Movie Review: Into Great Silence (2005)

Into Great Silence (2005) written and directed by Philip Groning

This documentary follows the lives of Carthusian monks in their Alpine monastery Grande Chartreuse. Filmmaker Philip Groning had asked for permission to film there in 1984 and the monks said they needed time to prepare, maybe in ten or twelve years. Sixteen years later, they invited him to come and film their lives. Groning spent two years filming and then two and a half years editing to make the film. 

The result is surprising. Most every film documentary features talking heads describing and often commenting on the subject. Maybe some info-graphics are thrown in, cute animations too. External information and broader context are shown to give a further understanding of the situation and to guide the viewers along the path the filmmakers desire. This documentary eschews all of that. The monks are focused on their work and their worship, laboring and praying with almost no words spoken and no attention paid to the camera. The film has one interview with a blind monk who talks about God and happiness (so there is one talking head) towards the end of the film.  The movie is a quintessential example of the "show, don't tell" style.

The greater part of the film follows the monks' lives. They eat simply, bread and some fruit and vegetables. They work at cooking, planting, chopping firewood, studying. Most of all, they pray. Individual prayers happen in their rooms; community prayer happens in the monastery's main chapel, with a bell ringing to draw the monks from their other activities to their main activity. The movie returns again and again to the chapel, sometimes with just one monk, sometimes with a handful of monks, sometimes during daylight, sometimes at night.

Visually, the movie uses a lot of close ups, some very close to the faces of the monks (or quite often, the backs of their heads), as they do their daily activities. This gives a sense of immediacy and intimacy, drawing the viewer into the inner part of the monks' lives. They live in simplicity and peace. The monastery and the men are unaffected by the outer world. Their peace has a joy to it, the sort that Paul writes about in Philippians 4:7, "that surpasses all understanding." Such peace can't be put into words as effectively as it is shown in this film. This intimacy is relieved by shots that are much further away, giving a sense of scale to the monastery and showing it tucked into its little valley in the French Alps. 

Any sounds in the movie are natural, either of the monks at work or in prayer (only the communal prayer is audible). The peaceful environment has the sounds of rainfall, birds chattering, tools like saws or pages turning. Again, this simplicity draws the viewer into the world of the monastery.

The style of the film is challenging to modern viewers who expect a lot of narrative or explanation. The movie moves languidly through the monks lives with no musical cues or voice-over to guide the viewers. With a 162-minute run time, a lot of patience is required. I think a viewer will know in the first ten minutes or so if they are in sync with the film and won't lose patience.

Highly recommended. I wouldn't watch this every day, but the feeling of peace it gives is mesmerizing and satisfying.

Movie Review: Accidental Courtesy: Daryl Davis, Race & America (2016)

Accidental Courtesy: Daryl Davis, Race & America (2016) produced and directed by Matt Ornstein

When Daryl Davis graduated with a degree in music from Howard University, his parents were worried about him being a success as a musician. Many are the parents who hope for a fallback career option for their musically-inclined children. Davis has worked with a wide variety of musicians from Chuck Berry to Willie Nelson. The truly amazing and seemingly impossible thing that Davis has done is what he does in his free time. Curious as to how someone can hate him without knowing him, he has met with many members of the Ku Klux Klan. Not only has he met with them, he has befriended them. And they have befriended him. A great many of them have left the Klan or are on their way out thanks to their personal contact with Daryl Davis. And yes, Daryl Davis is a black man.

If that isn't surprising enough, Davis is collecting Klan memorabilia and has over two dozen sets of robes from Klan members who have quit the Klan and given their robes to Davis. He hopes to open a "Museum of the Klan." His purpose is not to honor the Klan, but to keep a record of the Klan and to be a witness to the possibility of change. Knowing where you came from (for both Blacks and Whites) is important for knowing where you are going. Davis's vision is to fight racism through changing hearts, which can only happen with a change of opinions, which can only happen with a change of experience. 

