Django Unchained

Django Unchained, Quentin Tarantino's latest western-inspired movie, is set in the southern states of the USA around 1858, a couple of years before the civil war broke out, when slavery was still going strong. It is the story of Django (Jamie Foxx), a young man whom in the beginning of the movie we find enslaved, his wife Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) having been stolen from him and sold. Django is being recruited by dr. King Schultz, a German dentist-turned-bounty hunter, to help him recognise some criminals. Schultz gives Django his freedom, they become partners and after a very "productive" winter, they set off to find and rescue Django's wife, who has been bought by a plantation owner, Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio), aka the man with no soul.

Bright, brave and skillful, Django is the definition of a hero. Sure, he gets a chance, but he also does whatever he can to turn his life around and take vengeance, motivated by love. Dr. Schultz is the “god-sent machine”, who gives Django the break he needs, and whose different background (Europe, bitches :P) allows him to have a less mainstream -at the time- approach towards Django and see him as a friend. Calvin Candie, on the other hand, is a ruthless man with absolutely no respect for human life, born and raised in a rich home with slaves, not only unable to see beyond that status, but also making the most of it, the bloodthirsty he is. Stephen, Calvin's elder servant (Samuel L. Jackson), is like a corrupt uncle Tom. As for Broomhilda, even though she did not play an active role like, say, firing a gun (after all she was a woman in the 19^th century), she was the reason of all this journey.

The story of the film is fictional, but it documents a social situation the whole world, and particularly America, is or should be ashamed of. Tarantino presented for the first time the crimes against African-American people in full-frontal view, without holding back the element of verbal or physical violence, thus making a film that pays tribute to history and hopefully works in a cathartic way.

Even though the movie is violent, it is also very entertaining. The tone of most of the movie is funny, due to the smart script by Quentin Tarantino, the great deliveries of all of its actors and all the details. Speaking of details, Franco Nero, the star of the original 1966 Django movie made a cameo appearance in this movie, as well as Jonah Hill, not to mention Quentin Tarantino himself. Also, did anyone else notice Amber Tamblyn by the window?

Django Unchained is a film that has reached its own full potential. The quality of acting, the amount of entertaining references (which are the joy of the cinephile), the funny moments, the intense moments, the amazing soundtrack, all blend to a project that looks like it is a product of the heart of Tarantino and the whole crew, sprinkled with Tarantino's characteristic blood splatter and gunshot. Even if I accepted it has flaws (too big-too much blood-etc), I wouldn't care to change them if I could.

Favorite line 1: "D' Artagnan, mother****ers."

Favorite line 2: "You silvertongued devil, you."

Fight Club

Deciding to write about a successful and famous movie like Fight Club is kinda awkward, since so many have talked about it before. So I am going to ignore all that and close 2012 with this movie.

Fight Club is a movie directed by David Fincher and based on the omonymous novel by Chuck Palahniuk. It is about a regular guy, (Edward Norton), a man with a conventional office job, whose feelings of loniless and desperation have caused him insomnia. He finds cure to his insomnia by attending support groups for people with health problems he actually doesn't have.. until those groups are attended by another "tourist", Marla (Helena Bonham Carter), whose presence disturbs him. After confronting her they decide to split the groups they attend, so he returns to his normal sleeping pattern, without meaning he is content with his life.

The next chapter begins when during a work trip he meets a confident guy, Tyler Durder (Brad Pitt) - by the way, I don't know how many "Tyler Durden" usernames I've seen :P. After he finds his house burned by accident, he calls Tyler who invites him to stay at his .. home. Tyler leads a strange life, free of many modern life obligations, living in a house ready to collapse, having minimal expenses and making soap for a living among other night jobs. Tyler introduces him to fighting as a hobby that helps him reconnect with his male identity, as opposed to the consumer he had become, a hobby which soon attracts other men.. The rest is in the movie.

Even though Fight Club is not necessarily my favorite David Fincher movie, I consider it a milestone in cinema. Among a pile of movies celebrating the classic american dream of the house with the garden and the dog (usually romances, comedies or dramas) or the action movies that involve a particular group of people such as Martians or criminals or police officers, there's a movie that takes a look into the conventions of modern society through the eyes of a random person, who is neither a golden boy nor an outcast, just a person who feels trapped in it. Just because this person is a single "30-year old boy", the film is free of family drama and can get more innovative. His friend, Tyler Durden, is like a caricature with a strong life philosophy and a prominent sense of freedom – there, I tagged him. Marla is something between Edward Norton's character and Tyler Durden's match – quirky, with also a unique view on society and life, unattached to material things.

