Sandra Hüller in “Über uns das All” [2011, Germany]

Posted on April 27, 2012 by TR

Young German director Jan Schomburg’s mystery drama, “Über uns das All” [Eng. title: Above us Only Sky] is a surprisingly delightful piece of cinema. Surprising because I’ve never heard of the director – I picked it up only because it was well received at the Berlin International Film Festival last year. This is definitely one of the better films I’ve seen released lately – and I see a whole lot more than I bother to write about here.

Storyline:
I won’t throw you spoilers, but here’s the gist. The film starts with a tantalising reference to Shakespeare’s ageless sonnet about love and marriage (Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds) as Martha conducts an English lesson for her class. She has a husband, and is in love. But her whole world, carefully constructed over years comes crashing down after his unexpected death. Who was he? Why was he feigning a life that’s not his? Martha tries to piece together various clues to come to terms with her loss, so that she could start bereaving for the person she was in love with. During the course of her search, she will meet a professor who will enlighten elements of the same sonnet she’d been teaching her pupils…

It is refreshing to see this topic discussed during these days of convenient marriages, prenuptial agreements, and express divorces. While the film isn’t remotely preachy or moralistic, it certainly tries to define what is true love. The characterisation required to generate the required drama is spot on, and aided by competent screenplay, we’re kept glued till the end. The cinematography is exquisite, and the performance of Sandra Hüller who plays Martha certainly lifts the film to a higher level, in a very German way. Composed, precise, and detailed, this is as German as films come, and for that reason, Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon.de DVD Link


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Posted in Germany | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Blanca Lewin in “Bombal” [2012 Chile]

Posted on April 25, 2012 by TR

Chilean director Marcelo Ferrari made his recent drama “Bombal” based on the love life of acclaimed feminist author María Luisa Bombal. I cannot verify how much of the film is based on real events, but what it does manage to recreate is the extreme state of depression she was in even while writing successful books at the time, most of which delve into eroticism from a feminine point of view. Her works were well received all over Latin America, but was frowned upon within some circles in native Chile. Most of the film is told through flash-backs from Bombal’s point of view.

Storyline:
The film is set sometime during the nineteen forties when María Luisa Bombal moved back to Chile with husband Jorge Larco. They have an open relationship – while he is gay, she is having an affair with a divorced Eulogio Sánchez. Hopelessly in love with Eulogio, Bombal descends into a state of depression when her feelings go in-reciprocated. After a failed suicide attempt, she goes as far as publicly shooting Eulogio who is now engaged to another woman. He survives, but at least it brings some kind of closure to that chapter in her history.

While the film has an interesting story to tell, the script/screenplay doesn’t do it enough justice. The characterisation, particularly of the male characters is uni-dimensional and could have been developed further, and it isn’t helped by the actors’ pedestrian performances either. Blanca Lewin however is the exception as she brings her professionalism to fore, more or less compensating for the other main characters. The sound track is fine, but the scope of the cinematography and editing seems to have been restricted perhaps due to budgetary constraints. It had the potential to be as powerful a drama as Bellocchio’s “Vincere“, but as it stands, remains just about an above average film. The bare-bones DVD is available through the below link.

Bazuca DVD Link


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Posted in Chile | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Barbara Brylska & Krystyna Mikolajewska in “Faraon” [1966 Poland]

Posted on April 24, 2012 by TR

Jerzy Kawalerowicz’s Oscar-nominated epic “Faraon” [Eng. title: Pharaoh] is a rare and also interesting interpretation of ancient history and politics from communist Poland. It has the grandeur of a Cecile B. DeMille film, but rather than merely glossing over history, it is far more ambitious in its scope by turning into an allegorical study.

In fact, Egyptology had progressed so much since 1966 that we have little option but to look at events in the film from a fictional viewpoint. That however doesn’t mean no effort had been made to make it look and feel authentic – far from it, a lot of detail had gone into the production design and watching the film is like browsing through the leaves of some lavish coffee table book. For instance they even rebuilt a royal river boat based on drawings from the fourth millennium BC, one that appears in just a single scene. Beyond the visual splendour though, there are passages of play where we see exquisite cinema as the director translates his vision into film, one that could not only relate to a modern world audience through their own historical experiences, but also Poland’s own until recent turbulent history. The cinematography is sumptuous, the screenplay flawless, but the direction particularly raises its game during important passages of play. The costumes are of acceptable if not exceptional standard, although my opinion must’ve been made after Pasolini’s “Medea” still fresh in mind. But this is a fine film nevertheless, and therefore Recommended Viewing.

Amazon.es DVD Link (comes with Spanish and Polish audio)
English Subtitles

Storyline:
The film charts the demise of a ruling dynasty in ancient Egypt – one that Ramesses XIII inherits. By this time, the kingdom effectively is run by priests overseeing the various ministries, with the Pharaoh more of a ceremonial figurehead than someone who could wield real power. The kingdom’s coffers are empty and all the wealth are controlled by priests. With a restive population, a rebellious mercenary army, and the ever-powerful Assyrians breathing down their neck, an ambitious but immature Ramesses tries to wrest control over his kingdom’s assets and wage war on Assyria instead of finding a peaceful alternative. His actions, paved with good intentions as it might be, is nevertheless misguided. It creates more adversaries than allies, not least with the overbearing priesthood. Any attempt to change the status quo is futile, Ramesses will soon learn.


