This Much I Know to Be True

 

Directed by Andrew Dominik, This Much I Know to Be True is a documentary film that explores the collaboration between Nick Cave and Warren Ellis as a follow-up of sorts to the 2016 documentary One More Time with Feeling. The film explores the collaboration between the two men as they perform songs from both the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ 2019 album Ghosteen and their newest work at the time in Carnage as they’re joined by legendary British artist Marianne Faithfull. The result is a visually-enchanting and engaging film from Andrew Dominik.

Shot in the spring of 2021 in London just weeks before the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds were to tour the U.K., the film is a look into the collaboration between Cave and longtime Bad Seeds member/collaborator Warren Ellis as they perform songs at the Battersea Arts Centre in London. Much of the material isn’t just from the Bad Seeds’ 2019 album Ghosteen but also their most recent collaboration in Carnage where Cave and Ellis perform these songs with a string quartet, a trio of backing vocalists, a session drummer, and Bad Seeds guitarist George Vjestica for one song. The film also feature scenes at Brighton where Cave and Ellis live in separate homes as they talk about their collaboration with the former also going back to the art of creating ceramic pottery and statues as the film opens with some of his creation including a story about the Devil.

Director Andrew Dominik is featured throughout the film as he asks Cave and Ellis about their collaboration as well as creating some unique compositions that include some dolly-tracking shots while utilizing different aspect ratios for some of the performances while much of the interviews are straightforward. Even with cinematographer Robbie Ryan keeping the visuals straightforward while the performances are shot with unique lighting presentation that include some unique lighting design with a few visual effects bit from Sam Brady in the lighting. There is also a scene where Marianne Faithfull does some poetry to precede a performance where Dominik shoots as she is getting ready while also showing that she is still dealing with an illness that she is trying to get over.

Editor Matthew C. Hart provides a straightforward approach to the editing as it include the performances in which he allows a lot of the shots to linger for more than 30 seconds while also showcasing the interviews that include Cave reading questions from The Red Hand Files that he runs as a way to communicate with fans. Sound recordist John Currie and re-recording mixer Adam Scrivener do amazing work with the sound in not just capturing many of the instruments that are played for some of the songs as well as some of the intimate moments and some of the chatter that goes on during the rehearsals.

This Much I Know to Be True is a marvelous film from Andrew Dominik. The film isn’t just something fans of Nick Cave and Warren Ellis should see but it is also a film that explore not just their collaboration but also their love of music as well as wanting to express themselves following the events of the COVID-19 pandemic whether it’s through music or art. In the end, This Much I Know to Be True is a remarkable film from Andrew Dominik.

Related: (20,000 Days on Earth)

Andrew Dominik Films: Chopper - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford - Killing Them Softly - One More Time with Feeling - Blonde (2022 film)

© thevoid99 2022

Sympathy for the Devil (One Plus One)

Written and directed by Jean-Luc Godard, Sympathy for the Devil (One Plus One) is a documentary film about the recording of the titular song by the Rolling Stones that is inter-cut with segments relating to the political and social events of the late 1960s. The film marks the beginning of a period of experimental features for Godard in his movement away from traditional narrative while he chronicles one of the most popular bands at that time during a crucial period in their career. The result is a fascinating though uneven film from Jean-Luc Godard.

The film follows a series of recording sessions in June of 1968 by the Rolling Stones for a song that is to reflect into the chaos of that year entitled Sympathy for the Devil. During the course of the film as the Stones would try and create this song, the film would be inter-cut with dramatic segments featuring actors reading or giving their views on many social and political ideologies of the time. Yet, both narratives would often feature a brief jump-cut of someone spray painting political slogans all over London during the course of the film. It’s a film that has two very different things happening yet both segments would also feature commentaries by a narrator (the voice of Sean Lynch) reading stories on Marxism where it would often drown out some of the things that is happening or be drowned out by comments from those talking politics or the Stones playing music as well as sounds of jets flying in the air courtesy of sound mixers Derek Ball and Arthur Bradburn.

Both the segments involving the Stones and the political content are shot in long takes by Jean-Luc Godard with the aid of cinematographer Anthony B. Richmond as it follows not just what is going on but also in the environment. Whereas the Stones are seen recording at Olympic Studios in London, the political segments largely take place in different areas. There’s two different segments involving black militants talking about their own ideas while executing white women in one segment as it takes place in a junkyard near a river. A segment with actress Anne Wiazemsky as a character talking to people in the forest about what she thinks the state of the world and the different ideas of politics. There’s one segment taking place inside a bookstore where a Fascist reads a book on Fascism with two customers beaten and bloodied by other Fascist customers as the store is surrounded by comics, pulp novels, and nudie magazines.

