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January 27, 2016 The Skanner Page 7 Arts & Entertainment Film Review: ‘The Lady in the Van’ a Touching Tale of Empathy Celebrated Playwright and Down-and-Out Pensioner Forge Unlikely Friendship in Bittersweet Docudrama By Kam Williams Of The Skanner News F or a half-dozen sea- sons, Dame Maggie Smith has been de- lighting television viewers as dowager Vi- olet Crawley on Down- ton Abbey. Younger fans of the show might be unaware that she’s a two-time Oscar-winner (for California Suite and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie) who had already enjoyed an illustrious ca- reer prior to appearing on the the hit PBS series. In The Lady in the Van, she’s been cast as a char- acter practically the polar opposite of the im- perious aristocrat we’ve come to love. For, Marga- ret Shepherd is a down- and-out homeless wom- an humbled by having to live out of a van which she parks on the street in the Camden Town sec- tion of North London. At the point of depar- ture in the early 1970s, we learn that Marga- ret’s miserable plight is substantially one of her making. She’s been on the run for five years since leaving the scene of a fatal hit-and-run car accident. And while the devout Catholic has confessed the sin to her priest, she could never quite bring herself to surrender to the authorities. Conse- quently, she’s forever looking over her shoul- der, fearful that her ar- rest might be imminent. The plot thickens when she can’t afford to fix her misfiring jalopy sore- ly in need of a tune-up. Most of the owners in the upscale neighborhood where the van is sitting would simply like to see the eyesore towed away from the block once and for all. But, for some reason, Alan Bennett (Alex Jen- nings) feels compassion for the ostensibly over- whelmed octagenarian, perhaps because he has a mother also of ad- vanced age. So, against his better judgment, the famous writer allows “ Miss Shepherd” to park her disabled car in the driveway on the express understanding that this will be a temporary ar- rangement. But Alan proves to be such a soft touch that the Film Review: ‘Requiem for the American Dream’ a Rallying Cry Documentary tells of the demise of the middle-class M IT Professor Noam Chomsky has been an outspoken critic of the Establishment ever since opposing the Vietnam War way back in the 1960s. At 87, the contro- versial firebrand is now decrying the incredible gulf between the filthy rich and the rest of us. He is the subject of Requiem for the American Dream, a cautionary docu- mentary delineating the consequences lying in wait for a nation where wealth is concentrated in the hands of the top one-tenths of 1 percent at the expense of the rapidly-disappearing middle-class. Co-directed by Peter D. Hutchison, Kelly Nyks and Jared P. Scott, the movie was culled from interviews conduct- “ from the host of do- mestic pro- grams im- plemented by President Roosevelt. H o w e v e r, the affluent have always hated the New Deal, Noam Chomsky, pictured e s p e c i a l l y here at a 2004 anti-war Social Secu- demonstration in Vancouver, rity and the B.C., is the subject of a new G l a s s - S t e a - documentary on the decline gall Act, of the American middle class. which ex- plains why they have repeatedly attempted to re- peal those measures. PHOTO BY DUNCAN RAWLINSON (CC BY 2.0) VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS By Kam Williams Of The Skanner News ...wealth is concentrated in the hands of the top one-tenths of 1 percent at the expense of the rapidly-disappearing middle-class ed with Chomsky over the past four years. Nevertheless, the talented trio managed to edit the footage into a very engaging and enlightening monologue bemoaning the current state of the union. The upshot is a fascinating film featuring a “less-is-more” format rem- iniscent of the one employed by Errol Morris in his Oscar-winning Fog of War (2003). The picture basically consists of close-ups of Chomsky shot against a black backdrop as he talks about the Machiavellian manipulations em- ployed by the power elite. It also in- termittently interweaves illustrative file footage of suffering and decadence into the production to help drive home the aging grass roots activist’s salient points. Chomsky begins by waxing romantic about the “golden age” of the 1950s and 1960s when the American dream was still within the grasp of the average Joe. He says that was the period when the U.S. populace benefited the most Chomsky states that, in addition, the privileged have deliberately crippled our democracy to such a degree that public opinion no longer has any influ- ence on politicians. Just consider how it has been impossible to get Congress to pass a bill making it harder for the mentally ill to purchase a gun, despite the fact that the overwhelming majori- ty of voters support the common sense idea. Overall, what we have here is vintage Chomsky. He’s issuing a rabble-rous- ing rallying cry intended to rouse the masses before it’s too late. America redefined as a civilization in sharp de- cline and on the verge of collapse be- cause of the very greedy’s systematic elimination of class mobility from the society. Excellent HHHH Unrated Running time: 73 min. Studio: PF Pictures Distributor: Gravitas Ventures Smith looks oh so re- laxed onscreen in the role she originated on- stage, whether cadging for alms on the pavement or exhibiting pangs of remorse about the crash which left her in dire straits. Just as effective is Alex Jennings’ interpre- tation of Bennett as a ter- minally-conflicted soul constantly carrying on an inner dialogue with himself. A touching tale of em- pathy blessed by a cou- ple of equally-endearing performances that are nothing short of inspired. Maggie Smith and Alex Jennings star in ‘The Lady in the Van.’ cantankerous old coot ends up squatting on his property for the next 15 years. Can a Tony Award-winning playwright and a feisty pensioner coex- ist peacefully in such crazy conditions? That is the question at the heart of The Lady in the Van, a heartwarm- ing dramedy inspired by actual events. The film was adapted from Bennett’s 1999 theatri- cal production of the same name which also starred Maggie Smith. Excellent HHHH Rated PG-13 for a disturbing image Running time: 104 min. Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics View movie trailers at TheSkanner.com
