henry's_cat Reviews

Himalaya (1999)

It's Yak-tastic!

[9/10 · 26 June 2002]

The Himalayas are the highest mountain range in the world, and people living the hard life in the mountain villages are steeped in tradition, still living the way that their ancestors have for hundreds of years, surviving by collecting the abundant salt and trading it for grain and other necessary supplies for surviving the long winter. Himalaya focuses on the village of Dolpo in a troubled time; the village chief has died whilst on a salt caravan and the community allegiances are split, as the chief's father, Tinle, wishes old tradition to be upheld and for his grandson, Passang, to take the position of chief, the younger generation of the village wish to be lead by the arrogant and able Karma. The village salt caravan is split, with the older villagers following Tinle and traditional methods, and the younger following Karma and his youthful strength, Passang is torn between the love of his grandfather and the need for a father figure like Karma and through the following of the salt caravan we see their relationships developing and changing.

Himalaya is entirely shot on location in Nepal, and although it seems that it's hard not to make a beautiful film in such an inspiring part of the planet, Himalaya is visually incredible, really giving a sense of enormity of the mountains and the rugged nature of the terrain and the people. One of the most memorable scenes of recent cinema takes place as the caravan travels along a tiny crumbling trail high above a lake, crisp, sharp textures and vibrant colours draw you in and give immense feeling to the scene, piqued by the sense of danger as they slowly work their way along.

Excellent cinematography and direction, assisted by a great soundtrack, have lead to an essentially unmissable film, one of the best and most engaging movies about the region, truly an epic journey.

It also features lots of hairy yaks, it's yak-tastic.

Come and See (1985)

A beautiful and Painful film

[9/10 · 4 February 2001]

This is one of the first films that truly shocked and scared me, as it is really terrifying in its plain brutality and stark portrayal of the second world war from a very human perspective. The shell shock scenes are some of the most poignant that I can remember seeing.

An excellent but harrowing film, highly recommended.

Unbreakable (2000)

Very disappointing from a plot perspective

[4/10 · 2 January 2001]

Unbreakable is a film that pushes the limits of plausible plot lines, and in doing so tries far too hard to make itself sensible, when it is dealing with what is essentially a ridiculous idea. Don't take it that I dislike the genre of fantasy (I loved X-Men), but I like it to be visibly so, without pretencions of psychological depth and insight, this simply felt extremely underwhelming.

Even though the film is very disappointing from a plot perspective, the camerawork is impressive in general with several particularly nice shots (especially through the billowing curtains in the bedroom scene). Bruce Willis is reasonable as the brooding David, basically re-enacting the role from the sixth sense, of a man with an uncertain past needing to participate in a voyage of self discovery before he can realize his destiny.

It lulled me into a sense of expectation from trailers, posters and the Sixth Sense, which it then unfortunately betrayed by being a film that was shallow and unengaging. I expected an intelligent thriller with an interesting twist but got a very slow, pretentious comic book.

After Life (1998)

Beautiful.

[9/10 · 1 January 2001]

Afterlife is another film offering an answer to the unanswerable question "What happens after you die? ". Although this has been asked many times through cinema in the past, few films have answered as elegantly as Afterlife.

Directly after dying the departed are received by a group of counsellors who assist them in finding what was, for them, the most beautiful and perfect, single experience of their lives. For some the choice is easy and they are instantly able to provide the moment, which, once recreated by technicians, they remain in forever but the majority of the film concentrates upon those who are unable to find their perfect moment, and need extra help to recall past loves and lost days of their youth. The institution has the perfect means to assist this choice, with the complete life of everyone on grainy home-video, perhaps a comment on the tehcnology and recording-obsessed Japanese.

Many of the scenes are visually exceptional, especially those in the snow and everything seems very real, and, ironically, down-to-earth, especially the school building being used throughout the film giving an institutional feeling, but the interaction between the staff is where the film holds its true strength. Especially interesting is the relationship between Shiori, a newly employed worker, and Mochizuki, her mentor, which develops throughout. The film is slow to start due to the documentary style often used, but proceeds in an enveloping manner holding your attention to the end. Along with "Heaven can wait" and "Beetlejuice" this film offers another novel look at life, death and the hereafter.

The Japanese title was "Wandafuru raifu" (wonderful life, after Frank Capra) and, even though the film is dealing with death, it is a statement of how wonderful life is.

I loved this film and it stuck me stunningly and reminded me of how good films can be when they try.

The City of Lost Children (1995)

The Surreal Jeunet and Caro rule supreme

[10/10 · 29 November 2000]

Once upon a time an inventor having no wife or child decided to create them in his test tubes. His wife was to be a beautiful princess but alas an evil genetic fairy took hand and she was born a minikin. Next he cloned six fine sons in his own image but fate cheated him again and a sleeping sickness took them. Needing a confidante he grew a brain in an aquarium, plagued by migraines. Finally came his masterpiece a man of supreme intelligence, alas this creation also had a fault, an inability to dream. This made the man so unhappy that he grew old unimaginatively quickly, so crazed did he become that he believed that one tear would save him, after a life of cruelty he died in agony never having known a dream.

Thus unfolds the story of the City of Lost Children as relayed by, the brain, uncle Irvin. The evil genius Krank (Daniel Emilfork) is stealing children's dreams in an attempt to lengthen his own dwindling life, but success is elusive as Krank turns dream to nightmare. One (Ron Perlman) loses his 'little brother' to Krank and, aided by Miette (Judith Vittet) a female artful dodger, he sets out to recover him.

Jeunet and Caro have created a visual masterpiece in the City of Lost Children, with beautiful sets, a warped fusion of docklands and fairground, and outstanding costumes by Jean Paul Gaultier. The film is as surreal as their previous collaboration, Delicatessen, the City of Lost Children is less adult in theme but it is no less unsettling. The films share many actors, notably Dominique Pinon, the handyman, who plays the six sons of the inventor, and Jean-Claude Dreyfus, who played the cannibal butcher in Delicatessen, as Marcello the opium addicted circus master. After the supremely disappointing Alien Resurrection, also directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, this is a masterpiece, visually reminiscent of Peter Greenaways The Cook the Thief his Wife and her Lover.

Like a twisted dream of a nineteenth century industrial fairground, viewed through the distorted mirror of Jeunet and Caro's imagination, The City of lost Children is a fantastic film and essential viewing.