DULL HOUSE
Set in 18th century New York, “The Heiress” seems like a typical period drama about (what else) the prospect of marriage. But unlike most romances, this film features no feisty fem. The titular character Catherine (Olivia de Havilland) is plain and boring – a maiden who’s an old-maid-to-be. Even her well-meaning father thinks she’s too dull to woo the opposite sex. Consider her sole great skill: embroidery.
At one party, however, a handsome man (Montgomery Clift) pursues her, soothes her with words, and moves her on the dance floor. Catherine is instantly smitten and soon, the suitor suggests of sudden marriage. Alarmed and concerned, Catherine’s father reins in the fast-galloping relationship. Can this love be explained by its perplexing nature? Or it can all be simplified in matters of finance? When a dreamy but broke guy courts a rich but dreary heiress, suspicions are bound to arise.
LET’S GO IN MY YUGO
Where is “Where’s Fluffy”? This is the question that sets the quest in “Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist.” The Holy Grail here is a legendary band that performs in secret venues. Two of its searching fans are strangers Nick (Michael Cera) and Nora (Kat Dennings). The two meet in a New York club, where she makes the first move, albeit lamely and desperately.
“Would you be my boyfriend for five minutes?” she asks Nick, pulls him closer, and presses her lips against his.
She’s acting out a lie – a lie she has told a haughty girl named Tris. No way would Nora admit that she came to the club without a boy. Nick, meanwhile, is too stolid to play along with the kiss. The recently-dumped chap is too lovesick to click with the chick off his lips. Of course, as it turns out, Nora’s nemesis and Nick’s ex-honey is one and the same person (Alexis Dziena). It is the first of the many complications. This teen movie is a comedy after all. And look for two gay band mates, a plastered friend, and a mini Yugo to join forces with the twosome.
THE FIVE SENSES: SMELL
“Perfume: The Story of a Murderer” might be literally odorless, but it’s, more or less, a movie for the senses. It sniffs the story of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille (Ben Wishaw), a 16th century Frenchman who is born with a superhuman sense of smell. Born amidst the stink of marketplace, Grenouille grows up poor but with rich knowledge of odors, both good and bad. Once he grows of age, he puts his knowing nose to use, becoming the apprentice of an Italian perfume maker (Dustin Hoffman). Grenouille then becomes obsessed with finding the most pleasing (preferably, the most ethereal) smell. Naturally, the young man becomes hooked on pheromones produced by beautiful maidens. He soon begins a murder spree, in an effort to capture the scent of a woman in a bottle.
A NOT-SO-BEAUTIFUL MIND
College life is a lifestyle of partying and getting some. Well, at least, that is how it is perceived in American movies. So, I was a bit taken back when I saw “Poison Friends” – a French movie with the novel idea of showing students actually studying. (Say what?)
The story involves an opinionated genius named Andre. The student’s intelligence and personality is prodigious. If brain could be flexed like muscles, he’d be the big man in campus. His friends worship him, listen to his advice, and follow his suggestions. They trust him completely. Of course, just because Andre has a brilliant mind, it doesn’t mean he’s also good-hearted.
RUFF CHILDHOOD
“My Life as a Dog” is neither about a dog nor a person turning into one. Rather, it’s about a 1960s Swedish boy who recollects his bittersweet boyhood. His name is Ingemar (Anton Glanzelius) and he longs for the silly throwback times when he can make his mother laugh. But oh those days seem to remain alive in his memory. Ever since his mother coughed up blood, Ingemar is no longer deemed as the source of entertainment. He has become a chore; he’s too much to handle for an ailing mother. And so, young Ingemar is sent away to the country, to live with his uncle for the time being.
This foreign film is an early gem from Lasse Hallström, who has helmed such award-attention films like “The Cider House Rules,” “Chocolat” and most recently “The Reader.” One of his strengths is capturing the spirit of a provincial community and here, he produces a quirky circle who welcomes the sad and lonely Ingemar. Among the noted residents are the town’s blonde bombshell, a corset catalogue reader, a persistent roof builder, and a punchy girl passing as a boy.
THE FIVE SENSES: HEARING
Marlee Matlin had an extraordinary start as an actress. In 1987, with only one screen performance, she nabbed an Oscar for Best Actress, winning over the kickass Sigourney Weaver of “Aliens.” Furthermore, at 21 years of age, she became the youngest of the Best Actress winners – a record that still stands today. This is all thanks to a drama called “Children of a Lesser god.”
In the film, Matlin plays Sarah, a deaf woman who refuses to speak. It’s an intriguing performance. Matlin, who’s (mostly) silent, aggressively fleshes out her character on the limitations of body language and facial expressions. She channels Sarah’s fiery temper through big and fast hand gestures. Psychologically speaking, the character Sarah is a walking time bomb, but the problem: she can’t scream to explode.
“Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” the third film (albeit not the last) of the series, details more personal background on the famed archeologist. On its opening scene, the film checks out young Indiana (played by River Phoenix) who already shows passion on rescuing artifacts from undeserving hands. On latter stages, the movie pairs up the grown-up hero (the iconic Harrison Ford) with his intellectual father (the even more iconic Sean Connery) as they both pursue that most revered artifact – the Holy Grail.
Adapted from a Sondheim musical, Tim Burton’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” tells the story of a vengeful barber (Johnny Depp) who returns to London to get back at a duplicitous judge (Alan Rickman). But before he settles the score, he is aided by an accomplice, in the form of an adoring pie maker (Helena Bonham Carter), who lives downstairs from his barbershop. Together, they combine resources to rid of the city’s vermin, including that of the evil judge.
