Hotel Zubrowka

Movies: The Grand Budapest Hotel

"[Boy with Apple] is a masterpiece. The rest of this shit is worthless junk."
 -M. Gustave

Once again I have the pleasure of reviewing a Wes Anderson film and once again Anderson has impressed me with with his singular brand of dry humor and stylistic storytelling.

The Grand Budapest Hotel has a very different feel to it than Anderson's last film, Moonrise Kingdom. Whereas Kingdom touched me deeply with its sincere depiction of young love, Hotel takes more of a comic caper turn with its story about a genteel, yet randy hotel concierge with a passion for older (as in, octogenarian) women who gets caught up in a family battle over a dead woman's fortune. Ralph Fiennes plays M. Gustave, the concierge of The Grand Budapest Hotel in the fictional country of Zubrowka circa 1932. Gustave takes his job with a pride and seriousness bordering on obsessive-compulsive. He runs a tight ship at the hotel, but he also takes the time to train young lobby boy, Zero Mustafa (played by newcomer Tony Revolori), and to make passionate love to 84 year old Madame D. (Tilda Swinton, unrecognizable behind a mask of wrinkles and age spots).

When Madame D. is found murdered, Zero and Gustave head to her family's estate to pay their respects. It turns out that although Madame D. left most of her fortune to her thuggish sons, Dmitri and Jopling (Adrien Brody and Willem Dafoe), and daughters, she left a priceless painting, "Boy with Apple", to Gustave. Enraged by the knowledge that Gustave gave his mother the big one for near 20 years, Dmitri threatens Gustave, who retaliates by stealing the painting right off the damn wall.

Thus starts a domino effect which involves police chases, secret second wills, a prison break, and a ski chase on an alpine slope. Anderson masterfully blends his trademark aesthetics (perfectly framed scenes exploding with saturated colors) with a sense of playful silliness, but also tempered with moments of sexuality and violence rarely seen in other Anderson movies. The film feels packed, but in a good way--where you want to watch the movie multiple times to catch all the witty quips and weird details you missed the first time.

Much of the success of The Grand Budapest Hotel rests on the shoulders of Fiennes. This film is absolutely star-studded, with actors from Jude Law to Jeff Goldblum playing big characters and Bill Murray to Jason Schwartzman playing smaller roles. Yet, I think the "Wes Anderson Family Reunion" aspect actually takes away from the film. While it's delightful to see our favorite actors pop up for brief cameos, those moments took me out of the world of this film. The actors, for the most part, speak in their natural accents. So Ed Norton sounds like Ed Norton. Jeff Goldblum sounds like Jeff Goldblum. Only Ralph Fiennes, in my opinion, is given the chance to create a character. And what a character he creates! Unlike the typical "Ralph Fiennes role"--dignified, perhaps a bit of cool malice, and oh-so-British--his M. Gustave is irreverent, flamboyant, charming, debonair, flippant. The older Zero narrates Gustave's life and loves by explaining that the women Gustave wooed were, to a one, old, rich, vain, blonde, and needy--just like Gustave (at least, the blonde, vain, and needy parts). Gustave is not taking advantage of these rich, elderly women. He genuinely prefers them. He explains to Zero that the "cheaper cuts" have more "flavor" with a gleam in his eye, practically licking his lips. Such naughtiness is exactly what an Anderson movie needs to firmly ground his twee mise-en-scene back to the earth.

I very much enjoyed The Grand Budapest Hotel, despite the flaw of--again, my opinion--too many cameos. Also, the lack of female characters is pretty disheartening, although I've come to expect that from Anderson's movies (which, let's face it, are generally big, ol' sausage fests). Anderson's one theme that he continually reinvents, whether in telling a love story, a coming of age story, or a comedy, is the father-son  (or, in many cases, surrogate father/surrogate son) relationship. You see this theme played out in almost all his films, and he is a master at capturing that special relationship between an older mentor and his young protege.

4.5 out of 5 stars

...all this other shit is worthless junk.

Reading Days

Books: Misc

Hello Dear Readers,

I apologize for not updating my blog recently, but this time it's not due to laziness, but rather simple lack of content to write about. I haven't seen a movie in the theatres in nearly two months, which is unprecedented for me. But wintertime is always feast or famine with movies: you gorge on Oscar nominated films which are released from Nov-Jan and then hibernate and avoid the movies from mid -Jan-March as the dredges of cinema are dumped into theatres. But don't worry! The minute Wes Anderson's latest confection, The Grand Budapest Hotel, makes its way to my town, I'll be first in line to watch and review it.

