BPM (BEATS PER MINUTE) (2017)

Written by Robin Campillo and Philippe Mangeot


Directed by Robin Campillo


Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. October 30, 2017 7:30 PM


"BPM (120 battements par minute)", a moving and compelling drama from Robin Campillo, looks back not so long ago on the fervent battle of French AIDS activists against the slow-moving pharmaceutical companies and the ineffective response by the government. It would appear to be an uneven fight yet desperate times call for extreme measures and ACT-UP was ready to do whatever it takes to be heard. Marching loudly in the streets, unannounced visits to high schools to hand out condoms and teach safer sex and splattering fake blood on property are just a few of the activities this group did to get people to pay attention to them. This drama, which won four awards at this year's Cannes Film Festival including Grand Prix (runner-up prize of Best Film) and was selected as France's entry for the Best Foreign-Language Award at this year's Academy Awards, serves as a powerful reminder of those people we tragically lost to this disease and those individuals who fought so that they would not be forgotten.

ACT-UP (which stands for AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) was a militant advocacy group formed in the late 1980's in New York. Fed up with the delayed process of medical treatment and the almost complete inaction from the U.S. government on dealing with this health crisis, gay men and lesbians came together, using civil disobedience to protest and demand a national policy to fight the disease. With the French government's reaction to this crisis no better than the States, a Paris-based chapter of ACT-UP was formed.

"BPM" is set in the early 1990's when it was much clearer on how people contracted HIV but there were still very few meds available to help those infected with the most popular being AZT which could be highly toxic and create other health complications. There are rumors of new drugs being developed called protease inhibitors which would prevent viral replication. Yet at the time, many were skeptical of their long-term effectiveness.

ACT-UP was organized as leaderless with actions and proposals brought to the committee to be debated before coming to a vote. And because of this, there is plenty of intense discussions and bickering over tactics and an effective direction of the group with some better expressing their ideas than others. While the group is made up mostly of angry and frustrated gay men, there are also a few concerned lesbians and a mother and her young hemophiliac son there to voice their opinions and lend their support.

We meet several members of this divergent group but the focus is on Sean (Nahuel Pérez Biscayart), an understandably prickly, HIV positive young man who realizes his time is limited and doesn't want to waste a moment. He wants to get out and take radical action against all those standing in the way of saving lives. A new member, Nathan (Arnaud Valois) is attracted to Sean and they slowly develop a romance but Nathan is negative which creates some complications to their relationship. And soon, Sean becomes sick. With Nathan and Sean's mother (Saadia Ben Taieb) there to help care for him, we watch in harrowing detail as his body begins to whither and fail him as the lively spark in his eyes is slowly dimmed.

Mr. Campillo began his career as an editor before moving on to screenwriting, doing acclaimed work with director Laurent Cantet on "Time Out" (2001), "Heading South" (2005) and the 2008 Palme d'Or winner and Best Foreign-Language Film nominee, "The Class". Recently he has impressed with his writing and direction on the 2013 drama, "Eastern Boys".

The filmmaker along with his co-writer Philippe Mangeot were both involved with ACT-UP and used their experiences during that time to help fill their story with detailed and accurate depictions from within the group. With so many characters involved, most do not have the opportunity to be fully fleshed out yet there still manages to be a lot of dialogue, particularly during lengthy, passionate discussions at the meetings. While some of this can be informative, it tends to drag the pacing of the film down, losing momentum and feeling unnecessarily drawn-out.

"BPM" succeeds best when we see ACT-UP in action, enthusiastically and creatively causing disruption to make their point. And in between all of the rage, fear and distress, we are also treated to some tender intimacy as we witness the blossoming courtship between Sean and Nathan including their first sexual encounter which surprisingly manages to be quite graphic yet still discreet.

But it is music that is used to transcend and exhilarate. Mr. Campillo shows the ACT-UP members moving and grooving on the dance floor as interludes between the more daunting moments. With their sweaty bodies swaying sensually through colored lights and eyes blissfully closed, we see that this throbbing house music will help keep their spirits up and to offer escape, at least briefly, to all of their cares and worries. One particularly poignant scene involves the use of "Smalltown Boy", the haunting 1984 dance hit from the openly-gay group, Bronski Beat, with Jimmy Somerville's gloriously piercing falsetto still able to shake you to your core.

