‘Gabriel Over the White House’ — The President Finds God
Posted on September 24, 2008 at 8:00 am
A little-seen 1933 film called “Gabriel Over the White House” has some themes that are particularly resonant in this time of unprecedented economic uncertainty and this historic Presidential campaign. Walter Houston (father of director John Huston and grandfather of actress Anjelica Houston — three generations of Oscar winners) plays the newly elected President of the United States, a cynical and apathetic man who has an affair with his private secretary and refuses to meet with the leader of the homeless. But then he has an automobile accident and is seriously injured. When he comes out of his coma, he is transformed. As he becomes an outspoken advocate of integrity and economic justice, he makes some powerful enemies. But it becomes clear that he has been inspired by a visit from the angel Gabriel.
This has been a controversial film since it was made for its frank acknowledgment of political policies based on scripture and for its association of policies some people consider “liberal” with religious beliefs some people consider “conservative.” Audiences have argued about whether the President is a visionary or a dictator. But it seems astonishingly prescient in its portrayal of the failures of Wall Street and government and its sincere commitment to Biblical principles is still fresh and appealing.
It isn’t so much that they have updated or re-invented the brilliantly acidic Claire Boothe Luce play that was adapted for a classic 1939 movie; they completely misunderstood it. The surface details of the original may need updating but its essential message and mordant wit are timeless. This version, in the works for more than a decade, is soft-focus but high-gloss, substituting empowerment for devotion. It is entertaining but it has a bitter aftertaste.
The original, the musical remake with June Allyson, and the new version all center on Mary Haines (Meg Ryan), who seems at the beginning to have it all — a beautiful home, a great job, good values, a loving family, and a lot of women friends, and who discovers that her husband is having an affair with a girl from the perfume counter. The original was written at a time when the daily lives of New York society women were as unknown and exotic to the men in their lives as to everyone who did not live on 5th Avenue. Each character was an example of one of a range of different coping mechanisms for the pampered birds in their silver cages. Without a single male in the cast, the story was told in women-only settings like an afternoon bridge game, a luxurious day spa, elegant stores, and a Nevada ranch-full of women establishing their six-week residency as the only way back then to get a divorce. Most of the characters were silly, selfish, cynical, or alone. And Mary painfully learned that “pride is a luxury a woman in love can’t afford.” Her husband and family must come first.
In this Oprah-fied version, it’s still an all-female story, and sistahs are doin’ it for themselves. The diamond rings on their fingers are gifts the women exchanged with each other. Mary says that she lost her job, her husband, and her best friend, and it is the best friend she misses most. And Mary’s great revelation comes from asking herself not what is best for her family but what she wants.
Some worthwhile thoughts about the way women lose themselves in what Oprah calls “the disease to please” are lost in the new-agey self-absorption of tasks like making a collage of magazine cut-outs to define your dreams and transforming your life by straightening your previously adorably curly hair. In the original, a woman’s heart got a make-over. Here, it’s just her hairstyle. And the actresses, who have the benefit of great genes and the finest cosmetic treatments in the world, have the chutzpah to do a post-credits coda reminding those of us in the audience who are not out at the parking lot already that inner beauty is what matters.
The all-star cast is sublimely watchable, especially Mary’s close friends: Annette Benning as a harried single magazine editor, an ever-pregnant earth mother (Debra Messing), and the spirited gay friend (Jada Pinkett-Smith). Bette Midler shows up as a brassy multi-married agent and the femme fatale behind the perfume counter is Eva Mendes. There are some clever in-jokes for fans of the first version and the able cast knows how to give the dialogue from writer/director Diane English snap. But the script makes the same mistake its characters do — it tries to do too much and to be whatever everyone wants.
This movie is less true to the original than it is to the girlcrush/shopping fetish “Sex in the City.” Instead of wit we get quips. Instead of poignant conversations about love and loss we get wisecracks and shoe shopping. “What do you think this is, some kind of 1930’s movie,” one character asks. We wish.
Rated PG-13 for thematic material, sexual references and brief violence.
Profanity:
Mild language
Alcohol/ Drugs:
Drinking
Violence/ Scariness:
A couple of hard punches
Diversity Issues:
A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters:
September 12, 2008
Tyler Perry’s latest film is more traditional and with a more consistent tone than his “Medea” movies, but it has his trademark trio: sincerity, spirituality, and story. And if he passes on that other “s” — subtlety, that’s all right. Reminiscent of the classic Hollywood melodramas filled with financial, romantic, and family anguish, this is the story of two families, one white and wealthy, one black and poor, and the many ways they interact — in business, in friendship, in love, and in battle.
Both families are headed by strong, determined single mothers. Charlotte (Kathy Bates) is the matriarch of the wealthy Cartwright family and holds the controlling shares in its construction business. Her closest friend is Alice (Alfre Woodard), the owner of a run-down diner who is always willing to give a free meal and clean clothes to someone who needs help. Charlotte’s son William (Cole Hauser) wants to take over the family business, with or without his mother’s approval. Alice has one daughter Pam (Taraji P. Henson) who works in the diner and another one (Sanaa Lathan as Andrea) who has a degree in finance and a lot of ambition. She works directly with William and both sisters’ husbands are construction workers for Cartwright with dreams of starting a firm of their own.
