Today's Review: Walk of Shame

Took a while, but here's finally a new review I wrote for MS:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/155776/walk_of_shame_-_recensie

Not the greatest comedy, as I anticipated. Filled to the brim with sexual and racial stereotypes for cheap laughs. Neverthless, many of those laughs still worked. You won't be roaring with laughter, but there's many a playful smirk, some moments of malicious delight and snickering aplenty to be had here. It's really too bad a reasonably talented actress like Elizabeth Banks functions mostly as the butt of these jokes though, best jokes being dlivered by others bouncing off her, instead of her being allowed to really demonstrate her own comic abilities. And the romantic subplot is hardly worth mentioning due to its dull and predictable processions. Overall, this movie is a decent bit of entertainment on long winter nights when there really is nothing else worth checking out. In these modern digital times where almost everything you could ever want to behold is just a click away online, such a scenario is a rarity though.

Today's Mini-Review: Jeune & Jolie

Jeune & Jolie: ***/*****, or 6/10

François Ozon paints a titillating but rather illogical coming-of-age portrait of the seventeen year old Isabelle (Marine Vacth) who explores her sexuality over the course of a year, told in four episodes over the four seasons. In summer we witness the nubile French girl's defloration by a German boy whilst on vacation with her parents. It's not a very fulfilling first time to say the least, as the young man humps her in a rather unflattering way (though alcohol is partially to blame). In the next season Isabelle chooses a secret life of prostitution, the suggested notion being to seek out other sexual options with men of various ages and preferences to really find out what she likes and desires herself. The exact reason for opting for such a drastic measure to discover her own sexual nature Ozon regrettably leaves in the dark, a rather cowardly move on his part as a writer, since it requires quite a leap of faith to take this decision for granted, one most spectators will have difficulty with. Vacth (actual age 23) nevertheless exhibits a brave performance in her role as hooker, as she is seen nude throughout the film on a regular basis throughout many a steaming sex scene, some exerting a genuine sense of tenderness and even playfulness, but others falling into a category of either unpleasant to watch to the point of debasing, or just awkward redundancy as we fully understood she was a prostitute at that point in the story. Despite all the intercourse she partakes in, the only real connection Isabelle experiences is with an old man who actually seems to care about her as a person too, instead of simply as a body for hire. Unfortunately she proves too much for his weak heart which expires as they have sex one time too many, after which Isabelle's hidden profession comes to light to the police, and ultimately her parents. Over the next two seasons, the girl must cope with her double life, her mother even more so, and come to terms with the reason why she chose such a dangerous and desperate path for her self-exploration. A clear answer is sadly never provided, so we are led to believe that any girl whose first time isn't pretty could easily go down the same route. Isabelle, however, must also deal with the death of a man, especially when she meets his widow (Charlotte Rampling) in spring, who seeks answers of her own regarding his demise. An overly mutually understanding confrontation follows, which further adds to the plot's credibility being stretched further than it ought to be. With Jeune & Jolie Ozon doesn't penetrate the realm of female sexuality for the first time (e.g. Swimming Pool for example), but he does so in his least convincing film to date. Nevertheless, thanks to strong performances by the cast overall and Vacth in particular, as well as genuinely compelling emotions being stirred in the various revelations (not answers, mind you) of the details of Isabelle's life, Jeune & Jolie is still a far cry from the mindless sensational soft-erotic drivel it would otherwise have become.

Today's Mini-reviews: Hannah and the Call Girl

Hannah Arendt: ***/*****, or 7/10

Biopic about the noted 20^th century Jewish-German philosopher Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), played impeccably by Barbara Sukowa. Directed by Margarethe von Trotta, the movie mainly examines Arendt's reports on the trial of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann in Israel for the American magazine The New Yorker, as well as the overwhelming critique, following their publication, on her controversial findings regarding the mentality of the architects of the Holocaust. Arendt's conclusion is that they were not evil inhuman monsters, nor even purely driven by antisemitist motivations, but instead that they were everyday bureaucratic nobodies who viewed their atrocities simply as a job that needed to be carried out as effectively as possible. This new concept of the 'banality of evil' caused widespread criticism of Arendt's philosophical thinking, and caused her to be much maligned by fellow Jews, including people close to her. The movie covers all of this turbulence in Arendt's life, but does so in an overly stiff manner, rendering both Hannah and her intellectual antagonists rather emotionlessm thus sadly underscoring the popular opinion that philosophy is dull. It also makes it uneasy for the audience to really care about Hannah's tribulations as she undergoes them with minimal visible emoting. Nevertheless, from a historical perspective the topics covered remain intriguing, aided by good performances throughout as well as the terrific use of actual footage of the real Eichmann at his trial, indeed showing him to be a single-minded man devoid of critical thinking or even remotely interested in the moral issues while carrying out his former onslaught. The movie does do a botched job of portraying the romantic relationship between Arendt and her mentor – and eventual Nazi philosopher – Heidegger, which is touched upon in a series of short flashbacks which hint at its importance, but eventually fails in being fleshed out in a satisfactory manner that helps us beter understand Arendt. It's a missed opportunity, but ultimately not completely harmful to the overall plot. Warning! Due to heavy smoking by Arendt throughout the whole of this picture, this movie may cause irreversible damage to your lungs.

Call Girl: **/*****, or 5/10

Swedish thriller regarding prostitutes and politicians in the Seventies, which caused quite a stir in its own country due to its suggestion that a popular prime mininster of that era engaged in secret sexual hook-ups with underage girls who were forced into this sleazy business. Though in truth the movie only briefly touches upon that particular subject, it's no surprise many Swedes would take offense at the rather bleak and harsh view Call Girl offers of the political arena of the day and its subversive fascination with young female flesh, as seen through the eyes of a troubled teenage girl, locked away in a juvenile rehabilitation center. As she escapes her confinement she and her friend soon meet up with all the wrong people and are ushered into a world of glitter and power where they can have whatever they want, but for a price. Under the “care” of an unscrupulous older woman, a terrifying role by Pernilla August (once Anakin's warm and caring mum), she finds herself landing the job of underage hooker, being shipped from one dirty old powerful man to the other, seemingly with no hope of escape. Meanwhile, a political news reporter gets wind of the whole affair and means to expose it, but finds himself intimidated by the agents of the powers-that-be at every turn, until there is no way out but death or victory. Call Girl cannot be denied to be a gutsy movie, handling a sensitive topic with nerve and bravery, but there's various elements against either enjoying it as a thriller or taking its contents too seriously. For one thing, there is the excessive running time of 140 minutes, which surely could have been shorter to make for a more compelling film, since several scenes of political corruption and debauchery, heroic investigative journalism and plenty of bare boobs feel redundant. For another, the main girl the movie revolves around is a rather stupid, obnoxious and spoiled young cow, making one stupid decision after the other to predictable effects, making it hard to really care about her fate since she so obviously did everything to deserve it. Though the ice cold, wholesomely disturbing role by August and the shocking, uncompromising climax make up for it quite a bit, it's not enough to make the movie feel like its overstaying its welcome, while appearing to warn teenagers to behave and stay away from strangers a little too overtly.