ksie_15241 Reviews

Au hasard Balthazar (1966)

Simply, A Wonderful Film

[9/10 · 22 August 2005]

A truly unique work in cinema. It is simply amazing that a story that is, on the surface, mostly about the life of a donkey can cause you to ponder the mysteries and ironies of life and fate. Bresson created here a model of how to say more with less. The final scene of this film is illustrative of this in its extraordinary ability to deeply move the viewer with only a bare minimum of directorial touch.

The plot lines of Au Hasard Balthazar at times seem forced, sometimes confusing the viewer, and often leaving the characters' motivations unexplained. This matters little, however, because they all follow the same theme that one's actions, explainable or not, are often just a reaction to the environment within which we are placed. The human characters and the donkey are one. Just as Balthazar must succumb to the whims of his owners, so are we humans often just surviving, and submitting to, the actions of those who control us. The film is in many ways a rumination about the free will actually afforded us in life. A key scene is between Marie and the miserly farmer (winemaker?), where the latter expounds upon his philosophy. Money and self-confidence are the keys for him because they allow a certain autonomy that lets him do as he pleases. Money, or the lack thereof, is depicted in several instances as often replacing true morality or spirituality in the characters' lives.

Another scene that mesmerizes (there are several) is when Balthazar is pulling the circus-animal feeding cart through the cage area. The soundless shots of the donkey making eye contact with the other animals is brilliantly done (again with little camera flourish). They seem to be communicating silently with only their gazes, which say "here we are, this is our fate". Extremely affecting, and staggering in its simplicity.

This is a film to be watched again and then again, and then again. In one of the DVD extra features, film scholar Donald Ritchie states that he has seen Balthazar many times, yet he still cries during the ending. I believe this and understand it. Credos to Criterion for resurrecting this classic, and for again doing such a fine production job.

Ciao Manhattan (1972)

Worth buying if you get the Anniversary DVD

[6/10 · 23 February 2005]

This film is interesting only to anyone familiar with the saga of Edie Sedgwick. And it seems a bit ghoulish/voyeuristic to admit watching it for that reason. Although it's often claimed to be a biography of Edie, the film really is just a painful look at a person in the final stages of mental illness-drug addiction. She died soon after filming completed, which is no surprise.

The plot of Ciao is pretty garbled by the storyline involving the character Mr. Vedecchio. The director's commentary explains that Vedecchio was only added to the movie because during shooting the rest of the cast disappeared and there was nothing else to do but beef-up this role. In fact, the whole movie is a cut-and-paste of pre-meltdown Edie (black and white footage) and post-meltdown Edie (color), with Vedecchio and Paul America tossed into the mix. The color section also introduces Butch, the drifter from Texas, who does provide some much-needed comedy.

Although Ciao, Manhattan might not be particularly entertaining on its own, the DVD extras in the Anniversary package are wonderful, and to me made the disc worth purchasing. The directors' (and Butch/Wesley's!) commentary provides the story of how this movie "directed itself", and informs much about Edie and her state of mind during the last days of her life. There is quite a bit of extra footage from the Warhol-NYC days, and some terrific stills of Edie. A nice booklet is also included.

Mother Kusters Goes to Heaven (1975)

Vintage Fassbinder with his exceptional cast company

[11 October 2004]

Another of Fassbinder's 'man's cruelty to man' films, Mother Kusters features the wonderful Bridgit Mira in the title role. She is superb, delivering a wonderfully restrained and poignant performance. Other Fassbinder regulars also appear including Karl Heinz-Bohm (in one of his trademarked icy-sophisticate roles), Margit Carstensen (excellent also as another of Fassbinder's self-absorbed characters) and Ingird Caven (oozing all over the screen brilliantly as a Dietrich-esque singer). All of the Fassbinder films I have seen contain strong female roles, and this movie is certainly no exception. The relationship here between Mira and Caven, as mother and daughter, is particularly interesting, yet not really explored sufficiently.

WARNING: PLOT SPOILERS

The early part of this story deals with the death of Frau Kusters' husband, and the initial repercussions. At first it seems that the movie is to be an indictment of the press. Reporters and photographers immediately swoop-down onto the Kusters family, invading their privacy and mourning, in search of a fantastic story about a homicidal maniac. They sensationalize everything the family tells them about Hermann Kusters, and do indeed print an inaccurate, exaggerated portrait of this simple family man.

But the exploitation of Mother Kusters goes even farther. First, it is her family. They are basically indifferent to their father's passing, and seem to have little concern about their mother's grief. The singer daughter (Caven) even goes so far as to use the sensationalism of the incident to further her career. It is here that a prior conflict between Corrina and her parents is hinted. The singer seems to have some empathy with her mother, and perhaps some deep-rooted issue with her father. But this is never quite explained or explored. Nevertheless, Mother Kusters seems to be alone in showing any respect for her dear departed.

The film then takes a subtle but surprising direction. Whereas the story to this point has dealt with emotional exploitation, Fassbinder introduces a political bend. A seemingly caring couple turn out to be members of the Communist Party. Their interest in the widow is as a symbolic example of the exploitation of the worker. The political angle of the story works surprisingly well, and is taken further with the introduction of anarchists, who of course also wish to use Frau Kusters for their own means.

The DVD version I have contains two endings. The first was apparently never filmed, and is instead shown in a summarized script format. The second was obviously tacked-on at a later date (everyone looks different), for American audiences. This is curious. Although upbeat ('happy'), the second ending is inferior and really rings untrue to the rest of the story. Did Fassbinder really feel this made the movie more saleable, or was this a corporate dictate? The endings' confusion aside, this is an excellent film.

Fassbinder once again explores deeply his usual (apparently personal) themes of emotional exploitation, cruelty, and the the political drama of post WWII Germany. Highly recommended!

Christiane F. (1981)

Not the full story but a very good film

[7/10 · 11 October 2004]

I read the book first. As mentioned several times below, the film is unable to provide much depth to several key characters (the mother especially), and avoids mention of several, ultimately failed, attempts at rehabilitation. Nonetheless, I enjoyed this film. The acting is quite incredible given that these were basically amateurs. In addition, the use of music, the locations and the special effects (I hope they were special effects!) are all done quite well. I've visited Berlin twice, and the movie excellently captures the flavor of this immense, intimidating city.

While I understand how the time limitations of a movie restrict the depth of the screenplay, I also believe the ending could have been handled better. The recuperation period in the country provides, in the book, a much broader understanding of the power of addiction, and of the mindset that much take root to defeat it. Ten or fifteen additional minutes of screen time could have greatly expanded the film's scope.