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Little Ashes: Movie Review
May. 10th, 2009 12:40 amLittle Ashes is an indie film about the relationship between Federico Garcia Lorca and Salvador Dali, beginning with Dali's arrival at the artist's residences in Madrid (some of which is shown at the beginning of the trailer here).
First, about Robert Pattinson -- yes, that's how I found out about this film. Like his roles in Twilight and How To Be, Pattinson's Dali is awkward, though Edward (in Twilight) was the most self-assured of the three. Then again, through most of his life, Dali was awkward. If you think Dali would fit in in a crowd, I offer this YouTube video Dali made as evidence to the contrary.
Having so few films behind him (the three mentioned above are Pattinson's three starring or co-starring roles), he seems to be an actor who's at his best when he's in an awkward moment, rather than some actors who like to find those roles they can relax into. In this one, Pattinson's character transforms from a person who couldn't fit in but wants to try, to copying Garcia Lorca in many ways, to coming into his own comfortable awkwardness.
So with his three roles so far, in the order I saw them: Edward's repressed because he's afraid of letting the killer vampire run amok; Art is almost hopeless, and to say he couldn't perform would be being kind; Dali is attracted to love and yet....
That said, Javier Béltran's really the star of the piece with his portrayal of Garcia Lorca. He does a great job with this role, and I think we'll be seeing more of him. How could I not love an actor who writes with a fountain pen? It's rare for American audiences to see any portrayal of the Spanish Civil War; this involves events leading up to the war rather than the war proper, but you definitely get the sense of things brewing. Garcia Lorca and Dali's politics begin to clash, though that isn't the core of the film.
The film as a whole, though, seems incredibly well-researched. The music is amazing, though sometimes too intrusive, and I especially like the folkloric singing in the country with poetry spoken in voiceover. Film, costumes, set -- all seem very period, and made me feel very much like I was in Spain (which is where it was shot). Bonus points for working in elements out of Buñuel's Un chien andalou into the earlier parts of the movie.
A serious movie about a gay relationship, especially one involving real people at a time and place where such relationships were forbidden, is a rare thing on the big screen, so if you'd like to see something gay-positive, I urge you to go. In the bay area, it's playing at the Clay theatre in SF, Shattuck Cinemas in Berkeley, Guild in Menlo Park, and Camera 3 in San Jose. It'll be in Santa Cruz later this month.
This is really a character study and not a plot piece, and its pacing is slow by current action-adventure standards. That said, it felt right for the piece. Shot with no budget, I suspect this only got a release at all because of Pattinson's sudden fame.
Worth seeing.
First, about Robert Pattinson -- yes, that's how I found out about this film. Like his roles in Twilight and How To Be, Pattinson's Dali is awkward, though Edward (in Twilight) was the most self-assured of the three. Then again, through most of his life, Dali was awkward. If you think Dali would fit in in a crowd, I offer this YouTube video Dali made as evidence to the contrary.
Having so few films behind him (the three mentioned above are Pattinson's three starring or co-starring roles), he seems to be an actor who's at his best when he's in an awkward moment, rather than some actors who like to find those roles they can relax into. In this one, Pattinson's character transforms from a person who couldn't fit in but wants to try, to copying Garcia Lorca in many ways, to coming into his own comfortable awkwardness.
So with his three roles so far, in the order I saw them: Edward's repressed because he's afraid of letting the killer vampire run amok; Art is almost hopeless, and to say he couldn't perform would be being kind; Dali is attracted to love and yet....
That said, Javier Béltran's really the star of the piece with his portrayal of Garcia Lorca. He does a great job with this role, and I think we'll be seeing more of him. How could I not love an actor who writes with a fountain pen? It's rare for American audiences to see any portrayal of the Spanish Civil War; this involves events leading up to the war rather than the war proper, but you definitely get the sense of things brewing. Garcia Lorca and Dali's politics begin to clash, though that isn't the core of the film.
The film as a whole, though, seems incredibly well-researched. The music is amazing, though sometimes too intrusive, and I especially like the folkloric singing in the country with poetry spoken in voiceover. Film, costumes, set -- all seem very period, and made me feel very much like I was in Spain (which is where it was shot). Bonus points for working in elements out of Buñuel's Un chien andalou into the earlier parts of the movie.
A serious movie about a gay relationship, especially one involving real people at a time and place where such relationships were forbidden, is a rare thing on the big screen, so if you'd like to see something gay-positive, I urge you to go. In the bay area, it's playing at the Clay theatre in SF, Shattuck Cinemas in Berkeley, Guild in Menlo Park, and Camera 3 in San Jose. It'll be in Santa Cruz later this month.
This is really a character study and not a plot piece, and its pacing is slow by current action-adventure standards. That said, it felt right for the piece. Shot with no budget, I suspect this only got a release at all because of Pattinson's sudden fame.
Worth seeing.