The Merchant of Venice (2004) REVISIT

Il Postino director Radford leans into a modern interpretation of The Merchant of Venice. There are subtexts in the text that are interpreted differently over the plays' 400 year existence. Shakespeare includes a biting critique of the antisemitism of the time. He also includes a robust depiction of a passionate love between two men. But it is easy to leave these lying under the radar when producing The Merchant of Venice. Radford has brought it all to the surface in this adaptation made for our modern sensibilities.

Radford also gives Pacino an opportunity for a scene stealing performance. Radford says he see Shylock, for centuries seen as a villain, as a tragic hero, Shakespeare's first great tragic hero, and this film centres him in a way that highlights this. Pacino is cast for a reason, he is the centre of the film despite Irons having the title role. The film wrestles with his uncomfortable comeuppance, one brought on by his own stubbornness, a stubbornness the film goes a long way to helping us understand. We sympathize with him even as he wish for him to grant mercy. One of the fascinating things about this take is the way the film both recognizes our relief in Shylock not obtaining his pound of flesh but our regret in his final fate. It makes us live in that tension, a tension which can be uncomfortable to be in.

While it makes us wrestle with that, it also explores the love between Antonio and Bassanio. Often this is presented as the deep platonic friendship men of the era commonly enjoyed with each other. But here the men are obviously in love, and have a physical aspect to their relationship. They kiss in the film, and not as friends do. The film also makes us sit with the love triangle they make with Portia, a woman presented both by Shakespeare and this film as likely the smartest and most powerful character in the play. She is given the chance in this adaptation to choose her own fate and in choosing marriage with Bassanio, a man clearly in love with someone else, she chooses her own freedom, perhaps in the only way a Venetian woman of means might be able to. 

There are textual supports for these readings, yet they are expressly modern in their sensibilities. Radford brings it all together quite effectively. It all feels just right, and fascinating. Radford's film is lovely in its hushed candle light. He has set his film is Venice's heights of beauty, art, and fashion. 

Pacino is very strong in his role, one that is multilayered and complex. As is the rest of the cast. Irons as Antonio is tragic as well and the film sets them up as counterpoints. Each with their faults which bring them down. But also each with our sympathies and understandings. So when the film reaches its resolution, it is one its audience is resolved to but perhaps not completely okay with. It's lovely and melancholy, and perhaps captures how a 21st century audience can understand it.

The Merchant of Venice

Starring:  Al Pacino, Jeremy Irons, Joseph Fiennes, Lynn Collins, Charlie Cox

Director: Michael Radford

Writers: William Shakespeare, Michael Radford

Enola Holmes (2020)

Charming and delightful, Enola Holmes is a clever little adventure story, with a little mystery woven through, which weaves through its narrative a subversive little message about upending gender dynamics. Part YA romance and part period thriller, the film adaptation of the books series is truly likable and inspiring.

Millie Bobby Brown is charismatic, funny, and commanding as the title character whose job it is to  switch around the expectations of characters of her gender and show us time and again that she is as capable, smart, and tough as her famous brother. Taught by her mother to carve out her own path that's exactly what she does as she flees her own Victorian existence and become her own person. She saves the boy in distress, outwits our fights the villains, and generally shows us who is boss. 

Director Bradbeer plays the whole thing with a fun air, having his title character break the fourth wall and speak directly to us. She is charmingly flawed and completely inspiring. Enola is designed to be a role model for girls to see themselves and for boys to respect. Thrown in are far more examinations of racial, class, and gender analysis than I expected from such a crowd pleasing story. The film makes both Enola and her mother more radical than one is used to seeing in such mainstream entertainment. But it all works, being both entertaining and having something to say all at the same time.

 

Enola appears to be the sort of action hero that could quite successfully head her own franchise of films. Perhaps we'll be having more Holmes films soon. 

