Juno; humour on serious stuff, my cup of tea

It's been months since I saw Juno (and since i wrote on my blog too but lets skip that part). Recently, however, someone bought me its soundtrack. The music reminded me vividly the film.
Juno is a film about a problem that seems to rattle America: teenage pregnancy. The film however instead of portraying a dramatic situation it takes the subject lightly and presents it with a great sense of humor. Juno is a teenage girl that decides to try sex with a friend. She is not in love she doesn't even have a boy friend she is just curious about sex. When she discovers that she is pregnant she tries to get an abortion. She is too afraid of the doctors to do it and she decides to give berth and the give the child for adoption to another couple. This is truly a modern film. There is not a single trace of conservatism in this film. Parents instead of freaking out and lecturing prove supporting and understanding. The friends do the same. Juno manages to live all the period of her pregnancy in a protective shell formed by the couple that wants to adopt the child, by her parents and her friends. If voices of prejudice, conservatism and religious hysteria appear in few instances are treated by the film with such contempt that are easily stumped out.
The direction of the film is subtle and efficient. There are no ingenious shots and intricate camera movement. On the other hand colors, cuts and camera views serve perfectly the story with it's lightness and optimism. The film leans heavily on the young actress Elen Page. She does an excellent job and supports the clever script of Diablo Cody. In X-men where she appeared she was at the least mediocre in her role. Here, though, the film offers her the opportunity to prove that she can be a great actress.
The film chooses to look only on the bright side of the situation no mater the few setbacks it presents -just for the shake of suspense. Some can say that it is naive and over optimistic. The tragic effects of teenage pregnancy have been discussed in so many other films and even more soap operas. This film chooses to say to a teenager that: ok! you made a mistake and you are pregnant. This is not the end of the world nor the end of your life. You can still have a life a future and dreams. It chooses to teach not through fear and terror but through humor compassion and intelligence. And that is an achievement.

Michael Clayton : An honest film

Michael Clayton is definitely not a masterpiece, nor a film that will reside in your mind forever. Since it is over two or three months that i saw it myself I can testify that the images have faded away. Even more the details of the case are easily forgotten. Still Michael Clayton is a film that has good intentions. An interesting script, good acting, honest even if not singular directing. It is a small film that keeps you interested , leaves you satisfied and most important of all does not insult your intelligence.
The hero, George Clooney (now here is an actor and an aspiring director that has managed to gain my respect!) is a lawyer in a big firm called the "fixer". He never goes to court but does all the little dirty jobs that are needed for out of court settlements. His life is a mess. Single father with a brother that gabbles and owns money to the wrong people. He is called in a case where a friend lawyer has suddenly abandoned their client and started helping the adversaries. When his friend is murdered he become entangled in a story with big company interests and he also becomes a target. In the end he manages to entrap the leader of the conspiracy, to turn her over to the police revealing the truth.
Big international companies pray on the poor and the weak in order to gain profit. This is the meaning of the film. If you consider the film as an expose I would say that it not very interesting or shocking as it should be. Most people are already fairly suspicious about big companies. We already know how most of them function and how they buy their way out of trouble. The film though manages to bring something fresh into the topic. Michael Clayton is not a hero that decides one fine day to take up big interests and bid companies and find justice. He is a little man working within this corrupt system. What is interesting here is that this little man that could easily have been bought with a career opportunity rises up to the occasion only when he is cornered and his life is threatened. This is much more realistic and thus interesting than an idealistic hero that fears no consequences and rushes on only in order to get to the truth for the greater good. Still this little man which has no respect from others and he feels no pride for himself manages to pull up a scheme and get the truth and justice. Even if he only does it to protect himself he finds a dignity in the process because that he realizes that he can bed only so far, that there is a limit that he will not cross. Michael Clayton is a common man and function as a regular man would do. He acts heroically when he can do nothing else. This is what makes the film an honest effort and a film with its own even small value.

Comment1: Many films have been done on the same subject. Three examples Erin Brochovits, Syrianna, and my personal favorite Constant Gardener

Comment2: Once more I am in a position where I have to apologize for neglecting my blog . I will try to make amends. Thanks for your patience

Oscars : Everything is about glamour

Two years now that I am writting this blog I ' ve never mentioned Oscars. It seems so pointless to me. I dont usually agree with who wins the award of best film or script or best actor. People who read this blog have probably understood that i have my own criteria and that I am not so pro for Hollywood. Don't take me wrong. Hollywood can do a film technically perfect, but that doesnt necessarily mean that it will also be interesting. Moreover I think that the Academy is all about Hollywood. Rarely a minor film reaches the nominations and the awards. To make things worse even through the Hollywood film that will get there the Academy usually awards the more conservative ones. Under these circumstances Oscars have become a mere curiosity for me. They dont even function as the starting point of a discussion any more. All my friends that are into films agree with me on this point and if everybody agrees where is the fun to the argument? As a result I am not bothered even to find out the results. Usually my frind John who is more into gossiping informs me a few days later on. When I get a sunday newspaper and there is womans' magazine along with it I get to admire the gowns of the celebrities. In the end that is what the Oscar celebration is for me a glamorous fashion show.
For those that still want to know the results of the Oscar awards here is the link in the imdb:http://www.imdb.com/features/rto/2008/oscars
the official site is : http://www.oscar.com/ And for those who wish to see the fashion side of it the official site of oscars has covered that aspect too. http://oscar.com/redcarpet/ Enjoy!

The Atonement: Hollywood epic as usually is glamorous and meaningless

Hollywood can produce technically perfect pictures. Great acting, lustrous directing and photography and even a good script make a film that easily can be watched but can it really move you or even touch you. These films have no peculiarity, are perfectly balanced and therefore are heartless.

Atonement is one of these films. It has everything going for it. An interesting script from a book that is already famous. A tragic love story, a misunderstanding that complicates everything, a war to make things even more dramatic and still the script doesn’t manage to get you really involved. Directing is well done. It even has an interesting idea. In the beginning it shows the story form the point of view of both sisters. In this way it is very clear from the beginning the tragic confusion that spears the narrative of the film. On the other hand, it might have been a more compelling film if everything was not thus so well explained. If for example we watched all the film through the point vies of the little sister. I this way there would be a small mystery on why the elder sister is so much in favor of the man. Is she in love with a rapist, how can that be? As the little girl grows up and gets a better understanding of the situation the spectator would come to understand the truth with her. In this case though Keira Knightley would have a far smaller part and those who went to see the film just for her would be heavily disappointed.

All actors have done an excellent work and that is probably the most important plus of the film. Vanessa Redgrave as the elder Briony (younger sister) proves that even few minutes are enough for an actor to prove himself. Saoirse Ronan is also very good, even her competence has been overstated due to her youth. Still there too many scenes during the film that the actors have a mesmerized look on their faces. First the young Briony, then Cecilia confronting the tragic events and then again when Briony realizes what she had done. You don’t notice while watching the film but when remembering it you come up with too many scenes that different actors have the exactly same blank expression on their faces. Considering this I can only reach the conclusion that it must have been some guide line given form the director. To say nothing more it was a directing that ruined some parts of an overall successful acting.

