It’s the hot days of summer and Criterion is using this month to release seven features with only one of them being a re-release. From Japan to Brazil, this month is really jam packed with new titles, including two from a German auteur released just last year. A Tom Cruise breakout role, a revisionist Western with an unlikely actor, a ‘90s Chinese masterpiece, and a critical film from Latin America during a dangerous period are all part of this month. Plus, the re-edition of a great noir film from France’s own master of the genre.
Black God, White Devil (1964)
From Brazil, one of the most famous films of the Cinema Novo movement tells the story of a ranch hand who kills his swindling boss and flees with his wife on the lam. They join a cult which promotes violence against wealthy farm owners while a bounty hunter comes to kill the leader of the group, only for the ranch hand’s wife to interfere with the plans. Black God, White Devil is full of anti-authoritarian messages – in the same year a military coup took place in Brazil to overthrow the democratically elected government – and talks about the radical lies people easily follow to total end.
Le Samourai (1967)
The month’s only re-edition is Jean-Pierre Melville’s phenomenal noir of a hitman named Jef (Alain Delon) with sharp skills who finds himself in the crossfire between a cop looking to catch him and a man who wants Jef killed. It has a cool vibe in Melville’s style and relies on looks more than words to get across the drama in his methodically planned out story. The grey, the lines, the silence, and the quick reactions fill in all to give his most unique tale of killers and the double-crossing that comes with it.
Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid (1973)
Director Sam Peckinpah famously got into a battle with MGM over the final cut of the film which prevented critics from getting his version for 15 years for a proper evaluation. Between budget constraints, Peckinpah’s struggle with alcoholism, and time length, it became the stuff of legend in which the director was the winner in the long-term over the studio. James Coburn plays the sheriff Garrett who chases down the infamous outlaw (Kris Kristofferson) under the order of the governor (Jason Robards). Bob Dylan also has a supporting role and wrote the score in short notice, including the theme song, “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.”
Risky Business (1983)
This early Tom Cruise, tighty-whitey-wearing comedy follows a high-school student bound for Princeton who has a weekend to never forget. He joins a call girl (Rebecca De Mornay) who takes him on a lustful weekend free from parental constraints and challenges his suburban conservative upbringing. Writer/director Paul Brickman gives an exploration into the growing yippie culture of the ‘80s and the rise of young professionals bound to take over a materialistic world.
Farewell, My Concubine (1993)
Co-winner of the Palme d’Or (with Jane Campion’s The Piano), Chen Kaige creates a stunning epic around two Beijing opera stars (Leslie Cheung and Zhang Fengyi) over 50 years. From childhood training to adulthood, Concubine tracks down the seeds of jealousy, betrayal, and political upheaval between the two friends and a woman who comes in between them to bring in deep passions. This film played a massive role in the rise of Chinese cinema and the Fifth Generation with other directors including Zhang Yimou and Li Shaohong.
Anselm (2023)
See the review from Insession here
The first of two Wim Wenders’ films is a documentary on artist Anselm Kiefer, shot in 3D to capture Kiefer’s entire body of work which explores everything from the land to the sky to human history. In traditional Wenders fashion, it is not straightforward, but told from Kiefer’s point-of-view and how he works, allowing us to get into his own head. It blurs the line between a movie and a piece of art, grabbing the deep-seeded spiritualism of Kiefer and his range.
Perfect Days (2023)
See the review from Insession here
Wenders’ other film was his Oscar-nominated drama set in Japan’s public toilet system and a cleaner (Koji Yakusho) who goes about his day. His encounters with co-workers and the rest of Tokyo bring a humanism echoing of Yasujiro Ozu, a director who influenced Wenders. It is very much different from other feature narratives he has done, but once again, Wenders delivers another piece of his interests that has no boundaries regardless of language different than his own.
Follow me on Twitter: @brian_cine (Cine-A-Man)