The movie has great cinematography and David Fincher's classic dark colours. The undertone of the movie is not specifically sad, happy, funny or tense – I guess it could be described as slightly gloomy, yet exhilarating, with some disgusting and some funny moments. (Spoiler alert) I wonder how the film would look without Marla. Even though she doesn't influence the plot development directly, she is quite significant to the hero – can you imagine him in the end, looking from the glass alone? He might look kinda sad. (/Spoiler alert)

Favorite line: Let the chips fall where they may.

PS: Noticed the "cigarette burn" in the end?

Awsome soundtrack songs:

 And as a bonus, the audio commentary of the director and the cast about Fight Club. 
(This is so good I almost wanted to keep it for myself).

Into the wild

Into the wild is a movie about the real story of Christopher McCandless, a young man who, after graduating university around 1990, donated his money to charity, destroyed his identifications and set off to explore the nature of North America without keeping in touch with his family. Disappointed by his parents and the materialism of the american dream, he travelled in Arizona, North Carolina, South Dakota, Colorado, Mexico, California, enjoying freedom and making several friends along the way. Much to everyone's sadness, he finally headed to Alaska, where he found an abandoned bus which he made his home. After a few months, living became harsher because of the lack of food. His attempt to return to civilisation failed because the river he had crossed in the winter had become violent due to the melting snow. Being trapped there, he eventually died from starvation, having realised that happiness is real when shared.

Sean Penn, who directed the film, seems to have dedicated to this movie the same kind of respect and power he gives to his roles. The gorgeous cinematography and the soundtrack mesh to present a slower America, as well as a natural, simple way of life that you feel you know but somehow you have forgotten. The narration is non-linear, yet clear, and the movie is long but not boring. Emile Hirsch is great portraying the idealist, adventurous Christopher McCandless.

This film is different from the usual american cinema because it neither deals with crime and violence, nor is sugarcoated. It is sweet as well as dramatic and sad, especially towards the end, but I just had to keep watching. There has been criticism that the film is too long and there are too many scenes with the hero alone, on the road or in nature etc. On the other hand, the hero spent two years travelling, and he did spend a lot of time doing things like that. So maybe there have to be many scenes like those so that we can put ourselves in his position, and see a good amount of images like he did. It's one of those movies that you feel that even if they may have flaws (not my opinion), they are meant to be there.

Goya's Ghosts

Goya's ghosts is a historical drama, set in Spain, at the late 18^th- early 19^th century. Francisco Goya was a spanish painter, considered now the first of the moderns, whose work was popular among both the spanish monarchs and the people, although not so much among the spanish church. In the movie, Goya's muse, Ines, is arrested by the church for heresy. Her father turns to Goya hoping that his connection with Brother Lorenzo, whom he is painting, can aid towards the release of his daughter..

Stellan Skarsgard, a swedish actor playing a spanish painter, was great as Goya, since he gave his character light, avoiding the pattern of the dark artist with the fixed eyes. Javier Bardem was also great as Lorenzo, natural and believable in his performance of a man who in a few years made a u-turn concerning his beliefs and his whole life. As for Natalie Portman, in her first scenes as pre-tortured Ines I can't say I was overwhelmed, since her playing a sweet innocent girl was not something new (I know, that's a bitchy comment). But later, as older Ines or as Alicia, she was pretty much outstanding.

The film deals with issues such as the religious oppression, the freedom (or lack of freedom) of speech, as well as the political changes taking place in the previous centuries, like the amazing similarly-themed movie El Greco. A difference between the two stories is that Goya is not the center of this movie, and he is presented more like a prominent person than a hero – after all, he was not trialed for anything. Actually, there isn't a particular star in this movie.

Watching well-made historical movies like this one makes me feel like I am in a museum or reading an illustrated encyclopedia with that paper smell (I mean that in a good way :P). Apart from that sentiment, though, the film gives you a lot to think about and feel through numerous powerful scenes, including the ending.

