Carmen

Yes once again the "history" misused .. well sort of. So no pun intended - we get Carmen - but maybe not as we imagine her. Maybe not even how she imagines herself - kidding again. Great cast - Melissa may have become too political for some (agree or disagree with her stance, I think she is on the right side of history), she is a really good actress and I hope she can continue showcasing her craft - on a bigger scale.

That said, I am not sure if this is based on a novel that deconstructs our image of Carmen ... but it is well told and you get more than a picture of someone doing everything for art ... (not the clown - sorry couldn't resist, if you didn't get that, don't worry: an inside horror movie joke) and she succeeds in a way too - well you be the judge of that of course.

Drama baby - and well edited and choreographed one as well ... good sound design too.

Carmen (2022) directed by Benjamin Millepied, retakes the original 1845 French novel plus references 1954 Carmen Jones film, and not the opera narrative. Dance forms becomes the centrepiece of an unsure love story.

It takes liberty to reinterpret the original setting to the U. S./Mexico border, supposed to be set in the Northern Mexican states. Actually it's Oz, the Australian landscape passing for Mexican desert scenery.

Although the film's intent to depict borderlands culture via Oz's landscape, there's odd cultural references like a repeated image of the Chilean Virgin Mary (Lady of Grace), in place of the Mexican Virgen de Guadalupe icon.

Carmen, helmed by Mexican actor, Melissa Barrera and Aidan helmed by Irish actor, Paul Mescal meet under certain circumstances: undocumented crossings (Carmen entering the U. S.) and paramilitary border patrolling (Aidan, retired Marine as a patrol volunteer). Their climatic interaction begins there as they flee together to "ciudad de los angeles" (L. A.).

Many scenes can suggest magical realism or surreal situations. There's some weak writing, with a contribution by Broadway's Alexander Dinelaris, but its strength is the dancing.

Millepied's background as a dancer, support the beautiful choreography that's a lot superior than the noted film, "La La Land". Unlike the prior, Carmen references the social reality of U. S. immigration policies and urban decay.

Dance scenes are breathtaking and employ Iberian and Latin American traditions from Flamenco to Tango. There's even a nod to L. A. contemporary urban dance forms like "Crumping".

The presence of Rossy de Palma, from Spanish cinematic royalty, cements a mystical creature as Carmen's aunt. She is a storyteller, recording Carmen's struggles as well as her love for Aidan.

At the end of the film, viewers navigate through muddled, slow burning action but it's worth it for the dancing and de Palma's acting. Its soundtrack has original compositions by Mexican musicians like Julieta Venegas and historic borderland ballads by Lydia Mendoza!

Predictable and quite basic storyline. Yet, the movie is beautifully done!

If you are into action movies, or dramas - you will find yourself scratching your head a little.. but take it as a new type of presentation.. After all, aren't you already tired of the same gangster, mob stories with racing cars and heavy shootings? (I am! All of the action movies are the same: no real plot line just chasings and gory images.. )

For me, Carmen was like a realistic play that we watch on stages: dialogues are mingled with dance and music to express feelings more than mere images, at times alternating the past and the present, the cause and the effect, the reality and the imaginary..

It's 'almost' an art movie because the image was not spectacular.. Instead, the soundtrack was. Among others, Paul Mescal (I had no idea who he was) sang a song amazingly, reminding me I wanted to learn how to play the guitar..

Carmen is a movie that tries to be too many different things at once. It wants to be a musical, a modern dance recital, a drama about ptsd and romance, and an art house forward film. The end result as you can imagine is a slow, bloated mess.

The positives are the performances from Melissa and Paul. This isn't an easy film to act in due to the nature of the story, but they both commit to their roles and deserved a better director.

Outside of the cinematography which accurately captured the mood of the story, there's nothing else to praise. Benjamin Millepied's cinematic vision is pretentious and dreadful. His eye for directing is better suited for the stage, not film.

I was going to call the romance at the heart of Carmen unconvincing, and hard to buy beyond the leads both being young and attractive, but then I'd have to go back and apply that criticism to West Side Story and who knows how many other movies, so no, it's not fair to say that. Also, I did buy the two leads as a couple a bit more as Carmen went along, and I think Paul Mescal and Melissa Barrera did the best they could with a fairly slight screenplay.

It's also almost a musical- more songs than most movies at least, and a handful of somewhat trepidatious dance numbers throughout. During some of the better moments, it felt like it was trying to go for something bigger than the production would allow, but then at other points, it felt like it was kind of afraid to be a full-on musical. A movie not feeling sure of itself is a pretty awkward thing. (They might've been sure of what they were making, but the confidence didn't come across in my eyes).

Carmen is also on the nose at points, having an agreeable message but a kind of awkward way of getting the point across at times. It is an unfulfilling movie that at least was going for something bold (I think), some of the time, so it's hard to call it worthless, despite the flaws. There are some striking shots throughout, the music's interesting, and there are two pretty good lead performances at its centre, but I don't know if all those qualities are quite enough to make it work as a whole, or feel worth recommending.