Talk to Her
Pedro Almodovar is one of the best directors working today. He is constantly growing and producing beautiful, thoughtful and moving films. This one is about two men both of whom are in love with women who are in a coma and both of whose loves are, in the end, unrequited. There is realism and magic, the past interweaves with the present, there is sadness and redemption and the soundtrack is great. This is one of the best films of the past few years.
The Quiet American
This is an adaptation of the Graham Greene novel and like the book, the film is simple, straightforward, and wonderful. Michael Cain plays the journalist living in Vietnam. Caine and a young American (Michael Redgrave) vie for the love of a young Vietnamese woman and as the film unfolds we find out who the quiet American really is. This film like all of Greene's fiction transports you to another time and place.
American Splendor
This is a drama-documentary about Harvey Pekar, a filing clerk who ends up writing a comic strip about his own banal life. The film follows Harvey's life from his early days as record collector, the beginnings of his comic strip, finding his love, appearances on the David Letterman Show, his struggle with cancer, the adoption of his daughter and retirement his retirement from his post as clerk. This film is somewhat interesting and entertaining but not great.
In The Mood for Love
The latest film by Wong Kar-Wai tells the story of two next door neighbors in Hong Kong who slowly develop a relationship as they realize that their spouses are having an affair with each other. Like Kar-Wai's other films this one is highly stylistic, with choreographed camera work and editing, great care for costume and set design and a beautiful soundtrack. In fact the visual and audio experience of this movie is much better than the story itself.
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