![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
verushka70So, my bf took me to see Little Ashes tonight. He said he wanted to see it because it's about Dali (we were both art students, once upon a time, long before meeting each other). [ I didn't know a THING about it, or even who was in it, which just goes to show how out of touch with pop culture I am lately. ]
But really, it turns out my bf just wanted to get lucky with me. Heh -- he learned so much from Brokeback Mountain. He no longer squirms through gay love scenes, either. (A) I got him used to it, and (B) he knows he'll be rewarded later. Good boy!
Little Ashes is actually a sweepingly romantic film in many respects, and the central romance is quite lyrically and beautifully filmed, at least initially. The actors are all very good, and their performances manage to capture youthful idealism and rebellion against the status quo and (later) fascism, the phases of the creative process for painters and writers (and how living and loving catalyze the creative process), the sweetness and poignancy of first and forbidden love, and the dysfunction of triangulated love. It manages to do this without being sickly sweet and sentimental, and also without being pessimistic and depressing the way Brokeback Mountain ends. The build up of the romance, the one-step-forward-two-steps-back aspects of its development, with its longings and desires -- yet recriminations and fears -- are also spot-on.
I have no idea about it's accuracy re: Dali & Lorca. I saw the film "Un Chien Andalou" for the 1st time in a history of cinema class in 1985, and I was blown away by the fact that it was made in 1929. I've watched it tons of times since and I still can't believe it was made in 1929. It was so far ahead of its time. It's also not for the faint of heart.
I did read about Dali somewhat while in art school -- though I was more interested in Luis Bunuel, because film was my art-school major. Once I saw "Un Chien Andalou," I basically went on to see almost all the rest of the Bunuel films except a few that are very hard to find and almost never screened. I liked Dali's paintings, but I wasn't as into Dali as I was Bunuel. Nevertheless, I did read up on Dali a bit at some point. What I vaguely recall reading was that he was very weird, very egotistical and narcissistic, had mommy issues, was extremely repressed by his Catholic upbringing, & was basically unable to have successful sexual relations with women.
Anyway, Little Ashes isn't a perfect film -- the romance takes center stage, so the encroaching fascism isn't emphasized enough (for me) to really dramatize the ending properly, resulting in less emotional impact than it should have. But I'd give it 3 stars. And I sure as hell would see it again.
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS
Robert Pattinson does a good job of portraying Dali in this vein. I've always felt pretty "meh" about Pattinson. I felt he basically sleepwalked through Twilight. (But then, who wouldn't? I sleep-walked through reading the damn novel, which was so badly written, I only bothered to skim the last 200 pages... augh, the relentless & repetitive use of passive voice made me want to KILL the author: boring, boring, BORING! not to mention cliched, stupid, and plotless... but I digress.)
The role of Dali in this film gives Pattinson actual acting to do, and he steps up to the plate admirably, willing to portray a Dali who is not lovable 100% of the time.
But you don't need to know anything about Dali's dysfunctionality to enjoy the film, because the film is mostly centered on Lorca. I don't know if I've seen Javier Beltran in anything before -- don't think so -- but he plays Lorca very sincerely and just smitten and then later heartsick. His Lorca is very sympathetic.
Matthew McNulty is also really good as a troubled Luis Bunuel whose vicious homophobia mars his otherwise progressive beliefs and masks his subverted desire for Lorca and jealousy of Dali's place in Lorca's heart. It's not too likable a role until shortly before the end, but he plays it well and doesn't shrink from the hypocrisy and distasteful aspects of the character.
The actress who plays Magdalena, Marina Gatell, also does a great job portraying Dali and Lorca's fifth wheel, herself smitten with Lorca, who only has eyes (and lust) for Dali. Hers is a much less well-defined role than any of the three male leads, but she acquits herself well, and you really feel the pain of her unrequited love for Lorca.
There are two sex scenes in the film, both highly unresolved (one physically, the other emotionally), one gay, and the other straight but twisted.
The most explicit sex scene in the film isn't m/m, but it manages to be both very hot and yet cringe-inducing at the same time -- something you know is totally fucked up, but can't help finding erotic anyway. At least, that's how I saw it. I'm sitting there watching it, thinking, "This is so wrong, this is fucked up, this should not behappening the way it's happening -- but it's hot, it's arousing, but it shouldn't be hot, because this is so wrong, this is so fucked up." This is kind of amazing, given that all three involved characters are there consensually.
The only reason it comes off that way is that by the time it occurs, due to the excellent acting, you're aware of how the three characters feel about each other and you're emotionally invested in their entwined stories at that point... so you can feel how twisted the enactment of the lovemaking really is.
