even think it is on Woody Allen´s top 10 best movies. If you want to see his best film, see "The Purple Rose of Cairo"his truly great masterpiece. And his other top 10 films, "Shadows and Fog", "Alice", "Broadway Danny Rose", Deconstructing Harry","Zelig", "Husbands and Wives",and the justified overrated gems "Hannah and Her Sisters", "Crimes and Misdemeanors" and "Manhattan". This movie presented relationship differently from many films, maybe that´s why it succeeded so much, Diane Keaton is brilliant here and there´s an interesting cameo from Paul Simon, See it enjoy it, but you know Woody has done a lot better, but if you want to introduce yourself to Woody´s movies, this films and "Hannah"are the best choices since are the most popular and accessible of Woody´s films
Ravenous (1999)
An intelligent fantasy film
An intelligent fantasy film, Ravenous is a multi-layered allegory dealing with cannibalism, that mixes militarism, homosexual elements, Catholic iconography, Indian myths, horror and humor, while reflecting on power struggle (among the male), consumers society and American expansionism. Director Antonia Bird handles suspense and tension tightly, aided by a very good cast, first-rate cinematography, beautiful locations, great music and a highly original screenplay. It provoked a rich discussion among my friends after the projection.
The Black Marble (1980)
Lovely Paula Prentiss comeback
In 1980 Paula Prentiss returned to good form after a five-year absence from the screen, with this affectionate version of Joseph Wambaugh's novel. Less concerned with physical action, this is a romantic comedy that deals with the inner world of police detectives. In a way, The Black Marble is the second installment of a trilogy about people in uniform, started with The Onion Field and finished with Taps, all three films directed by Harold Becker, photographed by Owen Roizman and edited by Maury Winetrobe. Roizman used splendidly the Panavision format, while Maurice Jarre contributed a beautiful score. Robert Foxworth, Harry Dean Stanton, Barbara Babcock and John Hancock all gave very good performances. A nice cameo by James Woods.
The Parallax View (1974)
Pakula's best
Probably Alan J. Pakula's best installment of his so-called "political paranoia" trilogy, The Parallax View was produced after Klute and before All the President's Men. The confidence of the viewer is undermined from plot point to plot point, with a political assassination in the opening, and the killing of the leading lady (Paula Prentiss), even more abruptly than in Psycho or Dressed to Kill. Warren Beatty plays a version of the ordinary man as an obscure reporter who is caught by the events, dominated by the sinister Parallax Corporation. Suggested by the Kennedy assassinations, the movie builds its suspense slowly and beautifully, and allows the viewer to make free associations, which was not possible with President's Men, based on widely known facts. One of the best American films of the 70's, and one of the most underrated.
Catch-22 (1970)
Great moviemaking
Books are books, and films are something else. Though I enjoyed reading Joseph Heller's novel, I was impressed with this adaptation, when I first saw it in a movie house, especially for its splendid use of the Panavision format. Although now I miss the wide-screen, the impression of high quality filmmaking has not diminished after the years, when I have seen Catch 22 in video.
The adaptation by Buck Henry opens the discussion on films based on books: Henry has preserved Heller's spirit, that is --for me-- the most important thing to do when one adapts a work from another source. And Mike Nichols' excellent direction asserts the autonomy of the cinematic author, who is free to create a different work of art from a literary source.
I must add that all the discussion seems rather strange, for no one knows how Heller's book will be appreciated in the 21st century...
For me, Marcel Dalio's cameo as the Italian blind man makes sense for the whole film, with his reflection on political and economic empires. Everybody is very good in this film (among the best, Jack Gilford, Alan Arkin, Orson Welles, Jon Voight and Bob Balaban), and my only regret is that Paula Prentiss' funny recreation of Nurse Duckett is seen only briefly.
Man's Favorite Sport? (1964)
Paula Prentiss at her best
Man's Favorite Sport? is a very funny (and ironic) spoof on male role-playing. With this film, Paula Prentiss helped to establish a new role model for women in the 60's, dominated by Doris Day. As Abigail Page, Paula plays a strong-willed young woman who is ready to test herself professionally and sexually with any man. Rock Hudson was very good too, while Howard Hawks displayed his cinematic know-how in a affectionate and less aggressive version of his screwball comedies of the past. Good Henry Mancini score for lots of slapstick scenes and romantic interludes.