REVIEW: Boogie Woogie's Art-World Satire Sails Wide of the Mark
Though aspects of the transplant from the New York to the London art scene work well -- a fleet of blood-baited American sharks swimming around seems fitting -- the temporal shift leaves what aspires to be a cutting-edge satire looking a little dated. The film's central contemporary artist is an up-and-comer named Elaine (Jaime Winstone), a heartless lesbian documenting her every heartless lesbian move (including the shivving of her loyal agent, played with great verve and sympathy by Alan Cumming) with a camera for the purposes of a "brave," "real" video installation. If the idea that gets everyone around her so excited seems about 10 years past its prime, it's because it is.
Ward fights directorial vertigo in his search for a satisfyingly wicked rhythm: Huston works his robotic chuckle until it moves from terrifying to tiresome; a farcical seduction scene involving Jean and a young artist (who later repeats his "come and see my etchings" routine with Paige) fails to surprise. Also skewed is the film's (ostensibly provocative) running observation of an artistic elite obsessed, like everybody else, with giant breasts. And yet the strength of the cast -- particularly Anderson, who has a grand, tremulous time playing an exquisitely ridiculous matriarch -- carries the viewer along without too much complaint. Neither a wholly realized satire or a successfully drawn ensemble piece, Boogie Woogie's got the moves but can't quite find the beat.
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this sounds like the way we do it in Queensland as well.
My first taste off Danny Houston was "30 Days of Nights" where he played a very convincing and somewhat scary Head Blood Sucker of a band of vampires who have their shit entirely too together. Then here he was in this gas pain. I mean I saw the plot. I didn't really see how anyone could give a crap but I did get it. I was getting ready to end the agony for a short run with tacks in my shoes but then, yes there she was, the stolen Gillian Anderson who has proven her versatality and talent time and time again by bringing a cold edged vision from a piece of paper into a living breathing and may I say incredible character that you had better follow. She's it. So I did.
Like a couple of other movies and to no small extent, The X-Files, she keeps it going. After watching Closure and knowing she did theater, I knew there was nothing she couldn't pull off. Her face is so striking and naturally beautiful that if you are not prepared you will have to go back and watch the whole scene she was in to get back on plot as you get your breath back. It's hard to believe that some lucky Dude holds hands with her everyday.
Aside from those two and Stellan Skarsgard who played a believable sadistic warrior king in Arthur, there was not much left that couldn't be figured out before hand. All in all I would give it a 5, A slight miss for the talent on board. As far as me refering to Gillian Anderson as being "stolen' I meant that we in the states have had to make do w/o her. Much of this post is about her. Watch the movie, I feel justified.I would like to see her come back stateside, make a couple more Block Busters then return and completely enjoy herself, her man and her children. Should she find herself single , she'd only need wait a moment, just give me time to find my keys and passport if needed.