Chocolate (2008)

 

The 2003 release of Ong Bak seemed to signal the emergence of Thailand as the new hot-spot to watch for martial arts cinema.  That film's grounded athleticism was a thrilling alternative to the stylized wuxia "wire-fu" movies that have dominated Hong Kong action cinema for the last several years.  Yet since that time, at least here in the West, it has seemed like Thai martial arts films have largely been a one-man show.  While there have been a handful of other films that have received Western releases, noone has arisen to stand alongside Tony Jaa as a breakout star.  Chocolate, however, makes a good case for Yanin Vismitananda as being the next Thai fighter with the potential to become a genuine phenomenon.

Mission to Mars (2000)

This NASA landing may have been faked on a California soundstage

In an interview accompanying Criterion's recent release of Brian De Palma's 1981 masterpiece Blow Out, his ex-wife and frequent collaborator Nancy Allen describes the consequences of casting John Travolta in that film.  The three had all greatly enjoyed working together on Carrie, and Travolta was eager to work with Allen and De Palma again.  But between Carrie and Blow Out, he'd gone from being John Travolta, star of TV's Welcome Back Kotter, to John Travolta, one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, thanks to Grease and Saturday Night Fever.  Consequently, what had been written as a small political thriller, was now going to be marketed as a major summer thrill-ride.  This meant the script had to be adjusted to include large-scale chases and set-pieces.  While the end result is thrilling, Allen reports with amusement that the process of filming the "big" scenes bored and frustrated De Palma to no end.  It all detracted from the story he wanted to tell and the stylistic flourishes that had so defined his early career.

I couldn't help thinking about that anecdote as I watched 2000's Mission to Mars, a movie so utterly anonymous it might as well have been scrawled on a bathroom wall.  It certainly seems that De Palma hasn't changed nearly as much as his films have, because his boredom with the film's big set-pieces and special effects bleeds into every frame.

The Station Agent (2003)

Peter Dinklage walking the right-of-way

I am curious to know whether 2003's indie drama The Station Agent has experienced a spike in sales or rentals since the debut of HBO's fantasy series Game of Thrones.  Peter Dinklage's performance in that series is the stand-out among a generally stellar ensemble, and is already receiving considerable Emmy buzz -- I can't be the only one inspired to go back and check out his breakthrough role.  I hope I'm not, anyway, as The Station Agent, although ultimately rather slight, is a terrific showcase for a truly remarkable actor.

La Nuit Des Horloges (2007)

The Night of the Clocks

Rarely have I seen an artist struggle so openly with the question of what their work means in the light of their mortality as in Jean Rollin's penultimate film, La Nuit Des Horloges.  Rollin died three years after making this film, after a long illness, and there can be no doubt that he did not expect to have many years of life ahead of him during the production of this unique movie.

High Kick Girl! (2009)

Rina Takeda.  Surprisingly, this shot was played at normal speed.

 One of the pleasures of working on this particular blog has been the fact that my co-author and I watch such wildly different kinds of films, yet think and talk about them in very similar ways.  This has at times allowed me to make unexpected connections between films and genres and find common threads of interest to follow.  And so it was that I found myself thinking about MGM musicals while watching this low-budget martial arts quickie from Japan.

Fish Tank (2009)

Katie Jarvis in a career-making performance

Andrea Arnold's sophomore feature Fish Tank is, quite simply, one of the best films of the last ten years.  Had it just had Arnold's pitch-perfect, naturalistic script, or the sumptuous cinematography of Robbie Ryan, or the typically tremendous performance from Michael Fassbender, or the dazzling turn from newcomer Katie Jarvis -- any one of these elements alone would have ensured this film critical notice.  But that this film brings all of these to the table guarantees that it will only grow in stature as more audiences are introduced to its riches.