Love, Actually?

Lovers on the Bridge/Les Amants du Pont-Neuf (1991) - Carax
Experienced it for the first time on the big screen, 9.25.09

Ever since I saw Lovers on the Bridge in the early 90s on a bootlegged VHS tape, it has become my favorite film of all time; vibrant images, young Juliette Binoche, manic uglyman Denis Lavant, amour fou, naïveté... what more can I say?

This unlikely love story btwn a young homeless man, Alex(Lavant) and a heartbroken painter with serious eye problem, Michele(Binoche) gets to me every time I watch it. For me, Carax was the only one who successfully articulated the first love with all the trimmings- its selfish nature, its unimaginable happiness/pain, on the screen. I haven't seen anything like that before or since.

Lovers is ridiculous in its scope- the most expensive French film made at the time because they couldn't get the permit to shoot on the Pont-Neuf bridge(the oldest in Paris), they had to build a replica of the bridge nearby. But I'll save you from all the well-publicized details here as it is an old news. The night of the Centennial celebration in Paris with fireworks and water skiing serves as a backdrop for Michele and Alex to get drunk and dance around like maniacs - the scene is truly a visual feat. I don't know how Carax managed to pull all of that off. Logistical nightmare it was I'm sure.

I remember an interview with Binoche where she broke down and cried when asked about the film and Carax. She and Carax were romantically involved during the filming(They did two films together). Hey, if anyone could make Binoche cry, he/she earns my respect.

Do I really care about Lovers ending in an upbeat, overly optimistic mood? Not really. But whenever I defend cinema as an artistic medium(I generally don't) against literature or music, I usually mention Lovers on the Bridge. The film is really one of a kind- the energy, the physicality of it will never be duplicated in cinema or in any other form. Watching Lovers on the Bridge on the big screen was a blissful experience, to say the least (thanks to Martin Scorsese who helped release the film in theater in the US).

best birthday gift I ever got

Birthdays are drag. I hate birthdays. Just a reminder you are not getting any younger. Then I received this from my lady:



A handmade Kaspar Hauser (in)action figure!!!

On the Highline under the umbrella

Highline is abandoned elevated tracks turned city park in Meat Packing District in New York City.



This experiment still needs work. You might have to turn the volume way up or use earphones/headphones for your maximum pleasure.



http://www.thehighline.org/

Bonfire

How about this?
Huh?
Look at me. She smacked her lips together, making a pleasant 'pop' sound.
It's called Plum. There was a reddish brown color on her lips.
That's nice.
Oh, oh, what about this? She held up another lipstick sampler.
It's called Dusk Rose.
Well, you have a tough choice to make. Either way, you look lovely.

He was a manly guy. He didn't really want to be in this women's cosmetic store. He slowly made his way to the perfume counter full of tiny bottles of scented oils. Most of them had exotic names. Then he found a section that had simpler names: Sea Breeze, Laundromat, Lobster, Bonfire...
He opened the Bonfire sampler. The name intrigued him. He sniffed without thinking much of anything. All of sudden the memories of his first love came rushing in.

It's mid September. Since it's an off-season, they don't have any problem finding a vacant cottage right next to the beach without reservation. The cottage has a kitchen and a wood burning fireplace. It is big enough for a family of five. But it's just two of them. Even though four hour drive has worn them out, they make love as soon as they get in as if it's their last time.

By the time he wakes up, she's not there next to him. He sees the sliding glass door facing the foggy beach slightly open. He puts on a thick sweater and steps out of the cottage. It's bitter cold. And the fog is as thick as milk in tea. He calls her name. She doesn't call him back. Moisture in the air is gently wetting his face. The sand beneath his bare feet is damp and cold. He follows her almost invisible foot prints. So faint. He's afraid they would stop in the middle of the beach. He looks up helplessly. He calls her name again. Nothing.

Everything is very still except for the sound of the low tide. He smells it first- the wood burning smell. Then He sees a small dancing yellow figure in the foggy distance- a bonfire. And she is sitting there, looking at it motionlessly. She looks smaller than usual, covered in his coat. There is no one around. The person who started the fire must've gone back up the shore, judging by the set of foot prints. He sits behind her and holds her. She holds him back, still looking at the bonfire. He knows she is going to leave in a few months. They both know it isn't going to work out between them. This is going to be the last time for them to be together.

He broke down and cried right there and then, in the shop full of women.

Uncertainty Principle: A Serious Man

A Serious Man (2009) - The Coens
The Coens' Schindler's List eh? Just as miserable for sure. It's about a nebbish middle aged Jewish physics professor Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) whose life is falling apart. He desperately looks for an answer. It's another Coen exercise in precision filmmaking about nothing. Yes, no one really knows the answers to life's problems. But we already knew that. The Coens go about telling this the only way they know how- cynically. Maybe a little more personal than their other stuff but just as dry.

Stuhlbarg is fantastic so as the rest of the Larry-King-ugly casts. It works much better than a star studded regular Woody Allen neurosis fare. Liked it much more than any of their recent masturbatory practice.