Movie Review

  • Dark Star (1974)

    Dark Star (1974)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Criterion Streaming, March 2020) Ugh. It’s with no pleasure whatsoever that I emerge from Dark Star reporting no pleasure whatsoever. Sure, I know it’s a classic reference in SF film history—writer-director John Carpenter’s debut, an oddball humorous critique of spaceship movies before spaceship movies became mainstream, and a definite cult classic considering its absurd black humour and downbeat ending. But when one says “cult classic,” one must hear “not for everyone” or perhaps “best suited to a specific time”—Dark Star, in its low-budget technical roughness and coarse execution only one step beyond a student film, is perhaps more remarkable now for what it inspired than for what it is. The links to Alien are obvious thanks to the working-class shipboard atmosphere and co-writer Dan O’Bannon’s signature on both scripts. But influence is not always correlated to original quality—sometimes, something is striking because it’s new, and then the newness fades as copies pullulate. Sure, I’m glad to strike off Dark Star from the list of landmark SF movies I hadn’t yet seen—but I’m done with it. And I can’t even blame the technical roughness of the copy I watched, since it came straight from best-in-class Criterion.

  • Harlem Nights (1989)

    Harlem Nights (1989)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On TV, March 2020) Much maligned upon release as a vanity project for Eddie Murphy to become a writer-director, Harlem Nights is far from being an unimpeachable film… but it does have a few strengths. The recreation of 1930s Harlem as a playground for Murphy and co-star Richard Pryor has its good moments, and you simply can’t deny the interplay between both stars. There’s something to be said for Murphy having the clout to tell an expensive historical black-themed story at a time when such projects were rare, and you can see in Harlem Nights the bare bones of a much stronger project. But the entire thing generally deflates in-between the highlights. Part of the problem is Murphy falling back on familiar crutches the moment the project starts threatening to become too big for him—the braying laugh, the cheap jokes, the stand-up-inspired dialogue. It prevents Harlem Nights from becoming its own creation—a co-writer (or another director) would have done this film a world of good. Still, don’t believe those who maintain, long after the need to keep Murphy’s then-rampaging ego in check, that the film is ridiculous or worthless. It’s disappointing and evocative of a much better movie, for sure, but it’s still worth a look if you’re a fan of either stars, many of the surprisingly impressive supporting actors, or the trajectory of black cinema in the 1980s.

  • The Ipcress File (1965)

    The Ipcress File (1965)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On TV, March 2020) The 1960s were a golden age of sorts for spy movies, obviously buoyed by the runaway success of the James Bond franchise in the early years of the decade—but while a lot of the straight James Bond imitators were quickly forgotten by time, what gets remembered are those bandwagoners that tried something slightly different. The Ipcress File, in retrospect, has a lot of enviable pedigree—Adapted from a novel by Len Deighton, who later became a reliable bestseller, it also stars a young Michael Caine—and I don’t need to tell you about Caine’s later career. The links to the James Bond movies were closer than most, in that many crewmembers and producers had some involvement in early Bond instalments. But what The Ipcress File does rather well is taken an approach markedly less entertainment-driven than Bond—a sordid tale of brainwashing, glum atmosphere, accidental friendly fire, overwhelming paperwork, an unreliable protagonist and less-than-benevolent hierarchical superiors. Still, the filmmakers aren’t going for audience alienation: If The Ipcress File is still well worth a watch today, half of it is due to Caine’s pure coolness behind square black glasses—a mixture of droll bon mots, assured physicality and his undeniable star quality. It’s markedly murkier in theme and tone than the Bond films and, as such, stands quite well on its own. Now, what’s this about sequels?

  • Rabid (1977)

    Rabid (1977)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) Considering that the current international headlines are all about a global pandemic, watching writer-director David Cronenberg’s Rabid isn’t so much mindless fun right now. This being said, even if Rabid is definitely about a zombie epidemic going out of control, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is unlikely to attain the wild body-horror madness of Cronenberg’s take on a (now) well-worn trope—by the time the heroine (played by porn star Marilyn Chambers) has a phallic appendage growing out of her armpit and motivating her to feed on human blood, well, I feel confident that we’re some way away from even the most horrible reality. What I liked most about the film, however, wasn’t its horror aspect as much as setting and atmosphere—loudly and proudly taking place in late-1970s Montréal, it features eye-catching details of the era and a fun “feels like my childhood” quality to an otherwise humdrum story. But unless you were born within three years and two hundred kilometres from Rabid’s production, I can’t quite promise the same kind of inherent interest. Otherwise, it’s an early Cronenberg, tackling a now-overexposed topic and doing it in a typically Cronenbergian way—which either counts as an advantage or a distraction.

