FISHING WITH JOHN: SEASON FIVE

After a small hiatus we're back! The theme of this season is "New York". Every guest this year is either a native New Yorker or got their start/made a name for themselves in the big apple. Like always, most of the guests are connected to John Lurie in some cool intimate way (with one exception), but they don’t all come from that no-wave/downtown early 80’s NYC art scene.

Enjoy…

EPISODE 501: Rammellzee

Rammellzee in Stranger Than Paradise

Relationship/connection:

1. Both appeared in Stranger Than Paradise together (although they were never on screen at the same time)

2. Both travelled in the same social circle (Basquiat, Jim Jarmusch, etc)

I’m not quite sure how familiar some of you are with the eccentric character known as Rammellezze, so let me just drop this video on you real quick…

Besides being a graffiti legend and just all around innovator/progressive thinker in the world of hip-hop, Rammellzee was a weirdo, and, as you can see, he dressed like a robotic Mexican luchador wrestler (I say “was” because today he’s no longer with us, but given that season 5 would probably take place around 1996, he’d be alive and well). This episode would be the most philosophical one yet. As Lurie & Ram sit alone in a boat fishing somewhere off a pier in Queens (where Ram is from), I imagine the two of them conversing on everything from painting (remember - Lurie is also an artist/painter) to existentialism. Rammellzee is known for being a deep thinker (in my opinion, he would have fit right in with Waking Life) so prepare to have your mind blown.  

EPISODE 502: Richard Edson & Thurston Moore

Sonic Youth (Edson & Moore on the left)

Relationship/connection:

1. Richard Edson & John Lurie worked together on Stranger Than Paradise

2. Like Rammellzee, I’m sure John Lurie & Thurston Moore were in the same social circle (they probably know each other)

3. Richard Edson is a former member of Thurston’s band Sonic Youth

For those that don’t know, Edson left Sonic Youth to pursue an acting career (Stranger Than Paradise was more than likely the movie Edson made first after leaving the band). I bet Moore & Edson hadn’t hung out since the 80’s so this fishing trip would give them a chance to hang out, catch up and talk about old times. I doubt Thurston would have any ill feelings towards Edson given that by the mid/late 90's Sonic Youth was a relatively popular band (kind of an important voice for generation X) and they had some pretty good rotation on MTV (again – this was 1996, so MTV actually played music videos by bands like Sonic Youth, Mud Honey, Dinosaur Jr., The Breeders, etc.)

EPISODE 503: Claire Denis & Vincent Gallo

Denis & Gallo on the set of U.S. Go Home

Relationship/connection:

1. Claire worked with Lurie on Paris Texas & Down By Law

2. Vincent & John came from the same scene

3. Claire & John have a lot of mutual friends/aquantances (Wim Wenders, Jim & Tom Jarmusch, Agnes Godard, etc) 

Around this time Claire would be releasing Nenette & Boni (which co-stars Vincent Gallo) so this would act as both promo for her film and a chance to catch up with her good friend John.

Claire (L) & John (R) during the filming of Down By Law (1985 or 1986)

This was right around the time when Vincent Gallo was starting to gain notoriety. He seems like a moody/unpredictable guy, so who knows what kind of rude/out of line comments he’d interject during Claire & John’s conversations.

EPISODE 504: Luis Guzman

Relationship/connection:

1. John Lurie did the music for Variety, which was one of Guzman’s earliest acting roles

*They would later go on to both co-star on Oz

Although Guzman hadn’t started working with Soderbergh or PT Anderson yett, he was still on character actor/”oh, that guy” status (by ’96 most people would recognize him for his role in Carlito’s Way). Luis Guzman is certainly a character on & off camera so I bet this would be the most comical episode of the season. I don’t mean to be presumptuous, but he doesn’t seem like much of a fisher, so it would be funny to see him out of his element. 

EPISODE 505: Hal Hartley & Parker Posey

Relationship/connection:

None that I know of.

In the season finale, we’d catch up with Hal Hartley who was probably one of the hardest working filmmakers at the time (between his debut in 1989 through 1996 he had six features and a ton of short films under his belt), and Parker Posey would be in the midst of her “it girl” status that she had in the mid/late 90’s in the world of indie film.
Fishing With John was produced by IFC so it would make sense that they’d wanna highlight an important indie filmmaker like Hartley who was on the brink of making one of his best movies (Henry Fool).

VARIETY

Bette Gordon's 'Variety', a movie that i missed at a one-time only screening at anthology film archives last week, is currently my favorite movie at the moment, no matter what other critics have said about it in the past. Even though the film may be somewhat rough around the edges, it completely captures the grittiness of early 80's new york city (an era that I've always been fascinated with). In fact, that "rough around the edges" feel to the 'Variety' actually adds to the films atmosphere, capturing the seedy & ugly side of nyc that the film explores. At the same time, its also one of the more "polished" films to come out of the new york underground/no-wave scene. 'Variety' is almost like an archive or a time capsule of modern American new york city independent film. A lot of key figures within that scene are featured in 'Variety' in one way or another: Cinematographer; Tom Dicillo, (who at the time was also Jim Jarmusch's cinematographer, eventually went on to become a prominent independent director), actors; Will Patton & Luiz Guzman (who we all know as one of the most recognizable American character actors working today) and musician/actor; John Lurie (another frequent collaborator of Jim Jarmusch, and pioneer within no-wave/jazz music) did the soundtrack. 'Variety' is another film in my (unofficial) on-going exploration of (usually non-traditional) female lead roles, under the direction of a female director.

