Post by Sharbs on Sept 27, 2018 14:37:49 GMT
Lovely Luisa.
"The nicest thing about feeling happy is that you never feel like you're going to be unhappy again"
Spoiler free except the final paragraph, but I went in basically blind and loved it. So tread as you will. Also it's pretty evident that Luis is transgender and refers to herself as a woman, I'm using her pronouns. Assuming, so sorry if that's wrong
This is about two people one a transgender prisoner and one an extremist prisoner, trying to cope with their present state of affairs and trying to feel each other out and learn what makes the other person in the room tic. It's not about bashing the right-wing media because a bunch of out-of-touch people locked someone up for being "sexually immoral". It's not a statement on extremist militia and whether or not his cause was just or what methods he used to ensure his captivity. IT'S NOT INTERESTED IN PANDERING.
On a slightly more sobering note, this could've derailed about 10 miles off the tracks and pretty quickly too. But I was still buying in due to William Hurt and Raul Julia. Their rhythm and feel for where this was heading and the journey needed to get there is something to behold and grab onto. It required me, in the beginning, to reach out and understand their isolation and what it means to themselves and the other because that's what they are searching for too.
My obligatory William Hurt paragraph: After the first few minutes of this performance I was really worried because of how his initial mannerisms and attire were worrisome not because it was obvious he's gay, but because of how I thought his character was going to be written. In the cliched version he's marching all stages of the pride parade with feathers and beads throughout the confines of the four corners of his cell (sounds kinda fun). But his character is writ wrat wrote with an impeccable sense of love and depth. But with every carefully crafted character on paper there has to a face and a body to match and William put the Hurt on this role (sorry, doesn't even work that well). Hurt is more than up to this task. The drawn out inflection creates this innate desire and longing to be happy and uncaged. Now that doesn't mean Luis is the woe-is-me character, instead she creates films in her head and recites them to Valentin to pass time, entertain, and they also serve as a prescription for the tough times in isolation for these two men. I'll finish more of thoughts of Hurt in the final section.
Final section/paragraph **SPOILERS**
"The nicest thing about feeling happy is that you never feel like you're going to be unhappy again"
Spoiler free except the final paragraph, but I went in basically blind and loved it. So tread as you will. Also it's pretty evident that Luis is transgender and refers to herself as a woman, I'm using her pronouns. Assuming, so sorry if that's wrong
This is about two people one a transgender prisoner and one an extremist prisoner, trying to cope with their present state of affairs and trying to feel each other out and learn what makes the other person in the room tic. It's not about bashing the right-wing media because a bunch of out-of-touch people locked someone up for being "sexually immoral". It's not a statement on extremist militia and whether or not his cause was just or what methods he used to ensure his captivity. IT'S NOT INTERESTED IN PANDERING.
On a slightly more sobering note, this could've derailed about 10 miles off the tracks and pretty quickly too. But I was still buying in due to William Hurt and Raul Julia. Their rhythm and feel for where this was heading and the journey needed to get there is something to behold and grab onto. It required me, in the beginning, to reach out and understand their isolation and what it means to themselves and the other because that's what they are searching for too.
My obligatory William Hurt paragraph: After the first few minutes of this performance I was really worried because of how his initial mannerisms and attire were worrisome not because it was obvious he's gay, but because of how I thought his character was going to be written. In the cliched version he's marching all stages of the pride parade with feathers and beads throughout the confines of the four corners of his cell (sounds kinda fun). But his character is writ wrat wrote with an impeccable sense of love and depth. But with every carefully crafted character on paper there has to a face and a body to match and William put the Hurt on this role (sorry, doesn't even work that well). Hurt is more than up to this task. The drawn out inflection creates this innate desire and longing to be happy and uncaged. Now that doesn't mean Luis is the woe-is-me character, instead she creates films in her head and recites them to Valentin to pass time, entertain, and they also serve as a prescription for the tough times in isolation for these two men. I'll finish more of thoughts of Hurt in the final section.
Final section/paragraph **SPOILERS**
There are two scenes in the final act that are just straight-up brilliant: They were Luis coming home and hugging her mom. How it was left at the hug instead of a nice conversation was so beautiful because of how affectionately Luis described her and their relationship, that's really all I needed. And the other being the final scene where Valentin has his final morphine trip rowing out with his love. Great way to end. Also just giving a shoutout to that awful Law and Order music cue during the chase scene. Ok, what I really came here to talk about and what I wanted to end with. I referenced this above as "where it all was heading". There is a section of this movie that is so masterful and one of the best most alluring half-hours of cinema (I re-watched this segment three more times with the additional two full views tonight). The scenes start when Luis is talking to the warden and the agent about getting Valentin to open up about his political secrets and discussing the plan that'll trigger Valentin's confessions. And ends with Luis leaving on parole. After Luis finishes the story about the Spider Woman the two inmates are on equal ground. They have seen and dealt with each other at their worst. Luis has made her proclamation to the viewer that she is in love with Valentin through this metaphor and the first movie that she finally finished. The spider being caught in its own web discribes herself at that current junction. so us, the audience are ahead of Valentin only by a few minutes because his proclamation of love to Valentine is so beautifully done. When Luis puts her hand on Valentin's scar that for me is the breaking point of whether or not she'll inform on the intel she has garnered for the warden. Her empathy is so prevalent that Luis lets out this worried sound like the sound when your heart gets broken for the first time and your mother is there to console you and she does the "there there". And then Luis stares in Valentin's eyes for a couple of seconds and scoffs out of disappointment towards herself then breaks down in his arms. One of the most touching moments I've ever witnessed. I just love the movie within a movie aspect where the real life plays out like her Nazi movie. There's a perfect poetry to it.
What are your guessess thoughts on this extraordinary film?