Laura Linney and Gabriel Byrne star in JindabyneI had Jindabyne on my wish list long before Matt's A+ review, but that piece of wholesome praise (to put it mildly) only served to convince me that I had something special to look forward to. The reason I had my eye on this one is that it stars one of the most watchable actresses of her generation. Movie years nominations in 2003 and 1998, and an Actress of the Year award in 2000 for her simply stunning turn in You Can Count on Me, should tell you that I'm a fan. Linney is a totally captivating actress with great emotional depth, and there a few better than her working today. So with Matt's enthusiasm for Jindabyne and mine for Linney I went in to this with pretty high hopes.
To summarise the plot of Jindabyne you'd probably say 4 guys go fishing, find a dead body on their first day, but not wanting to spoil the trip they fish for a couple of days before contacting the police. The rest of the film follows the fall-out of their decision. Yet it takes a good hour for any of this to actually happen. The opening 60 minutes in which we amble along in the company of Linney, Byrne and co are not what I'd call gripping. There's no plot to speak of, the characters are not that interesting. Ray Lawrence's insistence in cutting every scene short with a fade to black had me wanting to put my fist through the screen. It's particularly galling on the 90 minute mark when it follows a major confrontation between Linney and Byrne - the best scene in the film. Instead of a lingering shot to let you take in the emotional gravitas of the scene, Lawrence has faded out around half a nanosecond after the last line of dialogue. I've just seen a film with a 4 minute static shot on George Clooney and it was fantastic. Oh to have those sensibilities rather than these. I recall now that he did the same thing in Lantana (at least I think he did) - I don't think I was particularly impressed then either.
Jindabyne is based on the Raymond Carver short story also featured in Robert Altman's Short Cuts. Now Altman is never one to rush a scene so automatically I enjoyed that more, but I think the main reason Short Cuts is far superior is the fact that it is based on a several Carver stories rather than just one. I don't think that Beatrix Christian has successfully adapted his short into a 120 minute feature. Apart from that slow first act, we have the presence of the killer popping up throughout the film, when he could have been excised completely and the film been stronger. But worst of all, a ludicrous 3 minute song at the girl's funeral that's just awful to sit through. And because there's too much padding here, Lawrence cuts short the genuinely successful scenes just to make room.
It's a great idea for a short story and does pose some interesting questions. Personally I don't find what the men did all that objectionable. The likelihood that the police would be in a better position to solve the case is slim so the only real ethical quandary is whether there's a family going through hell that need to be put out of their misery. For that reason they should have reported it immediately but maybe they didn't think of that. The allegations levelled at the men of racism or sexism are well wide of the mark, although Clare has a point when she asks if he'd have left a boy in the stream instead of a young woman. Somehow it seems a harder thing to do. I guess then that the men are guilty of ageism.
Jindabyne is out on DVD now.
C
9 comments:
Could not disagree more. Found this completely gripping from start to finish owing to the human drama, so brialliantly portrayed by the two leads and, in particular, the magnificent Linney.
Didn't notice the fade-outs at all, and it didn't detract from my enjoyment, so much did I love it. And the cinematography is truly stunning. Really want to see Lantana as well, but that might have to wait until I join lovefilm as my local videoshop sucks more ass than Marlon Harewood attempting a tackled in his own penalty box.
Also, re. the police investigation, I'm sure it's true that the longer a body waits unexamined, the more evidence is destroyed. True, in the water, there might not be much anyway but I think I'd feel pretty damn strongly about it if it was my daughter. In a way, too, the evidence is kind of beside the point, it's just a pretty horrific thing to do. As a keen fisherman myself, I wouldn't leave a dead body in the water even if I saw a British record Pike lurking in the weeds : )
And I think it really does leave a lot of questions open re. race and sexism - why does Gabriel Byrne's character come back and immediately try and have sex with Linney? Very strange actions for a man who has just found a dead body. I found it a hugely thought-provoking film that lingers long, long, after the final curtain.
Am very surprised actually. Thought you'd like this.
Have been shocking at seeing films recently, will definitely try to see some in the next week. Huge apologies, I suck!
Why does Byrne want to have sex with Linney? Maybe to feel like nothing untoward had happened. Maybe to feel alive. Maybe to feel as masculine as the killer. Maybe to feel that Linney is more alive than the dead girl. Maybe for affirmation that he didn't do anything wrong and that having sex with someone somehow proves that??? What are you suggesting? That he got a horny kick out of the dead girl?
I believe the men would have done the same thing had they found a 30 year old man dead in the water. Does the film make a strong case that their actions are sexist? I don't believe so. I do not believe that they would have rushed to call the police if the body was a white woman either.
