Catching Hell (2011)

Alex Gibney’s Catching Hell is a great film. I missed it when it premièred at the Tribeca Film Festival last year and only managed to catch it on Oscar night 2012 when it ran counter to the awards ceremony on ESPN.

How good is it?

It not only washed away any thought of watching the awards ceremony, but caused my dad to stop noodling with his computer to sit down and watch it with me.

The film concerns the story of Steve Bartman, who was unlucky enough to deflect a foul ball in game 6 of a league championship series that might have landed in the glove of Moises Alou and ended the inning. What happened after that was a complete collapse of the Chicago Cubs that lead to their losing a chance for the World Series. While its clear that Chicago lost thanks to their own mistakes, Cubs fans put all the blame on Bartman who was physically threatened and received death threats.

This is a great film that takes one small event and then spirals it out into something more. This is the story of a city that went crazy and blamed a (nerdy looking)fan for the complete collapse of their favorite team. It's a frightening look at the mob mentality and the general need to scapegoat. It's also a look at how we all believe in some sort of supernatural explanation for the order of the universe (it's completely irrational that one non-player can affect what happens on the field.)

I would hate to think what would have happened if Bateman had been caught by the rabid mob.

My heart bleeds for Bartman, a nice seeming fellow who did what many other fans wanted to do, but who's attire and post failed catch demeanor made him stand out of the crowd. His life was wrecked simply because too many people can't see that baseball is only a game.

A must see.

Like Water (2011)

Like Water is probably the best sports film that played this year's Tribeca film fest. I think I saw all of them except one and this one was head and shoulders above the rest.

The story of Mixed Martital Arts (MMA) champion Anderson Silva over a period of several months as he prepares to defend his title for a record time.

The film has a couple of virtues that make it hard to dislike.

First the film is about a really nice guy. Silva comes off as a great person who doesn’t pretend to be anything other that what he is, a soft spoken gentleman who’ll kick your ass. He wants to provide for the family he loves and he wants to do it In such away that keeps him, them and his opponents out of harms way. I love that Silva is that rarest of things these days, a philosopher warrior. If you listen to what he’s saying and what his trainers are saying you realize that he believes in what he says and what he does and that all of the philosophy in his talk is more than talk but a way of life. I was blown away by one of his final statements about life being not about winning or losing but about how long you can keep moving forward. The reason being was that it was an attitude echoed by the award winning and truly great film Gallants, which ends with a similar statement about life.

Secondly the film tells its story with a skill and economy that most other documentaries I saw this year don’t use. It tells its story with a laser like precision and then it gets off. The film runs a scant 75 minutes but it fills each one with some great sights and sounds and enough information that even some one like me who doesn’t like MMA now wants to watch it.

Lastly the film the filmmakers lucked into one hell of a story. The battle of Silva and his opponent outside of the ring is mere appetizer to what happens in the octagon. I don’t want to tell you what happens but even Hollywood couldn’t make anything this dramatic or exciting.

I loved this film. It made me feel good. It has the rush that most Hollywood blockbusters and even small scale feel good films can only hope to achieve. Even if you don’t like MMA you need to see this film if for no other reason its just a great ride. (besides its infinitely better than the more highly touted Klitchko film.)

The Hideaways (2011)

The Furlong men all have miraculous powers of one sort or another. James' grandfather goes blind for 37 minutes if he even thinks about sex. His dad fries electronic equipment when frightened. James' power is even more terrible, he sucks the life out of anything around him for a wide distance if he is sick and injured. After causing a series of terrible tragedies he runs away and lives alone in the woods for fear of the destruction he might cause. He stays hidden for ten years until Mae, a young girl with terminal cancer wanders into his life after running away from the hospital where she is being treated. You’ll have to see the film to find out what happens.

A dark fantasy/fairy tale on the order of the Grimm Brothers or some of the best known works of Neil Gaiman and similar writers, this is a film that is one of the finds of the Tribeca Film Festival. It’s a wonderful film that is ballsy enough to dwell in the darkness and to not talk down to it’s audience. It’s film for those who like the darkness in say the Twilight saga but found those, and similar stories kind of soapy and too fantastical. It’s the weird cousin, in a way, of the Princess Bride but set here and now.

It has a couple of of great characters, especially Rachel Hurd-Wood as Mae. She’s the narrator and the heart and soul of the film. She’s the one that the girls will relate to and the guys are going to love. If the film works it’s due in large part to her stellar performance.

I should say that I wasn’t really planning on seeing this. It was the sort of thing I was kind of interested in, but wasn’t sure but I had to fill some time so I put it into my que only to find that it knocked my socks off. Trust me on this, this was the 6th film of 7 on the day I saw it, the 20th film in four days, the 39th film in all of the Tribeca related screenings to that point, and my tolerance for bullshit and crap was really low. I was really impressed by this good little film.

Okay, full disclosure, as much as I was impressed by this film I wasn’t the absolutely right audience for the film. There are things in it that aren’t my cup of tea. That said as I watched this film I was constantly going “Eden needs to see this” or “Randi needs to see this” or “Lee needs to see this”. All through out the film I kept picking out people I really needed to show this film to because I know so many people who would absolutely LOVE this film.

Walking out of the screening I stopped by and met the producer Jean Luc Ormieres who was sitting on a couch. I told him how much I liked the film and how I wanted to go off and tell people about the film. I also told him I was a member of the press and that I was planning on writing up this film. This is that review. I hope that this does this small treasure justice. I don’t want to over sell the film or tell you too much I just want you to get enough umph to get out of your chair and go see this film.It may not be your best of the year, but I do think you’ll like it.

Actually what I’d like to see happen is for this film to find a distributor who is going to nurture it into finding it’s audience. This is the sort of film that isn’t going to be a huge hit on day one, but it is going to be one that will get it’s audience via word of mouth and by friends taking friends to it or by friends pressing copies of it into friends hands. This is a film that’s going to be a hit once people start to see it and discover it.

Go discover it.

Tribeca Capsule Reviews

The festival is over, and many films are heading toward oblivion, while others are heading for a theater near you. As I close out this first week of recommended films from the festival I want to take the time out to mention again a few films that I don’t have the words to write up properly but which you really need to keep an eye out to see.

GNARR
Documentary on the run of John Gnarr for mayor of Reykjavik, looks to be one of the funniest more heart warming films of the year. Here’s a film that says if you beat back the gloom and status quo with hope you can achieve great things. It’s a magical movie, who’s only flaw is that it doesn’t explain who people are or what the time frame of things are. If they could make it more accessible for people out side of Iceland you’d have a film that could and would go on the best of the year list. On the other hand that’s nit picking since it’s just so god damn funny you probably won’t care. See this.

BANG BANG CLUB
This is the story of four photojournalists who band together for safety and end up taking some of the most memorable pictures coming out of South Africa during the final days of Apartheid. The film follows the quartet from 1990 to 1994 when the first truly universal elections took place in the country. It’s the story of the unseen war where the people In power chose to create divisions in the black population so that they could hold on a little longer.

I probably should do a longer full review of this film, but to be perfectly honest as much as I can recommend the film, I found that the day after seeing the film, much of it had begun to fade from memory. What you need to know is that the cast is great. Even the big name Ryan Phillipe disappears into his role to the point you forget who he is. The set pieces where the guys go off to take pictures will amaze you and make you want to join them.(It’s some of the best stuff I’ve seen all year). It’s counterpointed by their home and office life which isn’t quite as amazing (and often down right cliché- you can see the romance between two characters from frame one). Weaknesses aside the film is definitely worth seeing. As this post appears the film is available on Tribeca pay per view and worth the couple of bucks to get.

JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI
This is the story of a man, his restaurant(Jiro’s restruant is an expensive one with a meal starting at around 300 bucks for a meal which can last as little as 15 minutes. Of course if you want to go you’re going to have to book a month or more in advance), his sons and his sushi.

