Letters from Iwo Jima

Letters from Iwo Jima has been called the “completion of the Iwo Jima saga,” with the first part being Flags of Our Fathers (released in October of 2006). This description is true to the extent that each film shows audiences a different perspective of the battle—Flags gives us the U.S. and Letters the Japanese—but the films can also stand alone, apart from one another, and remain complete works. A person does not need to see one to understand the other, but it is quite interesting to watch them both so that one can gauge an overall perception of the battle. In a tremendous feat, Clint Eastwood directed the films back-to-back, and it isn’t a stretch to say that Letters is the better one. While Flags of Our Fathers is a good picture by all accounts, it is still filled with flaws. By contrast, Letters from Iwo Jima will likely go down in history as one of the greatest war movies ever made. Does it deserve such status? Quite possibly. It certainly has its fair share of powerful moments. For one thing, the Japanese knew they were going to lose, and much of the film’s strength lies in illustrating their complete and utter resignation to death. Much like the story of the Alamo, they were overwhelmed by incredible odds, but kept fighting to the last man. It is this inevitability, this certainty of loss, which ultimately fuels the picture. As such, Letters from Iwo Jima has a focus that Flags of Our Fathers was sorely lacking. Another key ingredient to the picture’s success is the addition of Ken Watanabe as General Kuribayashi. In one of the year’s best performances, Watanabe plays a man who is well aware of what the outcome of the battle will be, but remains steadfast in his devotion to his country. Letters from Iwo Jima is not only one of the best films of the year, but it is also one of the best in Eastwood’s long career.

Directed by Clint Eastwood.
Written by Iris Yamashita.
Starring Ken Watanabe, Kazunari Ninomiya, Tsuyoshi Ihara, Ryo Kase, Shido Nakamura, Hiroshi Watanabe and Takumi Bando.

Rated R for graphic war violence. 141 min.

****½ so says The Fish

The Painted Veil

The Painted Veil, a period piece set in 1920’s China, could easily be described as an epic production. At the same time, however, it turns out to be one of the most intimate character studies of the year. Based on W. Somerset Maughm’s novel, it tells the story of Kitty Fane (Naomi Watts), a shallow beauty who was born into a wealthy family and spoiled for the better part of her life. At a party, she meets the rather uninteresting Walter (Edward Norton), a bacteriologist who is stationed in the far east of China. They meet on subsequent occasions and, to her surprise, he proposes. She doesn’t love him, of course, but feels pressured to accept because of her age and the opinions of her parents. Once in China, she begins a love affair with a charismatic Englishman named Charlie (Liev Schreiber) and has delusions about running off with him, away from her boring husband. It is not long before Walter discovers her infidelity, but rather than granting a divorce, he decides to drag her into the interior of the country where a deadly cholera epidemic has broken out. Kitty views this as an act of murder and suicide on Walter’s part, but her husband’s true intentions are never known. Maughm’s various works have been adapted a countless number of times, and this film ranks among the best, due largely to the superb performance by Naomi Watts. The growth of her character feels so natural and unforced that the audience will be compelled to embrace her in the end, despite all of the mistakes she has made. Edward Norton is terrific as always, but Walter exists more as a tool that ultimately shapes who Kitty becomes, as opposed to a full-fledged character himself. Norton brings quality to the role, but the film really belongs to Watts, who does her best work since Mulholland Drive. The scenery, thanks to cinematographer Stuart Dryburgh, is absolutely breathtaking; Alexandre Desplat’s musical score evokes the perfect range of emotions; and director John Curran does an excellent job of balancing all of the elements. It is a wonderful translation from book to screen.

Directed by John Curran.
Written by Ron Nyswaner.
Starring Naomi Watts, Edward Norton, Liev Schreiber, Toby Jones, Diana Rigg, Anthony Wong Chau-Sang and Juliet Howland.

Rated PG-13 for some mature sexual situations, partial nudity, disturbing images, and brief drug content. 125 min.

