George Benlian on movies, books and few other things

Lin Cunxin speech can inspire many

The Chinese Lin Cunxin is one of the World's most celebrated ballet performers. I knew nothing about him but during his speech of nearly one hour, i had tears in my eyes. Born in an extremely poor rural family in 1961, the Maoist China of that era was a definite terrible episode that lasted for many decades.

Li Cunxin wrote his memoirs in a book called "Mao's Last Dancer". I bought it after the emotional but highly inspirational speech and will for sure read it sometime this year before the release of the movie directed by Bruce Beresford and dur to be in our screens in October this year.

The part that touched me the most was when already famous and dancing in prestigious venues all over the world, through the help of ex-president George Bush Sr's wife, Barbara and the Chinese Ambassador in USA atthat time, his alliterate parents were able to visit the States after a long period of absolute no contact between Li and his parents due to the strict Communist Regime rules. The reunion is a heart warming story of hope and love.

Cunxin is a family man. He married an Australian Ballerina and settled in Melbourne. His latest great challenge was the deafness of their daughter who was cured after long years of battle and des illusions. She is now a dancing student in her late teens.

With Cunxin life is beautiful but it is also full of challenges to overcome. A great discovery from my end...

Farewell to an Aussie legend - Charles Bud Tingwell

 

Charles Bud Tingwell died last Friday morning in a Melbourne hospital following a two year battle with prostate cancer. He was aged 86 and still had a script for a new project near his bedside.

I met Bud Tingwell twice. The first time was at WEA Film Study Group in the late nineties. He was the guest speaker after a special screening of "Always Another Dawn", a sentimental melodrama of love and war playing an heroic young naval officer. In 1947, Bud Tingwell was only 24 and was at the beginning of a prolific career that was soon going to take him to England where he worked for several studios such as Rank and Hammer. In the 1960's his increased popularity due to his role as Inspector Craddock in the four Miss Marple mysteries made by MGM-British opposite the eccentric Margaret Rutherford placed him in an enviable position to pursue a solid acting career in his return to Australia a decade later and to be part of the revival of Australian cinema and specially in a number of Austalian classic series such as Homicide, The Sullivans and The Flying Doctors.

The second time i met him was during the Sydney Film Festival in year 2000. He was the leading actor of "Innocence"; a beautiful and touching love story directed by Paul Cox. I remember vividly talking to him outside the State Theatre about his role and his impressive career. He was a passionate man who took acting as a meaningful and enriching profession.

He never stopped. He was playing solo few years ago at the Sydney Theatre Company. He was also very active in theatres in Melbourne. I just checked IMDB and found out he played in a tv movie the role of Winston Churchill made in 2008. In the recent years we saw him in "The Castle", "Wog Boy", "The Dish" and in "Jindebayne" - All very popular aussie flicks.

In 2004, he published his memoirs simply called "Bud".

The Page Turner by Denis Dercourt

A movie that causes an impact is an essential viewing. I didn't know what to expect at the beginning although i was aware about the international success of "The page turner". It turned out to be an intelligent and tantalizing story capable to take the viewer by surprise. 

Denis Dercourt comes from a musical background having served as an alto soloist in the French Symphonic Orchestra. Apart his directorial career he also teaches chamber music at the Strasbourg Conservatory. His influence from Claude Chabrol is well noticeable specially in his observation of the French Provincial bourgeoisie in a mesmerizing suspense drama with a twist.

The enigmatic smile of the sweet and pretty young blonde will discourage us to believe for an eventual mean action from her. The unpredictable treatment of the young woman character is i guess the strength of the movie. We may even consider the famous pianist played by Catherine Frot as the villain because of her attitude at the early part of the story. Dercourt plays with the state of emotions of the nervous virtuoso making her a gradual victim of a well perpetrated vengeance. Deborah Francois excels as the icy yet polite Deborah who has a precise plan that will transformAriane's comfortable lifestyleinto a misery. Catherine Frot and Pascal Greggory are both prefect as the loving couple facing an uncertain future.

The prolific French writer and academic Maurice Druon dies at 90

Maurice Druon's death nine days before his ninety first birthday is a reminder of the gradual disappearance of a generation of French intellectual figures who started writing during or immediately after the Second World War.