It’s a loving portrait of a man who lives for his work and what it takes to be the best. Beautifully shot, with a heavy use of Philip Glass music this is a great little film that makes you want to go out and have some sushi (several people at the end of the screening were going to head across the street to get sushi.) This is a neat portrait of wiley old man who strives to always improve and be the best at making sushi and has been awarded with accolades from around the world as a result. A tough task master Jiro puts his apprentices and sons through rigorous training, and he freely admits that if it wasn’t for their preparation of the staff he wouldn’t look so good at preparing the food for the guests.(There is revelation late in the film about the Michelin award- which reveals how good his training is).

Sadly Jiro and his eldest son can kind of see the end of the road for them and their restaurant. As they note the amount of fish is rapidly declining due to over fishing thanks to the explosion of sushi across the world.Sushi was once an expensive delicacy but now is available everywhere.(This film is an interesting counter point to the Oscar winning film The Cove about the men who fish for the fish that become sushi.) I liked this film a great deal. (Coming soon to a theater near you-I believe Magnolia has picked this up)

Romantics Anonymous (2010) Respost

(As some of you may know Blogger had some problems earlier this week and it removed several posts from the blog. Most everything that disappeared has returned, this post has not. I'm hopeful that the original post will appear. In case it should not I'm reposting the text of the post)

One of the jewels of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival is one of the most charming romantic comedies you’re likely to see.

The story of the film has Angelique, a young woman with social problems, she’s not good with people and gets flustered easily, looking to get a new job at a chocolate manufacturer. She thinks it’s to make chocolate, instead it’s to be a sales rep. She is interviewed by the owner of the company,Jean-Rene, who also has similar emotional problems. He hires her, more because a ringing phone flusters him, rather than anything else. What we can guess and they don’t know is that they are the perfect mismatched pair and soon will be crashing into each other, despite their best efforts not to.

The director, Jean Pierre Ameris, said in the press notes that he wanted to make a film that was going make people who are afraid to try things, less frightened, and honestly he succeeded in spades. I’m a bit of a social misfit myself (one can’t write up as many films as I have if one has a full firing active social life) and when the film was over I wanted to go out and try something daring, I didn’t, but I wanted to.

This is a film that makes you feel good. You will laugh and smile, feel warm and fuzzy and probably even shed a tear. It’s a glorious 80 minutes with two wonderful people.

If the film works its because of Isabelle Carre and Benoit Poelvoorde as the pair of love birds. They sell everything and make you fall in love with them to the point that you over look any flaws elsewhere in the film (Well drawn plot? More like a sketch). Frankly these two are so good that when the film is over you just want to dive back in and spend more time with them.(But as much as I’d love to see more of the characters I never want to see a sequel. I don’t need to see what happens next. Let me hang out with them and eat some chocolate, but don’t give me another film, it just won’t work)

One of the best films I’ve seen at Tribeca, either this year or last.

A must see.

This is currently out on French DVD, but wait for this to hit a theater near you since it's a great date film

Romantics Anonymous (2010)

One of the jewels of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival is one of the most charming romantic comedies you’re likely to see.

The story of the film has Angelique, a young woman with social problems, she’s not good with people and gets flustered easily, looking to get a new job at a chocolate manufacturer. She thinks it’s to make chocolate, instead it’s to be a sales rep. She is interviewed by the owner of the company,Jean-Rene, who also has similar emotional problems. He hires her, more because a ringing phone flusters him, rather than anything else. What we can guess and they don’t know is that they are the perfect mismatched pair and soon will be crashing into each other, despite their best efforts not to.

The director, Jean Pierre Ameris, said in the press notes that he wanted to make a film that was going make people who are afraid to try things, less frightened, and honestly he succeeded in spades. I’m a bit of a social misfit myself (one can’t write up as many films as I have if one has a full firing active social life) and when the film was over I wanted to go out and try something daring, I didn’t, but I wanted to.

This is a film that makes you feel good. You will laugh and smile, feel warm and fuzzy and probably even shed a tear. It’s a glorious 80 minutes with two wonderful people.

If the film works its because of Isabelle Carre and Benoit Poelvoorde as the pair of love birds. They sell everything and make you fall in love with them to the point that you over look any flaws elsewhere in the film (Well drawn plot? More like a sketch). Frankly these two are so good that when the film is over you just want to dive back in and spend more time with them.(But as much as I’d love to see more of the characters I never want to see a sequel. I don’t need to see what happens next. Let me hang out with them and eat some chocolate, but don’t give me another film, it just won’t work)

One of the best films I’ve seen at Tribeca, either this year or last.

A must see.

This is currently out on French DVD, but wait for this to hit a theater near you since it's a great date film.

The Assault (2010)

French thriller recounting the true story of the hijack of an Air France plane on Christmas Eve 1994.

In washed out tones and slow motion we watch as a special forces unit performs a raid on a house. It’s a simple but stunning piece of filmmaking that makes you sit up in your sit and go hello. From the moment it starts we as an audience are hooked and forced to follow as we watch the story of the 1994 Christmas hijacking in Algiers.

The Assault is a stunning piece of film making. It’s a just the facts story of what happens as four hijackers take a plane in Algiers hoping to turn it into a flying bomb and crash it into the Eiffel Tower. We watch as the hijackers deal with the unfolding situation, the French government try to unravel the situation and the strike force plans how to handle the situation. It’s a just the events as they unfold on a human level. There is no real politics (we watch as a woman from the interior ministry tries to get information but we don’t see the political wrangling of the ministers above her), we watch the hijackers as they prepare to go on their mission and only get hints of their lives outside. We learn the most about the strike force, and their leader and his family. Mostly we just watch as things play out culminating in one hell of a shoot out.

The finale of the film is the storming of the plane and I would be hard pressed to say that its not one of the more amazing things I’ve seen this year in film. (And considering the treats I’ve had just at Tribeca, never mind elsewhere that’s saying a great deal). It’s one of the best action set pieces of the last couple of years. It will rock your world. The more amazing thing is that it’s true. It proves very clearly that we don’t need over done, overly clever big budget shoot outs when the real world stuff is so much more involving. I loved this piece.

Oddly as a great as the opening and closings of the film are the middle section where we watch events move to their violent conclusion, is just good. It’s not bad, not even remotely but it’s just solidly good. The problem is that as good as material is it’s so documentary in it’s approach that we never fully really care about most of the characters. (It's so documentary it's hard to say anything about the film because it just is, like news footage) Yes, we like our Special Forces hero and his family, but everyone else isn’t given much to do. We only get fleeting glimpses of the huge number of characters so we never fully emotionally connect. It keeps the film from reaching the heights of the final sequence.

Do understand I’m nit picking. I’m being a weenie and asking a great film to be more so, to be perfect, I should probably be smacked around for it, but when you see the film (and you should see this film, no really you should) you’ll understand.

An amazing must see film.

Trollhunter (2010)

Pseudo-documentary about what happens when film crew from a local college investigates a rash of bear poaching. They think they have stumbled upon the culprit. What they have found instead is the only man in the government who's job it is to hunt and kill trolls.

Yes, there are really trolls, big huge ugly things that Norwegian government doesn't want you to know about.(And there is a good chance that by the end of the film you'll really believe there are)

The film consists of footage that was received in the mail after the filmmakers went missing. It documents the crews search for the poacher, the discovery of the trollhunter and what happens when they follow him around.

This film is a great deal of fun. It's a film that puts it's premise together that about half way into the film I kept thinking to myself, but of course there are trolls.

I'm at a loss about what to say about the film. I could tell you it's improvised. I could tell you that the trollhunter and his boss are played perfectly by two of Norway's top comediennes. I could tell you all these technical things, but I'm not.

What I'm going to say is that if you love fantasy, if you want to believe in unreal things see this film.

While some of the scenes with out the trolls are a mixed (some go on too long, some are too short), the four set pieces with the trolls are amazing. Two, the bridge sequence and the final one are two of the most amazing things I've ever seen, the bridge because it's just so damn perfect a sequence; the final one because it is one of the most lyrically beautiful sequences I've ever seen. I love this final sequence more than you can know. The shots of the troll coming over the rise, the shots of our tiny hero taking on this monster all alone are so incredible and so amazing, they point out why he is the hero that the filmmakers call him. There is one shot I want to get a print of and hang it on my wall.