In conclusion Atonement doesn’t manage to take the extra step that would carry it from being another without spirit Hollywood film to the grand epic (like the English Patient) that had ambitions to be.

Comment:

I am in love with the green gown that Keira Knightley wears in the most crucial scene of the film. It was dress that advertised the film all by itself. On the other hand, if you end up commenting the dress in a film, the film is probably a lost cause.

My Blueberry Nights: the aesthetics of city blues and jazz

A film by Kar Wai Wong is always stylish. Is it also meaningful though?
After the gorgeous In Mood for love and 2046 he is coming back with My Blueberry nights. This time he distances himself from the aesthetics of his origin and manages to create a completely different atmosphere .My Blueberry nights is actually a stylistic tribute to jazz and blues. The story is about a girl who finds out that her boyfriend is cheating her. Since she can’t imagine her life without him she leaves New York to travel around America working as a waitress in various places in order to forget him. Before starting her trip she meets a guy that owns a coffee shop. She talks to him confessing in him and they become friend. The guy falls in love with her and waits her to return. In her trip she sends him postcards describing her adventures and the people she meets. In her trip she meets people who in a way are the embodiment of various feelings. Arnie is obsessed with a woman that doesn’t love him back. Sue is becoming the personage of guilt and remorse. Leslie is a trickster that doesn’t believe in sincerity. The protagonist manages to define herself by contrast to others. She chooses who she wants to be by comparing herself to the people she meets. In this way she chooses not to base her existence on someone that doesn’t love her back and not to loose faith in people. In this way she manages to resolve the issues that drove her to this adventure. She mends her heart. A year later she comes back ready to start a new relationship with the owner of the coffee shop that awaited her. The story is menial an excuse to develop the blues atmosphere. The dinner shop wit the painted glass, the often shots of the lighten train. The night aspects of the city and the noise of a busy city are emblems of a jazz aesthetic. , The characters of the film like the alcoholic policeman, the Vegas gamblers also contribute to the blues-jazz atmosphere.
The film is well shot and it has a distinctive atmosphere and images. This great advantage makes the film interesting and saves it from its somewhat banal story. It is a small cute film that you can easily watch. Some shots are so beautiful that manage to mark your memories. It lacks though all the grandeur of a good script. Not exactly without a point but also not exactly with a meaning either.

Comment
It is not a lucky coincidence that Kar Wai Wong chose Norah Jones as his leading lady. A jazz –blues singer and composer for a Jazz blues film

American Gangster: A gangster film that even if it bears the signs of the directing mastership of Ridley has few things to offer

A black man manages to import the purest cocaine from Vietnam and sell it in America. His enterprising spirit and the teaching of his old boss (the previous black mafia chief) help his ascend to the higher levels of the social ladder and to gain the status of the most important gangster of America. His organization combines elements of both Italian mafia and crime in the black ghetto. From one hand he bases his works on his family as Italians do, and he claims territories as smaller criminals do. In the end he is discovered and arrested by an incorruptible policeman. He decides to cooperate with the police and help bring to justice not only his fellow criminals but also the corrupted policemen.
Ridley Scot manages to build a film that is fairly interesting even if it is not arresting or special. The spectator can easily watch that film even id he doesn’t really get involved in the story. The script is well enough written, coherent and with good character building but with no twists and turns and no big surprises. It remains rather flat throughout the whole duration of the film rendering rather slow. Both leading actors, Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe do a really good acting job and this is one of the serious plus of the movie
In Ridley’s Scot mob film the super gangster the chief –surprise, surprise-is black. Would any one believe that racism could effect the preconceptions about a gangster? It actually does. Somehow no one would expect the biggest gangster to be black. In American film black are small time crooks they are not into organized crime. Italians as (supposedly) more sophisticated are specialized in this. The Denzel Washington character even if is a major drug dealer and a ruthless killer somehow is presented in a light almost positive. He follows the American ideal by being hard-working, inventive, loyal to family and friends, humble and in some peculiar way even just. After all these good elements the spectators are pleased to find out that the cop that arrested him and made a deal with his ended up defending his in court and getting him out of prison sooner that the court had decided in the first place. How can a gangster a killer can end up as a persona that the spectator can relate to and sympathize with is a thing beyond my comprehension.
All and all American gangster proves that even a great director and two actors don’t always make a great movie. The delicate balance of a masterpiece or even of a great movie is hard to achieve.

The Orphanage:Juan Antonio Bayona does a horror film that mixes beautifully the tricks of the horror tradition and the twists of modern films.

As usual I read the reviews about this film before going to the cinema and as sometimes happens this was a mistake. The critics were very enthusiastic about his film and praise was freely given. As a result as soon as the film finished I felt a disappointment. I had expected too much. Many times before I have claimed that a good film stays with you getting stronger by day. In the case of The Orphanage I realized that my initial disappointment was false. The next two days after the film images kept creeping on me and surprising me. Then after a week it finally faded not into a haunting memory but into at least to a fond one.
What makes a good horror film? Most of all and above all its atmosphere. In a nightmare what scares people is the feeling in the air. When one is trying to explain what made him uncomfortable in his nightmare he finds it difficult to explain. He usually has to result to the phrase: “you had to be there”. Orphanage manages to create threatening pictures of simple incidents and built up the anxiety of the spectators. The first sequence of the film is not only very cleverly shot but is an ingenious motif that is repeated at one of the most terrifying and intense scenes of the film. Nothing is more innocent than a children’s play. Still Juan Antonio Bayona manages to transform it into a sinister experience. The children play a game that is known to all the nations of the world. Someone is counting and the others are moving. When he stops counting he turns to look. The others must stop and remain completely still. This goes on until one of the children approaches enough to touch the child that counts. The he runs and the counting child must catch all the other children in order to win. In the first scene of the film a small girl is counting on the bark of a tree. The other children are approaching but the director keeps then out of frame. In this way the spectator doesn’t see who is approaching until the very last moment and the anxiety keeps increasing. Later on the grown up heroine plays the game with the ghosts of the children. She counts and in the beginning she can’t see her playmates. As noises are heard the spectator knows that the ghosts are there. Counting over and over again she and along with her the spectator sees the dead children approaching. We are forced to keep our breath since we know that in the end the ghost will have come close enough to touch the heroine. This touch is something that the spectator completely intoned with the heroine both wishes and dreads. A child’s play takes a whole new meaning. In many scenes we see and hear the wheel squeaking and turning. This image of a child’s’ toy emphasizes the lack of children in the yard, their absence firstly and their supernatural presence later on.
The images are intense but they are not entirely new. They belong to the long tradition of the horror film. In the Nightmare of the Elm Street, for example a kids’ song about the boogie man of the dreams takes a terrifying meaning in world where Freddy Cruger stalks the dreams. In Fritz Lang’s M the balloon a toy again becomes the symbol in the begging of the kid’s presence and then of it’s disappearance and murder.
Other tricks up Juan Antonio Bayona’s sleeve are the chilling scenes. A door is banged on the fingers of the heroine making her finger nails break and bleed. Even if this is a minor wound most people reflexively find this incident disgusting. The deformed child with the covered head is another fear factor. Killers and paranoids the cinema has taught us that are freaks heavily deformed usually masked. The car accident and the sudden death of the strange woman are used to provoke a shock to the spectator.
The new thing in the recent horror films is that the power that traditionally is threatening proves to be not only innocent but even helpful and sympathetic. Dead people and ghosts are not the threat as seen in Sixth Sense or the Others. The gravest threat and the source of evil are people. Beyond death there seems to be no hatred and no wish for revenge only a different set of rules. Orphanage is following this new lead proving that a stupid incident and not the ghosts of the children leads to the devastating end.
When someone analyses the ways the director used to create the atmosphere he realizes that orphanage takes advantage of the usual ideas of the horror genre without really offering something new. Even its twist and turns are something fairly used in the latest horror films. On the other hand it has a clever script, great actors intelligent directing a terrifying atmosphere and arresting images. Asking for more than that might just be avarice. I might just as well admit it: Some times over education spoils all the good old fun.
Comment:
Favorite phrase and scene: Unos des tres, tocca las pares

