Castro Theater's April 2016 Calendar

Since it appears that there is no longer a puzzle within the Castro Theater's monthly calendar, I will modify my title lines appropriately.

Among the films on the April calendar which caught my attention are:

April 11 - Hail, Caesar! paired with Anomalisa. The latest Coen Brothers film is a flop at the box office but I read an interesting article about the film in Film Comment.  The film has a number of thinly veiled references to actual Hollywood figures which makes it more interesting for me.

April 15 - Midnites for Maniacs is presenting Big Trouble in Little China and Never Too Young to Die.  CAAMFest showed Big Trouble in Little China a few years ago.  I missed that screening and have not seen this film since the 1990s.  I remember enjoying this film quite a bit as a teenager & young man so I'm anxious to see how it stands up to my current sensibilities.

The San Francisco International Film Festival is at the Castro for six days between April 21 & 30 including the opening night film Love & Friendship.

I would like to see Mustang (April 5) & Breathless (April 6) but I have other plans on both evenings.

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Castro Theater Calendar - April 2016

He's a Maniac

Of all the film programmers at the various festivals and rep houses in the Bay Area that I am familiar with, the one I see most often in the audience is Jesse Hawthorne Ficks of Midnites for Maniacs.  I'm not referring to his watching the films he programs but rather the films at other film series.  I see him at the YBCA, the PFA, the Roxie, the Vogue, I see him on BART going to the films...I even see him while I'm grabbing a bite at the Grove catercorner from the YBCA (allow me to recommend the Eggs Benedict "Dave's Way" which is served all day long).

Such a cinephile deserves all the support I can give him.  Besides, he occasionally calls me out on my absences from his screenings.  I've seen four films at three of his recent events at the Castro.  On Labor Day Weekend, I went to see The Wiz.  In September, I watched Inside Llewyn Davis & Coal Miner's Daughter on a double bill.  In October, I saw Reign of Fire.  In August, I was going to see a William Lustig film at the YBCA which Jesse sponsored but it was sold out.  I missed his November Cassavetes & Son pairing so I could go to French Cinema Now.

On December 12, the Maniac has programmed two films allegedly inspired by his viewing of Los Angeles Plays Itself:  Who Framed Roger Rabbit & Ed Wood.  On January 2, he is pairing Snowpiercer & Runaway Train.  Both films will screen at the Castro.

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The Wiz starring Diana Ross; with Michael Jackson, Ted Ross, Nipsey Russell & Richard Pryor;  directed by Sidney Lumet; (1978)

Inside Llewyn Davis starring Oscar Issac; with Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund & Justin Timberlake; directed by Joel & Ethan Coen; (2013) - Official Website

Coal Miner's Daughter starring Sissy Spacek & Tommy Lee Jones; with Beverly D'Angelo; directed by Michael Apted; (1980)

Reign of Fire starring Christian Bale & Matthew McConaughey; with Gerald Butler; directed by Rob Bowman; (2002)

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I had never seen The Wiz before.  I was expecting blaxploitation; instead it was closer to Stephen Sondheim.  The Wiz is a retelling of The Wizard of Oz.  Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Ted Ross, Nipsey Russell & Richard Pryor play the Dorothy, Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, Tin Man & Wizard, respectively.

At times, the plot was ghettoized such as when Dorothy & her cohorts encounter some prostitutes or when the Flying Monkey are a motorcycle gang.  All in all, the film was more tame than my expectations.  Once I settled into the film, I couldn't help but compare the scenes in The Wiz with the corresponding scenes in The Wizard of Oz.  Maybe it's just my musical tastes but the deciding factor was the music.

In addition, I think Diana Ross was too old for the role.  Judy Garland's Dorothy was a teenage girl & a feisty one at that.  Diana Ross played Dorothy as a shy, 30something school teacher.

It was ominous that the Emerald City is set in the World Trade Center Plaza.

Beyond the curiosity and bucket list values, seeing The Wiz was a dud for me.

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I missed Inside Llewyn Davis during its original theatrical release.  I jumped at the opportunity to see it at the Castro.  Oscar Issac plays the eponymous character.  Set in the early 1960, Davis is a struggling folk singer in Greenwich Village.  He doesn't have a place to live so he sleeps on friends' couches.  While leaving the one such flat, the owners' cat escapes and Davis chases after it.  For much of the film, Davis is holding a cat and that is the explanation.

