THE SCHOOL OF CHANTAL AKERMAN PART 6: MOVING IMAGERY

On this latest entry, we take a look at a particular scene from one of Akerman's most well known films and the (possible) influence it may have had on LGBTQ cinema (along with a few other bonus comparisons).

Enjoy...

Also - make sure to check out:
PART ONE
PART TWO
PART THREE
PART FOUR
PART FIVE

Je Tu Il Elle / Mulholland Drive

Je Tu Il Elle / Blue Is The Warmest Color

Je Tu Ill Elle / Carol

Je Tu Il Elle / The Handmaiden

Je Tu Il Elle / High Art

Jeanne Dielman... /
Blue Is The Warmest Color

Jeanne Dielman... /
Manhunter

Je Tu Il Elle / Attenberg

Toute Une Nuit / Down By Law

Toute Une Nuit / No Fear No Die / US Go Home / Nenette & Boni / 35 Rhums

Family Business / Henry Fool

Jeanne Dielman... / Ida

THE SCHOOL OF PERSONA PART 3

Below are a few more obvious (and not-so obvious) references to some of my all-time favorite moving images courtesy of Ingmar Bergman's Persona (along with a few quotes from the possibly influenced directors themselves).

Enjoy...


I’m sure Ingmar Bergman did not influence Cheryl Dunye's Watermelon Woman (I did tag her in this post on twitter so perhaps she can chime in. I mean - movie references and video stores do play a big part in her film). But the visual similarities (along with Bergman's exploration of sexuality) is quite the coincidence.

Persona / The Watermelon Woman

BFI: What filmmakers have influenced you in making your Alien films?

Ridley Scott: Mostly Kubrick, but then along the way you’ve gotta take on board [David] Lean, you’ve gotta take on board [Akira] Kurosawa and [Ingmar] Bergman.

Persona / Bladerunner

Person / Bladerunner

Persona / Freeze Frame

Persona / Always Shine

Persona / Always Shine

Nicolas Winding Refn is on record saying he's never seen Persona but this is a pretty interesting comparison nonetheless (although I find it hard to believe a self-proclaimed cinephile like Refn has never seen Persona)

Persona / Fear x

If I can’t watch a film like Persona and realize, Oh, Ingmar Bergman is an originator and I’m a synthesist, then I don’t know what I’m doing. Part of knowing what you’re doing is understanding, Okay, I can’t drive the lane. But I can shoot from the outside. - Steven Soderbergh

Persona / Sex, Lies & Videotape

Persona / Sex, Lies & Videotape

I wrote a lot of fan letters to Bergman... - Lars Von Trier

Persona / The Orchid Gardener

Person / Mullholand Drive / Blue Is The Warmest Color / Carol

NO HOME MOVIE

No Home Movie is a low-key love letter to Chantal Akerman's family. Specifically her mother. Akerman's sister Sylviane makes an appearance at one point and there are constant references to her father, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. But at the end of the day this is a film about her mom. In No Home Movie Chantal Akerman places cameras throughout her mother's apartment and observes her over the course of what seems like a few months. It should be noted that Akerman's own presence in the film is rather cryptic. We never see a full-on shot of Chantal but rather half shots of her face through Skype chats, her voice off camera, or shots of her back. What's even more cryptic (and a little heartbreaking) is that there are a few lines of dialogue in this film where she mentions her unhappinesss & depression to her mother through casual conversation (for those that don't know, she took her life late last year).
It's difficult for me to not be a little bitter towards certain circumstances surrounding her death. My love of Akerman's work is documented on this site going back to almost day one. That's something a lot of these bandwagon film sites & publications can't say. I find it funny reading all these pieces dedicated to Akerman after her death yet when she was alive her worked had been trashed and bad-mouthed by some of the very same publications in recent years (obviously not all, but still...). And what's even more frustrating is that her career spans over 40 years yet the main/only film people focus on is Jeanne Dielman... when, in my opinion, isn't even her best work. It's certainly iconic and worthy of all the praise it's gotten (and as you'll see in a few moments I use quite a few images from the film) but there's so much more to discuss (her semi-autobiographical Rendezvous D'Anna is a film worthy of the same over-analysis & dissection in my opinion).

Putting aside all the obvious influences that Jeanne Dielman... has had on art house cinema throughout the years...

Jeanne Dielman.../Safe (Todd Haynes)

Jeanne Dielman... / Safe 

Jeanne Dielman... / Silent Light (Todd Haynes)

Akerman has also influenced Claire Denis...

Rendezvous D'anna / Vers Nancy

Tout Une Nuit / U.S. Go Home

Abdellatif Kechiche...

