Culture War

Movie: Howl

My Rating: 2 stars

This movie is the perfect example of how sometimes, historically and culturally important phenomena may not translate perfectly onto film.  Or, it at least demonstrates how sometimes, directors may get too caught up in the abstract idea of a movement to tell a very compelling narrative story about it.  That’s what happened here in this film about the famous beat poet, Allen Ginsberg’s, poem Howl.  Directors, Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, could have made this movie an accessible (if commonplace) courtroom drama about the landmark obscenity trial surrounding the shocking (for the time) poem.  The drug-infused, homoerotic content was quite sensational at the time of its publication, in the morally-repressed and prudish 1950s America.  And, the case was a real milestone for the advancement of freedom of speech.  It really reaffirmed the (now) common sense logic of: just because you, personally, don’t like something, doesn’t mean it has no merit as speech.  And it also asks the cheeky question: if you’re so offended by this “pornographic” material, then why have you run out and purchased the book and read it from cover to cover?  This isn’t radio or TV we’re dealing with.  People can control their exposure to this sort of material.

This line of free speech cases really established many of the freedoms we take for granted today.  But in order to understand why this trial was so important, it’s necessary to have an understanding of the content of the poem.  The film provides plenty of excerpts from the poem by showing James Franco, who plays Ginsberg (expertly, by the way), composing verses aloud, and by staging reenactments of some of his live readings.  But, I get the feeling that these directors didn’t just want to make another stale, old courtroom drama.  I think they wanted something a little more artsy and conceptual—making this a movie more about the poem, than about all the publicity that surrounded it’s controversial publication.  But, I think the film’s abstraction really is its tragic flaw.   Woven into all the composition and courtroom scenes is a very bizarre CGI-animation piece that tries to make a visual depiction of all the things happening in the poem.  This is a big mistake.  For a poem that deals with such philosophical and metaphysical ideas, a visual representation is not appropriate.  It almost cheapens the poem.  Also, the animation style is absurdly creepy.  But, I think I know why the directors made this decision.  The film is already very short, running at only eighty-four minutes.  If all the animation were cut out, it would probably only be about forty.  I think most of it serves as filler, padding the film out to feature length.  It’s very disappointing.  Although, if anything, the film has merit as a mini-history lesson for people who are unfamiliar with how uptight people used to be in the 50s, and about the generation of youngsters who dared to fight back.

Reevaluating the "Classics"

Movie: From Dusk 'Til Dawn

My Rating: 3 stars

So, the last time I watched this movie, I was a Freshman in high school.  I snuck in with a few friends from school.  It was on one of those big group dates that youngsters like to go on, and I think we did it to impress the boys.  Well, I wasn’t really ready for this kind of film at that age, and I definitely didn’t enjoy it.  I was a little too young to handle the violence, and a little too green to get the humor.  Although, I do remember being impressed by George Clooney at the time.  He was a good fifteen years younger, thirty pounds lighter, and he had that really sweet fake tattoo.  And that’s the kind of thing that really leaves an impression on a fourteen year-old girl.  You know who’s also in this movie, looking a lot younger, and a lot less grizzled?  Danny Trejo.  Look out for him.  He even has a couple lines.  Well, I didn’t remember much about this movie—only recalling my strong reaction to it all those years ago—so I decided it deserved a second watch.  Especially since I’m a little more versed in Mr. Tarantino’s whole shtick, and am generally a little more comfortable with the whole horror thing.

You have to gently ease your way into these Quentin Tatantino B-movie tributes, and this one is definitely one of his more intense works.  It’s all shotguns, tits, liquor, and exploding heads.  That’s all well and good for a seasoned veteran, but I’d recommend starting off with some of Tarantino’s tamer, crime films (Jackie Brown, maybe), or some of his other wacky collaboration pieces (Sukiyaki Western Django).  Not this balls-out, blood-and-guts, vampire gore-fest. I figured I might just enjoy it this time around (even though I tend to find Tarantino’s work to be more than a little self-conscious and overworked).

