eightylicious Reviews

The Pale Blue Eye (2022)

The Pale Blue Eye - some remarks

[4/10 · 6 February 2023]

A Netflix production - already by that we have created an impression in our mind and expectations have been set for this new film. Just as the old studios had their own image and filmmaking standards, so does this new streaming service that is slowly replacing them. Not that it is right to create expectations so fast - a film is, after all, a collective effort, and it is an injustice to all the cast and crew to dismiss or praise their effort only based on whom they made it for.

The film is based on a book. Does this mean we have to judge the film based only on the book? Absolutely not. What we have to hope for is a good film, and one that uses the book but for background - décor and creates something new from the source material is only welcome.

(These are just general principles concerning film and its relationship with other arts from which it may borrow elements. I think that film can be a completely independent art and its relationship with literature should consist of creating through images what the book describes with words, or change the content of the book entirely if the end result is artistically satisfactory.)

COMMENTS ON THE FILM

Deficient photography. A gothic film with a gothic atmosphere was what the film should have been, would it really want to successfully imitate Poe's work. It is not, though. The colors and the way the combine creates a very bright atmosphere and the play between darkness and light gives emphasis on the latter (something that takers all the symbolism about the climate of sadness, grief, and madness that dominates the film away). The film prefers to just paly with light and candles and the only way the dark atmosphere is created is (literally) by setting the film at night. The darkness, in the film's world, though is not a matter of time, but a time of mood that dominates every aspect of this universe every time because of reasons owed to the human mind's condition (i.e. Madness). Is this film "mad"? Visually, it is too sane.

The mood of the film (that is created by the direction): unsuited to its subject matter. A detective that searches for a murderer that cuts the victims' hearts out and discovers a world of mental instability and disorder is a story that would require some intensity directorially. Yet the director adopts more a view of curiosity than one of complete instability. The camera, too stable to give away any indication of craziness just records what the a actors do as if being more a child that curiously sees everything as a spectacle (Poe is in the film portrayed like that; but in this film, the main hero is the detective; so for the camera to adopt the point of view of a secondary character while still making it clear that there is a protagonist is a grave mistake) rather than a person slowly sucked in a world where nothing is what it seems. More a attention is given to details (the uniforms of the soldiers) than the atmosphere of the age. It is more a period film with atmosphere than a film of atmosphere with period elements (what it should have been).

In this film, madness is a spectacle and directed accordingly. In a scene we see a family drenched in madness from head to toe, but the director gives more emphasis on their actions (thus making them an object of attention only because of what they consist of) than the characters' state. The characters, anyway, are not well developed something that could have been made up for by the direction (different montage for every character, something that could make the contradiction between how they seem and how they truly are inside apparent: they see themselves as sane, and their actions as logical, but we see their threatening presence, their faces betraying their mental state, emphasized by gros plans; the detective facing the cliff form where his daughter committed suicide and feeling so small in this world that has no space for him now that he's lost everyone {plan général}). Instead the direction is bland, same for everyone, as if waiting only for the actors to betray what they truly are (but since the film has as its subject the play of appearances, they can't) through their performances.

The performers rely more on exaggeration to communicate their mental state and worries: since the direction treats the latter more as material to see because of tis unusual character than just a quality of the characters that creates fear rather than repulsion {the director wants us to see what is happening because it is something we haven't seen before, not because this says anything about the film} the actors seem more to perform hysterically than to truly convey the undercurrent of madness that runs throughout the film (but never truly makes itself clear, to my dismay). The camera is stable, recording someone who is shouting; the conclusion we make is that the character is mad but in a way that is owed only to them and not to their environment. A film with intensity that the camera doesn't want to communicate because the director is not involved and just sees everything from distance is a film only based on the actors' performances. But without good direction that creates the film's general tone (i.e. Its intensity), the performances don't blend in well and stand out as outsiders. Christian Bale and Harry Melling are these outsiders, of whose the reactions are so antithetic to the film's calm and distanced character that they are just branded as hysteric. But intensity of performance doesn't always mean that the character is hysteric or that the actor exaggerates. It is often a sign of trauma on the part on the characters, that the actors portray with their intense reactions. The film wants to make such a case for Bale, but Scott Cooper can't show the character's mental state's dependence on his environment because the second is serene {again, stable camera}, and the first isn't. Result? The only thing that communicates madness in the film are the actors --> They are treated by the director as something special that doesn't fit with the rest of the film, and no intension is added to their reaction through the direction --> The real intention of the intensity of the actors'' performances is lost, and it seems redundant and tiring.

The director has generally distanced himself from the plot and the mystery in the film is treated more as a puzzle to solve from a safe distance than a case requiring our constant attention (and thus involvement in the film). In general, the problem with the film is that everything in it is spectacle; the characters and their actions are spectacle, the plot is spectacle, the photography is only used for "spectacular" reasons than as a real effort to produce visually the emotional tone of the film. In short, nothing there is to be examined, but to be looked at, nothing is there to engage us in the characters'' journey, but to make us watch them from afar as something different and eerie (or creepy) that has no degree of identification with us. The distance is so big between viewer and film that it just gets boring, since if films were just made to show us everything foreign that we have to see only because they are different and of which the only interesting quality is their strangeness we would have stayed in the days of the first documentaries. Now we are in an age where we can treat madness in film as something more as a spectacle and even if we lack that kind of conscience, we can just make it have a substantial character in the plot. Here, though, this character doesn't exist.

A case of lost potential, that could have been saved, had there been a better director and cinematographer.

The Evil Dead (1981)

Unequal - The evil dead

[6/10 · 6 January 2023]

Sam Raimi's directorial debut, "The evil dead" (1981) is a commendable effort by a promising director. In the grand tradition of "The Texas chainsaw massacre" (1974), Raimi shows in the first half that good direction can be more powerful than any kind of visual terror, something not always understood when making thrillers (see, or rather don't, "The Amityville horror" (1979)). We follow a group of friends as they accidentally summon some demons and try to survive their attack.

This premise, to which isn't done justice by my blunt description, is excellently brought to life through the well-paced, full of feelings direction by Raimi. With his camera, he managed to create a sense of constant horror, this feeling of continuous chase by the demons so intensely felt by the heroes themselves. The haunting music by Joe Loduca helped the most. While we do see some gore, most of the horror comes from the sense of danger prevalent in the atmosphere, as created by Raimi's directorial skills.

Unfortunately, in the second half, the director has a change of mind and suddenly decided to fill his movie with all the gore imaginable, scenes that, if grouped together, could be - and this could be no exaggeration - be named, "The decay and utter destruction of the human body". The human body reduced but to a pile of entrails that are there for us to see and want to vomit ours.

"Vomit" is the perfect verb that could describe what Raimi wanted us to do in the second half of this movie. As if having lost faith in his direction and thinking it didn't make the film scary enough, the director decided that bloody spectacle is the recipe for a good horror movie, and put in his one everything imaginable, emphasized and reinforced by his direction. To me, this changes the whole movie. The feelings that are now caused are not those of fear and terror, but of disgust and repulsion. The movie becomes hard to see not because it is horrifying, but because it is disgusting, so stinking with bodily fluid and entrails that it pushes you away. It also becomes kitsch, in the sense of the hyperbolic.

In most horror movies, we don't really see the horror, but the reactions of the protagonists, which, if directed well, are terrifying by themselves. Raimi may have thought that this is a sign of cowardice on the part of most directors. But it is, to my mind, a way worse move to show this horror, because this way one only turns to easily-produced feelings of disgust to make their film memorable. Maybe I'm the one whose sensibilities are offended, but I don't think so. I just think that "The evil dead" prefers to show us how repulsive it can be rather than how frightening,even though it happens to be so that through disgust,we become desensitised to horror. It simply leaves our mind.

I believe that good thrillers, be they the ones who haunt us ("Don't look now", "The shining"), or the ones who frighten us ("The Texas chainsaw massacre", "Driller killer"), are the result of good direction. Visual spectacle matters next to nothing (Cinematography is another thing). Too bad that "The evil dead" preferred to use this method at the end. Because it was, indeed, something.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

Disappointing - Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

[3/10 · 5 January 2023]

"Indiana Jones and the raiders the lost ark", was one of the best adventure movies ever made, not because of its lush settings, or impressive spectacles, but because of its exemplary direction. It showed, in my opinion, that what is important is not the action itself, but how this action is shown by the director. Its human qualities, as displayed by the vulnerable yet smart characters it had as heroes, also helped. Unfortunately, what the sequel does is abandon both of these traits for something more commercial and certainly less difficult to achieve: large-scale spectacle.

In this movie, which functions as a sequel to the first one, Harrison Ford's hero embarks on an adventure in India after leaving Shanghai due to being chased by a man named - in a completely stereotypical manner, that is just the beginning of this movie's faults - Lao Che. Together with him are a singer (Kate Capshaw) and an orphan, whom he calls Short Round (Ke Huy Quan). After a tumultuous journey, they arrive in India, where they learn of the disappearance of a village's children and of the existence of five holy rocks, wanted by a religious cult in order to impose their godess's dominion over the world.

What may sound like an interesting premise is to me but a lazy attempt at exploiting the success of the first film. Directed slowly by Spielberg, it has none of the intensity of the first one, and instead relies on the meticulously constructed hideout of the cult to impress the viewer. Yet the era of the cinema of attractions has long passed and we demand more from a film than visual spectacle, especially if it has action at its core. Except for the final sequences, where the director tried to make up for his lack of intervention in the film's previous ones, the action, or rather the thrill (because the feelings that are caused to the viewer are what matters when talking about action) is mostly produced from the imposing scenery. But this just changes the position of the viewer, who, from one immersed in the action and emotionally involved in the heroes' adventures (which are emphasized by the director) is rendered a passive observer to whom the space makes them clear that they watch something important. And the hero? Where is he in all that feast for the eyes? There, as he was in the first film, fighting ans trying to escape, but filmed so slowly and dare I say aloofly by Spielberg that he never had the chance to shine. As in the first film, the stunts that he does are within the limits of reality, and just test the endurance of his body. But now, this body doesn't interest the director. What he cares about is what's around it.

For me, this film is a prime example of the danger of having action sequences exploiting generally ordinary circumstances without adequate direction, something also demonstrated by the James Bond films. "From Russia with love" (1962), features action scenes involving ordinary objects and filmed in ordinary places. Consider the scene where Bond battles with Nash in the train. It is just a scene with two men fighting in a train cabin, yet with Terrence Young's excellent direction and pacing, it becomes not only intense, but also a test for the hero. It also emphasizes his human qualities by showing that there is no need of a villain with gadgets (Nash is only holding a gun) to put him in danger, something that makes his victory later even more satisfying. This scene not only has narrative value (though it, the story progresses), but it also enriches the character, and gives the movie a perfect tone, that of low-key in nature but thrilling in direction. "Indiana Jones and the raiders of the lost ark" had the exactly same quality in its action scenes, which, taken for granted that they take place in a war, and thus are excepted to be more large-scale, show nonetheless the competence of Spielberg as a director of solid, commercial action films. The body of Indiana Jones was there the only protagonist, of which the actions were emphasized by Spielberg's camera. Kicking a Nazi out of a truck can be more thrilling than rolling down a cave in a minecart, if the former has better pace than the latter.

Not only is the direction lacking in passion, the characters are also lacking in development. Both of Jones's sidekicks are there to provoke easily-gained sympathy, in the most condescending and lazy way. Capshaw, but for her bursts of anger when with Jones, has none of Marion's vivacity and craftiness, being just the innocent, easily-frightened victim, and is there only to provoke the viewers' fear and create agony about her and Jones's fate, something that the artificial direction can't do (but did, and too well I say, in the first film). Quan is an even worst case, since his character is written in such a condescending way that he is rendered unbearable to watch. Is this truly the only way the director of "E. T.", can write child characters? Where is the compassion and the knowledge of their feelings? What we have here is just a caricature of a child, who only has the innocence of the previous children created by Spielberg and is used in order to have us melt at his sweetness. Again, easily provoked sentiments that have no other use but to give the film some of the human character of the first. The difference is that in the first film, the feelings were caused because of the characters' actions, not their stereotypical qualities.

What we have here is a film that puts all its faith in the spectacle and the stereotype, serving nothing new but showing what had already been shown in other adventure films ("The spy who loved me" (1977)); that it is not what we see as action, but how see the action, that matters. That is is not the scale, but the direction that makes an action film deserving of praised. The sequel of the famed "Raiders of the lost ark" got praise in its time, but to my mind it was only a feast for the eyes. And we don't only watch films with our eyes. We have brains too.

