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Film and the Arts

January '25 Digital Week II

Details: Parent Category: Film and the Arts; Category: Reviews; Published on Thursday, 16 January 2025 03:17; Written by Kevin Filipski

4K/UHD Release of the Week

The Mother and the Whore

(Criterion)

French director Jean Eustache’s 1973 masterpiece may be the greatest film his compatriots Jacques Rivette, Eric Rohmer or Jean-Luc Godard never made—its mammoth length (3 hours and 40 minutes) belies the simplicity of its subject and execution: it’s a look at a narcissistic young man’s relationships with his live-in lover and a new woman in his life. Although it’s nearly all talk, since it’s Eustache’s script—with supposedly no improvisation—it’s emotionally direct and honest.

This is by far Jean-Pierre Leaud’s best performance, and Bernadette Lafont and Francoise Lebrun equal him as his eponymous lovers. The photography and editing are sublime, and the shattering ending reminds one of Ozu, which is high praise indeed. The B&W film looks stupendously sharp in UHD; extras comprise new interviews with Lebrun and filmmaker Jean-Pierre Gorin; archival interviews with Eustache, Leaud, Lafont and Lebrun; and a restoration featurette.

In-Theater/Streaming Release of the Week

Wicked

(Universal)

It starts with an ugly, CGI-drenched opening and ends more than two and a half hours later with the showstopper “Defying Gravity”—which is only the end of the first act of Steven Schwartz’s blockbuster Broadway musical. That means we have to sit through another two-plus hours next holiday season to finish this thing.

So is it all worth it? Not really—it’s a mighty slog to get through, the songs are mainly negligible, the story isn’t as clever as it should be, and only Cynthia Erivo has the requisite vocal chops and acting prowess to make Elphaba soar into the stratosphere. Ariana Grande also has a powerhouse voice, but when she tries to act, she’s laughably inadequate. Further, Bowen Tang, Jeff Goldblum, and Michelle Yeoh are wincingly hammy, while Jon M. Chu’s direction consists of making things bigger, louder and more garish without settling on a consistent tone or style.

In-Theater Release of the Week

Every Little Thing

(Kino Lorber)

Sally Aitken’s heartwarming documentary is an intimate portrait of author Terry Masear, who diligently and lovingly rehabs hummingbirds out of her California home, taking in those that were orphaned or injured and meticulously nurses them back to health.

Aitken’s camera follows Masear, who founded Los Angeles Hummingbird Rescue 20 years ago and wrote the book Fastest Things on Wings in 2016, and also provides stunning views of the birds themselves—as Maseur notes, hummingbirds flap their wings 50 times a second, something that seems impossible to contemplate even as Aitken records it.

Streaming/Blu-ray Release of the Week

Touristic Intents

(First Run)

Prora, which was a huge resort complex on Germany’s Baltic Sea, was built but left unfinished by the Nazi regime, and Mat Rappaport’s informative and thoughtful documentary explores its postwar life: the East German government continued its construction, using the place for military operations as well as housing for conscientious objectors.

Then there are the lasting implications of its history—through insightful interviews and on-location footage, Rappaport raises important questions exploring the dissection of tourism and politics. There’s an excellent hi-def transfer.

Blu-ray Release of the Week

Mozart—Mitridate re di Ponto

(Unitel)

One of Mozart’s early operas, a tragedy about a king and his two sons who are all in love with the same woman, comes off as stately and often static in director Satoshi Miyagi’s 2022 Berlin State Opera staging, despite Mozart’s often melodious music.

The cast, led by Pene Pati, Ana Maria Labin, Angela Brower, Paul-Antoine Bénos-Djian, Sarah Aristidou and Ken Sugiyama, is impeccable, while the Les Musiciens du Louvre under conductor Marc Minkowski provide solid support. There’s first-rate hi-def video and audio.

DVD Release of the Week

Sisterhood

(Distrib Films US)

Although the French title, HLM Pussy, gets right to the point—if too rudely for some, obviously— Nora El Hourch’s trenchant character study dramatizes how a close-knit group of teenage female friends becomes partially estranged when one calls out her brother’s best friend for sexual harassment.

