Robert Gives Thanks

I love slow movies. Really slow. For the longest time I thought everyone else considered that word to signify the worst in movies. Slow meant bad enough to put you to sleep. I love movies that put me to sleep. I’ve a whole collection of movies that I can pop in the DVD player whenever I can’t sleep and they’ll do the trick. If we can agree that music peaceful enough to put you to sleep can still be great, why not movies?

So this year I’m thankful for slow movies. But I’m also thankful for others who love them, because together we inspire filmmakers to keep making them. Great modern films like Goodbye, Solo and The Assassination of Jesse James..., and The Band’s Visit and Silent Light.

I’m thankful that cinema hasn’t been completely overrun by the desire to make anything but “boring” when too often films that are poetic, relaxing, serene, and contemplative are given that most terrible of labels.

I’m also thankful for Studio Ghibli, Charlie Chaplin, Mumbecore films, Faye Wong in Wong Kar Wai movies, Maria Falconetti , Charlie Kaufman, the masculinity of John Huston, the Iranian New Wave, Max Von Sydow (who looks like my grandfather), Fellini in the 1980’s, everything that comes out of Werner Herzog’s mouth, the modern Documentary movement, Louise Brooks and her hair, and Jude Law’s last line in A.I. “I am, I was!”

"You Haven't Taken Any Pills Have You?"

JA from MNPP here. Thank goodness Martin Scorsese finally got that damn Oscar out of the way! This is the Marty I've missed. The Marty who's having some fun. The Marty who had Robert DeNiro hold a bubbling flare in his hand.

If you have no idea what I speak of, the trailer for Shutter Island has finally arrived. If you don't know the plot from Dennis Lahane's book here tis:

"From Oscar®-winning director Martin Scorsese, “Shutter Island” is the story of two U.S. marshals, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), who are summoned to a remote and barren island off the coast of Massachusetts to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a murderess from the island’s fortress-like hospital for the criminally insane."

I knew as soon as Leo Dicaprio was given a couple of seconds of weighty dramatic pause before he could finish his setnence saying the hospital which he speaks of is "......... for the criminally insane!" that we were in deliciously lurid Cape Fear territory. You get glimpses of most of the film's sterling cast - Leo, Ben Kingsley, Mark Ruffalo (yum), Emily Mortimer (yay!), Michelle Williams (yay!), Elias Koteas and Jackie Earle Haley (both being creeps, yay!), Patty Clarkson (double yay!), Max Von Sydow (woop!)... I always look forward to a new Scorsese but this one is one tailor-made for me, I swear.

You can watch the trailer in at Apple or right here:

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I took some more screen-grabs if you're interested in that; they're over at MNPP. The cinematography by Robert Richardson looks typically gorgeous. What do we think? Shutter Island is out on October 2nd.

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Max & Haley

Today marks the 80th birthday (80th!) of cinema legend Max von Sydow. This year, a fan site points out, retrospective celebrations of his work seem highly probable. I bring this birthday up because my interview with him a year and half ago is still one of my favorite events from my Film Experience journey. He was so interesting to talk to. Consider the diversity of his resume: The Exorcist, The Seventh Seal, Awakenings, The Virgin Spring, Flash Gordon, Three Days of the Condor, Judge Dredd, Hannah and Her Sisters. He's worked with everyone from Ingmar Bergman to Steven Spielberg. If I could have tied him up for hours with more questions, I would have, believe me. His next film is Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island (previously discussed) and then we might see him in the WW II resistance fighter drama, Truth & Treason. He's not in the trailer so we assume he plays one of the characters as an older man in an epilogue.

On the other end of the age spectrum is von Sydow's upcoming co-star in that picture, Haley Joel Osment. He turns 21 today. He was once everyone's favorite tiny medium (The Sixth Sense) and little android (A.I. Artificial Intelligence) but we haven't seen him for years. Growing up is always difficult for child stars. Their faces change or don't change enough. There's that brief awkward phase or whole long stretches of it. We haven't seen Osment much recently but he does have two films in the works, the aforementioned Truth & Treason and an indie comedy called Montana Amazon in which he co-stars with Olympia Dukakis.

