HAPPY PEOPLE: A YEAR IN THE TAIGA
Filmmaker Werner Herzog (GRIZZLY MAN, ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD, CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS), is drawn to extremes and the challenging edge on which some people live their lives. With co-director Dmitry Vasyukov, Herzog takes us the remote heart of the Siberian Taiga and the village of Bakhtia, where about 300 people live on the bank of the Yenisei River virtually untouched by the modern world. This isolated wilderness has no phone connection, running water or medical assistance and can only be reached by river or chopper. With the exception of power saws and snowmobiles, the people maintain their culture and live as they have for hundreds of years, maybe much longer. Herzog’s distinctive narration covers and colors the life of one trapper through four seasons as he hunts, makes his skis, boat and hunter’s cabin. So much was unsaid, but what was on the screen was mesmerizing. It’s good to be reminded that in our day, part of our human family lives in a world nearly unfathomable to the one we enjoy in our desert paradise. Big recommendation. Now playing Cinema’s Palme d’Or at Westfield in Palm Desert. See it before it disappears.
OZ THE GREAT AND POWERFUL
Sam Raimi’s often visually dazzling prequel to 1939’s beloved classic will never replace it in the hearts of movie lovers. But this journey that tells how the Wizard found his way to the Emerald City almost works on its own terms. Cobbled together from elements of author L. Frank Baum’s 10 Oz books, team Disney and Raimi have cleverly avoided copyright and legal issues and delivered a bright, beautifully rendered 3D experience that brings to life a vivid dream world. Even if you’ve never seen the other movie, this film can be a satisfying experience.
James Franco is the carnival magician and con man that flees Kansas in a hot air balloon and is whisked by a tornado to OZ where all the denizens are under the control of a wicked witch. The people of OZ welcome him as the prophesied savior. He tries to explain their misunderstanding, but is smitten by beautiful witch Theodara (Mila Kunis) and when he sees all the treasure for the taking, he goes along with the unintentional deception. The big question is: Will Oz have the guts to become the leader the good citizens of Oz deserve? For me, this eye-candy wavered between moments of genuine awe and wonder and yet I was sometimes taken out of the movie with thoughts of crass exploitation and a studio hoping to cash in on a familiar name. Not sure why. Sure, all movies are a business enterprise, but we should never think it when enjoying the story. I believe Sam Raimi’s love of cinema is genuine and deep. He would be making movies even if no one paid him. Thankfully, that shows though most of the time and makes this big budget, lavish production worth seeing.
NEW FOR HOME THEATER:
EASY MONEY
A big hit in Sweden, this twisty noir crime thriller is about JW (Joel Kinnaman), a poor economics student who falls for a pretty rich girl while leading a double life among Stockholm’s upper class. To maintain the deception, JW’s seduced into a brutal world of criminal activity that involves Jorge, an escaped convict on the run from both police and the Serbian mafia enforcer Mrado. A massive cocaine deal promises a new life for all but delivers death for some. Paying close attention to the layered plot offers big rewards in this extremely tense, finely crafted thriller. DVD. The Weinstein Co/Anchor Bay.
BADLANDS
Terrence Malick’s 1973 debut film established him as a director with a singular vision and placed its two impossibly young stars – Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek – on the map. The pristine new transfer of this loose adaptation of Charles Starkweather’s heartland killing spree in the late 1950s still chills with its poetic beauty and horror. Lost innocence is played against romantic dreams and the arrogance of casual bloodshed. “He wanted to die with me and I dreamed of being lost forever in his arms,” narrates Spacek’s Holly about Sheen’s Kit. This dark, enigmatic film evokes the world of Flannery O’Connor and it’s hard to imagine her writing was not an inspiration for writer-director Malick. Excellent extras include two featurettes. Vintage footage recounts the actual crime and the hunt for Starkweather, a James Dean wannabe, and his 14 year-old companion Caril Ann Fugate. A wonderful new making-of documentary (45 minutes) visits Martin Sheen, Sissy Spacek and production designer Jack Fisk for a thoughtful reflection on the movie, Malick and how it impacted their lives. The timeless truths of this perfect film, a rare work of cinematic art, still shimmer and chill. Blu-ray. Criterion.
THE FRANKENSTEIN THEORY
The best thing about this low budget movie new to DVD (there’s no Blu-ray) is the lenticular 3D cover on the box sleeve. I’m a sucker for any printed material that uses this technology that’s been around for years. Too bad this great image of Frankenstein’s monster is nowhere to be found in the actual movie. However, Director Andrew Weiner great premise — that Mary Shelley’s novel is in fact a thinly disguised factual account. The movie is about a documentary crew hired by an eccentric professor, a discredited relative of the real Dr. Frankenstein, who travels to the Arctic to find restore his good name by finding the still living creature. Nice Alaska locations give this modest film a surprising verisimilitude that enhances the ghastly mayhem that ensues. DVD. Image.
Also available: ZERO DARK THIRTY, LIFE OF PI (see it in 3D if you are able), RUST AND BONE, SAMSON AND DELILAH (Cecil B. DeMille’s original 1949 Biblical epic) and THE BORGIAS Season 2 (watch it while the new Pope is picked!).
RobinESimmons@aol.com
