I've seen over 20 films in the last two weeks, so it's been cinematic overload. I'll just mention the Film Festival offerings from Vancouver and Seattle Lesbian and Gay festivals towards the end. More thoughts will be offered when those films actually have a release--most all were strong enough to get released. So here goes.
My favorite of the openings this past week is the fascinating, stylish documentary on the life of fashion icon DIANA VREELAND: THE EYE HAS TO TRAVEL which I saw at SIFF in June. Her daughter Lisa Immordino Vreeland produced, directed and wrote this film, and obviously had access to an amazing array of models, actors, fashionistas, and assorted industry types, as well as a wealth of video and pictures with which to illuminate Diana's life and times. I was engaged and transfixed and very entertained. As PROJECT RUNWAY's Tim Gunn would say, she really "made it work" for herself, and deserves the iconic status she enjoys today. GRADE--------A-
It's been nearly 3 weeks since I viewed THE MASTER. It hasn't stuck with me like I thought it might. Well acted by Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Laura Dern, and a large cast, it tells the rather crude and simplistic story of a young shiftless Navy veteran who becomes depressed and a drunkard after WWII, and finds himself fascinated by the leader of a new religious sect/cult. (Reports that this is based on the start of Scientology are left unsubstantiated.) Hoffman plays the leader in broad fatherly strokes--it's easy to see why the desperate Phoenix wants to follow him. The film is leisurely told, as it follows the new group around the country on talks and road shows. Because of his violent behavior, the Phoenix character makes it hard to assimilate into the group--he seems most resistant to the indoctrinations and philosophies that are espoused. The film doesn't have too much else to say. The photography is good, although why it was filmed and screened in a few theatres (including Seattle's Cinerama) in 70 MM remains a mystery. I saw it in 35 MM and that seemed just fine for the rather intimate character study that it seems to be. I admired the film more than liked it. It would have been nice to like some of the characters, but the film takes a distant, cold, nihilistic stance towards it's characters and subject matter. GRADE--------B-
Some humanistic feeling is sorely needed in the passionate and cerebral documentary film about the AIDS crisis that started in the 1980's, and how difficult it was for protesters to get the governments attention on matters about this plague. HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE suffers from too many talking heads and political posturing, when it might have benefited from more personal stories (from AIDS patients). Still, the found documentary footage is impressive, and the film lays out a time line that shockingly shows how resistant politicians and the public were to this disease. It's not the easiest film to watch, but certainly an important one. GRADE---------B-
HERE COMES THE BOOM is certainly easy to watch, but the highly improbable plot keeps getting in the way. Slightly reminiscent of the recent WON'T BACK DOWN, the story deals with a school that is losing so much money that it must cut the arts and music programs. Kevin James (TV's KING OF QUEENS) stars as a bad teacher (always late, and downright lazy in the first few scenes) who suddenly finds himself trying to raise money to keep the arts and music programs in the curriculum. He decides that since he was a wrestler in collage, he could become (at age 51!) a mixed martial arts player, since even the losers make big bucks. He's conveniently single, and is desperately trying to date fellow co-worker Salma Hayek, also conveniently single. There's just too many coincidences to make this worth more than an average film, in spite of some good laughs and some charming characters. GRADE------C+
If you are reading this, YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. The new version of WUTHERING HEIGHTS is a very unpleasant film to watch. Filmed with that aggressively hand held jerky camera that had my head aching, and lit only with natural light (sometimes only candlelight or fireplace) that frequently made it impossible to see who was even in the room, the film rubbed me wrong from beginning to end. The director Andrea Arnold made one of my favorite films in 2005, the provocative thriller RED ROAD. I didn't object to the fact that she makes Heathcliff a black man here, even though he is treated more like a slave than hired help, but the film was so relentlessly hard to watch and to listen to (the actors mumbled their lines, and often it felt improvised to weak effect,) and the costumes were dirty, grimy, mud covered (as were the faces most of the time.) I'm not saying that WH has to be romanticized bliss, but I really object to watching an experimental version that is nearly impossible to watch and "get into." If I had been sitting on or near the aisle, I would have fled the theater after 15 minutes. Instead, I suffered for 90 minutes. GRADE------D
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Vancouver International Film Festival notes
That darn Justin Bieber and his entourage bus at the border made me 45 minutes late getting into Vancouver on Wednesday morning (I took the BoltBus--only $11!!!), but I still managed to catch I, ANNA, a British low key thriller about an aging detective becoming romantically attracted to his prime suspect, Charlotte Rampling. Then, from France and Japan, a film called LIKE SOMEONE IN LOVE about a young college student/prostitute who becomes involved with an elderly professor, but the film casts an eerie, almost comical spell. I ended the night with the Polish film screened a SIFF, which I'd missed last June, called ROSE. Set in WWII, the drama tells of the suffering, rape and injustices that fall on the title character, as she tries to recover from past horrific experiences. I was really exhausted after that so I went to bed. These films were rated by me B-, B+, and B+ respectively.
