Day: November 5, 2013

The Iranian New Wave: LFM Reviews Dead End

By Joe Bendel. It sounds creepy, but it was not uncommon practice for Iranian men to follow prospective wives as part of their due diligence. The men were supposed to be cautious and the women were supposed to be grateful. One revolution later, certain things remain the same, if not more so. As a result, one young woman jumps to conclusions when she recognizes a distinguished looking man haunting her street in Parviz Sayyad’s Dead End, which screens during the Asia Society’s Iranian New Wave 1960’s-1970’s film retrospective.

Pretty but hopelessly naïve, the young woman living with her widowed mother has strangely not received much attention from marriageable men. Initially, she is somewhat confused when she notices the tall mystery man loitering outside their flat. Since they live on the titular dead end street, there is not much to bring him to their neighborhood. Assuming he has honorable intentions, she quickly starts fantasizing about their potential union. However, Sayyad constantly slips viewers hints the unmarried woman’s hopes will not be consummated.

Considered a not-so veiled critique of the Shah’s rule, Dead End remains banned by the Islamist regime. It is not hard to see why, given its overt themes of surveillance. There is also a rather biting subtext regarding gender inequalities that is even more subversive under the Revolutionary government.

From "Dead End."

There is indeed plenty of open anger in Dead End, but it never sacrifices the highly personal drama for the sake of polemics. This is first and foremost the woman’s story, as painful and demoralizing as we expect it will be. Mary Apik’s lead performance is exquisitely sensitive, conveying a lifetime of disappointments and the acute vulnerability of her circumstances. It is a necessarily restrained performance, but it is hard to shake its quiet power. In contrast, Parviz Bahador projects an apt air of danger, yet is also quite charismatic in a coolly severe sort of way as the man following her.

While Jamsheed Akrami’s Lost Cinema provides some useful cultural context to fully appreciate Dead End, patrons should also bear in mind it gives away the emotionally devastating final twist. Still, many scenes take on additional significance when viewers know what fate ultimately holds in store for the woman. Regardless, both films are fitting selections for the Asia Society’s Iranian New Wave film series. In fact, Dead End is arguably a classic of world cinema that unquestionably ought to be more widely seen. Highly recommended, it screens this Saturday (11/9) with Sayyad and Akrami scheduled to participate in a Q&A session afterwards.

LFM GRADE: A

Posted on November 5th, 2013 at 11:11pm.

Because Life Wasn’t Weird Enough Without It: LFM Reviews The Visitor

By Joe Bendel. Atlanta is a sinful city, where every damn street is called Peachtree. A cosmic warrior has come to straighten things out here. He will do battle with the pre-pubescent girl who has made the world such a crummy place in the ever-so strange 1979 Italian-produced sci-fi knock-off, The Visitor, directed by Giulio Paradisi as Michael J. Paradise, which has been re-mastered and re-released by Drafthouse Films.

In a dimension “beyond imagination,” a mysterious old man seeks out the remnants of the evil Sateen, a demonic entity he vanquished eons ago. Evidently, some of his old foe’s essence ended up on earth, specifically within Barbara Collins’s ancestors. She is one of the rare carriers who can give birth to his malevolent offspring. Unfortunately, she already has one child, the dreadful little Katy. Her boyfriend Raymond Armstead is pressuring her to get married and have more children, because he is part of an apocalyptic secret society that frequently holds awkward board meetings devoted to promoting evil. Collins resists, ostensibly for the sake of her freedom. However, she is also instinctively against anything Katy is for.

You might think the bad guys would do anything to protect the birthing abilities of the only woman who can deliver Sateen’s bad seeds. Well, obviously you are not part of an international satanic cult. Poor Collins is shot, partially paralyzed, run off the road, and attacked by a falcon. Yet, despite all the stress, her skin remains remarkably clean and radiant. As Armstead and Katy plot against her, the gaunt Jerzy Colsowicz arrives to do battle with Sateen’s spawn. That’s right, it’s a frail septuagenarian versus an eight year-old, so get ready to rumble.

