DEAR WENDY

Denmark / France / Germany / UK. Directed by Thomas Vinterberg, 2005.

Date: Sep 28th, 2005. Format: Film. Surrounding: Niagara, Tampere.

My friend was on a visit to my place before I biked to Niagara at 11 pm screening. We had drunk a couple of beers and a few shots of Jameson, so my concentration skills were not on top while watching this von Trier (scriptwriter) & Vinterberg collaboration. So, I'm not so sure to decide whether von Trier succeeds this time in his familiarly icecold approach to American way of living. This is of course an original look at how easily the gun culture will blind some young uncertain people, who may have also had to face some traumatizing experiences. So, that's already the reason, why this is more intelligent tale of the modern day America than the easygoing Bowling for Columbine. What I particularly liked was the battle scene in the end. It's shot in the good old western way, but because the characters, both the youngsters and the polices, seem so real, live and flesh, in their heroism, it looks that they are living in some myth more than reality, which we instead - should - represent in our seats. I definitely would like to see this with more sober head. There was a lot of black in the picture, but it looked like a laptop screen - was the problem in the film or at the screen of Niagara? Actually, this has bothered me sometimes before in that theatre, which is very dear to me. ***

KATAKURI-KE NO KÔFUKU

Japan. Directed by Takashi Miike, 2001.

Date: Sep 25th, 2005. Format: Dvd. Surrounding: Liisankatu, Tampere.

The Sound of Music must be one of the dumbest musicals ever made, but to be unpredictably yours - Edelweiss was the first song I ever sang in karaoke. That happened last April at the middle of the day in Ale Pub located in Tampere railway station building. It's relieving to see there's also a Japanese shock homage made to that 1960's semi-innocent family film. This is the definitive far out version of the happy nazi musical, a future cult classic perhaps. The eversweet Katakuris family is running a mountain hotel. The first customer commits suicide. The next one is a sumowrestler who's got a room date with an underaged girlfriend. The forest behind the hotel is soon full of diggins.. The film becomes a psychedelic ode to life with all its joys and troubles. We never know what happens next, and it's obvious that's just how Miike sees life as whole. If you weren't shocked by Audition, you might have a great chance with this. ****

PALINDROMES

USA. Directed by Todd Solondz, 2004.

Date: Sep 24th, 2005. Format: Film. Surrounding: Niagara, Tampere.

I happened to see this a few hours after I was visiting an opening of the art exhibition of my friend in Taidekeskus Mältinranta. It was sort of triple bill in the museum; there were works of two other artists too. Earlier this year, on Jan 7th, I paid a visit to an opening of the exhibition of this same artist as well. It was in a gallery ran by my other friend, but it doesn't exist anymore. A lot of other things have changed after that as well. That night in the beginning of the year led to a good thing for me, because after we had drunk in bars with the gallery owner, I ended up in a magical follow-up party. After that event began a both confusing and beautiful springtime, but that's another story. This was quite an exceptional night too; before, after and in the exhibition I met many of the girls whom I sometimes, years ago, had some little thing going on with. I was quite surprised about this and thinking, does this have some kind of meaning? Why do they all pop up to me now? So, Palindromes, as a teenage flick for adults, was a kind of exact film to watch in a day like this. I adore Solondz's way to deal with banal people and their weaknesses so peacefully and without irony. Of course it seems like irony but when we look deeper into his characters, it isn't. He cares of them. This is not a masterpiece, though. There are too many poor scenes. But the weird idea to use 12 different-aged actresses in the main role, a 13-year old girl who wants to get pregnant, works surprisingly - or should I say brechtingly - well. When Jennifer Jason Leigh watches almost straight to camera, and she has a line: "Pedophiles love children", it seems she might be thinking, that oh my god, what am I saying! ****

SEPARATE TABLES

USA. Directed by Delbert Mann, 1958.

Date: Sep 23rd, 2005. Format: Dvd. Surrounding: Home, Tampere.

We get to know a bunch of uncertain people here; people who feel themselves unable to live like they would like. They are staying at hotel in Bournemouth. The most interesting inhabitants include the neurotic major (David Niven) who is protecting an embarrassing secret from others, the decent and tender girl (Deborah Kerr) who's heart beats for major but is put down by his moralistic mother (Gladys Cooper), the alcoholist (Burt Lancaster) who has a love affair with the hotel's sort-of-realistic owner (Wendy Hiller) and is visited by his former, very beautiful but sad wife (Rita Hayworth). A real dream cast! I've always loved these kind of films where depressed people spend their time in a closed space and really talk and talk talk until they have to open their hearts. And you don't always have to adapt Tennessee Williams for that! The ending is quite optimistic, and there's no reason why it shouldn't be. These characters belong to each other. ****½