DVD Reviews

January 19, 2010

Lost In Beijing

Why do you think most governments ban art? Is it to protect the citizens of that country? or is it to protect the establishment? I hope you answered the latter. In the lead up to Beijing receiving the honor of hosting the 2008 Olympics, Up and coming filmmaker Li Yu was working on piece of art that the Chinese government would try to gut in the name of “national security”.  If you remember when Beijing was preparing for the Olympics, the eyes of the world were on China. Even George Bush ironically had to acknowledge the extent of the Chinese government’s human rights violations. The Chinese government does not exactly have a record of taking criticism very well. The reason I wanted to mention this is contextual. After being played at some international festivals the movie was set for release in China. Initially the government allowed this movie to be released with the caveat that many of the more controversial scenes be cut out. Li Yu tried to compromise but eventually the movie was banned in the country all together.

Now on to the movie— The movie is set in the fast growing economic underground of mainland Chinese Society. A young working class couple, An Kun and Liu Pingguo, one a window washer and the other a masseuse (respectively) have moved to the city to presumably improve their lives. Pingguo works in a Massage Parlor owned by Lin Dong ( Ingeniously played by Tony Leung Ka Fai…The funny Tony Leung not the serious one from the Wong Kar Wai movies). After one of Pingguo’s friends gets fired by Dong after refusing to let a customer touch her inappropriately Pingguo and said friend go out to commiserate for a afternoon of drinks.  Pingguo returns to work after her break and is found vulnerably intoxicated in one of the massage rooms and is akwardly raped by Dong. The catch to the whole thing is An Kun just happens to be washing the windows of the building and witnesses the whole sad event. After getting over his initial explosive anger An Kun decides to get paid while getting even by blackmailing Dong. Initially An Kun decides to blackmail him by threatening him with turning Dong over to Police until it turns out that Pingguo is pregnant. Dong who is reluctant to even acknowledge An Kun’s threats at first becomes excited when he learns that Pingguo is pregnant, mostly because his own wife Wang Mei is infertile. Eventually the two men work out a deal. The only question is who’s baby is it really? There is a lot more to this story but I don’t want to give it all away.

The purpose of this movie being banned and being so controversial is the same same reason it is genius (as the case with many banned pieces of art). China does such a good job of covering up the ills of their society that sometimes you just forget about them. What Li Yu has done with Lost In Beijing is juxtaposed the Nouveau Riche class against the working class that has been created in China’s new economic growth.  By focusing on the beef between the two male characters in the film, Li Yu displays the disregard for the female characters in the film (and society). While all the darkly comedic and generally depressing twists and turn are happening you are forced to remember that all this came about because Pingguo was raped. You are also forced to realize how Wang Mei’s feelings are being neglected but she still has a dependence on her new upper class life style. The reason this movie has been banned is for showing the true complexities of a burgeoning capitalist society. Just as well it is not a flattering image of China especially their treatment of women. There are some complaints about the sex scenes in the movie as well. I do not believe they are in anyway “pornographic” or “Too much” in context of the film itself, it makes a point. If you want to see one of the best movies to come out of China in a while that wasn’t made by Wong Kar Wai, Ang Lee, or Zhang Yimou then check out Lost In Beijing.

Martyrs

I love films that push me. Push me mentally, emotionally, and intellectually. Im sure I have a higher tolerance for certain things than the average person because of my daily grind. Martyrs made me feel very uncomfortable while watching certain parts. After the movie was over, I felt a little uncomfortable, but as the discomfort wore off I began to assess and realize the reason the movie affected me is because it was a well made horror film. It did exactly what a true horror film is supposed to do…Horrify you!

The film begins with a young Lucie escaping from a torture chamber and being placed in an orphanage where she is coming to terms with the horrible things that has happened to her. She also makes friends with a girl of the same age named Anna. You see early in the film that Anna is protective of Lucie, whether through her acute hallucinations or the therapists and media who take interest in Lucie’s story. After that prologue the films jumps 15 years forward to a older Lucie busting into the house of the family she claims tortured her all those years ago and pretty much disemboweling them with a shotgun. This scene is probably my favorite although it is cake and tea time compared some of the other gory scenes in the film. After killing the people who ruined her life she calls Anna who quickly comes to her rescue. When Anna arrives she gets to work cleaning the house and disposing of the bodies. She is obviously disturbed by what has transpired and even a little doubtful about Lucie’s judgment. The film alludes to the fact that Anna is not only a loyal friend to Lucie but actually in love with her (this becomes more relevant later in the film). While Anna is trying to help Lucie cover up this slaughter she accidentally lets it slip that she is doubting that this is actually the family that tortured Lucie as a kid. This revelation leads to Lucie committing suicide in front of the house that 95% of the movie takes place in. Now you have Anna and a bunch of dead bodies, and this is really when the madness begins to ensue! That is as far as I will go…You have to see it for yourself.

This movie is also made by a new filmmaker. Pascal Laugier is new to the game of French horror (which is a strong genre) but being only his second movie he has solidified his spot as a master horror/psychological thriller filmmaker. Martyrs only receives a 52 on Rotten Tomatoes, but this is deceiving. Americans are not ones to accept gore or violence that is realistic therefore you see reviews that say this movie contains “unnecessary violence” or “torture porn”, which is not true. What Laugier has done is made the scenes look VERY realistic. There are not slow motion shoot out scenes or over the top blood squirting comically in the air (although there is A LOT of blood) like Americans are used too, so the Tomato meter rating is skewed. While some people may think that the gore and really long drawn out torture scene (geezus) is too much, there are many nuances that remind you that the world can sometimes be fucked up. Not for nothing the films points out in a non-pretentious way that people do horrible things in the name of war, religion, or just plain personal satisfaction. If you have the stomach for it, watch it because I didn’t even scratch the surface on what happens in this movie.

Collapse

Collapse is a documentary by Chris Smith that focuses on Michael Ruppert. Ruppert is an ex Los Angeles narcotics detective who exposed that the C.I.A. was in fact selling crack cocaine in South Central during the 80′s.  Since Ruppert is from a family of intelligence workers for the US government and also once a lead all star narcotics detective in LA it was only logical the C.I.A. would approach him with their plans to distribute coke in the ghetto. The problem is Ruppert refused and tried to report the offer to the F.B.I. and government. Ruppert was promptly removed from his post as cheif NARC and the smear campaigns began on his character. At this point Ruppert became a vicious self educated investigative journalist and has exposed many other plots that we were probably not supposed to find out about.  Lets just say him and his team pretty much predicted the occupation of Iraq and the recession. He is also a fierce advocate of the peak oil theory. He goes into detail in this film about how all these things are going to play out and eventually lead to the “collapse” or modern society.

There is a duality to this film though that is what personally makes it so captivating. While Mike Ruppert is a controversial figure that most people probably don’t know about. This film is also about the Collapse of Michael Ruppert the man. The once confident detective/writer who spent so many years obsessed with finding out all those things that we are not supposed to know about our society. As you watch this film you realize that man no longer exists. Ruppert is broken now and practically driven himself insane. Still, he speaks with a clarity and lucidity that you cannot deny anything he is talking about. During the Bush administration there were several attempts on Ruppert’s life, including him being poisoned. He was forced to be treated in France for liver failure because American doctors were either afraid to treat him because of the repercussions on them, or Ruppert was afraid that some doctors may try to finish the job. Ruppert left the country and “retired” to get the Bush administration off of his back. As seen in Collapse, Ruppert is back, but now he is becoming a shell of himself. He still wants to help…He goes on to explain that what if a German knew the holocaust was coming and did nothing to warn people. What kind of person would they be?