The Green Mile (1999)

The green mile - Dear Télérama, you missed

[8/10 · 11 May 2022]

The adaptation of Steven King's novel, "The Green Mile", became one of the most successful and critically acclaimed movies in history when it was released. One can see why; it tackles extremely sensitive subjects, above all, the death penalty, is served by an excellent cast, and combines timely ideas with creepy atmosphere. It's the supernatural and the philosophical, in one cell, walking together on the Green Mile.

The Green Mile is the name of a green line that leads the inmates of American prisons to the electric chair. This is what is destined to happen to John Coffey (Michael Clark Duncan), a huge, tall black man who had been found with the corpses of two girls. In 1930's Louisiana, this means death, and the prisoner is treated accordingly, that is, with little respect and consideration of his welfare.

As are all others: the prison is an inhospitable place, in which everyone has to make up for their lost lives with the most little of luxuries; a bar of chocolate is for them something sacred, everything matters more when you'll die soon. Most of the inmates behave carelessly, as if they had their whole life in front of them. Of course they know what their future beholds, they intentionally ignore it in order to forget their fate. They prefer to focus on the present than the frightening future. All of us fear death, but witnessing the execution sequences truly extinguished every little doubt I had about my position towards it. It's, indeed, something unfathomably gruesome to die like that.

When the prisoners are executed, they have no one to wish them goodbye. The people in the audience are all hostile towards them; relatives ashamed to have any relation with them, ordinary citizens whose conscience condemns the accused's crime, and, above all, the loved ones of the victims for whose death these prisoners are executed. The prisoners don't have much time to think , but in the little they do, most of them seem to be dominated by fear. Can one regret such a serious "mistake" at the time of their death? I truly don't know. The film doesn't state that explicitly, but it invites to think and to enter the minds of the inmates, search for any trace of humanity inside.

In fact, there's plenty of that in some. While the movie doesn't portray them as completely innocent and moral - this would habe been impossible considering their crimes - it makes an effort at showing their human side. When one of them pets a mouse , we are invited to love this act of love towards a creature expressed by a criminal. He is presented as the one we are supposed to like, while the policeman that ultimately tries to kill the animal is portrayed in a wholly negative light. Percy Wetmore (Doug Hutchinson), is a person working there due to nepotism only. He has no sense of sympathy for the prisoners, and treats them with denigration. He behaves like a spoilt child - this one without an itinerary - who wants all of his wishes fulfilled while ignoring everyone else's state, especially those that are affected the most by his decision. The one that tries to obstruct him from doing that is Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks), who sees the man inside of the beast, and understands that even these people are in need of decent treatment while imprisoned. His friendship with Coffey will be the beginning of the end for his career, since it is in him that he discovers not only a magical power, but also a metaphorical one, the one of forgiveness.

Coffey is condemned, yet he doesn't seem to care. He just sits calm and helps everyone. Paul is impressed by this man's immersive character, and discovers on the way that he truly possesses a talent for the supernatural. He has the ability suck every negative experience, and pain from a person and , if he likes, transport it onto another. This raises some questions: is one affected by someone else's negative deeds (even in this creepy, totally imaginary way)? Coffey seems to believe that this is true. And so when he transports Paul's intestinal problem onto Percy, he essentially condemns him - metaphorically, the condemned sentences the condamner - to pain for his cruelty.

Paul grows old, and the movie ends. There is, of course, no need to describe the ending, it is already known who will die and who will live to see the future. Paul does, but the memories of Coffey's execution haunt him forever. He, with his magic, has also punished the warden; he has made him live for too long. Most of us wish for longevity, but we often tend to forget that means losing our loved ones, who often have shorter lives than we do. Paul has suffered such loses, and life is unbearable to him. Because of memories. Memory has been the subject of the cinema for a long time; How we can create memories, how memories of important events stay in our minds even though we haven't lived them, and so on. The type of memories present in "The Green Mile" are the most classic kind; incriminating ones, that cause guilt for letting something bad happening. Paul couldn't have done else anyways; it's the lawmakers of the State that condemn one to death, and a simple warden can't transcend the limits of the law. The magazine Télérama had complained about the movie not deploring the death penalty, but they missed the point, in the sense that it is presented from the perspective of a man working in this system, who, even if he doesn't entirely approve of it, cannot defy it. He is just obligated to follow its rules, however immoral they seem to some people. Dear Télérama, with all due respect, I'm telling you, twenty-two years later, that this time you missed.

You missed because you didn't see the deeper questions that this movie asks, and condemned it for not doing something that it couldn't due to its narrative character. You missed since this movie wasn't only a "Christian tale" - as you called it, although it could've been interpreted through this lens too - but also a more philosophical one, that combined a seemingly indifferent story if for the fans of the supernatural genre, with an interesting conclusion that justifies its three hour-long duration. This time, the wrong film walked the Green Mile.

Ibiza (2019)

Ibiza - Vacation in the land of cheapness

[2/10 · 28 April 2022]

The troupe Le Splendid was one of the most subversive ones ever to grace the French comedy scene: its plays satirised everything valued and sacred in French society, from Christmas ("Le père Noël est une ordure"), to The French Resistance ("Papy fait de la résistance"). One of its most prominent members was Christian Clavier, who, like some of his former colleagues, rejected the progressivism of the troupe later in his career and embraced the complete opposite: comedies taking advantage of the conservatism of a faction of the French society, in which the good old traditional French family prevails over every (foreign/ different) danger stands in its way. "Ibiza" is such a case, but, even worse, it fails in its aim: to make spectators laugh. It is not a comedy, or to put it better, not one of this century.

Philippe, a podiatrist (Clavier), has just found a new friend many years his younger, Carole (Mathilde Seigner). Both of them divorced, they decide to go on a family vacation, together with Carole's children, Julien (Leopold Buchsbaum) and Manon (Pili Groyne). The latter two hate their mum's new chéri and consider him the epitome of kitsch, so the thought of spending one week with him doesn't please them very much. Things predictably progress, and the four land on the magnificent island for a vacation that will change their relationship, from the better to the worst and the reverse all over again, through a series of misunderstandings mostly stemming from Philippe's refusal to accept anything new.

This characteristic of Philippe is transposed to the whole film, that aims to satirise this so often referenced element of modern society, political correctness. Not exactly appropriate for a family comedy, mostly considered pure escapism by viewers, this subject is indirectly evoked through some pretty unsuccessful gags, involving homosexuals, hipsters, foreigners, and everyone considered abnormal to the main character, to the (obvious) embarrassment of his step-children. Ironically, Philippe misses the grand 80's, as exemplified by the music he puts on in the car, which is unfortunately done a disservice by the way it is used in the film. Yes, the 80's, despite the actor's having moved to the opposite direction since their end. I doubt this was anything but a result of the will to put the likeable, normal protagonist, who grew up in an age of innocence, in contrast with his recalcitrant step-children, citizens of tomorrow, a tomorrow that seems too bleak to Philippe for him to understand it.

"Ibiza" isn't only graced by Clavier's political opinions - which should have no place in a comedy, regardless of their nature - it is also unsuccessful in its comedic aspect. The gags aren't funny in the slightest, being mostly simple, often-used jokes, centering on jealousy between the members of the couple (the man notices some younger women and his girlfriend reprimands him), or the children's completely "incomprehensible" behaviour, one characteristic of adolescents. "They are just teens", says Philippe, pretending to understand them, though what he really wants is to avoid discussing with Carole about her children due to his total ignorance of their way of thinking.

Stereotypes are what this film is composed of: No character has any substance beyond a set of traits belonging to their group: Philippe is nostalgic, suspicious of modern times, and, as a divorced man, longs to find a loyal companion, loneliness being unbearable to him. Carole, the eternal single mother, makes no effort to keep up with the times and lets her children do what they see right, except, of course, drugs and tattoos, in which cases her mother instinct is activated and she comes to the rescue. As for the children, they are classic teenagers - classic in the sense of "how cheap comedies see them": always complaining, with their sole interests being having short-lived relationships and partying to "awful" rap. This, of course, is not the recipe for a good comedy, one that treats its young characters as pure caricatures and never gives them any justice. Even the parents, supposedly the reasonable ones, are presented in a completely contradictory manner of what the director wanted them to be and are thus rendered characters with little,if any, value to the story.

Traditionalism is prevalent in "Ibiza", and so, predictably, the performances are traditionally mediocre. Clavier causes no sympathy to the viewers, being a parody of the values he was supposed to represent with his fervent support of them, and his interactions with the children seem condescending at best, with no respect from his part at worst. Seigner has little place in the film besides her role of the worried mother, and just follows Clavier, giving only an imitation of his own performance, that parodies him even more. Buchsbaum made no impact as the son and his performance lacked feeling, justifying his parents' views about his relationships. We weren't waiting for the next Jean-Pierre Leaud, but he could have done better had he invested more in his role, which has the superficiality of a sitcom character, without their charm. Christophe Rippert is an exceptional actor in comparison to him, something actually doing him injustice, since he at least created a character able to win some smiles. Groyne can't reach the level of other synonymous characters (Emmanuelle Béart has already incarnated the best Manon in "Manon des Sources"), and her portrayal of the heroine seems like a mixture of Vic from "La Boum" and Lola from "LOL", both great protagonists who represented their generations' mindsets with honesty and respect to their audience. She presents the image of a completely unlikeable generation, failing to give any positive elements to her character. Is this the director's view of the current teenagers forced on to her by the script, or is it her inability to incarnate a character beyond the level of the stereotype? I think a mixture of the two. Regardless, the actors didn't achieve anything but making this already weak film worse.

"Ibiza" is not a film belonging to this era. Its type of jokes and presentation of family relationships may have been timely during the eighties - Aldo Maccione had a success as a father similar to Clavier with "Aldo et Junior" (1982), after all - but it is a bad move, not only cinematically, but also commercially, to release such a film in an age of constant changes like this one. Even among 80's films, the comedies that have remained cult are the ones providing a more balanced view of family (La Boum, Les compères...), in which the family is always reconciled, but with all members respected and having characteristics that define them as individuals, not stereotypes of whole age groups. This is the reason why they would go on to represent this generation; these traits of theirs made them relatable, and the teenagers loved them because they didn't intentionally try to be liked: they could be hated or loved, but surely they were memorable. They didn't start off as generalisations, they became such with time.

There is, of course, another type of comedy that still remains popular and causes laughs aplenty: the smart one, which, in its subversiveness, make us think about society while having great fun. The group that perfected these comedies was Le Splendid. Who would have thought that Christian Clavier, the one who interpreted a drag queen in 1982, would go on to make a film in which he sees two men kissing, and feels disgusted to sit near them? Has he betrayed his old values, or just transformed them into something new? I think it's the first. In this trip to Ibiza, I doubt there is anyone looking at Christian Clavier and thinking that the one who is a stinker is not Santa Claus, but Philippe. Even if he's not holding a gun.

The Fifth Element (1997)

The fifth element - Science fiction à la française

[7/10 · 28 April 2022]

Luc Besson wrote the story of what would become "The fifth element" when he was sixteen years old. This teenage enthusiasm is evident in every aspect of the film, from its glamorous visuals, to its comedy with its often preposterous character. Although the film is in English, it is French from head to toe. "The fifth element" is, simply, science fiction à la française.

Every five thousand years, evil threatens the universe. The only way to stop it is though five elements: the classic four known to anyone who has watched "Avatar:The Last Airbender" (by this I mean fire, water, air and earth, here represented by four stones), and one fifth, that is so rare one has to rely on utter luck to find it. This is what happens to Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), former army Major and taxi driver extraordinaire. This fifth element is an alien being called Leeloo (Milla Jovovich), that escapes from the laboratory she is held captive and jumps into the void, only to be saved by landing on the taxi's roof.

When combined with the other four, this fifth element can prevent evil from destroying the Earth. This is something that the authorities know, and charge Dallas with saving it. It sounds simple, but it is not, when you have an evil megalomaniac, Mr. Zorg (Gary Oldman) chasing you for the stones, while some egoistic alien merchants, the Mangalores, want them as their own and are after him. This is the perfect recipe for what will be a succession of misunderstandings, surprises, and lavish spectacles, that even include a dance show starring a DJ.

