Reviews
The Governess (1998)
The Governess was a beautiful film that I think deserves more credit than it got.
The Governess was a beautiful film that I think deserves more credit than it got. I feel this film followed in the same quality and artistic depth as Jane Campion's 'The Piano'. Of course the story is very unique. Minnie Driver plays Rossina da Silva, a Jewess in victorian era England, who is forced to find employment in a Christian family when her father dies. She takes on the persona of 'Mary Blackchurch' a pious Christian women. She ends up in distant Scotland, where her employer turns out to be a deeply intelligent scientist - whose family feels detached from society because of his work. Mr. Cavendish's work interest Rossina and in their work they discover not only some breathtaking advances in science but new emotions and feelings, which they each explore differently. The film technique is just impeccable. There are beautiful shots on the shores of the ocean. The use of color and glass distortions makes Rosinna's Jewish world come to life like I have never seen before. I think I loved this film, not only for its story, but also because it opened up a realm to me that I had never been aware of: Jewish life in the 19th century. Minnie Driver is wonderful in this film, her Rosina is stronger than any other role I have seen her in. Tom Wilkinson of 'Full Monty' fame is also a very believable and caring Mr. Cavendish. SEE THIS MOVIE ! It is so beautiful and the soundtrack is moving, almost haunting. The governess is definitely on my list of favorite films of all time !
Polish Wedding (1998)
Sadly I was quite disappointed in most aspects of this film.
Polish Wedding was a film that was not quite popular, but I wanted to see it to make my own assumptions. Sadly I was quite disappointed in most aspects of this film. The story is supposed to be about a blue -collar Polish family in Detroit whose members are all struggling with their love and hatred for each other. The mother played by Lena Olin, is self obsessed - caring only for her control of her children and love affair. The father is a tired baker, who sees the holes in his family but is reluctant to face them. Claire Danes plays their 'free spirit' of a daughter, who wanders alleyways at night with strange boys and ends up pregnant. The film technique and art direction is a contrasting mix of urban ugliness and natural beauty. There are some notably beautiful scenes for which I must give some credit. Aside from this one point of merit, the rest of the film falls short of what I expected. First of all, the characters are really unrealistic. Being part Polish, I found the accents to be contrived and the whole feel of the family to be unfamiliar. The characters were interesting at first, but due to lack of development, become increasingly boring as time goes on. I tried, with great effort, to see where the title becomes relevant in this film, but there is no hint of a wedding in this film - Dane's character just waltzes to the boys house in a wedding gown - actually convinced she will get married ???? I think this film might have been a real jewel if the story had moved a little more quickly and if the characters had not been so flat and un-dynamic. Anyone with a hint of Polish in their blood might even find this film more offensive that self-relevant. It casts a bad picture onto a people with a far more interesting family tradition than is seen in this artificial construction.
The Thin Red Line (1998)
I wanted to like this movie but could not
The Thin Red Line is the first of Malick's work that I have seen or even heard of. It did not take me long to wonder, why this film was billed as a war film at all. For although it brings forth images of war, it focuses more on internal issues than anything else. The characters themselves say little. We see with their eyes, we hear their thoughts but we never truly get a sense of who they are. Nick Nolte's character takes a long time yelling orders and cursing his men's lack of courage. I spent the first half-hour confused about who was who. Many of the characters looked so similar in their army garb, not to mention that their monologues were indistinguishable. There are also several scenes which completely baffled me for their purpose. For example, one solider (his name escapes me) meets another wounded in the leg. They exchange pleasantries on a scenic hilltop and then separate without any action or significance. The monologues dragged on with an excess of rhetorical questions. The still moments of nature and creative use of light was exceptional. However, these images ran too long and at times I began to lose interest. Images, beautiful or not, cannot alone complete a good film. There has to some context for images. As far as acting was concerned, I felt that Sean Penn was just playing himself and not a solider. His indifference and strained effort at emotion was a nuisance, at best. The other big names in this movie were also ambiguous. Clooney receives top billing for a role that lasts only three minutes. John Travolta also plays a short role, in a uniform and mustache that make him look more like one of the Village People than an actual general. John Cussack's character mysteriously disappears at the end - someone help me here... did he die ? The other actors seemed to blend into one big army-green mess, all sniffling and trembling. Realities of war I cannot understand... perhaps. Nick Nolte's raging commander was the only mentionable performance and in the end his character has no closure. I was too lost in the confusing techniques and bored by the length. Anyone with a short attention span will be lost and those who are impatient will leave the theater, as some did.