The phenomenon of Cinema Series

With the opportunity of Golden Compass I want to discuss a new cinematic phenomenon: the series. The return Of Jedai was probably the first film that didn’t have an ending but prepared the spectators for the next episode. Nowadays, there are more and more series on the screen. The three films on middle earth (The Fellowship of the Ring, The two towers, The return of the King) seem to have created a new trench. Now we have the MatriX trilogy, Narnia, Harry Potter, Golden Compass, Xmen and so on. These film are a little bit different from the James Bond Series or the horror series of the 80’s (Nightmare on the Elm Street). They were conceived from the beginning as series. Sometimes the film does not have an ending. Spectators have to wait for the next film to have a satisfying end. On the other hand James Bond or horror series got a new episode only because they were successful in their first attempt. They were not preconceived as series. Moreover these films have an ending even if it is an open one that will allow some continuance. I wonder how the film companies decided to take the risk of creating a film with no ending. Didn’t they think that the spectators would be annoyed? I remember someone telling me that he chose not to see the trilogy of the ring until all films were finished and out so that he could see them all together. Since then though I have heard no other complaining about the no ending thing.
Series offer a sense of security. When you go to see a film you take a risk. I am not talking about the risk of not liking the film you chose to see. The more grievous risk is whether this film will make you comfortable or create an anxiety. Will you be able to take it in and handle it or will it unbalance you more than it should? In a series you have a feeling of security. More or less you know what you will see. You are already familiar with the heroes and the situation. There is no risk involved. It is like getting your old slippers on. They are comfortable and warm and cozy. An episode is already safe and familiar but has the advantage that will offer something new, a development on the same old story. You don’t have to take any risks. You don’t have to make the extra effort to get to know the character and recognize them. You don’t have to invest emotionally into them all over from the beginning.
On the other hand art (and cinema is art) should be dangerous so that there is some edge and clarity at the experience it offers. And there are so many different options, characters to get to know, new experiences to live through fantasy and film .Why should you stuck to the same over and over again? In film you are already on the side of the security since it’s the hero that suffers the consequences not you. You have the chance to live his experiences without any real suffering. Why would the extra safety net of the series be needed? Is our world so exhausting emotionally that we don’t manage to do even that: invest in different films with various characters and plots? Do we need the safety of security provided by series and even remakes? The big brains of Hollywood have found the new lure. We go to cinema in order to get re united with people we already know facing the problems that faced the previous year and the year before. Then we complain that our daily life is repetitive and dull. Isn’t that strange?

The Golden Compass: if you "need" to see it wait for the dvd

Philip Pulmans’ trilogy imitates the style of Tolkien and Lews. It is only logical that after transferring Middle Earth, Narnia and Hrry Potter’s world into the screen some Hollywood brain would discover the trilogy of the world. I wonder who will be genius enough to remember Jordan’s Wheel of Time (12 books hopefully) or Kind’s Sword of Truth (9 books). In this way spectators will be able to watch cinema series for the rest of their lives.
I am the first to admit that I have read all these series of epic fantasy and even more and that I will be the first to be tempted to see them on the screen even if I know before hand that the film won’t be good. This is the case of the Golden Compass. I knew that the film would be bellow mediocre but somehow I couldn’t resist seeing my fantasies and the images of the book alive. I am so angry with myself for being such an obedient victim of –a not so clever- marketing but here it is.
The film was all covered with a golden dust that supposedly managed to create the magical atmosphere of the book and raise the admiration of the spectator. Well not really! If everything is golden the result is not magical just kitsch. The scenario was coherent and slightly interesting only for those that had already read and liked if not loved the book. Great actors like Nicole Kidman do as always their best. They manage to render some credibility in the whole effort but little more.
In conclusion next time I feel an urge for junk food I will try to restrain myself and watch the film on tv. Such films find their way into dvd or tv channels quite soon.

Persepolis: An adult cartoon worth seeing

Persepolis narrates the story of a young Iranian girl. By telling her story it also narrates the recent history of the Iranian country. Iran from a liberal country has ended up as one of the more strict non-liberal muslin countries. And who is to blamed about this development? The west! Bravo!
Don’t get fooled by the fact that Persepolis is a cartoon. The film has nothing childish into it. The script rapidly explains the recent history of Iran so that the spectator can understand the weird twists and turns the life of a little girl takes. She begun her life in a liberal, influenced culturally by the west environment. She gets into her teens and the regime has grown strict, religious and totalitarian. The freedom of speech is withheld, her favorite uncle gets executed and she buys the new Airon Maiden album at the black market. As she can’t stop being rebellious, her parents sent her to Europe. She is an underage political refuge and she has to face all the misconceptions that the “superior” Europeans have for her country. Even more she is a teenager that tries to find her place in the world.
The nice thing about the script of Persepolis is that it proves that even in the most difficult situations human don’t stop being human. Wars and dictatorships do not make the typical problems of a teenage woman more menial. Beside the fact that she had relatives killed by the regime and she is a refugee, she still has to accept herself, fell in love, have her heart broken and face many more mishaps in the process of growing old. when she returns to Iran the government is more totalitarian than ever which forces her into a wrong marriage and then into a divorce. As a result she has to leave her country once more.
The bad thing about the script is that it is trying to convey too much in a too little time. As a result the spectator is not completely immersed into the film. He\she doesn’t identify with the girl that even if she has to face all the problems that most people face while becoming adults.
Two phrases have stuck into my mind from this film. The heroine says that even if two wars and a dictatorship in her country didn’t manage to kill her a simple banal thing like love almost did. This phrase manages summarize all the meaning of the film. In one of the last scenes of the film her parents tell her to leave Iran for a second time. Her mother tells her that she forbids her to ever come back. Iran is not for her. When she says that, she knows that she will never see her daughter again. She still has the courage to offer her daughter the most precious gift, freedom. Leaving your country and being a refugee, means leaving back the people you love. In Persepolis the protagonist has done exactly that.
Persepolis script is strong and intense because it has much to say. On the other hand if someone expects to find the exquisite perfection in the technique of design that characterizes the films of Disney or Dreamworks or Pixar will be severely disappointed. The design of Persepolis is coarse. In its simplicity however, manages to become enchanting. The plastic perfection and the illustrious pictures of the American cartoon would probably not fit this darker and much more adult cartoon and people should realize that before criticizing the lack of quality in design. All and all judging back on the films that I have seen since the beginning of the film season I would say that Persepolis is probably one of the most interesting films. Even if it has its weaknesses it remains an amenable effort and a worth seeing film.

