TRUE GRIT, BLACK SWAN, TRON LEGACY, and IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE

posted by Tony Youngblood

I’ve seen a few films over the past few weeks, but none hold a candle to IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE, which I viewed for the first time in 10 years at The Belcourt Theatre. It’s neither a Christmas film nor a religious one, although the holiday trimmings may suggest otherwise. (Lucky that. I’m not a big fan of either.) What it IS is a celebration of kindness, charity, and family. You will walk out wanting to call your grandma and volunteer at the local homeless shelter. The film shows our capacity for goodness, and THAT is why it resonates so many years after its release.

I also saw TRON: LEGACY, which Gareth and Jett review in this week’s podcast and I reviewed last week. Gareth called it a ride, and I would agree. He’s going on for another spin, and I’m jumping the fence searching for my lost wallet.

Next up, I screened the Natalie Portman/Darren Aronofsky art-house thriller BLACK SWAN and found myself agreeing completely with Jett’s appraisal of the film in last week’s podcast. Good psychological thrillers don’t A. reveal the entire plot with one cutaway to a scab on the lead actress’s back and B. scream, “Look at me! I’m a masterpiece! Hey, over here! This is a film of SUBSTANCE” at every artfully-composed corner. Brandon Norwalk had a different take in his review.

Last weekend I saw the new Coen brothers Western TRUE GRIT, starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld. Jett and Gareth discussed the film in this week’s podcast and Brandon reviewed it here, so I’ll be brief.

Everything I hear about the film is prefaced by, “This isn’t one of the best Coen brothers films, BUT. . .”  Sure, the film is a little less quirky and a little more conventional than standard Coen fare, but I found it just as enjoyable as any of their other films. How can it be called a minor work when BURN AFTER READING, THE LADYKILLERS, and INTOLERABLE CRUELTY roam the streets? TRUE GRIT’s atmosphere and Jeff Bridges performance are as sensual as a pair of well-worn cowboy boots hanging off the door knob: dirty, lived-in, and musty, spurs clanging out a rhythm with every gust of wind.

The dialect may not be authentic (who really can say?), but the rhythm, cadence, and inflection would make David Mamet proud. The photography of Roger Deakins is absolutely breathtaking. 14 year-old Hailee Steinfeld holds her own against fine performances by Bridges and Damon. Atmosphere cuts thick. This is a film I want to curl up in.

In his The Film Talk review, Jett brings up a point I hadn’t considered. (SPOILER AHEAD.) When Mattie fires the shotgun and falls into the cave from the kickback (the only moment in the film that rang false for me), it is to demonstrate that all actions have consequences. Jett suggests that when we see her 25 years later as a hard-hearted spinster, we’re to believe her life has been destroyed by her revenge quest. But I get the impression that when Mattie says she, “never had any time to get married,” she meant it. Her strong-willed personality and unapologetic intellect had more to do with her life choices than her disability, and I suspect she was perfectly happy with how things turned out.  Mattie didn’t leave the desert unscathed, but it was a trade worth making.

You can skip TRON LEGACY and BLACK SWAN but do try to catch TRUE GRIT while it’s still in the theaters. It may even make my best of 2010 list, coming to this blog next week.

Tony Youngblood is a film and music snob and producer of the experimental improv music blog and podcast Theatre Intangible. His favorite films include Eric Rohmer’s The Green Ray, Abbass Kiarostami’s The Wind Will Carry Us, Ingmar Bergman’s The Magician, Lee Chang Dong’s Oasis, and Rob Reiner’s This Is Spinal Tap.

This entry was posted on Friday, December 31st, 2010 at 6:54 am. It is filed under Blog, Westerns, Youngblood on Film. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.