On Thursday morning I was ready to go. I started early (1015am) with a rather dull Chinese film called BEIJING FLICKERS about a group of immature 20 somethings trying to grow up. IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER was a low budget Canadian film with a surprisingly good script and actors--the lead also wrote and directed. She is the irresponsible sister who can't get into a good relationship--she always picks losers. Her sister is getting married, and in spite of some cliches, the blend of comedy and drama works well. The Czech sex comedy by Jan Hrebejk was next, and it was a cheerful sex positive charmer called THE HOLY QUATERNITY about two families that are best friends. When the parents go on a warm weather vacation together, well, think about a more progressive BOB AND CAROL AND TED AND ALICE........It's a big crowd pleaser, and really funny stuff. On the opposite end was OUR CHILDREN (Belgium/France) a grim, serious, stunning film about a young wife who struggles to raise four children (in rapid progression) while struggling with depression. The first scene lets you know the ending, but it is still a powerful experience. Finally from Germany, HOME FOR THE WEEKEND has mother telling her family she will no longer be taking her mental health drugs, and the adult family has various reactions. It slowly grew on me, and there are some startling disclosures by the end. Then to bed. These films were rated by me C, B, A-, B+ and B respectively.
Friday morning I started off with a French documentary called THE INVISIBLE ONES about older gay and lesbian couples (mostly) who all became farmers in the south of France. It was very well done, with lots of video, pictures, back stories and humor, showing how they made a family of their own over the years while growing up in a repressive society. Next was a strong, if minor, character study staring Melissa Leo called FRANCINE. She has just gotten out of prison, and must adjust to civilian life, but as the short film (75minutes) progresses, one becomes doubtful she will make it.
The gripping French film REBELLION by Mathieu Kassovitz dramatizes the 1988 attempt of some "rebels" to free New Caledonia from French rule--this occurring just weeks before the big French elections. I made time for supper with Toni and Kathleen, then went off for the Mexican film AQUI Y ALLA, which has a man coming home from being in NYC for several years of work to find his family treating him a bit like a stranger. He has to warm them up before heading back to the US for more work.
Rated A-, B, B, and B-.
On Saturday several film were repeated so I got a chance to view them. NUALA is an Irish documentary about writer Nuala O'Faolain, who came from a very impoverish, abusive household to become a brilliant and successful author. The film was informative and engrossing, although I felt too much time (over 20 minutes) towards the end dealt with her death by cancer. Also saw THE IRAN JOB, a documentary from Iran/USA about American basketball player Kevin Sheppard who can't get into the NBA, so takes a job playing basketball and training a struggling team for Shiraz in Iran. The film works well as a fish out of water story, a sports come from behind thriller, and a strong human interest drama. Rated B+ and A- respectively. All in all, a pretty good 4 days of international film. Watch for these films this winter and spring, and by next summer on DVD.
The SEATTLE LESBIAN AND GAY FILM FESTIVAL had already started when I got back to town, but I managed to see a few selections. On Monday night I saw YOSSI, a sequel of sorts to the Eytan Fox film YOSSI & JAGGER (2003) which is a well loved film about two men in service who fall in love, but must keep it a secret. That film is a love-story-tragedy. Even though it had been quite a while since I'd seen Y&J, it doesn't really matter, because YOSSI picks up 10 years later with the surviving man now a workaholic heart specialist at a hospital, still deeply closeted and repressed. When Jagger's mother comes to him for a test, it triggers unresolved feelings, and a forced vacation makes him try to open up. It's a small but lovely film. Several of my favorite films over the years were directed by the Isreali Eytan Fox, including WALK ON WATER (2004) and THE BUBBLE (2006). On Saturday I saw the gripping documentary MOHAMMED TO MAYA about a conservative Islamic man who transgenders into a woman, against his/her family's values and basically alone except for a friend who films the procedings. It was an intimately shocking and heartbreaking experience to watch. Then came the low budget (7,000 dollars!!!) film THE FALLS about two very serious male Mormon missionaries who discover love with each other while on their mission work. After a slow and leisurely beginning, the film becomes more humorous and rather effective. It is certainly a topical film and looked like a million dollars. My favorite movie was a filmed British dance version of SWAN LAKE (in 3D!) I'm no fan of 3D, and I wish it had not been used for this film (it gives me eye strain and sometimes a headache), but the music was glorious, the costumes and choreography were fascinating and the entire production had the audience cheering after nearly every scene. The film reminded me of the recent PINA--it was clear and personal. The gender changes (the park sequences are danced by male swans, and the prince is obsessed with the lead swan, so the dance takes on --without a hint of camp--a very masculine feel. The homoerotic theme is fascinatingly woven into this tragic but superior production. GRADES------A-, B-, B-, and A
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