SIFF Screenings----Best Bets---LUSTY MEN, ATTILA MARCEL, MUSE OF FIRE, DIFRET, OF HORSES AND MEN.....

Here's some screenings I saw this weekend, in order of preference.

GRADE A-

LUSTY MEN (1952) is Nicholas Ray's B/W film beautifully acted and written and directed and now restored about the year in the life of a struggling rodeo man.  Robert Mitchum, Susan Hayward and Arthur Kennedy form the romantic triangle.

GRADE  B+

ATTILA MARCEL-- The first live action French film by creator of TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE and THE ILLUSIONIST, with the same sensibilities:  precious quirky characters in a sweet fantasy about mute man living with suffocating aunts, trying to find out what happened to his parents.

MUSE OF FIRE--Part silly vanity production, but this rousing, stimulating documentary about the importance of Shakespeare to modern audiences and actors, and the difficulties in understanding the Shakespearean language hits a lot of fascinating notes.  A one of a kind experience, although I wish the hand held filler sequences involving the traveling around of the film makers were edited, and replaced with more of the interviews themselves, including talks with Judy Dench, Ian McClellan, Baz Luhrman,  Jude Law, and many, many others (over 100!).

DIFRET--Powerful subject matter propels this "based on a true story" Nigerian production about a 14 year old girl who is kidnapped, abused and raped by her soon to be husband, as is wont in certain societal customs.  When she kills her "intended" she is portrayed as the guilty one.  Constant hand held camera distracts from film's potential.

OF HORSES AND MEN--Stubborn, odd townspeople and the horses they love and own, in a series of episodic stories set in a small Icelandic village, where the point of view is often from the animal. Unusual and appealing and heartbreaking, especially for some of the horses involved.

GRADE B

CHINESE PUZZLE--French movie filmed almost entirely in New York City (where most of the characters speak French!)  A writer finds his life too complicated with his family and his various woman friends.  It tries to be Woody Allen-ish, but fortunately the emphasis is on the drama instead of the silly comedy moments.

CANOPY--Nearly wordless thriller of two soldiers--an Aussie and a Chinese  who are trapped on a small island during the Japanese invasion of Singapore during WW2.  Minor, but evocative and beautifully filmed.

THE SEARCH FOR GENERAL TSO--Light weight but charming infomercial about the extremely popular Chinese American dish called General Tso Chicken, which is unheard of in most of China.

GRADE D+

DESERT CATHEDRAL--Low budget indie production has tiresome and dull script about a depressed man talking constantly into a wiggly video recorder, trying to explain/rationalize to his deserted family about why he has this persistent suicide wish.  UGH.


NOTICE-------After 15 minutes of struggle, the Harvard Exit screening on Saturday of HOTELL from Sweden was canceled due to technical difficulties.  I will not be going back to see it due to so many other choices on the day of its repeat, plus the fact that the film is extremely hand held in that first 15 minutes........