CAPSULES ON OLDER FILMS (WRITTEN IN 2001)
Alphabetically:
Deconstructing Harry (1997) (C+)
In one scene, Harry Block (Woody Allen) is in his car on his way to receive an award from his university (a throwback to Wild Strawberries) with his son, a good friend, and a hooker. It's both funny and sad. Deconstructing Harry is presumably Allen psychoanalyzing himself and, if so, its his least cheerful self-examination. The script is not great and Block is not a good man; the movie is reliant on the cliche that writing is therapeutic and a reflection of the author, and Block is a horny Victor Sjostrom without a romantic bone in his body or a charitable deed in his past. All the romance is in his head and he gets to live the life he is convinced he is incapable of living through his writing. Like Wild Strawberries, the film manages to be both dark and life-affirming. Like Annie Hall, its style is a homage to hallucinatory Fellini. The best of the performances are inspired scenery-chewing; Judy Davis finds comic streaks in spastic drama and Demi Moore is actually good in a hilarious turn that compliments Kirstie Alley's fits. It doesn't all pull together and it never finds its footing, but oh well. I'll be waiting for a miracle like Manhattan Murder Mystery. [MAY 28, 2001]
Fallen Angels (1995) (B+)
Fallen Angels is a joyous film; every frame feels like it has been lovingly created by someone who is very excited to be making a movie. Wong Kar-wai's plot and characters are enigmas and the film seems to exist solely for esthetic purposes. It is set in an ominous Hong Kong and involves a professional killer (played by pop singer Leon Lai), his agent (Michelle Reis), and a mute (Takeshi Kaneshiro). Hong Kong comes across as a fantasy world, something out of Blade Runner, and the film often echoes both John Woo action movies and films noirs. Christopher Doyle's druggy cinematography, William Chang and Ming Lam Wong's MTV-chic editing, a scenery-chewing performance by Charlie Yeung, and the use of the brooding ballad "Mong Gai Ta" are all highlights, but the real treat is watching Wong construct this tiny universe of alienated weirdoes for over an hour of fright and hilarity, and then discover that he has demolished the hysterical atmosphere with tender, romantic conclusions for both of his subplots. [APRIL 1, 2001]
By Andrew Chan