2017 AFI FILM FESTIVAL PRESENTED BY AUDI

This year marks the fiftieth anniversary since the creation of the American Film Institute which was designed to save America’s precious motion picture heritage. After it was discovered in 1967 that less than 10% of American films were being properly preserved for future generations, AFI teamed with the Library of Congress to archive and store these important films. To date, 37,000 motion pictures are now safely preserved in the AFI Collection at the Library of Congress.

The American Film Institute later created a film festival to showcase exciting new films and this year's AFI Film Fest presented by Audi is set to begin on November 9th and concluding on November 16th. The event will be held once again at the TCL Chinese Theatres and the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

"Mudbound", a historical period drama co-written and directed by Dee Rees, will open this year's AFI Fest at the TCL Chinese Theatre. The film tells the story of two families following the end of World War II living in the rural South who struggle against financial hardships and racial tensions of the day. Carey Mulligan, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Mitchell, Jason Clarke, Jonathan Banks, Mary J. Blige and Rob Morgan star.



There are three Centerpiece Screenings: "Call Me By Your Name" from Italian filmmaker, Luca Guadagnino, "The Disaster Artist" by star and director, James Franco and "Hostiles", the latest from director, Scott Cooper.




A tribute to the Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker, Errol Morris ("The Thin Blue Line", "The Fog of War", "A Brief History of Time") will be held on November 11th along with a screening of his latest, "Wormwood", a Netflix six-part drama series.



The Closing Night Gala will be the world premiere of "All The Money in The World", the latest from Ridley Scott who will also be honored with a tribute and discussion following the screening. Based on the novel from John Pearson, the film recalls the true-life incident involving the kidnapping of the sixteen year-old grandson of billionaire J. Paul Getty (played by Kevin Spacey) and his shocking refusal to pay his ransom. Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg, Romain Duris, Charlie Plummer and Timothy Hutton also star.

UPDATE: Due to the disturbing allegations against actor Kevin Spacey, "All The Money In The World" has been cancelled as the Closing Night film. As for the film, in a most unusual move Christopher Plummer has been hired to re-film Spacey's role as J. Paul Getty with the plan to still release the film theatrically on December 22nd.

"Molly's Game", the feature directing debut by writer, Aaron Sorkin has been selected for the Closing Night Gala on November 16th. Based on a true story, Jessica Chastain stars as Molly Bloom who ran exclusive poker games for power players for years before getting busted by the FBI due to her unknowingly having the Russian mob playing at her club. Idris Elba plays her defense lawyer and the cast also includes Kevin Costner, Michael Cera, Chris O’Dowd and Bill Camp.



Two Special Presentations include a conversation with British director Christopher Nolan who is hot right now following his surprise summer hit, the WWII drama, "Dunkirk" and the eighty-nine year old French filmmaker, Agnes Varda will discuss her impressive career following a screening of her latest film, "Faces Places". Ms Varda will also be receiving an honorary Oscar on November 11th.

And for the first time, AFI Fest will be holding an annual retrospective to spotlight an important filmmaker of global significance and this year will be Robert Altman. The late writer/director will have twelve of his most essential films screened: "M*A*S*H" (1970), "McCabe & Mrs. Miller" (1971), "The Long Goodbye" (1972), "California Split" (1973), "Nashville" (1975), "3 Women" (1977), "Vincent & Theo" (1990), "The Player" (1992), "Short Cuts" (1993), "Kansas City" (1996), "Godford Park" (2001) and "A Prairie Home Companion" (2006). There will be a discussion following each screening and talent in attendance will be later announced.









There is much more with the best of new features, documentaries, shorts and world cinema to be screened throughout the eight day fest. Tickets for most screenings are free and Express passes are available for purchase. For the complete list of films, to get tickets and additional information, please click below:

AFI Film Fest 2017

EVERY COLIN FARRELL PERFORMANCE RANKED

I remember becoming aware of Colin Farrell in a little-seen indie film, "Tigerland" back in 2000. This Vietnam war-set drama, directed by Joel Schumacher, was about a group of young men at a U.S. army training camp in Louisiana struggling to accept their unavoidable fate of going in to battle. The film didn't do much at the box-office but it was well received by critics, with them singling out Farrell, a little known Irish actor at the time, for his role as Bozz, a draftee opposed to the war who doesn't respect authority.

