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In the Fade – Justice? Revenge?

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“They’ll get their punishment. I promise you.”

Justice. Revenge. Are they the same? Are they even related? In the Fade from Fatih Akin is the story of a search for justice, and what happens when that justice is denied. In the Fade is Germany’s official Oscar entry for Best Foreign Language Film.

Katja (Diane Kruger) has a wonderful life with her husband Nuri and young son Rocco. Her world is shattered when Nuri and Rocco are killed in a terrorist bombing. She can barely make it through the funeral, and her life is spiraling downward until two neo-Nazis are charged with the crime. From there on, her only mission is to see justice done.

The film plays out in three acts, entitled “The Family” (meeting the family, the bombing, the grief), “Justice” (the trial), and “The Sea” (Katja’s actions after the trial). Katja’s grief is the driving force through it all. At times her grief leads her to self-destructive behavior. It is only when she has hope that the killers will be punished that she seems to have a reason to live. But what would happen if things didn’t work out in the trial?

In press notes Akin (who was born in Germany to Turkish immigrant parents) notes that the story is inspired by xenophobic killings by members of the National Socialist Underground. But he chose to make a survivor (Katja) the empathetic center of the film. There is no attempt to justify the murderers’ perspective. Rather we remain totally focused on Katja and her emotional struggle before, during and after the trial. It is in that struggle that Akin is able to take us into the darkness of revenge.

How do we differentiate between justice and vengeance? We often think of the two as almost synonymous. However, justice connotes a high ideal—even a biblical ideal. It is a call to bring things back into alignment. Justice should help to create healing and reconciliation. Revenge, on the other hand, may seem like it is making something right, but in fact it only serves to create more pain and suffering. Revenge may seem like an imperfect form of justice, in that it pays back pain for pain. In the end it is only a counterfeit.

The emotional journey we take with Katja eventually takes us to some very dark possibilities as she responds to injustice. Even in this she is driven more by her grief than by the ideal of justice. The combination of grief, anger, and vengeance leads to a result that may seem inevitable, but fails to leave us feeling that justice or healing has been achieved.

Photos courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

Aftermath – Two Lives Connected by Tragedy

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Two lives are torn apart by a catastrophic event. When two airliners collide in midair killing everyone on both planes, Roman Melnyk (Arnold Schwarzenegger) loses his wife and daughter. For air-traffic controller Jacob Bonanos (Scoot McNairy) who was on duty when the crash occured, the guilt (whether deserved or not) eats away at him and is rapidly destroying his marriage and his life. Aftermath tells their stories in storylines that we know will converge just as the two airliners did. Will it bring redemption or be yet another life altering calamity?

Both Roman and Jacob struggle in the face of the terrible event. Roman is nearly paralyzed by his grief, which gives way to anger. He doesn’t seem to be concerned about the monetary settlement offered by the airlines. He wants someone to look at the picture of his family and say they are sorry. Jacob, on the other hand, must face the legal and moral issues around his part in the tragedy. While everyone seems to be concerned about him, there is also the sense that his superiors are just as concerned to cover their own liabilities. Both men have some support in friends and family, but in many ways each must face their pain alone. They do not build walls, but their suffering becomes a wall that it difficult to get through. As the two men, whose stories we alternate between, continue their descent into darkness, both come to the verge of suicide.

Schwarzenegger and McNairy both do excellent jobs of portraying the pains that take control of their lives. Both characters have very complicated journeys through their emotional upheaval. We are drawn to both men, even when we see that they turn away from some who would seek to ease their struggle. The film’s themes of grief, guilt, vengeance, and the possibility of overcoming all of those things to find balance and peace all play out in the film.

The last third of the film moves ahead to a time when both men have had a chance to settle into the post-tragedy life. Roman seems to have come to terms with life alone. Jacob has moved away and changed his name and career. We know that eventually the two must meet to bring any kind of closure to their issues. But that meeting has its own surprises, which are really not settled until a denouement in the final scene, some time later. That final scene provides the hope that even the darkest event of one’s life can still not completely overwhelm.

