Movies You May Have Missed: 9/28/08
Bérénice Bejo and Jean Dujardin in OSS 117: Cairo Nest of Spies
This week you should really be renting Paul Newman movies, but if you simply must see something new, here’s our weekly look at the Movies You May Have Missed coming to DVD on Tuesday.
OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies (2008) ****
First up is one that deserved a full LiC review but never got one. The monkey responsible for finalizing the rough draft has been sacked.
OSS 117 is a fictional French super spy named Hubert Bonniseur de la Bath who beat James Bond to print by 3 years and was the subject of a movie a full 5 years before Ian Fleming’s hero. This current incarnation turns the genre on its head and spoofs it with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
The story is set in 1955 and every effort has been made to make it appear as if it was actually filmed 50 years ago. From the old-style Gaumont Film Company logo, to the Saul Bass style opening credits, to the old stock footage of Rome, Paris and Cairo, to the clothing styles, to the process shots used in the driving scenes, this could easily have been filmed in the 1950s. In fact, one couple leaving the theater where I saw it wondered aloud if it had been.
The jokes come from the offensively insensitive and hopelessly inept OSS 117 (Jean Dujardin) as he stumbles through foreign countries inciting revolution even as he seeks to stop them. What separates this from something like the Austin Powers franchise is that the filmmakers never let on that they’re kidding and the film lacks Mike Meyer’s knowing smugness. As a result, it works better as a satire.
Ultimately, OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies is more of a funny movie in the “continual rolling chuckle” variety rather than the “spleen busting” variety, but funny is funny damnit. But don’t take my word for it. Check out what Alexander Coleman has to say at Coleman’s Corner in Cinema.
Bigger, Stronger, Faster ****
If not for Daniel Getahun, I probably would’ve missed this one all together. The topic of steroid pumped bodybuilders doesn’t do a thing to interest me, but this documentary is about something bigger and it’s pretty great. Here’s a quote about filmmaker Christopher Bell from the LiC review: “For a first time documentarian, Bell is surprisingly effective. He has a folksy, amateur interview style similar to Michael Moore, but he never grandstands, pulls snarky stunts or seeks to embarrass his subjects. He asks probing questions, but he’s gentle and non-judgmental. Also unlike Moore, he seems genuinely interested in finding answers rather than establishing an agenda and he’s careful to approach his subject from as many angles as he can find.”
Jellyfish
Here’s an Israeli film I meant to catch but never managed to get around to it. Winner of the Camera d’Or at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, this well regarded Israeli ensemble comedy/drama tells the intersecting stories of three different Tel Aviv women: a waitress who finds an abandoned child at the beach, a bride who breaks her leg at the wedding reception and a housekeeper from the Philippines who doesn’t speak Hebrew. Over at Anti-Dis-Arts-And-Entertainmentism, K Bowen gives it B.
Taxi to the Dark Side
Unlike Bigger, Stronger, Faster, I didn’t let Daniel talk me into this one though I probably should have. He gave Alex Gibney’s documentary on torture a solid B+ at Getafilm.
Filed under: DVD
Tags: Alex Gibney, Berenice Bejo, Bigger Stronger Faster, Christopher Bell, Jean Dujardin, Jellyfish, OSS 117 Cairo Nest of Spies, Taxi to the Dark Side
Related Posts: - Six Down, Six to Go
- Review: Bigger, Stronger, Faster (2008) ****
- The Watercooler: 5/12/08
- Weekend Forecast: 5/9/08
- Movies You May Have Missed: Rewind
Well, I will be chomping at the bit to see BIGGER STRONGER FASTER, as I have not yet seen it, having missed it’s Manhattan theatrical run at the Quad. I know Daniel Getahaun loved it, and I remember Craig’s excellent review, so I will make time this upcoming week to take it in. As it stands now, without that film in the prospective mix, I believe the best documentary of the year is a flat-footed tie between MAN ON WIRE and UP THE YANGTZE, with the Herzog film next up. But in the year of the doc, this has been one for the ages.
JELLYFISH is another I did not see, so the DVD will again catch me up.
I know Alexander reviewed CAIRO, (again unseen by me) so I will click on that link today) and then see when I can fit that one in.