Writer/director/star Perry (he plays only one role this time, Pam’s husband) takes on big themes and big drama: sex, love, death, betrayal, and corporate takeovers, but all presented with heart and sincerity and a firm and genuinely inspiring devotion to God and to doing for others. It is sheer pleasure to watch Bates and Woodward take on these roles. On a road trip (“Like Oprah and Gayle!”) or in a boardroom, tucking bills in the thong of a male stripper, confronting heartbreak, counting blessings, they keep us watching and caring.
Rated R for strong disturbing sexual content and abuse involving a young teen, and for language
Profanity:
Very strong language and racist epithets
Alcohol/ Drugs:
Drinking, smoking
Violence/ Scariness:
Child abuse, very disturbing themes and confrontations
Diversity Issues:
Ethnic, racial, and gender diversity is a theme of the movie
Alicia Erian’s semi-autobiographical novel about a young girl coming of age has been brought to the screen by writer/director Alan Ball, whose “American Beauty” and “Six Feet Under” explored the darker side of sunny suburban streets. This is the story of Jasira, the daughter of divorced parents, an American mother and a Christian Lebanese immigrant father. When Jasira begins to go through puberty, her mother’s live-in boyfriend responds inappropriately. Jasira’s mother packs her off to go live with her father in a sterile Houston suburb. Jasira has to cope with a range of reactions to her changing body from the bratty boy next door she babysits, who calls her ugly names, to his father (Aaron Eckhart), who treats her both as seductress and prey, her father, who seems horrified and angry but spends most of his time with his girlfriend, and a classmate who wants to be her boyfriend.
Summer Bishil gives a lovely, nuanced performance as Jasira, showing us that she is not just a passive victim but someone who is intrigued by the sense of power she feels from the effect her womanhood has on people. She is drawn to the photos in her neighbor’s Hustler magazine not because she is gay but because she sees in them a strength and freedom that intrigues her and makes her want to explore for herself. It is good to see a young girl in a movie who is allowed to be complicated and have complicated relationships. At least this film respects the power Jasira has as a person and a young woman. It also raises the cultural and racial clashes more thoughtfully than most films. There’s a nice moment when a confused staffer from Jasira’s Texas high school can’t understand why this brown-skinned girl does not speak Spanish. But It is very hard to watch at times, and there are moments when you can’t help wondering if the act of filming and watching is not itself exploitative or abusive.
As we expect from Alan Ball, the performances are breathtaking in their courage and sensitivity, especially Peter Macdissi as Jasira’s father and Aaron Eckhart as the neighbor, whose status as a reservist about to be called to the Gulf War lends an individual and societal element of being on the brink of chaos. In smaller roles, Maria Bello as the narcissistic mother, Lynn Collins as the father’s warm-hearted girlfriend, and Toni Collette as a concerned neighbor with some experience in crossing cultural borders create characters who feel completely real within the context of a story that tries and often succeeds in transcending its particulars for a story about the personal and political struggle to come of age.
Rated PG-13 for intense violent sequences, thematic material and brief language
Profanity:
Some strong language
Alcohol/ Drugs:
Smoking, drinking
Violence/ Scariness:
Frequent violence including terrorist acts, bombs, guns, some graphic images, suicides
Diversity Issues:
A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters:
August 27, 2008
A timely story, some welcome complexity, and a compelling performance elevate this story of terrorism above the usual bang-bang.
Don Cheadle plays Samir, a person of interest being tracked by the authorities for his possible involvement in terrorist activities. He witnessed his father’s death from terrorism in Sudan when he was a child. Later he became a US Special Forces soldier trained in munitions. He is a devout Muslim. Whose side is he on now? We follow Samir as he is imprisoned for terrorism in the Mid-East. At first, Omar (Saïd Taghmaoui) the Muslim leader of the toughest gang in the prison, sees him as a challenger because he does not immediately ask for protection. But he grows to respect and then feel friendship for Samir and helps him to escape. Together, with the help of a wealthy supporter, they plan an audacious attack on the United States.
Meanwhile, American agents led by Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) are trying to find Samir. The characters constantly criss-cross the globe and seem to move just as easily across geographic borders as they do across legal, cultural, and moral lines. As the FBI tries to figure out whether Samir is a good guy or a bad guy, we must make the same calculation about them.
The story for this film was created by comedian/actor Steve Martin along with director Jeffrey Nachmanoff, who wrote the screenplay. It has a welcome murkiness that shows more insight and respect for the complexities of global affairs than the usual cliches and stereotypes. If that seems at first less satisfying it is because it is more demanding. The audience can’t hold on to superficial signifiers and has to be willing to shift its own allegiances throughout the story. If that makes the ending less immediately satisfying, it makes it more thoughtful, more resonant. And through it all, Cheadle’s courageous and focused portrayal of a devout man who is trying to find a way to reconcile his beliefs with his experiences shows his sincere loyalty to his story, his character, his audience, and his own search for truth.