  • McQ (1974)

    McQ (1974)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) John Wayne doing Dirty Harry is pretty much the unholy union of two heave-inducing flavours in one detestable package. The creepy uncle of Classic Hollywood taking on the vigilante fantasies of New Hollywood is far from being the most compelling premise. And Wayne does show up in McQ as an old and bloated cop, shooting corrupt policemen as part of a sombre drug conspiracy. Since the entire film rests on his shoulders, it’s nearly a miracle if it eventually settles for being an average and forgettable affair—a middle-of-the-road neo-noir with local Seattle colour, redolent with 1970s atmosphere but dragged down by a wholly inappropriate lead actor. He’s old, he looks stupid by making dumb cracks about “women’s lib” and is generally treated with undeserved reverence by director John Sturges. But hey—Wayne was a relic of a past era by 1974, and certainly feels like it here too: no fancy car nor big gun can compensate for this 65-year-old having trouble with even the most elementary of action hero business. McQ is certainly distinctive, though—After seeing young upstarts Eastwood and McQueen having their own action movie thunder, old Wayne wanted his, and the result speaks for itself as an indulgence.

  • La règle du jeu [The Rules of the Game] (1939)

    La règle du jeu [The Rules of the Game] (1939)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Criterion Streaming, March 2020) Not every classic hits the same, and so not only am I not overly impressed at La règle du jeu, I’m also not impressed with myself for not being impressed. While I’ll acknowledge that I will need to revisit this film at some point, my current impression is this: I can recognize the film’s thematic depth, but I see no reason to engage with it. It’s about a weekend get-together at a country estate, but it’s also about classism, a battle between the sexes, romantic jealousy and inaction in the face of growing fascism. Even better, writer-director Jean Renoir uses the film for some then-daring cinematic experiment, moving the camera in ways seldom seen at the time and using every single bit of artistic credit he had at the time. (Which may explain why the film was quickly banned by the Vichy administration and would only resurface in its complete version twenty-five years later.) Alas, I found La règle du jeu meandering, talky, a bit too long and not as focused as I would have liked. There’s a distinct possibility that I may not have been in the most appropriate mood to take it in, so let’s keep that in mind—I’ll try to have another look in a few years.

  • L’Atalante (1934)

    L’Atalante (1934)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Criterion Streaming, March 2020) While I’m not and probably won’t ever be a big fan of L’Atalante, there are a few things about the film that are worth noting. The first, outside the film’s frame of reference, would be to acknowledge the very romantic idea of the film and its place in the regrettably short life of its writer-director Jean Vigo—After barely managing to complete its production, Vigo died at 29 years of age… shortly after seeing the film’s less-than impressive initial release. It would take another generation for L’Atalante to be regarded fondly as a fundamental piece of poetic realism and lionized by the French New Wave filmmakers. That’s a lot of history for what is rather a simple film, at least from a narrative standpoint: a couple marries, splits up and reunites—all set against the somewhat romantic world of French canal barges. But everything is about execution, and even twenty-first century audiences have to recognize Vigo’s stylistic flourishes in telling his story. There’s quite a bit to like here—including many very cute cats—but the test is whether it’s still interesting, and it is: the Poetic Realism movement has aged rather well, and L’Atalante can still comfortably fit next to a viewing of Pépé le Moko. It’s not hard to see how that specific style would come to influence American film noir, the French new Wave and other significant subgenres.

  • Howards End (1992)

    Howards End (1992)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, March 2020) While it’s amusing to call Howards End “Stiff Upper Lip — The Movie,” it’s perhaps fairer to acknowledge that time has polished it into the apex of a very specific kind of British drama. In the thirty years of the Merchant-Ivory collaborations, this is probably their best film, the one that most embodies the atmosphere that the pair was aiming for—a time of repressed feelings, grand (but fading) rural estates, dimming aristocracy, class tension and family drama. It’s all wrapped up in a very neat bow here, with sumptuous cinematography and best-of-class actors. In-between Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, a baby-faced Helena Bonham Carter, Vanessa Redgrave and others, this is a top-notch execution of a mood—the apogee of an entire genre. It’s a graceful reckoning with the end of an empire given life by some great characterization and even finer acting. It’s both wish-fulfillment and criticism of the wish at once. Is Howards End too long? Sure, but only in the moments you’re not completely smitten with it—otherwise, it’s not nearly long enough.

