10 Cent Pistol

Written and directed by Michael C. Martin, 10 Cent Pistol is the story of two criminals who both plan a job to retrieve a savings bond that was owed to one of the criminals where things suddenly go wrong in the planning. The film is a mixture of film noir, the heist, and all sorts of things as it revolves around two brothers who did a job for a crime boss only to get fucked over where one of them wants to get what he‘s owed while the other becomes very cautious. Starring Adam Arkin, Brendan Sexton III, Jena Malone, Thomas Ian Nicholas, JT Alexander, Damon Alexander, Jessica Szohr, and Joe Mantegna. 10 Cent Pistol is an interesting but extremely messy film from Michael C. Martin.

The film revolves around a heist inside the home of a crime boss where two brothers are trying to retrieve a savings bond that one of them was owed to for serving jail time. Along the way, a shitload of problems ensue where the brothers don’t trust each other as well as the fact that there’s some resentment brewing. At the same time, the two try to play their own angles into getting this and that where the result becomes a mess. Writer/director Michael C. Martin wants to create something that feels like a modern noir film as it is largely told from the perspective of these two brothers who always did things together but when they meet this crime boss. Things go wrong where the two did separate things with bad results where one goes to jail and the other being broke. At the same time, one of them was dating a wannabe actress who would end up being with the other brother as complication ensues where she finds herself involved in the scheme.

Martin’s direction is largely straightforward in terms of the compositions and the way he sets things up. Notably for a key sequence in the second act where the younger brother Jake (JT Alexander) is trying to steal a car without being seen by the cameras and do it carefully as it is one of the more engaging moments of the film. While Martin’s usage of close-ups and medium shots have their moments, the script with its non-linear narrative does make it hard to comprehend into what is happening where Martin is really trying to do something that has audience guessing what is going on and such. It ends up being nonsensical at times while it would also lag into the pacing where the non-action and heist scenes try to feature elements of humor that never gels. The film however does have a satisfying payoff of sorts as it relates to someone involved as it shows the stupidity of what people will do over something as trivial as money. Overall, Martin creates a decent but undercooked suspense-thriller about two brothers trying to retrieve a savings bond they’re owed to.

Cinematographer Michael Fimognari does nice work with the film‘s cinematography though it does have a low budget look in the way many of the daytime‘s exterior settings while doing some fine lighting for scenes set at night. Editor Aram Nigoghossian does terrific work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with some montage-style cutting for some of the set-ups though it doesn‘t do enough to comprehend some of the messiness in the film. Production designer Adrina Rose Garibian does excellent work with the look of the apartment home of the brothers as well as the place where their boss lived in as well as some of the places the characters go to.

Costume designer Mynka Draper does wonderful work with the costumes as it is mostly casual for the men along with some of the stylish clothes and dresses the character of Danneel wears. Sound editor Trip Brock does brilliant work with some of the sound such as the carjack scene inside the garage as it plays up some of the suspense in the film as well as some scenes in bars and such. The film’s music by Jim Dooley does excellent work with the score as it‘s a mixture of low-key, guitar-based music with some ambient textures though it tends to be overused at times in some of the moments while music supervisors Jim Bissell and Evan Dubinsky bring in a soundtrack that consists of rock and pop music.

The casting by Emily Schweber is pretty good as it features some notable small appearances from Jessica Szohr as a friend of Danneel who would do a double-date with the brothers, Emilio Rivera as Easton’s halfway house advisor, Brendan Sexton III as a friend of Jake who would help out in the scheme, Thomas Ian Nicholas as the boss’ son H-Wood who deals with the awful situation he’s in, and Adam Arkin as a surgeon who is friends with the gangster that helps out in healing Easton. Joe Mantegna is brilliant as the gangster Punchy where Mantegna does a lot of things as a man of wisdom and charm while being very dangerous as Mantegna makes the most of his brief appearance.

JT Alexander is alright as the more cautious Jake who is resentful for his brother’s troubles as he tries to do what is right while Damon Alexander is OK at times as the more brash Easton as the older of the two though he often comes across as a loudmouth and tries to be tough as it’s a performance seen so many times in other films. Finally, there’s Jena Malone in an amazing performance as Danneel as this wannabe actress who starts off dating Easton until he is sent to prison where she falls for Jake as she finds herself entangled into a scheme where Malone manages to find ways to rise above the material despite the horrible situations that she is surrounded with throughout the film.