**** so says The Fish

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is a novel that has been fighting to get to the screen for over 20 years. German author Patrick Süskind had long been skeptical about a possible film adaptation and always declined to sell the rights. In fact, his stance was so adamant that it was itself portrayed in a film called Rossini, about an author who refuses to relinquish his story to filmmakers. Since its publication in 1986, Perfume has garnered interest from a host of directors, including Stanley Kubrick, Milos Forman, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott and Tim Burton, all of whom felt the story was ultimately unfilmable. Although it has finally been brought to the screen by Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run), the failure of previous efforts is understandable considering the precise nature of the tale. Set in 18th century France, Perfume chronicles the sad life of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (played perfectly by newcomer Ben Whishaw). Born in the foulest section of Paris, in the putrid bowels of a fish market, he is immediately abandoned by his mother and left for dead. Spending his childhood in an orphanage, our protagonist is despised by those around him. The other children cannot explain their aversion, but are convinced in their souls that there is something very wrong with Grenouille. In fact, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille possesses the greatest sense of smell in the known history of the world. It is so acute that he can discern organisms—plants, animals, even people—from miles away. He can distinguish between water and rock from vast distances, breaking down the elements that make up the world and cataloguing it within his extensive mind. Yet, for all of his olfactory abilities, Grenouille has no smell of his own. As such, he wanders the world unnoticed, like a phantom. This drives him to create the ultimate perfume using the most beautiful fragrances he can imagine. His methods in obtaining them, as the title suggests, are horrifying to say the least, and this is why one might hesitate to recommend Perfume to others. It is, fundamentally, about a serial killer. But unlike the charismatic Hannibal Lecter, or the vulnerable Tom Ripley, Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is a hollow shell of a person, propelled only by his pursuit of a perfume. As such, he is more like an animal, driven by instinct, than he is a human being. Like the novel, the film does nothing to sympathize with him, and thereby asks a great deal from the audience. However, those willing to follow Grenouille on his journey will be rewarded with a beautiful production where all the expense shows up vividly on the screen. The costliest German film ever made, Perfume is by and far the most handsome looking film of 2006. Tykwer succeeds rather impressively in illustrating Grenouille’s sensory skills, and it is doubtful that even Süskind himself will find many faults with the adaptation. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer will not appeal to everyone, but those who relish the original story will likely feel the same way about the film.

Directed by Tom Tykwer.
Written by Andrew Birkin, Bernd Eichinger and Tom Tykwer.
Starring Ben Whishaw, Alan Rickman, Rachel Hurd-Wood, Dustin Hoffman and John Hurt.

Rated R for aberrant behavior involving nudity, violence, sexuality, and disturbing images. 147 min.

****½ so says The Fish

Children of Men

If there was a single comfort that guided humanity through its darkest times, it was the idea that life would always go on. It has been the same for every generation. No matter how bleak or chaotic the state of the world seemed to be, people could always have hope for the future. But what if there was no future? This is the horrifying scenario depicted in Children of Men, the brilliant new film from director Alfonso Cuaron, loosely adapted from the science fiction novel by P.D. James. The time is 2027, and it has been almost 19 years since the last baby on Earth was born. For some reason or other (it is never explained, nor does it matter), humanity has been unable to produce children. The world has become a dystopia of violent extremists and elderly citizens, left with the terrible reality that in another fifty years, everyone will be gone. Clive Owen stars as Theo Faron, a London bureaucrat and former peace activist who has become resigned to the fact that all is lost. He spends his days wasting away, sometimes in the company of his hippie friend Jasper (played, as always, to perfection by Michael Caine), completely disillusioned about the fate of humanity. He is visited by Julian (Julianne Moore), a woman from his past—now turned revolutionary—who wants Theo’s aid in transporting a girl across the border. The girl’s name is Kee, and to Theo’s complete shock, it turns out that she is pregnant. The rest of the film is a journey in which Theo must bring Kee to safety while protecting her, and the secret she carries, at all costs. The film is thought provoking on every level, from its depiction of a frightening future in all its realism, to how it mirrors the world we live in today. Cuaron uses long takes to capture every scene, and he films the characters in medium shots rather than close-ups. The actors’ performances are never manipulated through the use of editing; rather they are left to speak for themselves. The ultimate effect is an incredible authenticity that accompanies every situation within the film. On top of this, the cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki (The New World) is an absolute wonder to behold and will likely be analyzed and appreciated for years to come. These are just a few of the aspects that propel Children of Men into the same league as Metropolis, Blade Runner and Gattaca. It is a masterpiece of the genre.

