Venice at Home – Day 2: Dazzling Debuts
Friday, September 2, 2022 at 8:05AM 
The 79th Venice Film Festival's second day was a busy one with two premieres by directors who've managed to seduce critics and the Academy alike. First, Alejandro González Iñárritu came to the Lido with his most ambitious project yet, the epic Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths, whose production history is embroiled in many controversies. Then, there was also Todd Field's long-awaited return to the big screen after a decade plus sabsence. TÁR is the director's third feature and feels poised to delight actressexuals in similar ways to his debut and sophomore efforts. So far, Cate Blanchett has received nothing but glowing reviews and might become the third Field leading lady to nab an Oscar nomination.
Let's remember both directors' debuts to celebrate these buzzy premieres. Frankly, as much as I may admire some of their following efforts, Amores Perros and In the Bedroom remain my favorite titles from their filmographies…
AMORES PERROS (2000)
The "hyperlink narrative" is one of the worst cinematic trends of the 00s, and you can safely pinpoint its origin to Iñárritu's first theatrically released feature, with a script penned by Guillermo Arriaga. Yet, judging Amores Perros by its influence on the international moviemaking landscape is unfair. Considered by itself, the picture's a propulsive wonder whose mosaic of coincidences and misery verges on Dickensian absurdism. The convoluted plot sustains itself throughout its wildest turns, in part, because its construction takes cues from a long tradition of pulpy crime thrillers, here weaponized as the vessel for a study of Mexican society.
Running over two and a half hours, it's legitimately awe-inspiring how much Amores Perros keeps its gambit going without losing energy as it goes. If anything, an accumulation of pressure makes the character's despair feel increasingly immediate and urgent, a growing fever ready to drive you mad. Iñárritu aces the negotiation between brutality and stylization, taking his cast to a paradigm beyond realism. Gael García Bernal and Goya Toledo excel at reflecting the film's mounting anxieties. Simultaneously, Emilio Echevarría is a miracle of underplayed menace, a rhythmic variation that makes the surrounding pandemonium all the more visceral.
Despite the marvels of acting and directing, the production's true MVPs can be found elsewhere amid the Amores Perros team. Lensing his first international hit, cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto is as agile with tonal management as the cast. He conveys palpable patinas and societal decay while leading the film towards a heightened milieu where milky sunlight explodes over people's sweaty skin like supernovas. Then there's Gustavo Santaolalla's energetic score, allied to a soundscape that makes chaos legible to the audience's ear. At last, the editing team of Luis Carballar, Iñárritu, and Fernando Pérez Unda deserve special love for their spellbinding achievement – making an epic mural run like a speeding thriller.
Amores Perros is streaming on Vudu, Tubi, and Pluto TV. You can rent the film on other platforms.
IN THE BEDROOM (2001)
Thomas Newman's score wails with strings, voiceless screams that get smothered by melodious arrangements as suburban peace reigns supreme. But then, a phantasmagoria of choral sound interrupts this comforting stance, setting the stage for an eruption of violence that shakes the world off its axis. In the Bedroom's narrative structure is much like its score, working in waves of placidity and panic, insidious forces corroding an idyll that, in retrospect, feels upsettingly hollow. Todd Field's debut feature continues the musical dissonances that had characterized his student shorts, subsuming their formalistic provocations beneath illusory convention.
It's a tricky strategy, intent on catching the audience off-guard even as it sets the pieces for an unavoidable tragedy. Once things start, there's no stopping them, and you can only watch powerlessly as the sketched characters disintegrate in paroxysms of grief. The shocks are often more riveting than the interim dormancy, purposefully so but perhaps too delineated to truly surprise, to nourish a drama defined by its brittleness. Field's elegant hand is a paradoxical presence, smoothing over interesting imperfections. With his actors, he directs them to feel like bombs, timed to detonate at precise moments but volatile enough to threaten a premature burst.
Sissy Spacek and Tom Wilkinson are splendorous portrayals of loss, giving in to sorrow, to rage, to a coldness that can cut one's soul and make the body bleed. Even a clichéd instance of smashing plates during an argument feels renewed by the thorniness each actor brings to their characters, finding new ways to tell old stories. In a pivotal supporting role, Marisa Tomei is similarly superb, commanding the picture's turning point with a guttural scream that's hard to exorcise from one's memory, one's nightmares. Despite this, it'd be inaccurate to compliment In the Bedroom's performances for their loud outbursts. These thespians shine brightest in the respite, playing the quiet before the storm.
In the Bedroom is streaming on Hoopla and Pluto TV. You can also rent the film on most big platforms.
