TELSTAR

In the 1960’s when Phil Spector ruled American pop music, we Brits crowned Joe Meek as our king.  They were both very similar people.  Flamboyant eccentrics bordering on insane monsters and complete control freaks dependent on heavy drug use and exploiting young unknown talents, they were geniuses nonetheless.

We learn in this intriguing bio-pic of his life, that Meek was an unhappy gay man … tone deaf too … and a very cocky songwriter who ran a small recording studio from a North London apartment incongruously situated over a handbag store. He was one of the first  producers to record instrumental and vocal tracks separately and merge them together, and his experimentation with different sounds gave him his biggest hit ever (and the first Brit to top the US charts ever) with the space travel influenced ‘Telstar’ for the group The Tornadoes.

Meek was a real manic mess who spent far more money than he made especially on his gay male protégés who had limited musical talents, and this soon became a breaking point for his Financial Backer Major Banks (uncomfortably played by Kevin Spacey).  His success in the Hit Parade with artists like Jess Conrad and John Leighton fueled his over-sized ego and made him pass up on opportunities to record The Beatles, The Kinks & Tom Jones.

Like Mr Spector he eventually spiraled totally out of control but went one further and murdered his long suffering landlady before killing himself.

This fascinating insight into this talented but tortured soul who played such a major part on developing British pop music when I was a kid (!) was originally produced as a play in London’s West End.  Actor/writer Nick Moran has deftly directed this movie adaption using the rather brilliant Con O’Neill to repeat his award winning stage performance as Meek.

I love dipping into recent history especially when it is done as well as it is here.  And if you do too, then this movie that was made in 2008, is now available on DVD most places.  One of Meek’s biggest successes was ‘Johnny Remember Me’ .. and I think we will.

P.S. Scary thought. When 'Telstar' was top of the Charts both sides of the Atlantic in 1962 is was played on all the airwaves all the time. There was no escaping it.  So much so that Margaret Thatcher chose it as one of the 10 Desert Island Discs!

★★★★★★★★

THE AMBASSADOR

'THE AMBASSADOR' is the work of Mads Brugger a Danish documentarian setting himself up as an 'African Diplomat' and under the pretense of representing Liberia he settles in the Central African Republic ostensibly to expose widespread corruption but at the same time becoming a diamond drug smuggler. This hilarious and completely compelling movie is about being a con-man trying to outplay a whole series of local con-men in this latest 'Mickey Mouse' Regime who are now in power in this desperately poor Third World Country.  But on reflection there is also a distinct possibility that the filmmaker has set this whole thing up and is actually conning us too.  Regardless of who is being taken for a ride it is an immensely funny film that takes aim at the farcical machinations in this African State where no-one is technically bribed but they all expect to be given a bulging 'envelope of happiness'.  

P.S. I met Mads at Sundance when the movie was premiered and he assured me it was all true.  Hmmmm.  Really Mads?

This has been re-printed from my SUNDANCE 2012 Blog as the movie is now in a few selected theaters now.

★★★★★★★★

MY DOG TULIP

J R Ackersley was a British writer and editor who started working with the BBC in London the year after its founding in 1927.  He published many emerging poets and writers who became influential in Great Britain, and later wrote his own highly successful memoir. He was also openly gay, a rarity in his time when the law forbade homosexuality and gay men were socially ostracized.

He always wanted a find a ‘special friend’ to share his life but this was something he never achieved, but in 1946 he obtained a German shepherd dog that became the object of all his affection, and the one real love in his life.  JR wrote a best-selling account of his relationship with his dog Queenie in 1956, which was made into a movie in 2010.  (The dog’s name was changed to Tulip to avoid obvious innuendos).

It's an exquisite hand-drawn animated movie that is a sheer joy to watch.  A tender love story between this articulate middle-aged man and his dog, which is peppered with a whole litany of eccentric british characters that J.R. deals with trying to make Tulip as happy as she can be.  It’s very much an adult’s story told for adults’ ….and not just because of the minute detail of Tulip’s toilet habits or her attempts to get pregnant.

Mr Ackersley was by all accounts a fascinating man in real life who mixed with the likes of E M Forster and a gay Indian Maharaja and whilst not a hint of this detail is in the movie, it does go towards explaining his wonderful dry wit, which pervades throughout the telling of this story.

It’s narrated by the wonderful sonorous tines of Christopher Plummer as JR and with Isabella Rossellini and Lynn Redgrave too (the film was the last Ms. Redgrave worked on before her untimely death and is dedicated to her memory)

If you a dog lover, you won’t be able to miss this one.  And evidently all Brits are according to J.R. as we are unable to love each other we English turn naturally to dogs.  Really?

Now available on DVD.