Directed by Alfonso Cuaron.
Written by Alfonso Cuaron, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby.
Starring Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Claire-Hope Ashitey, Charlie Hunnam, Pam Faris, Peter Mullan and Danny Huston.

Rated R for strong violence, language, some drug use and brief nudity. 107 min.

***** so says The Fish

Pan's Labyrinth

Somehow, fairy tales have always carried the connotation that they are little more than moralistic yarns for youngsters. The brothers Grimm may beg to differ, but even their stories have grown somewhat saccharine in the mind’s eyes of readers. Leave it to writer/director Guillermo Del Toro to disrupt the order of things by giving us an R-rated fantasy that evokes the dormant sense of wonder that lies hidden within all adults. Ofelia, the protagonist of Pan’s Labyrinth, may be a child, but the obstacles and anguish she must overcome in this film are anything but childish. Set in 1944, amidst the post-Civil War repression of Franco’s regime, the story follows Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) as she and her mother Carmen are brought to Spain’s rural north at the behest of Captain Vidal. Though Carmen is recently married to Vidal, it is clear from the outset that her only value to the Captain is that she is pregnant with his child. Ofelia can sense this, but dutifully follows her mother to where her terrible stepfather is stationed. Played brilliantly by Sergi Lopez, Captain Vidal is one of the most terrifying villains to hit the silver screen in years. The sheer unpredictability of his sadistic actions imbues the film with a constant sense of fear and uneasiness. To escape this atmosphere, Ofelia spends her time reading books of fantasy and imagination. It isn’t long before she stumbles onto a hidden world filled with magic, fairies, creatures and horrors that are just as unspeakable as the ones she faces in reality. In this world she meets Pan, a suspicious faun who assigns her three tasks to complete. Not knowing who to trust, and with lives hanging in the balance, Ofelia soon comes to decisions that affect her own fate, along with the fates of those around her. Pan’s Labyrinth is a gloriously visual and heartbreaking story that teaches us just how sophisticated and complex a fairy tale can be.

Directed by Guillermo Del Toro.
Written by Guillermo Del Toro.
Starring Ivana Baquero, Sergi Lopez, Ariadna Gil, Maribel Verdu, Alex Angulo and Doug Jones.

Rated R for graphic violence and some language. 112 min.

****½ so says The Fish

We Are Marshall

Sports dramas that are based on inspiring true stories are not hard to come by. In fact, there is probably a rule somewhere that says one of these films must be released every couple of months. Some of the past year’s offerings include Invincible, Gridiron Gang and Glory Road (still the best one of 2006). Now we have We Are Marshall, a less traditional entry in the genre in that it deals less with the sport of football than it does with the small town that embraces it. In 1970, the town of Huntington, West Virginia, which was home to Marshall University, is devastated by a plane crash that claims the lives of its entire college football team, along with several coaches, parents and fans. It is a disaster that the citizens are unable to cope with, and leaves the college in a quandary about what to do with the football program. Many want to suspend it for the time being out of respect for the fallen players, but a few surviving teammates (who had missed the doomed flight) convince the College Board to hire a new coach and start the program from scratch. Until this point, the film is drowned in an understandably somber mood, which is why the appearance of Matthew McConaughey as Jack Lengyel, the new head coach, is such a breath of fresh air. The actor brings a great deal of much needed charm to an otherwise depressing film. Lengyel’s job is to recruit players from wherever he can, whether they come from basketball courts or soccer fields, in order to get the Marshall team ready for the approaching season. To say he is fighting an uphill battle, both on the field and with members of the Huntington community, is an understatement. But his determination to keep the team moving forward works well as a message for the film. More than anything, however, We Are Marshall proves that director McG—who, until now, has only been known for churning out Charlie’s Angels muck—can actually make a decent film. It’s not Hoosiers, but then again, very little is these days.

