For the second time this year, I've found myself reliving a history that I wasn't alive for: specifically, an inspiring event in the U.S. in the 70's. In 1974, Philippe Petit defied gravity for the simple reason that he could; in 1978, Harvey Milk ran for public office for the simple reason that he couldn't. Both men captured the attention of a city while inspiring a generation of people to reexamine their purpose in life.
I find it surprisingly easy to compare Man on Wire and Milk, maybe because the former was so unlike a documentary and the latter was so much like a documentary. A similarity through differences, if that makes sense. And then there's this trait that both share: while excellent films about important issues, neither moved me emotionally in the way I expected.
Milk, for all its painstaking work in illustrating eight years in the life of the gay rights activist-turned-politician Harvey Milk, still didn't quite succeed in connecting me with the man - and it's not because I'm straight. It's because I didn't feel as if I got to know who he was, where he came from and what he wanted in life. Of course I understand what he was fighting for, but you didn't have to make a movie to show me that. I mean I don't think I know who Harvey Milk was. It says something about the limitations of a biopic (and a life tragically cut short), I suppose, and it's made me rethink my own campaign for a film about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Can a movie do justice to these stories about larger-than-life figures? In any case, Milk tells us more about the a movement than it does about a man - not a missed opportunity, just not the angle I was looking for.
Gus Van Sant (who directed Paranoid Park just last spring) does as much as he can with the by-the-book screenplay by Dustin Lance Black (the life-story-on-tape did nothing for me), and he fortunately has a dream of a cast at his disposal. James Franco (Pineapple Express) and Emile Hirsch (Speed Racer) excel in their respective roles, fully committing themselves to characters that I can only imagine are a far cry from their own identities. I suppose the same could be said for Diego Luna (most recently seen as Michael Jackson in Mister Lonely - don't ask), but his character is so annoying that you find yourself waiting for him to get off the screen. Josh Brolin (W.) continues to establish himself as a rising dramatic star, but we don't get enough time with him on his own to explore the depths of his character, either.
As the namesake of the film, Sean Penn delivers as expected, imbuing the hero with fiery emotion and a playful self-awareness. Clearly this was a role that Penn cared a great deal about, and his inevitable Oscar nomination can hardly be disputed. Part of me feels like I'm seeing him in the same roles over and over, but then again I'm someone who liked him in both All the King's Men and The Assassination of Richard Nixon, both of which were roundly panned (and I wonder if the criticism isn't what drove him to disappear behind the camera last year instead). There's no question that he's one of the greatest actors of his generation, and if he continues to seek out challenging roles he'll solidify his place as a Hollywood legend.
Sean Penn practices his Oscar acceptance speech - just in case...
Judging by the sniffling and cheering in the theater around me, it's clear that Milk has hit a cultural nerve in this country at this time, no doubt influenced by the recent Prop 8 vote in California. It's a movie that will educate a generation about a time that they may have either forgotten or simply been unaware of, and to that end it's a grand success. But it left me wanting more of Harvey Milk, and I still have a lingering feeling that it would take a documentary or (get this) a book for me to understand his motivations and the source of his courage. Carried by its outstanding ensemble cast, Milk will no doubt continue to receive attention during this awards season. If you're moved by it more than I was, I imagine it will be one of the most affecting movies you'll see all year. Grade: Writing - 7/10 Acting - 10/10 Production - 9/10 Emotional Impact - 8/10 Music - 5/5 Social Significance - 5/5
Good Will Hunting (1997). Directed by Gus Van Sant; written by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck; starring Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Robin Williams, Minnie Driver, Stellan Skarsgård, Casey Affleck, and Cole Hauser.
