2008 Progress Report, Part 2

The next list contains the films that were above the level of "Yeah, it was fine," but not on the level of shorts-creaming. And as for Mother of Tears, I didn't feel comfortable putting it in either the best or worst category, so she's only there by default. Oh, and please excuse the horrible cropping... I was just lazy. I'll post the other 2 lists later on.

Les Autres!

The Bank Job – dir. Roger Donaldson – UK – Lionsgate – with Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows

Mother of Tears, The [La terza madre] – dir. Dario Argento – Italy/USA – Weinstein Company – with Asia Argento, Cristian Solimeno

My Blueberry Nights – dir. Wong Kar-wai – France/Hong Kong/China – Weinstein Company – with Norah Jones, Jude Law, David Strathairn, Rachel Weisz, Natalie Portman, Chan Marshall

Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead – dir. Lloyd Kaufman – USA – Troma – with Jason Yachanin, Kate Graham, Allyson Sereboff

The Ruins – dir. Carter Smith – USA – DreamWorks – with Jena Malone, Jonathan Tucker, Laura Ramsey, Shawn Ashmore, Joe Anderson

Savage Grace – dir. Tom Kalin – USA/Spain/France – IFC Films – with Julianne Moore, Eddie Redmayne, Stephen Dillane, Hugh Dancy, Elena Anaya, Unax Uglade, Belén Rueda

Shotgun Stories – dir. Jeff Nichols – USA – Liberation Entertainment – with Michael Shannon

Signal, The – dir. David Bruckner, Dan Bush, Jacob Gentry – USA – Magnet Releasing – with Anessa Ramsey, AJ Bowen, Justin Welborn, Cheri Christian

Son of Rambow – dir. Garth Jennings – UK – Paramount Vantage – with Bill Milner, Will Poulter, Ed Westwick, Jules Sitruk

Stuck – dir. Stuart Gordon – USA/Canada/UK – ThinkFilm – with Mena Suvari, Stephen Rea, Russell Hornsby

Water Lilies [Naissance des pieuvres] – dir. Céline Sciamma – France – Red Envelope Entertainment/Koch Lorber – with Pauline Acquart, Louise Blachère, Adele Haenel, Warren Jacquin

2008 Progress Report, Part 1: UPDATED

Well, fuck me, it’s already past the half-year mark, and 2008 has really surprised me. Thanks to studios like IFC, the early part of the year has been filled with 2007 leftovers from the various international festivals. From new films by Gus Van Sant, Jacques Rivette, Catherine Breillat and Olivier Assayas, to name a few, could you ask for a whole lot more? I’ve assessed all the films I’ve seen that were released in the United States this year and arranged them into three convenient categories. The first contains the real stand-outs of the early year, films likely to hit that impending best of the year list. The second is an A for effort, for films that tried but didn’t exactly succeed but are not altogether dismissible. And finally, the last list will contain 2008’s duds, of which I hear there are many outside of what I’ve seen (hello, The Happening, The Love Guru, Hancock!).Let's start things out with the worst. Thankfully, I avoided a number of the multiplex flicks, so the list is surprisingly small, even though it does contain some shit-fests.

UPDATE: So Harmony Korine's Mister Lonely is officially the most forgettable film of 2008. This is the second time I've tried to think up films released in 2008 that I've seen, and twice I've left this film out. Hopefully, I'll forget Drillbit Taylor as soon as I've forgotten this one.

The Bad!