 

Enola Holmes 

Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Clafin, Helena Bonham Carter, Burn Gorman, Fiona Shaw, Frances de la Tour, Louis Partridge

Director: Henry Bradbeer

Writer: Jack Thorne

Sign O' the Times (1987) REVISIT

Sign O' the Times remains my favourite Prince album and one of my favourite albums of all time, yet I had never before seen the promotional concert film released in 1987 to promote the album. Shot mostly at Paisley Park to a live audience with some additional sequences added in, the film does manage to capture what a Prince concert was like (I was fortunate to experience this myself) even if it is somewhat constructed and not a true filmed live concert. In many ways it is really more than that. It is Prince's vision of his concert experience. He has put together a filmed representation and it is incredible.

It is a reminder of what a showman he was. There is a bit of a story flowing through the concert and he's performing, so much better than he does in his fiction movies (like Purple Rain). But it's not just him. Sheila E is featured, along with Boni Boyer, and there is an appearance by Sheena Easton in the music video for U Got the Look inserted in the middle. It's all exhilarating fun. For a Prince fan, who won't get to attend his concerts again, this felt like a balm on that wound.

Neon and smokey, quite essentially 80s, in many ways the way as the film Sign O' the Times is more lush and beautiful than a lot of concert films shot in actual stadiums. Yet with a real live audience it has all the energy of a real concert. And the result is cinematic. He plays through one of his best albums, one of the best albums. It's a retro treat and truly of its time. It captures a lot of what was great about late 80s pop energy. It is sexual and vibrant and just damn big. It reminded me of how lucky we all were to live in a time when he was making music and spectacle.

Sign O' the Times 

Starring, written, directed by Prince

Antebellum (2020)

Antebellum is high concept. Yes there is a twist, and I will not spoil the twist in this review, but I felt the twist was less a "gotcha" sort of twist and more of a central theme of the film. Antebellum functions as metaphor and somewhat revenge fantasy. It's like an episode of Black Mirror or the Twilight Zone, asking us to think about issues more than perhaps telling us a story or developing its characters. For me it was enjoyable as a think piece, once that is beautifully shot. Perhaps it could have been stronger with more focus on development of character.  

 

Antebellum follows two stories, one in the present and one in the past which follow similar threads. It is about connecting historical racism with the experience of people of colour in the US today. The idea is the past and the present are intricately connected and Antebellum makes that point in a clever way. It also reveals a truly horrific reality in the end, one that shows how much we still struggle with the enduring power of white supremacy. Again perhaps I wish the film had delved deeper into this but it still is eye opening. 

The film's last act becomes a series of revenge fantasy and Janelle Monae symbolically destroys her captives, finding poetic ways to kill like an 18th century Kill Bill sequence. While this part felt a bit over the top, damn was it entertaining, and certainly cathartic. The film ends too abruptly. I wish so much of of this good idea could have been explored more deeply. 

The main problem with Antebellum is that is just doesn't go deep enough. It should be longer and more complex. It has at its heart a fascinating idea of which the surface is only scratched. 

Antebellum

Starring: Janelle Monae, Eric Lange, Jena Malone, Jack Huston, Gabourey Sidibe, Mark Richardson Jr., Tongayi Chirsa, Robert Aramayo, Lily Cowles

Writers/Directors: Gerald Bush, Christopher Renz

 

The Nest (2020)

The Nest is the story of a family whose life feels somewhat idyllic, relocating to the UK and in the transition falling apart. Writer/director Durkin has crafted what is often described as a slow burn, as we watch a family that is generally relatable and even likable descend into self destructive behavior and depression. Beautifully shot and carefully written, The Nest is an emotional punch that is subtle yet profound. 

Centered around Jude Law's father character and his inability to make a go of it in America, he brings his American family with him to his home in the UK where he struggles even harder to make anything of himself. The film, set in what appears to be the 80s, focuses on the reliance of masculine direction and the loss of female autonomy as the root of much of the problem. Durkin occasionally uses on the nose references to punctuate his story, such as a sick horse reflecting the state of the family's progress, and a desperate attempt to dig up the dead and buried horse to resurrect the family. Still, Durkin films it all beautifully and creates a film that while slow moving is very watchable.

