THREE MONKEYS (2008) TURKEY
Directed by Nuri Bilge Ceylan
Film Society’s showcase of Turkish cinema has ended last week, and this is the second Turkish film I have seen in my whole life. The first was Ferzan Ozpetek’s The Turkish Bath. Ceylan’s movie is nothing like it but it does share a common ground; Istanbul’s special aroma fill the air of both these movies. Whether in the particularly magical setting of a balcony or a bath, or in the features of the Turkish women or men, these directors are great in capturing and exalting Turkish specific taste. This capacity is probably the only real worth of Ozpetek’s film while Three Monkeys has so much more to offer. Ceylan is a stylish director who gives an otherworldly touch to reality with agility and tact. The best of Ceylan is in his reveal shots and jumps in time. You will realize this in the three opening shots. The combination between the steadiness of the shots and the many twists and turns of the story makes this film full of substance and suspense. A rarity in film and an incentive to see more of his work.
And yes, it is STUNNING!
French writer Francoise Sagan lights a cigarette for actress and ‘ice queen’ Catherine Deneuve.
Read two short and rounded scenes from Sagan’s classic Bonjour Tristesse at bookbytes.net
POLISSE (2011) FRANCE
Directed by MAIWENN
The movie screened at Tribeca last week and I’m not sure how I feel about it. The discussion I had after seeing it rotated around the director’s intellectual honesty. The director chooses to explore a loaded loaded subject and I think she does a good job at it. Still the major flaws stick out like water in the desert; amidst all the great characters represented, the main character (acted by the director herself) is the less well shaped. A lot of attention is paid to her love affair and her personal journey from living a wealthy life of disconnection to finding love in the tough life of the multicultural hood of Belleville. Bofff! the french would say. Shot as a documentary, and very effectively so (the acting by the children is the real gem of the movie!), it loses that feel in the end when a certain kind of mannerism feels not only unnecessary but also dishonest. My friend gave Maiwenn the benefit of the doubt…I don’t know if I will.
Close in subject matter but miles away in style and approach I would rather recommend this romanian movie:
THE RETURN (2003) RUSSIA
Directed by Andrei Zvyagintsev
A must see! The father - son relationship has hardly been depicted in a better, more intense and realistic way! The film captures perfectly that continues ping-pong between authority and love which balance is so hard for a father to find and for a son to understand. Imagine all of this loaded material combined with a road trip to a mysterious island in search for something that is never revealed. The atmosphere Zvyaginstev creates is both incredibly realistic (the characters are so well fleshed out!) and magical. The locations are breathtaking; the use of the camera movement gives the movie an, only apparent, slow pacing and shows a mastery which doesn’t bring attention to itself but only deepens the significance and impact of this film!