Milk

The movie Milk is about the first openly gay man that was elected to public office in the United States, Harvey Milk. The film describes the journey of Harvey Milk from the age of 40, when in 1972 he moved to San Francisco with his partner and started being more politically active, defending the rights of gay people at a time when they were stigmatized by conservative America, until he was assasinated in 1978.

I don't know if Gus Van Sant is my favorite director, but I definitely appreciate his style. In this film he describes many events at a brisk pace, never lagging. Among the scenes that were filmed now, real video bits from the '70s were also used. The music used in the movie came mostly from previous decades and dresses the movie in a scenical way. The storyline is not overshadowed by gay romantic scenes, since they start very early in the movie, leaving room for the 'important' parts of Harvey's journey to develop.

Sean Penn, as always, is terrific. In the film there is not even a tiny second that you have doubts about him as a gay activist man, or that you feel he overshadows the movie or the other actors. No need to say more about this, since he won an Oscar for this role. The rest of the cast is great, too. Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch, James Franco, Alison Pill.. Although I am not sure if I did not like Diego Luna as Milk's second (in the movie) partner or I did not like his role.

A film worth seeing, since it presents socially important historical facts and people in an artistically wholesome way.

Favorite line: "Can two men reproduce?" "No, but God knows we keep trying."

The machinist

I was so happy this film was on TV the other day, because I had wanted to see it for some time.  The machinist is about Trevor, an industrial worker, who has not slept in a year. His insomnia was caused by his guilt about something he did a while ago, which he cannot remember because his mind blocked it over time. The lack of sleep has severely thinned his body and confused his mind. He has become obsessive, alienated from almost all people and suspicious that he is being chased.

This psychological thriller is dark (literally – the colors are very dark- and metaphorically). It is not particularly violent, since it does not revolve around abuse. It is also a mystery, and as it goes on it keeps you engaged while you try to connect the dots, until in the last minutes of the movie the mystery is solved and the hero finally sees clearly. They say there are many references to Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and having read "Crime and Punishment" I would agree that Trevor reminded me of Raskolnikov.

It's hard to believe that this film is so overlooked. It does move a tad slowly (although there are action scenes too), but maybe that rhythm is necessary for the viewer to experience the mental situation of the hero. Actually, this movie in a faster pace would probably be wrong. Christian Bale obviously is a very dedicated actor. Not only did he undergo a major weight loss (the biggest weight loss any actor has ever been through for a role), but he conveys the hero's inner situation without overdoing it. 

It is not a feel-good movie, but it probably won't depress you either. There aren't any deeper meanings about life emerging through the story - just a psychological thriller.

Favorite line? Probably none.. this movie is more about the atmosphere than the lines.

50/50

50/50 is one of the most recent cancer-themed movies, directed by Jonathan Levine, and inspired by the story of its writer, Will Reiser. In the past I have watched another two similarly themed movies, "Stepmom" and "The bucketlist". "Stepmom" is a strong movie. Dealing with relationships such as mother-teenage daughter, husband and ex-wife, ex-wife and current mistress, it is intense and melodramatic. "The bucket list" is a slightly lighter movie that makes you contemplate about friendship and the meaningful things in life. Both of them are golden movies with golden actors.

"50/50" is less dramatic than the above, yet powerful. It is about Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a regular, rule-abiding young man who one day learns that he suffers from a rare form of spinal cancer. The movie shows his journey during treatment and how he and the people in his life deal with it, like his best friend Kyle (Seth Rogen), his girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard), and his mom (Anjelica Huston).

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as Adam, acts quietly and without profound emotion, leaving room for the audience to feel for themselves. He wins the viewer's empathy from the beginning to the end, barely making a frown or shedding a tear, a very modern approach if you ask me. Seth Rogen as Kyle, even though he is not exactly elegant, is touching as he stands by his friend without treating him like he's going to break. Anna Kendrick, as Adam's psychologist during his treatment, despite the initial awkwardness between them, becomes actually supportive to him in a way that complements Kyle's role.

There are funny as well as sweet, subtle moments, which are more due to the script and the chemistry between the actors, rather than the music of the movie. In fact, the soundtrack is there just to mildly complement the story, not to generate strong emotions to the audience (*cough* Nolan *cough*). In a nutshell, this movie is effortlessly outstanding.

Favorite line: "I would describe it as fine."