Villainesses

Halloween is almost upon us, and even though it's at the wrong end of the year to celebrate it properly in Australia (try wearing a corset when it's almost 30 degrees), celebrate it most of us do. Because we always welcome another excuse to party! And what better way to honour this time of haunting than with a list commemorating those mistresses of evil that we love so much. Whether from the screen or the page (though everyone on this list was chosen because of their film counter-part), there are some incredibly memorable women who do their best to bring badness to the world, and these are just ten of my favourites. Some of the entries might not be what you were expecting, mainly because I have an odd sense of taste, but oh well. The ladies on this list were chosen based on their villainy and evilness, but also based on how much scenery they chew and scenes they steal. But enough stalling, let us start this list of my top ten Villainesses!

Oh, and spoilers may be hiding in here....

10. The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz

So, while Wicked may have made Elphaba a human, this Witch from the original Wizard of Oz will always be my favourite bad tempered woman. Not only is she quite powerful, but she has a nazty habbit of holding grudges. I also like that we don't know her back story in the original, but I like to think she spent years saving up her bitterness for when Dorothy arrived. The Wicked Witch is deifinitely a fun villain to watch, and she did create that famous witches cackle!

9. Debbie Jellinsky from The Addams Family Values

 
Not a name that commonly crops up on these sorts of things, but I love this character. Joan Cusack's performance here is one of the best I've seen of her, so over the top and hilarious. I love both of the new Addams Family movies, but the second one is probably my favourite, thanks to Debbie. A professional black widow, who seduces Fester, tries to murder him on numerous occaisions to get his money, goes insane, and then tries to murder the rest of the Addams family as well. And her motivation? Because she deserves more. Brilliant!

8. Beverley Sutphin from Serial Mom

Now, here's an interesting thought. What happens when you're villain is also your main character, who also believes that she is doing nothing wrong by brutally murdering anyone who comes against her family or who doesn't represent the American way? You get a hilarious yet (slightly) underrated John Waters comedy! This is a brilliant idea of a serial murdering housewife, played wonderfully by Kathleen Turner, and the murder scenes themselves are great on their own. For example, an old woman is beaten to death with a lef of lamb whilst watching Annie. But what makes this film great is the trial scene at the end, where Mrs. Sutphin manages to  outwit the prosecutor and the many witnesses that are called against her. Certainly the most intelligent mother/wife/murderess to be seen onscreen!

7. Lamia from Stardust

 
People seem to forget that Michelle Pfeiffer has played too witches. I like this one better, she's a lot more fun to watch, and pretty much goes into evil overdrive. Part of what makes Lamia one of my favourites is that Pfeiffer is just having so much fun with the role! The way the character has changed from the book to the film might be seen by some as heresay, but it's one of the things that I like. The film created an identifiable villain whose vanity motivates and blinds her. Plus, she kidnaps, tries to kill and deceives the main characters for the duration of the film. And the make up is just amazing.

6. Mrs. Danvers from Rebecca

Psychological manipulation and subtle lesbian overtones time! Mrs Danvers is the housekeeper of Manderlay and obssesed with the previous (and deceased) Mrs de Winter, the Rebecca of the title. When Maxim de Winter brings back his new bride, Danvers does everything she can to manipulate and undermine her authority over the estate. This culminates in Danvers trying to persuade her to jump out of her second story window. This woman is crazy! She patronizes our heroine, bullies her, seems to have been in complete idolisation of Rebecca, and thanks to Hitchcock's incredible direction, is creepy as hell. Seriously, she floats instead of walks!

5. Ursula from The Little Mermaid

Now, this wouldn't be a list of villainesses without some from Disney! Oh Ursula, with you 'I am fabulous' attitude, and your overwhelming confidence, it's no wonder your song is one of the best remembered from the Disney archives. And you end up on so many top ten lists! But the thing I admire the most about Ursula, is that she doesn't care what others say about her, and her determination to get whatever she wants, by any means necessary. She's also really scary when she's insane!

4. Dolores Umbridge from the Harry Potter series

There are likeable villains. Well, not likeable, but enjoyable villains. I've already introduced to a few of them on this list. Then there are those that I respect as characters in their own rights, because they are strong characters. We will be getting to them. Then there is Umbridge. Good god I loath this woman! She is a vile, patronising creature and I wish I could have the good fortune of destroying her in her entirety! But why is she on the list if I hate her so much? Could it be that because I hate her so much that she is on the list? It is true that there are few characters who make me want to hurt something as much as Umbridge does! And I think that counts towards something. Well done to Imelda Staunton in a fairly unforgiving role.

3. Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty

Yes, the most famous of all the Disney villains is not number one. And it isn't because she isn't menacing, powerful or evil enough, but rather that her motivation seems to me to be a little... petty. She isn't invited to a party. So? Why should she care? It didn't look like her sort of affair anyway, not that I am any judge on the sorts of parties that evil fairies might like... This is one of those characters where a backstory is gratefully welcomed, and I can't wait for Maleficent to come out next year. But this doesn't mean that I don't think she's a good villain. She is more powerful than any other of the magical women on this list. And I especially like that for most of the film she is creepily subdued, until she gets angry at the end and turns into a dragon. Which is awesome!

2. Milady de Winter from The Three Musketeers, and The Four Musketeers

 
But it has to be the Faye Dunaway 1973 version! It has to be! Milla Jovovich is terrible, and Rebecca de Mornay is a completely different character than the one in the books. Dunaway's Milady is selfish, remorseless, incredibly intelligent and holds grudges against everyone who treated her wrongly or stands in her way. While she is more of a bit player in The Three Musketeers, in the sequel her vengeful nature comes out full force as she seduces D'Artagnan, tries to kill him, tries to kill Athos (maybe marries him for his money, we don't really know) and then turns Buckingham's servant Felton against his master, all in a bid to get revenge against the men who wronged her. And in that way, she is a little sympathetic. She has a motivation that people can relate to. Okay, it's revenge, but who hasn't wanted something bad to happen to someone else? Also, no one can give that pitying stare that Dunaway can give.

1. Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest

 
Yep. This woman. This sadistic, self-righteous, iron fisted woman. If you haven't seen One Flew, then you need to. I think the thing that makes her number one for me is that she seems respectable. If we were watching the movie from her perspective then we would sympathise with her, but since we see the film from the patients point of view, we see her for the twisted snake of human she is. The only pleasure she seems to get from her rather thankless job is to torment her patients and treat them as lesser human beings. Also, every other character on this list I can empathise with in one way or another. But this woman, I can't understand her motivation, and when I try to I just can't comprehend that anyone could act the way she does. It doesn't help that Louise Fletcher's performance is so wide-eyed and emotionless. She is indeed, the most evil of all villainesses.


And that is my list! Hopefully, a little different from others you've read/seen, but what's wrong with different. There were some I wanted to put on here, but I deemed them either to be not evil enough or not my favourite, so they were left off. Anyway, happy Halloween lovelies! Until next time, readers.
(If this was a video, the outro music would be "Evil Woman" by ELO!)

I Wish

 

Now, I'm not an expert on Asian cinema. I've seen a few kung fu movies, a little anime movies, Studio Ghibli of course. But not really any drama or comedy movies. So, I can't do what every other reviewer has done when reviewing this film. I can't compare it to Hirokazu Kore-eda's previous film Nobody Knows. Besides, a film should be able to stand up by itself. So, what is this film? This is a very gentle film about two brothers. That's about it.


Koichi Oosako is a young boy who lives with his mother and grandparents in a small town that is shadowed by a still active volcano. It has been six months since his parents have separated and his younger brother Ryunosuke still lives with his musician father. When Koichi finds out that when the first two speeding bullet trains meet, a miracle will happen. He and his friends then hatch a scheme to be there when the trains pass and yell out their wishes so that Koichi can wish for his parents to get back together. He tells Ryu, and persuades him to come along and wish for the same thing. But Ryu has accepted what has happened, and doesn't know if that's what he wants to wish for anymore.

Since this is my first introduction to Kore-eda, I can't really comment on his style or anything, but I can say this. He seems to be a filmic version of Haruki Murakami, in that he makes the everyday seem magical and takes his time over the small things that people take for granted. And this film really is about the normal magic that Murakami higlights expertly, especially in his short stories. This is also very gentle, and is largely made up of subplots that each of the characters go through. Like one of Ryu's friends, a girl who wants to be an actor despite her mother disapproving. Or Koichi's grandfather who used to be a baker and is trying to recreate traditional karukan cakes. Everything is very small scale, made fantastical because it is shown through the eyes of children.

And the children are exceptional. For some reason, these past few months have had incredible child ensembles. And this is no different. There is a part of the film where they each talk about what they would wish for and it seems almost like a documentary, the acting is so natural. This is helped by the fact that Koichi and Ryu are played by the incredible Maeda brothers. And considering that they only share about 10 minutes of screen time together, the bond between them is awesome even if you don't know that they are brothers. And the fact that there are no 'bad guys' makes the adults of this kids world the only 'bad guys' that are here, and the kids outshine the adults so much.

Now, I want to talk about the ending briefly, because it can be interpreted in a few different ways. Well, two different ways. So, if you want to see the film without spoilers, stop reading now. If you don't mind spoilers, then go ahead and read. At the end, each of the kids shout out a wish, except Koichi, who finally accepts that his parents are never going to get back together and 'chooses the world' instead. Now, all the other wishes to me seemed like they came true, or at least some of them did. For me, at least. There are a few shots that seem to confirm this, but it's more implied than right out said. But I'd still like to believe that they came true, maybe not through any actual magic (though that is debateable) but through the kids own determination and persistence. Again, open to interpretation, but I'd like to think that they came true.

