Shearing the Oscars: Best Actress

I'd best start by sharing some love on this, the day devoted to the subject. It would be necessary to do so simply because I will need the reminder after I get done with this piece.

This year's Best Actress Oscar race is not so much a puzzle to me as it an infuriating farce that exposes the emptiness of the Academy Awards. Sandra Bullock is the front runner for her work in THE BLIND SIDE. I don't mean to be hurtful. I saw the movie; I thought she was good in it but Oscar good? Please. Of course not, but she has had a really good year and has done so many great things for the box office over the years. Her top competition is Meryl Streep for her work in JULIE & JULIA. Streep has scored a record breaking 16 nominations with this last one but hasn't won since 1983. Naturally, we have to throw her something as some point. At least Streep's performance is Oscar worthy but what I don't understand is why the headlines don't read, "It's Down to Sidibe and Mulligan!"

Here are the nominees for Best Actress ...

SANDRA BULLOCK as Leigh Anne Tuohy in THE BLIND SIDE


I am not going to just denounce Bullock's nomination here. I didn't mind John Lee Hancock's THE BLIND SIDE. It was certainly designed to be satisfying but it accomplished its goals. Bullock carries the weight of the film on her shoulders and does it with strength and attitude to spare. She is also written in such a saintly manner that her character comes off as too perfect to be actually human. The fact is that Bullock has the nomination and the edge to win because she is well liked in Hollywood and Hollywood enjoys rewarding contribution over performance from time to time. Remember Julia Roberts in ERIN BROCKOVICH?

HELEN MIRREN as Countess Sofya in THE LAST STATION


At 64 years of age, this is Helen Mirren's fourth Oscar nomination. She won in this exact category in 2006 for her work in THE QUEEN. She returns now by portraying another famous historical figure, Countess Sofya, wife of Russian author, Leo Tolstoy, in Michael Hoffman's THE LAST STATION. Whereas her work in THE QUEEN had to be spot on given people's familiarity with the subject but, with little existing footage of Countess Sofya, Mirren had to create a character rather than recreate. This role is just not loud enough in a year like this one and I'm pretty sure Mirren knows it.

CAREY MULLIGAN as Jenny in AN EDUCATION


I am convinced that Carey Mulligan is going to be around for a long time and seen as one of the next generation's greatest actresses. In Lone Scherfig's brilliant, AN EDUCATION, she plays Jenny, a teenage girl of excessive intelligence and discipline who longs to let her passion run free. The range of Jenny's journey requires Mulligan to balance the many faces of this teenage girl - the good student, the perfect daughter, the virgin girlfriend to a man ten years her senior and of course the woman she so hurriedly wants to be. The National Board of Review and the Toronto Film Critics Association threw their support behind Mulligan but the film just never caught on like it should have.

GABOUREY SIDIBE as Clareece "Precious" Jones in PRECIOUS


I'm sure I've said this before but it bears repeating; I was completely floored when I met Gabourey Sidibe in person this past fall at a roundtable with her and PRECIOUS director, Lee Daniels. Ignorantly, I expected her to be much like the damaged, frightened, introvert she played in the film but she is the complete opposite. Beforehand, I did not think her performance was much of a stretch from who she had to be in reality. How could it be? Yet somehow, this bubbly, outspoken young lady found a pain so dark that everything she actually is is swallowed up by Precious. Sidibe was honoured by the National Board of Review but most of the film's award focus goes to co-star, Mo'Nique. Sidibe deserves this but will have to hope Streep and Bullock cancel each other out.

MERYL STREEP as Julia Child in JULIE & JULIA


When I mentioned that Streep broke a record this year with her 16th nomination for JULIE & JULIA, I neglected to mention that it was her own record of most career nods she broke. There is no question that Streep gives everything every time she goes out there (almost, anyway) and not having been rewarded by the Academy since 1983 seems unacceptable but why can't we remember that we should be honouring individual performances and not bodies of work. That said, I would much rather watch Streep take this than see Bullock get it for just putting in the time. Unfortunately, with the Screen Actors Guild in Bullock's camp, it might be tricky.