Davis is friends with Jim (Justin Timberlake) and Jean (Carey Mulligan), a married couple.  That doesn't stop Davis from having an affair with Jean who informs him that she is pregnant and that he is the father.  She demands he pay for the abortion and he takes a job singing backup for a novelty song Jim is recording (Jim is unaware of the affair or his wife's pregnancy) to get the money.

At the abortion clinic, Davis discovers he has a credit with them because his previous ended up not getting an abortion.  She has subsequently moved to Akron.  Partly to find his ex and child and partly to audition for a record producer (F. Murray Abraham), Davis hitchhikes out of NYC.  He is picked up by jazz musician Roland Turner (John Goodman) and his driver, beat poet Johnny Five (Garrett Hedlund).  The trio share an awkward car trip until Turner ODs on heroin in a restaurant bathroom & Johnny Five gets arrested for arguing with the police.

Recounting the plot up to this point makes me realize that the plot isn't really necessary to understand & appreciate the film.  Llewyn Davis is a schmuck.  However, he is also an uncompromising musician which may be good for his music but is for his life.  He goes through life trying to hurt his friends but is largely unsuccessful.  It's also the story of Greenwich Village during a specific, pre-Dylan era.  There wasn't much money in singing folk songs so people did it for other reasons.  In the film, Davis does it for "the right reasons."

Inside Llewyn Davis doesn't bop you on the head with its message.  It's message is more like "life happens, deal with it."  Davis deals with it in a sad and funny way.  His plight contrasts with his acquaintances who have compromised and enjoying the benefits and suffering the costs of their compromise.

After the screening, Jesse shared two hypotheses.  First, Davis had been part of a successful duo before his partner committed suicide before the events of the film.  His life has been in a downward spiral since.  Jesse posited that Davis and his songwriting partner were gay lovers which explains why his life has gone in the dumper and why he gets so upset when a friend attempts to sing harmony to one their old songs.  I recall during the car trip, Turner asks Davis "Are you a homo?" and Davis responds with silence.

The second item Jesse posited was about an older man who pops up in a few scenes.  He has no dialog and his appearance is just short of conspicuous due to the camera time he is given.  Jesse's theory is that the old man is Davis from the future looking back on his life.  That's not a literal representation but as if Davis in the present time & Davis in the early 1960s were juxtaposed in the same frame.

During the viewing, I suspected the relationship between Davis and former partner was more intimate than a simple musical duo although I guess I was looking for more visible signs of their relationship.  Given that Davis impregnated two women, I wonder about his sexual orientation but he could be compensating.  It would also explain why he engenders such resentment from the women:  Jean is palpably contemptuous of Davis while his former girlfriend skipped town with his baby.

As for the old man, I'm not as convinced of Jesse's theory but the film doesn't contradict it.  The film ends with the likelihood that Davis will give up his musical career & rejoin the merchant marines.  The film feels like it is documenting a nexus in Davis' life.

I'm a Coen Brothers fan and Inside Llewyn Davis is one of their stronger entries; it's more subtle and understated than most of their films.

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Inside Llewyn Davis was followed by Coal Miner's Daughter.  Jesse revealed to the audience that the film is being remade with Zooey Deschanel as Loretta Lynn.  After chortling from the audience, Jesse said Deschanel was endorsed for the role by Lynn herself.  I'm not sure if I misheard him or if he misstated the situation.  Deschanel played Lynn in a Broadway musical adapted from the film which was in turn adapted from Lynn's autobiography.  I can't find anything about a remake in film production.  Still the thought of Deschanel as Loretta Lynn is hard to fathom.

Director Michael Apted is an Englishman and best known for the 7 Up documentary series.  Given his filmography at the time, he seemed an odd choice to direct a film about a country singer from Appalachia but the film doesn't appear to have suffered from his direction.  Spacek won an Academy Award for her performance and the film was nominated for Best Picture.  Interestingly, Apted was not nominated for Best Director.

As Jesse mentioned in his introduction, Coal Miner's Daughter was made during a time when biopics just told the story.  They didn't delve too far into the psychological underpinnings of the characters.  If the movie is to be believed, Lynn was the victim of marital rape on her wedding night as a 15 year old.  She doesn't seem to be any worse off because of it.  Indeed, in real life her marriage lasted 50 years.  Tommy Lee Jones plays Doolittle "Mooney" Lynn, a WWII vet, moonshiner and Loretta's hard-drinking, hard-living husband.  To be honest, I think I would have liked to have seen more screen time exploring what made Mooney tick but the title of the filmvwas Coal Miner's Daughter not Coal Miner's Daughter's Husband.

