"Henry Fool" with a genre spin
Added 11/27/2008
Ten years after her husband, Henry Fool (Thomas Jay Ryan) fled the country in order to escape being arrested for murder, Fay Grim (Parker Posey) is approached by two CIA agents wanting her assistance in obtaining Henry's "confessions", a collection of notebooks which were previously believed to be the manuscript to a very poorly written novel, but in fact, might contain government secrets.
"Fay Grim" is the sequel to Hartley's 1997 film "Henry Fool". However, whereas "Henry Fool" could best be described as a pretentious art-house comedy/drama (and yes, I did like it very much), "Fay Grim" builds on many of the ideas that were set-up in "Henry Fool" and spins them into a tale of espionage and terrorism. In this film, Hartley uses the framework of a spy genre piece to answer many of the questions that were left unanswered at the end of "Henry Fool" - in particular, who is Henry, what was in his notebooks and why did he write them in the first place. For most of this film, Hartley does an excellent job of this, to the point where I actually started wondering if Hartley had all of these answers in mind when he wrote "Henry Fool". However, the film is let down by a weak and rather confusing ending (I'm still not really sure why Fay seemed to care so much for Bebe, a woman whom she meets along the way, at the end of the film, and I think that there were about three different (and contradictory) explanations given for the contents of the notebooks) which leaves things open for yet another sequel ("Simon Grim", perhaps). Having said all of that, if another film about Henry Fool and the Grims come out, then I will definitely be lining up to see it. Hal Hartley films are often described as an acquired taste, and although I have been able to find fault in all of his films that I have seen, I still have a taste for them and would gladly see more. Henry Fool is one of my favourite characters in a Hartley film and in movies in general, and any opportunity to see him again, would be worth it for me.
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An acquired taste
Added 5/16/2008
This is not a film for everyone. It is definitely an acquired taste. At the time I picked up this movie, I was not aware that it was a sequel and with that being said, if you have not seen the previous movie, you will be able to watch this one on its own. I was attracted to it by the fact that the leading lady Fay Grim is played by the queen of independent movie industry, Parker Posey. It is hard to say what genre this film belongs to because it is so quirky. Dialog is exaggerated by all characters so it is intended to be somewhat surreal. I was suprised to see Parker Posey reprise her comedic take on cell phone in vibrating mode inside her underware. She did that in another movie and it was interesting to see it again becuase it is just as funny, if not more. To me this is a movie about the fabulist Henry Fool, who in spite of being a writer, spy and a liar is loved by his wife, son and brother in law. He is a rebel that everyone loves to hate, one of those characters that everyone is drawn to by his charisma regardless of the fact that one can feel touble from afar. Film has dry humor and appears to drag at the moment, but cast is funny. Saffron Burrows is so beautiful and sexy one cannot take his eyes of her. Definitely not intended for wide audiences, but absolutely unique in its own way.
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Not for everyone...
Added 2/22/2008
Have you ever watched a movie and it just clicked? The movie wasn't perfect - in fact it was probably quite flawed - but it hit you at just the right time for it to resonate. It's a movie that you hesitate to recommend, it's a movie you can perfectly understand people hating, and yet for you it actually rose to the level of masterpiece. And even as you love it you realize that if you had seen it at a time when you were a little more distracted, or a little more impatient, or a little more tired, you would have probably hated it. Lost in Translation was such a film for me. So was Mother Night. And now i happily add Fay Grim to that list.
I should have hated it. It betrayed the quirky simplicity of Henry Fool by making the characters all part of some absurdly complex and far-reaching spy plot. It almost plays like a satire on Hollywood sensibilities: "How about if we make a simple film about a frustrated, misunderstood writer who inspires an unrealized poet?" "OK, as long as the writer ends up actually being an international spy wanted by the CIA!"
And yet, this film works. It works magnificently. Not really a sequel to Henry Fool, more like a riff on Henry Fool, like an interesting thought experiment in re-imagining an existing story in the most far-fetched way. But it works. The spy plot is Byzantine in it's complexity but if you're paying attention it remains logical and consistent. The character are - as in all Hal Hartley films - played in an overly theatrical manner, somewhere between kabuki and sketch comedy, and yet it works. The dialogue... the dialogue is classic Hartley, endlessly quotable, with fabulously intelligent lines dropping left and right.
I can't promise you'll like this, I can't even promise you'll stay awake. All I can say is if you liked Henry Fool and Amateur (and DEFINATELY start with those-- DO NOT make this your first Hartley film) then give this a shot.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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An Unexpected Sequel
Added 1/1/2008
As Henry Fool is among my top 10 favorite films, I was shocked, surprised, baffled I'd never before heard of a "sequel" until told by my brother a few months ago. I wrestled with watching, not wanting to spoil a nearly perfect film memory with a substandard follow-up. I needn't have waited, as Fay Grim finds Hartley and Co. in as fine a form as ever, the characters we fell in love with in "Henry" now older, wiser and a little world weary. Parker Posey is a force of nature as Fay. We watch her still somewhat unraveling life as a single mom in Queens, worrying about her brother, Simon still serving a long prison sentence for his role in Henry's escape - an episode that confounded viwers at the end of the first film. Additionally she's fearful of the legacy Henry left for their child (the marvelous Liam Aiken) now a teenager ever in trouble at school, and who's escapade at film's start (involving an ancient type of ViewMaster with pornographic images, suggesting the long missing Henry has somehow made contact with his son), and some guilt over her affair with Simon's publisher.
