Directed by Michael Winterbottom
Michael Winterbottom's film adaptation of the "unadaptable" novel by Laurence Sterne, although self-referential to the point of being annoying is nonetheless a fairly droll film which tackles both the complex process of film making as well as the complexities of contemporary relationships.
Steve Coogan plays himself who is playing Tristram Shandy in a film adapatation of "The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy." The whole thing is a pretty big fiasco, as the film goes through a number of rewrites, scenes are cut and added on a whim and the whole thing just appeard to be a mess in the best style of "Day for Night." Throughout it all, Coogan is attempting to deal with his girlfriend and baby while at the same time recklessly flirting with his assistant. There are far too many side stories and tangeants to even start discussing here, but suffice it to say that if you pick up this film midway through, you're going to be confused as hell.
"Tristram Shandy" doesn't take itself too seriously, which is good because this film succeeds best when it lets itself turn into the truly rollicking, mad cap gem it is supposed to be. There are some hilarious sceneces such as Coogan/Tristram recreating the moment of his birth in a gigantic model of a womb which appears woefully unauthentic. The film is infused with a healthy dose of dry, Brit humour that requires some rewinding to fully catch all the jokes but overall the humour is accessible enough, and truly funny enough as well, that most audiences will find it enjoyable. The major drawback of a film like "Tristram Shandy" is since it is adapting a book that is notorious for have almost no structure whatsoever, there is no real flow to the film beyond watching the trials and tribulations of those involved with its making. The film jumps to and fro from the actual film to "real" life and eventually to real-real life and it isn't so much confusing as borderline exasperating in the end. Nevertheless, Winterbottom and Co. aren't trying to make an artistic statement with this piece and aim solely to entertain and they are mostly succesful in this regard.
No comments:
Post a Comment