Reviews (1)

"Quality Time" with a true "Legend"!!!
"Resident Alien" is a most wonderous experience! You feel like your right there as the camera follows Mr. Crisp all around New York and we get to see some private moments in the life of this "Living Legend". He is the undisputed "Father of Style", and for those who have never had the pleasure of spending time in this great man's company, this great film/video will at least give you the chance to feel as if you had. Quentin Crisp reigns supreme, as always... and he does know such wonderful people indeed! This is a true "FIND" and tribute to a man who never ceases to amaze. Bravo Mr. Crisp, Bravo!!! ... Read more

Reviews (7)

A powerfully affecting film, beautifully shot and acted
Rather than detail the specifics of plot and character (other reviewers have done this quite well), I'd like to express my gratitude to director Jonathan Nossiter and his superb leads, David Suchet and Lisa Harrow, for a film that shows us the small gifts that may come to every life--even the lives of those whose main achievements are that they have survived. Surrounded on all sides by the brainless offerings of popular culture, this beautifully shot and acted small film is a revelation.

An Amazing Piece of Recognition
The movie "SUNDAY." An amazing piece of recognition. Recognition of need and warmth counterpoised against the routine pretense of recognition which accompanied one's life in the past.

The woman has lived a long time with failure, with the illusion of promise which the future might bring. A new man, renewal of a career, that relationship which defies definition, but which can weave a magical web of mystery around the usual day to day events of life. The woman's question: I am still beautiful, I can act and speak and make audiences cry. Why am I left behind then, with my image worshipped still, at an altar which does not contain me?

The man has not lived so long with failure, is still enduring the shock of it, in jagged shots of vision-as a camera, flashing past sights no one ever wanted to see; persistent glimpses which go in and out of focus as in a dream, a nightmare-where eyeglasses produce a truth which eyes do not wish to see. His escape from truth, he can remove the eyeglasses and see nothing. Life has become a pile-up of trash, in rain spattered streets still blotched with late winter's snow. In spite of looking, your eyes refuse to grasp it, to integrate scene after scene with reason or meaning.

I watch the screen in amazement. I wonder how a story will emerge from the bad weather, bad views, bad tasting dark and light which tell the story of a fractured and blighted society. The society which we don't see or hear or care to see. Yet this bitter, broken place contains the music and the vital energy of all races, all nationalities. This energy, though misdirected at times, can still break through the clutter to beauty, unbelievably.

A bleak but interesting film about desperate people.
Jonathan Nossiter's 1998 theatrical release "Sunday" might take some critisism from some, but at least it could never be called un-original! Fueled by some great performances from older-actors Lisa Harrow and David Suchet (Hercule Poirot from the PBS series "Poirot"), I found this to be some downright intriguing cinema! On it's surface, "Sunday" is a story about mistaken identity - an out-of-work actress mistakes a passer-by on the street as a movie director she met once, and the man decides to play along with her - leading to a rather strange Sunday spent together. However, as the story unravels we start to see into the characters wounded souls, and we ulimately get drawn into their bleak and desperate world. The man is currently living in a Presbyterian homeless shelter (for reasons that are revealed late in the film) and the woman is living in the shadow of an off-balance and controlling ex-husabnd. Be forewarned, this film is not one to spoon out easy answers, and along the way you will really start to wonder about the character's thoughts and motivations - Why does the man so willingly play along that he is someone else? Does the woman REALLY believe that this skittish man is a famous film director, or she just playing a game out of loneliness? We know that the man is just acting a part, but is the woman acting too? (She is an actress after all, and her motives are a bit cloudy!) This engrossing story is wrapped-around a subplot that deals with the other men back at the homeless shelter, and often the two storylines play in a sort of strange counterpoint with each other. Look for an almost unrecognizable Jared Harris (who made quite a convincing John Lennon in the made-for-cable film "Two of Us") in a supporting part as one of the homless men. Director Jonathan Nossiter has a good visual sense, and he sometimes throws in some images and sounds that are downright disorienting to the viewer...but with good reason! Sometimes the camera's jump back and forth between storylines, almost haphazardly it seems. Sometimes the picture goes blurry, or our view is temporarily obstructed, as we see things through our protagonist's damaged eyes...But take my word for it, as you get drawn into the story ALL of this will make sense in the context of this unusally poetic film! Nossiter was also a bit brave to include what must be the most unglamorous nude scenes ever committed to film (Lisa Harrow's old and bruised body is not exactly what we're used to seeing in hollywood films!), but it's just one of the many things that makes "Sunday" all the more "real". Some viewers may be dissatisfied with the film's somewhat abrupt ending, but once you take the characters into consideration, the ending will make a lot more sense! If you want a movie that is dictinctly different...go for it!

