The Debt Review

Movies have become dumber. Do not try and deny it they have. No matter how much we want to say we are more sophisticated as an audience we are still slaves to big explosions, dumb dialog, and special effects. As a consequence we have killed the political thriller genre. Despite its faults, I give The Debt a massive pat on the back for even being made. Think back to the great political thrillers of the past and ask yourself if they would be made today. Movies like 3 Days of the Condor, All The President's Men, or the Manchurian Candidate (1966) are perfect examples of political films that made statements, and made us think while simultaneously keeping us on the edge of our seat. I don't think that The Debt is quite on par with those classic films, but I do think that it is a noble effort to bring back a dying genre to american audiences.

The story revolves around three former Mossad agents who are now entering their golden years. The three agents (Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, and Cirian Hinds) have gained notoriety for their part in a 1966 mission in which the three tracked down and eventually killed the "Surgeon of Birkenau." Their story has since become legend and as a great man once said: "...when the legend becomes fact, print the legend." The movie then immediately flashes back to the events of the mission. The three agents (now played by Jessica Chastain, Martin Csokas, and Sam Worthington) have discovered the "Surgeon of Birkenau" working as a gynecologist in East Berlin. They work up a plan to extract him from East Berlin and deliver him up to a war crimes tribunal in Israel. Things go wrong, mistakes are made, and sacrifices are inevitable.

The Debt is essentially two movies placed into one story. The initial and closing segments could have easily been expanded to work on an independent level, but are over condensed to bookend the flashback. While the flashback is the focus of the movie I still would have liked to have seen these bookend sections given a bit more time to create a better story for the great older actors that inhabit these portions.

The flashback section is a remarkably well made kidnapping thriller. Jessica Chastain is really having one heck of a summer. Between The Tree of Life, The Help and now the Debt, she has really established herself as a quality actress. Her scenes in the gynecologist office are really tense and uncomfortable and they are because she makes you feel her discomfort. Also of note is the amazingly despicable performance by Jesper Christensen. Christensen portrayal as the "Surgeon of Birkenau" is nothing short of exceptional, and you can see he delights in his manipulation of his captors.

It's nice to know that despite the continuing trend of loud and stupid filmmaking, that there is a segment of people dedicated to creating intelligent and thoughtful dramas. Even if they are imperfect.

The Tree of Life Review

The Tree Of Life Review

A four year old boy sits on a park bench, next to an elderly man.  The elderly man is a well respected and brilliant physicist. The boy is just a boy. The physicist, seeing he has an audience, begins to explain all the secrets of life, the universe, and everything to the four year old boy. The four year old boy sits mesmerized by the old man's tale, listening carefully, focused on every detail. When the elderly man finishes, he looks down at the four year old boy, and says "Do you understand?" To which the four year old boy says, "No sir, but can I hear it again?"

After sitting through the Tree of Life, I believe that within it must be all the secrets of life, the universe, and everything. Terence Malick has laid out his philosophy on the meaning of life quite beautifully. But I also, like the four year old boy, I cannot process it. I guess am not as smart, or wise, or as experienced as I thought.  Perhaps there is an obvious meaning to the movie that I couldn't see it. Maybe I couldn't see the forrest for the trees. I don't know, but what I do know is that I couldn't see any real narrative structure to the movie.  It's timeline is incomprehensible, and when it does begin to form some linear structure, about one third into the movie, it becomes just a series of disjointed events, like memories that you can't quite place in time.

It is in this section of the movie that the story of a boy and his loss of innocence is told.  Raised by a nurturing mother, and a strict father, the boy undergoes a transformation. He lets go of his youth, filled with grace instilled in him by his mother, and embraces a jaded hard edge, drilled into him by his father.  Brad Pitt plays the father quite well.  He is a man who once had a grace of his own, a great musician, who was beaten down by the world and who doesn't want his son to repeat his mistakes.  He is loving, but hard, and moments of tenderness are almost immediately followed by moments of intense severity.

The movie consists very little of plot, or story. It exists more like an impressionist painting set to music and poetry, than a film.  There is an elegance to the movie that is both delightful, and frustrating.  Throughout the movie I was constantly reminded of Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece, 2001: A Space Odyssey.  The Tree of Life, just like a Space Odyssey, sometimes lets go of its story in favor of beautiful artistic visuals that bring added depth and emotion to the film. Unlike 2001, The Tree of Life tends to lose focus on the story, and get lost in it's art. I appreciate art, I think many films can be artistic, but I also think that movies are stories, and without focus a movie can become messy and chaotic.  The Tree of Life is just that, blissful chaos.

There is no real easy way to explain what The Tree of Life is about. It defies definition, and it is as beautiful as it is unexplainable. I still can't wrap my head around what this movie was about. The best way, the only way to know what this movie is about is to experience it for yourself. Maybe if I see it again I will understand.