Reviews: Brother Sun, Sister Moon, Pépé le Moko, and Happy Valley

Thursday night was movie night for me. I watched three, two for class, one for pleasure. Only one was really worth my time.

First in the line-up, was Brother Sun, Sister Moon, for my History as a Medium of Film class. It's directed by Franco Zeffirelli, whose body of work consists mostly of Shakespearean adaptation and religious epic. This was one of the later, following the early life and ministry of St. Francis of Asissi. Zeffirelli also did Jesus of Nazareth. If, in either of those movies, he was trying to help us identify with the respective religious leader, he missed his mark. In both films, the enlightened protagonist plays more the role of the lunatic. I personally feel it would be better if we were put in their place, privy to their thoughts, doubts, dreams and visions. Zeffirelli rather shows them to us as a third person. We are in the seat of the casual observer, and only see enough to convince us that this person is not normal. They look like lunatics, and were they're taken out of the familiar context, were they anybody but Jesus or a venerated Saint, we would write them off as such.

The had other flaws. It was made in 1972, and all of the music (there was plenty) is by Donovan. If you're not acquainted with Donovan, he is a super mellow folksy psychedelic hippie. The score for Brother Sun was calm, cheesy, and boring. It fit the movie. St. Francis is hailed as the patron saint of nature, and there is plenty of that here, lots of shots of him looking at butterflies and running through blooming fields, with Donovan serenading you all the while.

Zeffirelli beautifully offers the audience a visual feast. The sets, costumes, and colors were still stunning, decades later.

The only noted actor in it is Alec Guiness, known popularly for his role as Ben 'Obi-Wan' Kenobi in Star Wars. He played the Pope, and when St. Francis was pleading before him at the end of the movie, I kept wanting him to say, "Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope."

Like pretty scenery, history, Catholicism and/or hippies? Check out Brother Sun, Sister Moon. Otherwise, you could use it as a sedative.

Next in the linup was Pépé le Moko, a French film from 1937. I was watching for my Aesthetics of Crime in Frech and German Film class. Fascinating class, great professors. It's mental gymnastics to even keep up with the material, much less excel and blaze new territory. But worth it for how much it impacts my movie viewing.

As for le Moko, Pépé is a gangster and a womanizer hiding out from the French police in the casbah of the city of Algiers. The casbah is so labyrinthine, winding, and overpopulated, that the police are helpless in it's midst. The only way to get Pépé is to lure him out. And his undoing is, predictably, a woman.

The predicament Pépé faces is whether to accept "freedom" within the confines of the casbah, or to leave for his home in Paris with the woman he desires, facing imminent capture by the authorities. Great flick. I would go on at length, but I'll spare you the philosophical discourse. Good old movie, check it out.

Third and finale for Thursday night was Happy Valley, premiering at the LDS Film Festival. My friend Evan was the assistant editor, and had an extra ticket. He did a great job, but I don't have nice things to say about the writer/director. It is a documentary (I use the term liberally here) about illicit drug use in Utah Valley. A guy named Ron Williams did it. He was there and spoke after the screening, but I didn't need to meet him personally to know how self-absorbed he is. It came through loud and clear in his "documentary". It was really more of a glorified home video of his messed up family. He started the project when his ex-wife went into rehab for heroine use. There was minimal research, shoddy camera work (literally with a home video camera) cheesy music, a small sampling of case studies, and little direction.

I suppose the message was simply of awareness on the problem, but it felt very heavy handed. One of the closing montages was SO over the top. "I am a heroine user and a killer, but I AM A PERSON TOO, and DESERVE TO BE LOVED! LOVE ME!" That is only slightly exaggerated. They also suggested a connection between the Church and rampant painkiller use, but they never draw a strong link. It's pretty superficial, "Mormons use painkillers 'cause the Church makes them feel lots of pressure." Okay. I guess. People everywhere feel pressure every day from their jobs, family life, relationships, etc., so why does the culture here have such a drastic impact? I'm not denying the hypothesis, I'm just saying it was insufficiently explained, and minimally supported.

And why would you emblazon your own name on your supposedly service focused ventures? Ronwilliams.org is ridiculous. The only people allowed to be this arrogant and narcissistic are actors. Their job is to be seen and recognized. Ol' Ron, however, is supposedly working in the fields of environmentalism, health, self-help, and the recent additions of music, film, and some nebulous non-profit for kids. The aim of each venture is vague, the flash factor high, and I can only imagine the impact minimal. If his movie is any indication, they are all highly polished turds.

That's a bit harsh. I suppose service for the sake of self aggrandizement is still service, but his motives are suspect. If he is really focused on serving others, should there be more pictures of the people he helped, or pictures of himself? You tell me.

P.S. Also showing at the LDS Film Festival is Take staring Minnie Driver and Jeremy Renner, and produced by an old employer of mine. I went to an early screening last June. Take was written and directed by a first time LDS film maker, and while it ultimately delivers a message of redemtion, it was too little too late to bring you back from the cold dark place it sets you in. High production value, though, and some innovative camera work. Watch the trailer, look for the gun. Awesome shot.