40 Film Challenge: Week 6 (5-18-2020)

Editor's Note: After re-consideration, "The Girl" (2015) is being replaced with "The Master" (2012).

WEEK 5: "I STILL HAVEN'T FOUND WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR"

U2’s aching rock ballad rocketed to the top of the charts in 1987. Named after the U.S. location that became a favorite of theirs when touring, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” became the anthem for wondering what lay over the horizon, much like one would feel staring into the open, rocky spaces of Joshua Tree National Park. All of us, in some way, are searching for meaning in our life, and so it feels like a perfect theme for this week’s batch of movies.

Many of these films connect back to other movie’s in this challenge: Spielberg honed his fun-house sensibilities with “Raiders of the Lost Ark” before wowing us with “Adventures of Tin-Tin,” and the script for Sorkin’s “Steve Jobs” bares many similarities to his script for “The Social Network.” Paul Thomas Anderson, director of “There Will be Blood,” is also back on the list with his movie “The Master.” This helps bring the idea of “searching” to the forefront not just onscreen, but behind it as well. What are creatives looking for when revisiting ideas they’ve explored before? How do those searches match the characters’ wants and needs? And while some searches don’t yield the expected outcome, does any search really ever turn up empty?

CLASSIC:

“Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981)

Written by Lawrence Kasdan Directed by Stephen Spielberg Genre: Adventure

The first installment in this iconic franchise initially didn’t present the main character’s name in the title, but Harrison Ford exudes so much charisma that it was plainly obvious to have all future installments bear the name “Indiana Jones.” But the real star of this film is Steven Spielberg's natural ability for spectacular showcases. Set-pieces unfold like elaborate Rube Goldberg machines, with every action resulting in another. Spielberg leaves no stone unturned in his scenes when finding dilemmas for Indiana to figure his way out of, and Harrison Ford’s charming mug is the perfect palette for a wry smile before taking it on the chin. Dr. Henry Jones Jr. would go on to find lots of other awe-inspiring artifacts, but his search for the Lost Ark still stands as his greatest adventure.

NEW CLASSIC:

“Steven Jobs” (2015)

Written by Aaron Sorkin Directed by Danny Boyle Genre: Drama

Aaron Sorkin has always had a weakness for the “One Man” archetype: the male hero who’s vilified for his exceptionalism yet changes the world regardless. His subversion of that is part of why “The Social Network” is so brilliant, and while “Steve Jobs” features another industry titan beset by assholery, this one’s more down the middle in its admiration of Apple’s founder. However, the movie still ends up being tremendously moving, because its not really about how a guy makes computers good, but about our relationships with our beliefs and how they sometimes conflict with being human. Michael Fassbender puts on an acting clinic in this movie, imbuing real ethos into Sorkin’s rapid-fire dialogue with dizzying panache.

DEEP CUT:

“The Master” (2012)

Written by Paul Thomas Anderson Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson Genre: Drama

As if we needed another reminder that Phillip Seymour Hoffman has left us far too early, it’s impossible not to watch his thunderous portrayal of a mid-century cult leader and wish we still had him around to captivate us. Based loosely on Scientology’s founder L. Ron Hubbard, Hoffman’s Lancaster Dodd absorbs Joaquin Phoenix’s Freddie Quell, a twitchy outsider afflicted with PTSD and a gift for making moonshine, into his burgeoning “religion.” Paul Thomas Anderson shows us two different searches for meaning: the growing body of believers who slowly feel suffocated between faith and independence, and the two men at the center of it who negotiate the powerful, undefined connection between them. PTA’s cinematography is one again marvelous, bringing the scope and texture of film stock into small and intimate spaces.

OUT THERE:

“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” (2010)

Written by Michael Bacall, Edgar Wright Directed by Edgar Wright Genre: Action, Comedy

“Scott Pilgrim” is one of the few movies that was truly ahead of its time. Released ten years ago to lots of head scratching from everyone besides director Edgar Wright's loyal followers, this hyper-stylized homage to nerd culture spent the last decade waiting for the media-saturated Gen Z to discover it. The first viewing of this movie is a lot: characters zip in and out of frame, quippy puns come fast and loose, kung-fu battles are accentuated by onscreen onomatopoeia and fuzzed-out garage rock anthems. But none of it is random or shaggy; every shot, edit, and moment is meticulously constructed, always to hilarious effect. At the center of all this is Michael Cera’s Scott Pilgrim, the soft-chinned lady killer looking for someone who’s baggage matches his own, who provides a stark dollop of ordinary insecurity to anchor the insanity around him.

KELLY’S PICK:

“Frances Ha” (2013)

Written by Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach Directed by Greta Gerwig Genre: Drama

“You look older, and yet less mature” muses one of the many random persons that Frances Ha, a late-20’s dancer-in-progress, would expect to meet living in the Big Apple. She knows it shouldn’t bother her, but it does, and that’s the crux of what Noah Baumbach’s film is about. Frances might be a late bloomer, but she still wants to be a voice that stands out in the endless sea of everyone else, even if only in a small way. This big-city coming-of-age story is well-worn territory, but Baumbach’s black-and-white photography provides a classic mood that pairs perfectly with Greta Gerwig’s irresistible effervescence. “Frances Ha” is a pop-song: simple, sweet, and catchy as hell.

BONUS:

“Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” (1989)

Written by Jeffrey Boam Directed by Steven Spielberg Genre: Drama

Yes, we’re double dipping into “Indiana Jones” this week, but why not with our theme of “searching”? Dr. Jones goes searching for his father, Dr. Jones (a magnificent Sean Connery), who was taken hostage by the Third Reich during his latest effort in his lifelong search for the Holy Grail. “Raiders” is still the better movie, and it laid the groundwork for everything this film builds from, but “Crusade” gives us some of Spielberg’s best, most eye-catching work. From an extended chase scene on a tank, to Indy’s desperate navigation of an ancient, booby-trapped sanctuary, this is the stuff that will be on Spielberg’s ballot for hall-of-fame greatness. At the end of the movie, with the Grail lost to a crumbling temple behind them, Indiana asks his father what he found after it's all over. “Illumination,” he responds. After watching a movie this satisfying, it's hard impossible to disagree.

BONUS “COMMUNITY” EPISODE: 

“Cooperative Polygraphy” (Season 5, Episode 4)

While this was the episode I intended for next week, it feels best to share it now considering the cast recently reunited to do a table read of the episode for charity, followed a wonderful Q&A. The virtual coming together was a blast, especially because the episode they chose still stands as one of the best in the series. In order to receive bequeathments from Pierce after he passed, they must first undergo a lie-detector test. Like other episodes I’ve selected as “best of’s”, this episode is just the characters around a table, and while the premise feels hokier than other tabled-based episodes at first, but it quickly becomes one of the best dramatic conceits the show had every come up with, as it effectively forces all the characters into a spiral of accusations and admissions. It’s one of the funniest the show has ever produced, and it also pivots in one of the most sentimental. Pedro Pascal proved a more-than-able replacement for Walton Goggins in the reunion, but Goggins is still the MVP (and make sure to stay during the credits to get the full payoff for his character).