2B - Thursday, November 15, 2007
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
'THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE, AND HER LOVER' 0989)
REDUCTIVE REASONING
Picking one and one apart.
4
Dinner
for any
and all
By BRANDON CONRADIS
DailyArts Writer
Released during the last gasp
in the decade of excess - an era
when the film world was domi-
nated by flag-waving action films
and endless cycles of box-office-
friendly franchises -Peter Green-
away's "The Cook, the Thief, His
Wife, and Her Lover" (1989) may
seem like the odd man out when
it comes to notable arthouse films
of the
succes
to the
max,
tore o
and s
too mi
but di
Too b
most
rable f
to dat
how e
dec
a<
mater
ine art
The
Thief,
is fair
big-cit
(Heler
of an
ster (
Park")
a hum
ard, "I
Frenc
"Diva'
time. Though it had a fairly his unruly guests under control.
sful theatrical run thanks Sounds straightforward, right?
then-fledgling studio Mira- Well, this is a Greenaway film,
Greenaway's stunning mix- which means any semblance
fblack comedy, social satire of plot is ultimately peripheral,
heer depravity was simply instead allowing the infamous
uch for most viewers and all British director of such films as
sappeared on home video. "Drowning by Numbers" (1988)
ad, since it's easily one of the and "The Pillow Book" (1996) to
accomplished and memo- indulge in some of his customary
'ilms released by that studio bouts of twisted humor, grotesque
e and a perfect example of imagery and visual trickery.
ven the most objectionable Figuring into the plot's wire-
thin framework are such varied
delights as cannibalism, violence
From the with silverware, rampant (and
explicit) nudity on the part of its
,ade of excess middle-aged actors and - last
but by no means least - sex in a
strange gem. meat locker. This isn't your typi-
cal romantic drama, folks.
Though it has been argued that
the restaurant - which, apart
ial can be crafted into genu- from a few fleeting scenes, serves
t. asthe settingfor the entire picture
plot of "The Cook, the - is actually an allegory for Mar-
His Wife, and Her Lover" garet Thatcher-era Great Britain,
ly unremarkable: At a posh it's really the film's aesthetic and
ty restaurant, the aging wife dramatic qualities that serve as
n Mirren, "The Queen") the focus of Greenaway's vision.
oafish and abusive gang- From the first frame, the film is a
Michael Gambon, "Gosford feast for the eyes, brimming with
) begins an illicit affair with vibrant colors and eye-catching
ble bookkeeper (Alan How- sets and costumes. But that's not
David Copperfield") while a to say these elements overshadow
h cook (Richard Bohringer, the performances, which are uni-
") frantically tries to keep formly outstanding and heighten
SCOURTESY OF
SMIRAMAX
the tragic and comic aspects of
the storyline. Mirren and Gam-
bon are especially impressive,
delivering Greenaway's acidic
dialogue with gusto and fusing
their shared scenes with the sort
of sexual and comic tension that
characterizes the film as a whole.
Another Greenaway trade-
mark is his fascination with cin-
ematic "games." His earlier film,
"Drowning by Numbers," con-
tains the numbers one through 99
interspersed,inorder, throughout
the entire film. In "The Cook,"
the game is subtler but equally
memorable: Characters' cos-
tumes change colors from shot
to shot to match the colors of the
sets. It's a classic Greenaway tac-
tic that pulls the viewer into the
film even if toe is tempted to turn
away from the more repulsive
events on display.
"The Cook" also benefits from
a haunting score by Greenaway's
regular composer, Michael
Nyman, which turns the film's
disturbing and unforgettable cli-
max into a true tour-de-force.
Few films from the '80s are
more deserving of rediscovery
than this one. Not only is it Green-
away's best film, but it's also one
of the finest films to come out of
Britain since - well, since Marga-
ret Thatcher was prime minister.
The Daily Arts guide to the
best upcoming events
Today 11.15.07
Penny W. Stamps
Distinguished Visitor series
lecture: Rebekah Mondrak
5 p.m.
At the Michigan Theater
Free
Figure Drawing Workshop
8 p.m.
At the Alice C. Lloyd art studio
Free
Creative Arts Orchestra
8 p.m.
At Rackham Auditorium
Free
Tomorrow 11.16.07
F.O.K.U.S. presents Forum:
The Roots of Reggae's Past
and Present
sp.m.
At the Michigan League, Room 4
Free
Enter the Haggis
8 p.m.
At The Ark
$15/$20
Amazin' Blue presents:
AMAZIN' Pre-game, Go
BLUE!
8 p.m.
At Rackham Auditorium
$7 with student ID/$12
Saturday 11.17.07
Society for Electro-Acoustic
Music
8 p.m.
At the E.V. Moore Building, McIntosh
Theater
Free
- Please send all press
releases and event information to
artspage@michigandaily.com.
I
I
WEEK IN REVIEW
" "But, Dad, celebrities are commodities!" ASH-
LEY OLSEN, new significant other to Lance Arm-
strong, accompanied the cyclist's daughter show
and tell. No word on a two-for-one deal with
Mary Kate.. Say it ain't so, Ellen. ELLEN DEGE-
NERES crossed the Writers Guild picket line to
tape another episode of her show. " We knew it
all along: MIT kids care about the environment
- and are stupendously lazy. In an effort to make
sure your feet never carry the rest of your body,
the school has come up with the concept of tiny,
stackable city cars. They'd chill outside subway
and bus stops and would run on electricity. No
word yet if the carbon footprint you won't leave
will make up for your friends who stop hanging
out with you. " Whoa. GIBSON has developed
a guitar that tunes itself and is expected to drop
in about a year. No, John Mayer riffs won't sound
better. Neither will you.
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