somewhere (2010)
So, Sophia. So, Sophia Coppola. Say what you will about the daughter of one of Hollywood's most famous directors and her films, I've loved them all (save The Virgin Suicides, haven't seen the entire thing). But Lost in Translation and Marie Antoinette are two of last decade's best films, easily. <em>Somewhere</em> comes in four years later and is, again, a fantastic film. From her always savvy use of pop music to long static shots that seem to be done for the fuck of it, the film moves with a pacing much like its opening shot. a slow, steady drifting, an ebb and flow, that in reality is putting us back where we started; going in a circle. Stephen Dorff (of, wait-don't-tell-me-I-don't-really-care fame) plays our lead here; another bored, privileged mis-fit. Coppola excels at these sorts of films for a reason, and so many critics of her work seem to discount her for it. But with the wealth that has been flowing freely in our capitalist, apple pie paradise this last century, more and more of the elite who earned their wealth more on the size of their personality and ego than their intelligence are spawning thoughtful, spoiled, existentially melting-down brats, the high ranks of which Coppola is a member. Her viewpoint is as valid and important as anyone's, and is, for my money, more cinematic than starving kids and the holocaust combined! Being a displaced American again plays an importance (Lost in Translation it's obvious, but Marie Antoinette, despite its era and setting is essentially about a modern American girl living in the 18th Century). Dorff and his daughter (played by Elle Fanning) Leave the country for an awards presentation in Italy. They never leave the hotel, ordering room service for every meal, and experience Italian culture via a bizzare awards show. They quickly return home as if executing a jail-break. Add to that the pole-dancing set to the Foo Fighters, the excellent use of the car as Dorff's solo mode of transportation around the west coast, and pretty much every small touch packed into frame make it worth the time and cash. So see it, Chris Pontius' scenes are priceless. Yes, see it, it's good.
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