I'm Here (2010)

I'm Here starts out a story of Sheldon(Andrew Garfield), a bashful and forlorn robot hoping to find a connection in an existence of monotonous routine and quiet despair in present day LA. His days consist of riding the bus, working as a library's assistant and coming home to a dark and nearly empty apartment. His longing for something else, something more, brings the viewer into this short with ease and forms an understanding of Sheldon through his loneliness. Soon he meets the unpredictable and flirtatious Annie(Sienna Guilorry) and the story of falling in love unveils itself through realistic courting situations. As realistic as love between robots can feel that is.


Spike Jonze has made a movie that is tied together with his most recent feature, Where The Wild Things Are. The most prevalent themes shared being loneliness and heartache. Aesthetically they share characters made up of special effects in naturalistic settings that blend and make for believable worlds. He's also taken these special effects driven characters and given them human feelings and emotions. This is conveyed through effects that display the same tone and emotionality in their face that the characters show through their voices. While Where The Wild Things Are was a passion project that took years to make, I'm Here seems to be a deeply personal film that had to be purged from his being. That's not to say that it seems a rushed affair, quite the contrary.


There's a bittersweet tinge throughout the proceedings as if we're seeing this through the lens of memory. While the two seem a good fit, one can't help but stop to think that the relationship is a bit one sided and how when one person makes all the sacrifices it often makes for a path towards heartache. This heartache is felt through the whole film and the atmosphere created by it. Despite this, it's still touching and romantic in a non-sentimental fashion. It doesn't hurt that at the epicenter is the exciting newcomer Andrew Garfield. Your heart aches along with him and his awkward, sweet and giving nature through the way he delivers his lines with such emotion. He'll be an actor to keep a watch for, especially after his turns in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and The Red Riding Trilogy as well.


I'm Here is a film that will surely resonate for those that have been in this type of relationship or have been in a lonesome routine based malaise. It fits well in the progression of Spike Jonze's filmography. It'll be exciting where he takes it from here and whether he'll continue to tackle these themes. He has stripped these robots down to their component parts and revealed a pulsating heart as authentic and sincere as anything you may see all year at the movies.

The Ghost Writer (2010)

The tagline for The Ghost Writer should have been 'With great power and money, comes no responsibility.'

We live in a world where bankers ruined the economy, where priests molest children and where the leaders of the free world can break international law through torture, lies and corruption; yet they all get off scott free and with no repercussions. It's a movie of that sort of corruption and in the hands of a lesser filmmaker than Roman Polanski would be a less scathing and suspenseful film and more of a dull and generic thriller. It deals in the same kind of political and social depravity that Polanski has dealt with in the past and already mastered in Chinatown. So why revisit these themes of political and social depravity when he's already made Chinatown? It's because it's needed more than it has in a long time. Sometimes when you start to open your eyes to the corrupt nature of the established order, you need an artist to open the blinds and let the sunshine of truth come in.


The Ghost Writer is the story of a ghost writer(Ewan McGregor) hired to finish the memoirs of former British Prime Minister Adam Lang(Pierce Brosnan)amidst a scandal where he's being accused of handing over terrorist suspects to the CIA for torture. Lang is a mixture of Tony Blair and George W. Bush, though mostly Blair. As played by Pierce Brosnan he has an air of arrogance and sense of entitlement that we've seen a lot of in those two leaders. The ghost writer, which we never get the real name of, is a bestselling hack writer that almost reminds one of Holly Martins in the film The Third Man. In both, the protagonist is a spineless smart ass who's always a few steps behind and way over their heads in what they're doing. They've both read or wrote too many pulp novels and believe that they too can be private detectives in a murder case. Luckily, just like in The Third Man, we have a lead in Ewan McGregor that is likeable and easy to root for. He doesn't quite live up to Joseph Cotten's skill, but in this movie he gets damn close.


The film has a few actors that are surprisingly good and fit perfectly in their roles. Never have I seen Ewan McGregor, Pierce Brosnan or Kim Catrall better. When those names pop up on the marquee, it often isn't a good sign. In this case they not only surpass expectation but are borderline revelatory, especially McGregor and Brosnan. They show that given the right material and director that they're great actors. It doesn't hurt that they share screen time with Olivia Williams in what is a subtle and striking performance as Lang's wife. There are also great small parts played to perfection by the likes of Tom Wilkinson(King Midas of actors), Timothy Hutton, James Belushi and the legendary Eli Wallach.


