The English Patient

Released:  December 6^th, 1996

Rated:  R

Distributor:  Miramax

Starring:  Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Kristin Scott Thomas, Naveen Andrews, Colin Firth

Directed by:  Anthony Minghella

Written by:  Anthony Minghella

Personal Bias Alert:  not a big romance fan, haven’t read the book

6.5 of 10

            There’s little wonder why Miramax picked up The English Patient when it became available just before filming began.  Founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein know how to set themselves up for success come awards season, and a big, sweeping romance with World War II as a backdrop practically screamed ‘90s Oscar gold.  Epics were in (Schindler’s List, Forrest Gump, and Braveheart took home Best Picture in the preceding years), and romances would win the next two years (Titanic and Miramax’s Shakespeare in Love).  Upping the prestige factor is the book it’s based on, which won the Booker Prize and was considered un-filmable by some.  So when an adaptation with an adequate story and gorgeous visuals rolled into theaters in late 1996, it must’ve seemed irresistible to the Academy.

            Yes, The English Patient walked away with Best Picture at the 69^th Academy Awards, along with eight other categories that night, but time hasn’t been kind to this film’s legacy.  Time wasn’t kind to its characters, either, as many spend the film breaking down inside an already crumbling monastery.  Nurse Hana (Juliette Binoche) has taken refuge there to care for an unknown dying burn patient (Ralph Fiennes).  A series of tragedies have left her convinced that anyone she cares about will be killed, so isolation with her amnesiac ward seems like the safest option.  Soon other military personnel join her, including a Canadian operative named Caravaggio (Willem Dafoe) and a bomb defuser (Naveed Andrews).  Each have been ravaged in their own way by the war and have come to the monastery looking for refuge, which most of them find through new or remembered love.

            The lynchpin for this entire plot is the amnesiac burn patient, who’s slowly unwinding memory proves influential on all their lives.  It’s also this period, told in flashback, that gives the film much of its padding.  It focuses on the over told story of a middle-aged obsessive, someone who’s too single-minded to be very empathetic, which then falls back on melodrama to make us care.  Much could and should have been cut from this section, as these long breaks from the much richer goings-on at the monastery becomes frustrating.

            The novel (which I haven’t read) is allegedly a strong piece, perhaps too strong to fit in a film.  Evaluating it strictly as a film, it felt like writer/director Anthony Minghella focused in on the wrong aspects of the story.  By playing up the romance, there was less time to flesh out the numerous subtleties that seemed to be lurking just underneath the relationships, giving the entire film an air of grandiosity.  The actors did their best to bring these subtleties out, but since the least interesting relationship is the main focus, most simply didn’t have the screen time to make a smooth character arc.  Also, this is a story that easily should’ve been an hour shorter, but a character sits on information that he has no reason to sit on.

            While its epic length may not be deserved, the film certainly delivers an epic scope.  Deserts, minefields, and Italian rubble are all beautifully captured in wide, lush shots that show off a generous budget for a prestige film.  Cinematographer John Seale, whose work you’ll be able to see in the upcoming Mad Max:  Fury Road, shows a good eye for framing, allowing small things to linger in the background or gradually move into view.  So while you’re wading through this slow film, at least there’s something pretty to look at.

            In the end, the various relationships do deliver in a grand, sweeping way that gives The English Patient an old-school, momentous feel.  That’s doesn’t entirely make up for how long it takes to get there, but you won’t leave feeling short-changed.

Other Notes:

Ø  They’re all struggling to find their way in the world, making maps to cover their confusion.

Ø  This is the first digitally edited film to win an Oscar for Best Editing.

Ø  “Yes is a comfort.  Absolutely is not.”

Ø  This doesn’t hold a candle to 1996’s excellent Trainspotting.