Directed by McG.
Written by Jamie Linden and Cory Helms.
Starring Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, David Strathairn, Anthony Mackie, Ian McShane, Kate Mara, Brian Geraghty and Robert Patrick.

Rated PG for emotional thematic material, a crash scene, and mild language. 124 min.

*** so says The Fish

Curse of the Golden Flower

Director Zhang Yimou is consistently ranked among the best directors in the world and for good reason. His films, ranging from his smaller, earlier work (Red Sorghum, Raise the Red Lantern) to his more recent epics (Hero, House of Flying Daggers), are rife with so many themes and are so masterfully executed that they stand head and shoulders above the works of most other filmmakers. Often using ancient Chinese legends for inspiration, he threads together wonderful narratives that focus on characters and relationships, while also creating some remarkable visual templates. Curse of the Golden Flower employs all of the director’s skills to their maximum effect. It is his most gorgeous looking film to date, and it features action sequences that would rival any of the Lord of the Rings pictures. On top of that, the plot is something right out of Shakespeare. Emperor Ping (played with a terrifying coldness by Chow Yun-Fat) has assembled his wife and three sons at the Forbidden City for the upcoming chrysanthemum festival. Although the eldest son, Xiang, is the Crown Prince, the Emperor would prefer to leave his throne to the middle son, Jie. Meanwhile, his wife, the Empress Phoenix (superbly played by Gong Li) suspects that her husband has been gradually poisoning her for several days. The story unfolds to include murder, love, conspiracy, incest, betrayal and madness among a host of other themes. Shigeru Umebayashi’s score oozes majesty and treachery all at once, and Zhao Xiaoding’s cinematography is truly breathtaking to behold. Although, when compared to Hero and other earlier works, Curse of the Golden Flower emerges as being decidedly harsh and unsympathetic, it is nonetheless one of Zhang Yimou’s richest endeavors to date and only serves to solidify his position as a superior filmmaker.

Directed by Zhang Yimou.
Written by Zhang Yimou.
Starring Gong Li, Chow Yun-Fat, Liu Ye, Jay Chou, Junjie Qin, Li Man, Jin Chen and Ni Dahong.

Rated R for violence. 114 min.

****½ so says The Fish

Notes on a Scandal

Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett act up a storm in this creepy psychological thriller that lies somewhat in the vein of Fatal Attraction. Dench stars as Barbara Covett, a veteran teacher at a public high school in London and a strict disciplinarian to say the least. She’s the kind of authority figure that commands attention as soon as she enters a room. Blanchett plays the school’s new art teacher Sheba Hart, whose docile attitude practically invites misconduct from the rambunctious students. Barbara effectively takes Sheba under her wing, while secretly growing a rather dangerous affection for her. She conveys all of this in her many diary entries, which eerily serve to narrate the picture. The plot takes a dramatic turn when Barbara catches Sheba having an affair with a student and finds a way to work this to her own advantage. Judi Dench, who is exceptional in whatever she does (as her plethora of Oscar nominations indicate), is in complete control of this frighteningly delicious role. It’s the best (and scariest) portrayal of a female psychopath since Kathy Bates in Misery. Blanchett is also outstanding, starting off as a rather meek and gullible victim of Barbara’s manipulation, but then grows steadily into a freight train of nerves as her character is pushed closer and closer toward the edge. Bill Nighy provides some wonderful supporting work as Sheba’s older husband, and Philip Glass’s unrelenting score beautifully drives the film down its spiral of desperation. Zoe Heller’s novel, adapted by playwright Patrick Marber (Closer), could easily have been the source for a great grade-B thriller; however, the story has been elevated by a taut script and two of the best performances of the year.

Directed by Richard Eyre.
Written by Patrick Marber.
Starring Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett, Bill Nighy and Andrew Simpson.

Rated R for language and some aberrant sexual content. 92 min.

**** so says The Fish