Tag: Romance

This film shows Martin Scorsese and Harvey Keitel in their infancy as filmmakers. Scorsese is using his usual conventions to illustrate Italian traditons and youth in America. It’s funny to see how he made movies decades before films like “Taxi Driver” and “Goodfellas.”

Who’s That Knocking at My Door (1967)
I Call First (original title)
R | 1h 30min | Drama, Romance | 20 January 1978 (Finland)

A young man struggles with the fact that his girlfriend was once raped.
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writers: Betzi Manoogian (additional dialogue), Martin Scorsese
Stars: Harvey Keitel, Zina Bethune, Anne Collette

Martin Scorsese directed films I love like “Taxi Driver,” “Mean Streets,” “After Hours,” “Raging Bull,” and many more. He’s like a machine that can only put out hits. This film starts out in a familiar way. You see a group of Italian young men, most notable the protagonist played by Harvey Keitel, a frequent actor in Scorsese’s films.

The conflict comes when Keitel’s character finds out his fiancee had been rapes in the past. He jst can’t calm down about it. I think this behavior could be acceptable in 1967 when this film was made but it looks ugly through modern glasses. Apart from the authentic banter between the Italian men, this film fell flat with me. He starts calling his girlfriend a whore for no other reason than for the rape that happened to her. I found his character disgusting for that. Hasn’t the woman had enough to work through without getting this from him? Because his character made me very uncomfortable with his unbridled acts of jealousy, it lost points.

6/10

This is the infamous “gay movie” I’d been hearing about months before seeing it. I learned it isn’t a gay movie but rather a movie about how lives cross in time and sometimes we find a spark: gay or not. As a heterosexual male, I enjoyed that aspect of this film very much. After all, there are also hetero relationships in the film and some very beautiful actresses. I’ve concluded this is more about summer relationships gay and straight than it is about revealing what it means to be gay. That may let down some people but there are other films out there that qualify as gay films.

Call Me by Your Name (2017)
R | 2h 12min | Drama, Romance | 24 November 2017 (USA)

In Northern Italy in 1983, seventeen year-old Elio begins a relationship with visiting Oliver, his father’s research assistant, with whom he bonds over his emerging sexuality, their Jewish heritage, and the beguiling Italian landscape.
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Writers: James Ivory (screenplay by), André Aciman (based on the novel by)
Stars: Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet, Michael Stuhlbarg

When people have a spark between them, it’s wonderful. We think of two young men as knees and elbows and as awkward creatures less capable of romance. This is film is kind of nice as we are in an open time of acceptance for gays and bisexuals. They just feel it. Why do some begrudge them love they desire? There were a few parts that dragged a bit. Overall though, this is a brave film that shows the value of love’s spark, over the spanse of one Summer, in Italy. I recommend it. Your thoughts are invited in the comments.

9/10

Gay cinema isn’t new but it is few and far between in the mainstream. May gay voices are sharing online they don’t see this as a “gay film” perse but rather a love story between two men that are likely bisexual. The author of the bestselling isn’t gay either. Well, matters of the heart aren’t always as cut and dry. This is a character study/love story.

Call Me by Your Name (2017)
R | 2h 12min | Drama, Romance | 24 November 2017 (USA)

In Northern Italy in 1983, seventeen year-old Elio begins a relationship with visiting Oliver, his father’s research assistant, with whom he bonds over his emerging sexuality, their Jewish heritage, and the beguiling Italian landscape.
Director: Luca Guadagnino
Writers: James Ivory (screenplay by), André Aciman (based on the novel by)
Stars: Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet, Michael Stuhlbarg

The older of the two in this couple is spending time in the Italian vacation home of his colleague. This would be purely scientific had it not been for the 9 years younger son of his colleague. He becomes entranced by the guest. What ensues is a film set in 1984, mostly noticed by how the Walkmans and slide projector props. They develop a thing that later his father will call “more than friendship” and by any standard it is certainly that.

I marveled at this film’s ability to chronicle the innocent love that develops between two men. It makes no judgements and shows when you love someone, the heart leads the way. I agree it is not heavily into the gay themes so some people who are counting on that will be disappointed. It does however show a touching love story made for lovers of all genders and identifications. I found no fault in this film other than my warning stated above. After all, it is being marketed as a gay film.

8/10

Foreign films can be staggering. They can pack a powerful emotional punch because they focus on the universal stuff. This one is like that in the way it conveys humor. The words at the bottom of the screen take the viewer on a laughing journey. Did they do it for me here? Not really.

But French humor doesn’t align exactly with mine. I have to recognize this film won many awards. For me, it came up short. The little rules of love and life she learns through the film are funny but not really worth the sit of the whole film. I’ve meant to see this film for years and today I finally sat down to check it out. Weirdly cool, it is indeed funny but without that magic that makes me want to shout it from the rooftops. Maybe later in life when I’m more mature and soulful and open to comedies like this I’ll write a second review. Maybe I wasn’t in the mood? For now, just know it’s quirky and choppy and of course, very hip so you may like it. Still, for me it wasn’t what the doctor ordered like I always hope comedy to be.

6/10

Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain (original title)
R | 2h 2min | Comedy, Romance | 8 February 2002 (USA)
Amélie is an innocent and naive girl in Paris with her own sense of justice. She decides to help those around her and, along the way, discovers love.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Writers: Guillaume Laurant (scenario), Jean-Pierre Jeunet (scenario) | 1 more credit »
Stars: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Rufus

Roger Michell directed this film. You might recall another film he did called Notting Hill with Julia Roberts. That was a work of art in my opinion. Now, let’s talk about My Cousin Rachel.

Here we have a story about a land baron who dies. His only adopted son believes his relatively new wife Rachel poisoned him but he has a hard time getting anyone to believe it. He spends a lot of time with Rachel and seeks to enact vengeance on her. Instead, her feminine wiles serve to make him fall in love with her. There is a mess in all this some might call it love. The end was a surprise to me but does wrap up the tale nicely.

They don’t give Rachel much to say or do in this film, which is a crying shame. Racel Weisz is a stone fox and a damn good actress. It seemed like she was subdued and below her potential. This story should have work the same way So I Married and Axe Murderer worked, through double ententes and metaphors about death. Unfortunately the director took a far more subtle approach to this tale. If you are a fan of the genre you might like it. I would recommend it as a background movie when you’re working on something else. Still, I can’t wait to see Rachel Weisz in something new!

6/10

My Cousin Rachel (2017)
PG-13 | 1h 46min | Drama, Mystery, Romance | 9 June 2017 (USA)

A young Englishman plots revenge against his late cousin’s mysterious, beautiful wife, believing her responsible for his death. But his feelings become complicated as he finds himself falling under the beguiling spell of her charms.
Director: Roger Michell
Writers: Daphne Du Maurier (novel), Roger Michell (adaptation)
Stars: Rachel Weisz, Sam Claflin, Holliday Grainger