iluv2viddyfilms
01-15-09, 11:14 PM
Colour Me Kubrick (2006, Brian W. Cook)
http://media.movieweb.com/galleries/2814/2708/lo/co6.jpg
Quick. Name your top 10 favorite film directors. Most film buffs probably can and they can also go on to list out their films and actors that stared in those films. Give those same film buffs a photo collection of 100 film directors and ask them to correctly label the photos of their 10 favorite directors. I doubt many of them could. Of course they would label Scorsese, Spielberg, and Hitchcock correctly. They would probably get Godard, Kubrick, and Chaplin (out of makeup). Could they identify Fellini, Tarkovsky, or Robert Altman? Who among them would know what in the world David Lean even looks like.
My point? Going into the film Colour Me Kubrick you might shake your head thinking how implausible could this thing be and how idiotic are these people who belieive that a man impersonating Kubrick, who looks NOTHING like Kubrick, could actually be Kubrick. I would bet many people. We think of words with directors not faces as we do with actors. We think of titles with directors. It can apply to any position behind the camera. Any 13-20 year old who's ever walked in Hot Topic knows the name Danny Elfman. I would bet a year's salary that less than 10 percent of them would be able to identify him out of a lineup.
CoLour Me Kubrick is based on a true story and it's a film that I can buy into. It's a remarkable film, not just because of how it was made (just listen to the sampling of music from various Kubrick films), but simply because of the subject and any creative flourishes imbelished onto the subject by actor John Malkovich. In Colour Me Kubrick we the viewer pretend to ourselves that we believe John Malkovich who is pretending to be Alan Conway who is pretending to be Stanley Kubrick is real. This is one of the most Malkovichian films I have ever seen. Between the exotic costumes and homoerotic posturing, it's a role perfectly tailored towards his talents.
The single best moment in the film comes when Conway asks a man in the bar if he once made a movie with him. The man says he doesn't think so, but would accept a Jack Daniels if Conway bought him one. The conversation goes on for a few seconds more. Conway lies to the man and says he's Kubrick. I won't tell you the rest, but keep in mind Kubrick wasn't the only Stanley making great movies.
And speaking of great movies Colour Me Kubrick is certainly not one. It is a film that is a required film for anyone who considers themselves a Kubrick afficionado. It is an enjoyable film. It is a bizzare film. It is a clever film. It is a film I would gladly watch again. It is a film you, may not enjoy. I did.
Grade: B
http://media.movieweb.com/galleries/2814/2708/lo/co6.jpg
Quick. Name your top 10 favorite film directors. Most film buffs probably can and they can also go on to list out their films and actors that stared in those films. Give those same film buffs a photo collection of 100 film directors and ask them to correctly label the photos of their 10 favorite directors. I doubt many of them could. Of course they would label Scorsese, Spielberg, and Hitchcock correctly. They would probably get Godard, Kubrick, and Chaplin (out of makeup). Could they identify Fellini, Tarkovsky, or Robert Altman? Who among them would know what in the world David Lean even looks like.
My point? Going into the film Colour Me Kubrick you might shake your head thinking how implausible could this thing be and how idiotic are these people who belieive that a man impersonating Kubrick, who looks NOTHING like Kubrick, could actually be Kubrick. I would bet many people. We think of words with directors not faces as we do with actors. We think of titles with directors. It can apply to any position behind the camera. Any 13-20 year old who's ever walked in Hot Topic knows the name Danny Elfman. I would bet a year's salary that less than 10 percent of them would be able to identify him out of a lineup.
CoLour Me Kubrick is based on a true story and it's a film that I can buy into. It's a remarkable film, not just because of how it was made (just listen to the sampling of music from various Kubrick films), but simply because of the subject and any creative flourishes imbelished onto the subject by actor John Malkovich. In Colour Me Kubrick we the viewer pretend to ourselves that we believe John Malkovich who is pretending to be Alan Conway who is pretending to be Stanley Kubrick is real. This is one of the most Malkovichian films I have ever seen. Between the exotic costumes and homoerotic posturing, it's a role perfectly tailored towards his talents.
The single best moment in the film comes when Conway asks a man in the bar if he once made a movie with him. The man says he doesn't think so, but would accept a Jack Daniels if Conway bought him one. The conversation goes on for a few seconds more. Conway lies to the man and says he's Kubrick. I won't tell you the rest, but keep in mind Kubrick wasn't the only Stanley making great movies.
And speaking of great movies Colour Me Kubrick is certainly not one. It is a film that is a required film for anyone who considers themselves a Kubrick afficionado. It is an enjoyable film. It is a bizzare film. It is a clever film. It is a film I would gladly watch again. It is a film you, may not enjoy. I did.
Grade: B