An Apology

I feel the need to apologise to the (probably few) people that are reading this blog. Even if I still go to the cinema and watch films it takes me a really lot of time to write about them. So I have seen Persepolis, The Golden Compass, The orphanage, My bluberrry nights but I have not managed to write my opinion on any of these films. My only excuse is that I have started writting my phd. And I have given up my day job. As a result the only thing I do day after day is writting on my computer about films. Imagine now that I want to take a break from that! What should I do now? Lets write some more on my computer about films! Well you see my point! Still I kind of miss my blog and after of two years that i am writing it, it has become something like a "project". I am thinking that if i keep doing this in some years time i will have written all the reviews of the films that i will have seen. It will be quite something! Besides some read these reviews and amazingly enough think them usefull. Having paid such a compliment how can I ever let you down. Therefore I solemny swear that i will try to write my reviews more on time. Stay tuned and thanks for all your patience.
yours'
Helen

Elisabeth: the golden age. Even the greatest actor needs a good script in order to perform his\her best

Cate Blanchett goes back to the role that made her famous. Unfortunately what is proven by the Elizabeth: The Golden Age is that even an actress of the magnitude of Cate Blanchett needs a challenging script in order to be able to create a masterpiece.

The film describes the era that Elizabeth ruled England. Spain tries to conquer England but Elisabeth manages to save her country. In the previous film the spectator watches the course of life of the queen. In the beginning she is an innocent girl optimistic and full of life. When she becomes queen she had to conform to her new role. As the film goes on the queen sacrifices everything to the well-being of her country. She abandons her innocence, the love of her life and eventuality her femininity. She starts as a woman and she ends up a symbol. In the latest film though, the queen has already made her choices and sacrifices. Even if she is temporarily tempted by a man and his exploits to the New World she knows that she can’t have the man and live her love. In other word the main character does not evolve at all in the duration of the film. The film is slow and pointless failing to convey any meaning. An effort has been made in order to cover the complete void of meaning. Elizabeth in few scenes is presented as a defender of freedom of believes and thinking. She say that she will not condemn and punish her subjects for their beliefs but only for their deeds. Later on when the Spanish ships approach the English coast she declares that they carry the Spanish inquisition and along it the mysticism of the dark ages. The whole film though fails completely to sustain this idea. These two scenes seem to have been added later on just to justify the purpose of the film.

Besides the great costumes and pictures the film is slow with no meaning and completely unimaginative. Too bad for Cate Blanchet. Maybe next she will choose better and make us all talk about her for another time.

Control: a film mostly for the funs of Ian Kertis and a merely interesting film for the rest of us

Control

Control is a film on Ian Kertis the singer of Joy Division who killed himself at the age of 23. Ian Kertis is described as a charismatic persona, a modern poet. On the other hand is a troubled figure awkward and strange. He suffered from epilepsy and he had seizures. His illness and his romantic problems eventually led him to suicide.

The film begins at a critical turn of the protagonist’s life. Even though he has promised to his wife that he will leave his mistress he isn’t able to do it. As result his wife tells him she is divorcing him. He is afraid to go on a tour abroad and he feels the pressure of performing on stage more and more heavily. He speaks to himself and admits that he has lost control. The film then goes back to the past reveal how the weird young man manages to seduce his friend’s girlfriend and eventually marry her through words, lyrics. From this point and on the life of Ian Kertis spins faster and faster and eventually it derails to the morning he suicides. He marries, he has a child, he forms a group, he makes a record, he finds a mistress, he becomes famous and eventually dies at the age of 23. A whole life in such a little time. The film tries to justify his suicide. It presents him as a genius bordering madness.

The script and the editing of the film manage to create a narrative that is interesting and keeps the attention of the spectator. The actor Sam Rilay who impersonates Ian kertis manages to imitate incredibly well all the awkward almost spastic body movement of the famous singer. The greatest though advantage of the film is the beautiful and well balanced images that break the limits of cinema and reach the aesthetics of artistic photography. The selection of Black & White film instead of color enhances this impression even though it could be interpreted as an easy way of creating an artistic effect.

Overall the film is a worthwhile effort. A fun of Joy Division would have every reason to be enthusiastic. The film presents in a interesting and artistic way the life of Ian Kertis. As for the rest of us Control is an interesting film a good attempt but nothing really exhilarating.

Lust:Caution

Ang Lee is a director with a rich resume. He has tried to direct films of completely different style and genre and every time he succeeds in creating a film that is over the usual mediocre Hollywood movie. Sense and Sensibility was an interesting well made Era film, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon an enchanting fairy tale on Chinese myths and war arts and Brokeback Mountain a revolutionary western. When one is facing a director of the past of Ang Lee one has to expect much from his newest film.
In his last attempt Ang Lee tries to make neo-noir. Lust:caution is on the Chinese Civil War. A young student is recruited by the revolutionists in order to seduce and help in the murder of one of the interrogators of the regime. She manages to become his mistress and gain his trust. In the end though she fells in love with him and warns him. He is forced to order her execution.
The film became infamous before even its first screening due to the audacity of its love scenes. In reality the scenes were not so provocative. They might join eroticism and violence but many other film have already done this in a much more provocative way.
These scenes are a necessary part of the film since its real subject is sex. Many people believe that sex can be separated form feelings. Ang Lee though doesnt seem to share this opinion. His protagonist implores lust and sex in order to trap a man. Even though in the beginning she hates him in the end she fells in love with him. Pleasure and sex manage to create a bond between them that she didn't wished for. She wishes to use sex to trap and by sex and lust she is trapped herself. Therefore Lust is a dangerous weapon it can always backfire bonding you to your enemy.
The photography and the synthesis of the image is quite impressive. It proves that Ang lee is not a random director. The aesthetic pleasure that the spectator can derive form the images though does not cover the fact that the film is slow and too long. It's all meaning and purpose could have been conveyed in a less time.

Eastern Promises: Cronenberg goes soft?

I expected with anticipation the new film of Cronenberg. After watching its trailer some months ago I imagined that Eastern Promises would be an exceptionally good film. I though that it would successfully combine high aesthetic with dark materials and the usual audacity of the director. Besides that I have to admit that I have a soft spot for both Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts. However, when you go to watch a film with high expectations experience has proven that you always get disappointed.

