2046 * 3-Iron * 36 * Absolut * Adam & Steve * After Midnight * Apres Vous * The Aristocrats * As it is in Heaven * Cape of Good Hope * The Circus * Deep Blue * Games of Love and Chance * Genesis * Godzilla: Final Wars * Le Grand Voyage * Happily Ever After * The Journey * Kekexili: Mountain Patrol * Keys to the House * Kings and Queen * Ladies in Lavender * Letter from an Unknown Woman * The Lizard * March of the Penquins * My Summer of Love * Mysterious Skin * The Overture * Pucker Up * Red Colored Grey Truck * Rice Rhapsody * Rock School * Sabah * Saving Face * Somersault * The Story of My Life * Strings * Summer Storm * The Syrian Bride * This Charming Girl * Touch the Sound * Two Great Sheep * The Warrior * YesSIFF 2003 * SIFF 2004 * SIFF 20052046Wow. Wowwowwow. I have four words for you all. Go. See. This. Movie. Cause ... damn. Wong Kar Wai made this film as a sequel of sorts to In the Mood for Love (actually, it's kind of a trilogy, starting with Days of Being Wild), though I don't think you'd have to see that to enjoy this. I haven't, actually. Ironically enough I tried to watch In the Mood for Love and just couldn't get through it. The pacing was too slow and I felt too disconnected from the movie. I think it had more to do with the fact that I wasn't in the mood, so to speak, but still I find the fact that it couldn't entice me or hold me to be significant. I suspect this might have to do with the fact that it really wants to be seen on the big screen.2046 definitely wants to be seen on a big screen. It is SO BEAUTIFUL. Christopher Doyle (In the Mood for Love and Hero) once again joins forces with Wong Kar to make a decadently delicious movie that is, as SIFF is touting this year, a feast for the eyes! I found the story infinitely more entrancing and inviting as well. It is provocative, VERY SEXY, stylish, intriguing, entertaining, very funny and witty, at times frustrating (in that way where you want to bonk characters over the head for doing stupid/mean things kind of way), and I might go so far as to say innovative. It's a curious and playful blend of Tony Leung's character (Oh my god, that man is way too handsome for his own good!), his interactions with five different women who come into his life, and the science fiction novel that he is writing, in which these women reappear to play roles. I cannot say enough good things about this movie. It's too early to declare this, but I wouldn't be surprised if this film is the best film of the entire festival. Really. It's that good.
The only flaw for me is that it's too long. There's a point in the movie
that literally screams, "THE END!!!" and then much to my bemusement it
just keeps going on for another 30 minutes or so. I found myself getting
a trifle annoyed and frustrated, as it seemed like that could have been
cut, or re-edited, and made the film better. But maybe I was getting
twitchy after having sat for so long.
3-IronWow. This is one REALLY good and REALLY interesting movie. What is most remarkable about it is that the two main characters in it don't speak pretty much at all throughout the whole movie. Only one of them speaks, right at the end, and the expressiveness of their faces and their bodies is magical. It's definitely one of those movies that has a very grim real-world situation which is approached with a strangely surreal, spiritual, and mythic/magical approach.A young man lives on his own, owning nothing more than his motorcycle, and he makes his way through life breaking into homes and apartments of people who are away. But he is not a thief. He stays in their homes, but takes nothing save for some food and in return he does whatever laundry he finds and repairs anything he finds broken. His life, however, is utterly changed when he breaks into the home of a wealthy man whose prize bride is hiding within, her face bruised and beaten. The two of them become inextricably linked, never speaking a word to each other and yet speaking volumes.
It's beautiful, sad, tragic, frustrating, magical, strange, and
wonderfully spiritual. In a way they are two people who are in the
world, but not of the world, and despite all the obstacles that stand
between them they manage through perseverance and deep conviction to
move forward in their own intangible mysterious world. I highly
recommend this film.
36This is one seriously intense movie. Hard to really describe it without giving anything away. The basic set up is that there is a group of armored car robbers who have gotten away with two many heists and killed too many people. The Chief of Police is retiring and tells the two men who are best suited for his position that whichever of them cracks the case and gets the bad guys will get his job. From that point it becomes of film where honor and ambition come head to head with less than cheerful results. Let's just say that the film is about how the authorities and the cops are often just as bad, if not worse, as the criminals they try to jail.
Daniel Auteil and Gerard Depardieu are both
excellent as the man you respect and care about and the competitor you
just want to beat to a pulp. I was so pissed off during this movie that
I often muttered darkly under my breath, "You BASTARD!" I don't
generally talk during films unless they really get to me, and man did
this get to me. I have a strong sense of justice and when you see it so
flagrantly abused and to such terrible extents, it really makes you want
to just step into the film yourself and start dealing some richly
deserved justice. I enjoyed it all the way through and it certainly had
my attention and interest, though in retrospect I'm not such sure I like
how it all wraps up. Some of it seems a bit abrupt and disjointed. But a
good movie nonetheless.
AbsolutThis was one seriously intense little film. A political activist is working to set into motion a virus that will disrupt major financial networks in the effort to stop the WLS (World Leader Summit) but on the eve of this event he is in a car accident and has forgotten that last, and most important, day with no idea of whether or not he managed to carry out his part of the sabotage. His doctor at the hospital offers him to be a test subject in the third set of trials of a therapy that is specifically designed to help people recover lost memories. He agrees and suddenly finds that he isn't sure any longer what is real or isn't, who he can trust or not. People, places, and things begin to emerge and repeat in distrubing patterns of similarity though not perfect reflection.
It's a quiet and yet gripping movie that blends reality,
memory, and dreams, making both the lead character and the viewers
wonder if they really have any idea what the heck is going on or what
really happened. I've seen this sort of device used before in TV
(episodes of Farscape and The Dead Zone come to mind right away) but
this uses it the best, and to the best advantage. The ending was also
interesting and surprising, catching me off guard after I thought the
ending had happened and was waiting for the credits to start rolling.
Adam & SteveMoving to the complete opposite side of the spectrum is this gay film. It's WAY over the top, very silly, very kitchy, very corny and very cheesy. For me that actually detracts. I had fun, but I didn't really care for either of the lead characters because they were too cartoonish and over-acted most of the time. Much to my amusement, entertainment veterans Chris Katan and Parker Posey, who are the side kicks of the respective lovers, totally steal the movie. They're just better actors.
Don't get me wrong, I laughed and I laughed alot. Some of it is
totally hilarious. Some of it is kinda gross. Some of it is way too
broad and not funny and some of it just slayed me. The director made a
point which I thought was interesting. He said that he used humor to
entice more straight men into feeling comfortable and enjoying his
movie. The humor, which is at times rather slapstick and broad seems to
appeal to straight men, in his opinion or research, which allows them to
care more about the characters and not get so squeamish or squirmy when
the romantic scenes happen. You'll have to judge that for yourself. I
personally found the whole romance=bottle (you'll understand if you see
it - don't want to make any spoilers) to be hilarious and yeah, it's
kinda straight boy funny. But I can't honestly say that I would
recommend this film very highly. If you like gay humor that is very over
the top, or you're a big Parker Posey or Chris Katan fan, then look for
a nice cheap matinee and expect to waste two hours and some brain cells.
After MidnightThis was a really quirky, charming little film about a janitor who watches over Italy's National Museum of Cinema. He is strange and quiet, obsessed with old films and making his own simple movies. One night he comes to the aid of a beautiful fast-food waitress who is on the run from the police for pouring hot oil on her employer. She's in love with a car thief, but as she hides out with this cinephile, she finds herself entranced with the strange world he has crafted about himself, and the man himself. And likewise it seems that he hasn't been coming to the fast food restaurant all this time just because he likes the Double Fry meals. But she is still in love with her thieving boyfriend ... so what will she do? It was in many ways not at all what I expected it would be and in other ways exactly what I expected. Again, not a brilliant film, but sweet and funny and definitely very charming. There were a lot of things that I thought were going to happen and I was suprised and pleased when they did not in fact happen. Cute. Definitely cute. And that museum? That looks like one of the coolest museums ever! I gotta check it out!Return to the Index Apres VousI have a problem with certain kinds of humor. I generally call them "embarassment humor" and/or "stupidity humor". I don't like movies where things are supposed to be funny because someone is doing really embarassing things, or when things endlessly go wrong for them, or other people put them in awkward and embarassing situations. And likewise I don't like humor when someone is so dumb, or ineffectual, or incapable of doing things that things just get all messed up and complicated and screwy. This is, for the most part, just not funny to me. This movie has a lot of this humor in it as Daniel Auteil rescues a man from committing suicide and then becomes pretty much his den mother; housing him, encouraging him, and trying to get him back together with the love of his life who left him. As my friend Jessica said so aptly, much of the humor isn't really funny, it just makes you squirm with discomfort.
What saves
the film for me is that there are other forms of funny in it as well,
and they shift back and forth between them. So for as many scenes where
I wanted to kill the suicidal guy for being such a jerk/wimp/pathetic
loser and making life hell for Daniel, there were just as many funny
moments that were, well, genuinely funny with no squirm factor
whatsoever. There are also some fun and unexpected twists in the plot
that I thoroughly enjoyed. The beginning was rather torturous, but by
the end I was happy with it.
The AristocratsThis is a surprising little documentary about one thing and one thing only - the dirtiest, nastiest, ugliest little joke ever told between comedians. It is rarely performed to the public but has been in the comedian community for generations. I'll warn you now, this is by turns incredibly disgusting and gross and definitely crude. The worst version told, the only version actually that really grossed me out, was thanks to George Carlin. Came in right at the beginning and had me worried for a bit that I really wasn't going to be able to deal with the rest. But fortunately he was the exception, not the rule. It's kind of amazing to me that a film about so small and, lets face it, stupid a topic, could be as long and as enjoyable as this was.Mostly what it involves is clips of interviews with comedians stitched together, talking about the joke and telling it. It's one of those jokes where the punchline is pretty much always the same and the set up is the same, but everything that happens in the middle is up to the performer. And as such some of the tellings were utter flops that you just sorta sat through with a grimace and others had you howling in the aisles. It's fascinating because you can either tell this joke, or you can't. There is no halfways about it. My hats off to whoever edited all this together, because a lot of the quick shifts from commentary to commentary really made the film, giving it a pace and humor that was, during those moments, relentlessly enjoyable. The best version of the joke, hands down, was the South Park version. I was dyin! And it was a clip made special for the documentary, so I don't think it's gonna turn up on an episode ... but you never know. Other really good versions were performed by Billy the Mime (so sick and wrong!), Carrie Fisher, Whoopi Goldberg (who was the most original and actually funny I thought), Gilbert Gottfreid (who does it with such style!), Martin Mull, Bob Saget (which shocked the heck out of me - not such a wholesome guy!), and Penn & Teller (brilliant). Kevin Pollack did a version of it as Christopher Walken that was AMAZING. He said he heard Walken do it and was only repeating it, but he might have been bullshitting. It was a brilliant impersonation though and Walken's delivery is PERFECT for the kind of joke that it is. Eddie Izzard utterly failed to do it at all right, and in fact he couldn't even do it. Totally not his kind of humor. There was also a guy who told the joke (Eric Med?) who did card tricks as well during it that really gave it some wonderful flair and character. It's the kind of film that is a strange mix of awful and gross and terribly terribly funny.
But I swear, Cartman telling the joke to Stan, Kyle, and Kenny had me
dyin!
As it is in HeavenI had heard that this was very good, so I made a point of going to see At first I really couldn't get into it - for a movie that was supposed to be sweet and charming it had an awful lot of unexpected violence and unpleasantness. For a long while I couldn't quite understand why everyone thought it was so great. But then it gets it feet and does indeed become a really good movie.The story is of a musician/composer/conductor who works so hard he drives himself into exhaustion and seriously endangers his health. So he returns to his childhood home out in the middle of nowhere to recuperate and just live for awhile. He seems to have abandoned all interest in music, till he finds out that the church choir needs a director. It's one of those movies where lives are transformed, lies are exposed, truths are revealed, souls are searched, and courage and beauty are nutured and blossom.
The only real issue I had with the movie is the ending, which I
saw coming from a mile away and which was a lot more disturbing and
unpleasant than I wanted it to be and than it needed to be. This is
definitely one of those movies that would have done better with a less
defined ending, one that leaves it up to the viewer as to whether it is
a happy ending or a sad one. It would have been frightfully easy to do,
more pleasing, and just as effective IMHO. The ending really annoyed me,
but I still gave it a 4.
Cape of Good HopeThis movie is a feel good movie that shows the darker side of people and yet emphasizes the light that can shine from people (often despite the darkness) instead. Considering that it's a film about and shot in South Africa, I think that's really saying something. The director was there (I was seated right behind him so I got to talk with him a great deal) and said that he wanted the film to reflect the growing sense of hope and optimism that is emerging in South Africa. That in and of itself is a good thing to know and hear about. So many films are still about the violence and horror of the years before - so it's good to know that there is a change in the environment and people. And since he and his wife moved there to work in social reform and choose to stay there because they loved it so much, well, I think that really says something too.I really enjoyed it and encourage anyone to check it out when it gets a release this summer. The film centers around an animal refuge, mostly for stray dogs, and the people who work there or become connected to it. There is the woman who runs the place who is involved with a married man and the vet who pines for her in secret. There is the African refugee (you never know from where) that was once a Professor of Astronomy but now takes care of dogs for a living. There is the young widow who tries to raise her son and take care of her mother and get an education at the same time. There is the young Muslim woman who works at the refuge and is trying desperately to have a child. Each of these stories meander in and out of one another, connections forming and relationships changing.
It isn't complex and some might say that it is
too fanciful and optimistic, not realistic enough, but I'm okay with
that. There is so much darkness in the world, so much hatred and evil
and anger and hopelessness. I appreciate films that don't lie and say
that everything is roses, that admit and show the thorns, but remind you
that there are still flowers to smell and see and experience as well. I
love films that are about hope and love and goodness, and this is one of
those films.
The CircusI have three words for all of you. SEE THIS MOVIE! I will also make a confession. Until today I have never seen a Charlie Chaplin film. I think I saw bits and pieces of some of them when I was a child, but I recall not really "getting" them or enjoying them and as such never went out of my way to watch them and never had them cross my path. But today I watched The Circus and it was so amazingly funny that for a good 2/3'rds of the movie tears were slipping out of the corners of my eyes and trailing down my cheeks because it was so incredibly funny and I was laughing so hard. I HAVE NEVER LAUGHED SO HARD, OR SO MUCH AT ANY FILM THAT I HAVE EVER SEEN. Really. Honest. I'm amazed.Silent comedies have a huge advantage over talking comedies. Silence. With most films part of you feels stilted about laughing too loud, too much, or for too long. Why? Because more often than not the dialog picks up right away again and if you laugh too much you'll miss whatever the next line might be. I think it can actively stifle enjoyment because, at least for some, it stifles the laughter. But with a silent film you can laugh as hard as loud and as long as you like and you're not going to bother anyone or miss any lines or make anyone else miss a line.
I'm sure part of the
reason it was so funny is because I saw it in a large theater with a ton
of people laughing right there with me. That's contagious stuff. But
even so, it had to be funny on it's own merits because even with all
that I've still never laughed so hard that tears were streaming down
my
cheeks. That's just amazing to me. And Chaplin's pacing and comedy is
sheer genius, playing just as funny now as it did when it was first
made. Yowsa. I think I'm gonna have to do some Chaplin Mimi Movie
Nights. :)
Deep BlueThe movie was unfortunately not as great as I had hoped it would be. There was some really beautiful footage, but I've seen as good if not better. The film makers also had a very annoying habit on dwelling overly much on the violent side of the ocean, showing shot after shot of orca whales catching seals - flinging them about violently like playthings (so much over the top that at one shot the audience actually started to laugh, it was so ludicrous and lame), sharks hunting fish on the coral reefs, and orcas killing a baby whale. I don't really have a problem with showing the more violent side of the sea, but it felt like over-kill to me, over-long, and wasn't even terribly interesting. Too much, too heavy handed. The only "predator" moment that I found really interesting was how coral reefs eat their neighbors with stinging tendrils. I'd never known that about them before and it was really fascinating.
The music for the film was part of it's weakness, sounding
more like some kind of Disney soundtrack (heh, it is a Miramax film!),
being melodramatic left and right and up and down. Pierce Brosnan, as
fond as I am of him, was not a particularly good narrator either. And
his material wasn't so very interesting or well-written either. Morgan
Freeman (narrator for March of the Penquins)totally kicked
Pierce's
narrating ass. It is by no means a bad movie, but I didn't think it was
really much better, if any better, than a lot of ocean documentaries
that I've seen on TV. Ah well.
Games of Love and ChanceWorst piece of crap I think I have ever seen! I was really appalled. There is nothing good about this film at all. It's about nasty, unpleasant, rather stupid French kids screaming at one another almost constantly and manipulating one another and being, for the most part, nasty, unpleasant and stupid. I actively hated this movie. This is the first movie that I've walked out of for this festival. What a piece of shite. What made it even more vexing is that I was struggling as to whether to see this film or another (The Role of a Lifetime) and I made the wrong choice. Arrrrgh! Soooooo frustrating, since that was the last showing of Role that I could have caught. Grrrrr! Suck suck suck!Return to the Index GenesisThis was a strange little film, narrated by an African man (in French) and told in the tradition of an oral storyteller. It's a story about the creation of the universe, earth, and the creatures that are upon it. Though it's based on Darwin's theories and scientific study of how the earth began, it is told in manner that is more poetry than science. Science Poetry I suppose would be a good way to describe it. It's visually beautiful, creating analogies and comparisons and metaphors between different forms and patterns found in nature from the microcosmic to the galactic.
I wasn't so sure about it when it started,
but in the end the film charmed me. At times it's almost like watching
the more nature-loving moments of Koyaanisqatsi and
Powaqqatsi but with narration as well as music. At other times
it's like watching a not very scientific episode of Animal Planet
or Nature or
something of that ilk. But there are some beautiful images and ideas
expressed through this film. My favorite one is when the narrator
compares himself to a river, describing how even though the cells in his
body are constantly dying and constantly being regenerated by new cells,
that he is still himself. He notes that like a river, we are not forms
made of matter but forms irrigated by matter. That really struck me.
Godzilla: Final WarsGODZILLA RULES! This movie is twenty pounds of fun in a 5 pound bag! And you have to understand, I am not a big Godzilla fan. I've actually seen very few of the Godzilla movies. I only know a few of his enemies by name and even fewer can I match name with face. I probably recognize more of them from playing Destroy All Monsters than seeing the movies. So for those who actually love Godzilla and have seen all the movies, this would be the extra wicked cool excellent movie to see. It's kind of a great Who's Who of Godzilla, with nearly every enemy and ally making an appearance. The villians are great, with the arch enemy being an excellent mix of threatening and evil looking as well as utterly hilarious and funny. Cute hero doesn't suck either. I think, for a Godzilla movie, it even has a pretty decent plot! And there's one American character who practically steals the show, cause he's a total macho commander type and as such is the totally perfect foil for the rest of them, adding excellent humor value. I don't think I'll give any synopsis - it would give too much away. This is a must see for Godzilla fans!Return to the Index Le Grand VoyageA Moroccan father living in France decides that he must go to Mecca before he dies. Since he does not drive he forces his youngest son (18) to drive him across 7 countries in order to get there. During the trip father and son struggle with cultural, religious, and personal differences as well as deal with a variety of strange and often undesireable passengers.
In short, I wanted to enjoy this film more than
I did. It wasn't bad, but it was a bit of a one note movie. I felt like
the son grew and made accomodations during the film far more than the
father, and the father was annoying hard-assed about a lot of things
that I felt were dumb or unfair. There was also moments of lies and
deceptions that I didn't understand the point of. Moments were
interesting and charming but it felt a bit long and rambling. Then end,
however, was unexpected and quite powerful and moving. When they show
Mecca, it's astonishing. You think, "Wow, what an huge number of people!
That's amazing!" and then the camera just keeps pulling back and pulling
back, revealing terrace after terrace, filled with what must be
thousands upon thousands of people. I just had no idea.
Happily Ever AfterThis is one of those French comedies that also has a serious undertone to it as well, and I'm having a hard time thinking of how to sum it up exactly. I think, in the end, it is rather one of those "the grass is always greener" kind of movies, where the married men are jealous of their freewheeling bachelor friend and said bachelor is jealous of their wives and children. There are affairs and secrets and conversations and romances and chance encounters and questions and much silliness and love and struggle.
I definitely enjoyed the film, but it's very uneven and at
times even puzzling and confusing. There was one line that made no sense
whatsoever and had me utterly baffled for quite some time, making me
question for a good while exactly who was the wife and who was the
mistress in one case. And another moment in the film, either a fantasy
or a memory, also was very confusing, making me unsure of exactly what
was really going on. Being at least aquainted, if not personally
involved in polyamory, there is always that weird space of looking at
all these shennanigans and wondering if it's really necessary and
wondering if these people prefer and believe in the traditional forms
of marriage and relationships set down by culture over time or if they
are just trapped by them, believing that this is the only acceptable
way to live and love? Fluffy and fun and had the most bizarrely
unexpected cameo by Johnny Depp that totally threw me off, like seeing
someone you know well in a totally unexpected place/context.
The JourneyGetting to this film was sadly the best part of it. I had driven to the last movie because there was only 30 minutes between the end of Letter and the beginning of Journey. I got out of the former at 8:37 and was in Capitol Hill and parked a block away from the Egyptian by 8:45, just in time for a 9:00 show. That's pretty damn amazing. It was a fun ride, whipping in and out of traffic and I took my success in arriving in time as a sign that this was meant to be. Alas I was wrong. This film has AMATEUR! written all over it. Clumsy, awkward, obscenely obvious, heavy handed, predicatable, tedious, poorly acted, poorly edited, with music that seemed to want to pound every non-subtle "hint" and message into your head. Guh. Add onto that very poor sound quality, rather poor film quality, and a projection that kept jittering and, well, you have a pretty crappy movie.
I didn't walk out - it was not quite that horrible,
but it wasn't good. There were only a very few brief moments which were
well crafted visually, which I enjoyed. But I could have counted them on
one hand. Which was too bad, because it was an Indian film, which I
usually enjoy, and was about a very delicate topic for that area, which
is two girls who realize that they love each other, and the family of
one who decides to arrange a marriage in order to set things, no pun
intended, straight. Siiiigh. Again, what was most annoying is that there
was another film playing at 9:30 that I was thinking also sounded really
good. I bet it was at least better. I had decided that if traffic and
the fates were against me and I didn't make it to Journey in time, that
I would go see Broidit instead. Siiiiiigh! So vexing. I hate making the
wrong choices. :/
Kekexili: Mountain PatrolWhen I read the description of this movie in the guide, I was pretty sure I didn't really want to see it. It just didn't sound like something I would really enjoy. And I was right. I always find it interesting though, because there are many movies that come out that I don't "enjoy" persay, but which are nonetheless powerful or interesting or well made. I always wonder then about such things. Is enjoyment the ruler by which I should measure films? Is enjoyment the ruler by which most people measure films, or is it something else?Kekexilli is based on a true story about the Tibetian Antelope that was being poached out of existance for their pelts alone and how a volunteer group of people formed a patrol in order to try to protect these animals. The story is told mostly due to a reporter who joined up with the mountain patrol, as it happened in real life, and his report back on the experience and what happened changed everything. I'll tell you this much, it's a grim little film that I personally found to be pretty depressing. It's the kind of film where you really wonder why people do the things that they do. You can understand more why the poachers do what they do than why the patrol fight so hard, against such impossible odds and hardships, to protect the antelope. And there is a bitterness to the fact that in trying to stop criminals sometimes you have to do criminal things.
It's certainly
gripping and by turns intense as well as culturally interesting, but
it's not a film about blacks and whites, it's a film where all the
shades of gray exist in both the landscape and the people there. I found
certain aspects of it to be quite interesting and wonderful - especially
the part where it was clear that these men truly revered and cared for
these animals, even going so far as to collect their carcasses, burn
them in burial, and sing over them. You rarely see that kind of
reverence for animals, worthy of a funeral like a person. They say the
cinematography is great, and I suppose it is, but the landscape is so
dreadfully barren and hostile that there is little beauty to be found in
it. I can't say that I'm sorry I saw it or anything, but I'm glad I
didn't miss some other film I might have liked better in seeing this one
during the festival.
Keys to the HouseThis was pretty good, but not amazing. Kind of tough to watch. A father who abandoned his handicapped son at birth returns to take care of him for awhile and take him to a special hospital in Berlin for care. The child is severely disabled, with physical issues that have twisted his body as well as mental ones. Despite this, however, he is a sweet person - friendly and loving. The father finds that once he has met this abandoned son he doesn't want to leave him, even though caring for him will be a great trial emotionally and personally.
I was most fascinated
by Paolo, the son, who is clearly played by a disabled person with the
same issues, though most likely not to the same extent as the character.
It isn't acted, because the body contortions and wall-eyed nature of the
child could not be faked. But it did make me wonder about just how they
made this movie and how that part was created and played. A slice of
life film with no real beginning or ending. Interesting.
Kings and QueenI hadn't been planning on staying for this movie, but then I thought, "Well, heck, I'm here and it sounds like it might be pretty funny ... why not?" Well, I wish I hadn't had that thought. It was one of those movies that was incredibly inconsistent. At first I wasn't really into it, but then it picked up the pace and got interesting and entertaining and so I was enjoying it. And then it got annoying and stupid and I wasn't enjoying it. And then it seemed to be getting better, but then it got even worse. And the more I sat there the more I begin to ask myself, "Should I leave? Should I leave?"
Sometimes, after you've made an
investment of time in something, you feel vaguely compelled to stay
through to the end, just to see how it will all pan out. Since it had
already had some very good points I kept thinking that perhaps it would
get better. But finally I decided that I had reached the point where I
wasn't enjoying it at all, and hadn't been for about 20 or 30 minutes,
and that I didn't really care how it ended or if it got better or not. I
was at first really annoyed to discover that I didn't leave until after
I'd been watching it for 2 hours, thinking that it was probably just
about to end. But then I was grateful as I checked the schedule to find
that it still had another 30 minutes of run time. Blah. Not even worth
trying to describe the plot really. Utterly random, odd, annoying,
tedious, and uneven. There was funny, but not enough, and not
consistent, and there was definitely way more annoying by the end than
funny. Le sigh.
Ladies in LavenderThis was what I call a "charmer" and I'm a sucker for those. I overheard some of the Evergreen film students (the ones I all made passes for) talking about how it really didn't do anything, how the music was more powerful than the story, and how they only would give it a 3 out of the SIFF voting of 5. I suppose in many ways that they are totally right, but I liked it more than that. I gave it a 5. But I will admit that I'm a sentimental thing and in retrospect I probably should have given it a 4. You'll all be able to see it, cause it's going to be playing in theaters soon.
Maggie Smith and Judi Dench are two sisters who rescue a
young man who is washed up upon the shore near their house. Then of
course come the questions of who is he and how did he get there and
emotional bonds are made and broken. I have to admit that I was relieved
that they didn't go where I thought they were going to go with this
story. And I really connected with Ursula, whose emotional dilema is
well one I can see myself having at her age sadly enough. I think one of
the things I like best about the film is the fact that they don't spell
everything out and they don't answer all of your questions, which is a
refreshing change. The ending, however, seemed a bit more abrupt than I
would like, though I'm not sure what else they could have done to make
it better.
Letter from an Unknown WomanThis is a Chinese remake of a classic that I've never actually seen, based on a short story. I'll have to check out the original version, out of curiosity, because this one really floored me. Absolutely beautiful. Extraordinary. Exquisite.The story is told from a letter being read by a famous author, and tells the tale of a woman who fell in love with him when she was just a little girl around 1930 or so, and whose greatest happiness was derived from him, even though he never remembered who she was despite many encounters that they had throughout his life. The film moves us through her life, jumping often years at a time till her path and his cross again. I guess one of the reasons I didn't find it offensive is because she was never pining for him hopelessly during the film. She loved him and cherished him. but realized or believed that he would not return the same feelings toward her. However, she went on with her life, got an education, and for the most part seemed to live a life that she enjoyed, though I'm sure some would argue that point.
There are
a few points which are left annoyingly vague and that I suspect, if
elaborated on, might have annoyed me. But perhaps not. Regardless, the
attitudes are understandable considering the age in which it was
written and beyond that it is simply beautiful. The narration of the
letter, the cinematography, the music, the pacing, the sets, the
costumes - I loved everything about it. It had a lush rich texture, much
like the brocade couch her fingers stroke or the leather tomes her
knuckles lovingly brush across.
The LizardThis was one thoroughly enjoyable film! A criminal, sentenced to life in prison, manages to escape disguised as a Muhad, that is to say a priest. And as they say in the trade, wacky hijinks ensue. Despite his best efforts to cross the border into safety, fate, or God, keeps interfering. This movie was banned in Iran and sadly I can understand why, but it's really quite a pity. Because despite it's irreverence it is a deeply spiritual and beautiful movie about how God moves in, as they say, mysterious ways. Best of all is the ending, which much to my relief leaves it up to you, the viewer, to decide said imposter's fate. Apparently we were very lucky to be able to get this film, as few prints of it exist. And it is a total gem of a movie.Return to the Index March of the PenquinsAs the person next to me so aptly put it after the film was over and the credits began to roll, "Well, that was perfectly pleasant." And it is. I have to admit I was kind of expecting something more but I'm not exactly sure what. Maybe I wanted it to be more of a straight documentary and less of an almost children's book narration. Maybe I wanted it to be more terse and to the point, rather than rambling. Maybe I wanted it to be more adorable than serious. Maybe I wanted it to be more spectacular. It just wasn't quite as impressive and grand as I expected it to be. It was, in a nutshell, perfectly pleasant.What this film presents is the astonishing and remarkable process by which the Emperor Penquin procreates. It is a testament to the amazing abilities of nature and the incredible persistance of life, even under the most inhospitable of circumstances. These amazing birds at the age of 5 years and up leave their watery home and hit the shoreline of the South Pole in March, which is the beginning of winter. They then make a 70 mile trek through the most brutal and deadly of landscapes, where nothing lives. It is 50 degrees below freezing, with no food or water or anything - just snow and ice. No one knows how they know where to go, as the ice and landscape changes every year, so there is no obvious trail for them to follow. And when they march along, they do so in a practically two-by-two line. They do this to reach an area where the ice is so thick that it is the only place that won't break apart, and therefore the only place where it is safe for them to raise their young. Once there they carefully choose a mate. Once mated they wait until the egg is laid and once the egg is laid, the female passes it to the male to take care of and the she leaves to get food. At this point it's been about 2+ months with neither parent having any food. The females at this point have lost 1/3 their body weight and will starve if they don't leave. They must then walk 70+ miles searching for where the new edge of the South Pole is. In the meanwhile the males stay behind, keeping the eggs balanced on top of their feet and covered by a flap of skin. They huddle together for warmth as the sun disappears completely and the weather and winds become unbearably cold and vicious. By the time the females have returned, the eggs have hatched and the males are now near starvation, now over 4 months without any food. Once again the young are passed off, this time from father to mother, and then males then must begin their 70 mile journey to water and food. As the weather begins to warm the distance between water/food and the breeding ground shortens till the parents are swapping off with more regularity and often with both parents being around to raise their young.
What they go through is
remarkable and the penquins are both beautiful and silly looking at the
same time. The baby penquins are completely adorable. I was totally
charmed and utterly amazed at what these animals are capable of.
Astonishing.
My Summer of LoveI had originally picked this film as it sounded good, but on my way to it I read the longer description in the Big Book (the fancy SIFF guide to the movies) and was not so sure that I was going to like it. Happily I did enjoy it. It wasn't amazing or wonderful, but there were interesting characters, interesting scenes, and interesting moments. I only gave it a three because the director made some choices that I wished he hadn't and it wasn't really all that compelling, just perfectly pleasant. One of the things I found rather annoying is this is one of those films where two girls, each rather fucked up in their own ways, come together and have a love affair, and then it turns out badly, with lies and psycho-drama that always seems like such a cliche'. Like just because they suddenly became lesbians, they're all crazy and they do crazy bad things. Fortunately the ending, which looked like it was going to be really bad and violent and so awfully predictable, doesn't actually pan out the way you think it will. I was both relieved and annoyed. Relieved that it didn't end in the typical violence, aka Beautiful Creatures, but annoyed that it went far enough down that path when I don't think it needed to. That vexed me.One thing that I did find interesting to see was how the director showed born again Christians. This is something I'm very familiar with, as most of my family is "born again". Most people perceive "born again" Christians to be, well, whacked, and this has always bothered me, cause my Mom is one of the nicest and true Christians (show by example) that I know. All it really means is that you come to find God later in life and are thus renewed, but I guess enough nutbars use the term that people have a skewed perception of what it means. What I found interesting is that while much of what the Christians in the film say and do was familiar to me, it came across much more creepy and distrubing than it is in real life. They do appear to be more freakish (though there are some reasons for this I think - mostly having to do with the brother's character in specific) than the ones of my aquaintance who believe in the laying of hands, who raise their hands in prayer and who believe in being "slain in the spirit" (all things show in the movie) generally seem to me. I also idly wondered how many people who watched the film understood what happened when the brother was slain in the spirit. Guess I'll never know.
That said, the film definitely has some wonderful, tender,
charming moments as well as some wicked naughty funny ones. And the two
starring actresses are both so beautiful in their own ways. It's one of
those films where I have to kind of wonder why all women aren't
lesbians, because it seems so natural and perfect for women to be so
intimately close. Ah well, too bad there isn't some Christian group that
tries to help people get over their straightness. That would get me to
church.
Mysterious SkinOh My God. This was another 5, one of the few. The film is intense, based on a novel by the same name. Two boys from the same town grow up. One lost 5 hours of his life when he was 10 and believes that he was abducted by aliens. The other was sexually molested and has grown up selling his body. The two of them, through a series of events and over time, eventually meet as teenagers to learn the truth about what happened to them as children.The film is dealing with some seriously intense and controversial issues - pedophiles, child molestation, prostitution - and yet manages to do so in a way that is astonishingly poetic and even beautiful in a way. It's hard to explain - the film doesn't pretty anything up. Quite the contrary. But you connect with all the characters, are drawn into their lives and their stories. It's well edited, flickering back and forth from one boy to the other, progressing forward through time and occasionally flashing back as well.
I was
prepared for many things coming into this movie. I was prepared to hate
it. I was prepared to leave it. I was prepared to be shocked and
appalled. I was prepared to be disgusted. I was not prepared to
captivated by it and find it one of the most unique and intriguing films
that I've seen in a long time. I think many might find it harder to
watch than I did. I often find that I have a fairly flexible mind about
many different issues and don't easily take offense at what many would
find shocking or judge harshly. The actors in the film were amazing.
Very compelling performances. There were a few weak moments here and
there, but I didn't mind so much. I was expecting there to be many more
than just a few.
The OvertureI can't honestly say that this is a "good" movie. It has a very predictable storyline, some very clumsy time shifts between the past, near-present, and present, and some rather standard plots. However, I can say that I enjoyed it immensely. Why? Because it's about a traditional Thai musician who is a brilliant ranard-ek (a sort of xylophone) instrumentalist. So of course the movie sports beautiful Thai settings and costumes and characters and a great deal of beautiful, and visually and aurally astonishing music.
If you've ever seen a master
playing the tabla, then you understand the speed and strength required
to play the ranard-ek. So while the film was not much to talk about, the
music and performances were breathtaking, and there was that wonderful
excitement that you always (okay, I always) get when a young brilliant
person manages to do things that everyone else thought were impossible.
It also had some elegant and creative cinematography (though alas
infrequently) and told the tragic story about how Thailand, in an effort
to be more modern and "civilized" in support of Japan during WWII felt
that they had to sacrifice their culture and their music to do so,
persecuting people in their own homes for simply playing the music that
they loved and being Thai.
Pucker UpThis is a light documentary about the art of whistling. Ever since I was a little girl I'd always been into whistling. I'm not sure really what inspired me. Most of the people in the documentary had someone in their family, an older generational person, who was a whistler back from the old days when whistling was a common form of music and a part of many songs. I don't recall any whistlers in my family at all. What I do recall is an interest in making sound effects for Disney films, like bird songs and the like. I can recall practicing whistling intensively and being proud of the fact that I could whistle almost any song I heard.
The film was entertaining and interesting, but certainly not very
deep. While whistling was more widely accepted than I had realized, it
was not a world changing thing. Some people are, as you would expect,
kinda freakish about their whistling. There is a huge competition in
North Carolina where whistlers meet and whistle for awards. I was most
charmed by this totally adorable guy that had come all the way from the
Netherlands to compete! He was insanely good! The top competitors were
really quite astonishing, demonstrating whistling techniques that I have
never seen or heard before. What I often found the most intriguing was
the fact that as people whistle, you can't really see the process like
you can say with singing. So often it doesn't look like they're doing
anything and you almost wonder if the sounds you hear aren't recorded
and being played or something - it looks that disconnected from what you
are seeing. In the end I did learn one thing that made me feel rather
smug. While I wouldn't be able to win even third place in the whistling
contest, I would easily have made the finalists panel. ;) I still am a
kick-ass whistler.
Red Colored Grey TruckThis was fun for the most part, but not amazing or anything. A very odd and quirky film about a color blind man who has a passion for stealing 18 wheelers for joy rides and a knocked-up singer/punk girl who is determined to go to the coast and have an abortion. Their paths cross when he steals a fancy red truck, that unbeknownst to him as some very secret and precious cargo in it, and she forces him to take her for a ride. It also just happens that on the day this all happens, civil war breaks out in Yugoslavia.
It's a strange mix of grim and ludicrous as
they travel through escalating violence and chaos and yet remain for the
most part in their own little world of personal issues and fantasies.
The girl annoyed me, as she had a tendency to do a lot of stupid bravado
type things and act like a big tough jerk, getting them into more
trouble than helping out. The guy is a total sweetie, if a bit bizarre
and weird. But a good guy who lets her push him around for far too long
IMHO with little to no thanks for all the nice things that he does for
her. For the most part charming, silly, and entertaining. A bit uneven
and random at times, but I stayed with it till the end, which is both
funny, oddly unexplained, and sweetly romantic.
Rice RhapsodyA very fluffy cute film about a woman who runs the most successful Haiwanese Chicken Rice restaurant in Shanghai and has raised three sons practially on her own, the first two of which have turned out to be gay. Desperate for grandchildren, she takes in a young French exchange student in the hopes of enticing her youngest son to be interested in girls rather than boys.
Though a manipulative move on her part, you
understand her desperation and she merely sets the stage in hope, her
careful arrangements and plots sweet and charming rather than annoying
or mean-spirited. It was a very fluffy sort of film and some of the
acting (the sons) was rather stilted. The mother and the French girl
were the best part of the film, both in terms of their characters and
their performances which were entertaining and really carried the film
and made it quirky and charming. Unfortunately the story kind of
devolves toward the end with a rather random cooking competition that
made everyone kinda go, "Huh?"
Rock SchoolOkay so first off I just gotta say that anyone who loves music, heck even just likes it, should see this movie. It's a documentary about the guy that the movie The School of Rock was based on. Paul Green is a man who has some very unorthodox ideas about how to teach kids about true rock and roll, which seems to mainly consist of playing "good cop/bad cop" with them (his own words), doing a lot of yelling at them, telling them that they suck, and cursing a blue streak. He's one of those cynical/hopeful kind of guys who has rough edges all over his body but a heart of gold. Even though it's clear that he often drives the kids crazy and pisses them off as much as they piss him off, they are devoted to the man. Many call him a "second father" and as much as he rags on them he also gives them props and affection and support. Basically he doesn't act so much like a teacher or an adult, but acts like one of them, interacting with them on a very even and direct level while still remaining "the boss".Watching this film reminded me of the music I grew up with around my brothers - especially Frank Zappa which gets the most coverage in the film because it was what the kids were working on during the making of it. The best reason to see this movie, however, is to see CJ, a kid who at the age of 12 could play better than most professional rock star guitarists, IMHO. The kid is FUCKING AMAZING!!! Really. It will blow your mind.
The
highlight of the film is when the kids get invited to play Zappanale, a
5-day musical festival held in Germany where only music by Frank Zappa
is played by cover bands and musicians who used to work with Zappa.
These kids take the stage and play what is most likely the most complex,
difficult, unique, individual and astonishing music ever made in rock
and roll, fusing lyrical harmonies, classical music, rock, jazz, blues,
funk, you name it. This is HARD music to play, but these kids do it. And
when CJ does his solo? Even Napolean Murphy Brock, who played with Zappa
and collaborated with him for many many years, walked to the front of
the stage, turned to the audience and said, "Everybody with me now," and
then turned back to face CJ, got down on his hands and knees and bowed
to the kid. Amazing. Astonishing. There are clearly other really
talented kids in the group, but .... daaaaaaaaaamn. Seeing CJ alone is
worth seeing the movie. I was so pissed to learn that he was going to be
playing at Neumo's at the Rock School Jam, and it was sold out and I had
decided not to go cause I didn't want to pay for a ticket. Doh! Keep
your eyes out for this kid, because he's going to be HUGE. What an
extraordinary talent. Siiiiiiiiigh! There was a Q&A with the director,
the producer, and Paul Green. Interesting guy. And he's franchising! ;)
There apparently are already 8 School of Rock schools in the US and he
claimed, when I asked about it, that there would be one in Seattle in
about 18 months. ;) Cool!
SabahCharming and sweet and romantic, but not amazing. A Muslim woman now living in Canada with her family lives under the rather oppressive control of her brother, taking care of her mother. Trouble ensues when she meets a handsome and appealing furniture maker while swimming who is not only not Muslim, but white. *gasp* I totally enjoyed it. It's a film that deals with the struggle between tradition and embracing new ideas and new cultures. She ends up having to rebel against her family, first in secret, and then later publicly. One could argue that it is one of those "man shows up, ugly duckling becomes beautiful" movies I suppose, but it didn't strike me that way. She led a plain life, but secretly yearned to be different before she ever meets the man, which is illustrated often in the longing looks she gives other women that she sees and her love for swimming. She starts the swimming herself, which was pretty daring, and her meeting him only serves to give her something that she really wants enough to realize that she doesn't have to hide her true self any more. There are some nice surprises though a few unconvincing character shifts.Return to the Index Saving FaceA successful Chinese-American surgeon finds her life complicated by the fact that her mother moves in with her after being kicked out of her home by her highly traditional father. She is unexpectedly pregnant and no one knows who the father of her child is, and she won't tell. On top of that her mother is constantly trying to set her up with guys and she's just fallen for a beautiful female ballet dancer.
This film is
really quite delightful. Not amazing or ground shattering by any means,
but strong and enjoyable performances (Joan Chen as the mother is
fantastic), an interesting and funny story, and a really wonderful look
at what it is to be Chinese in America. I love how the daughter will
talk in English and the mother will respond in Chinese, the two
languages used interchangably throughout the film. There is a lot of it
that is charmingly cliche' but in the kind of way that you just don't
mind because it's comfortable and familiar and still funny after all
these years. Though it's tagged as a "lesbian" movie, it's honestly more
about the relationship between and mother and daughter as much if not
more than that. Being close to my own mom, I found that aspect quite
compelling. It's going to get at least a small distribution and I think
it's worth checking out if you have the time and inclination.
SomersaultI thought about skipping this movie to hang out for Joan Allen's Q&A after Yes and I probably should have. Not so horrible a film that I felt compelled to leave, but pretty pointless and useless I thought. Ironically it supposedly won 14 awards at some event of festival abroad, sweeping the boards. I can't imagine that. The other films it was competing against must have been really heinously bad.Return to the Index The Story of My LifeI gave this film a 4 when I probably should have given it a 3. It was cute and charming and funny and interesting but it certainly wasn't really great or anything. Ah well. The movie is about a ghostwriter who discovers that the woman he has held a torch for since college is dating the subject of his latest assignment - a soccer player who is driving him crazy. At the same time he is dating a woman who is challenging his work, wondering why he has given up on his own writing to write books for other people, about other people. Some of it is terribly cliche and silly, but I really liked the lead actor (very sexy with sad eyes) and especially the beginning was terribly witty and amusing.Return to the Index StringsThis movie gets points for being the most unique film, as it is all done with marionette puppets. What was truly excellent about it is that the fact that they are puppets is the entire point of the film. In this world, the strings are what keep you alive, cutting them injures you, and if you cut the head string, that will kill you. This created a very interesting and unique sort of world and setting for the story to take place in.The downside of course is that they're puppets and as such certain aspects of storytelling work less well. Like love scenes, for example. Puppet love should never be shown. It just comes off silly. There was a fair amount of giggling throughout the movie at moments that were a bit silly or where being a puppet really interfered with one's ability to act.
I think the main thing about the film that I find odd
was that it came from Denmark, but the dialog was all in English. The
voices were for the most part well done, but I can't help but think that
if it had been in Danish or some other foreign language, it would have
had a little more convincing and respectable. Silly, but true. The story
is fairly simple and familiar - nothing terribly unique there
unfortunately. But the world setting was most intriguing and the puppet
work was often beautiful and astonishing. Points also for having very
unique puppets that were people like without trying to be realistic. But
they eyes were very real, and a wonderful contact point from which to
connect with the characters. Well done.
Summer StormA coming of age/coming out film about a young man who realizes that he is hot for his best friend, not his girlfriend. Over all an enjoyable and well made film, with a lot of humor, angst, awkwardness, upset, and sexy sex. Things come to a head when the two boys and their girlfriends, all of whom are members of a local crew team (y'know, those long skinny boats, Harvard vs Yale?), go to a campsite where they will compete with other teams. During this trip they encounter one of the competing teams (ironically called "Queerstrokes") who of course end up all being gay. This creates a great deal of controversy for some crew members and of course brings forth an awakening to his sexuality in our protagonist.
While there were a lot of moments that were a little too forced, or a
too overly dramatic, unrealistic, a bit stereotyped, and occasionally
heavy on the symbolism, I thought that film did a decent job of showing
the difficulty of coming out and the issues that surround it, both
positive and negative. If you're into this kind of a film, it was an
enjoyable exploration and there were some occasionally brilliant moments
of cinematography - especially when the camera touches upon and lingers
briefly upon the physical places of pivitol events throughout the film.
Very nice touch. Elegant and powerful.
The Syrian BrideI almost didn't see this movie, because I wasn't sure from the description that I would like it. But I am SO grateful that I did go to see it, cause it turned out to be one of the best films of the festival so far! It's an intense and deeply personal film about a family who lives on the border of Israel and Syria. Due to political confusion and territorial rights issues, the town in which they live is "offically" on the Israel side of the border, but most of it's inhabitants are Syrian in ancestry. The town is so much divided that those who have passports from there are noted as being "Undetermined" under their nationality.
This is both the happiest day of Mona's life. Happy, because it is her
wedding day. Tragic because once she marries her Syrian husband and
crosses the border she will NEVER be able to cross back over the border
and visit her family. There are of course on top of that complicated
family politics, relationships, and issues. It is beautifully acted,
with wonderful imagery and cinematography. A gripping and compelling
story about how politics and religion, both internal within a family,
and external between people and governments, does more to divide and
betray humanity and love than unite. It's really just an extremely well
made film with a really fascinating, at times frustrating, and mostly
bittersweetly beautiful story. It's one of the few films I felt deserved
a 5.
This Charming GirlThis film is woefully mis-titled. It should have been called This Pathetic Girl, or This Tedious Film, or This Annoying Story, or something along those lines. It was boring boring boring. The girl was anything but charming. And what is really sad is even when you finally learn why the girl is the way she is, which is completely unexpected and the most exciting part of the film (in a grim and horrible way), you find you really just don't care.
I was so bored and annoyed with her that I
couldn't even make myself feel too terribly sorry for her, even though I
wanted to be. I just had no investment in her. She was a non-person to
me and any sympathy I had was more superficial than genuine. Which is
really a pity, because her situation was very sad and should engender
more emotion than just annoyed resignation and disappointment. I think
the film could have been good if it been acted, directed, and edited
completely differently. *chuckle* Okay, I guess that's saying that it
would have been completely different if it had just been completely
different. Sadly there was just nothing there to sink your teeth into
emotionally and way too many shots went on and on and on endlessly for
no good reason. I don't need to watch someone weeping for 3 minutes
onscreen to understand that she is sad and grieving. I got it in less
than one minute, thanks.
Touch the SoundThis was just fabulous. Really good. By turns extraordinary and insanely good, but not consistently so. Part of this is because the movie is about a percussionist artist (who happens to be deaf, which is pretty unique and interesting), and I love percussion, and part of this is due to the creator of the film, who is the same guy that made Rivers and Tides, the documentary about artist Andy Goldsworthy. This director has an incredible visual eye and often instead of showing us her making music continually, he would intercut visual textures, patterns, rhythms, and images that complimented and visually illustrated her music and sounds. These moments were intensely beautiful and on a few occasions I found tears streaming down my cheeks, though I think it was in artistic pain - wanting to be able to make what these people made/make and not being an artist of that caliber.It also reminded me of something that I really need to face up to and deal with. I want to do it all. I always have. I've wanted to be a writer and a singer and a drummer and make all kinds of art - murals, painting, prints, lithographs, jewelry, glass art, installation sculpture, be a voice-artist, an actress, a dancer ... so many things. Too many things. And people would tell me, "You can't do it all". I didn't believe them, but the more I tried to do everything, the less things seemed to work out. It got to the point where I felt frustrated and confused and never seemed to get anywhere. So now I do nothing, frozen and unable to make any choices because I still want to do it all, but can't ... or don't know how to. But it is better to do something, anything, than nothing. If I do nothing, then I don't get to be -any- of those things. And some, or even one, is better than none. I highly recommend this film. One of the things that is intriuging about this movie is that even though it is about a percussionist who is deaf (or almost completely deaf), there wasn't any sort of faciliation for a deaf audience. No subtitles. I found this rather curious, personally. The woman is amazing too - she lost her hearing as a child and you would never guess that she is deaf from watching her and listening to her. She reads lips, doesn't sign, speaks perfectly normally, and of course plays amazing music which she hears not with her ears, but with her body. Very cool. I might just have a role model here.
After it was over, I had a really unpleasant experience. In the bathroom
a woman asked me what I had thought of the film. We had been talking
before the film, so I guess that is why she asked me. I told her that I
thought it was great, but then I proceeded to explain what I thought
it's one flaw was. While I admire this film-maker greatly, he does not
have a very good sense of creating a solid thread on which to hang his
film. I noticed this in Rivers and Tides as well, which tended to have
moments that were extraordinarily fascinating or beautiful or poetic,
but also moments that were dull, random, and even a bit pointless. He is
a genius in bursts, but not consistently. His films are like
rollercoasters - an uneven ride. So I illustrated my opinion and her
snotty response was to suggest that maybe the "problem" was with me, not
with the film. I really was utterly astonished that she could be so
incredibly shitty and rude after she asked me for my opinion. I
countered her assessment by saying that I didn't think that was the
case, that I had seen the same flaw in Rivers and knew others who agreed
with me. She rather pitingly wished me better luck in finding movies
that I enjoyed, clearly ignoring the fact that I already told her that I
loved this film. What a bitch. When I came out of the bathroom another
woman came over to me and told me that I had been amazingly eloquent in
my description of the film's flaw, and that I described exactly the only
issue she had with the film as well. This made me feel a little better.
I think the woman was mean because when we had spoken early I told her
that I hated a movie that she like, claiming that it was incredibly
amateurish. So I guess she felt intimidated or offended or something.
Still, seemed really rude and mean to go and attack me that way. I was
grateful that one of my co-workers joined me for the second film, so I
could tell him all about the rude woman and get that off my chest.
Two Great SheepThis could have been a pretty entertaining little movie about the hardships of a Chinese couple trying to raise two imported sheep who are completely unsuited for the cold harsh climate of this small village. Forced to take on these sheep, in an effort to honor the local government officials and bring income into their poor arid village, the couple instead find themselves slaves to the well-being of these two animals and at the mercy of the authority, who constantly berate them for not taking better care of the sheep when it is impossible to do so.
There is beautiful scenery as you watch these poor folks run all over
hither and yon, walking miles and miles and miles to get from one place
to another. But after awhile that gets really old and you want to start
yelling at the screen, "Yes! I know! I get it! They don't live near to
anything and their lives are nothing but endless toil and running around
for others and at the cost of themselves!" I mean really, enough is
enough. I picked up that clue phone over a dozen times. I got it. In
talking with another viewer we both agreed that it was probably a film
reflecting some situation of either culture or politics or both that is
happening in China, but not being "in" on such things, all allusions
went right over our heads. In the end they were not "great sheep" by any
means and this was definitely not a great movie.
The WarriorThis kept being touted as "an Epic film, that only last 85 minutes!". It was definitely oversold. I'm a bit disappointed by that fact, because I went in with high expectations. It was a good, interesting, enjoyable movie, but it did not live up to all the acclaim it was being given, so I was not particularly impressed. The story was simple and unfortunately all too overdone. Warrior working for a powerful lord does a lot of killing for a living till one day he realizes what he is doing and says to himself, "No more." Lord resents this and refuses to accept his departure and orders his death. Many tragic things happen. Ex-Warrior swears never to kill again and leaves, only to be hunted. Meets others on his journey, eventually confronting his once friend, a man who now wants to kill him. Sigh. Seen variations on this before. Some of the acting is excellent, some is just okay. The best part of the film are a few moments of almost magic realism, which are really wonderful though play out awkwardly as there are so very few of them. I think if they had used that more throughout it would have been a much stronger, and certainly more interesting, film. But they didn't, so much so that the bit at the beginning that I was puzzling about throughout the whole film and was about to chalk up to "strange and inexplicable cultural metaphor" didn't get clarified until the end. I guess I should be grateful it got explained at all though, huh?Return to the Index YesThis is the latest film by Sally Potter (The Tango Lesson and Orlando) which has the strange gimick of all the dialog being in iambic pentameter. This gimmick is both the film's strength and downfall by turns. Some of the players are able to speak the dialog and make it sound natural and fluid. Others sound as if they are trying to read a new Shakespeare play that they've never heard before and don't quite yet have the grasp of yet. In addition there are many thick accents and mumbled dialog that made understanding what was being said rather difficult. This definitely detracted for me. I thought that Sam Neil was the most impressive, able to deliver his iambic pentameter lines with such natural inflection and pacing as to make it the Shakespearean affectation almost unnoticeable. The story is also rather ... lacking. And the ending is rather goofy and sentimental and doesn't really ring true for me. Motivations are lacking and vague at best. But there are definitely some great moments in the film and I had to laugh when Ms. Potter echoed the bedroom scene in Orlando with a rather Tilda Swinton-esque Joan Allen curled against her lover. That must have been a deliberate nod to her own work, which seems strangely narsisistic to me somehow. There are some clever uses of "security camera" shots which I liked. The story though is rather random - a unhappily married woman has an affair with a chef who used to be a surgeon in Beirut. Things get complicated when she falls in love with him and he gets hit upside the face with the prejudices being held against him and "his people" due to terrorist acts. There's a lot of stuff that happens that just seems ... random to me and without point. But perhaps the point is to show how odd and random life can be? Dunno. There's also a hilarious appearance by Moaning Myrtle as the maid in Joan Allens' seemingly spotless home.Return to the Index |