Semi-Contrarian Takes on 'Alcarras', 'Bones and All', and 'Triangle of Sadness'
Sunday, October 9, 2022 at 6:45PM by Nathaniel R
BONES AND ALL © United Artists Releasing
Hello strangers. Yours truly has been moving apartments for the past few days hence the radio silence. But HQ (aka the desktop computer) is now plugged in, wifi connected, and ready to be of use again if the rest of me can similarly recharge. When was the last time you moved? It's a bitch, right? Bone tired and the whole body aches from packing and box lifting and such. Can't wait to talk about The Fabelmans and TÁR but first some quick takes on recent NYFF screenings the last of which (Triangle of Sadness) is just fabulous and now in theaters. Go see it!
BONES AND ALL
The latest flick from Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name) is an interesting experiment in fusing tender romantic drama with sickening gore...
Guadagnino continues to be a force behind the camera but why is he using his gifts for this? And so soon after the interesting but still wholly uneccessary remake of Suspiria? I fear we'll never get another I Am Love or even another A Bigger Splash. Art should not attempt to be for everyone so sometimes there are casualties. I must sadly file this under "definitely not for me" Still, Bones and All will definitely be for some including maybe you. The audience sitting around me at NYFF ate this up (sorry not sorry). They seemed especially enthused about Mark Rylance (in the film's only large supporting role) and Michael Stuhlbarg, one of many longish cameos which tend to be a feature of road trip movies. I thought both acclaimed actors were legimitately bad with broad and obvious "I'm a freak!" performances. Taylor Russell and Timothée Chalamet go in the opposite direction, avoiding easy-queasy monstrous tics and instead genuinely feel like two lonely drifting souls who just happen to also have an insatiable taste for human flesh. The direction, soundscape, cinematography, and leading players were all very effective but, no pun intended, it left a terrible taste in the mouth... particularly in its final predictable act. Elisa admired this in Venice and thought the cannibalism element was tasteful in that it wasn't fetishized. While the latter is true, I disagree; if the cannibalism itself is a metaphor for anything that might put someone on the margins of society (and isn't it?) with no way to really co-exist with their fellow man, do we really need to watch the eating? C+
Oscar Dreams: It would be shocking if this caught on with the Academy
Release: In a sick joke this opens for Thanksgiving. YUM.
ALCARRAS © MUBI in the US
ALCARRAS
Have you read Jason's piece on Spain's Oscar submission? It's a lovely reflective take that helped me appreciate the artistry of this film about a family of peach farmers who are losing their whole way of life. In other words it's the best kind of review! Carla Simon's movie is beautifully observed throughout with some sequences and shots that are still haunting. Still I admit I missed the tautness and potency that economically shaped and scripted dramas starring professional actors can often have. Though it's just 120 minutes the pacing doesn't quite work. Should it feel this leisurely and extended when thematically it's about holding tightly and desperately to something that's rapidly slipping away? B/B+
SAINT OMER
France's courtroom drama is about two women, one an Academic writing a book touching on the Medea myth and the other on trial in a tabloid-ready infanticide case. The plot suggests violent sensationalism and complex maternity themes but only the latter is present. Director Alice Diop refuses all sensationalism. Saint Omer conveys admirable thoughtfulness, intelligence, and challenging ambiquity...but it's very dry. Diop's documentary roots are evident in the way the plentiful drama often feels more told and recorded than shaped. Enormous scenes play out with long static shots often with little to no editorializing in the way of cuts, music, shot composition, or even within performance. All of which makes this more of a movie to think about than to feel along with. B
Oscar Dreams: Alcarras and Saint Omer arrive to the Oscar race for Best International Feature Film festooned with festival prizes. While their high profiles and quality could land them on the finalist list with a fighting chance for a nomination neither feel like locks; they're either too observational or too academic for typical Oscar glory. Could happen but might not.
Release: Both have US distribution but no release dates yet.
TRIANGLE OF SADNESS © Neon
TRIANGLE OF SADNESS
It's Exactly what you'd expect from Ruben Östlund (The Square, Force Majeure) and that's mostly a compliment. It's "THEMES" are in all caps but cleverly crafted. It leads to really big laughs through mass audience cringing. Finally, it's wildly entertaining, pleased with itself, and overlong; the lily will definitely be gilded.