And Hollywood took notice of the smoldering, good-looking actor, offering him parts with the goal of creating a new star. While Farrell has had a few opportunities to shine ("Minority Report", "Phone Booth", "In Bruges","The Lobster"), many of his films were unfortunate and forgettable ("Alexander", "Daredevil", "Fright Night", "S.W.A.T", "Total Recall"). But there is no denying his exceptional talent, which is why he is still very much in demand and working steadily.

With the recent release of "The Killing of a Sacred Deer" which re-teams him with Yorgos Lanthimos, the writer/director of "The Lobster" and Nicole Kidman, his co-star in the Civil War-era remake of "The Beguiled" that came out earlier this summer, it seems like the perfect time to review the career of the now forty-one year old actor. Vulture has ranked the forty feature film roles that Colin Farrell has performed in to date and reveal what they think is his least successful to his finest hour in cinema.

Click below to read:

Every Colin Farrell Movie Ranked from Worst to Best

PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN (2017)

Written & Directed by Angela Robinson


Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. October 15, 2017 7:05 PM



Wonder Woman was one of the first female super-heroes to appear in comic-books back in 1941, a time when women were not seen as much more than wives and mothers.  She was the rare feminist character that was highly intelligent, powerful and strong who didn't require a man to fight her battles but still maintained traditional ideas of femininity. William Moulton Marston, an American psychologist and educator, is the man behind Wonder Woman's creation (under the alias "Charles Moulton") and with "Professor Marston and the Wonder Women", from writer/director Angela Robinson, reveals the incredibly unconventional life of the author that inspired this unique hero. Enticing and melodramatic, the film examines the eye-raising, intimate relationship between Martson, his wife and his female student yet lacks a convincing passion and spirit to fully engage this decidedly kinky material.

The film opens with Marston (Luke Evans) startled by a frenzied mob burning comic-books including his "Wonder Woman". This is followed by the professor being questioned by the director of the Child Study Association of America (played by Connie Britton) during an investigation over the effects on children to his questionable comic-book character and the depictions of subversive behavior in them.

We flashback to 1928 when Professor Marston is teaching a course on human behavior involving the dynamics between men and women at Harvard. His wife, Elizabeth (Rebecca Hall), also a noted psychologist, works along side her husband at the school as they are struggling to develop a device that can detect if you are lying. In search of a research assistant, Olive (Bella Heathcote), a lovely, sweet-faced student, applies for the job and Marston, attracted to more than just her brain, quickly hires her. Outspoken, opinionated yet insecure, Elizabeth crudely warns the shy young girl not to sleep with her husband. Horrified that she felt a need to even mention the idea, Olive wants to quit even before she starts the job. But after Marston has his wife offer a hasty apology and both are thrilled to discover Olive is the daughter of radical feminist, Ethel Byrne who is the sister of the groundbreaking activist, Margaret Sanger, they begin to work closely together.

Thanks to a suggestion by Olive, they are finally able to get the lie detector to function. And this soon leads to this highly educated couple being unable to deny that they have both become completely smitten and fallen in love with their young protégée.

This is only the third feature by Ms Robinson following her 2004 indie debut, "D.E.B.S." and the Lindsay Lohan disaster, "Herbie: Fully Loaded" the following year. Although she has spent most of her time directing for television, it's hard not to wonder if her gender has played a part in her not having more opportunities in film. This may be why "Professor Marston" has a solid screenplay and impressive performances yet features a fairly generic cinematic vision. One glaring example is when our trio make love together for the first time. With Nina Simone's "Feeling Good" blaring in the background, they come together backstage at the school's empty theater, playfully dressing in stage costumes and shot in glossy, Hollywood-styled soft focus. It's hardly a genuine erotically-charged moment or even a believable sex scene.

