Tag: Marraige

“Anna Karenina” (2012) starring Keira Knightley, Jude Law, & Aaron Taylor-Johnson

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Vronsky: I love you!

Anna: Why?

Vronsky: You can’t ask why about love!

In 1874, in Imperial Russia, the aristocratic Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley) travels from St. Petersburg to Moscow to save the marriage of her brother Stiva- AKA Prince Oblonsky (Matthew Macfadyen)- who recently affair w/ the governess. My fellow Austen fans know that Knightley and Macfadyen previously starred together in Pride & Prejudice (2005), also directed by Joe Wright. Anna has a loveless marriage w/ her husband, Count Alexei Karenin (Jude Law); they have a young son- Serhoza. Anna meets a cavalry officer, Count Alexei Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), at the train station; they have a strong attraction to each other right away. She learns that Vronsky will propose to Princess Kitty (Alicia Vikander- in one of her early roles), the younger sister of her sister-in-law Dolly (Kelly Macdonald). Anna convinces Dolly not to divorce Stiva; Kitty invites her to stay for a ball. The diamond necklace that Anna wears is an exclusive piece created by Chanel. Anna and Vronsky dance at the ball and call attention to themselves. They begin a love affair that will lead to tragedy for Anna.

Karenin: I consider jealously to be insulting to you and degrading to me. I have no right to inquire into your feelings. They concern only your conscience.

Wright adopted an experimental (some said ambitious) approach to this story; the majority of the film was shot on a theater built in Shepperton. The skating rink, train station, and stables were dressed on top of the theater. Doors open onto Russian landscapes; some actors walk from one set to another under the stage. Toy trains and doll houses were used for some shots. Levin (Domhnall Gleeson- in one of his early roles) is allowed to venture out of the theater b/c Wright wanted to stress the fact that Levin is the only authentic character. The soundtrack makes use of a Russian folk song that was also adapted by Tchaikovsky in his Fourth Symphony (written in the same time as Tolstoy’s novel). The song that the (presumably gypsy) Masha (Tannishtha Chatterjee) hums and sings near the end is a Bengali lullaby (a language spoken in Bangladesh and the West Bengal region of India). Wow, I was NOT expecting that!

Countess Nordston: Would you die for love, Konstantin Dmitrich?

Levin: I would. But not for my neighbor’s wife.

[pause]

Levin: An impure love is not love, to me. To admire another man’s wife is a pleasant thing, but sensual desire indulged for its own sake is greed, a kind of gluttony, and a misuse of something sacred which is given to us so that we may choose the one person with whom to fulfill our humanness. Otherwise we might as well be cattle.

Countess Nordston: Ah, an idealist!

[laughter erupts]

I just saw this (1st time) last week and was a BIT disappointed (though I didn’t have high hopes for it). I’d heard/read reviews from several viewers who either hated it or were meh (unimpressed). As one viewer commented: “It looks like a perfume ad.” One podcaster said that Wright goes more for “style and beauty than substance.” I thought he did a great job w/ Atonement and liked the freshness he brought to Pride and Prejudice. Macfadyen is the ONLY actor who looks like he’s having fun w/ the role. Macdonald is naturally good in everything, but I think she is under-used here. There is almost no chemistry between Knightley and Taylor-Johnson (who has some distracting hair). I learned that he is British (I assumed he was American b/c I first saw him on Nocturnal Animals). Several fans of the book were esp. disappointed w/ Taylor-Johnson’s portrayal, b/c Vronsky is supposed to be more of a “deeper” man. Law does a fine job (though he looks unglamorous); some of his fans may be shocked to see his (natural) hairline. The younger couple (Gleeson and Vikander) do a good job also; I liked the sweet scene w/ the letter blocks. Levin’s scenes out working the land were done well. These actors teamed up for Ex Machina, a hit movie that was also critically-acclaimed.

There are other versions of this story to check out, if you’re interested; I have seen two other adaptations. The 1997 movie (starring Sophie Marceau and Sean Bean) has the romantic chemistry lacking here, but some viewers felt Marceau was a bit TOO restrained. I always like seeing Alfred Molina; he plays Levin. The 2000 mini-series (starring Helen McCrory and Kevin McKidd) has intelligence and maturity (which some book readers felt Knightley lacked). Sadly, McCrory recently passed away from cancer. I liked how Karenin (Stephen Dillane) and Levin (Douglass Henshall) were portrayed in that show.

