Classic Movie Review Barfly

Barfly (1987) 

Directed by Barbet Schroeder 

Written by Charles Bukowski 

Starring Mickey Rourke, Faye Dunaway, Alice Krige 

Release Date October 16th, 1987

Charles Bukowski’s writing transcends experience. Something about his words can penetrate all life experience. I’ve never been through the gutters that Bukowski frequented, I’ve never even had a drink of alcohol, but there is something so powerful, visceral, and evocative in Bukowski’s skid row poetry, it’s hard not to be moved or have your stomach turned or to smile and not even know why. Bukowski’s naturalism, his vivid realities, speak to human experiences in the most unique ways.

That said, Bukowski’s prose was never thought to be a natural for the big screen. And yet, here we are with Barfly turning 30 years old this weekend. Bukowski wrote the screenplay at the behest of director Barbet Schroder who promised direct the film exactly as Bukowski wrote. It took nearly a decade and the insane producers Menachem Golan and Yoram Globus to make it happen, but Schroder lived up to his promise. Barfly is fully and completely a product of Bukowski.

Mickey Rourke stars in Barfly as Henry Cisnaski, a Bukowski stand in. Henry is a drunk and a bum, but he has the soul of Bukowski. Henry is a writer when the moment strikes him. In the midst of another endless bender, Henry is occasionally inspired and writes short stories that in moments of clarity he sends to publishers. One such publisher is on Henry’s trail throughout Barfly with the help of a detective but that isn’t the story of Barfly.

What story there is in these non-traditional narrative centers on Henry’s relationship with a fellow drunk named Wanda (Faye Dunaway). The two meet in a bar, naturally, and share drunken hard luck stories before she takes advantage of a friend to buy more booze for the two of them. She brings Henry to her apartment, only slightly better than his hovel and invites him to stay but with the warning that she would likely go home one night with a man who could afford booze.

Find my full length review in the Geeks Community on Vocal

Movie Review Murder by Numbers

Murder by Numbers (2002) 

Directed by Barbet Schroeder

Written by Tony Gayton

Starring Sandra Bullock, Ryan Gosling, Michael Pitt, Agnes Bruckner, Ben Chaplin, Chris Penn

Release Date April 19th, 2002 

Published April 18th, 2002

Director Barbet Schroeder began his career as one of the leaders of the French new wave in the 1960's. Writing for Cahiers Du Cinema, Schroeder expounded a style-over-substance approach, a free form of filmmaking that was about artistry more than story and character. Since coming to America in the early 70’s, Schroeder's style has become much more generic. It’s been mostly straight thrillers with conventional thriller plots and characters that, while proficient, weren't the genre busting style he had developed early in his career. Murder By Numbers is Schroeder’s latest by-the-numbers thriller that, while proficient, isn't Earth shattering.

Sandra Bullock stars as a hardass detective investigating an unusual murder that seems to have no motive. What Bullock and her partner, played by the personality challenged Ben Chaplin, don't know is the murder was committed as part of a suicide pact between two overpriveleged teens who thought it would be fun to try to commit the perfect murder. The teens, played by Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt, gorge themselves on forensic science books and the study of investigation, careful not to leave any clues. Of course what fun is committing the perfect crime if you can't take credit for it, so the boys begin to tease the detectives by dropping little hints, all the while setting up someone else to take the fall. Gosling's character, while not wanting to go to jail, still would like to be acknowledged for his brilliant scheme while Pitt quarrels with his own guilt.

The plot is strong but the characterizations are a little thin, especially Bullock who delivers a good performance but her character seems somewhat hard to believe in the muddled narrative. She's supposed to be this tough cop who other cops think is one of the guys yet at the same time she is intimidated by Gosling, who is not exactly menacing. The motivation for her being intimidated is explained later but by then it has already disrupted the characterization and rendered her unbelievable.

The standout is Michael Pitt who is on his way to an Oscar nomination with previous performances in Hedwig & the Angry Inch and Bully. He is building quite a resume with Murder By Numbers, an effective foray into the mainstream. The film itself could have benefited from being a little less mainstream, a little darker. As it is, it comes off a little too slick and somewhat shallow. Murder By Numbers is an okay film but it’s best to wait to be seen on DVD.