  • Shin seiki Evangelion Gekijô-ban: Air/Magokoro wo, kimi ni [The End of Evangelion] (1997)

    Shin seiki Evangelion Gekijô-ban: Air/Magokoro wo, kimi ni [The End of Evangelion] (1997)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, March 2020) I was a bit amazed to see The End of Evangelion occasionally pop up on the IMDB Top-250 list, and that amazement is likely to persist now that I’ve actually seen the movie. Not being all that familiar with the Evangelion series, it took me a few minutes and some extracurricular reading to get up to speed—not that there’s much to it: Earth is threatened, but it’s up to a few moody teenagers in robot suits to save the world. Whatever, anime, you do your thing. Considering that I would never be able to fully understand the film as a finale to the Neon Genesis Evangelion 24-episode anime series, I sat back and let it all wash over me. This, in the end, was the correct approach—trying to explain just what’s going on in The End of Evangelion is doomed to failure and would sound like insane gibberish even if I succeeded. The very short version is: it’s the final showdown, there’s a lot of barely understandable sights and sounds, and the entire thing hovers at the edge of symbolic unintelligibility. It’s violent, surreal, pompous, experimental, incoherent, apocalyptic, metaphysical and when you’re dealing with those qualifiers in rapid succession, who really cares about understanding the plot? Writer-director Hideaki Anno is a madman, but I’m happy he wasn’t stopped: The End of Evangelion is actually rather impressive in its own way—and if you’re going to justify including it as an occasional visitor to the IMDB Top-250, it might as well because it’s the most anime-esque of all anime—it’s difficult to imagine anyone ever doing something like this ever again. Would I recommend it? I have no clue.

  • Smilin’ Through (1932)

    Smilin’ Through (1932)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) If there’s anything unusual about Smilin’ Through, it’s its use of the supernatural as a framing plot device, as both the beginning and end of the story doe depend on a ghostly presence to make sense. (Which was far from the norm at the time.) In-between, we get Norma Shearer and Fredric March plays pairs of characters separated by a generation, and the more usual melodrama of star-crossed lovers trying to get together and failing until the ghosts interfere. Smilin’ Through is fine for an early-sound-era romantic drama: there’s little new here aside from the ghosts, and the film is arguably more interesting when juxtaposed with its earlier 1922 silent film and the later 1941 version, whose details are updated from the first to the second World War. (Although that 1941 version does have Jeanette MacDonald, so you know there’s going to be some high-pitched singing.) Technical credentials are adequate for the time, and since both March and Shearer were top stars, there’s enough care invested in Smilin’ Through’s production to make it worthwhile if the premise appeals to you.

  • Children of the Corn (1984)

    Children of the Corn (1984)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) Blending some folk horror with “kids are evil” old narrative chestnuts, Children of the Corn ends up being somewhat of a mixed bag. The premise, not uninteresting, has a couple accidentally stopping in a small town where all the adults have been killed by children in a pagan crop-saving ritual. The usual shenanigans follow, with the adult protagonists being hounded by the killer kids and fighting back. It’s all executed in standard 1980s-horror-movie fashion, which may (or not) strike a chord with those who like horror films of the era. It does have its assets: It’s impossible not to like 1984-vintage Linda Hamilton, obviously, but the film around her isn’t quite so interesting. Those who know Children of the Corn’s production history will tell you all about how Stephen King wrote a screenplay adapting his own story, only for the screenplay to be thrown in the garbage by the film’s producers, who then went on to do their own thing with the premise. As such, there’s no attempt at cinematic excellence or respectability here: it’s a straight-up genre exercise, made to make a buck with the era’s undiscerning theatrical audiences. There have been many sequels (8) and remakes (2) to Children of the Corn, almost all of them intended for the home video or streaming market—not that the sins of the children should be inflicted upon the forbears, except as a hint toward how compelling the premise could be for other filmmakers.