Despite the top-notch work of Jena Malone and Joe Mantegna, 10 Cent Pistol is a terrible and messy film from Michael C. Martin. Due to a nonsensical script and the desires to be all things in a crime film despite a few noteworthy moments. The film is just simple something lackluster in what it wants to be while being hampered badly its low-budget look. In the end, 10 Cent Pistol is just a bad film from Michael C. Martin.

© thevoid99 2016

A Serious Man

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 11/22/09 w/ Additional Edits.

Written, produced, and directed by Joel & Ethan Coen, A Serious Man tells the story of a physics professor whose ideal life of bliss is shattered when his wife divorces him, his children treat him with disrespect, his brother living at his home, and his work as a teacher causes him to raise question about his life. The film is set in the summer of 1967 at a Jewish community in Minnesota where the Coen Brothers grew up as it examines a man's faith being tested as well as his belief on how he should live. Starring Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fyvush Finkel, Sari Lennick, Fred Melamed, Adam Arkin, George Wyner, Amy Landecker, and Coen Brothers associates Katherine Borowitz, Steve Park, and Michael Lerner. A Serious Man is a witty yet harrowing film from the Coen Brothers.

It's 1967 at a Jewish suburb in Minnesota where a physics professor named Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) lives with his family that includes his wife Judith (Sari Lennick) and their two children in daughter Sarah (Jessica MacManus) and son Danny (Aaron Wolff), the latter of whom is about to have a Bar Mitzvah. Also living at the house to the annoyance of the family is Larry's troubled brother Arthur (Richard Kind) who has been making secret trips to the bathroom lately. Larry feels he's been doing what he's supposed to do in life but doesn't get appreciated by his kids while his marriage is losing steam. At a nearby college where Larry works at, a Korean student named Clive (David Kang) goes to his office over what he felt was an unfair grade where an envelope of money was left.

Larry's life begins to unravel as Clive's bribe starts to threaten a possible tenure that he's worked hard for. A friend named Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed) comes to Larry's home where it's revealed that Judith is leaving Larry for Sy and wants a ritual divorce so she can marry Sy in the traditional Jewish faith. With Sarah stealing money for a nose job and more concerned about her hair while Danny is dealing with a bully (Jon Kaminski Jr.) over owed money and is more concerned about the TV reception rather than his Hebrew studies. Larry and Arthur move to a nearby motel as Larry is bewildered by Arthur's troubled state of mind as well as complex number problems that all has to do with science.

After talking to a sympathetic attorney in Don Milgram (Adam Arkin), Larry goes to three visits with different rabbis over his personal and existential troubles. The first was a young junior rabbi in Scott Ginzler (Simon Helberg) whose guidance was unhelpful. After a tragic incident involving the Gopnik family, Larry turns to Rabbi Nachtner (George Wyner) tells a strange story about a dentist (Michael Tezla) obsessed with the model of a man's teeth that featured a Hebrew message. Faced with money problems and a spiritual crisis along with mounting legal troubles with Arthur getting trouble with the authorities. Larry has a brief encounter with a sexy neighbor in Mrs. Samsky (Amy Landecker) where Larry discovers marijuana for the first time. At the urgency of Milgram, Larry tries to have a meeting with an aging rabbi named Marshak (Alan Mandell) as his spiritual and existential troubles would finally collide as the day to Danny's Bar Mitzvah moves closer.

The Coen Brothers are always known for tackling certain environments and situations that goes on around them whether it's humorous or very dark. With this film, it's a mixture of both but from a more personal point of view as the Coen Brothers go back in time to 1967 in Minnesota where they grew up as kids. Particularly with their Jewish background and days at Hebrew school. Yet, the film is about a lot of things including existentialism and spirituality. The film begins with a strange story about a cursed couple (Allen Lewis Rickman & Yelena Shmulenson) in an old time who meets a strange man (Fyvush Finkel) where the woman claims the man died three years ago. The little story, presented in a full-screen ratio would set the stage of what is to come.