I know I've been lax in details. Sorry. I don't want to spoil anything. The best way to see this movie is just see it, not knowing what is going to happen next. You need to find the wonder of the trolls on your own. You need to see things for yourself.

Trust me this is way cool.

The film hit pay per view on the 6th of May. It hits theaters on June 10th. Either way see it, you will believe in trolls.

Re-thinking Bleeding House (2011)- I've partly changed my mind

Back on April 27th I ran a short review of Bleeding House and I called it a minor movie worth viewing only on a slow night. However over time my opinion changed in regard to the film at least in some respects, or rather in one respect: I think you should see the film the film for Patrick Breen's performance as Nick.

For those who don't remember the earlier review I'll give you a brief explanation of the plot. Just outside of Cleveland live the Smiths. They are a shut away family cut off from society. The reason for their living off to themselves lies in a tragedy years before where Mrs Smith burned down the house of the Bells, killing the whole family. She was spared prison thanks to the legal maneuvering of Mr Smith. As a result they are not wanted parts of the community. It's also left a deep scar on Gloria their daughter who collects insects which she tacks to the wall. Quentin, the son is looking to get out and is planning on running away with his girlfriend at the first opportunity. Into their lives comes Nick. he's a kind southern gentleman who is looking for aid because his car broke down. He's called for help but can't get any until the morning. reluctantly the Smiths let him in. they are hoping word of their good deed will help open doors to their community. Sadly even though Nick seems to be a nice guy and wins the affection of everyone, he does in fact do what he jokes about doing, "I carve people up". He says it's because he's a surgeon. Actually it's because he's a religious psycho who takes out people he perceives to be morally corrupt. He feels that by killing them he is freeing their souls.

I'm going to reveal a spoiler here so if you don't want to know skip to the next paragraph. The crux of the final third of the film comes with the revelation, one you pretty much know from minute one, that the death of the Bells had nothing to do with the mother, but was in fact the work of Gloria, who is a psychotic as they come, complete with a love of killing animals. The battle in the final third is the question of whether Gloria will listen to Nick and join him on his rampage or if she will battle him to the end. It's no where near as clever as it sounds so everything flounders.

As I said before the film isn't all that special. It's extremely well made and well acted but the film has enough plot for maybe just more than an a single episode of a show like Tales From The Darkside or Monsters. The film is also filled with logic gaps and plot holes (You can't store paper in the woods under leaves and have it look fresh, people's ages are wildly wrong for the time frame inferred) that collapse the whole house of cards much to easily. It's a well meaning film that isn't bad, but really isn't worth the time except in passing...

...or would be if it wasn't for Patrick Breen as Nick. Breen is the whole movie. If the film were any better as a whole this would be the role to shoot him to the top of the heap. It's a quiet mannered performance that is just the right amount of creepy...and you can't help but like him and trust him even as he's draining the blood from your veins. Breen's performance is horror classic. It's one of those performances you can't forget.

Think about it.

I saw this film over a month a go at a screening, I wrote up a dismissive review to appear when the film premiered and yet here I am, writing it up in a full review as the first film in a series of highlighting the best of Tribeca just over a week after my negative review.

Why?

Because despite a month of movies, despite everything else, when I finally sat down to really think about the films I wanted to write about I couldn't get Nick out of my head. It's a brilliant performance. It's wonderfully written. It's clear that writer director Philip Gelatt loved his character and he gave him some of the best lines a villain could wish for. (I do have to say that Gelatt's dialog is wonderful across the board, it's just his plotting and pacing that don't really work).

If you are a horror fan you need to see this performance. It's a new gold standard for screen villainy.

The film currently on VOD on cable and satellite as part of the pay per view Tribeca package. It's due for a limited theatrical lease starting Friday. Personally I'd go for the VOD and get a bunch of friends.

Tribeca- The wrap up post

Its over and done.

For me Tribeca was not an 11 day festival but essential the month of April and beyond.

It’s time to look back and wax poetically, and probably a bit jaggedly, at the festival that was.

Wow.

That’s not meant to be a declaration of anything other than simply statement that the enormity of what I just went through.

It was big. It was huge. It was actually a great deal of tiring fun.

The statement that I had fun will probably come as a surprise to anyone who was reading this blog last year where I bitched and moaned and complained. I still have complaints but the major ones from last year are gone.

From the end of March to the start of May I saw 54 feature films and 23 short films. I attended numerous press screenings and a hand full of paid regular screenings. I met a good number of people, talked about way too many films and learned a great deal about myself, the festival and the world.

The learning about the world is easy enough to explain, look at all the documentaries I saw and you’ll see how much there is to know about truth, justice and hope.

About myself I learned that my limit is five screenings in one day. I also learned that being a movie reviewer is really hard work. Yea, you get to see lots of movies but then you have to write them up quickly and clearly before you see the next one. It’s incredibly hard and more tiring then simply running to and from the movies.

About the Festival…

Yea… there is a lot to say about the festival.

First off I have to say that Tribeca works simply because the people working on it make it a pleasure to go. I had such a huge joy talking to everyone. No one bitched and moaned at stupid questions. Everyone was nice and helpful. The ONLY reason I considered coming back this year was the fact that the volunteers were such a pleasure last year. They are a large reason I hope to go back next year.

Looking back and comparing this year to last year I have to say the festival is still too big. There is simply too many movies, and too many events and to much everything. If I didn’t attend the press screenings I could never attend as many films as I did. Its simply not physically possible. As it is I had to pass on several interviews because to talk to a filmmaker or attend a party or go to a talk meant that I would lose multiple films. Since this is a primarily a film website I made the decision that they came first.

I know why the festival is big; the answer seems to be two fold. First if its big then people will keep striving to do more. How many movies can we see? How much can we take in of this beast called Tribeca.

The other reason is the film is a launching pad and marketing tool. By showing a lot of films all these filmmakers can say they were at Tribeca as if it’s a badge of honor. They can use it to try to get a release to a wider audience.

The trouble is by being so f-ing huge the number of good films, or at least exciting or meaning full films is small. I saw 54 features and while I liked most, very few made much of an impression. I saw them, I made notes, I wrote them up and then they were gone. Most were washed from my brain.

Personally those making the choices need to cut down the number of films they are screening. Yea it’s nice to help the inde movement but at the same time I want to feel that what I’m seeing is special going in instead of feeling that well, maybe I’ll remember this in two days.

This year I got the sense that maybe they got it right. Many of the complaints that I and others had about going in past years seemed to be gone.(I’m not talking about the press screenings, rather the public screenings). This year from my small world seemed to be better. We didn't seem to treated as cattle, and the audience seemed to come first. Things didn't seem delayed by endless red carpet stuff.

I know that this year over last year there were more winning films, with several announcing they were special from the opening frames instead of being great in retrospect.(My list of the most and least favorites are at the bottom)

Ultimately I had a blast.

This year I went to Tribeca and I saw some films, made some friends and possibly got a paying gig or two.

I hope that I’m allowed to go back next year since I’m just a big kid and seeing this many movies makes me go all fanboy.

Over all a grand time was had at this years Tribeca Film Festival.

For those who are interested the Heineken Audience Award was Give Up Tomorrow. There are other Jury awards but ultimately what matters is what the people who pay says. A full list of their choices can be found here (you’ll notice I also loved some of the same films)

My favorite films of the festival were as follows:

Semper Fi-a Moving documentary about keeping our soldiers safe from our government
Give Up Tomorrow- Exposing a gross miscarriage of justice
Grave Encounters- A great horror film that transcends its flaw.
The Assault- A Procedural about an anti terrorist raid
Turn me On God Dammit- wonderfully frank coming of age tale
Romantics Anonymous-What romantic comedies should be
Like Water- A great, exciting sport documentary
The Guard- A modern western in the West of Ireland with wickedly funny dialog
Gnarr- Funny film about making politics work
Troll Hunter- Its all about the trolls.