Maybe he isn't ambitious about having a big film career as an adult but if he is I figure both M. Night Shyamalan and Steven Spielberg ought to offer him something good to help him with the transitioning. They way I see it they both owe him --think of how much weaker both of those films immediately become with anything less than a preternaturally gifted child actor in their demanding roles.
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Oscar and The Jesus Year

I'm really trying to leave the gold man behind but he never unclenches his grip. Have you noticed the arms? Plus he has a sword... so, one has to move slowly away. Tip toe. Tip toe. I advise against sudden movements.

Anyway, for fun I thought I'd dedicate a post to the dozen acting Oscar winners who won when they were 33 years of age. Why? Because it's all about Kate Winslet right now! Here they are...

• Harold Russell, The Best Years of Our Lives (1946... the only man! they make them wait longer. He was also the first disabled Oscar winner if my trivia is correct)
• Olivia DeHavilland, The Heiress (1949... second Oscar)
• Donna Reed, From Here to Eternity (1953)
• Sally Field, Norma Rae (1979)
• Meryl Streep, Sophie's Choice (1982... second Oscar)
• Jessica Lange, Tootsie (1982)
• Geena Davis, The Accidental Tourist (1988)

• Emma Thompson, Howards End (1992)
• Juliette Binoche, The English Patient (1996)
  
• Julia Roberts, Erin Brockovich (2000)
• Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chicago (2002)
  
• Kate Winslet, The Reader (2008)

You know this list makes Mel Gibson seethe with jealousy.

No Best Actor nominee has ever won during his Jesus year. In fact no actor who has ever risked playing Jesus has won an Oscar either before or after that Only Begotten Moment (and that includes actors as acclaimed as Ralph Fiennes, Max von Sydow -- whom I interviewed and asked about the "spiritual thread" in his career, Willem Dafoe and Christian Bale all of whom you'd think would have a statue by now) so maybe it's an Academy curse.

If I am struck by lightning after posting this, I'll try to film it so David Fincher can use it in his next movie.

If your Jesus year is still ahead of you you can use this trivia as a goal post. How will you work towards winning an Oscar by then? Make a plan and get busy! If you're older than 33 try not to feel desperately unaccomplished.
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We Can't Wait #6 Shutter Island

Directed by Martin Scorsese
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Emily Mortimer, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, Max von Sydow, Elias Koteas, Jackie Earle Haley and Patricia Clarkson
Synopsis: Marshals Leo & Mark attempt to find murderous Emily! She escaped from Ashecliffe Asylum where Dr. Ben & Max both work!! She might be hiding on Shutter Island!!! (I'm gagging on multiple exclamation points because it sounds like such a pulpy thriller. Wheee)
Brought to you by the novel by Dennis Lehane by way of Paramount Pictures
Expected Release Date October 2nd

In our mad rush to complete the We Can't Wait series, my blog buddies and I zoomed right by Scorsese and Co. So, there's no conversation. Still and all... I doubt you need any convincing. A Scorsese picture is an event and when you combine what sounds like addictive actorly narcotic (insane asylum setting!) and a cinema friendly plot with this enticing cast ... well, it's an embarrassment of (potential) riches, isn't it?

What we have here is a highly anticipated picture but it could also be an Oscar hopeful, too. How sweet would it be to see Mortimer & Clarkson taking up the semi-annual 'two supporting actress nominees from one film' tradition? And how far ahead of myself am I getting!? Too far. Pull it back, pull it back. (whew. it's not time for that yet. April 1st Nathaniel, April 1st)

Ruffalo, Haley, Williams and DiCaprio on set (photos from Just Jared)

Not that Shutter Island (also known by its alternate title Ashecliffe) will have to bear the weight of golden expectations. The Departed finally put that "Give Scorsese the Oscar!!!" cause to rest. Finally we can get back to the more important business of enjoying his mad cinematic skillz. Great movies (and we hope it is one) are their own reward.

On the other hand, aren't we going to run out of Lehane novels to adapt pretty soon?

In case you missed any entries they went like so...
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We Can't Wait:
#1 Inglourious Basterds, #2 Where the Wild Things Are, #3 Fantastic Mr. Fox,
#4 Avatar, #5 Bright Star, #6 Shutter Island, #7 Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
#8 Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, #9 Nailed, #10 Taking Woodstock,
#11 Watchmen, #12 The Hurt Locker, #13 The Road, #14 The Tree of Life
#15 Away We Go, #16 500 Days of Summer, #17 Drag Me To Hell,
#18 Whatever Works, #19 Broken Embraces, #20 Nine (the musical)
intro (orphans -didn't make group list)
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