A young girl arrives at the hospital during the shift of Naomi Watts. She is in labor and dies given birth to a baby girl. The nurse Watts finds the mother’s diary written in Russia and tries to discover the relatives of the girl in order to give them the baby. In the diary are written details of the Russia mafia operating at London. The nurse is big trouble but to her rescue comes Viggo, the driver of the mafia who aspires to be accepted in the mafia family as a true member.

Eastern Promises seems a very mainstream film. Both main actors manage to create two characteristic individuals. The whole story is very ordinary and very non Cronenberg. This film could have been made by another director. Its’ aesthetics are very well thought. Only an accomplished director would be able to achieve the great pictures and the dark and cruel atmosphere that envelops the whole film. Still it lacks all the extremity and audacity of images and ideas that we are used to get form Cronenberg. No atrocities, no sexual pervasions, no provoking of our tolerance. There is only one scene that reminds us the extreme gore that Cronenberg used to implement in his films. In the hot baths two men attack to kill Viggo. He is naked and vulnerable but still manages to win this brutal battle. The violence of this scene is extreme. At the same time the scene is much eroticized since the actor is completely naked. Violence and eroticism is a strange combination that spectator might find both appalling and strangely attractive. This mix though is something that Cronenberg would find interesting and choose to do in one of his films.

Only some hints on the second level of the film prove that Cronenberg has remained consistent and true to his usual obsessions and ideas. Tattoo is the first motif that the spectator can recognize as Cronenbergian. The members of the Russia mafia stigmatize their bodies narrating their personal history. When Viggo is interviewed in order to get accepted in the inner circle of the Russia mafia he stands naked before the leaders. They read his tattoos and ask him several questions about his past and family. Scars on the surface of our body are signs left from our past. They prove our history: our illnesses, our accidents and other incidents of our past. Here, the tattoos are used as scars that prove a man’s past and therefore his identity. In this way Cronenberg hints that our body forms our personal identity. Identity is the second real Cronenbergian motif that we find in this film. But does the body form our personal identity for real? No! As usual Cronenberg has created the perfect set up for his spectator. Bringing forward with such intensity the body which was the theme of his older films (the films before ExistenZ) manages to hide his true intention and surprise his spectator. Viggo’s body always very present on the scene, naked, strong and highly eroticized does not define actually him. It lies for him. His true identity is proven only in the end of the film when we realize he is an undercover cap. The paradox is that the mafia believes the story that is revealed by Viggo’s body. Then chooses this same body in order to lie and trick somebody else. Why would they have such a strong believe on something that they know that can be manipulated in such a way?

Cronenberg seems to declare that our body does not form our identity. Nor does our past (A History of Violence) neither does our family. Identity is not something given, he says. It is a personal choice and it can be changed. Of course there is an issue here. In the last scene Viggo has taken the place of the leader of the mafia. He sits at the same table where he used to sit sipping down his drink in exactly the same posture as the previous leader. If personal identity is so flexible and has nothing to do with our physical presence, past or family, how easy is it to loose your identity and without realizing to become someone else, someone you didn’t even like in the first place?

For another time I am forced to make compensations. Eastern Promises might not be the raw shocking fresh and weird material that Cronenberg used to produce in the first decades of his career but it still is a good –even if not great film- that remains within the sphere of the ideas and philosophical questions of its’ creator. Cronenberg gets older and he might get softer but as Truffaut would say the worst film of an auteur is always better than the best film of a simple mainstream director. In other words even if I am not totally satisfied by Eastern Promises (or Lynch’s Inland Empire for that matter) I still can not reject a film that hides some serious thinking and ideas behind its surface.

Death at a Funeral: cheap and clever humor mixed together in a film that manages to entertain

A good comedy is really hard to find. Especially for me that I find rather difficult to laugh crude jocks and stupid people who manage to get themselves in impossible situations and face ridicule. Irony, sarcasm and wit make me laugh much more and sincerely than anything else. As a result I usually go for a Woody Allen film like Deconstructing Harry or Mighty Aphrodite or even Manhattan Mystery Murder. Still this film has managed to win me over and make me laugh. As I have said on other instance seeing a movie in a theatre is a unique experience. The spectators influence greatly the experience. If their quiet, if they participate in the correct way in the viewing, if they make annoying noises … everything matters. When I saw this particular movie two rows further down was sitting a fat middle aged man who was laughing hysterically. I have to admit that if he wasn’t in the same room with me I might have laughed less with the film.

The father of dysfunctional British Family dies. At his funeral a stranger visits the family and threatens to reveal some shocking truths about the diseased. He blackmails the sons. The propriety is thrown to the dogs as more and more awkward and extra ordinary incidents take place. The family goes through a crisis but in the end manages to re establish its balance. The script mixes the irony and sarcasm against a proper middle class country British family and a hint of sexual and scatological humor with some success. The sobriety and awkwardness of a family funeral is transformed into a hilarious instance.

A small production film offers the advantages of all the economical independent production. A good written script with clever lines and lots of not-so-famous actors who manage to impersonate perfectly all the characteristic personas of the film. All the film is based on their acting skills and they manage to support it properly. Atmosphere, sytlish mise en scene and impressive directing are lacking but are not needed.

In the whole no one could say that Death in a funeral is masterpiece. It remains however, an interesting film and a rather good comedy. It is pleasantly watches and manages to provoke the spectator’s laughter and mirth with some genuine humor and even some well rather cheap tricks. One can rarely ask much more from a comedy.

Ratatouille: A perfect recipe for a cartoon that leaves you smiling

A twist of the unexpected, a table – spoon of humor, a cup of graphic magic, and a pinch of moral meaning and we have the recipe for an almost perfect cartoon that will satisfy both adults and children.

A twist of the unexpected: Ratatouille is based on a surprisingly clever idea, on a surrealistic paradox that most good fairytales content. A rat, one of the most dirty and disgusting creatures in our conception, has a passion for good food and fine cuisine. A rat is creature that most adults with very strong pre- conceptions have a natural objection of ever meeting anywhere near food or even worse in a restaurant’s kitchen. Still this rat Remy washes his upper foot and refuses to walk on four because he doest want to contaminate his food with the dirt and the smell of the things he steps on. Moreover he refuses to eat just to eat. He savors every good taste and gets excited by the right combination of taste and smell. He is presented as an artist, someone that would endanger his life and abandon his family in order to be able to do his art and be praised for it.

A table-spoon of humor: The jokes in this cartoon can satisfy both children and the more rigid adults. Remy’s first visit in the kitchen where he nearly escapes from exposure or death a thousand times reminds us a scene of an old good Charlie Chaplin slapstick comedy. The laugh derives from the body movement, the exquisite timing of an orchestrated sequence that resembles a perfectly executed dancing or even an acrobatic number. In other scenes the humour is much more subtle and intellectual catching the attention of the adult audience. Catchy lines offer wit. The rats are considered thieves so in Remy’s dialogue with his father a joke is played on our way of thinking.

Remy: We're thieves, and what we're stealing is, let's be honest, garbage.
Django: It's not stealing if no one wants it.
Remy: If no one want's it, then why are we stealing it?

