Weekly Watches: July 10, 2024
Sharing Our Team's Recent Discoveries: Weekly Watches with 100 Movies Every Catholic Should See
Take Shelter (2011)
Directed by Jeff Nichols, starring Michael Shannon Jessica Chastain
By Mitch McCurren
After a hiatus from feature-film directing, Jeff Nichols has finally returned with this year’s The Bikeriders. This return had me wanting to revisit his 2011 breakout independent film Take Shelter, which is a slow-burn family drama that has one of the most memorable, ambiguous, and revelatory final scenes of any movie I’ve seen. The film follows the apparent descent of a father, Curtis, (Michael Shannon) into a mental health problem suggested to be schizophrenia. Curtis begins to have dreams and hallucinations that convince him of the imminent arrival of a storm of biblical proportions. While in some respects Curtis realizes he is having mental health issues, he nevertheless begins to sacrifice his family’s financial stability by becoming obsessed with building a storm shelter. This naturally causes there to be strife between Curtis and his wife, Samantha (Jessica Chastain). The final act of the movie takes the viewer on a whirlwind beginning with a devastating meltdown that Curtis has in front of much of their small town with him accusing them all of being unprepared for their impending doom. This is followed by a storm actually hitting the town, and Curtis and Sam sharing a cathartic moment. Most viewers would assume this to be the final scene; however, Nichols’ adds on a stunning coda that causes the viewer to reexamine everything that has just happened.
Take Shelter is wonderfully directed and features absolutely powerhouse performances from Shannon and Chastain. Some may find the slow pace somewhat of a drag, but I was consistently and thoroughly invested in what would happen to Curtis and the couple’s marriage with his mental health in decline. If the movie had ended where I thought it was going to, I would have been satisfied and impressed with a film that gives a spotlight on what something like schizophrenia could do to a marriage. I was also inspired by the way the film depicts a covenant based marriage with the true love and commitment Sam shows to Curtis in the face of certain public ridicule. The ambiguous final scene then takes the film to a whole new level. It provides a clever commentary on the nature of prophets and reveals to you how your presuppositions and biases could blind you to what may actually be going on. Surely many of the biblical prophets were labeled as crazy as Curtis. In this way Take Shelter serves as an effective parable on how many of us are likely to view a modern-day prophet. Take Shelter deservedly earned Jeff Nichols his breakout and the acting of the two leads is remarkable in a way that gets you thoroughly invested in this small family drama. Further, I love the discussions its ending prompts, and its themes about marriage, mental health, and prophets make it quite a unique and memorable film.
Fury (2014)
Directed by David Ayer, starring Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf and Logan Lerman
By
The Second World War has long enjoyed prolific treatment in film. 2014’s Fury represents another entry into this vast canon, yet it manages to vie for a unique position by focusing on the experience of a single tank crew, something that few previous have depicted. To this end, Fury is most effective. The premise is simple. Brad Pitt commands a team manning an M4 Sherman tank in the final days of the war as they face the maniacal onslaught of the Third Reich’s final desperate attacks. He commands a motley group of men, ranging from Shia LaBeouf who plays a straight-laced bible quoting gunner to Logan Lerman, a boy of 17 who, completely untrained, is thrust into the line of combat.
Fury shines through the relationships of the crew members, especially in the father-son dynamic which develops between Pitt and Lerman. If you’re able to look past some of the film’s conspicuous historical inaccuracies and embrace it as story of male brotherhood amidst the existential horrors of war, then Fury will deliver an enjoyable, and gripping narrative. Amidst the explosions and gore, a religious subtext becomes apparent, especially through LaBeouf’s character. Vastly outnumbered, and with the option to either flee and save their skin or stand in the breach and defend their unsuspecting army comrades from a surprise Nazi attack, LaBeouf invokes Isaiah 6:8 “I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me”. What becomes one of the main thematic strains of the film then is this notion of stepping up at great personal risk in response to what they believe is God’s call. These men choose to lay down their life for their brothers in an epic and emotionally charged final confrontation. For one who can stomach the intensity of a war film that does not shy away from some of the darker aspects of conflict, then Fury certainly merits a watch, especially in light of the Christian and biblical references throughout.
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
Directed by Wes Anderson, starring Bill Murry and Owen Wilson
By
Recently I did a mini-binge of Wes Anderon. I had already seen most of his films, but I wanted to finish off his filmography. Of the few of his remaining movies that I hadn’t yet seen, the one that surprised me the most was The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.
As you might expect, this film grabs your attention right off the bat with the usual Wes Anderson charm. What I didn’t expect, however, was just how emotionally poignant it would turn out to be. This movie masquerades as a “proverbial boat movie,” however, it’s really the story of a broken man and his son. While the hunt for the Jaguar Shark–which may or may not even exist–underpins the events of the film, it is really the smaller character interactions that matter. Riddled with quirky, fun, and unexpected moments (like the pirate attack that randomly happens part way through), I’d argue that this film more than justifies its almost-2 hour runtime–the longest of any Wes Anderson film yet.
Eventually though, no matter how important these small interactions may be, the “main” plot of the film, the hunt for the Jaguar Shark, must somehow conclude. As a bit of background, before the events of the film, while filming the in-universe documentary “The Jaguar Shark Part 1,” the so-called Jaguar Shark killed Steve’s best friend. Because of this, Steve declared his mission for “The Jaguar Shark Part 2” as finding, and killing this shark (with dynamite) for the sake of revenge. However, when the moment in the film where they actually find the shark arrives, the large crew of the Belafonte all sit in their submarine together and silently watch as the majestic creature swims around them.
I believe it is the small moments of beauty that typically set Wes Anderson films apart. Moments like this one make a fun and quirky movie about a semi-washed up oceanographer into something much more than I initially expected.
Discrete Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
Directed by Luis Buñel
By Charles Scott
Luis Buñel has been an intriguing filmmaker to me since I first discovered him. His filmography spans from the silent era all the way through the 1970's and he always seemed to be ahead of the game. This is now the fourth film I've seen of his and each of them has been vastly different from the previous one. Instead of something like his early Avant Garde picture with Salvador Dali, Buñel decided he was going to make a biting satire of high society, and did not pull any punches.
The Discrete Charm harkens to another classic French film calling out the upper class; The Rules of the Game. Discrete Charm isn't just a retredding of the same territory, but rather a satirical character study that uses dreams to tell us more about the characters and display increasingly crazier scenarios.
The premise is quite simple: the same group of 5 people continuously attempt to hve dinner together, but never get to actually eat as they are interrupted by various crazy acts. A lot of the humor feels stylistically similar to Iannucci's Death of Stalin, and almost always landed for me. The smoothness of this film and the pacing are quite excellent and just absolutely stunned me. I will continue to explore Buñel's career with the utmost enthusiasm.
Definitely recommend if you are looking for something a bit wacky and surreal.
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