So, again, I am sorry that this took so long and that it's so rambling. But oh well, go see this film. It's lovely and gentle and very easy to watch. The thing that I didn't like about it was mainly that the subtitles didn't translate any text, so I have no idea what the place names are or anything. But that's the only complaint that I have. Hopefully, I'll get the next review, which will be Killing Them Softly, up in the next few days. And hopefully it will be better quality than this. But go see I Wish, it's adorable. Until next time, readers.

On the Road

I'm amazed how often some actors get type-cast. Sometimes without them even knowing it. I am of course talking about the female Ben Affleck, Kristen Stewart (though that isn't really fair to Ben Affleck. Maybe he's just the male version of Kristen Stewart). For some reason, she always plays 'relatable' young women over whom two men are wanting to be with/ lusting over. And you'd think that this would be the movie to stop that, but no. This is an adaptation of the generation defining book by Jack Kerouac, which came out in 1957, and is based on a series of journeys that Kerouac undertook with his friend, Neal Cassidy, during the 1940s. It is also the most famous novel from the beatnik era, and has long since been thought to be unfilmable. I did read the book before seeing the film, and I can tell you right away the film does not compare.

The main plot follows a series of 5 trips that Sal Paradise takes across America, all involving his hero Dean Moriarty. Along the way, they interact with various recurring characters, including Carlo Marx, a young beat poet, Old Bull Lee and his wife, Jane, Mary Lou and Camille, two of Dean's wives.We get veiws into Dean's unorthodox home life, that paint him as a charming drifter with no concept of responsibility. All of the characters are based on people that Kerouac knew in real life; Sal is the fictional embodiment of Kerouac himself, Dean is Neal Cassidy, Carlo Marx is Allen Ginsberg and Old Bull Lee is William S. Burroughs. The film manages to stick as close to the books narrative, but sometimes that isn't necessarily a good thing, as we will see.

So, firstly, was there anything good in the movie? Well, yeah, is the short answer. The women were characterised well. In the books, the women are basically just attachments to the men and aren't given anything to do except have sex and get the marajuana ready. In the film, they are given characters! Actual real characters. And both Amy Adams and Kirsten Dunst are very good. Kristen Stewart is okay. And that really sums up the whole movie. This film exists. That is the nicest compliment that I can give it. It's just okay. Not terrible, but definitely not good. So, while it gains points for having good female characters, it loses them immediately for being dull.

Of course, the thing with the women will only come to light if you have read the book. Speaking of the book, I'm not the biggest fan of Kerouac. There were good parts, and the way it is written is beautiful. But there are parts that I didn't get, and if I read it again, I still probably wouldn't get it. The characters are quite selfish, especially Dean. And even though he has this charm that shines through the pages, there were some times when I just couldn't understand what Sal saw in him. And that was sort of the point. It was like Frankenstein to me. The author builds up this character so you expect him to be pretty amazing, but after you finish the book you just find him to be a dick. Amazingly, this didn't come out in the film.

I don't know what the filmmakers were trying to do, but they seemed to be trying to make Dean a 'nice guy'. Or at least sympathetic. In the book, we are shown Dean warts and all, and the strength comes from the fact that even though he is a completely selfish person, Sal still thinks of him as a great mind, and a great man despite what he did. Here, there is no charm, no charisma, just an actor trying to do what he thinks is Dean. And it doesn't work. By trying to make Dean a nice guy, you are trying to find excuses for the things that he does. It just can't be done. He's almost an anti-hero in the book (or at least he was to me. Don't take everything I say about the book as law, I'm not an expert) and in the film they try to make him a romantic lead.

So, the book remains unfilmable. Really, the best way and the only way to do the book justice is to not do a direct adaptation. Make it insane, make it crazy! Make it imaginative. You need to capture the essence of the book, not the story. In the end, the story isn't what matters, it's the way it's written and what it has to say. Give this one a miss. But do read the book, I may not understand it all that well, but it does need to be read. Sorry this took so long, and that it's so short. But guess who's been sick again! Anyway, next time should be the Japanese film I Wish. So, until next time readers.

Beasts of the Southern Wild and Dreams of a Life

That's a long title for 2 fairly short reviews. But I'm doing these two together because they're kinda similar and it's been too long since I've seen both of them to leave this for any longer. So, before either fades in my memory any longer, let's get on with this. Beasts of the Southern Wild is Benh Zeitlin's debut film directing and first came out in Melbourne in this years MIFF. It has gotten amazing reviews and there is already Oscar buzz humming around it. Dreams of a Life also got good reviews, but unfortunately was only released in Australia on one screen (ACMI) and has now left the country altogether (I think). Both these films deal with the intense themes of life and death, while also looking at community and survival. So, maybe it's a good thing that I'm looking at both of them at the same time. Let's just hope my writers block eases up enough to get this review out.