Moving and Imaginative
This is masterful and precious storytelling about two middle-aged people: a has-been actress and a homeless man whom she's bumped into on the street and mistaken for a movie director. Intrigued, hungry, and lonely, he assumes this director's identity and they spend the day together, deceiving each other in the most loving and heroic ways. This movie must be watched over and over again, listened to carefully, savored. The poetic honesty of the two lovers and the plight of the homeless men in the shelter where the man lives are all interwoven and depicted so fleetingly, so powerfully, that you'll want to stop the tape and rewind it in several places just to get the full impact of the characters and how they influence each other's destinies. The scuzzy realism of the homeless shelter is juxtaposed beautifully with the lyrical speeches of the lovers as they woo each other with their individual stories about life and disappointment and lost youth. But, they haven't lost hope, and that's why I adore this film. If you want to see a small, beautifully crafted film acted by two world-class Shakespearean-trained British actors in the lead roles, I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

A good one.
A good one for those of you looking for an intriguing psychological plot set in a realistic style. Throw in a pinch of the unusual, a generous dose of pathos, a splash of sex, and ride along the edge of this winner. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

a tiresome, dull nightcap
I was excited to see this film and was utterly let down.This is not a cute movie about lushes; it shows that the wine industry is as cut-throat and gossipy as any other market.You would think the rich would be guarded.Throughout the work, I wondered why the interviewees allowed themselves to be interviewed.(It reminded me of my surprise that so many fashion industry gurus allowed themselves to be in "Pret-a-Porter.")The fact that Ronald Reagan's photo comes up consistently throughout this documentary is a sign that things won't be easy to watch.

Yes, it was fascinating seeing individuals and businesses battle between art versus commerce, tradition versus innovation, and regionalism versus globalization.When they add issues of class, religion, ethnicity, and linguistics, it only enriches the mix.Still, this was an overall disappointing work.

This documentary lacks a narrator.It encourages viewers to reach their own conclusions and read between the lines.However, this is one of the reasons why the work moves so slowly.Then again, it was far too long a documentary anyway.The comments can be a bit dull, so the work depended upon random things like an expert spitting out wine, canine flatulence, a shot of Brazil that had nothing to do with nothing, and even a soccer-style, brief winemaker flashing to keep viewers awake.The main French wine consultant here looked a lot like one of France's adult film industry stars, an equivalent to Ron Jeremy.

The camera work is jumpy.It was like watching an episode of "Cops" without the exciting car chases.The subtitles were white and against the summery landscapes and pastel colors, I had to struggle to read them.

The audience at the theater cracked up throughout the documentary.They must have had a lot of "vino" in them before coming because this work was dull to the third degree."The Corporation" is a much better, more compelling work. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Saved by the actors
Jonathan Nossiter's "Signs & Wonders" can't decide if it wants to be Ingmar Bergman's "Scenes From A Marriage" or Nicholas Roeg's "Don't Look Now". The amazing Stellan Skarsgard, who can skate effortlessly between "Dogme 95" and Hollywood without a slip, plays the married American businessman, living in Greece with his family, who is having a passionate affair with a co-worker (ice-queen Deborah Unger). Long-time art-house favorite Charlotte Rampling gives a believable, measured performance as the betrayed wife who eventually finds her own lover. Unfortunately,after the involving first third, the story meanders into too many dead-end directions. For instance,in one scene Unger drops a bomb on Skarsgard that hints at noirish intrigue and conspiracy, but this is never explored, nor mentioned again. An underlying theme of destiny, precognition and/or superstition is interwoven with the story, but if all the ominous foreshadowing is meant to point to the completely out-of-left-field "Bad Seed" ending, then the film is ulitmately false and little more than a pretentious excercise with pretty Mediterranean scenery. Skarsgard and Rampling have such great on-screen chemistry that one hopes they can work together again with better material. A guarded recommendation.

KWINKYDINKS AND BEYOND
More than sex, food or survival, we are creatures driven to find meaning in our lives (or so it's said by those who claim to know such things). A recent film that tap into that mindset, with varying degrees of success, is now available in a fine digital edition.

In SIGNS & WONDERS, the once happy 17 year marriage of Marjorie (Charlotte Rampling) and Alec (Stellan Skarsgard) comes undone and Alec begins making decisions based only on coincidences and superstitions.

Complex and strangely mesmerizing, this original film is especially unsettling as Alec ever more desperately seeks to understand signs that he believes will explain what is happening to him and give meaning to the tragedy that has befallen him, his adulterous wife and their two children. Special features include director Jon Nossiter's video diary.

Different and disturbing because it hits close to the desperate sanity we all share in our fragile and perilous world view.

(In)Security Guard --- and the human condition
I've never had an emotional experience while viewing a film comprable to that which overwhelmed me while watching Signs an Wonders. Strangely enough I was most moved by the scene of Skasgard entering the embassy. This was a minor masterpiece of taut directing, cinematography, and acting--I was strangely touched by the actor playing the security guard, who with only the slightest of gestures somehow conveyed the essence of the human experience. A must see for all serious lovers of the cinema.

A very good unconventional movie.
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I am a big fan of Stellan Skarsgard so my opinion is probably biased. ...I really enjoyed it. It's about a guy who makes some major decisions about his life based on superstitions and coincidences, and the affect it has on those close to him. He is constantly looking for signs around him and tries to understand what the signs are telling him about his life. It is a very complex movie, and you don't know whether to feel sorry for him or just dislike him. There are some twists and turns in the movie that keep you interested, wondering where they are going with the story.

... ... Read more