This week at the cinema: Blue Jasmine

Kicking the week off on Sunday, I took in Blue Jasmine, Woody Allen's latest film.  I had no idea what to expect going into the movie, except that it had an all-star cast, including Andrew Dice Clay, resurrected from the late 20th century.  It had the somber melancholia of Allen's more narrative works such as Match Point as opposed to the quirky philosophical banter of Midnight in Paris or Annie Hall.

The film features Jasmine, a fascinating female character played by Cate Blanchett, who falls from the height of Wall Street royalty to the depths of mental illness and poverty.  Watching her cling to the vestiges of her old life is painful, but will infect viewers with the voyeurism of highway drivers slowing down to get a better view of a fatal car crash.

If Blanchett does not get an Oscar nomination for her work on this one, I will be shocked. The rest of the cast certainly does  Alec Baldwin delivers his best sleazy white collar criminal. Sally Hawkins plays Jasmine's foil as her pure hearted sister Ginger. Bobby Cannavale is the lovable blue-collar boyfriend who does his best to fight the immediate antagonism Jasmine clearly has for him.

Woody Allen says his secret is "picking the right actors and getting out of the way."  He allegedly spends less than a few minutes with his leads, prior to production, explaining what he wants.  The performances in this film just prove what magic can happen when actors are at the top of their games.

DC FIlm Society Screening: JOBS

You can take the girl out of Hollywood, but you can’t take the Hollywood out of the girl, so I was thrilled when my boyfriend, who shares my love of film culture, scored tickets to see a sneak preview of Jobs, the first bio-pic of the hippie-cum-technology magnate, Steve Jobs.

The event was presented by the DC Film Society.  We lined up at the Loews Georgetown theatres an hour early and already had doubts that we’d get in.  By the time we reached the entrance, the only seats that weren’t reserved for VIPs were in the front row.  

I won’t say much about the film, except that it will surprise you and take you through a living history of Jobs and his empire starting before Apple was even a spitball in a brainstorm.  The soundtrack created a strong sense of history and of inspiration.  Ashton Kutcher and Josh Gad, playing partners Jobs and Wozniak, gave moving and well-rounded performances.  The story line was clear and linear.  When the time came, I simply was not ready for the credits to roll.

To my delight, after the film, director Joshua Michael Stern and actor Josh Gad sat right in front of us in directors’ chairs to answer a Q & A moderated by DC Film Society Director, Michael Kyrioglou.

When asked about casting the film, Stern said that when he met Ashton Kutcher, it was clear that Ashton had already become obsessed with the role.   The actor walked into the first casting session with Stern with Jobs’ peculiar gait and was even alleged to practice an all-fruit diet, just like the tech giant.  Stern said Kutcher would be an odd and controversial choice, but a curious one that would draw people in.

Josh Gad spoke about the magic of shooting on location in Jobs’ childhood home in the Silicon Valley, in the garage where Apple 1 & 2 were born.  He said someone even found a collection of Jobs’ personal journals while snooping around between takes.  “You should probably put those back, “ he remembers advising the finder.

Stern has already screened the movie for most of the key players of the original Apple team, who have vetted the film, but not Steve Wozniak. Gad, tried to contact Woz while preparing for the role, to no avail.  Competing film projects may have tied Woz’s hands in terms of offering any help. 

The Q's and A's were over before they began, and Stern and Gad were whisked out, only delayed by a few fan-photo-ops, before being hustled into their respective black esclades and zipping away.  If I hadn’t known better, I would have thought I was right back at Hollywood & Highland.  Too bad there's no In n’ Out in Georgetown.