"The fifth element" is surely not a comedy, rather a tongue-in-cheek action film. The action sequences are thrilling, with Willis shining due to both his physical and his acting performance, his reserved, serious attitude coming in stark contrast to the takes he has to fulfill. The chase for the famed fifth element catches the viewer's attention from the first scenes, and the excellent Milla Jovovich as Leeloo serves the film perfectly, evolving from an innocent alien being to an experienced, capable heroine that occupies the screen and overshadows all others in her presence. Willis and her make a memorable pair, that combines the former's distant, cold rational nature and her more sentimental personality.

Gary Oldman as the villain is the definition of kitsch, always dressed in luxurious outfits, visible from meters away, and his portrayal of Mr. Zorg transcends the limits of caricature and becomes rather a parody of classic science fiction nemeses. The comical aspect of the film is further reinforced through the hilarious Tom Lister Jr. Incarnating the President of this world, who doesn't only offer some great comedic scenes involving his ever-present family, but also is Besson's way of relentlessly satirising modern political leaders. That all this happens in a science fiction film just goes on to show the director's many aspects.

The comedic and ironic characteristic of "The fifth element" contribute in giving it a human side, which is what makes it resoundingly European. Even better, the film is dominated by its cinéma du look nature: magnificent scenery, Gaultier costumes conceived in another planet, and plenty of colour. The universe is like a canvas, which Besson has painted in the best way possible with his cinematic palette, a quality that he had already shown in his "Le grand bleu" nine years ago. But here it is not the sea that is explored in its preexistent beauty: Everything we see is a product of Besson's imagination, one that truly amazes sometimes.

"The fifth element" is there to see, not to analyse. It is mostly a feast for the eyes, replacing with visual excellence what is lacking in substance. Besson has, with films like that, abandoned his auteur beginnings and become one of the most commercial French directors. But his way of going commercial often transcends his compatriots' one and becomes something unique. "The fifth element" is such a case, something that renders it all the more better.

Words Bubble Up Like Soda Pop (2020)

Words bubble up like soda pop - Teen romance the Japanese way, with some timely lessons along the way

[9/10 · 28 April 2022]

Teen romance the Japanese way: This how I would characterise "Words bubble up like soda pop". This culture has a wholly different way of expressing feelings. Shyness dominates, silence too. But maturity is also present in a higher degree than we in Europe have used to. The two protagonists are only thirteen, yet they behave more responsibly than many of their peers: the girl, Smile, has bucked teeth. In our modern society, in which physical image is often more important than anything else, this characteristic of hers is a serious problem. More so since she is a popular influencer. And so she wears a mask to hide her mouth, and thus the way she really expresses herself. What her fans see is only a fake image, one where online videos make up for her real character. She pushes everyone to smile, but she is always sad, afraid that someone will discover her secret. It wasn't always like that. When she was young, her teeth were her trademark, something cute to be proud of. But, as often happens, one day she woke up hating them. Cherry, the boy, cannot communicate because of his introverted character. And so he expresses himself through words, writing traditional haiku poems for others to read. But who does? Only few people care. While Smile loves busy roads and malls, he hates noise, and wears headphones to block it. This is how he lives in harmony. But he also can't express his true feelings to people he loves. He is too reserved to do so.

Their meeting takes place in a mall. The malls, those trademarks of modern society, the temples of consumerism, that attract people just out of curiosity. To see what's new, and possibly to buy it too. Even musicals have been filmed in malls: Chantal Akerman shot one, "Golden Eighties" in 1986, in which she showed the relationships between some people working in a mall: their loves, their joys and losses. With this film she showed how for the citizens of consumerist societies, the mall is like a second home, in which their life takes place. "Words bubble up like soda pop" develops this logic by having its characters starting their romance there. Smile and Cherry don't work in the mall, but both spend much of their time there: Smile shoots her videos, and Cherry reads his haiku to a club of like-minded people. None of them is young. They all come from a retirement home, in which he also works. And so, when he and Smile unexpectedly cross paths, she starts helping in the retirement home, only to be close to him.

One of these elderly people living in the retirement home is an old, short man, Mr. Fujiyama. He is constantly searching for a record, one that will restore his lost memories of an important person. For him, this record symbolises his whole life, his time of happiness now over. This happiness was found in a simpler world, one in which technology played a far weaker role than now. When the heroes decide to help him, it's not only an act of care towards a person that needs it, but one connecting these two different generations.

Mr. Fujiyama seems to be a classic animated distant old character, but his real personality is more like Carl from "Up" than any villain Disney has ever come up with. He just misses his past, and wants to relive it. It is through this aspect of his personality that he wins the viewers' sympathy. He is not one to feel pity for, but rather a character to love, and perhaps his positive portrayal also comes from Japanese culture's deep respect from the elderly, just as the teen romance's depiction speaks a lot about this culture's view of relationships.

That both characters are essentially outcasts - even Smile does not have many friends, except for her followers, who love her fake self and not the person who she really is - reflects an international tendency to let people ignored in the past tell their stories. Characters with niche interests, introverted personalities, whose stories were either not told or used as a form of humiliation, creating caricatures of their protagonists. Though Japan has a different view of concepts such as popularity than the West, it is still admirable for us to watch those movies so as to understand how to integrate characters diverging from our stereotype of the "normal" teenage protagonist, searching for approval. Disney's Japanese counterparts create characters that have no problem being unpopular and embrace this nature, while their finding love comes from these characteristics that make them special.

"Words bubble up like soda pop" is a film that will appeal to every type of audience because it treats the characters' romance with honesty, all the while having some scenes in which it is almost impossible to hold one's tears. It is the complete opposite of soda pop, full of sweetness, a joy in its best moments, that offers not only feeling but also food for thought aplenty. The fact that it is also beautifully animated, charming in its simplicity, renders it all the more better. Yes, all this was a lot, but this film is truly worth of analysis, and perfect discussion material. In such a discussion, words truly bubble up like soda pop.

The Outsiders (1983)

The outsiders - The world isn't kind to those that don't belong

[8/10 · 27 April 2022]

Francis Ford Coppola's "The outsiders" (1983) tells the story of two rival factions: the Greasers, so called because of the substance they put on their hair, and the Socs (an abbreviation for "The socialites"), the kids whose parents can go to social clubs. The first ones wear ripped jeans and shirts, the others white pants and college jackets. The Greasers run, while the Socs drive fancy cars. It is the Greasers that will suffer the most, because they don't belong to this upper class of American society, something that will force them to commit crimes, and be marginalised from the community. In other words, they will become outsiders.

Three brothers living in 1965 Oklahoma are in the center of the story: the oldest one, Ponyboy (C. Thomas Howell), is a sensitive, innocent boy who has difficulties getting along with his older brother, Daryl (Patrick Swayze). He has been the caretaker of their home since their parents died tragically, and this sense of depression has made him tough, distant and irritable, shouting at Ponyboy for the slightest mistake. Sodapop, their other brother, finds himself in the middle of their quarrels when Daryl demands of him to express his opinion. His real quality is neutrality. He doesn't want to meddle in his troubled family's affairs, preferring to contribute to the household by working in a gas station. Mediocre as he is, he finds satisfaction in such a simple job, hit knows that Ponyboy has more talent and motivates him to follow another path in life; one involving college studies, and later a successful career.

Unfortunately, such a path is only reserved for the Greasers' opponents, the Socs. Rich and privileged from head to toe, they don't know what poverty or loss means, and mock the Greasers for their financial state and low social status. Only some of them have real feelings towards their rivals: a red-haired girl nicknamed Cherry (Diane Lane) meets Ponyboy and his friend, Johnny (Ralph Macchio) in the cinema by chance. Talking to them, she discovers not the tramps she thought they were, but gentle people, damaged by life's hardships. She will fall for Ponyboy, and he for her. But the other Socs won't let their romance blossom.

The one that the Socs fear the most is Dallas (Matt Dillon). He is the archetype of the young rebel, the James Dean of the next generation, fighting for whatever seems just to him with a fervour that leads him to become a real criminal. But this doesn't matter to him. His sense of justice comes from his heart and not from his brain. And this gets him into trouble, but also pushes him to act in a way that transcends his humble origins and become a hero.

These youth are trapped in a hole they can't get out of: the social one. Society regards them as outcasts, delinquents, dangerous. They can't change the authorities' perception of them unless they cover their criminal past with noble actions, of which the chance to happen is more frequent in films than in real life. Nothing in them wins the appreciation of the Socs. The Greasers may have dominated the scene in a school ("Grease", 1978), but on the road they are denigrated because of their background. Travolta and his friends were a gentle type of gang: the most dangerous thing they could do was smoke. But the Outsiders finish many packets a day and have no problem with that. The stereotypes of American highschools of popular kids and outcasts don't matter here, since this is a depiction of a more tough kind of reality, not a plastic musical. If "The Outsiders" were one such, the whole point of the film, that of pointless fights between social classes that lead to nothing but sadness and ravage, would be lost.

While thankfully avoiding the conventions of the musical, the film does have a memorable score, composed by Coppola's father, Carmine. His son thought it were too dramatic for such a film, but in my opinion it perfectly captures the personal conflicts inside the souls of the protagonists. It is intense, like their personalities. When Coppola made "The Complete Novel Version", he added some hits of the time to give the film a more realistic tone. He certainly succeeded. What The Jam's and T-Rex's pieces did for "Billy Elliot" (2000), Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and many others did for "The outsiders". They transformed the viewer to that time, and gave the film a matching soundtrack, one that represented the generation depicted in it.

Coppola's smooth direction makes the nearly two-hour version of the film flow effortlessly. With a camera that zooms and then turns away, lights that dim and shine again, the colours of the sun juxtaposed with the city's grey atmosphere, the whole film is also a feast for the eyes. Coppola was absolutely right to cast his young actors, all of them becoming stars in part due to his film. Their performances demanded a level of maturity many of them wouldn't have had considering their age. Their characters didn't have any differences in that extent, but their lives were ones of constant struggle, far from their screen impersonators' ones. Macchio especially shone as the heroic Johnny, giving the most dramatic performance in a film with plenty of those. All of them achieved the primary purpose of the film; to makes us resonate with their struggle, cry when they are facing the impossible and laugh when they have fun, expressing a childishness they have partly lost due to life's challenges. We feel for them when they are wronged, and wish them to find the way towards a better future, one in which they won't be outsiders, but in the centre of attention, like their real selves.

Before the Brat Pack, before John Hughes, preceding "St. Elmo's fire" and "The Breakfast club", "The outsiders" introduced us to a tight-knit group of teenagers facing the problems of the previous generation, but coming through because of the same traits that characterised the two former films: friendship and resilience. S. E. Hinton may have wanted to tell the story of her generation in her homonymous novel, but "The outsiders" exposed it to a new audience, and thus made it transcend the limits of her time, and make it more universal. A novel is already so, but the cinema is a more powerful medium. Image dominates paper. Seeing these future stars incarnate her roles on screen, Hinton was proud. If I were, her, I would have been too. Because they would have made my book more accessible to this new generation. Who can say no to a good book adaptation?

The Big Hit (2020)

Un triomphe - Waiting for Godot behind bars

[8/10 · 26 April 2022]

What if someone told you about some prisoners staging Beckett's "Waiting for Godot", with almost none of them having a passion for acting, the one even being illiterate? Surely, you wouldn't believe me. But this is what the director Jan Jönson did with a group of inmates in 1985. The result was a real triumph, and this what this French retelling of the story has as its title.

Etienne Carboni (Kad Merad) is an unemployed actor wanting to find a way to express his favourite passion. This is why he decides to go help some prisoners by teaching them how to play. Their previous instructor had only taught them some of the myths of La Fontaine, making them lose all faith in theatre. But Etienne has other things in mind; seeing them wait desperately for every day to pass, he comes up with the idea to stage a work that is itself about waiting, Beckett's aforementioned masterpiece. Of course,his ambitions are too high at first: almost none of the prisoners knows how to act, and the theatre of the absurd, with its often nonsensical dialogue, is difficult for them to understand. But they get inspired by the charismatic Etienne, and give a performance that would have made Beckett proud.