But The Nest isn't completely bleak. There is a strong sense of hope and redemption or perhaps the readiness to forgive that runs through The Nest. Durkin doesn't appear to be dooming this family to hell. There is a sense they will, together, somehow pull through. Law's character has failed at family in the past, and he's struggling to make it work, but you sense they might succeed. 

Law and Coon are both remarkable. So much of a film like this relies on the cast pulling it off and they do. Their chemistry and strong performances make you believe they can be this rocky and still find love. Both do some of the best work. The Nest is a quiet little film for a night of melancholy and reflection.

The Nest

Starring: Jude Law, Carrie Coon, Charlie Shotwell, Oona Roche

Writer/Director: Sean Durkin

 

Mignonnes/Cuties (2020)

Mignonnes spurred a bunch of controvery upon it's American release as people accused it of sexualizing young girls. The film, which follows the experiences of an 11 year old muslim girl from an immigrant family in France as she tries to connect with other girls in her school, isn't really anything like what its critics describe. It explores the way her family culture interacts with the mainstream French culture around her, and does focus on the ways her friends express their developing sexuality in dress and behavior. The film is a portrait of a young person desperate to connect to those around her while also navigating her family's culture. It is truly quite fascinating. 

Critics appear to be saying simply by exploring these very real world issues, the film is exploiting them. The issue of how to tell a story such as this, including its critique of both the western and traditional cultures and all that involves, including the hpersexualization of young women in western culture, is a challenging one. However writer/director Doucouré handles this difficult balance with quite a sensitivity, balancing how she handles both the treatment of the Senegalese women living in France as they work within their religious, linguistic, and cultural landscape and the treatment of the young French girls excited to act older than they are. The film is tragic and sad, honestly facing the factors which inspire these girls to make the choices they do. Doucouré finds humour and sadness as well as a little hope in the end in this story of growing up similar to how films like Thirteen or Eighth Grade but with the added element of the immigrant dimension.

Mignonnes is likely another example of films being judged before they are seen, mistaken for something they are not. The film spends a good amount of time on the girls' enjoying dancing together, often exploring the forms of dance they see in music videos. The film doesn't show us this to titillate us, but to put this in our face, to show us the reality of being 11 in this age and with the cultural influences which pervade each aspect of our children's lives. It is a story of scared, confused, little girls, growing into young women without the supports they need, often treating each other horribly out of their own insecurities seeing only around them what the world wants from them not for them. It is quite powerful.

Breakout star Fathia Youssouf is remarkable, giving her character, Amy, such a quiet depth and power. Her performance is riveting. She is dealing with so much through this story and Youssouf handles it all masterfully. Mignonnes is an impressive debut by Youssouf and Doucouré, both of whom I am excited to see more of what they can do.

Mignonnes/Cuties

Starring: Fathia Youssouf 

Writer/Director: Maïmouna Doucouré

Coastal Elites (2020)

Coastal Elites is potentially the first COVID film, a movie that consciously speaks to the specific moment of living through the global pandemic. Filmed as five "confessions" with actors each alone in a room facing the camera, talking to an unseen listener (us) often through an online portal. I know many reactions have been negative just for this fact. I appreciated that it attempted to capture this moment and experience. 

Each piece takes on a progressive issue from the point of view of the progressives who are speaking it. In fact the first scene, featuring Bette Midler, acknowledges this outright. She talks of how the MAGA hat wearing man she is charged with assaulting told her that he is mostly motivated by pissing people like her off. I think a lot of the reaction to this has been about how on the nose Coastal Elites often is. I mean the cast, Midler, Levy, and Rae specifically, aren't known for their subtlety. But for me that was a bonus. I liked that it was unabashed a cry into the night, this long night of the soul American is currently suffering. I liked it didn't shy away from embracing all that so many are living through at this moment. 

I found Rudnick's script, while sometimes running on too long, was on point for capturing the frustrations, the fears, the angers, the passions, and the consternation of its subjects. He manages to put his finger on so much of what is making the current American reality so sad, and he does it with a bit of humour and perhaps even optimism. Because there is a real honesty to the pieces. Perhaps its an honesty too many don't want to hear and maybe that's why people have reacted to it in the way they have.