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Released:  February 13^th, 2015

Rated:  currently unrated

Distributor:  20^th Century Fox

Starring:  Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Mark Strong, Michael Caine, Sofia Boutella

Directed by:  Matthew Vaughn

Written by:  Jane Goldman, Matthew Vaughn

Personal Bias Alert:  haven’t seen Kickass, not familiar with the comics

8.2 of 10

            This film is all about style.  Too often, a film’s style comes down to replicating whatever’s worked before, leading to the feeling of sameness that permeates nearly all genres of film.  Directors with a true voice exist (Wes Anderson, Terrence Malick, and the Wachowskis jump immediately to mind), but if successful, their inventions often become nothing more than the new norm.  That’s why it’s especially exciting to see work from someone like director Matthew Vaughn, who brings a uniquely humorous and violent voice to Kingsman:  The Secret Service but hasn’t hit it big enough to gain admiring replicators.

            Yes, Vaughn directed the successful return-to-form X-Men:  First Class, but in adhering to the lucrative series’ more weighty tone, his own playfulness was rightly tamped down.  So successful was the reboot that Vaughn was asked back to direct Days of Future Past, which he gave up to man the helm of the smaller but less restrictive Kingsman.  It just might prove to be a career-defining moment, as Kingsman delivers a mass appeal story with just the right amount of flourishes to become 2015’s first big hit with critics and audiences alike.

            Smattering together several familiar storylines, this coming-of-age spy riff follows the tryout of Eggsy Unwin (Taron Egerton) for the top-secret spy organization The Kingsman.  It’s an upper-crust British outfit following the Bond formula of slick suits and clever accessories that proves not very open to Eggsy’s lower class roughness.  The obvious chip on his shoulder is there, but Eggsy’s also smart enough to know that he can run with these guys.  It’s a deceptively difficult part that requires a balance of action, drama, and humor, and Egerton’s a major find.  For a relative newcomer, he seems at ease carrying this film and exudes a brash, bad boy charm that’s so perfectly Eggsy.

            The other ‘find,’ and what has drawn significantly more chatter throughout production, is the casting of Colin Firth as Eggsy’s mentor.  The former Mr. Darcy, stuttering King, and ABBA rocker might seem out of place in our current spy model of action-heavy leads, but Firth cuts a fitting silhouette as a dapper, old-school infiltrator.  That’s not to say that he doesn’t get his fair share of action (which he handles very well, thank you very much), it’s just not his method of choice.

            When Firth, Egerton, and others do break out the action, Vaughn pulls out all the stops to make it a raucously good time.  It’s violent, excellently choreographed, and smoothly filmed, so you refreshingly aren’t going to miss a single punch or slice.  However, there’s no nastiness to these scenes.  It’s more an embrace of violence as entertainment, an acknowledgement that we enjoy the idea of it more in the over-the-top, thrilling way that comics portray it than in the somber, gritty way that many films, even comic book films, are now leaning towards.  Yes, this is a comic book film itself, based off a recent series from Marvel-owned subsidiary Icon Comics, but this is an even more playful, and oddly more cheery, style of action than The Avengers or even Guardians of the Galaxy.  Trust me, when Firth whips out that umbrella, you’re in for a good time.

            Even with all this healthy levity, Vaughn and cowriter Jane Goldman still work in some scenes of needed drama.  They stick to some common plotlines, making the beginning portion seem a bit familiar, but once they up the stakes for Eggsy this film truly takes off.  Even the villain played by Samuel L. Jackson, who borders on hammy in the trailer, proves to be a remarkably solid mix of humor and menace, enhanced greatly by his elegant but deadly enforcer Gazelle (Sofia Boutella).

            A perfect film it is not, but Kingsman:  The Secret Service is so surprising in its entertainment that it’s hard not to scream its praises from the rooftop.  Here’s to hoping that this film’s greatness doesn’t get lost in the beginning of the year quagmire.

Other Notes:

Ø  I can’t imagine this film not getting an R rating from the MPAA.  It’s a rare blockbuster for adults.

Ø  Suits really do make guys look good.

Ø  Totally didn’t notice that was Mark Hamill.  Guess I have to turn in my Star Wars Nerd card.