Not a “best of 2006” list (barely even a list)

Really just a few movies I’ve seen in the past few weeks. Forgive me, Justin-- films.

Now, Voyager (1942)
Every so often I get on a Bette Davis kick where I first indulge in a little self-pity that I can’t be Bette and then content myself with watching her sly, soft-filter face and grand, emotional monologues. I especially love 1950’s All About Eve, but this movie’s also a good place to start. Davis plays Charlotte, a young woman who evolves from a frumpy daughter to a svelte woman of the world. In one characteristic scene that is definitely not meant be funny, Charlotte’s new beau, unaware that she was once an ugly duckling, studies her family photograph. “Say!” he frowns. “Who's the fat lady with the heavy brow?” “That lady,” gasps Charlotte, spinning away tearfully, "is me!”


The old Charlotte, apparently hideous

Volver, Pedro Almodóvar (2006)
Speaking of drama, nobody does more to whip the passions of women’s lives into such moving, operatic proportions. If the emotions passing across his characters’ faces could be harnessed, they could power a small continent-- and everyone on the continent would be weeping, laughing, and wearing vivid, low-cut blouses.

Little Children, Todd Field (2006)
I almost hesitate to recommend this film, because I don't much like some of the plot, but it’s an improvement on Tom Perrota’s decent novel (how often can you say this about a film?), and the acting and cinematography are extraordinary. Kate Winslet brings her usual, believable beauty, and when the camera pans quietly over a packed community pool and an empty suburban backyard you feel like you're looking through the eyes of a single riveted observer, rather than a cool, omniscient lens. A few minutes in, it was clear that the subject of the story (suburban malaise) would be treated without irony. A big relief.

More generally: We just got a subscription to Wolphin. The first DVD to arrive is, well, a mixed bag: A few excellent shorts, a couple of oddballs and more than one genuine dud. But if you’re interested in checking out short films (oh, these most definitely are films) that nobody one else has seen, I'd say it's well worth subscribing. Either way, be sure to watch the short clip on the website from A Stranger in Her Own City, an excellent documentary about a seventh-grade girl from Yemen who refuses to wear a veil.

So... I still have a little time before the new semester descends, avalanche-style. I want to squeaze in a few more Netflix and theatre trips, so pass along your recommendations! Then it's back to books.