The Mirror Stage: A Tribute

Lacan made his name on what he called the mirror stage, which catalyzes the entry of infants into the symbolic world. Sometimes it takes a lot to impress me, but throw a shot of a mirror into your movie, and I'm temporarily subdued. Accordingly, I've been collecting mirror shots for some time now. Here are some of my favorites, many of which exhibit Lacanian undertones.

Mad Men Season 1: Betty's Season 1 story is merely a forerunner of her self-realization in Season 2. It's fitting that she's not looking in the mirror quite yet.

Mad Men, Season 1: Isn't this shot just perfect? The focus is clearly on Peggy, who's reacting to the mirrored woman crying. But we can still see Joan, mirrored herself, beckoning Peggy into the bathroom, because she can't help everyone. I don't think the episode is suggesting this, but the mirror stage is innately individual; you have to get through it on your own.

Battlestar Galactica, Season 1: Aside from the neat visual, this is straight out of Lacan, Sharon's mirror self trying desperately to force her into consciousness. Also the frame is pretty evenly divided: on the right, we have wavy hair complete with strays (hair is a particularly maternal symbol to Lacan), and on the left, ordered lines with a mirror and letters! Welcome to the Symbolic.

The Headless Woman: I've posted this elsewhere, because I love the multiple reflections of the same thing. But it's also appropriate in a Lacanian context. You'd think Veronica would start to figure things out...

Ivan's Childhood: I've used this before also, but here's a boy without a mother who spends a movie searching for her. Sort of. It's worth noting that the mirror stage is a one-way street. (I really don't want to spoil my favorites for anyone who hasn't seen them.)

The Mirror: Tarkovsky's movie about his mother. Fitting, eh? Sidenote: I love that this mirror isn't perfectly shimmering like most movie mirrors. It's hard to tell here, but it has dirt and spots all over it.

Viridiana: Viridiana lets her hair down, a sexually suggestive maternal symbol that beautifully sets the Oedipal film's first act in motion. I don't see this as a reference to the mirror stage so much as a simple demonstration of self-consciousness, somewhat ironically coming from a figure of chastity. (Who says nuns can't look hot?)

Vicky Cristina Barcelona: More sexual awakening going on. Poor, clueless Chris Messina.

Summer with Monika: Here's a mirror shot that mirrors an earlier mirror shot with a dramatic difference. The baby couldn't care less. Too young for this world.

Last Year at Marienbad: No clue what's going on here, but the geometric composition is superb.

In the Mood for Love: I even love mirror shots when the characters aren't looking in them, although it detracts from my Lacanian analysis.

Mulholland Dr.: This is the moment where Rita/Diane/Whatever realizes she doesn't know her name. Of course she's looking in the mirror at such a naked, vulnerable moment. The mirror stage is essentially traumatic. If this is all a dream, then I suppose Mulholland Dr. is a stunning depiction of The Real. But that's another post.

Picture of the Day

I forgot David Cross was in Waiting for Guffman! That Directors post had me itching to return to Christopher Guest, and I'm glad I did. One, it captured my feelings about the Oscars, waiting for something to end my misery, something that never came. And two, it provided the funny. "Kids don't like eating lunch at school, but if they've got a Remains of the Day lunchbox, they're a whole lot happier." That man is a genius.

Another forgotten Guffman player? Matt Keeslar, also known as The Middleman ("Middleman!"), plays the hot, young mechanic Guest's Corky St. Clair hits on and casts in his show. The close-up on Keeslar's character's dad eyeing Corky might be my favorite part of Guffman. I wish Keeslar were in more Guest movies, but now that he's not under contract to a television series (I told myself I wouldn't cry), maybe there's a chance.

The worlds of David Cross and Christopher Guest overlap again in Arrested Development, which features a lot of Guest players in multi-episode roles. Consider: Ed Begley, Jr., Michael Hitchcock, Jane Lynch, John Michael Higgins, and apparently David Cross. Anyone I missed?

Just for you, I also snapped this blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot of David Cross' Mr. Show partner Bob Odenkirk as an apparently rejected auditioner:


"We consider ourselves bi-coastal if you consider the Mississippi River one of the coasts."

P.S. I think I might be over Michael Cera, a prospect unthinkable just months ago. But yeah, what's going on with this Arrested Development movie? Clearly Cera's goal in life is not to satisfy me, but is it too much to ask for a straight answer? For someone ostensibly sick of Hollywood politics, Cera sure is playing a game with this, and my love is apparently not unconditional.

P.P.S. If the television gods won't deliver on Arrested Development, the least they could do is reteam David Cross with Bob Odenkirk, preferably in Son of Mr. Show.

Oscar Night: Waiting for Guff-Rourke

Mankind's most boring Oscars were announced tonight, and though there were no real surprises, nobody here got more than 14 predictions right. I'm a little embarrassed for us.

Slumdog Millionaire swept up 8 Oscars for its crew. To them I say: all I want to do is bang bang bang bang, and a click, and take your Oscars.

