In HAPPY TIMES, Michael Mayer gleefully excoriates haute-bourgeois Israeli emigres

I've often thought that no one else in the world holds up a mirror to the negative aspects of the Israeli character more than do Israeli filmmakers themselves. Granted these are generally left-leaning artists whose subjects more often than not are the self-satisfied, successful and quite well-off. In the new Israeli film HAPPY TIMES, writer/ director Michael Mayer (Out in the Dark), along with co-writer Guy Ayal, applies those adjectives to as entitled and nasty a group of Israeli emigres as you could find, living in Los Angeles and invited to a dinner party at a Beverly Hills mansion, the hosts of which have clearly obtained their fortune in criminal fashion. It will not take long for you to realize that, whatever happens to these creeps and how really awful this is, you're not going to mind one whit.

Mr. Mayer (shown at left) starts things off somewhat slowly but nastily/ naughtily. Soon enough things heat up and the bizarre bloodletting begins. This is a comedy, albeit one about hypocrites and sleazebags (some obvious, others not so), and as our cast gets "offed," one after another in ways increasingly intricate and sometimes surprising, your laughter won't curdle quite as much as you might expect. (Don't worry -- bit of a spoiler ahead -- if you're anything like TrustMovies, the one character you'll be rooting for the most manages to avoid the crunch.)

The dinner party is made up of the host family (fortunately the kid, below, is soon carted off elsewhere), its relatives and in-laws, plus a friend or two. It takes awhile to decipher just who is who and what this might mean, but stick with it (if you're a fan of this kind of thing) and you'll be rewarded.

Most of the cast members seem new to my purview, but I did immediately recognize the gorgeous Stéfi Celma (below, right) of the delightful Netflix series Call My Agent), as well as Michael Aloni (of Out in the Dark). However, the entire cast seems well-chosen and each delivers the necessary and not-so-nice performance required.

Once the extent of the sleaze and hypocrisy of these folk have been established (for a few of the characters, this takes longer than for others), their comeuppance soon comes up. At 92 minutes, the movie doesn't outstay its "charm," although, according to the IMDB, the original length was 102 minutes, so perhaps the film was shortened a bit for American distribution. 

Whatever: If you're the type of audience who enjoys black humor and creative killings, this is probably a movie for you, especially since the demises grow more clever and inventive, right up to and including the final double whammy. 

From Artsploitation Films and in English and Hebrew, with English subtitles as necessary, the movie hit streaming venues earlier this month and is available to view now. Click here for more information and here for streaming choices.

Lower education unveiled in Jan Hřebejk/Petr Jarkovský's dark and delicious THE TEACHER

Another first-rate gem from the film-making team of director Jan Hřebejk and writer Petr Jarkovský, who have earlier given us Divided We Fall, Up and Down and Kawasaki's Rose, their newest venture -- THE TEACHER -- is also one of their best. Of course, we say this every time the pair makes a new movie. But, hey: It's true. I can't think of another film-making team that produces such consistently funny black comedies that are simultaneously ridden with examples of sad, weak and oh-so-real humanity. The combo is bracing, to say the least.

This Czech duo, pictured above with Mr. Jarkovský on the left, knows how to create situations so fraught with oddities and ironies that yet seem absolutely believable, and its combination of smart dialog, nimble direction and terrific performances results in movies that are both memorable and hugely entertaining.

So it is again with The Teacher, which tells the tale of a rather special teacher back in 1983, when Czechoslovakia was under the thumb of Communist Russia. One of the consistent surprises of this film-making team is how accessible, understandable and darkly funny it makes life under the Communist behemoth. I suppose that abusive power is pretty much the same all over the world; the degree to which is it used is what varies. Here in the USA we may just be seeing currently the fuller exposure of that particular iceberg.

Our teacher, played with a rich array of acting arsenal attributes by Zuzana Mauréry (above and below) has a fascinating and unfortunately all-too-easily-achieved way of working the system. TrustMovies will not go into details, for these are both original and too much fun to spoil your surprise.

