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Film review: "Phantom Thread" in 70mm |
Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter
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Written
and photographed by: Tyler Purcell |
Date:
26.12.2017 |
"Phantom
Thread" costumes on display at the ArcLight, Hollywood, USA
It’s very rare in this day of poor movies only designed to make money, to
see something as elegant and well made as Paul Thomas Anderson’s new movie
“The Phantom Thread”. This seemingly simple love story between a
self-absorbed dressmaker (Reynolds Woodcock) and yet another model (Alma),
has much complexity lying below the surface. As director Paul Thomas
Anderson explained in a recent interview; the script is thin, because the
story is told through looks. This sort of storytelling works well in a
period piece, which this very much is. Anderson came up with the story
researching fashion industry mogul Cristóbal Balenciaga. Set in the 1950’s
England, Woodcock played by Daniel Day-Lewis, is a self-absorbed
career-minded dressmaker, who is seemingly only interested in women for
their shape. He’s obsessed with finding the perfect shape to help guide his
dressmaking and after he kicks out his previous in-house girl, finds Alma
(played by Vicky Krieps) a cafe worker near his sea-side home. He falls
madly in love with her body and Alma has nowhere to go, so she’s dragged
into his world.
At first, she loves being pampered and dressed, but eventually realizes
Woodcock is a very difficult and distant person to be around. His obsession
with work is nearly constant, which puts their relationship into uneven
territory. This is not helped by Woodcock’s sister Cyril (played by Lesley
Manville) who lives with him as well. She’s seen these relationships come
and go, seemingly dozens of them in recent years. She’s there to protect and
manage her brother and rightly so, he needs managing. Alma does truly love
Woodcock and tries desperately to save the relationship because she knows
deep inside, he loves her too. After many failed attempts, she goes for the
jugular and like a Shakespearian play. Her very rash and dangerous thought
process, puts them back together again in an unexpected way. Woodcock
eventually catches on to her madness, but instead of punishing her, accepts
it’s the only thing that will keep them together.
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More in 70mm reading:
"Phantom Thread" is
released in 70mm
P T Anderson's "The
Master" in System 65
70mm Blow Up List
2017 - by in70mm.com
Panavision and the Resurrecting
of Dinosaur Technology
The Hateful Eight is a Wonderful
Cinematic Experience for the true Cinefile
Nolan's "Dunkirk" will feature
over 100 minutes of IMAX material
Internet link:
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"Phantom
Thread" show times at the ArcLight, Hollywood, USA
This wonderful, beautiful and lush story is acted with impeccable precision
and love by three brilliant actors, some who’ve already won awards for their
performances this year, even though the movie isn’t being released until
January. The story goes that Paul Thomas Anderson wrote the story years ago
for Daniel Day-Lewis, who is long retired from acting. It was about
convincing him to come out of retirement, that was the delay in production.
It was Lewis who found the movies leading lady Vicky Krieps, who until this
point had not played a leading lady in an American film. The two of them
have amazing chemistry, to the point where they seem like old mates from
another life. This is one of Daniel Day-Lewis’s best performances of his
entire career. It’s incredible seeing him on screen, he is a tour de force
and constantly amazes the viewers at every moment. Even in static shots of
his face, you can see him thinking, he really is Reynolds Woodcock. Then
there is his sister Cyril, what a magnificent performance by Lesley
Manville, a British television regular. She is the glue that binds the story
and Woodcock’s life together.
Since this movie is a period piece, costumes, vehicles, buildings,
everything needed to be adjusted to fit the period and there were little to
no “touch ups” done in post. The costume design was outstanding, not just
the dresses made by Woodcock, but also the normal clothes people wore. You
could feel the fabric as it was being worked with, you could smell the rooms
and hear the creeks as people walked around. The entire movie was shot on
location, both in London and a near-by seaside town. This allowed the
production to focus on just a few places, which makes the art direction that
much better.
This movie is the first time Paul Thomas Anderson worked without a
cinematographer. His normal DP Robert Elswit, was unavailable but his normal
crew was available. Since all you really need is a vision, great gaffer and
camera crew, the role of a DP isn’t AS important. Michael Bauman was
credited as the “lighting cameraman” which is incidentally the same credit
as Kubrick used
on his movies. It’s not easy to shoot a period piece, mostly taking place in
a small “practical” (on location) rooms, but the cinematography on this
movie was impeccable. Shot in 3 perf 35mm with Kodak Vision 200T and 500T
stocks, the movie looks absolutely stunning and fits the period perfectly.
Anderson works entirely photo chemically, producing his movies the old way,
striking dailies, watching film prints on a daily basis during production
and cutting negative. Due to Anderson’s obsession with high quality
theatrical distribution, the film is being presented in 4k digital OR as I
saw it, 70mm blow up’s from the original camera negative. The print at the
Arclight is directly from the negative, which is quite astonishing. There
were moments when I shed a tear because of how good film looks when shot
properly. Things like dynamic range, the delicious blacks and soft
highlights, there is just no other way to put such a beautiful image onto a
screen in my opinion.
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Then
there is Johnny Greenwood, or should I call him, the best composer for 2017.
His score is by far, one of the best scores I’ve ever heard, could be one of
the best scores in cinema history. He did this with Anderson’s “There
Will Be Blood” in 2008, but this time he’s outdone himself. Not only did
he reference period music, but also the classics, integrating many themes
from classical composers. The theme can be heard on nonesuch records youtube
page if you so desire to look it up. That piece is only one of a dozen
pieces which lead you to remember the beautiful visuals and storytelling.
In retrospect, one has to admit this could Paul Thomas Anderson’s best movie
and looking back on the year’s movies, by far the best movie of 2017 in my
opinion. It has everything anyone could ever want in a movie, wonderful
story, brilliant acting, set on a stage that’s entertaining and provocative.
Then you add all the technical accolades and the entire picture is perfect
in my mind. As the movie finished and the credits came on, the finishing
touch was the photochemical credits, something that nobody does anymore and
it just reinforces the artistic beauty of the format. This isn’t just a
movie about what’s on screen, but also a swan song to the photochemical
process and the beauty that lives within. This is a movie that MUST be seen
by any film buff, anyone who cares about the artistry and photochemical
process.
I can’t wait to see it again.
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28-07-24 |
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