BEST FILMS OF 1968 - List in Progress
by Mike Lorefice

Les Biches
Claude Chabrol

****
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Capricious Summer
Jiri Menzel

The lazy summer of three middle aged men is interrupted when cut rate circus performer Arnostek (director Jiri Menzel) and his young assistant Anna (Jana Drchalova) arrive in the second rate resort town. Antonin Dura (Rudolph Hausinsky) theoretically runs the not particularly well kept bath house, though his wife Katerina (Mila Mysikova) does all the work while he pontificates and philosophizes with his two friends Major Hugo (Vlastimal Brodsky) and Priest Roch (Frantisek Rehak). The three men all look to Anna for their autumnal romance, making each other jealous, but winding up humiliated when they get their chance with her. Meanwhile, Katerina flirts with Roch and winds up moving in with Arnostek, which Antonin is somewhat indifferent to until the excitement of Anna turns to brooding over his failure. A laid back meditation on growing old, this supposed comic mix of the dark and the amiable is skin deep though not unrealistic. The characters are neither likeable nor dislikeable, inoffensive even in their faults. The films is somewhat lacking in energy both in front and behind the camera, but perhaps that's what getting old is about, brief periods of youthful exuberance followed by lengthy ones to regret no longer having what it takes? Menzel's character provides most of the excitement with his stunts and magic tricks, such as crossing the pond balancing on a pole and making gigantic playing cards materialize so he can hang them like clothes as he walks the tightrope. [1/3/07] ***

The Girl on a Motorcycle
Jack Cardiff

***

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The Great Silence
Sergio Corbucci

***1/2

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Mandabi
Ousmane Sembene

Sembene's important second feature allows us to witness day to day life in Senegal for the first time. Filming in his native language of Wolof rather than the French of Black Girl, the concerns of this understated work are very African with the specter of France (and foreign aid) perhaps tormenting from afar. The early portion stands out because it ignores the focus of the film, the money order, almost as soon as it's introduced to allow us to understand the disruption it will cause. The general story of it sometimes being better not to have much money has been done before, but this bitter comic fable is anything but the typical mawkish sentimental populist work. The long out of work illiterate 60 something main character is a somewhat lazy man, beat down by the system and unaware just how trapped he is between the corrupt forces of tradition and modernism that are both out to make sure he stays poor. He values his dignity like all good Sembene natives do, and thus must battle the bent system as best as he can. When he receives the money order from his nephew in Paris, he and his two wives try to be good and generous people, to prop up others who were their equals. However, they are severely limited from years of leading a desperate life; they get caught up in unwarranted pride and become even more prone to foolishness. The film examines the dehumanizing post colonial power structure - no more merciful and helpful than the French system it often seems to mirror - with the difference between an 18th century society and modern bureaucracy being a few blocks away. The man is not only unable to cash the money order, he gets farther from doing so at each step because of the new requirements ultimately leading to a call for African self determination. Being at the mercy of the uncaring bureaucrats is bad enough, but due to his wives eagerness everyone in the village knows he has the money coming, which traps him between the con artists and the poor. A worse film would start giving the hero the breaks we ultimately feel he deserves. [7/14/06] ***1/2

Play Dirty
Andre De Toth

Appears to be little more than a Dirty Dozen derivative, but really creeps up on you. In the end, De Toth not only exceeds the said film, but crafts a memorable depiction of the lack of loyalty in or reason for war. Michael Caine is an ambivalent petroleum executive the British Army uses to port fuel during WW II. Nigel Davenport, who heads the group of cynical undesirables, takes on the dangerous mission of destroying an oil stockpile 400 miles deep in Rommel's North Africa simply to garner the reward. Caine is donned "Captain" of the mission, but he has no experience in this line and even if he did the men wouldn't want or need him. Davenport himself will do everything in his power to keep Caine alive simply because he's been promised a reward, but that doesn't mean Davenport is about to listen to him much less bow to his wishes. Even though they've vowed to pay for Caine's safety, the British Army actually doesn't care if the group returns alive and no one in the bunch cares about the British and their power hungry objectives. Betrayal is constantly in the air, and could come from anywhere. All the superficial elements are stripped, leaving a film with no score to cue you of impending danger and endless sand and rock to depict the futility of it all. The film is very tense because it's so quite and the setting is equally dangerous or benign depending on how you look at it. All the action scenes are done in a believable manner and simply depicted by the camera. Like Hitchcock you see where the problem lies, how it's quickly progressing, and know what's going to happen if they can't stop it. The difference is there's no desire to excite; De Toth is not looking for highlights but attempting to depict a treacherous continuum. In many senses, the routine exercises that are usually skipped are as risky as clashing with the enemy. Though there is no training footage per say that fact is more than made up for by making basic tasks like changing tires and loading weapons into nerve wracking scenes. The tasks change, but there's no glory, no heroism, and no reward. The surprise ending is a classic that really makes the film. [9/7/06] ***