I Lived, But ...

Kazuo Inoue's documentary on the director Yasujiro Ozu, I Lived, But ... (1983), is a stunning achievement. It represents a comprehensive and compelling summary of his filmography and a touching portrayal of the director's personal life. The mystery surrounding the kanji mu (embedded on Ozu's grave) is also nicely explored.

Through clips of actual behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and thousands of photos, Inoue manages to build a truly brilliant biography of the great director. Especially the interviews of the stars of his films are essential and Sugimura's interview gives the film the required sentimental touch which makes it more unforgettable than any other documentary. There's also a great deal of imagery used a bit like Ozu's pillow shots accompanied with great music. They serve in a nicely cathartic way along with giving the documentary a relaxing pace and mood.

The name is not only a clever reference to Ozu's early filmography, but it also captures the possible internal conflict of the director's loneliness. Inoue employs a number of little subtle things like this to get under the viewer's skin and manages to move us by the end of the film by giving Ozu the respect he deserves.

Score: 10 out of 10

24 Realities per Second

Nina Kusturica and Eva Testor's documentary on Michael Haneke, 24 Realities per Second (named after a famous quote by the director), could have provided great insight into the work of one of the most fascinating European directors working today. Even though there are intriguing scenes of him working on the set and answering questions of the interviewers and the audience at a screening the clips don't hold together very well - especially because transitions are completely missing. 

Haneke's thoughts are interesting on their own, but in the end they are rather sparse and are not though-provoking because the structure of the documentary doesn't let them become memorable. Without giving a clear focus to anything the film is too fragmented to give a strong image of the director or the films he makes.

No matter how badly the presentation is failed the director is a fascinating person when he opens up for the camera and that makes the documentary watchable.

Score: 5 out of 10

Flight of the Red Balloon

Hsiao-hsien Hou's Flight of the Red Balloon (2007) reminds me of the director's earlier film, Café Lumière (2003), because in both films he explores a foreign culture so vividly and profoundly in a minimalistic way. Whereas Café Lumière was only about that Flight of the Red Balloon's scope is a bit bigger. As a vital reference to Albert Lamorisse's Red Balloon (1956) a mysterious red balloon follows the son of a puppeteer and his babysitter in Paris.

Hou's "slice of life" approach is still refreshing and brilliant in a way that's hard to put into words. There's a heart-warming aspect to it although the film's atmosphere is occasionally gloomy. Hou creates one of the most interesting characters of his entire career with the Chinese babysitter, Fang Song, who is also a film student interested in shooting footage of the boy's adventures in the city. Despite its freewheeling nature as a vivid document of the culture the film also deals with family issues and art in a significant degree, which makes it even more interesting.

Hou's minimal (but not static) camera movement, gorgeous compositions and calm editing (most scenes are shot with a single take) are as captivating and sophisticated as in his greatest masterpieces such as City of Sadness. The instrumental music is used in a slightly cathartic way that reminds me of Hou's earlier films although this time it was even more effective. Especially the song used at the end of the film was a great choice.

Hsiao-hsien continues to amaze me with his wisdom and sophistication which seem to be never-ending seeing that his career has lasted for so long already and he has never stumbled drastically.

Score: 10 out of 10

Inglourious Basterds

(image source)

Quentin Tarantino's latest film, Inglourious Basterds (2009), is a rather confusing film when compared to the director's earlier output. Rewriting world history completely is not the peculiar thing, it's Tarantino's restrained and occassionally unfunny approach that is rather distracting. Apart from the juvenile gags and offbeat soundtrack you wouldn't necessarily realise this to be a film from the director who brought us Pulp Fiction.

The idea of a bunch of Americans slaying Hitler might sound like a great premise for a Tarantino film, but it surprisingly falls flat. Apart from Hans Landa, the characters are quite one-dimensional. Now this wouldn't really be a problem since Tarantino usually handles them well, but none of them really get to shine in this film since they aren't really funny. Luckily Landa has a lot of screentime to make the film enjoyable - and the cast is good enough to make the film solid.