WHO WILL WIN? Sandra Bullock

WHO COULD STILL UPSET? Gabourey Sidibe

Next up in Black Sheep's Oscar coverage, we give you a guide to what nominated films are still playing in theatres out there and what you need to make sure you need covered before Oscar night.

Again, before I go, much love to all the Black Sheep readers!

IT'S COMPLICATED

Written and Directed by Nancy Meyers
Starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin and John Krasinski


Jake: You know what they say, people in nursing homes with plants live longer than people without."

The title says it all. IT’S COMPLICATED, alright. The sad part is it isn’t nearly as complicated as these folks make it out to be. I concede that starting an affair with your ex-husband after he is remarried to the younger woman that broke up your own marriage would definitely qualify as complicated. I also agree that hiding that affair from your kids and the guy you just started dating makes it even worse. Just don’t ask me to feel bad for you though because it is only as complicated as you allow it to be.

Writer/Director Nancy Meyers knows what movie audiences want around the holidays. Her previous works (WHAT WOMEN WANT and SOMETHING’S GOTTA GIVE, to name a couple) have been big holiday hits and IT’S COMPLICATED will be no different. Albeit sometimes forced, it is actually quite funny at times. Meryl Streep plays Jane, a 50-something single woman whose kids have all left her very costly nest and who finds herself alone for the first time in her life. It isn’t long before her neurosis and several bottles of wine find her in bed with her ex (Alec Baldwin). The twosome are such talented actors that going along with all their antics often not only leads to hilarity but also character and insight, a rarity in safe fare like this. And let me just say that Streep should get stoned in all of her movies from now on. That woman is downright silly sometimes.


To get complicated, things need to get dirty first and IT’S COMPLICATED is far too clean to qualify. It’s like Hollywood’s take on the kinds of desperate scenarios indie film characters find themselves in. As they sit amidst all their perfect privilege and wealth though, their woes only come across as whiny. Funny, sure, but self-indulgent too.

FANTASTIC MR. FOX

Written by Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach
Directed by Wes Anderson
Voices by George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray


Mr Fox: This is going to be a total cluster-cuss for everybody.

Let me just get this out of the way; Wes Anderson’s FANTASTIC MR. FOX is certainly aptly titled as the perfect word to describe it is simply, fantastic. This stop-motion Roald Dahl adaptation about man versus animal honours its roots and broadens its ideas into a contemporary family classic that is both insightful and yet still playful. In his first foray into animation, Anderson does not bend to the style but rather turns the style itself inside out to become the perfect compliment to his quirky and expressive nature.


Despite being fantastic, Mr. Fox (voiced by a spry George Clooney), has gotten himself and his neighbours into a hole they can’t get out of. After promising his wife, Mrs. Fox (a sly Meryl Streep), that he will never steal again once she announces that she is pregnant, Mr. Fox deliberately breaks that promise and angers the biggest farmers in town, Boggis, Bunce and Bean. The farmers drive the animals underground and they must come together to dig their way out. The battle is on and the delight with which Anderson seems to be having with it all, draws the viewer as deep into the depths of the film as the tunnels being dug on the screen.


While Anderson, along with THE SQUID AND THE WHALE writer, Noah Baumbach, infuse the screenplay with adult themes a plenty, from resisting your natural instincts to rising above the hand that feeds you, they create a pace that is delicate and quiet but never so much so that younger viewers will lose interest. Under Anderson’s always mindful and always expansive eye, FANTASTIC MR. FOX is as cunning and as sharp as one would expect a fox to be. It is its unexpected charm though that will make it Anderson’s most endearing work.

JULIE & JULIA

Written and Directed by Nora Ephron
Starring: Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci and Chris Messina


Julie Powell: The truth is, no one knows about me. I feel like I’m just sending things out into this endless void.

In 2002, struggling New York writer, Julie Powell started a blog, called “The Julie/Julia Project”. In 2004, I started a blog and if you’re reading this right now, then you are likely reading my blog. And I, like Julie, often wonder if there is anyone out there reading these words that I spend so much time toiling over or, on more fortunate occasions, delighting in. She, like me, sometimes lacks the faith and the strength to believe that there is an audience, that there will be a bigger one and that all of this work will lead to the right person at the right time taking note of it and subsequently plucking her (or me) from her life (or mine) and dropping her in the middle of the one’s she’s only dreamt of. The major difference is that Julie has a secret weapon – Julia Child. I apparently need to get me one of those.