  • Singularity (2017)

    Singularity (2017)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) Someone should tell Singularity’s writer-director Robert Kouba some harsh truths: Big ideas, adequate special effects and one headlining star do not ensure a good science fiction film. Especially when the star is John Cusack, who’s been sinking deeper and deeper in the undistinguished morass of straight-to-streaming far of the past decade. Not when the film is blandly executed with trite dialogue, implausible worldbuilding, awkward staging and extremely familiar tropes. A look at the film’s production history is instructive, as Singularity was initially shot in 2013, and then retooled with a Cusack-starring framing device years later—almost certainly an attempt to salvage existing footage into a sellable property. The stitches certainly show, with the Cusack AI-introducing segments being slightly more interesting than the somewhat humdrum central post-apocalyptic quest narrative of the bulk of the film. Oh well: exactly no one will be surprised to learn of a low-budget Cusack film being terrible nor of a low-budget film whose high concept is badly executed. Still, I wonder — What happened here?

  • The Omen (2006)

    The Omen (2006)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (In French, On Cable TV, March 2020) Exactly no one will be surprised by this remake of The Omen, and it almost seems by design—More akin to a theatrical revival than a new movie, this update changes very little to the 1976 script (to the point where original screenwriter David Seltzer got the sole writing credit respite a few rewrites without his input!) and essentially updates the actors, cinematography, direction and setting to 2006 standards. As a result, it does feel slicker than the original (the dog attack sequence isn’t quite so ridiculous, for one thing) but loses almost all of its authenticity… if that’s the right word. Not that I’m a big fan of the original—which may account for my not-pleased-nor-displeased disposition toward this remake. It’s almost interesting (like the 1998 Psycho remake) to see essentially the same script given a new coat of paint and taken out for a spin. If nothing else, a double bill of both the original and the remake, while tedious, would be instructive as to how filmmaking evolved in three decades even as the themes of the original have held up. Going back to the theatrical revival analogy, well—why not? For director John Moore, isn’t it better to redo what seemed to work well in the first place than to take chances with modifications that don’t pan out? Despite my lack of affection for the original, it’s rather neat to see Julia Stiles, Liev Schreiber and Mia Farrow step into these well-established roles for a film. It’s not that good, but then again: The Omen’s over-the-top histrionics can be reasonably entertaining, and if the remake doesn’t bring anything new, maybe it does have familiarity to its credit—although by 2020, with immense streaming libraries that can include the original, it remains to see whether there’s a reason for 2006’s The Omen to exist. Aside from, let’s admit it, the rather amazing “2006-06-06” release date.

  • Pygmalion (1938)

    Pygmalion (1938)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) Anyone with some awareness of the much-better-known film My Fair Lady will find themselves in familiar territory, narrative-wise, with Pygmalion. Adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s theatrical urtext of “lower-class person being successfully groomed to high-class,” this film codifies the trope that would then be reused in many imitators, including the My Fair Lady musical. As such, Pygmalion can feel laborious to modern viewers, as it runs through predictable plot developments and feels almost identical (minus the songs) to the later musical comedy. It’s still serviceable, however: the quality of Shaw’s dialogue remains, and the breezy comic style does help distinguish this film from many other literary adaptations of the 1930s. Still, Pygmalion does pale in comparison to its inheritors and imitators—and I say this as someone with no particular fondness for My Fair Lady.

  • The First Wives Club (1996)

    The First Wives Club (1996)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, March 2020) I read nearly everything by author Olivia Goldsmith before her life was cut short by complications following plastic surgery (an irony for the ages, considering that her novels were all about middle-aged women becoming comfortable with their own aging), and The First Wives Club was not only her first, but perhaps her most representative novel as well. Here we have three “first wives” teaming up to take out their ex-husbands after many transgressions. The adaptation is a rare opportunity for middle-aged actresses to have great memorable roles, and much of the fun of the film consists in seeing Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn and Diane Keaton tear up the scenery as they wreak revenge. The lead trio is complemented by an impressive supporting cast of known actors — some of them before they became famous, such as Sarah Jessica Parker. The First Wives Club is not a subtle film, and the social commentary can be blunt, but it’s part of its charm that none of the ex-husbands is anything but irremediably evil and that the heroines exert nothing but righteous retribution for a litany of sins. It’s actually fun in its own way, even if the film is intended for middle-aged women.