Until then, considering my URL is technically "readingwatchingreviewing", I figure I'd catch you up on the "reading" part. I've plowed through many books since getting a Kindle for my birthday and that momentum has led to more reading in my life in general (including print books and magazines). Some of the books in this entry I'm only partway through. I picked out the most interesting of the wide range of novels and non-fiction I've been reading over the past few months.

***

A Year of Biblical Womanhood
By Rachel Held Evans
Memoir

Rachel Held Evans is a writer who is both a feminist and an evangelical Christian. She writes a blog where she discusses topics of interest to Christians of a more liberal persuasion, such as patriarchy and abuse, discrimination, masculine identity in the church, etc. In A Year of Biblical Womanhood, Evans tackles the issues of "Biblical womanhood"--i.e. living life as a woman in accordance to a literal(ish) interpretation of the Bible--head on by spending a year attempting to conform to the dictates of the Bible. Every month, Evans focuses on a virtue--modesty, purity, resourcefulness, etc--valued in the famed "Proverbs 31 woman" (a description of an ideal wife) and sets various goals for herself, such as cooking Thanksgiving dinner for her family, not cursing, dressing modestly, and so on.


Her adventures lead to much hilarity and a decent amount of self-reflection. I'm only about halfway through, but I already know what Evans' conclusion will be: that it's impossible to hold oneself to the standards of Biblical womanhood (although trying to might lead to some insightful moments) and that egalitarian marriage is where it's at. I'm not an evangelical or a fundamentalist, but I am interested in religion, feminism, and gender roles--which is why I was drawn to this book. Unlike other explorations of patriarchal Christianity (such as Kathryn Joyce's devastating and excellent Quiverfull: Inside the Christian Patriarchy Movement) by "outsiders", Evans gives us an inside perspective. My only beef is that she doesn't come down more harshly on the limited views of evangelicals when it comes to gender roles and feminism. Frankly, I wish Evans was more damning of her own religious subculture, which I understand is unfair to expect. In place of true criticism and questioning is a hefty dose of cuteness and humor. Not that there's anything wrong with that, and Evans is doing a lot to be a public voice for feminist evangelicalism, which can't be easy. I just hoped for a little more bite and edginess.

Similar books you might want to check out: The above-mentioned Quiverfull, as well as Joyce's new book The Child Catchers about Christian families who take advantage of the adoption industry; Kevin Roose's funny and surprisingly respectful memoir titled The Unlikely Disciple about spending a semester at Liberty University; although I haven't read it yet, Cami Ostman and Susan Tive's Beyond Belief: The Secret Lives of Women in Extreme Religions seems like an interesting read that attempts to understand why women get involved/stay in religions where they are expected to be submissive.

3.75 out of 5 stars

***

It's Not You: 27 (Wrong) Reasons Why You're Single
By Sara Eckel
Self-help

I'm not one to read dating advice books (although I enjoy mocking them), but I read an excerpt of Sara Eckel's It's Not You and knew this was a different kind of book. Rather than dispense advice on how to find a mate, Eckel takes common arguments about why (heterosexual women) remain single--"you're too picky",  "you're too desperate", "you're too old", etc--and breaks them down with common sense and logic. For example, why are women told they need to be a bit stand-offish and not needy, but also show a man he's "needed"? I'll tell you why: because people are dumb. Eckel's arguments point out the simultaneously liberating and frustrating truth about love: much of it has to do with timing and luck. Also, chemistry, the definition of which varies from person to person. This truth doesn't sell advice books, but hey, I guess the ladies who wrote The Rules gots to eat too!

I absolutely loved this book because rather than aim to make women feel panicky and ashamed, its goal is to make them feel calm, accepting, and in control. Which is a far better place to be when looking for love. Eckel shares her own success story about meeting her now husband in her late 30's, but she never suggests that her own life should be held up as a model for all women. Her writing voice is warm, funny, and logical. A wonderful counterpoint to the nagging, shaming voices we hear all too often when it comes to women and romantic relationships.

Similar books you might want to check out: Sasha Cagen's Quirkyalone changed my freakin' life. She captured the concept of truly enjoying being alone, but still open to romantic possibilities. Outdated by Samhita Mukhopadhyay is a "dating while feminist" guide which includes reasons why it's *better* to be a feminist while playing the dating game: it's sexy (feminists ask for what they want in bed!), it reminds you that it's ok if the relationship doesn't last forever, and (most importantly), it gives you the courage to walk away when things aren't working out.