JULIE & JULIA is based on not just one but two true stories. Writer/Director, Nora Ephron, who hasn’t directed anything since 2005’s BEWITCHED and hasn’t directed a hit since 1993’s SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, returns with a structure that is not so dissimilar to her Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan romantic comedy classic. Ephron must balance her story between two times and places as Julie Powell (Amy Adams) blogs and cooks her way through Julia Child’s cookbook and Julia Child (Meryl Streep) learns to become well, herself. Both ladies are lost before taking on their new challenges; both have strong, supportive men in their lives who make them better people (Chris Messina for Julie and Stanley Tucci for Julia); and, fortunately for Ephron, both ladies are effortlessly talented and consistently compelling to watch.


Ephron plays things too safe for JULIE & JULIA to have a profound impact on the viewer. The obstacles the two women face seem more contrived than plausible and therefore, their triumphs never take on the significance necessary to inspire the viewer. This is particularly disappointing considering this is a movie about following inspiration and daring to dream. Still, the talented cast manage laughs whenever they can and Streep’s performance is so boisterous that it elevates the whole thing from, in restaurant review terms, a 2-star to a 3, but given what they had to work with, it could have easily been a 5 under the command of a more skilled chef.

Black Sheep @ The Oscars: BEST ACTRESS

This was a tough one. The nomination competition was fierce enough on its own without Kate Winslet contending for a spot for two standout performances. Sally Hawkins won the Golden Globe and a number of critics’ accolades for her performance in HAPPY-GO-LUCKY but missed her shot here. Kristen Scott Thomas hoped for a spot for her performance in I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG but that little seen film left little impression. Michelle Williams had hoped that her stark performance in WENDY AND LUCY would earn her a second nod but it was too bare to register. Even Cate Blanchett, an Oscar regular, couldn’t get swept up in the Benjamin Button bonanza. And so with one slot inevitably going to Winslet, who else managed to squeak past the stiff competition?

Anne Hathaway in RACHEL GETTING MARRIED

When you first meet Kym in Jonathan Demme’s "love it or hate it" family drama, RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, she is a lot to take. She talks to fill the silence and she does so very defensively in order to close the doors before they are even opened. She doesn’t want anyone to see what lies behind those doors, not ever herself. Hathaway infuses Kym with a nervous likeability that makes her both compelling and repelling. It is certainly the kind of performance that gave everyone pause and had everyone wondering if there was more to this princess than anyone had ever imagined.


Hathaway was considered to be an early favorite in this category when the film debuted to rave reviews at the Venice and Toronto film fests. Still, the film has proven to be more of a critical darling than anything else and, quite sadly as this critic loved it, this is the film’s only nomination, indicating that overall support may be thin.

Angelina Jolie in CHANGELING

Christine Collins is always a lady. She is always properly made up and appropriately composed. This would prove to be her downfall as all assume that she will just sit quietly and take all that is thrown at her but they did not take into account what a mother would do for her missing son. Jolie delivers another understated performance here and is just as captivating for her fragility and endurance as for her beauty.

CHANGELING is also not a widely regarded film. Jolie missed the nomination in this category last year for her role in A MIGHTY HEART and so some might want to reward her for both as a means of making up for the past but she does already have an Oscar at home for her earlier performance in GIRL, INTERRUPTED. Jolie is not considered a threat in this category and I doubt that will change.

Melissa Leo in FROZEN RIVER

To be fair, I still have not seen this film. It only comes out next week on DVD and I can’t even remember it playing in theatres here in Montreal, which is odd considering the story takes place party in Quebec. I can tell you Leo plays Ray Eddy, a single mother drawn into the world of border smuggling. Aside from that, I got nothing.