There is something about director Roach's approach, how he has his subjects look directly into the camera, speaking right to us, which I feel might be a bit disconcerting for most audiences. There is something a bit too real, too confessional. We often don't want to look into these mirrors, and perhaps now it's all still too raw. But really I think he's tapped into something rather visceral here and in many ways I just couldn't look away. And perhaps years from now, this can provide a bit of a time capsule into this moment, this pandemic moment, this final days of Trump's first term moment, this social media moment. Hopefully a time we've begun to forget a bit.

Coastal Elites

Starring: Bette Midler, Dan Levy, Issa Rae, Sarah Paulson, Kaitlyn Dever

Director: Jay Roach

Writer: Paul Rudnick

The Devil All the Time (2020)

The title to Pollack's novel, The Devil All the Time comes from the line "he was fighting the devil all the time" referring to struggling with ones demons, and perhaps the demons of the world around you. The film adaptation is a stew of violence, toxic masculinity, poisoned religion, poverty, and fear. It is an indictment of the American reality and it is brutal. 

The Devil All the Time follows a number of violent men, and the women unfortunate enough to be wrapped up in their lives. Each brings their own culpability and horror to the stew of rage that is the American rural south of the mid-twentieth century. They are hypocrites, scared little boys who act out their fantasies of domination and power without ever actually obtaining any while hurting those around them. Sure we are to sympathize with Arvin Russell and his father Willard, both portrayed more as victims of the toxic culture, only defending themselves. But in reality their response is more violence. 

Few of the other characters are redeemable at all. Robert Pattison's predatory preacher and Harry Melling's
delusional zealot play God with the women in their lives. Jason Clarke's perverted serial killer is completely irredeemable while Sebastian Stan's cop is power hungry and ruthless. Writer/director Compos rarely gives shades of grey, instead painting in his lush Americana dream, disgusting displays of violence and greed. The women characters that grace the film are two dimensional and voiceless. Riley Keough gets the closest to having agency at all yet she never is able to escape her twisted husband. It all adds up to a bleak, harsh critique of 20th century American culture where there is little for us to feel any redemption. 

And in that The Devil All the Time looses something. It never quite felt like it was able to do much besides wallow in it's own misery. Arvin only lives through things through a series of lucky coincidences. Everyone else is just so evil, ready to exploit the culture which empowers and feeds their greed and anger. And in the end Arvin appears to be taken away by Jesus, to reflect on the life that brought him to this point and to hope for something better. The movie feels very on the nose, while it very much holds our hands through a series of terrors. But it never does the work to get underneath any of that. It is finger pointing more than reckoning. 

But The Devil All the Time has its strengths. The performances are all strong and the film is shot in such as way as to contrast all the viciousness we are seeing with finding the beauty of the landscape. Compos isn't able to, or maybe he refuses to, connect that beauty to any of the interactions in the film. Even Arvin's loving relationship with his father is tainted in abuse. The Devil All the Time feels like Americana Von Trier, a hopeless yet visually stunning exploration of just how awful people are, without any real attempt to understand why beyond a cursory nod to cycles of violence without any chance of getting off that merry-go-round. I read the ending that Arvin doesn't make it but Compos leaves that for you to decide. 

The Devil All the Time

Starring:  Tom Holland, Bill Skarsgard, Riley Keough, Jason Clarke, Sebastian Stan, Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska

Director: Antonio Campos

Writers: Paulo Campos, Antonio Campos

The Broken Hearts Gallery (2020)

The Broken Hearts Gallery may be all rom-com cliches but no one cares because it completely works, mostly off the talent and charisma of its star Geraldine Viswanathan who is an electric presence on screen. But she's not alone as the rest of the cast, from Booksmart's Molly Gordon, to Hamilton's Phillipa Soo, to Narco's Arturo Castro are all just charming and hilarious so much so that one just watches The Broken Hearts Gallery with a silly grin through the whole movie. 

