The Phoenician Scheme

 

Written and directed by Wes Anderson from a story by Anderson and Roman Coppola, The Phoenician Scheme is the story of a wealthy businessman who names his only daughter as his sole heir as they deal with rival businessmen and other forces wanting to take over. The film is an ensemble comedy-drama that follows a man who built his empire who installs his nun daughter to become his heir. Starring Benicio del Toro, Mia Threapleton, Michael Cera, Riz Ahmed, Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Scarlett Johansson, Hope Davis, Mathieu Almaric, Richard Ayoade, Jeffrey Wright, Rupert Friend, and Benedict Cumberbatch. The Phoenician Scheme is a whimsical and heartfelt film by Wes Anderson.

Set in the 1950s, the film follows a wealthy industrialist who has named his only daughter as his sole heir as the two along with a tutor traveling around the fictional European country of Phoenicia to deal with various investors over money, he skimmed over to salvage a project that he hopes would help Phoenicia. It is a film that explores a man who had been through many near-death experiences involving plane crashes and assassination attempts on his life where he decides to bring his eldest child into the fold even though she is about to become a nun as she is reluctant to take part in his criminal activities. Wes Anderson’s screenplay has a narrative that is straightforward with some strange yet surreal sequences that involves its protagonist Zsa-Zsa Korda (Benicio del Toro) often visiting the afterlife following every near-death experience. These events forces him to name his estranged daughter Liesl (Mia Threapleton) as his sole heir as he has 10 other sons who are all adolescent and unable to help Korda in his schemes. Joining them on this trip through Phoenicia is a Norwegian entomologist in Bjorn (Michael Cera) whom Korda hired as a tutor in his own increasing interest in insects.

The script also has a unique structure into the group of people that Korda has to meet to cover his losses that includes a consortium led by two American brothers in Leland (Tom Hanks) and Reagan (Bryan Cranston), the heir to Phoenicia in Prince Farouk (Riz Ahmed), a French nightclub owner in Marseille Bob (Mathieu Almaric), an American investor in Marty (Jeffrey Wright), Korda’s second-cousin Hilda (Scarlett Johansson), and his half-brother Uncle Nubar (Benedict Cumberbatch) whom Korda believes killed Liesl’s mother many years ago. Korda would endure a series of challenges and events upon his journey as it would play into a character arc of his own as a man that is constantly dealing with assassins trying to kill him and other things while he gets to know Liesl. Liesl would have an arc of her own while also revealing her own quirks such as the fact that she carries a dagger and smokes with a pipe. Notably as she gains a view of the world though remains committed to her faith and becoming a nun. Bjorn is a character that is full of intrigue as he is fascinated by Liesl while he is also ambiguous in the things he talks about while often surrounds himself with insects as they fascinate him. The film also has a subplot relating to a government agent led by Excaliber (Rupert Friend) who is tailing Korda and his activities in the hope of disrupting everything for Korda.

Anderson’s direction is entrancing as it does play into his stylish usage of symmetrical compositions and diligence to everything he captures on film. Shot on location at the Babelsberg Studio in Germany and in a 1:48:1 aspect ratio format that is an unconventional presentation that is atypical with a lot of films. Anderson does maintain some unique compositions in some of the wide shots he creates to play into the fictional country of Phoenicia as it is a country between Europe and the Middle East. Anderson does maintain some stylish framing in the way he puts his actors in a medium shot or a close-up along with some intricate tracking shots where characters would move from one room to another. Anderson’s presentation of the scenes set in the afterlife are shot in black-and-white as there is an element of surrealism where Korda meet some people including his first wife (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a young Liesl (Beatrice Campbell) and a few others as it plays into his own brush with death.

The film also plays into the ideas of faith as it relates to Liesl who often prays during her journey while the sequence in which Korda meets with Bob at his nightclub that is being robbed by Communist revolutionaries led by Sergio (Richard Ayoade) as Korda, Liesl, and Bjorn would meet them again as they are all Atheists. There is a humorous take in how Anderson presents Atheism as it would help play in both Korda and Liesl’s character arcs as it relates to faith. Notably the former whose encounters with the afterlife through his near-death experiences forces him to contend with his own existence. The film’s climax relates to the final meetings with those he counted upon to help him save the project as well as confront Uncle Nubar who is the last investor who is also ambiguous into answering Liesl’s own questions about her mother. It would be followed by a ridiculous fight scene as well as other outlandish things followed by an epilogue that plays into the fate of Phoenicia, its project, and those close to Korda. Overall, Anderson crafts an evocative and enchanting film about a business tycoon trying to make amends with his estranged empire to save his criminal empire.

Cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel does incredible work with the film’s cinematography with its stylish usage of lighting for interior scenes in the day and night as well as in the way some of the exterior scenes are lit including scenes at night such as a scene inside a crashed airplane with the usage of lamps and available light. Editor Barney Pilling, with additional work from Andrew Weisblum, does excellent work with the editing with its usage of jump-cuts, slow-motion shots, and other stylish cuts to play into the suspense, action, and humor also knowing when to have shots linger on for around a minute. Production designer Adam Stockhausen, with set decorator Anna Pinnock plus art directors Marc Bitz, Neneh Lucia, Anja Muller, Esther Schreiner, and Mariana Vasconcellos, does brilliant work with the look of the Korda estate, the unfinished train tunnel, and other places including interiors of the planes that Korda flies in as it is a highlight of the film. Costume designer Milena Canonero does amazing work with the costumes in the design of the suits that Korda and Bjorn wears as well as the nun outfit that Liesl wears and the clothes of some of the other characters including the sweatpants and shoes that Leland and Reagan wear.

Hair/makeup designer Heike Merker and prosthetics designer Mark Coulier do terrific work with the look of the characters in the hairstyles that Liesl and Bjorn have as well as the big beard that Uncle Nubar has. Special effects supervisor Gerd Nefzer, along with visual effects supervisors Craig Crawford and Steve Murgatroyd, does fantastic work with the look of some of the models and miniatures used in the film along with a few bits of visual effects as set dressing. Sound editors Wayne Lemmer and Christopher Scarabosio do superb work with the sound in the way planes sound from the inside as well as the sounds of certain objects including weapons. The film’s music by Alexandre Desplat is wonderful for its low-key piano-based orchestral score that plays into the suspense and drama with some soft percussive and a low-key string arrangement to play into some dangerous scenes. Music supervisor Randall Poster cultivated a soundtrack that features classical music pieces from Igor Stravinsky, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach, and Modest Mussorgsky as well as music from Gene Krupa and Dizzy Gillespie.

The film’s casting by Douglas Aibel is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Beatrice Campbell as a young Liesl, Donald Sumpter as a chairman that Excaliber works for, Alex Jennings as Korda’s butler, Jason Watkins as Korda’s attorney, Stephen Park as Korda’s pilot, and in the roles of Korda’s 10 adolescent sons in Edward Hyland, Ogden Dawson, Kit Rakusen, Milo James, Hector Bateman-Harden, Benjamin Lake, Gunes Taner, Gabriel Ryan, Mohamad Momo Ramadan, and Jonathan Wirtz. Other notable small roles as figures of people that Korda sees in the afterlife include Charlotte Gainsbourg as Korda’s first wife, Willem Dafoe as an attorney in Knave, F. Murray Abraham as a prophet, and Bill Murray as God. Hope Davis is fantastic as the Mother Superior who arrives in the film’s third function as Liesl’s mentor who learns about Liesl’s journey as well as getting to know Korda where she decides to join him in his own scheme for the good of Phoenicia.

Tom Hanks and Bryan Cranston are superb in their respective roles as the brothers Leland and Reagan as two American investors who are upset over their own financial loss as they would settle this dispute through a game of horse where Hanks and Cranston display their skills in the game. Riz Ahmed and Richard Ayoade are excellent in their respective roles as the Phoenician heir Prince Farouk and the guerilla leader Sergio with the former being an investor who believes that Korda will do good while the latter is a Communist revolutionary who decides to join Korda in the film’s third act in dealing with enemies of Korda. Rupert Friend and Mathieu Almaric are brilliant in their respective roles as the bureaucratic Excaliber and the nightclub owner Marseille Bob with the former being a government agent trying to disrupt Korda’s activities and the latter being another investor who has issues with what Korda wants only for his encounter with Sergio changes everything.

