Audience Member
Overrated social satire.
Rated 2/5 Stars •
Rated 2 out of 5 stars
02/27/23
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Audience Member
LOVED IT! I can't say exactly why. It reminded me of my life and of how much I want to live in NY. Both leading actors are amazing.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
01/18/23
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Audience Member
With both hilarious satire and gentle emotional authenticity, the filmmaker, Zeina Durra, really gets the texture of young upper-class expats living in New York. She shows, on one hand, the freedom quite particular to New York City, where nationalities mix, where classes confront each other in much more ambiguous circumstances than wherever back home is, and where everyone you know is engaged is some sort of vague, self-obsessed pursuit of accomplishment --all amidst endless taxi and limo rides to the next coolest place, where you only ever stay for five minutes. On the other hand, the movie captures the way that , when you come to America, you feel as if you're in a place where the wars, the struggles, the serious business of other places, somehow get sucked into a bubble that you can look at, but not touch. Durra does an admirable job of gathering these stray pieces together to show the strange, restless state in which her characters live.
The critics speak about the influence on Durra's work from Whit Stillman's films--which I love, and which always make me laugh out loud. She certainly has learned from his marvelous ability to capture social nuances and the characteristics of class and nationality, and to satirize them with an utterly straight face. The difference, I think, is that Stillman always remains slightly aloof, maybe even slightly aghast at his characters (or am I just projecting?), where Durra approaches them here with more compassion. She eventually lets you see the substance behind characters that start out as utterly frivolous.
I'll certainly be looking for Durra's next film.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/04/23
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Audience Member
Another art film I was able to see at the Cleveland Institute of Art's Cinematheque. I knew nothing about it beforehand besides the blurb printed in the Cinematheque's calendar, which said it was inspired by the films of Whit Stillman. And that didn't help me out because I am not familiar with his films. Anyways, I gave it a shot and found it funny at times. Usually funny in the way that reality shows are funny because it is awkward watching spoiled self-important types show off how spoiled and self-important they are. There is a heart buried under the story of these glamorous hipster types though too. Elodie Bouchez as Asya is an artist born in France whose parents are of Middle Eastern decent. She learns that an ex-boyfriend was possibly abducted or at least has been prevented from leaving the Middle East when a military coup occurs. In a post-9/11 world the CIA suspects nearly everyone of Middle Eastern decent of potential terrorism. The ex-boyfriend's brother Karim still lives near Asya in Manhattan and is protective toward her. Asya's friend Tatiana was engaged to marry the ex-boyfriend very soon. Will he survive? Will he make it home to America? While all this is worrying Asya she goes about her life. After an art show including some of her work, she meets Javier, played by Jose Maria de Tavira, a Mexican law student. As they become closer, their circle of friends (and humorously whoever else wants to latch on to their young ritzy life) continue to go clubbing where there is always one friend too drunk to get home or to the next bar alone. The chemistry between Elodie and Jose is strong as their relationship develops. They laugh when they go on a date to a dance recital, just the two of them, because the dance is impossibly pretentious, but they seem unaware that their lifestyle is often just as pretentious. The pace and story challenge expectations in a good way, but I didn't always find it very meaningful.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/01/23
Full Review
Audience Member
http://www.clevelandmovieblog.com/2011/10/imperialists-are-still-alive-october.html
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
02/27/23
Full Review
Audience Member
This is a psuedo intellectual mess of that is way too pleased with its own perceived cleverness. Elodie Bouchez, despite her obvious physical beauty, is annoying as a pouty supposedly daring artist. The story is disjointed not because it is trying to make a stylistic point but because of the poor construct of the screenplay and the message it is trying to make is lost in all the pointless dialogue and the bad acting. Ironically Zeina Durra makes fun of plays and artwork that are exactly like her own work. If you want proof that the imperialists are still alive just read the news and save the 91 minutes needed to watch this rambling film for something more fruitful, like watching paint dry.
Rated 0.5/5 Stars •
Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars
02/24/23
Full Review
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