My least favorite films were:

Grey Matter- Well made but poorly written allegory about genocide looks to have been cobbled together to get a release. Pretentious doesn't begin to describe it.
Bombay Beach- Unfocused film on people by the Salton Sea begins nowhere and goes nowhere,stopping instead of ending.
White White World- This film only works if you read all the promotional material and use it to make fill in the blanks. As a stand alone film it's two hours of your life that feels like the loss of ten.
Talihina Sky- a good documentary about the Kings of Leon ruined by piss poor editing. Moments work and it starts to come together at the very end but by that time its too late and the end credits roll.
The Kite- Messy unfocused ADD filmed story of a man going home for a kite festival and what happens when he gets there. I think since after an hour of nothing really happening I left.

(There were three others that were on an earlier draft of this list but I've come to realize they aren't as bad as these films.)

(I should add that the various Jury’s awarded several of these films awards which kind of makes me wonder if we saw the same films)

And with that Unseen Films ends its real time coverage of Tribeca for 2011. I do want to say that next week we’ll be starting 7 days of fuller reviews of some of the best films, so keep reading.

Braid (2011)

Before I get to the review I want to tell you a story, and its a good one with a great pay off, so bare with this long winded opening.

Back on April 27th I posted my daily report on the films from Tribeca and it included by review of several of the films that appeared in the collection Take as Directed.I had walked out of the collection before the end because there was only one film I had actually liked and I wanted to cut my losses.

Not long after the post went up I got an email from Chun-Yi Hsieh who directed one of the films I missed asking me to please try and see his short film Braid. He said that he wanted to hear what I had to say about it. I said I would if we could come up with a way to see it without having to go through the shorts that preceded. He then let me know that the film was in the press library and that I could see it there. Since I had the on-line access I checked to see if it was there as well and found it was, except that it was one of two shorts I tried that didn't work.

After a couple of days where the film wasn't working, I emailed Mr Hsieh to say I still wasn't able to see the film and I asked was there any other way I could see the film? He was kind enough to get me access to the film via other means.

Let me begin by saying that I think Chun-Yi Hsieh will like what I have to say, since his insistance I see Braid has led me to a wonderful little film and hopefully allowed me to get in on the ground floor on the career of a very talented filmmaker.

This film is a small little gem of cinema that, hopefully, heralds the entry of a masterful new filmmaker into the world filmmaking community. Braid knocked my socks off and was one of the finds of the Tribeca Film Festival.Its a film to make you WOW.

I don't say this lightly, or because the director contacted me, since if you've been reading all of my Tribeca coverage, you know that after 54 features and 23 other shorts I saw a great many things I didn't like andsaid so. If I didn't truly like it I wouldn't have given it it's own review, I would have lumped it in Sunday's long piece on shorts.

The plot is simple: An unemployed father is grieving the death of his wife. Unsure of what to do he comes up with a plan that will affect his life and that of his daughter. Unfortunately, or fortunately, dad doesn't figure the cutest kitten you'll ever want to see, into his plan. How it plays out is the film.

This is a great looking and fantastically acted film that reminds me of some of the best recent dramas coming out of China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Actually that's selling the film short since the film simply looks like some of the best films coming out anywhere at any length.

The joy of the film is that even though the film is only 15 minutes long it never feels rushed. The film unfolds at it's own pace. This is important since there were several films I saw at Tribeca that looked good or had a good story, but had no sense of pacing. The film Bunny for example, was a great looking little film with a good story but moved along at such a clip that the film felt like it was on speed. With Braid the story plays out in perfect order. If you want more proof consider I would have sat and watched this film for as long as it took with out moving, where as several of the other shorts, many shorter than this had me getting up in the middle to get a drink or jumping to the end.

I love how Hsieh chooses how to tell his story. There are all these little details that say volumes about what is going on (watch how we get filled in on the relationship between the father and deceased mother in a few carefully chosen photos). What you think is a random shot or action actually has meaning later on. I love to watch a director at work who trusts his audience enough not to explain everything and to let us do some work and piece things togeher.

I'm not going to really say much more. You have to understand that the pain of writing about is short films is that they are hard to do so with out taking away all of the suspense. While they can have a great complexity, revealing too many details can spoil them. I'd like to explain a few more things that happen in Braid in detail but the film is too short, I don't want to take away all of the surprises and "Ah Ha!" moments.

It's a beautifully constructed film that really rocks.

I want to state again that I believe that Braid, assuming my instincts are correct, is going to be the early work of a director who is going to be dazzling us for years to come. I know it's hard to tell from one short film but Chun-Yi Hsieh seems to be the real deal. I wasn't certain until I took a look at another short film that he did called Toy Man . It's a four minute black and white film that kicks you in the gut and shows that he is a man who is only improving.

If you can keep an eye out for Braid, it's a really good film that promises us great things in the future...and entertains and moves us in the present.

two from Tribeca: Beyond the Black Rainbow & Detachment

On Friday and Saturday, I wrapped up my short, but memorable, time at the Tribeca Film Festival with two very different films: a late night screening of Cinemania entry Beyond the Black Rainbow, and a special screening of Tony Kaye’s latest film Detachment. The festival had world premiered the film a few days earlier. Here is a brief account of both.

Beyond the Black Rainbow
This was an odd blending of cerebral science fiction and experimentalism – leaning more towards the latter. I absolutely loved the way the movie looked and sounded. Before you take that as an absolute endorsement, know that the aesthetic has a very specific reference point: science fiction of the late 70s and early 80s. For me, it specifically brings to mind some of my favorite early films by Canadian director David Cronenberg. The sense of coldness and melancholy, which has long made me a fan of his work, was captured perfectly by new director Panos Cosmatos. The music, credited to Sinoia Caves, not only adds to the movie’s retro feel, but stands on its own. It will appeal to fans of 70s synthesizer and Krautrock pioneers, such as Klaus Schulze and Kraftwerk, and more recently, creators of melancholy electronic soundscapes like Boards of Canada.
While these elements make for some out of this world moments, the story, merely hinted at, does not hold up under the abstractions. Had there been no narrative to follow, I might’ve been able to appreciate the barrage of psychedelic images as an accompaniment to the mesmerizing music. Instead there is initial promise of a story: Talk of a cultish organization developing an experimental mood altering drug. Plus, a few moments of insight into the mind of the unsettling Dr. Nyle, played by Michael Rogers channeling a cross between David Carradine and a Videodrome (re: Cronenberg) era James Woods. But this story is not satisfactorily delivered. I could imagine the movie being more enjoyable after repeat viewings. Perhaps, most appropriately, on VHS?

Detachment
This was a huge surprise for me. Emotionally overwhelming and innovatively conceived, Detachment is the latest feature film from esoteric director Tony Kaye, who made American History X and the documentary Lake of Fire. He shows no signs, here, of easing up on his interest in social issues. In fact, this moving, at times difficult to take in, look at the state of the education system in America provides a more harrowing look at the subject than any other film I can think of. Despite essentially being a fictional narrative, it is laden with confrontational truths that bear the mark of thorough research.
My full attention is focused on the status of this film, which is maddeningly up in the air. No definite, or even approximate, release date is available as of this writing. I can imagine its fate taking shape in different ways. It might be heralded as an important dissection of an American institution that has long been in decline and just might be on the brink of disaster. On the other hand, it might be marginalized and criminally underexposed, as is often the fate with works of art that threaten to make people uncomfortable.
Kaye was at the screening, and introduced the film enigmatically with a brief song and some words of caution about the color red. After the film, he discussed some of the very real life inspirations behind the project, at some point comparing teachers favorably to Harry Potter. Look out for this one.
Below are some clips of his introduction and the Q & A following the film.

Tribeca On Line: The Shorts

This is a few brief words on the shorts I saw on line. I didn't watch everything, but what I felt in the mood for and what I could see before the access disappeared(Though I did manage to see Braid which seemed not to be functioning, thanks to a link provided by Chun-Yi Hsieh the director. That film is just too damn good to be relegated to a slot here and will have it's own review going up in a day or so.)

