Bideodromage
This film by the Coen Brothers follows the travails of a bespectacled, bedeviled, embattled writer in Los Angeles, who encounters some quite interesting individuals during his journey. These scenes feature Steve Buscemi, Tony Shalhoub, Michael Lerner, John Goodman, and John Turturro.
Marlon Brando and David Thewlis engage in a mostly courteous exchange of ideas, and find said ideas to be at loggerheads. Various snouts, hooves, and outrageous spectacles are discussed. From The Island of Dr. Moreau, 1996. Both actors are at the pinnacle of their craft.
Actor Andrew Scott turns in a bravura performance as criminal mastermind James Moriarty in the BBC series Sherlock. Truly mesmerizing.
“Car Lot“, from Psycho soundtrack. Composed by Bernard Herrmann.
The plot of Psycho, directed by Alfred Hitchcock, pivots on the fulcrum of a red herring. Janet Leigh’s character fears that she is in imminent legal danger, and suffers from a troubled conscience, when in fact something far, far worse, something having absolutely nothing even remotely to do with events up to that point, awaits her.
When he dines initially with Leigh, the reaction/mood of Norman Bates {portrayed iconically by Anthony Perkins} changes rather drastically, from chipper, to utterly incredulous, to overtly hostile, to a resigned world-weariness, to a last attempt at joviality. He appears to be friendly and caring, if a bit troubled and mercurial.
When the dogged, unswerving Milton Arbogast {Martin Balsam} calmly dissembles the slowly dissolving structural integrity of Norman’s version of events, he opts to trot out the heavy artillery, proclaiming “If it doesn’t gel, it isn’t aspic; and this ain’t gelling.” Stunned silence proceeds to take over the entire universe, and Norman Bates is clearly rattled. The two shall meet again, soon enough.
These Fragments I Have Shored Against My Ruins…
Hieronymo’s Mad Againe…
Paul Bettany displays simply towering talent in his portrayal here of serial killer Ted Kaczynski. Such examples of the following phenomenon are not without precedent, but they are rare fowl indeed. The Phenomenon: Bettany manages to be more Unabomber-esque than the Unabomber himself. Sure, it’s not possible; but this seems to pose little hindrance. Like G. Oldman as Stansfield, Olivier as Christian Szell, and Brando as Lee Clayton, Bettany simply has that much power to spare. It is rare indeed that a performance can truly be categorized as iconic…but the word applies fully in this situation. Incredible mastery. I find it haunting, in any number of ways, to this day. Indelible.
Some fine work here by some of our best. First, Ian Holm does Jack The Ripper. Mr. Holm, not usually known for this type of thing, “kills” it. Amazing creativity. Then my guy Tom Noonan plays John Lee Roche, a towering psychopath who is soft-spoken but quite hilarious: nothing could beat “You’re just resisting me.” for a bit of dialogue with such a type. Next, career “Hey! It’s THAT guy!” actor…..which means you’re doing something RIGHT….Mark Holton allows John Gacy to inhabit him utterly in Crawl Space (2003). Very cool, very deadpan….then, in a (for me) surprise of sorts, Brian Dennehy pulls a devastating gem from his arsenal in his *own* portrayal of The Killer Clown in 1992’s To Catch a Killer. This is the only scene in the TV-movie with any violence, really, of any kind….and here it’s 100% psychological (which, if you’ve been there….)….but/and Dennehy’s undeniably intense psychopathic trance is unforgettable, poignant, tragic. And plenty frightening. Whoa.
The great Christoph Waltz, Two-Time Academy Award winner, shows some of his inimitable what-have-you.
The 1999 Horror/Cult film Ravenous is a most unusual moving picture, even for one detailing the Wendigo exploits of certain individuals. Many comedic elements continue to pop up, often on the heels of a truly frightening passage. The musical score, by Damon Albarn and Michael Nyman, adds a very great deal to the proceedings. This singular cinematic endeavour starred Robert Carlyle, Guy Pearce, and Jeffrey Jones, with Carlyle in particular standing out. His Colqhoun/Ives character is both the slippery eel and the fulcrum of the film.
Bideodromage 