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The Last Mistress Directed by Catherine Breillat 69 out of 100
To realize this is a film by Catherine Breillat is much the same as realizing The Age of Innocence was a film by Martin Scorsese. Just as Scorsese "tamed" his bloody wild side with the rather staid but still quite alluringly luscious period piece adaptation of Edith Wharton, Breillat seems to subside her own rather feral filmmaking style in order to take on the dreaded period costume drama. Yet, just as one could look beneath the layers of The Age of Innocence and see the depth of character and spot Scorsese being Scorsese, one can look under the covers here and find a rather bawdy - though our jaded modern sensibilities may not see it that way - bedroom sex farce-cum-desolation story. And the one thing under those covers that makes us all sit up and take notice is the quite feral herself Asia Argento.
Creature du jour of modern cinema, Argento's Vellini, a woman of quite rabid disrepute in 19th Century Parisian society, is as sexually vibrant as any character the actress has played - and she has played quite a few sexual characters. Making love (if it can be called something as tame as all that) with the aural audacity of a libidinous cantatrice while lasciviously drinking the blood of her lover as if some sort of savage carnal praying mantis going in for the post-coital kill, only to eventually succumb to the pain of loss and degredation, Argento plays her role like she plays every other role, as if it were the last part she will ever get to play. Argento acts as if the world will end when the screen goes dark and this works perfectly with the bang-bang shock cinema of Breillat, even when it is set in a world of drawing rooms and high society. The stunning hubris of Fat Girl, Romance and/or Anatomy of Hell (for better or for worse?) may not be readily seen in the lush padded parlours of The Last Mistress, but thanks to the wanton bestial sexuality of Asia Argento, one feels as if it is there after all. [06/27/08] Kevyn Knox Film Critic, Essayist + Historian |
| FilmSpeak.com’s FilmNewz for Tuesday, October 7, 2008 I am sad to say that this will be my last FilmNewz
newsletter. As you may have read, the
Midtown Cinema was recently purchased by Powers & Associates, the company
who is responsible for developing Midtown.
Make no mistake about it, despite all of the rumors that have been
circulating, this is great news as Powers has committed to keeping independent
cinema alive in Harrisburg. Allen Brown
and I have been fortunate to have had the honor of introducing independent film
to Harrisburg and are thrilled to know that the torch will be carried for many
years to come. Allen and I began this
project almost 10 years ago and this November will mark the Midtown Cinema's
7th anniversary of showing films!
Although Allen and the Cinema staff worked extremely hard over the
years, none of this would have happened if it wasn't for all of you, our loyal
cinema supporters who faithfully saw all of the wonderful films we have shown
over the years. Many of you have written
to thank us for the Cinema and to see if there is anything you can do. All we ask is that you continue to support
the Cinema. Please understand that if
you do not support independent cinemas, they will surely die. Your support of the Midtown Cinema, as well
as other local indie houses such as Skip Hick's amazing Allen Theater in
Annville, is critical to keeping first run independent and foreign films
playing in this area. Below is a welcoming note from Powers & Associates'
Cinema Director, Zane Sebasovich. Zane will be taking over Cinema operations on October 17, 2008. I
asked Zane to say a few words about his company's exciting plans for the
Midtown Cinema. I have passed this email
list on to Zane so that he can continue sending you information about upcoming
films and events. Again, thank you so much for your support and I look forward
to seeing all of you at the movies! TODD "Thank you for the introduction Todd, and Hello to all
the Midtown Cinema people. I look forward to meeting all of you at the theatre,
soon. It has been a pleasure learning from Allen and Todd, and I hope to
continue to build the kind of theatre they would be proud of. Over time there
maybe some small changes to the theatre, but have no fear, your independent
film outlet will never be compromised. I look forward to meeting all of you and
hearing your thoughts on what we can do to better the theatre." - Zane
Sebasovich, Cinema Director. Local Feature Information … Playing at the Midtown Cinema (909-6566 or
www.midtowncinema.com) from Friday, October 10 through Thursday, October 16, 2008: “THE DUCHESS” (1 hr. 45 min., Rated
PG-13). A vibrant beauty and celebrity of her time is trapped in an unhappy
triangle with her husband and his live-in mistress. She falls passionately in
love with an ambitious young politician, and the affair causes a bitter
conflict with her husband and threatens to erupt into a scandal. Starring: Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Dominic Cooper, Hayley Atwell, Charlotte Rampling. DAILY SHOWTIMES: 3:30, 6:30, 9:00
(9:00 show on Fri and Sat Only) “RELIGULOUS”(1 hr. 41 min., Rated
R). Bill Maher travels around the globe interviewing people about God and
religion. Known for his astute analytical skills, irreverent wit and commitment
to never pulling a punch, Maher brings his characteristic honesty to an unusual
spiritual journey. Directed by Larry Charles (“Borat”). DAILY SHOWTIMES: 3:00, 6:45, 9:10
(9:10 show on Fri and Sat Only) “FROZEN RIVER” (1 hr. 36 min.,
Rated R). Ray Eddy, an upstate New York trailer mom, is lured into the world of
illegal immigrant smuggling when she meets a Mohawk girl who lives on a
reservation that straddles the US-Canadian border. Broke after her husband
takes off with the down payment for their new doublewide, Ray reluctantly teams
up with Lila, a smuggler, and the two begin making runs across the frozen St.
Lawrence River carrying illegal Chinese and Pakistani immigrants in the trunk
of Ray's Dodge Spirit. DAILY SHOWTIMES: 3:15, 7:00, 9:15
(9:15 show on Fri and Sat Only) COMING SOON – SECRET LIFE OF BEES Enjoy, TODD J. SHILL, ESQ.
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