Incendies Review

Incendies is an ambitious Canadian Quebec-made film with major aspirations that tries to do a lot, and for the most part it is an admirable success. Adapted from “Scorched”, a 2005 play written by Lebanese-born Wajdi Mouawad, the French language film is the complicated and intricate story of two twins living in Canada who receive some shocking news in their recently deceased mother’s will. The twins, Jeanne and Simon, are surprised to find out that their father, unbeknownst to them, is still alive, and that they have an older brother still living somewhere in their mother’s country of origin, Lebanon.

One of the twins, Jeanne, is determined to unravel the secrets of her family history, and Simon, desperate to rid himself of his mother’s past and move on with his life, wants nothing to do with it. We experience most of the movie through Jeanne in the present and her mother Nawal in lengthy flashbacks during the 1970s, and it is through their eyes that we witness the terrible bitterness and hatred that swallowed up Lebanon. To those unfamiliar with the violent history of war torn Lebanon, the movie recounts the evils perpetrated there by both the Muslim and Christian sides. As the movie progresses, one begins to understand the terrible events that transpired in that country, the sacrifices people made, and how even something as important as the bond between family can be tragically lost and twisted. The movie is unflinchingly violent and graphic at times, and events that transpire will shock some people, but it is in these moments that one can witness the irrational and inexplicable things war does to a country, and understand how love and family is the important link that transcends it.

The low profile cast and director would be completely unknown to people accustomed to Hollywood movies, and their work here is exceptional. Never once do you doubt the integrity of the movie and never once does director Denis Villeneuve lose focus on the driving force of the narrative in this film, and Incendies is a more powerful experience because of it. Its roots as a play are very apparent here, and the movie wouldn’t be quite as effective and challenging without the great performances of the actors. Lubna Azabal plays the part of Nawal Marwan and she has the most demanding role in this movie. Her experience as a young Christian woman in a country swallowed up by Muslim-Christian hatred and violence, where reprisal killings of men, women, and children were common and people on both sides were shockingly unremorseful and merciless, shows the divide in that country that continues to prevail to this day.

The movie has an unusual but low key soundtrack that includes a number of songs by Radiohead, and their unique brand of music works well in this movie. “You and Whose Army” and “Like Spinning Plates” are utilized exceptionally well and the harrowing music instantly puts you in the setting and mood of this movie. The film has a runtime of 130 minutes and its theatrical origins are noticeable as its slow pacing makes the viewing experience a little cumbersome at times but besides that, Incendies is well told and a number of key scenes keep the narrative flowing and strong. Incendies may meet criticism from some circles for what they may consider a shallow and contrived melodramatic attempt to tell the story of Lebanon through the story of the Marwan family.  The key difference however, is that this story is not sensationalized in any way and things that occur in this movie have happened and could very possibly have happened in many war torn countries. Authenticity is paramount here, and the fact that it was written by someone of Lebanese origin gives credence to this, and there is clearly a great deal of personal pain and anguish in this story. Incendies is ultimately a tale of secrets, suffering, family and how the truth should never be buried or concealed. Hopefully, its nomination for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language film will give this impressive movie the exposure and attention it deserves.

A-

Trailer:

Movie info:

Runtime: 130 minutes

MPAA rating: R

Cast: Lubna Azabal, Melissa Desormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette, Remy Girard, Abdelghafour Elaziz

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Screenplay: Denis Villeneuve, Wajdi Mouawad

Cinematography: Andre Turpin

Distributed by: E1 Films Canada

                                                         

Blue Valentine Review

WARNING: SPOILERS

Definitely a movie that went under most cinemagoers’ radar during the awards season of 2010, Blue Valentine was a surprisingly painful and gut-wrenching movie to watch. Only available in limited release in Canada, it was difficult to find a theater near where I live that played the movie but the journey was definitely worth it and I finally got around to seeing it in late January. All in all, Blue Valentine is a movie I found to be one of the more rewarding movie experiences in the past year, and one that challenged the conventions of its genre.