[1] I’m not saying all films have to be constructed in a conventional manner, but when the form overtakes the substance something has gone wrong.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Count Vronsky is a piece of serious miscasting. Instead of looking like a great lover and sure temptation for wavering Anna, he looks like some feeble dandy with his foppish shock of dyed curly blonde hair which makes him look quite ridiculous.

Keira Knightley does the best she can, despite looking most of the time like she’s attending a fashion shoot.

[2] Keira Knightley’s version of Anna is not nearly as bad as you would think. She has the sense to restrain herself a little so that the many other elements of the novel shine through. […] This Anna takes Vronsky just because she can, and then ultimately regrets it. We can feel her frustration: she’s young and wants to have fun but she’s tied down to a stuffy older husband. In that sense, it’s quite a modern interpretation, but not hideously so.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Count Vronsky was just miscast. If the novel had been about Anna seducing a schoolboy, he would have been great, but Vronsky is meant to be a dashing man. The styling is atrocious- he looks like a seventies Scandinavian Eurovision entry.

Jude Law as Karenin. A bizarre choice… However, he gives a performance that is probably his best.

-Excerpts from IMDB reviews

“The Firm” (1993) starring Tom Cruise, Jeanne Tripplehorn, & Gene Hackman

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Did y’all read John Grisham novels back in JHS (like me); I recall reading a few (which were made into movies that my family and I saw). My fave is (of course) The Pelican Brief, as it stars Denzel Washington; Julia Roberts, Sam Shepard and the supporting cast perform well also. The director was Alan J. Pakula; he also wrote the screenplay. Julia commented that “working w/ Denzel was like working w/ The Beatles.” The Client (starring Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones) has also been considered a good movie w/ touching performances; it was directed by Joel Schumacher. A Time to Kill was the first starring role for Matthew McConaughey (looking gorgeous); he is a young defense lawyer. I liked it when I was younger; it’s NOT that subtle (also directed by Schumacher). It has a strong cast: Donald Sutherland (and son Kiefer), Samuel L. Jackson (the defendant), Kevin Spacey (the district attorney), Sandra Bullock (an ACLU attorney), Ashley Judd, etc. It’s where I discovered Chris Cooper (one of my fave character actors); he just embodies every role he takes on. The first Grisham novel to be made into a movie is (probably) the most well-known- The Firm.

Mitch: Hey Ray, wouldn’t it be funny if I went to Harvard, you went to jail, and we both ended up surrounded by crooks.

Mitch McDeere (Tom Cruise) is a recent Harvard grad w/ a promising future in law. About to sit for the bar exam, he is approached by a small Memphis firm; they make him an offer he doesn’t refuse. Mitch and his wife, Abby (Jeanne Tripplehorn), are nearly bowled over- they get a luxury car, fully-furnished house, and plenty of Southern hospitality. Also, Mitch will be just across the river from the prison where his older bro is being held. Suddenly, two of the associates are killed while boating in the Cayman Islands. The FBI contact Mitch, asking him for info. He can work with the FBI or stay loyal to the firm. Whatever decision he makes, he’ll lose the successful life he dreamt of since a boy growing up in a trailer park. Mitch thinks up his own plan…

Mitch [to Wayne]: Ten thousand dollars and five years in prison. That’s ten and five for each act. Have you really looked at that? You’ve got every partner in the firm on overbilling. There’s two hundred fifty acts of documented mail fraud there. That’s racketeering! That’s minimum one thousand, two hundred fifty years in prison and half a million dollars in fines. That’s more than you had on Capone.

