It was a lighter weekend than last, but another good weekend on the whole. I saw this weekend’s new release, Easy A; re-watched a film I last saw 17 years ago, The Piano; this week’s feed the queue entry, The Night of the Hunter; the Crete-set feature Zorba the Greek; and several more episodes of the second season of Torchwood.

So, here is what I watched this weekend:

EASY A

If John Hughes had made features in the 2010s, some might say that Easy A would be his kind of movie. However, there’s a delightful humor to the film that moves beyond the sometimes cynical approach Hughes put to his films. Even though this is a lighter, more enjoyable version of classic Hughes films, it is clear he had an influence on the filmmaker, Will Gluck, who uses references to three of John’s films (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off). On top of this, there is a reference to Say Anything… which further suggests that Gluck was trying to put his mark on the 21st century with a film he hopes will represent an entire teen social era. And surprisingly enough, he succeeds.

This story revolves around a high schooler who wants to get her friend to stop nagging her about a boy she supposedly dated and lies that they had slept together. This is Olive’s (Emma Stone) second lie, but it won’t be her last as a single overheard remark spreads like wildfire and then further lies spread further disaster until Olive is cast as the school’s whore and she becomes desperate to get out from under the label as her lies have begun to take a toll on those around her and those she most cares about. The film is narrated via webcam as Olive tells the entire world about all of her dishonesty and, unlike a lot of films that use a similar framing device, this one manages to continue to use it effectively for the length of the film, further pleasing me with its ability to not only stay on topic, but keep pace and rhythm sufficiently in check.

Many young directors believe they can channel the spirit, angst and frustration of an entire generation. Although I think Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is far more successful of this year’s offerings, Easy A does an excellent job with a completely different tack. Whereas Scott Pilgrim clearly appeals to a specific countercultural demographic, Easy A spreads its appeal far wider to both teenage crowds and younger adults. You don’t have to have an encyclopedic knowledge of video games to appreciate this like you did Scott Pilgrim, but you also don’t have to have a deep knowledge of The Scarlet Letter, which forms the backbone of the film’s plot, or of literature in general, though knowing something may give you a few more insights into the more interesting jokes in the film (a Sylvia Plath joke late in the film is far more droll when you know something about her).

Emma Stone shows us a talent that could lead her on a career path similar to that of Reese Witherspoon whose success in Election helped propel her to a strong career that includes an Oscar win. Stone delivers witty liners like a 40-year-old professional and when she goes toe to toe with the likes of Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci, she acts on a peer level, which is rather impressive for such a young actress. Clarkson and Tucci do outstanding work as Olive’s parents and to a slightly lesser extend, so do Thomas Haden Church as Olive’s teacher and Lisa Kudrow as her guidance counselor.

THE PIANO

Going up against the emotional juggernaut of Schindler’s List in the 1993 Oscar race was one of the most unfortunate things a film like The Piano could ever do. In another year, The Piano could have been Best Picture. The film tells the story of a mute woman and her young daughter married off to an English gentleman trying to make a living in the colony of Australia. Her only voice is the large piano she brings on the long sea journey with her. When her husband refuses to bring it with them to the new house, a local guide decides to trade some of his land for the object and coax the pianist to his house in an effort to get close to her.

Holly Hunter and Anna Paquin received Oscars for their performances in the film and watching it, it’s not difficult to see why. Paquin shows us the quality of actress she would become and, although just a child and prone to a few pieces of overacting, still creates a believable and dimensional character. Hunter manages to convey hate, frustration, love, fear and many other emotions without speaking a word. The way she thrusts notes at those whom she does not respect, the way she melts into her music as she skillfully plays the piano, which, in her hands (Hunter actually played the piano for the film) and the gorgeous scoring of Michael Nyman becomes a secondary character.

Sam Neill who hasn’t always been the most interesting of actors plays the doting husband who becomes more distrustful and angry as the film goes on, unable to secure the affections of his new bride. Harvey Keitel was surprisingly not nominated for an Oscar for his subtle and richly detailed performance as the guide who slowly falls in love with the talented woman whose passions are given in exchange for a payment of individual keys from the piano. Apart from Nyman’s brilliant score, the film features some outstanding art direction, costume design and cinematography, which captures the filthy, muddy environment while bring the audience into the passionate embrace of the film’s love affair.

NIGHT OF THE HUNTER

The Night of the Hunter stars Robert Mitchum as a dangerous man posing as a preacher as he tries to get close to the wife of an incarcerated bank robber hanged for killing two during his robbery. The money was never recovered and Mitchum’s Harry Powell wants it. The problem is he must retrieve the information from those who know, the thief’s two young children John and Pearl, and they aren’t about to reveal their dead father’s last secret, which he shared with them.