The movie, directed by a relative unknown (Derek Cianfrance), has a poignant resonance that elevates it above the rest of the schlocky romantic dramas that come out every year and the main reason behind that is the riveting performance of its two leads (Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling). What drew me and interested me in watching this film in the first place was the presence of Ryan Gosling as the male lead. Ryan Gosling, an actor who I used to revile and solely associate with “Young Hercules”, a terrible TV show I used to watch as a kid, has completely changed my perception of him in recent years. He impressed me with his performance in the largely ignored “Half Nelson”, a movie that actually got him an Oscar nomination in 2006, and he also had similarly great performances in the otherwise unremarkable “Fracture” and “Lars and the Real Girl”. Playing the role of Dean, this is by far his best and most mature role and he has become one of my favourite young actors working in Hollywood today. Gosling exudes a certain magnetic charm and charisma that makes his character’s decline into a balding, out of shape, and at times violent alcoholic even more difficult to witness. Williams’ performance as Cindy is equally as good as Gosling’s, and she is very convincing as a depressed and sad woman who has fallen out of love and wants more out of life.

The movie, at its core, is beautiful in its simplicity. It tells the sometimes touching, sometimes painful to watch love story between two people who ended up together in less than ideal circumstances and who are ultimately looking for different things in life. The movie adeptly moves back and forth through time from the past to the present as the story of their relationship slowly unfolds and you begin to understand the characters more and more. Parts of the plot do seem to fall into the general clichés of the genre but they are handled with a maturity and at other times with a tragic realism that you would not find in the typical Julia Roberts flick. The movie’s cinematography has a very unique and immersive feel that utilizes extreme close-ups of the leads in certain scenes that some may find awkward and unwieldy at times but it serves the movie’s intense tone well. There are graphic sex scenes in the movie that aren’t easy to watch, and it is during those scenes, at the pinnacle of the problems of the relationship, that you see the worst in both characters during a drunken and regrettable night spent at a seedy motel.

The greatest success of this movie is that it has three dimensional characters that are unique in their depth and true to themselves. Both characters are just looking for happiness in life and strive to achieve it, and both make their mistakes, and in a rare success in a film of this genre, you understand why they make those mistakes. You may not like where the movie takes you or what ultimately ends up happening, but you understand the characters’ motivations behind their decisions and choices.  The movie never gives you one big reason why things go wrong but just shows how things slowly unravel over time. There isn’t some big reveal or some major infidelity that ultimately ends the relationship, but rather, it is the slow and steady realization that the person you are with is not who you are meant to be with; the steady realization that you can’t be happy and there is no way to work things out. You see the good and the bad in both characters, and while there was a time when they were happy, it becomes apparent how nothing in life is clear cut and simple, and how redemption and happy endings aren’t always what lie in store for every relationship.

B+

Trailer:   
    

Movie Info: 

Runtime: 112 min  

MPAA rating: R 

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, Faith Wladyka, John Doman, Mike Vogel, Ben Shenkman

Director: Derek Cianfrance

Screenplay: Derek Cianfrance, Cami Delavigne, Joey Curtis

Cinematography: Andrij Parekh 

Distributed by: The Weinstein Company

Intros...

Well I've always been interested in movies and I've probably seen almost 1500 movies in total; most of them are Hollywood movies and most of them suck to be honest but I try to see a variety from around the world. I think my taste in movies will become very obvious to people who end up reading my blog regularly but I try to stay open-minded to any kind of movie (with the exception of anything Twilight related).

I'll be posting movie reviews of new releases every now and then and I'll also be posting reviews of some of my favorite movies and talk about why I love them so much and what I don't especially like them. I kind of like how some sites do top ten lists so I'll probably be doing a couple of those; I think they're probably fun to do.

I always thought a lot of the professional movie reviewers to be killjoys in their reviews who take all of it too seriously so I figured I'd just do something more lighthearted and give my personal input and nothing more.

Anyways, I hope that you will find my posts interesting and I hope my passion and love for movies are reflected in this blog.