Photos courtesy of Lionsgate Premiere

On the Blu-ray and DVD versions, available today, special features include the audio commentary with Director Elliott Lester and Producer Eric Watson, as well as interviews with Lester and Director of Photography Pieter Vermeer.

Elle – Obsessions and Revenge

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“It’s twisted.”

That brief line of dialogue defines Paul Verhoeven’s Elle in more ways than one. The plot certainly has very interesting turns along the way, but the convolutions of the personalities are what really make this entertaining and interesting. This is an intense psychological thriller, with the accent on psychological.

Michèle (Isabelle Huppert) is a strong, domineering woman. She runs a video game company in a no-nonsense style. She brings that into her personal life as well. The first hint we have of her past is when she is in a café and another customer walks by and dumps food in her lap muttering about “you and your father.” Michèle’s mother is keeping a much younger man—something Michèle finds somewhat pathetic. We learn her father is in prison with a parole hearing approaching. But things really heat up when Michèle is attacked and raped in her home. She seems to go on like nothing happened, but she fantasizes about killing the attacker. When she learns who did it a tense and very perverse game begins to unfold.

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But this is more than just a revenge film. In fact, we may not even see it as such because we’re never quite sure if that is really what is driving Michèle. Perhaps for all the terror of the attack, she may find it perversely stimulating. Perhaps it provides a balance for the sense of control she manifests in the other aspects of her life. Perhaps, as we learn more about her past, we might wonder if she is emotionally disturbed. Likewise her attacker is also something of an enigma. Between the two of them the tension grows both sexually and emotionally to levels we know can only lead to disaster.

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The film is essentially about obsessions. Certainly sexual and violent fantasies often play out together (compare the video game Michèle’s company is working on). Such obsessions are central to the developments between Michèle and her attacker. For Michèle’s mother it is an obsession with youth. Michèle’s history tells of strange issues her father dealt with that had lasting effects on her and of people’s perception of her. Obsessions such as these take control of lives. So all the emotional protection that Michèle has built around herself comes falling down when the attack brings chaos into her life. That struggle between chaos and control creates a dangerous atmosphere that threatens to undo her and twist her life even more than it has been.

Yes, It is all very twisted (especially all the characters). Delightfully so.

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

In a Valley of Violence – Sin and Salvation in the Old West

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“I’m not here to save you. I’m not here to save anybody.”

The Spaghetti Western is back! In a Valley of Violence harkens back to the films of Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood. From the opening credits we know a very close similarity to films like The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Like those earlier Westerns, this is something of a demythologized West. There is no romance to this vision of the Old West. People and life are hard. There is little love to be seen. Through it all, there is a good deal of talk about sin and salvation.

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On his way to Mexico, Paul (Ethan Hawke) and his dog Abbie come across a whisky priest (Burn Gorman) in the desert. He is told that over the ridge is the town of Denton, that is “full of sinners.” While Paul wants to avoid other people, he decides a stop in town would be a good idea. When he arrives in town, the first building is a boarded up church. Paul reflects, “God must have packed up and left with the rest of them.” Soon Paul has a run-in with Gilly (James Ransone), the local bully and son of the Marshal (John Travolta). Paul is happy to go on his way, but Gilly isn’t willing to let things go. Violence and vengeance escalate, and Paul, who is haunted by his past, must go back on the promise he made himself to not kill any more.

Added to this mix are two sisters, Mary-Anne (Taissa Farmiga) and Ellen (Karen Gillan) who run the town’s hotel. Ellen has connected herself to Gilly as a way out of the boring life of this community. Mary-Anne, whose husband has left her, sees her hope of escape in Paul. But Paul has a past that makes him not want any human connections. He sees himself as a sinner without hope of redemption. As such, he won’t allow himself to be loved, and so cannot offer love.

