THE CARD COUNTER

 Oscar Isaac     Willem Dafoe     Tye Sheridan     Tiffany Haddish

            I have heard that counting and keeping track of cards in games can help you win; and William Tell (Isaac) demonstrates this both in a simple card trick and in a fascinating story with themes of punishment and expiation—and their limits.  Writer/director Paul Schrader is a master of nuance and suspense, with engaging characters, richly metaphorical settings (Ashley Fenton), music complementary to the script (Robert Levon Been, Giancarlo Vulcano), and provocative cinematography (Alexander Dynan).

            Tell is a card shark who likes to keep a low profile after stints in the military and prison.  He has developed a systematic lifestyle that reflects his approach to cards—astute observation, discipline, the compulsive need to hide, and a solitary existence.  He meets a woman who calls herself La Linda (Hadish) and once she learns how good he is, wants to “back” him (finding wealthy clients interested in betting on him).  She appears to be the sole lightness in his life, but he still holds her at bay.

            After one of his games, he is passed a note from a bystander wanting him to give him a call, which he does.  This is Cirk (Sheridan), the son of an old acquaintance in the military.  Cirk has a proposal that seems not to interest Tell as much as the young man’s life story, which relates to the theme of punishment/expiation.  Tell has some ideas about how he can expiate himself of some of his past for which he was punished, but for which he has not forgiven himself.

            As with his previous film, First Reformed, in which a pastor is trying to work through PTSD after a war experience, Schrader poses circumstances that force the viewer to contemplate psychological stressors, current issues like war, and—above all—personal responsibility for actions in the past.  That is, it’s about war and about its after-effects and how those involved deal with them.  First Reformed deals with one person’s struggle; The Card Counter deals with the second generation’s struggle as well.

            The lead actors are supremely fitted to their roles.  Isaac’s ability to convince us of the depth of Tell’s story is key to the well written plot.  Tiffany Hadish provides (needed) respite from the gruesome details of Tell’s and Cirk’s accounts.  And she once again proves her acting abilities.  Tye Sheridan pulls off the hard-to-engage teenager with a singular passion and not much ambition.  Tiffany Hadish has evolved from her comedy roots in Like a Boss and Girls Trip to being a serious pivotal character in this film.  Willem Dafoe expertly shows us a jaded, exploitative figure who has no qualms about exploiting others under his control in the most weaseled of ways, even to the end.

            The psychological authenticity of Paul Schrader’s films always amazes me.  He is clearly attuned to personal transformations with myriad motivations that are not always clear, even to the person, much less those observing him/her.  The arc of transformation is similar in this film to that in First Reformed.   It involves something like “original” to something that is an outgrowth of itself after encountering real-life experiences.

            There are small wry touches of inspiration and humor that might go unnoticed, such as William (Bill) saying to Cirk, “You live like this?” (a messy room) and Cirk saying to Bill, “You live like this?” (a compulsively neat room).  Or La Linda taking Bill out  to a “city on fire”, which means walking through a labyrinth of bright lights, possibly as a metaphor for the potential of card winnings—dreams—and then, reality.

            

An intricately “wired” account of the psychological transformation of individuals as a consequence of their experiences.

 

Grade:  A                  By Donna R. Copeland

FIRST REFORMED

Ethan Hawke     Amanda Seyfried     Philip Ettinger     Cedric the Entertainer     Michael Gaston     Victoria Hill

     This is one of those independent films that you hope will be coming up regularly forever. It takes an issue and argues it with eloquence and passion, showing both sides.  That is, the audience is expected to take some responsibility for thinking about something important and reasoning through it to conclusion. Pastor Toller (Hawke) has a known past of having a son he talked into going into the military (generations of his family had attended VMI)—against his wife’s objections—and, unfortunately, Joseph was killed in Iraq.  The burden of this kind of guilt is the subject of the film, and it’s put into larger contexts related to political activism, religious beliefs and meaning, and, fundamentally, hope and despair.

     Pastor Toller seems to be experiencing PTSD (post-traumatic stress syndrome), and trying to work through it, using scripture and group therapy, and a diary that is to be destroyed in one year.  Adding to the pressure is that he is pastor of a 250 year-old church, which tries to survive by joining a much larger congregation, the Church of Abundant Life, led by Pastor Jeffers (Cedric the Entertainer).  They’re all gearing up for the celebration of the re-consecration of First Reformed.  Here, we see the issues of original conceptions of religion played out against the current capitalist conceptions of a religion paired with financial backing.

 The First Reformed Church has to collaborate with the Church of Abundant Life in planning.  At first, there doesn’t seem to be much of a problem; Pastor Toller has met with Pastor Jeffers a number of times, and they seem to be on the same page.  But the primary contributor to the Abundant Life Church is a businessman with a moral center that differs significantly from Pastor Toller’s.

     And inserted into all of this is a major complication in the form of parishioner Mary (Seyfried) asking for help from Pastor Toller for her husband, Michael (Ettinger).  He is an activist for the environment, and has strong feelings about bringing a child into the world.  (Mary is pregnant with their child.)  He wants to abort the child, but Mary does not.  

     Pastor Toller is drawn into this dilemma, which exquisitely connects with his own dilemma he is already dealing with; that is, a parent’s responsibility for a child’s life.  Michael is troubled that he is bringing a child into a world that will eventually kill him, because of environmental neglect.  (The oceans rising several feet, for instance.)

     Paul Schrader, the writer/director of this film, eloquently outlines the agonizing questions of our day related to climate change, personal responsibility, and political activism, and demonstrates how individuals and families can be affected.   The ending of the story is drawn out, culminating in a conclusion that may be dissatisfying for many.  

     First Reformed is an outstanding production overall.  Schrader is an expert in storytelling and visual effects.  He and cinematographer Alexander Dynan open the film with an old white-boarded church scene suffused in a pale blue light; and these colors are seen throughout, with accents of black, bright red or other colors inserted for maximum emotional effect in certain scenes.  Ethan Hawke—in his usual fine form—gives one of the best performances of his career, complemented by Amanda Seyfried as a sincere young parishioner and Cedric the Entertainer as an experienced pastor of a large, well-connected church.  

An impressive film in all aspects of filmmaking.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland