Medium Cool

Rating:
Summary: "This is REAL, Haskell"
Review: Medium Cool is an icon and artifact of the political furnace that was the 1960's in America. The title derived from the then-popular analysis of mass media by Marshall McLuhan, it mixes the important events of the time with the lives of characters trying to live their lives and do their jobs in the midst of upheaval with an insight into electronic media.
Originally this film was supposed to be another film entirely. Instead, two-time Oscar winner Haskell Wexler and his crew, after the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy, waded into the turmoil of the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago.
There is some resulting confusion apparent in the film. Is it about the mass media, particularly television, in 20th century America and the insensitivity to human suffering it weaves? Is it about racial politics and cultural exploitation of black people? Is it about a poor Appalachian mother and child in Chicago? Is it about political intrigue, assassination and FBI spying and disruption of legitimate protest?
At times some of the acting may seem stiff or ad hoc, and sometimes the sound has a raw documentary quality about it. But some of the music apparently enhanced on DVD, particularly that provided by Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention, provides a sarcastic critique of the popular culture promoted by the mainstream hype of the time. The conventional belief system was being severely challenged by assassination, the shocking realities of Chicago '68 and countercultural events like "Medium Cool".
Patience of the viewer is rewarded with Wexler's outstanding photography in an amazing cinema verité of the characters playing out their roles in the actual "police riot" in the streets of Chicago."This is REAL, Haskell," we hear one of his crew warn off- camera as tear gas is discharged in front of them. There is also some footage of the poor people's march and encampment in Washington D.C., with the TV crew squishing around in the mud in rubber boots as if on some expedition.
The DVD is excellent. The technical perfection and poetic composition of Wexler's cinematography comes through from a flawless print. The commentary available with Wexler, actress Mariana Hill and Paul Golding interviewed in 2001 greatly enriches the viewer's understanding of the making of the film and its subtle touches.

Rating:
Summary: one of the best films ever
Review: possibly the most realistic film ever made

Rating:
Summary: One of the few '60s films to actually remain relavent
Review: Released in 1969 by overshadowed by Easy Rider (which despite being a bit more flashy in technique is actually a far more conventional film), Medium Cool is one of the few "counterculture" films of the '60s to actually remain relavent. The first film to be directed by famed cameraman Haskell Wexler, Medium Cool is the story of 1968, a panoramic view of a near revolution. Cleverly, Wexler tells his story through two outsiders -- a detached newsman (Robert Forster) and the country widow that he romances (well played by Verna Bloom who should have become a star as a result of her sweetly realistic and appealing performance). Though the film is clearly on the side of the counterculture, the use of these two outsiders allows Medium Cool to retain an objectivity that seems to be missing from most other films of the period. Instead of simply worshipping the trends of the time, Wexler was actually at the apocalyptic events seen in the film. When Forster and Bloom find themselves lost in the chaotic rioting of that year's Democratic convention, the scenes are riveting because they were actually filmed during the actual riots. This is the rare protest film where, instead of seeing wealthy Hollywoodites playing their idealized versions of the times, you are actually seeing the events as they unfold. For someone like myself who was born on the tail end of the Viet Nam War, seeing that footage and realizing how close to collapse society actually was in 1968 is truly an eye opening experience.

Much of the film, of course, is improvised. Improv is often a frightening word when it comes to film making. It seems to be a talent that a lot more people believe they have than actually do. However, Medium Cool is one of the few films I've ever seen where the improvised sequences come off not as self-indulgent but actually very revealing. It helps that Wexler found some of the best improvisational actors working at that time and put them in his film. Hence, the wonderful Peter Bonerz shows up as Forster's jittery partner and the contrast between his nervousness and Forster's coldness provides for a good deal of humor (something missing from far too many protest films). A particurlar highlight is when Forster and Bonerz interview a group of Black militants. Bonerz's desperate attempts to both find an escape and come across as a good, white liberal at the same time are priceless. Other than his later role as the oily dentist on the Bob Newhart Show, Bonerz was never given another oppurtunity to show off just how truly talented he is and that's a shame.

Also giving a strong improvisational performance is Peter Boyle, making one of his first film appearances and playing one of the first of his signature "right-wing nut" roles with a blue collar accent that never condascends or gives into easy elitism (another quality that sets Medium Cool apart from other protest films).

