Film Persona

  John Huston's "The African Queen" By 1951, John Huston had racked up success in Hollywood with films like " The Maltese Falcon ," " The Treasures of the Sierra Madre ," and " The Asphalt Jungle ." Because of this, he was given the liberty to use the technicolor technology only afforded to the most trusted of filmmakers. With this technicolor technology, Huston made " The African Queen ," which centers on two people attempting to traverse the rivers of East Africa in order to escape the Germans during the first World War.  The film itself is a technical mastery, as the technicolor images are so crisp and astonishing that it renders the visual spectacle of the film worthy of viewing. This was the most impressive element to me. However, the film is mostly an adventure romance of which the sole concern is entertainment. There wasn't really anything to grab on to for me in this film, albeit I recognize the visual mastery at play.  ...

  Sacha Guitry's "La Poison" After Sacha Guitry's tumultuous experiences in the war and his arrest and detainment after the war, he was in a state of disillusionment. The French government was profiting off of the misery of its citizens and providing an environment of distrust and melancholy. Once he began to make films again, he finally was able to collaborate with one of France's greatest screen performers, Michel Simon, on his 1951 film " La Poison ."  " La Poison " centers on an older couple, Paul and Blandine, who are miserable together and spend all day contemplating the other's death. One day, Paul tricks a defense lawyer into constructing the perfect situation that would yield the best defense against the murder of his wife. After killing his wife, Paul is arrested and learns that his wife had poisoned his wine. During the trial, Paul begins to get overly confident of his victory and yet is still acquitted.   One of my first takeawa...

  Charles Crichton's "The Lavender Hill Mob" Charles Crichton's 1951 British comedy film " The Lavender Hill Mob " has some of the most British sensibility of any film I've seen in a while. That being said, the film is straight up a comedy, so British comedy, mind you. There were quite a few moments in the film that had me genuinely laughing out loud. There were also some moments of mild suspense and elements that kept me fully engaged.  The film centers on a Henry Holland, a London bank clerk, played incredibly by Sir Alec Guinness. For the past twenty years, Henry has been in charge of gold bullion deliveries. One day, he devises a scheme to steal a consignment of gold bullion with the assistance of foundry owner and two small-time criminals. Through a series of ups and downs in their plan, we watch as Henry and his 'Lavender Hill Mob' pull of a heist of the gold and attempt to get it across the border. As I said previously, I was thoroughly en...

  Yasujiro Ozu's "Early Summer" After watching Yasujiro Ozu's 1951 film, " Early Summer ," I couldn't help but notice the striking similarity to his 1949 film, " Late Spring ." Both films center on a family trying to arrange a marriage for one of their members who is resistant to it. The resistor in both films is played by Setsuko Hara. Both films hint at dramatic generational gaps taking effect in a post-war Japan. Both films conclude with characters making sacrifices in their own lives for the sake of the happiness of the collective family. Because of these similarities, I found myself slightly wavering while watching " Early Summer ."  That being said, the film still has individual merits that warrant its own individual viewing. Ozu once again manages to create a sense of domestic comfort in his work, while also dissecting the miscommunications that occur between family and how each family member wants different things out of each ...

  George Stevens' "A Place in the Sun" George Stevens had been a studio director in Hollywood for the better part of twenty years by the time he made 1951's " A Place in the Sun ." Adapted from Theodore Dreiser's 1925 novel " An American Tragedy ," the story's plot centers on the real-life murder of Grace Brown by Chester Gillette in 1906. Stevens' adaption of this novel would provide him a second wind in Hollywood, as the film's success would grant him a few more Hollywood classics in the 1950s. He was able to accomplish this with the help of two of the hottest young actors working in the industry at the time, Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor. The plot follows George, a hard-working, lower-class young man who arrives to get a job at his wealthy industrialist uncle's factory. Upon receiving a job in the packing room, George falls in love with co-worker, Alice. However, after meeting Alice, George meets the beautiful, young ...

  Vincente Minnelli's "An American in Paris" After the war, cinema became a reflection of the tattered souls of all the countries ravaged by war and horror. The Japanese were contemplating a post-truth landscape with their Golden Age of cinema and the Europeans were excelling at themes regarding morality in a Godless world with their post-war cinematic boom. And the Americans continued to hash out their doll of pulpy noir pieces that was ponderous of the corruption of our soul. However, the Americans also had the great machine of Hollywood to enact its post-war global presence. While all the other countries were trying desperately to reestablish themselves economically, culturally, and politically in these post-war times, the United States were really in a position of power to start a brand new enterprise of 20th century colonialism. American exceptionalism and new technological innovation was the name of the game. And the U.S. was empowered to spread the good word, as it...