The film touches all the bases.  We see the rise of Loretta Lynn, her friendship with Patsy Cline (Beverly D'Angelo), her struggles, her strained relationship with Mooney and their ultimate reconciliation.

Coal Miner's Daughter confirms that from day one, Tommy Lee Jones the type of actor that you can't ignore on screen.  Although Spacek won the Oscar, she had the benefit of acting or reacting to Jones' performance which is vaguely reminiscent of his other roles.  The slight Southern twang and cadence of his voice seem to be constant in all his film performances.  Jones has a talent for portraying aggressive but fallible men with an innate sense of decency.

The storytelling in the film seems dated but Coal Miner's Daughter is well above average and showcases Apted's versatility as a director.

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Reign of Fire was made in the aftermath of 9/11.  If you look hard enough, you can see some allegories but ultimately the film is about dragons and dragon-slayers.  Actually, watching it 12 years after it was made, I thought Reign of Fire could be thought of today as an allegory for global warming and other looming environmental disasters.

Christian Bale is the leader of a group of people who take refuge from the dragons in a remote castle.  Matthew McConaughey (bulked up and with shaved head) is the American dragon-slayer who has come to recruit some men for his Ahabesque quest for the white whale...I mean dragon.  Bale fights the dragons (or more like he runs from the dragon), McConaughey fights the dragon, Bale & McConaughey fight each other and finally, Bale & McConaughey fight the dragon (and not that is not a euphemism).

There are holes large enough in the plot that you could fly an attack helicopter through but there is not need to recount them here.  I guess the CGI was good or good for its time.  Frankly, Reign of Fire bored me for the most part.  The post-apocalyptic films really have a hard time grabbing my attention.  Most people consider Reign of Fire a well-made but glorified B movie; all action, no story.  I won't disagree.

Jesse paired Reign of Fire with The Dark Knight.  Reign of Fire was the 2nd half of the double bill.  I missed The Dark Knight due to work & a trip to the gym.  I hadn't seen Reign of Fire  but I had seen The Dark Knight (at the Castro too).  In hindsight, I wish the Maniac had reversed the order of the double bill as I would have much preferred seeing The Dark Knight a second time over Reign of Fire a first time.

The Puzzle Within the Castro Theater's February 2014 Calendar

The Castro Theater is only closed one day in February - on the 18th.  It is having a private event on February 4 and the program for February 25 is still to be announced.  That left only three photos on the calendar for the month.

After several days of on-line and paper copy perusal, I drew a blank.  The most promising lead was the man pictured in February 4.  I identified the statuette he is holding as an Emmy Award.  That sent me off in the wrong direction as I assumed the person had won the Emmy in the 1950s or 1960s based on the vintage of the photo.  That proved to be incorrect.  My co-worker also thought he was on the verge of recognizing the man.  After scouring the list of Emmy winners from the era, I switched tactics.

I next turned my attention to the month of February and guessed the puzzle had something to do with Presidents Day, Valentine's Day or perhaps the Winter Olympics.  I searched photos of actors sharing the same surname as presidents and Winter Olympians or actors named Valentine or Valentin.  I discovered I don't know the names of very many Winter Olympians.

At this point, I gave up and I cheated by using Google Image Search on the February 4 photo.  I discovered to my chagrin that the photo is of Bob Newhart, a comedian I have enjoyed for years.  I discovered the highlight of his early stand-up comedy routine was to portray a phone conversation with someone or even God.  The photo is likely a routine Newhart did on an Emmy Awards telecast.

Armed with Newhart's identity, I immediately suspected the February 25 photo was of William S. Hart and I quickly confirmed this.  The Valentine's Day theme was confirmed - Newhart and then Hart.  I made a guess (which was proven correct) that the woman pictured on February 18 was not named Newhart or Hart or had "heart" in her surname.  I quickly zeroed in on the names Hartley and Hartman.

I searched through IMDB listings of Hartley first.  I first eliminated Mariette Hartley and eventually a number of other actresses named Hartley whom I didn't know about.  The highlight was scanning Nina Hartley's credits; the most recent of which is Lesbian Adventures: Strap-On Specialists Vol. 5...Volume 5 is, of course, the seminal entry in the series.   Hartley, a porn star with over 600 "acting credits" to her name, has been making porn for 30 years.  Her sole "legitimate" role was in Paul Thomas Anderson's Boogie Nights.  I remember her performance well; she played William S. Macy's wife.  After diligently looking through Ms. Hartley's photos (my favorites were Splendor in the Ass and Pussyman 15: Bone Voyage), I decided it was not her and I gave up on Hartleys altogether.