★★★★★★★★

HOPE SPRINGS

So what does happen when a marriage just grinds to a halt and you are left with just going through the daily motions with not even bothering (daring?) to mention its demise?  This rather intimate and uncomfortable story is just about that when after 31 years of marriage Kay & Arnold live separate lives in the same home.  There is no infidelity and no adultery and the pair have long settled into a passionless routine which Arnold fills with work and watching the Golf Channel on TV, whilst Kay tries to find out if tshe really is missing out of something more.

Her search leads her to discover Dr. Feld a therapist who runs intensive couple counseling courses.  Just getting frosty and crotchety Arnold there is a major achievement, but getting him to participate in these soul-baring sessions will take a miracle.  It is all intensely personal and excruciatingly painful, and as the ‘battle’ for their marriage and their whole relationship swings somewhat precariously back and forth, there is never any real inkling as to what the outcome will be.

Maybe it’s the ‘hopeless romantic’ trait in me but I very soon became deeply engaged in this very mature no-holds barred dissection of a marriage that seemed a little too close for comfort (even though I am very single ….go figure!)

Excellent story line, great script, deftly directed by David Frankel ('The Devil Wears Prada') but it's the inspired pairing of Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones that made this really one soar.  Miss Streep is as always the ‘Gold Star of acting’ and her ‘Kay’ was pitch perfect as the anxious undemanding wife who had enough faith to want her marriage back.  But Mr Lee Jones was a great (and wonderful) surprise out of his usual roles of tough men ('No Country for Old Men’ ‘Men In Black’ etc) as the irascible and totally irritating Arnold who thought he was happy with the status quo.

Despite it’s billing, and even with Steve Carell’s subdued Dr. Feld, this is far from being a comedy.  True there are some beautiful touches of humor especially when Kay tries to push the sexual boundaries slightly, but marriage, as seen here is a very serious business.   A joy too though …. just like this movie. 

★★★★★★★★

TEDDY BEAR

This is the story of Dennis a middle-aged pumped up 6' 5" bodybuilder who weighs in at 305 lbs but still lives at home with his diminutive shrew of a mother who bullies him like mad.  After Dennis's old Uncle marries his new young Thai bride it sets him off thinking that he too may actually be able to get a lady friend of his own.  After lying to his mother he sneaks off to Thailand but this powerfully shy big man can not overcome his fears and insecurities when he tries his hand at being a sex tourist.

He is totally miserable in Pattaya City until he discovers a gym, and the widow owner, and suddenly things are looking up.   Only snag is how the hell is he going to tell his fierce controlling mother?

Usually Danish movies are always so bleak .... maybe it's something to do with all that cold weather.... but despite the icy glares of Dennis's mother, this one was really quite sweet and totally charming.  

P.S. It won the World Cinema Directing Award at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival for filmmaker Mads Matthiesen, : and this review is reposted from my Sundance 2012 Blog

★★★★★★★★

AMADOR

When Nelson persuaded Marcela his girlfriend to move from Bolivia to Madrid he promised her a life full of roses.  Literally.  His dream was to set up their own Florist shop and make their fortune and live happily ever after. The reality is that they hire a team of scavengers to raid the town's garbage dump for discarded half-dead flowers that they wash and titivate and then re-sell.  They operate the ‘business’ from their small shabby apartment and the flowers 'cold store' is their refrigerator.

Marcela has had enough both of this life and of Nelson, and at the start of the movie we see her packing up her few possessions and writing a ‘Dear John’ note for Nelson and setting off for the bus stop and a new life.  However she faints at the stop and is taken to hospital where she is horrified to discover that she is pregnant.  Not that she wants the baby, but it is reason enough to put her escape on hold and so she reluctantly heads back home.

The refrigerator has broken and as this is essential for the flower business they must buy a new one.  The trouble is that they are totally penniless so cannot even afford the down payment, so Nelson persuades Marcela to take on a paying job.  The one she finds is caring for Amador a bed-ridden elderly man whose daughter wants to take off and get busy with her own life.  Her function is to feed him, wash him and just keep him company throughout the day.

Amador and Marcela are wary of each other at first; both are subdued and quiet souls, but soon a bond of sorts grows.  Amador senses that Marcela is pregnant even though she has not started to show yet, or even mentioned it to anyone (including Nelson,  and he tells her that as he is not much longer for this world, and that the baby can take the spot he is vacating.

And then he dies. Which rather throws Marcela somewhat as she desperately needs the job to keep making the payments on the refrigerator.  So without telling a soul she continues her daily routine as if nothing has happened and keeps the dead body company.  Soon a nosey neighbor is complaining about the smell, and so a panicking Marcela confides in Amador's only regular visitor, a middle-aged hooker that comes every Thursday to give him 'some relief'.

This very gentle film that unnecessarily draws  the story out a little too much with its constant  close ups of Marcela not doing much more than thinking, has a very twists to its plot (especially at the end) that make it far from predictable and quite intriguing. Some of the symobolism such as the references to mermaids and the real meaning of flowers are a tad too obvious and don't particulary enhance the movie, but that said, it’s still an enjoyable wee film.

