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Reviews
The Baker (2007)
The Baker is weird, wonderful, and hilariously funny!
I am often a bit leery of the term "black comedy" because it is sometimes used to describe films that I find strange and unfunny but that is not the case with Gareth Lewis's wonderful new movie The Baker. This clever film made me smile, laugh, guffaw, and just plain feel good! It also made me wonder about the kind of mind that could conceive such an unusual story. It is about a reformed paid assassin hiding out as a village baker and searching for love and a "normal life" in a town where the villagers are far from normal! The story is different and funny but never tasteless or absurd. The entire cast are wonderful especially The Baker played by Damian Lewis who sets just the right note as he convincingly portrays a paid killer, an inept baker, and a sweet, nervous, nice guy who thinks everyone deserves a second chance. I highly recommend The Baker and look forward to future films from Gareth Lewis, an inventive and entertaining writer/director with a wicked sense of humor!
The Situation (2006)
Excellent, intelligent examination of the war in Iraq
I saw The Situation at the Music Box Theatre in Chicago yesterday and I thought that the film was excellent; it's very tense and really keeps you on the edge of your seat. When it is all over all you can think about is "what a mess" and feel glad that you are not in Iraq and wonder what motivates someone who doesn't have to be there to go there voluntarily - like Anna the news reporter very well portrayed by Connie Nielsen.
The film is critical of US government policy in Iraq but not critical of most of the Americans working there who are struggling to make sense of the confusion and craziness of the situation. In fact you feel a lot of sympathy for Dan Murphy, the CIA agent excellently played by Damian Lewis , because he is trying to do some good and gain credibility for US policies in the midst of corruption, confusion, and desperation. The film is definitely NOT critical of the soldiers who are getting shot at and who are just trying to follow orders and stay alive. As the Colonel well-played by John Slattery says "I'm a just soldier, I don't understand all this, just give me some sh*t to blow up!"
It shows the situation in Iraq from lots of different human viewpoints. The former Iraqi official (Mohamed El Lozy) who hates the Kurds currently in power and who gives intelligence to the CIA in exchange for favors. All he wants to do is stay alive and get his family safely out of the country but his wife and son despise him for his weakness (and he despises himself for "selling his soul".)
Zaid, the photographer (Mido Hamada) who works with Anna is an Iraqi from a Christian family and his parents were killed by Saddam. He has never been outside of Iraq and he wants to see snow and someplace with "no ruins, everything standing up!" Zaid's grandmother says that they didn't think things could get worse than they were under Saddam but they are worse now.
Sometimes the Americans are shown despising the locals and we see the locals hating and denigrating the Americans but both groups act despicable and hateful at times - and sometimes they act honorable and fair. We see the resentment of the locals because they are sitting on top of the world's largest oil deposits and yet they have no gas or electricity and little food everything is black market and everyday there are murders and kidnappings.
The Americans are trying to establish order and put Iraqi officials in power so they can leave the country, but the Iraqi police are more like a violent gang focused on greed and personal power and there is no order. The insurgents are ruthless and violent (and support Saddam's policies because they hate the other fractions) but at least they are not motivated by greed.
Nothing is what it seems and "there is no truth" as Dan says. I won't spoil it but the resolution of the film's two big questions are not what you expect was Rafeeq (Anna and Dan's friend and informant) killed because he talked to the Americans? And will the senseless (irresponsible but unintentional) death of the teen-aged boy during the bridge incident go unpunished because he is just another dead Iraqi?
The film is very well made, the cast is excellent and it is great that local characters are portrayed by Arab actors. It is also great that all the members of the large ensemble cast members get a lot of on screen time. It's hard to believe that the budget for the entire film was only $1 million - it's a big movie.
I highly recommend the film, it makes you think and question common beliefs. It is the kind of film that stays with you for a long time.
Keane (2004)
You can't ignore Keane, it is an important and very moving film
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to experience Keane with some friends at the Landmark Century Cinema in Chicago. Keane is an extraordinary film created by a truly exceptional filmmaker, Lodge Kerrigan. I had read many reviews and comments and thought that I was prepared for the intense story but I wasn't prepared to feel both assaulted and uplifted after seeing this movie. Keane is only 90 minutes long but it feels much longer because it creates a very high level of tension, but it is a subtle, constant tension, not like a break-neck chase scene in an action film. The movie quickly invades your soul and then seduces you onto an emotional roller-coaster. The tension comes from the fact that it all seems very real and you cannot help but care and worry about the characters. After the movie I went into the washroom and I was shocked to see that my face, neck, and chest were all blotchy and red, I've never experienced such a strong response from viewing a film before.