Bringing “MeToo” into a different arena, El Hourch finds space for sympathy and understanding as well as justified rage, and she has assembled a perfect cast of mostly unknown performers—I only recognized the elegant Berenice Bejo, who plays the mom of one of the teens—for a clear-eyed, truthful study that’s all the more remarkable for being El Hourch’s debut feature.

CD Release of the Week

Ruth Gipps—Orchestral Works, Vol. 3

(Chandos)

Englishwoman Ruth Gipps (1921-99), like many women composers of the 20th century, was automatically considered second class, despite having gotten a doctorate and showing the facility to write sophisticated works. Now, decades after her death, her works are have been justly resurrected, as this third volume in a series by conductor Rumon Gamba and the BBC Philharmonic of her orchestral works rewardingly shows.

There are three shorter pieces: Coronation Procession is a sparkling opener, followed by the wistful Ambarvalia and the passionate pastoral Cringlemire Garden, whose lovely string writing is reminiscent of Gipps’ teacher Vaughan Williams. The two major works are Gipps at her most original: the Horn Concerto has a lyricism that soloist Martin Owen brings to the fore, while Gamba and the orchestra give the superb first symphony a vigorous workout in its first-ever recording.

The Brandenburg Concertos Presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Details: Parent Category: Film and the Arts; Category: Reviews; Published on Wednesday, 15 January 2025 15:11; Written by Jack Angstreich

Photo by Cherylynn Tsushima

At the superior Alice Tully Hall, on the night of Friday, December 13th, I was unusually fortunate in attending a wonderful concert—presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center—devoted to the magnificent Brandenburg Concertos of Johann Sebastian Bach.

In useful notes for this program, Ellen Exner provides some background on these works:

In 1721, Bach compiled this set of highly individual, and in many ways unusual, chamber pieces for all different combinations of instruments and sent them in score format, with a humble letter of dedication, to Christian Ludwig, the Margrave of Brandenburg (1667–1734). It is thought that Bach must have played for the Margrave in 1719, on a trip to Berlin to pick up a new double-harpsichord. Bach's dedication states that the concertos were sent at the Margrave's request, based on his delight in Bach's talents.

The event started strongly with the Concerto No. 6 in B-flat major, BWV 1051, featuring violists Paul Neubauer and Milena Pájaro-van de Stadt, cellists Jonathan Swensen, Inbal Segev and Dmitri Atapine, and with double-bassist Blake Hinson and harpsichordist Kenneth Weiss, both of whom performed on all the works in the program. An ebullient, initial Allegro is followed by a slow movement marked Adagio ma non tanto that is graceful and serious but not grave, while the Allegro finale is delightful and even livelier than the first movement.

The Concerto No. 1 in F major, BWV 1046, was played by Aaron Boyd on the violino piccolo—“a violin tuned a third higher than usual,” according to the annotator—violinists Daniel Phillips and James Thompson, Pájaro-van de Stadt and Segev again, oboists James Austin Smith, Randall Ellis and Stephen Taylor, bassoonist Marc Goldberg, and on the hunting horns (corni da caccia), Julia Pilant and Stewart Rose. The opening Allegro is enchanting and ingenious, preceding a solemn, song-like Adagio and another, exuberant Allegro. The finale begins with a charming minuet with a modest Trio and a more urgent Polonaise; a second Trio is more energetic.

The Concerto No. 5 in D Major (BWV 1050) was performed by Phillips, flautist Tara Helen O’Connor, violinist Chad Hoopes, Neubauer and Atapine. The Allegro first movement is vivacious and brilliant, featuring an unusual, extended, and virtuosic keyboard solo. A sensitive and emotional slow movement marked Affetuoso precedes a dance-like, Allegro finale with an intricate, even dazzling, fugue.

The Concerto No. 4 in G Major (BWV 1049) was executed by Hoopes, flautist Sooyun Kim, O’Connor, Boyd, Thompson, Pájaro-van de Stadt, and Swensen. It starts with a bravura, sparkling Allegro, while the ensuing Andante has an almost elegiac quality, and the also effervescent Presto finale is an incredibly complex and awesome fugue.

The Concerto No. 3 in G Major, BWV 1048, featured Boyd, Thompson, Hoopes, Pájaro-van de Stadt, Philips, Neubauer, Atapine, Segev and Swensen. The beginning Allegro is energetic and engrossing and, after an exceedingly brief Adagio, the Allegro finale is dynamic and propulsive.

