Film Persona

  Nicholas Ray's "Johnny Guitar" What's ironic about Nicholas Ray's 1954 western " Johnny Guitar " is that the titular character isn't the most compelling and central character in the story. That honor belongs to the Joan Crawford's Vienna. While it's not that revelatory that Crawford would be the most intriguing presence in a film, it is somewhat out of the ordinary for a western's central conflict to revolve around two women.  In the story, Vienna owns a saloon on the outskirts of an Arizona cattle town. Her relationship with the townsfolk is tedious, to put it lightly, as her entrepreneurial ambitions threaten local power player Emma Small. When a  group of lawless hooligans who frequent Vienna's saloon are suspected of holding up a stagecoach, it becomes the perfect pretext to force Vienna out of town due to her association with their ringleader, 'The Dancin' Kid.' Enter Johnny Guitar, a reformed gunslinger and Vienna...

  Jacques Becker's "Touchez Pas au Grisbi" Jacques Becker's only gangster film, 1954's " Touchez Pas au Grisbi ," happened to spark a new interest in the gangster flick in France at the time. After the rousing success of Becker's Jean Gabin-led film, police dramas with ironic and fatalist moods became a new focus in film. Becker felt he wanted to do this style of film after reading Albert Simonin's 1953 novel of the same name. Although the casting of Gabin in the lead role is a no brainer, Becker was hesitant at first. He felt that Gabin represented French cinema of the past and not of the current moment. Regardless, Gabin was cast and it became one of his more notable roles in his career. The film centers on Max, a Parisian criminal. After securing a stash of gold after a heist, Max must navigate the tricky cat and mouse games of fellow criminals who want to steal Max's loot. After several exciting incidents, Max loses everything.  I felt as...

  Agnes Varda's "Les Creatures" Agnes Varda once described her 1966 film " Les Creatures " as an attempt to show the messy nature of inspiration. This notion is convey through the protagonist, Edgar, who is a writer attempting to scribe a science-fiction story using the characters and places he is surrounded by in his small town. Varda seems to create a sense of disorder as she mixes fantasy with reality throughout.  There is so much uncertainty about what is really happening in the film that I often didn't notice that things were slipping into an altered reality or dream state, even when things got really out of hand. I still consider " Les Creatures " to be entirely in the "new wave" mold, as Varda gleefully continues to push the boundaries of editing and construction. With Varda's realization, I get so swept away by what is real and what is not and eventually come to the conclusion that these lines between reality don't really ...

  Mikio Naruse's "Wife" With his 1953 film " Wife ," Mikio Naruse once again traverses the realms of a disintegrating marriage. However, what's unique about this story is that its contemporary framework allows the viewer to contemplate the societal circumstances that play into this domestic tragedy. It is a film full of broken relationships and yearning for connection.  My enjoyment of this film was not overwhelming in the least. However, I did find some engagement with this picture and feel that it is a film of note in Naruse's filmography.