Sofia Coppola's SOMEWHERE

[Drusilla_]

I saw it last week, and enjoyed it too- it's not a film everyone will like, but like Label Basher says, Sofia's films never are. It's a near-perfect mood piece, and it'd be very easy to let a film with so many silences become dull, but this isn't. Honestly, I think this is going to be one of the underrated gems of the year- people are more tolerant of Black Swan's overwroughtness than of this one's quiet.

I don't understand why David Edelstein had to point out that Sofia's is not the universal human condition, I don't see any similar criticism of all the wanky-old-man dramas that usually dominate the Oscars/box office.

 

[jml2]

I loved it. From things I'd been hearing I was prepared for it to be awkwardly slow in some scenes, but it felt almost snappy compared to some things I've seen! It wasn't that long in those scenes at all.
Elle was wonderful, no surprise. I loved when she said NO to the guy wanting to look at her diary. Loved the ice-skating scene.
I always find with Sofia's films that I have to see them once to get my bearings, and then see them again to really enjoy them to the fullest. Only seen this once so far though.
The look on Stephen's face in the very last moment before it ended is still in my mind..

 

[jml2]

I don't understand why David Edelstein had to point out that Sofia's is not the universal human condition, I don't see any similar criticism of all the wanky-old-man dramas that usually dominate the Oscars/box office.

totally agree

 

[xerq]

well i thought the film was awful. it dragged too long and didn't really have a direction or clue as to where she wanted to take the film.in the end it wallowed in mediocrity. spare yourself the trip and rewatch the virgin suicides.

 

[KoV]

http://www.getphpbb.com/phpbb/index.php?mforum=filmjunk

my thoughts:


Johnny Marco stands on a balcony watching the people below. It’s a simple but effective metaphor for Johnny’s detachment from life. Some would call Somewhere insubstantial or lacking in story, but to me, Sofia Coppola has zeroed in on something incredibly interesting and important. The feeling that you don’t amount to much of anything is portrayed beautifully in the film, culminating in the heartbreaking “I’m ****ing nothing” scene. What’s so wonderful about the film, though, is that it really isn’t one-note. Ultimately, it’s not a depressing movie or a very happy one. It’s filled with moments that are a mix of both, just like real life. The naturalism attained in this film is astounding. Sofia lets the camera really see and as a result, we get these great little moments that help develop the characters, bring them down to earth, and again, inject more naturalism into the film. Consider the scene where Johnny sits smoking on the couch. It’s an extended shot, but seeing his little movements, like picking up the pear, helped me to get that much deeper into the film. It helps to break the barrier between film and reality, letting me feel more connected to the characters, like I am seeing them and not just the minimum version of them presented to further the action of the story. The relationship between Johnny and Cleo played out beautifully. No forced moment to be found here, only a sometimes sad, sometimes funny, ultimately hopeful portrait of a man on the verge of either a breakthrough or a breakdown.

Stephen Dorff is incredible in the film. When the camera is focused on an actor for an extended period of time, he’s really got to kick it up a notch so that the viewer never catches a glimpse of him “acting”. That Dorff is able to handle this repeatedly and make it look like the easiest thing is a testament to the considerable talent Dorff possesses. He made Johnny, for me, one of the most relateable characters in cinema. Elle Fanning is also wonderful as Cleo, portraying an intelligent, observant girl without ever making her seem precocious. Her chemistry with Dorff was spot on, perfectly displaying both the love and the distance between them.

And of course I can’t talk about a Sofia Coppola film without mentioning the film’s technical merits. Harris Savides’ cinematography is quietly, simply beautiful. Los Angeles has never seemed so restrained and lovely before. The costumes aren’t showy at all, but they all seemed perfectly chosen to help illustrate the characters. The score, by Phoenix, gives new meaning to the word “minimal”. I loved the hints of music, perfectly matching the purring engine of Johnny’s (for me, instantly iconic) Ferrari. The film beginning and ending with Love Like a Sunset was a wonderful touch, too, especially considering the other links between the two parts of the film. The other songs in the film, particularly “I’ll try anything once” by The Strokes, were used perfectly.

