Gilda

I've loved this movie for many years and I'm always surprised that people don't know it or haven't seen it. 1946, Rita Hayworth at her peak, Glenn Ford, George Macready: hate, jealousy, lust and betrayal. This was probably my once-in-a-lifetime chance to see it on the big screen. (thank you Pacific Cinemateque!) I went to the movie by myself but felt among friends in the packed theatre. Ah yes, I'm not the only fan!

Glenn Ford is a Johnny Farrell, a handsome but semi-sleazy opportunist, befriending shady casino-owner Ballin Mundson (Macready) on his first day in Buenos Aires. All is swell until Ballin returns from a business trip with a young sexy vamp of a new wife, Gilda, and she happens to have a secret torrid past with Johnny. They pretend to be new acquaintances but can't disguise the hatred and jealousy. Nobody is fooled - the lusty hate steams up the screen. There's plenty of story to round out the motivations, and a very entertaining supporting cast.

This movie belongs to Rita Hayworth. She gets to be everything - from icy cold and aloof to violently enraged, from giddy and loose to fearful and heartbroken. And there's not a single shot of her that isn't definitively gorgeous. This film branded her as a sex goddess in Hollywood - an image she didn't enjoy but never escaped.

I'd remembered many of the great lines - Gilda and Johnny spit beautiful poison at eachother! But I'd forgotten the humour. Zingers like these are nowadays usually reserved for over-the-top comedies, or a single counterpoint moment.

Do Gilda and Johnny end up together? Or do they kill eachother? It doesn't even matter. They don't make 'em like Rita anymore, and they don't make movies like this either.

Becoming Jane

I guess I'm on a bit of a streak of not-so-good movies. Becoming Jane is mostly uncharming and very full of itself. Anne Hathaway does a good job with her accent, and the supporting cast Julie Walters, Maggie Smith, James Cromwell and James McAvoy are great, but the movie isn't very good overall. In fact, it felt quite ridiculous.

This movie aspires to be the Jane Austen version of Jane Austen's real life, but falls very short. Jane's stubborn independence and sharp wit are on constant display but they don't reveal a lot of depth to the character - the movie seems to presuppose that you admire her. It's like watching Keira Knightley stomp and chomp her way through Pride and Punishme - I mean Prejudice.

Many surrounding situations hint (too heavy-handedly) at the future storylines of Jane Austen's novels. I found this almost insulting to Jane Austen's talent and imagination.

On top of all this, there are some terribly awkward - even hideous - camera transitions. So many styles of camera positioning and pace are employed that it starts to feel like the over-eager first production by a film student.

I wonder if the story and characters would be received better if they weren't trying to tell the story of Jane Austen? Possibly the plot and characters would stand alone and make for a not-bad movie. However, trying to be not just Jane Austen-like but the definitive Jane Austen story, this film is too contrived, too shallow and too short. Again, kudos to James McAvoy and the supporting cast, and no complaints about Anne Hathaway. I think I'll blame this one squarely on the director. (Big thanks to Kevin for going to see it with me! )

The Bourne Ultimatum

This final chapter of the Bourne trilogy was disappointing. The movie has an exciting pace but moves way too fast for anything meaningful to occur. Who is Jason Bourne? What was Jason Bourne? There are no satisfying answers, nor any interesting developments.

I had the pleasure of reading The Bourne Identity several years before the first movie installment of this series was made. I thought they did a great job adapting the story to a film set in present day - no small feat given the advancements in spy-type technology. Jason Bourne is fascinating and sympathetic, mysterious and tortured. (and sexy!) But in this most recent film, Jason Bourne is none of these things. (well, ok, he's still sexy!)

The whole movie feels like an ultra-extended alternate ending to the 2nd film. It doesn't stand on it's own and ultimately feels quite pointless. Some very interesting characters, played by some very exceptional actors (Joan Allen, David Strathairn, Albert Finney, Scott Glenn, Chris Cooper) are wasted with inadequate story development. If there was an award for Least Dialogue in a Talkie, then this movie would be a prime contender. Make no mistake - this movie is all about action. They do introduce a new interesting character (Paddy Considine as reporter Simon Ross) but he doesn't make it far - another waste. His story line is snuffed-out, and for what? So we can bring back the meaningless Julia Stiles character again? Boring.

All that said, if a movie is going to be all-action, this IS the way to do it. There's hardly time to blink with all the racing and chasing and satellite-tracking. That makes for a fun ride, I won't deny that, but there's a surprising sense of "That's it?" when you get to the end.

December 2007 - Robyn chimes in: My turn to disagree with Jodi...It only took a few months, but I finally got around to seeing this film on DVD. I was looking forward to seeing this one for a while, as I love the previous two films, and the third did not disappoint. I thought it was action-packed and well paced, with great action scenes (although I was hoping for a better car chase scene). If you're not that familiar with the previous films, there are a few things that you'll miss - overlapping timelines and reminders of previous events make this a great story that dovetails nicely with the first films. 

A few bits that are hard to suspend one's disbelief about: there's no way they could run an operation as complex as that and make the silly mistakes they made while chasing Bourne. Also, Julia Stiles - while I thought her inclusion in the story was well placed, I did find it hard to believe that she manages to disappear as effectively as she did, since in all other situations she was clearly clueless about spy tactics - and you never do find out what she tries to get Jason to remember... I also felt that the Albert Finney and Scott Glenn characters were not big enough to justify having such marquee actors in those roles - it was a bit distracting, as I kept waiting to learn more about their involvement. Finney was a bit over the top as the CIA "dad" to all the ultra spies. 

Other than those bits, I enjoyed the look, sound and feel of the film. The story is well paced, and great use of camera angles keeps the energy up. Paul Greengrass seems well placed from his experience with United 93 to make a film feel urgent and immediate. Matt Damon is, of course, Matt Damon - as good a Jason Bourne as there could be. 

I hope they don't make a fourth film, as that would be stretching the story beyond its lifespan (not to mention typecasting Matt Damon for eternity). While this one left a few loose ends, I think it tied up enough that we can let David Webb go on his way. This will be one that I want to add to my collection, to complete the trilogy, and I look forward to watching them back to back to back in a Bourne marathon one rainy weekend.

Step Into Liquid

Step into a beautiful world.

I never truly appeciated the beauty and art of surfing until Dana Brown and the Maverick crew showed how awesome it can be. This film presents the surfing world as a place of fun and harmony, where people take things just seriously enough to be respected, but not so seriously that they become a clique. These are athletic artists, who, while they may not all have a way with words, certainly have a way on the water. Dana Brown certainly has a way with words and pictures, weaving story after story together to present a lifestyle filled with smiles.

The images are breathtaking, one after another, and even I, who have a fear of water and the things with big teeth that live there, can feel the lure of the board. Unlike other sports, where the next guy down the run can basically follow your tracks or run in your footsteps, surfing involves acts that can never truly be duplicated. Each wave that rolls overhead or crashes to the shore is unique, and while each surfer may do something similar, they will never experience the same wave. Nature keeps remaking the surface, so everyone has an individual experience.

The soundtrack is outstanding - both the original music and the compilations are fun and catchy. This is a film you can have playing at a party, and people will enjoy just listening or watching a bit here and there.

This has become one of my favourite movies, and I love sharing it with people who have never seen it. Even the skeptics end up glued to the screen, and often want to borrow it to watch it again. Like surfing itself, this film is addictive.