After some introspection.

Now that I'm more than halfway through my first year at college, I've seen more films, learned more about film as an art, and, most importantly, learned more about the people whose cinematic works have historically been erased, ignored, and/or not taken seriously. As a self-proclaimed "film buff", I absolutely consider it my responsibility to explore a wide scope of filmmakers, actors, screenwriters, editors, etc.-- and that means having to do a little searching sometimes. I've found myself more often than ever lingering on the "woman directors" Wikipedia page or the "Native American actors" Wikipedia page, each time realizing that I recognize only a few names, and that to some people the entire list will appear to be full of "unknowns".

When we live in a society that is still so deeply white-supremacist-capitalist-ablist-transphobic-homophobic-biphobic-neuroatypical ignoring-fatphobic-xenophobic-patriarchical-ageist-the list goes on and on and on, being on a list that is simply called "directors" or "actors" is a privilege. Being an artist whose merit is not constantly questioned because of whatever "others" you is also a thing of privilege.

Thus, I'd like to tell anyone who sees my pursuit of watching the works as "affirmative action" or "white liberal guilt" to take a hard look at the film industry, its place in the kyriarchy and the effect of those two things on hir own tastes.

Film-watching goals for the summer.

• Continue seeking out the films of Anna Magnani, Sandy Dennis, Madeleine Sherwood and Katharine Hepburn.
• Watch Maria Callas in Pasolini's Medea.
• See more films directed by or starring Orson Welles.
• Keep watching silent comedies by Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin.
• Finish up the Best Picture winners.
• See more with Isabelle Huppert.
• Watch Angels in America.

A Study in Contrasts

Stranger Than Fiction and Magritte

I find it impossible to ignore the similarities between Harold Crick's alternate reality and that of the great surrealist Rene Magritte. What a fitting combination, too; why NOT pay homage to some of the most bizarre mise-en-scenes this side of Dali when you're directing a mainstream film that also manages to respect the viewer's comprehension of the strange?

Tea and Sympathy...and how the "ideal" male has pretty much reversed

I first came across the play Tea and Sympathy last year in theatre class and promptly forgot about it until I went on one of my usual hour-long treasure hunts on Youtube, where I found the 1956 film version with Deborah Kerr. Nobody plays a concerned/conflicted mother figure better (just watch The Innocents) so that alone attracted me. Once I began the movie, though, something else intrigued me altogether: the reasons Tom is brutally bullied and how fantastically dated those reasons are.

The main story follows Tom, a 17-or-so boy at an all-boy's boarding school who is teased for his lack of traditional masculinity. Now, here's the thing: instead of enjoying football and goosing the cute waitress Ellie, he plays acoustic guitar, sings beautifully, writes poetry, wears sweaters and goes on long walks. Oh, and here's the clincher: he dreams of being a professional folk singer. Does that not sound like the sort of guy who'd be marketed as adorable and "a catch" these days? Just take a look at some more recent movie hearthrobs. Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) from (500) Days of Summer, Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera) from Juno, Andrew Largeman (Zach Braff) from Garden State, the list goes on. Anyway, Tea and Sympathy is beyond fascinating with that comparison in mind. The guys who push Tom around seem less like "the norm" and more like the jerky meatheads who would end up being the butt of every joke in a modern romantic comedy. 

(By the way, Tea and Sympathy is by no means a romantic comedy or in any way comparable to the studiotastic indie romances I mentioned up there- my comparison begins and ends with the portrayal of normal/desirable masculinity.)

And that, my Lolita, is the only immortality we will ever share.

Lolita is my favorite book. It has been since I first read it, and possibly even before that considering the bizarre amount of research I did prior to reading it. No other work of fiction has had the same disturbing effect on me; that is, to sympathize with and even love a protagonist so despicable and pathetic as Humbert Humbert. And although my intense love for Lolita makes me something of a purist when it comes to interpreting and appreciating the book, I have no qualms with the liberties the brilliant Stanley Kubrick took with his 1962 adaptation of the novel. 

