Celluloid #135

In Theaters


Twilight: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 (2011) Condon - Bella and Edward finally get married, and big surprise, she gets pregnant instantly. The rest of the film could have been 45 minutes, but we are privy to at least three tame sex scenes and the length of the pregnancy. The tension is that this human-vampire hybrid could kill Bella in childbirth, and if it is born, the wolves will want to kill it. Jacob takes his shirt off within the first minute of the film and proceeds to get angsty and breaks away from his pack. It's still weird that everyone likes Bella, the music is still bad, and the dialogue still clunky as ever, but I really do think this is the weakest of the franchise so far. ??/5

In Home


Another Year (2010) Leigh - Tom and Geri are a nice old couple who seem to have carved out a nice simple life for themselves. They love each other and their adult son, have satisfying but unglamorous jobs, like to garden, cook for each other, and have friends over sometimes. Each season is a chapter in the film and centers on a visitor drinking too much and lamenting about aging in one form or another. These visitors may be grating, but they are relatable in ways that one would probably want to avoid (desperate, sad, lonely). 4/5

Ginger Snaps (2000) Fawcett - The quality of this film is too shitty. It turns out that the story isn't much better. Two sisters are really close and into doing creepy things together, and maybe have a death pact. Their relationship begins to fall apart when Ginger gets her first period, but Bridget believes that she was really bitten by a werewolf, causing to Ginger to act crazed and grow a tail. I would have been into a genre exploration of female adolescence, but I guess we already get that in Carrie and this film is just too embarrassingly bad. 2/5

To Die Like a Man (2009) Rodrigues - Our protagonist is Tonia, a pre-op MTF. She works as a dancer and has a spoiled young junkie for a boyfriend. Basically what ensues is a lot of cliched melodrama, but this film is unique in that we never hear any character speak. They appear to talk to each other sometimes, but while we can hear the diegetic noise, no dialogue. However, we see subtitles, so what is communicated isn't a mystery. 3.5/5

Celluloid #134

In Theaters


Into the Abyss (2011) Herzog - In Herzog's latest documentary, he explores capital punishment. He interviews Michael James Perry, his accomplice Jason, their families, the families of the victims, and other residents in the town of Conroe, TX. It's 8 days before Michael's scheduled execution. While the topic seems full of interesting angles, I found myself often thinking of Errol Morris and wishing that he was at the helm instead. Herzog comes off as out of touch with the poor, uneducated people in the town. At times he puts words in their mouths, and they very clearly do not understand him. While I often enjoy Herzog's bizarre monologues and his presence in his documentaries, there simply weren't enough Herzogian moments that worked. The main thing that comes across in this film is that it is awful to to live in the middle of nowhere without work, education, or anything to do...leaving poverty and generations in prison. 2.5/5

Le Havre (2011) Kaurismaki - Charming film full of old people and immigrants. Marcel befriends a young escaped African immigrant. Idrissa stays with Marcel who feeds and shelters him, and also investigates how to get Idrissa to his mother in London. Meanwhile, Marcel's wife Arletty is diagnosed with terminal cancer, but keep the information from Marcel for fear of him not being able to cope with her impending death. Feels like a colorful contemporary fairy tale. 4/5


Melancholia (2011) Von Trier - It's the end of the world. A planet named Melancholia has been hiding behind the sun, but now it is set on a collision course with Earth. Meanwhile, Justine is getting married, but also suffering from debilitating depression. Her sister Claire is also a person prone to anxiety, but feels obligated to let Justine stay with her family while trying to get better. This movie is bookended by some really interestingly strange/beautiful images. At times it seems a little reminiscent of Tree of Life. This film is also unique in its portrayal of depression (and equation with the melodramatic ceasing of existence). Fascinating that Justine only finds relief when basking in the glow of the fatal planet. 4/5

In Home


Candyman (1992) Rose - The Candyman is an urban legend where if you say his name five times in the mirror, you summon him to life. At that point he will slice people in half with his hook. Helen is studying urban legends for her thesis and gets entangled with the myth's version at Cabrini Green Projects. She starts seeing the Candyman herself, but gets framed for a murder while she was blacked out. After being arrested, she has to be locked up because everyone believes her to be crazy, yet she still keeps seeing him and knows she is responsible for summoning him. 3.5/5

Celluloid #133

In Theaters


Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) Durkin - We meet Martha just as she escapes the clutches of a cult in upstate New York. Her sister, Lucy, comes to pick her up after their 2-year estrangement. Lucy has been enjoying a wealthy existence with her tony husband; a huge contrast from the anti-materialistic lifestyle of the cult. The fascinating aspect of the film is its mood and deliberate confusion between dreams and memories. So much of this is shot in the "magic hour" only lending to its dreaminess. I think the film is a little too long and that the ending is strange. (I don't mind unresolved endings at all, but this one seems to evoke an unnecessary and probably fake-out element of danger). Also, John Hawkes is really great here - playing a character in the same vein as his Winter's Bone role, more charismatic than scary. Lastly, Elizabeth Olsen has an enviable body and I really didn't mind seeing her naked many times in the course of this movie. 4/5

In Home


Bill Cunningham New York (2011) Press - Bill Cunningham seems like the nicest old man. He's been the photographer for the NYTimes' "On the Street" and "Evening Hours" columns for decades. He is so nonjudgemental giving him the ability to chronicle emerging trends in fashion before most other people. He's also so uninterested in his own fashion (all though his blue smock jumper thing is pretty cute), doesn't care about food, rides a bike all over, and lives in a small apartment full of file cabinets. He always has a broad smile on his face, but has never had much of a love life (the film seems to indicate that he might be gay in this old school way where he doesn't want to pursue that lifestyle...he also goes to church every Sunday). Anyway, it was a pleasure meeting him. 4/5

Fright Night (1985) Holland - Charley and his girlfriend Amy are having problems. He's a little too distracted by horror movies, and this compulsion only gets worse when a likely vampire moves in next door. Of course everyone thinks Charley is crazy. Amy ends up getting seduced by "Jerry" the vampire and Charley gets a local midnight movie host to help rescue her and prove his sanity. Really silly. 3/5

Celluloid #132

In Theaters


the Skin I Live In (2011) Almodovar - Antonio Banderas plays a crazed plastic surgeon who has had a pretty tragic family life. His wife cheated on him and got in a car crash, leaving her body completely burned. She kills herself rather than look like that. His daughter is traumatized by the event, spends some time in a mental hospital, gets released, gets raped, and then also kills herself. Now our doctor is on a crazy revenge kick. This film is both soap operatic and unpredictable. It's obviously a treat to look at because it's Almodovar and I appreciate his return to the bizarre over the bourgeoisie. 4.5/5

In Home


Basket Case (1982) Henenlotter - Super campy B-horror about Dwayne, a guy who carries around a basket with him to the various seedy motels he inhabits. The basket contains his former siamese twin, Belial, who appears to be made out of whatever faulty genes Dwayne was spared from. Belial looks like a disgusting blob with teeth and gets extremely jealous of any relationships that Dwayne develops. This hit the spot at 1 am after a night of excessive drinking and dancing. 3.5/5

Near Dark (1987) Bigelow - Mae is a pretty girl who also happens to be a vampie. Caleb is a country boy who falls for her before he discovers her identity, and ends up getting turned. They roll around with a rowdy group of vampires always looking for their next kill. Caleb and Mae both have less bloodlusty ambitions about killing...it's necessary for their survival, but unpleasant. Bill Paxton plays a goofy vampire  who really enjoys his role. I really liked the Southwest setting and the unique way of getting out of their hellish situation. 4/5