ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

Charlotte Rampling

Juniper: Breaking Through a Broken Heart

by

Directed by Matthew J. Saville, Juniper tells the story of Sam (George Ferrier), a teenager struggling with self-destructive behavior. When he?s finally suspended from school, his frustrated father Robert (Marton Csokas) demands that he cares for his ailing (but alcoholic) grandmother Ruth (Charlotte Rampling). Ruth is a fiery woman who refuse to play by the rules but, as Sam grows closer to her, the two begin to find the best in each other? and themselves.

With some surprising fire and fury, Juniper is a heartwarming film about the power of learning how to live and the joy that it can spark in one another. Saville tells a simple story that puts the emphasis entirely on his performers. This becomes a wise decision as what ultimately sparks the film is an incredible performance by Rampling. As the gruff and grumpy granny, Rampling may have a stern face but we also believe that she is covering up a warm heart. Although her sharp demeanour attempts to keep most people away, Rampling slowly allows us to see through the cracks to the heart of a lonely woman, crippled by regret. Rampling always does a good job of bringing humility your characters, but she does a particularly good job here of creating empathy for this lovable curmudgeon.

At its heart, Juniper is a story of broken people, grappling with loss. For this family, trauma is a generational problem, and it has left scars on them all. Ruth has never been able to truly settle her soul in a relationship. Robert struggles with issues of abandonment and fear, despite having his mother in his life. Of course, this extends to Sam who also feels disconnected within his own home. At each level, characters fear allowing themselves to be loved by another. To them, drawing close to another individual feels like a threat to their soul, be it either emotionally or physically. 

However, at the same time, this is also a film about brutal honesty. As she is approaching the end of her life, Ruth has no time for anything but the truth. As a result, she cuts through social propriety by speaking her mind with candor. Whether it?s the doctor instructing her how much time she has left to live or her son?s rules about having parties, Ruth has decided that she will decide for herself how to live her life. And it?s this energy that makes her character endearing. For example, she is willing to challenge Sam?s struggles with women, reminding him that that?s an important part of growing up. In moments like these, Sam begins to experience the sort of support that he has been missing from his emotionally absentee father. To Sam, Ruth becomes the one who has chosen to invest in him, even if it is not in the traditional sense. 

For Ruth, much of her life may have passed her by? but she understands that it is something that Sam can still experience. In doing so, Juniper highlights the ways that honesty can become a form of grace, tearing down barriers between characters. Here, secrets cause pain but truth provides a chance to heal.

Backed by Rampling?s stellar work, Saville?s simple story of grace with an edge becomes a trip home worth taking. Like Ruth herself, there?s genuine heart underneath its gruff exterior. By leaning into the hurt,?Juniper also sparks the chance to heal, even for those who have carried their pain for generations.

Juniper is available in theatres on Friday, February 24th, 2023.

Friday at AFI Fest 2017

by

Welcome to AFI Fest 2017 Presented by Audi.

Hollywood and Highland is one of the epicenters for the entertainment industry. The Chinese Theatre (with its courtyard full of shoeprints and handprints) is the location for most of the gala events for the festival. The group of smaller Chinese Theatres upstairs is where most of the films will be shown. The Egyptian Theater is just down the street. Down on the street is the Hollywood Walk of Fame with the stars of people from the whole history of the entertainment business. (Maybe I?ll go live on the day I walk down to the Egyptian to show you some of the stars.)

Friday is a light day at the festival, not starting until the evening showing. (Most days start screenings in the morning or early afternoon.) So, after picking up my press pass and grabbing a bite to eat, I only got one film in.

Hannah is something of a masters acting demonstration by Charlotte Rampling. After her character takes part in an acting class, goes home and has a silent dinner with her husband, she takes him the next morning to prison. As she goes on with her now solitary life, she must deal with her loneliness, frustration, the scorn of not only the community but her son and his family. There is very little dialogue in the film. Throughout the film we focus on Hannah. Rampling?s performance is almost completely physical, bringing the emotions to the screen through facial expression and body language. There are few big moments, rather we watch as Hannah?s life slowly adjusts to a new reality and struggles to cope with her own sorrow.

There will be a full schedule Saturday as I seek to travel the world via films.

The Sense of an Ending – Unhistoric History

by

I have a t-shirt that reads ?The older I get the better I was.? That sentiment immediately came to mind when I watched The Sense of an Ending. It is a story of memory of past times, but we see that those memories may not be a reliable recounting of what happened.