Beaufort Diaries
Animated tale of a polar bear in the big city. Nicely done.

Bye Bye Super 8
Tribute to the end of Super 8 Kodachrome film via images captured over the years. I was moved since it kicked up feelings in the long time filmmaker in me.

Current (Reprise)
Haunting documentary of the paper and streamers left in the wake of NYC's first ticker tape parade after 911. I really wish I had seen this on the big screen.

Dungeon Master
Hip guys decide to play Dungeons and Dragons only they need a Dungeon Master and end up getting more than they bargained for. Amusing tale is lessened by a style that made the film look and feel like an extended commercial for something.

Filmpiece for Bartlett
Abstract images is the least of any of the similar films from this years crop.

Garden Roll Bounce Parking Lot
Documentary of the garden that was paved over for a parking spot. Okay.

Green Wave
Visually arresting film of an ocean wave turned on its head. I loved the images but hated the strobing effects.

Guru
Amazing self help guru has deep depression. And I should care? Sorry, that's snide but the film is just too long and too conventional for me to care for 25 minutes.

Harmonium Mountain
Philip Glass music accompanies the manipulation of an image of Mount Soporis in Colorado. That will will either excite you or scare you. I thought it was neat and regret not seeing this on a big screen.

A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation
Animated tale set to a poem read by Ian McKellan about a boy dealing with loss. Its a film that has moments that wonderfully charts their own territory in the Tim Burton Edward Gorey territory. Other moments are more conventional and less exciting which lessens the over all effect. Worth a look for the moments when it soars.

Not Over Easy
Goofy in the wrong sort of way about a woman seeing her wonky relationship played out by eggs. Not all that clever or amusing.

One Day I Forgot and Used My Hands
Trippy collection of images from a camera with no lens. Neat.

Preferably Blue
Yet another pissed off Easter Bunny tale. The story doesn't match the wonderful animation.

Sleep
Gorgeous black and white animated film about people sleeping...its like watching someones dream. Wow.

Strips
Strips of a burlesque strip tease films rearranged for effect. I got up and got a glass of water in the middle of this...not a good sign.

Year Zero
Overlong animated tale of a zombie take over of the world. It hits too many cliches for it to be worth seeing if you've seen a lot of similar movies.

Tribeca on Line: 11 features in three days

When things settled down and I stopped moving I decided to try out the at home portion of the Tribeca Film Festival. This meant looking at the pay per view choices, which I ignored for now since the two I hadn't seen Last Night and NEDS would be up for several more months (yes months). I then logged into the on line press library and found a whole lot of goodies. Most of the shorts are there as well as about 20 feature films, of which I hadn't seen 11. With nothing to do for three days I decided to dive right in and see what I could before it all went away.

I'm going to begin with a look at the feature films. (A review of the short films will follow shortly.)

She Monkeys
Winner of the Jury Award for Narrative Feature left me scratching my head. There is nothing really wrong with it, rather it's simply not all that remarkable a film. The story concerns a young woman who is training for an acrobatic equestrian team, her relationship with one of the other girls and her sister. Its a nice contemplative film, but there isn't anything all that special about the film. (The sexually charged nature of the film made me wonder why the jury voted for it since that is the only amped up thing in it)

When The Drum is Beating
Audience favorite about the Haitian jazz band Septentrional and the history of Haiti. The band has been around for six decades and has survived and thrived when so much else in the country hasn't. I loved the music which kept me bouncing, but the history seemed academic and the talking heads intrusive. If you're curious give the film a try, though odds are you'll be like me checking out Amazon for some of the groups albums in lieu of ever seeing this film again.

Neon Flesh
I was supposed to see this at a press screening but I over slept. What a loss. This film is a winner. Its the story of a young man who lives on the street and survives by hustling and committing small time crimes. When his mom is due to be released from prison he sets up a brothel so she won't have to work the streets. It gets complicated from there. Think Tarantino melded with Guy Ritchie but with a unique spin on the whole deal. The best praise I can pay it is I can't wait to see it again with my Dad.

Cairo Exit
Earnest film about a young woman looking to get out from her life in Cairo and not repeat past mistakes. Her sister was pregnant and forced to get married. Her husband is gone and now she has a son she ignores. Her best friend needs to get married so she'll have support but needs to have an operation to look like she is a virgin. Her boyfriend wants to get out of his house and go to Europe where he is sure to make a fortune but isn't sure she should go with him. What happens is the film. I liked the film and admire that it even got made (The producer speaking at the talk after Grandma 1000 Times related the struggle to complete it)but at the same time I didn't love it, partly because the script is uneven, mostly because the performances are uneven. There were scenes where everyone seemed to be in a different version of the same film. Worth a look on cable.

Artificial Paradise
A beautiful young woman trying to beat drug addiction spends time at a resort community. Beautiful but a tad slow film won the Jury award for cinematography, which kind of says it all since the look of the film is more interesting than the story which just meanders along. Worth a look if you're in the right mood.

Donor Unknown
This is the other sure fire winner in this group of films. It concerns the search by a young woman to find the man who was the sperm donor for her mom and the related quest to find the brothers and sisters she never knew she had. The film is a masterpiece of construction by eliminating all of the typical suspense (we meet dad early on) the film is free to take us on a ride of it's own choosing. This is good time with good people and we're happy to go where ever they want to take us. This film was just wonderful. I can't wait to see it again.

Flowers of Evil
I started this movie about a French man romancing an Iranian girl two or three times and each time I got to this point just after the opening credits where our hero dances down the road I ended up turning the film off. I turned it off simply because I just couldn't connect to it and had the feeling that I was exactly the wrong audience. I tried. It's not bad, it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Love Always, Carolyn
The life and times of Carolyn Cassady, wife of Neal and lover of Jack Kerouac. She is intent on setting the record straight and crawling out of their shadow. I liked the film but I didn't love it. I think the problem was I really didn't care about the subject. Don't get me wrong I like the Beats, but the relationship between the Cassadys and Kerouac really never interested me, and this film couldn't make me care.

Love During Wartime
The story of the relationship between a Palestinian man and his wife an Israeli. Described in the press material as a Romeo and Juliet, they are really just a nice couple caught up in a political mess that forces them to move to Germany so they can be together. Solid but rather unremarkable. I would have liked this more had I not seen it in a mass of 54 films.

Loving Story
HBO film about an inter-racial couple that spawned the Supreme Court case that struck down the laws against miscegenation. Its a solid little film, as most HBO films are. Worth seeing when it finally runs on HBO.

My Last Round
This is the love story between a young man and a gruff boxer. This is a nice little film that is the sort of film that were it a conventional heterosexual would be enjoyable but completely forgettable. As it is it's still enjoyable, only slightly less forgettable.

And with that the feature portion of the Festival is done...coming soon the short subjects.

Semper Fi: Always Faithful (2011)

One of the most important films I saw at this year's Tribeca Film Festival, Semper Fi tells the heartbreaking story about the fight to get the Marine Corps and the American Government to come clean about the contamination of the drinking water at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. The tainted water (the result of leaks and improper dumping), has been responsible for the deaths and illnesses of thousands of people (soldiers, their families, and civilians alike), over a period of decades.

The film is primarily the story of Jerry Ensminger, who has lead the fight as a means of trying to find closure in the death of his daughter, who died of leukemia while he was stationed at the base. Years later Ensminger, by then retired from the Corps, discovered the existence of the contamination while watching the news on TV. Shocked at what the story revealed he began to look into the matter and found it was just the tip of the iceberg.

When the film started I thought I was simply going to see a typical "lone citizen leading a David (Ensminger) and Goliath (the Marine Corps)" story. I was certain that it was going to be filled with all your typical twists and turns, and that in the end I would be pissed off and I would be angry until I dove into the next film at the festival. Instead, I was blindsided, and left broken and sobbing in my seat. I had to struggle to find my way to the next screening.

