The Look-see Inside: Raising the Amenebar Above Almodovar
By Richard Oxman
> “When you can’t escape and you depend on others so much, you learn to cry by smiling.” — One of Ramon Sampedro’s (Javier Bardem’s) lines in *The Sea Inside*
> “Many die too late, and some die too early. The maxim: die at the right time still sounds foreign to us.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
Spanish director Alejandro Amenebar can be forgiven his (undeservedly) highly-praised *The Others*…now that he’s reached the heights scaled by (Oscar’s Best Foreign Film ‘05)… *The Sea Inside*. I didn’t like the former ‘tat all (to say the least), but the latter climbs The Ladder way up beyond anything offered up…by anyone from the Iberian Peninsula… within my Alzheimer’s memory. [1]
This masterpiece stands out… much like the peninsula itself… reaching out to its viewers, spotlighting itself by virtue of its… *extending itself*. Waving, it asks you to do the same.
Why don’t I simply write a straight-up review? No good cinematic experience deserves that fate, least of all one which invites you to look inside of yourself deeply.
Just as it’s off the mark to target *Vera Drake* as a movie about abortion, it’s a huge mistake to label *The Sea Inside* as a euthanasia flick.
It’s the furthest thing in the world from being just another movie of the *Whose Life Is It Anyway?* school, in which a quadriplegic fights for the right to die. This riveting “true story” of Ramon Sampedro (Javier Bardem), the Spanish sailor who ruptured his spine in a diving accident at twenty-six and spent the next thirty years being cared for on his family’s farm in Galicia… is life-affirming in a visceral sense that films rarely stir up. And it offers stimuli for thoughts about how to live *up the kazoo* in lieu of arguments. [2]
And on that point… about making points…the protagonist’s love of debate is a good example of how the film drops seeds…without hitting you over the head respecting where to plant them. It’s filled with visual and verbal innuendo. The duodenum of disingenuous filmmaking gives way… to poetry here. Ravishing reminders of the realm in which we live.
As Chris Vognar of the *Dallas Morning News* says, the director “employs a series of slow moving camera shots that dissolve to create haunting and imaginative transitions. This is especially impressive given that the film, like Ramón, is mostly confined to bed.”
Yes, the immobility accentuates Bardem’s perfomance, making a complete mockery of acclaim directed toward the likes of Clint Eastwood this past February. Clint appears as if he *should be in bed* when contrasted with JB’s efforts/accomplishments. [3]
And he’s only a part of an *ensemble* cast which excels. [4] They’re –to a one– perfect. And I’d even go as far as saying that if it was Highway Robbery for Hilary Swank to swipe Best Actress over Imelda Staunton, it’s unquestionably “a major Brink’s job” for Mabel Rivera to not receive at least a Best Supporting Actress nominee nod.
Instead of telling you who she played… I’ll allow you the fun of guessing who she is in the film.
This unfortunate, blessed creature was denied what Camus called “a happy death.” But the publication of his *cartas desde el infierno* (Letters from Hell) –and Amenebar’s (and co-writer Gil’s) telling of its genesis– have paved the way for many other suffering souls…providing relief on several levels.
One of the great contributions this film makes is to refrain from easy categorizing, the meaningless labeling of Ramon… *as a member of a group*. Even with the inherent activist angle, solidly built into the story, one doesn’t come away generalizing… seething with a political agenda. Audiences are too busy feeling the singular sadness… and much more… of Ramon and some of the other characters who appear.
There are many others I should single out for praise (like the Casting Director and the Music Director et. al.), but, again, this is not a straight-up review.
I think it’s time to just send you off to the movies.
You’re lucky. You won’t be seeing Hart Crane jumping overboard. You won’t be taking poison with Hannibal. Neither will you be drowining yourself with Virginia Woolf… nor watching Gerard de Nerval *doing his thing* with an apron string.
No, you will be saying YES. Yes, as you observe someone you never knew anything about. *Si* as you see others in a new light. And “yes,” as you look at yourself anew.
Adieu.
SPECIAL NOTICE: PLEASE CONSIDER SENDING MY YOUNG BUDDY A CHEER UP CARD OR WORD. HE’S “DYING”…INCARCERATED LOCALLY, COMPLAINING THAT NO ONE CARES. PERHAPS IF A HANDFUL OF YOU *STRANGERS* DROP HIM A SHORT LINE OR FUNNY IMAGE IT MIGHT BUOY UP HIS SPIRITS. FEEL FREE TO TELL HIM I SENT YOU HIS WAY. BELOW IS THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO SEND SOMETHING TO JESSE:
Jesse Robert Tapia - UD
@ Elmwood Complex
P.O. Box 361870-U
Milpitas, CA 95035
You also need to put his PFN and Booking Numbers on the envelope. I put them in the front lower left corner. They are:
PFN # DUS184
Booking # 05019130
**No extraneous items on the envelope, such as tape, stickers, rubber stamps, glitter, etc. Remember: ALL mail is subject to review by a correctional officer.**
Flimsy Film Footnotes:
[1] Open Your Eyes ('97), I’m told, had some good moments, though I recall not liking it; Amenabar, to be gossipy Hollywoodishy, had Penelope Cruz in that-and Kidman in *The Others*. Both bruised *Cruisers*. I've read interesting descriptions of his '96 Thesis. Watching the DVD Special Features actually detracted from our appreciation of Amenabar, dashing images-which turned out to be false, clashing with fantasies. But none of that takes away from the end product-which is the cinematic experience of this particular creation.
[2] The real Sampedro actually said that it was obvious that one day euthanisia would be accepted all over the world. The movie clearly doesn’t strain on that point, using acknowledgement of that as a point of departure. Very refreshing to have the focus in such a so-called topical film be on human dynamics.
[3] And not just in this film either. On that note, by the way, I recommend that *ridders* who haven’t seen Javier in anything check him out in *Mondays in the Sun* (’02) before picking up the more popularly known *Before Night Falls* (’00). For several reasons, which I’ll be glad to explain upon request. That said, he’s terrific in both.
[4] *Perfect implementation of emotions* certainly does apply to several actors/actresses in multiple scenes. It is rare.
