Raging Bull and Fear in Film

When you talk about fear in film, it is typically a result of design. The characters, lighting, and camera angles are arranged in a way to intentionally strike fear in you. The character’s alone in the house with the killer they’ve been running from the whole time, or something along those lines. These scenes, even when they work effectively, are fear of what is to come. You aren’t afraid of the teenage girl walking down the hallways of her dark house, you’re afraid of what may lurk around the corner. Rarely, if ever, is the audience in fear of what is happening in that moment. One of the few instances in which I felt legitimate fear while watching a scene was, funnily enough, not in a horror movie.

Jake LaMotta, portrayed in an instantly iconic performance by Robert DeNiro, is a violent man. His work is violent. His home life is violent. His sex is violent. And up until this point, it has done well for him. But as the film Raging Bull goes on, directed by Martin Scorcese in what may very well be his masterwork, what use to empower Jake and be his profession starts to undo him. His compulsions and drives for violence and self-gratification, which initially rewarded him, slowly start to undo him. He’s no longer respected as a heavyweight boxer. He has lost his family. And his relationship with his brother has been torn asunder by his ego and pride. What was once a proud, well-respected man at the peak of physical fitness has been reduced to owning a shitty bar in Miami. He’s overweight and reciting crappy comedy monologues to himself. Soon enough his wife divorces him. Then, to top it all off, he gets arrested for sleeping with an underage girl. He’s thrown in jail like some common sleaze ball.

We have never seen Jake weak. Hell, we haven’t seen him up until this point be anything but a brute.  He is nothing now. His ego, pride, greed have nothing to hold up to anymore. All he has is his violence. His animalistic fury. And he uses it.

“WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY”

                 When I watched this movie for the first time, I cowered in my seat while watching this part. Knives held in the dark, creepy men in masks, long dark hallways. Whatever. That's all technique, not storytelling. But this is pure unbridled anger mixed with fear and self-loathing. I cannot quite articulate what about this scene sticks inside my gut so much. But it’s haunting. It’s a man at his lowest point in his life. When he is stripped of it all, this is how he acts. And that’s terrifying to bear witness to. Surely more fear inducing than any thriller or horror movie I've ever scene. It causes me to worry about man and what he is capable of. 

                An amazing scene, an amazing performance, an amazing film.

A Scene No One Else In Their Right Mind Cares About

There's not much else to say about Martin Scorsese. I mean, come on. The guy's basically film royalty now. He made some of the most artistic films of all time while also making some of the most entertaining ones. This isn't about the guy, his movies, or even his style. Nah, this is about one single shot that over the last four years I have become totally obsessed with. And I'm not sure I've ever met anyone else who's cared about it.

The movie Goodfellas is great. Yeah, what a unique, culturally distinctive opinion. Cinematography is like nothing else I've ever seen. Blah blah blah blah. One shot stands out to me to this day and every time I watch the movie I count the minutes until I get to watch it.

It's a small moment, and it doesn't even stand out to you when you see the movie the first time. But oh ym god, this shot absolutely drips with cool. On an artistic level, it's a perfect melding of story, acting, cinematography and song choice. De Niro doesn't overplay the moment overplayed, but between the steady dolly in, the slow motion, and the blunt blues guitars, you can tell something is about to happen. The story carries an entire plot movement, which could have been an entire scene of arguing between character, and deftly executes it in a matter of seconds.

And the song. Scorsese has a bunch of iconic scenes set to song, but this one just stands out from most. It just feels like some bad stuff is about to go down.

This scene perfectly illustrates how story is not just dialog, which is a lesson I fear many young film makes forget. So much of a film is built on small moments like this, and I think this type of film making is the type that most often resonates with an audience.

Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook a warm, fun, and emotional drama comedy. Bradley Cooper plays Patrick, a man suffering from a mental breakdown, but he’s a man with a plan, determined to get his wife back, through exercise and self-improvement. While home from the mental hospital he must contend with his loving mother (Jacki Weaver) and father (Robert DeNiro), and his father’s desire for connection through their shared love of football, all the while attempting to stick to his goal of connecting with his wife. He meets an unbalanced young widow, Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence) who promises to help him, in return for his help in achieving one of her dreams.

Director David O. Russell creates some of the most natural scenes I’ve ever seen and heard, while characters talk over, under and through one another. The timing of the gags is perfect, which really adds to the genuine funniness of the film. I laughed a lot during this movie, and the reason being is that there’s no reserve with the characters. The rawness of the relationships and the dialogue of each character truly made a hilarious sight to both see and hear. The script is phenomenal and brilliantly thought out. Everything came together, one way or another in the film and there were many aspects of the film that seemed almost too complex to tie together at the end.