Adapted from the Man Booker Prize winning novel by Julian Barnes, the central character of the piece is Tony Webster (Jim Broadbent), a semi-retired recluse. When he gets a letter from someone about something that has been left to him, it starts his recollection of times and people from his past. The film wanders back and forth between the present day and his memories of the past. In the current sections, Tony deals with his ex-wife Margaret (Harriet Walter), daughter Susie (Michelle Dockery), and his first love from long ago Veronica (Charlotte Rampling). In the flashbacks, we meet the younger Tony (Billy Howle) and Veronica (Freya Mavor), and Veronica?s mother Sarah (Emily Mortimer).

Through it all we may think that Tony?s memories are accurate but, as the story progresses, he begins to have memories that he has long suppressed?memories that may change the way he understands himself after all these years?and may reflect on the person he has become.

There is a scene in flashback where Adrian (Joe Alwyn), Tony?s friend and rival at school, reflects on the impossibility of truly knowing history. There is always so much that is not known that we tend to make assumptions based on inadequate information. This plays out often both in Tony?s memories and in the world in which he is growing old.

How we remember (and what we choose to remember or forget) greatly impact on the way we understand our lives and?the world. Nostalgia often makes us think of ?the good old days?, but those days are often filled with darkness that we have forgotten. Certainly (as my t-shirt attests) that can create personal histories that are only real to us. It?s understandable that we concentrate on the good things from our past and let our mistakes slide into the void of forgotten history. Being able to do that sets us free to find happiness without the continued burden of guilt.

But this can also be found as something we do as a society. It was a happy coincidence that the day after I screened The Sense of an Ending I came across a reference to an article on Time.com written by Serenity Jones, President of Union Theological Seminary in New York. The article, written during last year?s election, reflects on the ferociousness of the discourse. She talks about our nation?s theological national story, but points out:

From a spiritual perspective, the problem is that this story has not incorporated a serious account of our wrongs. Our enduring flaws, profound failures, egregious harm and horrendous evils?none of these are part of our core story. The clearest example of this is our failure to sufficiently deal with our two most obviously horrific wrongs?the carefully orchestrated genocide of Native American and the 300-year-long story of the most brutal social system ever created, chattel slavery.

Whether it is on a personal level or as a nation, the flaws of our memory may make life easier for us on some levels. Forgetting past sins may well seem like a blessing. But it can also block us from experiencing repentance and the true freedom from our mistakes that can lead us to find new life ahead.

Photos courtesy CBS Films

 

45 Years: Even after all those years

by

?Those memories?they?re things, aren?t they??

Memories can be the things that keep people together or tear them apart. In 45 Years, a couple about to celebrate a milestone anniversary suddenly have memories brought up that threaten their future happiness.

Key_3_45-YEARS_copyright-Agatha-A.-Nitecka

Kate and Geoff Mercer (Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay) are planning a celebration for the 45th anniversary. They know each other so well. They have been together so long that we would think they have no secrets. Kate even knows the books that Geoff has started but never finished (like his books by Kierkegaard). But one day a letter arrives from Switzerland. They have found the body of Geoff?s girlfriend prior to Kate who fell into a crevasse when she and Geoff were vacationing. Kate had known about the accident, but as Geoff becomes more and more affected by this news (he even begins smoking again), Kate begins to discover things about that relationship she never knew and those revelations push her into a bout of jealousy. As their anniversary draws nearer and Kate is busy with all the details of their party, the two are actually drifting farther and farther apart.

Key_4_45-YEARS_copyright-Agatha-A.-Nitecka

I have to admit that I think Kate may be overreacting a bit. After all, this is something that happened before the two of them ever met. Perhaps Geoff should have told her a bit more about that relationship, but it was so long ago it barely matters now. However, Geoff?s melancholy at the news of Katya?s body being found is so profound that it seems right that Kate might be taken aback. We never really learn all the issues within their relationship through the years that are triggered by this news. But then, we never really know what long buried problems will reemerge in new ways.

It may seem surprising that a relationship that has lasted so long can still be so fragile. But even though we may think we know someone because of the history we share, there may well be issues that have stayed hidden for long periods. When the specter of Katya comes into Geoff?s life anew, it brings up feelings for both Geoff and Kate that could have been simmering unrecognized for all these years: regrets, unfulfilled wishes, insecurities. We get the sense that just as Katya fell into a fissure, so too has the Mercers? marriage. Even the plant life around their home (in its winter dormancy) reflects that they have entered a season of decline, perhaps even an end.

45Years_Still91

When the anniversary party finally arrives, it is a time of great celebration. But what does it mean for Geoff and Kate? Can they cover the grief and insecurities that have grown in their lives the last few days? Is this a chance to begin again? Is it the beginning of the end? We are reminded just how frail marriage can be.

Photos courtesy IFC Films