300 Words About: Howl

Hmm...people had a hard time understanding my poetry...how will they understand this film?

To be perfectly honest, I went into Howl at a distinct disadvantage: I've never connected much with the Beat Generation, and I find a lot of poetry just plain bewildering. Put it to music or use imagery that I understand and I'm good, but meditate on "peyote solidities of halls, backyard green tree cemetery dawns", as Allen Ginsberg does in his infamous poem, "Howl", and I'm lost.

Call me culturally illiterate, but I'm afraid that while I understand the social significance of the poem in its time (both as a cathartic statement and as a legal precedent), it just has no emotional resonance for me at all. Should this have affected my viewing of Howl? Probably, but since much of the film is animated I didn't have to do much heavy lifting anyway. The metaphors and raw passion were brought to life for me, so all I had to do was try and understand, which I did with infrequent success.

In theory I love the idea of bringing poetry to cinematic life for the very reasons I've mentioned: it helps me make some sense of the underlying meaning. But "Howl", with its huge cultural and historic significance, may not have been the best poem to explore in this way. The entire film should have been animated, or the entire film should have been a legal drama about obscenity and censorship in the 1950's, or the entire film should have been a biopic of Ginsberg (heck, maybe it just should have been a documentary).

Instead, Howl is all three, and suffers because of it (even if I admire the fact that none of the dialogue was scripted). I was tossed around from the courtroom to a living room to a coffeehouse to an animated nightmare. It was disorienting and, apart from James Franco's committed performance, it made disappointingly little use of a terrific cast featuring Jeff Daniels, Jon Hamm, and David Strathairn.

The end of the film is much tidier than the rest of it, and underscores, at least to me, that directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman were more interested in telling the story of the poem than exploring the poem in the story, as if the meaning of the lines in "Howl" should be obvious to anyone who reads them (in a Q & A after the screening I attended, the directors talked almost exclusively about the technical aspects of making the film). Well, consider this viewer a little more enlightened about why "Howl" received so much attention, but still pretty much in the dark about what half of it actually means.

Now on DVD: The People Speak

Watching The People Speak, a performance documentary based on the writings of the late historian Howard Zinn (he passed away almost exactly a month ago), is a little like the experience Marty McFly has in Back to the Future II when he goes back to the alterna-1985.

Listening to the diary entries and recorded quotes of several dozen American citizens (vividly brought to life by a talented cast of A-list Hollywood actors) describe the reality of the country around them, you can't help but consider how many different histories this country has (and really every country has). The history you learn from a textbook, the history you learn from your family, and of the course the history you don't hear at all. This is the American history you haven't heard.

Underrated MOTM: The Firm (1993)

The Underrated Movie of the Month (MOTM) for March is a hit from the good old days of legal thrillers: the early 90's, when characters didn't preach (Michael Clayton), the bad guys weren't based on reality (Michael Clayton) and the stories didn't take themselves so seriously (Michael Clayton). The Firm is a commercially packaged blockbuster that doesn't try to be anything else. It's the anti-Michael Clayton in that respect and it's all the better for it.

Cashing in on the popularity of young novelist John Grisham, The Firm became the first - and, in my opinion, the best - of nine film adaptations of his books, the last being, of course, 2004's Christmas With the Kranks...?!

Opening in the summer of 1993, The Firm was an immediate hit with audiences, many of whom likely saw it multiple times out of devotion to Tom Cruise at the peak of his career. Critics weren't as kind as Joe and Jane Public, and even the few who praised the film complained about its 154-minute running time. In his middling review, Vincent Canby of the New York Times said it was "so slow that by the end you feel as if you've been standing up even if you've been sitting down." Rick Groen of the The Globe and Mail was more blunt: "it's long, it's cluttered, and it's trite."

Maybe it's long, but cluttered and trite? Well, not anymore than Grisham's novels were. That you could tell any of them apart in the first place was an accomplishment to be proud of, but that fact somehow never prevented me from picking up his "new" book every year. So why would the public reaction to the film adaptation be any different? Like all of Grisham's stories, The Firm offered a likable character in the midst of a struggle (Mitch McDeere), nasty villains out for blood (the partners at the firm), a sympathetic antihero (Avery Tolar), and colorful supporting characters (Tammy Hemphill and Eddie Lomax). The late director Sydney Pollack knew that it couldn't be considered "too long" if he was faithful to the novel, since viewers, like voracious readers, would follow the story intently to the end (Owen Gleiberman of EW even admitted, "The problem isn't so much that we can't deduce what's going on as that we aren't given time to enjoy it.").

But therein lies one minor problem: Pollack wasn't very faithful to the book. All of the characters were still in place but their motivations were different and the ending was accordingly changed. Instead of McDeere being a shrewd, morally unpredictable hotshot who retires to the Caribbean, he became in the movie a kind of Boy Scout, returning to Boston to presumably begin a career in pro-bono work for a nonprofit firm. This grated on a few critics ("Very little of what made the written version so enjoyable has been successfully translated to the screen," complained James Berardinelli), but I was fine with it. As with Jurassic Park later that summer, I found myself able to enjoy the entertainment value of both the novel and the book, despite their obvious differences.