Well, the movie is actually pretty fun.  It’s totally silly, and entirely gratuitous.  But that’s what we’ve come to love and expect from our dear friend Quentin, right?  And, at a pretty lean running time of one hour, forty-eight (trust me, it feels like even less) this is a quick, little treat.  I think Tarantino has found just the right balance between character development, and vampire hunting.  The smack-down is the most exciting part, but there’s only so much of that kind of pandemonium you can watch before it starts to feel tedious.  Fortunately, Tarantino doesn’t make that mistake.

Shocked and Appalled

Movie: Dumplings

My Rating: 4 stars

Wow, this is an insanely gruesome movie.  I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into beforehand.  The little synopsis on Netflix didn’t give me any kind of clue.  Maybe if I had read some of the member reviews beforehand I would have been prepared for the carnage, but I don’t like to read too much commentary before I watch a film.  I find that it always influences my own opinions, and I prefer to be surprised.  Maybe not the best decision here.  But, hey, I guess that’s what horror is all about.  I watch so many horror films that I find it’s harder and harder to be “horrified” by a movie these days.  So bravo, Mr. Fruit Chan.  My hat’s off to you. You’re a really twisted director (even though your name is so darned cute).

The story is about an aging actress, Mrs. Li, who goes to extremes to hold onto her fading looks and her straying husband.  She’s tried all sorts of crazy beauty tonics, and her latest obsession is with Aunty Mei’s (Bai Ling) famous Rejuvenation Dumplings—full of all kinds of potent traditional Chinese medicine.  Mrs. Li will try anything, and these dumplings have a reputation for being very powerful.  They’re in short supply and very expensive, but Mrs. Li will do anything and pay any amount of money to get them.  I was expecting a psychological horror film about this lady going steadily insane as she gets increasingly more desperate for this rare beauty remedy.  And, she does do a fair amount of just that.  But, the specific nature of this latest remedy is particularly troubling.

Not only is this film only for die-hard horror fans, but it’s also only for those with very strong stomachs.  In addition to being physically revolting, the story is also very morally difficult.  The characters take advantage of each other, and are taken advantage of, themselves (in very terrible ways and unbelievably casually).  You’ll have to take my word for it that it’s all pretty monstrous. Certainly more than I was expecting.  But, that’s not saying this is a bad movie.  I’ve never seen Bai Ling act before, and frankly, I never took her all that seriously as an actress, but she really plays a very chilling villainess in this film.  She’s quite the predator. And the writing is pretty compelling too.  The tension builds slowly throughout the film until it all boils over at the climax.  It’s really intense.  I’ll tell you one thing.  If you do decide to watch this film, it’ll be a really long time before you look at dumplings the same way again. 

Duds

Movie: Stone

My Rating: 2 stars

I don’t know about that Edward Norton.  He used to make such great movies, but it seems like he’s been making some pretty bad decisions lately.  His acting is still pretty amazing.  He somehow manages to nail the part of the sleazy, low-class guy that isn’t necessarily a criminal at heart, but still always finds himself in trouble with the law.  But, these aren’t good-hearted characters.  While they may not be evil, they’re still pretty trashy.  It’s funny, but these seem to be the only sort of roles Norton’s been taking lately.  Maybe he’s having some sort of an identity crisis.  But that doesn’t explain all the total bombs he’s been appearing in.  Maybe he’s so wealthy and successful, that he really doesn’t care anymore.

This movie sounded like it was going to be an exciting crime thriller.  Norton plays an incarcerated criminal.  He’s locked up for arson, but he’s up for parole.  As it turns out, prison is a pretty awful place and he wants to get out as soon as possible.  So, to make sure his hearing has successful results, Norton arranges for his foxy wife (played by Milla Jovovich) to seduce his parole officer (Robert De Niro) and “persuade” him to see things her way.  Sounds racy and exciting, right?  But, the story ended up being way more of a touchy-feely relationship drama than an edgy tale of manipulation and trickery.  People discover themselves and grow, and discover what they want from life.  And that’s all admirable, I suppose.  We all want people to do that.  But the writing here is actually pretty mediocre (code for boring).  And, I was in the mood for a psychological thriller, damn it—not people examining their life choices and the state of their marriages. 

