On the Town With Aubrey Reuben
Where All the Stars Shine Brightly!
February 22, 2014
02-17-14 Cast
members (L-R) Emily Skeggs. Pearl Rhein at the opening night party
for "Transport" at Jake's Saloon. 202 9th Ave. Sunday night.
02-16-14
On
Broadway, The
Bridges of Madison County, book by Marsha
Norman, music & lyrics by Jason
Robert Brown, based on the novel by Robert
James Waller, is
a musical about a farm wife (Kelli
O'Hara), an Italian war bride,
living in Iowa, in 1965. Married for
twenty years, with two teenage children,
she is left alone for four days, when
her family attends a state fair. When a
visiting photographer (Steven
Pasquale) asks for directions to
photograph a covered bridge, she decides
to guide him. She makes him dinner that
night and then spends four days falling
in love with him. O'Hara sings
beautifully and is a joy to behold. The
rest of the cast, directed by Bartlett
Sher, is fine, but do not contribute
much to the romantic tale.
Off-Broadway, Transport,
book by Thomas
Keneally, music & lyrics by Larry
Kirwan, is a musical about Irish
women being deported to Australia in the
nineteenth century for their crimes. A
fine eight member cast act, sing and
dance splendidly, under Tony
Walton's expert direction. The music
is pleasant, the lyrics intelligent and
the story is engrossing. The Police
Commissioner Bill
Bratton and
his wife Rikki
Klieman attended
the opening. The opening night party
took place at Jake's Saloon.
Love and
Information, by Caryl
Churchill, is a two hour
intermissionless play, consisting of
almost 50 playlets, most about a minute
or two, with 15 actors playing over a
hundred roles. If this sounds confusing,
or better yet exhausting, it is. Caryl
Churchill is an acquired taste as a
playwright. Having seen many of her
plays, I have yet to acquire that taste.
The opening night party took place at
Amity Hall with guests like Sam
Waterston, whose son James is
one of the cast members.
I attended
a Meet & Greet for The
Realistic Joneses, by Will
Eno, which will open on
BroadwayApril 6. It has a terrific four
member cast with Marisa
Tomei, Toni Collette, Michael C. Hall and Tracy
Letts, and I look forward eagerly to
attend the opening.
Film
Society of Lincoln Center is presenting
press screenings of Rendezvous
of French Cinema March 6-16. On
My Way, by Emmanuelle
Bercot, 2014, stars CatherineDeneuve as
a middle-aged grandmother, a former
beauty queen, now widowed, running a
small restaurant in her home town. When
she learns that her married lover has
deserted her for a new, young
25-year-old girl, she is destroyed
emotionally, and gets into her car to
wander through the French countryside.
Her adventures in this two hour road
movie, in which she reconnects with her
grandson, her estranged daughter and
many other characters on the trip, is
the theme of this excellent film. The
photography is superb, and the viewer
enjoys the sights of France from
Brittany to the French Alps. Deneuve is
simply magnificent, in this very honest,
realistic film.
Love is
a Perfect Crime, by Arnaud and Jean-Marie
Larrieu, France/Switzerland, 2013,
has beautiful photography of the Alps,
as Mathieu
Amalric plays
a professor, who attracts his female
students sexually, as well as his
incestuous sister, who shares his
chalet. Trouble occurs when one sexy
young student disappears, and the
teacher becomes involved with her
attractive stepmother. The story is
quite unbelievable, but it is a pleasure
to watch the beautiful scenery and the
lovely young ladies.
If You
Don't, I Will, (Arrete ou Je
Continue), by Sophie
Fillieres, France, 2014, also stars
Mathieu Amalric as a husband, whose
relationship with his wife (Emmanuelle
Devos) is deteriorating rapidly. It
reaches a climax on a weekend hike, when
she decides to remain in the forest,
instead of returning home with her
husband. Again the story is far-fetched,
but the irritation between the couple is
realistic, and one can understand the
outcome.
.
.
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Age of Panic (La
Bataille de Solferino), by Justine
Triet, France, 2013, is about a divorced TV reporter (Laetitia
Dorsch), with two very young daughters, who has to cover the 2012
Presidential Election day in France. She hires a babysitter, whose troubles
begin when the father tries to see his daughters against the mother's
wishes. It combines a documentary style of the crowded streets of Paris
against a difficult family problem. The acting is first rate and convincing.
Grand Central, by Rebecca
Zlotowski, France/Austria, 2013, takes place in a dangerous Nuclear
Plant, where workers risk contamination. A love affair develops between a
new worker and the girlfriend of one of the other workers. Unfortunately,
the three main characters have little charisma or chemistry with one
another, and watching scenes in a nuclear plant is quite depressing, as is
the film.
Going Away (Un
Beau Dimanche), by Nicole
Garcia, France, 2013, is about a substitute teacher, on a three day
holiday weekend, who suddenly finds himself involved with one of his
students and his mother. As their relationship develops, we learn their
histories, which are quite unbelievable. If you suspend critical judgment,
you will find the film quite enjoyable.
Young & Beautiful (Jeune
et Jolie), by Francois
Ozon, France, 2013, is, without doubt, the finest film of the series up
to now. A 17-year-old (a remarkable Marine
Vacth) discovers herself, working as prostitute for a year. The effect
on her family, friends and clients is revealed in this intelligent,
truthful, brilliantly acted film by every actor. It is one of the finest
films that I have seen in ages, and I heartily recommend it. It is a
memorable cinematic experience.
2 Autumns, 3 Winters (2
Automnes, 3 Hivers), by Sebastien
Betbeder, France, 2013, is an irritating film, about two uninteresting
young people, who meet while jogging and fall in love. The two, played by Vincent
Macaigne, who never seems to comb his hair, and a constantly glum Maud
Wyler, talk to us in the camera like talking heads. What they say is
banal, and they are an extremely dull couple to spend 90 excruciating
minutes with.
Miss and the Doctors (Tirez
la Langue, Mademoiselle) by Axelle
Ropert, France, 2013, is a film about two doctors, who are brothers, who
work in a sleazy working class area in Paris. One is an alcoholic, and the
other has a perpetual sour facial expression. They both, unbelievably, fall
in love with a single mother of a diabetic daughter, who is their patient.
The film is as boring as the lives of the two doctors.
Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me, by Chiemi
Karasawa, USA, 2013, is a documentary about the esteemed actress, as she
she celebrates her 87th birthday, after six decades in the theatre, and on
film and television. The filmmaker spent more than a year following Stritch,
at her home in the Hotel Carlyle, performing in cabaret, with friends, and
frank scenes of her visits to the hospital, suffering from diabetes. It is
an openly honest view of a feisty personality, always expressing what's on
her mind, and is quite funny. In the twilight of her career, she received a
well deserved Tony and an Emmy Award for her one woman show. A fitting
conclusion to a memorable life in the theatre.
02-20-14 Cast members James Waterston and
Maria Tucci at the opening night party for "Love and Information" at Amity
Hall. 80 West 3rd St. Wednesday night. 02-19-14
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