By STEVE PERSALL and PHILIP BOOTH
Published November 4, 2004
[Photo: Focus Features]
The Motorcycle Diaries
The Motorcycle Diaries (R) (128 min.) Che Guevara was one of the most dynamic political figures of the 20th century; his vision of a unified, egalitarian Latin America made him an ally of Fidel Castro and eventually a target of the CIA. Walter Salles' film, partly based on Guevara's journal, ends before he was famous but not until we have an idea of why he decided to put his life on the line for his principles.
In 1962, Guevara was a medical student in Buenos Aires, embarking on a demanding road trip with his friend, biochemist Alberto Granado. They traveled nearly 8,000 miles around South America, partly for adventure but also to visit a leper colony that needed their expertise and idealism. Nothing about the trip is political, yet it all contributes to future politicism. We know what Guevara and Granado couldn't have: that the trip sparked revolution and, for better and worse, change.
Working with Jose Rivera's beautifully revealing screenplay, Salles creates a film that would be fascinating even if the central heroes weren't destined for fame. The open road has always been a strong setting for introspection and social reflection, as so many films and books have proved. But our awareness of the future informs each small moment, especially in the second hour when Guevara's conscience is tweaked by the tragedies of others.
Gael Garcia Bernal (Y Tu Mama Tambien) plays Guevara in magnetic fashion: handsome, compassionate and subtly changing. The character arc is tricky, moving from apolitical youth to budding revolutionary in a matter of weeks. Bernal never hints at reverence for Guevara's memory and focuses on his passion for the present. Equally compelling is Rodrigo de la Serna as Granado, although his shift from horny vagabond to social activist isn't as smoothly drawn.
The Motorcycle Diaries is episodic, at times to a fault. The first half, in which the duo indulges in personal goals such as bedding women and traveling inexpensively, skirts redundancy until they arrive at a mining region and see firsthand how cheaply lives are held. The film hits its stride with the leper colony sequences, which bring out the best in both men but only hint at what's to come.
Filmmakers would be more naturally drawn to the latter, dangerous days of Guevara. Salles bravely goes the other route, depicting when and how the fuse of revolution was ignited. You don't have to agree with Guevara's politics to admire his personal strength. The Motorcycle Diaries may even inspire younger viewers to assess their own potential to shape the world, and older ones to wonder why they didn't. That's a lot to ask from any film, but Salles delivers. A-
- STEVE PERSALL, Times film critic
Leaving the roost behind
Around the Bend (R) (85 min.) Around the Bend is a self-consciously quirky comic drama that largely takes place in the scenic environs of KFC restaurants across the Southwest.
Large helpings of the Colonel's chicken accompany a series of gatherings variously held among four generations of troubled males. Henry (Michael Caine), the clan's crusty, randy patriarch, is a retired archaeologist with two things on his mind: the hoped-for affections of the wacky Danish live-in help (Glenne Headly), and a final digging expedition aboard the family's beat-up orange VW microbus, with harried banker grandson Jason (Josh Lucas) and young great-grandson Zach (Jonah Bobo) in tow.
Turner (Christopher Walken), Henry's son and Jason's father, shows up after a mysterious 30-year absence to provoke family turmoil. Ultimately, he joins that expedition from the Los Angeles area to Albuquerque, N.M., a travelog complete with shots of gorgeous red sunsets and impressive rock formations. Yes, family secrets will be revealed, and relationships will be healed.
Caine, as usual, is a galvanizing screen presence, sorely missed when he makes his exit. Walken, silver hair reaching for the sky, plays a lovable nut case and casually grazes on the scenery. Bobo is cute as a button, as required, and Lucas often seems adrift on the wrong movie set, playing it straight while his more entertaining fellow cast members veer out of control. Somehow, it's simultaneously extra crispy and undercooked. C+
- PHILIP BOOTH, Times correspondent
Playing against gender
Stage Beauty (R) (110 min.) Stage Beauty occupies roughly the same milieu as Shakespeare in Love: It's the 17th century in England, and the greatest beauty of the London stage is a man, Ned Kynaston (Billy Crudup), because women were forbidden to act. His ambitious dresser and assistant, Margaret Hughes (Claire Danes), dares to break the ban, and, in doing so, foments a revolution in the theater world.
Kynaston, a superstar because of his acclaimed portrayal of Desdemona, is first blindsided and then flummoxed by the attention Margaret receives for her work in that role, in a performance by an underground troupe: "A woman playing a woman? What's the trick in that?"
A dandyish Charles II (Rupert Everett, an offbeat charmer) decides to lift the ban and derails Kynaston's career. The actor has no choice but to switch to same-sex roles. The results are funny and poignant. He can't stop loving his old, trusty vocal mannerisms and body language.
Richard Eyre (Iris), directing an adaptation of the Jeffrey Hatcher play, which took plenty of liberties with history, turns in a funny, raunchy film marked by hilarious, fast-paced exchanges and plenty of crude and rude behavior. The costumes are lavish, and the set designs - from an impromptu theater to the royal court - are evocative. As a gender-bending comedy, it's less edgy but more entertaining than other films in the genre. B+
