Detroit


Kathryn Bigelow's Detroit is the point where Bigelow's artistic reach exceeds her narrative grasp. In her previous films with screenwriter Mark Boal, Bigelow crafted her films around a central figure. In Detroit, she and Mr. Boal attempt to provide a polyphonic portrait of the Detroit riots of 1967, centering on murders by police officers at the Algiers Motel. Bigelow contrasts warm color tones of home life (browns and yellows) and the local music scene with cold tones (mostly sickly green) of the police's racist culture. What doesn't jell is characterization. Bigelow seems to work best in mythic genre pieces centered around a flawed protagonist. As with Strange Days, a multi-perspective narrative seems beyond her ken. (1/14/18)

at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)
  • High Time
    Blake Edwards' High Time  is a simple minded Bing Crosby vehicle that Edwards transforms into a pop tone poem of color and music. The st...
  • Squeal
    Algars Vilims and Kevin Janssens Aik Karapetian's Squeal , currently streaming on Tubi, is the most interesting and impressive film I...
  • The Cabin in the Cotton
    Richard Barthelmess and Bette Davis            Michael Curtiz's The Cabin in the Cotton is one of the more under rated American films of...
  • The Wet Parade
    Dorothy Jordan, Robert Young, and Walter Huston Victor Fleming's The Wet Parade  is a mediocre melodrama based on a then recent novel by...
  • Outcome
    Keanu Reeves and Jonah Hill Jonah Hill's Outcome is a toothless Hollywood satire destined for obscurity. Keanu Reeves stars as Reef Hawk...