TRIBECA 2010: Quick Takes: THE KILLER INSIDE ME & GAINSBOURG JE T'AIME
[ Once again, thanks goes to Aaron Krasnov ]
A lot has been said about Michael Winterbottom's The Killer
Inside Me thanks to a scene in which Jessica Alba is used as a
punching bag. The scene, by Winterbottom's admittance drew heavy
inspiration from the fire extinguisher sequence in Irreversible.
This is the scene the film will be remembered for of which many words
have been written already.
Yes the scene is gruesome, but in an unrealistic she
just took 3 shots to the face and is still standing way. This scene
sets off the lunacy of events to come, but more on that in a bit.
In the brief Q&A after the screening
Winterbottom and the film's trio of stars (Affleck, Alba, and Hudson)
spoke towards the grim nature of the novel and how they worked to bring
this darkness into each of their characters and the film as a whole.
This darkness is only seen in glimpses, instead an
occasionally jaunty, mildly dour, tonally jumbled absurdity of a film
takes its place.
Casey Affleck's reserved
introspection channels the darkness of which Winterbottom speaks,
getting more exaggerated as the film progresses. As with Affleck's
performance the film builds from mild-mannered, gentlemanly West Texas
character study to an over the top finale of absurd self destruction.
Peppered with mordant humor and upbeat southern
blues the film builds similar to American Psycho and has the
disposition of A History of Violence.
This
is not the dark nuanced portrait of a sadistic mind it is billed as and
it is not Winterbottom's best work but there is a lot to enjoy with a
payoff similar to a good Tales from the Crypt episode.
I wanted to pass along my thoughts on Gainsbourg Je t'Aime...
Moi Non Plus , while I wouldn't generally associate a biopic of a
French singer/songwriter with ScreenAnarchy the post-modernist narrative and
the heavy reliance on fantastical allegory are worth a look.
I admittedly knew very little about Serge Gainsbourg
or his music going into the film, I loved his daughter's performance in
Antichrist , outside of that a relative blank.
The film unfolds as a whimsical journey through Gainsbourg's
career, from childhood persecution by the nazis up until his eventual
descent into alcoholism, wisely forgoing
Gainsbourg's death. Gleefully keeping berth of traditional biopic
storytelling techniques, first time director and comic artist Joann Sfar
personifies Gainsbourg's character and artistry through prosthetic
otherworldly doppelgangers which follow the titular artist throughout
the film.
Reveling in music and
cigarette smoke the film has no love for exposition, little of
Gainsbourg's life is explained, it is simply on display.
With all of that said the film could use a bit of
trimming, with a run time of 136 minutes, it drags a bit through the
middle and is occasionally over indulgent in it's desire to be
different.
A fantastic first
directorial outing for Sfar and a punch in the arm to
the traditional, tiresome biopic.
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