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It is interesting just how often the ideas of sin and salvation come up in the dialogue between all these characters. They seem to be defined by the sins of their lives. Anger and hubris are very central to Gilly and his cohort. The Marshal just wants to maintain a status quo, even though he knows his son is dangerous. Ellen embodies vanity. Paul cannot let go of the sins of his past. That is the very reason he his drifting through the desert to get to Mexico. Only Mary-Anne has a claim to goodness. She spends her life taking care of others but feels as though she is punished for it. Salvation seems impossible to these characters. Paul just seeks solitude as an escape from his guilt. The rest seem to see themselves as residing in hell. It is Mary-Anne who is actively looking for something better—a redemption that she hopes she can find in Paul.

In A Valley Of Violence

Whether salvation can be found in this film is a question worth considering. But a deeper question is whether violence can be the medium by which salvation is accomplished. This is a story that is driven by revenge and violence. Does all that overcome the sinfulness that envelops Denton or by the end do we think that the evil that dwells there has come out victorious?

Photos courtesy Focus World

Captain America 3.0: Dents in the Armor #SPOILERS

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captain2A year ago, as ScreenFish was born, we rallied to cover Avengers: Age of Ultron. I had glowing things to say about this popcorn genre film that reached for the stars and shared a vision of our humanity. A year later, Marvel/Disney dropped close to our anniversary, and my partners in crime were awestruck.

I, on the other hand, refuse to drink the Marvel Kool-aid. Without further ado, here’s my dissection of the film- it’s not for the faint of heart (or those trying to avoid spoilers.) You’ve been warned.

Yes, there were some high points to the film. Let’s hit those first.

captain3Chadwick Bozeman might be the big winner here. T’Challa has always been on the cool, mysterious side of the Marvel Universe, but as the only character in the film to show a single ounce of character development, I couldn’t be more excited to see the standalone Black Panther film. As one of my fellow theater goers commented, “That’s how you introduce a new character, DC!” [This went better than their use of Nemo (Daniel Bruhl), who suddenly switched from timeless Nazi to low-level Sovakian military. Or the promotion of Ross (William Hurt) from General to Secretary of State. Hello, Red Hulk?]

Tom Holland (Spider-Man) and Paul Rudd (Antman) tie for secondary awards. These two brought the customary Marvel sense of humor and panache to the second half of the film that was missing in the first. [Yes, this also highlights the bi-polar “two parter” segmentation of the film. And the fact that they spent almost 2.5 hours setting us up for a showdown and let the tension dissipate without reconciliation? That’s just poor.] Stan Lee’s cameo here might be his best yet- yes, Tony stank!

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Visually, the film takes us to some cool places – just not as cool as the upcoming Doctor Strange film. There were some solid battles. Crossbones (Frank Grillo) versus Cap’s undercover team was solid [Crossbones was the baddest villain in the film]. While I’m over the good guy versus good guy battles (thanks, Batman V Superman), the final confrontation between our heroes might have actually been one of the best. Again, unfortunately, in a good versus good battle, the writers can’t make us believe that any of them really give up any ground because they need them for their solo outing.

In the comics, the action is caused when a group of rough-around-the-edges superheroes pull a television stunt that ends in tragedy. You might say that Scarlet Witch’s tragic rescue of Captain America carries more direct weight because they’re principal heroes, and I’d accept that. BUT, in the comics, the forcibly divisive law put into place was the Superhuman Registration Act. This is wildly more politically charged than the Sokovia Accords because it was about identity and the families of masked superheroes.

For what it’s worth, it’s interesting to note that the current Republican frontrunner is promoting growing legislation about ‘registration,’ even though Republicans have historically been more interested in local government and individual responsibility. In Civil War, Cap’s questions about responsibility crash into the armor of Stark’s own personal interaction with the mother of a man lost as collateral damage. The head versus heart argument might apply here, but the film doesn’t ask us to care too much about any of these characters in poignancy or emotional depth.