So yes, another masterpiece from Sofia Coppola. There is no film-maker quite like Sofia. It’s so brazen of her to make films the way she does. Her films are all about the moments, the mood, the internal feeling miraculously conveyed to the viewer. Her previous three films moved me in ways most films can’t even dream of and this one is no different. How crazy is it that a film as subtle and quiet as this can be such a deeply emotional experience? Perfect.

 

[Not Plain Jane]

Thank you for your thoughtful review. I love Sofia's films too, and I feel kind of sad for those who just don't get her style or subtlety. But then again, we all have different tastes. For me, "Marie Antoinette" was my least favorite, but I still loved it. Her use of modern music and her irreverence about the accents somehow made that film, and Sofia's sympathetic take on the much maligned Queen, more relatable.

I can't wait to see "Somewhere"! A.O. Scott's review in the NYTs was glowing!

 

[Not Plain Jane]

P.s. I read that Dorff lived at the hotel during filming to make his character even more natural. And before filming Sofia had Stephen pick up Elle at her real school and then hang out with her, like going for ice cream or whatever, so that they could develop a natural demeanor and so Stephen could get a sense of what it feels like to be a parent. No wonder the film comes off so natural.

 

[Label Basher]

^ If I went to school with Elle I would have DIED. It would have been like Keanu coming to pick up Drew Barrymore when I was a teen in the 90s. Faints.

I LOVE the scene in the pool. The whole segment is my fav plus it ends with the Twilight bit which was hilarious. Johnny is so out of touch that he doesn't even know what Twilight is.

 

[holaloha]

I saw it about a week ago and I didn't like it too much. Coppola has a very distinct style of filming (obviously, if you've ever seen her previous films). I didnt like the story too much. but the acting was good. Kudos to elle!

 

[Deleted member 116957]

I love the inclusion of The Strokes song.

I've been listening to that song ever since I saw it.

The movie was ok, but I think that if someone already dislikes her films... they'll probably dislike her after for this one.

 

[adorefaith]

I watched Somewhere last night.. what a godawful movie but Elle surely makes you want to endure it till the end. She's divine..

Oh no....was it really that bad?! i've been so looking forward to it..

 

[apriliciate]

Oh no....was it really that bad?! i've been so looking forward to it..

the story is just blah! but their acting are so great! especially elle !

 

[MulletProof]

Oh no....was it really that bad?! i've been so looking forward to it..

To me it was .. I've loved Sofia's previous work but I'm not sure it's been decaying a bit since Marie Antoinette or I've really just sort of 'decoded' her filming style that I can't really take it anymore. I 'get' the course of the film, I think anyone can relate to the emptiness and non-obvious vulnerability of its characters and the complexity of relationships, it's just the way it's filmed what just feels so vapid at times.. and I know everything is autobiographical in one way or another but at this point for me, her films feel like an Alanis Morrisette or Taylor Swift song , she doesn't reveal details that would make you uncomfortable but you can see Sofia through her female lead actress and I don't think I like what I see .. I've been thinking on how that girl/woman (depending on the movie) always looks down on others, especially other female figures in the story.. it's like she's the only person that gets it, she feels a bit ahead of her time, and the rest are just dumb or out of touch with reality (you can see this in all of her films, from the Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette and now Somewhere).. I know that sounds silly and it's more meant to portray something that we all feel in real life sometimes (that we are drowning and the rest are just ), but it's something she insists on revisiting instead of developing and it makes me wonder if that's really how she tends to see others?, I'm missing a bit of humility in her characters and overall stories.

And anyway, that lack of development is quite probably my biggest problem about her, that her films just don't feel creative anymore.. The Virgin Suicides for instance was film that was beautifully shot and it told a story that was rich in characters, perspectives, interpretations, etc.. Lost in Translation followed some of that and succeeded imo.. Marie Antoinette was 70% editorial-worthy shots and 30% the actual life of Marie Antoinette and Somewhere now feels like 90% 'cool shots' and some story added to 'spicy' it up and make it meaningful somehow. When I was watching I couldn't help but relate completely to Stephen Dorff' character and wonder 'am I really that sad that I need to be watching this crap?'.. .