Druon was a popular writer who was never shy to express and impose his opinions. A prolific author, he won the prestigious "Prix Goncourt" in 1948 at the age of thirty for his portrait of a powerful family, the post-war French equivalent of the Murdoch dynasty. Ten years later, Jean Gabin played the patriarch and financier Noel Schoudler in an adaptation for the cinema by Michel Audiard. In the fifties, he published a series of historical novels "Les Rois Maudits" ("The Accursed Kings")which made him an internationally renowned writer.

But it might be for a song lyric that he was most revered. In 1943, living in London as a young cavalry officer with the Free French forces in exile under Charles De Gaule he and his uncle, the writer Joseph Kessel, heard a simple marchlike tune with an unusual structure of repeated 11-syllable lines. Druon and Kessel adapted into the French version which became known as “Chant des Partisans” (“Song of the Partisans”. This quickly became an anthem of the French resistance, second in its patriotic power only to “La Marseillaise.”

In 1966, he was elected to the prestigious Académie Française. During the four decades, Druon was known as a cultural conservative who over the years remained determined to keep the historical gender assignments given to all french nouns. 

In the seventies he served for a short period of time (Just over one year) the functions of Minister of Culture during the Presidency of Georges Pompidou.  

"Tulpan" - A nice heartwarming discovery

"Tulpan" is not your mainstream movie. In contrary, shot in a documentary style, this moving simple tale has deeper meanings about life in a treeless, remote area in Southern Kazakhstan. We are very far from the Civilization despite Boney M being present in this desolated region through one of their song. "Tulpan" might have difficult and tense scenes however it remains a well made comedy full of witty humor specific to situations only possible in those forgotten areas where life is a continuous survival against harsh conditions of the nature.

Life could have been better to our young hero, an ex-marine with "both hands and legs" if only the parents of Tulpan; the only single woman in the region would have agreed to give her as a bride. Our young hero has no proper job and to make the matter worse, he has two big ears. This is cynicism at it's best with a heartwarming evolution but no Americanize victory and happy end.

Sergei Dvortsevoy succeeds giving us the bleak beauty of the steppe’s windswept landscape: the endless sky, the camel stampedes, and one of the most remarkable animal birth scenes. A definite crowd- pleas er able to touch us in its extreme conditions of life. After all, this is a movie with universal tendencies.

For more information about this movie, check www.tulpan.com.au

Alain de Botton - the modern philosopher

Alain de Botton is an inspiring writer. Every time he visits our shores i make sure to attend the event highly anticipated by his Australian readers. Last time when he was here for "The Architecture of happiness" in 2006, the grand concert hall of the Sydney opera house was full of his fans. Today, he delivered his speech about the subject of his new book called "The pleasures and sorrows of work" at the same place in front of a packed enthusiastic audience.

The man might look frail however the minute he opens his mouth the art of elocution is well evident. The son of a finance magnate, De Botton never knew a routine working life. Highly educated, he began writing in his early twenties and two decades later he has reached the status of a world famous and respected modern philosopher who has published nine best sellers.

I consider De Botton as an intelligent and witty explorer. What is fascinating about him is how he can dissect a subject in an approachable style. His latest is about the pleasures and sorrows of work. In the past, he has reflected on how architecture can be a medium of happiness and well-being; on how people can become anxious about their status; on how travel can be an art of life and even about how Proust can change your life. 

Lately, De Botton is behind an exciting new project called "The School of life". It is described as a new cultural enterprise based in central London offering intelligent instruction on how to lead a fulfilled life.

I will be writing more about his books in the future months. In due course, you could check the following websites: www.alaindebotton.com and www.theschooloflife.com

Summer hours by Olivier Assayas

 

The French director Olivier Assayas is known for his rigorous and intelligent style of filmmaking. He may not be everyone's cup of tea and i have disliked some of his movies specially his earlier ones.

"Summer hours" - in french "L'heure d'ete" is his latest production released in France one year ago. An intimate family portrait if treated with sensitivity  and in-depth can produce an enriching cinematic experience. Yasujiro Ozu mastered this theme and it is not surprising to note Assayas being the most Asian influenced of French directors. He is subtle in his treatment of a story and can sometimes be too ambiguous.

Fortunately "Summer hours" is more viewer-friendly than some of his earlier works. A film about the passing of times may not attract much attention and i know some viewers expressed disappointment as to the lack of expected action present in majority of movies. This is a different kind of cinema; a delicate way of telling the story of three siblings facing the death of their mother and the sensitive decisions they have to make with the question of inheritence. Several scenes about valuable objects and paintings are filmed as a documentary to provide a realistic approach. I checked the internet and didn't find any famous french painter named Paul Berthier. 