A lot stands on their way: the director of the prison (Marina Hands) puts a superhuman effort for letting the prisoners stage the play and thus gets desperate when they seem to give up. Such is the attitude of the judge (Catherine Lascault) too, who doesn't believe in the life-changing power theatre has, and because of that has to be convinced in order to let the prisoners play. Above all, every inmate has demons chasing him; there is the illiterate Jordan (Pierre Lottin), who despite his impediment gets to play the most demanding role, Patrick (David Ayala), longing for his dear wife, Moussa (Wabinlé Nabié) an immigrant searching for a better luck in France, who feels every one of his character's words as if they were really his own, Alex (Lamine Cissokho), a giant two metres tall, yet with a child's heart, and Kamel (Sofian Khammes), the most audacious of them, the leader of the group, hiding a secret behind his tough guy façade. With this team, all different as chalk and cheese, how can a successful production be made? This is why Etienne's job seems all the more impressive. He tries to build bonds between his actors, treating them like real performers and not like amateurs. He shows them something they haven't got for years; respect. And it is this respect that will motivate them to do their best.

The film is completely based on the performances. Without them, it would be nothing, for all the originality of the story. The actors portraying the prisoners truly immerse themselves in their roles, and deliver performances that seem more like life slices than pieces of cinema. Merad is poignant in the role of poor Etienne, and his monologue, although less intellectual than Lucky's in Beckett's pièce, is still a sample of real acting talent, full of spontaneity and emotional intensity, depicting the progression of a man who went from not putting up with his actors to admiring them for their resilience.

This resilience is countered with a vulgarity usual for prisoners, but one which gets a different meaning in this film. The inmates not only play in "Waiting for Godot", but make little additions that often transform it to a veritable comedy. Swear words, facial expressions, even extra characters more fitting to a thriller then a Beckett piece, make for a different version of the famous play. By adding all these elements, the prisoners express their tiredness; they can't wait anymore for freedom, for joy, for fun. The show isn't only a way to educate themselves, but works, as theatre often does, cathartically, freeing them from their worries while on stage. Their vulgarity and immaturity serves as a way to make their real state clear: they do have a great time playing, but behind the scenes, they are criminals, on detention for what seems like eternity, not being able to make a step without supervision. This film surely doesn't condone criminal actions; it just shows the human side behind those behind bars. While it may feel condescending at first, with the prisoners' childish behaviour being just an easy way to feel pity for them, it goes on to show how they can shine when given real motives.

When Samuel Beckett learnt of the amateur actors' additions to his play, he said (and here I'm paraphrasing): "This is the best thing to happen to my work". Indeed, it was. The theatre of the absurd, usually reserved for intellectuals, got remade in a version intended for ordinary people. It was a gentle act of love towards Beckett's original play, from some people that didn't fully grasp its meaning. This, of course, didn't matter in the end. The performance was, like the film, a triumph. It truly deserves a standing ovation.

Love Me Tender (1956)

Love me tender - It's Mr. Rock'n'roll in the story he wasn't born to play

[5/10 · 26 April 2022]

"IT'S MR. ROCK'N'ROLL IN THE STORY HE WAS BORN TO PLAY". This is how Elvis Presley's first film, "Love me tender", was advertised. Intended to be the story of the infamous gang of the Reno Brothers, the film follows the four gangsters' misadventures after robbing a Union train during the Civil War.

The robbery is successful, and the brothers decide to take the money to General Randolph, in order to continue the war against the Unionists. The only problem is that the war has ended since some days. At first reluctant to believe it, the heroes then take advantage of their remaining fortune and buy a groom's costume for the eldest one, Vance (Richard Egan), who wants to marry his sweetheart Cathy (Debra Paget). Unfortunately, time is not on their side, since, upon returning, Vance finds Cathy the wife of the youngest brother, Clint (Elvis Presley), the only one who didn't go to war, and is thus innocent regarding the robbery. Trying to reconcile, the two brothers find themselves meddled in Vance's past crime, when Federal Soldiers come to get the money. So starts a chase in forests and valleys, in which old bonds will break and Elvis songs will be heard.

"Love me tender" wants to be a Western, but it resoundingly fails because of the cast's weak performances. Egan interprets Vance too artificially to come off as threatening and ambitious, while his short-lived romance with the equally bland Paget seems doomed from the start , since the pairing of the brave, determined Vance with the weak, indecisive Cathy only survives thanks to societal traditions - it is imperative that a woman be married. The more sentimental Clint easily wins her over, and it is thus quite meaningless to watch the brothers' feud unravel.

Elvis, one of the most famous idols of that generation, makes a mildly positive first impression as an actor, although his bursts of anger seem rather overdramatic to be convincing, possibly due to Elvis's zeal for acting. His character, the innocent cowboy, was imitated seven years later by the "French Elvis", Johnny Hallyday, in "D'où viens-tu Johnny ?". While Johnny was too artificial, his American counterpart was overzealous, and their attempts at being Western heroes fell a bit short of that aim, even though both would develop a notable, if not admirable acting career later. Mr. Rock'n'roll wasn't yet ready for a dramatic role, be it in a cheap Western, and so "Love me tender" was surely not the story he was born to play.

Damaging his attempt at acting seriously were Elvis's songs, of which the title tune became one of his biggest hits. For this blow to Elvis's acting ambitions, his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, is to blame, since he insisted that his protégé sing in the film. Fortunately, the songs are integrated smoothly in the plot, appearing in intimate moments, or during funfairs, in which some fun is not to be missed. Only the soundtrack makes up for this generally forgettable film, which has little charm beyond the beginner's try by Elvis, and the magnificent scenery.

Elvis's debut remains significant from a cultural standpoint, but has little value cinema-wise. In a film as forgettable as can get, he, at least, provides a performance weak due to inexperience only. Still, this does nothing to save the film from failing, and I doubt there are many that would have loved it tender, if it wasn't for their teenage idol, singing with his sweet voice; "Love me tender/ Love me sweet/ Never let me go..."

Space Adventure Cobra (1982)

Space adventure Cobra - The tale of a useless protagonist

[3/10 · 25 April 2022]

Buichi Terasawa's manga, "Cobra", about a Belmondo-like pirate roaming space with his android sidekick proved such a big success when released that it was adapted to a series and a film with little time separating the two. While the series has retained all of its cult charm, possibly owing to the fact that Cobra's charisma is evident throughout his adventures, the movie, "Space adventure Cobra" feels unneeded, since, while ostensibly centered on Cobra, uses him just as a pretence to explore visually stunning universes. It is cinéma du look made in Japan, but with little of the slickness of its French counterparts to make up for the ridiculous plot and characters.

Preceding the series by some months, "Space adventure Cobra" is completely based on the manta's first arc, in which the pirate and his sidekick team up with a bounty hunter, Jane Royal, in order to fight the leader of a crime syndicate called the Galactic Guild, who goes by the name of Crystal Boy. Kind of a C-3PO imitator but with sinister intentions, he wants to destroy Jane's home, the planet Miros, and only Cobra with his Psychogun, a ray gun under his left arm, can stop him.

So are we supposed to believe, but from the moment that Jane shows up, one thing I sure; this dynamic, independent heroine is capable to defeat this villain all by herself. Possessing a talent for martial arts, not to mention an irresistible seductiveness - this, of course, is what draws Cobra to her - she can fight all alone. It is through Cobra's clumsiness, though, that the two heroes find help in the face of Captain Sandra, the leader of an all-female force. In an age of female characters often only present for their sex appeal, the developed, interesting heroines of "Space adventure Cobra" seem pioneering, and Cobra, more of a womaniser than a warrior, seems totally unnecessary.

Perhaps it would have been beneficial to the protagonist if the makers of the film had checked out some of Belmondo's action comedies. There, not only his charm and humour, but also his talent for stunts, were exploited, making for an excellent combination of awe-inspiring action and sweet, gentle comedy. Unfortunately, "Space adventure Cobra" prefers to play it like a serious space opera, leaving no space for the character to express his goofiness and special kind of action in a way that fits into the plot without being utterly comedic, and thus a parody of Terasawa's creation. Cobra is like Belmondo in "L'alpagueur" - trapped in a role that doesn't fit him, too serious and lacking in human qualities to make his always triumphant one-man stands worth watching. At least Belmondo had acting talent to save him. Cobra, in his animated nature, has none such traits. In the hands of Osamu Dezaki, he becomes nothing more than a two-dimensional imitator of his French idol, without the qualities that gave the other his uniqueness. Only the goofy stuntman has remained of the original Belmondo in Cobra.

If the protagonist feels like a failed version of Belmondo, then the settings seem like Beneix on drugs. Bright colours, large spaceships designed in every detail - this is more like Besson - and different planets are there for us to admire. The film begins with a sequence full of psychedelic colours, in which a little tour of the planets of this cinematic universe is combined with the image of naked women inside water. Beneix in Woodstock, on stimulants. Fortunately, the setting becomes more modern as the film progresses, although, even in its neon, New Wavy moments, doesn't lose its desire to experiment with psychedelic art elements. It is a film made in the eighties, with nostalgia for the seventies. What if Crystal Boy's dark, distant, cold headquarters could've been pulled off a Besson feature? The film prefers to travel back in time for visual inspiration, thus losing its cinéma du look character. The only way it resembles the original cinéma du look films is that it uses the setting to complement a weak plot. But this is unintentional. The director doesn't seem to know that his story is weak and so doesn't deliberately highlight the film's visual aspect. The visual result is only an experiment.

To my dismay, the whole feature seems like an experiment in testing the protagonist's film potential. It just pushes him to the limits, making him play in a serious story, when only a brand of ironic, funny action could have saved him. Without a good lead character, the movie falls apart. Cobra was no professional. In fact, in his effort to distinguish himself as an action hero he just lost his way, and ended up in an environment that didn't suit him. He resembled more a child, one whose goal was to discover adventure, when he wasn't made for that. Cobra was a lovable character in the series. But in the film, this charm of his found no real use. And this is the most unfortunate thing about "Space adventure Cobra", a space opera with a lead actor missing all the right notes.

I Want to Eat Your Pancreas (2018)

I want to eat your pancreas - Titles are often delusional

[8/10 · 25 April 2022]

Movie titles are often delusional. Instead of showing the film's real meaning, they are designed to attract attention by being unusual. "I want to eat your pancreas " is such a case. For, it is not about cannibalism, but rather about how love can make death sweeter.

Sakura, an attractive, lively seventeen-year-old girl seems no different from her classmates. She has to hide nothing from them, anyway. Or so it seems, until Haruki, a shy bookworm, discovers her diary, entitled "Living with dying ". He finds out that Sakura is suffering from a terminal disease, affecting her pancreas. Knowing he has learnt her secret, she decides to befriend him. They seem to be so different; why would the popular, beloved, emotional Sakura want to hang out with the passive, anti-social Haruki? The reason is one: with his unsentimental behaviour, he is completely suited to her treating of her condition. Sakura knows she will die, that she has little time left. But she prefers to put on a brave face and not let anyone know about her fate, so as to protect them. Kyoko, her best friend, can't put up with the thought of her friend and Haruki being together, and warns him about Sakura's vulnerable nature. In reality, she is the easily hurt. Haruki can complement Sakura because, in his phenomenal indifference, he can shoe feelings more honest than her more sensitive friends. Not only titles can be delusional, but appearances too.

It is difficult to understand what kind of relationship the two heroes have. They don't have the fondness that characterizes friendships, and calling them a couple would be an exaggeration. Their relationship combines the best elements of the two; devotion, care for the other, honesty. Not every boy expressing interest for a girl is in love with her , contrary to what the heroes' classmates think. To believe that the two are in love would be, again, delusional.

In contrast to many similar films, especially American, "I want to eat your pancreas" doesn't center on the heroine's condition, showing her fade away to her untimely death. Instead, Sakura adopts a more mature behaviour, treating her illness with humour and enjoying life, as if her time on Earth were infinite. Infinity, this word that fascinates us so much, since we know we can't achieve it. Sakura acknowledges that, and so spends her remaining time with the people who mean the most to her, her friends, thus rendering these moments infinite. This is a life stance of the most admirable kind.

That the film is animated just goes on to show how the Japanese see this as a medium of telling serious stories. Live actors would have probably added a degree of artificially in the story, while animated characters, served excellently by the voice actors, deliver a result that feels more honest in its traditional, two-dimensional nature.

"I want to eat your pancreas " is a film that uncovers the truth behind many delusions; that death is always painful, that relationships between girls and boys are invariably ones of love, that appearances aren't deceiving. Above all, it is a movie with more feeling than many live-action ones. A feeling that makes us cry, live with and love the characters, as I'd we had known them for years. As if we were their closest friends. Would you give your pancreas to such a close friend to eat it, if this was the only way they could be cured? I truly don't know. But by seeing the film, I found out how much love is entailed in that question.

