Weekly Viewings From The To-Watch Pile #2

[Note – The review of Chuck & Buck spoils a major plot twist to the film. This was the only way I felt I could review the film, so be advised]

This is first time I've added a trailer for a film for these posts. I could have added one or two more for these films, but the same problems of them revealing too much reared their head. Thankfully the trailer to The Lickerish Quartet doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of what its about and prefers to have positive quotes from film critics and Andy Warhol.

The Lickerish Quartet (Radley Metzger, 1970)

‘Metzger's porno-existentialist film (or something like that)deals with a family of three, living in a spacious castle, whose comfortable lifestyle is upset by the arrival of a mysterious woman who may or may not be an actress in one of the stag films the husband likes to watch. A woman who may or may not even be real.... But what IS real, anyway...?’  - From IMDB User Comments

From the opening, one must ask if the film is merely not that good or very deceptive. Is it a softcore sex film with wooden acting, or an interesting work that uses a lot of inter-cutting between time and images? Is it erotica with pretension, which is reminiscent of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Theorem (1968) without the politics, or is it a clever meta-film with sex which plays its ideas with a slight of hand? Am I just reading too much into it instead of enjoying the couple of sex scenes and the strange plot? Whatever it is, Metzger’s film is certainly worth viewing, playing a game that, regardless if it has depth or not, makes it strangely compelling.

Zipang (Kaizo Hayashi, 1990)

‘Jigoku is the leader of a small band of renegades who live the dangerous life of treasure hunters. Jigoku has a bounty on his head, and pursued by the hard-headed female bounty hunter named Yuri the Pistol. During the exploration of a mysterious cave, Jigoku`s band discover a mysterious golden sword, which is supposedly the key to the mystical world called 'Zipang', the land of gold.’ – From Amazon UK

A bitter disappointment. After a good black-and-white opening, it becomes apparent as the film goes in it is not as good as it could have been. Looking like a mainstream cinema release from Japan, it is a cartoon, a mostly bloodless (bar one or two moments) fantasy samurai film which has imaginative characters and weapons, but lacks any real excitement to the scenes or any of the sword fights. Were it not for one or two other unconventional moments with black-and-white photography and/or rapid cuts, and sped-up shots, it is very generic.

Chuck & Buck (Miguel Arteta, 2000)

From http://www.ifc.com/news/08172010_ChuckBuck1.jpg

‘Buck is a man-child who has lived his existence in a life of Romper Room, kindergarten collages, and lollipops. When his mother dies suddenly, Buck remembers his old childhood friend Chuck, with whom he feels a need to reconnect after having invited him to his mother's funeral. Buck treks out to Los Angeles where Chuck, an up-and-coming music record executive, is living his life. Buck ends up developing an obsession with Chuck and begins stalking him.’ – From IMDB

This film should have been one of two stories. It should have been either a) a story of unrequited love of one man for another after they experimented sexually as kids, or b) about a man who has the mindset of a child trying to reconnect with his childhood friend despite never having grown up. By not following this, and making the film both, the film loads too much into the plot to make it emotionally credible. It may happen in reality, or work in a film, but here it feels like a forced attempt to make it a black comedy when in fact a heartfelt drama, driven by a great performance by Mike White, is trying to get out from its genre straight jacket.

The Brothers Bloom (Rian Johnson, 2008)



From http://www.lonelyreviewer.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/the-brothers-bloom.jpg



‘Brothers - older Stephen and three years junior Bloom - have been con artists since they were kids. Stephen is the mastermind, for who the intricacy of the story used in the con is as important as the positive outcome of the swindle. Bloom is the main character of Stephen's stories, the character he considers the anti-hero. As adults, they travel the world and never enlist the same people twice in their cons, except for their consistent sidekick, the mysterious and primarily silent Bang Bang, a Japanese woman who just appeared in their lives one day and who has a penchant for blowing things up. As Bloom hits his mid-thirties, he wants to quit the business as he is losing his own identity to that of the characters he portrays; he doesn't know anymore what is real and what is make-believe. Stephen talks him into one last con, the mark to be the eccentric, lonely but beautiful New Jersey heiress...’ – From IMDB

A mess of a film that is convoluted for the sake of it. This writer has become bored of most films with plot twists as it feels like they, and the feeling of asking whether what is real or not that directors try to get the audience to have, seems far more important and the driving force of them instead of mood and interesting characters. Even the eccentricity becomes too much here in places when it is clear it is covering up lack of plot logic and lack of character development. Aside from Robbie Coltrane, the only interesting thing in the film is Rinko Kikuchi as Bang-Bang, a mostly mute, elf-like eccentric with very expressive eyes and face who was far more compelling a character than anyone else. I kept watching for Kikuchi, looking for her on screen to see what she was doing, instead of concentrating on the story itself. Even then, she has little point in the plot by the end, an example of how this whole film has little of interest and to enjoy.

It’s Alive (Larry Cohen, 1974)

From http://auteurs_production.s3.amazonaws.com/stills/167987/it-s-alive-1974.jpg

‘The Davies expect a baby, which turns out to be a monster with a nasty habit of killing when it's scared. And it's easily scared.’ – From IMDB

The film is not perfect, suffering from a pace that becomes sluggish at times, and the question of what its message actually is. However this B-movie, which brings up many ideas in its earnest story of a killer, mutant baby, has a lot more clever than a lot of A-movie and Oscar worthy dramas, which may look intelligent on the surface but are only surface-deep, even though its premise is very silly. Not only is there a good performance by John Ryan as the father, but the slower pace allows the director to build up the characters and their situation significantly. Even the references to childhood in the background throughout are effective despite being obvious. It also has – combining the events that happen with the music, lighting and sound effects used – the perfect ending for a film like this.