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WIP

Tank Girl:

Based on the British comic strip created by Alan Martin and Jaime Hewlett, Tank Girl reached the silver screen in 1995 under the direction of Rachel Talalay. In a post-meteor-apocalypse world circa 2033, corporate megalith Water & Power controls nearly everything under the iron guidance of CEO Kesslee (Malcolm McDowell). A few rebellious souls continue to inhabit independent settlements, while a renegade band of violent creatures known only as The Rippers carry out guerilla strikes against W&P. When the corporate thugs descend upon and destroy her home settlement, Rebecca (Lori Petty) becomes Tank Girl, teaming up with Jet Girl (Naomi Watts) and some unlikely allies to fight for freedom.

What makes Tank Girl work so wonderfully well is its complete commitment to its own weird aesthetic, combining punk music, comic book visuals and a foul-mouthed, oddly charming attitude to produce something that’s very nearly original. Petty has great fun as a smart-ass grrrl rebelling against the powers that be, and the rest of the film plays along with her, never taking its plot so seriously as to get in the way of its joyful, freewheeling style. Production designer Catherine Hardwicke and creaturemaster Stan Winston contribute some great designs, and the movie has a consistent sense of its own style—everything fits, no matter how outlandish the gewgaws, costumes and gadgetry become.

Director Talalay came from a production background, having worked on 1980s New Line releases including John Waters’ Hairspray and at least one of the Nightmare on Elm Street films, and her producer’s instincts remain solid. Because the film is set in a future version of our own society, a lot of the fun comes from pop-culture references to Doris Day, Isaac Hayes’ Theme from Shaft, and Cole Porter, including a big Let’s Do It musical number. The acting isn’t given short shrift either—Malcolm McDowell does his standard villain routine with verve, Naomi Watts is credible as the shy, technically-oriented Jet Girl, and Ice-T and others turn in solid performances as a band of genetically-engineered human/kangaroo mutants. Even the visibly low-budget special effects seem right—the obvious models, matte paintings, and man-in-a-suit creatures actually enhance Tank Girl’s offhanded ambience

Down with love

Director Peyton Reed gets the film’s look and, in moments, its disingenuous innocence, but you have to wonder what he and the screenwriters, Eve Ahlert and Dennis Drake, thought they were parodying. The actors clearly haven’t a clue. McGregor sharks around agreeably…but there’s something uncertain about the performance, as if he can’t find his footing…Zellweger lets her guard down better than most actresses…But she doesn’t have Day’s resiliency, which enabled Hudson’s jokes to bounce off her so well, or that glorious way of moving across a room…Trying to send up a movie as self-consciously artificial as ‘Pillow Talk’ is like deploying a double negative: the satires cancel each other out.” –Manohla Dargis, The Los Angeles Times

 

 Cuban Blood /Dreaming of Julia

One of the entertainment marketing tricks that really burns my bacon is the random retitling of a film for its DVD release. Take, for example, the charming little picture Dreaming of Julia. The title refers to the fantasies of the main character, a young Cuban boy coming of age during the time of the Castro rebellion. Our hero is befriended by — and develops a crush on — a beautiful American woman named Julia, who reminds him of the heroine of the Doris Day thriller Julie. The film is a gentle, warm-hearted slice of life, told in semiautobiographical fashion by first-time director Juan Gerard.

Some nudnik at Velocity Home Entertainment decided that more people would be likely to purchase Dreaming of Julia on DVD if the title were changed to Cuban Blood — a title that would be fine for a Miami gangster picture, but is wholly inappropriate for this film.

You’ll get more of this rant in my review of Dreaming of Julia… I mean, Cuban Blood. But you’ll also learn more about an unheralded cinematic treasure you just might enjoy. Please check it out if you’re so inclined.
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Love And Other Catastrophes

Alice and Mia are film students seeking a third roommate to share their new apartment. Mia’s girlfriend wants to move in, but Mia fears commitment. However she is in hot pursuit of her favorite lecturer and becomes embroiled in a bureaucratatic nightmare trying to switch to his course. Alice is also seeking a romantic relationship while she struggles to finish her thesis, “Doris Day as Feminist Warrior.” Emma-Kate Croghan directed this highly enjoyable screwball comedy when she was just 23. Events take place within 24 hours among a group of college students, played by a fresh and engaging ensemble, who deal forthrightly with sex, love and the movies with fast and smart humor, as quotes from Jane Austen, Alfred Hitchcock and Quentin Tarantino abound. A Fox Searchlight Release. 80 minutes. Australia, 1996

That Touch of Pink