SUPER-SPOILER: THE SEX SCENE
Long story short, Magdalena (Gatell) comes over to seduce Lorca (Beltran), and only after having thrown herself at him and revealing her lust (and a nipple), does she realize a sweaty, sexually aroused Dali (Pattinson) is sitting curled in the corner of Lorca's dorm room, having just yanked himself away from Lorca's kiss because of his perverse inability to get it on (with anyone, apparently). She's horrified at first, but then decides to go through with it... She and Lorca have lustful yet loveless sex, throughout which Lorca and Dali stare longingly at each other across the tiny room and Dali masturbates, watching them.
Like I said... creepy yet hot.
Which gets me to the Joe/Billy part. Billy is portrayed in HCL as rather a cool customer (as contrasts with Joe's straight up sentiment of wanting Billy back) with other options, having feelings for Joe but not allowing those feelings to interfere with his moving onward and upward -- rather like Dali is portrayed in Little Ashes. Conversely, Joe -- like Lorca in Little Ashes -- comes off as sincere, heartfelt, and genuine, despite (or probably because of) his fucked up efforts to get Billy back. Mary the Fan is a bit like Magdalena in Little Ashes, except in HCL Mary clearly has more of a thing for Billy than Joe in HCL (probably because it's implied Billy is the father of her child).
But I can totally transpose the Lorca/Magdalena/Dali scene in Little Ashes into a Joe/Mary/Billy scene.
I could totally see Billy letting Joe get thisclose but no closer, letting Joe steal kisses the way Dali lets Lorca, but keeping him at arm's length otherwise, always having one foot out the door. Then (say) Mary the Fan comes to Joe's hotel room hoping to get closer to Joe, and she finds Joe with his motor already running, which at first she takes to be his lust for her until she realizes Billy is there, sweaty and aroused from Joe, but refusing to go any further. I can see Joe fucking Mary with Billy in the room, letting Mary have what she wants, but Joe himself having eyes only for Billy, gazing simultaneously longingly and angrily at Billy across Mary's body as Billy, longing for Joe but unable to let himself go, beats off watching them.
Hot, no? mmmmmmmmyeah.
In other news, I am in school again... online RN-to-BSN school. Each class is 8 weeks long. Which looks like they'll be kicking my ass for the next year until I get them done, dammit. Sigh.
Well, one thing about being in school, for me: it never ceases to inspire my writing as a procrastinational diversion to the drear of textbooks and homework. So, I predict more slash out of me in the next 12 months than in the preceding. So, yay for that, anyway.
And that is all.
But really, it turns out my bf just wanted to get lucky with me. Heh -- he learned so much from Brokeback Mountain. He no longer squirms through gay love scenes, either. (A) I got him used to it, and (B) he knows he'll be rewarded later. Good boy!
Little Ashes is actually a sweepingly romantic film in many respects, and the central romance is quite lyrically and beautifully filmed, at least initially. The actors are all very good, and their performances manage to capture youthful idealism and rebellion against the status quo and (later) fascism, the phases of the creative process for painters and writers (and how living and loving catalyze the creative process), the sweetness and poignancy of first and forbidden love, and the dysfunction of triangulated love. It manages to do this without being sickly sweet and sentimental, and also without being pessimistic and depressing the way Brokeback Mountain ends. The build up of the romance, the one-step-forward-two-steps-back aspects of its development, with its longings and desires -- yet recriminations and fears -- are also spot-on.
I have no idea about it's accuracy re: Dali & Lorca. I saw the film "Un Chien Andalou" for the 1st time in a history of cinema class in 1985, and I was blown away by the fact that it was made in 1929. I've watched it tons of times since and I still can't believe it was made in 1929. It was so far ahead of its time. It's also not for the faint of heart.
I did read about Dali somewhat while in art school -- though I was more interested in Luis Bunuel, because film was my art-school major. Once I saw "Un Chien Andalou," I basically went on to see almost all the rest of the Bunuel films except a few that are very hard to find and almost never screened. I liked Dali's paintings, but I wasn't as into Dali as I was Bunuel. Nevertheless, I did read up on Dali a bit at some point. What I vaguely recall reading was that he was very weird, very egotistical and narcissistic, had mommy issues, was extremely repressed by his Catholic upbringing, & was basically unable to have successful sexual relations with women.
Anyway, Little Ashes isn't a perfect film -- the romance takes center stage, so the encroaching fascism isn't emphasized enough (for me) to really dramatize the ending properly, resulting in less emotional impact than it should have. But I'd give it 3 stars. And I sure as hell would see it again.
SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS
Robert Pattinson does a good job of portraying Dali in this vein. I've always felt pretty "meh" about Pattinson. I felt he basically sleepwalked through Twilight. (But then, who wouldn't? I sleep-walked through reading the damn novel, which was so badly written, I only bothered to skim the last 200 pages... augh, the relentless & repetitive use of passive voice made me want to KILL the author: boring, boring, BORING! not to mention cliched, stupid, and plotless... but I digress.)
The role of Dali in this film gives Pattinson actual acting to do, and he steps up to the plate admirably, willing to portray a Dali who is not lovable 100% of the time.
But you don't need to know anything about Dali's dysfunctionality to enjoy the film, because the film is mostly centered on Lorca. I don't know if I've seen Javier Beltran in anything before -- don't think so -- but he plays Lorca very sincerely and just smitten and then later heartsick. His Lorca is very sympathetic.
Matthew McNulty is also really good as a troubled Luis Bunuel whose vicious homophobia mars his otherwise progressive beliefs and masks his subverted desire for Lorca and jealousy of Dali's place in Lorca's heart. It's not too likable a role until shortly before the end, but he plays it well and doesn't shrink from the hypocrisy and distasteful aspects of the character.
The actress who plays Magdalena, Marina Gatell, also does a great job portraying Dali and Lorca's fifth wheel, herself smitten with Lorca, who only has eyes (and lust) for Dali. Hers is a much less well-defined role than any of the three male leads, but she acquits herself well, and you really feel the pain of her unrequited love for Lorca.
There are two sex scenes in the film, both highly unresolved (one physically, the other emotionally), one gay, and the other straight but twisted.
The most explicit sex scene in the film isn't m/m, but it manages to be both very hot and yet cringe-inducing at the same time -- something you know is totally fucked up, but can't help finding erotic anyway. At least, that's how I saw it. I'm sitting there watching it, thinking, "This is so wrong, this is fucked up, this should not behappening the way it's happening -- but it's hot, it's arousing, but it shouldn't be hot, because this is so wrong, this is so fucked up." This is kind of amazing, given that all three involved characters are there consensually.
The only reason it comes off that way is that by the time it occurs, due to the excellent acting, you're aware of how the three characters feel about each other and you're emotionally invested in their entwined stories at that point... so you can feel how twisted the enactment of the lovemaking really is.
SUPER-SPOILER: THE SEX SCENE
Long story short, Magdalena (Gatell) comes over to seduce Lorca (Beltran), and only after having thrown herself at him and revealing her lust (and a nipple), does she realize a sweaty, sexually aroused Dali (Pattinson) is sitting curled in the corner of Lorca's dorm room, having just yanked himself away from Lorca's kiss because of his perverse inability to get it on (with anyone, apparently). She's horrified at first, but then decides to go through with it... She and Lorca have lustful yet loveless sex, throughout which Lorca and Dali stare longingly at each other across the tiny room and Dali masturbates, watching them.
Like I said... creepy yet hot.
Which gets me to the Joe/Billy part. Billy is portrayed in HCL as rather a cool customer (as contrasts with Joe's straight up sentiment of wanting Billy back) with other options, having feelings for Joe but not allowing those feelings to interfere with his moving onward and upward -- rather like Dali is portrayed in Little Ashes. Conversely, Joe -- like Lorca in Little Ashes -- comes off as sincere, heartfelt, and genuine, despite (or probably because of) his fucked up efforts to get Billy back. Mary the Fan is a bit like Magdalena in Little Ashes, except in HCL Mary clearly has more of a thing for Billy than Joe in HCL (probably because it's implied Billy is the father of her child).
But I can totally transpose the Lorca/Magdalena/Dali scene in Little Ashes into a Joe/Mary/Billy scene.
I could totally see Billy letting Joe get thisclose but no closer, letting Joe steal kisses the way Dali lets Lorca, but keeping him at arm's length otherwise, always having one foot out the door. Then (say) Mary the Fan comes to Joe's hotel room hoping to get closer to Joe, and she finds Joe with his motor already running, which at first she takes to be his lust for her until she realizes Billy is there, sweaty and aroused from Joe, but refusing to go any further. I can see Joe fucking Mary with Billy in the room, letting Mary have what she wants, but Joe himself having eyes only for Billy, gazing simultaneously longingly and angrily at Billy across Mary's body as Billy, longing for Joe but unable to let himself go, beats off watching them.
Hot, no? mmmmmmmmyeah.
In other news, I am in school again... online RN-to-BSN school. Each class is 8 weeks long. Which looks like they'll be kicking my ass for the next year until I get them done, dammit. Sigh.
Well, one thing about being in school, for me: it never ceases to inspire my writing as a procrastinational diversion to the drear of textbooks and homework. So, I predict more slash out of me in the next 12 months than in the preceding. So, yay for that, anyway.
And that is all.