I knew that I was in trouble when I realized that tears were running down my cheeks for seemingly no reason. I didn't expect it. Hell, there wasn't much of anything occurring on-screen, but there was something about the story and how it was being told that was literally wringing tears from my eyes. By the time we got to the sequence where a government commission invites the public to tell what happened to them, to relate the stories of their losses and illnesses, I was damn near sobbing uncontrollably. I dare you not to cry when one mother tells you about the birth and death of two of her children born with birth defects. The first was born with an exposed spine, and the second was born without a top to its skull. It's one of the saddest things you will hear.

I know you're asking yourself, why would I want you to see such a profoundly upsetting film? Because it's affecting the lives of millions of people, many who probably don't even know about it. You need to see this so that you may be moved to try and help someone you know who may also have been exposed to the danger...and not just in Camp Lejeune, but at other military bases as well (remember I said this story is only the tip of the iceberg). You need to see this so that you can help keep safe the very people who are supposed to keep us safe.

This is one of the best films of the year and it's one of the most important as well. Expect to have your feet knocked out from under you.

Please see this film.

(For more information on Jerry Ensminger, his fight, his group, and the situation at Camp Lejeune, please go to the website The Few, The Proud, The Forgotten.)

mondocurry Asian cinema corner report from The Tribeca Film Festival 3

Part 3 Let the Bullets Fly

Everything about this past Sunday’s screening of Let the Bullets Fly at the Tribeca Film Festival had a big time feel about it. Big time lines, big time press at the tent outside the theater taking photos and interviewing big time director/star Wen Jiang along with well known actress, wife, and costar Zhou Yun. The film itself, while not always as intense as I was led to believe it would be, also made a big time impact by the time it reached its conclusion.

The story takes place, not in ancient China but in a 1920s outlaw-centric desert-scape of questionable historical accuracy. With a title like ‘Let the Bullets Fly,’ one might expect a nonstop thrill ride of one shoot-out after the next. Comparisons to the action packed Korean film, “The Good, the Bad, and the Weird,” no doubt because of its similar setting, only further propagated this expectation. In fact, scenes of violence are spread out rather widely throughout the movie’s 2 plus hours, and most of the big battles are fought with wits and minds. The film is still an overall success in two ways: as an interesting allegorical tale of the sort of power struggle that takes place between established bureaucracy and organized masses, and as a powerful character study of Wen Jiang’s twist on the gangster with a heart of gold protagonist.

The film begins with the infamous outlaw Zhang disrupting the path of a train carrying a would-be mayor to his new post. Here at the film’s outset, the true nature of the movie’s title, which I shall not reveal, is cleverly shown. With some prodding from the original mayor-to-be’s companion on the train, Zhang decides to take the politician’s place and achieve wealth and power through this deceptively earned post. When Zhang descends on the town with his gang and new advisor in tow, he learns that things are run by an even bigger outlaw of sorts, the town’s conniving governor, portrayed to shifty, greedy perfection by Chow Yun Fat. In little time, a back and forth power struggle between these two forces ensues.

From this point in the film, there is no shame in feeling confused. The story does everything in its power to mix up, baffle, and mislead the audience. As the characters vie to take the upper hand physically, financially, and in terms of the public’s perception of them, there are numerous double and triple crosses where even the characters seem uncertain of whether they are telling the truth or not. Schemes are devised employing the use of doubles, making people’s identities another confusing element of the story. Members of Zhang’s gang wear simple masks that make it easy to distinguish group members from one another, but are also easily copied by the rival governor’s forces, serving to further complicate the question of who is who during the action.

In the end, the struggle stands for more than just a battle of wills. There is clearly something being said here about how control can shift from the powerful to the relatively powerless, although the director is unwilling to relate the film to any specific political or historical situations. The title of the film again comes into play in the finale, giving the sense that the entire tale was thoroughly thought out and well-constructed.

The character of Zhang, played by director Jiang in a very strong performance, is an interesting one. At first, he stands as a sort of old school outlaw come face to face with bureaucracy, and feeling frustration when unable to adapt to it. While it presents a less risky and more profitable form of criminal activity than the one he is used to, it goes against his more traditional code of honor. His story is not just about him trying to be the more honorable thief; along the way, his motivation and entire way of being comes into question. Although presented subtly, his changes along the way are significant.

The film was not a perfect hit for me. There are moments of dramatic intensity that hit hard at the beginning of the film, only to get lost along the way to a somewhat meandering middle section. Still, when all is said and done, I felt as though I had experienced a thought-provoking and skillfully executed film, with excellent work both behind and in front of the camera.

During the Q & A, Jiang represented his vision confidently and quietly. He would not commit to any specific meaning behind the film’s story, stating that it is open to the interpretation of the audience. He rejected the notion of symbolism, too, emphasizing that objects and images in the movie are what they are, and not more. He did confirm that he will soon begin work on Let the Bullets Fly 2.

Bleeding House,Matters of Taste, The Kite, The Guard and some shorts or Tribeca FIlm Festival April 27

Today was the end of the Tribeca Film festival press screenings for me. I've seen 43 features and five shorts. I can't get to any of the few remaining press screenings. I may be attending some of the regular screenings, but for me the only thing certain is I'll be looking in on the On Line and Pay Per View portion of the festival over the next few days. We will be having more actual festival coverage since Mondocurry is attending a film or two more.

And with out further adieu the remaining films----

First up they are having the world premiere of Bleeding House in a few hours. I've been restricted in writing up the film until tonight because of an embargo, however the film has been on pay per view on cable for a week so I'm posting my review now instead of later.

This is the story of named Smith family with a dark secret. The daughter stays at home and never go out, Mom and Dad are consumed with guilt but are trying to get on with their life. Their son is desperately trying to get away and is making plans to run off with his girlfriend. Into their life comes the sweet talking southern gentleman named Nick. Nick cuts people up for a living, though don’t worry he’s a surgeon. Actually do worry since Ned is a very bad man out to correct the sins of the past.

This is a great looking film that reminded me of some films from the late 1970’s and early 1980’s that tried to do more than be horror films. Sadly they, like Bleeding House, didn't amount to much. This film is little more than an episode of Tales from the Darkside stretched to 85 minutes. It’s bland, dull and uninvolving; worse it never builds to anything it just meanders to a close. If it wasn’t for Patrick Breen as Nick this film wouldn’t be worth seeing. Frankly Breen is the reason this film was picked up for the festival and it’s the reason it’s destined to get a very minor cult following.

Is the film worth seeing? On cable in a non-pay per view manner, on a slow night, it is. Okay now that I’m done with a review that has been hanging around for a month (I saw this back I March at pre-festival screening but was restricted in saying anything until now) onward and upward to more recent stuff….

A Matters of Taste is a great little documentary from HBO films on Paul Liebrandt, the youngest chef ever to get a three star rating from the New York Times. The film follows Liebrandt from 2002 until the opening of his Corton restaurant in Tribeca in 2008...and the battle to impress the critics afterward.

I had a blast with this. It's a wonderful portrait of a man and his food. I'm not a foodie, give me a burger and fries and I'm happy, but damn if his food doesn't look great. Of course some of it is things like "eels, violets and chocolate" or "Espuma of calf brains and foie gras", so I don't think I'll try it but it looks good.

I don't know what else to say other than this is going to be on HBO on June 13th and should be on your list of things to see since it's really good.

After that I went across the floor to see one of the shorts programs- Take as Directed. The plan was to see one in particular, but depending on how the films were I would make the decision to stay or go. If the films weren't great I would leave and go see the film The Kite. I made it through five of the eight films before I left.

Bunny is the great looking but otherwise unremarkable story about a young boy and his friend chasing another boy who stole his rabbit. It's not a bad film, but it's so short nothing builds and the ending kind of is a foregone conclusion.

The Philosopher was the film I wanted to see. It stars Jean Reno as a man who gives up everything in order to become a philosopher. Its a funny touching little film. Its the only film of the five I watched that seemed like a complete film. This is one to search out.

