Frances Ha (8/10): Greta Gerwig charms and dances her way through Frances Ha

“I'm so embarrassed. I'm not a real person yet.”

I found Frances Ha completely irritating and the black and white cinematography pretentious, but that was only for the first five minutes of the film because once I was submerged into the world of this character I was captivated by it. I don’t think I have experienced a change of heart so quick while I was watching a film as I did here because soon I was in love with this character. Greta Gerwig’s performance as Frances Ha went from irritating and phony to charming and sweet in a matter of a few minutes. The black and white cinematography had the feel of a French New Wave arthouse film, but to my surprise it ended up being much more than an imitation or a simple homage. Noah Baumbach is aware with the fact that many people have trouble identifying with these quirky NY East Side characters and he deviates the plot from what we are expecting it to be very quickly. If this year Richard Linklater delivered the ultimate slice of life film on the transition from boyhood to teenager, then Frances Ha could be considered as Baumbach’s slice of life film about adulthood and finding a place in this world. It isn’t a perfect film, but it does explore the issues of self-discovery and learning who we are in life. Frances Ha is a very subjective film considering its enjoyment may be connected with how much you identify with Frances’s situation. All her friends are moving on with their lives and she seems to be stuck in the same place dealing with the uncertainty of her life. Her friends seem to have their lives resolved, but she doesn’t know what direction she is heading. Audiences who have experienced or are experiencing this same uncertainty might find it easier to relate with the film and enjoy it more for capturing the truth of their lives in some way. I connected with the film and wouldn’t mind rewatching it again, but I can see how it isn’t a film everyone will enjoy. 

Greta Gerwig delivers a solid performance and gives this nostalgic film an upbeat feel to it. She drew me in with her uplifting performance and I found it impossible to resist her charm despite her flaws. She balances the charm with the quirkiness of her character. You can hate her for being so possessive, but at the same time you can fall for her optimism and contagious joy. You forgive her for the bad decisions she makes and route for her nonetheless. This is Gerwig’s best performance to date. She had already caught my attention in Baumbach’s earlier film, Greenberg, playing opposite Ben Stiller, but this is a much better film. Despite enjoying The Squid and The Whale and Greenberg quite a bit, this is Baumbach’s best film. It may have to do with the fact that Gerwig herself contributed with the screenplay and that she is in every single scene of this movie. This is absolutely her movie and she delivers. Mickey Sumner, Adam Driver, and Michael Zegen give solid performances as well as they all interact in some way with Frances, but she is the heart and soul of this film. I also enjoyed the soundtrack of this film and there is a scene where Frances is walking through the streets of New York with David Bowie's "Modern Love" playing the background which will leave a smile on the audiences’s faces. 

My Review: To Rome with Love (8/10)

¨If something is too good to be true, you can bet it’s not.¨

Woody Allen has been directing at least one movie every single year for the past thirty years. It was Rome`s turn for 2012 and although it isn’t as good as his previous film, Midnight in Paris, which won Allen his fourth Oscar for original screenplay, this was still a well written comedy. I laughed really hard at several scenes and enjoyed the film from start to finish. The only problem I had with the film was that the editing was a little choppy in some scenes and the soundtrack was a little annoying, but beside that the film worked really well thanks to some great performances and a great script. It was good to see Woody Allen acting again after six years (the last time was in Scoop) and he is always a charm on camera. I think I`m enjoying Wordy Allen`s films a lot more now than I did his older ones, although it probably has to do because I understand him better now. In To Rome with Love he once again seems to blab about the usual topics such as love, infidelity, fame, success, and death in a very funny and original way. I am a huge Ellen Paige fan, so I was excited to see her on a Woody Allen film and she was just great in the few scenes she shared with Jesse Eisenberg. She never disappoints. I had some high expectations for this film and it never disappointed me. Woody Allen seems to have found a pretty nice groove in Europe and has written yet another very funny comedy. Most fans will be satisfied.

The film takes place in Rome where we have several different romantic stories taking place. These stories aren`t interconnected with each other (other than the fact that they all take place in Rome) and probably aren't in the same time frame either. First we are introduced to Hayley (Alison Pill), an American tourist who is asking for directions to a local she runs into named Michelangelo (Flavio Parenti). He gladly takes her to the spot she´s looking for and romance blossoms between them. Then we are introduced to Leopoldo (Roberto Benigni), a married man who´s routine life changes all of a sudden when he becomes an instant celebrity (for no apparent reason). John (Alec Baldwin) is a successful architect who is visiting Rome, the city he lived in when he was a student. He runs into Jack (played by Jessie Eisenberg) who takes him to the very same place where he used to live when he was young. We soon discover that John really is reliving his past through Jack. Jack is living with his girlfriend Sally (Greta Gerwig) and her best friend Monica (Ellen Paige) is going to be staying with them for a couple of days. Jack can`t help but fall in love with Monica. Antonio (Alessandro Tiberi) and Milly (Alessandra Mastronardi) are a recently married couple from the south of Italy who have arrived in Rome for a job proposal. Milly gets lost in the big city and Antonio has a mistaken encounter with a prostitute named Anna (Penelope Cruz) that will lead to a huge mix up. Woody Allen also has a role in this film as Hayley`s father who comes to meet Michelangelo`s family.

 Each one of the stories work really well in my opinion although I did laugh a little harder with Roberto Benigni`s scenes which remind us all of the perks of being a celebrity, as well as the disadvantages (the overly exaggerated media attention). Woody Allen was also great as the frustrated Opera director who can`t seem to enjoy the idea of retirement and associates it more with dying. I think that is his personal philosophy and thus the reason why he continues to make films at such a fast pace. He refuses to retire from directing. The mix up between Penelope Cruz and Alessandro Tiberi also makes for some funny scenes, but my favorite story had to do with the love triangle between Jessie Eisenberg, Greta Gerwig, and Ellen Paige. There were so many different things going on in this film, but somehow Allen managed to make the film work in such a way that every character was made interesting. I`m usually not a fan of these multiple stories in one film, but here it works really well and the surprising thing is that the stories weren’t even interconnected with each other. But it works because Rome becomes the central theme of the film. I really had a fun time with this movie and would recommend it.

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