So, really, don’t waste your time on this movie.  You will be heartily disappointed, as I was.  It’s not the story the promotional material bills it to be.  And, the story it is happens to be pretty uninteresting.

Cheez Platter

Movie: Step Up 3

My Rating: 3 stars

I’ve been up to my old tricks again, watching these super cheesy dance movies.  The acting is terrible, and the plotlines are ludicrously implausible, but I just can’t stop.  Not that I’ve been trying, mind you.  I was actually pretty excited for this latest installment of the Step Up franchise.  This is yet another film that was designed to be watched in 3D in the theaters, and it promised to be bigger and better than ever.  I’m pleased to say that it actually delivers.  The movie has some of the best dancing I’ve seen from this series, and there’s a huge diversity of different dance styles.  This story is set in New York City, where people from all over the world come to make their fortunes.  So, the dancing is similarly varied and exciting.  Best of all, there’s way more of it.  The story leads up to one final dance battle the way all the previous ones have, but there are all kinds of intermediate competitions and training sessions to satisfy viewers’ demands for awesome feats of grace and agility.  Because, that’s what everyone is actually watching the thing for!  We’re not watching this film for the character development or their deep philosophical musings.  And we certainly aren’t here for yet another rooftop romance scene, where our two attractive protagonists talk about “dance being their soul” as they gaze out over the urban cityscape.  Or, yet another "stomping around in water" dance.

The movie ended up being very satisfying.  But, there was no way I was going to be seen in public purchasing an actual ticket to see it in a theater.  No, no—I try to play things way too cool to ever be caught doing that.  So thank goodness for Netflix.  That way, I can satisfy my guilty pleasures in the privacy of my own living room.  (Except that with city living, there’s never any real privacy in one’s living room, what with that pervy neighbor that lives across the way and his trusty pair of binoculars—guess he’s not getting quite the show he expected, though).  My biggest complaint with these films is that the heroes’ dance routines are never quite as good as their evil rivals’.  Sure, the good guys’ routine is always heartwarming, including displays of brotherly love, small children dancing “straight hood,” and other amusing things like that.  But they’re never quite as technically accomplished as the bad guys.  Oh, but they always win.  We want them to win, but it never feels quite right.  It’s not a big enough complaint to keep me from coming back for more.  I thoroughly enjoy these things, and I’m pretty sure you will too (if you can ignore all of the dialogue, that is).

Those Stylish Suckers

Movie: Daybreakers

My Rating: 3 stars

Vampires seem to be pretty hot these days—mean ones, sexy ones, others who are looking for monogamous, romantic relationships with human ladies.  But, with all these variations, vampires are all still living on the fringes of society.  While not all of them feel the need to hide, they’re definitely not calling attention to themselves.  But, this movie is a different beast altogether.  This story contemplates what the world would look like if vampires actually “won” and became the dominant species.  New technologies would start popping up left and right as these newly transformed people start trying to tackle the various issues that only vampires have to deal with—burning sunlight, the inability to use mirrors, and most notably, the difficulty in finding a reliable source of food.  Plus, we all know that vampires are extra sexy and get to wear the super-stylish clothes you see in noir films.  But, for a species that relies on human blood to survive, the mass conversion of humans to vampirism creates a very tricky problem.  Should they encourage further conversion?  (Because, everyone is capable of joining this new society, and they should be allowed to do so).  Or, should they reserve a small portion of people aside on a sort of “human ranch,” and start raising them for food?  It’s pretty grotesque to consider, right?  And, it kinda puts a new spin on the idea of vegetarianism, and the implications of eating meat.