I moved on to Hartman and hoped it was photo of a young Lisa Hartman.  It was not but I will say that Ms. Lisa Hartman posed for several bikini photos that would have made Ms. Nina Hartley proud.

The next name on the list was the late Elizabeth Hartman.  She passed away in 1987 at the age of 43.  I have not seen any of her films except for the original Walking Tall where she portrayed Mrs. Buford Pusser.  I don't recall her performance in that film.  Her IMDB photos were promising and I searched on-line and immediately found the exact photo used on February 18. Nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in A Patch of Blue (1965), "Hartman [eventually] succumbed to her lifelong depression and jumped from the fifth floor window of her apartment in an apparent suicide" in 1987.  I have not seen A Patch of Blue but am now interested in seeing it.

February 4 - Bob Newhart

February 18 - Elizabeth Hartman

February 25 - William S. Hart

I can only assume the clues are referencing Valentine's Day and its common symbol:  the heart.

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Looking at the Castro calendar for the month, Age of Consent (1969) on February 13 looks promising.  "James Mason is a painter on the wane who retreats to a remote island off the Great Barrier Reef, unexpectedly finding inspiration in the form of nubile free spirit Helen Mirren. This sublime restoration of Michael Powell’s last feature includes the infamous censored nude scenes and the original score."

The Coen Brothers' Miller's Crossing (February 19) is one of my all-time favorite films although it's been many years since I last watched it.  Unfortunately, IndieFest and Mostly British are playing that night.

Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors (February 21) is one of my favorites by him.  It screening as part of a Midnites for Maniacs program.

I haven't seen Star 80 (February 27) for many years and have never watched it on the big screen.  I recall the film favorably although it has been 20+ years since I last saw it.

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Castro Theater Calendar - February 2014

Five at the Castro

In April & May, I saw five films at the Castro Theater.

Blood Simple starring John Getz & Frances McDormand; with Dan Hedaya & M. Emmet Walsh; directed by Joel Coen; (1984)

Happy Together starring Leslie Cheung & Tony Leung Chiu Wai; directed by Kar Wai Wong; Cantonese & Mandarin with subtitles; (1997)

Fallen Angels starring Leon Lai, Michelle Reis & Takeshi Kaneshiro; directed by Kar Wai Wong; Cantonese with subtitles; (1995)

Spring Breakers starring James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson & Rachel Korine; directed by Harmony Korine; (2012) - Official Website

Enter the Void starring Paz de la Huerta; with Nathaniel Brown & Cyril Roy; directed by Gaspar Noé;  English & some Japanese with subtitles; (2009) - Official Website

Happy Together and Fallen Angels were double features as were Spring Breakers and Enter the Void.

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Way back in early April, I saw Blood Simple at the Castro.  Blood Simple is notable because it is the first Coen Brothers film.  I always get them confused.  Joel Coen is usually credited as the director, Ethan Coen is usually credited as the producer and both are usually credited as the screenwriters.  For the past few films they have worked on, both are sharing credits as director and producer.  Joel is married to actress Frances McDormand although during production, they were likely not married.  They were married on April 1, 1984 but I'm not sure when the film was in production.  It premiered in September 1984.  Blood Simple was remade by Chinese director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern) under the title A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop.

Bar owner Julian Marty (Dan Hedaya) suspects his wife Abby (McDormand) of having an affair with Ray, one of his bartenders.  His suspicions are justified because they are having an affair but Marty is a controlling, manipulative jerk so it's not surprising his wife would stray.  Marty hires private investigator Loren Visser (M. Emmet Walsh) to surveil the two.  When Visser returns with photographic evidence of the affair, Julian ups the ante by hiring Visser to kill the couple.

Visser is one sleazy "sonbitch" as they say in Texas where the film is set.  He doctors photos of Ray & Abby to make it appear they are murdered.  He presents the photos and collects his fee, but then double crosses Marty and kills him with Abby's gun which he has stolen during the course of his "investigation."  He inadvertently leaves behind his distinctive cigarette lighter and later realizes Marty locked one of the photos in the floor safe.

Ray arrives at the bar to collect his last paycheck only to discover Julian is dead.  Seeing Abby's gun and remembering a warning from Julian to not trust Abby, Ray assumes Abby killed her husband.  The becomes an after-the-fact accomplice by cleaning the office of the blood and disposing of Marty's body.  Actually, Marty isn't quite dead as Ray discovers when he starts to bury him in a cornfield.  No need to split hairs, Ray keeps on shoveling dirt over the barely conscious Julian.

