The Station | Blutgletscher

I can tell you that Blutgletscher does not translate to 'the station'. It actually means blood glacier. So, umm Austrians....your movie title is faulty. And to top it all off, the movie is full of glaciers and blood and not stations. Go figure. The film is also full of weird creatures that do unpleasant things to humans. And dogs that give both to babies (or at least one daby which I believe is the scientific term for a dog baby).

Look, you probably don't need to rush out and see this film - and I've sort of given away the ending, but it was still a fun way to pass the time while drinking moonshine and eating banana choc tops. 10 out of 10* for being outrageous.

*My inner Austrian made me score it that high.

Quai-d-orsay

So I went to the French film festival with a head cold and not much sleep. I wanted to go because it was a fun thing to do with some fun peeps. I saw a film that went for two hours with lots of French words and subtitles. The film was good but it was so nice and dark in there that I had a few little micro sleeps. Just tiny ones, but enough to make me want to snuggle into the seat and cover myself with a big heavy blanket.

Instead I jiggled around. A lot.

But the film. It was funny in parts - and very relatable if you have ever had to write a speech or talking points or the like. It's about a guy who goes to work for a Minister as the communications guy, writing speeches. He has to navigate his way through all the advisors and the Minister himself, who constantly changes the theme of the speech and asks for multiple rewrites. Sorry - that makes it sound very boring. It really isn't, but there is just not much more to say. Worst movie blog post ever.

Francis Ha

The girl over at Chinatown Teahouse recommended Francis Ha. It is a beautiful movie. Kind of quiet and nice and it reminded me that some of the greatest love stories are that of friendships. 

The Book Thief

Hats off to the brave person who came to see this movie with me. After reading and sobbing throughout the book I gave plenty of warning that this movie watching could involve two long hours of crying. But in the end, I was brave the mojito, banana choc top, and giant glass of shiraz proved to be a sufficient distraction. I only cried four times.

When I first saw this had been made into a film, I was disappointed it wasn't in German and worried it would follow the likes of many others - set in Germany with a bunch of actors speaking in English with no believability around the characters. Nup. While there was only a smatter of German, the accents where so authentic that the fact that everyone was speaking English in Nazi Germany was not distracting at all. And the little things like the linen, the kitchen, the music, the landscape - all bang on the money. 

I did shed a little tear when I heard the main character sing 'Guten Abend, gute Nacht, mit Rosen bedacht' in one of the early scenes. My Mami used to sing that to me and I bet she used to have had it sung to her pretty much around the same era the book was set. Hence my sadness as this story and my own do intertwine. 

One day I hope to understand more of my family history, but what I do know is that for my mother her past involved the war, Stalingrad,foster homes and missing siblings still today. Her story is like a big puzzle impossible to solve because it's full of emotion, faltering memories and half truths. I'm not sure if I'll ever get to know what happened but there is no denying that it shaped the woman she is today - a juxtaposition of a determination with an emotional vulnerability like no-one else that I know.

The author, Markus Zusak's, parents migrated to Australia around the same time as mine and I suspect his parents were able to tell him more of their past. Or maybe he was just better at recording and remembering it? I'd like to do that when the time is right, but for now I shake my head in wonder because this story is my history too - a world away from my little yellow house life in Canberra.

After the film, there was a medicinal whiskey to reflect on what was then and to talk about what is today, in the context of war. The book (and the film) reminds us there is a beauty in the words and the strength and braveness of everyday people. It's sometimes hard to remember that when thinking about the horror and pointlessness of war.

Enough Said

This is a great film. A sad / happy film. Julia Louis - Dreyfus plays Eve, a divorced masseuse who meets Albert, played by James Gandolfini.

If you've ever been in a long term relationship that has hit the splitsville's I think you'll get a lot out of this film. How is it that the little habits people have become so intolerable when you fall out of love? Or maybe those people were never in love? What is love? Jeez - how did I turn a nice little romantic comedy into a series of the worlds worst philosophical questions? Moving on....

I don't know, but as you get older do you become more forgiving of those little quirks? Right now, I can't think of any particularly annoying habits anyone in my former life had, though I'm sure at the time there were a half dozen things that would drive me bananas. But now - I don't remember any of them. I do remember the stuff that busted my heart a bit. I wonder what he would say if you asked him? Maybe he remembers a half dozen pesky habits of me. Which would be odd because I'm pretty much perfect. 