But, the main drama in this film comes from the fact that you’re never going to be able to convince everyone in the world to agree to one lifestyle.  People can be fickle and stubborn.  As you might expect, in this new world, there are bands of “wild” humans wandering the countryside, who just don’t want to become vampires.  Maybe they love nature and sunlight?  Perhaps they’re worried about the moral implications of eating other people (or are just grossed out by the idea)?  Then, there are always going to be those ornery, reactionary types who just don’t want to do something precisely because everyone else is doing it.  Whatever their reasons, these groups of individuals are making trouble for the vampires—most notably in their efforts to find a “cure” for the “sickness.”

So, this actually turned out to be one of those movies where the concept and atmosphere are way cooler than the actual story the director settled on.  I was really hoping for something a little more chilling or suspenseful.  But, the plot ended up being a little more straightforward and mundane.  As it turns out, this is just a story about people and society, rather than an exciting supernatural story.  I guess all this is interesting enough, but I would have enjoyed a little more exploration of all the surprising, little details of this new vampire world.  Maybe a prequel would do the trick.

Summer Fun

Movie: X-men: First Class
My Rating: 3 stars

So, this was a pretty cool movie.  All the reviews promised that there would be enough excitement for viewers who aren’t necessarily familiar with the X-men franchise or its underlying mythology to be able to enjoy the movie.  But, they said there are still enough obscure references and inside jokes to satisfy die-hard fans.  I honestly didn’t think I knew enough about the series to pick up these little winks at the superfans, but I may have been selling myself a little short because I think I got a few.  I guess I’m not actually a total newbie to the story, unlike the people I went to the movie with.  There must be a few traces of those Saturday morning cartoons I watched with my brother still floating around somewhere in the back of my brain.  So, despite my overall lack of deep knowledge of the comic, I got to play the part of that smug expert for the evening, answering the questions of my even less well-informed friends.

This is a pretty enjoyable movie.  It’s got a familiar story, lots of action and intrigue, and plenty of eye candy.  And, it’s absolutely full of big, A-list stars—the dreamy James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, the lovely Rose Byrne, that ubiquitous Kevin Bacon.  This is the stuff summer blockbusters are made of.  And most of the acting is even pretty decent (January Jones, I’m looking at you, tsk tsk tsk).   It was all such good fun that my non-fan friends even commented afterward that it was actually a really good movie, you know, “because it focused on interpersonal relationships and didn’t get into too much superhero stuff.”  Sigh.  But, I think you get the picture.  Film studios don’t want to make anything to inaccessible these days.  But then, sometimes they go a little too far kicking the original material under the rug, and focusing only on effects and romance.  I mean, that new Green Lantern movie is already dead in the water, and it isn’t even out yet.  Fortunately, director, Matthew Vaughn, struck a happy medium with this film.  True fans will enjoy seeing how their favorite characters became the heroes they know today.  And, ignorant teenagers on dates will be satisfied with the fist-fights and hints of romance (hey, it’s a PG-13 movie).  And then everyone else can just watch the pretty faces.  It’s fun, and this sort of action film is always pretty good on the big screen, but I wouldn’t say that you need to see it there.  I think waiting for the DVD on this one would also be perfectly acceptable.