Spirited Away (2001)

Spirited away - More than a children's cartoon

[10/10 · 24 April 2022]

Since the beginning of Western animation, few people have considered it more than "children's material", and thus paid little attention to the powerful messages entailed in such works. When Japanese animation, the so-called anime, came to the West, the same way of thinking was applied to them, something that often had disastrous consequences, with anime deemed too violent for children - which, they were, but not all animation is destined for the young ones - being censored, France especially having a history of edited Japanese animation programmes during the 80's. What "Spirited away" succeeded in doing was change the mindest of thousands regarding anime. That it won the Oscar of Best Animated Feature shows it all. Where does its charm lie? Why did it win such a prestigious award, coming from a country of which the animation tradition wasn't deemed but for children at the time? The answer is hidden in its special character, that makes it simply unforgettable.

Chihiro, a ten-year-old girl, spoiled and sullen from head to toe, moves with her parents from their old city to a new one. Knowing that she has left her friends and happy past forever, she can't bear the thought of moving. When the family stops travelling to rest, they discover what seems like an abandoned amusement park, and, strangely, find food inside. The parents, hungry from their long journey, start devouring it, and Chihiro, frightened, sees them turn into pigs. Now, she has no choice but to help them become humans again. As if by luck, a young boy, Haku, is willing to assist her, and tells her to go find Kanji, a spider-like creature searching for workers. So starts Chihiro's journey in the land of spirits, in which everything one knows about life is turned upside down, and where only obedience saves humans from turning into beasts.

When she first discovers this land, Chihiro sees that she has no substance, like a ghost. Only through Haku's help does she keep her real look. He is like a friend to her. Until they reach a business resembling a spa, in which the citizens of this strange world work, with an old, terrifying creature named Yubaba as their boss. It turns out that Haku is her apprentice, and he can't be friends with a worker like Chihiro. This is the first shock that the little girl receives. The environment of the business is completely hostile to her, and, there, she has no special identity. She is just one of the many creatures working there. Only the fact of her being a human differentiates her from the others. Her name is changed, so that her old memories will go away. The name, the fundamental characteristic of personal identity, is taken away from a person having no other way to remember her now-lost previous life. This is another shock, actually preceding the first one, although they could be interpreted as one. Her friend is no longer one such, and Chihiro herself, now called Sen, ia no longer herself. What she knew about human relationships is lost, since the others address her with a name that doesn't mean anything to her, and the person knowing who she was now is her superior.

Like a modern Alice in Wonderland, Chihiro is now trapped in a world where every sense of logic is lost, where spirits dominante humans, where animals rule their former oppressors. Spirits, once worshipped as deities, now are the real bosses of humans, determining their fate, if they will survive in this irrational universe. It is this reverted situation that makes the film interesting. What if animals dominated humans, is only one of the questions the film asks.

The most important one is a question concerning love. Can love survive in such a world, where everyone thinks for themselves, wanting to win the appreciation of Yubaba? Can Haku transform into his older self through Chihiro's care? Miyazaki masterfully showed that through the two characters' relationship, which culminates in a dreamy climax, making even the most unconvinced of viewers shed a little tear.

Money rules the spirit world. It being a business, the citizens only care about rich customers, who seem to search for affection rather than services. One of them No Face, a huge black ghost, demonstrates this attitude by stating to eat his caretakers. Chihiro, with her pure love for others, regardless of their wealth, will be the only one who can cure the violent tendencies of his. Knowing that her parents were turned into pigs due to their greed, she does everything she can in order to show Yubaba that she doesn't only have money and relaxation in mind. She is human, both in her body and in her heart. This is a message all the more traditional.

The animation of "Spirited away" is also traditional in character. Hand-drawn by Miyazaki himself, it feels more resonant than the computer animation used by American studios. It transports one to more innocent times, feeling child-like in its colorful, innocent, computer-less nature. It was the way a child would look at the world, amazed by everything they catch a glimpse of. The already impressive spirit world becomes something unimaginable through the animation.

With "Spirited away", we all become like Chihiros: impressionable, youthful, careless, fascinated by things the grown-up mind finds banal, like talking animals and bright colours. We try helping Chihiro find her parents and home, while thinking about our own. We see her love, wishing that we were at her place. We shed tears for her dear ones' death, even if we haven't experienced such a thing ourselves. This is what a good film does. I think now you understand that animation is not only for children. It is sometimes more adult than adults themselves.

Space Cobra (1982–1983)

Cobra - Only cult memories after you

[8/10 · 21 April 2022]

In 1982, the anime series "Cobra" was shown in Japanese TV screens. With its charm and innovative character, it would win over not only them, but also Europeans, especially the French. Luc Besson has admitted being fan of the anime, and its main hero was created with one of the most famous French actors as model. Why did it influence France so much? Where does the magic of "Cobra" lie? This question has answers aplenty.

"Cobra", like many animes before and after it, started off as a manga, this one by the artist Buichi Terasawa. Having at first Alain Delon in mind, later modifying his hero's physique to resemble Delon's commercial rival, Jean-Paul Belmondo, he created a character that was brave, cynical, prone to risk-taking but confident enough to know he will win, always with a cigaret in his mouth à la "Le magnifique". His secret weapon, though, was none of these traits: it was the Psychogun, a ray gun hidden under his left arm, that could exterminate everything obstructing his way. And there was surely a lot that blocked his way to eternal relaxation. For, Cobra had two lives: in his first one, he was a space pirate with long black hair, that resembled Captain Harlock, roaming the universe with his sidekick, an android. In his second one, he was an everyman, Johnson, with blond hair and a face that seemed as if Belmondo was his brother. These two will become one when Johnson's memory will come back, making him remember his old life and restarting his adventures. Now, both the Galactic Police and the Galactic Guild, a crime syndicate composed of criminals different as chalk and cheese are after him. He, though, doesn't care: his aim is to ensure what is simply called a dream life, full of treasures and beautiful women.

This kind of attitude was inspired by Belmondo's early work with Godard, in "Breathless" and "Pierrot le fou". It is true that, if we observe Cobra's attitude towards life, he and Belmondo have no differences: both live for adventure, but also appreciate love and riches. None of them acts under the law, both being outlaws acting with their will as their compass. The will to transcend all boundaries of society found in Godard's films is indirectly also present in the anime, since the adventurous Cobra obeys nobody but himself and thus accepts no compromise, often putting himself in danger for the experience. The cigarette in Cobra's mouth was sported by his idol only one year later, in "Le marginal". This could be seen as a sort of reunion between these two heroes. Seeing Belmondo smoking with his prop in "Le solitaire" only five years later, Cobra would have been proud.

Beside his connection with Belmondo, Cobra also influenced, as mentioned above, the most Hollywood-like of French directors, Luc Besson. It is easy to see why. The lavish, slick, neon-lit urban settings of the anime could have possibly been an influence in Besson's depiction of the Paris Metro in "Subway", and Christophe Lambert's petty criminal Fred seemes like someone having a poster of Cobra in his room. Everything, from his appearance - uncombed blond hair - to his behaviour, which was a mixture of bravery and complete carelessness, could have been owed to Terasawa's creation. Cobra's style of funny science fiction seems tailor-made for a Besson film, the sixth element in his filmic five.

But, where does this admiration come from? Why would an anime inspire such love in Europeans? This could be attributed to its brand of comedic action. While not being short of memorable villains and Cobra's conformations with them, the series treats both his missions and the hero with a gentle irony that is refreshing to see. Too much seriousness would have killed the series, such a mood not being suited to a character personifying not the moral hero, but rather the petty, lucky hustler. Already having elevated Belmondo to legendary proportions, the French would have undoubtedly been charmed by his Japanese imitator. A behaviour that in other countries would seem great for a protagonist, but would limit itself to him, a character unknown, would have struck a chord with viewers in the Hexagon, due to being something already familiarised by an actor breaking box-office records at the time.

If Cobra's behaviour resembled a French actor's, then the show's score seemed to have been, to quote Godard, "Made in USA". A jazzy theme song, with a saxophone solo as infectious as the one in George Michael's "Careless Whisper", it accompanied the pulp-like adventures of the protagonist and together with the setting, gave the series a noir feeling impossible not to fall for. Already being used to it, the French changed the "générique" and gifted the series an even better song, interpreted by Olivier Constantin. "Homme ou machine/Nul l'imagine/ Quel est son secret/Nul ne le sait", sung he, while synthesizers wailed together with his voice. Lyrics that would stay in the head of a whole generation.

"Cobra" succeeded in France because it was a show tailor-made for this culture. From the protagonist, to the show's style and potential, every star seemed to align in order to create a cult series in the likes of "Dragon Ball" and "Nicky Larson". Like them, the series would face censorship, the adults not being able to understand the value of leaving a series intact and deeming every anime "made for children". Its style may have been just like the Belmondo films their children would go see in the cinema, but no animation could have the right to be violent or mature. Sure, "Cobra", with its scenes featuring naked women may have been scandalous, but what remains in the head is not them. It's the adventure, the fun, and the cult "générique". Unfortunately, not even Cobra's Psychogun could face the forces of censorship.

That the show's popularity remained the same even with the censored version just goes on to show how amazing it was. Terasawa knew what he had in his hands: a series destined for the whole world, with a hero not unlike those of the pulps of the past. A hero coming from Japan, who found his home in France. A home quite inhospitable, that nevertheless elevated him to the same status it had his hero. For, at the end of the day, they were both "magnifique", and what they left behind is more than beloved; it's cult. Now that none of them exists anymore, one thing is sure; they will have found each other up there, smoking and fighting their enemies together, all the while remaining the heroes of a generation. This is the best combination of all.

Pause-café (1981)

Pause café - A soap opera like no other, and its decline

[8/10 · 21 April 2022]

When the soap opera "Pause café" was first shown to French TV screens in 1981, it caused a hype destined only for cult programmes. It had a modernity and a charm few other series had: it showed high schools for what they were; institutions often housing serious problems, with students that needed help but often didn't get it, of which the faculty were often too conservative to assist their young students. Adolescence wasn't all like "La Boum". In fact, it resembled more "Pause café".

In a high school located in the suburbs of Paris, a young social worker, Joëlle Mazart (Véronique Jannot) is assigned to help the students with their daily problems. At first, few consult her. But she knows she can win them over, for she has something no other faculty member has: understanding. Being very close to them in terms of age, she knows what problems they can go through. And there are a lot of them; teen pregnancy, drug usage, domestic violence, family expectations that often overwhelm the children, Joëlle will see every case enter her hospitable, cozy office with the posters from concerts and theatre plays.

To all of them, she offers a cup of warm coffe, and plenty of tie for discussion. This is where her famous surname, "Pause café" comes from. Even when facing the strict, authoritarian principal (Jacques François), who is not very satisfied with having a liberal social worker interfere in his business, she will prevail, because she has the teenagers on her side. For her, the mental health of the students is more important than the image of the school or their grades. She could even sacrifice her position for them.

All this happened in the first season. For, the series had such high audience scores that the suits in French TV decided to give Joëlle Mazart more time to shine the next year, in "Pause café Joëlle Mazart". Now, Joëlle has changed schools, due to the drug-taking of a student incarnated by Marc Lavoine and his revolver eyes. In her new school, no one trusts her, and so she (re)starts her quest in a hostile environment. Still, the traits that had made her name in her previous school earn her the students' appreciation in the new one, too. The problems here being a little over the top, she has to invest even more time, something that will enrage her partner, Lionel (Alain Courivaud). Already having a problematic relationship in the first season, their romance will turn out to be as short-lived as the series's quality years.

With her mission complete, Joëlle decides to take a break from all that for seven years. When she returns, in "Pause café pause tendresse", she is a different person, no longer having the vivacity and the spontaneity that gave her character its uniqueness. This is maybe because she needs to devote virtually all of her life to her son and her husband (Bernard Le Coq). The now-called Mrs. Calvert still works as a social worker, but the cases she is called to deal with make her seem more like a police investigator. Kidnappings, adolescents with guns living in abandoned buildings and other problems more suited to CSI give this last installment a character it can't successfully exploit, transforming it from a commercial soap opera with timely social messages to an exercise in overdramatization.