Ray & Abby have some cryptic conversations where Ray attempts to explain he has taken care of Abby's mess but unaware her husband is dead, Abby doesn't get the drift.  Roy is put off because he thinks Abby is playing coy.

Abby goes to the bar and finds the office looking fine...except someone has attempted to break into the safe.  It was actually Visser trying to retrieve the doctored photo but Abby assumes it was Ray since he was upset over his last paycheck.  Combined with Ray's odd comments from before, Abby assumes Ray killed Marty.

When they later meet at Abby's apartment, Abby is leery of Ray thinking him a killer.  Ray has noticed someone following him and instructs Abby to turn off the light.  Fearful that Ray wants the lights off so he can kill her too, Abby refuses.  Visser has indeed been following Ray and is positioned on the roof across the street with a high powered rifle.  He shoots and kills Ray which causes Abby to knock out the light & hide in the bathroom.  Visser is quick to enter the apartment but when he goes into the bathroom, it is empty.  Realizing Abby must have exited the bathroom window and into the window of the next door unit, Visser reaches his arm out to open the next door unit's window. Abby slams with  window shut on his hand and drives a kitchen knife through his hand.  Visser shoots through the wall thus weakening it.  He eventually punches through the wall to remove the knife.  As he enter the unit to kill Abby, she shoot him through the door.  Her comments indicate she thought it was her husband who had come to kill her.

That was a long write up because the film had a lot of plot twists.  Everyone was suspicious of everyone else...as it should be in noir.  Both Abby & Ray thought the other capable of murder which makes for a healthy extramarital relationship.  M. Emmet Walsh, two years removed from Blade Runner, shines as the depraved PI.  Dan Hedaya also stands out as Marty.  The Coen Brothers have made some really good films and this is one of them.

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Ho (Leslie Cheung) and Lai (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) are a dysfunctional gay couple at the center of Happy Together.  Lai is the more stable one while Ho is prone to promiscuity and mental abuse.  The two seem to have gone through several cycles of breakup, reconciliation and abuse.  For a change of pace, the film is set in Argentina.  At the beginning, I thought the film was going to be black & white but color is gradually added to the scenes.

After Ho & Lai breakup, Lai gets a job a nightclub where Ho comes in with other men.  This upset Lai greatly.  One day Ho shows up at Lai's apartment after being beaten.  Lai takes him in to care for him but eventually the rekindle their relationship and the destructive cycle begins anew.  Ho torments Lai until he leaves him once again.  Lai begins a friendship with Chang (Chen Chang) a co-worker at the Chinese restaurant he works at.  It is implied Chang is gay but their relationship is platonic.

However, when Chang leaves for an extended trip to the southernmost lighthouse in South America, Lai flounders and begins to exhibit behavior similar to Ho's...who coincidentally shows up at this juncture. Lai has matured in the intervening time.  He recognizes the cycle of abuse and refuses to see Ho.  In addition, Lai has stolen money from a business associate of his father.  He writes a letter attempting to reconcile and promising to return to Taiwan to face the consequences.  Before he returns, he visits the lighthouse Chang went to.  According to legend, you can drop your sorrow into the sea at this location.  Afterwards, Lai returns to Taiwan where he goes to the night market food stall which Chang's parents own.  Although Chang is not there, Lai glimpses a photo of him tacked the support beam and steals it.

Happy Together reminded me a lot of director Kar Wai Wong later 1960s trilogy.  The themes of destructive relationships and unfulfilled desires are present in Happy Together although it is played out among gay men.  As always, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai delivers a subtle performance as Lai.  In the later trilogy, Leung displays characteristics of both Ho & Lai in his performance.

I saw Fallen Angels at the Red Vic in January 2009.  I remember the cinematography.  Much of the film was shot at night among neon lit streets of Hong Kong.  The loose plot involves a hitman (Leon Lai) and his handler (Michelle Reis).  The two never meet but they exchange messages about jobs at a ramshackle, industrial space that serves as their apartment.  The woman is sexually attracted to the man; even using the scent of his clothing as masturbatory aids.

The other main character is odd mute (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who essentially breaks into businesses at night and either sells their products or insists on being paid to leave.  For example, he breaks into an food truck and forces people to buy the food out the window.  Some people don't know anything is amiss but if you try to leave without buying anything, he harasses them.