Sure the film is filled with silly coincidences and often feels like it is being forced to hit the typical rom-com beats without really trying to make them feel organic. For example an ex-girlfriend shows up near the end just as things seem to be going well coming completely out of nowhere. Even the ending, with the oh so stereotypical "grand gesture" (which the film boldly has one of the characters actually label it) where he runs after her and confesses his love publicly, feels like it's going over the top. But it is pretty easy to forgive the film as it is just so much fun throughout. Just try to watch this without laughing out loud.

The story itself is about learning to let go of the past the embrace new love. Yes I know, we've seen it 100 times before. But rarely with this much hilarity and some pretty decent chemistry between the oh so cute leads, neither of whom meet the typical rom-com visual archetypes, but both of whom are impossible not to fall for.

This film easily made me laugh more than any film so far this year and for that is scores points. And if it makes Viswanathan a household name that also makes it worth it as she is a major talent just waiting to break into the big time. 

The Broken Hearts Gallery

Starring: Geraldine Viswanathan, Darce Montgomery, Phillipa Soo, Molly Gordon, Arturo Castro, Bernadette Peters, Suki Waterhouse, Ego Nwodim, Utkarsh Ambudkar

Writer/Director: Natalie Krinsky
 

Mulan (2020)

Disney's early 21st century trend of remaking their animated classics as live action epics has mostly for me been a failure. They have never quite captured the magic of the original films they are aping. They mostly feel like uninspired copies. Mulan doesn't really change that although I may have, on the most basic of levels, just enjoyed this film a bit more than some of the other updates. 

This Mulan is an attempt to bring wuxia esthetics to the Disney formula so we get a sweeping, visually stunning adventure story that still hits all the main plot points of the original film. But in doing this so many of the pieces that makes 1998's Mulan so strong are lost. This Mulan is oh so serious with very limited moments of comic relief. Gone are Mushu and the lucky cricket (although they refer to him in a different way), the wise cracking grandmother, all the music, and most of the jokes playing off our understanding of gender. 

In fact it's the gender analysis of the first film which I missed the most. For some reason (desire to appeal to Chinese censors?) the clever gender deconstruction and queering of the characters has all be scrubbed from this version. The original animated film did a lot of exploring what it means to "be a man" or a woman, how that is constructed and deconstructed, and how individuals might navigate that binary, including flowing through it. This Mulan removes all that to make it all about a young woman lying about who she is hiding her chi under a bushel, and learning to let her little light shine and be who she is. All good messages but rather mainstream. Gone is all the drag, the burgeoning love interest between a man and someone he thinks is another man, and the examination of the ways men can't show their true selves while practicing their masculinity. 

Instead this Mulan is painted as a superhero. Early on we are shown she has powers which she is encouraged to hide away. We see the way another magical character is ostracized for her "being a witch" and how Mulan learns to stand against that culture of suppression. Again, this is all good but feels a little standard. This Mulan tells a good story and raises her to the status of a national hero. But it's a story we know exactly how it's going to play out as we've seen it before. Perhaps that's where these films loose it a bit for me. It is hard to get too into it when I feel like I'm rewatching something I've seen before.

There is also something that's rather uncomfortable about this Mulan in that the movie consistently reminds us that we are watching a story of reinforcing empire. In the original the antagonists were invaders bringing death and destruction in an attempt to gain power. But here the villains are painted differently. There is a scene where they talk less about seeking power, about getting their own land back, the land taken from them, and about creating a space where people who are different have a place. They are less cruel and power seeking and more a group of wronged people seeking justice. And Mulan fights them?? This is a difficult problem as this Mulan is an agent of empire. It all feels less noble and less honourable. 

So once again we find ourselves with an inferior copy, an almost 2 hour reminder that there is a better version of this story out there and we ask ourselves why wouldn't we just watch that?