Jeffrey Wright and Scarlett Johansson are amazing in their respective roles as the American investor Marty and Cousin Hilda with the former being an investor who is also upset over what Korda wants while the latter is Korda’s second cousin who is unsure about wanting to marry Korda to save his business as she is also trying to handle things for herself. Benedict Cumberbatch is great as Uncle Nubar as Korda’s half-brother who is also an investor yet remains mysterious in his own dealings while is also unwilling to answer questions about the death of Liesl’s mother. Michael Cera is incredible as Bjorn as a Norwegian entomologist who is hired as a tutor for Korda while also being an administrative assistant where he is full of humor and intrigue as he is also someone that is fascinated by Liesl.

Mia Threapleton is tremendous in a break-out performance as Liesl as Korda’s estranged daughter who is becoming a nun as she is reluctant to join her father on a trip through Phoenicia where she gets to see many wonders of the world while also being someone who smokes a pipe and carries a dagger where she has quirks of her own like her father. Finally, there is Benicio del Toro in a phenomenal performance as Zsa-Zsa Korda as a business tycoon who has created schemes to swindle people out of money where he is ruthless in his pursuits until a series of near-death experiences forces him to make some changes in saving a project for the country of Phoenicia where he gains some insights about the ways of the world. It is a witty performance from del Toro who brings a lot of complexities of a man with irredeemable qualities, yet he puts in things that would make him redeemable during his journey as he also has some amazing low-key chemistry with Threapleton.

The Phoenician Scheme is a sensational film by Wes Anderson that features a great leading performance from Benicio del Toro and a major discovery in Mia Threapleton. Along with its ensemble cast, dazzling visuals, a sumptuous music soundtrack, and a story of redemption and meaning amidst bad decisions and near-death experiences. The film is an offbeat yet compelling film that does mark a newfound maturity from Anderson in its exploration of family dysfunction as well as characters trying to find redemption from their bad habits. In the end, The Phoenician Scheme is a phenomenal film by Wes Anderson.

Wes Anderson Films: Bottle Rocket - Rushmore - The Royal Tenenbaums - The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - Hotel Chevalier - The Darjeeling Limited - Fantastic Mr. Fox - Moonrise Kingdom - Castello Cavalcanti - The Grand Budapest Hotel - Isle of Dogs - The French Dispatch - Asteroid City - The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar - The Swan - The Rat Catcher - Poison (2023 short) - The Auteurs #8: Wes Anderson

Wes Anderson Film Soundtracks: Bottle Rocket - Rushmore - The Royal Tenenbaums - The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - Seu Jorge-The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions - The Darjeeling Limited - Fantastic Mr. Fox - (Moonrise Kingdom) – (The Grand Budapest Hotel) – (Isle of Dogs) – (The French Dispatch) – (Asteroid City) – (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar) – (The Phoenician Scheme)

© thevoid99 2023

The Impostors

Written, directed and co-starring Stanley Tucci, The Impostors is the story of two struggling actors who accidentally stow away on a cruise to run from an egomaniacal actor while meeting with an array of offbeat passengers and crew members. The film is a farcical comedy where it involves many people who pretend to be someone else while dealing the need to act in order to save themselves. Also starring Oliver Platt, Alfred Molina, Lili Taylor, Campbell Scott, Hope Davis, Steve Buscemi, Michael Emerson, Billy Connolly, Dana Ivey, Allison Janney, Richard Jenkins, Tony Shalhoub, and Isabella Rosselini. The Impostors is a rip-roaring and exhilarating film from Stanley Tucci.

Set during the Great Depression in New York City, the film revolves around the misadventure of two struggling actors who receive tickets to a show starring an egomaniacal actor where they insult him at a bar only to go on the run and find themselves as stowaways on a cruise ship. It’s a film that play into two men who are trying to make it as actors but upon learning they’re on a cruise ship where they pretend to be stewards. Stanley Tucci’s screenplay is quite loose where it plays into these misadventures of Maurice (Oliver Platt) and Arthur (Stanley Tucci) to them trying to get food as they’re unemployed as well as what goes on in the ship as they encounter a series of offbeat passenger and crew members. Among them is a deposed queen (Isabella Rosselini), a heartbroken singer (Steve Buscemi), a once-rich-turned poor widow (Dana Ivey) with her grieving daughter (Hope Davis), a possibly gay tennis pro (Billy Connolly), and other oddball characters. Adding to the turmoil is the fact that the famed but arrogant actor Jeremy Burtom (Alfred Molina) is also on the ship.

Tucci’s direction is definitely stylish starting with an opening credits sequence where Maurice and Arthur cause trouble as a way to avoid paying for coffee and food as it’s presented like a silent movie. Then it becomes partially straightforward with elements of slapstick comedy where some of it is shot partially in New York City while much of it is shot on a soundstage for the scenes set on the cruise ship. While Tucci would create some amazing compositions with the wide and medium shots, much of it presented loosely where he allows his actors to just create performances that are exaggerated. While it does help to tell the story, there is an element where it feels self-indulgent at times but Tucci wants to create something where the actors are there to have fun and allow themselves to over-act at times. Overall, Tucci creates a silly yet extremely fun film about two actors who stowaway on a cruise and try to find a way to solve problems through the power of acting.

Cinematographer Ken Kelsch does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography from the colorful and sunny look of the daytime New York City exteriors to the look of the many interiors on the cruise ship as well as some of its exteriors. Editor Suzy Elmiger does brilliant work with the editing as its usage of jump-cuts and other rhythmic cuts play into its humor and lively tone. Production designer Andrew Jackness, with set decorator Catherine Davis and art director Chris Shriver does amazing work with the look of the cruise ship with its exteriors as well as some of the interiors of the rooms and ballroom in the ship. Costume designer Juliet Polcsa does fantastic work with the design of the clothes from the clothes of the men including the lavish look of Burtom and the dresses that the women wear.

Hair stylists Victor DeNicola and Carla White do nice work with the hairstyles the women wore in those times along with some of the wigs that some of the characters wear. Sound editor Robert Hein does terrific work with the sound in the way some of the sound effects are presented as well as the sparse moment in the play scene. The film’s music by Gary DeMichele is wonderful for its ragtime/jazz-based score that played into the period of the times while music supervisor Margot Core creates a soundtrack that play into that period including some old music in French as it relates to the destination of where the ship is going to.

The casting by Ellen Lewis is incredible for the ensemble that is created as it feature some notable small roles from David Lipman as a baker Arthur harasses and gives Maurice tickets to a show, Matt Malloy as a fellow actor that Maurice and Arthur knows who had been humiliated by Burtom, Lewis J. Stadlen as a band leader, Elizabeth Bracco as an entertainment director for the cruise, Allan Corduner as the ship’s captain, Michael Emerson as Burtom’s assistant, Teagle F. Bougere as a sheik who has a fondness for a certain French song, Matt McGrath as an Italian detective named Marco who is afraid to kill as he has feelings for one of the ship’s directors in Lily, and Woody Allen in an un-credited yet funny performance as a neurotic stage director Maurice and Arthur audition for. Richard Jenkins and Allison Janney are superb in their respective roles as the con artists Johnny and Maxine as Americans who pretend to be French as they both try to woo Mrs. Essendine and the sheik. Tony Shalhoub is stellar as the ship’s first mate Voltri as a man who runs the ship but also has some very dark motives of his own.

Dana Ivey is wonderful as the widowed Mrs. Essendine who is upset that her late husband didn’t leave her a cent while Hope Davis is terrific as her daughter Emily who grieves for her father and acts melancholy until she notices the heartbroken singer. Isabella Rossellini is fantastic as the veiled queen who laments over being deposed and not want to be seen as she is fun to watch while Campbell Scott is hilarious as the German cruise director Meistrich who has a thing for Lily where he is just a hoot. Billy Connolly is excellent as the tennis pro Sparks who definitely bear some homosexual tendencies as he is fond of Maurice while Steve Buscemi is amazing as the suicidal and heartbroken singer Happy Franks. 