City of Men [Cidade dos Homens] – dir. Paulo Morelli – Brazil – Miramax – with Douglas Silva, Darlan Cunha

Cloverfield – dir. Matt Reeves – USA – Paramount – with Michael Stahl-David, Lizzy Caplan, Mike Vogel, Jessica Lucas

Diary of the Dead – dir. George A. Romero – USA – Dimension

Drillbit Taylor – dir. Steven Brill – USA – Paramount – with Owen Wilson, Leslie Mann, Alex Frost, Josh Peck

Frontier(s) [Frontière(s)] – dir. Xavier Gens – France – Lionsgate – with Karina Testa, Aurélien Wiik, Samuel Le Bihan

Funny Games – dir. Michael Haneke – France/UK/USA – Warner Independent – with Naomi Watts, Tim Roth, Michael Pitt, Brady Corbet, Devon Gearhart

Grand, The – dir. Zak Penn – USA – Anchor Bay – with Woody Harrelson, Cheryl Hines, Dennis Farina, Werner Herzog, David Cross

Kiss the Bride – dir. C. Jay Cox – here! Films – USA – with Philipp Karner, James O’Shea, Tori Spelling, Joanna Cassidy

Mister Lonely - dir. Harmony Korine - IFC Films - France/USA/UK/Ireland - with Diego Luna, Samantha Morton, Denis Lavant, Anita Pallenberg, James Fox, Werner Herzog, Leos Carax

Other Boleyn Girl, The – dir. Justin Chadwick – USA/UK – Sony Pictures – with Eric Bana, Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Jim Sturgess, Mark Rylance, Kristin Scott Thomas, David Morrissey

Mondo Vision?

A studio I've never heard of, Mondo Vision, has announced a 2-disc set for Andrzej Żuławski's La femme publique, starring Valérie Kaprisky, Lambert Wilson and Patrick Bauchau, for 30 September. Mondo Vision also owns the rights to two other Żuławski films: L'amour braque, with Sophie Marceau and Tchéky Karyo, and L'important c'est d'aimer, with Romy Schneider and Klaus Kinski. I will let you know when those two are announced. Stay tuned!

Bad News Tennis Shoes

Michael K from Dlisted is reporting that my dear Rose McGowan has been dropped from Robert Rodriguez's Barbarella remake, which pisses me off to no end. The studio apparently wanted a name for the lead and guess who they want to play the role made famous by Jane Fonda: Jessica fucking Alba. She's about as sexy as a hang-nail and about as interesting too, so my well wishes for the unnecessary remake have dissipated. You may know that Alba, alongside Hayden Christensen, makes me want to gouge my eyes out. Boring and talentless have never offended me so much.

On a local note, the Tivoli in the University City Loop has announced their Midnight Movie Fest for this summer/fall. The results are mixed, as usual, appealing to the dorky 80s crowd mainly, but there are a few highlights, which include the uncut version of David Lynch's Wild at Heart, which I believe is just a little more graphic decapitation/head explosion (I can't remember which) near the end, and John Cameron Mitchell's Hedwig and the Angry Inch. John Waters' Pink Flamingos will also show it's filthybeautiful head, and, though I might have thought it to soon, the epic Grindhouse will also be showing. And now you can see it with people who knew what the fuck was supposed to be going on. The full list is as follows:

July 18-19 - Alien (Director's Cut)

July 25-26 - American Psycho

Aug 1-2 - Hedwig and the Angry Inch

Aug 8-9 - Wild at Heart (Uncut) - No One Under 18 Admitted

Aug 15-16 - Jurassic Park

Aug 22-23 - The Breakfast Club

Aug 29-30 - Blade Runner (The Final Cut)

Sept 5-6 - The Dark Crystal

Sept 12-13 - Grindhouse

Sept 19-20 - Rear Window

Sept 26-27 - The Crow (new print)

Oct 3-4 - My Neighbor Totoro (in English)

Oct 10-11 - Pink Flamingos - No One Under 18 Admitted

Oct 17-18 - 2001: A Space Odyssey

Oct 24-25, Oct 31-Nov 1 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Ballons, Parks, Abortions, Rides, and Kabuki

Here are some more DVD updates. Unfortunately, I've been rather busy in a job hunt, so I haven't had time to review a bunch of films as I'd like to. So, hopefully this will hold you over. Oh, and if you have any fine job suggestions, send 'em my way!

