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Entries categorized as “The Fourth Wall” 62 results
Kevin Fullam writesThe Fourth Wall: The Last Seduction
Welcome to The Fourth Wall, CHIRP's weekly e-conversation on cinema. This week's subject is the film The Last Seduction.
This edition is written by CHIRP Radio volunteers Kevin Fullam and Shawna Kaiser.
Kevin:
Hang on to your heart, your wallet, and your life -- if Bridget Gregory of The Last Seduction is in town, all three are at risk. Was it a victory for feminism to see a female cinema protagonist that was as ruthless as any male to grace the screen? Let's discuss...
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In the annals of Neo-noir, The Last Seduction may have traveled one of the oddest paths to glory. First aired by HBO in 1994 before the channel garnered its current status as a purveyor of high-brow television, Seduction was originally pitched as a throwaway "skin-e-max" (in the words of screenwriter Steve Barancik) flick. Lo and behold, a quality piece of cinema emerged, powered by a stunning performance from lead Linda Fiorentino as the aforementioned Ms. Gregory. The film was then ushered into the box office for a brief run (grossing over $5 million) and garnered a four-star review from Roger Ebert, who listed the movie on his Top 10 list for the year. However, despite generating serious Oscar buzz, Fiorentino was ruled ineligible by the Academy because the film had aired on cable before arriving in theaters.
The plot in a nutshell: Bridget is married to Clay (Bill Pullman), a shady would-be doctor who's dealing drugs in order to pay back a loan shark. After a big score, the couple quarrel; Clay hits Bridget, and she decides to hightail out of NYC -- with their $700,000. Bridget bunkers down in a suburb of Buffalo until her divorce goes through, while Clay (now in serious physical danger from Mr. Loan Shark) hires private eye Harlan (Bill Nunn) to find his wife and recover the loot.
Kevin Fullam writesThe Fourth Wall: Revolutionary Road
Welcome to The Fourth Wall, CHIRP's weekly e-conversation on cinema. This week's subject is the 2008 movie Revolutionary Road.
This edition is written by CHIRP Radio volunteers Kevin Fullam and Clarence Ewing.
Kevin:
The honeymoon is over. Now what?
Throughout much of Hollywood's history, it seems that marriage (especially the wedding) has been utilized as a feel-good capper on many a love story. It's practically a requisite for any traditional rom-com film, right? These tales are usually told from a female perspective*, where the heroine sets out to nab her beau, and the pair ride off into the scripted sunset, either just pre- or post-altar festivities.
[*though certainly not always -- but interestingly, similarly-styled relationship films with male leads (say, High Fidelity) are seldom referred to as romantic comedies.]
I've often wondered how much of an impact these messages have on our own desire to get hitched? The pressure comes from all sides in American culture: mass media, religion... hell, even the tax code subtlety encourages it. But for decades, scant attention was paid to the discarded husks of marriages gone wrong. And with a divorce rate estimated at around 50%, we have no shortage of fractured homes in the good ol' United States.
Celluloid has caught up in recent decades, with tales about the nightmare of child-custody battles (Kramer vs. Kramer), to the insanity of knockdown, drag-out enmity (War of the Roses). But I'm not sure that any film has done a better job of illustrating the Descent Into Marital Despair that's featured in Revolutionary Road.
Kevin Fullam writesThe Fourth Wall: Altered Carbon
Welcome to The Fourth Wall, CHIRP's weekly e-conversation on cinema. This week's subject is the Netlix series Altered Carbon.
This edition is written by CHIRP Radio volunteers Kevin Fullam and Clarence Ewing.
Clarence:
In the Netflix series Altered Carbon (based on the Richard K. Morgan 2002 novel), highly trained killing specialist Takeshi Kovacs is shot to death in a hotel room for some reason. But it’s OK, because in his world, human consciousness can be downloaded and transferred between human bodies, which are lovingly referred to as “sleeves.”
Logan... pardon me, Kovacs...is revived hundreds of years after his “death” to solve a rich man’s murder, because rich people can pretty much do whatever they want to whomever they want.
Along with a motley collection of allies/cyperpunk sidekicks, Deckard... sorry, Kovacs...has to figure out who killed the rich man who’s not really dead (because science) in order to win the freedom to wander around moping about all the violence stuff he’s done in his many pasts.
Kevin Fullam writesThe Fourth Wall: Black Mirror, Season 4
Welcome to The Fourth Wall, CHIRP's weekly e-conversation on cinema. This week's subject is Season 4 of the Netflix series Black Mirror.
This edition is written by CHIRP Radio volunteers Kevin Fullam and Clarence Ewing.
Kevin:
Here's a thought experiment, Clarence:
Imagine that you're in possession of a super-duper computer that is able to run those "simulated worlds" so often discussed among intelligentsia these days. (Summary: how do we know that we'renot living in a simulated world as opposed to "reality?" Answer: we don't.) You've got a thousand Clarence Ewings floating around in this magic box, all living out variants of your own life. However, here's the twist -- you can somehow drain their resources for your own use. Come down with a kidney problem? You can purchase pristine health at the cost of kidney failure for one of your sims. Short on cash? One of your sims suffers a financial calamity, while you reap the benefits. They won't have any clue as to why it's happening -- after all, bad luck befalls everyone sometimes, right?
Would you want such a device? What are the ethical obligations involved in dealing with these virtual beings? They may not be "real," but life sure does feel real to them... so, does the difference matter?
Kevin Fullam writesThe Fourth Wall: 2017 In Review
Welcome to The Fourth Wall, CHIRP's weekly e-conversation on cinema. This week's subject is a recap of the year 2017 at the movies.
This edition is written by CHIRP Radio volunteers Kevin Fullam and Clarence Ewing.
Clarence:
The calendar on the wall says 2017 is all done. Let's honor the film critics code and reflect on the year that was, shall we?