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Reviews
Road to Perdition (2002)
So many loose ends...
I acknowledge the cinematic and technical good points all the way around. But the content of the story and its flow...wow...so many jumps without explanation. Basically, a mobster story of one whose family gets killed by the family for which he works, and who then turns on his protectors with retributive justice. His young older son becomes part of the flight saga.
An Irish mob family, but other than some Irish dance music briefly at a party, you would only know by the last names. When I heard the music, I asked myself, why are they playing Irish music? Then of course, I realize they all have Irish names.
The narrative is by the boy (opening and ending), and basically is his telling of the story. Perhaps that's why the plot has so many loose ends? He would not have known all the details of how things happened in this lifestyle, other than what he may have gotten out of his father, if those conversations happened. People make comparisons to the Godfather, but having viewed that trilogy and done some research of mafia families, etc, awhile back, I noticed many things.
When the note is delivered to a debtor, the note says to kill Sullivan. Later, I assume Conner wrote the note, though he says it's from his father, Rooney, when he gives the note to Sullivan. The note is never brought up again, but as evil as Conner has been so far, it's an easy assumption to make. And Rooney still lets Sullivan leave free after meeting with him at the church. And leaves himself wide open for Sullivan to decide to kill him, when Rooney will not stop, or punish Conner.
After a spree of killing and bank robbing, we never see Sullivan pursued. He even walks into the building where Tucci's character is protecting Conner, pass the body guards who open doors for him, for him to make the final kill. That didn't make sense to me and it is not explained in any kind of dialogue. Did they decide that they no longer were going to protect Conner? After the final killing, he and son stroll on a beach, back to Aunt Sarah, whose residence was known by the assassin, and the family, and Sullivan knew this. Sullivan didn't realize the assassin was still alive? That didn't really matter; there would have been family hit men out for him. Didn't suspect someone might be there waiting for them? I was. None of that made sense to me. The Tucci character boss's explains to Sullivan how the family protection will leave for him if he tries to kill Rooney or Conner. So after killing the head and son of the head of a family, he better be trying harder than Aunt Sarah's beach house to hide out. And he got caught apparently off-guard??? Remember Fredo...he just had to wait til it happened, after the mother passed. He had no where to run. So, was Sullivan just accepting he was a dead man? He wasn't a Fredo...he was smart.
The Newman character protecting his son is understood, though a crazy psychological pit that is. But I couldn't really tell where Sullivan was in relation to the 'family'. A hit man, a henchman. As for me, I couldn't believe Hanks as this kind of character; the only reasoning for his casting I could come up with was that one could believe that his son would love him, and that he could love his son back, genuinely. And indeed, the father/son theme is what is the basis of the movie. Sullivan/Sullivan; Rooney/Sullivan, Rooney/Connor. And that helped me accept Hanks for the casting. Even then, I could imagine that a change in voice or dialect or even hair. Something that when I looked at him, I saw the character he was portraying: someone who would accept the killing, and the heavy extortion work Rooney gave him to do. What upbringing did he have that would have made that something he would do.... Tucci looks different almost every time I see him. I have learned to recognize his voice. Great character actor. Even Brando in Godfather did this thing with his mouth so he spoke differently. I think 'great' actors do find ways to find and transmit their character. Anyway, Hanks didn't work for me in this kind of role just as a casting choice, though of course his acting is very good.
When the boy goes back to the farm house to stay, I tried to fill in how he got there after the killings at Aunt Sarah's, and what happened to Aunt Sarah? Police, etc. Anyway, I appreciated the ending. From research, I understand that members of mobster families can leave and live outside those families. They can be left alone. And they have the bag of money left to the farm family earlier (money that can't be returned, because it's off the books) as they head into the. Depression Era. This was all in 1931.
The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)
A Tale from Many Angles of Love
I think I would have titled this: "In the Shoes of the Fisherman." I was struck by the several subplots showing love from different points of view. The 'romantic' subplot seemed to be one of three kinds of love and their trials that intersect in this story. The romantic plot intersects with the Pope, when Dr. Ruth Faber confides in him about her marriage, and he suggests that she look for the love that she has lost. She then rejuvenates, but her husband, even after leaving the other woman, seems unrepentant and unsympathetic to his wife's pain and jealousy, unaware of her sign of forgiveness. Another one was the love between the spiritual brothers, the brotherhood relationship of the Pope, Father Telemond, and the older Cardinal, which is directly addressed in the last part of the film, when the Cardinal confesses his jealousy for not having the attention and affection after years of long service, and the Pope confessing his preference for the struggling priest. These relationships reconcile with love and understanding. The third love is the love of the individual for the Church, as expressed dramatically by Father Telemond who grapples with articulating his faith in more modern terms vs the traditional doctrines of the Church. As he says, "I hate her, but cannot leave her (her referring to the Church)." Though silenced for his views, it is done with compassion by the Pope. One might also consider the relationship of Kiril to Olivier's character as a fourth angle - when he describes their intimate relationship based on torture the many years before, and now depends on him to help him in the saving of his nation going to war. The dependence and trust is based on that oddly formed intimacy. And that trust is upheld by the now Pope Kiril, which ultimately translates to an expression of greater love, forgiveness and sacrifice when he announces to the crowd that he will donate the Church's wealth for the cause of the starving.