"Pause café" was now the shadow of its former self and thus disappeared rather quickly, leaving behind a mixed legacy. The first two seasons truly showed the potential a series treating teenage problems with respect could have. The cast acted superbly, complementing each other, and showing the situation prevailing high schools at the time of Mitterand's election. If his getting elected was a change from nearly a decade of conservatism, the glorious first years of "Pause café" served to uncover a more serious image of high school, all the while avoiding moralistic lessons. The series portrayed the issues discussed as what they were. Nothing more and nothing less. It seems as if Serge Leroy and Georges Coulonges ran out of ideas and didn't stop to think if the last season had the spirit of the two former.

So ended the reign of the ""Sex Education" of the 80's", that now remains cult for its innovative character and its charm, its unparalleled content and its capable cast, all combined under a cup of coffee in a room inside a high school. The actors found other things to do. Véronique Jannot played in noir films with little success, Jacques François continued his already long acting career, participating, among others in "L'Africain" (1983), while Marc Lavoine launched his singing career. Yet, this show remained an integral part of their professional lives.

In an interview, Véronique Jannot admitted, rather disappointed that "people will call me Joëlle Mazart for the rest of my life". This is true. What else can be expected, when a show has such an impact, when a whole generation makes it part of their childhood? When Véronique Jannot released the songs "Désir désir" and "Aviateur", it is quite evident who made them hits. The generation still having her as their idol, through this series already dating some years.

If this isn't cult, I don't know what it is.

Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea (1985–1987)

Les mondes engloutis - A journey to the center of the Earth without leaving one's sofa

[9/10 · 21 April 2022]

Before the advent of Nickelodeon, European animation was dominant in the continent, and France had a lot to offer; from Albert Barillé's "Once upon a time... " series, to Nina Wolmark's fiction programmes, the country exported its animation series continent-wide, meeting success. One of the most charming products of this golden age was "Les mondes engloutis", which successfully combined curiosity, enthusiasm and humanity to create an unforgettable experience.

In the course of a single evening (according to the laws of Physics), our friends the considerate Bob, the lovable Rebecca, the all-knowing Arkana, Spartakus with his mysterious past, and their flying ship Shagshag, together with the adorable pangolins Bic and Bac discover worlds the human eye has never seen. All of them, with the exception of Spartakus, come from Arkadia, a mysterious underground civilization, that is supplied all energy by its sun, the Shagma. When it falls I'll, the heroes are sent to find the cure, two pieces of brass, through which their sun can shine again. Travelling in a cave, they meet former gladiator Spartakus, and set out for their mission that will mark a generation of viewers.

We can't define the series as something specific: it has elements of science fiction (Shagshag the talking vessel being an example), comedy (the infamous Pirates of the Lake, the heroes' enemies that are so incompetent even Bic and Bac can beat them), and even musicals, since, in an act of gentle greed, Wolmark added some songs written by herself and composed by the great Vladimir Cosma to almost every episode, knowing she would receive royalties every time they would play. Who can forget the infectious them song, "Les mondes engloutis", with its lyrics motivating the viewers to follow the brave heroes to their journey?

"Go, follow the engulfed worlds/ to the centre of the Earth" sang (in translation) Ministar. And what worlds were they! During the course of their journey, the heroes found anything and anyone; they met Galileo and Einstein, crossed forests and lakes, islands and deserts, all the while being chased by the pirates, making their entrance with their own theme song. With every episode taking place in a different place, one could only feel anticipation for what would happen next. This is the curiosity entailed in the show, marking every one of its fifty-two episodes unique.

Not only was the show captivating, it also taught timeless lessons about progress and tolerance. The heroes treat science as something magnificent, that can help their friends and cure their sun. In the episodes with the scientists, Wolmark's vision about science becomes clear. Treated with suspicion and prejudice by their compatriots, they are threatened with death until the truth in their theories is uncovered with the help of the heroes. We are supposed to applaud them for discovering and spreading the truth to people still living in an age as enlightened as a room without current. In an age when the threat of nuclear war was imminent, this may seem old-fashioned, but it is, surely, hopeful. By making the series a science fiction programme, the creator had the opportunity to explore its brave new world more broadly, showing both more "primitive" areas, and big cities à la Metropolis. In one such, the citizens are governed by an oppressive regime whose members wear armbands with a black shape on them. It is clearly a reference to the Nazis. By showing this state of constant surveillance, Wolmark very intelligently communicates the message that no dictatorship is acceptable. In contrast to the supsicious, oppressed citizens of this city, our heroes accept everyone and help whoever asks them, with the condition that their cause is just. Through the diversity of the show's different worlds, "Les mondes engloutis" delivers its message with a subtlety very much needed for a children's show.

For all these reasons, "Les mondes engloutis" is special . Rich in plot, with characters one can't help falling for, a soundtrack that kills and messages transcending the programme itself, it is a show that has earned its cult status deservedly. Every time I watch it, I dream. That I were on Shagshag, searching with my friends Spartakus, Bob and Arkana for the Shagma's cure.

So, thank you Nina Wolmark for enriching my adolescence with your amazing show, that in its low-quality, two-dimensional, handmade world showed me things that I had never thought about. "Les mondes engloutis" deserves to be remembered, not only because its pangolins were thought as the cause of COVID-19. It has this often inexplicable attractiveness that makes one come back to it again and again, diving to the centre of the Earth without leaving their sofa.

Call Me by Your Name (2017)

Call me by your name - How not to live up to expectations (the Italian way)

[5/10 · 19 April 2022]

When thinking about 1980's Italy, one thinks of things aplenty: Italo disco, timeless films ("Non ci resta che piangere", "Vacanze in America", "Cinderella 80" to mention a few), teen magazines (the cult Cioè) and much more. Of these three elements, "Call me by your name" only has the first, and this in very small quantities. For, director Luca Guadagnino had another vision with his film: he wanted to tell the story of a relationship not very much accepted in the society of the time, a homosexual one. He did achieve this, but not successfully. He rather managed not to live up to expectations, the Italian way.

1983, northern Italy. An Italian-American teenager, Elio (Timothée Chalamet) is on vacation with his parents (Michael Stuhlbag and Amira Casar). Everything is going well in his life: he flirts with his French, charming girlfriend, Mazia (Esther Garrel), his family is supportive, and no problems are in his way. All this changes when Oliver (Armie Hammer), a twenty-four year-old American, who has come to work as an assistant to Elio's father. At first, they only feel contempt and suspicion for each other. They seem to be so different, the one rich and privileged, the other lacking this wealth, Elio being just an immature child, Oliver a mature young adult. Still, their differences soon matter little to them, as they start to develop a romance like no other: for the first time, Elio learns what real love is, and Oliver seems to be the perfect teacher.

Despite the promising premise of the film, and its equally captivating start, the story is not executed well. This is due to two factors: the extremely slow-paced direction and the weakness of the actors'performances. Guadagnino didn't serve the movie well, filling it with long shots that are truly antithetic to its topic, which is the definition of youthful enthusiasm and energy. Instead of really offering us the experience through the eyes of a teenager, he gave us a version of it through a pair of eyes as sleepy as can get. The young performers didn't deliver either. Chalamet, for all his young age and obvious passion, seemed too submissive and hypotonic for such a role, which requires constant intensity of character. Hammer, though charming and dominant on screen, did not have the energy one could expect from a romantic, young man in Oliver's situation. There generally seemed to be a certain lack of intensity in the film, with none of the actors showing their emotions, instead waiting until the last moment to do so. And of course, then everything has been lost.

The film's title, "Call me by your name", indicates the honesty present in the heroes' romance. The name is one of the most important elements of a person's identity. By calling each other by the other's name, the heroes understand that they have nothing to hide from each other and treat each other as equal. This honestly, while coming off in the movie, was not made particularly felt, hidden under the uncertainty of the first romance and the lack of real contact the two lovers had until later in the film.

What made up for the disappointment that was to watch the performances was the atmosphere. At this extent I have to congratulate Luca Guadagnino, since he took care of that to the last detail: from discotheques, to vintage fridges and televisions, to clothes representative of the time, everything was well-chosen and showed not only the love of the director for accuracy, but also his will to complement his story visually. The setting was a feast for the eyes to see, thanks to Sayombhu Mukdeeprom's admirable photography, with the help of which the amazing landscape of Italy came to life. Musically, the movie felt like a time machine to this time, with the Psychedelic Furs, Joe Esposito, and even forgotten one-hit wonder F. R. David offering (among others) the accompaniment to the film. Sufjan Stevens's original score, on the other hand, didn't make any impression to my eyes and thus deserves no special mention.

The joie de vivre that the director wanted to communicate through his work does not come through because of all the factors mentioned above. For a film slow and emotionally reserved - this of course being an oxymoron - from start to end, one cannot expect from it to deliver this sense of freedom, this sense of love, carelessness and adventure, that is entailed in the term "Joie de vivre". For all the people experiencing "joie de voir" while watching "Call me by your name", I found none of this joy. The film was not satisfying. Only by saying that could I call it by its name.

Das Boot (1981)

Das Boot - When German cinema tried to go international

[6/10 · 18 April 2022]

German cinema, like much of European cinema, has rarely gone international; few films ever transcended the borders of its country, let alone its continent. Yet "Das Boot" not only achieved that, but also did so with a sensitive subject: the experience of World War Two through the eyes of the Nazis.

One must not mistake "Das Boot" for a propaganda film, or one justifying the actions of the Nazis. It's a clearly anti-war feature, that aims to show that even Hitler's well-oiled war machine had problems from within. The whole film takes place in the titular submarine, the U-Boat 96. Its crew is made up of new recruits, all young men who have no idea what real war is. Above all, they don't know what real life in a submarine feels like.

The one not knowing this the most is a war correspondent (Herbert Grönemeyer), who accompanies the crew in order to take photographs of these brave men fighting for their land and show them to the German people. At first, he is happy and proud to see the men working, waiting to fight, and loves the atmosphere of the submarine. But, shortly after, he starts to sweat, becomes claustrophobic.

All the men feel enthusiastic when they enter the submarine. They wave to other submarines as if they see old friends, and climb to the top t admire the sea. It is only when a destroyer hits the submarine that they understand what war is: A state of constant fear, in which the vague speeches of their leader about love to the country and glory don't matter.

The one who knows that best is the captain (Jürgen Prochnow). Understanding that the war is handled disastrously by the High Command, he complains and tries to help his crew survive. Only he is battle-hardened, all the others never having witnessed war, let alone participated in it. When he sees that the morale of his crew is lower than the deep in which they dive, he gives them hope. But such hope is lost when they are stuck in Gibraltar. Will they survive? They surely don't know. And we stand with them, seeing their struggle to survive in an illogical war, in which the old values about honour and duty are lost in the carnage brought by machines, the destroyer being one such.

Wolfgang Petersen managed to show that both sides of this war had humans in their ranks. Even if we forget that when seeing the evil Nazis in "Raiders of the lost ark" or "Dunkirk", "Das Boot" makes everyone see that not all of the Allies' enemies were soulless war machines. They also have families, and even the high-ranked ones don't always agree with their leader's decisions. The one that always does that is the 1st Watch Officer (Hubertus Bengsch), who, brainwashed as he is, obeys every order of his superiors and maintains his fixation with the military etiquette until the end, wearing his uniform and trimming his beard when all the others have submitted to time and now stay unshaved. It is the reality of war in contrast to the imaginary version of it. Not al soldiers could be like the Officer. The High Command would like this to happen, but human nature doesn't submit so easily.

In the three hours of the film, we witness the change of character that the recruits experience: All of their optimism is lost, replaced by hopelessness. No one cares about their country, or the war. What they want is to save themselves.

While Petersen's direction was excellent, showing both the interior and the exterior of the U-Boat in a way that transports the viewers there, the duration of his film almost made the effect of his direction disappear. Too long for a commercial film, and focusing on the same place - in order to give us the feeling of anxiety and claustrophobia the sailors felt - it retains little of the film's original suspense, and thus renders such an admirable effort tedious.

It is interesting to see that the films that crossed the German borders at that time were focused on very controversial topics. Released the same year, the frightening "Christiane F", about the addiction of a thirteen year-old girl to drugs also met international success. If this film was the portrait of the generation actually walking on the German streets, "Das Boot" could be interpreted as the opposite: the depiction of a generation of which the acts were no longer acceptable in the eyes of the spectators, that tried not to justify, but rather to redeem itself through the movie. The same spectators that made the former film a hit contributed to the latter's success. Because it didn't try to justify the actions of a regime of which the members were back then still alive. It just attempted to show the other side of the war, of which the sorry is only told by the victors, while acknowledging the role of Germany in it. Two films showing the most sensitive subjects of each generation, that met transnational acclaim because of their honest portrayal of these topics.

