To Sing and Die in L.A.

Glenn from Stale Popcorn here to share some thoughts on 2004, the current year of retrospective here at The Film Experience.

Two of my favourite films from 2004 share Los Angeles as a setting. One is about a serial killer driving around the streets in a taxi while the other is about lesbian musicians trying to catch a break. So the similarities pretty much end there. I like to imagine that they filmed right around the corner from each other and that they accidentally caught each other on film. Hiding in the background.


The first title I speak of is Michael Mann's Collateral. Perhaps the best pure thriller of the decade, the film is noteworthy for many reasons. First and foremost there is the decade-topping cinematography by Paul Cameron and Dion Beebe. Truly an awe-inspiring piece of camerawork there, don't you agree? Expressions like "I've never seen that on screen before" are just kept for James Cameron, okay! But other than that the film is just a really great thriller. Fast-paced, sleek and effective while also giving us plenty in the way of technical and actor prowess. Collateral was originally set in New York City and if it were made in NYC of the 1980s then it could've been just as good, but I think LA was the right home for this one.

The film received an Oscar nomination for Best Editing and Jamie Foxx got nominated for Best Supporting Actor. If I had a say it would've gotten nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing and, depending on the day, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress for Foxx and Jada Pinkett-Smith respectively. Depending on the day! My favourite moment of the movie? When Tom Cruise's hired assassin trips over a desk chair! Whoops! It looks so completely by accident and genuine.


The other 2004 LA-set film I wanted to mention was Prey for Rock and Roll. It's not an expertly made film, but it's an entertaining one and one that has an addictive raw edge to its portrayal of a struggling band. Unlike most of these movies where the band or singer is so tailor-made for stardom that you can predict the scene where a record manager spots them, the band in Prey for Rock and Roll, with Gina Gershon on vocals and lead guitar, is exactly the sort of band you'll find struggling to play pub gigs for the rest of their lives.

I particularly like that they sound like they're from the wrong era. Sounding like a mix of Hole and L7 with a bit of Curve thrown in despite being set in the 1980s. Although, while I wasn't in LA at the time, perhaps that's where that style was originating, in which case the film has another interesting dimension. Clam Dandy, the band within the film, probably would have gone on to release one album to immense critical acclaim with a cult following, but would have then followed that with Billboard-seeking mainstream hooks and would eventually peter out before breaking up and forming side-projects. The title track and "Every Six Minutes" are fine examples from the original songs on the soundtrack and even if they aren't presented within the film in any spectacular production numbers, they are great songs to have pop up on an iPod every now and then. Bonus points for Lori Petty!

April Showers: Miami Vice

In between Michael Mann (Public Enemies) movies I always forget that I really like his work. If you could reach into one of his movies you would be able to feel something... a cold surface maybe, vibrations from a loud noise or a drop of sweat hitting you. He has a real gift for atmosphere and texture. And apparently he has a thing for sex in the shower since two of Miami Vice's three big sexual scenes take place there.

The first shower scene is basically relationship detail. The music is soothing and we're just observing the easy intimacy of co-workers/lovers Naomi Harris's Trudy and Jamie Foxx's Tubbs.


The second shower scene is curious. We've spent several minutes watching Gong Li's Isabella and Colin Farrell's Sonny fall in love/lust (same thing in the movies on account of time is sped up). They've just realized that their relationship is a bad idea. Or maybe they've just decided it's a good idea to vocalize that obvious conclusion. The shower scene following this announcement begins oddly though it follows the same structure as the first shower scene. The man is lost in thought or zoning out, as one sometimes does when the hot water is drumming into one's skin. The woman enters and the intimacy begins. Only this time the music moves into ominous chords as we see Gong Li approaching the shower. She's all blurry like killers are as they approach shower curtains.

She tears open the shower curtain in a rather violent edit. It's the cinematic language of threat. Michael Mann is trying to ratchet up the tension in this dangerous affair (they're violent business partners and Sonny is also an undercover cop and could bring her down) but there's something about the shower entrance that feels little cheap. Like a 'Boo! Gotcha... she's just there for more nookie' red herring.