The effects of mental illness are felt and evident throughout, rather than simply talked about or seen once. Because Patrick and Tiffany lack inhibitions or filters, the kind of genuine conversations or interactions that are available to them elevate this from the dull to full excitement. Patrick and Tiffany are in another place, and as their families struggle to be supportive, they find that their illness has removed them from their lives. They find that their problems are what make them so perfect for each other. With a not-so-perfect final dance, they realize that they are meant to be, and the silver lining is found.

The Untouchables: Classic

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This week I re-watched one of my all-time favorite movie, The Untouchables. This Brian De Palma crime classic centers on the effort to arrest the notorious gangster, Al Capone. The movie takes place in the beginning of the 1930’s at the height of the prohibition in Chicago, Illinois. Eliot Ness and his gang of “Untouchables” must bend the rules of the law in order to capture the heavily influential criminal. 

The film stars Kevin Coster as Eliot Ness, Sean Connery as Jimmy Malone, and Robert De Niro plays Al Capone.  The film takes advantage of several engaging shots that really bring the viewer into the retro setting of this film to life. One thing I noticed this time watching it that I had not noticed before is that the clothing was all chosen and designed by Giorgio Armani. I am not really a fashion buff, but I know the significance of Mr. Armani’s name and I believe he did a really good job. The music in the film is entirely done with a full orchestra and it really lines up to the time period and the subject at hand.

The acting is superb. All characters shine especially De Niro’s interpretation of Capone. De Niro, known for his mobster roles, does the part great justice and really helps you understand how sick he really was.

I recommend the film to all.

More Than Just a Silver Lining

Recently nominated for 8 Academy Awards, Silver Linings Playbook tells the story of an unlikely friendship between two people recovering from mental illnesses.  Going into the theatre I had my hopes up high after friends, parents and critics praising the film.  Surely I was not disappointed.  This touching, and emotional roller coaster allows the audience to see the frustrations and struggles of people living with these disorders.  Having only seen Bradley Cooper in movies like The Hangover, and Valentines Day, I was not expecting a strong, heavy hearted, leading male performance from him.  I was surely mistaken after Bradley carried the film impressing me with his acting and his on screen chemistry with all of the characters.  He played "Pat" a man living with bi-polar disorder who was recently released out of a mental health facility into the care of his parents Pat sr. (Robert DeNiro) and Dolores (Jacki Weaver) whom also gave wonderful performances in the show.

The film really picks up once Tiffany, a recovering sex addict played by Jennifer Lawrence, steps into the picture and befriends Pat.  Her performance was stunning and even won her the Golden Globe for a leading actress in a comedy or musical.  Both Lawrence, and Coopers ability to convey so much emotional depth within their facial features, especially their eyes and their necks, is unbelievable. I could not take my eyes off of either one, when either of them were on the screen.  I think both of them have reached new heights in their acting careers.  It's impressive to any actor who can steal the show away from Robert De Niro who still have a more than perfect performance.

The film is nominated for all 4 acting awards, best editing, best adapted screenplay, best director David O. Russell (nominated in 2010 for The Fighter) and best picture at the Academy Awards.  I think this film deserves all of these accolades.  The movie was a spectacular creation and beautiful tale of unlikely friends coming together.  After seeing the film I couldn't help but think if even a few things about the movie were different it could have been just another rom-com and not this beautiful work of art.  Don't get me wrong, I love rom-coms, but change Jenifer Lawrence with Katherine Heigel, have Gary Marshal direct instead, and it could have been a very different movie.

All in all, Silver Linings Playbook was a wonderful journey, and a stepping stone for film makers everywhere to show that even the most simple of plots can have the most lasting impact on audiences.

Heat

Heat is a 1995 Michael Mann film about a bank robbery crew led by a master thief who is played by Robert De Niro and a cop, played by Al Pacino who is hot on their trail after their most recent heist.  Heat also has Val Kilmer in a supporting role.  Heat is a movie that I really love and it is action packed and thrilling to the very end.  I think it has one of the best action shoot outs you can find in any bank robbery movie and I also think it has one of the best ends to a bank robbery/action movie out there.  Robert De Niro and Al Pacino are great as they go against each other.  There is a fantastic scene between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro that has fantastic tension.  It is a fantastic movie that I would really recommend seeing.  Michael Mann puts together a great story in this movie.  I am also a big fan of some of Michael Mann's other films such as Collateral and The Insider, which also stars Al Pacino.