There is an air of mystery in the atmosphere and in the ghost's conversations with the people around him that so few filmmakers could pull off. This is not only a throwback to the great political thrillers of the 70's but of the thrillers of Hitchcock. Polanski is a master of suspense and he slowly builds it up throughout with an ease and subtlety that is unmatched. It's the kind of suspense that doesn't always end with action, but sometimes with laughter. The Ghost Writer not only has scathing political awareness, suspense and drama, but also great humor. There's many "comedies" that never match the humor utilized in The Ghost Writer. There's also many films that never match the visual beauty of The Ghost Writer either. Sure, it's often overcast and rainy but Polanski's camera is as curious as characters are of each other and they're surroundings. It attempts to see the world in an authentic way, but is also slick and cinematic. Aesthetically there's a great balancing act that is as successful as the pitch perfect script by Polanski and Robert Harris.


The Ghost Writer is a film that proves wrong to all those that say they don't make them like they used to. It's not only a fun night at the movies but a movie with themes and messages that are needed. It's a movie of suspense, drama, mystery, and humor that both arthouse viewers and mainstream viewers can appreciate. It may be the best thriller to come out all year, but also may have the most impressive and haunting final image. An image that is thematically tied to the masterful ending of Chinatown. Instead of a famous last line to latch onto like in Chinatown, we are left to sit, ponder and stew as the haunting sound and image of our projection of freedom blows through the breeze — to be disregarded and lost in the whirlwind of corruption.

Vertigo (1958)

In Vertigo, just as in reality, the perception of another is skewed by the perceiver's desires. We often paint a different picture of a person than who they are in order to mold them into our subconscious picture of perfection. Whether it be traits tacked on from past relationships or even a denial of traits that are thought of as lackluster in that person. Often we are the ones changing the perception of others in order to fulfill their desires as well. Reality is as much about the truth we discover on a regular basis as it is about the lies we tell ourselves and others in order to shape it. The lens in which we project our image of reality can cause as much truth, artifice, romance, excitement and emotional response as what Alfred Hitchcock's camera portrays in his masterpiece Vertigo.


A concept at the forefront of the film is that of memory and the attempted recreation of the past. Our past and our memory inform our decisions, desires and the way we see the world. This is portrayed in the film by the character of John 'Scottie' Ferguson(James Stewart). Through the course of the film we see how the past and his memory of it, no matter how skewed, informs his tendencies and behavior. He takes his obsession and love of an already constructed image of someone and objectifies it further. The woman he is in love with never existed — it being a calculating ruse. Does he love the woman or the idea of the woman that she constructs for him?


It is in this respect that it becomes a ghost story, but with no literal supernatural aspects. Hitchcock perfectly displays this through the style of the movie. It has an eerie dreamlike quality that makes it feel as such. This is portrayed in the wardrobe worn by Madeleine(Kim Novak), the stark color and lighting and the haunting score by Bernard Hermann. The setting of San Fransisco is beautiful and picturesque. Hitchcock likened it to the closest thing the United States had to Paris. It's no wonder he lovingly shot it and let it become a character in the film. It's also no wonder that both Scottie and Madeleine loved to wander it's endless hills.


Through the first part of the story we are in the dark just as Scottie is — our perspective is of his subjective view of the investigation. In the second half, this is not only changed but so is many other factors in the narrative. The characters drastically change and we see role reversals in terms of point of view. The second half has an eerie parallel in the way the scenes play out in comparison to that of the first half. While Vertigo begins as a mystery, a thriller and possibly a ghost story, it ends up becoming a very dark and obsessive love story.


Vertigo is a film that is perfectly cast in every respect. The role of Scottie is as fitting of James Stewart and his skills as his sharp suits are in the film. His rhythm, his cadence and his ability to make you care for a character, which was never more important than in a film such as this, is a testament to his abilities as an actor. It doesn't hurt that when necessary he lends certain scenes with a playfulness, wit and charm that were vital for the movie to not become too dark and depressing. He is joined by the multifaceted and ethereal Kim Novak. Her role is very demanding and one of the best female roles written in a Hitchcock film. She has you empathizing with her in a way you wouldn't expect towards the end. It lends weight to the tragic proportions the film takes on. Scottie is someone that wants what he can't have and it's abundantly clear in his interactions with Midge, his wonderful ex-fiancee who does everything short of throwing herself at him. She is played by Barbara Bel Geddes with a great cheerfulness and is the most endearing character in the movie. It's a small but vital role in keeping a balance in tone and in showing other aspects of Scottie's character. The rest of the cast is rounded out with fine character actors, but it's those three that shine particularly bright.


Hitchcock is a director known for his thrilling and unabashedly entertaining films. None of his others ever reached the depths and ideas that Vertigo contains. This was a personal film for him and it shows in his attention to detail. He was merging art and entertainment in a way that very few films have achieved. He plumbs the depths of the human psyche to reveal themes of obsession, guilt, unrequited love, identity and the nature of memory that are all too relateable to most. He took some of the most base of human emotions and put them in flawed characters.