Said to be based on a real situation that the writer and director make seem all the more so, The Teacher tackles the subject of fighting against injustice vs groveling to power, and the parents of the children of whom this teacher is in charge come down, as expected, on both sides of the issue and to varying degrees. What they say and how they say it in order to explain their position makes for much of the movie's exhilarating (if queasy-making) fun.

Bravery under Communism was hard to come by, and even when it reared its head, this might have been for as many wrong reasons as right. The filmmakers understand this, and they also know how to demonstrate it without finger-wagging or hammering it home. The situation, if it divides the parents (above), also brings together a set of students (below) who, under other circumstances, might have almost nothing in common. Here they bond -- in yet more irony!

Defection, education, submission and protest, the movie covers them all -- and more. By the time of its denouement, which takes Czechoslovakia to its post-Communist era, The Teacher unveils its final small-but-telling irony which is, like the film itself, a dark gem.

From Film Movement and running a just-right 103 minutes, the movie has its New York City premiere at Film Forum in New York City this coming Wednesday, August 30. Elsewhere? Well, it opens in Santa Fe at The Screen on Friday, September 8. Click here then scroll down to see futher upcoming playdates across the country.

PROPERTY IS NO LONGER A THEFT: Elio Petri's 1973 dark comic gem makes its Blu-ray debut

The latest gift from Arrow Academy, this lesser-known (here in the USA) movie by Italian filmmaker Elio Petri -- a philosophical, political black comedy called PROPERTY IS NO LONGER A THEFT -- should quickly take its place as one of this noted filmmaker's better works, as well as one of his most unique. Made after his more popular movies, The 10th Victim and Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, this one, so far as I know, was never released theatrically in the U.S.A, so its debut on home video is newsworthy and certainly a "must" for Petri buffs.

The movie tells the tale of a young bank clerk/accountant, oddly named Total (played by Flavio Bucci, shown below, in his first starring role), who has had a typically Italian upbringing -- the kind of hypocritical, patronizing parenting that, among other things, seems to have turned so many Italians, as the noted filmmaker Daniele Luchetti once explained to me, into anarchists. That was back in 2008, but clearly Signore Petri (shown at left) understood as much as early as 1973 when this original and prescient movie was released.

Total, who is literally allergic to money, addresses the audience at the beginning of the film by telling us, "Egoism is the fundamental sentiment of the religion of property. This situation is becoming intolerable, and I know many of you feel the same way." We then shift into a scene in the bank where Total works and see the bank's most successful client (a butcher played by co-star Ugo Tognazzi, below, left) make a huge deposit that suddenly turns into a robbery.

The manner in which the bank and the authorities handle this robbery, coupled to Total's own politics and philosophy and that of the butcher, who is a nasty, greedy piece of work whose own philosophy closely mirrors that of Donald Trump's -- this movie's Blu-ray/DVD debut could hardly be more timely -- leads to our Total's deciding to target the butcher and exact a very weird kind of revenge.

The remainder of this long (126 minutes) but succulent and bleakly entertaining movie offers up that revenge in a manner that is so encompassing and rich, as well as ever cognizant of the hypocrisy and denial built into humanity, that it eventually coils in on itself and crushes its own protagonist. But the journey is both bizarre and bubbly enough to carry us along quite easily. (The tour offered by the "protection service," above, is one of the highlights of the movie -- so redolent of wealth, power and our current "corporate" times as to take your breath away.)

The third important character here is Anita, the mistress of the butcher, played with a nice combination of fear, dread and utter understanding of a woman's place in this society by Daria Nicolodi (shown above and below, who was Dario Argento's oft-used leading lady). Petri, who co-wrote the film with Ugo Piro, allows each of his main characters to "explain" themselves during the course of the film, and Anita's explanation is a stunner, showing how very well she understands both herself and her situation. It's feminist and smart in so many ways, and yet Anita, of course, though she may understand things, still cannot control them.

Subsidiary characters include a shady police inspector, "drunk on power" (Orazio Orlando, above, left); a performer who doubles as a thief (the great Mario Scaccia); Total's whatever-works-for-me father (played by Salvo Randone, below, left); and a few others -- all of whom Petri uses to make his points about the society we lived in back then and that has only become more so down the decades since. By the finale you'll fully understand just how black a black comedy this one is -- as it makes nasty fun of everything from Marxism (our hero's family practices what he calls Mandrakian Marxism, as in Mandrake the Magician) to Capitalism, thievery, acting, and the very core of Italians and their society.