Mad Scientists

Movie: The Chef of South Polar
My Rating: 5 stars

I got to see a screening of this film at Dc’s Japan Information & Cultural Center (JICC) last night.  I like going to see films there, because often, they show movies that haven’t been released in the United States yet.  This is usually because the actors of subject matter is so obscure or specialized that distributors just don’t think there’s a market here for these movies.  But, I don’t know why that is.  It seems like you can always find people who want to rent all kinds of crazy DVDs.  And, this film is actually particularly charming and funny.  But it is pretty obscure.  The story is about the group of scientists living at the Dome Fuji Station, a Japanese research facility in the heart of Antarctica.  And, it’s told from the point of view of the crew’s longsuffering resident chef.  He was a cook in the coast guard, and was assigned to a stint in Antarctica against his and his family’s wishes.  These guys are in Antarctica on an expedition collecting ice core samples, and it’s scheduled to last around four hundred and forty days.  All the scientists have their own experiments to run, and they all help with regular chores around the station.  But they can’t be expected to take care of all their needs by themselves, so they’ve been given a chef—the titular character.  And he’s a pretty easygoing, indulgent guy too, to put up with all these guys’ wild shenanigans.  All this sounds pretty cute, but I can understand why a distributor would have thought this wouldn’t do too well outside of Japan.

The story is absolutely delightful.  It’s full of all the sorts of quirky characters you’d expect to find at an isolated, scientific outpost.  And, all the sorts of bizarre behavior you’d imagine they’d engage in too, once the reality of their over-four-hundred day mission finally hits, and the real boredom sets in.  The moping, the boozing, the improvised (sometimes nude) sporting events, and all the other tomfoolery.  And, then of course, there’s the eating—one of the most reliable diversions life has to offer.  Heck, the airline industry figured that out ages ago, offering various snacks and nibbles every couple of hours on those long-haul flights.  And let me tell you, this chef whips up some of the most exciting meals imaginable—and all from frozen ingredients!  But, the boredom is the least of these scientists worries.  They at least have their official jobs and chores to throw themselves into if the going gets rough.  Their biggest problem is really the loneliness.  They’re far away from friends and loved ones.  But, they’re also separated from every other element that was familiar from their old lives.  It’s a big shock to the system to be thrust into such isolation.

But, these eccentrics manage to help each other through their various episodes.  They all go through a few.  And, they manage to drive their long-suffering chef almost crazy in the process.  It’s wild and wacky fun.  I loved this movie.  But, unfortunately I went before having eaten dinner.  It was almost torture watching course after course of delicious, steaming, Japanese food served up, with my stomach grumbling the way it was.  It also made the film seem a little longer than it probably was.  It runs a bit over two hours, which isn’t too crazy . . . unless you’re starving.  (I’ve been eating nothing but Japanese food since I saw the film.)  I’m not sure when you’ll ever get the opportunity to see this movie since it seems to only be playing the festival circuit right now.  But, if you ever do, make sure you see it.  And schedule a big Japanese dinner for afterward!

A Girl With A Gun

Movie: Resident Evil: Afterlife
My Rating: 3 stars

So, this movie was designed to be watched in 3D.  Since I don’t make it to the theater as often as I’d like, and since this film franchise already comes with a reputation for being entirely ridiculous and cheesy (even for video game movies), it’s safe to assume that I wasn’t ever going to be shelling out fourteen dollars to see it in a theater.  But that’s ok.  I’m sure something was lost not having seen it on the big screen, but the movie was actually pretty fantastic on my HDTV too.  It looked different from even other action/thriller movies I’d watched on it.  The colors are vibrant, and extra scrutiny has been given to little details.  I could tell which scenes were probably 3D in the theater because the director paid extra special attention to things like the rhythm of rain drops falling in slow motion on pavement, or the lovely Mila Jovovich’s leather-clad legs high-kicking right at the camera in half-time.  Mila points the barrels of her tricked-out, automatic assault rifles right in the audience’s face.  And, ninja-stars hit nameless goons in the chest, and they spasm in exaggerated, drawn out shots.  It’s all pretty gratuitous and just as awesome as you’d hope for form an apocalypse-zombie movie like this.  And in case you were worrying, yes, there are plenty of action shots of Mila Jovovich kicking zombie butt in her specially designed, leather, combat-bodysuit.  It’s a very practical item of apparel.