IFC has announced their October releases, which includes a new date for the Palme d'Or winner 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days for the 14th. The June release was delayed, although the film is available for rent at Netflix, seeing as how their Red Envelope Entertainment co-released the film. Gus Van Sant's Paranoid Park and Hou Hsiaso-hsien's Flight of the Red Balloon will also hit shelves on the 7th and 21st respectively.

The Weinstein Company has also announced Boy A, which is hitting theatres right now, for 7 October; the film, directed by John Crowley (Intermission) and starring Peter Mullan, has received some positive notices from critics. Through Dimension, they will also be releasing Hell Ride just in time for Halloween on the 28th. The violent biker film looks like it'll skip a theatrical release and head straight to video. It stars Dennis Hopper, Vinnie Jones, Michael Madsen and Eric Balfour. Elite Squad [Tropa de Elite] from Brazil will also be out on 14 October; the film won this year's Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.

As previously mentioned by Eric, Luchino Visconti's Ludwig, starring Helmut Berger, will be out on 14 October from Koch Lorber. The film will be presented uncut and contain two-discs. I'm sure you've already read about this, but MGM will release their long-overdue Hitchcock boxset on the same day. The set includes: Rebecca, Lodger: A Story of the London Fog, The Paradine Case, Spellbound, Notorious, Young and Innocent, Sabotage and Lifeboat.

AnimEigo will release Kon Ichikawa's Revenge of a Kabuki Actor, formerly known as An Actor's Revenge, on 14 October. Sommerhouse, a division of Koch Vision, has re-announced The Apprentice, aka Fleur bleu, starring a young Susan Sarandon for the same date. Tarsem's The Fall, starring Lee Pace, will be released by Sony on 9 September. Wolfe will release Jamie Babbit's Itty Bitty Titty Committee on 2 September.

Fox will release as part of their film noir set Moontide, directed by Archie Mayo and an uncredited Fritz Lang and starring Jean Gabin and Ida Lupino, and Road House, directed by Jean Negulesco and starring Lupino and Richard Widmark, for 2 September. And finally, TLA is releasing Hormoz's I Dreamt Under Water [J'ai rêvé sous l'eau], which co-stars Caroline Ducey (Romance) and is an extension of his short film of the same name, on 30 September.

UPDATE: Eric was right. MGM will also release Elia Kazan's Boomerang on 2 September as part of the Fox Film Noir collection. Thanks! Also, I forgot to mention, if you want overkill, The Weinstein Company will also have a 3-disc set of Rob Zombie's Halloween sometime in October.

...People Fucking

Here are a few DVD announcements. Picture This! Entertainment will release the film 7 Virgins [7 vírgenes], starring Juan José Ballesta (El Bola) on 30 September. They will also release The Good Boy, or in Spanish Segundo asalto, starring Darío Grandinetti (Talk to Her), on the 16th.

Strand will release two films in September: Jacques Nolot's (Porn Theatre) Before I Forget [Avant que j'oublie] and Ferzan Ozpetek's (Steam: The Turkish Bath, Facing Windows) Saturn in Opposition [Saturno contro], starring Stefano Accorsi and Margherita Buy.

ThinkFilm is releasing Stuart Gordon's bloody comedy (?) Stuck, starring Mena Suvari and Stephen Rea, on 7 October. They will also have out the Canadian film YPF, or Young People Fucking as it was known at festivals, on the 14th. You may know Young People Fucking as being amid the Canadian government censorship case. Google it.

Facets is releasing the Bill Douglas trilogy, which consists of My Childhood, My Ain Folk and My Way Home, from 72-78, on 23 September. The set will also be released on 23 June from BFI in the UK. The Weinstein Company has Lou Reed's Berlin, a concert film directed by Julian Schnabel, on 16 September. It has to be better than any other concert film I've seen of Reed in the past.

Kino will be releasing a newly remastered version of the infamous RKO picture The Man on the Eiffel Tower, co-directed by Burgess Meredith, Irving Allen and Charles Laughton (though the latter two remained uncredited), on 16 September. The film was only previously available in a shitty transfer for cheap. BCI Eclipse will release another out-of-circulation film, Simon Heresa's A Day at the Beach, written by Roman Polanski on 9 September. The film stars Peter Sellers.

