Friday, February 4, 2011

Five From A Favorite - Boarding Gate (Olivier Assayas, 2007)

7 comments:

Unknown said...

Nice screen grabs! I have this in my Netflix cue and have been meaning to check it out for some time. I might just have to pull the trigger tonight.

Drew McIntosh said...

Thanks for the comment, J.D. Pull the trigger! I know I am in the vast minority here, but I think I actually may prefer Boarding Gate to Assayas' two other higher profile critical darlings from the decade, Summer Hours and Carlos (though I love both of them very much).

A lot of that can probably be put on Asia Argento, who I think could raise a case for being the most interesting actress in the world right now, and this is maybe her best performance, but really the entire movie is so unique and captivating all the way around.

I'd love to hear what you think of it if you watch it at some point!

Sam Juliano said...

You rank this over both Summer Hours and Carlos, Drew? Wow. Well, I had the great fortune of meeting Assayas and chating with him for a few minutes during the roadshow version of the latter film at the IFC Film Center months back, and I (like you) am a big admirer. Still though, I say this without having watched BOARDING GATE, which you compellingly presented here in images.

Drew McIntosh said...

Truth be told Sam, from the decade I may even prefer Demonlover over the other three, but ultimately we're talking inches here, not feet. I think all four are really, really great. Assayas is certainly one of the best we have in the world right now.

Be sure to drop me a line if you get around to Boarding Gate, Sam. I'd love to hear what you think!

Stephen said...

Drew,

Very good choice of images that show how Boarding Gate can be intense, difficult to follow and very interesting to look at.

It's always nice to use the film's last image without it giving anything away.

I prefer it to SUMMER HOURS and IRMA VEP (I haven't seen CARLOS) but not (like you) to DEMONLOVER. I've just written a review of DEMONLOVER here, if you're interested:

http://checkingonmysausages.blogspot.com/2011/02/demonlover-2002-olivier-assayas.html

P.S. I've just come across your TV blog via Wonders in the Dark. I'll follow with interest, especially as I'm out of the loop with a lot of Television.

Drew McIntosh said...

Thanks a lot for the comment Stephen, glad to hear I'm not the only one who thinks so highly of Boarding Gate. It can definitely be characterized as you've put it: "intense, difficult to follow and very interesting to look at", and the amorphous qualities of its plot and characters certainly seem to seep into the visuals in really interesting ways. And thanks for linking your piece to Demonlover! That was a great read, and we are definitely on the same page there. It's obvious that Assayas had a decade of quality work to be stacked against anyone's, and I think we'll all be wrestling with these movies for some time to come.

As for the TV blog, I had to put the brakes on it as I misjudged the amount of time I'd be able to devote to it, but definitely check back in the future as I plan on getting back to it as soon as I can give it the proper time.

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