It probably shouldn't have tipped that threatening. After all, what's threatening about showering with Gong Li or Colin Farrell? Unless you have a heart condition, jump in and grab the soap!


But I love that Michael Mann is determined to keep the audience off balance. This next bit works better. He's been pulling us into the relationship and then suddenly, he's pushing away. The lovers kiss and stare and Isabella whispers something into Sonny's ear. See, we can ogle. We can practically touch the wet tendrils of hair clinging to hot skin but we're not allowed any closer. We're no longer privy to this conversation.

[Come see the new blog. We'll renew this series in April]
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ShoWest: The Princess and the Frog, The Soloist, Meryl as Julia Child

Here's the final bits from frequent commenter Rosengje's ShoWest journey which he generously gifted to The Film Experience. Thank her in the comments for putting us in pocket and taking us along. Here they are...

The Soloist was met with a relatively indifferent reaction following a screening at Le Theater des Arts. I respected and even admired Joe Wright's (Atonement) latest effort, but had almost no direct connection to the material. Perhaps my greatest concern going into the screening was the potential for the film to go over the top in impressing the sentimentality of the story on the audience. Instead, the movie never reached the emotional heights that it should have. Robert Downey Jr. gives a typically charismatic performance as Steve Lopez, a columnist for the LA Times. Lopez accidentally encounters Jamie Foxx's Nathaniel Anthony Ayers Jr., a homeless former cellist, while on assignment in the Greater LA area. Ayers was once a promising musical talent at Julliard, but suffered a schizophrenic breakdown in his early 20s. Lopez becomes increasingly invested in restoring Ayers's potential, even as his own life is in disarray. Wright effectively grounds the story in the reality of the LA landscape, not shying away from photographing the city's least desirable areas. Unfortunately, this is also one of the film's most problematic areas. I was frequently uncomfortable with the portrayal of race and poverty throughout the film. The implication that it required the presence of Lopez, a relatively affluent white male, to shed light on the city's drug problems was troubling and lacking in nuance. The movie also falls prey to the Hollywood trend of providing excessive back story. We are treated to extensive flashbacks of Nathaniel's childhood and his eventual decline into paranoia. The sequences are competently acted and captured, but they seem redundant. It would have been more interesting for the audience to piece together the character's story on their own which also would have allowed Jamie Foxx a chance to provide more nuance in his performance.

Surprisingly (or not), I found Catherine Keener to be the highlight of the film. She has a small role as Lopez's former wife, but makes the most of her screen time. Keener is able to convey an array of emotions as she watches her ex devote himself to a stranger while neglecting the couple's own son. As an upper-level staffer at the Times, she also provides one of the more compelling portraits of a powerful woman in the workplace in recent memory.

Supporting Actress Oscar campaign possibilities for Keener than, or is the role too incidental to the meat of the thing? Speak up awards season addicts.

We saw extensive footage from Angels & Demons, The Ugly Truth, Julie & Julia, The Year One, District 9, and The Taking of Pelham 123. Despite my distaste for this Katherine Heigl person, The Ugly Truth looked unexpectedly funny.

Julie & Julia looked great, and the audience burst into applause at Meryl Streep's first appearance as Julia Child. I believe we were treated to the first footage of District 9, which is presented by Peter Jackson and is currently being worked on by Weta. I am skeptical of the story, which follows the segregation of an alien species from humans, but the film had an interesting look to it. Interestingly, Sony was the only studio to require a full cell phone check. Wolverine induced paranoia?

Paranoia what. who? I got stuck on the spontaneous applause for Streep's biopic transformation... from industry folks no less. I missed the rest of that paragraph. In case you missed it here's the previous post on Meryl as Julia.

Before a screening of The Proposal (surprisingly charming), Disney had a treat in store, a scene from the upcoming The Princess and the Frog. Disney is opening the movie in New York and LA on November 25 and platforming it out on December 11. The sequence we watched had elements that were still very early on in the animation process, but the audience was captivated. Anika Noni Rose voices Tiana, a native of New Orleans, who has dreamed of opening a restaurant for 14 years. Defeated, she walks onto a balcony to pin all of her hopes on making a wish on an evening star. Well, her wish is granted in the form of a prince trapped in the body of a frog. The prince convinces Tiana to kiss him and return him to his original grandeur, in exchange for him making her dreams finally come true. The clip was hilarious and poignant, and the voice work was very impressive. I thought the footage looked right at home alongside the Disney classics and I cannot wait to see the finished product.