And I also have’t seen TAXI, but am aware of Dan’e review an dteh awards it received. This is really a week for catch up!
Only the Region 2 set, THE JOSEPH LOSEY COLLECTION (Optimum) is worthwhile, as it brings together his finest films including THE COLLECTOR and THE GO-BETWEEN. I own these films separately, so I won’t need the box.
And although Ozu’s AN AUTUMN AFTERNOON (Criterion) was discussed last week on this column, it is worth mentioning that in most parts of the country the disc releases Tuesday. It’s a must-own as a masterpiece of world cinema.
Yes, Daniel at Getafilm has done a splendid job of conveying just how fantastic a year this has been vis-a-vis the documentary features that have been released this year.
OSS 117 is one I would like to see again in the very near future on DVD, partly to see if it still holds up with a second viewing. I have a feeling you might enjoy this one, Sam, but I could easily be proven wrong.
The Joseph Losey Collection and An Autumn Afternoon are certainly must-haves.
I loved both OSS 117 and TAXI TO THE DARK SIDE, although I still think last year’s documentary Oscar belonged with either NO END IN SIGHT or SICKO.
OSS 117 is probably the funniest film I’ve seen this year. I’m still interested in JELLYFISH…I’ll probably check it out sometime this week.
Thanks gents, for the generous words. It’s worth mentioning again that I regretted going to see BSF in the theater until about 5 minutes into it. No matter what your expectations are, I think you’ll end up being pleasantly surprised by Christopher Bell, as Craig says. This one hasn’t dropped too far in the year’s doc list. Certainly safe for somewhere in my top 10.
I consider Taxi a 2007 movie, and agree with Matthew that No End in Sight was a more simple, svelte documentary that deserved to win last year. I think Gibney reached wide and shallow to the film’s detriment; what new information did we learn? Solid, but not groundbreaking. I’m not Gibney hater, either, even though I was unimpressed with Gonzo. I love Enron. In fact I’d watch it again it if wasn’t playing out in real time on every news channel again this past week…
I think OSS 117 remains the funniest I’ve seen as well this year, Matthew, though for guilty laughs I might take another look at Tropic Thunder (though I know it didn’t work for you). I think I found OSS funnier than you and maybe others did, Craig, but I can’t discount the fact that I was discovering it sight unseen and unheard of with a packed late night audience at MSPIFF in April. One of my favorite theater experiences this year so far.
Jellyfish tripped me up from the beginning, and I was left speechless and reviewless more out of confusion than anything else. In hindsight (and because of K’s and Evan’s reviews), I guess it wasn’t that hard to follow. Maybe it was just a matter of going in expecting a linear story about 3 women and finding myself in some kind of meta-hallucination-dream-remembrance. The actors kept me engaged, though, and the little girl completely freaked me out. I recommend it.
Thanks for linking Evan’s review to Jellyfish, I couldn’t find it for some reason….Damn wordpress searches….
I thought OSS 117 very funny, but just not of the pants-peeing variety. But then for some reason my expectations of it were already pretty high even before Daniel’s good word.
Matthew, I liked Sicko too when I first saw it, but I couldn’t help but ultimately be annoyed with Moore. He makes it so easy for the other side to tear down his arguments. It’s frustrating.
I found Taxi… really incredible and easily the best documentary of the decade. What really sealed it for me was just how much stuff was put out there, and unlike say a Michael Moore film, the facts are there in black and white, with there not genuinely being any sensible retort you can make to them.
I thought Bigger, Stronger, Faster was decently made, although as someone who has followed the topic of steroids in sports very extensively, it felt like there were things that he obviously didn’t want to get into on the anti-steroids argument, namely, when the question of where the bodies are, the lists of hte pro wrestlers who have died of steroid related heart attacks in the last 10 years under the age of 50. For this year, (and count me among those who consider Taxi… 2007), it’s the second best documentary I’ve seen, behind Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?
Thank you for stopping by LiC, Michael. I’m always happy to have a new voice.
I agree with your criticism of Bigger Stronger Faster to a point. I do wish the filmmaker was a little more willing to be critical of the dangers of steroids, but at the same time I felt he was aiming for a bigger theme. He was more interested in what drives people to risk the dangers and take steroids anyway and I think that’s an important question.