Davis's commitment to truth and to respecting others (even those he disagrees with) is amazing. While he disagrees with the Klan, he respects their right to express their opinions. He not only respects that right, he actually listens to them. That listening is the first step that eventually opens the door for them to listen to him. The dialogue creates a connection. At one point, Davis says he does what he does to help his people. He clarifies that by "his people" he means his fellow Americans, regardless of their skin color. That's perhaps the biggest and most difficult step that needs to be made. It can't be made by a law or by the education system, it has to be made by each and every one of us.

This documentary is endlessly fascinating. Davis deals with love and hate from the Klan; he deals with love and hate from the black community. He travels the country, lecturing about his activities and talking with people. His life story and his work are well worth examining and experiencing. 

Highly recommended.

Movie Review: The Great Buster: A Celebration (2018)

The Great Buster: A Celebration (2018) written and directed by Peter Bogdanovich

In an interesting blend of biography and analysis, film director Peter Bogdanovich looks at the life and films of Buster Keaton. Buster was born to vaudeville parents and by the age of four was part of their act. He learned timing, risk-taking, and how to take a fall from his father. When Buster reached his twenties, he moved to New York where he was drawn into film, working with Fatty Arbuckle on comedy shorts. Arbuckle moved to feature length comedies, so Keaton took over the production. He spent a good decade and a half producing shorts and feature films independently, making his greatest and most creative works, like Sherlock Jr. and The General. He took a contract with MGM which took his creative license away. The studio system ran by the script and by the schedule. Keaton's career went into a long decline and he faded into obscurity. Still, his films are remembered fondly and his impact on comedy, cinema, and art is undeniable. The movie features interviews with Carl Reiner, Dick Van Dyke, Richard Lewis, Mel Brooks, Quentin Tarantino, and Werner Herzog.

This film looks at Keaton's life first and then, in the last third, delves more deeply into Keaton's major feature films from the 1920s. His energy, creativity, and daring are amazing. He did all his own stunt work and some of the stunts are almost unbelievable--buildings falling down on or around him, Keaton swinging out over a waterfall to catch a falling woman, etc. Even though he was nicknamed "Stoneface" for his deadpan reactions, Keaton is physically expressive and his eyes (if not the rest of his face) show intelligence and emotion. He's an artist that doesn't get enough credit or enough play time these days.

This documentary is a fine introduction to Keaton and his work.

Recommended.

Movie Review: Mifune: The Last Samurai (2015)

Mifune: The Last Samurai (2015) co-written, edited, and directed by Steven Okazaki

Toshiro Mifune is easily the most famous actor from Japan. After World War II, when the country was in desperate times, Mifune applied for a job as a cameraman's assistant. He was soon swept in front of the camera. His international stardom came from his collaborations with director Akira Kurosawa. Their first film, Rashomon, put Japanese film on the world stage. They had a long string of artistic and box office successes, including Seven Samurai, The Hidden Fortress, and Yojimbo, which respectively inspired The Magnificent Seven, Star Wars (George Lucas even wanted Mifune to play Obi Wan Kenobi!), and A Fistful of Dollars. Mifune had an electrifying presence on screen, with the sort of star power that every actor wishes for.

The movie delves a bit more into Mifune as a person. He would prepare for roles with a great deal of research and thought. He was passionate, dedicated, and fearless in his performances. He behaved the same way in his regular life. He loved cars and alcohol, indulging a bit too much at times. He was considerate of other actors. He worked hard and had a rich career.

Even though many of the interviews for this documentary are with his sons, Mifune's family life is only minimally described. How he was as a father or husband just barely comes across. The focus of the documentary is really on his public and professional persona. The movie does delve into the history of Japanese cinema, starting from the first silent films in the early 1900s through the popularity of chanbara (sword fighting) films and up to the propaganda films of World War II.

Mifune had both great talent and dedication to his task, making him a remarkable actor. His career is fascinating and had a huge impact on cinema everywhere.