If the second hour's energy begins to flag a bit, hang on. There's a second wind coming.  Hang on also to watch the disc's special features, which include My Name is Total, a wonderful and nearly-present-day interview with star, Flavio Bucci, who rambles a lot but also fascinates and has plenty of interesting stuff to tell us. There are also a fine interview with producer Claudio Mancini, titled The Middle-Class Communist, and an interview with make-up artist Pierantonio Mecacci, The Best Man.

The Blu-ray transfer is first-rate, as well. I doubt this movie looked any better when it was projected on Italian screens back in the 1970s. From Arrow Films and distributed here in the USA via MVD Entertainment Group, the disc hit the streets this past Tuesday, March 28, and is available for purchase. I would hope that one could rent it somewhere, but so far, Netflix does not even make it available to be saved to your queue.

Sandra Oh and Anne Heche enliven Onur Tukel's dark and bleakly funny CATFIGHT

Looking for a nasty, funny, guilty pleasure that also offers a social/political edge? Such a thing arrives this Friday, March 3, as CATFIGHT opens in ten cities across the USA. Written and directed by Onur Tukel (Summer of Blood, Applesauce), the movie is an allegory for a number of things: the way we live now, our predilection toward violence as problem-solving, the uses of art and politics, political/ environmental correctness, the snares endemic to success, and our nation's (hell, most of the western world's) inability to place the important stuff -- environment, sheer survival -- ahead of our need to be entertained.

This is a lot to pack in, and it must be said that Mr. Tukel, shown at left, packs it pretty heavy-handedly. (Witness the "news" program we see on TV throughout, in which immensely important topics are consistently interrupted by a farting clown, to the utter delight of the audience. It's Fox News meets Duck Dynasty meets Captain Kangaroo.) On the other hand, given Turkel's subjects and the behavior of his leading characters, that heavy hand often seems pretty appropriate. This movie is a smack-down in so many ways.

As its stars, Catfight is lucky to have two actresses willing and able to go "all the way": Sandra Oh, (above), who is a revelation here, and Anne Heche (below), who seems to grow farther and farther afield from the beautifully angelic delight she played in one of her early films, the sweetly loony Pie in the Sky. Both actresses are impressive here, but Oh proves, oh, so rich and deep, as her character goes through one transformation after another. Heche, on the other hand, is fairly two-note, but she does take bitchy nastiness to shocking new heights.

If you imagine the the titular catfight comes at the film's climax, or that we wait for it eagerly and with baited breath, think again. The fight -- and it's a knock-down, drag-out bloody wonder -- happens very early on, in fact, and then occurs again and again throughout. Hence that theme of aggression as the problem-solver. The tale takes its two characters -- the wealthy wife of a successful businessman (Oh) and struggling artist (Heche) cared for by her significant other -- and, due to the results of these several fights, has them switch places in terms of success/wealth.

Yes, this is a rather obvious plot contraption, but Tukel rings enough changes on it that we easily follow along. In the role of Heche's significant other is Alicia Silverstone (below), who, via her funny/creepy character, provides some sharp, humorous digs at the politically and environmentally correct set, as well as those folk who go gaga as the birth of a baby approaches.

What happens -- the twists, turns and reverses -- all seem to lead to the same outcome and conclusion: Human beings are in such denial, are so fucking hypocritical, and can only seem to use violence to solve problems that, hey, let's admit it: We're lost. But, yes, like the audience for that farting clown, we'll go down laughing, while enjoying ourselves immensely. If stupidly and irrevocably.

Catfight -- from MPI Media Group/Dark Sky Films and running 96 minutes -- opens Friday, March 3, in New York (Cinema Village), Los Angeles (at Laemmle's Noho 7), Chicago, Atlanta, Cleveland, Seattle, Orlando, Phoenix, Denver and Kansas City (while simultaneously streaming via all digital platforms). 