Lili Taylor is brilliant as a cruise director in Lily who befriends Maurice and Arthur as she tries to help them hide as well as deal with Meistrich. Alfred Molina is phenomenal as the egomaniacal actor Jeremy Burtom as a man who is quite full of himself and isn’t aware that he’s just a hack. Finally, there’s the duo of Stanley Tucci and Oliver Platt in remarkable performances in their respective roles as Arthur and Maurice as two unemployed struggling actors trying to get work where an awkward moment with Burtom leads them to accidentally stow away on a cruise where they do whatever they can to hide as they use their acting skills to save them.

The Impostors is a sensational film from Stanley Tucci. Featuring a great cast, amazing set pieces, lively music, and a willingness to just let loose and have fun. It’s a film that is aware that it’s being indulgent while giving the actors a chance to just act out and be funny. In the end, The Impostors is a spectacular film from Stanley Tucci.

Stanley Tucci Films: (Big Night) - (Joe Gould’s Secret) - (Blind Date (2007 film))

© thevoid99 2016

American Splendor

Based on the comic series by Harvey Pekar and the graphic novel Our Cancer Year by Pekar and Joyce Brabner, American Splendor is the story of comic book writer Harvey Pekar who would create a comic book based on his own misery as he would become sort of famous while struggling with depression and such. Written for the screen and directed by Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman, the film is a mixture of documentary and dramatization as the real Pekar and Brabner appear in the film, along with Pekar’s friend Toby Radloff, while they’re respectively played by Paul Giamatti and Hope Davis. Also starring Judah Friedlander and James Urbaniak as Robert Crumb. American Splendor is an imaginative yet captivating film about the life of Harvey Pekar.

Through his American Splendor comics that he would write, Harvey Pekar would gain fame writing about his own miserable life in his hometown of Cleveland as he would become a cult figure and make appearances on David Letterman’s talk show during the 1980s and early 1990s. Yet, the film is told in a very unconventional style where it plays into dramatized versions of Pekar’s life as he endures his dissolution of his second marriage and finding inspiration to write his comic with the help of Robert Crumb’s illustration that would also lead him to meet and marry his longtime partner Joyce Brabner. The film also is told in a documentary fashion where the real Pekar and Brabner are interviewed as the film would also incorporate archival footage of Pekar’s appearances on David Letterman’s show plus a MTV news footage of Toby Radloff preparing for Spring Break as he is seen as a goofball.

The film’s screenplay showcases much of Pekar’s misery early in his life as he spends much of his time working as a file clerk in a Cleveland hospital whenever he’s not writing. Yet, it would feature moments that would eventually motivate Pekar into becoming a writer as the first act revealed how he met Robert Crumb while the second act is about how he met Joyce Brabner through corresponding letters as she was asking for an issue of one of his comics. Pekar and Brabner’s relationship is one of the aspects of the story that makes interesting as their marriage would eventually become material of its own where the third act is about the making of Our Cancer Year when Pekar was suffering from cancer in the early 1990s as it would give the duo rave reviews as well as a new lease on life despite Pekar’s on-going encounter with misery and Joyce’s refusal to work as well as analyzing people about their neuroses.

The direction of Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman is quite abstract not just in its offbeat presentation but also in how they approach the story. Much of the dramatization portion of the film is shot on location in Cleveland where it focuses largely on intimate compositions from close-ups and medium shots along with unique camera angles to play into Pekar’s life and his relationship with Brabner. There’s even moments in the dramatization where Brabner watches the real-life footage of Pekar on David Letterman through his many appearances with the exception of his final appearance on the show which is presented in a dramatic context due to the controversy that Pekar would create that eventually kicked him out of the show for good. Some of the direction infuses some animation by John Kuramato that sort of breaks down the fourth wall as it would often motivate Pekar or play into what Joyce would see upon meeting Pekar for the first time.

The documentary portion of the film is shot in a soundstage where the real life Pekar, Brabner, and Radloff show up while the actors would play them would be in the background. There’s some interviews in the film to play into Pekar and Brabner’s commentary on their own marriage plus Radloff embracing his role as a nerd. With Pulcini as the film’s editor, he uses a lot of archival news footage as well as Pekar’s appearances on David Letterman to great use along with montages about how his stories in his comics would mirror his own real life. Much of the editing is stylized yet the direction remains very intact to play into Pekar’s world and his struggles with depression and cancer where it ends unconventionally but also with tenderness that showcased how far Pekar has gone into becoming a celebrated figure in American literature. Overall, Pulcini and Berman craft a very lively and whimsical portrait of a writer who creates art through his own misery.

Cinematographer Terry Stacey does amazing work with the film’s cinematography from the way it captures some of the realism of the locations in Cleveland to some of the lighting in some of its interiors for the scenes at the New York City hotels that Joyce and Harvey stayed during his David Letterman appearances. Production designer Therese DePrez and set decorator Robert DeSue do fantastic work with the set pieces from the messy home of Harvey Pekar as well as file-hall where he does much of his work. Costume designer Michael Wilkinson does nice work with the costumes as it‘s very low-key and drab to play into the personalities of Pekar and Brabner.

Sound editor Nicholas Renbeck does terrific work with the sound from some of the sound collages in some of the images in Pekar‘s comics as well as some of the sound effects. The film’s music by Mark Suozzo is brilliant as it low-key in its emphasis on Americana with folk and jazz while music supervisor Linda Cohen brings in a fun soundtrack filled with jazz, rock, and pop music to play into the different time periods that Pekar lived in his life.

The casting by Ann Goulder is great as it features appearances from the real Harvey Pekar, Joyce Brabner, Toby Radloff, and Pekar/Brabner’s adopted daughter Danielle Batone plus cameos from Donal Logue and Molly Shannon as stage versions of Harvey and Joyce, respectively. Other notable small roles include Daniel Tay as a young Harvey Pekar, Earl Billings as Pekar’s hospital boss Mr. Boats, Maggie Moore as an old classmate that Harvey runs into, Vivienne Benesch as his second ex-wife, and Madilyn Sweeten as the young Danielle whom Harvey and Joyce would befriend during the making of Our Cancer Year. James Urbaniak is excellent as the famed comic illustrator Robert Crumb where Urbaniak brings a low-key approach to his role as someone with an odd sense of humor. Judah Friedlander is amazing as the nerdy Toby Radloff who always like to do nerdy things and spend part of his time eating jellybeans, White Castle burgers, and embracing his role as a nerd.

Hope Davis is phenomenal as Joyce Brabner as she brings this character full of frustrations and low expectations while often analyzing people and describe their neuroses as it’s one of Davis’ dazzling performances. Finally, there’s Paul Giamatti in an outstanding performance as Harvey Pekar as it is a performance that provides a lot of laughs as well as anguish where Giamatti brings that sense of misery and despair that makes the character so engaging while also showcasing some offbeat humor as it’s Giamatti in one of his greatest roles ever.

American Splendor is a magnificent film from Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman. Armed with the great performances of Paul Giamatti and Hope Davis along with its unconventional presentation between documentary and dramatization. It’s a film that explores the world of one of the great writers of American comics without the need to go into any kind of convention while being humorous and heartwarming. In the end, American Splendor is a tremendously rich film from Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman.

Robert Pulcini & Shari Springer Berman Films: (Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen’s) - (Wanderlust (2006 film)) - The Nanny Diaries - (The Extra Man) - (Cinema Verite) - (Girl Most Likely) - (Ten Thousand Saints)

© thevoid99 2014

Genova (2008 film)

Directed by Michael Winterbottom and written by Winterbottom and Laurence Coriat, Genova is the story of a widowed professor and his two American daughters who move to Italy after the death of their mother. There, they deal with their new surroundings as they all try to come to terms with loss. Starring Colin Firth, Catherine Keener, Willa Holland, Perla Haney-Jardine, and Hope Davis. Genova is a touching yet enchanting drama from Michael Winterbottom.