All in All is a romantic comedy of sorts. Its about two kids who are at bible camp and who have fallen in love. I have no idea if they are making fun of the kids or if the directors like them. Its a clunky film that had me wondering what this was doing at Tribeca. Its just not very good.

Cold Blood is a short little WTF about a mother that takes her son to the hospital for an unknown reason. When we got to the end of the end of the four minute film and the mother says "I didn't explain that very well" I wanted to shout at the screen "I'll say you didn't".

Last Resort is a short film that kind of almost works but ends too soon to be much of anything. I know the point of the end is to be slightly ambiguous, but it doesn't work. The plot of the film has a man rob a pregnant woman and he forces her to drive into the country. When the car gets into crash, he runs off leaving the woman to fend for herself... I'll leave the ending to the film in case you should see this, but let me just say it's the wrong kind of ambiguous which leads me to believe the director either didn't have an ending or had to leave it there because anything else would have stretched the film out further.

Unhappy with four of the five films I walked back across the floor to see the Indian film The Kite. I had heard the film was very good. What I found was a film that very messy and not worth seeing. I'm going to say right at the outset I left half way in. My life is too short for this sort of nonsense.

The plot, as much as I can figure out, has a man and his daughter going to his old home where his mom, his sister in law and nephew live. Its the time of the annual kite festival. There is some sort of familial strife but what it is wasn't really even hinted at after half the film so I know nothing. The side bits, like the kid who fails to deliver the kites, go nowhere

The film is shot in a rapid fire style. There are lots of cuts, colored images. There is lots of shaky hand held stuff. Tons of shots of the streets and people and kites but why? It's either filler or setting the scene but how much more scene needs to be set. There is little character development. What was this all heading to? I don't know, they never told us enough to know, or care.

I really dislike this film a great deal.

There was one last trip across the floor to see the wonderful film The Guard. This is coming out in the US on July 29 and is worth seeing when it hits theaters. In all honesty this is the sort of film that I wish wasn't the end of the festival since it's so good that I wanted to keep going to the next movie and the next movie...

The plot has backwater Irish police man Brendan Gleason running into the middle of a major drug case. Gleason's Gerry Doyle is a smarter than he seems sort of guy who is way ahead of most people around him. Into the mix comes Wendell Everett played by Don Cheadle. Everett is an FBI man looking to find the drug smugglers before they can spread their goods. How this plays out is not what you expect.

This is a great little film. Its a funny funny movie that is wickedly clever in it's dialog. On some level no one is ever that clever that often, on the other hand it's so damn funny you won't care. This film gt the biggest laughs of any of the 43 features I saw at Tribeca.

The press notes said that the film is actually a western and I kind of thought they were mad, until the final shoot out comes and you realize just how much of a western the film really is. This is one of the rare times where something with out horses and sage brush really is a western.(Its a better western than the weak Blackthorn with Sam Shepherd)

When it was over I was pissed off. It wasn't anything to do with the film, it was simply that for me the press screenings were done. I had no more trips into the city. I know there will me more films, but The Guard got me pumped up to keep going in a way that most of the movies I saw at the festival didn't.

And with that my daily reports are done. As I said I'm going to look at the at home component to the festival, and there is more reports coming from Mondocurry, but for now the daily stuff from me is done. (Dave's reports will be appearing tomorrow and until the festival ends Sunday)

I should also point out that Friday I'll have a longer review of Semper Fi and the week after next I'll have a week or so of longer reviews from the festival. I've already written them up in these daily overviews but some things need a second go round. (I also have a sights and sounds post in a pipeline for the next few days and look back at this years fest will come next week).

Please keep reading since we're not done yet.

mondocurry Asian cinema corner report from the Tribeca Film Festival 2

Part 2

Underwater Love (Onna No Kappa)


Underwater Love is a logic-defying, eccentric vision that was somehow, through the work of unknown forces in the galaxy, brought to fruition. It proves that once in a while, given the right combination of unlikely and seemingly disparate parts, a whole is produced that on some level works, even brings a little magic into the audience’s world. It presents a twist on the classic “boy likes girl but girl doesn’t realize she belongs with boy because girl is involved with other boy who is kind of a jerk story.” Except here, the boy is a deceased high school student reincarnated into a Japanese mythical Kappa creature, and getting the girl to realize she doesn’t belong with the jerk is only part of the problem; he also has to keep her away from the persistent advances of an irksome shinigami (god of death). This is a movie that raises more questions than answers, so I think it would do well to pose a few rather than give an account of what happens. And in keeping with the holiday season, it seems fitting to limit the questions to four. Unlike in your Haggadah, however, you’re not likely to find any authoritative answers, or in some cases any at all.

1. Why all the sex in this otherwise innocent story of true love?

This is a ‘Pinku’ movie, part of Japan’s soft porn-ish film industry, which is taken more seriously by its participants, which over the years has included many an established director, than in the US. So sex was likely the first essential ingredient. This, also, is what director Imaoka Shinji does. A look at his imdb page shows a long list of tawdry stuff. Much of it sounds rather dark, for instance Bottled Vulva: Bank-Teller Noriko, which may in fact be about exactly what it sounds like. In comparison, Underwater Love is light-hearted positive stuff.

Still, with all the other possible less head scratching directions one could go with an erotic movie, why do a fantasy about a Kappa? Perhaps it was a bid to not be left out of the Interspecies Romance genre that has swept the US of late. In the West, young ladies swoon for graceful vampires and chiseled werewolves. From oft topsy-turvy Japan, though, we get an awkward creature with a body like a turtle, a beak for a mouth, and a bald spot in constant need of irrigation. It acts rather goofily and loves to snack on cucumbers. The ladies are still enamored. If it offers a clue where the film maker’s priorities lie, the most meticulously rendered part of the Kappa’s body is indeed its penetrating member.


2. Why is the shinigami an unsavory looking guy wearing a rainbow colored gown?

That sure doesn’t look like Ryuk from Death Note. This film was shot on a very low budget. In fact, according to the German producer who spoke during the Q & A after the film, all scenes were shot in only 5 days with only a single take for each one. I would venture to guess that with no way to make a convincingly menacing god of death, they decided to not even try. Another fact learned from the Q & A is that the actor playing the shinigami was the only one who has worked with director Imaoka on several previous productions. Perhaps other roles he has played make him a good fit for a god of death. The lack of a costume also goes along with a loose and free spirited feel of the production on the whole.

3. Why do the songs often sound like they belongs in a science fiction movie and the visuals look like they are from an art house film?

There are some interesting names associated with the project. The soundtrack was produced by certified indie French pop enthusiasts Stereo Total. They created a mesmerizing soundtrack of 8-bit bloops and bleeps and occasional sweeping synthesizer tones. Another bit of insight from the Q & A was that the soundtrack was created before shooting of the movie began, based on a script and outline the group was given two years before filming began. I wonder if the music would’ve turned out differently had the group seen the visuals before working on the soundtrack.

Famous autere cinematographer Christopher Doyle, who has worked on many an Asian film production, was brought in as director of photography. This could account for some intriguing uses of light and dizzying sequences of rain deflecting off of lilly pads, especially near the end of the movie.


4. Why are the dance routines so terrible?

There is a clear lack of any form of choreography, probably owing again to lack of budget. The movements appear to have been created by the actors and actresses themselves, all jerky head movements and jumping from one side to another. As strange as it is, the unpolished routines fit comfortably with the rest of the movie. And then there are the lyrics to the songs, which contain some hilarious non-sequiters that I couldn’t begin to imagine an explanation for.

A question that was asked of Imaoka after the film was about the Kappa’s tendency to hop in place dandily with its hands on its hips. He explained that this was not related to Kappa folklore; it was an idea that sprung from his own imagination. The charming lead actress Sawa Masaki gave some insight into the Kappa’s prominence in Japan, describing an honorary license for catching and releasing the mischievious creatures that people can obtain in some regions.
With turns that are at times endearing, raunchy, and downright strange, that would seem, on paper, to scarcely fit together, this little film will certainly go down as one of the more peculiar entries in Asian cinema.