Dutch deadpan in Alex van Warmerdam's very dry hit-man comedy, SCHNEIDER VS BAX

Remember Borgman -- that dark, Dutch, sort-of-variation on Boudu Saved from Drowning (and other what-to-do-about-the-trashy-tramp movies)? Alex van Warmerdam, the writer/director of that strange, cunning little film is back again with another bizarre, deadpan, dark comedy-of-menace titled SCHNEIDER VS BAX. It arrives this coming week on DVD, and if your taste runs to this sort of thing, the movie is a good example of this sub-genre.

Mr. van Warmerdam (shown above, right, and at left) also co-stars in the film, as he did in Borgman, and his gruff, low-key, macho presence is quite right for both his role and the film. He handles the screenplay and dialog with ease, and his direction ropes his entire cast onto the same page and style, making the most of this kind of deadpan, at which you often don't know whether to laugh or wince. (You'll probably do both at once.) The filmmaker has created a cast of characters that you may find it hard to warm up to, but this is fine, since some of them will not survive the trip.

The tale here is of a pair of hit men, evidently quite good at their jobs, who -- for some reason which we never really learn -- have been pitted against each other by the fellow who gives them their assignments. Van Warmerdam plays Bax, and another actor from Borgman, Tom Dewispelaere  (below), plays Schneider. Neither character knows the other, and though they fairly quickly learn that their boss is playing them against each other, they still evidently feel they must kill that other in order to survive.

Bax gets a surprise visit from his grown daughter (Maria Kraakman, shown below and further below, who is very good in this role) and then from his father -- both of whom complicate his life and reactions -- while Schneider becomes involved with a pimp and whore who equally complicate his assignment. How this all works out managers to be very dark, often funny, and even surprising. You will imagine that you know what is going to happen here, but I can tell you with some certainty that you will be wrong -- in at least a couple of important instances.

Coincidence does occur, and certain scenes seem a tad incredible, and yet so bleak, bizarre and weirdly funny is it all that, somehow, credibility is maintained -- if barely. Simply for the scenes between Bax, his father and daughter, the movie manages to rivet you in its own, special, this-can't-be-happening-but-oh-my-goodness-it-is manner.

In its odd way Schneider vs Bax turns out to be a kind of very late coming-of-age tale -- and a pretty good one, at that -- even though it is not clear for quite some time just who it is that's doing the coming.

From Film Movement and running a fairly sleek 96 minutes, the movie arrives on DVD this Tuesday, October 25 -- for purchase or rental.

DVDebut: Upper-class twats up to no good in Lone Scherfig's rich-are-rotten THE RIOT CLUB

An Education, Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself and Italian for Beginners were among the best movies of their respective years (2009, 2002 and 2000), and perhaps the most important thing they have in common is their director/sometimes writer, Lone Scherfig. If her latest endeavor, THE RIOT CLUB will not be included in this year's best lists, it is still a good enough example of a sub-genre not that often seen of late: the black comedy/ melodrama of class distinctions. It's British, of course. (They know the territory about as well as anyone).

Whether or not this tale of uber-nasty high-born Oxford students is based on "truth" -- a members-only society of wealthy, upper-class students who look down on the poor and middle-class, deriving ugly fun at their expense -- it's enough to know that it sure could be.

Further, the manner in which Ms Scherfig (pictured at right) and her writer, Laura Wade (who adapted the film from her own play) have brought these boys to life, their behavior seems all too believable and consistent.

By the time we've reached the shocking and ugly climax, over-the-top plays like par-for-the-course.

This is one of those films that will send the wealthy, entitled set into paroxysms of rage due to the fact that these people are shown to have so little understanding or empathy for anyone outside their closed circle. Oh, yes -- and they treat women no better than they handle those poor and/or bourgeois. There certainly are some decent rich (I've discovered a very few out of all those I've encountered over my 74 years), but if one looks, worldwide, across the vast divide that separates the wealthy from everyone else, the picture is not pretty. And due to the ever-growing disparity between rich and poor, this gap/attitude/divide worsens and becomes more difficult to correct with each passing year.