I glimpsed a plot but it's not important.  The three lead actors plus Karen Mok as a pink haired punk with a voice that couple peel paint just power through the scenes.  Some scenes are humorous such as the killer showing a classmate a photo of his "wife" who is a black woman he paid to have his photo taken with.  Other scenes have a kind of violent elegance more associated John Woo.  Still other scenes are headscratchingly weird.  The effect is cumulative; you'll either grow to love it or grow hate it - I was the former.  The film also has a distinct soundtrack which I liked.

Happy Together and Fallen Angels was a very successful double feature in my opinion.

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Spring Breakers was advertised as not your typical spring break film.  Right at the beginning, there is a skillfully edited montage scene which makes spring break appear grotesque.  Actually, when thought of rationally, the debauchery is grotesque in a libertine sort of way but for generations, young people have rationalized their annual week of bacchanalia as a necessary stress reliever.  Also, there is a "what happens in Ft. Lauderdale stays in Ft. Lauderdale" mentality and code of silence.

Four college girls (Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson & Rachel Korine) go to Florida on spring break.  Actually, three of them robbed a restaurant to get the money so they could go.  This film is already going in directions other spring break films don't go.

After the requisite party scenes, the film swerves into uncharted territory.  The four girls are arrested for public drunkenness or disturbing the peace.  Arraigned while still in their bikinis, the four believe they will spend the rest of spring break in lockup because they can't pay their bail.  Witnessing the proceeding is a corn-rowed wigga called Alien (Jame Franco).  Rapper, gangsta, playa and owner of an outrageous gun collection, Alien bails out the four women.

The five are out to party but the action gets increasingly disturbing.  At one point, two of the women point a gun at Alien during (what the audiences thinks is) foreplay for ménage à trois.  Initially hesitant, Alien embraces the new spin, even going so far as to suck on the pistol barrel à la fellatio.

As the action heats up and gets weird, the girls peel off.  First to go is Selena Gomez whose character goes prayer group and was not part of the robbery.  Next to go is Rachel Korine (the director's daughter) who was the getaway driver during the robbery.  She is shot during a drive by shooting by some rival gangstas of Alien.  I guess getting a flesh wound in the arm puts a damper on the thug life.

The two girls who are left (Hudgens & Benson) are the wildest of the quartet.  The two actresses go for broke in their performances.  The scene where they enter the diner to rob it is chilling and there is a shocking disconnect between their petite bikini clad appearance and their behavior.

After a threesome in the pool, Alien and the two girls go to get some payback for the driveby.  Rocking tiny bikinis, wearing pink ski masts and toting assault rifles, the two girls contribute to a memorable shootout.

Although Spring Breakers has some disturbing imagery, it's played as a dark comedy.  Franco chews up the scenery.  Some of the scenes are patently ridiculous.  Director Harmony Korine has a vision of where to take the film and she gets there in stylish fashion.  I thought Spring Breakers was tremendous.

I was on the fence about sticking around after Spring Breakers.  The next film (Enter the Void) was more than 2.5 hours long and the film was starting at 8:45 PM.  I'm glad I did because the opening title sequence was almost worth the price of admission.

What followed was equally imaginative and exhausting.  Oscar (Nathaniel Brown) is American drug dealer in Tokyo.  His sister Linda (Paz de la Huerta) is a stripper, also in Tokyo.  Oscar is shot by the police (in the Japanese style public toilet of all places).  His spirit or soul rises from his body and the rest of the film is told from this disembodied viewpoint as the action skips back and forth in time to tell Oscar and Linda's story.

This sounds like a gimmick film but director Gaspar Noé is almost able to pull it off.  I say almost because I'm not sure if the movie was received by the audience as the director intended.  The story is told in mind-numbing detail as layer upon layer and character upon character is given screen time.  This may have been Noé intention so as to show the state of Oscar's spirit.  The effect on the audience was excruciating at time.  Although my concentration flagged occasionally, I never fell asleep and my interest was maintained through the end.  What an ending!  Linda and another character go to a love hotel.  After a dizzying array of overhead shots featuring several characters performing various sex acts, Linda engages in sex.  In some ways, it's as if Oscar is having sex with her sister but if that isn't creepy enough, Noé switches visual perspectives midway through the act.  The audience gets a shot of the penis inside Linda's vagina during and we  are treated to the proverbial money shot.  Boring and obligatory in pornographic films, in Enter the Void it signaled Oscar's rebirth or reincarnation as well a signpost to the audience that film was almost over.

Enter the Void was self-indulgent but Noé's vision for the film proved engrossing.

Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson & Rachel Korine (pick two) in masks and James Franco (back to camera) in Spring Breakers