Uneven, magnetic, overblown, erratic, spectacular, incoherent, meandering, shouty and FAR TOO LONG. Why do directors think that the longer a movie, the best chance of awards? Damien Chazelle has looked at early Hollywood as Oscar voters will see their own industry. But a decent story is missing, we just get a succession of set pieces, glorious as some of them are. The last half hour did see some better momentum, but this had nothing to do with the main plot and could easily have been completely cut.
Brad Pitt does his best to hold the whole thing together, although Margot Robbie's character is way too mad to be interesting. Her shooting of her first talkie was a classic of too many re-takes which end up just boring. But finally she manages a perfect performance. Shame we had to wait so long.
Another awards contender so, yes, far too long once more. Cate Blanchette as conductor/maestro Lydia Tar does put that award winning contribution, but there are too many long one to one discussions (some quite intellectual) that hold up the main theme. Director Todd Field has made something that Peter Bradshaw in the Guardian says is "entirely outrageous, delirious and sensual physchodrama". The best parts were when Lydia actually conducts in rehearsal and the orchestra belts out Mahler's Fifth Symphony from the cinema's speakers. (This is definitely a film to see on the big screen, I would never have been able to watch it at home). Those musical pieces are awesome. Two English actors are wonderful, first Mark Strong and the Julian Glover, not having to move from his restaurant chair being 87. Both are conductors, the latter having retired from Tar's Berlin Orchestra. He tells Lydia about all the conductors who have fallen from grace for one reason or another. Does she heed the warning? I recognised Noemie Merlant as Lydia's assistant from her lead role in Portrait of a Lady on Fire.
But let's get onto the second half that many critics, though positive, are split in what they saw. What did I see? Something quite unbelievable. I just could not buy in to why Lydia goes downhill. we know early on that she is in some trouble with a former protégé having committed suicide. Any reasonable person would then keep their heads down and work through her final Mahler symphony getting everyone on her side. But no. He egotism means she can do what she likes and promoting a young and attractive cellist (Sophie Kauer, an actual musician in her first acting role, and born in Guildford ) leads to her downfall. Lydia's choice of this brand new member of the orchestra to solo in Elgar's Cello Concerto instead of the orchestra's lead cellist is not realistic. As is the way she ignores her family for this new attraction. But are we expected to take everything at face value, or is this one of those films where it is mostly in her imagination? Maybe that is what the director wanted, for us to worry about what we have seen. For me, just bring on the music.
Another long film (two and a half hours) but this one went in a flash. This dramatised story of Steven Spielberg's childhood starts in the 1950's, he is a couple of years younger than me but from a much more affluent family. He was lucky is this respect as I compared our lives, but not in his parent's divorce. There was a good script and although the story was generally warm, there were occasional awkward and even nasty parts. I tried to spot instances that maybe influences scenes in Spielberg's later movies, the boys on their bikes is one.
Michelle Williams is terrific as Sam Fabelman's mother, I didn't know that she was a brilliant pianist. Paul Dano as the father is a less attractive personality as an unrecognisable Seth Rogan is captured with Sam's mother on film. Young Sam could have done with a better actor than Gabriel LaBelle. His sisters were far better. David Lynch in a tiny cameo is memorable. John William's score is predictably excellent as were the choices of songs. Especially The Crystals' Da Doo Ron Ron that was cut far too short.
No comments:
Post a Comment