The scenes involving the Stones recording Sympathy for the Devil shows the band hard at work trying to develop the song that would become one of their defining songs as vocalist Mick Jagger tries to find the right vocal tone for the song while guitarist Keith Richards would play bass on the song trying to find its groove. Drummer Charlie Watts and bassist Bill Wyman would provide their own contributions to the song as would session keyboardist Nicky Hopkins and producer Jimmy Miller. The scenes also showcase guitarist Brian Jones becoming less involved as there’s a major scene during the recording where the band plus Hopkins and percussionist Rocky Dijon are all playing in the circle while Jones is playing acoustic guitar in a booth behind Jagger. It is a moment that shows his diminishing role in the band as he would die more than a year after the recording of the song.

While the film does contain some rich cinematography by Richmond as well as some straightforward editing by Ken Rowes including the jump-cuts to showcase the young woman spray-painting slogans on walls around London. The film is definitely uneven largely due to the fact that Godard wants to create something that is a response to the events of 1968 as it’s really 2 different films. Yet, the film’s original intentions had Godard wanting to make something that is more political but clashes with one of the film’s producers in Iain Quarrier, who plays the role of a Fascist book seller, would complicate things as the resulting film that is shown is quite uneven. It’s uneven to audiences that thought they would see a film about the Stones in their prime only to see something else while Godard-enthusiasts would wonder why the Stones in a film that definitely has a lot of commentaries on the politics of the times.

Sympathy for the Devil (One Plus One) is a stellar film from Jean-Luc Godard. Though it’s a very uneven film due to its different subject matter. It is still an interesting film that chronicles a tumultuous time period inspired by the events of 1968 as well as a look into the Rolling Stones creating one of their defining songs. In the end, Sympathy for the Devil (One Plus One) is a terrific film from Jean-Luc Godard.

Related: Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus - Shine a Light - Crossfire Hurricane

Jean-Luc Godard Films: All the Boys are Called Patrick - Charlotte et son Jules - A Bout de Souffle - The Little Soldier - A Woman is a Woman - Vivre sa Vie - Les Carabiniers - Contempt - Bande a Part - A Married Woman - Alphaville - Pierrot Le Fou - Masculin Feminin - Made in U.S.A. - Two or Three Things I Know About Her - La Chinoise - Weekend - (Joy of Learning) - (British Sounds) - Tout va Bien - (Letter to Jane) - (One A.M.) - (Number Two) - (Here and Elsewhere) - (Every Man for Himself) - (Passion) - (First Name: Carmen) - Hail, Mary - (Soft and Hard) - (Detective) - (King Lear (1987 film)) - (Keep Your Right Up) - (Nouvelle Vague) - (Allemagne 90 neuf zero) - (JLG/JLG - Self-Portrait in December) - For Ever Mozart - (Historie(s) de Cinema) - (In Praise of Love) - (Notre musique) - (Film Socialisme) - (Adieu au Language) - (The Image Book)

© thevoid99 2017

Made in U.S.A.

Based on The Jugger by Donald E. Westlake, Made in U.S.A. is the story of a young woman who travels to Atlantic City to find her boyfriend as she finds herself in a world of trouble filled with intrigue and political turmoil. Written for the screen and directed by Jean-Luc Godard, the film is a stylish on the American crime films Godard love as it’s inspired by Howard Hawks’ The Big Sleep as well as Westlake’s novel. The film also marks the seventh and final feature-length collaboration between Godard and his then-wife muse Anna Karina as Paula Nelson. Also starring Jean-Pierre Leaud, Yves Afonso, Laszlo Szabo, and a special appearance from Marianne Faithfull. Made in U.S.A. is a stylish yet entrancing film from Jean-Luc Godard.

It’s 1969 as Paula Nelson travels to Atlantic City as she learns that her boyfriend Richard P. (Jean-Luc Godard) is dead. Trying to find out what happened and why, she meets with Edgar Typhus (Ernest Menzer) who gives her some information about Richard’s death as his nephew David Goodis (Yves Afonso) and his Asian girlfriend (Kyoko Kosaka) visit. Later going to a bar, Paula meets a gangster named Richard Widmark (Laszlo Szabo) and his assistant Donald Siegel (Jean-Pierre Leaud) about more information as she goes to a villa where Richard P. frequented at where she encounters Widmark about Richard’s disappearance.

With Paula now a suspect over the death of Typhus and David’s girlfriend with David believing that Paula did it, Widmark helps her out though a private investigator named Aldrich (Claude Bouillon) remains suspicious. Though she suspects Widmark, Paula believes that Richard was killed over his political beliefs as more complications occur. With the often silent Siegel revealing some unexpected information, Paula takes charge into what happened to Richard as she turns to Aldrich and David for help.

The film is about a Leftist journalist/P.I. who goes on the search for the story about her boyfriend’s death and its supposed political reasons. Yet, it’s really a movie about a woman caught up in a world where she is surrounded by ideals about advertising, pop culture, and politics. While the film is set in Atlantic City, it’s really set in a Parisian suburb where Atlantic City plays more like a metaphor of American culture and its impact of Europe. Throughout the film, Paula Nelson talks in metaphors about the idea that advertising is really a form of Fascism while she meets various characters including a man (Remo Forlani) who talks with a bartender (Marc Dudicourt) about the objects at a bar.