Water Bearer Films is releasing Philippe Vallois' (We Were One Man) notorious Johan, carnet intime homosexuel, or Johan, mon été 75, on 26 August. And finally, Venevision will release Antonio Chavarrías' Volverás, starring Tristan Ulloa and Unax Uglade, on 16 September.

Remember Me?

It's been so long that I almost forgot the full version of Terrence Malick's The New World was never released on DVD. In fact, I think it was only released in like two theatres for around a week. In fact, I think there were three different versions of the film that were cut. I don't know. But New Line will be releasing a 172-minute version on 14 October. I thought the version that was released in NYC and LA ran about 150 minutes, so I'm not quite sure what this version is all about. More information as it becomes available.

Delirious? You mean the one with John Candy?

Who Are You, Polly Maggoo? [Qui êtes-vous, Polly Maggoo?] – dir. William Klein – 1966 – France

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Mr. Freedom – dir. William Klein – 1969 – France

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The Model Couple [Le couple témoin] – dir. William Klein – 1977 – France/Switzerland

I ventured into the so-called delirious fictions of William Klein over a month ago and only when listening to Serge Gainsbourg this evening was I reminded of such. Touted as lost narrative classics of the ex-patriot photographer Klein, to say that they each left something to be desired wouldn’t be accurate. For, what’s most strange about these three films, particularly Mr. Freedom and The Model Couple, the two weaker of the three, is that everything is in place. Both Mr. Freedom and The Model Couple have their tables set for delicious satire, but maybe it’s their tidiness that makes them so forgettable. Or maybe that while Klein may have been thematically “ahead of his time,” his films just didn’t have much to say that couldn’t have been summed up in a sentence.

The delirium that The Criterion Collection speaks of can best be found in Who Are You, Polly Maggoo?, which is the only enjoyable one of the three. It’s amusing kitsch and a satire that sort of works overall, or at least in comparison. The other two, however, solely rely on pulpiness and their own proper table-settings which never equal anything substantial or even entertaining. Even with Mr. Freedom’s amusing cast of celebrities, which include Delphine Seyrig, Donald Pleasance as Dr. Freedom, Philippe Noiret, Serge Gainsbourg (with a horrible over-dubbing in English), and Yves Montand as Captain Formidable (in an uncredited cameo), the film hardly ranks high in its own novelty. I think I’ll just stick to my Serge Gainsbourg albums from now on, and I’ll probably soon forget the so-called delirium of a once-forgotten and should-be-forgotten-once-more artist.

Ou, de la tristesse

Love Songs [Les chansons d’amour] – dir. Christophe Honoré – 2007 – France

Yet another example of my declining emotional wellbeing has emerged, and, if you know me, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it’s in the form of a French musical. I can hardly resist those bastards, and even when coming from a director I typically loathe, I’ve become infected, yet again. It began earlier this year when three films (Olivier Assayas’ Boarding Gate, Bruce La Bruce’s Otto; or Up with Dead People and Gus Van Sant’s Paranoid Park) snuck up on me, finding a vulnerable, confused lad emotionally stricken with these strange tastes of melancholy and hope sufficing for a certain void within his own soul.

Christophe Honoré has been pissing me off for years. When I got a chance to see Ma mère, his misfire of an adaptation of the final novella of Georges Bataille starring Isabelle Huppert, I knew he was up to no good. I even saw it on opening night in Paris, and that didn’t even help the endeavor. And then there was Dans Paris, which solidified my disdain. But, damn him, if he didn’t hit me in the right way with Love Songs, another dually serving teaming with star Louis Garrel. Garrel has made a career out of allowing himself to be desired, particularly by gay directors (François Ozon also used him in a short called Un lever de rideau), in the shedding of clothes, the hazing of his eyes and pouting of his lips. For once though, I was able to spot what so many people find alluring about the actor in Love Songs and maybe allow the inevitable comparison to Jean-Pierre Léaud (although, shoot me if I ever allow a comparison between Honoré and Godard to subsist; you’ll know I’ve fallen over the deep then).