Juliette Binoche, Charles Berling and Jeremie Renier are playing the siblings. Living abroad has become a life choice for two of the three siblings. This typical middle class french family will soon have heir in America and China. This film could have been called "Changing times". I liked the idea of starting and ending the movie with the young generation of teenagers and childrens. It is a distinctive allusion of the continuation of life despite certain alterations that come naturally.     

Yasujiro Ozu the Matchmaker

       

"Tokyo Stories" by Yasujiro Ozu made me a loyal follower of this director works. My collection of his movies is getting larger and additional information through DVD bonuses is always welcomed. Lately i have been watching a cycle of his movies having as common theme family portraits. Ozu was obsessed with the consequences of relationship between a father and his daughter ("Late Spring" and "An Autumn Afternoon"), and a mother and her daughter  ("Late autumn") after a marriage.

If i have called Ozu the Matchmaker, it is because the idea of marrying the twenty four years old daughter is in the centre of the above named movies. Middle aged male friends are all too keen to find a suitable husband for the young woman. It makes me smile when the age of the daughter who must get married is always twenty four. Similarities in the theme reinforces Ozu's obsession with the family portraits. In "Early Summer' made before "Tokyo stories", the whole family is behind the target of marrying Noriko to a suitable man except our young lady has her final word to say. This is an interesting situation as considering the context of the period - early fifties - independence in choice remains powerful. "The end of summer" made before his last movie in the early sixties has a considerable variation in the family portraits theme as this time, it is the father who has few surprises to reveal. I really liked the scene where the three sisters are at their father's deathbed finding out about his other life with another woman from whom he has a daughter.

Life and death are indissociable. Ozu has strong attachement to the cycle of life. All the movies i noted above are honest observation of life changes. Death may be the end however life continues on with the next generation. Funny and poignant scenes bring happiness and a touch of sadness. It is a balanced outcome that is so meaningful in our normal lives.

 

If the stories have similarities, what makes the whole experience more memorable is the use of the same faces. Setsuko Hara is the girl to marry who in the early sixties becomes suddenly a mother with a daughter to marry. Chisu Ryu is always around playing the father who will face a lonely life. Other familiar faces are all part of the extended cinematic family of Yasujiro Ozu, a man who was never married and never had children of his own.

Next time, i will be writing on other themes explored by Ozu specialy in the early part of his career in the thirties and the forties.

Leave to remain - a memoir by Abbas El Zein

 

The first time i met Abbas El Zein was during the Sydney Writer Festival in the late nineties. At that time, his wife to be Ann Mossop was the director of the festival and the laureate of Goncourt 1995, Andrei Makine was one of the international guest. I remember Abbas interviewing Makine at a litterary evening organised by the Alliance Francaise of Sydney

I met him again several years later still at the Sydney writer Festival. This time, he interviewed Rawi Hage whose book "De Niro's war" was a surprise best seller on the darkest period of Lebanon, the Civil War.

"Leave to remain" is Abbas El Zein second book. One thing in common that i share with the author is our country of birth - Lebanon. I have witnessed the bloodshed of those terrible years and i have always thought how our dangerous lives could one day become a tormenting subject.

It is a beautifully written book. The narrator asks in parallel the ultimate questions about normal daily life and memory of difficult times in a country handicaped by decades of violence  . A modern muslim intellectual who has a strong sense of belonging and who reflects about his origins.He doesn't hesitate to form a view with question marks about the future of his own children. A sensible approach of a heavy subject that is the War causing the killing of civilians which  results in a complete inexistence of rational life.

As a reader who has spent his first fifteen years in Lebanon, i am no stranger on the content of certain elements in the book. Trying to understand Lebanese politics is a paradox and a complete waste of time. There is really no hope in that part of the World.

So what did i watch during the French Film Festival?

It's not always easy to choose from a selection of 35 titles. Some of them will have theatrical release in the coming weeks so i will watch them later on. Others are only good for the small screen so time should not be waisted. There is also a handful of titles that we know in advance will be definitely worth having a look. 

 

 Emmanuel Mouret is a 38 years old director who also plays in his own movies. Eric Rohmer influence on his work is visible from the first scene of any of his movies. Since year 2000, he has directed four. His fifth one has just been completed and is due to be released later this year.

