First Reformed

Written and directed by Paul Schrader, First Reformed is the story of a Protestant minister who deals with a declining attendance in his church while coping with his own identity and faith in these trying times. The film is a study of a minister who is dealing with his crisis of faith as well as what faith is becoming in a world that is ever-changing. Starring Ethan Hawke, Amanda Seyfried, Victoria Hills, Michael Gaston, and Cedric “the Entertainer” Kyles. First Reformed is a haunting yet evocative film from Paul Schrader.

The film follows a minister, whose church is about to celebrate 250 years, is dealing with a crisis of faith not just with his own being as well as his health but also a declining attendance of the church as one of its visitors comes to him for help as it relates to her husband. It’s a film that play into a world that is ever-changing as this minister is trying to deal with the reality around him but also this sense of hopelessness in this world. Paul Schrader’s script follows Reverend Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) who runs the First Reformed church at a small town in upstate New York where he notices a declining audience as many of the locals go to a nearby megachurch run by Pastor Joel Jeffers (Cedric Kyles) who owns the historical landmark where the First Reformed is where Toller goes to Jeffers for counsel. The main bulk of the narrative revolves around Toller trying to help a troubled environmental activist in Michael Mensana (Philip Ettinger) who is wracked with despair about the world as his wife Mary (Amanda Seyfried) was the one who suggests that Michael should go to Toller for help.

Toller would get close to Mary in helping her as she is also pregnant which adds to Michael’s despair while Toller is trying to understand what Michael is seeing. Throughout the film, Toller would write down the recollections of the day in a journal as it would include voice-over narration that play into Toller’s own feelings as his plan is to write out his thoughts for a year. Even as he is dealing with loss from the past and has trouble trying to connect with others aside from Mary where he also becomes troubled by his surroundings as well as the ideas of climate change which makes him question the world around him.

Schrader’s direction definitely evokes a lot of visual style and themes from those he admire like Ingmar Bergman, Robert Bresson, Carl Theodor Dreyer, Yasujiro Ozu, and Andrei Tarkovsky as he aims for something that is meditative and simple. Shot on various locations in the boroughs of Queens and Brooklyn with the Zion Episcopal Church from the former being the film’s centerpiece and in a 4:3 full-frame aspect ratio. Schrader would use Ozu’s static camera approach to medium shots and close-ups where he doesn’t aim for any kind of camera movement except in a few scenes or in some zooms for close-ups. Still, Schrader uses this approach of not moving the camera to get a lot of coverage including some wide shots of the locations to play into this growing awareness of the ever-changing world that Toller is encountering. Particularly as he does what he can to help others and offer assistance to Jeffers’ church yet becomes troubled by his own reliance on alcohol and other health issues. Schrader’s direction would maintain that sense of discomfort in Toller as he copes with the world at hand where he question his own faith as he would position the camera in a wide or medium shot whenever he’s writing his journal.

Schrader also would create moments of surrealism as it relates to a meeting between Toller and Mary who reveal this non-sexual yet physical intimacy she and her husband did as it’s a moment that play into the fears and hopes of what the two want for the world. It’s a moment that does recall some of the visual ideas of Andrei Tarkovsky as it would play into Toller’s awareness of a world becoming more unruly. The film’s final sequence plays into Toller’s response as it would climax with this celebration of the church as it celebrates its 250th anniversary with Toller being part of the festivities. It is a moment that has Toller display his disdain of what faith is becoming and his act of defiance towards the modern world and how he believes is ruining God’s creation. Overall, Schrader crafts a riveting and rapturous film about a minister dealing with his crisis of faith as well as helping a young woman with an emotionally-troubled husband.

Cinematographer Alexander Dyan does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography by emphasizing on simplistic and natural visuals for many of the interior/exterior daytime scenes along with some lighting for scenes at night as well as a shot during dawn at a decaying location. Editor Benjamin Rodriguez Jr. does excellent work with the editing as it is largely straightforward in terms of its rhythmic cutting as well as not playing to anything remotely stylized in favor of letting shots linger for a while. Production designer Grace Yun, with set decorator Nadya Gurevich and art director Raphael Sorcio, does fantastic work with the look of some of the interiors at the house that Toller stays in next to the church as well as the home that Mary and Michael live in and some of the rooms inside Jeffers’ church. Costume designer Olga Mill does nice work with the costumes as it is largely casual for its winter-time look with many of Toller’s clothes being his black minister clothes and white robes as well as the casual look of the other people in the small town.