Leo is certainly the dark horse in this category. The nomination alone has made people take notice of the film and, along with its nod for original screenplay, it could build some last minute momentum. Leo has been nominated for a number of awards already, including the National Board of Review, the Independent Spirit Awards and the Screen Actors Guild. There is certainly good reason to consider her the underdog contender but keep in mind, the SAG nominated her but she did not ultimately win. No, that honour went to …

Meryl Streep in DOUBT

You may never know a scarier screen nun after Streep’s Sister Aloysius Beauvier. The way that she leers at the children in the playground, just waiting for them to step out of line so that she can assume her duties as disciplinarian and well, discipline them. She almost seems to get some perverse joy out of it. She scours the world for all its evils and when she sets her eyes on her parish priest, you know he’s in big trouble because even God will be too scared to not side with the sister.

How many times does someone need to be nominated in their lifetime? Streep holds the records for most Oscar nods with 15 in total. She does have two wins but her last was for SOPHIE’S CHOICE in 1982. She is definitely due and many are saying that this will be her year. DOUBT did not play well outside of the acting categories, which denotes a certain apathy toward the film but Streep did take home the SAG award for this intense performance. The trouble is, so did …

Kate Winslet in THE READER

Hanna Schmitz is one of Winslet’s most complex characters. We meet her under the same circumstances as the young boy she ends up taking to bed. She seems nice enough, if not perhaps just a bit cold and guarded. Still, you would never imagine that she was personally responsible for countless deaths as an SS officer in the Second World War. Furthermore, it is unfathomable that she is actually able to rationalize her actions as entirely reasonable.


Winslet was expected to earn a nomination here for REVOLUTIONARY ROAD. In fact, after her double win at the Golden Globes opened the possibility of an Oscar repeat. Her role in THE READER was touted as a supporting performance but as she has the most screen time of any character in the film, that was a hard sell that was eventually rejected by the academy. The SAG rewarded Winslet in the supporting category and now both SAG honoured actresses find themselves going head to head at the Oscars. It could get ugly.

I would say though that even though Winslet did not get the nod for REVOLUTIONARY ROAD, no one will forget the force with which she delivered in both films. And so, Black Sheep predicts Kate Winslet for Best Actress in THE READER.

DOUBT

Written and Directed by John Patrick Shanley
Starring Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams


Father Flynn: What do you mean you’re not sure?

There is no doubt in my mind that John Patrick Shanley is a brilliant writer. His Pulitzer Prize winning play, DOUBT, also went on to win the Tony for Best Play and has now spawned a big screen adaptation starring three of Hollywood’s most gifted stars. Getting the man who created the characters and who buried such profound dilemmas deep within his words to bring his own play to life on screen must have seemed like a scenario only the angels could have arranged for in heaven. Sadly, the results are more purgatorial than heavenly. Shanley’s unique understanding of the material is evident in every impeccable performance given but his lack of experience as a filmmaker (his only previous experience directing was in 1990 with JOE VERSUS THE VOLCANO) ultimately leaves the film feeling flatter than one would hope, especially when the material calls for a hellishly passionate fire.
Still, given the gravity of the subject matter and the manner in which the cast delivers it, I doubt anyone will care.


The reality is that Shanley’s inexperience only stops a good film from being great. The genius of the script itself is not only engaging but challenging and provocative. Just as the day begins with mass for so many, especially more so in 1964, so should a film that questions the very foundation of religious belief – faith. As the young alter boys prepare to assist with the serving of mass, one may wonder why any boys are still allowed to become alter boys. The image itself is now almost intrinsically linked to pedophilia and abuse. Still, boys continue to volunteer because they have faith and they are looking for a way to express it. Once the parishioners have taken their seats, they hear a sermon that casts doubt over the decency of the decisions they make on a daily basis. It is ironic really, considering they go this very same place to alleviate these doubts. It is this constant duality and questioning that makes DOUBT so meaningful and faith so fragile.


At the St. Nicholas Church School in New York City’s Bronx neighborhood, the young students don’t have room for doubt in their lives. Doubt doesn’t fit in a world ruled by structure and regulation. This is especially true when breaking the rules means having to face the most frightening nun I have ever seen, Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep). One ordinarily might think that people who choose to serve God, or for whom God has chosen a life of servitude, must have a heartfelt devotion to their creator, matched only by their appreciation for the beautiful He created. Streep’s Aloysius though seems to solely be on guard for the devil and it is her certainty that drives her to fish it out in Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Having nothing to go on but the loosely drawn conclusions of a fellow nun (Amy Adams), her accusation that Father Flynn may have acted inappropriately with a young alter boy is all she needs to create doubt.