I saw this movie for the second time recently; I saw it way back in HS. It’s pretty good, though it could’ve been edited down much more (as it clocks in at 2 hrs. 34 mins.) The director was Sydney Pollack; the supporting cast included Ed Harris, Holly Hunter (who got an Oscar nom), David Strathairn (looking good- even in prison garb), Gary Busey (before he went off the rails), Terry Kinney (w/ a full head of blonde hair), Wilford Brimley (in a rare meaty role), and Hal Holbrook. I’m NOT a big fan of Cruise, BUT I think he did a fine job here. There is great chemistry between Cruise and Tripplehorn, so you buy them as a solid/loving couple (though they are still in their 20s). Hackman (who plays senior partner Avery Tolar) does a great job; he goes from intimidating to friendly, then (in the end) becomes rather vulnerable and sympathetic. There is a creep factor in (most of) the scenes between Abby and Avery; he obviously has a thing for her.

Abby: What are they going to do to you?

Avery: Whatever it is, they did it a long time ago.

The firm is all about control; they have the McDeere house bugged and even set traps for Mitch when he is on the Cayman trip. First, he gets hit on by a woman at the bar, as Avery dances nearby. Mitch refuses her advances and goes for a walk on the beach; he comes upon a man acting aggressive w/ a woman. Mitch gets to play the hero- the abusive man rushes off. I learned that Halle Berry tried out for the role of this stranger on the beach (played by former model Karina Lombard). Why does Mitch hook up w/ this woman so quickly!? Well, she is young, unusually beautiful, and tells him a story of wanting to be “safe” (financially). You can see that Mitch connects to this desire. I was surprised that I got a BIT emotional in the end, when Abby comes back to Mitch.

Abby: I’ve loved you all my life. Even before we met. Part of it wasn’t even you. It was just a promise of you. But these last days… You kept your promise. How could you lose me?

Hunter (who wears some loud costumes and colorful wigs) admitted that she never saw this movie. This was the same year that she gained critical acclaim w/ The Piano. I couldn’t help but notice the chemistry between Hunter and Strathairn in one of the last scenes; he’s looking at her like he’s really in love- yowza! During the end credits, we see them sailing off together.

Terror at Home: “Pacific Heights” (1990) & “Unlawful Entry” (1992)

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Pacific Heights (1990) starring Melanie Griffith, Matthew Modine, & Michael Keaton

The home is the most dangerous place – the old saying goes. A young couple in San Fran, Drake Goodman (Modine) and Patty Palmer (Grifffith), decide to save on rent by buying a house. Despite it being outside of their price range, they purchase a Victorian house in Pacific Heights (a friendly/diverse neighborhood). They start making renos and renting out the 2 apts. on the ground floor. They rent out the 1 BD back unit to the Watanabes (a older Japanese couple); seemingly-wealthy Carter Hayes (Keaton) is able to manipulate his way into renting the front studio (promising to pay 6 mos. in advance). Drake and Patty eventually learn that Carter is the tenant from hell.

Drake Goodman: [as they are house painting] You have to remember this is an investment, Patty. You can’t afford to do everything at once.

Patty Palmer: It’s not just an investment – it’s our home.

Screenwriter Daniel Pyne once rented an apt. to a tenant that he couldn’t evict. In the original script, Carter was a bisexual man who sexually threatened both Drake and Patty; there is no trace of this in the movie. I can’t believe they got such a (respected/veteran) director- John Schlesinger- to work on this boring/predictable movie! There is next to zero chemistry between Modine and Griffith, so I can’t buy them as a couple; these are already actors I tend to avoid. Also, like some critics, I found it tough to empathize w/ this pair. To add insult to injury, check out the terrible fashion they made Griffith wear- ugh. Keaton is trying to do something w/ the scraps he has been given (fresh off of his Batman fame); however, Carter doesn’t come off as scary. Unlike many domestic thrillers, he is a con man after money, NOT a psychopath after another man’s wife. It was at least nice to see a young Laurie Metcalf (best known for Roseanne) as a capable lawyer.

It’s like a yuppie horror. Instead of taking an axe to the head, they take it to the house. –Roger Ebert

There is a rather problematic assumption that Drake makes re: potential Black tenant, Mr. Baker (Carl Lumbly), which will rub many modern viewers the wrong way. And yes, I guessed that Baker would turn out to be a cop! As Drake’s more financially-stable/wiser friend Reed, Dorian Harewood doesn’t get much to do. Yup, they put in a Black bestie to offset the possibly racist assumption that Drake made re: Baker; it can’t get more predictable! Avoid this movie- you’re welcome.

