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twentyten: film somewhere around 75?
Gah. It kills me how badly I need to catch up on my cinedocu project for the year….and that I’ll miss some in the count, I’m sure. sigh
Anyways, The Virgin Suicides (1999).
Director: Sophia Coppola, Starring: Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, James Woods
I’d passed through this film years ago without much thought, but it’s been looming in the 2-4 range on my Netflix queue for about a year now. It finally popped through this week.
I think this film tips the scales on my thoughts on Sophia Coppola. It’s beautifully shot with amazing lighting that makes the whole film have the feel of a summer afternoon. But on such a dark, dark film. This film seems to be about opposing forces, the beauty of youth next to the harshness of suicide. Naivete vs corruption. Parents vs children. Even some of the elements used to tell the story seem strange and out of place. The introduction of interviews with adult Trip, and the slideshow of the neighborhood boys travelling the world with the young Lisbons….such strange devices, but interesting. I must say, for a directorial and writing debut, I’m impressed - even if she’s a Coppola.
I really enjoyed the film this viewing, and many things I’d not noticed nor paid attention to caught my eye.
- One of the sisters is played AJ Cook (or Jennifer Jareau if you’re a Criminal Minds fan)
- One of the homecoming dates is Hayden Christensen, which caused an audible WHOA.
- And then some serious heavy hitters, James Woods, Kathleen Turner (oh that voice!) and DANNY DEVITO as the counselor!! This I probably realized before and just forgot.
Tripp Fontaine : coolest name, worst haircut.
I also did not realize that novel, on which the film was based, was written by Jefferey Eugenides. I was riveted by his novel Middlesex and can now see very similar threads in both stories. I’m sure there’s a lot more to be said than what the film can convey, and the book may shed some light into the way Coppola chose to weave the story and structure the film. I’ll be picking a copy of this story up immediately!
Also, fun trail brought to light by IMDB: AJ Cook and Hayden Christensen were both in the show Higher Ground together, with Jewel Staite. Staite kept Serenity in the skies, Christensen grew up in a galaxy far away….now will Cook look past profiling and PR and have her own space adventure?
8.15.10
