| Movie Review: JuneBug-A Movie about the South by Dan Foster
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Saw another one of my weird movies yesterday, JuneBug ,
a movie about the South, relatively speaking, and a movie of subtleties. Overall, made by a bunch of Yankees who don't get the South; while, on the other hand, they do. I know that statement sounds ambiguous, but this is the movie you understand and you don't. Like I said, subtleties.
The story line was about this very sophisticated gal, Madeline, who ran an art gallery in Chicago. Madeline meets a guy from North Carolina, George, who comes into her gallery and marries him in two weeks. When they head south, they have been married six months; they have an incredible amount of sex- I'm thinking about hours; sounds great to me! Replay this over and over in my head. I would expect nothing less from a young troop from NC than lots of sex. Anyway, they come south, not just to see his family but for the wife's business; she is trying to sign this southern artist; his stuff looks like junk; but to her, she sees great potential. The artist is this quirky, older guy who paints a lot of penises-amazing.
Madeline is introduced to George's family and it is like an alien world. Many of the stereotypical Southern nuances, as I like to call them, are present: the religion, the homogenous groupings, Church-going and socials. The young preacher prays over the couple and, George, Madeline's husband, sings beautifully, "Softly and Tenderly," at a Church social. The sophisticated wife, a Chicagoan, is mesmerized. She didn't even know he could sing and is simply blown away by it all. She doesn't verbalize it, but you see it in her face.
The predominant character could be Allison, in a sense: young, naive. She is married to Johnny, George's brother, who stayed behind and is sullen, angry, and feels trapped. Allison is this motor mouth, cute as a button, and nine months pregnant. Madeline, the sophisticated wife, spends lots of times looking and inwardly shaking her head.
There's some drama around the artist; and Johnny, George's brother, develops honest affection for Madeline. Allison seems oblivious; she ends up losing her baby and grieves intensely.
When you come out of the movie, you think to yourself, "What was this movie about?" And yet, you are still thinking about it days later. Wait for the video and then see a couple of weird movies and call it, Weird Movie Night. How's that?
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| DVD Review: Maria Full of Grace by Majorie O'Keefe
| This movie is about a teenage girl who is so desperate for a better life that she gets involved with some shady characters.
Maria Full of Grace is a very heavy movie. Maria is a "mule"or "mula" (carries drugs across international borders). She swallows twenty-three two inch bags of heroin, makes it to New Jersey, is interrogated and almost arrested, but remains incredibly cool. Her black eyes stare straight through people. Security finds out she is pregnant so they can't x-ray and she walks.
Maria is one gutsy youngster, just seventeen according to the movie. Two scum bags waiting on the drugs pick her up along with two others. They go to some sleazy motel and do the "thing" to retrieve the heroin; one girl gets sick, apparently a bag ruptures and she dies. Maria and a friend run away. They have only one address, the sister of the dead girl. They go to the sister's house and a series of events follow. The movie is heavy, sad, tragic-no way to do it justice in a review.
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http://www.shsu.edu/~his_sub/map-Vietnam.jpg | Beautiful Country. Very heavy movie. I think it had to do with the fact that somehow in every Vietnam combat vet's psyche, all the problems of the Vietnamese are laid at our feet. At least I have felt that way. Not true, but have always felt like we let the Vietnamese down. We made all those promises and then ran out on them.
Vietnam was not like Iraq, we actually had a moral purpose and were operating at the behest of a legitimate government although corrupt; but still, for the time, it seemed to be the right thing to do. But, like Iraq, Nam was mismanaged to the max.
STORY LINE WAS HEAVY
It is the early 1990's in Vietnam. Binh, an Amerasian (Father was American soldier in Nam and Mother was Vietnamese) is an outcast, a child of the dust. He goes through an entire series of mishaps in leaving Vietnam. Just when you think it can't get any worse and your heart is weighted down, it gets worse! Binh's mother flees to Siagon leaving him behind in the country side. Unaccepted, he finally leaves when the mother's sister decides to marry and there's no room for Binh in the home. Binh travels to Saigon and finds his mother. (interesting thing here is that the word, Saigon, is used and not Ho Chi Minh City). The Mother is very accepting and gets him a job shining shoes and other menial tasks. He is tall, unlike the Vietnamese, and all know he is a "child of the dust." He is abused by employers. Finally, he has an accident which kills the employer; he escapes with the help of his Mother who sends his half brother, Tam, with him to become one of the "boat" people. Amazingly he and his brother survive; they finally get to Malaysia and become slave laborers.
IMPOSSIBLE TO RELATE THE INTRICACIES OF THE STORY
In an odd set of circumstances, he escapes the horrific slave labor camp with a Chinese prostitute and wannabe singer, Ling, and his little brother. They board an old freighter. There's an unscrupulous boat captain and slave trafficker. They have a portion of money to pay their way to the United States. What they don't have, they must agree to work off in New York through indentured servitude. Many die on the voyage where there is little food, to include his little brother, Tam. Binh finally gets to NY; the prostitute, Ling, who he loves, goes back to plying her trade. Binh works and finally heads out to find his father; he has a picture.
NICK NOLTE IS THE PERFECT FATHER FOR THE MOVIE
Binh goes to Texas. Steve, Nick Nolte, who is blind works on a ranch. After some bungling attempts, father, Steve; son, Binh; are reunited. By this time, I am exhausted; all this drama really gets to you.
SUMMARY
This movie is very symbolic; Beautiful Country is America ; Binh is America; thus Beautiful Country is Vietnam.
Impossible to do justice to all the allegory, the symbolism, and the metaphors in this movie. It should be about four hours long to explore all of the above. I'm serious! I doubt many Vietnam veterans will see the movie as distribution is very limited and such a shame. It was heavy and any sane person would avoid it, but most of us Vietvets are hardly sane. We should see it and then discuss and tell war stories and start a buzz about it.
Other interesting facts, include:1) the movie is about Vietnam, and an Amerasian's struggles, but it is a Norwegian production 2)The film has English subtitled Vietnamese dialogue gradually becoming American English as Binh's language skills improve. jhl
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