Two Lottery Tickets (2016) Making Waves 2016

For many people the notion of a Romanian comedy is alien. This is because most people distributors and film festivals gravitate toward the deadly serious films from Romania, you know the ones that are full of sturm and drang and make you want to play in traffic. Seriously the cineastes who program the festivals need to at least borrow a sense of humor because there are funny films from Romania.

A good case in point is TWO LOTTERY TICKETS which has three loveable losers winning several million Euros in a lottery only to have to go on a mad hunt in order to find the wining ticket. Insanity results.

I know what you're saying we've been here before, and you are absolutely right. We have seen the basic plot used in cinema going all the way back to the silent days. You would think that the plot has been used up, and I would tend to agree. I mean I only half heartedly watched the film because I was dead certain this was not going to be anything I hadn't seen before...

...but the characters and the setting in Eastern Europe won me over and it wasn't long before I was laughing at our heroes dead pan and not so dead pan adventures. Basically despite my better judgement I found myself laughing at what was going on one screen.

And since this is a Romanian film there is a bit of social commentary as we get a good look at the way people who aren't so well off get by and how they have to struggle just to buy a drink.

I do have to apologize because I really don't have a great deal to say about the film. I enjoyed it a great deal - to the point that I stopped taking notes and just let the film wash over me, Anytime that happens the film gets a couple extra points and thats what happened here.

The film plays Saturday night at the Making Waves festival in Pleasantville New York and is recommended. For more information and tickets go here.

United States of Love (2016) Making Waves 2016

Shot by Romanian New Wave cinematographer Oleg Mutu UNITED STATES OF LOVE won the Silver Bear for Screenplay at the last Berlin Film Festival. The film is four loosely connected stories about women and their unrequited loves.

Playing more like four separate films joined together UNITED STATES OF LOVE is a heavy look at love lust and longing. Its a film where we look at the quiet and not so quiet desperation of four women in a country opening to the west (it's set in 1990ish) and going capitalistic. One woman lusts for a new priest. Another is having an affair with a married doctor. A third forms an attachment for a young woman. The fourth finds the downside of striving to be a model in a free economy.

Nicely acted by everyone concerned, this is a very good look at a world and lives in change. We have develop a real feeling for the women and their plight, though the obsession for the objects of their desire shown by some of them is more than a tad creepy. Logic and reason kind of get tossed aside by it but at the same time director Tomasz Wasilewski is juggling a lot of balls in the air making comments not only on the lives of the women but society in general.

I liked it a great deal.

United States of Love plays Friday at Making Waves New Romanian Film Festival. For more information and tickets go here

Nightcap 11/27/16- There are 4 film festivals in New York this week (African Diaspora, Other Israel,SAIFF, Making Waves), Why I am not reviewing a film, and Randi's links

Baloon at this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The march to the New Year is on and this year is going out with a bang with four festivals going on in New York at the same time....
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The African Diaspora International Film Festival continues this week. With the holidays over I’m trying to arrange my schedule so that I can get to some films.

For tickets go here
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The Other Israel Film Festival is a really cool festival. Highlighting the view from those not in the mainstream of Israeli society the festival brings together some great films that show you another side of life in Israel, for example the life of the Palestinian minority. I’ve covered the film for the last couple of years and I’ve been delighted by what I’ve seen.

I’ll be posting some reviews based on screeners I have and I’m going to be attempting to get to a few screenings. I suggest you check the schedule and buy tickets because there looks to be some great films.

I’ve seen a couple of films already and here are our reviews

Junction 48
Forever Pure
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The South Asian Film Festival is a really cool. Film Director Ted Geogehagen got me into the festival when five or six years ago he asked me to cover the festival. I’ve been trying to do so ever since. The festival is a fantastic collection of films from India and the surrounding countries. It’s a festival that will open your eyes to the films of the region. I know it opened mine.

This year the festival is happening at Village East Cinemas. The festival has a great selection of films including the deeply disturbing AUTOHEAD which is playing next Saturday and will include a Q&A with the film’s director. I highly recommend the film and I’m hoping to get myself there.

For the complete schedule and tickets go here.
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I discovered Making Waves: The New Romanian Film Festival when it had made its home at Lincoln Center. Unfortunately because things happen the festival has moved out of NYC proper and up to Pleasantville and the John Burns Film Center. However the fact that it’s moved 30 minutes north of the city shouldn’t deter you because this is a killer festival that shows more than the dark brooding Romanian dramas that the Film Society seems to love. Honestly it wasn’t until I went to the festival a few years ago I thought the country only turned out dark and brooding dramas. However that isn’t the case. There is in fact more to Romanian film than what we have been lead to believe and Making Waves shows us that.

The festival is playing to films that played at the New York FIlm Festival GRADUATION (which Nate Hood reviewed) and SIERANEVADA (which we all missed),I don't know any of the other films, but I have some screeners so expect reviews during the run of the festival.

For more information and tickets go here.
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For the third time in seven years and about 5500 film I'm not going to review a film I've asked for. I'm not going to say what the film is other than to say it's a documentary biography.

The reason behind my not reviewing the film is that I don't know how to do it without pissing someone off. The film is an okay portrait of some one coming to terms with who they are and going out on their own. I'm not really sure why the film got made because it covers similar ground to 57 other recent films- except that there are a couple of twists that can used to sell the film but have no bearing on the central tale.  Explaining that is going to get me into a fight with someone who connects with the story on those levels so I'm stepping away.

Don't get me wrong I like the film, but I've also liked the other 57 versions I've seen in the last 2 years.
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And Randi Links

The Radio City movie premieres
Most extreme motorcycles
How to mess with people's minds
Best Foreign film possibilities