After the death of his wife Marianne (Hope Davis) from a car accident, Joe (Colin Firth) decides to take a job to teach English literature at a university in Genova, Italy. Taking his two daughters in 16-year old Kelly (Willa Holland) and 10-year old Mary (Perla Haney-Jardine) with him for the entire year, they’re accompanied by Joe’s old college friend Barbara (Catherine Keener) who also teaches at the university. Things aren’t easy as Mary is ravaged with guilt over the accident as Joe has his two daughters take piano lessons from a local teacher. Kelly meanwhile, becomes interested in socializing as she meets a young man named Lorenzo (Alessandro Giuggioli). With Barbara showing Joe and the girls the sites in the town as well as other places as she gets to know Mary who claims to see her mother’s ghost.

When Barbara takes Joe and the girls to a beach that is nearby a monastery, Barbara takes Mary to a place to light candles where Mary suddenly wanders around and gets lost prompting Joe to try and find her. Joe becomes more worried about Mary while Kelly starts to come home late from parties as she starts to rebel and do things behind her father’s back. With Mary still seeing her mother’s ghost, Joe takes an interest in one of his students in Rosa (Margherita Romeo) much to Barbara’s chagrin where he would go out with Rosa on one particular day. With Kelly also out, Mary remains haunted by the visions of her mother prompting her father and sister to realize what has been happening.

The film is about a British professor who decides to try and start over following the death of his wife as he takes his two daughters to the exotic world of Genova. While he takes a job teaching English literature for a summer course in a local university, his two daughter go into very different directions to deal with loss of their mother. For the rebellious teenager Kelly, she ventures into a world of parties and falls for a young man while keeping it secret from her father. For the younger daughter Mary, she tries to find solace in attending spiritual places to light candles as she is surrounded by the ghost of her mother while dealing with the guilt over how her mother died. While an old friend of Joe in Barbara would try and help out, she would start to feel guilty thinking she’s getting too close.

The screenplay that Michael Winterbottom and Laurence Coriat create is an exploration of grief where they emphasize more on following these characters in this new world they’re adapting to rather than play to the conventions of a melodrama. Since the film doesn’t have much of a plot as it wanders around a lot for the characters to figure out how to adapt to this new environment. Yet, there are moments of repetition of what these people do for their surroundings though there’s a break every once in a while from these daily routines. Notably as there’s a few moments where Mary cries in anguish prompting Joe to comfort her as she remains haunted by the events presented early in the film. The characters are definitely flawed because they’re all unsure of how to move on. Though Kelly starts to act out by going home late and become cruel to her younger sister and dad. It’s only because she is at an age where she is trying to find herself but the loss of a maternal figure adds to her confusion.

Winterbottom’s direction is truly engaging in the way he presents the film without trying to make Genova into a world where it’s all about the beaches and luxurious buildings. Instead, Winterbottom avoids the postcard look of the film to go for something more realistic as he takes the camera into these narrow alleys where it’s a place that is very strange and dark. Since it is presented largely in a hand-held digital camera style, Winterbottom makes a film where it is about this new environment and this family trying to start anew. Though the early portions of the film shot partially in Sweden and Chicago, the first scene that involves the accident has Winterbottom create something simpler and then cut to black only using sound to emphasize what is happening.

The presentation of these early scenes are shown with a much tighter and controlled approach to the direction while everything else in Genova is much looser. Though the locations are a bit claustrophobic at times and other locations much more spread-out. There is something to that presentation that is engrossing to watch while the drama that unfolds makes it more entrancing. Notably the scenes where Mary would often see her mother either in her room or at a certain location. The overall work has Winterbottom create a truly mesmerizing film about grief and coping with loss.

Cinematographer Marcel Zyskind does an amazing job with the film‘s very vibrant and colorful digital photography to make the film have a more realistic look as well as maintaining some hypnotic lighting set-up for some of the film‘s interior setting. Editing the film with Michael Winterbottom is Paul Monaghan as the duo create a very stylish approach to the editing utilizing rhythmic cuts to play up some of the drama that unfolds in the film. Production designer Mark Digby does a nice job with the set pieces created such as the apartment Joe and his daughters live in to a few other set pieces in some of the locations in Genova.

Costume designer Celia Yau does a wonderful job with the costumes for the more youthful clothes of Kelly and Mary to complement their differing personalities. Sound designer Joakim Sundstrom does excellent work with the sound to capture raucous atmosphere of the locations including the party scenes and beaches. The film’s music by Melissa Parmenter is superb for its somber yet evocative presentation as it’s mostly low-key with piano pieces while a lot of the film’s soundtrack includes a mix of classical piano sonatas, a score piece by Georges Delerue, and alternative rock cuts from Modest Mouse.

The casting by Wendy Brazington is brilliant for the small ensemble that is created as it includes small appearances from Alessandro Giuggioli as Kelly’s Italian lover Lorenzo, Margherita Romeo as Joe’s Italian student Rosa, and Hope Davis in a very crucial yet ethereal role as Joe’s late wife Marianne. Perla Haney-Jardine is great as the young Mary who seeks some sort of spiritual answer from her late mother as she is filled with guilt for her mother’s death. Willa Holland is excellent as the teenager Kelly who tries to rebel by going to parties and explore her sexuality as a way to act her loss. Catherine Keener is terrific as Joe’s old friend Barbara who helps the family out while trying to understand what Mary is dealing with. Colin Firth is superb as the grieving professor Joe who tries to deal with Mary’s guilt and Kelly’s rebellious nature while wanting to start over as it’s a very touching performance from the British actor.

Genova is a rich and exotic film from Michael Winterbottom featuring top-notch performances from Colin Firth, Catherine Keener, Willa Holland, and Perla Haney-Jardine. The film is definitely one of Winterbottom’s most unconventional yet surprisingly accessible film in terms of its exploration of loss while adding a realistic look to the city of Genova. In the end, Genova is a radiant yet engrossing film from Michael Winterbottom.

Michael Winterbottom Films: (Rosie the Great) - (Forget About Me) - (Under the Sun) - (Love Lies Bleeding) - (Family (1993 TV film)) - (Butterfly Kiss) - (Go Now) - (Jude) - Welcome to Sarajevo - I Want You - (With or Without You (1998 film)) - Wonderland (1999 film) - The Claim - 24 Hour Party People - In This World - Code 46 - 9 Songs - Tristram Shandy: A Cock & Bull Story - The Road to Guantanamo - A Mighty Heart - The Shock Doctrine (2009 film) - The Killer Inside Me - The Trip (2010 film) - (Trishna) - (Everyday) - The Look of Love - (The Trip to Italy) - (The Face of An Angel)

© thevoid99 2012

Synecdoche, New York

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 12/6/08 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.

Written and directed by Charlie Kaufman, Synecdoche, New York tells the story of a playwright who tries to work on a play that goes on 40 years as he questions his own mortality and the women in his life as he struggles to create his most ambitious play yet. Inspired by Kaufman's own work in the theater, the film explores Kaufman's themes of surrealism and the creative process in this complex, high-art story. With an all-star cast that includes Kaufman regular Catherine Keener along with Philip Seymour Hoffman, Michelle Williams, Samantha Morton, Emily Watson, Tom Noonan, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Hope Davis, and Dianne Wiest. Synecdoche, New York is a high-concept, complex, and provocative directorial debut from Charlie Kaufman.

Playwright Caden Cotard (Philip Seymour Hoffman) has just mounted a play of Death of a Salesman that features a young actress named Claire Keen (Michelle Williams). While Cotard has a nice home life with wife/painter Adele (Catherine Keener) and their 4-year old daughter Olive (Sadie Goldstein), an incident involving a sink has him going to doctor where he's ill with numerous diseases. After attending couples counseling with therapist Madeline Gravis (Hope Davis), Adele leaves Cotard as she and her friend Maria (Jennifer Jason Leigh) take Olive to Berlin to venture into the city's art world. Caden befriends box office holder Hazel (Samantha Morton) as he deals with sudden success and own personal issues. While he and Hazel have a brief affair, Caden finds companionship with Claire as he receives a prestigious grant where he would stage a grand play based on his own life.