Once William, Elizabeth and Olive commit to their progressive relationship, they move to upstate New York where they raise together their children (with each woman having two with the professor) while telling their neighbors that Olive is a widow that they are helping out. A trip in to the city has Marston stumbling upon a tiny shop which discretely sells fetish wear and detailed instructions on the pleasures of bondage which further spurs the professor's imagination. But noisy neighbors, resentment and illness disrupts the idyllic paradise the trio have created in their home.

While no one will confuse these beautiful actors for their real-life counterparts, they are able to bring these people to life with committed performances. Mr. Evans, the Welsh actor and Ms Heathcote from Australia are quite exceptional but it's Ms Hall who is the true standout here. The British actress delivers a fierce intelligence, sharp wit and fiery passion to her role as she struggles with her mind telling her that their romantic liaison is completely impractical while her body is filled with an undeniable desire.

"Professor Marston and the Wonder Women" introduces us to a forward thinking man that greatly admired and respected women, believing that with their superior minds should be in charge of ruling the world. Although this was far from a commonly held belief in Marston's time (and not much has charged in our modern era) but with the two important women in his life that he loved to help fuel his imagination, he was able to creatively bring his extraordinary ideas to realization. The film is not entirely successful in breaking out of the usual bio-pic routine yet succeeds in opening our eyes to other uncustomary ways to love and be profoundly committed in a relationship.

FRANCES MCDORMAND'S DIFFICULT WOMEN

Frances McDormand, the Oscar, Emmy and Tony award winning actress, no longer signs autographs. And if you see her on the street, she will not take a selfie with you. And rarely does she give interviews nor will appear on talk shows.

Yet the New York Times magazine has miraculously managed to not only get the notoriously reclusive actress involved in a fairly detailed profile of her life and career for their Culture Issue but somehow managed to get her to be photographed for the cover despite her continuous claim of hating to have her picture taken.

Now this is exactly what I, and I'm sure all of her legion of fans, love about Frances McDormand. Much like many of the non-conforming characters she has played over her thirty-six year acting career, McDormand can also be a prickly and complicated character full of contradictions. While it's been noted McDormand will not give you a selfie, she will ask your name and engage you in conversation.

I'm sure part of the reason for McDormand's willingness to be interviewed is to promote her latest film, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" from writer/director Martin McDonagh which has been getting plenty of buzz and just recently won Audience Awards at this year's Toronto and San Sebastian Film Festivals. Not only was this role written with her in mind but her appearance in the film is one of her rare starring roles for most of her work has been impressive and memorable supporting parts in such films as "Mississippi Burning", "Almost Famous", "Wonder Boys" and "North Country".

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Frances McDormand's Difficult Women

MOTHER! (2017)

Written & Directed by Darren Aronofsky


Where & When: Arclight Cinemas, Hollywood, CA. September 17, 2017  7:30 PM



Even before I saw the film, I was impressed by the restraint of the trailer for "mother!", the latest from eye-opening auteur, Darren Aronofsky, which disclosed very little of what exactly this would be about. I am one of those people who hate with a passion trailers that heavily details the entire film including revealing key plot points or all the best jokes in the two minute time frame. With star, Jennifer Lawrence featured prominently, it appears that "mother!" could be some kind of fervent horror thriller with a woman in some type of supernatural peril.

After seeing the film, I now understand completely why the trailer was so vague. In fact, it is actually downright misleading. "mother!" is far from the traditional horror film as it was presented and considering some of the previous idiosyncratic work by Mr. Aronofsky ("Requiem for a Dream", "The Fountain", "Black Swan" or even his biblical epic "Noah") that thought never should have been considered. This is clearly the reason for the divisive audience reaction to the film with it receiving the rare CinemaScore rating of "F".

And so the obvious question becomes what exactly is "mother!" about? That is not easy to pin down. Beginning like an intense marital drama involving mysterious visitors and spooky elements, the film shifts with unrestrained abandon in to a surreal nightmare involving religious symbolism, moral decay, the rapid decline of civilization and the inevitable destruction of our planet. And there is also a surprisingly wicked sense of humor to be found here as well.

