The Brothers Bloom

The Long Con

The summer season is usually reserved for Hollywood’s tent-pole offerings – Sequels, Threequels and Prequels. Movies about cars, movies about toys; movies about cars transforming into toys. And yet, sprinkled amongst this surfeit of gluttonous mass consumption are the rare gems that dare challenge the audience’s imagination. I’m talking about the indie (500) Days of Summer, the French Séraphine, the Sci-fi mocumentary District 9 and delightfully quirky The Brothers Bloom.

I finally caught a screening of The Brothers Bloom when it played this week at Griffith (Quick shout-out to my friends at Freewater – Thanks guys, for bringing this movie to Duke!)

We’re first introduced to the Blooms as children. In an opening scene that serves to both introduce the two protagonists as well as establish the visual tone of the movie, we meet Bloom, the Younger  who torn between his heart and his loyalty to his brother, is often the reticent star of the Bloom, the Older’s intricate cons.

As the Blooms grow older, their cons become increasingly sophisticated. Through a mix of sheer charisma and elaborately plotted schemes they earn their keep by swindling their way through the fortunes of the rich and unsuspecting.

Oscar winner, Adrien Brody (The Pianist) plays the younger of the two Bloom brothers. All prominent nose and deep haunted eyes, he is perfectly cast to play a man struggling with the consequences of his actions. Mark Ruffalo plays the older Bloom brother and Machiavellian schemer. He plays his character broad and is sadly outclassed by his peers. 

The Blooms might have met their greatest challenge when they set out to con the seemingly naïve Penelope, a quirky shut in heiress played by Rachel Weisz (of The Constant Gardener fame). The rest of the movie proceeds as a whimsical carrousel ride – where the audience is never quite sure who’s conning whom.

Joining the fray is Rinko Kikuchi’s Bang Bang. You might remember her as the mute Japanese girl in Babel, and here too she utters few words (I believe I counted three). She plays Bang Bang as a picaresque mime. And while she's mainly there for comic relief, she easily steals many of the scenes she's in. Adding to the mix is Robbie Coltrane's (Hey, its Hagrid from Harry Potter!) Frenchman-pardon-Belgian.

Earlier this semester we discussed whether narration ought to be the centerpiece of a movie – its essence. While the movie certainly has a pretty solid plot line and adheres for the most part to Bordwell's rules of classic cinema – it refuses to be encumbered by them. In fact the movie really shines when it gives in to its whimsical side.

One sequence that really stands out is a montage where Penelope, the pin-hole camera enthusiast proceeds to demonstrate her ‘collection’ of hobbies to Brody’s Bloom – in quick jump shots she’s shown riding a unicycle, break-dancing and playing the accordion.

All most as much action takes place in the background as does in the foreground. The movie is full of these blink-and-you-miss-it moments. Like when Penelope silently checks out Bloom through the rear view mirror of the car or when she has her first umm... train ride.

The movie is shot in super saturated colors, complementing its flighty theme. For example, when The Belgian first makes his entrance on the boat – he’s shrouded in darkness, Penelope's visage is half-lit by eerie red light. Yet as in the short-lived series, Pushing Daisies, our protaganists are dressed in solemn funeral black, as if grounding them in this whimsical ride, and contrasting them sharply against the buoyant color of the Montenegro coast, or the muted grays of Prague. In fact, Rian Johnson directs this movie more Wes Anderson-esque than his previous outing, the gloomy film-noirish teenage mood piece, Brick.

One of the final lines of the movie goes, A perfect Con is one in which everybody gets what they want.
And in a way, isn't that what a good movie is, really? A grand con designed to please the audience? Well, on that front this movie does not disappoint!

The Brothers Bloom is rated PG-13 and is directed by Rian Johnson. It stars Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel Weisz.

Bordwell and Classical Hollywood Cinema

Every time I watch Cinema Paradiso, I'm reminded of why I love watching movies! #filmstudies

That's what I tweeted as we neared the end of Guiseppe Tornatore's 1989 hit, Cinema Paradiso.

Twenty years on, few question whether this Oscar winner for Best Foreign Language Film deserves to be labeled a Classic. But let’s set aside our admiration for this movie and rethink that word for a moment, 'Classic'.

Does Cinema Paradiso really fit the stereotypical definition of a ‘Classic’?

A 'Classic' Definition

In examining David Borwell’s article, Classical Hollywood Cinema: Narrational Principles and Procedures one may conclude that for a film to be considered an example of the Classic Style of Cinema, it must contain certain elements.

• First, there’s always a Protagonist, the Hero of the movie who is endowed with certain ‘psychological attributes’ and who must overcome adversity to attain a specific goal.
• The presence of a Dual Plot Line, one of which deals with a romance and another set in a alternate sphere such as work life, a quest or personal relationships.
• Causality ensures that the film maintains continuity. This is done by maintaining the Unity of Time and Space within the Universe of the film.

Cinema Classico

Does Cinema Paradiso necessarily adhere to each of Bordwell’s requirements?