A lot of the ideas and turmoil that Larry Gopnik faces is all based on the story of Job. A man who had everything and then loses everything. The Coen Brothers have Larry be challenged that is all around him. A disgruntled student angry over a failing grade as he tries to bribe him and later, threaten to sue him. An intimidating neighbor (Peter Breitmayer) who is trying to build something near Larry's property line. A failing marriage as the wife goes to a man who has more to offer. Children who are disrespectful. A selfish yet troubled brother and a possible tenure that is threatened. All of this puts Larry Gopnik into a crisis that he is facing as he is losing everything while trying to deal with what he can.

The script is truly complex with elements of humor and drama while there's small moments of violent scenes all of which are fantasy. Yet, it's all about Larry and his fears of what could happen as he faces the loss of everything he's worked for and believed in. At the same time, there's little subplot that revolves around Larry's life as his brother is a man who could be a genius but lacks any social skills while Larry's son is dealing with a bully whom he owes money to.

The direction of the Coen Brothers is truly spectacular in its intimate setting and unique compositions. The recreation of 1967 Minnesota looks very beautiful with great detail as the Coen Brothers take everyone back in time. The camera angles and compositions, a lot of which are quintessential Coen Brothers in their trademark is definitely stylish but also engaging. From the first 10-15 minutes of the film where it is set at a very different world and time with a full-screen theatrical presentation ratio. The rest of the film has a look and feel that is the late 1960s with a lot of music and objects including a great scene where Larry and Mrs. Samsky gets stoned. While there's a few anachronisms over a couple albums by Santana and Creedence Clearwater Revival from 1970 and a song by Jimi Hendrix that was recorded after 1967.

Those are minor since it's all about a certain time and what is happening. Even in the way the Coen Brothers wrap things up that features an ending that really challenges convention. The abrupt ending is really an allusion to a conversation Larry would have with a rabbi about the way things work in life. What the Coen Brothers create is a challenging yet personal film about spirituality and existentialism that is complex but also rewarding in what is needed to be said. It can be interpreted quite simply whether it matters or not. It's all about open interpretation as the Coen Brothers create what is definitely one of their finest films to date.

After taking a break from the Coen Brothers by not doing work on their previous film Burn After Reading, cinematographer Roger Deakins returns to the fold in creating some of his best camera work for the duo. Deakins' colorful look of 1967 Minnesota is full of life while the opening scene is done with intimate, dark colors and a chilling feel that is beautiful. The work for the interior and exterior shots are brilliant as Deakins definitely has a lot to work with while putting out some weird, fuzzy shots for some of the stoned sequences of the film.

The Coen Brothers, under their Roderick Jaynes pseudonym, does some excellent work in the editing as they give the film a nice, leisurely-paced feel while slowing things down for dramatic tension. The use of smooth transitions and rhythmic cuts work in conveying the sense of drama and turmoil over Larry's emotional crisis as it features a great parallel scene between Larry and Sy in their cars. Production designer Jess Gonchor along with set decorator Nancy Haigh and art director Deborah Jensen do a phenomenal job with the look of the film from the use of 1960s car, objects, and radio transistors to help give the film a 1960s feel and tone.

Longtime Coen Brothers collaborator in costume designer Mary Zophres does great work in the look of the clothing that the characters wear. From the rabbi garbs and Hebrew hats the Jewish community wears to the 1960s dresses and clothes that the women wear. All of which has an authentic look that is fascinating as Zophres deserves a lot of commendation for her work. Another key Coen Brothers collaborator in sound editor Skip Lievsay along with sound designer Craig Berkey also do great work in the sound department. From the waves of sound in the antenna to the atmosphere of the synagogues and places that Larry is at as the sound work is truly spectacular.

Longtime Coen Brothers collaborator and music composer Carter Burwell creates an eerie yet beautiful score that revels in the dark atmosphere of the film as well as its dramatic tone. With a light but also heavy orchestral score, Burwell arranges them in an understated tone as it's a score piece that is truly eerie. The soundtrack of the film is filled with a lot of 1960s music, notably the Jefferson Airplane that begins with Somebody To Love and three other tracks while Jimi Hendrix's Machine Gun also appears in the film for a dramatic-heavy scene.

