jp-scheffer

L'Amica Geniale

I am currently watching the Italian-American TV series My Brilliant Friend (L'Amica Geniale), based on the four books by Italian writer Elena Ferrante, about a poor neigbourhood on the edge of Naples, Italy, in the 50's and 60's, where people live in uniform, grey appartment blocks, and where violence and drama are daily occurrences, and the story primarily follows the lives of two girls who become life-long friends, but have very different characters and ways, against a background and within the context of a great diversity of stories about those who touch their lives, and those whose lives they touch, and the whole story has great realism, width and depth, and I call it a "people's epic", wherein the people are the hero's and the villains, and often both.

Still two seasons (books) to go, and I'm hooked, which I very rarely am with any TV series, and I already count My Brilliant Friend as a masterpiece of cinematic storytelling.

J. P. S.

As I say in the title, this is a gorgeous, relevant film, on multiple levels, without it being a complex, tiring film to watch, on the contrary, it is very purposeful and clear, yet also very beautiful and engaging, not to mention very stirring and moving. The cinematic language in which the story is told, made me long for more, and as cinema and storytelling go, I count this film as a triumph, so I rate it 10/10.

I mean, come on! This film is a realistic and confronting, yet poetic and philosophical exploration of the challenges, problems and abuses eccentric, gifted people face in a society that is prejudiced and hostile against what it perceives as strange and threatening, because it fears what it reflects back, and this film shows the full tragedy of this cruel denial and rejection, but also the great beauty of authenticity, creativity and courage, for which it deserves a lot more recognition and appreciation than it got, so from me it gets a 9/10 rating.

I went into watching this film almost without preconception or expectation about its content, only having watched a very small part of the trailer as not to spoil the experience, the journey if you will, of watching it, which is how I generally like to approach new films, so I mostly wanted to watch it from my already firmly established admiration for the supremely talented Aronofsky and the supremely talented cast, and as the title suggests, allowing myself some humourous wordplay with it, this film surprised, shocked and overwhelmed me, and both director and cast not only fulfilled the promise of their combined talents completely, but created something greater than the sum of its parts: a true experience, a true journey, encompassing all possible feeling, emotion and thought. Aronofsky and his cast created a work of art, and art is not necessarily pleasant, easy or comfortable, but it is fulfilling, both for the artist and the observer, who through the communication of art can become as one mind, as one soul, as one heart.

The Matrix trilogy is certainly underrated, because it is a lot more profound in meaning than most think they think it is, if you can call it thinking, because I'm referring to a type of thinking, or rather, limited delusional perception, that's a lot like the state in which humanity finds itself, or rather lost itself, in The Matrix, being both the title and the grand conceptual context in which, and through which, by way of transcendence, the characters and the plot move. The Matrix trilogy is a masterpiece of cinema. It's really that good.

This movie is utter brilliance in every respect, from the story, to the dialogue, to the locations, to the direction, to the cinematography, to the costuming, to the production design, and then of course the actors, whose portrayal of their character living, moving and talking in a very specific historical, social and locational context, can be qualified as an act of genius.

Hilary Swank and Tommy Lee Jones truly lead the cast of a movie that humbly and graciously allows the viewer-listener to partake in a journey that encompasses all aspects of existence, and that is a rare and wholesome privilege.

I liked Famke Janssen's directorial debut, which was made on an austere budget and shot in Oklahoma in just 20 days, well enough to want to see her next film, which I hope there will be, as it is difficult to make this kind of independent film and release it.

In this film, Milla Jovovich is what she excels in being, which is enchanting and mesmerizing on several levels, as she portrays a loving but dysfunctional mother in a way that draws you in and makes you empathize as well as sympathize.

Famke Janssen's story is original, the locations are great, as is the cinematography, and the scenes are cut together flawlessly, building a sensible arch of narrative and emotion to a worthy conclusion.

In other words, a very good job from writer Famke Janssen, director Famke Janssen, cinematographer Guido van Gennep, producers, cast and crew.

The present, ridiculously low score prompted me to write a short review.

The setting, the story, the characters of Big School are both typically British and universal, and though each character is well defined by their role, each actor in the very talented cast is allowed to show their individual craft, sometimes genius, a freedom that, especially in the experienced hands of David Walliams, Catherine Tate and Philip Glenister, produces some high quality comedic characterizations of the archetypal figures that we encounter in the odd, but equally classic school setting that they populate.

I can't fault this production, having very much enjoyed the first two episodes, and I'm rather looking forward to seeing the rest of this well-thought-out, well-produced new BBC series.

Notes on the 2005 U.S. film 'North Country', about a "Class Action" in Minnesota that was essential to the social-legal struggle for female emancipation, much like what is represented by the 2010 British film 'Made in Dagenham', which historically precedes it as an earlier part of the same struggle, but which primarily centers around the economic aspect of it.

Thoughts on Josey's character.

Knowledge does not equal intelligence, but rather may serve as a catalyst of an already existing potential, a latent force, which is human intelligence. In this sense, one can more rightly say that experience equals knowledge. To maintain that Josey's character is of "average intelligence", as some seem to do, counts as a continuation of one's, as once it was also her, ignorance about the essence of the female-human psyche, one's core identity and true source of power, and therefore, it is patriarchal condescendence. And it is exactly this cultural condescendence that she overcame through staying, or rather, becoming true to her core identity, unleashing a wealth of social and practical intelligence, and through sheer courage and perseverance, thus becoming a true and authentic leader in the emancipation of women, but firstly, of herself, and there is nothing "average" about that.

Thoughts on the film.

As for the dramatic and cinematographic qualities of 'North Country': this film gives the viewer a strong sense of location and reality, and it is a top-notch realistic socio-political, historical drama of a rare kind, meaning that its occurrence happens few and far between, and of which I mentioned another example, 'Made in Dagenham', that can and will make one think about, and re-think one's experiences and views, correcting aspects of one's perception through the relative wisdom of hindsight, and also affirming and deepening what one has already learned, or perhaps always suspected about the world, about people, and above all, about oneself. This film is as much about women as it is about men, the struggle for, and no less against, gender equality being the story whereby its main characters are driven, the ideal, and the necessity of final gender equality being its passionate, convincing message, and therefore this film is for women and men equally.

Concluding my review, I'd say that 'North Country' represents a raw, but eloquent and important chapter in the continuing history of the gains and losses, the pain and victory that characterize all such essential human struggles. For its all-encompassing portrayal of the struggle for female emancipation, through the compassionate, clear analysis of one chapter of it, this film deserves a full house, and in more than one sense.

I will honour the great film that is Centurion, by not giving anything away, because it needs to be seen and heard, not spoiled by reviews: not the negative ones, which this film certainly does not deserve, but also not the very positive ones, like mine would be, if I cared little enough about this film and its potential new viewers to spoil it for those who have become curious about what this precious little gem that I'm almost not talking about might be like. But I care about it very much, and to those who are open-minded enough to have been made curious by my "review", I say: I will tell you no more, you must go and see it for yourself! Because, admittedly low-budget - What's in a budget anyway? Sometimes less is more - as Centurion might be, for those who love a great story, a great cast, great scenery and a great film score, in short, a great film: watch and listen to this one, and you'll appreciate that I kept my review as uninformative as I possibly could, hopefully just enough to make you curious, but not enough to spoil it for you in any way!