 

       

"Shall we kiss?" aka "Un baiser s'il vous plait" is his latest opus.Like in his previous movies,  love and relationship remains key elements in his exploration of thirty something lives of well behaved, well educated middle class men and women. The abundance of the dialogue may give the impression of a play however when it is well written, the whole experience is worthy of our time. Rohmer, Sacha Guitry, Marcel Pagnol all made movies with abundant dialogues, a tradition well kept in the French cinema. Mouret's observation of human relations is shown with the utmost simplicity and panache. He has good taste when it comes to romance. Marie Gilain, Fanny Valette and now Virginie Ledoyen have all felt in love with our romantic and idealist hero. The use of classical music (Schubert in "Shall we kiss?")adds the perfect touch of a harmonious comedy full of wit and intelligence. I am a huge fan of Emmanuel Mouret films. It takes some effort to accept a different type of filmmaking but once you are under the spell the rest is pure joy!

    

I have seen many kissing scenes over the years yet i never felt so engaged by the kiss scene at the end of this enchanting cinematic experience.

 

Jacques Mesrine was France's public enemy number one from the sixties until his assassination in the middle of the French capital in 1979. A two part movie directed by Jean-Francois Richet got released in 2008 obtaining a huge success by the press and the public alike. Four hours of packed action will impress anyone who likes thrillers. If part one may look repetitive, part two is truly and simply spectacular. It takes time to get used to the idea of almost liking a criminal whose ideas and charisma made him the most popular gangster of modern France.

 

Vincent Cassel is staggering in the leading role. He is without doubt the most gifted french actor of his generation. He can play anything and be reliable and convincing. Mesrine didn't know the meaning of the verb "surrender". A master of disguise and an assertive manipulator of high caliber, thirty years after his atroce end, he continues to fascinate.

Both movies are perfect examples to stop giving credits only to the Americans when it comes to fast heart beating action movies. For sure the American cinema is full of great thrillers but we should not underestimate  productions of this genre from other countries including of course France. Few years back, i discovered another superb french thriller called "36 Quai des orfevres" starring Daniel Auteuil and Gerard Depardieu.

Speaking of Daniel Auteuil, i was very disappointed to see his talent totally wasted in a weak comedy known in english as "Me two". A stupid idea makes a stupid movie and even Daniel Auteuil can't save it!

However, thumbs up for the new comedy written and directed by Francis Veber. Born in 1937, Veber became in the seventies a well respected screenplay writer specializing in comedies. He wrote "L'emmerdeur" know in english as "A pain in the ass" in the early seventies for Edouard Molinaro, a popular french movie director. The movie was a big hit in those days allowing Jacques Brel to show his acting abilities specially in a comedy. Thirty five years later, Veber made a remake from his own screenplay and the result is even better than the original. We are guaranteed as always to spend a joyful time in company of his duo. This is i guess the biggest recipe of great comedies. Having two very opposite characters being together can definitely provide hilarious moments as well as well structured conflict.   

    

Both Patrick Timsit and Richard Berry played "L'emmerdeur" at the theatre couple years ago. I always found Berry a fine performer who like Vincent Cassel can play any character and keep the whole thing authentic. Timsit however is your typical french comic actor who is obviously taking great pleasure of making his surrounding lives miserable. For a good laugh, "L'emmerdeur" is highly recommended.

 

 Jean Becker is the son of legendary film maker, Jacques Becker. Born in the thirties, he made couple average comedies in the sixties before disappearing for two decades. In 1983, he directed Isabelle Adjani in "L'ete meurtrier" before disappearing again for another decade. Since 1995, he is back and is making interesting movies on regular basis. His latest "Deux jours a tuer" is a curious piece that keeps the viewer puzzled. We know from his previous movies, Becker likes to promote the simple life. He has a zen approach and little things have great importance for him. In this movie, he keeps a deep secret right to the end. A great way to show how we can be sensitive without risking a stereotype outlook. Again, when watching a new movie by Jean Becker, we know he will take us to a beautiful and sometime sad journey.

  

"Mes amis mes amours" is a french romantic comedy having London as the centre of the action. An average movie that has some funny scenes but the lack of surprises can play a overall negative role.

The biggest highlight of the festival was "Paris 36". I didn't watch it for the simple reason it will be released in May. However, i did miss out an opopportunity to meet it's leading actor, Gerard Jugnot who was a guest at the festival. It is a pity as i have always considered Jugnot as a talented artist who can be funny and touching and definitely a pleasure to see him performing.