Je Tu Il Elle / Blue Is The Warmest Color

Lodge Kerrigan...

Jeanne Dielman / Clean, Shaven

And I feel like Jim Jarmusch has a spiritual connection to Akerman as well...

News From Home / Permanent Vacation

No Home Movie has an additional layer as it's kind of an unofficial sequel to her 2002 film La Bas (like No Home Movie, La Bas takes place primarily in an apartment, we hear Akerman's voice off camera a lot, they have the same up close & personal/claustrophobic vibe, and both films reference Judaism and the same family members).

Not to make this too much about myself but No Home Movie made me contemplate the lives of the loved ones around me. My Grandmother passed away a few months ago (not that much soon after Chantal Akerman passed away). Actually, Akerman's mother reminded me of my late grandmother. They have some of the same mannerisms, they're around the same age, and they have plenty of stories to tell (who wouldn't have stories to tell when you reach your late 80's/early 90's). As I watched the elder Akerman tell stories of World War 2, escaping Poland, and overcoming anti-semitism, I was reminded of my Grandmother's stories concerning civil rights, "colored's only" sections and tales about my dad as a kid.
No Home Movie also doubles as a comment on how we sometimes treat the elderly. Not to ruffle any feathers but the way Akerman's sister speaks to their mother in certain scenes is a little bossy & lightly patronizing. But she's certainly not the only adult to speak to their elderly parent that way. A lot of folks are guilty of it which is why this film is so important & relevant.

No Home Movie is classic Akerman in the sense that time is taken very literally, the pacing is very slow and Akerman isn't concerned with editing or keeping the attention of the casual viewer. At the screening I went to there were quite a few walkouts which not only pissed me off, but also confused the hell out of me. I mean...Akerman's films aren't the kinds of movies you just casually stumble upon. By 2016 you should know what you're getting in to when it comes to one of her movies. Walking out of one of her (recent) films because it was "boring" kind of makes you look a little stupid in my eyes (just like people who still get worked up over the style in modern-day Terrence Malick films. Again - what the fuck were you expecting?)
I know this all sounds harsh and a little pretentious but Akerman's work meant a lot to me so it's hard to not take things personally. She not only influenced some of my favorite filmmakers (both directly & indirectly) but she had the kind of guts that you don't see in too many filmmakers (male or female). (Two-face) Publications like indiewire are always clamoring for strong female voices in film as if Akerman hadn't been around since the late 60's (maybe stop writing so many articles on Melissa McCarthy, Tina Fey & Cate Blanchett and shine a spotlight on Akerman's work).

PINNLAND EMPIRE'S PERSONAL FAVORITE SCENES OF THE DECADE SO FAR: PART FOUR

Lists used to be a regular thing on here at PINNLAND EMPIRE, but for whatever reason I gave them a rest in favor of writing longer articles that most of you probably don't even finish reading once you start. It recently hit me that although its way too early to start deciding what the defining movies of the decade are, there's already quite a few isolated moments from the last 4+ years that are either so visually striking, prolific, heartbreaking, frightening, hilarious or a combination of everything that they deserve to be mentioned.

So, as part of a new ongoing series, we're going to list my personal favorite movie moments of the decade so far.

I put an emphasis on the word personal because its just that. My own personal opinion. This list in no way speaks for anyone else. And please keep in mind that this is ongoing (as you're checking this fourth installment I'll already be putting the final touches on part six). So if you don't see something listed that you feel should be, give it some time. It may show up eventually. There's no order or hierarchy in what gets listed either.

FYI...three of the six films represented in this installment are currently streaming on Netflix instant and one is easy to come by on DVD & Blu-Ray just about anywhere, so I don't wanna hear any of that; "no one has heard of or seen any of these movies" (although I will admit that two films on this list aren't easy to watch or come by on DVD/Blu-Ray)

So here's part four. Enjoy...

Representin' Williamsburg (The Comedy)

Hating on “hipsters” has become a little tiresome and cliché. We get it – they can sometimes be pretentious, dirty looking and annoyingly ironic. But you can find faults in any sub-group/sub-genre of people (hip-hop backpackers, skaters, incense burning bohemians, rockers, bros/frat boys, etc). 

Film had yet to really address hipsters, specifically Brooklyn hipsters, until Rick Alverson's The Comedy came along in 2012. I somewhat appreciate that it was made by a white filmmaker instead of a filmmaker of color (as messed up as that sounds) because there’s a good chance it would have been angry, emotional & misguided instead of precise & well thought out. Imagine Spike Lee’s recent rant on gentrification in the form of a movie. Sure it would have been interesting and rooted in truth, but it would have come off slightly immature & angry. 

