20 January 2007
Woody Allen: three comedies
Hollywood Ending (2002), Anything Else (2003), Zelig (1984)
I got to see three Woody Allen comedies, and although he is not one of my favourite filmmakers, his movies are always original and sometimes sarcastically funny. What I find amazing is Woody Allen's capacity to come up with so many stories in such short periods of time.
In Hollwood Ending, Woody is about to start in
an interesting project. He plays the role of a movie director. His former wife proposes a movie project, and he is chosen as the director. Right before shooting begins, he becomes completely blind! According to the doctors it is all merely psychological; there is nothing wrong with his eyes. With the help of his assistant, Woody goes through the whole shooting without ever seeing what he is directing. Nobody suspects until the end, where the plot gets more complicated and poor Woody sees his movie slowly turn into a fiasco.
Anything Else tells the story of a couple, whose unstable relationship affects others in many ways. In this movie, Jerry is a stand-up comedy writer, whose girlfriend (Christina Ricci) always makes his life impossible. She is a wannabe actress who takes too many pills and is only concerned with her weight. Jerry's friend, David (played by Woody Allen) is a neurotic university professor who gives good and bad advices to his friends. Together they make Jerry's life nearly impossible, until David suggests an escape that can save Jerry's career as a writer.
Zelig is a strange film. Shot in black and white, is sort of a fake documentary about the life of a
man known as the Chameleon Man, Mr. Zelig (played by Woody Allen) in the 20's and 30's. The Chameleon man was able to change his physical appearance depending with whom he was hanging around. As preposterous as the plot sounds, the excellent cinematography and effort put into creating every character and fake interview make it look like the real thing. Particularily funny are the scenes where the Chameleon Man appears at an outdoor Nazi congregation in Munich, and we see the scene of Hitler giving his speech and in the background the Chameleon Man is waving, or when he interrupts in the middle of a Sunday Mass given by the Pope, appearing in the balcony of the Vatican! A truly original and well done film.
Hollywood Ending (2002), Anything Else (2003), Zelig (1984)
I got to see three Woody Allen comedies, and although he is not one of my favourite filmmakers, his movies are always original and sometimes sarcastically funny. What I find amazing is Woody Allen's capacity to come up with so many stories in such short periods of time.
In Hollwood Ending, Woody is about to start in
an interesting project. He plays the role of a movie director. His former wife proposes a movie project, and he is chosen as the director. Right before shooting begins, he becomes completely blind! According to the doctors it is all merely psychological; there is nothing wrong with his eyes. With the help of his assistant, Woody goes through the whole shooting without ever seeing what he is directing. Nobody suspects until the end, where the plot gets more complicated and poor Woody sees his movie slowly turn into a fiasco.Anything Else tells the story of a couple, whose unstable relationship affects others in many ways. In this movie, Jerry is a stand-up comedy writer, whose girlfriend (Christina Ricci) always makes his life impossible. She is a wannabe actress who takes too many pills and is only concerned with her weight. Jerry's friend, David (played by Woody Allen) is a neurotic university professor who gives good and bad advices to his friends. Together they make Jerry's life nearly impossible, until David suggests an escape that can save Jerry's career as a writer.
Zelig is a strange film. Shot in black and white, is sort of a fake documentary about the life of a
man known as the Chameleon Man, Mr. Zelig (played by Woody Allen) in the 20's and 30's. The Chameleon man was able to change his physical appearance depending with whom he was hanging around. As preposterous as the plot sounds, the excellent cinematography and effort put into creating every character and fake interview make it look like the real thing. Particularily funny are the scenes where the Chameleon Man appears at an outdoor Nazi congregation in Munich, and we see the scene of Hitler giving his speech and in the background the Chameleon Man is waving, or when he interrupts in the middle of a Sunday Mass given by the Pope, appearing in the balcony of the Vatican! A truly original and well done film.
15 January 2007
Sophie Scholl (Deutschland, 2006)
Sophie und ihr Bruder haben in der Zeit des Nationalsozialismus Propaganda gegen das Regime verbreitet. Sie waren selbstverständlich gegen Hitler und seine gesamte Kriegspolitik. Gemeinsam mit anderen Freunden haben die Geschwister Propaganda-Blätter geheim gedruckt. Dann haben sie diese Blätter in Schulen und Universitäten verbreitet. Eines Tages sind Sophie und ihr Bruder von einem Professor erwischt. Sie sind schnell verhaftet und verhört worden. Der gesamte Film handelt von Sophies Verhör.
Am Anfang habe ich gedacht, der Film würde langweilig. Aber im Laufe des Films war ich von dem Dialog zwischen Sophie und der Polizei sehr beeindrukt. Der Verlauf des Verhörs ist sehr interessant. Schliesslich wurden Sophie, ihr Bruder und andere Freunde, die auch an der Vorbereitung der Propaganda-Blätter teilnahmen, vom Gericht zur Todesstrafe verurteilt. Die letzten und traurigen Szenen erinnern den Zuschauer an den Mut und die Stärke dieser jungen Menschen.
06 January 2007
Volver (Spanien, 2006)
Der neueste Film von Almodovar handelt von drei Schwestern. Eine der Schwester (Penelope Cruz) hat eine Tochter. Sie werden plötzlich mit dem Tod ihres Mannes konfrontiert. Es geht eigentlich um einen Mörder. Mutter und Tochter verstecken die Leiche des Mannes. Inzwischen taucht die Mutter von Penelope auf. Sie war vor vielen Jahren gestorben! Ist das die wahre Mutter oder ein Gespenst? Warum ist sie zurückgekommen? Diese Mischung von Realität und vielleicht Fiktion gefâllt mir am besten. Almodovar versucht auch ein bisschen von Spanien zu seigen, indem Penelope, mit Hilfe zwei Musikantern, ein typisches spanisches Lied singt. Hier gibt es keine komische Charakter, oder geistlich zerstörte Männer. Der Film ist insgesamt unterhaltsam und zum Teil lustig. Die Geschichte ist selbstverstândlich mit Almovars Stil stark geprägt.
Babel (2006)
The last film in Inarritu's trilogy deals about human solitude and desperation. Three different stories happenning in three countries are told alternately. In the first one, two Maroccan brothers shoot at a tourist bus hurting one of the passengers. In the second story, a Japanese girl tries to overcome her solitude and the death of her mother in a very unconventional way, and in the last story we see the tragic destiny of a Mexican babysitter after having problems with the border patrol police. We do not get happy endings, the movie might feel a little pessimistic and sad, but there is anyways a slight chance for hope and a better future. As Inarritu stated, he tried to show how human beings, even with modern communication technology, are still having problems understanding each other and accepting their differences. This is one of the best films I saw in 2006.
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