Visual effects supervisors Justin Cornish, Brian Houlihan, and John Mangia do terrific work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects as it relates to the fantasy sequence involving Toller and Mary that play into their hopes and fears of the world. Sound editors Ruy Garcia and Michael McMenomy do amazing work with the sound in creating a sparse yet effective atmosphere for much of the locations including these little moments in the quieter scenes and settings. The film’s music by Brian Williams, in his Lustmord pseudonym, is wonderful for its low-key electronic score that only appears in the film sparingly for much of its second half while music supervisor Dina Juntila provides a soundtrack that is mainly music played on location includes rendition of traditional music as well as an acapella cover of a song by Neil Young.

The casting by Susan Shopmaker is superb as it include some notable small roles from Bill Hoag as a worker at the First Reformed church in John Elder, Michael Gaston as a corporate figure in Edward Balq, Victoria Hill as a church worker in Esther who becomes concerned for Toller’s health, and Philip Ettinger as Mary’s troubled husband Michael as an environmental activist who is becoming uneasy about the world around. Cedric “the Entertainer” Kyles is great as Pastor Joel Jeffers as a preacher who runs a megachurch in the small town that is trying to counsel Toller about his troubles while also supervising the organization of the First Reformed church’s 250th anniversary celebration.

Amanda Seyfried is incredible as Mary Mensana as the pregnant wife of an environmental activist who is concerned for her husband as she turns to Toller for help as well as befriend him as someone she can go to for guidance as it’s understated and radiant performance from Seyfried. Finally, there’s Ethan Hawke in a phenomenal performance as Reverend Ernst Toller as a pastor that is troubled by his own health, crisis of faith, and the need to help a troubled activist where it’s a calm yet eerie performance from Hawke who displays an anguish as a man trying to do what he can to help people yet is troubled by the world around him as it’s a true career-defining performance for Hawke.

First Reformed is a tremendous film from Paul Schrader that features a tour-de-force performance from Ethan Hawke. Along with its ensemble cast that includes a phenomenal supporting performance from Amanda Seyfried as well as gorgeous visuals, a simplistic presentation, and compelling themes of faith. It’s a film that play into the ideas of the world at large and a man asking big questions about his surroundings as well as the need to help someone in need. In the end, First Reformed is an outstanding film from Paul Schrader.

Paul Schrader Films: Blue Collar - Hardcore – American Gigolo - Cat People (1982 film) - Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters – (Light of Day) – (Patty Hearst) – (The Comfort of Strangers) – (Light Sleeper) – (Witch Hunt) – (Touch) – Affliction - (Forever Mine) – (Auto Focus) – (Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist) – (The Walker) – (Adam Resurrected) – (The Canyons) – Dying of the Light - (Dog Eat Dog) - (The Card Counter)

© thevoid99 2019

Sugar (2008 film)

Written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Sugar is the story of a young pitcher from the Dominican Republic who dreams of making it to the big leagues where he deals with the reality of chasing that dream when he arrives to America in the minor leagues. The film is an exploration of a young man who wants to give himself and his family a chance at a better life away from poverty while coping with the gift he has when he has to endure culture shock and the demands of the game. Starring Algenis Perez Soto, Andrew Holland, Rayniel Rufino, and Michael Gaston. Sugar is a rapturous and intoxicating film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.

The film is a simple story of a young baseball pitcher who is given the chance to travel to America to play in the minor leagues as he hopes that he can make it and give his mother and siblings a good life back at the Dominican Republic. What happens instead is that he would face challenges upon arriving into a new environment where there’s so much to be expected not just from himself but also others who would come and go. The film’s screenplay by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck is largely a study of ambition and its fallacies as well as what it takes to make in the majors despite the fact the protagonist in Miguel “Sugar” Santos (Algenis Perez Soto) doesn’t speak much English and doesn’t know very much about American culture. The first act partially takes place in the Dominican Republic where Sugar is like every other player dreaming of making it to the Major Leagues like many before him where he is at an academy to learn about the game while learning to speak English. Upon learning that he and another player are going to Arizona for spring training with a minor-league rookie team, Sugar is excited as he hopes to do good things for his family.

Though he experiences culture shock and confusion during his time in Arizona, he was able to bond with players from the Dominican Republic along with players from other Spanish-speaking countries. When Sugar is sent to the A level in Iowa, the culture shock becomes greater where he would live with an old couple in the Higgins as he has trouble adjusting to his new environment while the only person he could really talk to is a Dominican player in Jorge (Rayniel Rufino) who has been in the minors for years as he helps Sugar out. While Sugar takes a liking towards the old couple’s granddaughter Anne (Ellary Porterfield), he does cope with some of the prejudice of being an outsider as it leads to this air of isolation that is prominent for much of the second and third act. Even as Sugar would endure an injury that would sideline him as he’s unable to get back on track prompting him to question a lot of things around him including himself.