This scene from The Comedy, where we see our main character (played by Tim Heidecker of Tim & Eric) at a predominately black bar being casually racist and self imposing, pretty much sums up what’s wrong with "hipsters" & gentrification in Brooklyn today.

The seizure scene (The Comedy)

Here’s another great scene from The Comedy that really got to me for some strange reason. Towards of the end of the film Tim Heidecker casually sits back and watches a woman he hooks up with have a seizure and he does nothing to help.

The Hottentot Venus (Black Venus)

Not since Irreversible has there been a scene involving rape, sexual assault or sexual objectification that made me squirm in my seat. Simply for the fact that this is easily one of the most uncomfortable moments in cinema is why I’m putting this on the list. Before Abdelatiff Kechiche broke through with last year’s Blue Is The Warmest Color, he made one of the most underrated/misunderstood films in the form of Black Venus – the story of the Hottentot Venus. 

After being paraded around Europe as a sideshow attraction due to her voluptuous figure (something Europeans weren’t used to seeing at the time), Sarah Bartmann was later used as a prop/human sex toy for high society orgies and sex parties. In one scene, while random strangers are violating her in various ways, she breaks down and starts to cry. But the scene is shot so up-close & personal that you almost feel like you’re a part of the sexual abuse. You just want the scene to end. Black Venus is a tough film but it’s important. I’ll never understand why bipoics on the same damn people continue get made (and find success) while more original stories like this one get no love. Black Venus didn’t even get love in its own home country (France), but I’m sure part of that had to do with guilt and Europeans still wanting to keep certain thing tucked under the rug. 

A Pissed Off Bride (Certified Copy)

I can’t give too much of an explanation as to why I love this scene outside of the cliché reason of seeing someone angry and in tears on what’s supposed to be a happy time (their wedding day). There’s a nice contrast here. This (quick) scene is also very polarizing because the camera just stays locked in on this woman and there’s no movement on her part for a few seconds to the point where it looks like an old painting.

The Homonculus (Faust)

This is definitely one of the three creepiest moments of the decade so far. Easily. This scene, of a homunculus trapped in a jar, evokes the spirit of both Tarkovsky & Henenlotter (specifically Basket case) at the same time.

Tom Wilkinson's "extended cameo" in The Ghost Writer

It’s a shame that there's already signs of The Ghost Writer, Roman Polanski’s 2010 political thriller, not standing the test of time. In my opinion, this is the best thing he’s done in YEARS (it was in my top 10 of 2010). It seemed like most true Polanski fans didn’t like this because it wasn’t a psychological thriller (a lane that Polanski mastered & innovated) and average movie goers found it “boring” (I saw this twice in the theater and both times I heard rumblings of it being boring). Tom Wilkinson is one of those under-appreciated supporting actors (often mistakenly labeled as a character actor). Like Danny Huston, even in bad and/or mediocre films, their presence makes most things watchable. Wilkinson is used sparingly in The Ghost Writer (only two scenes) yet his creepy performance/extended cameo is the most memorable thing in the film for me.

Hiding Out (Upstream Color)

Like the scene in Certified Copy, this is another one I love but I can’t fully explain why. I know this scene is supposed to symbolize vulnerability and being scared of an unknown/mysterious threat, but beyond that, there’s a beauty & ambiance  here that almost can’t be put in to words.

PINNLAND EMPIRE'S PERSONAL FAVORITE SCENES OF THE DECADE SO FAR: PART ONE

Lists used to be a regular thing here at PINNLAND EMPIRE, but for whatever reason I gave them up in favor of writing longer articles that most of you probably don't even finish reading once you start (wait til you see what I have planned for Friday). It recently hit me that although its way too early to start deciding what the defining films of the decade are, there's already quite a few isolated moments from the last 4+ years of movies that are so visually striking, prolific, heartbreaking, frightening or hilarious, that they deserve to be mentioned.

So as part of a new ongoing series, we're going to list my personal favorite movie moments of the decade so far. I put an emphasis on the word personal because its just that. My own personal opinion. This list in no way speaks for anyone else. And please keep in mind that this is ongoing (as you're checking this first installment I'll already be putting the final touches on part four). So if you don't see something listed that you feel should be, give it some time. It may show up eventually. There's no order or hierarchy in what gets listed either.

FYI...Four of the seven films represented in this installment are currently streaming on Netflix instant, another is currently in theaters, one is set to be released by criterion in the near future and another can be found on DVD & Blu-Ray at any Best Buy, Target or Barnes & Noble, so I don't wanna hear any of that; "no one has heard of or seen any of these movies"

So here's part one. Enjoy...