Some of the character’s lines convey hints on our preconceptions on French culture (Colette: I hate to be rude, but, we're French!), high cuisine and even contemporary politics creating the opportunity to appreciate the under run irony of the cartoon.

A cup of graphic magic: Pixar has done an amazing work on the computer graphic animation. It has managed to resolve on of the biggest defaults of the new technology. While the cartoon remains realistic and exploits the benefits of the new 3d technology flawlessly, it succeeds in remaining romantic and atmospheric. In the past the 3d perfection gave the cartons a feel of plastic and it rendered them a little kich.

A pinch of moral meaning: As a good American cartoon film Ratatouille (allas!) has to have a moral meaning which is obvious in all the film. In case someone misses it Anton Ego (=the evil food critic) sums it up in the end: “Not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere”. This motto unfortunately reminds me too much of the American ideal of opportunity where everyone no matter how poor, humble and insignificant can become famous, rich and successful. "If you risk enough, work hard enough you are bound to make it" Americans say. Still this is a little bit too clean cut, naive and optimistic. On the other hand this is a kid's movie.

The second theme that runs through the whole picture is very much on discussion these days. Both in England and in America the habits of nourishment especially for kids are being discussed. The ethnic food of Americans, Fast Food, is severely judged and found guilty for many of the health problems of the nation. When Remy says: If you are what you eat, then I only want to eat the good stuff, he sums all the debate on health and food.

As for myself I would choose to keep this line:

Django: This is the way things are; you can't change nature.
Remy: Change is nature, Dad. The part that we can influence. And it starts when we decide.
Django: [Remy turns to leave] Where are you going?
Remy: With luck, forward.

Or even better perfectly suited for me would be:

“In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is more meaningful than our criticism designating it so.”

Cinema Festival of Athens: 1. Show some love you losers, 2. The Voyeurs, 3. Lola Montes

Every year I swear that I will try to make the most of the film festival watching even two films per night. Unfortunately reality caches up with me and I manage to see only few. To make things worse this year I manage to get a cold which means that I caught even fewer films than usual. Anyway, I still managed to see three very different films. Firstly the Show some love, you losers! - Daihachi Yoshida, secondly The Voyeurs- Buddhadev Dasgupta and finally Lola Montes-Max Ophüls.

Show some love, you losers! - Daihachi Yoshida
Daihachi Yoshida describes the complex relationships of a Japanese country family. When the parents die in a car accident the elder sister returns to the village for the funeral. The film describes the relationships focuses mostly on the relationship of the two sisters. The elder in her aspiration in becoming a actress even if is completely untalented has manage to blackmail and torture all the family. The younger one has found inspiration in her sister to crate an extremely violent comic. When her comic becomes famous her sister blames her for her failure claiming that the comic has undermined her confidence. When she returns to her ancestral home she spends her time torturing her younger sister. The more she tortures her the more inspiration her sister gets. In the end the younger sister undermines her efforts for acting career in order to get more material for her comic. As the film evolves the spectator gets the whole extension of the dependence and hate that both the sisters share. As their battle gets stronger and stronger the casualties increase. Their brother dies in a fire accident.
And his wife is left alone without a family. Both victims and aggressors damned by their family connections leave the village for Tokyo.
The film is not very ambitious. Low key directing without many impressive shots and scenes manages to serve efficiently well a strong script. Even if the situation that is described is rather bleak everything is described with a strong sense of humor and irony that makes differentiates the film from a typical melodrama and elevates it. Even if it couldn’t be said that the Daihachi Yoshida has created a masterpiece, his film is a good and interesting example of what an independent film industry can offer with its modest means.

The Voyeurs- Buddhadev Dasgupta
Buddhadev Dasgupta admits that for this movie he was influenced by two real incidents that were on the news in his country. The first was the arrest and the conviction of two young men who through a secret surveillance camera ware watching a woman in her apartment. The second was the assassination of the Brazilian man Mentes in the metro by the British Police.
Truly in this film Buddhadev Dasgupta attempts two political commends. The first one refers to the police brutality and mistreatment with the justification of the fear of terrorism. In the second one he declares that we live in a voyeuristic society where everyone has a voyeuristic role to play. As a beautiful young woman goes into the big city in her attempt to become an actress she becomes the theme of the voyeuristic pleasure of everyone around her. Her neighbors try to get glimpses of her in her apartment from the windows, people stare at her on the street, the policeman fantasize seeing her naked through x-vision cameras at the train station and so on. Her next door guy who fells in love with her places a camera in her room and starts watching her. In the end he gets arrested tortured and imprisoned for a crime that as Buddhadev Dasgupta claims everyone in a modern society commits. The character of the young woman is surprisingly self conscious and dynamic. Even if she wants to become an actress and thus she seems to want to be looked at she never accepts her role as the theme of a gaze pathetically. Contrary to many western supposedly emancipated woman characters of fiction she battles to control the way in which she will be looked at and returns earnestly and equally energetically the gaze. When she finds out that someone has been secretly watching her, she refuses to feel shame and be victimized. She refuses to feel ashamed of herself and feel less about herself. Instead of that she returns the gaze at the camera and leaves a message for those watching her.
The voyeuristic act of the men is presented almost as a misbehavior of a young boy that even id it is not commendable still does not such a severe punishment as torture, death and imprisonment. There is a sharp contrast between this little crime and the crimes the police does in her effort to find and convict the terrorists who blew up the train.
Unfortunately Buddhadev Dasgupta tries to make a solid and serious comment on political reality using rather naive and simplistic means. As a result both the comment and the film loose some of their worth and gravity. On the other hand naiveté has its own attractions. There are many scenes with a feeling of magic realism manage to describe the sheer pleasure of living even in a country like India where life conditions are harsh. The scene where an old friend, bus driver, who offers the heroes a lift after the bus service abandoning his bus on the streets of the poor neighborhood and all the inhabitants come to enter a bus probably for the first time in their lives is a scene of beauty and nostalgia. The scenes of the men transferring a sofa on their heads with a small boy sleeping on the sofa have a surreal magic in it. There are many small details that little to the script but make all the difference to the atmosphere of the film. Maybe to someone who knows well India and the way of living there these scenes are banal and have nothing special to offer but in the eyes of a western there is a romance here and a magic that make this film worth seeing.

