Cinéfest '07: Elizabeth and Stuff

Sorry if this is weirdly-paced and incoherent. I haven't really had time to think about these movies, and I just wanted to get something down in words.

Unfortunately, this whole film festival week is not looking as promising as it did a couple days ago. I couldn't possibly be busier at school, so in between mountains of homework and organizing Spirit Week and the first school dance of the year, I've been trying to figure out a way to fit in some screenings and then time to report it all on this blog. (You readers are somewhere on my priority list, I swear.) So it seems like the only movies I will be catching will be the ones that I have definite tickets for, and I'll be going to the majority of those over the weekend.

The first movie I saw was on Wednesday, and it was Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth: The Golden Age, which, as you all must know, is the long-awaited (?) sequel to the Oscar-winning Elizabeth (1998). That movie is often attributed with the beginning of Cate Blanchett's career, and for good reason. Her performance as the young Queen Elizabeth I is by far her best performance, and nothing she's done since has been able to match the measured power and grace that she pulled off in her big breakthrough role. (I'm not the biggest Cate Blanchett fan in the world, to put things lightly. You may have noticed that already, seeing as how I don't drool over every thing that she does.)

Sadly, the response I got from The Golden Age was a big, resounding "So what?" The thing is, it suffers from that horrible generic biopic affliction. Because it's based on fact and history, it doesn't feel the need for careful and creative plotting. There is far too much time spent on the Mary Stuart subplot and the Queen's attempted assassination, especially considering they are completely forgotten about in the third act. It feels cheap that you spend an hour or so involved in one big story, only to find out a little later that it's completely irrelevant to the main action.

There's a lot of good things to say about the flick though. The production values are a mess of exquisite, breath-taking confections (costumes, sets, makeup, etc.) Remi Adefarasin's cinematography is absolutely to die for, carefully using natural lighting to beautiful effect. The performances are very good all around. Cate Blanchett has some moments of true transcendence, particularly the already-infamous "I too can command the winds, sir!" scene from the trailer; Clive Owen is dashing, charming and romantic; Abbie Cornish and Samantha Morton create interesting characters, but aren't given enough screentime to really stand out. Sadly though, Elizabeth: The Golden Age just doesn't measure up to the sum of its parts.

The other film I saw, which was only last night, was called Killing Zelda Sparks, based on the play Barstool Words and directed by first-timer Jeff Glickman. There's actually not a lot to say about it - it's pleasant for the most part, but probably focuses too much on setup and then the big pay-off at the end feels a little cheap. Still, it was really fun seeing some of my friends in their small roles up on the screen.

Movies coming up: Just Buried, Across the Universe, Reservation Road