The first 10 minutes of Post Tenebras Lux

I'm not even a parent but Carlos Reygadas shoots this scene so intimately that I feel like I'm watching my own daughter play and have the time of her life right before my very own eyes. The purpleish sky & fish-eye lens perspective adds to this scene's overwhelmingly beautiful ambiance too...

Boonmee's son appears in the opening moments of Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

Drawing on the infamous image of bigfoot, this scene is so effective because not only does he just sort of appear out nowhere, but he makes eye contact with us and stares directly in to our soul.

Sean Penn wanders through his office in The Tree Of Life

I'd rather not bore you again with my angst & frustrations with the world of architecture & design, but this scene really does capture all that. For further reading, check out part one of the whole history of my life as well as my write-up on this very scene from a couple of years ago...

Opening credits for Enter The Void

I've never taken cocaine or uppers before, but I imagine Gaspar Noe has, which is why the introduction to his last film felt so authentic. The opening credits to Enter The Void might cause you to go to a nightclub and commit a gruesome mass murder.

The final 15-20 minutes or so of Blue Valentine

I was already sad & frustrated by the time Cindy uttered the phrase; "I am so out of love with you", but the final moments where we see Dean try not to cry in front of his daughter and eventually walk off by himself is just heartbreaking.

Franck sees something he's not supposed to see in Stranger By The Lake

Typically in a neo-noir/murder mystery, we don't discover who the killer is until the end of the film. That's the big reveal. But Alain Guiraudie lays all that out in the first act of Stranger By The Lake in a scene that makes us feel like we're right there watching a murder take place yet we're too scared to scream or call for help.

Adele & Emma walk past each other for the first time (Blue Is The Warmest Color)

It may seem cliche or corny, but we've all been there or wish we could experience the thrill of locking eyes with someone on the street and instantly fall in love at least once in our lives. The three hour epic that is Blue Is Warmest Color offers plenty of memorable scenes, but nothing quite like these few seconds here...

Tune in to the next installment where we take a look at Marvel's greatest cinematic moment, a balls to the wall samurai battle royale that would make Kurosawa proud, and a great scene from a film I'm not too particularly fond of...

BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR

Blue Is The Warmest Color is a great film (it'll probably end up in my top 10 at the end of the year). But like anything directed Abdellatif Kechiche, its tough to sit through at times and takes some commitment. Its three hours long (and the time doesn't breeze by), it's filled with a lot of scenes that some may consider to be banal and the infamous sex scenes seem to overshadow the rest of the story (that's all anyone has to talk about with this whether they liked it or not). When you take a movie that's three hours long, 15 minutes worth of sex scenes really isn't that big of a deal. This film has so much more to offer than that. Its one of the most raw relationship/coming of age dramas in recent years yet all some people have to talk about is a sex scene that pales in comparison to what everyone has probably already seen on porn sites. The only worthy topic of discussion regarding the sex in Blue Is The Warmest Color is that these are in fact pretty graphic sex scenes involving two young women directed by an older straight man. People, especially feminists (who have been quite critical of this film), have a right to raise an eyebrow at this monetarily as long as they're willing to keep an open mind and give it a chance. What could a straight man possibly know about love making between two lesbians? Straight male directors who've explored gay women on film in the past haven't exactly paved a way for Kechiche. In Chasing Amy we had a film about a gay woman who falls for a straight man. In She Hate Me, not only does our straight male character turn lesbians "momentarily straight" due to the size of his dick, but he gets two (lesbian) women at the end of the movie (seriously, why did they have to have sex with him? They couldn't get his sperm any other way?).

A science fiction movie? I don't know. I think I have made one already. Chasing Amy. Because you go ask any lesbian - that'll never happen - Kevin Smith

There's something very "masculine" about the sex in Blue Is The Warmest Color. I definitely wouldn't call it pornographic but there's something questionable about it at first. The two main characters are "fucking" in the film more than they're making love or having sex. Are these sex scenes genuine & raw or is this just some male lesbian fantasy?
But Abdellatif Kechiche is far too mature to suddenly start exploring sex like an immature little boy. This isn't even his most "shocking" or unapologetic look at sex & sexuality. Has anyone seen Black Venus (2010)? That film is way more graphic in my opinion.

