The Man Who Fell to Earth: Eyes Wide Shut

   

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You see this? Do you feel uncomfortable? You should, they were having sex ten seconds ago.

 I’m a day late, but I needed a moment to really collect my thoughts on this one. It was an experience that warranted more than a minute’s worth of meditation.

    Thomas Jerome Newton is a humanoid alien, come to earth to save his planet from a terrible drought. He quickly amasses a giant amount of money to fund the project, mystifying and entrancing the people who comes into contact with. But the vulnerable alien soon finds himself caught up in the web of trouble, addicted to Television, alcohol, and lost in a world of values and edifices that will do their best to drag him down. It’s a meditative piece about our world, caught up in it’s surrealist imagery and creative camera angles. If true art is truly incomprehensible, this is certainly the latter...I’m not sure about the former.

    The story itself is not my source of agitation. The idea is based off a novel by Walter Tevis, and actually as an interesting piece of science fiction. It’s not the first time we’ve postulated how our society would utterly wreck a being from another planet (won’t be the last) and it could be an interesting character study. The idea stands on it’s own just fine, and I’m actually considering going to find the book.

    What doesn’t work is the execution. The story, quite frankly, drags its feet for hours on end, while presenting an incomprehensible series of surreal images that were probably meant to be deep in some fashion. I was either bored, a movie quality to be downright sinful in cinema, or confused most of the time as the story attempted to unfold in front of me.

    When the film wasn’t boring, or just unintelligible, it was beset with awkward nudity. I have now seen all the naked David Bowie that I probably ever will, and found myself having the exact opposite response I expected. While I don’t expect all nudity to be portrayed as erotic, I certainly don’t expect it to be seen as so clumsy, awkward, and uncomfortable. It felt voyeuristic, likely the intention, but it made things incredibly uncomfortable. Besides, no one wants the naked coital couple to suddenly turn and look at the camera: the shame will never leave you.

    It’s all a shame, really, because the actors involved are quite good. David Bowie, as always, is stunning in his ability to portray incredibly complex characters as he did with Tommy. He’s so fragile, and yet mysterious and unnerving in his childish ways. Rip Torn as Bryce is an interesting study in both a mid-life crisis and a conflict of interesting. But all the good acting in the world can’t make up for an utterly sluggish pace, mixed-message metaphors, and a style that just leaves the audience far, far behind.

    In short, I found it mildly pretentious, incredibly awkward, and beyond confusing. I imagine someone who’s more knowledgeable in surrealist expression and ‘true art’ would likely know it better than me, but I gave up. That said, I can still recommend the movie to a select crowd of people. If you like out of your head experiences, deep philosophical musings, and have a taste for the bizzare, go for it at least once. Those looking for a fun, casual experience...try something else. So, overall, not for everybody, but not an abomination of cinema.

   

Next Film: The Stuff

Labyrinth; Music, Makeup and More.

 “A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, an elaborate subculture that engage in repeated viewings, quoting dialogue, and audience participation. Inclusive definitions allow for major studio productions, especially box office bombs, while exclusive definitions focus more on obscure, transgressive films shunned by the mainstream.”

-Wikipedia Definition, “Cult Films.”

            Fifteen year-old Sarah Williams has the same problems any teenager of the 80s has; her stepmother is incapable of affection, her father is henpecked, and her step-brother is pulling all the attention away from her. Fed up with her perceived problems, the childish teen wistfully wishes that Goblins would take her baby brother away. A sparkly, leather-clad Goblin King answers her call and tells the distraught girl that she can have her brother back if she solves a labyrinth that acts like the lovechild of The Phantom Tollbooth and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Along the way, she’ll run into all kinds of interesting creatures while the audience is treated to some 80’s-tastic music. It’s cheesy, predictable, and one of my all time favorite movies.

            Now, the story isn’t anything too special, and lacks any sense of complexity. What it does bring to the table is this strange mix of ”totally serious fantasy movie” and “tongue-in-cheek humor” that has a hit-or-miss streak to it. There is also an overflux of content at a breakneck speed, not allowing for anything to be really flushed out. The ideas are interesting but in sore need of some pruning shears.

One could almost argue that the story is here simply to allow our main characters to shine. Sarah Williams, played by then-newcomer Jennifer Connelly, connects nicely with the teenage audience while also being just mature enough that I don’t want to yank my hair out in frustration. Jareth, portrayed by the ever eccentric David Bowie, has some very obvious glam rock influences while coming across as the juvenile leader of some street gang. It’s quirky, but he makes it work in a way he only could.

            But it’s impossible to talk about a Jim Henson film without talking about the puppets. This is some of the most creative use of puppets and animatronics I have ever seen from Henson studios; Hoggle, the cranky dwarf that aids Sarah, gets to have very expressive facial features thanks to some heavy work in animatronics; The giant robot that protects the Goblin City, the biggest puppet they ever made, absolutely towers over our human actors; and the fact that someone can actually wear and move in Ludo’s costume is insane. People and puppet blend well in this film, creating a very visually interesting space to move about it.

            Speaking of being visually interesting, this film isn’t afraid of getting creative with it’s camera.  While a few close-ups and POV shots have a tendency to be disorienting and/or claustrophobic, most of the shots are actually quite nice. Wide angles to make our labyrinth look expansive, flipping the camera to make Jareth defy the laws of gravity, and many others.  While not extraordinary in its cinematography (that’s fancy film talk for actual use of the camera), the movie does get a gold star for effort.

            Lastly, I cannot, CANNOT, talk about this movie without bringing up the music . You could argue that the entire cult around this movie came from Bowie’s soundtrack considering most of us will eagerly parrot out the lyrics when cued (“You remind me of the babe”). I admit with complete honesty that the music usually doesn’t move the plot forward in any way. In fact,the music utterly stops the plot in its tracks most of the time. But can you really get angry at stopping for a dance break?The music is diabolically catchy, and very easy to sing back to fellow admirers. Whether it’s Bowie belting out a love song or a group of dancing fire demons having a good time, you’ll enjoy yourself.

            So, in summary, I believe you should see this movie because it’s easy to watch and enjoy. It’s a fun little 80s fantasy movie with good music, a good setting and fairly decent story. While lacking in complexity, and probably needing an editor for the overflow of content, none of that detracts from having a good time with it.

Next Review: The Big Chill