What are your favorite films from Iñárritu and Field?
Reader Comments (8)
God, The Revenant is an amazing piece of film. While a rollicking rollercoaster of a movie, it borders on a spiritual meditation featuring some of the most beautiful cinematography I have seen at the movies.
During the two and a half hours or so, I held my breath, gagged, cheered, wept and thought about the meaning of my own life. The highlight was how deeply moved I was by the film’s subtle discussion of race.
Like Glass, I chose a life partner of a different race, ethnicity, culture. So much of what DiCaprio verbally and silently conveys echoes in my own life. I haven’t found many movies that really capture the gritty truth of such relationships.
I love The Revenant for the adventure, the setting, the pictures, and the acting. Yet, I was overwhelmed by the message about love between two people. The intimacy of enduring passion, the bond of a shared past and future, all shown silently with great tenderness, was achingly real.
I was super high on Little Children when it first came out. I think it was #3 or 4 on my initial top 10 list for 2006. But a subsequent viewing years later soured my opinion considerably. I still thought Jackie Earle Haley was great, and I also thought the perpetually underrated Jane Adams was excellent in her very small role (arguably even a cameo), but I remember thinking the movie was way too on the nose to the point that I was left wondering what I saw in it back in 2006. It’s also frankly one of my least favorite Kate Winslet performances; the book club scene in particular struck me as downright awful (though in fairness I think it was equal parts the writing).
It’s been even longer since I’ve watched In the Bedroom, but I do remember liking it a lot. I recall thinking Sissy Spacek felt more like a supporting role than a lead one to me, but I’d have to rewatch it to confirm that position.
As for Iñárritu, I’d probably agree with Amores perros being his best even if I will never watch it again simply due to the dog fighting scenes. I’d say Birdman would be next for me as I really liked it when it came out, but I haven’t seen it since and I’m honestly a bit surprised by how little I’ve even thought about it over the past eight years (wow, has it really been that long?). It’s not a movie I’ve ever felt a strong desire to rewatch even though I did like it at the time.
I like the Japan segments of Babel a lot and the Mexico ones to a somewhat lesser degree, but I couldn’t get into the Morocco segments at all. In 21 Grams I like the Benicio del Toro parts a lot more than the Naomi Watts and Sean Penn parts. Basically I like parts of all his movies I’ve seen but don’t feel as strongly about the wholes.
Based on my list, I still have Amores Perros as his best film though my dad really loved both Birdman and The Revenant as he liked what Inarritu did for both Michael Keaton and Leonardo diCaprio as my dad loved both of those actors. He never got over that moment of Keaton putting his Oscar speech in his pocket. Seeing that hurt and it hurt my dad as I don't blame him for loathing Eddie Redmayne.
As for Todd Fields, I've only seen Little Children which I think is a great film.
I do not think there is any "might" about it - Blanchett is the first acting lock of the season. Those weren't just great reviews - they were hosannas.
Finbar McBride -- I wish I saw the movie you described. But, alas, even though I watched it twice in theaters hoping I'd find the genius work of art others described, THE REVENANT wasn't for me. Sakamoto and Fisk innocent, though.
Edwin -- I share a lot of your thoughts regarding these filmmakers. I had the exact same experience with LITTLE CHILDREN.
thevoid99 -- Based on his competition, Keaton should have won that Oscar!
Michael R -- That would make for a fascinating track record. Are there other directors whose first three films all scored acting nods in the same category? Maybe that's a trivia article I could write.
@Claudio and Michael R: I think Stephen Daldry holds that distinction (first four films actually scored acting nods, even wins).
I love Amores Perros, really like Birdman, admire Biutiful with reservations, find Babel meh, and can’t stand The Revenant.
As for In the Bedroom, I have a hard time loving it due to Sissy Spacek’s passive approach to her character. I wanted her to put up a fiercer fight towards Wilkinsons’s accusations (HE needed a good slap more than Tomei).
Edwin : agree 100% on Spacek being borderline Supporting in ITB. It's Wilkinson's movie all the way. She and Tomei are wonderful but Wilkinson is the main protagonist.
Birdman is absolute perfection for me (extra points for be a comedy) so, is easy my choice for Iñattiu's favorite film and In the Bedroom of Field.
A curious thing about Amores Perros: when was released in México people was very enthusiastic, even had a second released due the demand, but in recent years the movie have been received a lot of hate in social media, especially when the film is named as the best mexican film of the modern era.
Is far to be my favorite mexican film but being objective is not a bad one. I'm wonder why the perception of the same movie could have opposite reactions 20 years later.