I like the zombies in this movie better than the ones in the last.  These are good, classic, staggerers.  They are decaying humans, limited by their bodies’ increasing weaknesses and they’re only hungry for flesh.  They aren’t the drug-crazed super-mutants, programmed for military combat that we met in previous installments.  Okay, there are a few leftover mutated zombies.  And for some inexplicable reason, there’s also an enormous, (strangely familiar looking) battleaxe-wielding behemoth with all kinds of exotic body piercings (I wonder what kind of pervert-mad-scientist gave him those).  Those guys all make plenty of trouble.  But there’s still a general horde and it’s made up of the regular kind of decaying zombie.  And, they do their fair share of swarming.  I appreciated that.  It adds a classic touch to this schizophrenic series.  So, there was really no reason for this movie, other than to play with some cool 3D effects.  Nothing in the movie advances the story at all, resolves any of the running conflicts.  And it leaves us pretty much where the last one did—in a cliffhanger, primed for yet another sequel.  But, I kinda don’t care.  The movies are all fluff, and this is the place I come when I’m looking for some mental cotton candy.  I can’t be a jaded hipster, watching ironic, edgy films every day of the year.  Sometimes you have to save a little room for dessert.

Lady Humor

Movie: Bridesmaids
My Rating: 4 stars

What a movie!  Yeah, I went and saw this one.  I wasn’t really planning on it.  I’m generally not a huge fan of all the crappy lady-comedies the film studios churn out every year.  But, all the rave reviews really convinced me that this wasn’t just another sappy rom-com about neurotic women who want nothing from life but to be married, and whose hysterics can only be controlled by a big strong man.  Well, there are few of those wedding hysterics, but the movie is actually making fun of ladies like that.  All the hijinks are centered around Annie (Wiig), who is a bit overwhelmed by having to serve as the maid-of-honor in her best friend, Lillian’s wedding (Maya Rudolph).  Her lack of money, job, and general direction in life make all of her duties pretty difficult.  And, that’s before she meets all the other insane bridesmaids on the roster.  Kristen Wiig is a lady with a sense of humor, and she really zeroes in on the comedy inherent in this sort of woman’s particular brand of obsession.  Oh, and the film also features just about as many fart- and sex- and excrement-jokes as any respectable bromance movie.  Because, sometimes love just isn’t pretty.  Although, Kristen Wiig is sure looking better than ever in this movie.

I don’t think I’d label this movie a romantic comedy, even though it features women and relationships.  It’s more of your standard, quarter-life crisis comedy—adults who haven’t fully matured mentally, and who don’t really know what they should be doing with their lives.  And, adults who have discovered that now that they’re out of school, it’s really hard to meet nice people that they’d actually want to date.  It’s the particular plight of my generation, so the topic was exceptionally ripe for comedic treatment.  The movie has a steady stream of gags, but the writing is pretty clever.  It’s shocking and in your face, and no topic is too crude to be off limits.  And, I really enjoy the amazing cast of comedians in this movie.  It’s absolutely filled with amazing actors that you’ll recognize from all the funniest movies and TV shows.  Some of them are main characters, like Chris O’Dowd as Wiig’s love interest, and Carnie Wilson as another bridesmaid, and (in my opinion) the best character in the movie.  Others are smaller cameos.  My favorite of these is definitely Tim Heidecker as Lilian’s (lineless) husband-to-be.  It’s great.  The movie is uproarious, and it’s the kind that you can watch over and over again.  It’s not your mom’s brand of romantic comedy, so you probably shouldn’t plan to take her to it on a girl’s night out.  But don’t miss it.

The Dark American Dream

Movie: The Jonese
My Rating: 3 stars

This movie is sort of a modern spin on the old, wholesome family comedy.  The family in this film does a pretty good job of projecting the whole squeaky clean image.  Demi Moore is Mom, David Duchovny is Dad, Amber Heard is Daughter, and Ben Hollingsworth is Son.  But, they’re actually edgy, glamorous, callous people underneath this façade of good, clean living.  And, they’re not actually a real family at all.  Rather, these beautiful, popular kids are part of a revolutionary (and subversive) new marketing scheme.  They’re a sham family—not even related to one another—designed by a corporation to sell the idea of the stereotypical, happy, successful American dream to others.  They portray people that are enjoying the wealth of benefits available for purchase from the “XYZ Corporation’s” family of products.