This film in its own quiet way explores how people break up and move on and how sometimes lives need to stay intertwined. It doesn't mean people want to stay connected, and in the film there is an awkwardness about that which is quite real. Relationships are hard and people make mistakes - this is an intelligent, understated film about that.

John Dies At The End

But does John Die At The End? I saw the film and I'm not sure I really do know if John died or didn't die. What was puzzling about this film: 

The fact the audience guffawed a lot at the beginning of the film. I (nor my companion*) were just was not on that LoLaCoaster.


Not knowing whether John actually died after watching the film.

That Paul Giamatti was in this film.

The handsomeness of the main character (unexpected more than puzzling).

That so many people were out at 10pm in Canberra just to see this film.

How much the film grew on me and actually had me guffawing.

I'm not sure if this film is genius or simply amateur. I suspect not being able to determine this makes it genius and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I asked the dog and he said 2 stars (I think that's a bit harsh, but I might be a bit tipsy as I write this).

* I wrote about friendship the other day here. I would like to expand on that to say that one definition of friendship is when your friend agrees to accompany you to a 10pm film session on a Friday night... where the film in question is a low budget horror film, of dubious quality. When they say yes to that invitation without hesitation - that is friendship. Total bonus that the film was good and fun.

Night Train To Lisbon

Or Last Train To Cairo as I'll probably remember this film as. Ironic given one of the main characters also starred in the Good Listener.... 

A little far fetched in places, but if you give into the fact that everyone in Portugal speaks English (and at times with fetching American accents) quite a nice film. And a film where I learned stuff. Who knew the Portuguese lived through a violent dictatorship? 

The film is based on an international best seller novel by Pascal Mercier originally published in German as Nachtzug nach Lissabon? FYI - that means Night Train to Lisbon for all you non Germanacs. Never ever heard of that book and now predictably I'd like to read it to see if the written text gives the plot and characters more context before launching in on the whole shebang of taking the train to Lisbon. But we all know that that is probably not going to happen so I'm certainly not going to make any grandiose promises here. And seeing I won't be reading the book, maybe I just have to forgive the film for its shortcomings because there were parts where the plot could have taken a predictable turn and it didn't.

Filth

Filth is the first of two films chosen to watch as part of the Canberra International Film Festival.  I'm not sure what to say about this film, aside from it isn't for the faint hearted. James McAvoy is brilliant. He is usually swoon-worthy in most films, but this, not very likeable and absolutely unswoon-worthy.

This film is in your face and entirely unexpected. The cinematography is impressive and even at its bleakest the film is quite stunning. Some parts are hilarious and others are just uncomfortable and I don't want to give too much away but if you see it, the plot will knock your socks off. 

Look, I'll just say go see it, but know at the end you'll need a drink or two to work through it. Just not whiskey. 

Before Midnight

Before Midnight is the sequel to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, films that follow the relationship of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline ( Julie Delpy). 

Films that have a      lot      of     dialog.

This film is no different which is quite astounding and exhausting all at once. For me, it was one of those films I enjoyed more once it was over because on reflection all of that dialog is very clever. The issues that concern this couple in their relationship are real problems and not some overblown movie drama. And in the end, life isn't perfect - and the moral of the story? You put aside the imperfections because this is the reality of relationships.

And beyond anything else this film is a fantastic advertisement for a holiday in Greece - or given the economic condition of the country at the moment perhaps property purchase? Who is in for buying beautiful villa amidst an olive grove with its own beach? We can go thirds....

Camille Rewinds

I've written about my distain for time travel more than once on this blog...so you might think it odd that I would willingly go to a movie about a woman who goes back in time. Well here is the difference. Time travel is ok if you only do it once back, and then return. Like back to the future style.

This film took me by surprise. It was a lovely little film but bittersweet for me.  A broken relationship, then back into to time - back to where that lifelong relationship started.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not still upset about how my relationship went pear shaped, but I did relate to this movie in a way that I wasn't expecting. The film made me happy but it also left me with a little sadness. I don't want to give too much away in case you watch it and you should (even if you hate time travel).

Rust and Bone

A handsome brute, a big fish, complicated relationships and 110 minutes of heartbreak (with glimpses of hope). What appears to be an unbelievable story, turns out to be quite a wonderful and engaging film.