The unconventional yet minimalist script allows Godard to create a story where it’s not really about the mystery but the study of a woman in a world where her views start to blur her idea of reality and fiction. There’s moments when the fourth wall of the film breaks as Paula says that this film is “Walt Disney with blood”. There’s characters that are named after either filmmakers, actors, or political figures while there’s also a lot of literary references to what Paula describes the film as there’s a lot of loose scenes that goes on including moments where Marianne Faithfull’s voice is heard singing As Tears Go By in a capella as she makes a cameo appearing at the bar scene.

Godard’s direction in the film is definitely mesmerizing for the way he maintains a much more controlled sense of presentation for this film. Throughout the film, there’s moments where Godard just let things happen while barely moving the camera or just keeping things still as if the characters are talking to the camera. There are elements of unconventional ideas in the film such as Richard’s last named drowned out by sounds of airplanes flying or a car beeping. In scenes where Donald is talking, it’s covered by Paula’s voice-narration which pop ups now and then to emphasize what she is going through.

Since the film is called Made in U.S.A., there is a vibrancy to the way the film looks as Godard employs the three colors of the U.S. and French flags. Particularly to emphasize the former in terms of its cultural influence though it’s set in the latter as there is a conflict over the America’s influence on French pop culture. The characters are often shown with these any of those three colors behind them to emphasize the world they’re in. The presentation is very mesmerizing even though it’s a film that is difficult to comprehend due to its unconventional approach. The political context might seem dated though it does make sense about the way the world is in terms of how advertising might be considered a form of Fascism. Overall, it’s an abstract but intoxicating film from Jean-Luc Godard.

Cinematographer Raoul Coutard does a gorgeous job with the film‘s vibrant photography that is awash with gorgeous colors from the locations to the dresses that Paula wears. Coutard’s photography also heightens the look for many of its exterior settings while keeping it more straightforward in its interior setting as he is the major highlight of the film’s technical work. Editors Francoise Collin and Agnes Guillemot do a great job with the editing which is mostly straightforward with a few jump-cuts in order to go for a more controlled though energetic tone. The sound work by Rene Levert and Jacques Maumont is superb for the way sound is placed on some parts of the dialogue along with natural sound in the locations that are in. The film’s music is mostly dominated by classical pieces from Ludwig Van Beethoven and Robert Schuman along with Marianne Faithfull’s As Tears Go By.

The casting is amazing for the people that appears in the film including Marianne Faithfull as herself along with Sylvain Godet and Jean-Pierre Biesse as a two lowly gangsters respectively named Robert MacNamara and Richard Nixon, Marc Dudicourt as a bartender, Remo Forlani as a man in the bar, Kyoko Kosaka as David’s Asian girlfriend, and Jean-Luc Godard as the voice of Richard P. Other notable small roles include Claude Bouillon as Inspector Aldrich, Ernest Menzer as Typhus, Jean-Pierre Leaud as the helpful Donald Siegel, and Yves Afonso as the wannabe writer David Goodis. Laszlo Szabo is very good as Richard Widmark, a shady man who helps out Paula though he remains secretive in what he’s doing. Finally, there’s Anna Karina in a mesmerizing performance as the metaphorical yet take charge Paula Nelson. Karina displays a restrained yet magnetic performance as a woman that tries to make sense of everything while proving to be no push-over as it’s a magnificent performance for the actress.

Made in U.S.A. is an extraordinary film from Jean-Luc Godard that features a radiant performance from Anna Karina. The film is definitely considered one of his best films of his revered 1960-1967 period though it’s really a transitional film of sorts as it shows Godard leaning towards political themes that would be prevalent in his post-1967 films. Yet it is a film that plays into the idea of American culture overwhelming a world that isn’t American as well as a woman trying to make sense of things in a crime-setting drama. In the end, Made in U.S.A. is a rich yet dazzling film from Jean-Luc Godard.

Jean-Luc Godard Films: All the Boys Are Called Patrick - Charlotte et son Jules - Breathless - The Little Soldier - A Woman is a Woman - Vivre sa Vie - The Carabineers - Contempt - Band of Outsiders - A Married Woman - Alphaville - Pierrot Le Fou - Masculine Feminine - Two or Three Things I Know About Her - La Chinoise - Weekend - One Plus One (Sympathy for the Devil) - (Joy of Learning) - (British Sounds) - Tout va Bien - (Letter to Jane) - (One A.M.) - (Number Two) - (Here and Elsewhere) - (Every Man for Himself) - (Passion) - (First Name: Carmen) - Hail, Mary - (Soft and Hard) - (Detective) - (King Lear (1987 film)) - (Keep Your Right Up) - (Nouvelle Vague) - (Allemagne 90 neuf zero) - (JLG/JLG - Self-Portrait in December) - For Ever Mozart - (Historie(s) de Cinema) - (In Praise of Love) - (Notre musique) - (Film Socialisme) - (Adieu au Language) - (The Image Book)

© thevoid99 2011