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The Sokovia Accords divides our heroes because of collateral damage, but forces the plot around the Winter Soldier storyline while also ignoring the responsibilities of pro- registration heroes when it comes to innocent lives.

Seriously, Iron Man is infuriated over the death of his parents twenty-five years ago, at the hands of a guy who wasn’t in control of his own actions, but his pet android gets all mushy, paralyzes his best friend, and he ignores the implications? Please. [For the record, yes, comic fans know these two mismatched, star-crossed lovers can tangle, but cooking with paprika was a little weird.]

Seriously, this no-name villain with no powers, no help, no plan, no NOTHING, is able to manipulate two friends who’ve battled universe-destroying, villainous armies into nearly killing each other? At least in Batman v Superman, Luthor had an actual plan, continually manipulated, and had a host of financial resources tied to his character. [No, that doesn’t make B v S a better movie, but it did provide us with a more reasonable explanation of the conflict, and the tension.] Zemo is a weak villain – and one which highlights the Cap versus Iron Man divide.

That leads to my largest frustration of the whole film: that superheroes would turn so dark. I wasn’t thrilled with Affleck’s Batman obsession with taking down Superman, but I wonder where we’ve gotten to when we would actually have people leave the theater on #TeamIronMan? Seriously? This guy was an inch away from killing Cap, and Bucky. Sure, they’re beating on each other, but Cap draws the line at incapacitation. Where’s Iron Man’s line? Is this where we begin to see Marvel delve into his alcoholism? What separates Iron Man from Zemo, as men bent on revenge after a major injustice? Thankfully, Cap can at least look himself in the mirror.

CivilWar571fee863dfd0I am well aware that this film will bust charts (although at my theater, it was nowhere near The Force Awakens) but this film SCREAMED marketing spinoff for some new characters – and obvious sellout for Infinity War. Was it as telegraphed as the T’Chaka hand-on-cheek moment with T’Challa before he’s blown to bits? I’m not sure. But for all its smoke and mirrors, Captain America: Civil War qualifies as the low point for Marvel’s scriptwriting as far as I’m concerned.

Where Age of Ultron challenged us to grow, Civil War simply allows us to sink back into our own baser instincts, without challenging us to see heroism in our ability to grow.

[Oh yeah, and I’m #TeamCap.]

The Revenant: Humanity’s Best & Worst

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The Revenant cleaned up at the Golden Globes – Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor in a Film Not in Matt Damon’s category. [Okay, I made that last category up… sort of.] But the truth is that while director Alejandro González Iñárritu’s latest film (he’s the artistic mind behind Birdman) dances gracefully, bloodily, across the fallen snow, the storyline lacks for aspects of the plot that could’ve made it grand.

John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy), the scene-chewing villain of this particular story, kills Hugh Glass’ (Leonard DiCaprio) half-Indian son and leaves Glass for dead in the 1820s. Furious, a ‘resurrected’ Glass goes hunting for Fitzgerald, fit and tied for revenge. Over ice and snow, Glass is undeterred by hypothermia (highly unlikely) or the bear mauling (which may be the best part of the film). But for two and a half hours, Glass pursues Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald runs, and we’re set up for an obvious confrontation. Along the way, we see some other subplots that play out as you’d expect, and nothing much unexpected happens.

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That said, beyond the bear attack, one vignette in the film stuck out. It’s the portion of the film where Glass is cared for at his weakest by another fellow traveler, a Native American. The man provides for Glass and his needs, protecting him and even “housing” him. It struck me almost immediately that it was The Parable of the Good Samaritan played out in the middle of this Pacific Northwest thriller. It’s one man’s recognition that another man’s life–even a stranger’s–is worth saving because life is sacred.

Yes, The Revenant will gain attention for its style and its crew, but it isn’t the best film I’ve seen in the last year. It’s fun, exciting, and at times, terrifying, but the best of the film is found in about ten minutes of the middle third, when we see humanity at its best.