We are apparently all too quick to assume the worse but Shanley’s script is far too knowing to wholly confirm or deny the truth. This is the trouble with doubt; unless confirmed, it will never be anything more than a plaguing suspicion. And while you need no proof to believe in God, you need just as little to believe in the devil. This is the genius of DOUBT; Shanley’s parable, for all its intense and transformative drama, can be broken down to a simple flip of a coin, where heads is faith and tails is doubt.

BLACK SHEEP'S WEEKLY NEWS WRANGLE

THE DARK KNIGHT TRIPS OVER A PINEAPPLE AND A PAIR OF PANTS
Opening early to avoid having to compete with the China Olympics, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS was smoking right out of the (hot) box. Earning the superfluous title of best August Wednesday opening of all time, the new stoner action comedy from the house of Apatow pulled in $12.1 million. THE DARK KNIGHT was forced not only down t second place but all the way down to third for the first time in its entire record breaking run. Yes, opening in second place on Wednesday is THE SISTERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING PANTS 2 with $5.7 million, just ahead of Batman's $5.1 million. It remains to be seen what the weekend will hold but it looks like the stoners might be able to do what the Mummy could not.
Source: Box Office Mojo

ANG LEE GRABS THE BOYS AND GOES BACK TO WOODSTOCK
Teaming with producer James Schamus for the 12th time, director Ang Lee is adapting original Woodstock organizer, Eliot Tiber's memoir, "Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, Concert, and a Life" from a screenplay written by Schamus. The Focus feature is set to start filming later this month after a postponement to make way for an impending actors' strike. Though this still could happen, the threat has decreased and seeing as how the cast is ready, it's best not to waste any time. The cast in question is includes Emile Hirsch, Imelda Staunton, Liev Schreiber and from "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart", Demetri Martin as Tiber himself.
Source: JoBlo

STREEP GETS SAPPY
After two proven summer blockbusters - 2006's THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA and this year's MAMMA MIA! - leading lady, Meryl Streep is in serious negotiations to star in Nancy Meyers' next feature. The project is yet untitled but essentially Streep would be at the center of a romantic triangle with two other men. This would mark Streep's first romantic comedy since, geez, does DEATH BECOMES HER count? It seems like Streep is tired of serious and I'd say she deserves the break.
Source: Variety

QUENTIN TARANTINO THIS ...
Brad Pitt has officially signed on to Quentin Tarantino's remake, INGLORIOUS BASTARDS. The World War II epic drama is a drastic departure for the director on some levels but not on others, given the original film's B-Movie roots. This would be Pitt's first time working with the contemporary genius and Quentin secured his partcipation just shortly after Pitt welcomed his new twins into the world. Also in negotiations to join Pitt on the project are Nastassja Kinski and Simon Pegg. Fellow director, Eli Roth has already commited to acting in the project. Tarantino intends to shoot this October and have the project ready for next years's Cannes film festival.
Source: Variety

QUENTIN TARANTINO THAT
While the last Tarantino story is actually based on fact, there are also plenty of Tarantino rumours circulating. Apparently, the B-movie obsessed director intends to remake another film when he's finished with BASTARDS. He hopes to put his own personal spin on Russ Meyers' FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL! KILL! Now, whether he wants it to be any good or not is a whole other issue. The bigger rumour here is that Tarantino is seriously consdiring Britney Spears for the role of Varla, a killer lesbian, stripper. I guess the B-movie tone would be perfect for Spears' particular acting talents. We shall see if this actually happens.
Source: Telegraph

MAMMA MIA!

Written by Catherine Johnson
Music by Stig Anderson, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus
Directed by Phyllida Lloyd
Starring Meryl Streep, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters and Stellan Skarsgard


Donna: Mamma Mia, here I go again. My, my, how can I resist you?

Let me tell you. Just because I’ve been listening to ABBA almost non-stop since I saw MAMMA MIA! two days ago does not mean I enjoyed the film all that much. It’s just the Swedish pop super group’s music is so darn infectious. You would think that energy would translate to a feel-great good time at the movies but sadly this is not the case. First time feature filmmaker, Phyllida Lloyd, spends far too much time dragging her feet when they should be dancing up and down the beach and no matter how many shots of the moonlight shimmering against the waves there are, the film is still a clunker instead of a stunner.