And at last, the Concerto No. 2 in F major, BWV 1047, was played by Thompson, Kim, Smith, trumpeter David Washburn, Phillips, Hoopes, Neubauer, Atapine, and Goldberg. The opening Allegro is winning and sprightly, succeeded by an exquisite, reflective Andante anda jubilant, irresistible Allegro assai finale.

The artists deservedly received an enthusiastic ovation.

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Present Bach

Details: Parent Category: Film and the Arts; Category: Reviews; Published on Wednesday, 15 January 2025 14:47; Written by Jack Angstreich

Photo by Cherylynn Tsushima.

At the marvelous Alice Tully Hall, on the night of Friday, December 6th, I had the exceptional pleasure to attend a superb concert—presented by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center—devoted to extraordinary concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach.

The event began promisingly with the popular Italian Concerto in F major for Keyboard, BWV 971, admirably performed on the piano by Shai Wosner. A lively, Allegro first movement precedes a serious Andante and an exuberant, Presto finale.

Even better was a sterling account of the justly celebrated Concerto in A minor for Violin, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1041, which featured violinists Bella Hristova, Ani Kavafian, and Danbi Um, violist Paul Neubauer, cellist Timothy Eddy, and bassist Anthony Manzo, with Wosner accompanying on harpsichord which he played for all the remaining works on the program. (Manzo and Eddy performed for all the rest of them as well.) The piece starts with a spirited Allegro and a song-like Andante, concluding with a jubilant Allegro assai.

The first half of the evening closed with the Concerto in C minor for Oboe, Violin, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1060R, with oboist Juri Vallentin, violinists Cho-Liang Lin, Kavafian again and Julian Rhee, and violist James Thompson, who appeared in all the rest of the works. The opening Allegro is charming and vivacious and the celebrated, exquisite Adagio—it memorably appears in a key sequence in Bille August’s underrated film, Twist and Shout from 1984–is lyrical, while the Allegro finale is lively and propulsive.

In the balance of the program, exceptionally rewarding was the Concerto in F minor for Keyboard, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1056, with Rhee, Hristova, Lin, and Neubauer, along with violinist Ida Kavafian. It has a sparkling, dance-like Allegro, a celestial Largo with a solemn undercurrent, and a rhythmic, even exultant, Presto finale.

Another highlight of the program was the less familiar Concerto in F major for Oboe, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1053R, with Vallentin, Um, and Ani Kavafian also. The opening Allegro is enchanting and virtuosic, followed by a meditative Siciliano—which is a Baroque dance—that possesses gravity, with a sprightly and dynamic, Allegro finale.

The concert concluded splendidly with the popular Concerto in D minor for Two Violins, Strings, and Continuo, BWV 1043, with all the musicians except Vallentin. An exciting Vivace leads to a slow movement marked Largo ma non tanto that is somber yet an epitome of grace, finishing with an enthralling Allegro.

The artists deservedly received an enthusiastic ovation.

January '25 Digital Week I

Details: Parent Category: Film and the Arts; Category: Reviews; Published on Thursday, 09 January 2025 03:10; Written by Kevin Filipski

4K/UHD Release of the Week

Seven

(Warner Bros)

Although at times quite gruesome, David Fincher’s 1995 serial-killer classic remains an intelligent, witty and unsettling drama 30 years on, eschewing the crassness of many films of its genre. The plot hinges on two cops brushing up on their Dante and Milton to ferret out a “deadly sin” murderer, and Fincher’s impeccably stylish directing keeps things on track until the genuinely—and logically—creepy denouement.

The performances by Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt are authentic and stabilizing, while Kevin Spacey enters in the last act and provides his customarily brilliant portrayal as the killer. Darius Khondji’s spectacularly moody cinematography looks superb in the UHD transfer; extras include four commentaries, deleted scenes, alternate endings and several featurettes.