Firstly, let's take a look at Beasts of the Southern Wild. Hushpuppy (Quvenzhané Wallis), a vivacious six year old, lives with her father, Wink (Dwight Henry) in a bayou in New Orleans known to those who live there as the Bathtub. The other people who live there are a tight knit collection of misfits, with little money who have to make do with what they can find and what they can kill. When a storm floods the community, those who remained behind are forced to make boats and find what they can before the water gets rotten. But the government services are vacating all areas that were affected bu the flood, whether they want to leave or don't. And Wink has also been keeping a secret from Hushpuppy, the fact that he is slowly dying.

If you couldn't tell, this is a movie that takes its time with the plot. Not a lot happens, yet it is in the little things that do happen that where the magic of the movie takes place. This has been called a fantasy film, and that mainly comes through the imagination of Hushpuppy, and the magic that she finds in everyday things. Throughout the movie, she constantly stops to pick things up so she can listen to their heart beat and know that they're alive. But this is not a kids movie, and the fantasy elements are matched by incredibly dark real moments of struggle and survival. Wink to some may seem like an irresponsible father, but what he is really doing is preparing her for the day that he leaves her, so he knows that she will be able to look after herself after he's gone. And that's what this film is really about. A community of outcasts trying to survive in a world that is slowly being destroyed.

The film has a little bit of an environmental message as well, but it's hidden behind incredible images that it really isn't that noticeable. The soundtrack is incredible, and I stayed until the end of the credits because it was so moving. But the most incredible thing about the movie were the two leads. Quvenzhané Wallis and Dwight Henry aren't professional actors and this is the first movie for both of them. In fact, Henry originally was the owner of a bakery across the street fromt the casting agency. He has lived through two hurricanes and his experience brought an added passion to the role. And as for Quvenzhané Wallis, the part was originally intended for a much older girl, but she wowed the filmmakers so much with her scream and her presence. Plus, the bond between both of them is one of the best documented father/daughter relationships onscreen. It's hard to believe that they aren't related.

So yeah, this film is worth it. And worth so much more than the brief paragraphs I give it. There was only one problem with it, and unfortunately it was a big one. The hand-held camera work made me so nauseous that for most of the film I had to have my eyes closed or else I was going to throw up in the cinema. This is a warning to all those who suffer from motion sickness, and it's a shame because I would love to see this film again. I just can't, because it will make me sick. But if you aren't phased by shaky cam, then go and see it before it disappears.

And now onto the second film, Dreams of a Life. This is a documentary from Carol Morely about the life and death of Joyce Vincent, a woman who died in a London flat and was only discovered 3 years later, lying on her sofa with the TV still on, Christmas presents scattered around her body. The only way she could be identified was through dental records as her body has pretty much melted into the floor. In order to make the film, Morely put ads saying 'Did you know Joyce Vincent?' in newspapers and on the sides of taxi cabs, so that people who knew her, no matter how vaguely, could come and talk about Jouce and what she was like during her life.

This is an odd and sad story. How can someone just be forgotten for 3 years? Why didn't the neighbours come when a strange smell started to seep through? And most importantly, how did she die? None of these questions are answered, and if you like documentaries resolve the issues they present, then this isn't for you. From the interviews, we never get a clear idea of who Joyce is, and in that way the message is very heavy handed. But the other questions that it doesn't focus on are the more interesting. So, I didn't come away from this thinking 'How well do you ever really know someone?' I came away from this thinking 'How can someone just disappear?'

A lot of the film is taken up with reenactments, featuring actress Zawe Ashton as Joyce, and she does an excellent job. But they take up so much time in the movie that they feel like padding at times. They also made Joyce feel more like a character than a real person, but there was so little information from the interviews at times, that the reenacments were needed. But again, in the end I do applaude this movie. It took a woman who was famous for her death and gave her a life (however cliched that sounds, it's true). It took what was essentially a sensational tabloid story and created something real. So, while nothing is resolved, while some things may make you frustrated, this is an excellent documentary and is incredibly different and moving.

Well, that's that done. Dreams of a Life sadly has left our shores now, unless Nova has decided to show it. I hope that it comes out soon on DVD, because it is such a startling story, about how a woman became so desperate that she had to cut herself off from her firends and family and lives in what is essentially squallor. We don't know how she came to be there, we don't know whether she committed suicide. However, what we do know is that she did live, and she did manage to touch so many lives. I'm doing a classic mistake of adding information during the conclusion, so I'll stop now. Anyway, hopefully I will get my next review up before the end of the week. Until next time, readers.