If you actually pay attention to Blue Is the Warmest Color you'll see that Abdellatif Kechiche takes his time developing the relationship between our two main characters; "Adele" (Adele Exarchopoulos) & "Emma" (Lea Seydoux). They don't just jump right in to fucking each other. Kechiche crafts numerous scenes of them getting to know one another, sharing personal stories, finding unique common interests and becoming friends first. The scene when Adele & Emma first walk past each is cliche but still my favorite moment in the film. All of this is what makes Blue Is The Warmest Color genuine.

This film is also genuine because it stays true to the title & art of the graphic novel (there were some changes made to the actual story tho). Abdellatif doesn't do a shot for shot copy like Robert Rodriguez tried to do with Sin City, but he still incorporates the color blue in the same slick yet obvious fashion as the graphic novel...

Based on the French graphic novel; "Blue Angel", Blue Is The Warmest Color is the story of Adele - a high school senior who falls in love in with Emma - a slightly older art student. Emma is openly gay while Adele keeps her attraction to women quiet at first but eventually comes out (although it's made unclear if her family ever finds out). It's difficult to tell at certain points but the film spans several years and as time progresses we watch our two main characters mature, form a real relationship and ultimately start to grow apart. This movie really didn't have to be three hours long but at the same time it kinda did (I don't think Kechiche has ever made anything under 2-1/2 hours). Adele's growth throughout the story is key and you really can't convey her kind of transformation in a 90 minute movie. Three hours is the perfect length for a coming of age tale because you can take your time and not rush things. As you watch Blue Is the Warmest Color you may think a lot of the scenes seem pointless at first but by the end of the film you'll realize that those pointless scenes are just as important as the explosive & emotionally heavy scenes because we're getting to know Adele & Emma intimately. This gave me an even greater appreciation for recent French coming of age films like Goodbye My First Love, Something In The Air and even A Kid With A Bike (a movie we'll be dissecting in 2014). I'd like to see more filmmakers take their time in developing young characters.

Outside of his signature documentary-style look, Blue Is The Warmest Color is quite different from everything else Abdellatif Kechiche has done (all of his films prior to this focused almost exclusively on Africans in France). But this isn't his first foray in to young love or coming of age. His sophomore feature; Game Of Love And Chance, was a relationship drama centered on a group of young teens. But it is his most intense & in depth film on both subjects. He takes his young characters very seriously in Game Of Love And Chance but he really dissects Adele & Emma and we get to see their lives outside of the relationship (Adele is studying to become an elementary school teacher while Emma is trying to make a living as an artist).

What makes this one of the more progressive films in recent years is that it's more of a love story than it is a gay rights issue movie. Yes there's a moment where Adele is confronted about her sexuality and there's a scene where our two main characters march in a gay pride parade but that's it. Homosexuality isn't really the "issue" in the film. Its about a relationship between two people who happen to be of the same sex (and as you watch the story unfold, Adele appears to be more bisexual than gay). Rainer Werner Fassbinder & Gus Van Sant were making films similar to this decades ago but for whatever reason it didn't really catch on. Fox & His Friends (Fassbinder) & Mala Noche (Van Sant) featured main characters who just so happened to be gay but didn't face any real discrimination or persecution. Gay civil rights will continue to be a social issue but it's nice to see a same sex love story that focuses more on the relationship internally and less on the struggles they face due to the outside world. Instead of battling homophobes for three hours we get a real relationship film. Adele struggles with her insecurities (mostly due to her inexperience & young age) and Emma is forced to deal with Adele's betrayal later on in the story.

The success of Blue Is The Warmest Color must feel bitter-sweet for Abdellatif Kechiche. There's been some internal post-production beef between Kechiche, co-stars; Adele Exarchopoulos & Lea Seydoux and some of the crew. Additionally, the author of the graphic novel doesn't support the film (but that almost always happens in the case of a graphic novel being turned in to a film, so whatever). Outside of The Secret Of The Grain, Kechiche's work has generally been overlooked by non-French audiences. Personally, I think Black Venus, his most hated work, is his best film. He finally makes something that's considered a universal success (he won the Palme D'or at this years' Cannes film festival) and everything is tainted with behind the scenes nonsense. 

Abdellatif's films aren't the most mainstream when compared to other filmmakers based out of France so I imagine Blue Is the Warmest Color will be an introduction to his cinema for a lot of non-french movie-goers and I'm perfectly fine with that (although his third film, The Secret Of The Grain, is easier to come by now that it's part of the criterion collection). It's nice to see an underrated filmmaker that I've been a fan of for so long finally get the recognition they deserve without having to compromise their style. 

This is another one of the very few films from this year that's managed to stay with me since I saw it along with Stories We Tell, 12 Years A Slave & Hors Satan so that counts for something...