The film’s direction of Boden and Fleck is definitely evocative in the way it captures not just this air of realism about the struggle in trying to make it to the major leagues but also in the study of isolation and culture shock. Shot largely in Iowa with additional locations shot in New York City, the state of Arizona, and the Dominican Republic, the film does play into idea of a man caught between two different worlds where one is a place that he’s familiar with as it’s his home and the other is just completely different. Boden and Fleck’s usage of the wide shots would capture the many cultural and social differences that Sugar would encounter as it adds to the sense of culture shock upon arriving somewhere like Iowa with its farmland, cornfields, and areas that doesn’t have much to offer like the small town he was in Arizona nor in the Dominican Republic. Yet, much of their direction involve intimate shots such as close-ups and medium shots to play into Sugar’s struggle with being on the pitcher’s mound and outside of the baseball field.

With Boden also serving as editor, she and Fleck would maintain something straightforward in the editing with a few jump-cuts such as a scene of Sugar meeting his many relatives wishing him luck that just adds to the pressure he’s in to succeed. Still, it just adds to this sense of isolation such as this amazing tracking shot sequence of Sugar walking out of his hotel room and into the bar, the arcade, and later the bowling alley as it shows him really lost he’s in. The third act is about this sense of continuation and awareness that Sugar has to endure when another player from the Dominican Republic emerges as someone who has the same gift that Sugar had. It’s a reality that is quite common where Boden and Fleck don’t sugarcoat it yet it would have an aftermath about what happen to those who don’t make it but still have a love for the game. Overall, Boden and Fleck craft a riveting and sobering film about a young man chasing his dream to become a major league baseball player only to deal with the realities and expectations of that dream.

Cinematographer Andrij Parekh does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography from the usage of natural lights for many of the daytime scenes as well as some lighting for some of the scenes at night including many of its interiors. Production designer Beth Mickle, with set decorator Richard Bailey and art director Michael Ahern, does fantastic work with the look of the baseball camps and places that Sugar goes to including the home of the Higgins family and the locker room for the team he plays for. Costume designer Erin Benach does nice work with the costumes as it is largely straightforward including the uniforms that Sugar wears during his time playing.

Sound editor Tom Efinger and sound designer Abigail Savage do excellent work with the sound in capturing the atmosphere of the baseball games as well as some of the places that Sugar and the people he’s with go to. The film’s music by Michael Brook is wonderful as it’s mainly low-key in its folk-based score while music supervisor Lynn Fainchtein creates a soundtrack that mixes all sorts of music from merengue, bachata, salsa, hip-hop, rock, and indie music from acts like Aventura, TV on the Radio, Cassie Ventura, Celia Cruz, Moby, Leonard Cohen, and Juan Luis Guerra with Ruben Blades and Robi Rosa.

The casting by Cindy Tolan is superb as it feature some notable small roles from Jose Rijo as a player named Alvarez, Kelvin Leonardo Garcia as the young pitcher Salvador who becomes a threat to Sugar’s spot in the third act, Alina Vargas as Sugar’s girlfriend in the Dominican Republic, Ann Whitney and Richard Bull as the old couple in the Higgins who would take Sugar in during his time in Iowa to make sure he does well, Ellary Porterfield as the Higgins’ granddaughter Anne whom Sugar takes a liking to, and Jaime Tirelli as a man named Osvaldo that Sugar meets late in the film. Michael Gaston is terrific as Sugar’s Iowa coach Stu Sutton who sees talent and potential in Sugar while is trying to understand where his control is once his performance suffers.

Andre Holland is fantastic as Brad Johnson as a player that Sugar befriends as he tries to help him with his performance and understand American culture. Rayniel Rufino is excellent as Jorge as a player from the Dominican Republic in Iowa who is the closest friend that Sugar has where he is someone that has seen a lot as he knows what will happen to him but would accept his fate. Finally, there’s Algenis Perez Soto in an incredible performance as the titular character as a young pitcher who has a gift for his pitching while hoping to succeed so he can get his family out of poverty but the demands of the game, the culture shock, and isolation would get to him as it’s an understated and mesmerizing performance from Soto.

Sugar is a phenomenal film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous images, an intoxicating soundtrack, and themes of isolation and culture shock, the film is a unique study of ambition and its fallacies as it relates to the idea of the American Dream. In the end, Sugar is a sensational film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.

Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck Films: Half Nelson - It’s Kind of a Funny Story – Mississippi Grind – Captain Marvel - The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck

© thevoid99 2018