The ceremony itself was pretty fun. When it comes to Oscar hosts, I may be easy to please, because I am one of the few who thought Hugh Jackman's opening musical number was good. Not the greatest intro to the most important ceremony the world has ever known, but a well-done, decent opener. It doesn't live up to the aforepromised spectacle of Hugh Jackman hosting drunk and naked, but what can you do?

However, if nobody's going to stand up for the gayness, at the Oscars no less, allow me. First we get the expected jokes about straight guys' anxiety around homosexuality, which I don't really have a problem with, especially coming from James Franco and Seth Rogen and Hugh Jackman in a musical number. Then the romance clip package comes around, and it took a while to get to Milk, but they made room. They follow up with another musical number featuring three couples, none of which are same-sex. This isn't entirely the fault of the Oscar producers, but again, because gay people don't have the rich cultural history straight people do, they get the shaft in these tributes. In the year of Milk, they couldn't have thrown a Rent song in for good measure? At least Dustin Lance Black and Sean Penn threw us a bone.

As for presenters, all that jumps to mind are James Franco and Seth Rogen, complete with Pineapple Express video clip, Whoopi's Sister Act reference (Never Forget!), and the best comedy of the night--Steve Martin and Tina Fey presenting Tina Fey's Oscar Host Audition Piece. Oscar gods, make it happen.

This feels like a good time to reiterate how much I love ceremonies (like Ellen DeGeneres') where they honor the work by showing examples of the costumes and art design and score and screenplays. Everyone hated it then (the sound mixing choir, for example), but I think displaying the work we're here to honor is far more interesting than montages from the year's movies. Also, having five previous winners present the acting awards was a great touch, I thought, and it looks like the nominees appreciated it too. I missed the clips from nominated performances--though the screenplay clips had them stretching to find a section of In Bruges that wasn't laced with profanity--but I wouldn't have sacrificed the Hall of Famers for the clips. Maybe next year, they'll have both.

Most of the best moments were unscripted: The aforementioned Dustin Lance Black and Sean Penn politics, Kate Winslet asking her dad to whistle from wherever he was in the audience, Philippe Petit balancing an Oscar on his head, and everything about Sophia Loren.

The awards themselves were further evidence of the prime drawback of being the grand finale of awards season, malaise. The closest thing to an upset was Departures winning Best Foreign-Language Film, but even I predicted that, so it wasn't that crazy a possibility. When Foreign-Language Film is the most exciting award of the night, the ceremony's in trouble.

Semi-relatedly, I bet on Herzog, but no-go. Still, it was refreshing to hear his voice and see him speak tonight, and in a documentary package by the Maysles brothers, no less! I didn't realize they were still active filmmakers, but I belatedly add them to my overlooked directors list.

With it all behind me, though I was rooting for Mickey Rourke, Meryl Streep, and Anne Hathaway, I can say that I'm pretty pleased with the acting winners. Kate Winslet is certainly one of my favorite contemporary actresses (maybe my favorite), and Sean Penn's Milk is a fine performance.

But I have no desire to rewatch 8-time Oscar-winner Slumdog Millionaire ever again. Call it Crash syndrome, but I got more enjoyment out of Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Milk, Doubt, The Dark Knight, and Hamlet 2. But since nobody else in the world is going to care about this in a few years, I can stop talking about it now too.

The Indie Spirit awards took place last night and also let me down due to the sweep of an awards favorite, only this time it was The Wrestler. Don't get me wrong, I thought The Wrestler was incredibly well-acted and smartly written. I was just hoping the spotlight could be shared. That said, Mickey Rourke's speech should win a WGA award.

So if anyone has anything to add, feel free to comment. Are you as disappointed as I was that In Bruges lost Best Screenplay? Did you love the Best Song medley? Do you agree that Meryl Streep should be appointed Queen of the Universe?

See you next Oscar season, which began approximately two months ago!

2008 Brandon Movie Awards

On my charitable days, I think that the Oscars are about to continue the year's trend of honoring perfectly fine movies with perfectly fine performances and perfectly fine writing and perfectly fine cinematography and perfectly fine music. But in my heart, I loathe those movies for being passable, forgettable, easy. I have a more provocative, stimulating, exciting, and artful group of films to honor. I present to you, the 2008 Brandon Movie Awards.

As I've said repeatedly, the BMAs are undergoing change. Thanks a lot, Obama. They've already undergone all the philosophical changes, but the format is physically changing and incomplete (mostly because I haven't cared enough to hunker down and finish). So for now, I'm presenting them here, unveiling the new changes.

Most significantly, putting my money where my mouth is, I have done away with gender divisions in the acting races. Because of the overflow, I've expanded the acting races to six slots now, but all the rest are confined to 5. I will present the BMAs in the following order:

Best Cinematography
Best Screenplay - no sense in differentiating between original and adapted
Best Supporting Actor
Best Lead Actor
Best Director
Best Picture
Best Documentary
Best Foreign-Language Film

And since the BMAs are always in flux, I'm open to suggestions for other categories. I've noticed plenty of online movie awards include a category for Best Movie Moment (or Scene). I'm considering that. Any other ideas?

