Disney and the Coen brothers: Odd pairs reveal common threads

cinema scope: ‘12 Years a Slave’: imperfect and honest

Poor “12 Years a Slave.” In just three short months this film has fallen prey—if not to its own excellence—than least to critical perception of that excellence. Earlier this fall the film debuted at a series of North American festivals to near-universal praise. By my count, no fewer than 10 critics have declared the film this year’s presumptive Oscar Best Picture winner, and this was all long before the public was able to see the film.
Recently the film has drawn a swell backlash. Instead of “is it good?” critics are now asking, “how good is it, really?” Is director Steve McQueen’s depiction of slavery politically insightful or simply aesthetically detached? These are fruitful questions; this film is not perfect. But my point is that the sheer volume of judgment and critiques that preceded viewers’ experience robbed them of the opportunity to encounter it—for better or worse—it without preconception.
It’s dangerous and ultimately pointless for a critic to deem a film an Oscar winner in any context outside of an Oscar preview; the statement tells us nothing about the film’s content of intrinsic value. And given the past few years’ winners, such a prediction could even be considered a minor insult—if “12 Years a Slave” does take home an Oscar for Best Picture, it will be far and above the most intelligent and immersive film to do so in at least six or seven years, perhaps much longer.

cinema scope: Remember Hoffman’s talent rather than his tragic death

In 2000’s “Almost Famous,” Philip Seymour Hoffman, playing the rock critic Lester Bangs, says, “the only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you are uncool.”
I’ve thought about that line a lot over the years. It was the first thing I thought about last Sunday morning when the news of Hoffman’s untimely death reached my woebegone ears. When I was a camp counselor for four summers, I used to repeat that quote to my campers, 14-year olds entering high school, and we’d talk about the ways it rang true—what it meant to be cool in a world filled with rejection and judgment.
The above line comes at the end of “Almost Famous,” when a young rock journalist—the night before the deadline of his first major Rolling Stone article—calls his mentor and asks for advice. To be fair, they are writer-director Cameron Crowe’s words, but as he did in every single role, Philip Seymour Hoffman made them come alive.

cinema scope

Disney and the Coen brothers: Odd pairs reveal common threads

January 24, 2014

Although the hoopla of awards seasons can make any year seem like a strong one for film, 2013 truly was a knockout punch for American cinema.

And because there’s little to look forward to in 2014 (with the possible exception of Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel”), I suspect we’ll all be spending some of this year wading through the annals of 2013.

Top ten lists are silly, obligatory, and ultimately baseless, so I’ve decided to present my favorites as a collection of unordered pairs—or ‘double bills’—I think would make for intriguing viewing. Enjoy:

1. “Before Midnight” & “Her”

The long-awaited “Before Midnight” is the lush and tragic third installment in director Richard Linklater’s romantic “Before” trilogy. It outlines new truths about the day-to-day realities of romantic love. Each of the three films reflects the age and temperament of the two central characters and this one is no different. “Before Sunrise” was starry-eyed and idealistic, just like Ethan Hawke’s Jesse and Julie Delpy’s Celine at age 23. Alternately “Before Sunset’s” more anxious and despairing mood communicated the characters’ uneasy transition into adulthood. “Midnight” finds the couple well into middle age, and the film feels more world-weary and more devastating as consequence. The grueling final 45 minutes depict an exquisitely-acted marital argument that works only because of the emotion and honesty Linklater, Delpy and Hawke (who together co-wrote all three scripts) have invested this story.

“Her” is also concerned with love and change, but on a societal level. Those who complain that the film lacks emotion and specificity have missed the point. The film’s glossy distance reflects our collective obsession with pretty things and neat emotions.

It’s true the film can be read as a touching story about two beings struggling to make romantic contact, but “Her” can also be read as a story of a man’s emotional immaturity and inability to face the world. Theodore Twobly—the film’s protagonist—finds refuge in a bodiless being only to realize he still craves human connection.

2. “Inside Llewyn Davis” & “Frozen”

This pairing may seem odd—one film is a resolute downer, the other a triumphant avalanche—but it felt fitting to pair the two strongest musicals of the year.

Both films are propelled by absence. In “Inside Llewyn Davis” this absence is the death of a creative partner. Some have speculated that the film serves as a (somewhat morbid) meditation on an imagined solo career for either of the Coen brothers—perhaps the best-known living duo in American film. But the film also asks questions about how to market oneself and one’s art in a largely dismissive world.

Many have already hailed the progressiveness of Frozen, which subverts staple truisms of the Disney princess. Marriage to a handsome prince is never presented as a goal and the climax concerns the reconciliation of two sisters, not two lovers.

3. “Blue is the Warmest Color” & “Beyond the Hills”

French Palme D’Or winner, “Blue is the Warmest Color” has received a lot of acclaim recently. The majority of the coverage, however, concerns just one scene in Abdellatif Kechiche’s three-hour epic—a lengthy and questionably-depicted lesbian sex scene. It’s unfortunate that many missed the real beauty of the film: its beautiful illustration of discovery and loss.

Which is why I’ve paired it with Christian Mungiu’s equally long and lush “Beyond the Hills,” the story of two young girls with an ambiguous romantic past. One chooses life in a monastery and the other feels an abandonment that leads to violence. The film is bleak but deeply engaging.

4. “12 Years a Slave” & “Gravity”

These are perhaps the strongest competitors for the Best Picture Oscar. “Gravity” is an expertly-crafted action film in the body of an avant-garde experiment. It’s the most visually engaging 90 minutes of film this year, bar none. And one could argue that Steve McQueen’s epic account of slave Solomon Northup was the most brutal. I’ve written about each of these films previously, but I’ll add that both are works of art that fulfill the truest goal of cinema—to tell a full story with image and sound.

5. “To The Wonder” & “Upstream Color”

“To The Wonder” is a sight to behold and a reminder of film’s capacity to blur the distinctions between photograph, narrative, poetry and music. Cinema needs Terrence Malick to remind us why movies should be seen on the big screen. His vision remains bold and undeniably enthralling.

The Best Terrence Malick Impression Award goes to Shane Caruth, director, writer, composer, editor, cinematographer and star of the elliptical “Upstream Color.” Caruth’s film concerns a woman being hypnotized and robbed of her money. Pigs, worms and rivers are involved, but after thirty minutes none of that matters much. The film is about loss and disillusionment with the world.

6. “Wolf of Wall Street” & Seemingly Every Other ‘American Dream’ Blockbuster (“American Hustle,” “Spring Breakers,” “Pain and Gain,” “The Bling Ring,” “The Great Gatsby,” etc.)

2013 was the year of American maximalism. It seemed every weekend we got another display of consumption, consumerism and greed.

The brashest, longest, most bloated, and (oddly-enough) the most intelligent of them all was Scorsese’s “Wolf of Wall Street,” a critique of American economics. Did it indulge its characters base behavior? Was it an examination of inequality? Does it note an element of moral despair in excess? Is it a phenomenally smarter film than “American Hustle?” The answer to all of the above is a resounding “Yes!” to all. A movie this concerned with excess simply can’t be reduced to pat endorsement or critique.

Final note: I nominate the Lemmon-Quaalude sequence as the funniest scene of the year. DiCaprio attempting to open his car door with his foot writhing on the ground should singlehandedly win him an Oscar.

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