What’s interesting with the two films today is how they come from both sides of the ‘pond’ - with the common thread of helping keep the spirit of auteur films alive and well.
Blonde (Netflix USA) - Coming with a lot of fanfare, here finally is the Andrew Dominik directed film about Marilyn Monroe, that stars Cuban actress Ana de Armas. It’s a Dominik product through and through, as he’s written the s teen adaptation from the fictitious bio novel of Joyce Carol Oates. Oates never claimed this to be factual or a non-fiction biography, but a more impressionistic rendering of what we know about Norma Jeane, as seen through the prism of Oates’ prose. So let’s get that straight from the outset, to claim factual inconsistencies or mistakes isn’t what Oates even wants to discuss. This is her take on the life and trajectory of a bombshell Hollywood star of the 1950s and how she’s both victim, and willing star, answerable to herself for the choices she made.
In Dominik’s hands, it’s as much about the Hollywood star-making machine, how it needs more and more, than just bites back if ever you show resistance or self-respect. Now, Ana de Armas is magnificent in this film, and she’s the best thing to watch here. The auteur aspect of film-making gets a bad name here, as the film is over long, over-stylized and over-indulgent. Some themes and motifs are repeated again and again, and instead of cutting to the next scene, we often linger and linger. I’m certain this is all intentional on Dominik’s part, and so some restraint and maybe control would have been in order as the filming went on. It is watchable, don’t get me wrong; but it’s also, at times, a tedious film to watch.
Brian & Charles (video on demand) - Garnering the Audience Award at this year’s Sundance London, this engaging, low-key film directed by Jim Archer celebrates British eccentrics, the softer aspects of AI & robots, and about loneliness and isolation. David Earl takes inspiration from the short film he first used to introduce us to the character Brian, and the robot he purportedly invented, and named Charles. Set in a tiny Welsh village, it’s as much about the locale and the kind of people who inhabit these rural countryside towns, as it is about Science Fiction/Fantasy and Brian’s creating a walking, talking AI, from discarded mannequin heads, a washing machine for a body, and hydraulic legs. It’s all wee and charming until certain plot lines develop.
First off, in a manner that resembles ET or Wall-E, we find that Charles has an intelligence of his own, and soon expresses interest to leave his sheltered existence, and venture out to discover the world. The funny sequences here are how Brian treats Charles like a baby child, and at times, like a frisky puppy. There’s a villain in the set piece, and he comes in the form of a local who’s a bully, egotistical, and firmly puts Brian in his sights. When he gets his comeuppance, there’s a catharsis generated that helps elevate this film above quaintness. An unconventional love story, and the instrumental role that Charles plays in this relationship, is added texture to this heart-warming film. What’s nice to note is the control Archer has over the material.