May 2nd 2024
All of Us Strangers (streaming on Disney+)
The Taste of Things
The Road to Patagonia
Fremont
Golda
Macbeth: National Theatre Live
I'm leading off this week with a streaming film, as it blew me away and I can't get it out of my head! Then there are five more cinema releases to choose from, with my pick being a French foodie film that will have you salivating with hunger.
Dir: Andrew Haigh
Length: 105 mins
Streaming on Disney+
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© Searchlight/Disney+ - cuts to the
heart of human longing for acceptance |
Adam (Andrew Scott), a screenwriter, lives a lonely life in a London highrise building. One evening his neighbour Harry (Paul Mescal) knocks on the door, drunk and dishevelled, offering to share a drink and maybe something more. Adam rebuffs Harry, but when they meet again, the pair connect and a tentative but sweet romance starts. Adam goes to visit his parents Mum (Claire Foy) and Dad (Jamie Bell), but he has already told Harry that they were killed in an accident when he was twelve. Adam comes out to his mother, who seems stuck in old fashioned attitudes about being gay, AIDS, and expectations of her son marrying and having kids. I'm telling you nothing more plotwise, because it is at this point that we start to wonder what in this film is real, what is imagined, and whether perhaps ghosts exist. What is real is the depth of the emotion and grief that Adam pours out - his insecurities as a young gay child, his feelings of neglect and isolation, his longing for love and understanding. Scott, with his soulful eyes and beautiful face gives a searing performance that ripped my heart out, as he reenacts what so many of us would like to do - revisit our past, say the things we wanted to, rekindle family, love and connection. Many of the dream sequences play with time, as Adam grapples his tormented emotions, but everything flows seamlesslessly in and out of past and present. The chemistry between the two men is at once sensual, tender and scorchingly sexual - lovingly shot in a way that makes us all long for a relationship just like that, regardless of our sexual orientation. The conversations they have, in which they reveal their deepest vulnerabilties, are achingly real. Harry's story presents us with quite a mystery at the end, and ultimately is open to interpretation by the viewer, but however you choose to decipher the what of the story, the why is just so clear - we all need love, safety, acceptance and belonging. This is an exquisite film that I need to see once more.5 - unmissable
The Taste of Things
Dir: Anh Hung Tran
Length: 135 mins
 |
© Rialto - luscious, lovely, lingering.
don't see it on an empty stomach! |
Dodin Bouffant (Benoit Magimel) is a renowned gourmet living in Paris at the end of the 1800s. His chef Eugenie (Juliette Binoche) has been cooking for him for more than 20 years and their relationship has become something more - an occasional romantic assignation, but despite Dodin wanting to marry her, she treasures her independence. Perhaps if he cooks for her, she will relent. I know we can become blase about foodie films, but this one is another notch above. It is set in a time in France when such proponents of haute cuisine as Escoffier, were making their mark. The exquisitely-realised story somehow combines everything that is sensual about food, love, nature, veggie gardens, and the joy of preparing from the heart a dish so perfect it is almost beyond words. The first half hour of the film is spent in silence as Dodin and Eugenie potter in the kitchen together. The rhythm is languid yet purposeful. Every scene is this film is visually divine, and you can almost taste the delights being conjured up. In fact, every dish was prepared from go to woe with top chefs supervising! There are a couple of subplots, but it is the food that is the major star, along with the gentleness of the love story. This sublimely mouth-watering film can happily take its place in the pantheon of the best foodie films out.4 - wholeheartedly recommended
The Road to Patagonia
Dir: Matty Hannon
Length: 90 mins
 |
© Garage/Madman - an adventure that
is inspiring and a love song to planet Earth |