"Das Boot" is a special anti-war film, since it expresses these feelings from the other side, that of the people that caused this war to happen at the first place. It is through its humanity that it manages to transcends the evil nature of Naziism and become a testament to the irrationality of war. In the U-Boat 96, Hell came to Earth. And through its story, many saw what this Hell looked like. For a commercial film, this is more than enough.

Summer of 85 (2020)

Été 85 - François Ozon's teen love story

[6/10 · 17 April 2022]

François Ozon is one of the new auteurs of French cinema. True to the spirit of his predecessors, especially Truffaut, he also deals with adolescence in some of his films. "Été 85", one of his latest works, is also the one in which teenagers play the most important role. It is a film full of nostalgia, that perfectly complements what seems to be a teen romance like no other.

In 1985, two teenagers, Alexis and Dave meet. The former's ships has capsized and so he needs to be rescued. The brave David comes and saves him. Not only from drowning, but also from lowliness. For, Alexis does not love girls. His preference lies more to men. This may sound completely normal today, but for the society of the time, it was something unacceptable. And so, the two heroes hide their love from everyone but an Englishwoman , Katy, who has come in France as an au pair. Unfortunately, luck is not on their side. David dies in a twist of faith. And now, Alexis has to decide whether he will fulfill the promise he gave his friend whilst he was alive: to dance on his grave.

Ozon's film is as much about gay love as it is about how the latter transcends death. Alexis and Dave truly love each other, and this shows. With "Été 85", Ozon essentially deconstructs the feeling of famous 80's films, and puts them in a different spectrum.

In France during that time, homosexuality was a taboo topic. Because of that, the cinema didn't dare explore it. Instead, the spectators were offered stories of heterosexual, middle class teenagers searching for love in the opposite sex. For this reason, when David puts the headphones of a Walkman in Alexis's ears, this is not only a tribute to cult teenage film "La Boum" (1980), of which Ozon is an admirer, but also an interesting revision of the film, since for the first time, it becomes the story of people marginalised at the time of its release. Such a scene serves to show that am age now beloved also had a lot of faults, with the homosexuals of the generation that grew up back then having the chance to see their own stories on screen only forty years later.

The quite bizarre fixation of the characters on death also serves as a contradiction of the French 80's teen film tradition, in which the topic was either nonexistent, or treated more as something only implied and almost never shown on screen. By having the hero see his dead lover's corpse, Ozon takes advantage not only of the shock factor of the scene, but also of the fact that such a scene would have been deemed outrageous by the audience of the day. Only actors of the new generation could successfully pull out such a sequence, in which death is perceived not as much as a taboo, but rather a natural fact of life.

Not only does the film examine the 80's, it also embraces the decade. The soundtrack is fully composed of hits of the time, with The Cure, Raf and many more artists transporting the viewers to this neon-lit, glamorous age. It is as if the director took an episode of the chart show "Top 50" and put it in the film. Marc Toesca would have been proud.

The film is truly no commercial feature. It is an auteur film, one that dares to address sensitive topics with honesty, with a plot that sometimes feels more like material for philosophical discussion than the story of a film. It is a movie that takes a beloved decade and its film culture and turns it upside down. Nevertheless, "Été 85" succeeds in its goal: to show the other side of an allegedly innocent and fun time, while also embracing its carelessness. It's the two aspects of an age in one film. In the summer of 85, both of them were made clear.

Betty Blue (1986)

Betty Blue - It's a mad mad love

[10/10 · 17 April 2022]

37,2 degrees. This is the morning temperature of a pregnant woman's body. This is the temperature Betty Blue (Beatrice Dalle) would like her body to have. But she can't. She can't have children, and so, the already fragile woman descends into madness. Only her love for Zorg, a handyman (Jean-Hugues Anglade) keeps her sane. Or does it? Does his love actually deteriorate her mental state? For, it's not a love like all others; it's a mad, mad love.

Such a love shows Jean-Jacques Beneix in his 1986 film, "Betty blue" (of which the original title was "37,2 le matin", indicating the temperature mentioned above). The director, already famous for his 1981 visual masterpiece, "Diva", here delved into emotional relationships in a strange, even bizarre manner. Betty blue is a fired waitress, and meets Zorg all of a sudden. But they know they are made for each other. They attract each other as if they were both parts of the same body. It's a love like that that can lead someone to do anything for their lover. Both Betty and Zorg excel in that extent.

Zorg works for a fat, rude cottage owner. His job is to paint all of his cottages, something tiring to do all alone. And so, Betty comes to help him. Unfortunately, her intense, uninhibited behaviour, perfect for intimate moments, becomes problematic, even dangerous when faced with the irritable employer of her lover. In a scene, fed up with his illogical attitude towards Zorg, she chases him paints his car with the same paint that she had painted his cottages. The submissive Zorg does almost nothing.

Zorg is an aspiring writer, but his own low confidence has made him forget this aspect of his character. It is only when Betty discovers his manuscripts that he decides to take up writing again. Without her constant support - she even types his manuscripts, thousands of words long, in order to send it to publishers - he would fail.

Zorg is there for Betty as much as she is for him. But he can't help her uncontrollable behaviour, her urge to always act spontaneously, her fragility, her anger, of which the cause no one understands. Betty is angry because no one wants to put up with her. They resort to the easy solution of calling her "mad" and locking her up in mental hospitals. Yes, technology can help in curing such mental illnesses, since Betty is surely ill. But only on the surface. What will really cure Betty is love, the one that Zorg gives her. Still, their love is more of the character of Betty herself; without limits, full of intensity and emotion. It's a love that reflects her inner state of feeling, and so, if something happens that distorts this happy moment in her life, she will die.

When recounting the making of "Betty Blue", Beneix said that Anglade and Dalle had a real romance during the film's shooting. This surely helped in making their performances more realistic. They indeed seemed destined for each other and complimented each other's behaviour in a way that gave this story its substance. Only through Dalle's captivating performance could the character of Betty come alive, and the reserved, worried Anglade served as a perfect counterpoint to her constant turbulence. These two were, in my opinion, one of the best couples of French 80's cinema, in an age when it had a lot of them.

The film does not limit itself to showing their love in feelings. It has plenty of erotic scenes, in which the named bodies of the protagonists can be fully seen as they make love. But this eroticism is well hidden. The bodies don't come off as provocative, neither is the sight of Dalle almost naked walking in the street. They are filmed in a way that seems as if Beneix wanted more to reflect Dalle's natural personality through her body, rather than exploit them for voyeuristic reasons. They are not there to be admired, rather just looked at.

Beneix does not forget his cinéma du look roots and , aside from the excellent story, fills his film with bright colours, luxury cars that shine in the night, and the magical landscape of the beach in which the cottages can be found. All this makes the film as a much a feast for the eyes, as it is for the heart.

A story about love, about madness, about the conclusion the combination of these two can have. A story about two people made for each other, but so different that sometimes their love seems to come from nowhere. "Betty Blue" is all that, and even more. It is a film as different as Betty's and Zorg's love was to all others. And this is why it is so successful in the end. Just as their love couldn't be replaced, this movie cannot be replaced by any other. It is what it is. Different, and often dazzling. Like their mad, mad love.

Class (1983)

Class - Not so classy after all

[5/10 · 16 April 2022]

If now he is mostly forgotten, Andrew McCarthy was all over the place in the eighties. Starring in successful teen films, he became a heartthrob, while retaining his persona of the sweet, innocent guy, for whom fame was rather unwanted. 1983's "Class" marked his debut, and started his short age of glory.

McCarthy plays Jonathan, an innocent country boy who goes to a prep school with the help of a scholarship. There, he meets Skip (Rob Lowe), a dominant, charming guy with apparently lots of sexual experience. Poor Jonathan falls for his pranks, but has something that the quite vulgar, irritable Skip doesn't; tenderness. So, when Skip understands his roommate's will to take this big step towards adulthood that the "first time" is, he suggests he go to a bar, where there are many women longing for company. And so he does, and really meets someone. Ellen (Jacqueline Bisset), a rich, seductive woman who attracts him like a magnet does steel. These two will start a relationship that will take a wrong turn when Skip understands with whom his loyal friend makes love. It's someone as close as can get.

Despite the engaging plot, the film doesn't function because of its cast's uninspired performances. Rob Lowe, arguably the most significant of the so-called "Brat Pack" members, here exhibited only immaturity and could not act convincingly in the scenes involving conflict with his friend. Jacqueline Bisset, while serving well the role of the attractive woman, acted too artificially for a romantic movie and thus left no particular impression. As for Cliff Robertson, here playing her oppressive husband, he personified the rich capitalist, that is, the archetype of the successful 80's businessman without any distinguishing traits, and consequently was as forgettable as the rest of the cast.

Andrew McCarthy was a case by himself; his role was the most likeable and relatable in the whole film. He was, essentially, the average youth of the time, searching for their first sexual experiences and wanting to escape from their parents. The youth of an age characterised by carelessness, in which teenage issues were explored seriously for the first time. Yet, the John Hughes era didn't start for another one year. And so, neither did deep teenage characters. Jonathan is kind, he respects his partner, but we are supposed to feel pity for his inexperience in sexual matters, and for his childish curiosity. The age when every teenager is accepted for what they are hasn't come yet, and the sensitive McCarthy has thus no place to express his real nature in a positive way.

"Class" is ostensibly about the way one's social standing can obstruct their having a relationship with someone belonging to another part of society. This is where its title comes from. Jonathan is too poor, too simple to have a relationship with Ellen. He comes from the countryside, while she lives in the city, and is married to a capitalist, while Jonathan has virtually no money to spend. Unfortunately, this aspect of the film is left unexploded, replaced by gags more suited to a sex romp.

For all the "class" that Skip seems to have, one of his pranks now feels extremely dated. Upon hearing that Jonathan will go find a partner, he challenges him to bring back her underwear, in order to show that he they made love. This move would be similarly repeated one year later, in John Hughes's classic, "Sixteen Candles", again by a nerdy, unpopular character, this time played by Anthony Michael Hall. While such a scene would maybe be acceptable in a film in the style of, say, "Animal house" (1978), or "Porky's" (1982), what with their relentless vulgarity and emphasis on sex, it changes the character of "Class" and makes what started as a romantic teen film now look more than a cheap copy of the latter two.

This film does not succeed because it tries balancing love and lust. Is it about love between two people of different ages and social classes, or a celebration of teenage enthusiasm? Neither the director, Lewis John Carlino, nor the cast seems to know what "Class" really is, and thus change their performances too abruptly for them to make any sense. Due to the film's dual nature, it feels too rushed, since it has little to n substance, and the issue arising from Bisset's romance with McCarthy is resolved too quickly.

Starting the career of one of the decade's most recognisable actors, "Class", is, nevertheless saved by his performance. Only through his trademark sweetness does the film keep some little quality as a romantic comedy. He was the only one who seemed to keep some of his dignity when faced with pranks, ridicule, and disappointment. He showed, not for the last time, that he, indeed had some class.

The Return of Martin Guerre (1982)

Le retour de Martin Guerre - Another big budget film à la française

[7/10 · 12 April 2022]

During the 80's, French filmmakers were encouraged by the Mitterand government, especially its Minister of Culture, Jack Lang, to make period pieces. Movies about the history of France, its landscape, and the character of its people. This happened because the French cinema had to face stiff competition from foreign films. Gone were the days when a few French films could dominate the box-office. Now, they had to face the American film industry, already strong in the previous decades, and international productions.

In a sense, Lang's move succeeded. Indeed, such films were not only successful, but also of considerable quality, a prime example of that being Claude Berri's "Jean de Florette" (1986). Moviegoers were interested in learning about the past, at least a dramatised version of it. And one couldn't find a better film showing exactly that than "Le retour de Martin Guerre".

Based on the true story of a man who pretended to be the titular hero and fooled a small French village in the middle of the sixteenth century, the movie describes his antics, from his arrival to the village, to his trial for deceit after an accusation of an alleged relative of his. This premise leaves lots of space for an interesting portrayal of life in the early Renaissance and the beliefs of the people at the time.