Claire joins Caden in the development of the play, Caden decides to stage it in an old factory where the staging of the play would become bigger for several years as he later marries Claire. After a trip to Berlin to meet Olive only to discover that she's grown under Maria's influence into a dark world. Caden's relationship with Claire falters as Hazel returns to his life as a married woman where she would assist Caden in the play's development. After casting an unknown named Sammy Barnathan (Tom Noonan) to play Caden, things become confusing prompting Claire to leave with their daughter Ariel while Sammy starts to put his own ideas about the play. When a British actress named Tammy (Emily Watson) comes in to play Hazel, things eventually become confusing as reality and fiction blurs for the overwhelmed Caden.

With Hazel hung up on Sammy, Caden tries to deal with Adele's success in the art world where he would sneak into her apartment and clean her place in the guise of a maid named Ellen. The character would eventually be played by Millicent Weems (Dianne Wiest) where things would unravel due to Sammy's presence as he becomes too much like Caden. With his own health failing and learning about what Olive had become, many around Caden wonder if the play will ever open.

If Charlie Kaufman has a theme that's prominent with some of work, it's about the artist and how the artist struggles to create that great work. While scripts like Being John Malkovich, Adaptation., Human Nature, and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind explore the mind of the creators in a humorous way. Synecdoche, New York is far different as the film explores an artist's mind as he creates something from his own life as it's continuing where reality and fiction blur. The film also explores death as this man is aware that he's sick and not feeling well realizing he's about to die. Yet, it becomes this long, 40 year period where he's trying to keep himself alive while seeing everything around him evaporate as well as his world between reality and fiction.

Kaufman's screenplay is definitely complex in this story about a man dealing with his own mortality and life with women as he creates a play about his life. Filled with funny dialogue, heartbreaking stories, and such. There's also something loose about the way Kaufman is telling the story as he has the characters make things up as they go along. While there's time where the idea of reality and fiction blur, Kaufman as a storyteller is trying to challenge the audience in the world of the creative process. The result isn't perfect depending on what type of audience Kaufman is aiming for as the pacing of the film and story drags at times. Notably its ending where people wonder how it's going to end as it's definitely drawn out. Still, Kaufman creates something with his screenplay that is definitely provocative and intelligent.

Kaufman's direction is definitely surprising as he uses some unconventional styles of coverage in creating the film. Taking his background in theater, he definitely uses many of the film's rehearsal scenes where the actors in the background are acting while whoever is in that scene are acting. Yet, Kaufman doesn't go for conventional styles of coverage as he sticks to where the emotion of the performances are as he's capturing it as he's just filming it and knowing when not to cut. Kaufman definitely has learned from people like Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry where as a director. He's definitely creating a style of his own. While there's flaws in the direction due to its pacing, drawn-out ending, and his unconventional approach to telling the story. Kaufman overall creates a film that is truly original and mesmerizing.

Cinematographer Frederick Elmes does an amazing with the film's stylish photography with some moody interior shots of the smoky-fire house with soft lens in those scenes. In some of the hospital and hallway scenes, it's in a blue-green style that's effective with the mood of its protagonist. Elmes' work in the exterior is great as he keeps the camera on the protagonist as it moves constantly and stopping at times to see where everything is taking place. Elmes work is truly magnificent in its photography and camera work as he reveals a wide scope into the world of theater and its ambitions. Editor Robert Frazen does fine work with the film's rhythmic cutting and transitional cuts that work in keeping the story moving despite its slow, turgid pacing.

Production designer Mark Friedberg, along with set decorator Lydia Marks and art director Adam Stockhausen, does spectacular work with the film's set designs. Notably in the big play scene where they create numerous replicas of the warehouse inside of the warehouse and another inside. With the look of the town and everything else, it's truly amazing as Friedberg's design is definitely brilliant in its staging and look. Other scenes shot in the homes are done wonderfully to reveal the contrasting world between Adele's posh lifestyle and the drab world that Caden lives in. Costume designer Melissa Toth does fantastic work with the evolving style of the female characters as the film goes on where the character of Hazel had this look, frizzy look to something more sophisticated as it progresses. The clothes that the women wear are superb while the look of Caden in all of its blandness is excellent for the way his character is.

Visual effects supervisor Mark Russell does excellent work with the recreation of the buildings as well as the zeppelin that flies around in the city. Makeup designer head Judy Chin does brilliant work with the aging look of the characters with the use of wigs and such along with the tattoo designs by Tim Kern for the adult Olive character. Sound designer Eugene Gearty and editor Philip Stockton do terrific work in the sound in capturing the atmosphere of the theater as well as other sounds to convey the troubled mind of Caden. Music composer Jon Brion creates a melancholic, heavy score filled with somber notes and jazz touches to help create the mood of Caden's mind along with original songs co-written with Kaufman done in a jazz style. With vocals by Sadie Goldstein on one track and Deanna Storey on three other songs. It's definitely a noteworthy yet haunting soundtrack from Jon Brion.

The casting by Jeanne McCarthy is phenomenal for its array of actors that she assembled. Small performances from Jerry Adler and Lynn Cohen as Caden's parents, Peter Friedman as a doctor, Josh Pais as an opthamologist, Amy Wright as the burning house realtor, Rosemary Murphy as the woman at the hallway Caden meets, Christopher Evan Welch as a pastor, Robin Weigert as the adult Olive, Deidre O'Connell as Ellen's mother, Kat Peters as the young Ellen, Daisy Tahan as Caden and Claire's daughter Ariel, and Paul Sparks as Derek are all memorable in their individual scenes. Sadie Goldstein is wonderful as the young Olive with some funny lines and some great scenes with Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Jennifer Jason Leigh is good in her small role as Maria, Adele's friend who manipulates Olive into becoming a tattoo model while later sporting a German accent to be an enemy of Caden.

Hope Davis is funny as a manipulative, sexy therapist who helps Caden with his problems but only for her own gain. Tom Noonan is great as Sammy, a doppelganger of Caden who plays the part of Caden so well that he ends up charming Hazel. Emily Watson is wonderfully funny as Hazel's doppelganger as she mimics everything Hazel does on character but as herself, she's a dreary Briton who threatens to change things for the play. Dianne Wiest is amazing as a dual role of Adele's maid Ellen with her dreary life and the actress Millicent who ends up becoming a driving force to the play late in the film as Weist's performance is phenomenal. Catherine Keener is excellent as Adele, Caden's sympathetic first wife who couldn't deal with the fact that her marriage to Caden is going to work as she leaves to become the person that shadows Caden for the rest of his life.

Michelle Williams is brilliant as Claire, Caden's second wife and then-leading actress who becomes supportive only to later be frustrated by the prolonging of the play as she seeks other ventures. Samantha Morton is great as Hazel, the woman who longed to be with Caden only to be rejected at first and move on, then become his creative partner and later, equal. Morton's performance is just wonderful as she and Hoffman have amazing chemistry that is touching and funny. Finally, there's Philip Seymour Hoffman in a tour-de-force performance as Caden Cotard. Hoffman's performance is just great in revealing the anguished and tortured soul of a man who loses himself into his own creation while his own life falls apart. Yet, Hoffman carries the film with such pain and humor that it's definitely his best performance to date as an actor.

Synecdoche, New York is a brilliant, provocative, and highly-original film from Charlie Kaufman. Fans of Kaufman's view of surrealism, the artistic process, and the tortured soul will enjoy the film for its high-concept and intense exploration into the world of theater and art. Mainstream audiences though, might be baffled by the film's concept and story along with its slow pacing and unconventional humor. It's definitely a film for an art-house film-going audience as they often wanted to be challenged by something like this. The average movie-goer might not understand the film in its concept though the performances by the ensemble cast led by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Samantha Morton do bring something accessible. It might not be for the average movie-goer but this isn't something they shouldn't entirely dismiss. In the end, Synecdoche, New York is a wild, imaginative, and innovative film from Charlie Kaufman.

Related: Anomalisa

© thevoid99 2012

Mildred Pierce (2011 TV Miniseries)

Based on James M. Cain’s 1941 novel, Mildred Pierce tells the story of a middle-class housewife’s struggle to give her children a better life during the Great Depression. Though she finds works as a waitress and begins to work her way up, she also begins to deal with the ambitions of her eldest Veda as their lives turn tragic. The story would eventually become a feature film in 1945 by Michael Curtiz that starred Joan Crawford in the title role, which would win her an Oscar for Best Actress. In 2011, the melodramatic story is told once again into a new medium for a five-part TV miniseries. This time, under the helm of one of American cinema’s great talents in Todd Haynes.