The form is distracting because, well, it isn't heavy-handedly present like in the director's earlier films. The more "restrained" and conventional approach would be fine if Tarantino was serious - he's not. This clinical approach makes the film awkward on many occasions because the jokes fall flat without Tarantino's tongue-in-cheek camerawork and editing. Using Morricone's compositions is a weird idea for a film set in the 40's and the result is a bit puzzling. While it works once in a while, the soundtrack as a whole is not convincing. Now add a few totally random/sloppy cuts and you have a form that doesn't exactly serve the film's purpose.

Inglourious Basterds could have been yet another success for Tarantino, but the execution stumbles a little. However, Christoph Waltz' towering performance almost single-handedly redeems the film.

Score: 6 out of 10

Singin' in the Rain

Stanley Donen's and Gene Kelly's Singin' in the Rain (1952) is generally considered one of the greatest musical films of all time, but I have never watched the film for some reason. I decided to erase this peculiarity from my knowledge on cinema by watching this legendary movie - and I don't regret it. Essentially the film is about actors struggling with new cinematic innovations (most importantly, sound) and love. In the musical tradition, they often break into long and complex song and dance numbers that captivate the audience.

I was surprised by how intricate and deep its exploration of cinema and acting was. Even though most of the songs performed in the film are quite corny, they fit well into the film's context and serve as a great source of entertainment. The narrative is really hyperactive because of the physical acting and vast number of musical bits. There's also a breathtaking, long musical sequence near the end of the film that baffled me a bit because it was almost distracting in its epic scale.

Most of the film's brilliance stems from the manic form, perfect acting (especially the physical acting is stunning) and intricate dance choreographies that left me in awe. It's not a surprise why most of the songs have become so popular - and why the Singin' in the Rain sequence is so famous (because Gene Kelly's performance is GODLY).

Even though I wouldn't consider Singin' in the Rain one of the greatest cinematic achievements of all time, it certainly works very well under its genre's restrictions and it's great for what it is.

Score: 9 out of 10

Voyage in Time

Andrei Tarkovsky's and Tonino Guerra's documentary, Voyage in Time (1983), takes a look at Tarkovsky's journey in Italy when he prepares to film his second last film, Nostalgia (1983). The documentary is shot and edited in a way that is similar to Tarkovsky's films: long takes, a calm pace and lovely imagery. Sometimes the camera wanders elsewhere while Tarkovsky and Guerra continue their discussion. The film's fragmented yet fascinating take on Tarkovsky's journey makes this documentary a worthwhile production for the director's fans. His speeches about cinema and his influences, his exploration of possible shooting locations and his interest in Guerra's poetry make this film surprisingly profound - even when it is considered that the subject is Tarkovsky.

Score: 10 out of 10

The Kon Ichikawa Story

Shunji Iwai's documentary The Kon Ichikawa Story (2006) chronicles the life of the legendary Japanese director, Kon Ichikawa (the director of films like Fires on the Plain (1959) and Tokyo Olympaid (1965)). It creates a warm and poignant portrayal of the director and his wife who often worked together.

The intriguing aspect of this documentary is how it is constructed. Most of the information is shared via white text on black backgrounds without voice-over narration. There are photos which have oddly been manipulated to move on some occasions (you have to see the film to understand what I mean). There are also clips of Ichikawa's films used once in a while as examples. The documentary ends with a clip of Kon Ichikawa working on his last film in 2006.

Iwai's appreciation for the director becomes more and more apparent as the documentary goes on. It was a great thing to shoot a documentary like this while Ichikawa was alive - he died 2 years after this documentary was finished.

Score: 7 out of 10

Preparing for a new Top list

I have decided to make a list of my favourite 80's films by the end of June this year. For this project, I collected all the films I would put to the list right now, the ones I need to watch again and also the ones I want to see.