At first, the stranger (Gérard Depardieu) is treated with love and respect. Having fought in the Hundred Years War and thought dead, his return (if he truly is Martin Guerre) is an event of utmost importance for the small-town residents of the village. In the Renaissance, as is the case now in some communities, men, especially those with families, Martin being the father of a boy, were considered the most important members of the society. So, not only has a long-lost person returned, but also a capable member of the community has come to contribute again.

In the nineteenth century, there was the famous case of Phineas Gage, a construction worker who was wounded in the head by a rod passing through it as a result of an explosion. His behaviour changed dramatically after this accident, and he was transformed, from a kind-hearted man, to one who was irritable and spiteful. One could compare the stranger's behaviour with Phineas Gage's case. The real Guerre was said to be a rude, cold man, who showed no love to his wife. Yet, the person claiming to be him behaves the opposite way. So loving is he to the woman, Bertrande (Nathalie Baye), that she falls for him and tries to protect him during the trial. What could've brought such change to someone's character? War, perhaps, since the man is a veteran of the Battle of Quentin (1556). In an age when science is almost nonexistent such excuses were easily believed. There was no psychologist to confirm the truth of the man's statements. There was only the Church.

The Church was back then the ultimate authority on every matter. Next to the king, they controlled every aspect of the ordinary people's lives. It is indicative that one of the most important witnesses to the trial of the presumed imposter was a priest (André Chaumeau) who, with his passionate speech, easily swayed the judges to a certain direction. If the man was found guilty, the Church would have to condemn not only him, but also Bertrande, since she would have committed adultery, a crime punishable even by death, in such a close-minded society.

Bertrande was one of many examples of women that were back then accused for crimes of minor, if any, importance. Interpreted masterfully by Baye, she is presented as a vulnerable being, whose human need for love is deemed unacceptable by her community. That Baye could play such different characters as the prostitute Nicole in "La Balance", and Bertrande in "Le retour de Martin Guerre" in the same year just goes to show her undeniable talent. In a sense, they are both people of the same kind; regarded as outcasts by the society due to their social class and sex, they have almost no rights and resort to questionable activities to satisfy their needs, be it personal or financial. Being both the victims of the authorities, they survive by caring only for themselves, something that will put their relationships, with men of dubious moral standings, in trouble.

As for Depardieu, this film was one in which he showed his serious side as an actor, personifying Guerre with an emotional intensity necessary for the role of such a fickle man. He is, essentially, trapped in his own lies, and his effort to untangle this web of lies he has himself constructed proves difficult, and is the primary theme of the film.

Not only were the performances excellent, but also the settings and costumes served the purpose of the movie. Functioning as the visual qualities complementary to the actors' interpretations, they transformed the viewers to this faraway time and proved stunning in their detail.

Interesting is to note that the music score, composed by Michel Portal, won the César award for best film soundtrack when faced with such competition as Vladimir Cosma's "La Boum 2" and Michel Colombier's "Une chambre en ville". To me, this showed the intention of the César Academy to honour scores that might not have had commercial character, but were commendable cinema-wise. Unfortunately, I regard this as a backward decision. In a time when the only movies keeping French cinema alive were commercial films, - "La Boum 2", after all, was more successful than "Le retour de Martin Guerre" - the Academy wished to award a film score that, while high-quality, showed no commercial value, and thus had no relation to the interests of the public. The state of award shows, which are now mostly estranged from reality and the commercial world, was perpetuated by such decisions. We have to decide whether we want these institutions to be a celebration of cinema in general or of modern cinema. Has the soundtrack "La Boum 2" proven to be more timeless than that of "Le retour de Martin Guerre" ? I truly don't know. But the viewers of the time had chosen, what music they preferred for their films, and the authorities ignored them.

Considering all that, what remains of "Le retour de Martin Guerre" is an ambitious film with impeccable costumes and props, of which the performances elevated it to a higher level, with an intriguing topic that may also serve as an examination of early Renaissance society and its beliefs. A film that was met with success when released, despite its uncommercial nature, being part of a more intellectual type of films, with their messages hidden behind the costumes. Still, only the combination of the two could make "Le retour de Martin Guerre" a good movie. It was a big budget film, but one à la française. I think this explains it all.

The Student (1988)

L'étudiante - "La Boum" goes to university

[9/10 · 10 April 2022]

After her withdrawal from "La septième cible", Sophie Marceau and Claude Pinoteau had a strained relationship. The director who had discovered the now ambitious actress felt betrayed by her decision to leave his movie, and didn't talk to her for four years. Still, every bad thing has some good consequences, and Sophie Marceau's participation in more complex films during her period of misunderstanding with Pinoteau allowed her to play even more convincingly when they reconciled in "L'étudiante". It was "La Boum" for the now grown-up original audience. "La Boum" in university.

Like Vic before her, Marceau's new heroine, Valentine, a student, is one of the most relatable kind. Opinionated and smart, she charms not only with her presence, but also with her words. It is though the former that she makes a young jazzman, Ned (Vincent Lindon) fall for her. Believing it to be just a one-night adventure, she goes out with him. But she can't get him out of her head on the days that pass. Is it love? For her, surely, but she can't sacrifice five years of studying for a relationship. Balancing her love life with her studies will prove to be the theme of this charming movie.

Despite having called the protagonist relatable, one can recognise that her personality has some exaggerated elements. She is, I think, too intellectual to be believable, and her arguments over sociological or political matters have no substance or purpose in a romantic comedy. It's as if she's trapped in the wrong film. For all that, though, her relatability stems from the fact that she has to balance two different aspects of her life, both prevalent in the university years. Not many people have had - or would have - relationships with touring musicians, but many would have partners for whom the importance of university would be incomprehensible. A classic workaholic, Valentine can't let Ned make her effort go to waste. She needs to succeed, and love doesn't let her do that.

Speaking of Ned, he also has his fair share of contradictory elements. While he wants to become a famous musician, he is too careless and lets valuable opportunities to unused. Too submissive to impose his presence, he unsuccessfully tries to record a film score, only to learn that his place has been taken by someone else, and does nothing. The only person understanding him is Valentine, and it is the meeting of these antithetic characters that gives the film its charm.

For this reason, the film is clearly commercial. Only a commercial film could survive with such a contradictory cast. What saves it is the cast's interaction, full of emotion, and the aforementioned plot, with its fair degree of relatability. Its resembling of "La Boum", with its relentless optimism, and its faith in true love, that prevails even in situations when it seems impossible. It is, surely, cheap, a cash-grabber, aimed to an audience that still carried their love of "La Boum" with them. But it is a gentle one. Even if it was made for money, it makes up for it using the same formula that made "La Boum " successful. One combining innocence and relevant maturity, with a soundtrack that sticks to the ear for days to come.

It is, as mentioned above, "La Boum" for university students. Nothing more and nothing less. One can't, and mustn't expect a lot from such films. They exist for other reasons. To make us dream, and feel joy. To make us travel back in a time when the University of Paris was still called the Sorbonne, and putting a Walkman in someone's ears was an indication of love.

For all its cheapness, it is as romantic and nostalgic as can get. And for that, it is invaluable.

Happy Easter (1984)

Joyeuses Pâques - Belmondo tries his hand at comedy

[3/10 · 10 April 2022]

In the 80's, Jean-Paul Belmondo was the main French action hero. Most of his films were big-budget adventures, with him fighting everyone, from the Germans in "L'as des as" (1982), to mafia criminals in "Le marginal" (1983). While these films have their charm (especially "L'as des as" is both hilarious and sweet), it is in comedy that he really shone. In 1984, wanting a change from his frequent action films, he collaborated with director Georges Lautner in "Joyeuses Pâques", an amazing comedy of manners.

Belmondo plays Stéphane Margelle, a wealthy industrialist who lives the perfect life; he has a loving wife, Sophie (Marie Laforêt) and a well-paid job. He has only one flaw; he is a womaniser. Every time he leaves for a business trip, he seduces a charming woman. And so, when his wife leaves for vacation without him, he seizes the opportunity to invite a young woman named Julie, (Sophie Marceau) who has been dumped from her boyfriend on Easter day, in his house. Of course, luck is not on his side, and Sophie comes back uninvited. Now, Stéphane has to find an excuse to justify Julie's presence. So, he says that she is his dear daughter, who, by the way, is pregnant. So starts Stéphane's web of lies, that grows even bigger, until a surprise visitor in a party turns everything upside down.

While the premise is already promising, the performances are the ones that differentiate the film from all other such comedies. Belmondo interprets Margelle with such intensity and theatricality that he becomes a pleasure to watch, only for his exaggerated reactions to everything his wife says. Laforêt, on the other hand, is pretty relatable in her way of trying to keep some logic in this mad situation, and her interactions with both her husband and her alleged step-daughter have a delightful mixture of sweetness and irony. As for Sophie Marceau, she serves as an excellent combination of the two others' characters, being both relatively reserved - or rather embarrassed with the situation she has been trapped in - and sentimental, especially in her confrontations with her "father". This was one of the films she made after being released from her contract with Gaumont, willing to cement her image as a serious actress. While she never really succeeded in that extent, her performance here was charming and showed a different aspect of her acting abilities, a far cry from the innocent teenager she had played just two years before.

The supporting cast is also excellent. Long-time Belmondo collaborator Michel Beaune is an oxymoron by himself as the communist businessman, who hates Margelle for his capitalistic nature but is the head of the company in which the latter works, and Rosy Varte as the surprise visitor provides possibly the most laughs in the film with her almost preposterous behaviour.

Lautner, who had previously collaborated with Belmondo in "Le professionnel" (1981) directed "Joyeuses Pâques" at just the right pace for it to be watchable without becoming tedious. For all the verbal comedy, a car chase at the end of the film shows that both for Lautner and Belmondo, some action, even light-hearted, was inescapable.

For many viewers, it was this movie that was inescapable. Millions flocked to see it when it came out, showing that a collaboration of the old and the new generation of French actors was not only desirable, but also successful when taking place. So, shy not sit and enjoy "Joyeuses Pâques", or better, watch it with a friend? It is surely a great way to wish "Happy Easter".

Les sous-doués en vacances (1982)

Les sous-doués en vacances - A cheap comedy à la française

[8/10 · 10 April 2022]

1982 was the year of sequels in the French vinema. Claude Pinoteau made "La Boum 2", while his compatriot and synonymous colleague Claude Zidi continued the adventures of his under-gifted students by making them go on vacation. The result was a film that succeeded in being a good sequel since the director changed no ingredient in his winning formula.

Some time after their examinations, the heroes now feel the need to relax and go on vacation. Bébel (Daniel Auteuil) is determined to travel to the Seychelles with his girlfriend, Jennifer. She, of course, dumps him, and poor Bébel will try finding a job, since he's strapped for cash. Luck shines for him at this extent; he works as a test subject for an invention called the "Love computer ". According to the crazy scientist who invented it, it can show if two people are made for each other when listening to a song. It is through these sessions that our hero meets Claudine, a blonde with blue eyes deeper than his intelligence.

Unfortunately, the famous club owner Paul Memphis (Guy Marchand) has also fallen in love with Claudine. Under the guise of wanting her as a helper for a concert in Saint Tropez, he travels with her to this eternal setting of French comedies, leaving Bébel behind. So start the efforts of poor Bébel to win Claudine's heart again, justifying the love computer's conclusion about these two.

In "Les sous-doués en vacances ", Zidi changed nothing from the first film but the setting. The heroes are all there, with their mischievous pranks now aimed to Memphis rather than the teachers. The mood of carelessness that exists in the first opus is also there, and, coupled with some 80's atmosphere in clubs and beaches makes for a feast for both the comedy lover and the 80's enthusiast.

Not only is the movie hilarious, but its soundtrack is also exemplary of what French pop had to offer at the time. Vladimir Cosma gifted a score composed of infectious hits, some of them also found in "La Boum 2" and "Le père Noël est une ordure". The timeless hit song, "Destinée" performed by co-star Guy Marchand, is one of the most famous slows in France, and was danced to death (if one can die from standing too much) in clubs and parties.

A film with a plot that works through being just fast-paced enough to be engaging, a soundtrack as commercial as it gets, and a cast of the most hilarious kind, "Les sous-doués en vacances " is a cheap comedy à la française, that is successful because of its honesty. It doesn't try to be anything else but funny, its capable cast hiding their seriousness for the audience's amusement. Zidi knew where his talent lay; in making people laugh. With "Les sous-doués en vacances ", he certainly did so. He was, indeed, destined for comedy.