The story of One Day is adapted from the bestselling novel by David Nicholls (also wrote the screenplay). Upon getting together on graduation night, Dexter (Jim Sturgess) and Emma (Anne Hathaway) develop a friendship that we, the audience, drop in on, on the same day July 15th (St. Swithin’s Day), over the course of 20 years. Whereas in the novel, each chapter chronicles a single year, the film does not have this luxury so the narrative skips a few years at a time, still focused on the “one day”. This aspect of the movie is well executed.

The performances overall were quite good; the excellent supporting cast includes Rafe Spall, Romola Garai and Patricia Clarkson. The one slight disappointment is Ms. Hathaway. This is not entirely her fault for, if I am honest, the kerfuffle in the media at the time of the film’s theatrical release regarding her Leeds accent was a bit of a distraction when watching her onscreen.

The film is wonderfully shot under the direction of Lone Scherfig (An Education, Italian for Beginners). So one would think that this is a wonderful formula for an emotive, romantic piece. But, as stated in my introductory paragraph, this was not the case.

What escapes me at this point is why, for the life of me, I walked away from the film thinking it ended as a bit of a mess. It had so much potential – unique narrative device, a great cast and director, but misfired where it mattered most – eliciting the necessary response from the viewer (me).

This is where you, fair readers, come in – what am I missing? Did you see One Day? If so, let me know what you think in the comments section below.

Let’s start with City Lights, the 1931 silent feature written, directed and starring one Charlie Chaplin.

At the time of the film’s release, silent pictures were on the wane, ushered in by 1929′s The Jazz Singer. So you can imagine how worried Chaplin was about the reception this film would receive in the public. Chaplin need not have worried.

The story of “The Tramp” and his love for the blind Flower Girl (Virginia Cherrill) was equally parts funny and enchanting. In other words, I absolutely loved it. There is something about the coordination of the physical, narrative and musical performance that pulls you in and does not let go.

Even if you are not a fan of silent film, I can guarantee that this is a great entrée into the genre.

Metropolis

The story of the multiple restoration efforts has become something of legend. I feel as if that these stories only added to the idea of Fritz Lang’s sci-fi extravaganza as a “lost masterpiece.” As a result, Metropolis has been on my must-watch list and now, I was going to witness the mastery first-hand.

Click here for Metropolis synopsis (source: IMDb)

Well, while there is no doubt that the film is visually arresting in scale, scope and ambition (there was nothing like it at the time), I found the narrative quite wanting and middling in places. This definitely was not the futuristic dystopia I was hoped to see. But I was determined – I kept on watching, hoping at once to have that “eureka” moment, where I understand what the fuss was all about. Unfortunately that moment never came for me.

Let me clarify: the film is not bad, but rather I did not respond to it in the way I really wanted to. This somewhat (but not intentional) contrarian view on Metropolis left me wondering … did anyone have the same reaction after seeing it?

As for the rest of y’all, it looks like you can make it a Brooklyn Decker double feature weekend with the following two releases:

Also on offer …

In addition, there are a couple of Tribeca Film Festival entries this week …

HYSTERIA

POLISSE

MANSOME

So what, if anything, will YOU be watching this weekend?

‘Nuff said

From one of my favorite sources, Total Film, here are a few bits:

• Anchorman 2 Poster Reveal
• TF’s “Can’t Wait to See” at Cannes
• iPad  App Launch! (check out video below)

From the Guardian (UK) Newspaper

• Alan Sorkin to pen screen adaptation of Steve Jobs’ biography 
• The BFI’s Five Year plan

From the New York Times Film section

(hope you have not exceeded your 10 article a month allowance)

• Feature on Ridley Scott and Prometheus
• Feature on Greta Gerwig
• Film Sexuality (from a Female Perspective) - see Hysteria

Miscellaneous Items

• MTV Movie Awards Scheduled same time as Obama’s Convention Speech (source: Vanity Fair)
• IMDb Summer Movie Guide
• i luv cinema fave Michael Fassbender is GQ’s June cover boy

The film is primarily seen from Peter Colt’s (Bettany’s) perspective. He is a professional tennis player in his waning years – in fact, after his participation in the upcoming Wimbledon tournament (he gets into tournament as a wildcard), he has plans to retire and work as a pro at a posh tennis club.

A ‘happy accident’ leads to Peter bumping into brash American upstart Lizzie Bradbury (Dunst). Sparks fly but the course of true love never did run smoothly. An overbearing tennis parent (in the form of Sam Neill), sees his daughter’s budding interest with Mr. Colt as an impedance to the glory on grass that (obviously) awaits. Add to the mix the pressure of the Wimbledon competition and you have a recipe for several peaks and valleys before our film reaches its satisfying climax.

