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Capharnaüm (2018)
tailor-made for hunting a festival prize?
This is definitely one of the most intriguing, provocative, heart blowing and irritating movies I've ever watched, this is the type of movies that leaves you in a disturbed state of mind while gazing at the credits scrolling down on the screen, it's hard to formulate a solid impression on such movies, it's definitely impressive and humane, but not necessarily in a positive way.
First of all let me confess that I couldn't determine the logic behind the movie name, when I googled "Capernaum" I found out it's the name of a small Palestinian town overlooking the Sea of Galilee, the movie could be referring to it as the location where events are set, or it could be meant as just a symbol of any Arab city, however the movie held many clear indicators that it was set in Beirut and that the main character "Zain" was Lebanese.
I believe that the message meant by the movie is really significant and
substantial, people shall cease from bringing new children to the world unless they are capable of raising them up properly and of securing their basic needs of shelter, food, healthcare and education, I'm not quite sure whether Lebanon is suffering from a serious over-population issue or it was just a general message the makers of the movie wanted to deliver.
Nadine Labaki is a very talented and artistically-motivated director, here 2 previous movies (Caramel 2007 and Where Do We Go Now? 2011) have been wonderfully charming, this one, however, is much less entertaining, and that's - in my opinion - is its main issue, cinema after all is an entertainment art, I appreciate the joy I feel when watching a well-made movie, and there is a thin line between entertainment and message, every movie maker has to respect that line and keep his movie balanced between both, in this movie I've been constantly molested by ugly views of slums (not that the camera views were ugly but the places themselves were) and aggressive scenes, that started from the very first frame to the very last one throughout 2 hours, at least some nice landscapes or enchanting scenes would have helped interrupt this harsh atmosphere.
One other concern I have is the feeling that some movies nowadays, especially in the third world countries - and even in Hollywood and Europe but within different aspects - are being tailor-made for film festivals and academy awards, some approaches and subjects are being celebrated and carefully framed to qualify for hunting a festival prize, for example poverty, breach of human rights, forced marriage of minors, people trafficking, child labor, enslavement of refugees and foreign labor, etc., this movie is a perfect paradigm of such movies, I believe that Nadine's two previous movies were much more intimate, affectionate, well-focused and - above all - more cinematographically enchanting.
Filantropica (2002)
A whole new level of cinema
That could be a unique genre of movies where it's hard to categorize, it's definitely comedy, but it's also sociopolitical drama and psychological tragedy, it could be even categorized as thriller and as fantasy, it has it all, it deeply describes post- communism Romania as much as it does for many other countries as well where life gets harder on intellectual educated professionals while it gets easy on crooks and parasitic creatures, famous honored poets and novelists can't afford a drink while models and "nouveau riche" earn loads of money doing nothing valuable, where you must be fraudulent and inauthentic in order to gain your spot in the new society. Nae Caranfil is a innovative director, I'd recommend "The Rest is Silence" and "Closer to the Moon" of his films, while Mircea Diaconu is a really talented and persistent actor, you can also see him in "Asphalt Tango". This movie is simply shocking, enchanting, charming and - above all - deep.
Indigènes (2006)
indigènes
This is a masterpiece, an epic tragedy that resembles a critical and uncovered chapter of human's struggle against discrimination, poverty, tyranny and inequality, this movie explains a lot about the diversity of the modern days French society and the historical right of Arabs in France through the sacrifices of their ancestors to liberate France when it was in its weakest state, defeated, occupied and humiliated.
The original title in French is "indigènes" (indigenous) which refers to the native North Africans in French culture, I find this title more relevant than the English more commercial one "Days of Glory".
For the first half of the movie I wasn't getting the "glory" in nomad soldiers from the remote villages or Algerian mountains recruited in the French army to liberate France from German invasion! that was absolute dishonor according to my principles, it was obvious that French commanders don't give a damn to the number of casualties between Arab and African soldiers as long as they achieve a symbolic victory over their oppressive opponent, discrimination was institutionalized, even "returning home" meant to French commanders returning to the French mainland, not returning every soldier to his own village in Africa.