A film fleshing out these characters is precisely what most directors would've made, but oh, not Hal. From the first minutes, things spin out of control when CIA Agent Fulbright shows up in her kitchen, proposing to her that those journals of confession . . . . "the masterpiece" Henry lugged throughout the first film are a sort of key to understanding multi-national terroristic occurrences that peppered the last part of the 20th century. A complex plan is set in motion for Fay to retrieve Henry's diaries in France, and single mom Fay, begins a worldwide tour that pushes the story into one of international intrigue, espionage, the power of love and longed for redemption.
All of the classic Hartley "ticks" are present: odd camera angles, rapid fire, clearly annunciated yet near impossible to comprehend dialogue delivered both rapidly and in a long forgotten deadpan style best described as "theatrical" - and other devices that alienate some audiences, while invigorating others. It is not without flaws, but this is true of all masterpieces, and Fay Grim is a masterpiece. Hartley takes these now well known characters (at least to "Fool" fans) and obliterates any preconceived notions we may have held about their fates. While there are plenty of darkly comic moments to cause outright laughter, there are, too, scenes of enormous emotional weight that are no less than Shakespearean in their delivery. It is this combination of comic and gut busting intensity that Hartley has always excelled at, and which make his work so genre-bending.
The performances from every single cast member are uniformly excellent. This is true right down to the smallest roles which in most films might be perceived as "extras" such as a hotel clerk, or a security guard, a casual observer in the street - all of them are people who are burned into your memory and essential to the telling of the tale at hand: there seems to be no such thing as an "extra" in this film. Particular kudos go to Ms. Posey takes Fay on a truly life transforming journey. One need only look at the image of her from the film's beginning and the very final image of her to understand the heart of Fay and of this film.
I've avoided reading reviews of "Fay Grim" before watching it tonight, but the fact that a year after its release I hadn't even heard of it, tells me this didn't do as well as anyone may have hoped. While I'm disappointed that this film (or Henry) take back seats in audience popularity to the mass produced dreck from big budget Hollywood system, it is encouraging to see that Hartley is still at it, still relevant, still making movies that can sweep one with the force of a hurricane into a world of wonder - a world where everything disparate and foreign and everyone "good" or "bad" is forever connected, still part of the same amazing universe.
4 out of 5 people found this helpful.
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An Ambiguous Spoof
Added 11/11/2007
This is my first Hal Hartley film and I had no idea it was a sequel to `Henry Fool'. Parker Posey plays Fay Grim, the wife of Henry Fool. She does not seem to have her life in order. But who can blame her. Her husband is on the run or dead, her brother is in jail and her son just got expelled from school. What could be worse?
Here is where this espionage spoof film takes off on its implausible but interesting ride. A C.I.A. agent is waiting in her home for her to return. He informs her that her husband is dead, and the multi-volume diary he wrote is wanted by every government in the world. And now that they know Parker can obtain some of them, they all try to use her.
The C.I.A. convince Fay to fly to Paris to retrieve the books that are rightfully hers. But do not tell her that she is being used in a game of espionage. As she gets thrown into this world of international intrigue, she learns to play the game in her own way. A quirky film that definitely lends itself for another sequel.
1 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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My new favorite movie!
Added 7/22/2009
I loved Broken English, and my husband had to admit he liked it too. This movie is one of those rare movies that you can actually relate to-where the dialgoue and situations remind you of real people. It's romantic without being sappy, and doesn't even have those unnecessary sex scenes that so many directors feel HAVE to be included in any love story. Despite what other reviews have indicated, I don't get tired of watching characters discover themselves and change their situations in pursuit of happiness. Don't all of us experience that at multiple times in our lives?
I would recommend this movie to anyone looking for a little substance and real film-making talent in their movie-watching experience.
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Updated modern classic
Added 3/26/2009
Though the tale of looking for love is old, there's really nothing old-fashioned about this effort. Parker Posey is pitch perfect in the lead. She looks increasingly lost as the film churns through her various lovers until she meets a French man in NYC. Film-maker Zoe Cassavetes seems to go above and beyond to ensure that no cliches are allowed in as the tale unwinds from scene to scene. This leaves a great impression for her first effort. Watch it.
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Parker Posey and Her Wonderful Acting Keep "Broken English" Afloat
Added 1/16/2009
In "Broken English" a New York hotel concierge Nora Wilder (perfectly cast Parker Posey) meets her perfect man in the winsome Parisian Julien (Melvil Poupaud) visiting the city. However, bring insecure (partly because of her recent date with a self-obsessed actor Nick Gable played by Justin Theroux), she cannot say "Yes" when she knows she should.
"Broken English is written and directed by Zoe R. Cassavetes, daughter of late John Cassavetes and Gena Rowlands (who briefly appears as Nora's mother). Anyone who knows the style of John Cassavetes as director (responsible for "Shadows," "Faces" and other great films) will not be surprised that his daughter employed a low-key approach to her filmmaking. Events are depicted in a much more subdued way than most Hollywood romantic comedies and its subtlety is one of the merits of the film.
Unfortunately, the materials themselves covered here are not particularly new. What is more disappointing is the characters and dialogues. Despite the excellent acting from Melvil Poupaud, the French traveler Julien is almost formulaic, too good a person to be true and so are Nora's mother and best friend Audrey (Drea de Matteo, who turns in a fine performance). Their characters are rather one-note, do not engage our interest or attention.
The greatest part of the film is, of course, Parker Posey. You will be watching her brilliant acting as Nora, but to me it seems as if Parker Posey has taken over the role and banished Nora out of it. Sometimes a talented actor gives his or her character a life that a by-the-numbers script fails to give, and I think this is what is happening here.
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