Live from Lincoln Center: South Pacific (2010)
Great Performance
This taped stage production of South Pacific was moving and delightful, while at the same time depicting and delivering a timeless and universal struggle and message from several cultural points of view. The main actors were excellent in their roles – musically and theatrically. Good chemistry and interpretations of the two couples brought the true meaning of the story full front. The characters of Billis and Bloody Mary were well done too, with the humor well-balanced against the more serious elements of the story and characters.
I found that the additions and deletions, and some re-organization of story elements of the movie adaptations (1958 and 2001) changed some of the meaning, message and subtlety that the original play actually contains. Though I respect these versions, as many found that the story of South Pacific clicked for them in these versions, for me, I fell in love with the musical with this staged version.
Ms. O'Hara's interpretation of Nellie is complete and compliments completely Mr. Szot's. All the music numbers are, to my perception, intact, excellent in design and execution, and deserving of the awards that it received. I was impressed by the quick and smooth transitions between scenes and set changes. There also seemed to have a thread of consistency between the music and the acting. All the magic of the theater! I very much enjoyed the deserved applause when it came! It would be nice to have the DVD come out, though the CD of the music numbers is available.
South Pacific (2001)
Interesting adaptation from stage to movie; does not rely on the music to tell the story
Only recently did I fall in love with this musical when I watched Lincoln Center's stage production on PBS. I was curious to know more of its history and watched the movie adaptations from 1958 and 2001. Movies are definitely a different genre from the stage, and it was interesting to see that in each version, the choice was to develop dialog into visual action, focusing on rounding out a fuller story, rather than relying on the musical emphasis to tell the story. Stage productions demand more movement from the characters, more choreography, while the camera allows for more still and close encounters. On stage, the movement and music are what tell the story.
In the bonus feature of the DVD, Ms. Close says something along the lines that a classic is a classic when it can endure many interpretations and retain its integrity. She also stated that she had wanted to do this all her life and remembered Mary Martin as the model for this role. It seems circumstances happened for her to fulfill her dream, albeit at middle-age. So it seems that a new adaptation for this more mature casting lent a new interpretation to this classic. They followed the precedent of the 1958 version in many ways, and even used colored filters for the Bali Hai number – with much better technique and effects! Overall, I thought the story, as they chose to adapt it, was put together very skillfully.
I noticed in this adaptation that most all of the comic edge was taken out. In its place was a kind of dramatic /romantic pathos, which made the tempo a little slower and more deliberate. The re-arranging of some scenes, and certain deletions, contributed to a change in tensions between characters and in the flow of the story than found in the stage production.
I thought the acting was very good all around. Ms. Close also talks about using dramatic interpretation for the songs, while singing. I very much appreciated her dramatic interpretation of the songs. But also felt there was a limitation in voice skill, and perhaps due to careful casting, the rest of the cast did not give her much competition. The interpretations through music seemed consistent with the pathos already established through dialog. There was no singing between Emile and Nellie in the scene at Emile's house when the guests have gone home. And Bloody Mary's 'Happy Talk" was also cut, as well as 'My girl back home
'. Again, the kinds of music deletions (as well as interpretations) gave the film a different emphasis. Even though it is a musical and uses music, it did not rely on the music (singing and orchestra) to tell the story as much as a stage production.
However, the choral numbers (Nothin like a dame..." and "Wash that man..") I thought well were thought out and executed very well. Especially, the former: I fully enjoyed the composition of the shots and the editing. I noticed very wonderful composition of shots throughout.
Though there is no specific age given for Nellie, plot elements do define it to some degree. Nellie struggles with her mother's assumptions and expectations for her daughter, especially regarding men and marriage, which might apply more to a younger woman transitioning away from home and parents, rather than a middle-aged woman. Indeed, the lines about marriage and men for Ms. Close's Nellie were cut in this scene with her mother's letter, as was any serious indication of an emotional struggle. This struggle, and the struggle with if she really knows enough about this man, give her character an emotional juggling act more typical for a younger woman in the new stages of love. But with the first struggle essentially cut,the tension of two struggles and the juggling is lost. Indeed, Ms.Close's Nellie seemed very confident, independent and secure, never too overwhelmed. Also, with a middle-aged Nellie, there has to be some assumption that she has her own romantic history, a certain wisdom from experience. Not all the traditional elements of the original play work for this interpretation.
Another characteristic of Nellie is her southern roots. Ms. Close did not play her with any dialect, perhaps wisely. But I found that emphasizing to some degree this characteristic helps in the development of Nellie and her reaction to the news of Emile's children's mother.
One of my favorite roles of Ms. Close is Sarah in "Sarah, Plain and Tall" (and its sequels), and she plays Nellie in a very similar fashion, which helped me understand her interpretation of Nellie a little better. (I personally would have preferred a softer hair-do and a few more feminine costumes for her Nellie.)