Billed as a series of love letters, (director and his gal, director and planet Earth), this doco can be many things to many people. Firstly it is an adventure story, as Matty begins his odyssey by heading from Australia to the Mentawai islands, Indonesia, for five years. He is captivated by the relationship of the indigenous people to their environment, but eventually he returns to office life in the city, and depression sets in. So he decides on a bigger adventure - to surf the coast of the Americas from Alaska down to Patagonia, the tip of South America. On the way he meets environmentally-aware Heather, and romance takes centre stage along with their gruelling but uplifting journey. Together they set out on motorbikes, but then swap them for horses. Heather, Matty (and their much-loved animals) are together 24/7 for well over a year as they trek, struggle, marvel, and meet some amazing people, from rebels to tribal folk. Visually this film is a treat, from the majestic Andean mountains to the thundering waves they surf. And it is of course a love song to the planet and a plea for living more in harmony with our environment. At times it feels a little disjointed; apparently the overall filming process took 16 years, so there is a huge variety of content and time frames, but it's inspiring to see such commitment and to share in this journey.3 - recommended
Fremont
Dir: Babak Jalali
Length: 91 mins
 |
© Low key and sweet story of
finding a new life |
Donya (Anaita Wali Zada) is a former translator for the US Army in Afghanistan. Now she's a refugee living in Fremont, California. She leads a relatively isolated life, relating only to Aziz, who runs a middle eastern resturant, and to her co-workers at a fortune cookie factory. Suffering insomnia she visits an unusual and eccentric therapist, Dr Anthony (Gregg Turkington), who suggests she is suffering from survivors' guilt. Aziz and neighbor Salim encourage Donya to start dating, so impulsively one day on the assembly line she puts her phone number inside a fortune cookie. This is a modest film, but with weighty themes, shot in black and white and remniscent of some of Jim Jarmusch's work. It's a movie that gets stronger as it moves along, being a bit slow to get going. But when it does fire up, about half way through, it has a sweetness and a low-key comedic poignancy, even if it feels a bit contrived at moments. It's a delight to see the star of The Bear, Jeremy Allen White, in a fine role as a kind-hearted mechanic somewhere in the woop-woops of California.3.5 - well recommended
Golda
Dir: Guy Nativ
Length: 100 mins
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© Transmission - a nearly unrecognizable
Helen Mirren is the Israeli "Iron Lady" |
In 1973, on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur, Israel discovered it was under atttack by combined Egyptian and Syrian forces. The fighting raged for almost three weeks until a ceasefire was finally declared. Then Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir was faced with critical decisions that could determine the fate of not only her country but also millions of lives. One of Britain's greatest actresses Helen Mirren is almost unrecognisable as Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir. There is absolutely no denying she inhabits her role, even if it does mean chain smoking throughout! But, (and this could be my being a politico-history klutz), I found myself not totally engaging in the narrative of the story; something seemed too impersonal and more like a history lesson rather than an in-depth look at the woman herself, which is what I imagined the film would be. Mirren is ably supported by Liev Schreiber as Kissinger and Camille Cottin as Golda's personal assistant. Whatever my reservations about the film, it's worth it for Mirren alone (as always). 3 - recommended
Macbeth
Dir: Simon Godwin
Length: 156 mins
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© Sharmill - minimalist staging,
top shelf acting |
Shakespeare seems immortal and is constantly
being adapted for modern audiences. More than 10 films of Macbeth have been
made and now we have the version of the National Theatre production filmed in
London. As with several other modern Shakespearian adaptations, this one,
embraces the garb of a contemporary battlefield with Scottish lords and kings decked
out in army fatigues that evoke the many wars in today’s world. The three
witches take a modern turn with their shredded jeans and Doc Martin boots with
other characters, dressed in modern suits or dresses. The staging is spare,
with the castle’s interior feeling a bit like a modern minimalistic home.
Though I always have immense trouble following Shakespeare’s language, Ralph
Fiennes delivers his lines with trademark crispiness and clarity as his Macbeth
travels an arc from bullied husband to monstrous murderous megalomaniac, though
I’m not sure the touches of physical humor he injects actually work. Indira
Varma almost outshines Fiennes as Lady Macbeth the power hungry wife who
eventually regrets what she has unleashed and descends into madness. Notable
also is Ben Turner as Macduff. My not being a Shakespeare buff really does not
qualify me to prognosticate upon this production, but I found myself progressively
engaged, and absorbed with this classic tale.
3.5 - well recommended