Although Wimbledon is a fairly straightforward tale, it is a winner in my book down to a well-written script and solid performances from the leads and supporting characters. Of note are Jon Favreau as Peter’s opportunistic sports agent and James McAvoy as Peter’s ne’er do well younger brother, Carl. Also having been filmed in and around London and Brighton does not hurt either

* be sure to visit Todd Mason’s blog for more great overlooked titles!

Kay Hammond as Elvira

For the past couple of weeks I have been going on a bit about the Noël Coward celebration taking place in NYC and the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Coward on Film programming series to go along with it. This past Saturday, I had the pleasure of catching a double feature of Brief Encounter and the subject of this post, the highbrow comedy Blithe Spirit.

This was the third of four collaborations between Coward and renowned director David Lean and based on Coward’s long running West End play (ran for nearly 2000 performances – longer than the whole of WWII)!

This screening was especially exciting because the audience was treated to a newly restored 35mm print of the film (in vibrant Technicolor, no less). This guaranteed that seeing it on the big screen would not disappoint. Thank you BFI (British Film Institute).

In terms of plot, the BFI  (website) offers this very succinct and on point synopsis:

A harmless séance at the home of novelist Charles Condomine (Rex Harrison) and his wife Ruth (Constance Cummings) summons up the ghost of Charles’ glamorous first wife Elvira (Kay Hammond in a reprisal of her stage role).

With respect to the end product, Coward himself thought the film was a largely inferior product to the stage play. In fact he used words which are not suitable for this website to describe it.

For my part, there were enough moments that had me cracking up, most notably …

• The interaction of Charles, Ruth and Elvira in their scenes. I can only imagine how wonderfully this translated on the stage.
• The scene in which Charles and Ruth are arguing and the subject of past relationships comes up - ”If you’re trying to compile an inventory of my sex life, I feel it only fair to warn you that you’ve omitted several episodes. I shall consult my diary and give you a complete list after lunch.”  This was line was excised from the American release of the film (deemed too risqué). Source: Wikipedia
• The revelation of the cause of Elvira’s death – I was floored!
• Madame Arcati’s absent-mindedness and incompetence at 1) not realizing what she has unleashed and 2) her several failed attempts at trying to make it right. Rutherford does scatter-brained very well.

One thing that absolutely DID NOT work to for me was the desired affect was the ghastly ghostly makeup – the ethereal, ectoplasmic other-worldliness that was the goal was completely lost in the Technicolor haze. Instead of Statue of Liberty oxidized green, maybe they should have gone for a white or off white.

Another issue of concern is David Lean’s direction. Granted, this film was quite early in his career (well before the grand, sweeping epics that would become his trademark), but it is clear that his comfort zone is in the realm of drama, not comedy. In fact, Rex Harrison allegedly was not happy with how Lean handled the production.

In the end I was able to overlook these issues because the writing and acting worked well.

A BIT OF TRIVIA: Ironically, according to Coward scholar and introducer of the film, curator Brad Rosenstein, Margaret Rutherford  (Madame Arcati) did not  ”get” the humor of the play or film. This is ironic because she delivers a great share of the laughs in the film.

In honor of the day, I asked my own mother what her favorite films are. What I received in return was a very succinct set of classics from the 1950s-60s.

IMITATION OF LIFE (1959)

The Fanny Furst novel on racial politics gets the Sirkian melodrama treatment. Stars Lana Turner, Juanita Moore, John Gavin and Sandra Dee.

CARMEN JONES (1955)

Otto Preminger’s filmed version of Oscar Hammerstein’s all-black adaptation of the Bizet opera Carmen stars Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte. Dandridge was nominated for an Academy Award for her role.

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1958)

Sultry adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ stage play. Stars Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor.

GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER (1967)

A groundbreaking film at the time, this film stars Sidney Poitier, Katherine Hepburn and in his final film appearance, Spencer Tracy.

Some very good selections indeed – mom certainly has good cinematic taste

In other words, I will not be headed to the cinema this weekend

But if you are interested in the third still, the film associated with it God Bless America is also available OnDemand – so you don’t even need to leave the comfort of your own home.

Well for me, Saturday is packed! Have a dance recital followed in the evening by the Noël Coward double feature in NYC – I simply cannot wait! And then Sunday is of course Mother’s Day in the States.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

In RUBY SPARKS, Calvin (Paul Dano) is a young novelist who achieved phenomenal success early in his career but is now struggling with his writing — as well as his romantic life. Finally, he makes a breakthrough and creates a character named Ruby who inspires him.  When Calvin finds Ruby (Zoe Kazan), in the flesh, sitting on his couch about a week later, he is completely flabbergasted that his words have turned into a living, breathing person. Courtesy of Fox Searchlight

Here’s the trailer:

RUBY SPARKS is set for release July 25th.

What do you think?