  Henry Cass' "Last Holiday" In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Alec Guinness was on a roll of hits in the United Kingdom. He had already worked twice with the iconic David Lean in his two adaptations of Charles Dickens novels. In 1950, he worked with director Henry Cass on " Last Holiday ," a film penned by black comedy writer J.B. Priestley. The film centers on an unassuming agricultural implements salesman who is told he has a terminal illness. He then spends his final days at an expensive hotel, where he becomes acquainted with a various cast of characters.  I did enjoy the film very mildly and felt that its central theme revolves around the class system, as a micro-class system can be seen in the hotel. Many thematic comments are made on the subject, as the Guinness character starts to learn how to fit in with the upper-class and how easy it actually is, along with how easy it is to attain a high-paying job and make good with wealthy people when it is belie...

  Anthony Mann's "Winchester '73" With the 1950 film " Winchester '73 ," actor Jimmy Stewart and director Anthony Mann started a collaboration that would last another seven films. The story centers on a cowboy, played by Stewart, in search of a prized rifle and a murderous fugitive. Mann shows us the journey of that rifle and the various ill-fated hands it falls into.  While the film has a mild entertainment value, there wasn't much for me to chew on. I felt relatively bored by the film and its Western aesthetic seemed only that, an aesthetic. There does seem to be deeper themes that parallel a sort of Homer-esque odyssey through the late 19th century Old West. However, the film chooses not to expand on that theme and chooses the safer option of Western aesthetic entertainment value instead.

  Robert Bresson's "The Trial of Joan of Arc" While watching Robert Bresson's 1962 film " The Trial of Joan of Arc ," it was very difficult not to compare it to the monolithic silent masterpiece of Carl Theodor Dreyer's " The Passion of Joan of Arc ." For one thing, Dreyer's version of the historical trial is without dialogue, save for the title cards. It's mostly about the emotion of Joan, whom is facing her execution at the hands of a corrupt state. In Bresson's version, the film is completely dialogue, without much visual action to accompany anything.  The film only consists of the direct conversations between Joan and the bishops of the church. Joan is continuously tortured, interrogated, and molested. Everything she says is scrutinized and warped by the corrupt judges. Because this is a Bresson picture, the characters are played by non-professional actors and thereby, there is little emotionality to the performances. The drynes...

  Anthony Asquith's "The Woman in Question" I suppose one of the primary things I could say about Anthony Asquith's 1950 film " The Woman in Question " is that it holds one's interest. It centers on the investigation into the murder of a woman in her flat. The police question various people who've interacted with the woman and each have differing views on her. Through flashbacks, we see the ways in which each person saw her and each flashback offers a different take on the same woman. It is very " Rashomon "-esque, but without the complexity. Regardless, it was able to hold my interest in who the murderer could have been. The end result does not create much adoration of the film for me, but the experience was still adequate.

  Federico Fellini's "8 1/2" After the universal success of 1960's " La Dolce Vita ," many were wondering what Federico Fellini would do next. The filmmaker had just made a masterpiece and the pressure to follow it up with something was mounting. How could anyone top " La Dolce Vita " and why would anyone want to try? With all this pressure and the chaos of both personal domestic life and modern life in general, Fellini was having trouble trying to arrange any sort of production. The issue came to a head in the spring of 1962 when Fellini felt like he had 'lost' his film. He had outlined a film about a man named Guido suffering from some sort of block, some sort of existential confusion. He hadn't yet settled on Guido's profession or the circumstances of how the story would play out. Fellini even had a crew and set constructed, all the while no story revealing itself. He was made to arrive on set and celebrate the launch of producti...

  Michelangelo Antonioni's "Blow-Up" By the time Michelanglo Antonioni left Italy in 1965 to make a film in the United Kingdom, many film critics believed that the string of films he made in Italy, starting with 1960's " L'Avventura ," were starting to run their thematic course. While I personally don't believe that to be true and felt like Antonioni could have recontextualized his themes into various outsources, there were a growing number of people who felt that the existential modern malaise one could expect from an Antonioni film had become too pretentious or too repetitively artistic. When Antonioni's 1966 English-language film " Blow-Up " was released in the U.K., those critics breathed a sigh of relief that Antonioni was venturing into new territory and gaining some commercial traction on the way. While certain elements of " Blow-Up " seem more commercially friendly, I would argue the thematic emphasis in the film is co...