I watched some more movies
Jan. 16th, 2010 11:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariLock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels
Other Kenjari and I watched this on New Year's Eve. We were particularly interested to see how it compared to Sherlock Holmes, since the two films were made by Guy Ritchie. Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels is a much earlier effort, so it's clearly lower-budget and smaller in scale. It's the story of criminals and would-be criminals in London's East End involving a large gambling debt and a heist to pay it off. Like Sherlock Holmes, it's got a gritty London setting, an intricate plot, charming characters, and clever action sequences. Lock, Stock is scrappier and has a plot that winds back on itself more.
Wristcutters: A Love Story
We watched this quite some time ago, but I forgot to write about it even though I liked it a lot. It's an indie film about a young man, Zia, who commits suicide and finds himself in a bleak yet mundane afterlife populated entirely by people who killed themselves. Zia ends up going on a road trip with his friend Eugene in order to find his ex who recently killed herself. Along the way, they pick up Mikal, a young woman hitch-hiking in search of the People in Charge. It's very wistful and sweet, and often funny. Amusingly enough, Eugene is based on Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello. And Tom Waits appears in the movie, as the proprietor of an establishment that is an odd combination of a summer camp, rustic resort, and retreat.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
We saw this last night, and were both utterly delighted. I think it might be my favorite Terry Gilliam movie - it's more cohesive than some of this others and happily lacks any sequences that are jarringly and incongruously bad (cf. Baron Munchausen). Dr. Parnassus is an immortal being who is something of a wizard, and his Imaginarium allows people to enter the landscape of their own imaginations, where they are eventually presented with a choice between their better natures and, essentially, damnation. The plot revolves around a series of wagers between Parnassus and Mr. Nick (the Devil) over the collection of souls, with Dr. Parnassus' daughter at stake.
The film is visually stunning and lovingly detailed. The Imaginarium landscapes are both beautiful and surreal, evoking Gilliam's Monty Python animations and the paintings of Hieronymous Bosch. The scenes that take place in London are occasionally reminiscent of Piranesi.
This was Heath Ledger's last film, and he didn't complete it before his untimely death. He plays Tony, a mysterious man rescued from hanging by Dr. Parnassus' daughter and troupe members. I thought it was quite audacious of Gilliam to have Ledger's first scene be of Tony hanging from a noose, seemingly dead, but it worked. Tony's appearance changes each time he enters the Imaginarium, which allowed the role to be filled in by Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell. This necessary device was handled very well: there is an early scene that established that it was possible for people's appearances to change once inside. Also, Tony is eventually revealed to be a hypocrite, liar, and charlatan, which further explains the changes in appearance - it's an extended reference to or elaboration of the expression "two-faced".
One of the best things about the movie is Tom Waits' portrayal of Mr. Nick. I am a huge fan of Waits' music, so I admit to being rather biased in his favor. Nonetheless, I found him to be perfect in the role. I think Waits put a lot of himself, or at least his persona, into his performance, but it worked so well. He plays the devil not as seductive, but as fascinating and eccentric.
Other Kenjari and I watched this on New Year's Eve. We were particularly interested to see how it compared to Sherlock Holmes, since the two films were made by Guy Ritchie. Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels is a much earlier effort, so it's clearly lower-budget and smaller in scale. It's the story of criminals and would-be criminals in London's East End involving a large gambling debt and a heist to pay it off. Like Sherlock Holmes, it's got a gritty London setting, an intricate plot, charming characters, and clever action sequences. Lock, Stock is scrappier and has a plot that winds back on itself more.
Wristcutters: A Love Story
We watched this quite some time ago, but I forgot to write about it even though I liked it a lot. It's an indie film about a young man, Zia, who commits suicide and finds himself in a bleak yet mundane afterlife populated entirely by people who killed themselves. Zia ends up going on a road trip with his friend Eugene in order to find his ex who recently killed herself. Along the way, they pick up Mikal, a young woman hitch-hiking in search of the People in Charge. It's very wistful and sweet, and often funny. Amusingly enough, Eugene is based on Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello. And Tom Waits appears in the movie, as the proprietor of an establishment that is an odd combination of a summer camp, rustic resort, and retreat.
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
We saw this last night, and were both utterly delighted. I think it might be my favorite Terry Gilliam movie - it's more cohesive than some of this others and happily lacks any sequences that are jarringly and incongruously bad (cf. Baron Munchausen). Dr. Parnassus is an immortal being who is something of a wizard, and his Imaginarium allows people to enter the landscape of their own imaginations, where they are eventually presented with a choice between their better natures and, essentially, damnation. The plot revolves around a series of wagers between Parnassus and Mr. Nick (the Devil) over the collection of souls, with Dr. Parnassus' daughter at stake.
The film is visually stunning and lovingly detailed. The Imaginarium landscapes are both beautiful and surreal, evoking Gilliam's Monty Python animations and the paintings of Hieronymous Bosch. The scenes that take place in London are occasionally reminiscent of Piranesi.
This was Heath Ledger's last film, and he didn't complete it before his untimely death. He plays Tony, a mysterious man rescued from hanging by Dr. Parnassus' daughter and troupe members. I thought it was quite audacious of Gilliam to have Ledger's first scene be of Tony hanging from a noose, seemingly dead, but it worked. Tony's appearance changes each time he enters the Imaginarium, which allowed the role to be filled in by Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell. This necessary device was handled very well: there is an early scene that established that it was possible for people's appearances to change once inside. Also, Tony is eventually revealed to be a hypocrite, liar, and charlatan, which further explains the changes in appearance - it's an extended reference to or elaboration of the expression "two-faced".
One of the best things about the movie is Tom Waits' portrayal of Mr. Nick. I am a huge fan of Waits' music, so I admit to being rather biased in his favor. Nonetheless, I found him to be perfect in the role. I think Waits put a lot of himself, or at least his persona, into his performance, but it worked so well. He plays the devil not as seductive, but as fascinating and eccentric.
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Date: 2010-01-17 11:39 pm (UTC)