The Language Barrier

In this article I am using film merely as a talking point to a real life issue. I began thinking about the language barrier while I was in my foreign film faze, watching subtitle filled masterpiece after subtitle filled masterpiece, I realized what a tragedy the cultural blockade actually is. While the Hollywood system has undoubtedly created a massive amount of quality work, in terms of creativity and innovative storytelling, the foreign market often prevails. Many of the greatest stories in film history have come from the hands of filmmakers such as the Swedish Ingmar Bergman, and Japanese Akira Kurosowa. Many people find it extremely difficult to consistently read dialogue off of the screen, while paying attention to the visual aspect of the film. This is by no means an easy calculation for the human brain, but all it takes is patience and an interest in actually experiencing the film. Personally, I find it easier to get captivated by a good foreign film, because I am forced to pay attention to every single word of dialogue spoken in the film.

One of the first films that come to mind when thinking about great foreign cinema is Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal. This is a tale that takes place after the Swedish crusades, following a Knight and his squire as they return home from the brutal war. During their journey, they come across death himself, the grim reaper. The knight challenges death to a game of chess for his life, if the knight wins, he lives, if death wins, he dies. That is easily one of the greatest, most fascinating tales I have ever seen, and most people in this country are completely oblivious to its existence.

I can not say that I would consider foreign cinema to be generally better then American cinema, with all forms of entertainment, people are often too quick to compare. Comparison is necessary for awards, and that is about it. All works of art, especially films, should be judged on their own merit, and the audience’s own humble opinion, not other works themselves. The fact of the matter is, film markets based on foreign land, have their own share of classic tales, and big time movie stars, along with their own brand of geniuses to sit back in the director’s chair. The point of this article is simple, to open the minds of people who would normally laugh at the idea of “reading a movie.”

Top 10 Films of 2007

For the past 8 years i have been following films, and creating lists of my favorite movies from each year. 2007 was by far the year filled with the most quality content. In most years, i can come up with around 12 or 13 great films which i would give a four star rating to, 2007 was a major exception. As of now I have 25 films from the past year which I would consider four star movies. Here is my list of the top 10 films of 2007. Soon there will be a review for each film.

1. Into the Wild (****)
2. No Country For Old Men (****)
3. There Will Be Blood (****)
4. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (****)
5. Atonement (****)
6. Michael Clayton (****)
7. Zodiac (****)
8. The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford (****)
9. Once (****)
10. Juno (****)

Psycho

Review:

There are very few artists who are recognizable by name to even those who have not seen a single piece of their work. Alfred Hitchcock is easily one of the most famous people to ever step behind a camera, and a great deal of that fame is due to his 1960 masterpiece, Psycho. Psycho opens up with one of the most chilling scores of all time, and an extremely stylistic opening credit sequence, which immensely succeeds in sucking in the viewer for the rest of the film. Films of the 1960’s and earlier are more then often shunned upon by the majority of my peers, and this is mostly due to black and white film, and unrealistic special effects. There is no better example of these fall backs being put to good use in a film then Psycho. Hitchcock takes black and white, and makes it a necessity for the film, without it, much of the style and atmosphere would immediately be lost.
There is a scene in the first act, when the female lead, Janet Leigh, is driving in the car, and it is obvious that the background is not actually there, it is an effect. In most films, this would distract from the story line, but Hitchcock finds a way to actually make it contribute to the suspense and intensity of the scene. Hitchcock was undoubtedly the king of movie twists, and Joseph Stefano’s script creates an innovate way of thrilling an audience. Not only is there a mind boggling twist to end the movie, but a major story changing event like has never been seen before. This does not occur in the typical final act of the film, but within the first quarter. The visual style, and unique narrative is not all that is extraordinary about this movie. The performances across the board are all immensely effective. From Anthony Perkins’ eerily believable portrayal of Bates Motel owner, Norman Bates, to Janet Leigh’s depiction of the lustrous renegade Marion Crane.

****/****
Here is the original theatrical trailer for Psycho.

Elmer Gantry

Review:

Just before the opening seconds of the film come onto the screen, a public service announcement quickly scrolls, warning the viewer of the subject matter, and suggests that the film is not suitable for impressionable children. Right away, one can get a sense of how controversial and ultimately important the release of this film actually was. Burt Lancaster gives one of the most charismatic, lively performances I have ever seen. This film holds no tricks, the content is all in the beautifully crafted screenplay by Richard Brooks, who brings a unique flare to the direction of this dialogue heavy drama, creating a swiftly paced 2 and a half hour joy ride of quality cinema. Burt Lancaster’s portrayal of the title character Elmer Gantry is not the only power house of a performance in the film. Roughly an hour and a half into the movie we are introduced to a quick witted prostitute Lulu Bains, played by academy award winner Shirley Jones. In the end, the film presents us with an overwhelmingly relevant message, about the ridiculousness and dangers in allowing one person or group of people to have religious power when they themselves forget the fact that they are human beings themselves.

****/****

Here is one of my favorite scenes from the film:

The Beginning

How it Began

Just 22 days ago i turned 17 years old. 17 is extremely young when it comes to film years. What I mean by film years is that the average 17 year old mind has an attention span no greater than 90 minutes, and the inability to enjoy film for being something more then simply escapism. I am among the few to have been blessed with this deadly disease, the love of cinema, at such an early age. My obsession with the movies began around the year 2000, i was merely 9 years old. My brother, who is 4 years older then me, was 13 and began following that years academy awards. He is the one mainly responsible for my obsession with the art form, and that is displayed by the fact that in that year, while the majority of this countries 9 year olds were drooling over popcorn flicks such as Pokemon: The Movie, and Disney's Dinosaur, I was enthralled in films such as Gladiator, and Memento. I vividly remember screaming and crying because my father could not bring himself to take me to see Steven Soderbergh's Traffic. Although Traffic I was not allowed to see, my father was still brave and ultimately understanding enough to take me to see films like Gladiator and Cast Away. The films I did not see in the theater were always rented by my older brother, who would always let me sit in on his viewings of most of the titles. There is no doubt that my underdeveloped mind could not comprehent all of the moral messages and meaning of the films, I was truly amazed by the stories, and power of good cinema. Each year my interest grew more and more, and I would watch more then enough quality films to develop my top ten list, which my brother and I would compare and hold many conversations about, which is also vastly responsible for the development of my appreciation for all things cinema. As my knowledge grew, and interest deepened, I began to try and see all of the films which are considered "must sees", such as Casablanca, The Godfather, and Citizen Kane.

It has been 8 years now since I was crying to see Traffic, and sneaking multiple viewings of films such as Requim for a Dream and The Contender, and now I feel that my eye has been trained to a point where I can go back, and examine the development of Hollywood itself, from 1960 until present day. I plan on taking at least 10 major films from each year, and watching them in chronological order. I will post the list for each year, and my reviews for the films I watch.

Here is my first list for 1960:

1. Elmer Gantry
2. The Sundowners
3. L'Avventura
4. Hiroshima, My Love
5. Exodus
6. The Magnificent Seven
7. The Alamo
8. Inherit the Wind
9. The Virgin Spring
10.Breathless
11.Spartacus
12.The Apartment
13.Psycho
14.Sons and Lovers