When a musical is paper thin on the stage, it runs the risk of being just plain silly on the screen. On the stage, MAMMA MIA! is a somewhat justified excuse to revive a bunch of ABBA tracks wrapped into a completely implausible, overly romantic farce. Young Sophie (played on screen by Amanda Seyfried) is but 20 and about to marry the very supportive and very handsome, Sky (Dominic Cooper). Something is missing though. Sophie has lived on this tiny Greek island her entire life and helped run a crumbling hotel with her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep) but she has never met her father. As far as she knows, he left before her mother could say anything to him but a chance encounter with her mother’s diary from the summer of her conception narrows the possible men to three. So rather than talk to her mother about her desire to know where she came from, she invites all three men (Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgard) to her wedding, pretending to be her mother looking for a reunion. Naturally all three men accept the invite and hijinks ensue. While the campiness of the whole affair is forgiven on stage because the suspension of disbelief doesn’t apply, this screen version is too far removed from the stage to feel the least bit plausible.


I believe in angels, something good in everything I see. And while there is very little good to focus on in MAMMA MIA!, at least there is always the surprising Streep. She jumps up and down on beds, slides down banisters without the least bit of concern for breaking her hip and she can sing too. Much like her turn in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, Streep’s performance as the lonely mother of the bride carries the film forward and, in the show stopping “The Winner Takes It All”, elevates the film to heights it could never have achieved without her participation. Though the two don’t get nearly enough screen time together, Streep and Seyfriend make a great mother/daughter combo. Seyfried’s fresh exuberance seems like it might actually be inherited from her movie mom. The rest of the cast delivers varying results – Julie Walters clearly thinks she is a comic genius but she comes off too brash; Christine Baranski is miscast as an older bombshell making for some particularly awkward moments with younger men; and someone should ensure that Pierce Brosnan never sings on screen again.


Ultimately, MAMMA MIA! never connects all of its components. A melodramatic moment is followed by a peppy ABBA song, which somehow erases everyone’s pain. In that sense, ABBA’s music is the perfect choice to set the tone as it is some of the most depressing pop lyricism set to upbeat melodies in pop history. While the contrast adds weight to the songs themselves, the musical masking casts an air of falseness that never lifts on the film. What your left with is a compilation of poorly choreographed, plainly sung music videos. No offence, Meryl, but you are long past your MTV days.

BLACK SHEEP @ THE 32ND ANNUAL TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL I

RENDITON and LUST, CAUTION


Who knew that for ten days in September, a little city called Toronto is transformed into something that resembles another little city that you might know as Hollywood? While I’m sure plenty of Torontonians already knew that, this is my first time at the Toronto International Film Festival and I was not prepared for what I became witness to. You can’t walk down the street without seeing someone wearing the orange volunteer T-shirt or with a TIFF tag hanging from their necks. Of course, none of these people are celebrities despite the long list of famous names that are flying in and out throughout the week. Brad and Angelina are here; or is it Angelina and Brad? Jake, Reese, Cate, George, Matt and Woody are all here. Even Ang Lee flew in from Venice to screen his latest, LUST, CAUTION, before it went on to win the Gold Lion for Best Film, much to many critic’s surprise. That said, I don’t know where they’re hiding. Thus far, I’ve only been able to spot them by hanging out on the sidewalks across from the numerous screening venues throughout the city to catch a glimpse of the beautiful people as they make their entrances on the red carpet. I’m convinced they spend the rest of their time shuttling between parties and their hotel rooms. No matter though; I did not come to Toronto to see celebrities … except for Jake Gyllenhaal. I did want to see him and see him I did, if only from very far when at the world premiere of his latest film, RENDITION. No, I came to Toronto to see some movies and that’s precisely what I did.


