Daniela Valentine in “Lake Tahoe” [2008 Mexico]

Posted on February 1, 2011 by TR

Fernando Eimbcke is a prodigiously talented director making waves in World cinema. His 2008 film, “Lake Tahoe” is in one word, mesmerising. Give this movie a chance for the first 15 minutes, and you’ll be so glad that you did. Sit back, and let the film take you where it wants. There are no cunning twists in the plot, nothing surreal or avant-garde, nothing to pay close attention to in that vast azure canvas – it is just plain and simple, like looking at a naturally beautiful woman, devoid of any makeup. Like a slow cooked gormet meal. Well, you get the idea.

The cinematography, the direction, and the location make the movie what it is – a modern day gem. The film is about loss, about accepting and coping with loss. I wouldn’t like to elaborate this time – it is for the viewer to make their own little journey through the film, just as young Juan does. That is part of the joy in watching. A little patience at the beginning, and you’ll find this as absorbing as a well-written novel. Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon DVD Link

 

The Nudity: Daniela Valentine
In the only nude scene in the film, Juan is talked into babysitting the child of a shop assistant, Lucia. He unexpectedly finds himself spending some time in her bedroom. Lucia is played by Daniela Valentine.
Daniela Valentine in Lake Tahoe

 

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Kate Winslet and Rachel Griffiths in “Jude” [1996 UK]

Posted on January 31, 2011 by TR

My first British film review here had to be something special. This one is special alright, even if a bit ‘obscure’! It boasts some famous names not just from British cinema and television, but also English literature. This is Michael Winterbottom’s (of ‘Welcome to Sarajevo’ and ‘9 Songs’ fame) 1996 film, “Jude”, an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s last book, “Jude the Obscure”.

I picked up this DVD at the store curious to see how Mr. Winterbottom had interpreted what I consider to be Hardy’s finest and deeply affecting work, having read all his published novels. I was pleased to find that a lot of the characterisation and scenery pretty much resembled the way I imagined while reading the book, and the casting of the main characters, spot-on. But it was disappointing to see only part of the story being told here, with some portions given far more screen time than the more important events. Arabella, one of the more intriguing characters in the novel is almost relegated to a side act, as is Aunt Drusilla. Considering the weeks (probably years) I spent wondering the true motives for Arabella’s actions, her part of the story has been astonishingly skimmed past. Jude’s introspections are what lifts the novel to its loftiness, but instead we are shown these long scenes of him learning Latin. As is a way too ‘earthy’ Sue Bridehead. But I suppose, this is all subjective – I’m just glad someone even decided to make a film based on the novel universally slated when first published. I must add that the novel is a whole lot more torrid than the film, and considering the times in which it was published, one can understand why it was so badly received.

On the plus side – we have a young Kate Winslet playing Sue Bridehead, and Rachel Griffiths playing Arabella – both appear in the nude, Kate more so than Rachel, but they’re both well worth a look.

Rachel Griffiths and Kate Winslet in Jude

Kate Winslet is Sue Bridehead and Rachel Griffiths, Arabella in Winterbottom’s “Jude”, an adaptation from a Thomas Hardy classic.

Amazon DVD Link [PAL]

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Isidora Urrejola in “Drama” [2010 Chile]

Posted on January 28, 2011 by TR

Chilean director Matias Lira’s debut feature, “Drama” is set in a drama school, where the students are encouraged to adopt the ‘Artaud’ method of acting by their professor – experiencing life to the full, so that they could free themselves and ‘become’ the characters they’re trying to portray.

Three ambitious students – close friends, Mateo, Maria, and Angel, decide to do exactly that. Mateo and Maria are lovers, while Angel’s just discovering his homosexuality. Things however spiral out of control as they take their experiences to new extremes. The film also delves into Mateo’s emotional scars from childhood – his actress-mother’s infidelity and the father’s indifference.

The screenplay and direction is pretty good, and includes some memorable dialogues too – a fine feat considering this is Lira’s debut, as is the impressive debut of the lead actress playing Maria, a drama student in real life too, chiquita muy hermosa Isidora Urrejola. Her big sister Fernanda Urrejola plays Mateo’s mother. These scenes were cut from the general release DVD – I hope there’s a director’s cut in the offing – considering some (only some) untidy edits in this release, and the fact that some footage was not at all used, but shown passingly in the DVD extras.

Segement 1:
A compilation of two scenes – the first is after a class in the school toilet (apparently unisex!) as Mateo marks his territory around Maria. The second is of Maria and Mateo spending the night together at his house. Angel drops by in the morning, and when the father enters the room and sees all three in bed together, he remarks, “If you start with a threesome, you’ll end up alone, my son…”

Isidora Urrejola in Drama

Cute debutant Isidora Urrejola sizzles in the 2010 Chilean film, "Drama".

 

Segment 2:
Made of three scenes – first is of fellow classmate Soledad trying to impress Mateo after he asks her to be in his forthcoming sketch. Maria isn’t impressed – she even warns her he couldn’t ‘get it up’. Soledad is played by the rather dishy Jocelyn Anfossy. The second scene is Mateo remembering the last time he saw his mother (Fernanda Urrejola) – on the stage before she and her lover/co-star are taken away by the junta. He performs the same play she was enacting – Romeo and Juliet. The last scene is of Maria walking into a place where Mateo and Soledad are having sex. Even after noticing, Mateo orders Soleded not to stop – the purpose – the more Maria is made to feel jealous, the more ‘complete’ the actor he’s become.

Jocelyn Anfossy & Fernanda Urrejola in Drama

Saucy Jocelyn Anfossy and beautiful Fernanda Urrejola in the 2010 Chilean film, "Drama".

 

Segment 3:
Made up of two scenes – first is when Maria decides to become a prostitute – to evoke similar jealousy from Mateo. She finds Max, a rich punter who proves more than a match for Mateo. When a frustrated Mateo calls Maria a whore, Max gives him a piece of worldly advice, “Women are like guitars – they respond the way they’re struck”. The second scene is the more dramatic of the two – at Max’s party, where she get’s gang-banged (implied) while a desperate Mateo tries to stop her. She asks a shocked Mateo, “Well, did I do it right this time..?”

Isidora Urrejola & others in Drama

Two dramatic scenes of Isidora Urrejola and others, with some DVD extras from the 2010 Chilean film, "Drama".

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Maren Eggert & Andrea Sawatzki in “Das Experiment” [BR720 2001 Germany]

Posted on January 27, 2011 by TR

Oliver Hirschbiegel’s 2001 thriller, “Das Experiment” [Eng. Title: The Experiment], is apparently based on something similar that happened in 1971. The film is stylishly made, with snappy editing and great dinematography – it is not a bad film, but it has nothing particularly original or profound to say.

The lead actors, particulalry Moritz Bleibtreu is always enjoyable to watch, and to a large extent the film works because of him. Taxi driver Tarek – well, a journalist-turned taxi driver Tarek decides to enrol in an experiment for some quick cash – spending two weeks in a confined environment. The participants will be split into two groups – one, the captives, and the other, the guards. Tarek finds himself among the captives, and find the dynamics keep changing for the worse every day, and he’s being particularly targeted by the guards. His anxious girlfriend Dora tries to get him out, but when the prison guards hijack the whole experiment after imprisoning the scientists themselves, it becomes more difficult. Sweet Maren Eggert plays Dora, and Andrea Sawatzki plays Jutta Grimm, one of the scientists in charge of the ‘experiment’. The below scenes were cut from Blu-Ray.

 

Scene 1:
Some scenes of Dora – brief nudity, but Maren Eggert is very nice..!

Maren Eggert in Das Experiment

Scenes of Maren Eggert in the 2001 film, "Das Experiment".

 

Scene 2:
Scientist Jutta is alarmed to find the guards have taken over the whole building and set their own agenda, and she’s taken captive too. A guard asks her to strip naked, but is stopped from going all the way by his leader. Later he tries again, by entering Jutta’s cell. Veteran actress Andrea Sawatzki is definitely still worth watching.

Andrea Sawatzki in Das Experiment

Andrea Sawatzki is the scientist in distress in the 2001 film, "Das Experiment".

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Leonor Watling & Paz Vega in “Hable con Ella” [2002 Spain]

Posted on January 26, 2011 by TR

I finally managed to get an Almodovar up here. I had reviewed his 2002 classic “Hable con Ella” [Eng. Title: Talk to Her] years ago, but these scenes are freshly edited and recut from DVD.

For people outside Spanish speaking territories, Pedro Almodóvar would have probably been their first introduction to Spanish language cinema. His early underground films were not only groundbreaking in their subject matter, they were cleverly written and refreshingly executed. He is still the most famous name in Spanish cinema, and rightly so.

While some of his recent films have become less edgy, “Hable con Ella” still retains the raw humanity emanating from his earlier works, and as ever, his women are inherently strong characters. In “Hable con Ella”, we see Alicia lying in a state of coma for the best part of the film, but still manages to command our respect, she makes us feel ashamed for looking at her nudity, and Almodóvar skillfully creates this special connection between Alicia and the audience. Similarly we have another strong character in Lydia the matador, who also goes into coma after being gored by a bull in the arena. The story and screenplay is excellently constructed, no wonder it won so many major awards including Oscar, BAFTA, Goya and César. If you haven’t yet seen this film, you should. This gem can’t be recommended enough!

 

The Nudity: Compilation One
Mostly of a beautiful and wholesome Leonor Watling. Watching her at the ballet school opposite his flat, male nurse Benigno falls in love, even when aware that she’s way out of his league. He visits her home with an excuse of a session with her psychologist-father. But following an accident, when Alicia lay comatose in the hospital where he works, Benigno begins a fictitious relationship with her, after her father appoints him to take care of Alicia exclusively. There is only one brief nude scene where she is conscious, when she comes out of the shower only to see Benigno snooping around her room.

Leonor Watling in Hable con Ella

Scenes of a beautiful Leonor Watling from Pedro Almodovar’s “Hable con Ella”.

 

 

The Nudity: Compilation Two
Includes the lovely Paz Vega, who plays Amparo in an amusing silent film within the film. Some of you may remember seeing this unforgettable scene, perhaps in bits and pieces. Alicia used to enjoy watching silent films – so Benigno narrates to her the film that he had recently seen. Earlier in the compilation, we see Lydia, played by Rosario Flores ceremoniously getting dressed for the bull fight. We also see a scene of a very scared and nude Ángela. played by Elena Anaya, running away after seeing a snake in her tent.

Paz Vega & Elena Anaya in Hable con Ella

Scenes of Paz Vega, Elena Anaya and Rosario Flores in Almodovar’s “Hable con Ella”.

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Posted in Elena Anaya, Leonor Watling, Paz Vega, Pedro Almodóvar, Spain | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment