The babes of Timecode (clockwise from upper left): Salma Hayek as a bisexual actress, Saffron Burrows as a bisexual depressive, Leslie Mann as another bisexual actress, and Mia Maestro as a pretentious filmmaker.
Here's a bold experiment: a bunch of great actors, 4 digital cameras, four takes, four different frames shown simultaneously in four sections on a single movie screen. It's real time, it's 90 minutes, it's sometimes confusing, but it's great.
It's Mike Figgis's , and while I'm still not sure I'd like to run into the guy at a party (he'd probably be the one snorting cocaine out of some model's cleavage), I'm starting to really admire him as a filmmaker. I first became aware of Figgis with the highly commercial Internal Affairs back in 1990 (the pic that re-launched Richard Gere's career), and then he hit it big with the critically acclaimed Leaving Las Vegas . . . but lately he's been turning out some interesting, unusual stuff.
Minus a million points for me, but I missed his last film, Miss Julie. I did catch the one before that, though: The Loss of Sexual Innocence, a self-consciously arty, but ultimately smart and satisfying picture. Timecode is even better.
It's experimental, but the sumbitch works. The performers include some big names (Saffron Burrows, Salma Hayek, Stellan Skarsgard, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Xander Berkeley, Glenne Headly, Holly Hunter, Kyle MacLachlan, Julian Sands, Steven Weber) and some people I've never seen before, but they all do a great job.
Story-wise, we've got Jeanne Tripplehorn and Salma Hayek as lovers. Jeanne's the Sugar Mommy of the duo, and Salma's an aspiring actress. She's heading to the offices of Red Mullet Productions to tryst with Stellan Skarsgard, who's married to Saffron Burrows. Jeanne Tripplehorn has Salma Hayek bugged, and doesn't dig all the illicit sex she's having. Meanwhile, the executives at Red Mullet, who include Holly Hunter, Xander Berkeley and Steven Weber, are waiting for some hot young filmmaker who's going to pitch them on her latest concept.
That latest concept turns out to be a digital video production consisting of 4 long takes, presented simultaneously . . . This is what we called "intertextuality" in film school. Executive Stellan Skarsgard declares her idea to be "pretentious crap" which is what we called "self mockery".
This, for me, is what saves Mike Figgis. Figgis could be compared to (pardon the slander) Oliver Stone, in that both men occupy a creative space at the union of commercial and experimental film. But whereas Stone enjoys wallowing in the excesses of both, Figgis seems to avoid their pitfalls of both the commercial and the experimental, and keeps a healthy sense of humor about the whole business.
Timecode is, by definition, experimental. But it doesn't skimp on the entertainment value. It's a very funny film, including taking jabs at its very concept. Not to mention that Figgis has packed the flick with not one, but two scenes a lesbian necking, generous even by indy standards. Of course in watching the film, we have any one of four frames to chose from, which means that if Salma Hayek and Jeanne Tripplehorn are necking in a limo in the upper left, yet the soundtrack clearly expects us to be paying attention to the meeting happening in the lower right, we, as viewers, have a real problem.
But Timecode is a demanding film, I won't lie to you. It probably warrants more than one viewing--I, for one, didn't quite follow how Saffron Burrows got from a bookstore restroom to almost having sex with some sexy blonde on a couch. I wasn't complaining about it, understand, but I didn't quite follow it.
Timecode probably isn't for everyone. But I dug it, and if you're in the mood for something a little daring, I recommend you give it a try.
(Oh, and note for those who were wondering: the title is meaningless.)
Name: kelly Subject: soundtrack -- Jan 30, 2005 at 3:32AM i was wondering the same thing because they dont make the soundtrack anymore and no where has it used . lemme know if you find out .
Name: jobob51 Subject: soundtrack -- Aug 14, 2003 at 1:37AM anyone know where i can get a downloadable sound track of timecode 2000
Name: B. Subject: Re: Timecode -- Aug 23, 2000 at 8:26AM Normally, I'm not an arty guy, some of my all time favourites are brainless stuff like Starship Troopers.
However given the hype I went to see it and was not disappointed.
It was a good romp and held my attention, surprising given the lack of explosion and gun-toting heros.
The soundtrack is aboslutely perfect and the fading in of songs at certain moments works really well as you look across the frames and see how all the characters are in different emotional states. Yet as well as touching and deeply character driven, it's also humourous. The swedish massure pretty much serving no other purpose than to get in a few laughs.
It's fantastic, though I was amused by one small error, the film's full title is Timecode 2000, and in it, Emma, the young female director comments "this is 1999 !" .. well it brought a smile to my face.
Name: Kerry Douglas Dye Responds Subject: Re: Timecode -- Aug 12, 2000 at 12:12PM Marketing aside, it's a good flick.
Name: Monty Gyro Subject: Timecode -- Aug 12, 2000 at 8:50AM Havn't seen the film yet but the adds in the UK are pushing the innovation of four split screens. ehm, what innovation? Zbigniew Rybezynski mastered the multi-view split screen technique some 20 years ago and Hitchcock did the long take thing. Nice to see some innovatin going mainstream though.
Name: dr no Subject: timecode -- Jun 10, 2000 at 10:33PM A minor (very) masterpiece. Sometimes you want to go to the movies, but you don't want to see a movie, dig? Well done, Figgis. Keep on keepin' on. . .somebody has to.
Name: The width Subject: Stop the far reaching poison -- May 7, 2000 at 4:52AM I feel like a fool, because of the things I truly believe in.... oh jesus piss , monkey christ. I'm not apologetic about my convictions like= I want to see timecode, but a couple of friends of mine died because of hard drugs and the idea of drug culture only says to me "Ramon is dead" and that's all makes me a weary every time I hear of some jackass glorifying it. I want to see this movie because of the format... I would love to see it. But Mike Figgis loves and his life passion seems to me to be things like alcoholism and the big smack. So piss on the downtrodden, lets big merry and fuck our lives because we have no strength.
That's right fuck every one.
Name: Kerry Douglas Dye Responds Subject: Re: timecode -- May 3, 2000 at 11:26AM I probably shouldn't comment, but that damn ego of mine ... I can't help it. For the record, I know what a timecode is (from my college days). For clarification, I meant that it was meaningless as a title, not that the word itself has no meaning.
Name: AV Guy Subject: timecode -- May 3, 2000 at 10:59AM Actually the title is not meaningless. Basically it's the technical term for how Mr. Figgis was able to "match up" the four long takes so they were in sync with each other. Of course I'm not sure that's why he named it what he did, it's just a possible explanation. Thanks.
