Thursday, December 5, 2013

Madison Film Forum: See Claire Denis' Bastards @ Spotlight Cinema, Dec 5, 7pm

Well, this is cutting it a little close as a review for Madison audiences, but I strongly encourage folks to venture down to see Bastards, the final installment of the current series for the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art's Spotlight Cinema, tonight (Thursday, December 5) at 7:00 p.m.  You may recall my earlier post about their screening of Museum Hours, and programmers Tom Yoshikami and Mike King continue to do a great job bringing in films that deserve longer commercial runs in Madison.

Claire Denis has had a prolific career since her directorial debut, Chocolate, in 1988.  I think my favorite of her films has been Beau Travail from 1999, which combined a deliberate pace with attention to textures and details. I also admired her art-horror film Trouble Every Day (2001) with Vincent Gallo, which for one reason or another remains difficult to access on video in the U.S. At the moment her 2009 feature, White Material, is available on Netflix Watch Instantly.

Bastards (or Les Salauds) starts with an elliptical sequence of a man in his office during a rain storm. In its simplicity, the shot of the man standing in the foreground as the rain falls heavily outside the window in the background is one of the most gorgeous shots I've seen in a while. The opening sequence also sets the stage for the kind of work the audience will have to do to piece together cues provided in a more cryptic style of visual storytelling. We quickly piece together that the man has committed suicide, and that his daughter Justine (Lola Créton) has been mysteriously traumatized. In another elliptical sequence we meet the main protagonist of the film, Marco (Vincent Lindon), who learns of the death of his best friend and brother-in-law and abandons his position as a cargo ship captain to return to his sister and his traumatized niece. The best parts of the opening act of Bastards work almost like a Jean-Pierre Melville thriller: spare dialogue, characters focused on quick, distinct actions, and just enough room for the audience put all the pieces together.

Marco learns from his sister, Sandra (Julie Bataille) that she suspects the wealthy Edouard Laporte (Michel Subor) of using her daughter as a kind of sex slave. A month later, Marco moves into an apartment in the building where Laporte lives with his mistress Raphaëlle (Chiara Mastroianni) and their young son. It doesn't take long for Marco and Raphaëlle to notice each other. In one great sequence, Marco leans over to help the young boy fix his bicycle chain, and Raphaëlle notices the muscles thinly veiled under Marco's expensive white shirt. One of the several strengths of Bastards is the great chemistry between Lindon and Mastrioanni; their characters have the kind of intense sexual energy that only unhappy people can share.

The balance of the movie follows Marco as he investigates what happened to Justine and possibly contemplates some kind of revenge against Laporte. In the process, Marco must sacrifice almost everything he cares about to reconnect with a family that he had deliberately distanced himself from years ago. What he discovers is perhaps needlessly over-the-top. Denis seems to have a preoccupation with violently traumatized vaginas; I recall two women jumping out of their seat and immediately leaving the theater during a particularly gory scene in Trouble Every Day.  And the ending might be a bit too perfect a fusion of art film ambiguity and film noir genre conventions. But throughout the film you feel like you are being guided by a talented visual storyteller and her committed cast working in peak form.





Container ship captain Marco Silvestri is called urgently back to Paris. His sister, Sandra, is desperate; her husband has committed suicide, the family business has gone under, her daughter has been admitted into psychiatric care. Sandra accuses the powerful businessman Edouard Laporte of being responsible. Determined to find the businessman's weak spot and exact a terrible revenge for the violence done to his family, Marco moves into the building where Laporte's mistress, Raphaëlle, lives with her son.








Maria is a White farmer who runs a failing coffee plantation in an unnamed African country in the present day. Civil war has broken out and rebel soldiers, many of them child soldiers, are advancing on the area. Rebels on the radio advocate attacks on emblems of colonialism. Maria's workers leave, but she refuses to abandon the plantation, and searches for men to finish harvesting of the coffee.