4.5 out of 5 stars

***

Unbound
By Cara McKenna
Erotic romance

And for all the single ladies who crave a little, er, mental stimulation, Cara McKenna's erotic romance Unbound will blow you the fuck away. At least, it blew me away. Be warned though--its contents are for adults (who like readin' 'bout sexytimes) only! The story takes place in Scotland, where Merry (last name slipping my mind) is taking a solo hiking vacation. Merry lost 100 pounds over the course of a year and is still coming to terms with her new body and the negative reactions of some of her friends, who prefer the old (people-pleasing) fat Merry. After drinking some bacteria-laden loch water, Merry finds herself at the door of Rob Rush, a guy who lives alone in the Scottish highlands. Rob harbors some major secrets, which are slowly revealed during the time her nurses Merry back to health.

Spoilers! Rob is a recovering alcoholic who was in an unsuccessful marriage. He initially drove to the secluded cottage to drink himself to death, but chose to throw out his booze and get sober instead. He is terrified at the thought of leaving his rural home, the isolation of which was his saving grace. The other secret Rob harbors is his sexuality: Rob is sexually submissive and has an intense fetish for rope bondage and female-dominant roleplay. Rather than seeing his kinks as fun and sexy (as Merry sees them, once the two start sleeping together), Rob is very ashamed of them. Unbound is the first book I've read to so sensitively approach the topic of sexual fetishism. Other books use kinks to titillate or shock the reader, but Rob's interests and his own ambivalence toward them are treated with such understanding and empathy, I would literally get up and say out loud "This book is SOOOOO GOOOOOOD!" while reading it. Oh, and the sex scenes are....wheeeewwww. Let's just say I needed multiple cold showers. The romance is truly romantic: the characters are flawed and human, the sex is scorching, and you root for their happy ending the whole way through. A+ work, Cara McKenna.

Similar books you might want to check out: If you're into BDSM-oriented romance that's not completely balls-out freaky deaky, look no further than Delphine Dryden's "The Science of Temptation" series. The books are about a group of extremely intelligent and nerdy friends who work at a university in Austin and also belong to a BDSM club. The first in the series, The Theory of Attraction concerns beautiful Cami and awkward (but sexually dominant) Ivan--basically, a hot Sheldon Cooper. The sequel, The Seduction Hypothesis, pairs up Lindsey and Ben (referred to as "a curious sub and a Dom in denial") while they attend BeastCon, a comic convention. Yes, BDSM sex at a freakin' comic convention. This book was written for all the sexy nerds out there! Finally, The Principle of Desire features a submissive man, Ed (who is adorable) and a dominant woman, Beth (who is recovering from a very controlling previous relationship where she was submissive). It's not the strongest of the series, but it's hot nonetheless.

5 out of 5 stars

***

Mandingo
By Kyle Onstott
Fiction

I'm reading Mandingo for a class I'm taking this semester about the history of sexuality in America. Mandingo was published in 1957 and was wildly popular despite its very un-1950's like content. Mandingo takes place on a fictional plantation, Falconhurst, in 1832 Alabama. Falconhurst is a slave-breeding plantation, where the overseers, the elderly Warren Maxwell, and his son Hammond, encourage their slaves to have as many babies as possible to keep the plantation going and to sell for a profit. Falconhurst is a den of wretched, sadistic behavior. The 659-page novel, which I am only partway through, describes whippings, rape, incest, and all manner of racism and debauchery. I'm reading it for a project in the class and it is a bear to get through, although it is also strangely compelling. The novel is notable for breaking away from literature that presented the Antebellum South as a respectable, genteel culture with happy slaves and God-fearing slave owners. Mandingo is Gone with the Wind by way of the Marquis de Sade. It takes all that Lost Cause-ers found lovely and beautiful about the South and essentially smears the whole thing with excrement. So, there is a bit of a dirty feeling of schadenfreude while reading it. It's an angry, shocking read, and it's also long and meandering, with detailed discussions of slave bodies and sexuality. Generally speaking, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone but the morbidly curious. Or those doing a project on slavery and sexuality.

Similar books you might want to check out: I got the idea to do my project on Mandingo from Gregory Smithers' excellent book Slave Breeding: Sex, Violence, and Memory in African-American History. Smithers' focuses on the issue of slave breeding and coercive reproductive practices in the Antebellum South, an issue he claims has been ignored and dismissed by many (white) historians for far too long. It's a fascinating read. Another book along those same lines, which I have not read myself is Annette Gordon-Reed's The Hemingses of Monticello, an extremely well-researched exploration of Sally Hemings and her family while they were slaves at Thomas Jefferson's residence. The book argues that Jefferson's long-term affair with Sally Hemings was, in some ways, consensual (as consensual as a relationship between slave and master could be) and that Hemings was an active participant in the relationship.


2.5 out of 5 stars

***

Thanks for reading about my reading, y'all! More reviews coming soon!