City of Instruments: January 2010

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Lord Jim

"For a butterfly, it is enough to be beautiful, and to live. But for man it is different, if he is sensitive. Every time he shuts his eyes, he sees himself as a hero, as a perfect man. Its all a dream- he can never be as fine as that. And so it is painful when he opens his eyes, to find he cannot make his dream come true. It is terrible for him. But you ask me- how to live? There is only one way. Follow the dream, and again, follow the dream, and so-to the end."
Joseph Conrad

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Limits of Control

How easily do we give in to our desires, but perhaps its the desires which give us so much rather than them being satisfied. This film is more like a poem. Its dialogue is very sparse and it repeats itself. Its message is very minimal but esoteric. I'm not sure what Jim Jarmusch is trying to say, but I like it that way. Jarmusch's cinema is about aesthetics, not cleverness. I don't remember Stranger Than Paradise so much for its message as I do for its style. Its the epitome of cool, and not in a superficial way. Its a coolness that runs deep. Jarmusch's last work, Broken Flowers, I felt tried to break into some new territory. I liked it, but not as much as the others. But I think he needed to step outside in order to make this one. I feel Limits of Control is a very mature work. Its hard to make a better film when you've made Stranger Than Paradise or Down By Law or Night on Earth. Its too early to say where this one might fall. But its definitely striking and original. I don't think he's resting on his laurels at all here. The other great aspect of this film is the cinematography is done by Christopher Doyle, who is responsible for Wong Kar Wai's great works In the Mood for Love, Fallen Angels, and Happy Together. I look forward to seeing this one again. Oh yes and much respect to Isaach De Bankole, who did a marvelous job of portraying the main character. You might recognize him from Ghost Dog and Night on Earth.