In-Theater Releases of the Week

The Brutalist

(A24)

In Brady Corbet’s would-be American epic about a Jewish Hungarian architect who emigrates to the U.S. after surviving Dachau, the hero is named László Tóth—which has to be some kind of in-joke, since it’s also the name of the Hungarian geologist who took a hammer to Michelangelo’s Pieta in 1972—and he is put through physical and emotional ringers that leave him as scarred as what he endured in Europe. Corbet and Mona Fastvold’s script is crammed with big gestures, little subtlety and empty platitudes, but Corbet and cinematographer Lol Crawley’s trusty camera dresses up the outsized dramatic ambition in gorgeous images, albeit often hackneyed or borrowed from better filmmakers.

As Laszlo, Adrien Brody gives a towering performance, and he is sensitively supported by Felicity Jones as his physically frail wife Elszabet. But poor Guy Pearce, who starts out hammily amusing as the antagonist, millionaire Harrison Lee Van Buren, is saddled with the most ludicrous dialogue and character arc, and he wears out his welcome long before the film ends with a ridiculously unnecessary epilogue that risibly sums up the preceding 3-1/2 hours—including intermission.

The Damned

(Vertical)

Director Thordur Palsson’s brooding, slowburn horror film fashions many familiar tropes—isolation, darkness, xenophobia, madness—and into a stew that’s distinctly unnerving but not fully cooked. Set during winter in a cutoff Arctic outpost, the drama builds around a self-sufficient settlement that must deal with the moral issues of intervening when a ship sinks off the coast, knowing there aren’t enough foodstuffs to supply survivors.

While enacted intensely by a cast led by Odessa Young as a widow, Palsson’s film never takes off, leading to a pseudo-Twilight Zone twist ending to cover up its shortcomings.

Hard Truths

(Bleecker Street)

Mike Leigh has been making semi-improvised contemporary character studies for decades but, with a few exceptions (High Hopes, Life Is Sweet), I prefer his historical epics like Topsy Turvy, Mr. Turner and Peterloo. His latest is a disappointingly shallow study of Pansy, a middle-aged wife and mother whose anger—at her husband, son, family members, even store employees and customers—masks deeper psychological issues.

Leigh and actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste’s second collaboration gets the particulars right but plausibility in characterization and relationships goes out the window whenever Pansy starts yelling…and yelling. The best scene, between Pansy and her loving but exasperated sister Chantelle (a pitch-perfect Michele Austin) at their mother’s gravesite, works beautifully because it is so understated. Too bad Leigh couldn’t maintain that restraint for the rest of the film.

The Last Republican

(MCDC)

Adam Kinzinger, a Republican congressman who voted with Trump 90 percent of the time while both were in office, was lauded by right-thinking people when he joined the January 6 committee and voted for Trump’s impeachment in 2021. Steve Pink’s chummy documentary portrait further humanizes Kinzinger as he and his wife go through her pregnancy while he’s preparing to leave office in 2023 after being primaried by a vengeful Trumpian party.

Pink gives us a sense of how otherwise unbridgeable differences between Kinzinger and, say, Liz Cheney on one side and Democrats on the other are closed by a need to save democracy. But despite such good vibes, we all know how it turned out: Trump is back, and things look worse than ever. So who really won?

Nickel Boys

(Amazon MGM)

Colson Whitehead’s absorbing novel about two Black boys, Elwood and Turner, who met and bonded at a racist Florida boarding school in the early ‘60s has been made into a frustratingly diffuse film by first-time feature director RaMell Ross, who obviously struggled to come up with a visual equivalent to the book’s omniscient narrator and second half plot twist. Using the camera for the pair’s POV works in theory but not dramatically, as it keeps us at a remove from the characters; it also cheats, since camera movements are not the same as a person’s real POV and so several scenes, especially those that are intimate or shocking, play out choppily. When he cuts to one of the boys, now an adult and living in New York City, Ross uses an even more tortured form of POV in a desperate attempt to hide the twist’s inevitable shock.

There are moments of power and emotion, and Ross brings his documentary skills to the fore in the final montages that juxtapose actual history with Elwood and Turner’s lives. Ethan Herisse (Elwood) and Brandon Wilson (Turner) are rarely onscreen, while others—like Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Hattie, Elwood’s beloved grandmother—play to the camera in an unnatural way, something that prods Hamish Linklater to give a cartoonish portrayal of the school’s corrupt and racist administrator.

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