Mulan
Starring: Liu Yifei, Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee, Yoson An, Gong Li, Jet Li, Tzi Ma, Rosalind Chao, Ron Yuan, Jimmy Wong, Doua Moua, Nelson Lee
Director: Niki Caro
Writers: Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Lauren Hynek, Elizabeth Martin

I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020)

Full disclosure. I'm not a Kaufman fan. Despite how much cinemaphiles love Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Adaptation, and Being John Malkovich, none of those really spoke to me. However I am a big fan of Jessie Buckley in what I have seen her in so far and feel she is a new talent to watch. So I approached I'm Thinking of Ending Things with some trepidation and optimism. It started good and I prepared myself, but as it went along it started to fall into the same patterns that I usually find disappointing in Kaufman films.

The film does start off strong. The movie begins with a long and somewhat fascinating conversation between Plemons and Buckley as a couple that is on a long drive together but clearly struggling to connect as fully as they might want to. But as the movie progresses it starts to make the conversations feel less realistic, more problematic. It then introduces moments that show us what we're seeing isn't fully "real" or a representation of reality, perhaps explaining why the conversations lost their rational bent. All of that's fine. But as it gets weirder and weirder it starts to get boring. I like films that explore impressions of reality, and perhaps esoteric horror in a way, but the story needs to support this in a way that keeps it gripping and not just a series of off putting moments for off putting moments sake. The film struggles to keep us caring about what is going on. 

When Buckley and Plemons are talking, discussing family, film, poetry, art, I would often get pulled into their conversations. I like the idea of them on a journey together literally and figuratively when it isn't clear they will make it or have the same goals. But when the movie tried to advance questions about reality, I would loose interest. I often find Kaufman's surrealism desperate and obvious and I'm Thinking of Ending Things falls into that trap. When he focuses on dialogues of a couple, one that might not be able to make it, it becomes more interesting again.

There was something truly fascinating about this couple on a journey, stopping in places where things don't make sense. I'm just not sure Kaufman offered anything interesting in that malaise. It's like the weirdness was supposed to be enough, instead of there being some method to the madness. In these moments I'd find myself wishing for the story to get back on track.

Plemons and Buckley are both strong. There is a bleakness to each of them, a sadness underlying a desire to push through their lives. As the talk I see them build the relationship underlying who they are. They are dealing with a lot, both playing their relationship exploring drama and the surreal horror trying to be built. They are a great paring here and their chemistry saves a lot of this for me.  

And that is my biggest disappointment with I'm Thinking of Ending Things. The story of the couple in dialogue as their relationship ends is an interesting one, one that often gripped me. But the surreal elements took me out of it, didn't add anything of value to my understanding of the narrative, and slowed down the momentum of the story. I wish he had more restraint in telling this story, this story of the tenuous connections between people. Instead he gets distracted by his trips and the film ends with a dance routine, sudden animation, and a time jump which all felt unearned and unsatisfying.

I'm Thinking of Ending Things
Starring: Jesse Plemons, Jessie Buckley, Toni Collette, David Thewlis, Guy Boyd, Oliver Platt
Writer/Director: Charlie Kaufman

Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020)

 

Bill & Ted Face the Music is a love letter to the series. It's the sort of film that will be very enjoyable for fans of what's come before and bore pretty much everyone else. As someone who has never really got the whole Bill & Ted thing, Face the Music offered nothing to make me change that. 

It's hard to criticize something so earnest in its pure approach, and something that pleases the people it does please. But honestly if it's not your bag it might be a bit tiring. The movie goes through a lot of effort to set up jokes that often, for me, feel like they didn't pay off. So I've just spent a lot of time sitting through joke set up only to have them fall flat.

 

I know Keanu is going through a bit of a renaissance right now but fortunately for his fans, he's making a number of different sorts of movies meaning you can find something you can enjoy him in even if it's not as Theodore Logan.

So, just go for it if you dig it. Otherwise, skip it and let those who enjoy it enjoy it.

Bill & Ted Face the Music

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, Samara Weaving, Kristen Schaal, Bridgette Lundy-Paine, Holland Taylor, Jillian Bell, William SadlerJayma Hayes, Erinn Hayes

Director: Dean Parisot

Writers: Chris Matheson, Ed Solomon