The Exterminating Angel

Made by Luis Buñuel effectively in exile in Mexico in 1962, The Exterminating Angel is generally considered a sharp satire on the rites and mores of the bourgeoisie. I think it can also be taken as having quite a political message. It made me think of situations where generally decent people find themselves trapped in situations that they know are wrong. They want to change things or get away, but can't quite bring themselves to. Think of Nazi Germany, Apartheid South-Africa or New South Wales under the Labor Party. The story revolves around a formal dinner party at the home of Señor Edmundo Nobile and his wife, Lucia. The servants unaccountably leave their posts before the dinner starts. After dinner the guests adjourn to the music room, where one of the women, Blanca, plays a piano sonata. Later, instead of leaving, the guests remove their jackets, loosen their gowns, and settle down for the night. By morning it is apparent that, for some inexplicable reason, they are trapped in the room. Fascinating, ground-breaking for its time, and even now, quite thought provoking.

Grave of the Fireflies

A massive emotional punch to the gut, Grave of the Fireflies is one of the saddest films you will ever see.  Set during the final days of WWII in Japan, it tracks what are also the last days of Seita and his little sister Setsuka.  Their family home in the port city of Kobe is firebombed.  Their mother, already sick, is badly burnt and does not survive, leaving them to fend for themselves.  They try living with their aunt, but she is resentful of having to feed and look after them, so they end up living in some caves by the side of a lake.  Food becomes increasingly scarce and soon they are living on dried frogs that they catch in the lake.  Setsuka dies of hunger and her brother soon after.  It is one of the most successful “serious” animations.  The lack of realism in the drawing of the characters, done in classic Anime style, does not distract at all from the emotional impact of the film.  If anything it makes it easier to identify with their plight.  Not a fun movie to watch, although many of the scenes, even those of the bombings, are quite beautiful.   It belongs in any top ten list of anti-war movies.      

Theme Park Movies

Having recently returned from a trip that included visits to Disneyland and number of other Californian theme parks, I thought I'd make a list of what I'd call the main "Theme Park Movies". These are movies that have either had theme park rides based on them, or in the case of Pirates of the Caribbean are based on rides. They also have in common that watching is a bit like a theme park ride, loads of action with twists and turns.

Pirates of the Caribbean
The Terminator
Back to the Future
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Jurassic Park
The Mummy
Star Wars
Transformers
Superman
Bat Man
Wild Wild West
Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

I'm sure I've left out many and would welcome additions.

M. Hulot's Holiday

I recently revisited this movie on DVD while on holiday in Fiji. While my surroundings were quite different from the French seaside holiday town of Saint-Marc-sur-Mer where Tati filmed Les Vacances I could nonetheless relate to the slightly soporific feeling that a relaxed holiday creates. Becoming accustomed to the little daily routines that are different from your work-a-day routines and therefore novel and enjoyable. Becoming used to the faces of your fellow holiday makers at the breakfast table. Filling your hours with pleasant and diverting, but not too taxing, activities. Its a lovely film, more enjoyable than laugh-out-loud funny. Like the books of PG Wodehouse its like a warm blanket to wrap yourself in and escape from reality for a little while in a world of nostalgia and gentle humour. I understand that a bronze statue of M. Hulot was later erected overlooking the beach where the film was made.

The Boat That Rocked

I have never before in this blog anticipated the release of a movie until The Boat That Rocked (see my review of Yes Man). I knew that I would love this movie, I wanted to to love this movie and I LOVED this movie.

Richard Curtis is the undisputed King of the feel good British comedy and he delivers again in spades here. He assembled a terrific cast, including big names like Philip Seymour Hoffman, Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh and the lesser names, but huge talents, of Rhys Ivans, Bill Nighy, Nick Frost and Rhys Darby (how many movies can there be with two actors named Rhys). It has a killer soundtrack with songs from The Who, Leonard Cohen, The Rolling Stones and many others. Its the story of a pirate radio station broadcasting from a boat in the North Sea during the early sixties when the BBC played a maximum of 45 minutes of popular music a day on radio. It had my wanting to leap out of my seat and cheer even before the end of the opening titles. By the end I was utterly satisfied. Its like getting stuck into a great gooey sweet baked pudding. There can be few things more fun that you can do on your own in the dark. It even looked like the actors were having fun making this. Excellent work and real entertainment. Rock & Roll!

The Great Dictator

A Chaplin masterpiece. Made in 1938, when in some quarters Hitler was not yet recognised as the embodiment of evil. Chaplin takes aim firmly at the rising Fuhrer and mocks him mercilessly, taking full advantage of the similarities in appearance with his own moustachioed little clown. This was to be the last outing for Chaplin as a small man with a moustache. It is clear that Chaplin wanted to use this film to make a point. If the preceding comedy was too subtle to get this point across, then it could not be missed in the three minute oration that he delivers at the end of the film. He has often been criticized for this, but I'm happy to cut him some slack. We get two hours of some of the best comedy the world has ever seen, in exchange for sitting through three minutes of Chaplin holding forth on values that most of us would hold dear in any case. A pretty good deal.