Unlawful Entry (1992) starring Kurt Russell, Madeleine Stowe, & Ray Liotta

Issues of security, policing, and masculinity make this film a worthwhile watch (even for modern audiences). After a break-in at their house, a suburban LA couple- Michael (Russell) and Karen Carr (Stowe)- get help from one of the cops- Officer Pete Davis (Liotta)- that answered their call. He helps them install a security system and begins dropping by, even when NOT on patrol. Pete opens up to Karen, hoping to get to know her better. Michael grows V concerned about Pete after going on a ride-along w/ him and his partner.

The director, Jonathan Kaplan (who was known for his TV work), also worked on the critically-acclaimed drama Love Field (also released in 1992). Kaplan’s style is unfussy and workman-like (as some critics noted); this choice works for thrillers. Siskel and Ebert both liked the movie, esp. the strong performance by Liotta (in one of his early roles). I liked Russell and Stowe as a couple; they were easy to empathize with also. They didn’t expect crime to come to their area, or affect them in such a (potentially violent) manner. Russell is playing against type as a yuppie developer; his latest project is a nightclub (actually a beautiful/historic theater in downtown LA). Stowe is an elementary schoolteacher who loves kids; the viewer wonders (like Pete) why she and her hubby don’t have some of their own.

This movie isn’t as shallow as I assumed it would be. It came out after the (infamous) Rodney King beating and subsequent riots. To modern eyes, it will bring to mind the recent changes in policing (after BLM, the worldwide outrage at the George Floyd killing, and related events). Notice how horrified Michael looks when he sees Pete beating the scared/junkie (a Black man) after the ride-along. Yes, this is the same man who broke into the Carr’s house and put a knife to Karen’s throat; however, Pete beats him even when he is unarmed (and has his hands up). Pete’s partner (also a Black man) has already gone off-duty, so didn’t see any of this. Of course, Karen didn’t see this brutal behavior, so she thinks Michael is overreacting. Pete even goes to Karen’s school to talk to the kids, explaining that the police are there “to help people.” We know it’s NOT always the case (from evidence filmed on modern cell phones)! There are (huge) cell phones in this movie; some lawyers and businessmen carried them. At the party, the potential investors are interested to talk w/ Pete, as they are concerned re: the security of the nightclub.

This movie also has something to say re: society’s notions of masculinity and femininity. Michael (who is educated/ambitious) can provide financially for his wife, BUT can’t protect her physically (in the beginning of the movie). He hesitates in taking the chance to hit the burglar w/ his golf club; Michael thinks this makes him weak. Pete (who is trained to fight/authorized to carry a gun) doesn’t hesitate in using violence. He thinks this makes him stronger than Michael (and better suited for Karen), BUT he is an abuser. In the poolside scene, you realize that Pete has put Karen on a pedestal; he turns away when she gets out of the water. In the cop bar, Pete and Karen chat, and we get the sense that she could find him attractive. In Pete’s eyes, Karen (beautiful/refined) is TOO good for him. In the post-hookup scene in his patrol car, Pete insults/hits the blonde prostitute. This woman (able to be bought) is “trash” to Pete, though she was nice to him. In the end, BOTH husband and wife have to work together to defeat the cop who NOT only threatened their relationship, BUT was a danger to society-at-large.

“Malice” (1992) starring Alec Baldwin, Nicole Kidman, & Bill Pullman

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Deception. Betrayal. Murder. Some things you never see coming. -Tag line

This is one of several thrillers made during the early 1990s set around husband and wife characters. The films incl. Deceived (1991), Shattered (1991), Mortal Thoughts (1991), Consenting Adults (1992), Unlawful Entry (1992), Presumed Innocent (1990), Guilty as Sin (1993), Sleeping with the Enemy (1991), and A Kiss Before Dying (1991). So far, I’ve only seen Consenting Adults (starring Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Rebecca Miller- wife of Daniel Day Lewis) and Sleeping with the Enemy (one of Julia Roberts’ first movies; it spawned 14 remakes internationally). I saw Malice (first time) last week; I never knew it was co-written by Aaron Sorkin (who also wrote A Few Good Men and created one of my fave TV shows- The West Wing)! It was originally intended to be filmed at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA (not Smith College). After reviewing the script, the college president declined, due to the serial rapist subplot. The movie was moved to Smith in Northampton; they only agreed as long as the college name was changed. In the opening, the little house that the young student lives in is the former residence of Pres. Coolidge.