I will be completely honest and say that if you could invent such a scenario where I would find a dead body on my way to a West Ham game and I had a choice of calling it in straight away and missing the game or watching the game and calling it in later, Dean Ashton and co would win every time. Every single time. If you came across someone in need of urgent medical assistance you'd drop everything and do all you can to help. I just don't see the big deal in leaving a dead body for a while (although 2 days is a bit much), and see the subject matter more fit for black comedy (as in Short Cuts) rather than serious critique on human behaviour (as Jindabyne attempted).
Also this really isn't Linney doing anything out of the ordinary. She's far superior in You Can Count on Me and even Love Actually.
Very surprised this is near your top 25. It's not even the best Autralian film I've seen this year.
Yes, I am completely suggesting that and it's certainly implied in the film itself by Linney's character. And I can tell you one thing from the bottom of my heart. If I had found a dead body (boy or girl, man or woman) I firmly and truly believe that the very last thing on my mind would be having sex the minute I got home, although I do have to admit that this has never happened to me so I can't say for sure. Schroedinger's cat and all that : )
I also think the film does make a serious ethical point. Whether the science is correct or not (we'll have to ask PC Court), the film suggests that the killer gets clean away because of lost evidence and this must at least be plausible from what I know about this (very little). What if the body had been dumped an hour or so before they found her? Though I'm pretty sure this wasn't the case in the film, will have to rewatch to think about this and the other issues you bring up.
Interesting point about whether they would have acted differently if it was a white girl or a black lad or a white lad. I don't think the film makes the case either way that their actions were racist or sexist but leaves it open for us to debate. Were they sexist or racist or are we the racist and sexist ones for thinking that they would have acted differently in the different cases thus imposing our own racist/sexist vaules onto them??? That's why I think it's so good. These questions are open and up for debate and, for me, that's one (though certainly not all!) of the criteria that helps to make a good film. It helps it to stay with you, helps you to question the characters and, as a result, to get to know them better, or at least think about them more. I think Jindabyne does this very succesfully and a lot more so than other films of its ilk.
We'll just have to disagree about Linney!
Another interesting point re. black comedy. I'm really interested in seeing Short Cuts to see how they dealt with the material.
Interesting opinions you have here. Anyway, would like to know how do you judge a film? Kind of interesting when you guys grading a film, especially when you have a different point of view.
Anyway, would like to know how do you judge a film? Kind of interesting when you guys grading a film, especially when you have a different point of view.
Hi. My only criterion for judging a film is whether or not I enjoyed it. I don't care whether the film makes me think, challenges me intellectually or has something deep to say about humanity (not talking about Jindabyne here). I know other people will have a "favourite" film which may not be the same as the film they think is the "best" of all time. For me "favourite" and "best" are synonymous.
Personally films that challenge abnd provoke thought happen to be far more enjoyable than other pictures anyway so I don't need to separate the two.
I actually think it is a bit of a cheat to not have your favourite film as the best of all time. I'll stand by the films I love and happily name Hannibal and Die Hard amongst the greatest films ever made!
I think Matt and I pretty much agree on this (that is what makes a great film rather than Hannibal being one of the best films ever made!)
Well, I know it is entirely subjective for every person. Personally, I define "good" films and "enjoyable" films. The great ones fall into both categories.
Example, I think "American Beauty" is a good, well acted, well written, and overall a well made film. I don't like watching it though. On the other hand,” Notting Hill” which is a normal romantic comedy, predictable plot, but I love watching it anyway. Then a film like “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” where I'm both entertained and amazed at the execution.
Just wonder if there is even a single film that everyone would agree is "great"….
There'll not be a single film that everyone considers to be 'great'. Just too many people that watch films for that.
No shame in loving Notting Hill. It is an exceptional romantic comedy and one of the finest examples of its genre. I liked it more than Eternal Sunshine.
Umhm...agree with you. Even in a small population like this blog, I doubt we could find just one film that everyone agrees is great.
Btw, just saw the tagline of Eternal Sunshine from IMDb...sad...
I agree. If you look down the IMDB list of 250 greatest films I doubt you'd find one that hasn't been graded 1 or 2 by at least a few people (though some of these could be malicious votes).
Sorry I missed this discussion earlier, some interesting thoughts.
I do agree with Adam on this, I have no problem in saying that Dumb and Dumber, Napoleon Dynamite and Caddyshack are excellent films alongside something much more thoughtful and philosophical like The Thin Red Line. It's all about what keeps you entertained and gripped, though different genres of films generally have different tools for doing this. Halloween is trying to do different things to you than Notting Hill but both most, surely, be judged ultimately on how far they keep you entertained and gripped to the screen. Some people think that horror films can't make great films because they're too one-dimensional and simplistic, I couldn't disagree more. It's just very very hard to make a film that's consistently scary and unsettling over 90 minutes (I can only think of 3 or 4 that have done this to me).
In relation to this, I think the really interesting thing about this site is that we might all be coming from the same starting point about films but yet disagree so strongly about which films are good and why.
I liked Notting Hill too by the way!!
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