The Believer (USA 2001, Drama), Writers: Henry Bean, Mark Jacobson; Director: Henry Bean

I rented The Believer not long ago. Ryan Gosling. Wow. He just keeps impressing me more and more. Although I’m wondering what TS, who recommended The Believer, liked so much about the film as a whole. I thought it had a few very strong points, but overall, I found it to be lacking.

Gosling stars as Danny Balint, a conflicted young man who is both Jewish and a neo-Nazi. Hence the conflict. The movie is based on the true story of Daniel Burros, a KKK member in the 1960s who killed himself when he was revealed by a New York Times reporter to be Jewish.

What I enjoyed most about the film were Gosling’s performance and some aspects of the writing. Gosling is outstanding. He portrays what is essentially a gross magnification of people’s tendency to hate in others what they hate in themselves, while still giving Danny real soul and substance. As for the script, I appreciated the way it delves into Danny’s unique perspective on Judaism. Although that often made me feel more like I was digesting a sermon than enjoying good dialogue, Danny’s background and insight brings particular resonance to his arguments about why he hates Jewish people. Knowledge is power, and here, he uses it for the greater harm.

The problem I had with The Believer is that, while the filmmakers, and of course Gosling, do a good job showing how conflicted Danny is as a young adult, I couldn’t see how he went from being a devout student of Judaism to a violent, hateful neo-Nazi. It didn’t help that the actor playing Danny as a youth doesn’t look or act anything like Gosling.

Also, the black and white fantasy sequences are a little reminiscent of made-for-TV movies. Every time the music kicked in for one of those sequences, I had to fight the urge to hit fast-forward. It just didn’t work for me.

I don’t mean to dismiss The Believer entirely, but I wouldn’t recommend watching it unless you want to study/enjoy Gosling’s performance, or try to wrap your head around some of the points Danny makes—if for no other reason than to examine how people can turn on one another so drastically and use their inside knowledge to do wrong.

Control (UK/USA/Australia/Japan 2007, Biography/Drama/Music), Writer: Matt Greenhalgh; Director: Anton Corbijn

I finally made it back to the ByTowne! And I didn’t even have to renew my membership, thanks to BD’s free movie passes.

We saw Control last week. (Wow—just writing this makes me crave ByTowne popcorn…) It’s a stunning, hyper-realistic documentation of the life of Ian Curtis, (Sam Riley) the deeply talented, volatile lead singer of England’s Joy Division. As Curtis’ problems with epilepsy, and self-diagnosed and misdiagnosed drugs, spiraled out of control, his depression and self-destructive tendencies worsened until he committed suicide at the age of 23.

The script is based on Touching From a Distance, a memoir written by Curtis’ wife Deborah. It unfolds very well, asking viewers to make a few leaps rather than spelling everything out word for word. And it doesn’t hurt that the dry British sense of humour comes through in little bursts.

Adding to the realism is the fact that Control is directed by Anton Corbijn, the photographer for Joy Division during the band’s heyday. With exceptional direction and gorgeous black and white cinematography, Corbijn recreates the atmosphere of Britain’s 70s rock scene with an insight that could only come from someone who lived through it. The film is a brilliant, bittersweet tribute to Joy Division, featuring some outstanding performances. Riley in particular is pitch-perfect; he delivers a painfully beautiful portrayal of Curtis’ mental illness.

Control is a bit like a stiff drink. It’s not everyone’s taste, so I don’t recommend it unilaterally to all of you reading this blog. But if you’re in the mood for something unusual, dark and honest, see this film. It will certainly be time well-spent.

Now I’m going outside to spend time in the cold, cold snow.