Volume 04, Number 10
Movies
Movie News
By Bill Hersey
The big news on the movie scene here before Golden Week was the world premiere of Spiderman III.
I had been to a press conference a few weeks earlier when Sony Pictures, President of Worldwide Theatrical Operations, Paul Smith, told the media that the Spiderman series had been such a mega hit in Japan they were having the world premiere of Spiderman III here on April 16 and the film would open in Japan on May 1, several days before anywhere else in the world. He also said the entire cast would visit Japan for the premiere. They were here, as well as a huge contingent of international journalists and Sony people.
It was early afternoon in the Roppongi Arena but a huge crowd of fans had already lined the long and wide red carpets anticipating the action later in the day. It was a dynamic setup with lots of huge monitors, big silver spider webs, and, of course, the replicas of the one and only Spiderman everywhere.
Unfortunately I couldn't stay for the screening.
Everyone who saw the film seemed to think it's the best of the three (so far) films. I did come back later that night and went up to the 52nd floor of the Mori Tower for the big party. The set up was spectacular. In addition to the 360-degree view of Tokyo by night there were life-size Spidermen on the ceiling, on the walls, and on the floor. All very high tech; all very Sony. Kudos to long time friend Dick Sano, his staff at Sony, the Sony troops that flew in to help, and many others who helped make the Spiderman III premiere the monumental event it was.
British actor Hugh Grant flew in for Warner Bros' to promote the comedy Music and Lyrics. Grant's co-star, Drew Barrymore couldn't be here and so the actor was kept super busy with back-to-back interviews and TV appearances including one with Johnny Kitagawa's pop group SMAP. I had the opportunity to meet Hugh backstage at the premiere. He told me he was really happy to be back in Japan, but just wished he had more time. The talented man does keep busy.
Movie Review - Babel
By Danielle Tate-Stratton
Babel is the latest in a series of movies using what seems to be Hollywood's current darling in terms of cinematic technique. Movies incorporating multiple story lines that tackle social issues, globalization, and the so-called ‘butterfly effect' of our actions, have enjoyed huge popularity as of late.
The conclusion of Alejandro González Iñárritu's socalled ‘death trilogy' (including Amores Perros and 21 Grams), Babel is a multi-continental story examining the inter-connected aspects of our increasingly globalized world.
The story, which takes place in the USA, Morocco, and Japan, is actually several stories connected, however tenuously, to each other. They show how one bullet can literally ricochet around the world, affecting several families of hugely varying backgrounds. It is to the director's credit that this does not spiral out of control and that the movie flows well overall. Although some events are revealed out of sequence, the plot(s) are not especially hard to follow, making this a complex movie you can enjoy, rather than leaving you to sit there scratching your head throughout.
Much has been made of Rinko Kikuchi's Academy Award Nominated performance as Chieko Wataya, the deaf Japanese school-girl coming to terms with both her mother's death and her burgeoning sexuality, and rightly so. Kikuchi, who studied Sign Language at a deaf school for several months in preparation for the role, delivers a convincing performance that is both subtly nuanced and highly emotional. For those of us living in Tokyo, there is the additional fun of being able to watch the scenes shot in Shinjuku and Azabujuban and recognize the locations.
The movie uses local actors (in Morocco), multiple languages, and shies bravely away from a slick Hollywood veneer. These techniques all allow viewers to become immersed in the multiple countries and cultures Babel moves between.
Look forward to great performances not only by Rinko Kikuchi, Cate Blanchett, and Brad Pitt, but also relative unknowns Adriana Barraza, Satoshi Nikaido, and Elle Fanning, Dakota's equally precocious and adorable younger sister.
Movies to Own on DVD
By M. Halliday
Some films treat the great outdoors with majestic reverence, some with fear and suspicion; occasionally a film will do both. The grand daddy of this type is John Boorman's oft copied, never equaled, Deliverance. Based on James Dickey's novel of the same name, Dickey appears as a sheriff at the end of the film, Deliverance is a chilling examination of what can occur when a ‘civilized' man ventures into the wild, in this case the Tallahassee river. Containing scenes that have entered mainstream consciousness (the dueling banjos, squealing like a pig), superb cinematography, a 70s superstar (Burt Reynolds) at the absolute top of his game, an excellent supporting cast including two of Americas finest—Jon Voight and Ned Beatty, and a tense plot; Deliverance is a masterpiece of suspense.
As good as Deliverance and no less unsettling, Nicolas Roeg's Walkabout is a very different take on the clash of civilization and nature. Set, for the large part, in the Australian outback it chronicles the journey (physical and spiritual) of a sister and brother abandoned by their suicidal father and joined by an aboriginal boy as they attempt to survive the harsh conditions. Jenny Agutter is excellent as the sister, as is David Gumpilil as the aborigine. This is not a feel-good survival film; the outback is shown as savage and unsentimental. Nor is it a judgment in favor of either culture shown. Perhaps it is a meditation on the impossibilities of meaningful communication no matter how desirable. Whatever it is—this film will haunt you.