Lola Montes-Max Ophüls.
The films best finding is that the life of the protagonist “Lola Montes” is re-enacted and narrated in a circus act. In this circus Lola has ended up as a special freak show, a woman of scandal. While the circus is actually a metaphor for life’s irrationality, ups and downs. In the same time he takes advantage of the graphic potentials of the circus in order to create a luxurious and colorful mise an scene.
Lola Monters is a film of a specific era and shouldn’t be judged with today’s criteria. Made in the 1955 it is a film created on the sunup of the color cinema. If someone considers that, one will be able to fully appreciate the boldness of the director who manages to make film based on the orchestration of colors and costumes. To be truthful the copy of the film makes it difficult to appreciate the intensity of the colors and their balance. Still one behind the patina of time can still see the effort that was made to create a luxurious mise an scene.
As a script Lola Montes is a typical melodrama of the era. It describes the file of an unconventional woman who chooses to be true to herself rather than being respected. She leaves her husband, who is unfaithful to her and ends up the mistress of a king. When the king faces rebellion and destruction she saves him by leaving him and abandoning also her only chance of happiness and security.
The film has not much to offer to a modern viewer. It remains however an important piece of film history and as such it was an experience to have seen it in a big screen

Σεπτέμβρης = Νύχτες Πρεμιέρας 20-30/9/08

Κάθε Σεπτέμβρη οφείλω να παραδεχτώ ότι το καλοκαίρι τελείωσε και μαζί με αυτό τα μπάνια και οι διακοπές μου. Αυτός ο βασανιστικός μήνας για μένα σηματοδοτεί το τέλος της σχετικής ξεγνοιασιάς και χαλάρωσης μου και την αρχή του προγραμματισμού και των προβληματισμών. Όλες οι δουλειές που είχαν ανασταλεί κατά τη θερινή περίοδο έρχονται με νέα βαναυσότητα ξανά στο προσκήνιο. Η βαριά κατάθλιψη που απειλεί να με καταπλακώσει αποφεύγεται την τελευταία στιγμή χάρη στη βαθιά μελέτη του προγράμματος του Αθηναϊκού Φεστιβάλ Κινηματογράφου και με τον προσεχτικό σχεδιασμό για το τι θα δούμε και τι θα αφήσουμε. Όπως έχω ξαναπεί (πέρυσι τέτοια εποχή) ο στόχος είναι να δω όσο το δυνατόν περισσότερες ταινίες οι οποίες για κάποιο λόγο δεν θα διανεμηθούν στους κινηματογράφους κατά τη χειμερινή περίοδο. Πρόκειται για έργα που ανήκουν σε αφιερώματα σε παλιούς σημαντικούς σκηνοθέτες (φέτος το αφιέρωμα είναι στον Μαξ Οιλς) ή έργα μικρών σκηνοθετών συνήθως εθνικών κινηματογράφων που εξαφανίζονται κάτω από το βάρος της δημοφιλέστερης και μεγαλύτερης Αμερικάνικης κινηματογραφικής παραγωγής. Φέτος μας προσφέρετε η δυνατότητα να δούμε κάτι από Ινδία με το αφιέρωμα του Μπουντατεμπ Ντασγκούπα, την Κίνα με τον Γιναν Ντιαο, την Ν. Κορέα με τον Παρκ Τσουλ Χι, την Ιαπωνία και το Μεξικό. Για μένα τα νέα ονόματα είτε ανήκουν σε κάποια «εξωτική» κινηματογραφία είτε στον συμπαθέστατο Αμερικάνο Ανεξάρτητο σημαίνουν νέα βιώματα, νέες εμπειρίες και προπάντων τη γέννηση νέων προσδοκιών. Γιατί άμα συμπαθήσεις ένα σκηνοθέτη που μέχρι τώρα δεν τον ήξερες μπορείς από δω και πέρα να ψάχνεις και να παρακολουθείς τα έργα του ελπίζοντας ότι θα ξανασυναντήσεις το στυλ και τον κόσμο που στην πρώτη ταινία σε μάγεψε.

Το φεστιβάλ, όμως, έχει φροντίσει και για αυτούς που επιμένουν να έχουν την ευχαρίστηση του να δουν πρώτοι μια πολύ-αναμενόμενη ταινία με διάσημο σκηνοθέτη και γνωστά ονόματα ηθοποιών. Σε αυτή την κατηγορία βρίσκεται το πολύ- διαφημισμένο ντοκιμαντέρ Earth και το Atonement του Τζο Ραιτ με την Κίρα Νάιτλι. Το πρόβλημα είναι ότι και τα δύο έργα προβάλλονται την ίδια μέρα και την ίδια ώρα οπότε πρέπει να επιλέξετε τι θα δείτε. Άλλη πρωτιά πάλι είναι η προβολή του I am not there του Τοντ Χεινς για τη ζωή του Bob Dylan με Κειτ Μπλάνσετ, Ριτσαρντ Γκιρ και Κριστιαν Μπειλ ή το HairSpray του Άνταμ Σάνκμαν.

Επιπλέον υπάρχουν ταινίες ειδικού ενδιαφέροντος για «ειδικό» κοινό. Πολλές ταινίες και ντοκιμαντέρ για είδη μουσικής, μουσικούς κτλ. (Κόκκινος Έλβις, The Old Weird America: Harry Smith’s anthology of American Folk Music, Anita Oday: the life of a jazz singer κ.τ.λ.). Για τους καρτουνίστες, επίσης, υπάρχει μια μεγάλη έκπληξη. Η Χιονάτη και οι Εφτά Νάνοι της Disney του 1937 σε φρεσκαρισμένη επανέκδοση. Εκτός από το κλασσικό αριστούργημα κινουμένων σχεδίων μπορούμε να απολαύσουμε την αξεπέραστη ιαπωνική τεχνική και τη ψηφιακή τεχνολογία. Ιδιαίτερα εκτεταμένο είναι το αφιέρωμα στο Grindhouse όπου ταινίες β-αισθητική με μπόλικο αίμα, splatter, και λίγο σαδομαχιστικό πόρνο έρχονται από την υποκουλτούρα και το κιτς μια άλλης εποχής να διεκδικήσουν μια θέση στη φαντασία και στο ενδιαφέρον του υποψιασμένου κινηματογραφόφιλου. Γιατί όταν το κιτς φτάνει στην απόλυτη υπερβολή συχνά αποκτά αισθητική αξία ( The Candy Snatchers, Invasion of the Bee Girls, Supers-Vixens και πολλά ακόμα που και ο τίτλος τους ακόμα με κάνει να γελάω).

Σε πολλές προβολές θα είναι παρόντες οι σκηνοθέτες των ταινιών ή άλλοι συντελεστές πρόθυμοι να απαντήσουν στις ερωτήσεις των θεατών. Στο βιβλιοπωλείο Ιανός έχουν οργανωθεί συζητήσεις με σκηνοθέτες αλλά και ανθρώπους συγκεκριμένων χώρων (π.χ. του supervising animator της Pixar) για τις ίδιες τις ταινίες, τα θέματα τους αλλά ακόμα και τις τεχνικές κατασκευής τους. Νομίζω ότι εάν κάποιος έχει ένα ιδιαίτερο ενδιαφέρον θα μπορέσει να μιλήσει με πρόσωπα που είναι μοναδικά στον τομέα τους. Διάφορα party τέλος έχουν προγραμματιστεί ώστε να βγάλουν εκτός καθημερινού προγράμματος όλους τους κινηματογραφόφιλους που μετά τη βραδινή προβολή έχουν όρεξη για συνέχεια. Για όλα αυτά, περισσότερες πληροφορίες στο http://www.aiff.gr/ όπου μπορείτε να κατεβάσετε και το πλήρες πρόγραμμα. Ελπίζω να σας βρω εκεί μόνοι ή με παρέα για να ανταλλάξουμε απόψεις από κοντά. Ραντεβού στις αίθουσες!