 

[cestmagique]

I don't understand why David Edelstein had to point out that Sofia's is not the universal human condition, I don't see any similar criticism of all the wanky-old-man dramas that usually dominate the Oscars/box office.

Actually, that comment of his has been lingering in my head for some time now after reading it. I think it's completely, remarkably spot-on. It's not just that she has an unusual position in life but that she doesn't seem to extend outside of it. So many other criticisms of her style aren't quite right, but that one fits.

 

[MayaStar]

sofia coppola and cc sheffield on the set 'somewhere'

more here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/filmlerev/sets/72157621656740164/

cc's flickr

 

[Mary-Anne]

I watched Somewhere last night, and to my surprise.. I actually did like it! I had seen the trailer and had thought it looked pretty good, but then I read some bad reviews and my interest sort of fizzled.
Here's the thing... It was a lot less deeper than I had been expecting. I thought it would be much more intense or pack a greater 'punch' so to speak.. especially in reguards to the ending... and I do understand the criticism that it's a tad pointless. But then, I think that's exactly the theme being conveyed- the pointlessness of this man's life, and the emptiness underlying all the so-called 'fun' things going on in it. I liked the fact that Sofia doesn't necessarily make us feel sorry for him though, that she stays objective.. doesn't sugarcoat, but doesn't over-dramatize either, I found it refreshingly unpretentious in that sense.. ultimately she lets us decide how we feel about him, weather we empathise with his emptiness or not.
I don't think we end up knowing a lot about Johnny in the end, and I do wish she had gone a level deeper with that, but the few moments of tenderness between him & Cleo, it's like we suddenly feel a pulse in this seemingly pulseless man...and it's subtle, but so sweet.
I love LOVE Elle Fanning as Cleo, she is just luminous in the film and a pure ray of light! I can't wait to see more of this girl...I also loved the Twilight reference too, especially with Dakota being in the films.. so cute.

 

[KoV]

you can see Sofia through her female lead actress and I don't think I like what I see .. I've been thinking on how that girl/woman (depending on the movie) always looks down on others, especially other female figures in the story.. it's like she's the only person that gets it, she feels a bit ahead of her time, and the rest are just dumb or out of touch with reality (you can see this in all of her films, from the Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette and now Somewhere).. I know that sounds silly and it's more meant to portray something that we all feel in real life sometimes (that we are drowning and the rest are just ), but it's something she insists on revisiting instead of developing and it makes me wonder if that's really how she tends to see others?, I'm missing a bit of humility in her characters and overall stories.

Very interesting thought. I've never really seen it articulated in the way that you have, but I still mostly disagree. Charlotte in Lost in Translation was the only one that really seemed to look down on others and it was addressed in the film. I thought that Sofia was not glorifying her habit of thinking herself above others, but just pointing it out. Lost in Translation had alot of that, I think, and not just with Charlotte but the characters were realistically flawed and we can see how alienated they are and maybe wonder if that is, at least in part, a result of their opinion of others.

I don't remember anything like that in The Virgin Suicides, but it could just be my memory since I haven't seen it in two or three years. Marie Antoinette, as I recall (and I've seen the film like..10-15 times, haha) only looked down on one person and I'd say that how could someone not? Especially a teenager raised as royalty. I think she grew in wisdom as the film progressed and wouldn't have been so condescending to DuBary(sp?) later in the film had she still been there. And I don't remember Cleo being condescending to anyone...

 

[jml2]

for Sofia fans:

 

[CielDeLit]

Wow thank you, that video is beautifully made

 

[Siennalicious]

I've seen the movie and really liked it. It's more like Lost in Translations than any other of her work IMO. Very slow and passive. It seems like nothing is happening but the story is there and acting is amazing. The Fanning girls are really talented and it's good to see Stephen back in the film business. In the end highly recommend it escpecially to all the Coppola fans out there!