This is the type of film that you have to see twice to get all that’s going on. On the first watch, it’s a compelling psychological thriller w/ twists and turns; the plot contains rape, murder, life-and-death trauma, and a deadly fight (all w/ in the first 45 mins). On the re-watch, you find the things you might’ve missed; it’s a chance to enjoy the terrific performances from the three leads- Alec Baldwin, Nicole Kidman, and Bill Pullman. There are brief appearances by Gwyneth Paltrow (a slacker student/one of her early roles) and Joshua Malina (a medical resident/old friend of Sorkin). Veteran actors George C. Scott and Anne Bancroft have small, yet pivotal, roles. Peter Gallagher plays the lawyer who holds some clues to Tracy’s (mysterious) past.

I’m the new guy around here and I want to make friends, so I’ll say this to you and we’ll start fresh. If you don’t like my jokes, don’t laugh. If you have a medical opinion, then please speak up and speak up loud. But if you ever again tell me or my surgical staff that we’re going to lose a patient, I’m gonna take out your lungs with a fuckin’ ice cream scoop. Do you understand me? -Jed explains to Dr. Robertson (after they operate on the college student/rape survivor)

Andy Safian (Pullman- looking youthful at 40) is an associate dean at a small college outside Boston that’s being terrorized by a serial rapist. Tracy (Kidman- looking gorgeous as usual) is his younger wife who volunteers as an art teacher in the Pediatrics ward of the local hospital, St. Agnes. They’re newlyweds renovating a Victorian house and need $14K to overhaul its plumbing. Dr. Jed Hill (Baldwin- looking gorgeous also) is the hotshot new surgeon at St. Agnes and a former HS classmate of Andy’s. Jed needs a place to stay; Andy and Tracy need the extra money. Soon, Jed is living on the 3rd floor; his noisy date w/ his surgical nurse, Tanya (Debrah Farentino), is grating on Tracy’s nerves. The rapes continue; Andy is even considered a suspect! Andy’s detective friend, Dana (Bebe Neuwirth), convinces him to come to the police station to eliminate himself as a suspect. Meanwhile, Tracy comes home and collapses from pains to her abdomen (a possible ovarian cyst)!

I have an M.D. from Harvard, I am board certified in cardio-thoracic medicine and trauma surgery. I have been awarded citations from seven different medical boards in New England, and I am never, ever sick at sea. So I ask you: when someone goes into that chapel and they fall on their knees and they pray to God that their wife doesn’t miscarry or that their daughter doesn’t bleed to death or that their mother doesn’t suffer acute neural trama from postoperative shock, who do you think they’re praying to? Now, go ahead and read your Bible, Dennis, and you go to your church, and, with any luck, you might win the annual raffle, but if you’re looking for God, he was in operating room number two on November 17th, and he doesn’t like to be second guessed. You ask me if I have a God complex. Let me tell you something: I am God. -Jed declares during the deposition

On my second watch, I saw that there were hints that Jed and Tracy knew each other from before. Jed and Tracy meet in the bathroom when Tracy drops her meds; she angrily asks: “What the hell are you doing here?” (in a tone that one doesn’t use w/ new acquaintances). Also, notice the looks of anger and jealousy when Tracy sees Tanya coming out of Jed’s room late at night. Fans of the noir genre will notice the noir-inspired choices made by the director (Harold Becker), esp. in the second half. This film is classified as a “neo-noir thriller,” according to Wikipedia. The sometimes haunting music (composed by Jerry Goldsmith) really sets the mood. This film harkens back- at times- to the Golden Age of Hollywood.