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Posted in Polish Cinema | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Blanca Lewin & Gonzalo Valenzuela in “En la Cama” [2005 Chile]

Posted on April 21, 2012 by TR

Talented young director Matías Bize impressed audience with his debut full-length feature (“Sábado, una Película en Tiempo Real” – I’ll write about it in a separate post, only hinting for the moment that the entire film was done with a single take). He cast the same lead actress (Blanca Lewin) in his 2005 drama, “En la Cama” [Eng. Title: In Bed], setting out to prove another point – that a full length film can be made (unlike a Andy Warhol), engagingly and illuminatingly from within the confines of one room. Okay, there is an additional scene in the film shot with a different set, but most of the happenings are in the one room, between two characters in a bed. The best part of it all is – it doesn’t look remotely experimental. The subject is as mainstream as it gets, just as the characters. What makes the film tick is its excellent script and screenplay.

Beautifully conceived, it doesn’t set out to say anything particularly profound, but reveals through dialogue the intricacies of relationships in an insightful manner. The storyline essentially is about a young man and woman, strangers, having a one-night stand after a party. Obviously sex was what in their mind, but one can’t possibly keep doing it non-stop without having a break now and again. As wonderful though the sex scenes are to watch, it is during the interludes between removing and putting on condoms that the drama truly takes place. Two strangers attracted to each other in a motel room that’s neither’s territory, and a whole sleepless night to contend with – surely they have to talk to each other at some point. And they do, if awkwardly at first, about mundane little things like films, comic heroes etc., until they get comfortable enough to talk about their past experiences and relationships. And through the unfolding night, we see their histories unravel, we see them face up to each other naked, unprotected – as human nature intended. And theirs is not that much different to our own…

I’d reviewed this film years ago, but this is a reappraisal for the blog, and also to refresh my memory. This remarkable film is the result of a neat little concept which also didn’t go unnoticed by a certain Julio Medem who acknowledged its inspiration for one of his own films. A film made with just two characters in a confined room – should work, just as your own relationship with a cherished one could within the privacy of a bedroom. It requires a fine script to pull it off, which this film does, ably assisted by some sleek cinematography and direction. The only two actors in the film – Blanca Lewin and Gonzalo Valenzuela give a fine performance and generate convincing chemistry between them on screen, although Blanca Lewin pretty much remains the star of the show. The editing may have been a touch overdone, but that’s only me nit-picking – it is a fine film as it stands. Needless to say, for those who like to watch cerebral films that are also a visual treat, especially if it is from a magnetic Blanca Lewin, this is Highly Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon DVD Link


About the DVD:
This DVD is from a different era. While it has some interesting extras and unseen (deleted) footage, it is also asking to be remastered. It is letterboxed widescreen, made with older TV sets in mind. I’m afraid we’ll have to put up with it until technology catches up. However, I thought I could share with you something from the DVD that I thoroughly enjoyed – of one of their rehearsals for a dance scene. 🙂
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Posted in Chile, Matías Bize | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Micaela Ramazzotti & Francesca Inaudi in “Questione di Cuore” [2009 Italy]

Posted on April 16, 2012 by TR

Francesca Archibugi’s drama, “Questione di Cuore” [Eng. Title: A Question of the Heart] is a breezy comedy about friendship and mortality. As entertaining and well-written the script is, what sticks in my mind though are the charming images of common-man’s Rome where the film is set – a city and its people that I’d always loved visiting, and where I want to go again now.

Storyline:
Angelo, a car mechanic and Alberto, a film script-writer meet as inpatients at a hospital ward – both had suffered a heart attack. They strike up an unlikely but close friendship during their stay, sharing each others dreams and fears. While Alberto recovers early, it isn’t the case with Angelo whose weaker heart is attributed to heredity. Angelo had worked hard to provide for his family – his mother, wife Rossana and their two kids, with one more on the way. He worries about leaving his wife an unhappy widow, and desperately tries to make arrangements in view of his impending death. There is also a joking comparison by Alberto to the Odyssey during a passage of play after Angelo tries awkwardly to make his friend Rossana’s suitor. To the film’s credit, it doesn’t descend into farce or cheesy melodrama – it ends in the most apt manner.

Ms. Archibugi has made a typical but way above average mainstream film here – and although I have seen only one other film of hers to date (Lezioni di Volo), I do like her style of film making. They are usually packed with a constellation of well known stars, more so in this film where additional cine personalities have walk-ins as themselves, Alberto being the well known script-writer. Actors playing the main characters – Kim Rossi Stuart as Angelo, Antonio Albanese as Alberto, and Micaela Ramazzotti who plays Angelo’s wife Rossana give a fine account of themselves, as does Francesca Inaudi who plays Alberto’s estranged girlfriend Carla, although hers is possibly the least developed character among all. Nevertheless, for an entertaining and thoughtful piece of cinema, this one is Recommended Viewing.

Amazon.it DVD Link [PAL]


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Posted in Italian Cinema, Micaela Ramazzotti | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments