Three films that fall under the very broad "art" category this week include a hit at January's Sundance Film Festival, a new period piece from the Merchant-Ivory team and a broad, boisterous comedy from Russia.
- "ONCE WERE WARRIORS" is the most horrifying film in recent memory, an uncompromising indictment of domestic abuse told as the story of a poverty-ridden Maori family that is struggling under the fist of its brutal patriarch.Jake Heke (Temuera Morrison) rules his wife and five children with a closed hand, which is also how he deals with any sort of disagreement - especially when he's drunk. His wife Beth (Rena Owen) puts up with his brutality, his cheating, his broken promises - even his raping her. But her loyalty and love for Jake will eventually grow thin, especially as she comes to realize just how seriously her own children are at risk.
Jake's rage is understandable to some degree. As the title suggests, the Maori people were once warriors, but there is no outlet for that fearsome heritage in modern-day New Zealand. And as the film ingratiates the audience into the Heke clan, it's easy to see how charismatic and winning this hulking, tattooed fellow is. And how easily Beth is seduced by him.
But in every situation, no matter how benign, there is an element of queasy suspense, the feeling that it won't take much to push Jake's buttons and begin another tirade. Beth's attempts to filter all of this are at first pitiable. In fact, she doesn't really come to her senses until she realizes her two oldest sons may already be irreversibly corrupted by Jake's violent example (one goes to a juvenile detention home, the other joins a gang). The question becomes, can she save her three youngest children?
All of this is very specific to a Maori ghetto in an anonymous New Zealand setting, with ethnic pride playing a big part in the story. But there is no question as to the universality of the subject and its treatment.
Screenwriter Riwia Brown (basing the script on a novel by Alan Duff) has provided some strong stuff (though some of it is predictably by the numbers), but it is director Lee Tamahori's stark presentation of the material that gives the film its power. There are scenes here that are very difficult to watch - in particular a moment that comes about a third into the film, as Beth takes a pounding from Jake during one of his regular late-night parties, and a rape later in the film. The violence is never softened and the terror is genuine.
Heartbreaking, frustrating, an observation of domestic violence and a tribute to the wives who ultimately refuse to remain victims, in the end "Once Were Warriors" demonstrates that women are the real warriors.
"Once Were Warriors" is rated R for violence, sex, nudity, profanity, vulgarity, drugs.
- "JEFFERSON IN PARIS" is the latest effort from the Oscar-winning team of producer Ismael Merchant, director James Ivory and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala ("Howards End," "The Remains of the Day"). But it's hardly up to expectations.
Abandoning England's repressed class distinctions for a look at a controversial subject of American history, the Merchant-Ivory team explores a period in the life of our third president, Thomas Jefferson (Nick Nolte), when he was ambassador to France (1784-89).
Since the film opens with the charge that Jefferson had children by his slave Sally Hemings (Thandie Newton) and then unfolds in flashback, it would be logical to assume this is what the movie is about. But in fact, this is more of a subplot that appears very late in the film and is never sufficiently addressed, much less wrapped up.
Instead, the film drags the audience through all kinds of intricate detail about Jefferson's dealings with the French government, albeit in a frustratingly vague manner, and seems to care more about his unfulfilled love for Maria Cosway (Greta Scacchi), the in-name-only wife of a foppish French artist (Simon Callow), and his distant relationship with his daughter Patsy (Gwyneth Paltrow), whom he places in a convent.
There are some interesting developments in the latter stories. It seems Jefferson promised his wife on her deathbed he would never remarry, which compromises his desire to woo Maria. And though he is promised that his Protestant daughter will not be indoctrinated by her Catholic surroundings, he is eventually disappointed. But neither is satisfactorily explored.
Eventually, when Jefferson does begin an affair with his slave, the film begins to come to life for a bit - thanks largely to Newton's excellent performance - but it's too little too late.
Aside from Newton, the cast seems rather lackluster, and as Jefferson, Nolte is incredibly uncomfortable. And the picture seems to drag on forever (it is roughly 21/2 hours in length).
There is, as you would expect, a remarkable amount of attention to period detail, and the costumes and sets are fascinating from start to finish. But none of this can compensate for the bland story.
There is also a question of historical accuracy, since there is some debate as to whether Jefferson ever really did have an affair with Sally, much less children by her. In that regard, this amounts to little more than just another sleazy celebrity biography.
"Jefferson in Paris" is rated PG-13. There is some vulgarity and violence, and the rating is primarily for a brief, unnecessary sexually explicit puppet show.
- "WINDOW TO PARIS" is a bizarre Russian comedy, a bombastic, loud, obnoxious "Twilight Zone"-ish parable meant to show the contrast between poverty in modern-day Russia and the capitalistic material wealth of the Western world. Which is more corrupting seems to be up for debate.
The central characters are a music teacher who is something of a Pied Piper to his students and his new landlord, whose rowdy family discovers a strange portal behind their wardrobe closet (perhaps some credit should be given to "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe").
As they drunkenly exit this "window," they find themselves in unfamiliar territory. The next day, when they sober up, they realize they are in Paris. And while the teacher spends most of his time simply trying to find a more appreciative audience for his music, the landlord's family starts collecting consumer goods. The metaphor is obvious and heavy-handed.
There is also a French neighbor who becomes irritated by the constant screaming and bickering of her new Russian neighbors. (She could easily represent the audience.) But eventually she crosses through the "window," finds herself in bleak St. Petersburg and better understands the situation.
Well-intentioned and occasionally amusing, "Window to Paris" is just too shrill for my taste. A little goes a long way.
The film is rated PG-13, which seems rather tame considering how much profanity there is, not to mention a scene that includes frontal nudity.