I suppose it best to walk into Love Songs with no idea of what to expect, other than the occasional breaking into song and dance and a chance to see the ever-charismatic Ludivine Sagnier in action. So, if you haven’t seen it, I wouldn’t recommend reading further as I guess this would be my spoiler alert. Knowing nothing of its story, the film went places I didn’t expect, placing into question the validity of its title. As one of the leads dies within the first act (it’s annoyingly divided into three and separated by title cards), the film shifts into a certain variation on a “love song,” with all the flavor of melancholy. Granted, that the character dies of unprecedented heart failure makes Honoré’s analogy a bit trite, it still fuels the film into lovely directions.

It would also mark, for once, Garrel falling into his character, as he entertains a romance with a teenage boy (Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet), almost as if officially giving into the gay pursuit filmmakers seem to love to take him. However, it’s really Chiara Mastroianni that’s most ravishing in the film, providing the finest musical number in the film, and probably the most effective as well. Love Songs, thus, becomes just a sign of my own times, another cinematic example of my waning existential crisis. I don’t even know if I’m of proper sound mind to actually discuss films that aren’t Mother of Tears. On vera.

On a related note...

Another documentary about a queer cinematic artist, Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis, will be available on DVD through Arts Alliance on 5 August... though don't you kind of wish I had news about Flaming Creatures instead?

2008 is the year of Derek Jarman: UPDATED

Kino will release Isaac Julien's documentary Derek, about the artist and filmmaker Derek Jarman, on 2 September. The film is narrated and written by one of his muses, Tilda Swinton.

UPDATE: Kino will also release on the same day Jarman's War Requiem, which as far as I know has never been released anywhere on DVD. The film stars Swinton, Sean Bean, Nathaniel Parker, Nigel Terry and the final performance from Laurence Olivier. Now if we can just get someone to put out The Garden...

Schooled

Via IndieWire, Laurent Cantet's Palme d'Or winner, Entre les murs (or, The Class as it will be called in the English-speaking territories) was picked up by Sony Pictures. No word on when.

Madame / Butterfly

As I'm sure you already know, Criterion announced their releases for September: three films by Max Ophüls, The Earrings of Madame de... [Madame de...], Le plaisir and La ronde. Though it's not on their site yet, Ozu's Autumn Afternoon will be available in September as well. The Eclipse box will be Aki Kaurismäki's Proletariat Trilogy, which includes Ariel, The Match Factory Girl and Shadows in Paradise.

Ryko has listed their September releases as well, which includes a single-disc version of Harry Kümel's wonderful Daughters of Darkness, starring Delphine Seyrig, a new version of Andrzej Żuławski's Possession, with Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill, and Vicente Aranda's The Blood Spattered Bride, all from Blue Underground.

Through Severin, two Patrice Leconte films, The Hairdresser's Husband [Le mari de la coiffeuse], with Jean Rochefort, and The Perfume of Yvonne [Le parfum d'Yvonne], with Hippolyte Girardot. Cult Epics will release a two-disc special edition of Slogan, better known as the film where Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin met, with additional interviews with Gainsbourg and Birkin as well as television commercials from the director.

Excitingly, the epic disaster known as Butterfly, starring Orson Welles and Pia Zadora in a well-deserved Golden Globe win, will make its way on DVD on 30 September [all of the Ryko discs will street on this day as well]. Ry Russo Young's Orphans will also be available through Carnivalesque Films.

Paramount will release the animated Chicago 10 on 26 August. TLA will release the animated adaptation of Dante's Inferno, with the voices of Dermot Mulroney and James Cromwell, on the same day. Showtime will release the first season of This American Life, which if you didn't know is the best thing currently on television, on 23 September. And, finally, Zeitgeist will release Jellyfish [Les méduses] on 30 September.