Even conceding the issues with the length and the complaints about the modified plot, the one aspect of the movie that cannot be criticized is the acting. This is a top-notch cast firing all cylinders, completely committing to their characters in a movie that they must have known wouldn't receive award consideration. Tom Cruise gives one of his best performances as McDeere as he allows himself to explore a range of emotions apart from his typical pride and tenacity. He churns one of these out every 2-3 years (and he's due now, the last one being Collateral), but this is one of my favorites because it came during a time when he knew could have just as easily taken any action or romantic comedy script.

The supporting cast was terrific as well, notably Gene Hackman and Jeanne Tripplehorn (what happened to her?), but also Ed Harris and Hal Holbrook. Holly Hunter was good enough to earn a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her work as Mitch's confidante Tammy Hemphill (she would later win Best Actress that year for The Piano), and don't forget memorable roles played by David Strathairn, Wilford Brimley, and Gary Busey.

Not to be thought of as an important movie from the 90's or a symbolic indictment of the American legal system, The Firm is good enough as it is: a commercial suspense thriller with great entertainment value and a star-studded cast. I would take that over a self-important (Michael Clayton) message movie (Michael Clayton) with cheap suspense (Michael Clayton) any day.

REVIEW: My Blueberry Nights (A-)

Background: Chinese Writer/Director Kar Wai Wong (heretofore known as Wong Kar-wai) has developed a devoted international fan base for his stylish films over the last 20 years, including the recent 2046, which I remember seeing listed by numerous critics as one of the top ten films of 2005. His first feature length English-language film, My Blueberry Nights, was selected to open the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, and is also notable as the acting debut for singer/songwriter Norah Jones - for whom the role was specifically written. Showing her the ropes are co-stars Jude Law (Breaking and Entering), Natalie Portman (The Other Boleyn Girl), David Strathairn (The Bourne Ultimatum), and Rachel Weisz (ouch - Fred Claus and P.S. I Love You).

Synopsis : In New York, Elizabeth (Jones) is seeking solace after having been just dumped by her boyfriend. She wanders into a nearby cafe and dramatically drops off the keys to her apartment, checking in every few days to see if her ex has reclaimed them on his way back to her. Instead, she strikes up a friendship with Jeremy (Law), the dreamy owner of the cafe who comforts her with blueberry pie and ice cream each night - all she can eat until she falls asleep on the counter. Before their relationship can go any further, Elizabeth takes off for parts unknown, working multiple jobs in order to buy a car and always sending postcards back to Jeremy in New York. In Memphis she works at a diner by day and a bar by night, in both places serving a local cop, Arnie (Strathairn), who's attempting to drink his way past the broken heart left by his cheating wife, Sue Lynne (Weisz). After her stint in Memphis, Elizabeth all of a sudden shows up in Nevada, where Leslie (Portman), a compulsive gambler with daddy issues, teaches her some life lessons by way of Texas Hold 'Em. Matured and gassed up with a car, Elizabeth heads back to New York, nearly a year after she first left. Has Jeremy been receiving her postcards? Is he still there? Don't look at the poster above...

I Loved:
+ Norah Jones. I've been a moderate fan of her music for some time, but didn't expect much here - especially not to be hypnotized by her beauty. I think she looks like my girlfriend. ;-)
+ Hearing Ryan Shaw's "We Got Love"! I called for this as part of last year's missing soundtrack. Different kind of scene than the one I mentioned, but I still a fantastic surprise.
+ David Strathairn's heart wrenching performance - as good as anything he's done, according to me.

I Liked:
+ Natalie Portman's role, but not until about an hour after seeing the movie. Her presence was a jolt in the film's momentum and I was initially put off, but then I realize that she played it perfectly.
+ The mix of filming styles - grainy, smooth, slow-mo, etc.

I Disliked:
- Rachel Weisz, which I didn't think was possible. Something didn't quite click for me.

I Hated:
- The jarring subway cars occasionally blowing by and totally disrupting the mood.

Grade:
Writing - 8
Acting - 10
Production - 9
Emotional Impact - 9
Music - 5
Significance - 4

Total: 45/50 = 90% = A-

Last Word: Not having seen any other Wong Kar-wai film, I really had no idea what to expect from My Blueberry Nights. Obviously I hadn't seen the trailer, nor did I have any idea what it was about (this is my goal with most movies). About all I did know was that it was Norah Jones' acting debut and it starred a handful of people that I usually like to watch. I say all of this because I feel my ignorance about all aspects of the film heavily influenced my impression of it - and wow, was I impressed. My Blueberry Nights is a completely refreshing, wholly artistic dream of a film; "romantic" describes every aspect of its production. Every scene is bathed in neon light and saturated with vivid color, perfectly complementing the subtle, sensual soundtrack that provides the heartbeat of the film - a film that's very much alive. The time and place of the story feel less linear than they actually are, which along with the quick editing and mixed film styles only adds to the dreamscape. Norah Jones is a captivating on-screen presence, and Wong Kar-wai is clearly some kind of prescient genius to have written the role of Elizabeth specifically for her. Unfortunately, the writing of the actual plot didn't do as much for me as the characters did. The key fishbowl was a little corny, and the sudden transition in and out of Nevada was too disjointed for me. Eventually, however, My Blueberry Nights regains its footing, and I found myself actually enjoying the saccharin-sweetened ending. My unfortunate ignorance prevents me from confronting the critics and die-hard fans who consider this Wong Kar-wai's worst film, but to anyone else I say this is evidence of a truly visionary filmmaker. If you're not tasting blueberry pie yourself by the end of this, I'm afraid you've missed something.