However, the film truly belongs to the two leads and they bring a true humanity to what otherwise could have been an overly cold and clinical film. As stated before, Bloom plays a simple character without ever giving a simple performance. Her political innocence is never ridiculed or attacked and her horror at the growing violence around her is wonderfully conveyed and felt by the audience. Forster, an always underrated actor, gives one of his typically low-key performances and bravely gives an honest performance as a character that many in the audience probably won't find extremely likeable. As he would later in "Jackie Brown," Forster manages to convey his character's detachment while stll suggesting an actual, human being. As he romances Bloom and becomes attached to her young son (well-played by Harold Blankenship), Forster slowly starts to surrender his cool exterior and Forster's subtle emotional development is wonderfully conveyed. By the time of the film's apocalyptic ending, we've come to truly care about these two characters and, as a result, Medium Cool becomes more than just a film about the 1960s. It becomes a film for the ages.

Rating:
Summary: One of the few '60s films to actually remain relavent
Review: Released in 1969 by overshadowed by Easy Rider (which despite being a bit more flashy in technique is actually a far more conventional film), Medium Cool is one of the few "counterculture" films of the '60s to actually remain relavent. The first film to be directed by famed cameraman Haskell Wexler, Medium Cool is the story of 1968, a panoramic view of a near revolution. Cleverly, Wexler tells his story through two outsiders -- a detached newsman (Robert Forster) and the country widow that he romances (well played by Verna Bloom who should have become a star as a result of her sweetly realistic and appealing performance). Though the film is clearly on the side of the counterculture, the use of these two outsiders allows Medium Cool to retain an objectivity that seems to be missing from most other films of the period. Instead of simply worshipping the trends of the time, Wexler was actually at the apocalyptic events seen in the film. When Forster and Bloom find themselves lost in the chaotic rioting of that year's Democratic convention, the scenes are riveting because they were actually filmed during the actual riots. This is the rare protest film where, instead of seeing wealthy Hollywoodites playing their idealized versions of the times, you are actually seeing the events as they unfold. For someone like myself who was born on the tail end of the Viet Nam War, seeing that footage and realizing how close to collapse society actually was in 1968 is truly an eye opening experience.

Much of the film, of course, is improvised. Improv is often a frightening word when it comes to film making. It seems to be a talent that a lot more people believe they have than actually do. However, Medium Cool is one of the few films I've ever seen where the improvised sequences come off not as self-indulgent but actually very revealing. It helps that Wexler found some of the best improvisational actors working at that time and put them in his film. Hence, the wonderful Peter Bonerz shows up as Forster's jittery partner and the contrast between his nervousness and Forster's coldness provides for a good deal of humor (something missing from far too many protest films). A particurlar highlight is when Forster and Bonerz interview a group of Black militants. Bonerz's desperate attempts to both find an escape and come across as a good, white liberal at the same time are priceless. Other than his later role as the oily dentist on the Bob Newhart Show, Bonerz was never given another oppurtunity to show off just how truly talented he is and that's a shame.

Also giving a strong improvisational performance is Peter Boyle, making one of his first film appearances and playing one of the first of his signature "right-wing nut" roles with a blue collar accent that never condascends or gives into easy elitism (another quality that sets Medium Cool apart from other protest films).

However, the film truly belongs to the two leads and they bring a true humanity to what otherwise could have been an overly cold and clinical film. As stated before, Bloom plays a simple character without ever giving a simple performance. Her political innocence is never ridiculed or attacked and her horror at the growing violence around her is wonderfully conveyed and felt by the audience. Forster, an always underrated actor, gives one of his typically low-key performances and bravely gives an honest performance as a character that many in the audience probably won't find extremely likeable. As he would later in "Jackie Brown," Forster manages to convey his character's detachment while stll suggesting an actual, human being. As he romances Bloom and becomes attached to her young son (well-played by Harold Blankenship), Forster slowly starts to surrender his cool exterior and Forster's subtle emotional development is wonderfully conveyed. By the time of the film's apocalyptic ending, we've come to truly care about these two characters and, as a result, Medium Cool becomes more than just a film about the 1960s. It becomes a film for the ages.

Rating:
Summary: Unbelievably good
Review: The film drifts through the first hour in a hazy heatwave of image and dialogue, as confusing as dislocated as life can be. Just as you worry that this ambience is all that the film offers the narrative kicks in and drags you through to the denoument unmissable frame by unmissable frame.

Pure art house gold.

Rating:
Summary: Unbelievably good
Review: The film drifts through the first hour in a hazy heatwave of image and dialogue, as confusing as dislocated as life can be. Just as you worry that this ambience is all that the film offers the narrative kicks in and drags you through to the denoument unmissable frame by unmissable frame.

Pure art house gold.

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and unnerving
Review: This film was shown as a representative of the documentary in my film class. I won't ruin the ending for you, but I was left with this incredibly eerie feeling after the movie was over. Definitely a thought-provoking movie, makes you question if there really is a Big Brother.