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> Fay Grim |
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Staring:
Parker Posey,
Jeff Goldblum
Average Customer Rating:   
List Price: $14.98
Our Price: $6.99
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Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audience Rating: Unrated
Binding: DVD
Brand: Magnolia Pictures
EAN: 0876964000857
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
Label: Magnolia
Manufacturer: Magnolia
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Magnolia
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2007-05-22
Running Time: 118
Studio: Magnolia |
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Product Description
A Hal Hartley-directed feature about a Queens-bred single mother (Posey) whose attempts to steer her son (Aiken) in the right direction are thwarted b
Amazon.com
Fay Grim is Hal Hartley's version of the espionage thriller. Consequently, it's more peculiar than pulse-pounding, but that's what makes his films appealing--to those who appreciate their off-kilter rhythms, that is. In Hartley's world, dialogue is often delivered with a straight face, no matter how funny the line or farcical the situation. In Fay Grim, he picks up seven years after Henry Fool left off, but this time the writer/director shifts focus from novelist Henry (Thomas Jay Ryan) to his seemingly scattered wife, Fay (Parker Posey). Their son, Ned (Liam Aiken), is now in his teens, but Henry remains at large, and Fay's "garbage man poet" brother, Simon (James Urbaniak), remains in prison for aiding in his escape. Then two CIA operatives, Fulbright (Jeff Goldblum) and Fogg (Leo Fitzpatrick), inform her that Henry is dead, so Fay agrees to track down his complete set of diaries in exchange for Simon's freedom. Apparently, Henry's incoherent ramblings contain state secrets. Joining forces with stewardess Bebe (Elina Löwensohn), Fay travels from Queens to Paris to Istanbul to fulfill her mission. In the end, Fay Grim resembles Hartley's noir parody Amateur, which featured Löwensohn, more than Henry Fool. It has less to say about talent and celebrity and more about mystery and intrigue. For the filmmaker, it also represents an opportunity to reunite a strong ensemble and to recover, at least for the time being, from a string of disappointments, like No Such Thing and The Girl From Monday. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
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"Henry Fool" with a genre spin, 2008-11-27
Ten years after her husband, Henry Fool (Thomas Jay Ryan) fled the country in order to escape being arrested for murder, Fay Grim (Parker Posey) is approached by two CIA agents wanting her assistance in obtaining Henry's "confessions", a collection of notebooks which were previously believed to be the manuscript to a very poorly written novel, but in fact, might contain government secrets.
"Fay Grim" is the sequel to Hartley's 1997 film "Henry Fool". However, whereas "Henry Fool" could best be described as a pretentious art-house comedy/drama (and yes, I did like it very much), "Fay Grim" builds on many of the ideas that were set-up in "Henry Fool" and spins them into a tale of espionage and terrorism. In this film, Hartley uses the framework of a spy genre piece to answer many of the questions that were left unanswered at the end of "Henry Fool" - in particular, who is Henry, what was in his notebooks and why did he write them in the first place. For most of this film, Hartley does an excellent job of this, to the point where I actually started wondering if Hartley had all of these answers in mind when he wrote "Henry Fool". However, the film is let down by a weak and rather confusing ending (I'm still not really sure why Fay seemed to care so much for Bebe, a woman whom she meets along the way, at the end of the film, and I think that there were about three different (and contradictory) explanations given for the contents of the notebooks) which leaves things open for yet another sequel ("Simon Grim", perhaps). Having said all of that, if another film about Henry Fool and the Grims come out, then I will definitely be lining up to see it. Hal Hartley films are often described as an acquired taste, and although I have been able to find fault in all of his films that I have seen, I still have a taste for them and would gladly see more. Henry Fool is one of my favourite characters in a Hartley film and in movies in general, and any opportunity to see him again, would be worth it for me.
An acquired taste, 2008-05-16
This is not a film for everyone. It is definitely an acquired taste. At the time I picked up this movie, I was not aware that it was a sequel and with that being said, if you have not seen the previous movie, you will be able to watch this one on its own. I was attracted to it by the fact that the leading lady Fay Grim is played by the queen of independent movie industry, Parker Posey. It is hard to say what genre this film belongs to because it is so quirky. Dialog is exaggerated by all characters so it is intended to be somewhat surreal. I was suprised to see Parker Posey reprise her comedic take on cell phone in vibrating mode inside her underware. She did that in another movie and it was interesting to see it again becuase it is just as funny, if not more. To me this is a movie about the fabulist Henry Fool, who in spite of being a writer, spy and a liar is loved by his wife, son and brother in law. He is a rebel that everyone loves to hate, one of those characters that everyone is drawn to by his charisma regardless of the fact that one can feel touble from afar. Film has dry humor and appears to drag at the moment, but cast is funny. Saffron Burrows is so beautiful and sexy one cannot take his eyes of her. Definitely not intended for wide audiences, but absolutely unique in its own way.
Like it or else, 2010-05-22
This is a Hal Hartley film. He made the movie "Trust." This was very good. So, every movie he makes is very good. If you don't like it, then you better watch it. Your guts will get slugged out I bet.
Parker Posey energizes one of Hartley's best., 2010-03-26
I am someone who always watches Hartley films although they are ofttimes irritating. The rhythms of his dialog usually bring out the best of his wit, but the plots often just drift. Mostly, though, problems arise in Hartley films because the characters always exhibit minimal affect.
This movie has classic Hartley dialog, wit, and absurdity. But it by and large transcends most of his oeuvre in that Parker Posey brings a new energy and emotional debt to the film and the plot is much tighter, particularly in the last quarter of the movie. I wouldn't recommend this as an introduction to Hartley, but I did find it to be one of his more accessible and enjoyable films and a step up from its prequel, Henry Fool.
Pale shadow of Hartley at his best, 2009-12-12
Yes, I know, "if you can't say anything nice" etc. I'll try, but I'm not sure it's going to work.
Hal Hartley's "Trust" remains one of my favorite independent films of all time, with "The Book of Life," "The Unbelievable Truth," "Simple Men," "Surviving Desire," and "Henry Fool" (to which "Fay Grim" is ostensibly a sequel) not far behind. By comparison, this film is a self-indulgent mess. Dutch angles are just not that interesting. Intentionally convoluted spy spoofs are just not that interesting. Even Hartley's undeniable gift for dialogue, in the absence of any effort to use it on behalf of characters that resonate, is just not that interesting.
I've read an interview or three in which Hartley claims that he's doing what's important to him, and I'd like to think that I wouldn't have spent several years running a fansite dedicated to his work if I weren't prepared to follow him wherever his muse took him. Still, I can't believe for a moment that he does not have more to say than "Fay Grim" would suggest.
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