In 'Variety', main character; Christine (played by Sindy Mcleod, who resembles a cross between a young mia farrow and a young cathy moriarty) takes a job working a ticket counter in a porno theater when she has completely run out of job opportunities. Once she takes this job, shes discovers a side of human beings (and herself) that she never really paid much attention too. This new found discovery/fascination of pornography, sexuality and the creepy side of human beings (who she comes in contact with quite often while working at the porno theater) causes a transformation within Christine.
In 'Variety', Bette Gordon reverses the gender roles, and puts a female lead in a typically male role. Through out the film, Christine does things that a woman wouldn't normally do in a film that takes place in early 80's new york city. She walks down alley's late at night by herself (once again...keep in mind this is early 1980's new york city), she goes on a date with a mysterious/shady guy that she hardly knows who frequents the porno theater that she works at (whom she eventually starts to follow, slowly turning the last half of 'Variety' in to a noir/mystery film). If a character like Travis Bickle from 'Taxi Driver' (which 'Variety shares a lot in common with in both; themes and in the main character) where to do these things, we wouldn't blink an eye or express that much worry about his well being. When Christine does these things in the movie, we're always worried and always on edge that something bad is going to happen to her (mugged, raped, murdered, etc). Bette Gordon further drives this point home with Christine's fascination in pornography. Lets be honest, we usually associate the consumption of porn with men. The only relationship we're use to women having with porn is acting in them. You don't expect a woman, especially an attractive, quiet, loner like Christine to enjoy porn.
Before i saw 'Variety', what drew me most to it were the stills and images that i saw on the Internet over the years. I didn't even bother to look up what the film was about. I just knew 'Variety' had to be a great film. The lighting and colors used in the images i saw reminded me of a Fassbinder film (specifically 'Lola'). 'Varitey' has this dark lighting & red-ish tint to it, which kinda adds to its dark atmosphere.

Variety

Fassbinder's Lola

'Variety' is considered to be a "cult movie" by many, but i wouldn't be so quick to group it in to a category of films that include; 'spinal tap', 'office space' and 'the texas chainsaw massacre' (which ARE all good movies, but still...). 'Variety' is a bit more serious (no matter how "unprofessional" some elements of the movie may to seem to others). Issues like; feminism, self exploration, loneliness and alienation (which are are explored in 'Variety') should be taken seriously. 'Variety' goes hand-in-hand with films like 'Red Road' (which i brought up in my review of 'Fear X') and 'In My Skin' (a film i reviewed last year on here as well). All three films have female leads under the direction of a female director. All three films show characters dealing with a side of themselves they never realized they had. And like i mentioned earlier, the (female) characters in these movies are characters that would have traditionally been played by a male. Whats also interesting is that both; 'In My Skin' and 'Variety' have climactic scenes towards the end of each film, that are very similar (in both movies, we see the female leads isolated in a room by themselves coming to terms with their new found fascination). Both films also show the female leads slowly start to isolate themselves from their (not-so understanding) boyfriends. Its almost like Bette Gordon and Marina De Van (director & star of 'in my skin') reverse the roles in the romantic relationships, and make the female the "males" of the relationships in the movie.
If you're a fan of any of the other films i mentioned earlier (taxi driver, red road, in my skin, the films of jim jarmusch & tom dicillo), you'll more than likely enjoy 'Variety'. It even shares some similar (visual) elements with other early 80's films like; 'Henry', 'Maniac' and Abel Ferarra's early work as well (specifically 'Ms. 45' and 'The Driller Killer').

BETTE GORDON: ROAD MOVIES

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Coming straight off the Amtrak train from Washington D.C. (that's right, i didn't even go home first to drop my shit off) i was able to make the last 2 nights of the Bette Gordon retrospective @ anthology film archives. What stood out the most to me from her body of work were her road movies.  First was her experimental film; 'United States Of America'. Although there is no (clear) dialogue between the characters, its pretty straight forward. The film follows a couple (Bette Gordon and her early collaborator; James Benning) on a road trip from the perspective of someone sitting in the back seat of their car. Watching this movie, i could see where Richard Linklater may have got some inspiration for his very similar first film; 'Its Impossible To Learn To Plow By Reading Books', which is another road movie where the director (Linklater) films himself on a cross country trip by way of train, making pit stops here & there to visit friends and wander aimlessly. If you can get past (what some may consider) the boredom and banality of 'United States of America' like; the long shots of the open road, the couple pulling off on the side of the road to switch drivers, the windshield wipers, the changing of the radio, etc, you'll soon realize that 'United States Of America' almost stands as kind of a time capsule of the 70's. In fact, the use of the radio is the main element that drives this home. Filmed in 1974 or '75, the radio switches in and out of different news stories and songs that capture the spirit of the 70's (specifically the news stories regarding the Vietnam war, and the use of Minnie Ripperton's 'loving you', which is a song that seems to follow them through their trip no matter what part of the country they're in). Gordon's experimental films of the 70's are quite different from her more narrative/straight forward work of the 80's up through the present day, but with 'United States Of America', you can see where some of the seeds were planted for the next road movie of hers that i saw; 'Luminous Motion'...

