Movies in 2026 189

 

Lately I've been focusing on my DVD collection, considering that the Criterion Channel will take up less space in my suitcase than thirty DVDs. The question of how many books we're going to bring overseas is a constant discussion point between Janet and myself, and, while she's more horrified by culling books than I am, she's also done a much better job getting started on the process. Recently I upgraded to a new Kindle and purchased some more books, with the notion of, at least initially, I'm going to try and survive on my Kindle with only a couple books making the trip (with other being slow-shipped). But what about DVDs? I watch so many movies on the Criterion Channel which also exist happily in DVD format in my movie cabinet, many of which I bought from the Criterion Collection, which begs the question of whether I need to bring them overseas in a timely fashion. This is especially true when you factor in the region differences with DVD players. However, some of my favorite movies do not live on the Criterion Channel, and thus they will have to make the trip. For instance, it is inconceivable that I won't watch Local Hero at least once or twice a year for the rest of my life, and thus it will have to hide away in my suitcase. Another example would be Hal Hartley's first trilogy, the so-called Long Island trilogy (The Unbelievable Truth, Trust, and Simple Men), which shows up occasionally on the Criterion Channel, but usually is not there, so my boxed set has to come along. Now, a more complicated question would be Hartley's second trilogy, the Henry Fool trilogy. I've never warmed to it in the same way I did the original, although that may also be a testament to my mad love of those three early Hartley classics. This brings us to the first film in that trilogy, Henry Fool. The cast is classic Hartley: Thomas Jay Ryan (as Henry Fool), James Urbaniak (Simon Grim), Parker Posey (Fay Grim), Liam Aiken (Ned), etc. It focuses on the chaos that ensues when reprobate Henry Fool arrives in town and immerses himself in the Grim household, convincing Simon to become a great/terrible/popular/influential poet and bedding down Fay. Like all Hartley films, it has its own brilliant and inexplicable logic and timing and ending which make no sense and perfect sense. I universally recommend all Hartley films, but if you're not familiar with him I wouldn't start with this film or trilogy, because it simply doesn't have the magic of some of his other films, and then you might not get around to watching those films, which would be much more than merely a pity. So, I will recommend it, but with that disclaimer.

A Dream Which We Cannot Always Perceive

 "In the people we love there is, immanent within them, a dream which we cannot always perceive but which haunts us."

Marcel Proust, In Search of Lost Time (Finding Time Again)

As I mentioned the other day, I'm now well into Finding Time Again, the seventh and final volume of the latest Proust translation, In Search of Lost Time. My first four readings of Proust were of the older Remembrance of Things Past translation, so it's been a treat to be introduced to the new translation. As I was saying to a friend of mine, one of those rare Proustians (we tend to find each other magnetically), I don't speak French so I'm not qualified to say whether or not this translation is better, although it is definitely acclaimed. Some of my favorite passages "disappeared," that is, the specific translation I had memorized, was rendered in a different form. Similarly, there are now passages in the new translation, which I guess were there in spirit previously, but which now jumped out at me even more dramatically. This brings me to the passage above. If I had more time right now I'd delve back into the older translation and spirit out the other version, but I'm way too buried at the moment. It would be interesting to see if I tagged it as dramatically as I did this one. As usual, Proust is spot-on. The person that we love is never simply that person, but the dream that surrounds them, of which we, at that moment, aren't really aware. Sometimes I think the nature of reading Proust is patiently working your way through another social gathering until you reach another life-altering observation.

Movies in 2026 188

 

Dune: Part 2 (Denis Villeneuve, 2024) 

Last night was movie night down at Gary and Ali's, which, of course, made me incredibly happy. A couple weeks ago we watched the first installment of Denis Villeneuve's Dune trilogy, and yesterday we moved on to Dune: Part 2. I liked the first one (generally, I like his films quite a bit) and I liked this one as well. They're so beautifully filmed. My main problem with it is that I think both films, but especially this one, overplayed an Arab fanaticism aspect and downplayed the Islamic mysticism/faith aspect. A similar accusation could be made against Herbert's original work, although I would argue that he doesn't play up the former and more richly explored the latter. I suspect this is much more a condemnation of Hollywood (and Western culture) than it is of Villeneuve himself. The Chani character is pretty far afield from the novel, but that may be more a case of plot positioning. You should give both of them a view. 

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Finding Time

 I'm finishing my latest re-read of Proust, which of course makes the cats happy because it required long stretches of not moving and close reading - and thus fulfilling my true destiny as glorified cat furniture. It helps that Janet is still out of time, and thus their options are more limited.

This should either be labelled, "Retirement" or "Why God Invented Metaphor."

Movies in 2026 187

 

Goldfinger (Guy Hamilton, 1965)

I went ahead and finished off the three films that comprised the Criterion Channel's early James Bond movies collection. Guy Hamilton's 1965 Goldfinger is a lot like Dr. No, that is, two bracketing movies that are much, much weaker than From Russia With Love. You would think that after From Russia With Love you'd have the series figured out, but some studio executive decided that they needed more lasers and time spent in Kentucky, so here we are. There's nothing that I could say or not say that would make you watch or not watch a James Bond movie, but it's pretty forgettable - although doubtless I will watch it again sometime before I shuffle off this mortal coil. 

Movies in 2026 186

 

Where the Truth Lies (Atom Egoyan, 2005)

It seems that I've seen a few mediocre if not wretchedly bad movies lately, which is certainly not part of the plan. However, just as last year's recording of everything I read, I'm trying to be honest and not gloss over my reading/viewing habits for the year.  The other night I decided to give another chance to a movie that I had watched a few years ago and truly disliked: Atom Egoyan's 2005 dud Where the Truth Lies. It popped up on the Criterion Channel as disappearing at the end of June (it was part of an Atom Egoyan collection) so I thought I'd give it a re-watch before it disappeared into the ether. I think I may have disliked it more the second time. I think it's supposed to be a sexually charged murder mystery, but it's really just a mess. Kevin Bacon and Colin Firth play a Lewis & Martin team who are popular in the 1950s, and there's a dead woman shows up in their hotel room, and the mystery is not solved, sort of, until the 1970s. Allison Lohman, who played the reporter, received a fair amount of critical scorn for her performance, but she's far from the biggest problem with this utter misfire. I guess the thing that bothered me the most is that this is Atom Egoyan, FFS (this makes his film Chloe seem like a towering cinematic success). It's just so difficult to reconcile this effort with the Atom Egoyan who directed The Sweet Hereafter and Exotica and Calendar and Family Viewing, etc. I saw that it was based on an novel by Rupert Holmes, and I suddenly thought, "Wait, not that Rupert Holmes the guy who wrote the Pina Colada Song and Timothy (the cave-in cannibalism song, which I still passionately argue is the worst song ever written)?" Yes, that Rupert Holmes. I'm happy he's making a living, but, wow, that's a heavy weight of cultural degradation that he's forced to carry around. Anyway, do not, under any circumstances, watch Where the Truth Lies. 

My Italian Tutor

 Thank god I have some help with my Italian or I'd never learn the language.

Note to self: Don't try to learn Italian around mealtime.