Netflixed: Same as the old gaze
The Saga of Gosta Berling (Mauritz Stiller, 1924): This adaptation of a Romantic-throwback novel of love-polygons is thematically regressive (like just about every other movie ever made), but it’s notable as Garbo’s first major vehicle. In her first scene, she eats salumi, advancing the radical notion that women can feel, like, pleasure. Garbo would become the champ of using naturalism to inject meaning into slushiness, but she doesn’t have much of a chance until 2.5 hours into the movie. The best performance is by the woman she would soon succeed as Sweden’s greatest actress, Gerda Lundequist, in the non-naturalist role of the woman who’s scorned and suffers and finally says fuck it, burn it down.
Entr’acte (Rene Clair, 1924): Despite the cameos by veteran Dadaists and budding Surrealists like Duchamp and Ray, there are mere traces of their movements until the zombie-conductor ending. Clair is more interested in using trick photography for lyricism. The slo-mo scenes and the rollercoaster montage make motion itself interesting like it hadn’t been since before Griffith. The upskirt shots foreshadow anime.
Captain America: The First Avenger (Joe Johnston, 2011): Cap has this reactionary image when he’s been a bleeding-heart since Kirby and Simon created him. Part of this is his role as a propaganda tool, which this movie cleverly addresses. This stumbles in its second half as it races through canon to set up The Avengers, but the ending has the weight you’d hope for.
Cars 2 (John Lasseter, 2011): This is a movie about how we should feel guilty if we laugh at Larry the Cable Guy, and even more guilty if we don’t. Because he’s being himself, you see; I can’t wait to play this excuse next time I pull a Kanye. Pixar make the action scenes professional, but this is the final blow against claims they bat a thousand.