Mr. Aronofsky doesn't present any of these substantial ideas in a clearly defined way, preferring to leave the viewer to draw their own conclusions of what this all may mean. While this may leave some of the audience thoroughly intrigued and enthralled, others will most certainly be frustrated and annoyed. And this appears to be exactly the director's intention with his polemic film. I was quite intrigued by "mother!' but I must admit I didn't fully understand everything that was happening. Yet I still loved the wild, trippy and puzzling journey the film took me on.

After images involving fire and destruction (which may make slightly more sense to some at the conclusion of the movie) begin the film, we are introduced to a young woman rising in the morning from bed, played by Ms Lawrence. None of the characters are given actual names but she is referred to mother, although she currently has no children of her own. With a mane of long, voluminous dirty blonde hair, her focus is on supporting Him, her older husband (Javier Bardem) who is a successful author now suffering from writer's block and renovating their large, dilapidated house in the middle of nowhere. She appears hopeful that all this devoted attention will bring her a closer connection with them both.

In the middle of one evening, a man (Ed Harris) appears at their door, thinking there was a room to rent. Instead of sending him away, Him invites the man to stay the night, despite mother being uncomfortable with the idea. With the arrival of man's wife, woman (an excellent Michelle Pfeiffer) the next day, the temperamental couple manages to completely disrupt the household. Him enjoys the company and the attention they provide yet mother is left feeling even more alienated and resentful.

Not long after the couple's two sons (played by real-life brothers, Domhnall and Brian Gleeson) burst in to the house, arguing over their parent's love and future inheritance, does a physical altercation erupt between them, ending with a tragic act of violence. And from here, the film begins to shift deeper in to an expressionist style, filling the screen with an explosion of intellectual reflection and artfully designed visuals.

You can pick up plenty of the cinematic influences that seemed to inspire "mother!" (Stanley Kubrick, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", Luis Buñuel, "Rosemary's Baby") yet the director has brought his own distinctively extravagant sense of technique and communication to his film. With the help of a minimalistic musical score from Jóhann Jóhannsson, sound designer, Craig Henighan and frequent collaborator, cinematographer, Matthew Libatique, they perfectly create an eerie and murky dream-like atmosphere that continuously transforms and unsettles throughout.

Fortunately, Mr. Aronofsky also has a very game Ms Lawrence who is willing to endure quite a lot thrown at her throughout the film. The young actress, shot in tight close-ups and appears in almost every scene, is exceptional as our guide through this unyielding maze of bizarre twists and turns. While for the most part, all she does is react to the madness surrounding her yet she brings a much needed grounded emotional power.

Without a doubt, "mother!" is one of the most imaginative yet polarizing films of the year. This brilliant but confounding drama gleefully challenges, incites and disturbs in ways that is rarely done anymore, particularly by an American filmmaker. I think it may be required to view the film for a second time for the opportunity to reevaluate and discover what may have been missed the first time. Or for some, watching "mother!" once was one time too many.

THE 100 BEST SCREENWRITERS OF ALL TIME

I have always believed that if you don't have a complete, well-written script, you will never have a watchable film. This has been proven more times than not yet you would be amazed how many times a movie begins production (mostly due to a pre-set release date), investing millions of dollars, with a script that is not in any condition to actually begin shooting a film.

I think part of the problem is the screenwriter gets no respect. There is this odd, long-held thought process that writing for the cinema is not that hard, pretty much anyone can do it and screenwriters are incredibly overpaid for what they contribute to the film. This is obviously far from the truth and all you have to do is re-watch one of your favorite films or recall a classic line from a movie to realize that not just anyone can create these special moments in cinema. It requires a certain talent and writers are just as important as the actors and directors to make a film memorable and entertaining.

Vulture has put together a list of the 100 best screenwriters throughout the history of cinema and have been ranked by forty of today's top working screenwriters. Some of the usual suspects are included (Woody Allen, Quentin Tarantino, Preston Sturges, Nora Ephron, Charlie Kaufman) but there are names that may not be as well-known (Guillermo Arriaga, Leigh Brackett, Burt Kennedy, Charles Lederer, Jay Presson Allen) but have contributed greatly to the art of screenwriting.

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The 100 Best Screenwriters of All-Time Ranked