My first day here was a tad bit chaotic. I was on a bus from Montreal at 9:30 AM. I somehow lucked out and scored a seat all to myself. This gave me the chance to spread out my legs and relax before my stressful arrival. It might not be stressful to you or someone else who is not me but I was arriving at roughly 4:30 and my first film was at 6:30. This gave me two hours to get a cab to my hotel, drop my stuff and make my way to the first venue. When I got to my hotel, I had two e-mails from people looking to sell me tickets to films the next day. I had to now meet someone at their house in Chinatown and then make my way to the first venue. There went my shower. I managed to find my way to both locations with a good deal of ease and before I knew it, I was waiting at the door of Roy Thompson Hall for RENDITION. People were screaming, “Jake! Jake!” as I was let in. I tried to look back but dozens of photographers and reporters waiting for their short window to get that shot, that sound bite, were blocking my view. I opted to go into the venue and get myself a good seat. I should have stayed outside. Considering how much I paid for this gala screening, my seats could not have been much worse. When it came time for director, Gavin Hood and actors, Gyllenhaal, Reese Witherspoon and Peter Saarsgard to make their way on stage, they were barely distinguishable to my eyes. I could still see Jake swaying his hips back and forth with his hands in his pockets though. That was good enough for me.


RENDITION is Hood’s follow-up to his Academy Award winning film, TSOTSI, and his first as an official Hollywood director. He maintains both bravery and integrity by telling the story of Anwar El-Ibrahim (Omar Metwally), an Egyptian chemical engineer who has been living and working in the USA for 20 years. After a suicide bomb kills an American operative in the Middle East, El-Ibrahim is detained as he reenters the US without any explanation. Witherspoon is the pregnant wife who searches frantically for her missing husband. Saarsgard is her college friend working in government whom she hopes can help her find him. Gyllenhaal is the American operative in charge of getting answers from El-Ibrahim. RENDITION is most interesting as a portrait of what it means to be American today. Each major player represents a different faction of Americana. Witherspoon is the non-political soccer mom (literally, we are introduced to her playing soccer with her son) who does not concern herself with world events but chooses to focus on her family, her life. Saarsgard is the American who knows that his government is committing injustices but accepts this and does not fight back in fear of what will happen to him. Meryl Streep plays the woman who gave the order to take El-Ibrahim into custody. She is Witherspoon’s antithesis; she does not concern herself with people or families but rather allows her ignorance to guide her decisions regarding the bigger political fallout. And then there’s Gyllenhaal. He begins as the good American who does what he is told and does not ask questions but eventually turns into the American who just can’t take the silence anymore. Unfortunately for RENDITION, the intrigue portion of this political thriller doesn’t go much further than this. The performances are solid but no actor is ever given the chance to take their characters as far as they could, leaving an unfulfilled feeling in its wake. RENDTION forces us to watch and learn about an atrocious reality being currently committed and then sends us on our way with very little changed. It’s as though we are abducted along with El-Ibrahim, only without the torture.


When the credits rolled at RENDITION, I sprang out of my seat and bolted out of the theatre as fast I could. It’s not that I didn’t care for the movie; it was enjoyable enough. It’s just I had another one starting in ten minutes and I couldn’t afford to get caught in the crowds. A cab dropped me off at the beautiful Elgin theatre of Yonge street and I somehow still managed to find a seat somewhere near the back just in time for Ang Lee to introduce his follow-up to BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. I had already heard mixed things about LUST, CAUTION. At just a little under three hours, I heard the film went too long. With an NC-17 rating and rumours that some of the film’s explicit scenes were real, I had heard the film might be a bit much at times. I simply found it be unfocused. It was as though Lee could not decide the style in which to tell his story. The film is part espionage, part historical, part suspense and part love story. It is at times epic while classical or noir at others. Still, like most of Lee’s work, there’s an underlying meaning to devour. LUST, CAUTION tells the story of Wang Jiazhi (Wei Tang), a young student who gets involved with a political acting troupe that decide to up their game by infiltrating the operations of a known traitor in order to kill him in the name of their invaded China. Wang is embraced by the wife of the traitor, Mr. Yee (Tony Leung) when she poses as a society lady. Before long, she catches Mr. Yee’s attention and they begin an intensely sexual and violent affair. The genius of the story is the exposition of the love’s epicenter. Lee throws his characters into it and forces them to struggle between their duties and their desires. Unfortunately, the unsteadiness of the film is distracting and almost makes it impossible for the point to be made.


