I was eager to see director Niki Caro's new film because her previous feature, Whale Rider (2003), struck me as a quiet yet profound work. The harsh setting of North Country is a far cry from the intimate Maori village of the earlier film, but Caro brings her powerfully human style of filmmaking to this story, which is simultaneously tragic and encouraging.
Josie Aimes, a young mother of two, decides to leave her abusive husband, eventually supporting her family working at a local mine. The job pays well, but Josie and the other women at the mine face daily harassment and even abuse at the hands of many of their male coworkers and superiors. (Read more)
Released in the United States the fall of 2005, this simple and charming comedy-drama is now available on DVD. An unassuming and unexpected film from Israeli director Giddi Dar, Ushpizin follows the story of a pious rabbi and his wife on the Succoth holiday in Jerusalem. This movie should draw the attention of Christians and Jews alike for its humble but convincing portrayal of a couple's faith in God.
The rabbi, Moshe, has recently undergone a major conversion from a life of crime, and he is too poor to afford the items necessary to celebrate the upcoming holiday. In their despair, he and his wife turn to God to provide a miracle. Their miracle comes in unexpected ways, however, when two guests (in Hebrew, ushpizin) impose on the couple and disrupt the sacredness of the holy day. (Read more)
In an article entitled, “The Secret of Twilight,” the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano reviewed the first of the Twilight movies. The film tells the story of a lonely teen who doesn’t fit in and a young vegetarian vampire who has decided to abstain from human blood.
Reporter Silvia Guidi begins by questioning the reason for the success of the movie, which “fascinates millions of people (not only teens, as there is also a Twilight fan club of moms).” “Bella—together with the fans of the series—has been conquered by the fascination with difficult love, which is worth the risk,” she writes of the main character.
Twilight is a “maximalist” story capable of conquering readers and viewers by giving voice to the deepest expressions that are censored by contemporary culture, expectations of the human heart, Guida says.
Reflecting on Edward Cullen, the vampire played by Robert Pattin, and Bella Swan, the teen who falls in love with him, Guida writes,“eternity is not only about living forever, but above all about living more, with an intensity that is unknown to ‘normal’ people.”
Edward, she goes on, “has the reactions and feelings of a teenager but the maturity of someone who has lived 108 years. He doesn’t choose to be good, but he changes because of the example he sees in his adoptive father, the ‘vegetarian’ vampire Carlyle, and because of the encounter with his ideal prisoner” in the movie.
In the background “are the separated parents of Bella, symbols of those who reject the ‘forever.’ To them…eternal love is only such as long as it lasts. Her father, Charlie, loves her but literally does not know what to say to her. Living with him means routine beer drinking, entire nights in front of the television watching sit-coms neither one of them like, eating in the car once a week, affection that is solid but unable to be transformed into real accompaniment in her life.”
Bella, Guida continues, “loves her father but does not expect much from him. She experiences the kind of discouragement that imprisons kids when they ask an adult a very important question and get a generic or completely unrelated answer.”
She also “sees in Edward’s loneliness her own unease: both are isolated, him because of his hidden ‘monster’ nature, her because she fakes interest in things she doesn’t care about: the cult of shopping, expectations for the prom, desperation over wanting to be in latest edition of the school magazine, chatting with her friends.”
Both of them, when they are together, “are condemned to receiving special attention: Bella knows she is risking her life; Edward, in order to accept loving her, must consent to hiding his bad side. This is the exact opposite of the 'Just Do It' mentality of young people.” Rather, the characters exhibit an attitude that says if they can try, “the world is there, they only need to take it.”
Reality “does not follow this law, as every fable teaches us,” Guida writes. “Cinderella knows she must leave the dance at midnight, unless she wants to see everything disappear and the carriage become a pumpkin, even seeing the enchantment of love end.”
“The question is not so much why is Twilight so successful, but rather, how can a kid watch it with indifference?” Guida wonders. (Read more)
Many Catholics will remember Steve McEveety for his work as producer on The Passion of the Christ. Married, the father of four and serious about his Catholic faith, McEveety has a 30 year film career that began as a child actor and matured to include Payback, Immortal Beloved and Braveheart as executive producer, and We Were Soldiers and other major Hollywood titles as producer.