When the film is working to set atmosphere, it is staggeringly brilliant. Unfortunately, not everything in the film is. Outside of Mitchum’s intense and terrifying performance, only Lillian Gish really gives the audience a believable character, steadfastly sitting in her rocking chair attempting to protect the children. Shelley Winters, as the mother is grating, giving a screechy overbearing performance. Evelyn Varden as the nosy general store operator is equally irritating, but perhaps presented as such to make the audience question her intelligence and her wisdom.

But the film belongs only to Mitchum. Harry Powell is an unrepentantly evil man stalking about the countryside righteously damning all those who stand in his way. His terrifying religious anthem “Leaning on the Everlasting Arm” is one of the most chilling vocal performances I can remember on film. Used to tremendously amazing effect as the children slowly drift down river trying to evade his menacing grasp, the song becomes a double edged sword of meaning, evinced when Gish sings it in harmony with and in counter-effect to Mitchum’s own in one of the film’s most well developed atmospheric scenes. Director Charles Laughton unfortunately never made another film. He showed a level of skill which most actors-turned-directors only wish they possessed. His hand is so assured and swift that even Winters and Varden can’t spoil the film.

When I first sat down to write this review, I was sure the daytime scenes didn’t quite fit the tone of the film, but looking back at them I believe that was the intention. In the daylight, evil still roams freely, but does so in disguise for in order for it to blend in with normality, it must apply subterfuge and guile to pursue its aims. Even though the audience knows Powell’s purpose coming to this little community, he is met with friendship and civility by the rest of the folk in the town. And this is necessary for him to get close to and manipulate the Harper family and hopefully to get his hands on the money. Yet, when night falls, evil can creep in and destroy the lives of those it touches. So when the tone shifts from day to night, there’s an obvious change in style and I know believe it was not only purposeful but perfectly executed.

ZORBA THE GREEK

Perhaps it’s an old cultural element of Crete, but there are elements of Zorba the Greek that are both infuriating to watch and sad to comprehend. Yet, the film feels somewhat pointless in several aspects. The film centers on a British citizen (Alan Bates) who returns to the isle of Crete in hopes of rebuilding his father’s long-abandoned mining operation. On his way, he means a man named Zorba (Anthony Quinn) intent on traveling with him and doing any tasks he needs done. The reasons are his own and the audience isn’t really privy to them, but Bates agrees and off they go to experience the culture of a small community where everyone leaps at the opportunity to host foreigners, but who also share ignominies and move as a whole in situations that would make most westerners aghast.

The film really has little to do with the mining operation despite being a metaphor for Zorba’s tumultuous, wild and irrepressible life. He moves with such conviction that his actions almost seem justified even if off kilter. He’s a gigolo and an inventor. He lives life to the fullest even if it is to the detriment of those around him. Quinn plays the part well against a strong performance from Bates, the astounding Lila Kedrova as the French hotel mistress and an array of strange and sometimes frightening villagers.

The film seems to take its cues from the French New Wave and Italian Neo-realist periods, trying to focus on the depravity and joyousness of human nature. But it’s also where the film seems to be trying to lose me: how can these people behave the way they do? Seeking revenge for the suicide of a man in love with the beautiful Greek (Irene Papas) who sleeps with Bates; swarming up to complete strangers trying to earn their respect and admiration; or rifling through houses of the dead or almost-dead to take anything they wish. It’s a culture which disturbs me greatly, which may be the entire point of the film. However, it seems completely unnecessary and perhaps a bit of a stretch to fill the film’s two-hour twenty-two-minute length. Aside from the performances and my frustration with the culture, there really isn’t a lot there. But the performances are worth a lot of credit and sometimes being uncomfortable isn’t a bad thing.

TORCHWOOD (SEASON 2)

What started out a bit rocky for me in terms of interest has quickly turned into one of my favorite shows. The inventiveness with which the writers infuse the show is astounding. There are episodes about aliens who subsist off of injecting others’ minds with fake memories or giant self-regenerating creatures used for a perpetual meat source. Then there’s the doctor making use of alien species for research projects to help heal the ills of society. All the hallmarks of great science fiction television (or even film) are evinced in the second season of Torchwood. We aren’t watching some glossy representation of the superficial elements of sci-fi (like the remake of Star Trek).

Not only should great science fiction entertain you, but it should make you think, make you question, make you understand the world around you. Through use of alien archetypes and bizarre situations, the genre shows the audience the depravity of human nature, but also its capacity to do good. But it’s when you take these ideas farther and remove the aliens from the equation and layer that social element onto existing subcultures and minorities that you begin to understand the importance and relevance of the entire concept. Torchwood has embraced that way of storytelling and, without over-sentimentalizing it, has made itself better for it all.