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mglasson
Reviews
Schizopolis (1996)
one of a kind
Schizopolis is perhaps best summarized with the copy line - 'All attempts at synopses of this film have resulted in hospitalization.' It's no understatement - just about every convention and niche of film is broken in this flick, and those looking for an easy ride into movie-watching oblivion won't find it here. The film mainly revolves around ad exec Fletcher Munson (played to perfection by Soderbergh) who is unhappy in his work, marriage and life, in general. He frequently masturbates at his office job and is generally distracted by his active imagination. After a co-worker suddenly has a heart attack, Munson is stuck writing a speech for T. Azimuth Schwitters - an L. Ron Hubbard type guru who sells a brand of self-help called 'Eventualism.'
One day, Munson spots his doppelganger and follows him to his home. Turns out this fella is a dentist, and, without any clear reason, he is suddenly transported into Dr. Jeffery Kortchack's body and assumes the dentist's life (which includes having an affair with his own wife from his existence as Fletcher Munson). Confused yet? Then there is also the story of Elmo, the exterminator who speaks in a language of random words (I.E., 'Jigsaw. Uh, fragment chief butter. King surgery mind??') and gets laid by all of his beautiful women clients. Language is altered and skewed throughout the film - one scene has the husband and wife exchanging analytically defined sentences ('Generic greeting!' 'Generic greeting returned!') And yes, it gets much stranger, but that is one of the many wonderful things this film has going for it - you will be completely uncertain as to what is next coming. I can do no justice trying to explain the plot; the above encapsulation is an infinitesimally small fraction of the entire story and all of its interwoven subplots, thereof.
So, what the hell does it all mean? I can't say that I'm entirely sure, myself, but I always have one helluva good time riding through it. There are endless side-stories and (seemingly) left-over ideas conceived through a myriad of supremely clever and bizarre film devices. It's a jarring experience at first, but with repeated viewing, the unconnected pieces of information come together in a most surprising and rewarding fashion. To me, Schizopolis is the cinematic equivalent of a Rubic's cube - you may fumble with it for a long time, but when you finally get a side complete - Ahhh, the joy and relief of a job well done. Yet, there are five other sides that remain mixed.
Soderbergh took several years to make this film completely outside of the Hollywood machine ('I was in danger of becoming a hack,' he said) So he mounted this indie-indie-independent labor of love in the vein of a guerrilla production - a project he was literally shooting in his own back yard and at the houses of friends and neighbors. Still, the film never feels like its cheating the audience because of its budget limitations. Whatever it is that he's trying to do within the film's cryptic scenes, he manages to pull off with the confidence that he knows what he's doing. Steven Soderbergh also plays the leading man - a choice more practical than really desired according to him, but his performance is amazingly funny (the scene where he's making faces at himself in the mirror is a keeper for all time). He also cast his recently separated wife (Betsy Brantley) as his wife in the film, echoing his own a personal dilemma.
And though this film embraces obfuscation and absurdity, have I mentioned that it's ridiculously hilarious? This is a cross-brand of comedy that I have never-before-seen. It's kinda like the Marx Brothers directed by Richard Lester on acid. But all insipid cross-comparisons aside, I feel like there's little room for improvement in this grandiose experimental film. There may be some minor performance flaws or uneven pacing, but in a film that embraces lack of coherence, that's hardly stable grounds for critique. This film was readily dissed by critics (if an established director does something completely off the wall and confusing, it must be self-indulgent), and the 12 people that actually saw it, abhorred it (any film that has people walking out after 20 minutes must have something going for it). So do yourself (and Mr. Soderbergh) a favor and seek this one out. Accept the challenge that this film proposes and try putting this puzzle together.
Not that there's any doubt about this now given his expansive oeuvre, but Steven Soderbergh is one of the leading revolutionaries working in cinema today.
Manhattan Baby (1982)
I actually kinda liked it
For Fulci fans, this may be a bit disappointing considering the pace and the lack of heavy gore, but this is not to say that nothing strange or ominous happens during the course of the film. In fact, i thought some of the random and strange deaths were good payoffs in their own right (i had to rewind a few of them to see if I missed something - turns out i didn't). Manhattan Baby really plays out like a poor sibling to "The Beyond:" an evil curse is unleashed and people start dying in strange, inexplicable ways while story coherence takes a backseat. This movie even features a lot of the same music used in The Beyond, but the similarities don't end there. As is characteristic by Fulci, there is ample coverage of the actor's eyeballs in extreme close-up overused to a comical effect and features its share of poor dialogue, wooden acting and some over-the-top characterization as well. All the same, this was a noble attempt on the part of Fulci and screenwriter Dardano Sacchetti to try something different within the horror genre and not rely so much on the bloodletting. While I wouldn't call this a runaway success, it tends to work on its own terms and is very enjoyable indeed.
Crash (2004)
Do yourself a favor, rent the original by Cronenberg
Crash is overwrought, over-thought and over-baked. A great example of how to make a pompous and self-important film with a message. Haggis tries too hard to make his point and overreaches in just about every category of the film. It feels very much in love with its own sense of social relevance and has all the subtlety of a jackhammer to the skull. Sure, race relations affect everyone and there's a great deal of ambiguity to the issue, but the universe of 'Crash' operates to suggest that we are all victims to our own perceptions on race. It's a tiresome thread that repeats itself ad nauseum and wears out its welcome within the first 30 minutes. I found the outcomes of the characters unsurprising and forced and the film took forever to sputter out and die. The fact that this film is in the top 50 movies on IMDb is a testament to the public's willingness to get suckered by Hollywood malarkey.
Indeed, if you want the real "Crash," go check out the one by David Cronenberg: dark, twisted and original. This film plays as preachy, tiresome, and masochistic.
Easy (2003)
easy should do better
I saw this movie at sundance and was really quite charmed by it considering that it is a "romantic comedy" of sorts which is not my genre of choice. The actors were all serviceable if not excellent in their comic, yet quite human, roles. margaritte (sp) is a spellbinding beauty who has always captivated in her film work... she had lost her voice at the screening, but even squeaking out a few words afterwards, she had me so in love with her. Beyond this, there were some pacing issues for me and the occasional clunky scene, but all in all, this was a smart and well-rounded sort of character piece. I don't agree with the reviewer who says it's not for "eastcoasters" since I live in NYC and felt that this film worked on many levels that resonated with me, in spite of the geographical differences. This is a fine piece of film-making that can work on its own terms and still fall into the framework of a good romantic comedy, so I hope that some genius out there picks it up for a direct to video release and it can deliver some punch on the home market. Margarritte needs to be a star and this movie proves she can deliver the good and the director holds the piece together with confidence and grace. Oh, and it was shot on DV and it looks like film. pretty cool.
RoboCop 3 (1993)
Bad, but better than 2
I can agree that this is by no means a good film, well maybe a few means provide it as such. The third installment is much more faithful to the spirit of the first Robocop, with better irony and less mean-spirited nastiness which the 2nd film possessed. Having said that, this is still a turkey of a film. It takes 20 minutes to introduce Robocop, the central kid in the film is always onhand to save the day with her laptop (!) and the acting from everyone is pretty hammy and hard to swallow. There is a comic book energy that the first film had that all of the sequels failed to garner. I am a HUGE fan of Robocop1 and prefer to remember the movie that way. I only saw this because it's been on cable all weekend.
Daddy's Deadly Darling (1973)
Fun Little Film
Good Times! Marc Lawrence makes another memorable character in the old, crotchety Zambrini - an ex-circus performer who supposedly came back from the dead after a tragic high-dive. Well, now he owns and operates a little cafe in the middle of nowheresville and feeds his pigs dead humans after midnight. As luck would have it, his newest employee of the cafe is a runaway psychotic from an insane asylum who likes to cut up men who come on to strong to her. She is really the film's main character and, as it turns out, Daddy's Deadly Darling is actually Marc Lawrence's deadly daughter in real life. Seems that he wanted to jump start his daughter's career so he gave her the lead. Well, unfortunately, she doesn't carry nearly enough quirkiness or depth to bring that character to life, unlike her father, who is a real gem to watch.
As a director, Mr. Lawrence had some good ideas to make some creepy, uneasy scenes to watch, but the version I watched (called PIGS) was very choppy and sloppy from an editing standpoint and the camera seems to enjoy shooting things in pitch black darkness. That's low-budget for you, but there's still something charming about this otherwise standard '70s exploitation fare. And any movie that has Marc Lawrence in it is, by default, going to have something going for it.
Head (1968)
A Masterpiece
Make no mistake about this unsung gem - HEAD is a revolution in filmmaking. People are eager to dismiss it as whimsy and drug-induced indulgence, but there's a lot more than meets the eye. This was a film that broke the rules of film, broke the rules of commercialism and defiantly stood it's ground. No wonder it was a box-office dud.
And while I can't say that EVERYONE should see this film and EVERYONE should like it, HEAD is a highly entertaining satire that succeeds in consistintly outdoing itself and reinventing its purpose.
Certainly any self-respecting Monkees fan or cineast won't miss out on the cinematic genius that is HEAD.