The Loneliest Planet

I'm going to say something risqué here....the more I thought about this film the more I liked it. Mind you, this film had a touch of the 'good listener'. Did I ever tell you about the time I saw the Good Listener with my pony friend? For the life of me I could never remember the movies name (which was actually the Lives of Others, an excellent film). I called it the 'Good Listener' for so long but in fairness it is a film about listening (and they do a good job in listening = Good Listener). Downside of this literal approach is both me and my pony friend have to work backwards from the 'Good Listener' to remember what the film is actually called. True story.

But I do go on and that's because I can't ever remember the name of this film, the Loneliest Planet.  'Into the Wild', then 'the Wildest Planet' then to 'the movie with that good looking Gabriel guy' seem like good working titles. And the movie itself? Well it is beautiful, but slow...a subtle film. It is kind of about nothing and everything. My movie companions thoughts:

'was shithouse' 

'picturesque but too long'

I don't know if I'd recommend this film. Go if you have patience and an eye for beautiful scenery. Maybe.

Amour

What is it about the pensioner crowd at cinemas? A friend and I had a run of them a few years ago where there were disruptive old folk at every film we went to. The highlight was a viewing of Gone Baby Gone where a nice elderly gentleman whispered loudly during the opening scene. 'He can't park there!' he said in outrage as the character pulls into a no standing zone.

So tonight at the start of Amour a pack of pensioners joined the very empty cinema. Right next to us, in the back row - rows A to F entirely empty. They giggled, shared mints (the ones in the noisy tins) and made the occasional (actually quite regular) comments throughout the film. Not to matter. The film is about an old couple coping with imminent death so I guess the rowdy group get dibs on that subject matter. 

The film is worth seeing on the big screen.  It is a subtle piece about a difficult topic and is restrained, still and quite deliberately slow. For once I didn't cry. I won't point fingers, but someone else did which proves this film is incredibly sad and touching. There are moments of beauty, love and glimpses of the past all intertwined with the jangling of eclipse mints.

The Women on the 6th Floor

I'm going to start writing about every time I see a film. Why? Because I think I'm either getting stupider or forgetful, and I have (it appears) no ability to remember films I've seen, no matter how recent. I had to check back on my own blog to remind me of a film I saw only a few months ago*. Sadly I didn't write a post about it - so here is where we are right now. Writing a post about a movie so when I forget it in two months I can check my blog before driving myself mad.


So the movie - it's a nice film. Kinda freaked me out in bits. It's really about why you shouldn't judge but you can't help judging! It's a nice story though, and I hadn't read about it anywhere - so the date it was supposed to be set did keep me guessing for a while but if you know when Franco was around til, you'll figure it out. I'd recommend it if you want to see a happy, light film. Just don't go see it with your weird, overly attentive, aging boss.

*Even now I've forgotten the name again of that bloody movie (checking google...crazy stupid love! Great film btw) 

Bill Cunningham - New York

Do you know anything about Bill Cunningham? I didn't, and my goodness what a story about a wonderful, gentle, inspiring and generous man. Credit to Richard Press who captured Bill with the sensitivity he deserves. A wonderful documentary - go see it at the cinema for this film is a thing of beauty.

Drive

Like Goodfellas, but with more driving.

Attack The Block

Taffy Bubblegum suggested this film (he was planning tickets to surprise his girl), and I'd managed to not go to the other three films I'd planned to as part of the Canberra film festival - so along I went with. Attack The Block was funny, scary, cringeworthy and had a great original soundtrack. I felt sad for the dog. Go see it.

5 German films

We were talking about films today, which led to a talk about German films. Well not really a talk, but really just me saying how great contemporary German cinema is. And it is - there have been some excellent German films in recent times. Here are five you should see immediately. Schnell!

The Baader Meinhof Complex

The Edukators

Sophie Scholl - the final days

Lives of Others

Run Lola Run

I don't suppose you have a top 5 German film list? To be honest either did I until 3 minutes ago...I couldn't come up with a top 5 of all time favourite films, so broke it down into my favourite German ones.

Beginners

This is quite an amazing film. Understated, clever, romantic and touching. Carefully edited and wonderful on the big screen. Go see it.

Incendies

Incendies follows the journey of two siblings to the Middle East as they try to find out the truth about their past. The film leaves you with a strong sense of this region and of the never ending war. It is a constant theme spanning the film and one of the characters lifetime. It is both beautiful and brutal.