It goes without saying The Visitor is a strange film. Everyone compares it to The Omen and Close Encounters, but Paradisi/Paradise probably rips-off The Birds more than anything else. For whatever reason, bird attacks seem to be the weapon of choice for good guys and bad guys alike. It is just plain baffling anyone thought this film could cash in on the late 1970’s sci-fi craze, but it boasts a truly once-in-a-lifetime cast, including John Huston (the John Huston), Lance Henriksen, Glenn Ford, Franco Nero (uncredited as the Christ-like figure), Shelley Winters, Switchblade Sisters’ Joanne Nail, Mel Ferrer, Sam Peckinpah (the Sam Peckinpah), and future Libertarian radio talk show host Neal Boortz. Get your head around that ensemble.

Frankly, Huston looks rather bemused in each of his scenes as Colsowicz and it is a good bet he never even bothered to watch the finished product. Ford and Winters soldier through like the old pros they are, playing the cop and the nanny, respectively. Eventual fan favorite Henriksen also shows an early affinity for scenery chewing as Armstead. In truth, aside from maybe Huston and Nero, nobody really phoned The Visitor in, but it is anyone’s guess what they thought they were doing in this convoluted, New Agey plot. There are times the film appears to be conceived as a showcase for Atlanta’s modernist architecture, which makes as much sense as any other explanation.

Visitor’s special effects are crude and confusing, even by 1970’s standards, but in its straight-forward dramatic scenes, the picture looks surprisingly slick. Naturally, even the music “borrows” from another film, but it must be conceded Franco Micallizzi’s riff on Strauss’ “Zarathustra” is oddly catchy, in a funky (arranger) David Matthews-Kudu Records kind of way.

If you don’t get The Visitor by now, you’re on your own. If you enjoy completely cracked cult cinema, this is your catnip. Impressive in its way, The Visitor demands to be seen to be believed. Recommended for those who can appreciate the sheer defiant spectacle of it all, The Visitor screens this weekend (11/8 & 11/9) at the IFC Center in New York.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on November 5th, 2013 at 11:08pm.

Another Sleepless Night in Paris: LFM Reviews Paris Countdown

By Joe Bendel. Victor and Milan ought to stick to slinging drinks. Delivering a shipment of cash to a Mexican cartel predictably turns out to be really bad way to work off their debts. It leads to all kinds of problems in Edgar Marie’s Paris Countdown, which opens this Friday in New York.

It was all Milan’s fault and Victor is not about to forget it. Forced to accompany his partner to Juarez, Victor gets the worst of it when the Federales bust their hand-off. After a rough interrogation session, they are “convinced” to testify against their French contact, the psychotic Serki, whom the nightclub proprietors know will come looking for revenge if he ever gets out of prison. That is exactly what happens six years later.

Victor has not talked to Milan since their Mexican misadventure. He still bears the scars and the hearing aid from his close encounter with a power drill. Yes, he is carrying a grudge, so when Wilfried, his mobbed-up sushi restauranteur colleague, offers him the chance to set-up Milan, he matter-of-factly agrees. However, Victor finds betrayal is far more difficult once he comes face-to-face with his former friend again. Against his better judgment, Victor will flee into the night with Milan, trying to stay one step ahead of Wilfried’s henchmen and the slightly put-out Serki.

From "Paris Countdown."

Countdown is aesthetically reminiscent of several recent French noirs, including Frederic Jardin’s more action-oriented Sleepless Night and Philippe Lefebrve’s massively cool, character-driven Paris By Night. In terms of style, Countdown essentially splits the difference between the two. Frankly, it is not as accomplished as either, but it still has its merits. In fact, the world-weariness of its primary protagonists and general vibe of nocturnal angst are quite compelling. Neither Milan nor Victor is any sort of action hero. Clearly, both are physically past their prime, struggling to deal with their night of madness.

Olivier Marchal (the director of the similarly hardboiled 36th Precinct) is appropriately haggard yet appealing roguish as the exceptionally irresponsible Milan. Jacques Gamblin clearly has less fun as Victor, but he is convincingly nebbish as the sad sack. Unfortunately, Carlo Brandt’s Serki looks even older and more broken down than they do, making him a problematic villain.

As a thriller, Countdown has enough atmosphere and attitude to get the job done. For his feature directorial debut, Marie shows a competent command of the elements, but the MVPs are clearly Marchal and cinematographer Danny Elsen, who gives it a fitting Miami Vice-like sheen. Recommended for fans of French thrillers, Paris Countdown opens this Friday (11/8) in New York at the Cinema Village.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on November 5th, 2013 at 11:05pm.