It appears to be increasingly cool among cinephiles to dislike Ruben Östlund's pictures but I personally like them a lot. In some ways he makes himself an easy target for his haters. He picks very bougie first world problems and easy targets -- in this case the filthy rich, the dehumanizing effects of capitalism, and vapid social media emptiness. While I emphatically agree with the critique that he doesn't know when to stop (ALL of his films are 20-30 minutes too long... so that he can make the same points repeatedly and he'd maybe make a masterpiece if he could learn to self-edit). Neverthless I vehemently disagree that his films are facile and as shallow as their targets. And even if they were, they're hugely enjoyable, truly surprising, and wickedly cutting while shooting their barrel fish. Triangle of Sadness is another winner on par with the merciless masculine skewering of Force Majeure and art world provocations of The Square. Triangle of Sadness pulls off the very difficult trick of changing shape entirely for each of its three acts without losing any personality, cohesion, or humor, or sight of its primary targets. Harris Dickinson in the leading role of a malleable male model and Dolly De Leon as a luxury yacht's cleaning manager are the terrific MVPs from a large and game cast. A- /B+
Oscar Dreams: Some pundits consider this a longshot. Not me. I'm betting it will tickle the Academy's fancy. It may skewer the exact type of people that make up the Academy, but it's critiquing them from inside the house, one wealthy liberal capitalist to another, so it won't be off-putting. I'm currently banking on Picture, Director, and Screenplay citations. Dolly de Leon is a wildcard possibility in Best Supporting Actress for her resourceful, funny, and increasingly crucial performance.
Release: The limited release from NEON just began. GO SEE IT.
Alcarràs, Bones and All, NYFF, Oscars (22), Reviews, Saint Omer, Triangle of Sadness
Reader Comments (8)
You warned about your contrarianism in the title, and I feel very contradictory towards many of your thoughts on these films. So sad we disagree so thoroughly, but I guess variety is the spice of life and movie love.
"Should it feel this leisurely and extended when thematically it's about holding tightly and desperately to something that's rapidly slipping away?" - I couldn't disagree more. An observational film like this needs time to observe rather than prune life's rhythms to satisfy a judicious dramatic structure. The prolonged measured pace made me feel like the family. Like I'm trying to hold on to something slipping away, squeezing a fruit to get every possible drop. You can practically feel their nails on the ground, leaving track marks through the running time as they are dragged away to an inevitable conclusion. The leisure pace is an illusion that every character's reality contradicts, making one appreciate their connection to the land even as we know the peaceful communion is hollow. If this were a breezy fleet-footed affair, I'm afraid all that gravity and immersion would be gone. Moreover, I think the film would feel cruel - about the singular matter of the family's anxiety rather than their collective and individual aching loves.
Indeed, I can't quite comprehend how you can criticize ALCARRÁS' purposeful rhythms and then excuse away the bloated runtime of TRIANGLE OF SADNESS which, to me, includes one chapter too many in its structure, is repetitive as heck and doesn't even know how to transition from one episode to the next. It felt so long in the worst way possible. For the record, I don't criticize Östlund to be cool, but because I find his films lacking.
As for Guadagnino, since SUSPIRIA is my favorite of his films, I'm thrilled he's continuing to pursue similar tonalities in other works. Can't wait to watch BONES & ALL.
Since ALCARRÁS is one of my two favorite Best International Film submissions that I've seen, I'm curious to know if you'll feel similarly dissatisfied with my other top choice - Pakistan's JOYLAND. Like the Spanish submission, it's around two hours.
Happy housewarming, Nathaniel!
Looking forward to lots of traffic on my favorite Website.
I think Alcarrás can actually take Foreign Film... I also have Triangle of Sadness on my director shortlist, and as an able Picture contender (and Harrelson for Supporting, as filler nominee) and Original Screenplay... bad luck for Östlund that an all three categories, EEAAO seems the most viable option among the two, for wins.
Cláudio -- it'd be boring if everyone always agreed! But I do think you're not seeing the agreement we do have. I never excused Triangle of Sadness' bloated running time and actually made note that Ostlund's repetitiveness and bloated running times are what's holding him back from making masterpieces. So i think we *do* agree there. We just feel very differently about his work otherwise.
I can see what you're saying about Alcarras and I did think it was very good (B/B+ is a good grade in my world!). Regarding its pacing... maybe I saw it too early in the morning or something?
Finbar -- thank you! I'll try to get back to daily posting now.
Jesus - i agree that it's not going to win anything but i think multiple nominations are quite possible.
I HATE Ostlund, but that was an excellent review. It made me see why people actually like him, even though I think he makes 150 min SNL sketches. He'd be a great SNL writer, though.
Sorry, I'm with those that found TRIANGLE OF SADNESS an overlong heavy-handed "satire". Good satires actually have to be funny and have a point that isn't obvious.
I did like De Leon's performance, but it came too late and is far too little in the grand scheme of things.
I too liked, didn't love but liked, TRIANGLE OF SADNESS. I've also liked THE SQUARE and FORCE MAJURE and most especially Östlund's 2008 film INVOLUNTARY. I agree that there seems to be a fashionable distain for him developing. He probably doesn't deserve two Palme d'ors, but he is a talented man making watchable, relevant films. We're in an era of love and hate where there's no room for a film to be thought of as "pretty good" but that's what this is.
I moved from one side of the country to the other in March 2020.
I was frantically packing. The day after I flew out of that city’s airport, the city went into lockdown.
I was so happy and relieved to spend lockdown in my new place, that I liked and with people I loved. (And I didn’t even need an excuse to just rest and recoup).