The casting longtime Coen Brothers collaborator Ellen Chenoweth with Rachel Tenner is truly amazing with the use of mostly unknown actors. Cameo appearances from such Coen Brothers associates like Steve Park as Clive's father, Katherine Borowitz as a friend of Larry's at a picnic, and Michael Lerner as an associate of Milgram are fun to watch. Notable small roles that are definitely memorable from their look and appearances include Tim Russell & Jim Lichtscheidl as detectives, Warren Keith as the voice of a Columbia Records music shop worker Dick Dutton, Claudia Wilkens as Rabbi Marshak's secretary, Michael Tezla as a dentist, Peter Breitmayer as an intimidating neighbor who could be an anti-Semite, Jon Kaminski Jr. as Danny's bully Mike Fagle, and Benjy Portnoe as Danny's stoner buddy. In the first scene of the film, Allen Lewis Rickman & Yelena Shmulenson are great as a couple believed to be curse while Fyvush Finkle is hilarious as a man who is believed to be dead.

Adam Arkin is very good as Larry's sympathetic divorce lawyer Don Milgram while David Kang is also good as the slimy, vengeful Korean student Clive. Amy Landecker is excellent as the seductive yet cool Mrs. Samsky while Alan Mandell is funny as the aging Rabbi Marshak that includes a hilarious scene with Larry's son. Simon Helberg and George Wyner are great in their respective roles of weird rabbis with the young Helberg as a laid-back junior rabbi while Wyner has a scene-stealing moment as an unconventional rabbi. Jessica MacManus and Aaron Wolff are wonderful as two of Larry's kids with MacManus as the mean Saran and Wolff as the secretive Danny who often complains about the TV reception.

Richard Kind is very good as the troubled yet selfish Arthur who likes to sleep in basements and take advantage of his brother's goodwill while is revealed to a man with such brilliance but a lack of social skills. Sari Lennick is great as Judith, Larry's wife who is tired of Larry and wants something new in Sy as she is a woman wanting a change. Fred Melamed is fantastic as Sy Ableman, a man who doesn't take things very seriously while being someone who really does care about Larry despite what he's doing to him as Melamed is truly a scene-stealer throughout the entire film. Finally, there's Michael Stuhlbarg in a breakthrough performance as Larry Gopnik. A God-fearing man whose life unravels through changes as he tries to confront all that is happening to him. Stuhlbarg, who is known primarily as a theater actor, definitely rise up to the challenge as he creates a character that is memorable and relatable while providing questions and answer about what happens when everything is taken away.

A Serious Man is definitely one of the Coen Brothers' best films of their career as it is a provocative film that challenges spirituality and existentialism. Featuring a great cast led by Michael Stuhlbarg and amazing technical work from several of the Coen Brothers' regular collaborators. It's a film that reaches the heights of classics like Barton Fink, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, and No Country for Old Men. While some audiences might be a little confused or put off by the Coen Brothers' quirky sense of humor and ability to asks questions rather than give answers. It's a film that is a very high-brow piece of art that won't be for everyone since it demands a lot of patience and interpretation from the audience about what they just saw. While it may not be one of their more accessible films, A Serious Man is another winning achievement from the Coen Brothers.

Coen Brothers Films: Blood Simple - Raising Arizona - Miller's Crossing - Barton Fink - The Hudsucker Proxy - Fargo - The Big Lebowski - O Brother, Where Art Thou? - The Man Who Wasn't There - Intolerable Cruelty - The Ladykillers (2004 film) - Paris Je T'aime-Tuileries - To Each His Own Cinema-World Cinema - No Country for Old Men - Burn After Reading - True Grit (2010 film) - Inside Llewyn Davis - Hail, Caesar! - The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers Pt. 1 - The Auteurs #9: The Coen Brothers Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2012

Dottie Gets Spanked

Written and directed by Todd Haynes, Dottie Gets Spanked is 28-minute short film about a shy six-year old boy becoming fascinated by the world of spanking and sadomasochism. When he fantasies about having his favorite TV star being spanked, his reality becomes blurred into his new obsession. The film recalls Haynes’ interest in sexuality as well the theme of repression in the family home that would come in later films like Safe and Far from Heaven. The result is a fascinating yet strange short film from Todd Haynes.

