La La Land
“The constructs of organized thought are all around us, the golden age will come when they are freed.”
― Tom Althouse
I don't like this movie for all the wrong reasons. I don't hate it, I like the music and there were three scenes I loved (the first, the last and the song during the central audition), but these things I didn't care for:
a. I'm really getting tired of Ryan Goslling trying to do every genre. I don't like him in half the stuff he attempts, and while I think he plays this role and sings just fine, he just irritates me and he's in 2/3 of the scenes.
b. To see Gosling and Stone try to be Astaire and Rogers in one scene really highlighted how much they are not anywhere close to being a triple threat. They are actors who sing and dance adequately. But if you are going to be doing a classic Hollywood musical, adequate just won't do.
c. I just saw Moana the day before, and that's a great musical. Better music, better connection between the music and the characters/plot without repeating what they already experienced. La La Land seemed lackluster in comparison.
3/5
The Handmaiden
“... in practice the standard for what constitutes rape is set not at the level of women's experience of violation but just above the level of coercion acceptable to men.”
― Judith Lewis Herman
There was a lot to like about Stoker and Thirst, but they were both missing something. They were visually stunning and fascinating ideas, but they weren't the Park Chan Wook I loved.
The Handmaiden is his return to form. This is the director that made the Vengeance trilogy, but with a whole new set of skills to play with.
This film is deeply beautiful, somewhat thoughtful, but most importantly, incessantly playful. It is laugh out loud funny, even while it is giving us disturbing scenes and images. Our laughter is uncomfortable, but more powerful for that. And the twists made me think of a Gone Girl presented well, not just for the shock, but to consider the concepts, the characters. A character doesn't change just because you learn something new about them.
This film will certainly be one of my favorites of the year. I don't know that it will be my favorite, though. There are a number to choose from.
4.5/5