I have just finished watching a film from 1997 called The Spanish Prisoner.  Special thanks goes to my brother for not merely recommending this film but for gifting me a copy so that I was nearly forced to sit down and watch the thing.

It is an excellent mix of temptation, corporate espionage, intrigue, and Kafka-esque hidden alleys.  As with so many of the finest who-done-its, the film allows the viewer a certain amount of leeway so that we are able chin-scratch along side those in the film who are chin-scratching, and working out who is scratching chin and who is duping whom is an important part of that process.

Would I call it film noir?  Maybe so.

The dialog seems like it comes from a play.  I don’t know what that means to anyone else but it means something to me.  Like the dialog is richer and yet more carefully planned.  At first I thought the acting was a bit stilted but as the film progressed I realized the actors were playing parts of people who were themselves pretending.  In short, don’t be put off by the first ten minutes of the film.  You’ll fail to get at what needs to be gotten at.

So, go watch it.  Or bring me a pizza and we can watch it here.  I’m flexible.

Ah, who doesn’t love a good zombie romp?  Admit it, more brains makes you all wiggly within.  I know it does me.

I realize how hard it can be to locate the grain among the zombie chaff.  We don’t all have the time for the thorough threshing necessary to get at the refined kernels.  Thankfully a recommendation has come my way which I am able to now pass on to you.  You can thank my friend Eric for bringing this to my attention.

If you were under the impression that Shaun of the Dead was the last word in zombie excitement, you have been sadly mistaken.  Fido, in its own special way, takes up where Shaun left off.

You enter into a 1950’s style utopia where idealized humans live within fenced cities, protected from the wild zombies living in the outlands between the cities.  However, within the cities humans have domesticated zombies.  They are a bit like helper monkeys, except less ferocious thanks to their special collars which inhibit their flesh eating drives.

You think I’m kidding?  This is the real deal.

Don’t waste any time.  You have to see this one.  Feel good movie of the year and all that fluff.

Happy zombie hunting, kids.

Sean Penn won an Oscar for his portrayal of Harvey Milk. I don’t usually give a rat’s fart for who won what in Hollywood, but this one is worth mentioning.

This film (called simply Milk) is a recounting (in near documentary style) of the events leading up to the famous Twinkie Defense.  While the Twinkie Defense has become somewhat a household legend, the work of Harvey Milk has suffered no such equal fame.  Now, though, we all have easy access to the tale.

The film itself is a masterwork of integration.  They have edited together archival footage and historical newscasts into their own footage to weave a magnificent, unified whole.

As to the acting of Penn, there can be no question that he is working at the height of his art.  He imbues every scene with emotional accuracy, helping to solidify the documentary illusion of the piece.

Definitely worthy of a rental.

I don’t know if anyone told me about this film when it came out.  I don’t have any recollections about it being the theaters.  This isn’t all that surprising when you consider just how many movies are made each year.  I’m bound to miss a few… thousand.

Written and directed by Nick Cassavetes, Alpha Dog is shot in a documentary style and based on a true story.  There are those who may criticize this film for exploiting a tragic tale for their own financial ends.  But it doesn’t feel like an exploitation.  It feels like it offers a sense of history.

Who would criticize Roots for exploiting the sorrow of thousands (millions?) over the centuries?  No, they have a couple of things in common.  They both offer us a sense of history from which we might learn and grow, and they both add meaning to their related tragedies.  (Though it must be acknowledged that Roots does this on a much grander scale.)

I especially enjoyed Ben Foster in the role of Jake Mazursky.  The role represents a dramatic reversal of talents.  His performance here is one of explosive emotion contrasted with his more sniveling rebellious role in The Punisher (the only good version thus far).  Quite a change.  Bravo.

Another notable performance was given by Anton Yelchin (as Zach Mazursky).  We’ll have to keep an eye on him.  He’ll be playing Pavel Chekov in the new Star Trek (out in maybe a week).

In short I enjoyed it.  I don’t want to go into too many details because (assuming you don’t know about the true history behind it) I don’t want to reveal too many of the plot points.  (I knew of neither the film’s background nor of the story from which it came at the time of my viewing.)

So, go rent the damned thing already.

Just watched another film worth talking about.  Well in my case worth writing about.

This is one of those films where you see the trailer on some independent film your friend brings over and you think “hey, that looks pretty good” and then you forget about it until, years later, you find a copy in a collection at someone’s house where you are visiting for an important dinner party and you can’t actually ask about the film so you forget about it again.  This is a mental cud film.  It’ll keep coming back up for a chew.

Benefit from my benevolent prodding.

It’s probably no surprise to anyone that I rather like films which prompt one to look back over one’s shoulder and wonder how the hell did I get here?  No surprise indeed.

Well, Christian Slater and a host of other top shelf actors were involved in one such project called He Was a Quiet Man.  Slater plays his role masterfully amid a supporting cast which never relents, superb acting all around.

I should make mention also of writer and director Frank A. Cappello (who also wrote the screen play for Constantine).  We’ll have to keep an eye on him, just in case.

Many of the scenes are remarkable constructions.  The box escape scene comes quickly to mind.  And the whole film reminded me of the slipping back and forth between reality and fantasy in the film La Science des rêves.

Ostensibly the film is about a guy who goes postal at his cubicle and kills a bunch of his co-workers.  Stopping to chit-chat with Slater’s character, he gets distracted long enough to get shot five times.  As with any good film, this is just the framework onto which the important story elements are hung like glittering christmas lights.

Underneath all of this, the electricity which glitters the lights, we have a tale of impending madness and modern solitude.  It is the story of the Invisible Man brought to the boiling point, yearning to be seen but once seen yearning to be invisible again.  One  cannot hide in the shadows when all the world is alight.

I remain a little uncertain about the ending, especially having watched the extras.  I’ll give it a week and watch it again.

Nonetheless, go out there and get yourself a copy.  Be prepared to be a little disturbed as the introspection probes mount.  C’mon, you remember the first time you watched Blue Velvet.  It’s worth it.

Ooh, big hug you crazy kids!