Directed by Todd Haynes with a teleplay by Haynes and Jon Raymond. Haynes’ adaptation of Mildred Pierce is a re-telling of the novel by expanding on the melodrama with the realism of the 1930s. While some might consider the project to be a companion piece of sorts to his 2002 film Far from Heaven. The miniseries is a different take on the world of housewives that Haynes had previously explored in Far from Heaven and Safe. Even as he goes for a grittier yet stylistic approach to the story with Kate Winslet in the title role. Also starring Evan Rachel Wood, Guy Pearce, Mare Winningham, Melissa Leo, Brian F. O’Byrne, James LeGros, and Hope Davis. Mildred Pierce is a sprawling yet evocative drama from Todd Haynes and company.

Part 1

It’s 1931 during the Great Depression in Glendale, California when Bert Pierce (Brian F. O’Byrne) leaves his home and his wife Mildred after accusations of infidelity. With her two young daughters in the glamorous Veda (Morgan Turner) and the playful Ray (Quinn McColgan), Mildred realizes that she needs work. While her neighbor Lucy Gessler (Melissa Leo) helps out along with Bert’s business partner Wally Burgan (James LeGros). Still in 1931, as Mildred struggles to find work in any kind of field. While an employment agent helps her find work, she gets a job offer to work for a maid by a rich woman named Mrs. Forrester (Hope Davis).

Mildred turns her down as she continues to try and find work where during a lunch break, she sees an argument between waitresses as the manager (Mark Margolis) fires one of them. Realizing they’re short, Mildred volunteers for the day as she accepts the job of being a waitress. While she only tells Lucy about the job, she hopes that no including Veda would know about this.

Part 2

With help from Ida Corwin (Mare Winningham), Mildred succeeds as a waitress as she brings in some money. While things are fine at the restaurant, the only thing the customers complain about is the pie as Mildred brings in pies of her own to help boost things. Realizing that she can make money on her own with her cooking skills, she also learns the ropes of the restaurant business with Wally’s help to start a restaurant. Though Wally reveals that in order for Mildred to have her own business, she needs to divorce Bert. Bert reluctantly does so though he still gets the chance to see his daughters.

Mildred’s secret comes out when her new assistant Letty wear Mildred’s waitress dress. Mildred has a confrontation with the snobbish Veda while revealing the plans she’s having for the restaurant. On the last day of her job as a waitress, a man named Monty Beragon (Guy Pearce) arrives as he asks Mildred for a day at the beach in Santa Barbara. Mildred accepts where romance happens between Mildred and the fruit company heir. On the way home, Mildred would encounter tragedy that would change her life as well as her relationship with Veda.

Part 3

After the family tragedy Mildred faced, she decides to move forward to open her restaurant called Mildred’s. With her maid Letty (Marin Ireland) helping out for the first day, it starts off slow until it grew in that first night. With Ida and Lucy helping out, the first night becomes successful as Monty makes an appearance much to the delight of Veda. With Monty in Mildred’s life and making an indelible impression on Veda, everything seems to be going well. Even as Monty gets a chance for Veda to audition for a prestigious music teacher. Though the audition is a success, Mildred knows that she has to get a top piano for Veda so she can continue to practice.

With Prohibition on its way out and Monty having money troubles, Mildred takes Lucy’s advice to have a little bar in her restaurant. Yet, it’s not enough to deal with Monty’s financial issues while Veda’s time with Monty makes Mildred uneasy. Even as Veda is unimpressed by Mildred’s present while saying things that upset Mildred about Veda’s conversations with Monty. At a rainy night on New Year’s Eve, Mildred confronts Monty about his conversations with Veda along with the fact that she works and he doesn’t.

Part 4

With Mildred’s becoming a success as Mildred hopes to expand her business, Lucy finds a location at Laguna that would become a place where Mildred would exceed her finances. With help from Wally and Ida, Mildred’s third restaurant at the Laguna becomes another success as she also expands her entrees. After the news of her teacher‘s death, Veda (Evan Rachel Wood) tries to get an audition with a famed music impresario named Treviso. Instead, the audition becomes a disaster leading Veda to party with a group of young people.

Mildred is worried about Veda’s partying ways as she gets an unexpected visit from Mrs. Forrester. What Mildred learns from Mrs. Forrester has her worried while she asks Veda what happened. Veda revealed she turned to Wally for help as Mildred learns the realization of what Veda is trying to do. Yet, what is more shocking is Veda’s motivation to do so as Mildred kicks her out. With Veda gone, Mildred focuses on her business yet she longs for information about Veda. Then, she hears the news from Bert that Veda has succeeded as an opera singer.

Part 5

After learning about Veda’s success and hearing her sing through the radio, Mildred is desperate to contact her. She realizes that Veda’s music instructor is Treviso who is happy about working with Veda though suggests to Mildred to not make any contact with her for her own sake. With ideas of finding a new home in Pasadena, Mildred runs into Monty as they reconnect. Selling her his estate, the two get married as Veda makes a surprise appearance. Though everything seems fine as Veda becomes a big success. Mildred learns about some holes in her finances as it becomes clear what’s been happening. Even Bert reveals what’s been happening as people from her business have tried to warn her about something. It is there that Mildred faces not only betrayal but also heartbreak.

While the original 1945 film was a noir-like melodrama set in the 1940s, it was a very stylized approach to what James M. Cain had originally intended with the book. Under the direction of Todd Haynes, Cain’s story about a woman trying to win the heart of her ungrateful daughter expands into something much bigger and more realistic. Even as Haynes uses Mildred’s struggle early in the miniseries as an allegory to what was going in the late 2000s during the troubled economy. Yet, Haynes and co-writer Jon Raymond delve into the story about this woman’s desperate to succeed in her own times and win her daughter’s heart. Even by going to Cain’s novel and bring in characters that weren’t present or under-utilized in Michael Curtiz’s 1945 film.

The relationship between Mildred and Veda is the heart of the miniseries while characters such as Bert Pierce, Ida Corwin, Wally Burgan, and Monty Beragon are more prominent in the book. Even the character Lucy Gessler, who wasn’t in the 1945 film, is presented in the miniseries. With these supporting characters, they bring in their own perspective about the Mildred and Veda relationship though it’s told through Mildred’s perspective.

Since it’s told in nearly six-hours and in five parts, it’s all about Mildred’s progression from a wife whose husband has left her for another woman to struggle on her own. When she eventually takes a job as a waitress so she can raise her daughters. During this time as a waitress, she learns about the restaurant business and with the help of a few people. She starts her own restaurant and eventually succeeds by turning it into an empire. Yet, part of the motivation isn’t to give her daughters the chance to feel secure but also for them to have a very good life. Unfortunately, one of them wants more than that.

The character of Veda is someone that wants ambition and wants to succeed at any cost. When family tragedy occurs in the Pierce family, it does bring Veda and Mildred closer which also serves as Mildred’s reason to want to have Veda around her. Instead, Veda becomes more ambitious and falls for Monty’s lifestyle. The chance to play music and later, become a singer is Veda’s chance to not only leave Glendale but also leave the mother who she feels is holding her back.

With the relationship of the two progressing throughout the duration of the story, there comes various people involved that would look at this relationship. The one person that would help create the divide in the two is Monty. Monty is a rich playboy who likes to live a lifestyle that he can afford, at first. By the time his own finances dry up, he goes to Mildred for money as she takes care of him. Instead, his own time with Veda would be the breaking point as they won’t see each other for a few years. When he does reappear, he would be responsible for the reunion between Mildred and Veda. Yet, that wouldn’t last as he would create the problems Mildred would face the near-ruin of everything she’s worked for. What’s even worse isn’t just betrayal but also an indication of how foolish she can be.

Part of Mildred’s fault is her ability to try and please others such as Monty and Veda. Yet, they take advantage of her hospitality making Mildred into a tragic figure of sorts. Even by the miniseries’ climatic moment is where she finally reaches her breaking point following everything that has just happened to her. The ending of the miniseries isn’t as stylish as Curtiz’s film but it’s an indication of what Mildred has learned and realizes in the end.