So the movie indeed wears its politics on its sleeve, but it entertains us even as it attempts to finger-point and educate. It is well-cast, -acted, and -directed, and while the writing is decent and the dialog generally believable, I do wish that Ms Wade has done a better job of it. What is needed here is something approaching what Oscar Wilde might have managed had he been inclined or able to tackle this particular subject, or what Alan Bennett did accomplish with his great play and film, The History Boys, another tale of British youth (a bit younger) on the rise.

Instead we get pretty much the expected, executed by a good-looking and talented cast of young men who manage -- via Wade, Scherfig and the actors' performances -- to differentiate well between these alternately bullying and cowardly sleazebags of tomorrow.  Normally, I'd name and comment on the performers, who are, to a man, just fine. But in this case I'll leave the IMDB to point out their names and only mention the leading elder actor, Tom Hollander, who once again gives a telling, subtle and comic performance as the representative of the older entitled generation.

The Riot Club, via IFC Films and running 107 minutes, arrived on DVD earlier this month & can be purchased or rented from the usual suspects.

Hilarion Banks & Scott Fivelson's "industry" melodrama, 3 HOLES AND A SMOKING GUN

Having just recently viewed Maps to the Stars, the knock-out Hollywood satire/ melodrama/black comedy from David Cronenberg and Bruce Wagner, it is probably a bit unfair to compare it in any way to the film that opens this week, 3 HOLES AND A SMOKING GUN. And yet this little melodramatic, would-be black-comic look at screenwriting strivers here in New York City who are bent on taking credit for the creation of what, from the sound of everyone's reactions to it, must be the greatest screenplay ever written (something called, with no great originality, Hijack), is so full of supposed inside-the-industry knowledge, back-stabbing and thievery that comparisons can't be helped.

Written by a fellow named Scott Fivelson and directed by someone else called Hilarion Banks (shown above), this movie is so ridiculously bad in terms of plotting and believability, that it is little wonder its copyright date of 2012 would indicate a certain period of sitting on the shelf, waiting to be released. It is difficult to believe that anyone who viewed the final cut would not have immediately suggested, "Leave it there."  I am not so much knocking the work of Mr. Banks -- which is perfectly standard and OK -- as that of Mr. Fivelson, who has packed his story full of details that seem mostly wrong.

Consider the scene in which a man has been poisoned and sits coughing and dying in his car, in what is certainly one of the "extended death" scenes of all time. A passer-by appears to notice this -- from quite a distance away, at night, and with the car's windows rolled up -- and motions as though he might come and help. Yeah, right.

Or consider the scene in which we meet the actual writer of this great screenplay, who has typed it on an old Remington and neglected to make even a single copy of his script. In this day and age. Yeah, right again. (The actor at left, above, is probably the film's most noted performer, Joaquim de Almeida, who has a small role at the proprietor of a junk shop.)

The movie jumps back and forth in time, to no avail at all, because soon nothing seems remotely real. Nor is it funny or interesting or unusual enough to warrant our attention. The plot concerns a has-been screenwriter, Bobby (James Wilder, above), who now teaches a course in that art here in NYC, and what look initially like his star student, Jack (sexy, cute but so-so acting newcomer Zuher Kahn, below), who soon proves to be an even sleazier sort than his creepy teacher.

The men, it turns out, have shared the love of another student, Sailor (Rebecca Mae Palmer, below), not that this matters one whit -- except to pave the way for another corpse or two.

The film's funniest scene, though again totally unbelievable, concerns a mugger (the very good Rudolf Martin, below), who wants to make off with Jack's valuables but who instead stays to chat.

Well, the location shots are fine, as is the "look" of the film. Otherwise, 3 Holes and a Smoking Gun is little more than an inadequate time-waster.

The movie opens on cable VOD this Friday, March 20, via Comcast, Cox, Dish Network, and Verizon, and from Shaw on Tuesday, March 24. It will also be available for digital streaming on March 24 via Amazon Instant Video, Google, iTunes, Vudu and X-Box. A theatrical premiere will follow in Los Angeles at Laemmle's Music Hall 3 on Friday, March 27.