allamericanpsycho21

Danny Boyle's Trainspotting is a film that has left me perplexed ever since the first time I viewed it as a teenager nearly a decade ago. I remember, as I finished the film, thoroughly hating it. There was something about its subject matter and characters that I immediately found off putting. It wasn't until my third or fourth viewing of the picture that I really understood what Boyle was going for.

It's supposed to be off putting and the characters are supposed to be unlikable. The film shows just how much of an impact heroin can have on a young individual's life. It destroys it to the point where heroin because the only that the really matters. For these young drug addicts, the only thing that gets them through the day is the anticipation of the next hit. By using over-the-top visuals (the sequence with the dead infant in the crib is one that I won't be able to shake for sometime) and a rapid MTV music video style editing, Boyle makes the film visually fascinating while showing the truth behind the life of the average drug addict.

If I have a problem with the film it's that it really doesn't go far enough. Less quick cutting and hyper stylized editing and more human characters would have made the film deeper and more palatable. But, maybe that wasn't what Boyle was going for. With his use of editing, he shows just how much can be lost when one is stuck in the sad world of drug addiction. That, in and of itself, makes the film something special. The film is gritty and dark, both qualities that are rarely seen in Hollywood movies today. I still think the ending doesn't work as well as it should as it feels a bit too upbeat but that's a minor quibble of an otherwise fine film.

Going into The Age of Innocence, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. Martin Scorsese has been one of my favorite directors for some time now yet this is a film that I have always put off watching. To me, looking at the cover box and watching the trailer, I expected little more than beautiful eye candy with three attractive stars. What exactly could Scorsese bring to the issue of high society in the 1800's that hasn't been already addressed? As it turns out, quite a bit.

With The Age of Innocence, Scorsese plays against type (if doing so as a director is possible) and dives straight into a genre that he is both not well known for as well as not directly familiar with. His lavish art direction and assured directing help make a familiar tale of doomed love breathe with new life. For example, one element of the film that I found fascinating was the film's use of colors to represent themes of the various characters. I love how the "forbidden" Ellen is always shown in dark, startling colors like bright blues, vibrant yellows, and blood reds whereas the pristine imagine of Mae is shown through light colors like soft, delicate pastels. As for the acting, I found it all to be uniformly superb. From Michelle Pfeiffer, as the fallen from grace Ellen, to the underrated work of Winona Ryder, as uptight May Welland, it all works.

As for the twist ending, I wasn't really all that surprised. For a movie that is very beautifully mounted and fully aware of its style over substance, it should come as no surprise that Archer doesn't end up with Ellen. In reality, he wouldn't have either. Image meant a lot in the 1800's…and still does today. Why give up his vision of perfection when it may not honestly be perfection at all? Our imagination of perfection is a lot more powerful than our reality of it.

One of the most interesting elements I found in "North by Northwest" was the way that Alfred Hitchcock toyed with the audience with the role of Eve Kendall. Here is a strong, sophisticated, and independent young woman that is neither played as a bitch nor merely eye candy for the hungry male audience. I have found that the crucial weakness of many movies of the 1950's and 60's is the fact that the strong woman must be punished for her independent instincts. In fact, this could easily be argued of many films today. A strong leading female character is just as rare in Hollywood today as it was fifty years ago. If the times have changed, many of the movies surely haven't.

One of the many things that I found intriguing by the character of Eve Kendall was her ability to show empathy while, as the same time, staying true to herself. For example, take a look at the scene in which Roger Thornhill tells Eve, in a heartbreakingly real speech, just how much her deception has betrayed him. Even in this scene, where Eve is the "bad guy", she is able to show just how much she deeply cares for this man. Maybe it's a sign of great acting or exceptional directing (the close up shot of her just as he leaves is incredible) but, either way, this is a character that we rarely see in movies today.

Here is a character that is not only sexual but innocent. She is neither exploited for her actions nor is she looked down on for being a female of carnal needs. If Roger is unsure and wary about sex, Eve knows exactly what she wants and what she shall get. In this aspect alone, "North by Northwest" was a movie years ahead of its time.