Noah (2014)

Originally published in The Daily Nebraskan, 4-1-14

“Noah,” starring Russell Crowe, is a mixed bag of tried-and-true storytelling methods and refreshing vision.

In recent years, Hollywood has seen a resurgence of epic films in the vein of “The Ten Commandments” and “Spartacus.” It started with 2000’s “Gladiator,” also starring Crowe, all the way to this year’s “Pompeii” and the two Hercules films slated for 2014. The results have varied, but “Noah” is a worthwhile adventure epic told on a mythic level, strengthened by director Darren Aronofsky’s bold style, a solid cast and some tasty visuals.

When Aronofsky took on the project, it seemed like an odd choice when compared with the small, personal scale of his last two films, “Black Swan” and “The Wrestler.” In interviews, he said he wanted to tell a more universal story with “Noah” rather than a more traditional Judeo-Christian narrative. As a result, the film is told more like a Greek myth than “The Passion of the Christ.”

 

The movie takes some creative liberties with the source material. God is an ambiguous force called “the Creator,” whose whims manifest in natural disasters and shape the world as our characters know it. There are angels in the film, but they closer resemble monsters from “Clash of the Titans” than seraphims strumming harps. They’re called Watchers, and they help a wicked army conquer the known world. Later, they return to the path of righteousness and help Noah build his ark. These angels, grotesque as they may be, are probably closer to what was actually in the Bible.

The story of Noah takes on an interesting metaphysical subtext under Aronofsky’s direction. When Noah tells the story of creation to his family aboard the ark, he follows the story of the Big Bang and evolution, connecting to the biblical canon with the phrase, “And God created Man.” When the Watchers tell their backstory, we see them descend to earth from space, where we can also see stars and nebula in the distance. When a Watcher is killed and ascends to the Creator, it actually ascends into space, and we can see a (very) wide shot of the earth below, neatly covered in spiraling storm clouds.

“Noah” opens with a fascinating prologue that details the “story so far” in the canon of biblical tales. The sequence is so interesting, it makes me wonder what other Bible stories would be like if they were styled like “Noah.” They would probably vary in genre and have a lot of wild, otherworldly characters – that’s a franchise opportunity right there. The introduction tells the story of Adam and Eve and their children Cain, Abel and Seth. Cain murders Abel and takes control of the earth, spreading a diseased civilization across the planet.

Noah is the last remaining son in the line of Seth. He has a wife (Jennifer Connelly) and two sons. He also comes to adopt Ila (Emma Watson) when his family finds her injured in a destroyed village. One day, the Creator sends Noah a vision. He sees himself underwater surrounded by thousands of drowning people, as the world is destroyed beneath them. It’s a haunting image, and to Noah the message is clear: the Creator is sending a storm to cleanse the earth of the wicked.

Noah and his family set out to build the ark that will carry all the animal species of creation on to the new world. The methods they use to house and sedate the animals are interesting to watch, and so are the scores of animals that flock to the ship. There is even a scene where every snake and reptile in the world slithers up to the ark at once. It’s a marvel to watch, like most of the film.

“Noah” gets more things right than modern adventure epics usually do, and it makes a good case for the (sometimes tiring) trend of similar films set in ancient times. Aronofsky is still a better director when working with a smaller budget and cast, but it’s comforting to know that he could still do something interesting with a story as old as time itself.

Also, I’m thinking a sequel is in order. Let’s see Aronofsky’s “Tower of Babel” next.

This Must Be the Place (2011)

 

 Originally published in The Daily Nebraskan, 4-1-14

Home
is where I want to be
but I guess I’m already there
I come home
she lifted up her wings
I guess that this must be the place

These are lyrics from The Talking Heads’ song “This Must Be the Place.” They have been playing over and over in my head since I watched Paolo Sorrentino’s “This Must Be the Place” during spring break. The film takes its title from the song, which plays several times throughout the movie in different forms and renditions.

This film is so good, I don't know why I didn’t hear about it sooner. Sean Penn is Cheyenne, an aging rock star who still does his stage makeup every single day. His hair is a ragged paintbrush of black hair – he’s always blowing away that one strand that won’t stay put. Cheyenne speaks everything in a gentle murmur, always barely above a whisper. His walking is more like shuffling. On his bad days, he may be mistaken for an old woman.

Simply seeing Sean Penn made up in this way is enough to fuel plenty of silent giggles. He looks like a cross between Ozzy Osbourne and Bono’s grandmother, with just a sprinkling of Robert Smith for some edge.

Cheyenne has a mostly quiet life. He lives in Dublin with his wife (Frances McDormand) and visits with a fan (Eve Hewson) on occasion, but he’s haunted by the memory of two young boys who killed themselves because of his music. He tries to visit their graves but is turned away by the boys’ parents and told he’s not welcome. One day, Cheyenne hears his father is dying. He goes to visit his father at his deathbed but arrives too late. Cheyenne tries to appease his guilt by seeking out a Nazi officer who tormented his father during the Holocaust. What follows is Cheyenne’s journey to the United States to find the Nazi, and he meets many curious characters in his travels.

Sorrentino’s most recent film, “The Great Beauty,” won an Academy Award and was praised for its rich visual style. Looking at “This Must Be the Place,” one can see hints of the visual splendor to come in Sorrentino’s work. This cinematography in “This Must Be the Place” is spotless. Dolly shots and long takes are used to great effect. The camera swoops gracefully over an idle neighborhood to reveal several characters. We dolly between two characters and gaze down a huge chasm as their conversation grows more distant. Graceful, engaging shots bloom left and right, highlighting Cheyenne’s struggle and the sheltered world he inhabits.

A scene about halfway through the film is shot as one long take. It’s a long, gradual dolly back over a David Byrne concert, and it starts as a shot of a woman sitting in a ’50s style living room, thumbing through a magazine and tapping her foot to the opening strings of “This Must Be the Place.” It’s a bit disconcerting at first, until we realize that this is part of a musical performance. The camera keeps slowly pulling back, revealing the players on the stage and then David Byrne himself, who starts to sing the song that resonates throughout the rest of the film.

Gradually, the living room set behind the performers tilts vertically, hanging above the stage. The camera has stopped moving backwards. The living room set now moves slowly over the performers and towards the camera, now hanging sideways, with the woman still somehow sitting in the chair and reading the magazine. It comes to fill up half the screen, then the camera turns to face the crowd, slowly moving towards Cheyenne, the only still figure in the crowd, with a forlorn expression on his face. David Byrne’s rendition of “This Must Be the Place” works perfectly with the scene.

That shot goes on for three minutes, and it’s just one of many beautiful visions in “This Must Be the Place.” It’s a nuanced visual construction that utilizes all the tools of cinema at once. It’s one of those shots that opens and closes repeatedly in your memory, calling you to watch it again. The whole film and all of its images leave this impression on me. It does what many of the best films do, which is capture a state of mind in images and music. Penn is at the core of this film. At the tail end of the aforementioned scene, staring into the camera with eyes that tell us all we need to know, and yet nothing.

No easy words came when trying to write about this film. It’s not a film that wears its heart on its sleeve. In this way, “This Must Be the Place” is much like its central character. It’s curious, dryly funny, subtle, puzzling and a delight to watch. Like Cheyenne, this movie may also be genius. I have only seen it once, but I have no doubt that my appreciation of “This Must Be the Place” will grow with time. Whenever I see a great film that can surprise, delight and puzzle me, I feel like I’m home. I guess this must be the place.