Background: Gus Van Sant films are good to use as a litmus test when talking to people who say, "I'm a big movie buff!" Good Will Hunting, Psycho, and Finding Forrester? Sure. How about everything since them (Gerry, Elephant, Last Days) or before them (Drugstore Cowboy, My Own Private Idaho)? The point being that Van Sant is mostly known for movies that don't really represent his niche: troubled young males. Paranoid Park is his adaptation of the 2006 Blake Nelson novel of the same name, and following his practice for Elephant, he cast a group of unknown actors (reportedly through MySpace), mostly students from Portland, OR. The book is set there and Van Sant filmed it there, but I don't know Portland well enough to know if the featured skate park is actually Paranoid Park. Anyway, the film was a smash at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, winning the 60th Anniversary Prize. The list of previous anniversary winners (it's every 5 years) doesn't explain to me what the award actually means. Let's just say that between Elephant and Paranoid Park, Cannes loves Gus Van Sant. Synopsis: We first meet blank-faced Alex (Gabe Nevins) as he's privately writing in his journal (the first of about 25 journal-writing shots). He's detached and innocent, but quiet in an annoying sort of way, and soon enough we learn he has a secret to hide. Told in non-linear form, the story progresses as a mash up of slo-mo Super 8 video and slo-mo 35 mm film, and the soundtrack ranges from rap to classical to jazz to hard rock. The details of Alex's secret are slippery, but ultimately not that important. A security guard at the train yard near Paranoid Park was found dead, and both we and the police know Alex is involved in some way. Before we're let in on the details we've already seen his growing guilt take a toll on his daily life. His friendships are strained and his perspective on the world affected, or so it seems. Does he actually understand life in a different way, or is he just temporarily in a state of shock? We can't fully access his thoughts, and we're not supposed to - he's a teenager. Our purpose is to simply study how this particular teenager reacts to a catastrophic incident and take a meaningful lesson away from it.
I Loved: + The scene in which Alex is interviewed by Detective Lu - awesome camera angles and rapid-fire dialogue in a long take. + The Napoleon Dynamite scene. Mischievously long - and hilarious. I Liked: + Some of the visuals, such as the opening credits and the walking through fallen leaves shot. + Gabe Nevins in his acting debut - not so much at first, but several scenes were impressive and by the end he had me. I Disliked: - The frequent sound effects that got right under my skin. I felt like I had autism and the tag of my shirt was irritating me. (Is that in bad taste? It's not meant to be.) - The skateboarding footage. What was the purpose? "To...." Ok, fine. Then why so much of it? - The lack of background information on Alex and his relationship with his parents. I was missing just this much to really empathize with his character. I Hated: - Lauren McKinney as Macy. I found her utterly intolerable. Was that acting or just messing around? - The shower scene. Love it or hate it for its effect, but you have to admit it was an unbearable moment.
Grade: Writing - 10 Acting - 8 Production - 7 Emotional Impact - 9 Music - 4 Significance - 5
Total: 43/50= 86% = B
Last Word: It took me a couple of hours to come around on this one as my first thoughts were, "What would Gus Van Sant do if he couldn't use any music or slow motion in his films?" Paranoid Park is haunting, brooding, and unpredictable - kind of like, well, a teenager. Van Sant has quietly become the established voice of teen angst over the last 20 years, and his subjects here are familiar in a strange way - maybe not from another movie (although more than once I was reminded of Elephant), but definitely from an American high school. The simple story was perfect for a creative director, but Van Sant's overproduction was ultimately too much for me this time around. I'll chalk this one up to personal taste; whereas others may have been stirred to the soul by the long takes and mind-drilling sound effects, I was occasionally restless and eventually exhausted. To say that Gus Van Sant's films require patience on the part of the viewer is an understatement (see Gerry), but even though I was prepared to sit through it, I don't think his incredibly frequent use of slow motion added any significant elements to the story here. If there was something symbolic in it, I'm sorry to say it was over my head. Switching gears, I was pretty impressed by the non-actor actors. Though he has the facial expression of an orphaned puppy, Gabe Nevins carried the film and was great in all of the scenes that took place at the school. The other characters were hardly tolerable, from his "dude" friend to his girlfriend to his parents. Not having read the book it's probably unfair for me to pick apart the characters, and their toxicity might have been by design, anyway. Or maybe that's just what happens when your casting agent is MySpace. To conclude: Paranoid Park is, I think, meant to be a thesis on the emotions of the American teenage boy in the midst of crisis. I almost want to call it Elephant-lite. The two films use violence in different ways, but the underlying message is how disaffected these teens are from that violence. I was disturbed, but I think the audio and visual elements distracted me from fully absorbing Paranoid Park.
For the second time this year, I've found myself reliving a history that I wasn't alive for: specifically, an inspiring event in the U.S. in the 70's. In 1974, Philippe Petit defied gravity for the simple reason that he could; in 1978, Harvey Milk ran for public office for the simple reason that he couldn't. Both men captured the attention of a city while inspiring a generation of people to reexamine their purpose in life.
Sean Penn practices his Oscar acceptance speech - just in case...