The teleplay by Haynes and Jon Raymond succeeds in not only the character study of Mildred Pierce as well as other characters. They succeed in also creating the environment of what was it like during the Great Depression. Through Haynes’ sprawling yet stylish direction, he creates something that is not just reminiscent of 1970s cinema. He also brings a contemporary approach to the story while retaining the language of the 1930s. Yet, Haynes is always having his camera interested in what is going on with Mildred’s world and through the people around her.

There are scenes throughout the miniseries where Mildred is looking around whether she’s inside a car or at a restaurant looking around. It’s as if she’s is feeling detached by the world around her. Even as Haynes understands what Mildred is going through with her life. Even as the story progresses, she becomes more refined while is awaiting to be reunited with Veda. The scenes where Veda performs an opera is truly captivating as it’s shown not just from Mildred’s perspective but also in how Veda is displaying those emotions through her singing. It’s not just Veda singing to her mother where it seems like she’s being grateful underneath all of that performance is a young woman becoming more detached from the woman who tried to give her everything.

Haynes’ direction truly succeeds in creating a feeling of detachment while bringing new life to the world of the Depression in California though it’s mostly shot in the state of New York. The look of the 1930s during the Depression might not seem as decayed or in ruins but rather a period where people are struggling while trying to get things moving. Even as he creates wonderful shots and camera movements to get into the emotion of the story. Even as he ends each part with some sort of cliffhanger as the end of the first part really shows a great example of what is happening. The result is truly a magnificent miniseries helmed by one of American cinema’s great filmmakers working today.

Cinematographer Edward Lachman does a superb job with the miniseries’ gorgeous photography. Lachman plays up the sunny yet dreamy quality of many of the miniseries’ exteriors that gives it a Californian feel. For many of the interiors, Lachman brings in an amazing array of lighting schemes whether its to reflect sunlight against the glass in some scenes or creating a mood for what is happening. Lachman’s photography is truly exquisite as it is definitely the highlight of the miniseries’ technical work.

Editors Alfonso Goncalves and Camilla Toniolo do a phenomenal job with the editing of the entire series. With Goncalves on the first two parts, Toniolo on the third, and both doing the last two parts. The editing works in playing up to the drama and uncertainty about Mildred early in the story. Even as presents the story in a leisured yet methodical pacing while not making it too slow. While it’s length works as a miniseries which allows each part to be separated at over an hour each. The editing also works to convey the intense melodrama that occurs throughout the miniseries as it is definitely some fine work.

Production designer Mark Friedberg, along with set decorator Ellen Christiansen and art director Peter Rogness, does a great job with the recreation of 1930s California from the look of the restaurants and homes that characters lived in. Even with the cars as Freidberg and his team do something that is truly spectacular with the period setting including the grand scenes for the opera. Costume designer Ann Roth does a spectacular job with the costumes for the miniseries. Roth’s costumes plays up to the evolution of Mildred’s character from a middle-class woman struggling to find work to a woman with lavish clothes running a business. Even with Veda’s clothes early as child with someone wanting top-class to a much more grander style of clothing to represent her narcissistic personality.

Visual effects supervisor Lesley Robson-Foster does a very good job with the minimal sound effects to enhance the look of 1930s America along a few shots for some of the driving scenes. Sound designer Leslie Shatz does an amazing job with the sound work for the miniseries. From the way cars sounded back then to the surroundings Mildred would encounter throughout duration of the miniseries along with the homes she lives in. Shatz’s work is truly stellar in the way she allows the sound to intensify the dramatic elements of the miniseries.

The score by Carter Burwell is truly wonderful for the way Burwell plays up to the melodrama as well as the period of the music. Creating a score filled with lush arrangements and orchestral flourishes that is bombastic and also understated to play up the drama. Even with something as plaintive as a piano to help play to Mildred’s complex emotions. Music supervisor Randall Poster helps with the soundtrack by creating a mix of 1930s pop music at the time, notably I‘m Always Chasing Rainbows that serves as Mildred‘s sort of theme. Poster also selects varied classical opera pieces for Veda to play with vocals by Sumi Jo to serve as Veda’s voice. The music overall is fantastic as it’s another highlight of the miniseries.

The casting by Laura Rosenthal is definitely top-notch with the array of people that appears throughout the entire miniseries. In small but notable appearances include Paul Sparks as an agent trying to get Veda to New York City in the fifth part of the series, Mark Margolis as the diner boss, Miriam Shor as a diner waitress, Elvy Yost as Mildred’s secretary in the latter part of the miniseries, Halley Feiffer as one of Mildred’s waitresses, and Marin Ireland as Mildred’s maid/assistant Letty. Quinn McColgan is very good as Mildred’s youngest daughter Ray who provides all of the warmth and playfulness that anyone could ask for in a kid. Hope Davis is excellent in a small but pivotal role as Mrs. Forrester, a rich woman who snidely offers Mildred a job in the first part only to return in the fourth when she confronts Mildred about Veda.

Mare Winningham is great as Ida Corwin, a diner waitress who helps Mildred run the restaurant while being the person who tries to warn Mildred about the finances. James LeGros is wonderful as Wally Burgan, a businessman who occasionally sleeps with Mildred early in the series to help her start a business while being the man who would make decisions that baffles Mildred. Melissa Leo is phenomenal as Lucy Gessler, Mildred’s best friend and confidant who helps her run the restaurant business while trying to warn Mildred about Veda’s behavior. Brian F. O’Byrne is extremely impressive as Bert Pierce, Mildred’s first husband who leaves for another woman only to become a supporter of her and one of the few people she trusts. O’Byrne truly brings an everyman quality to Bert who is kind of a sap but a guy that is sympathetic as his own relationship with Mildred in the progression of the story becomes one of the most interesting as O’Byrne really shines.

Guy Pearce is amazing as Monty Beragon, the charming playboy who wows Mildred with his tastes as he helps her succeed. Yet, Pearce also brings a devilish quality to Beragon as he is someone who is more brutish and also lazy as a guy who just likes to live a lifestyle that he can’t really afford. It’s Pearce at his finest as he and Kate Winslet have some wonderful chemistry whether they’re in love or hating each other. For role of Veda Pierce, two actresses play the character in two different age groups. For the younger Veda, Morgan Turner is superb as this young, ambitious little girl who scoffs at the idea of the working class while being very spoiled. Turner adds a smugness to that character that makes her someone that anyone would love to hate. Yet, it’s a remarkable performance from the young Turner as it’s really a set-up for what will Veda become as a teenage girl/young woman played by Evan Rachel Wood.

Evan Rachel Wood gives, what is probably the best performance of her young career so far. Not only does she make Veda more unlikable, she makes Veda into a monster that anyone wishes would be dead. Wood truly brings a very dramatic flair to her character by being a bit over the top and also bringing the idea that she is a talented singer/musician in the way she mimics things. By the time the story progresses and she becomes larger than life, Wood definitely has moments she nearly steals the scenes from Kate Winslet including a nude scene that is one of the most infuriating moments of the miniseries. It is definitely a break-out performance for the young Evan Rachel Wood.

Finally, there’s Kate Winslet in what is definitely one of her greatest performances of her career. In playing the titular character, it is a very different performance than the one Joan Crawford gave in the 1945 performance. It’s stripped down and also very direct about a woman struggling to bring security to her young daughters and to succeed on her own terms. Winslet brings a real weariness to her character while her physicality in the way she reacts to things is just startling. Even as she has a great rapport with her fellow actors including Evan Rachel Wood where the two have great scenes together about their troubled relationship. While it may not be her best performance of her career, it is certainly among one of her best in an amazing career.