The films I consider eligible for the list right now 

A Summer at Grandpa's (Hou)
Akira (Otomo)
Aliens (Cameron)
Angel's Egg (Oshii)
Blade Runner (Scott)
Blue Velvet (Lynch)
City of Sadness (Hou)
Fitzcarraldo (Herzog)
Grave of the Fireflies (Takahata)
Koyaanisqatsi (Reggio)
Laputa: Castle in the Sky (Miyazaki)
My Neighbour Totoro (Miyazaki)
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (Miyazaki)
Once Upon a Time in America (Leone)
Pink Floyd The Wall (Parker)
Raging Bull (Scorsese)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (Spielberg)
Ran (Kurosawa)
Star Wars Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back (Kershner)
Star Wars Episode 6: Return of the Jedi (Marquand)
The Color of Money (Scorsese)
The Meaning of Life (Gilliam)
The Thing (Carpenter)
This Is Spinal Tap (Reiner)
Wings of Honneamise (Yamaga)

The film I need to watch again

1984 (Radford)
As Tears Go By (Wong)
Blood Simple (Coen & Coen)
Brazil (Gilliam)
Come and See (Klimov)
Do the Right Thing (Lee)
Fanny and Alexander (Bergman)
Full Metal Jacket (Kubrick)
Kiki's Delivery Service (Miyazaki)
Mystery Train (Jarmusch)
Nostalgia (Tarkovsky)
Scarface (De Palma)
Stranger than Paradise (Jarmusch)
The Last Temptation of Christ (Scorsese)
The Sacrifice (Tarkovsky)
The Shining (Kubrick)
They Live (Carpenter)
Time Bandits (Gilliam)

The film I should watch (listed under the director's name)

Aki Kaurismäki
- Ariel
- Crime and Punishment
- Shadows in the Paradise

Akira Kurosawa
- Kagemusha

Alejandro Jodorowsky
- Santa Sangre

Bela Tarr
- Damnation

Bernardo Bertolucci
- The Last Emperor

David Cronenberg
- Scanners

David Lynch
- The Elephant Man
- Dune

Edward Yang
- The Terrorizer
- Taipei Story

Francois Truffaut
- The Last Metro

Hsiao-hsien Hou
- Daughter of the Nile

Jean-Luc Godard
- First Name: Carmen

Kon Ichikawa
- The Burmese Harp

Krzysztof Kieslowski
- Decalogue
- A Short Film About Killing
- A Short Film About Love

Louis Malle
- Au revoir les enfants

Mamoru Oshii
- Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer

Martin Scorsese
- The King of Comedy

Nagisa Oshima
- Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence

Nicolas Roeg
- Bad Timing

Robert Bresson
- Money

Shohei Imamura
- Black Rain
- Ballad of Narayama

Takeshi Kitano
- Violent Cop

Terry Gilliam
- The Adventures of Baron Munchausen

Werner Herzog
- Cobra Verde

Top 50 Films of the 2000's

# Name of the film (Director, the year of release)

50. I'm Not There (Haynes, 2007)
49. The Man Without a Past (Kaurismäki, 2002)
48. I'm a Cyborg But That's OK (Park, 2006)
47. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Kaufman, 2004)
46. Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (Oshii, 2004)
45. Howl's Moving Castle (Miyazaki, 2004)
44. Hero (Yimou, 2002)
43. Amélie (Jeunet, 2001)
42. Pan's Labyrinth (del Toro, 2006)
41. Monrak Transistor (Ratanaruang, 2001)

40. Antichrist (von Trier, 2009)
39. Amores perros (Inarritu, 2000)
38. 2046 (Wong, 2004)
37. Adaptation. (Kaufman, 2002)
36. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (Hosoda, 2006)
35. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Jackson, 2002)
34. Downfall (Hirschbiegel, 2004)
33. The Taste of Tea (Ishii, 2004)
32. Lost in Translation (Coppola, 2003)
31. Mulholland Drive (Lynch, 2001)

30. Ichi the Killer (Miike, 2001)
29. American Psycho (Harron, 2000)
28. Suicide Club (Sono, 2001)
27. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Jackson, 2001)
26. Thirst (Park, 2009)
25. Children of Men (Cuaron, 2006)
24. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Dominik, 2007)
23. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Jackson, 2003)
22. Persepolis (Paronnaud & Satrapi, 2007)
21. Syndromes and a Century (Weerasethakul, 2006)