It’s early 1960s America as Steven Gale (J. Evan Bonifant) is a fan of The Dottie Show that stars a woman named Dottie Frank (Julie Halston) and a man playing her husband (Adam Arkin). Steven’s obsession with Dottie is so big that when he sees her on the cover of a magazine with a contest to meet her. He signs up with the help of his mother (Barbara Garrick) though his father (Robert Pall) is appalled by the obsession. Upset, Steven dreams about being on The Dottie Show along with a man spanking a schoolgirl (Ashley Chapman) he knows. While he endures the taunting of kids from school about the show, Steve gets a big surprise when he wins the contest.

He goes to New York City from New Jersey to the studio where the show is being made. He meets the actor who plays Dottie’s husband and the real Dottie, who looks and acts nothing like her TV persona. Still, Steven was excited as he gave her his book of drawings. During a rehearsal for the show, Steven sees Dottie gets spanked which transfixes his mind as it led him to create more drawings. Yet, his obsession is increased as his parents become concerned which leads to another dream that ends up becoming a big moment in his life.

The short is a coming of age tale of sorts about a boy’s sudden infatuation with spanking and the object of desire he finds in a TV star named Dottie. What happens is that this weird fascination with this character and spanking would lead to a moment that would impact the boy and inspire his art. Haynes’ story is partially based on his own childhood as the short has a nod of sorts to I Love Lucy. Still, it’s a story that has Haynes explore the themes of repression in the family as the boy feels slighted by his father.

Haynes’ direction is very stylish as he goes for a mixture of 1950s TV with a more realistic yet colorful style of film. He also creates something that is very personal in the direction from the way he shoots the film from a boy’s perspective. Even as the TV and dream sequences are in black-and-white to play off the boy’s imaginative world. Still, Haynes creates an engrossing yet hypnotic short that plays to his themes as well as bringing humor to his themes.

Cinematographer Maryse Alberti does an excellent job with the film‘s colorful photography in creating a lush yet realistic feel to the scenes shot on location in New Jersey and New York City. Alberti’s work in the dream and TV scenes are also dazzling for the black-and-white sequences created. Editor James Lyons does a fantastic job with the editing in creating rhythmic cuts to gauge into the protagonist’s reaction along with a mesh of fast cuts to play into the kid’s dream. Production designer Therese DePrez, along with set decorator Scott Pask and art director Dan Appel, does a wonderful job with the art direction from the set that Steven visits to the dream world that surreal. Costume designer Eugenie Bafaloukos does an amazing job with the early 1960s period costumes to play up to the times along with the dream world where Steven wears a big crown.

Sound designer Brendan Dolan does a very good job with the sound from the hollowed yet busy world of the TV studio to the atmosphere at the park where Steven is at where he watches kids play. The film’s music by James Bennett is also good with its somber score to play up Steven’s melancholia along with some upbeat piano pieces to play up to his excitement.

The casting by Steve Jacobs is phenomenal with an array of memorable small performances from Robert Pall as Steven’s father, Lindsay Rodio as a girl who makes fun of Steven, and Ashley Chapman as a schoolgirl who loves to watch the same show that Steven does. Adam Arkin is very good as an actor playing Dottie’s husband while Julie Halston is funny as the woman who plays Dottie while bringing complexity to the actress who is really in control of the show. Barbara Garrick is wonderful as Steven’s sympathetic yet supportive mother who helps him reach his dreams to meet Dottie. Finally, there’s J. Evan Bonifant in an excellent role as Steven. A talented but shy kid who adores Dottie while being transfixed by spanking as it helps his art.

Dottie Gets Spanked is an excellent yet stylish short film from Todd Haynes. Fans of Haynes’ work must see this for his presentation of early 1960s culture that would play up to later projects like Far from Heaven and Mildred Pierce. It’s also a strangely accessible film that has a weird sense of innocence that works about the idea of spanking. In the end, Dottie Gets Spanked is a funny yet playful short from Todd Haynes.

Todd Haynes Films: Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story - Poison - Safe - Velvet Goldmine - Far from Heaven - I’m Not There - Mildred Pierce (TV miniseries) - Carol - Wonderstruck - Dark Waters (2019 film) - The Velvet Underground - The Auteurs #3: Todd Haynes

© thevoid99 2011