This Week in Cinema, I Learned…Sept 15-21 2024
Written by Cameron Geiser
Welcome to This Week in Cinema, a yearlong film criticism project wherein I will be watching a new film that I haven't seen every single day.
The Surreal Fantasy theme has begun to evolve this week by wading into the Horror genre with a couple of the titles included here. The 1970’s Japanese abstract Horror film House is what I like to call Evil Dead for Kids while David Lynch’s reality warping Lost Highway was easily one of the most unsettling films I’ve ever seen. Next up I’ve got two more anime films from Hayao Miyazaki in Howl's Moving Castle and Kiki's Delivery Service, which feels good being able to knock out more of his work as each film feels timeless, magical, and filled with whimsy, danger, and harrowing visuals. The final three films are Francis Ford Coppola’s Musical One from The Heart, with a shiny new 2024 edit to boot called The Reprise, Terry Gilliam’s foray into whimsical fantasy and science fiction adventure in Time Bandits, and lastly Pictures of Ghosts, a documentary detailing Recife—the coastal capital of the state of Pernambuco in Brazil from a local filmmaker’s perspective with a deep focus on the movie theatres, or palaces of Cinema, that the City was widely known for.
I think the most interesting idea presented over the week was examining the balancing act between what is Surreal, and what is Horror? When does something become so abstract or fantastic that it becomes overwhelming? When does fear begin to settle in? Is it before or after your curiosity has boiled over with the unknown? David Lynch’s Lost Highway perfectly encapsulates this notion by beginning the story out with subtle inconsistencies in reality that inform the characters of potential supernatural ongoings- but it quickly escalates into the absurd and the unnatural. Such is the way with David Lynch, but it got me thinking about fear and it’s subjectivity. Perspective is everything when it comes to Horror, what scares one person will make another laugh- or have no particular reaction at all. I know someone that was scared to their bones by Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, but this person also works in haunted houses every Halloween with stone cold unflinching joy in the festivities of scaring others. People are such fascinating creatures in this way. So next time you’re at a social event and don’t know how to start a conversation, ask them what scares them. You may learn more about them than the average ice breaker could tell you, and possibly end up sharing a good spooky story or two in the process!
September 15th
House (1977)
4/5
This film was absolutely wild and completely unexpected. I never knew what would, or could, happen from scene to scene. The story follows Gorgeous, a schoolgirl that travels with six of her classmates to her Aunt’s countryside home for their Summer vacation. Things almost immediately seem odd upon their arrival, and things only get stranger as time goes by. Equal parts Scooby-Doo and Evil Dead, House aims to assault you with as much abstract imagery and fast paced editing as possible while building the tension and taut connection between the macabre and the silly. As things start to get violent and dire for the girls, the Aunt and her creepy cat (which may be a Demon), begin killing them in increasingly brutal ways. With ridiculously bright primary color filters and rotoscoping animation over the live action footage, it’s all so much that it forces me to pause. I’m wary of giving you too much information as the less you know, the better. House is excessive, bloody, fantastic, atmospheric, goofy as hell, and a great watch. Check it out!
September 16th
Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
4/5
Knowing absolutely nothing about this one going in, I was taken aback by how sweet the love story at the core of this film was. I also didn’t expect it to be a tale of wizards, witches, and war! Sophie (Jean Simmons, I unexpectedly ended up watching the english dub) is but a humble milliner, or hatter, who gets cursed by a witch that transforms her into an old woman and seeks to break the curse as she stumbles upon Howl’s Moving Castle and boards the many-legged machine. As Sophie befriends those that work for and live in Howl’s Moving Castle, Howl (Christian Bale) eventually returns home to see that Sophie has “hired herself” as the cleaning lady. As the war in the background begins to intensify Sophie learns of Howl’s nightly activities as he flies above the warzones attempting to douse both sides’ ambitions. Miyazaki imbued this film with strong anti-war notions, a focus on compassion, and with a positive lens on aging to boot. While perhaps not reaching the very heights of Miyazaki’s oeuvre, Howl’s Moving Castle is an excellent addition to his filmography and a highly watchable one at that!
September 17th
Kiki's Delivery Service (1989)
4.5/5
Kiki’s Delivery Service is easily one of my new favorites from Miyazaki. It has a succinct and distinct vibe rivaled only by My Neighbor Totoro thus far, but with the entertainment value of something like Howl’s Moving Castle with just a pinch of real magic in the execution of its ideas about artistry, creativity, and writer’s block. As Kiki (Kirsten Dunst, once again I ended up watching the english dub) embarks on her journey away from home once she turns thirteen, a rite of passage for every young Witch, she quickly finds a peaceful seaside town to settle in with her loyal cat Jiji (Phil Hartman). They settle in a room above a bakery run by a kindly married couple and begin a flying courier service. Things go okay for a while, but after a few mistakes and fumbling of deliveries Kiki gets into a funk of depression and begins to lose some of her magical abilities. After a young painter Kiki met in the forest encounters her again and diagnoses her depression as a form of writer’s block, she points Kiki in the right direction- towards passion. As someone who very much understands and empathizes with depression and a lack of passion or creativity at times, Kiki’s Delivery Service hits the nail on the head perfectly. If you ever find yourself in that headspace, give this film a watch. It may lift your spirits as it did mine.