20. Nobody Knows (Koreeda, 2004)
19. 3-Iron (Kim, 2004)
18. Visitor Q (Miike, 2001)
17. 5 Centimeters per Second (Shinkai, 2007)
16. There Will Be Blood (Anderson, 2007)
15. The Wayward Cloud (Tsai, 2005)
14. Oldboy (Park, 2003)
13. In the Mood for Love (Wong, 2000)
12. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (Park, 2002)
11. Spirited Away (Miyazaki, 2001)

10. Lady Vengeance (Park, 2005)
9. Synecdoche, New York (Kaufman, 2008)
8. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ... and Spring (Kim, 2003)
7. Goodbye, Dragon Inn (Tsai, 2003)
6. All About Lily Chou-Chou (Iwai, 2001)
5. Last Life in the Universe (Ratanaruang, 2003)
4. What Time Is It There? (Tsai, 2001)
3. Shiki-Jitsu (Anno, 2000)
2. Love Exposure (Sono, 2009)
1. Yi yi (Yang, 1999) (the DVD release makes it eligible for the list)

Une catastrophe

The legendary French film director Jean-Luc Godard made a trailer for the 2008 Viennale film festival. This trailer was called Une catastrophe, and it is Godard's poetic way to briefly look at violence and love in films. Its length is only ONE MINUTE. The short film is a montage of video and sound clips from other movies - including Eisenstein's Battleship Potemkin (1925). The trailer / short film also features a German poem. Une catastrophe is eligible for my project so I thought I should briefly mention it on this blog after I watched it. It's a solid work of art, but nothing more.

Score: 5 out of 10

PS: You can even watch it on YouTube!

Goodbye, Dragon Inn

Tsai Ming-liang's Goodbye, Dragon Inn (2003) is the director's tribute to cinema. A movie theater is about to be closed and for the last day a special screening for old films is held. We see vague characters wandering around the silent, ugly and trashy theater.

There are two characters that the narrative follows most of the time. The first is called "Ticket Woman" (in the credits, at least) who takes care of the theater along with the projectionist seen at the end of the film. She limbs along hallways and climbs up and down stairs very slowly. Some sort of a romantic relationship is suggested between her and the projectionist, but it is never directly implied. The other "main character" is a shy man who tries to make contact with the other people watching films, but to some degree fails in the end. There are also a few other people often seen in the film. I would like to mention two elderly men who shed tears at the end of the screening. I interpret that as them mourning for the loss of cinema.

I think it tells a lot about the "nature" of this film that there is almost no dialogue. If you dont count the dialogue coming from the film(s) they watch, there are roughly 10 lines spoken- in fact, it might actually be less than 10 lines. The ticket woman's slow movement and the silence emphasize the "death of cinema" (or the death of cinema-going experience) Tsai tries to portray in this film.

The film lingers on carefully framed shots for minutes and there isn't a lot that happens onscreen. For example, there is a 5-minute shot of an empty theater which felt like Tsai's true moment of respectful silence for cinema. The camera never moves and the few cuts set the film for a really calm and slow pace that annoys some viewers. This is why there are people who criticize the film for being "too boring", but for me it is the complete opposite. The respectful and honest take on a nostalgic subject kept me glued to the screen. Even the 30's Mandarin pop song at the end of the film is closely tied to the idea of "dying cinema" because it's a song about how hard yet bittersweet it is to let go of the past.

Despite being so calm and silent, there are a few moments that are absurdly hilarious. It is Tsai's trademark to have these moments of comedy gold in middle of a quiet film. Most of these funny bits come from the lack of communication (or failed attempts to communicate) between the characters in the film.

Goodbye, Dragon Inn isn't easy to watch by modern blockbuster standards. But if you are willing to give it a chance, you will find a bittersweet and caring tribute for cinema. It is a truly stunning film.

Score: 10 out of 10