Reviews

In the special features of the Barfly DVD Charles Bukowski tells the story of Director Barbet Schroeder's phone call seven years ago. According to Bukowski he slammed down the phone the second he heard "Will you write a screenplay?" Schroeder calls again moments latter only to get the same result however, this time Bukowski throws in a "F*** You!" for good measure. On the third call Schroeder manages to say a little bit more, "Will you write a screenplay for $22,000.00?" This time Bukowski stays on the line.

In a film that has countless problems I think this is the most outstanding. The script fails to capture the same unrefined vigor and beat of Bukowski's writing. The stylized verse is there but the foundation is not. Watching the film I wondered if Bukowski really wrote it, the film feels more like someone attempting to write a Bukowskiesque character study.

Barbet Schroeder claims that Bukowski is his favorite author but his film seems to entirely miss that nail in favor of the clichéd and asinine. The true potential of this disjointed narrative can only be glimpsed at in short-lived scenes: The "bookend" opening and closing sequence, Wanda placing a crucifix under her pillow, and Chinaski cleaning his wounds with Scotch. These sequences play out wonderfully but scenes with similar potential are squandered by Schroeder's unambiguous attempts to make certain the audience "gets it." The scene with the Pegasus is destroyed in this fashion.

Faye Dunaway and Mickey Rourke turn in inconsistent mediocre performances. Rourke's interpretation of Bukowski is below par and superficial and Dunaway (Wanda) comes off like a stock character.

The Biggest disappointment for me was Robby Müller. Films like Breaking the Waves (1996), Dead Man (1995), Mystery Train (1989), and Paris, Texas (1984) are just a small sample of Müller's cinematography. Barfly is a visual failure compared to the level of work Müller is capable of delivering.

I don't know if the shortcomings of this film can be credited to Bukowski's selling-out or if the blame should be placed on Schroeder. Either way the result was a second-rate filmic voyage into the world of cheap bars, lonesomeness, and alcoholism.

Princess Tam Tam is without the trappings of racism, in the way we think of racism in the United States, but there are more subtle (to the American viewer) assertions about ethnic identity during the time. Pay attention to Alwina's (Baker) placement within shots, how she is addressed by the other characters, the settings around her that all depict her as a "savage" African, and ask yourself if Alwina has any shred of agency throughout the film. I don't want to ruin anything but at the end pay very careful attention, the dichotomy between "Eastern" and "Western" culture is to say the least offensive, such diction is thankfully disavowed these days. The French have a checkered past as an imperial force throughout the areas depicted (see Chris Marker's Les Statues Meurent Aussi- 1953), and pay attention to the places the European travelers visit while they are in Africa, and what does that reflect about their attitudes towards the "other". I give this film a 7 because I am a sucker for Baker, much of what she did in her professional career, like Princes Tam Tam, that is regressive is certainly overshadowed by her efforts towards integration, her work as a freaking spy (I am gushing, sorry.) However the film for me is captivating because of her performance, besides that it is a telling relic of bygone mentalities.