The film does have a protagonist, Toto, but it's harder to pinpoint what his 'goal' is, really. Is it simply to make films? We, the audience can only guess at his motivations. Does he really need to overcome any sort of 'adversity'? One could make the argument that Toto was afraid to leave his village and that his ‘quest’ was to overcome his fear of unknown. But in watching the movie, I felt that it was Alfredo, not Toto who was truly responsible for his departure. (“You have to go away… for a long time,” he instructs Toto) So by Borwell's definition, Alfredo is a much truer protagonist in the classical sense of the word. (His character faces adversity - blindness, and accomplishes his goal - by getting Toto out of the village) And who is the antagonist? Surely every classical hero deserves one! Father Adelfio? No, his character is played more for laughs, to provide comic relief. Perhaps Toto himself is his own antagonist, and he needs to overcome his inner demons in order to move on. Yet, at the end of the movie we can’t be entirely sure that Toto has achieved his goal of self-actualization.

And what of the dual plot line? Sure, Toto toys with the idea of a romance, but Elana’s character flits in and out of the movie so quickly, that the audience hardly has time to perceive it as a powerful romance. Indeed some parts of his courtship are quite whimsical, even downright comical! And his love for Elana is overshadowed by his love for the cinema (When he first meets her, he captures her on his super 8 camera. When he revisits that reel years later, he might well have been reminiscing about his early experiments with the medium) Has Tornatore shrewdly twisted convention? Quest and Romance are almost interchangeable, and we’re never quite sure which one’s a conduit to the other.

Causality is one element that’d maintained pretty well throughout the movie. Toto’s life plays out almost as if it were a triptych, in the grand style of the old English novel.

For the longest time, I readily assumed that Cinema Paradiso was the very definition of the classical movie – sweeping vistas, archetypal starlets, with the right mix of humor and melodrama. But let's compare Paradiso to a movie that more readily fits into that category.

Meg Ryan = Katherine Heigl Twenty Years Ago

Around the same time as Cinema Paradiso, Nora Ephron’s Sleepless in Seattle was out in theaters in America. During her career, Ms Ephron has had her share of misses (Bewitched) and some hits (the delightful Julie & Julia). I’ll let others decide which of these category Sleepless falls into - this post is more considered with the schematics of the movie. In Sleepless in Seattle, Ms Ephron, crosscuts two disparate but linked storylines. The protagonist (Sam/Annie) must overcome their adversity (for him - dealing with the death of his wife, for her – being stuck in a relationship that lacks ‘spark’). Their romance is challenged by an antagonist (distance) and the film progresses towards a very clearly defined goal (of uniting these two characters). There's also a secondary plot line (Annie’s relationship with Walter, Sam’s with his son Jonah). Causality is also clearly established. Even though the two lead characters are rarely in the same shot, by having the two plan to unite on the top of the Empire State Building on Valentine’s day, the film establishes a place and time-frame.

Sleepless in Seattle certainly enjoys a special place in the hearts of many, and conventional wisdom would identify this movie as a ready Classic. Yet, twenty years on, it is Cinema Paradiso is considered a timeless masterpiece.

Bordwell’s article pinpoints several interesting characteristics of the classic film style. Yet movies like Paradiso have challenged these definitions of what constitutes a classic. In the most recent example from this summer, the surprise indie hit 500 Days of Summer bucked convention by presenting itself as the anti-Hollywood love story – where the guy and the girl do not end up together. Yet, I wouldn’t be surprised if twenty years from now, a class of film students were to sit in a darkened room deconstructing the classical elements of storytelling in 500 Days!

So, I guess what we've learned is that for a movie to be considered a Classic, it shouldn't necessarily have to fit the neat conventions of the Classical Movie Style. 
In paying homage to the Classic Hollywood Movie, Tornatore has himself created a Classic for the Ages!

"leit-mo-tif"

A Leitmotif (from the German Leiten, to lead + Motiv, motive) may be defined as a dominant or recurring theme, usually a piece of music or a melody that accompanies the appearance (and reappearance) of a character, idea or situation.

Although not exclusively applicable to movies, leitmotifs have been used extensively in films - and particularly in movies which span multiple sequels, to provide an identifying characteristic to a situation, or character without requiring the use of dialogue.

Some leitmotifs have become instantly recognizable. In the Star Wars Saga, the appearance of chief antagonist, Darth Vader is always accompanied by a theme known as The Imperial March (as heard in the video below). The theme immediately sets up a tone of impending danger, even to the ears of a first time viewer.

Another example of a leitmotif in a movie series of recent times is the tune popularly referred to as Hedwig's Theme. This is played over the opening credits of each of the six Harry Potter movies so far, as well as ech time Harry boards the Hogwarts express. A sample of the music can be heard here:

In the Kill Bill series, Darryll Hannah's character, Elle Driver is introduced by her now iconic whistle. (The song in question is called Twisted Nerve.)

Leitmotifs do not refer to music exclusively. In Jean Pierre Jeunet's Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain, virtually every shot is primarily composed of three colors: Red, Green and Yellow.

This theme was carried into the movie's advertising campaign as well, as demonstrated by it's poster:

Seven Images

Suppose you were to wake up one day, à la Jason Bourne with no memories whatsoever? Now suppose you had the foresight to put together seven images that define you, what would those pictures say about you?


For our first class, we were asked to compile seven images that 'made us up'. After perusing my Facebook albums, here's what I came up with:


SEVEN IMAGES


And now that you know me a little better, I hope to learn more about you... 
Leave me comments on my posts, and let me know what you think about the films we discuss.