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November Films

540 words on ,

Last month with Human Desire, Waltz with Bashir, Bullets over Broadway, Welcome to Sarajevo, and more.

Human Desire

Human Desire, a 1950s film directed by Fritz Lang - and based on Emile Zola’s novel La Bête Humaine - features the the tasty combination of love and murder along with such wonderful human traits as greed, jealousy. Obviously, drama ensues.

Waltz with Bashir

Waltz with Bashir is a new Isrealian film around the memories of soldiers of the 1982 Lebanon War coming back to haunt them. Apparently what they saw as young soldiers then was simply forgotten and suppressed by their minds for many years and the film’s protagonist Ron tries to find out what happened and which role he played in a massacre that took place when he and his friends were close by.

It’s a somewhat depressing film and it tries to show how overwhelming being sent to war was for the young soldiers. As Ron discovers layer after layer of his own history by discussing it with his friends from back then, we see how the soldiers came from taking the situation by far too lightly to being completely overwhelmed by the prospect of being shot the next moment. And how they eventually see the people who are presumably their allies shoot helpless refugees. Even though they did tell the higher brass about these suspicions and observations, the question whether they could have done more to help those people remains a nagging one, forcing them to simply forget about the events in question.

The film’s animation - along with the Max Richter soundtrack - gives it an appropriately depressing feel as Ron re-lives the past events and untangles the dreams that haunt him.

Dream scene from Waltz with Bashir

Probably a good film to watch not only for the detail of Israeli history it discusses but mainly for the effects that war has on the soldiers who have to do their job there.

Bullets over Broadway

Woody Allen’s 1994 Bullets over Broadway tells once more the story of a playwright. This time of one who manages to get one of his pieces on stage. And in his role as the director has to suffer to consequences from his play being financed by the mob who put their boss’ not-so-competent girlfriend in a leading role.

Also: Nice overeating.

Welcome to Sarajevo

Michael Winterbottom’s Welcome to Sarajevo is far less stylish than the other films of his I saw so far. It also lacks a number in the title and aims to be more documentary about the war in Bosnia. We follow the British TV reporter Michael who is reporting on the ongoing war and see how one day he feels the need to actually save one of the kids he met rather than just showing tragic pictures of them. But it’s not even this story at the film’s core, it’s more the atmosphere in the town. Where life tries to go on despite the constant shootings and bombing.

Also

Old TV adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgeralds classic Bernice bobs her hair which gives a good impression of Zickenterror. And the less than remarkable film version of Baal starring David Bowie. The one I saw in theatre was far better.

December 12, 2008, 9:48

Tagged as ari folman, baal, bernice bobs her hair, bullets over broadway, david bowie, emile zola, f. scott fitzgerald, fritz lang, human desire, max richter, michael winterbottom, waltz with bashir, welcome to sarajevo, woody allen.

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