Eaten by Tapirs

In keeping with my tradition...

...of pirating post ideas from Bree, I'm hereby briefly blogging about the movies I've seen in the last couple months. One of Costa Rica's oddities is that most movies arrive in the video stores before they hit the theatres, but between them I've been able to catch a solid selection of films in the New Year.

January to Mid-Frebruaryish

Munich
Complex, a touch overlong, and occasionally absent-minded, Steven Spielberg's rumination on the moral costs of counter-terrorism is still profoundly moving and expertly forged. The performances are uniformly excellent, Kaminski's cinematography is better than anything else of the last year, and the violence is excruciating - as it should be. Spielberg seems to have turfed his endless need to redeem his characters in the final frame - no one ends the story any safer, any wiser, or any happier than when they started. It left me pondering for days afterwards, and worthy of another viewing as soon as I can stomach it. Five stars out of five.

Syriana
I'm wrapping up a Master's degree in international politics, writing a thesis about the psychology of religious terrorism. So when I watch Syriana and fail to grasp what links Character X to Character Y, or exactly how the requisite evil corporation manipulates the US government into installing a puppet emir in a fictional Arab oil state, I comfortably blame my confusion on sloppy storytelling rather than my own inability to follow the film. Really, did it have to be this convoluted? Though a carbon-copy of Traffic (with oil substituted for drugs), Syriana is often sharply-written, with fine performances from a vast ensemble cast, and enjoys glorious desert photography. But it suffers from the apparently irresistible need of any self-professed Important Film to warp international politics into a set of crude cliches, with brazen evil lurking in every boardroom and cabinet office. What little I know of the real world of oil, money and power suggests a stage far more intricate, greyer, and ultimately much more frightening than this disappointing film. Three stars (barely) out of five.

The Constant Gardener
This fine flick deserves many of the same naggy criticisms I hurled at Syriana, but boasts even better photography, a sharply-winding but ultimately comprehensible script, and truly extraordinary performances from both Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz. Sadder than a box full of three-legged kittens, but worth the emotional battery. Four stars out of five.

Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
I've never seen Citizen Kane, but even absent that comparison, I'm almost certain that Wallace and Gromit is the finest film ever made, anywhere, by anyone. To try to describe it would be a crime. A masterpiece on every imaginable and unimaginable level. Five stars out of five (duh).

Crash
Yet another Important Film (too many of these this year), this exploration of American racial tension starts out by hobbling itself with cliches, and almost had me reaching for the remote in teh first ten minutes. But then Crash smartened up, picked up the pace, and became a surprisingly insightful, nuanced discussion of all the things Americans think about but go to great lengths to avoid talking about. A huge and talented cast, an increasingly engrossing script, and steady-but-not-too-showy direction made this a very pleasant surprise. Four and a half stars.

Lord of War
Possibly the most cynical film I've ever seen, and a surprisingly successful guilty pleasure. Andrew Niccol's exploration of the moral promiscuity of the global arms trade is incisive, over-the-top, and tons of fun until it becomes depressing as hell. It's a nice thing to see any movie these days that's so reliant on quiet conversation, with nary a gunfight to be found. Occasionally too self-referential for its own good, and the subject matter eventually (and inevitably) drives the viewer into a moral abyss, but a great ride while it lasts.

Transporter 2
I'm not hard to please when it comes to brainless beat-em-ups. But I don't comprehend how a movie this astonishingly stupid ever got made - and with only one worthwhile fight scene in the entire miserable mix. Ugh. One and a half stars.

I think that's it for now. Still looking forward to Good Night and Good Luck, Brokeback Mountain, Night Watch, and, above all, Ice Age 2. Good times lie ahead.

posted by Paul @ 10:37 AM