I am now getting around to mentioning the movies I saw in the last couple of weekends. First, "Being John Malkovitch" is a surreal adventure raising a number of somewhat poorly elucidated themes. First, the lure of celebrity, and the desire to experience what it is like to be someone famous even when such experience amounts to little. Second, infantile fantasies of control frustrated by the recalcitrance of the actual, and the violence that might well up when the frustration becomes acute. Third, the allure of the admiring gaze, and the desperation to feel that validation.There are a few other things, but this covers the main thrust. The question is, does the film, which is amusing, well- executed, and off- beat, do enough with these themes to make it more than a playful muddle, with the drama overwhelmed by the central conceit, or is there an underlying coherence and substance? On balance, I would say that it is a substantial film, but dangerously close to muddle.....
The second movie I saw was "The Straight Story", directed by David Lynch, of "Blue Velvet" and "Twin Peaks" fame, starring Richard Farnsworth, who has an amazing face, and Sissy Spacek, one of the most undervalued actresses around. It is also rated G! The story is true, about a fellow with bad hips and lousy eyesight who wants to reconcile with his brother, after a ten year estrangement. The brother has a stroke, and he becomes alarmed. He cannot drive, due to his eyes, and he hates to take a bus, so he rigs his riding mower and spends several weeks on the road, travelling from western Iowa to Wisconsin. There are many Lynch camera touches, but it is played straight, and is a quite touching evocation of family and endurance in the face of hardship. It is very slow- paced, though, and could have used some cutting, or more active scenes in the script. It depends on how involved one gets in the quest: if one is not drawn in enough, then it will get tedious; if one empathizes a lot, it will be a very good experience..... |