For one thing, Nabokov himself penned the screenplay. And never have I seen a film slip past the censorship codes of the time with such mischievous ease (everything from Lolita's summer retreat, "Camp Climax", to her unintelligible whispering into Humbert's ear about the "game" she and Charlie played is full of innuendo). The cuts away from the assumed action between Lo and Humbert never hinder; in fact, they follow the book, which like the film is always far more suggestive than it is explicit. Of course, Kubrick deviated quite a bit from Nabokov's final draft of the screenplay, but the nasty fun and spirit is all there. 

As a reader, I often forgot that the book was something of a tragicomedy and spent many teary afternoons lingering over the passages near the end in which Humbert proclaims that "I was a monster, but I loved you" to his doomed nymphet. The film's undeniably snappy and absurd humor (represented perfectly by Peter Sellers's tic-infested portrayal of Clare Quilty) alerted me to all the funny subtleties of the novel that I had pushed aside in attempt to wallow in Humbert's misery. The Humbert that Kubrick creates is undoubtedly more sophisticated than everyone else in the film, but some of the funniest moments come when he finally loses his cool: think the frantic drink-fixing scene as he (James Mason) hollers his reassurance to Charlotte (the always energetic and endearingly pathetic Shelley Winters) that his diary is in fact fiction and not a real record of his highly immoral (not to mention illegal) lust for her daughter (Sue Lyon).

It's hard to say who the MVP of the film is, considering the brilliance of the entire ensemble. It's a well-known fact that Peter Sellers was one of the only actors Kubrick ever allowed to improvise, and his line delivery is perfectly inane ("You've got the most normal lookin' face I've sort of evah seen"). I've had a thing for Sue Lyon ever since seeing Night of the Iguana, where she plays a similar role opposite a very troubled Richard Burton, and she didn't disappoint here. I greatly appreciated her refusal (and, presumably, Kubrick's) to turn Lolita into a stupid little coquette who deserved her fate; this Lolita is not a pedophile's innocent delight but a young lady struggling to grow up in peace. 

Basically? I recommend it.

And once again, a shameless plug for my very talented friend Michael: !http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2C2HNLKui

5I

My very favorites, ladywise

If you have read this blog at all, you'll be aware that I favor several actresses over others, for whatever reason. Here are my favorites, complete with noms/wins (for those of you who don't know, I have my own Oscars for every year including my own nominations and wins...nerdy enough for you?). Bold/asterisks denote wins.

1. Sandy Dennis

1966 Best Supporting Actress (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?)*

1967  Best Actress (Up the Down Staircase)

1969 Best Actress (That Cold Day in the Park)*

1977 Best Supporting Actress (Nasty Habits)*

1982 Best Actress (Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean)*

STILL NEED TO SEE: Thank You All Very Much, The Fox, Sweet November, The Four Seasons, The Out-of-Towners, Another Woman, The Indian Runner

2. Allison Janney

1999 Best Supporting Actress (American Beauty)

2002 Best Supporting Actress (The Hours)

2007 Best Supporting Actress (Juno)

STILL NEED TO SEE: Drop Dead Gorgeous

3. Catherine O'Hara

1990 Best Supporting Actress (Home Alone)*

1996 Best Supporting Actress (Waiting for Guffman)*

2006 Best Actress (For Your Consideration)*

STILL NEED TO SEE: Penelope, A Mighty Wind

4. Madeleine Sherwood

1958 Best Supporting Actress (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof)*

1963 Best Supporting Actress (Sweet Bird of Youth)

STILL NEED TO SEE: Wicked, Wicked, Hurry Sundown, Pendulum, The Changeling, Resurrection

4. Natalie Wood

1961 Best Actress (Splendor in the Grass)*

1961 Best Actress (West Side Story)

1963 Best Actress (Love With the Proper Stranger)*

STILL NEED TO SEE: Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, Rebel Without a Cause