[1] …Baldwin’s mesmerizing performance is what stands out. Jed is charismatic, seductive, and as charming as a cobra as he weaves his spell over the Safians. Baldwin’s ability to jump from utterly charming to incredibly chilling in the blink of an eye is on full display here; it is truly the performance of a lifetime.

[2] It’s the uncertainties in the movie that make it one to remember. See it, you will not be disappointed! The background musical score is one of the most memorable that I have heard in any movie. Malice is a tale of arrogance, power, mystery, and deception, that must be seen and will be long remembered after the final credits roll.

[3] Alec Baldwin… is splendid as the doctor/villain [and what a smoothie he is]. His God “complex” speech is one of the highlights. Then there’s the delicious Nicole Kidman… What makes her performance stand out to me is that, as wild and evil as she can be, there’s also a vulnerability in her portrayal. You actually care what happens to her, even though you know she deserves to get caught. […] And Bill Pullman, being given a sort of wimpish character to play, brings it way up to the same level as the stronger characters with his performance. He does an outstanding job in this flick. 

[4] She’s [Anne Bancroft] like the spider with the fly with she’s talking with Kidman’s hubby who just doesn’t get the situation. Bancroft brings enormous power to this character.

-Excerpts from IMDB reviews

“Odds Against Tomorrow” (1959) starring Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Shelley Winters, & Ed Begley

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Dave Burke (veteran character actor Ed Begley) is looking to hire two men to assist him in a bank raid: Earle Slater (Robert Ryan), a white/middle-aged ex-con, and Johnny Ingram (Harry Belafonte- also co-producer), a young/Black singer w/ a gambling problem. Ingram (who likes the finer things in life) is recently divorced from his schoolteacher wife, Ruth (Kim Hamilton), w/ whom he shares a young daughter. Burke arranges for Ingram’s creditors to put pressure on him. Slater (who has a quick temper) feels humiliated by his failure to provide for his devoted wife, Lorry (Shelley Winters), who works two jobs. The two men, though reluctant at first, eventually accept to do the crime. Slater loathes and despises Blacks; tensions in the gang quickly mount.

[after Slater insults Ingram]

Burke: Don’t beat out that Civil War jazz here, Slater! We’re all in this together, each man equal. And we’re taking care of each other. It’s one big play, our one and only chance to grab stakes forever. And I don’t want to hear what your grandpappy thought on the old farm down in Oklahoma! You got it?

Belafonte chose Abraham Polonsky (writer/director of Force of Evil) to write the script. As a blacklisted writer, Polonsky used the name of John O. Killens (a Black novelist/friend of Belafonte). In 1997, the WGA restored Polonsky’s credit. The director is Robert Wise (West Side Story; The Sound of Music); he used infra-red film in some scenes (to create a distorted feel).

This is the first film noir with a Black protagonist! The bartender at the jazz club is a young Cicely Tyson (her second film appearance); she passed away in early 2021. Noir icon Gloria Grahame makes a brief (yet important) appearance. The movie was praised highly by James Ellroy and influenced the work of Jean-Pierre Melville (a French director). The volatile chemistry between the three men is at the center of the movie. I liked the character development, on locations shots of NYC (incl. Central Park), and the slightly uneasy atmosphere. Jazz and Calypso music are played at the smoky club where Ingram performs.

[1] Good low budget heist film. Ryan’s character is one of the ugliest portrayals of a white racist in film. Belafonte’s character is one of the most multi-faceted and complex potrayals of an African American up until that time, and the performance doesn’t date at all. Wise keeps the pacing taut and the suspense high.

[2] Personally I found Belafonte’s contribution the most searing. He captures the role of the divorced father to a tee. The scene where he is awakened by his ex-wife after sleeping (ever so slightly) with is daughter is masterful. You can sense the longing in his heart for the nuclear family that once was.

[3] Wise wants to communicate a whole context, he wants to detail his characters to a fault. How many directors would dare that today? Robert Ryan’s part is very complex. First he seems friendly, but further acquaintance shows a lack of self-confidence (he’s getting old, he’s a washout, he wants to go for broke). And he is a racist. Rarely, this obnoxious feeling has been depicted with such wit.

-Excerpts from reviews on IMBD