Okay, let's get back into the groove of things. Fortunately for those tired of these posts, there are only two more after this one. Anyway, moving on.
The theme for this one is "
Falling to Pieces". Haven't we all felt like that at some point? Where you just feel like you're slowly going insane? Well, whether you have or not (I might have a few times), Hollywood is willing to show movie characters that are on the verge of a nervous breakdown. (And if you're wondering, no, Pedro Almodovar's film of a similar title isn't on this list.) The list starts after the jump.
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| Red Desert (Antonioni, 1964) |
When most people see a housewife, they usually see someone who always has a smile on her face. That's far from the case with Giuliana (Monica Vitti).
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| Repulsion (Polanski, 1965) |
Then again, Giuliana has nothing on Carole (Catherine Deneuve) when it comes to unstable behavior. Thanks to her androphobia, she's just inching towards going completely insane. (You can just see in her face that she's quickly unraveling.)
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| Insignificance (Roeg, 1985) |
Rather than focusing on one character, the film revolves around four characters (thinly veiled portrayals of Marilyn Monroe, Albert Einstein, Joe DiMaggio and Senator Joseph McCarthy) and their insecurities. Hey, even famous people have their flaws. Speaking of which...
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| The Aviator (Scorsese, 2004) |
Man, the way Leonardo DiCaprio depicts Howard Hughes' many breakdowns throughout this is just...unnerving. (Yes, I think he should have won.)
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| We Need to Talk About Kevin (Ramsay, 2011) |
Likewise can be for Tilda Swinton's performance in this. (She was robbed, I say!)
And the wildcard is...
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| Side Effects (Soderbergh, 2013) |
Not to give anything away since this is a relatively new film, but Rooney Mara gives a
really effective performance in this. That's all I have to say in regards to this. (Oh, and if you haven't seen it yet, you really should.)
All right, need to polish off those last two lists...
You have me at a disadvantage, I haven’t seen Red Desert or Insignificance. Catherine Deneuve is fantastic in Repulsion and Tilda Swinton is totally mesmerising in We Need to Talk About Kevin, but then she often is! Have you seen Lynne Ramsay’s other movies?
ReplyDeleteMy favourit portrail of people “Falling to Pieces” in recent movies is Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon in William Friedkin’s Bug. It is often miss-sold as a Horror or Sci-Fi Thriller.
I haven't seen any of Ramsay's other films though I've been meaning to after seeing We need to Talk About Kevin.
DeleteI was thinking of including that one but I wanted films about people with insecurities, not those plagued by mental illness.
I haven't seen Red Desert or Insignificance either, but it's awesome that you've come up with so many of these mixes. Looking forward to the next two.
ReplyDeleteThank you. :)
DeleteGlad to see two very recent movies here (Kevin and Effects), makes me curious about them -- these days I seem unable to watch anything past the 80s! Great mixes!
ReplyDeleteThank you. :)
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