Demi Moore is kinda perfect in this role.  She’s just got that “calculating viper” vibe about her—beautiful and collected, but just waiting to strike if you cross her.  And, David Duchovny works as the dad of the family.  He’s got that rakishly handsome, easy-going, beta-male thing going on.  His “lioness” wife runs the show and keeps him in line, but he accepts it all with a wink, letting his friends know that he’s really just letting her get away with it—indulging her vanity.  You know women!  So, the acting is pretty convincing.  Our actors really capture the essence of the vain, grasping, status-hungry suburbanites.  It’s very “Real Housewives of [insert your favorite, bourgeois city here].”

The story?  A little on the cheesy, melodramatic side.  I like the concept of the ruthless marketing corporation, making money off these status-seekers insecurities.  It’s probably just one step beyond what happens in real life.  Pretty seditious stuff.  But, I think the director’s need to give the film a nice, neat story arc (and the requisite romantic subplot) forces it into a pretty conventional, overdramatic mold.  But, the movie isn’t all fluff.  It’s a comedy, but there are some pretty dark elements as well, with some characters really suffering the consequences of trying to achieve this flashy lifestyle they can’t afford.  And, the cold, empty shell of a family our salesmen live in seems hauntingly familiar to some of the real lives they’re mimicking.  So, the movie is pretty fun, and it’d probably make a pretty entertaining choice.  Again, it does get pretty cheesy in places, but if you’re willing to overlook those bits, there’s plenty of worthwhile material here too.

Tough Guys

Movie: District B13
My Rating: 4 stars

Well, this movie turned out to be better than I’d planned on it being.  For some reason, I just can’t mentally accept the idea of the French producing tough gangsters.  Oh, I’m well aware that they exist, and that they are, indeed, very nasty.  But, I have a really hard time taking the idea very seriously.  So, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie.  I think it works because director, Luc Besson, doesn’t try to use the generic idea of what a movie gangster should be.  Instead, he takes advantage of some of the few awesome things that are uniquely French—like parkour.  That’s the graceful and athletic navigation of all kinds of urban obstacles—like scaling walls, and hopping rooftops—using only one’s strength and coordination.   It’s pretty cool looking, and almost reminds me of a dance.  Besson creates some truly amazing choreography.  I don’t know what’s more impressive—the fact that the actors (or stuntmen?) could pull off these acrobatics without killing themselves, or that Besson managed to set up all the perfect camera angles to catch these feats of agility.  There’s only so much you can fudge these things in editing.  The actors make jumping over walls, and shimmying down stairwells look like child’s play, but if there’s anything those amateur clips on Youtube have taught us, it’s that parkour is not, in fact, easy.  It usually involves painful collisions with dumpsters and about eighteen stitches to the forehead.

So the story is about the semi-fictitious B13 suburb of Paris.  It’s a rough neighborhood with lots of crime (and immigrants).  So, the elite, pure-blood French politicians have decided to erect a wall around the neighborhood in the hopes that problem will take care of itself, by encouraging chaos to break out and everyone killing each other.  What they didn’t count on was that there are a few good seeds—people who are trying to create order and a safe place to live.  That would be our hero, Leito, and his sassy little sis, Lola.  Leito doesn’t stand for all the drug dealing and thuggery and he tries to keep the neighborhood in line.  Of course, things get a little tricky when he finds himself between the drug lords on one side, and the corrupt politicians on the other.

The film is a fun, quick-paced, action thriller.  The story is light enough in tone for anyone to enjoy.  But, it also raises some pretty relevant political issues as well, with all the social and ethnic tension we’ve witnessed in Paris over the past few years.  All I can say is, I can’t wait to rent the sequel!