O céu de Suely

After seeing O céu de Suely, a friend of mine declared, "This is Brazil." Another friend says the same thing about Bye Bye Brasil and I myself have gone so far as to say the same thing about O ano em que meus pais saíram de férias. In all three cases, I think we see films that don't exotify or objectify. Instead, they try to tell about life as it is and was, about changing societies and places where that change is truncated.

The friend who loved this film is, predictably, from a rural city, a place where the prostitutes do actually cost US$10 per trick and where there is almost no work and no way to get ahead if you do not start out with privilege. This friend's city is bigger than Suely's and thus has more opportunities, but the problems are the same, particularly for women. Tellingly, the same problems plague small towns in desolate areas throughout the world.

The story of Suely--the woman lured to the big city by love and ambition who returns to her home town only to discover that she cannot support herself and her child there--is not one of victimization so much as one of hope. From the outside, we feel bad for her and know that her future in the city where she still has no education and no job history on her work card is only slightly more hopeful than in the small town. Perhaps this is why Suely's belief in her ability to better herself is so touching and heartbreaking.

Milk

Milk is Sean Penn's film. In his role as the title character, Penn's performance is truly great; he is one of the few straight actors to "play gay" without going over the top or straying into stereotype. It is a careful and seamless performance that will be well-rewarded in the awards season.

That said, the film is not as great as Penn's performance. A typical biopic, it drags the audience around in Milk's life. Unfortunately, the presence of the writer's decisions is too present and the narrative decisions (both inclusions and exclusions) distract. There are also some points where the pace should be faster, particularly at the end when the film tries to build a dramatic tension for a finale that everyone expects. Perhaps the problem is that the writing in these parts seemed gratuitous and did not add to the events (as opposed to the King assassination in Talk to Me that was both heartbreaking and original even though this is one of the most storied events in recent history). Another problem was the writing of the supporting characters--both Diego Luna and Alison Pill suffer from parts that were terribly neglected and undeveloped. This is painfully obvious in the case of Luna's character who is hard to understand and perhaps should have been excluded if he wasn't going to be developed or understood. Furthermore, there is a curious dearth of drag queens in the Castro; although Milk's social circle did not include this population, the crowds should. I understand the desire not to cave to stereotypes, but the absence is unnerving.

Overall, totally worth seeing but not Van Sant's best.

Waitress

The best thing about Waitress is that it is essentially a movie about pie. Sometimes (particularly at the end) the pies were a little too florescent and it takes a non-cook to think that her chocolate would be cooked directly over the stove's flames instead of on a double boiler. Still, pie held an otherwise mediocre film together.

This is one of a string of 2007 films about unwanted pregnancies where the protagonists never consider abortions; in this one, the protagonist is lukewarm about the situation until the moment the baby is born, at which point she is delighted. The film is consistently too easy like this--wouldn't people have been concerned about her reaction (more than just giving her a baby book)? After the birth, wouldn't an asshole husband tried to control her via a custody battle? Is it too convenient that the prize for a pie contest is $25,000?

It is not that Waitress didn't provide some harmless entertainment; it did. Still, the plot was filled with holes and problematic elements that were too distracting to ignore.

Soshun (Early Spring)

This is one of the more ambivalent films that I have seen on modern life. Ozu's story of the "salary man" in postwar Tokyo addresses urbanization and gender without ever fully condemning modernity or older traditions such as miai or relations between men and women.

It is also a great film. The ambivalence works to keep the audience rapt in thoughtful interest as we question the demands that a husband makes on his wife and muse at his traditional (albeit chosen) home life and modern work and social life. Ozu also treats us to some breathtaking shots that could only be improved by a full-screen version of the DVD or a screening in a movie theater. Ozu proves that a character-driven urban drama can still feature excellent cinematography; perhaps modern filmmakers could learn from this.

I did not love the musical score and the timing of Sugiyama's transfer seems a bit unlikely, but this is generally on par with the very best films of the 1950s.

City of Men

Don't see it.

This film is a failed sequel to a miniseries that was rather captivating. In the film, however, the magic is gone as the writer stretches for a plot and the television style fails to convert to the big screen.

This was a total disappointment to anyone who didn't want the miniseries to end. Ultimately, they should have left well enough alone.

Carandiru

This film comes close to being an excellent piece of film making. Starting with a compelling plot and an ensemble cast that includes the likes of Wagner Moura, Lázaro Ramos, Gero Camilo, and Milton Gonçalves, Hector Babenco had all of the ingredients for success. Indeed, he pulls off quite a feat--he creates a textured view of life in a dreadful prison and the prisoners who wound up there. Few of the characters are particularly sympathetic, yet the viewer cares and is upset by the system that led to the situation in Brazilian penitentiaries, particularly the events at Carandiru.

The film does suffer from a certain look common in Globo novelas that is created by lighting, aesthetics, editing, and acting styles. This effect is not because the film is low budget--this is one of the most expensive Brazilian films ever made. Rather, it shows the effects that Globo has had on general taste and the styles and mannerisms of its stable of actors. This is fine for television--in my opinion, Globo has produced some of the most interesting and well-made soap operas in the world. That said, it grates in film. If you have any doubts, watch the trainwreck better known as Olga