Vertigo is not only Hitchcock's best, but one of the all-time greatest films. It can question your perception of the world and the way you approach it. The memories you have and whether they're as reliable as you think they are. Your identity and what kind of masks you put on with various people. The love you feel for another and if it's built upon reality or a form of reality molded by both parties. It's also a visceral thriller that keeps you guessing until it's final frames. Vertigo may forever mold your reality, because as the screen goes to black, the final image may be burned into your brain as deep as the image of Scottie's love is in his own.

Plastic Bag (2009)

An epic journey of a plastic bag from the grocery store all the way to the North Pacific Trash Vortex. It is a portion of the Pacific Ocean that spans 500 nautical miles of spinning garbage. A stark reality that is shed upon in this short film by Ramin Bahrani, director of other films such as Chop Shop, Man Push Cart and Goodbye Solo.

Ramin smartly brought aboard director Werner Herzog to do a first person narrative from the perspective of the bag. It is a poetic, succinct, and heartfelt portrayal of an existential plastic bag yearning for more. The short is reminiscent of the classic short film, The Red Balloon. In both Plastic Bag and The Red Balloon, the inanimate objects have a life of their own. They're developed into a character in which the audience becomes emotionally attached. Just like the balloon in The Red Balloon, one wonders just how Bahrani was able to manipulate the plastic bag so well. Luckily for the audience, it shares more with that movie than that famous scene from American Beauty that must come to mind to some when they come upon this short film's premise.

The arc is similar to that of Spielberg's A.I. The bag yearns to return to his maker and goes on a journey to do so. Unlike A.I. though, Bahrani effectively uses subtlety to great effect while not masking his themes with sentimentality. In the bag's journey, it deals with the alienation of one's surroundings. It has no place in nature and the contrast of it's interactions with the outside world show it. With many filmmakers, this point would be hammered home, but in Bahrani's film it absorbs into the mind of the viewer over the course of it's running time with grace and fluidity.

Plastic Bag ends up a story of the loneliness of immortality and of human responsibility. A very enjoyable aspect is that after the bag is discarded by the woman at the beginning of the film, there is no human to be seen. We are spectators of a vast landscape of just the Earth and the creations of Man interacting with one another. The picture of what the world may be if everyone continues to get their chips and their sodas double and triple bagged for the sake of convenience. An artistic and subtle gem that perfectly melds with Bahrani's filmography and his stories of the American experience told through the outsider's perspective.

Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Achieving a dream can often be daunting, difficult and littered with failure. The travails that a human can go through in order to achieve their dream can seem impossible or just plain awe inspiring. In the case of the film Fitzcarraldo, it is both. Werner Herzog set out to build a film around the concept of dragging a 340 ton ship over a mountain. It is about the strength of the human spirit and how even the craziest of dreams are within reach, no matter how far that reach may be.

The film is the tale of an eccentric man determined to build an opera house deep in the Peruvian jungle. His name is Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald or as the Peruvians call him, Fitzcarraldo(Klaus Kinski). You could label him a businessman, but he has no interest in business as anything other than a means to get enough money to achieve his real goal. He's surrounded by a sea of bourgeois naysayers and greedy men. They think of him as out of his mind, but they don't mind watching him fail either. Luckily he has the support of the lovely and supportive Molly(Claudia Cardinale), the owner of a brothel in which the rubber barons frivolously spend their money. Her belief in him materializes when she gives him money to buy land and a steam boat in order to reach the rubber trees in which he will make his fortune. The only problem is that the rubber trees on his land are inaccessible due to the streams and rapids of the rivers. Fitzcarraldo sets out on his boat along with his crew to somehow figure out a way to do what is thought of as impossible by many of the rubber tycoons in the area.


With his all-white suit and panama hat, Fitzcarraldo embarks on a great journey down the river. We see along the way his failed cross-continental railway, his stubborn vision and his love of opera music. In an incredibly poignant moment, Fitzcarraldo decides to take out his gramophone and play music from his favorite opera singer, Enrico Caruso, as a response to the ominous drumming by the dangerous natives lurking behind the trees onshore. These natives have been known to be extremely violent against outsiders. The natives along with the forces of nature are against him, but he is a man of endurance. The film instantly becomes unforgettable when he decides that he is going to attempt to drag his 340 ton boat across a mountain and into the river parallel to the one they're on.