14 comments:


  1. I wasn't sure Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen--or any actor, for that matter--could play such an iconic character without being overshadowed by its grand progenitor (i.e., Hopkins), however "Hannibal" is so beautifully written, acted and directed that it transcends the inevitable comparisons. Happy death day Hopkins played Lecter with hellish glee. He was the serial killer as prankster, a thinking man's Joker without the facial scars. the devil's candy Mikkelsen's Lecter is quieter and deadlier. He's almost like an alien predator, or a velociraptor in human form. When he smiles, you're probably about to die. Mikkelsen is chilling, funny, and blazingly brilliant. He totally makes the role his own, but that's not to take anything away from Anthony Hopkins. Asking who makes the better Lecter is like asking who's the best Dracula, Lugosi or Lee. They're both great, they're just different. Happy death day 2017

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your regular Amazon shopping could get you awesome FREE Luxurious Gifts.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your regular Amazon shopping could get you awesome FREE Luxurious Gifts.

    ReplyDelete
  4. paypal log in: We have mentioned the step-by-step PayPal create and login procedure. Thus, after going through this blog, you would create your account and perform paypal login without any issue.

    ReplyDelete
  5. You can of course see your expertise in the work you write.
    The industry needs more passionate writers like you who are not afraid to speak up for their beliefs.
    Followed your heart
    manycam pro crack
    ptgui pro crack
    fl studio crack
    autodesk revit crack

    ReplyDelete
  6. I generally like the blog and I really respect your content.
    Phrases are my favorite.
    I will bookmark your site and continue to explore new data.v
    windows 11 crack
    windows 11 download
    braina pro crack
    malwarebytes anti malware crack keygen

    ReplyDelete
  7. Paypal login: Paypal is an online payment platform that allows users to pay for items with the help of a protected internet account. You can pay to any other platform by simply adding your bank account, credit card, or debit card details. Then, You have to choose which of your cards or accounts it pays with. You can also set one to be the default payment method. From big brands to little boutiques, you can shop safely at millions of online stores with PayPal login.
    paypal login

    aka.ms/remoteconnect allows users to play the Minecraft game at home with other people with devices such as a computer, PSP other than their own. With the help of The aka.ms/remoteconnect website. Users can easily run Minecraft on the PS4, Nintendo Switch for the best playing experience without any error if the Individual does not have any Microsoft systems.
    Aka.ms/Remoteconnect

    ReplyDelete
  8. I use this software myself, and no flaws or faults have been discovered, thus I believe it is the greatest option.
    Multiple language skills and support have been really beneficial to me.
    abelssoft tagman crack
    hma provpn crack
    veritas system recovery crack

    ReplyDelete
  9. Obrigado por este site. Eu aprecio seu trabalho. muito bom eu tenho um site que muda sua fonte no Insta, Facebook, Snapchat, e outras redes sociais se você quiser mudar seu nome de usuário Visite Letras

    ReplyDelete
  10. Bittrex is a global leader in the blockchain revolution. We operate the premier U.S.-based blockchain trading platform, which is designed for customers who demand lightning-fast trade execution, dependable digital wallets, and industry-leading security practices.
    Independence Mag!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Le joli site contient vraiment des choses ici, mais si vous voulez convertir un fichier dans n'importe quel format, voici un site appelé fusionnerPDF Le format est pratique pour enregistrer des fichiers qui ne nécessitent pas d'édition mais qui sont faciles à imprimer et à partager. Si vous avez tendance à modifier un fichier protégé par copyright pour cela, consultez ce site fusionner en PDF

    ReplyDelete
  12. I was reading your article and noticed if you had considered creating an ebook on this subject.Your gathering and lead unconventional task to have these outstanding contents of emulator so lick and get best ds emulator for pc

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow! I think this is one of the most significant information for me. My friend suggest me this site very helpful and i think you also check the site. puTTY is an open source software tool that provides a secure connection to your computer securely via SSH and telnet. puTTY
    is a free software package that helps you connect to a Unix like computer from the windows operating system.

    ReplyDelete