What can I say that hasn't already been said more profoundly by others? Keane is a brilliant and unique film and it is, without a doubt, Damian Lewis's finest performance and that is really saying something because he is a wonderful actor who is capable of conveying great feeling with his eyes and body and with a minimum of words and without overacting. The movie very realistically portrays poverty and mental illness and makes you feel great compassion for William Keane at the same time that you feel frightened and uncomfortable. You want to comfort William and pat him on the shoulder and say "don't be frightened, it will be alright" and the next moment you want to avoid him and "get away as fast as you can" because he is scary and disturbing and you never know which William you will encounter next. And on top of all this you feel great fear and concern for Kira, the very sweet and innocent child who becomes the focus of William's unpredictable attention and wonderfully portrayed by Abigail Breslin.
The film's action covers only a few days and it very clearly portrays the hell that is this man's minute-to-minute existence with excruciating detail. William is basically a good person but he is driven to acts of self-destruction and violence by his illness and the central tragedy that dominates his life real or imaginary. Watching how hard it was for him just to deal with the minutiae of daily living was agonizing. When the film ended (with incredible abruptness) a man in the row in front of us let out a large gasp as though someone had just punched him. Very few people just got up and left, many stayed all the way through the credits, and there was no conversation as we exited the theater, the silence was deafening you could actually hear people thinking.
In discussing the movie with my friends later it was clear that we had all been deeply affected in different ways and had varying thoughts about the film. For example, one suggested that perhaps Keane had really kidnapped Kira and that the film was told backwards after losing her? Another (an actor) was very impressed by that fact that this very mature film was only the director's third movie and she was amazed by Damian Lewis's bravery in taking on such a complex role with such fearless, selfless dedication. Still another was surprised at how natural and unscripted the movie seemed as though we were really sharing this man's reality, especially the scenes between Keane and the little girl. We were all worried about William and Kira and wondered what will happen to them, as if they were real people, because they are they represent many real people who live on the fringes of our society. It was clear that this movie will be with us all for a long time to come.
I hope I am not giving the impression that Keane is a depressing film because it's not and it ends with the basically decent man that is William Keane triumphing over his illness at least for the moment. You feel hope for William, not despair. You want him to get well because he is a good person.
When I was driving home out of the city I saw a dirty, wild-looking street person begging for money at the side of the road. I have always been taught to avoid such people because they are dangerous and not to give them money because they will just spend it on drugs and alcohol nothing that I saw in Keane disputed those beliefs but as I stopped to give the poor man some money it occurred to me that after experiencing this film, I could no longer just ignore someone like him. If you have a chance to see Keane - do it, it's really important.
An Unfinished Life (2005)
An Unfinished Life was a great old-fashioned movie!
I think people who don't like the film (aside from those who don't like Jennifer Lopez and have made up their mind it will be bad before seeing it) just don't like "corny old fashioned movies" but I do! Sure, it's predictable, you can figure out right away what will happen, the crusty, angry old cowboy will be charmed by his endearing grandchild, the evil boyfriend will get what he deserves, the unhappy mother and the handsome sheriff will fall in love, the daughter and mother will quarrel and make it up, the injured old farm hand will be the voice of reason throughout, and the bear will be set free - but what's wrong with that? I don't always need to see face-paced car chases, explosions, death and gunfire to enjoy a movie. I like cornball, heartwarming films, too. At the end of their "two big thumbs up" Ebert and Roeper review, Roeper said "when people say they 'just don't make movies like they used to' they are talking about films like An Unfinished Life." And he's right, it won't appeal to everyone but I liked it.
The film is worth seeing just for Robert Redford's great performance and his wonderful relationship with Morgan Freeman (a very different movie - but I kept thinking of Butch and Sundance - they just clicked very well together and complimented each other.) The movie evoked strong emotional responses from the audience - laughter, gasps of fear, and applause at the end. I really thought it was a good movie!