I decided to catch up with some films by Martin Scorsese that I had not recently viewed in their entirety. Casino: Very similar in structure to GoodFellas, Casino remains an excellent work. The similarities are evident: Robert DeNiro playing a leading role supported by Joe Pesci, a true organized crime story written by Nicholas Pileggi, and a detailed soundtrack which brings the film to life. Brutal violence illustrates how seriously casino boss Sam “Ace” Rothstein and his backers from the Chicago Outfit take the business of running the Tangiers Hotel and Casino in the 1970s. Although Rothstein seemed to have …
Bell Lightbox Screenings, Part I: The Godfather
The reason that we screen films at the Bell Lightbox is so we can better appreciate today’s films. It’s not solely a matter of enjoying the film that is shown – although that is also a significant factor – but to understand its impact on the films that followed it. The Godfather is one of the best films of all time and it is always satisfying, despite the condescension dripping from Lightbox staff and the crowd of jackanapes who had smuggled six-packs into the theatre and insisted on quoting every famous line aloud. Those drawbacks were trivial relative to the …
Shutter Island
So what if Shutter Island is a visually stunning work of art? Would you expect anything else from the best director of the past quarter-century? The overhead shots – which give the audience the impression of peering down and spying on the mysterious island – are a captivating technique employed by Martin Scorsese. Some of the long shots which zoom into extreme close-ups rival the visual interest of the dolly zooms in GoodFellas. Irrespective of the rest of the film, the cinematography is spectacular. The plot befits a blunt felt-tipped marker rather than an elegant quill. I cannot blame the …
Chloe
Chloe showcases what talent can accomplish, especially during the first half of the film. Compelling performances, creative cinematography, and clever direction grab the audience’s attention. Fearing that her husband David may be cheating, Catherine hires the titular character to tempt him. As Chloe reveals what transpires between her and the music professor, she becomes closer with Catherine. The story is told from Catherine’s perspective: we see how she imagines what happens between David and Chloe gradually, how she wistfully gazes at other couples and compares them to what she thinks her relationships has lost. Gradually, she pulls apart from her …
A Good Fella or a Wise Guy?
Both sides of a tragic tale – the glitz and glamour and the nuts and bolts – are told by Martin Scorcese and Nicholas Pileggi, retelling Henry Hill’s journey from hijacker and street tough to drug dealer and gambler to federal informant. The two works exemplify the difference between film and literature; Goodfellas enables you to visualize the events and see how a character chooses a course of action and Wise Guy recounts exactly what happened and how it was done. In retrospect, Goodfellas will be recognized as one of the top three films of the 1980s, although stylistically it …
Shine a Light
Martin Scorsese’s film about a Rolling Stones concert, Shine a Light, puts on a good show. I was expecting more of a documentary; not This Is Spinal Tap but a film that shone light on the band’s intricacies, like how that Simpsons’ episode revealed that Keith Richards spikes his lemonade and Mick Jagger mows his own lawn. Bill Clinton introduces the Stones and mentions that he did likewise at a climate change fundraiser because “they care as much about this issues as we do.” Hopefully they purchased carbon emission credits to make up for lights that were “burning [Mick Jagger’s] …
M & The Departed
Having screened these two films lately, some points have come to light. One can’t help but remark how much cinema has decayed lately. Unlike other recent films, The Departed was driven by skill on-screen and behind the camera instead of special effects — the plot was compelling throughout and genuinely surprising. Likewise, M was thoroughly entertaining despite its technical limitations. Fritz Lang created a screenplay that was both dramatic and humorous, employed innovative camera angles, and benefited from several strong performances. Both stand out among the greatest ever in stark contrast to the sea of mediocrity that most films released …