Mildred Pierce is a spectacular yet mesmerizing miniseries/melodrama from Todd Haynes featuring a towering performance from Kate Winslet in the title role. Along with some fantastic supporting work by Evan Rachel Wood, Morgan Turner, Guy Pearce, Melissa Leo, Mare Winningham, and Brian F. O’Byrne. It’s definitely a story that really plays to its sense of ambition and heartbreak. While it may not be as overly stylized as Michael Curtiz’s 1945 film, it is definitely a more realistic take on James M. Cain’s novel though both have the same idea. While it is a long story to watch, it is told in the right medium as a miniseries as Todd Haynes truly went all out for this story. In the end, the 2011 miniseries of Mildred Pierce is a dazzling yet intense project from Todd Haynes.

Todd Haynes Films: Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story - Poison - Dottie Gets Spanked - Safe - Velvet Goldmine - Far from Heaven - I'm Not There - Carol - Wonderstruck - Dark Waters (2019 film) - The Velvet Underground

Related: Mildred Pierce (1945 film) - The Auteurs #3: Todd Haynes

© thevoid99 2011

About Schmidt

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 6/4/04 w/ Additional Edits.

One of the most enduring and influential actors to grace the silver screen, Jack Nicholson gave moviegoers roles anyone can remember. Whether it's a werewolf, a joker, a sailor, a drunk, or all sorts of crazy guys. After winning the Oscar for Best Actor in 1997 for As Good as it Gets, Nicholson took a break from acting. By this point, an actor of his caliber and age would end up retiring or end up playing roles that are familiar to an audience. Unfortunately for some of those veteran actors, they end up playing themselves to the point that they've lost their edge. For Jack Nicholson, he found the right role in 2002 in a bleak-comedy from Alexander Payne about a 66-year old retiree trying to stop his daughter from getting married to a loser while wondering what meaning his life had to anyone entitled About Schmidt.

About Schmidt is a film about ageing and what could've been with your life at an old age. From the Louis Begley novel adapted into a script by Payne and Jim Taylor, About Schmidt has all of the offbeat humor that Payne's previous films Citizen Ruth and Election had.  Unlike those previous films, this one is more harrowing. Payne's bleak look on About Schmidt reveals the fear of growing old and not being useful to anyone. The casting of a legend like Jack Nicholson in the role of Warren R. Schmidt is indeed inspiring, especially since Nicholson does something he hasn't done in this role, which was restraining himself. With a rich cast including Kathy Bates, Hope Davis, and Dermont Mulroney, About Schmidt is a funny, offbeat drama from Alexander Payne.

The film begins as Warren R. Schmidt is counting down the seconds of his final day as an executive vice president at the Woodmen insurance company in Omaha, Nebraska. When the day ends, a new chapter of his life begins as he goes to a retiring party with his wife Helen (June Squibb) as he looks on at all the people celebrating his life including best friend Ray Nichols (Len Cariou). Warren feels calm but awkward about his present life, as he couldn't believe that he's now retired as he returns home as he gets a call from his daughter Jeannie (Hope Davis) about a robe she and her fiancée Randall Hertzel (Dermont Mulroney) gave him. Warren doesn't think much of Randall as he begins his new life as a retiree with Helen as they have breakfast in the motor home they just bought and he goes to his office to find his replacement not needing him at all with his old files in a trash bin.

One day, Warren scours through the channels till he finds the Childreach service as he decides to call and help a poor child. A few days later, he gets a letter where the child he sponsors is a little boy from Tanzania named Ndugu. He writes Ndugu a letter where he channels his frustrations about his life how he calls his replacement "a cocky bastard". He also writes about his family and how he disapproves Jeannie of getting married to Randall and how his wife Helen now irritates him with little things like the way she smelled, she sits, and how she makes him urinates sitting down. He wonders, "Who in the hell is this old woman living in my house?" He sends $11 in a check and the letter as he tells Helen he's going to the post office and upon his return; she dies all of a sudden. Jeannie and Randall come to Omaha to comfort Warren, as he is subdued over the whole thing.  Yet, Randall talks to him about a pyramid scheme while Jeannie criticizes Warren over the fact that he bought a cheap coffin for her mom and that he needs to take care of himself now.

Helen's death leaves Warren to be a mess as he leaves the house to be messy as he begins to discover love letters Ray had sent her a long time ago. Warren snaps at Ray as he decides to leave for a trip while writing letters to Ndugu. Warren begins to relive his adolescents by visiting his old fraternity house in the State of Kansas University and his old childhood home, which became a tire store. One day during a stop, he meets up with a couple named John and Vicki Rusk (Harry Groener and Connie Ray) where they invited him to dinner as they talk about their kids and sorts. When John was away, Warren talks to Vicki about his wife as he felt, she understood him better than his wife did as he makes a pass at her forcing him to leave. He then ponders if he was ever good enough for Helen as he decides to stop Jeannie from marrying Randall by going to Denver.

Warren arrives at Denver where he meets Randall's hippie mother Roberta (Kathy Bates) at her house while having dinner with Jeannie, Randall, his brother Duncan (Mark Venhuizen), and Randall's divorced father Larry (Howard Hesseman) with his new wife Saundra (Cheryl Hamada). Warren couldn't believe Jeannie is going to be married to this strange, bohemian family as he begs Jeannie to reconsider but she has already decided to marry Randall. Warren's night gets worse when he sleeps at Randall's room and on a waterbed of all things that made him stiff and disjointed. Jeannie is angry and stressed over the plans of the wedding and her dad in this situation as he tries to get up but he becomes a zombie of sorts during rehearsals for the wedding. Things get worse for Warren as he begins to wonder what difference has he made for anyone.

While Citizen Ruth and Election were extremely funny and offbeat, About Schmidt is more of a dramatic film with elements of humor. Alexander Payne truly deserves credit for bringing in light-hearted comedy to the film's bleak tone. Even with its drab, grayish-look from cinematographer James Glennon gives the film its bleakness while presenting the world of Middle America that is often overlooked. Payne's harrowing view is pretty funny on some cases, especially the way Nicholson's Schmidt character looks at all the things in America including museums and arrowheads. Payne is truly one of the best American filmmakers in the past decade and About Schmidt is truly an amazing American story despite its the cynical tone towards aging.

Hope Davis delivers an enchanting yet powerful performance as Jeannie.  A woman wanting to get married though her stress can lead her to act bitchy towards her dad, who is trying to help. Dermont Mulroney is hilarious as the waterbed salesman Randall. While he looks like a cartoon with a mullet and a weird mustache, he's a kind of guy who is just nice despite the fact that he's a nincompoop. The smaller performances of June Squibb, Len Cariou, Howard Hesseman, Harry Groener, and Connie Ray, all standout in their respective roles while the best supporting performance overall goes to Kathy Bates. Bates brings in a brash, funny performance as this bohemian, hippie woman who curses a lot, does all of these weird things and most of all, gets naked in a hot tub with Nicholson. Bates deserves kudos for showing the world what a real woman looks like, as it's one of those "Whoa!"moments.

The film's best performance easily goes to Jack Nicholson. Usually, Nicholson would've done things in a more offbeat, crazy sort of way where he's loose and abrasive. For the Warren Schmidt character, he doesn't do any of that since it would've been too easy for him and he would end up parodying himself. What Nicholson does is give a restrained, somewhat relaxed approach to his character and at times, make himself feel awkward. It's Nicholson not trying to be young but actually, accepting his age in a role that is classic Nicholson. Nicholson manages to balance a sense of comedy into his performance as he drools during the rehearsal while putting in some his mastery in drama to the more heartwarming performances, especially in the film's final scene.

While it's not as funny as Election or his 2004 film Sideways, About Schmidt is still a strong, funny drama from Alexander Payne featuring a masterful performance from Jack Nicholson. Fans who loved Nicholson in the past will be amazed at his performance while Payne fans will love this comedy for its offbeat, relaxed tone. Even the supporting performances of Mulroney, Davis, and Kathy Bates will keep the audience watching, especially in the more shocking moments. It's a film that's both entertaining while not trying to be too real for its audience. In the end, Payne delivers another winner with About Schmidt as Jack Nicholson proves himself again as an enigmatic actor.

Alexander Payne Films: Citizen Ruth - Election - Sideways - Paris Je T'aime-14th Arrondissment - The Descendants - Nebraska - (Downsizing) - The Holdovers - (Tracy Flick Can't Win) - The Auteurs #5: Alexander Payne

(C) thevoid99 2010