Recommended, highly for Mifune or Kurosawa fans.

Movie Review: Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)

Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018) directed by Morgan Neville

Fred Rogers is the creative genius and star of the long-running and wildly popular Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. One central question about him is whether he was the same in person as what he portrayed on television. This documentary examines this question along with what his message was.

The documentary shows that Fred Rogers was what he portrayed in his show. But there's more to the story, because there's more to what he portrayed. He's not just the gentle sweater-wearing man who listens attentively, behaves graciously, and acts kindly. Rogers also performed most of the puppets, including the cat Daniel, who was very vulnerable, simple, and honest. He also played King Friday, the occasionally overbearing authoritarian who wants his way all too often. From interviews with his wife and children, it's clear that bits of the man were in all of these characters. Of course, the overall show is very upbeat, gentle, and affirming. He was no tyrant at home because, as his wife says, he was never allowed to express anger in words as a child, something that stuck with him throughout life. He certainly knew what he wanted and took direct approaches to get it.

Fred Rogers was more than a TV personality. He had been studying in seminary when he first saw a television. He was amazed by the possibilities of the medium and took some time off from school to work in the medium. He eventually finished his degree and was deeply influenced by the child psychology of the time. He used his Christianity and his training to make a children's show that was extremely simple on the surface but with surprising moments of depth.

Rogers always engaged in important issues, though often subtly. When Robert Kennedy was assassinated, he had a show where Daniel asked what the word meant. That started an honest and kid-appropriate conversation. When 1960s racial tensions had bigots throwing blacks out of public pools, Rogers invited his neighborhood's police officer Clemmons (who was black) to share his foot pool. Rogers even shared his towel for drying off. His belief that people should be treated with dignity and respect permeated all of his work. He didn't dumb things down for children but found a way to talk to them as intelligent, feeling, and inexperienced persons.

And that's the way he treated everyone--on the show and in real life. He was the same person and a great role model of gentleness and honesty that is severely lacking in this day and age.

Highly recommended.

Parental warning: This documentary is rated PG-13. There is some mild profanity from one or two interviewees; one person mooned Mr. Rogers' camera and we see the photo briefly; another person discusses his homosexuality a few times and how Rogers reacted to that; footage from 9/11, the Challenger explosion, and the Vietnam War are included. Unlike the TV show, this documentary is not for little kids.

Movie Review: Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2010)

Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2010) written and directed by Werner Herzog

In December of 1994, some spelunkers in France stumbled upon a cave with wall paintings that date back over 30,000 years. They are the oldest works of art extant, have been studied by a variety of scientists, and kept under lock and key by the French government. German filmmaker Werner Herzog was given limited, supervised access to the caves for a few weeks to make a documentary about the paintings. This movie is worth seeing just for the chance to see the amazing pre-historic artwork. Herzog films them with an expert eye, catching the details and simulating what the flickering lights of the torches early men and women must have used. The music is appropriately primal and evocative. The occasional use of heartbeats is a little on the nose but work on occasion.

Herzog also interviews the scientists, a mixed group of archeologist, paleontologists, art historians, and others. He draws out the scant details of what the lives of the ancient artists may have been like. The cave paintings were done by more than one person and the evidence points to the possibility that some paintings were done 5000 years after the oldest paintings. Herzog explores the possible meaning of the drawings (most of which are of animals, though there is half of a human female form and several handprints) and their context. The cave is full of animal bones but no human ones. One bear skull is set in the middle of a flat rock suggesting an altar. Bridging the gap between the twenty-first century A.D. and 28,000 years ago is a great challenge. A lot of tantalizing bits lead to interesting speculation by the scientists and Herzog. Herzog's postscript trying to create a new perspective was a bit much for me. Even so, the movie brings up a lot of interesting issues about human nature, history, and art.

Even with its G rating, the movie is a bit too slow and meditative for little kids. I didn't show it to J and L because I don't think it will capture their imaginations the way it did mine.