Sabin wrote:Clap.Mister Tee
When it turned out he was instead laughing at the very idea of sound cinema, it seemed like the film had a real existential idea -- one underlined by the sound effects nightmare: that people could be so locked into one way of living that making what seems a small change (given that many actors were already used to talking, onstage) could be terrifying and paralyzing. I started seeing parallels with the American economic situation -- the crash/Depression wreaked similar havoc on long-held assumptions -- and also thought the film's title might indicate George Valentin was, like Chaplin, resistant to the new form because he thought it genuinely esthetically inferior to what had preceded. (Peppy's reaction to his film hinted at this; that he was doing something bigger and grander than her popular comedies) That might have been a truly exciting film, with enough thematic richness to make even the rest of the Star is Born dramaturgy seem fresh. But once Dujardin sets his new apartment on fire, any such broad context goes out the window. Having the dog summon the policeman was bad enough; but the later cheap"Bang!" mislead was enough to make me actively angry at the film. And even the Star is Born stuff wasn't followed through on. When Peppy and George have their confrontation, there's a real issue in the air -- can he now live with being propped up by another's success? The film doesn't seem to care about the answer; the final moments basically say, screw it; let's just tack on a happy ending. For a second I thought there was some attempt at Brechtian irony. But, no, it was more like Melina Mercouri's Never on Sunday rewrite of the endings of the Greek tragedies -- "and then they all went to the seashore". In the end, the film is simply pastiche, and I can't fathom how it's seen as a fitting choice for best picture even in a weak year.
Clap.
Clap.
ClapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapclapCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAPCLAP-ROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAR!
Please.