This movie never saw the insides of many movie theaters but is now available on DVD.

★★★★★★★

HELLO LONESOME

Three separate and unrelated stories about three couples that have no plot to speak off, and the only common denominator is that there are all lonely in their different ways.  As odd as it sounds (and is!) film-maker Adam Reid’s far from perfect debut movie has just enough endearing moments to make it watchable.

Bill is a gruff middle-aged voice-over actor who works from his home studio and never manages to put more than a pair of underpants on most days.  Since his wife left him, and his grown up daughter will never even return his phone calls, he is stuck in his rather remote house and his only ‘friend’ is Omar the delivery mans who calls most days.

Eleanor is an elderly widow who divides her time between mopping around for her late husband and polishing their prized classic car, but when she gets her driving license revoked, she allows herself to be taken grocery shopping by her much younger rather dry divorced neighbor and a quasi romance starts.

Gordon is a hip young man who spends his time online placing bets on sports and picking up women.  This time he wins big time on both counts, but just after he meets and falls for Debby she gives him some major news, which will put their new relationship on a totally unexpected track.

There are glaring holes throughout this whole movie and at times the stilted script is a tad too irritating, but equally there is something strangely intriguing about these interminably sad folks.  It has pathos but a good helping of humanity too

It has the hallmarks of a real work of love as Mr Reid wrote, directed, produced and filmed it himself all in 15 days with a miniscule budget (which doesnt show). He picked up an Independent Spirit Nomination for his efforts along the way.  It will be interesting to see what comes next from him ….. but meanwhile maybe think about taking a spin on this one.

★★★★★★

BLACK BUTTERFLIES.

It’s so hard not to think of Sylvia Plath when you watch this heart-wrenching biopic of the celebrated but deeply troubled South African poet Ingrid Jonker as both of then took their own lives at a young age.  Plath was just 30 when she poisoned herself in 1963, and Jonker drowned herself two years later when she was barely 31.  Both women also had complex relationships with their respective fathers, which contributed to their deep un-happiness.

Filmmaker Paula Van der Oest’s fascinating profile opens on a glorious Cape Town beach where Ingrid is struggling with the strong tides and is saved from drowning by a handsome older stranger who turns out to be the novelist Jack Cape. When Jack discovers Ingrid’s identity he professes to be a fan of her work, but very soon after that he starts an affair with her (he already has a wife and two children) and is quickly declaring his love too.

Ingrid, recently separated from her husband after a very short marriage has a two year old daughter, also falls heavily for Jack but she soon engineers the first of many break-up’s with one of her frequent emotional flare ups when Jack fails to responds to all of her demands.  Ingrid’s irrationality and her highly-strung nature are not so much about attention seeking but her very desperate and real need to be loved.  Yet when pregnant with Jack’s child she secretly takes herself to a back street abortionist  without  telling a soul.

When Jack won't give her the attention she wants Ingrid doesn't hesitate in finding another man/men who will, including the newly married novelist Eugene Maritz. He, like Jack, will also end up telling the highly demanding Ingrid ‘you drain me!’  Despite her ambivalence, it is Jack that stands by her one way or another, and it is he that rescues her work from one of the several Mental Institutions she has been confined in, and brings it home to edit it all into what will eventually become her award winning book of Poetry that really establishes her literary reputation

Ingrid's  father had divorced her mother before she had been born, and she was only 10 years old when her mother died and her father that she never knew took her, and her sister, to live with him and his 3^rd wife and their children where they were treated like strangers.  Mr. Jonkers was a leading rightwing racist Member of Parliament, and even though when Ingrid grew up and her politics where at the totally opposite end of the scale, she never stopped trying to win his love and/or approval.  There is one very poignant scene when she pleads with her father to read her latest poem ‘The Child That Was Shot Dead’ about an outrageous incident she had witnessed but he in real anger just rips the paper to shreds.  He takes her in to give her a roof over her head when she was homeless even though he hates her (‘you are a slut’ he shouts) but in the end he gets his revenge by agreeing that the latest Mental Institution that she has been confined can give her electric shack treatment which finally breaks her spirit.

These were turbulent times in South Africa and the black majority were still being kept in their place by the white Afrikaner’s and her vehement opposition to apartheid greatly affected Ingrid and her work.  It’s rather fitting that many years later Nelson Mandela chose to read the same poem that had once so incensed Ingrid’s father.  The date was 1994, and the occasion was the Opening of the first Democratically Elected Parliament in South Africa. It's a fitting tribute to the passionate eloquent prose of a woman whose legacy lasted longer than her short life.

I will totally put my hands up at admitting that I had never even heard of Ms. Jonkers until I caught sight of this movie.  In it she is stunningly played by Dutch actress Carice van Houten who strikes such a fine balance of a troubled soul that could still pour out this remarkable work.  The poems themselves that are quoted throughout the work are exceptionally moving and will make you want to read more.

Tough and sad story: beautifully told.

★★★★★★★★