I had a couple of hours to kill the other day while I was waiting for Dani to get off work and figured I'd go catch a movie. Turns out that I'd just missed showings for films I really wanted to see and was left with the choice of killing time at Best Buy/Frys/Barnes & Noble (and I've got MORE than enough books, games & DVDs to occupy my time already) or go see something not necessarily on my "must see" list.
So I ended up seeing Birth. I like Nicole Kidman (especially in recent films) and figured that, while it sounds kinda creepy, there's the possibility it could be good, or at least interesting.
Well, interesting it was. And creepy in spades. Just not in a terribly good way.
The interesting part was the director's style. Jonathan Glazer almost single-handedly gives new meaning to the term "leisurely". Long, slow tracking shots, leisurely scenes of minimalist conversation… it's like he set out to make the antithesis to the ADD afflicted "MTV-style" film that seems so prevalent today. (Ironic, since half the credits listed in IMDB look like they're for music videos.) There's one scene early in the film where he zooms into a close-up on Kidman's face as she's attending a classical concert. For what feels like five or more minutes (but is probably closer to "only" three) he holds that close-up as she listens to the music. But what's really fascinating here is that nothing seems to really be happening here. We're not being given any real insight into her character—it's still early enough into the film that you're not entirely sure what's going on, nor who she really is—and, aside from a momentary reaction when her fiancé says something to her, it's an almost static moment. Interesting is probably the wrong word, since it wasn't particularly. Fascinating might be better.
As for creepy… well, the idea of a movie about a ten-year-old kid telling Nicole Kidman he's her dead husband just oozes creepy. And the movie really delivers on that, especially in the bath scene about half-way through the film. But then, by the time you get to the end of the movie and you realize what's really happening, well suddenly that bath scene, and every other scene between Kidman & Kid, suddenly become that much more creepy, and not in a particularly fun way. Suffice it to say that there are a LOT of damaged people in this movie, and you're given front row tix to watch the damage unfold (though there is some hope/redemption, at least for some, by the end).
A quick aside… I know they must have picked the Peter Pan pixie bob for Kidman simply because of its androgynous look, and it certainly contributes to the creepy, but DAMN, who'd have thought they could make her look so unappealing these days? (I think even the prosthetic nose from The Hours wasn't as effective at making her "unsexy".)
And, while I wasn't a huge fan of the movie, the soundtrack might well be worth checking out… interesting mix of classical and new age styles and very evocative. You get a lot of time to notice the music during the leisurely moments of the film. The many leisurely moments of the film.
So I ended up seeing Birth. I like Nicole Kidman (especially in recent films) and figured that, while it sounds kinda creepy, there's the possibility it could be good, or at least interesting.
Well, interesting it was. And creepy in spades. Just not in a terribly good way.
The interesting part was the director's style. Jonathan Glazer almost single-handedly gives new meaning to the term "leisurely". Long, slow tracking shots, leisurely scenes of minimalist conversation… it's like he set out to make the antithesis to the ADD afflicted "MTV-style" film that seems so prevalent today. (Ironic, since half the credits listed in IMDB look like they're for music videos.) There's one scene early in the film where he zooms into a close-up on Kidman's face as she's attending a classical concert. For what feels like five or more minutes (but is probably closer to "only" three) he holds that close-up as she listens to the music. But what's really fascinating here is that nothing seems to really be happening here. We're not being given any real insight into her character—it's still early enough into the film that you're not entirely sure what's going on, nor who she really is—and, aside from a momentary reaction when her fiancé says something to her, it's an almost static moment. Interesting is probably the wrong word, since it wasn't particularly. Fascinating might be better.
As for creepy… well, the idea of a movie about a ten-year-old kid telling Nicole Kidman he's her dead husband just oozes creepy. And the movie really delivers on that, especially in the bath scene about half-way through the film. But then, by the time you get to the end of the movie and you realize what's really happening, well suddenly that bath scene, and every other scene between Kidman & Kid, suddenly become that much more creepy, and not in a particularly fun way. Suffice it to say that there are a LOT of damaged people in this movie, and you're given front row tix to watch the damage unfold (though there is some hope/redemption, at least for some, by the end).
A quick aside… I know they must have picked the Peter Pan pixie bob for Kidman simply because of its androgynous look, and it certainly contributes to the creepy, but DAMN, who'd have thought they could make her look so unappealing these days? (I think even the prosthetic nose from The Hours wasn't as effective at making her "unsexy".)
And, while I wasn't a huge fan of the movie, the soundtrack might well be worth checking out… interesting mix of classical and new age styles and very evocative. You get a lot of time to notice the music during the leisurely moments of the film. The many leisurely moments of the film.
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