Millennium Mambo

Hsiao-hsien Hou's Millennium Mambo (2001) shows the director exploring yet another directorial dimension. The final result is bewildering but interesting: it combines the experimentation and subject matter of an up-and-coming director with the confidence of an experienced auteur. The film focuses solely on Vicky, a woman in need of a change to her life. The film begins by showing how her relationship to Hao-hao began - an on/off relationship that eventually comes crashing down.

This is the first time Hou sets the entire film in the contemporary Taiwan (and partly Japan). This time the setting doesn't play a role as huge as in his other films - now the focus is completely on the characters. They are intriguing because most of them are trapped and flawed in a tragic way. Hou explores Vicky's life in dense detail (and honestly) which makes the film emotionally tangible.

Even though Hou experiments a lot with the form this time, he hasn't forgotten his long take aesthetic. Most scenes are built around one long take where the camera is in a fixed position (although it turns around a lot). He mostly uses the same angles and positions for every set throughout the film - which gives the viewer a concrete idea of the surroundings. This is especially effective in Vicky's apartment that is mostly shot from a single position. The experimentation with bokeh and slow motion is intriguing and mostly successful. For example, the opening shot of the film is one of the most haunting ones Hou has ever shot. And that says a lot.

Before I forget I have to mention the clever use of sound in the film. There's a faint musical score in the background most of the time and Hou likes to use "authentic" (not sure if it is, but it sure sounds like that) background noise for most scenes (with the exception being the dreamy passages that serve as emotional catharses).

Millennium Mambo is a fascinating film dominated by its towering lead performance by Shu Qi. She carries the film quite effortlessly even when it could have stumbled hard. It is an all-around good film that could have been better. It creates a strong emotional bond to the characters, but doesn't achieve much through its experimentation.

Score: 8 out of 10

The Rules of the Game

Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game (1939) is insane. INSANE. The director introduces us a huge cast of characters so effortlessly and throws them together for an enormous party that spirals out of control quickly. The characters are complex, intriguing and most of all, very captivating. The narrative weaves them together in such a dense and clever way that I'm still baffled even though it was the second time I saw the film. In only 100 minutes, the film covers so much character and plot development that it could fill a 4-hour film.

This time Renoir's form is also very convincing. The camera drives are powerful and brilliantly connect the different storylines all the way from the servants to the rich. The editing never lets the viewer catch their breath once the real action kicks in - and that's only for the better.

The Rules of the Game is one of the most stunning cinematic masterpieces I have ever seen.

Score: 10 out of 10

Play Time

Jacques Tati's Play Time (1967) is one of the funniest (if not the funniest) films I've ever seen. I was already very entertained when I saw the director's earlier film, Mr. Hulot's Holiday, but this is clearly his masterpiece. His regular character, Mr. Hulot, arrives to Paris to meet with an official, but gets lost in the labyrinth of modern life and ends up in the craziest party I've ever witnessed onscreen.

Tati's physical comedy is in the most complex and brilliant possible form in Play Time. The setpieces, multi-layered action and stunning choreography totally knocked me out already during the first 30 minutes. The film is a thrilling and breathtaking ride that feels unified all around. The camera wildly flows from one situation to another until we come to the later half of the film which provides one of the greatest cinematic climaxes I've ever witnessed. The complex restaurant sequence is probably one of the most ambitious things ever shot in the history of cinema.

Tati's form is breathtaking in its complexity yet again. The cinematography does not only use camera movement in a flawless way, the compositions are impeccable as well. The playful musical score adds the final touch on the "controlled chaos" that lasts for 2 hours straight.

Without a doubt I can say that Play Time is one of the best films I've ever had the honor to watch and it is certainly the best comedy of all time - even better than Stanley Kubrick's magnificent Dr. Strangelove.

Score: 10 out of 10