I still have yet to see several 2008 heavyweights, like Synecdoche, New York, Waltz with Bashir, Flight of the Red Balloon, and I've Loved You So Long. I really ought to correct this some day.

With that out of the way, allow me to present the new, improved BMAs for 2008!

Best Cinematography:

Javier Aguirresarobe - Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Eigil Bryld - In Bruges

Eric Gautier - A Christmas Tale

Jody Shapiro - My Winnipeg

Peter Zeitlinger - Encounters at the End of the World

The BMA goes to: Eric Gautier for A Christmas Tale! If I were judging based on single frames, My Winnipeg would take the cake, but cinematography is about camerawork, and Desplechin's movies are as dynamic and vibrant as can be. Gautier is constantly sweeping, swinging, and swirling, cutting between low-angles and high, never failing to find the most interesting way to catpure the subject. This wouldn't work for every film, but for a movie about life and all its passionate emotions, Gautier's energy is perfect.

Best Screenplay:

Woody Allen - Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Mike Leigh - Happy-Go-Lucky

Jenny Lumet - Rachel Getting Married

Guy Maddin & George Toles - My Winnipeg

Martin McDonagh - In Bruges

The BMA goes to: Martin McDonagh for In Bruges! "You fucking retract that bit about my cunt fucking kids!" I don't even know how to punctuate that brilliance.

Best Supporting Actor:

Mathieu Amalric - A Christmas Tale

Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Rosemarie DeWitt - Rachel Getting Married

Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

Eddie Marsan - Happy-Go-Lucky

Ann Savage - My Winnipeg

The BMA goes to: Rosemarie DeWitt for Rachel Getting Married! I've spoiled this in previous posts, but DeWitt gave my favorite film performance of the year. I find her endlessly watchable thanks to her ability to express so much simultaneously, even contradictory feelings. For instance, in the scene at home after leaving the salon, Rachel's face betrays both her forgiveness and hatred of Kym for her past transgressions, one of the many examples of how Rosemarie Dewitt remains charismatic even while revealing the ugliest shades of Rachel.

Best Lead Actor:

Colin Farrell - In Bruges

Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married

Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky

Maria Onetto - The Headless Woman

Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Michelle Williams - Wendy and Lucy

The BMA goes to: Sally Hawkins for Happy-Go-Lucky! Sally Hawkins is called upon to do a lot more than just be cheerful, and even in those scenes where she's unflaggingly optimistic, Hawkins finds a way to hint at her complexity. But it's in scenes with Eddie Marsan where she really shines, especially their climactic outburst.

Best Director:

Jonathan Demme - Rachel Getting Married

Arnaud Desplechin - A Christmas Tale

Guy Maddin - My Winnipeg

Lucrecia Martel - The Headless Woman

Martin McDonagh - In Bruges

The BMA goes to: Guy Maddin for My Winnipeg! I doubt this is a surprise, given my pick for movie of the year is such a personal piece from its auteur. Maddin is all over this film, from his semi-autobiographical tales to his expressionist and silent film homages.

Best Picture:

A Christmas Tale

The Headless Woman

In Bruges

My Winnipeg

Rachel Getting Married

The BMA goes to: My Winnipeg! But then, you already knew that. I've called it the most dazzlingly, audaciously innovative movie I saw from 2008. Nothing enchanted or inspired me more.

Best Documentary:

American Teen

Encounters at the End of the World

Man on Wire

My Winnipeg

Young at Heart

The BMA goes to: My Winnipeg! Perhaps the more revealing question is which documentary's my second favorite. That would be Encounters at the End of the World. I really ought to see Trouble the Water and The Order of Myths.

Best Foreign-Language Film:

A Christmas Tale

Four Nights with Anna

Gomorrah

The Headless Woman

Let the Right One In

The BMA goes to: The Headless Woman! I once said it's the formally best film of the year, and with more distance, I think that's accurate. The Headless Woman is a masterwork begging for and rewarding close analysis. I can't wait to catch up with Martel's other films.

To recap, My Winnipeg won Best Picture, Best Director (Guy Maddin), and Best Documentary. A Christmas Tale won Best Cinematography (Eric Gautier), Happy-Go-Lucky won Best Lead Actor (Sally Hawkins), The Headless Woman won Best Foreign-Language Film, In Bruges won Best Screenplay (Martin McDonagh), and Rachel Getting Married won Best Supporting Actor (Rosemarie DeWitt).

If you're interested in other online awards, might I suggest the Muriels? It seems their panel loved Rachel Getting Married even more than I did.

So how do we feel about the current incarnation of the BMAs, and the awards themselves this year? Any other categories you feel merit attention? Yes or no to the Best Scene idea?