While the screenings were somewhat disappointing, the magic of just being there was certainly not. I left the Elgin with all the other patrons pouring into the street. They were unimpressed and dismayed but all I could think about was what was to come next.
Next …
Part Two
PERSEPOLIS
and MICHAEL CLAYTON

A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION

Written by Garrison Keillor
Directed by Robert Altman

Real life American radio show, A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION, becomes fictional fodder in director, Robert Altman’s film of the same name. After 32 years on the air, the show has not changed a bit. Host, Garrison Keillor (played by Keillor himself) broadcasts live from a Minnesota theatre in front of a loyal audience. Various acts perform songs, ranging in message from spiritual to romantic to borderline naughty while messages from sponsors are interspersed throughout. Gracing the stage in song are colorful, quirky (read Altman-esque) characters played by a gamut of folk from Meryl Streep to Lily Tomlin to Woody Harrelson to John C. Reilly. It doesn’t stop there either. The cast continues to round out with the likes of Kevin Kline, Virginia Madsen, Tommy Lee Jones and little Lindsay Lohan. And those are just the A-listers. Nearly the entire story takes place over the course of the show’s final broadcast, practically shutting out any possibility for conventional structure and allowing for character work and integrated back story. Altman has given us a backstage pass to A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION’s swan song, what ultimately becomes a contemplation on death that is served with soothing melodies that soften the looming sadness and grief.

At 81 years old, director, Robert Altman, admits that mortality is in his thoughts and it is certainly running rampant through the wings and dressing rooms of this homely theatre. The death of the comforting show opens the door to conversations about corporations crushing simple people and sensitive souls as well as the neighborly values sung about in the songs. An aging character dies on this fateful night allowing cast and crew’s reactions to permeate to the surfaces of their faces. Should something be said in his honour? Should words be said about the demise of the show in its honour? Is death a reason to honour life or is life reason enough? As both host and screenwriter, Keillor seems more in favor of honouring life while it is still with us, choosing to perform each show like it were his last. This makes the last show no more significant than any of the others, at least not just because it is the last one. Death is so acutely prominent on this night that it even takes the form of an angel of death, dressed in a glowing white trench coat. She presides over the duration of the show, visible only intermittently to those around her and not even all of them at that. Her function, as an angel of death, is to take souls to whatever comes next when their time has come. Though her duties for the evening had already been fulfilled, she cannot leave as she is haunted by her own death, which came while listening to A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION. Even angels cannot fully piece together the puzzle that is the transition from life to death.


As the angel of death, a character billed as Dangerous Woman, Madsen sadly gives one of the film’s weaker performances. Though not entirely her fault as her white over coat is a little too white, too perfect, her stride is more of a glide and her speech is always calm, docile. Together, these approaches come off as more farcical than supernatural. Equally clichéd is Guy Noir, an over glorified security guard played by Kline. His private eye speak seems out of place amidst the rest of the realistically based characters. Luckily, Altman’s strange decisions to have these characters play to such stereotypes did not detract from all the rest. Individually, the rest of the major players are strong but they are stronger still as part of the miniature groupings they belong to. As duo Dusty & Lefty, Harrelson and Reilly play off each other like they’ve been doing it for years. Not surprisingly but still seriously appreciated are Streep and Tomlin as the Johnson sisters, Yolanda and Rhonda. They round out each other’s stories and harmonize like only sisters would. Tomlin even has a hint or irritation in her eyes whenever Streep drifts towards a more whimsical train of thinking. Of course, many an eye is on Lohan to see how she holds up as the third wheel to these two unquestionable talents. And hold up she does as the next generation representer of the Johnson family,
A daughter who sings of death but at least she sings. Some things don’t die; they just evolve.

In true Altman style, all of these different lives converge to create a world unto itself. This world is reinforced by Altman standard elements like lengthy credit sequences, conversations running over others and fluid camera movement crossing from the back stage to the actual stage and from floor to floor. The result is a multi-leveled maze that Altman somehow manages to make sense. Whilst doing so, Altman also sneaks in the film’s greatest irony, that some traditions don’t die but continue to thrive after four decades of filmmaking.