Ανακαίνιση των ομορφότερων αιθουσών της Αθήνας: Απόλλων & Αττικόν

Όταν ανοίγει ή ανακαινίζεται μια κινηματογραφική αίθουσα….ανοίγει η ψυχή μου! Αλήθεια σας λέω! Αισθάνομαι ένα κύμα ευφορίας όταν σκέφτομαι ότι ακόμα μια όμορφη αίθουσα θα ανοίξει τις πόρτες της στο κοινό για να προσφέρει μαγεία. Σήμερα λοιπόν, που μου ήρθε δελτίο τύπου από την κ. Λ. Τσαλάκη για την ανακαίνιση του Απόλλωνα και του Αττικόν με την ακολουθία αντίστοιχων φωτογραφιών αισθάνθηκα ανακούφιση και ικανοποίηση.
Το Αττικόν ειδικά είναι πιστεύω μια από τις ομορφότερες αίθουσες αν όχι σε ολόκληρο τον κόσμο τουλάχιστον στην Ευρώπη. Χτίστηκε το 1914 από τον διεθνώς αναγνωρισμένο αρχιτέκτονα, Αλέξανδρο Νικολούδη. Η ιστορία του Αττικόν σαν ένας χώρος που κάποτε φιλοξενούσε θέατρο είναι εμφανής στη διαμόρφωση τής αίθουσας του. Η πλατιά σκηνή, η μαρμάρινη σκάλα, ο πλούσιος διάκοσμος στο ταβάνι, ο πολυέλαιος, τα χαριτωμένα θεωρεία φανερώνουν την πολυτελή ιστορία του συγκεκριμένου κινηματογράφου. Για μένα οι θέσεις στην μπροστινή σειρά του θεωρείου του Αττικόν προσφέρουν την απόλυτη θέα στην κινηματογραφική οθόνη. Ένας φίλος δε λέει ότι ποτέ δεν ξεχνάει ποια έργα έχει δει στο Αττικόν. Με λίγα λόγια οι άνθρωποι που έχουν στην κατοχή τούς αυτή την αίθουσα έχουν καθήκον να τη σέβονται και να την κανακεύουν γιατί το Αττικόν είναι ένα από τα λίγα σύγχρονα μνημεία της Αθήνας.
Δύο χρόνια πριν, τέτοια περίπου εποχή, στις Νύχτες Πρεμιέρας είδα στο Αττικόν το Νησί του Κιμ Κι Ντουκ. Με έκπληξη και τρόμο διαπίστωσα ότι κατά τη διάρκεια τής προβολής άρχισε να βρέχει μέσα στην αίθουσα. Σκέφτηκα τότε με λύπη ότι το νερό της βροχής θα κατάστρεφε τα υπέροχα βελούδα της σκηνής. Με τη φαντασία μου είδα την αίθουσα σταδιακά να σαπίζει και να παρακμάζει. Ελπίζω και φαντάζομαι ότι δύο χρόνια μετά η ανακαίνιση χάρισε στην αίθουσα όχι μόνο νέο λούστρο αλλά και ότι έλυσε οριστικά τέτοιου είδους προβλήματα. Κοιτάζοντας τις φωτογραφίες της ανανεωμένης αίθουσας χαίρομαι εις διπλούν γιατί οι ιδιοκτήτες της σεβάστηκαν το παρελθόν και τα ιδιαίτερα χαρακτηριστικά της αίθουσας. Οι τοίχοι βάφτηκαν με χρώματα διακριτικά που τονίζουν όμως τις γύψινες διακοσμήσεις. Τα κόκκινα βελούδα διατηρήθηκαν. Οι καρέκλες είναι νέες, υποτίθεται πιο αναπαύτηκες (οφείλουμε να δοκιμάσουμε για να βεβαιωθούμε). Επιπλέον, πληροφορούμαι ότι στα θεωρία τοποθετήθηκαν δερμάτινες πολυθρόνες και τραπεζάκια. Ολόκληρος ο τεχνολογικός εξοπλισμός ήχου αντικαταστάθηκε με το τελευταίας τεχνολογίας μοντέλο Dolby Digital.
Αντίστοιχα ανανεώθηκε και ο Απόλλωνας. Μπορεί ο Απόλλωνας να μην είχε ποτέ την χλιδή και την ιδιαίτερη λάμψη του Αττικόν ήταν όμως πάντοτε μια εκλεκτή αίθουσα. Και σε αυτή την περίπτωση οι επεμβάσεις των ανθρώπων της Cinemax και Σκούρας Φιλμς φαίνονται να είναι ουσιαστικές και διακριτικές. Εδώ, τα χρώματα έχουν αλλάξει ριζικά. Νομίζω όμως ότι ο συνδυασμός του πράσινου με το καφέ ταιριάζει στον χώρο καλύτερα από το παλιότερο κάπως ψυχρό μπλε. Επίσης, άλλαξαν οι μοκέτες, τα καθίσματα και το σύστημα προβολής. Ευτυχώς οι πίνακες –ποπ πορτρέτα-των σταρ του Hollywood, το σήμα κατατεθέν της αίθουσας εξακολουθούν να δεσπόζουν στο χώρο.
Τέλος, ο χώρος της αναμονής διπλασιάστηκε και τα ταμεία αυξήθηκαν ώστε οι θεατές να εξυπηρετούνται πιο εύκολα και πιο γρήγορα. Οι θέσεις παραμένουν αριθμημένες και ο θεατής μπορεί να αγοράζει (και να προ-αγοράζει) το εισιτήριό του από το ταμείο, τηλεφωνικώς, ή μέσω internet. Ένα ανανεωμένο μπαρ συνοδεύει τον χώρο.
Περιμένω λοιπόν, με ανυπομονησία διπλή την έναρξη του κινηματογραφικού φεστιβάλ Αθηνών. Με τις Νύχτες Πρεμιέρας θα έχω την ευκαιρία να διαπιστώσω ιδιοις όμασι τις αλλαγές και να εξακριβώσω εάν είναι όντως τόσο θετικές όσο φαίνονται από τις φωτογραφίες και ακούγονται από το δελτίο τύπου. Ένα μόνο με ανησυχεί …. η νέα τιμή εισιτηρίου ποία θα είναι; Γιατί όπως πάμε ο κινηματογράφος σε λίγο θα είναι μια ακριβή και πολυτελής έξοδος. Ας μείνουμε ωστόσο στα ευχάριστα και στην οπωσδήποτε θετική ενέργεια της CinemaX και Σκούρας και ας ελπίσουμε για τα καλύτερα.



Σχόλιο:
Τα παράπονα μου για τη βροχή στο Αττικόν βρίσκονται στο αρχείο μου "Κριτική Κινηματογράφου μόνο στην επιφάνεια"
http://helencomments.blogspot.com/2005_10_01_archive.html