Soldiers mingle into the French territories with people cheering and praising their courage in the battlefield, Arab soldiers feel they belong to France, Saiid says to a French young lady that was listening to his courage stories: "je libère une pays, c'est mon pays" (I liberate a country, it's my country).
Soldiers are now fighting for glory, for the principles of the French Revolution (liberté, égalité, fraternité) and under the slogans of Charles de Gaulle, they fight against Nazism and tyranny, they reject the German temptations to dilute their loyalty to the French army, they still see clear discrimination but still aspire for equality and fair compensation when they complete their mission and liberate what's now their own land, France.
Music plays a great part in this movie, soundtrack and songs by Cheb Khalid are a solid part of the tragedy with its Arabic lyrics about alienation and leaving motherland in search for glory, homesickness and yearning to homeland's characteristics.
Steve Jobs (2015)
Steve Jobs vs. Spotlight
I have to admit that I've been struck by the unexpected awesomeness of this movie that I don't actually quite figure out why it wasn't shortlisted for the Oscars' best picture and best screenplay, best this year, Though it already won The Golden Globe for best screenplay and best actress in a supporting role, it definitely deserved at least one Oscar trophy, it came much better than Jobs (2013) although it focused on a much shorter time frame.
Trying to compare this marvelous piece of creativity with the Oscar winner, Spotlight, makes more confused about the rules of nomination, I can put the comparison like this:
Screenplay: Both the two movies resembled true events but in two completely different approaches, Spotlight was dull and boring, it's actually closer to a "documentary" than a "motion picture", the story it showcased was critical and sensitive but the approach wasn't entertaining, it was just "narrative" as in a press reportage you can read in a newspaper or watch in National Geographic, while Steve Jobs was really entertaining, creative and attractive though it just showcased three moments in the life of the celebrity and was almost barred inside one location, the evolution of the main characters along with the three main chapters of the movie was perfectly synchronized and well studied to the smallest detail in terms of costumes, makeup, accessories, etc. Performance: Spotlight characters were mediocre, just OK but not spectacular except for Stanley Tucci who was really outstanding as usual, no other crew member achieved extraordinary performance, i think that was the outcome of the poor screenplay, in Steve Jobs, Seth Rogen made a spectacular role, Kate Winslet evolved to a completely new level of her career, Michael Fassbender, however, haven't impressed me that much but he did the complicated role very well. Music: Sound track of Steve Jobs was enthusiastic and emotional and played a supporting role in the overall atmosphere of the movie, Spotlight hardly even was accompanied by any music. I gave Steve Jobs 8/10 and Spotlight 6/10, I'm no critic or a professional, it's just my personal opinion as one of the audience.
Joyeux Noël (2005)
I fell in love with it!
I fell in love with this unique piece of art, it is really touching, humane, artistic, ethical, aesthetical and entertaining. it doesn't just immortalize the true and honored story of "The Christmas Truce" of 1914 during the World War I, but gives a lesson about humanity and how pure morals could be spoilt by the war machine and by the widespread of ignorant hatred, I loved how the first scene resembled three school children from France, England and Germany all repeating a memorized speech of hatred against the other nations then the film ended with three scenes of the three supposedly confronting armies rejecting hatred and returning to their regular state of humanity. P.S. I liked that the commander of the German troops was a Jew that's married to a French woman, and I liked that everyone spoke his own language, it affirmed the message of accepting people's diversity.
The Revenant (2015)
Leo definitely deserves it this time
Leonardo DiCaprio probably made this film for the sole purpose of securing his first Oscar's, the man did the impossible this time, he fought with a wild bear, slept inside the corpse of a dead horse, he achieved a great job of performance this time so there's no excuse for not giving him the trophy. The movie itself is of course awesome, perfection and neatness clearly appear in every frame, every shot and every detail, in music, editing, costumes, makeup, in every tiny detail you can feel the hard work, however, and though its runtime is relatively long, I think the movie lacks a strong backbone of a story, it didn't focus enough on the romantic relationship between Leo and the native American girl, we didn't know how they met or what brought her in his way, it could dedicate a few minutes to the kidnapped tribal girl and how she was rescued, there's not even a female protagonist! I'd give Leo 9/10, the movie making 8/10 and the movie story 5/10.