He also co-founded Mpower Pictures, which in 2007 released the extraordinary portrait of a young man’s conversion, Bella. This year, McEveety and his Mpower colleagues bring The Stoning of Soraya M. (www.thestoning.com) to limited screens across the country on June 26. Don’t let the summer go by without somehow seeing this film. Superbly written, directed and photographed, with compelling lead performances by two astonishing actresses, The Stoning is the most moving screen story I’ve seen in years. Once you’ve watched it, you’ll never forget it. (Read more)
Let me begin by saying that I have never seen an episode of any Star Trek television series. Nor had I seen a Star Trek movie until J.J. Abrams’s recent update of the cult classic. No longer held prisoner by obsessive fans and Trekkie conventions, Star Trek proves itself to be a stylish and intelligent story, palatable to wide audiences.
The biggest reason I wanted to see Star Trek was that its director, J.J. Abrams, is the creator and director of Lost, the world’s most brilliant television show. And Abrams does not disappoint, as the film incorporates many themes from the show like the dynamics of revenge and forgiveness, heroic self-sacrifice, the tension between reason and emotion, and, of course, time travel. (Read more)
Joe Wright is quickly becoming one of my favorite directors. I fell in love with his 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice, and, although I have yet to see his Oscar-nominated 2007 film Atonement, I think he has another winner this spring with The Soloist. The story depicts real human misery and authentic compassion, packaged together in a refreshingly unique style of filmmaking.
The Soloist is based on a nonfiction book by Steve Lopez, columnist for the L.A. Times. In 2005, Lopez met a homeless man named Nathaniel Ayers on the streets of downtown Los Angeles. Nathaniel had a gentle disposition, a serious difficulty communicating comprehensibly, and a unique ability to make music on a violin with only two strings. Lopez’s book, also called The Soloist, tells the story of how he befriended Ayers, trying to extend a helping hand to him, and how it ultimately changed his own life. (Read more)
Sometimes the best messages can come from the most unlikely sources.
A good example is “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” (Read more)
I don’t get to the movies very often these days. So, it is especially disappointing to waste my time on an artistically and morally bankrupt film that lacks even vague entertainment value. The one thing that redeems my experience of I Love You, Man is that by writing this review, I may be able to spare others the agony.
I Love You, Man begins with a simple premise that has a lot of potential. Paul Rudd plays Peter Klaven, who proposes to his girlfriend and, in the process of choosing their wedding party, realizes that he has no close male friends. He embarks on a series of "man dates" to find fun and meaningful male friendship. In the hands of even a single talented filmmaker, this could have been a brilliant movie. (Read more)
A rare word-of-mouth phenomenon, Slumdog Millionaire has captured the nation’s attention in the last few months. To me, the most impressive feat of this movie has been its ability to attract everyday Hollywood moviegoers to arthouse theaters to watch a foreign film. I am still a little mystified by the question: What about this movie has made it so universally appealing?
The plot of the film is a typical Hollywood story: a poor young man battles his destitute circumstances, seeks to change his luck, and chases after a beautiful woman. While the movie’s plot may be basic Hollywood fare, its style is not. In my mind, making this brutal and jarring style of filmmaking palatable to the American public is the Slumdog’s most surprising achievement. I found the film visually creative and even stunning. The poverty of Mumbai’s slums is strikingly uncomfortable, but the camera uncovers a life and vibrancy there that is innate to a place where human persons live, love, struggle, and die. (Read more)
February 09, 2009
Doubt
By Hilary Rowe
Based on the trailer for writer/director John Patrick Shanley’s recent film, I expected Doubt to be a predictable cheap shot at the Catholic priesthood. Since the sexual abuse scandals of recent memory, it has been far too easy for filmmakers and media outlets to demonize the clergy. Because Doubt deals directly with the topic of clerical sexual abuse, I pegged this movie as more of the same.
I was surprised and relieved to find that Shanley presents a fair and nuanced portrait of the American Catholic Church in the 1960s and of the issues involved in accusing someone of such a serious offense. Doubt achieves a difficult balance, being simultaneously respectful of authority and critical of those who abuse their authority. (Read more)
