Nancy Stone

There have been many cinematic renderings of this tale, and I can’t remember if this one is the most true to Mary Shelly’s book, but this one was brilliant unto itself. Gorgeous and heartbreaking. And a perfect cast. Mr. Del Toro is my new favorite story teller.

This film is almost startling in its complexity. It’s about characters, black and white dealing with the changes following Rhodesia’s independence in 1980 and the election of Mugabe who will go on to betray his people in the new Zimbabwe. But this story is told by an eight year old, trying to understand who she is and the impact of the election on her white family and the farm that has bound them to the land. She has grown up with a fierce but mentally unstable mother whose love seems to be only for her land. The performances are all excellent, particularly those of the young girl and the mother, played by Embeth Davitz who also directed. The eternal questions around black and white claims to the land are almost overshadowed by this spirited little girl trying to understand her family along with the larger drama taking place around her. When it was over, I realized that I had hardly breathed for an hour and a half.

As only the Coen brothers can, the humorous and the grim are pulled together in ways that elicit strong and often competing emotions. At times hilarious and at other times riddled with the unmistakable Coen propensity for unanticipated violence, the movie is a roller coaster, but always clever and smart with that particularly wonderful dialogue that only the corns seem capable of today. Thank god for their wonderful movies!

This movie is a total train wreck that lasts well over two hours. If I could stand to watch it again, I’d watch to see how many times Elisabeth Moss and/or her fellow she rockers stick out their tongues. The music is TERRIBLE and there’s no reason to believe her band was ever any good or that she was a rock idol. It’s an insult to real girl bands, and,sadly, we’re clearly supposed to find the most banal lyrics to be profound. Her character is a narcissistic hate wielding totally self absorbed addict. On top of all that are her gurus and seances that her fellow rockers tolerate. But the question is why? She’s totally without talent and takes great pleasure in demeaning everyone around her. What’s glaringly missing is one good reason why ANYONE would put up with her for a minute. What a miserable waste of time.

I don’t watch the 11th hour to see a sexkitten with hair falling over one side of her face and showing cleavage almost every night. She wasn’t this bad before. She’s smart, but the glamour stuff gets in the way. Fortunately none of the other female journalists on MSNBC play this card. Really miss Brian Williams!