Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Woody



When push comes to shove, and the Leopard is asked what my favorite movie is, the same one always seems to comes to mind: Woody Allen’s 2003 film Manhattan. There’s a satisfying mixture of comedy and drama that has simply never been equaled in my mind.

Woody’s ingenuity when seen objectively, is pretty astonishing. Though the great comedian/writer/director is capable of the odd clunker, the majority of his films are quite good and at his best, pictures Annie Hall, Hannah And His Sisters, Midnight In Paris are arguably among most enjoyable films ever made. 

Having just read a wonderful book of interviews, Woody Allen On Woody Allen, I’ve gained even more respect for Allen not just for his inventiveness but his tenacity (as of this writing he’s written and directed over 50 films – over one a year).

Every film he creates, even the weaker ones, uniformly are produced: beautifully acted, intelligently written and well shot. For me, the opening of a Woody Allen films no matter how frequent, is a small event. With The Woodman, you it will always be something worth the price of the ticket.

Thursday, April 4, 2013

The Leopard recently saw Tatsumi, an animated biography/documentary about one of my inspirations, the great manga artist Yoshihiro Tatsumi. Directed by Eric Khoo, The basis of the film is the book A Drifting Life, about his fascinating career. It's a wonderful tribute to Tatsumi's art.
Tatsumi started out in children's manga, but was an early founder of gekiga style, which was alternative Japanese comics, often touching on adult themes of loneliness, depair and hopelessness, reflecting on then post war Japan.
The film not only animates A Drifting Life but also some of Tatsumi's best known stories, some of which are quite shocking in their violence and and especially sexual content.