Posts Tagged: Rob Marshall

Review: “Into the Woods”

into-the-woods-red-riding-hood

Since people are already asking me what I thought, here you go:

Cast:

  • Meryl Streep was lackluster.  Her opening rap lacked the big theatricality that number demands (much like the energy-sapped Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett.)  “Stay With Me” was better, and “Last Midnight” was actually pretty good.  Who could have done better?  My top choice would be Joanna Gleason, but Donna Murphy would do in a pinch.
  • Anna Kendrick was OK, but a few too many contemporary/AI-style scoops, and not enough real understanding of the lyrics and characterization in her songs.
  • James Corden was very good as the Baker as was Emily Blunt as the Baker’s Wife.  It’s a shame that Rob Marshall staged “It Takes Two” in such a goofy way.
  • The Princes were good!  “Agony” was funny, but could have been SO much funner with better direction.
  • Little Red Riding Hood was OK, but just over the line of being too Aspbergersy.
  • The role of the Wolf was completely wasted on Johnny Depp.  If they really needed him to get the film made, I suppose this how he could do the least harm, but hasn’t he destroyed Sondheim’s music enough?  “Hello Little Girl” is such a Ravelian blues masterpiece, and was a big missed opportunity.  Plus, his costume should have been wolfier.  He basically came off as a child molester, which I know is the point, isn’t art about disguising such things?
  • I’m not going to complain about Christine Baranski being in anything, but I would have preferred a Brit in her role (paging Joanna Lumley!) and in most of the others as well.
  • I could have sworn the giant was Matthew Crawley’s mother from Downton, but it turns out it was that woman from The History Boys.
  • Jack was good.  I thought it was really cute how he couldn’t say his ‘R’s.  Tracey Ullmann was a surprisingly good choice for Jacks’ mother.

Direction:

  • Everyone said that this is really a movie, but I’m not sure that I agree.  I thought the staging of the musical numbers was very theatery and generally weak, with a few exceptions, notably the duet of “No One is Alone” which I found very effective (and filmic).
  • There were way too many tight shots, especially at beginning, and many scenes were blocked in such a way that I couldn’t tell what was going on.
  • I did NOT like the ending, which was rendered too maudlin without the return of the bubbly score.  Yes, I know that it was in the credits, but sorry, that doesn’t count, and it sucked.  And I hated Cinderella’s final “I wish”.

Music

  • The score itself is, of course, a miracle and one of the great artistic masterpieces of all time.  Sondheim is like Beethoven for me, in that the most satisfying way to engage with his music is to read the score; no staging/filming/presentation could ever come close to the genius he put on the page.
  • I had no problem with the lack of the narrator and “No More”.  It’s a great song, but I’m willing to sacrifice it for the movie.
  • The key changes bothered me, especially when they occurred mid-song.
  • The additional music score added for the movie was pretty weak, certainly when compared to the Glory of Sondheim.
  • Did everyone catch that Easter Egg of “The Night Waltzes” from A Little Night Music being played at the ball?
  • Some tempi (especially the Witch’s numbers and “Your Fault”) were too slow.  I think they could have been just a notch faster and we still would have understood the words.
  • The orchestrations sounded true to the original overall, and of course Jonathan Tunick always fits Sondheim like a glove.  But I wonder what his name in the credits really means.  Did he actually do anything for the movie, or did he just hand over his original score sheets and let these people do their stuff?
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At the very least, I think we can be safe in our knowledge of what Daniel Bhattacharya’s contribution amounted to amounted to.

Overall, it was good, but not great, and certainly the best of the Sondheim film adaptations.  There were so many missed opportunities, and plenty of ways that they could have presented the music and lyrics in a way that would have elicited their inherent humor, charm and poignancy to greater effect.  I’d give it a solid B – definitely worth seeing, but do yourself a favor and listen to the Original London Cast recording.

Oh, and p.s. I was crying from start to finish just thinking about how tight the motivic construction of the score is.

The connective tissue is Penelope Cruz

Some thoughts on Los Abrazos Rotos (“Broken Embraces”) and Nine, two movies that I happen to have seen recently:

I had been wanting to see Los Abrazos since like 2008, or whenever it was listed on Wikipedia as Pedro Almodòvar‘s new project. That little wikiblurb was so enticing, because it promised both an homage to American noir and another start turn for Penelope Cruz.  I followed the progressive openings of the film as it made waves in Spain, France, across Europe and seemingly everywhere else except the US, my anticipation mounting and my expectations reaching monumental proportions.  By the time I finally got to see it, the movie actual move itself could only be a disappointment because it could never live up to the masterpiece that I had created in my mind.

And yet, it did.  This might be my favorite Almodòvar film, but I think I say that after every one that I watch.  But seriously, this one has everything you want from the man, from the luscious color palette to the engrossing plot twists and characterization to the near constant dialogue with cinematic history (including the history of Almodòvar’s own films!).

Plus it’s a killer score, which I already mentioned in an earlier post.  But now, just for the sake of comparison let’s look at Abrazos v. Inglorious Basterds, the two most recent offerings by two of the cinema world’s supposedly great auteurs.  Juxtaposed thus, it just becomes so obvious that Pedro is the way more serious filmmaker than Quentin Tarantino.  And I don’t just mean that his films are “serious” and Quentin’s are not – certainly both have aspects of humor and gravitas.  What I mean is that for two writer/directors who load their works with cinematic references, Pedro is the one able to seamlessly interweave his commentaries into the structure of the film, whereas Quentin handles the whole meta level with total heavy-handedness.

As for Nine, let’s just say thanks to Maury Yeston and Rob Marshall for making something not only palatable but actually ENTERTAINING out of Fellini’s 8 1/2.  Only the most extremely loyal of readers will know that I do not much go in for that particular film.  But when you mix in some peppy songs and a little pornographic choreography (,and of course stir,) the whole thing really comes to life!  Who knew?  Anyway, Penelope Cruz continues to amaze:

PLUS, the editing of Nine by Marshall & co. was featured on a very special episode of Barefoot Contessa.  Who wouldn’t like that?

In other news, relating more to me than to Penelope Cruz, rumors are flying that the Cleveland Orchestra, which is (was?) scheduled to come to my school is going on strike.  For us students down in Bloomington, this comes as a rather perplexing turn of events, since the general student attitude is that any musician who has a “real job” ought to hold onto it for dear life.

This is just a guess, but I suspect that it’s probably the old-timers in the orchestra who oppose the contract that’s on the table right now (5% salary reduction this year, restored next year, 2.5% increase in two years).  Back in the Szell days, Cleveland took an immense civic pride in its orchestra and treated the musicians as minor celebrities, certainly a rare thing for orchestra players.  It’s conceivable that anyone who lived through that period might be unwilling to face up to current social and economic realities.  But what a shame that they would have to deprive a hard-working bunch of student musicians of their expertise and inspiration.

Supposedly, we’ll find out late tonight or early tomorrow whether or not they actually plan to come (the rumor mill has it that they won’t), but either way, the whole affair leaves me with a sour taste.

PLUS, they’d also be depriving us of a chance to hear Thomas Adès’ Violin Concerto, which is I think one of the greatest pieces of the past decade.