September 18th
Lost Highway (1997)
4.5/5
Talk about your nightmare fuel. With the exception of the third season of Twin Peaks, Lost Highway has the most abstract and disorienting terror I’ve ever seen put to screen. Since the character’s identities, names, and personalities all change and don’t matter as much as you would expect, I will be referring to the characters by the names of the actors portraying them for this film. When unmarked videotapes keep appearing on Bill Pullman’s doorstep with increasingly invasive footage he and his girlfriend, Patricia Arquette, obtain a security detail from the police but try to continue their lives anyways. While out at a party an entity (Robert Blake), let’s call him a Demon for now, approaches Bill Pullman and tells him that he’s at Pullman’s house “right now”. Incredulity spreads across Pullman’s face as the Demon encourages him to call home, which he does and the Demon answers saying, “See? I told you I was here”.
A lot of strange, almost indescribable things happen for the remainder of the film but my interpretation of events is supernatural in nature. My understanding of the story is that this Demon got tired of the human underling he was using to acquire more victims and chose Bill Pullman to be his new servant but in order to assure obedience and servitude he puts Bill Pullman’s mind and spirit in the body of a troubled teenager, Balthazar Getty, on the other side of town and mixes their memories and identities, entirely confounding and confusing Bill Pullman so thoroughly that when he is later returned to his body, he is no longer the human spirit and mind that he was when we first saw him at the beginning of Lost Highway. I could be wrong, obviously, but with the inclusion of red curtains, doubles as a concept, nightmare logic, and tulpas I was constantly getting “third season of Twin Peaks” vibes. I found this one to be incredibly entertaining and odd, but I come with a positive bias towards most of David Lynch’s work, so take that for what it is.
September 19th
One From The Heart: Reprise (1981/2024)
3/5
Francis Ford Coppola, director of The Godfather films, The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula also directed a Musical? Yes, it’s true! It’s also the movie he bet everything on and almost ended up losing it all for One From The Heart. Just as Coppola had re-edited the third Godfather film recently, this year marks another re-edit for his big gamble of a musical this time simply called Reprise. Having never seen the original version, this certainly wasn’t a bad movie, but while the backlash the original got was a bit much in retrospect, I can see why it wasn’t exactly received with open arms. I think the biggest hiccup from the get-go was establishing the movie as a musical with songs written and performed by Tom Waits (which, by itself is a cool thing to do), but paired with an overly optimistic 1950’s style “Golden era of Musicals production”, well, these two tones clash violently.
You can see Coppola’s passion and technical skill all over this film, but no two parts of the film ever match up with each other. Everything feels disjointed and at odds with itself. The very clear soundstage shooting and fake looking sets really broke the immersion for me and inflated the artificiality of it all. The cinematography, performances, and blocking/framing are all exquisite, but even the two main characters have performances that are far too “BIG” in nature constantly. One from The Heart is audacious and impressive at times, but there are many parts of the film that just don’t work. However, Harry Dean Stanton is not one of those things and my personal vote for MVP of the film.
September 20th
Pictures of Ghosts (2023)
3/5
This documentary is a love letter to the movie theaters of the Brazilian city of Recife, where the director Kleber Mendonça Filho grew up during a pivotal time in Brazil’s cultural history. These palaces of Cinema not only commanded attention, but they also marked differences in how social etiquette and common practices have changed in that time. Witnessing the change over the decades of theaters thriving or molting into dust after being abandoned packs a punch if you’re nostalgic for the theatrical exhibition of movies, which I very much am. Seeing the city evolve and alter itself over time from a personal perspective was a nice touch, and one that humanized the documentary effectively. I chose this documentary on a whim as it seemed like exploring the places that we’ve left behind could have an abstract residue that changes perception- especially with shared social spaces. Seeing the architecture choices of these older theaters really put an emphasis on how droll and drab a lot of modern multiplexes look today. The movie theaters of yesteryear put their heart and pride into those buildings, and it’s evident in the extravagance, the coloring, and the detail that went into these truly beautiful palaces of Cinema.
September 21st
Time Bandits (1981)
Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits is a perfectly enjoyable sci-fi/fantasy romp through the highlights of Human History. Kevin (Craig Warnock) is a young boy obsessed with History and constantly daydreaming about historical figures and swashbuckling adventure. His parents couldn’t be bothered by their son’s interests as they’re more invested in the latest consumerist objects to hit the market. One night six time traveling Dwarves burst out of Kevin’s closet and bring him along on their quest to plunder history of its greatest treasures. Along the way they meet historical figures like Napoleon (Ian Holm), Robin Hood (John Cleese) and King Agamemnon (Sean Connery) to name a few. I quite enjoyed the madcap nature of Time Bandits. The Monty Python adjacent comedy, fantastic practical effects, and delightful cameos all combine to form a thoroughly fun adventure film with a sci-fi shtick that isn’t overdone or used inappropriately given the story at hand. Definitely worth a watch!
Cameron Geiser is an avid consumer of films and books about filmmakers. He'll watch any film at least once, and can usually be spotted at the annual Traverse City Film Festival in Northern Michigan. He also writes about film over at www.spacecortezwrites.com.