I had no idea what the story elements for this New Orleans musical were going to be. Opening a restaurant, eh?

Rose definitely has a beautiful voice so I'm pleased that Disney entrusted their first black Princess to her. You get glimpses of the strengths of her pipes in From Justin to Kelly (I know!) and Dreamgirls but her best role to date was definitely her TONY winning jubilance in Broadway's shortlived but spectacularly moving Caroline or Change (all of this, previously discussed). Though it's only voice work and she isn't famous enough to get marketing built around her (like Cameron Diaz and Mike Myers for the Shrek films), I hope Anika the actress manages plenty of face time when the movie arrives for the holidays. This star can shine. Hollywood just needs to let her. But you know how they have trouble maintaining interest in the black actresses, even the very talented ones.
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Damn Linkees!

OhLaLa ~Jake Gyllenhaal drinks to Jamie Foxx's new music video Blame It (on the alcohol)... always a good thing to blame it on. Foxx seems to have instructed his celebri-guests (there are a few others, too) to play "attitude" because they don't seem to be having a good time.
Just Jared ~more Wolverine promo pics.
/Film Eddie Murphy as Richard Pryor? Bill Condon sure does love making biopics. Fully half of his feature filmography is biopics.


Yahoo by way of Awards Daily ~Clint Eastwood receives a prize from Cannes, 3 months before the festival begins. I promised to ease up on the Eastwood thing this year (my frustration with the collective need to bury him in trophies has not won me fans) but please allow me to express genuine non-snarky confusion here. I had no idea that film festivals gave prizes when they were not in session. Who juries that? Is this the same prize he received last May when he was there to promote Changeling (only delayed for its own ceremony?) or is this actually an additional career prize nine months later? I'm not trying to piss people off. I'm just confused that off season honors exist and that they honor the same people honored the previous summer.
Kenneth in the (212) and Crazy Days have wise things to say about this Rihanna / Chris Brown situation. Why is she back with him and why are other celebrities, blogs and infotainment shows so willing to promote misogyny and domestic abuse with these "misunderstanding" semantics? Domestic abuse is not excusable. Period.
The Big Picture ~ Will Watchmen flop outside of the community prepared to love it?
Glark ~"my hair is a bird" Ha!

And about that new Damn Yankees movie you may have been reading about elsewhere. The film will supposedly star Jake Gyllenhaal as 'Shoeless Joe Hardy' (an old man who, after making a pact with the devil, becomes a young superstar baseball player) and Jim Carrey as Mr. Applegate (i.e. The Devil). Don't get too excited about it. According to Everything I Know... there's not even a screenplay, a director or a "Lola" yet. Lola, Mr. Applegate's temptress assistant who develops genuine feelings for Joe, is the best role in the show and was immortalized by Bob Fosse's girl Gwen Verdon in the 1958 movie. She's got one of the musicals two real showstoppers which is called "Whatever Lola Wants" (see previous post). Mr. Applegate gets the other one (his only musical number) "Those Were the Good Old Days". Broadway star Cheyenne Jackson recently did the 'Shoeless Joe' thing here in NYC and, come to think of it, Jake Gyllenhaal is almost his perfect movie star counterpart. Both are a) tall dark and preternaturally handsome b) underappreciated due to their total gorgeousity c) almost too perfect for the Joe Hardy role in that Joe is kind of a dull character, a blank slate object of adoration for the media and the other characters. So if you're already a slightly generic fantasy object when you're coasting, you have to add a lot of notes to that role or it can fall flat. Shoeless Joe is very Benjamin Button actually. It's an old man gets young lead role but it's a very passive one and the least interesting character in the piece. Good luck Jakey!

Now can someone in Hollywood please cast Cheyenne Jackson in a major motion picture? He's, in a word, awesome. Plus he already proved with United 93 that his acting skills and charisma transfer just fine to celluloid.
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