If your curiosity’s been piqued, you can still get tickets for screenings of Underwater Love at Tribeca later on this week.

photo credits to Mr. C at Planet Chocko Zine, another source for offbeat cinema reviews

Hideaways,Ozzy Osbourne,Despicable Dick, Koran by Heart, Gone, Grandma 1000 Times and Splinters or one very long day at the Tribeca FIlm Festival

It's official my limit of films is five in a day. Trying to do seven, as I did today, was way too much, fun in someways, but way too much in others.

This is going to be brief, and perhaps a tad jagged. I say this because I've been in motion since before 7AM and started watching films from 9AM.

The first film was God Bless Ozzy Osbourne. It's a warts and all look at Ozzy and his music, though the focus is very much on the man. He was once considered a wild man by the crowds, but to his friends and family he was a drunken pain in the ass and not much of a dad. Its the right sort of bio film that gives you a nice round look at the man and puts his antics and survival into context. One of the better films of the film festival.

Koran By Heart is an HBO documentary that will screen in August. It's a film that isn't really worth putting on your long range calendar. Its the story of several people who go to the Koran reciting Championships in Egypt. It's a nice idea, but at 75 minutes the film is not very detailed thanks to the producers choosing to follow too many people to the point that we never get to know anyone. Events don't really transpire naturally they lurch from thing to thing. While the pieces are interesting, for the most part you just stop caring. If I had seen this on TV I would have turned the station.

Despicable Dick and Righteous Richard is a really good little film about Richard Kuchera, a one time partier now twenty years sober and who in looking back decides it's time to put right all his past miss deeds and make up to all those wronged. Richard really is a dick, but he's trying, which counts for something, even if everyone he's trying to make up to thinks he's going to fail. As the press notes say it's a real life episode of Earl. I didn't expect to like the film and frankly I went only because it filled a hole in my schedule. I walked out singing the praises of the film. This is one to keep an eye out for if you run across it.

Gone is a riveting documentary about the disappearance of Kathy Gilleran's son in Vienna. The cops don't want to know from anything because he's gay and an American. They don't care if she's an ex-cop, they only want her to go away. A frightening story of what can happen when our loved ones are away from home. It's a sad slowly building heart breaker with only one flaw, there is no resolution (as of the completion of the film he's still missing). I really liked the film a great deal and I can't wait to see it again.

After Gone I tried to go to catch the end of the Grave Encounters Press Day stuff, but I just couldn't make it in time.

Grandma 1000 Times is a portrait of the directors grandmother in Lebanon. It's a touching funny portrait, that is an amusing 48 minutes. I laughed and had a good time. I also was puzzled as to why the film has been winning so many awards around the world. Don't get me wrong, its a good film, but at the same time it didn't strike me as special.

This was a Tribeca Talk and they had a panel discussion on Middle Eastern and Arab cinema and related subjects. It was okay. The trouble was that with the four people on the panel talking about four different subjects nothing came together.

After the movie I went ot a great diner on the corner of 23rd and 9th Avenue and had some great pot roast. It was my breakfast lunch and dinner...and t was wonderful.

After dinner it was back to the Chelsea Cinemas for Hideaways. This is the story of a young man with a deadly power. If he retreats into the woods to live alone until a young girl dying of cancer stumbles in and changes his life. It's a grand fairy tale about the transformative power of love. If you like things like Neil Gaiman's Sandman or fairy tales there is a really good chance you'll love this. I was on my way out and I made a point of telling the producer that I thought the film was great (better than my short write up) and that I really thought if it can get a US release it will make bucks. Trust me, this is a nice little winner...though I should warn you it has a very black edge, as all Grimm's like fairy tales do.(I'll do a longer piece once Tribeca is done)

The last film today was the world premiere of Splinters about surfing in New Guinea. It was also the least interesting of all of the documentaries of the film festival. I've seen more than a handful and frankly even as bad as some of them are, this film was unremarkable. Its a bout a small town getting ready for the countries first surfing contest and it follows various people as we see life in the small town and we watch people surf. I'm not an expert on surfing films but this was the dullest surfing footage I've seen. I was unimpressed. While the film isn't bad, coming at the end of 21 films in five days (and 7 of those today) I had no patience and I walked out. There are other better films out there, more worthy of your time.(and there are worse ones more worth avoiding).

After that I headed home. It was a trip delayed because someone had to be forcibly removed by the police for refusing to pay a fare.

Tomorrow is a day off for me. It's back to the dull grind of work, before I go back on Wednesday for my last day of press screenings.

And keep reading because Mondocurry will be reporting on his trips to the festival and I may get around to a sight and sound post of what I've seen and experienced at the festival.

mondocurry Asian cinema corner report from the Tribeca Film Festival

This year, the Tribeca film festival offered up some interesting gems from the realm of Asian cinema, some officially signed off on by the gurus of moving images from Asia at Subway Cinema. I scheduled myself a 3- day line-up of the more outrageous offerings, and the following is a bit of a report on the proceedings.

Part 1

Detective Dee and the Phantom Flame

This outstanding film directed by veteran Tsui Hark left me slack jawed, hairs standing on end, and otherwise amazed. Recently, my interest in Asian cinema has gravitated mainly towards Japanese and Korean productions, leaving most films from China on the out. This movie challenges that position considerably.

Tsui Hark’s recent films have not created the buzz they once did. For me, his older works were also a bit rough around the edges visually. Here he has delivered a seamless blend of fantasy, period piece historical drama, and hardboiled mystery in one enormously entertaining package. It has been a long time since I have found myself so disarmingly overjoyed with a big screen movie adventure based out of any country.

What impressed me most is that the story weaves a through and through mystery, complete with red herrings, hidden intentions, and hard earned clues that move the plot forward. The fantasy element doesn’t overwhelm other aspects of the story, nor is it ever used to give an easy out to inexplicable plot points.

The focus is on Di Renjie, a sleuth who is released from confinement to solve a series of mysterious murders that take place around the construction of a massive Buddha statue. Since these incidents threaten the proceedings of soon-to-be Empress Wu’s official inauguration, she reluctantly frees the skilled detective so that he can solve the case. The empress was also the one who had Dee imprisoned in the first place for acts of treason, and there you have a sense of the complicated nature of the relationships and motives affecting characters in the story.

Di Renjie is teamed up with the empress’ most trusted assistant (or “right hand woman” if you will), and one of her military’s lead investigators in a very volatile partnership. There is plenty of suspense and intrigue as the formidable trio faces unknown perils while each of them also tries to outwit and vet their suspicions of the other two members in their makeshift alliance.

It wouldn’t be a bona fide Chinese epic action movie if the protagonists weren’t multi-talented. So it almost goes without saying that they are all accomplished martial artists. As the pieces of the puzzle slide into place, there is plenty of stylistic action galore.

The point where fiction meets reality is its dealing with Empress Wu’s rise to power. While the details of course have been changed to include far more fantastical elements, there is a shared aspect of ruthlessness with which she is believed to have taken grasp of power.

Everything about the film from its panoramic scenes to its high stakes finale is on a big scale; the same can be said for the themes it deals with. Notions of revenge, loyalty, and putting the greater good ahead of personal feelings come into play as the story draws nearer to its conclusion.

I have noticed the term steampunk come up in promotions and reviews, and was curious if it actually did play a role in the movie at all. In fact, fans of this budding genre that embraces stylized depictions of real and imagined pre 20^th century technology will likely thrill to the lovingly rendered details of the grand Buddha statue’s inner workings. Also of note is the weaponry employed by many of the characters. Rather than rely primarily on blades, they wield many technically engaging mechanisms that snap, spring, and whir into action.

The director was not on hand to talk about the film. This was a shame because, of the three entries I’ve seen so far, this is the one where the director would have received a standing ovation from me and likely the other members of the very enthusiastic packed audience. It’s likely, though, that Hark is still making the rounds in his native China, where the movie recently swept the Hong Kong film awards. Expect more Dee and more great things from Tsui Hark in the near future.