Werner Herzog decided not to use special effects to achieve his goal of getting the boat over the mountain. He, like his character, decided to do it for real. This comes across as you're watching this unreal feat in the movie. You're never not aware of the making of the film when you're watching this unfold. You wonder just how it was done. This takes you out of the film, but also strengthens it and makes it an unforgettable experience. Werner Herzog is a director with a bold vision and the events of the movie directly mirror Herzog's production and his viewpoint towards the making of movies. In a way, it becomes essential to know at least some of Herzog's history and a little of his filmography. That's not hard as he's not only an essential filmmaker but a man you can read about for hours and never get bored. This is a man who ate his shoe on camera after losing a bet. A man that continued doing an interview despite being punctured and bleeding from an air rifle bullet lodged in his abdomen. His response, "It is not a significant bullet." A man who decided to do this movie 500 miles outside of civilization and then drag a 340 ton boat across a mountain!


The film has some great performances, especially Klaus Kinski. An actor that no one will ever claim lacked intensity on the screen. He gives Fitzcarraldo a depth that few actors could have. He's strength, passion, madness and eccentricity all gelling to make a compelling and empathetic character. The other performance of note is that of Claudia Cardinale, one of the greatest beauties to ever be committed to celluloid. She isn't given much screen time, but in the scenes she has, she is the picture of grace and understanding. Her nuanced performance lends so much to the relationship she shares with Fitzcarraldo. It's a character of compassion, independence, strength and support. She is the woman that every man only hopes to come along. One that supports and encourages your dreams while being her own woman. It is one of the many great roles that Claudia would play throughout her career. Despite her striking beauty, she was able to play progressive roles in great movies. The rest of the cast is fleshed out by great character actors and the natives of the area where the movie was shot.


Fitzcarraldo is a quintessential film and a classic. It is a movie of vision and heart. It's of the obstacles we face in life and our adversity over them. It is of love, of passion and of the human spirit. The human spirit which endures failure, doubt and the elements of nature and human nature. It's a film crafted with hard work and perseverance and especially with a labor of love. Take your inspiration and roll with it through the punches and through the hardships. In the end you'll come out better whether you've achieved your goals or not, for you will never be haunted by the...what if?

Caché (2005)

A whodunnit where the culprit isn't important and is merely a means to provoke thought and discussion? That's what we have in the film Caché aka Hidden. Michael Haneke is a director that wants to bring ideas and sociopolitical issues to the forefront. His characters and story are tools used to invoke a discussion he wants to engage his audience in. In this film he wanted to discuss the relationship between the French and the Algerians and they're troubled past. It's also about the things we keep hidden from one another, even ourselves. The lies, memories and guilt that we hold in our past. We see all these dealt with through the lens of denial and pride.


The story starts with Georges and Anne(Daniel Auteuil and Juliette Binoche), a married couple receiving video tapes of the front of their home along with bloody childlike drawings and strange phone calls. They grow concerned as each new video tape becomes more and more personal, especially for the husband Georges, a TV host of a literary talk show. Two videos show up that leads Georges to believe it's a person from his past; an adopted brother from his childhood named Majid. Through the rest of the film we see him try to reveal the truth of who the perpetrator is while hiding the truth of his past from those around him and even himself.

If you have any inkling that this may be a visceral thriller, it isn't. Haneke doesn't have any interest in the visceral. The movie plays more like a slow family drama that allows you to contemplate what is going on. There are many static shots and camera movement is very minimal. The objective isn't to bring you into the movie, but to push you away in order to reflect. This Brechtian device allows the viewer to think analytically instead of responding emotionally. You are surveilling the characters just as the perpetrator does.


The cast does a fine job in their roles. Juliette Binoche does a great job with what on paper was probably a limited role. Daniel Auteuil fits well as a prideful man in denial. Many will see him as an embodiment of France and it's denial of it's past with Algeria. The cinematography fits the film well and Haneke knows exactly what he's doing in the directing department. The devices he uses to tell the story often have interesting results, including some shocking moments. Caché seems to fit well in his filmography. My experience with his movies have been his US version of Funny Games and The White Ribbon. He deals with themes of guilt, oppression, repression, sudden violence and the seediness that rests right below the surface of everyday life.


If what you're looking for is a fun night at the movies, this movie is not for you. This is for the more critical thinking viewer. I've seen it on many top of the decade lists and I can't say those are wrong. I wouldn't personally list it that high but I can see the value of the movie and why it's so acclaimed. Haneke is one of the most important directors currently making movies, but not a personal favorite. I'm engaged by the ideas in his movies but I also need other aspects to work in conjunction with those ideas. Cache is a good film, but not one I can readily recommend to most. Despite this, it's always refreshing to be engaged by a movie that not only doesn't talk down to you, but respects your intelligence so much that it challenges you to fill in the gaps. If you see this film, hopefully you'll have someone else to discuss it with. It's a movie to discuss, ponder and absorb.