LUMINOUS MOTION

The back seat perspective of Gordon's 'United States Of America', almost makes it a prequel to 'Luminous Motion' (a movie that i saw for the first time on saturday night and instantly became a fan of). The film follows main character; Phillip, a smart 10 year old boy fascinated by science, on the road (or on the run depending on how you look at it) with his alcoholic/con-artist/prostitute mom, played by Deborah Kara Unger. At the introduction of the screening on saturday night, Bette Gordon commented that she was always fascinated by the "mother & son" relationship, and with 'Luminous Motion', she also wanted to make her own version of 'bonnie & clyde'. Even though i categorized this film as a "road movie", about less than a third of the film actually takes place in a car or even on the road for that matter. At one point in the middle of the film, it looks like Phillip and his mom are finally gonna settle down, but after a gruesome incident, they're back on the run. As the the story progresses, not only does the film start to get more and more dark (Phillip kills someone, his mom sinks in to a deep depression and wont get out of bed, etc), we start to piece together why he and his mom ended up on the road in the first place. We learn that his mother is actually a bit more complex than just the "alcoholic/con-artist/prostitute" that i labeled her earlier. And finally, we learn that Phillip doesn't have the best grip on reality. Through out the film, Phillip is both haunted & helped by the ghost of his mom's ex-boyfriend who Kasey may or may not have killed with a drill gun earlier in the film. He's also haunted by the presence of his father, who may or may not be real as well. Due to Deborah Kara Unger's usual soft spoken & sensual acting (also found in her performances in 'the game' and cronenberg's 'crash'), you cant help but sense some incestuous undertones between her and Phillip (from him rubbing lotion on her back and painting her toenails, to the scene where he spies on her having sex), which further drive home the point i made earlier about the film becoming more and more complicated and dark as it goes on. Of everything I've seen so far, this is easily my favorite film by Gordon (i still have yet to see 'Variety' though). The tone and atmosphere of the movie are reminiscent of everything from Wim Wenders to Alex Cox's 'repoman'. 'Luminous Motion' falls under many categories. Its a coming of age tale, part comedy comedy/part family drama and it even has elements of science fiction. This is one of the many forgotten about independent gems of the 90's that, thanks to anthology film archives, got its 2nd wind this past weekend. I enjoyed this movie so much, right after i saw it, i went around the corner to kim's video and bought the DVD. I think part of the reason that i enjoyed 'Luminous Motion' so much was because it had a similar vibe to other coming of age movies i love like; 'Parents' and 'The Reflecting Skin'. All of those movies combine elements of dark humor, the horror of childhood (which is actually a line from 'the reflecting skin') and family drama from the perspective of a child. Also, all three films focus on a child discovering things about adults (specifically their parents) that frighten them.

Luminous Motion

The Reflecting Skin

Parents

HANDSOME HARRY

While 'United States Of America' & 'Luminous Motion' have quite a few elements in common with one another, Bette Gordon's most recent film; 'Handsome Harry', doesn't really connect with her previous road movies. In fact, the only thing 'Handsome Harry' has in common with the other 2  is that they all take place on the road. 'Handsome Harry' almost feels like the sequel to 'Young Torless'. Both are movies that deal with bullying and harassing gone too far within the military. In 'Young Torless', there's a scene towards the end, when the main character has the chance to help a fellow military student who's been harassed to point where its become sadistic, but he turns his back on him, and allows his fellow classmates to gang up on him and literally string him up. 'Handsome Harry' essentially picks up where that movie left off many years later. In 'Handsome Harry', a middle-aged electrician takes to the road to find his old navy buddies who he committed a hate crime with 30 years earlier against their gay navy mate. This film plays out like a cross between 'Broken Flowers' (a middle-aged man on a road trip trying to track down people from his past) and an episode of 'Law & Order: SVU' (the hate crime aspect of the film). As Harry tracks down each navy buddy, he learns that they have all been suffering or paying for their sin one way or another. One, played by John Savage, not only has sexual problems, but his son turned out to be gay. Another, has a paralyzed wife who was hit by a drunk driver, and he's had to take care of her ever since. And another one of his old navy buddies is dying from what i guess we're led to believe is some kind of cancer. What i liked most about the film was that even though i could see where the plot was going, i didn't expect the film to end the way it did (i mean that in a good way). The acting, which featured a stand-out performance from John Savage, almost seemed like stage acting, rather than film acting. And along with 'Young Torless', 'Handsome Harry' stirs up elements of Dennis Quaid's performance in 'Far From Heaven' (the repressed, masculine closet homosexual struggling with his sexuality).