The New Directors New Films 2024 Curtain Raiser.

This year’s annual meeting of the Museum of Modern Art and Film at Lincoln Center, New Directors New Films occurs this week. Highlighting the first works of up and coming directors from around the globe, the festival is a walk on the artistic side bringing a selection of soon to be art house favorites to the streets of New York.

Despte being connected to the Museum of Modern Art the festival doesn’t just highlight art films, this year’s opener is Aaron Schinberg‘s  A DIFFERENT MAN which was a huge hit at Sundance. In the past they launched the action classic THE RAID into the United States, but the truth is the fest does tend toward more upper crust films.  That may scare some people but good film  lovers almost always find something to fall madly in love with.

I love to see  as many of the films as I can. While I don’t always love everything I see, I do love the fact that I’m getting to see films that are more often than not giving us a new perspective on what cinema is. I love to get in on the ground floor of filmmakers who are going to be huge- and very often New Directors finds the next big director.

As this posts I've seen and written up 14 of the features screening and I may squeeze in a few more. I’ll have reviews dropping before the first screening of all the films so keep reading. If you are looking for some recommendations might I suggest

OMEN which is a supernatural tinged film about a man who returns home with his wife.

LOST COUNTRY a tale of lost innocence involving the son of the public face of notorious regime

OTRO SOL a good blending of truth and fiction about lost treasure and notorious thief.

MALU has an Oscar worthy performance by Yara De Novaes as a self-centered actress.

MEEZAN (SCALE) must be seen on  big screen with big sound. The story of the fishing community in city in Iran. This is as close to being there as you can get.

Take a look at the schedule and buy some tickets.

The Company Called Glitch That Nobody and Everybody Wanted (2024)

A business man races to find funding for his start up company before a rival can stop him.

Set in a single day as our hero desperately tries to get the money need and deal with issues in his life this is a good little slice of life/thriller. Sure, we’ve seen variations on this sort of tale before, but not always as successful as this. The key to films like this working is we have to like the person at the center, and in this case, we do so we are willing to travel along for the ride.

If there is anything that is going to affect how you like this film, it is how the film is shot. Since this is a film that is series of conversations over either a cellphone, computer or other similar device, we are watching people who are not in the same location interact with each other. Director Graham Holliday largely forgoes(yea!) watching everyone as we see them on a screen and instead shoots everyone sitting at their computer or sitting on their phones.  While in some ways it brings us closer to the characters, in another way it wobbles the film. The wobble comes from the framing of the images – they are all widescreen with a single person in the shot. While we get some sense of people being in the real world, via people in the background, the film still feels static since the shots tend to be single takes. Instead of making it real world it actually makes us feel like we are watching people on a set talking to no one. As much as I was intrigued by the story, I was distanced by the presentation.

Does the presentation make the film bad? Absolutely not, but it does lessen the impact.

Should you see the film? Yes definitely. It may not rattle the pillars of heaven, but it entertains and is compelling which is infinitely more than most recent films.

Between Revolutions (2023) Romanian Cinema: Making Waves

 

Documentary/essay/drama is a beautiful and haunting film about two women who met at the University in Bucharest and formed a friendship that continued through letters when one of them returned to Iran after the revolution.

Blending letters with period footage and some poetry this film is more like a dream then a documentary. Watching this on a big screen in a darkened room I drifted off to another time and place. Carried along by the marriage of images and sound I found myself connecting to the women in ways that a more conventional telling.  I felt the relationship.

This is magical filmmaking and a must see.

Occasional Spies (2023) Making Waves: New Romanian Cinema

This is a great documentary that I’m glad Making Waves put on my radar.

This is the story of how the British during World War 2 went to Palestine and recruited Jewish refugees to become spies and go back behind enemy lines and do espionage. The jobs they needed done needed the ability to instantly blend into deep cover situations, something that a British national could never do.

This is a nail biting spy tale that is going to have you on the edge of your seat. Perfectly set up by opening with a letter written by one of the operatives who was captured and heading toward execution, the film lets us know right at the start that this was not fun and games. The film then speeds along telling us the story of the men and women who put their lives on the line to fight the Nazis. 

The film is a perfect blending of documentary and recreation. A lot of times with tales like where it’s either pure documentary or pure recreation you wonder how it would be told in another style. Here you never wonder simply because the mix is so perfect. Ultimately you just want to go again as soon as the film ends.

This is an absolute delight and highly recommended.

ON THE ADAMANT (2023) opens today

This is a look at the Adamant, a community center for people with mental and emotional issues located on the Seine. We follow the group on several days over the course of a year.

This is a mix of interviews with observational sequences. It's some good time with some good people. I left the film wishing that the film was longer so that I could see more.

As much as I like this film I need to warn some of you that some of this is going to seem static. There isn't much camera motion or many cuts. It's because the  Adamant isn't very big so there wasn't room for multiple cameras (besides it would have been intrusive).  This is noticeable in the first part of the film where there are more interviews then sequences where things happen. However as the film goes on we get sequences where the people we met  earlier interact and become more than just people talking at us. It's wonderful, and it will make you want to see more.

This film is a charmer and recommended

OLD ONES (2024)

 

OLD ONES is a trip through Lovecraft country with varying degrees of success.

The plot has long ago sacrificed  man named Marsh being pulled from a river by a father and son. When one of the old ones comes  out of the river and kills the father Marsh saves the boy and drags him along on a trip that crisscrosses through the lives of several Lovercraftian characters.

The basic story and execution is quite good. It’s nice to see  someone trying to do something with the Lovercraft mythos that is a kind of hybrid of the stories and something original.  Most films seem to be one or the other. The film also has everyone in the cast and crew invested. No one seems to be sleep walking through the events.

At the same time some of the effects are not pulled off perfectly. We can see that there are masks and prosthetics. While this would be fatal in most other films, the fact that the film is so filled with love we just nod and go with it.

I liked OLD ONES. It’s wonderfully free of pretensions and simply a film trying to be spooky

Worth a look

Against All Enemies (2023) opens Friday

This is a look at how military and police are being radicalized by the far right and militias and how this radicalization helped the January 6th Insurrection happen.

Good look at the hows and whys of how people are joining the violent hateful right. It's a film that makes clear why it's happening and what we have to do to try and stop it. 

I like this film a great deal for what it tells us. We need to hear and see what is happening. What works against my absolutely being  over the moon about it is that the film is a bit too matter of fact. As vital as the film's subject is there isn't enough of sense of urgency. Yes the information will anger and horrify you but the presentation may not move you.

Reservations aside the message is important enough to recommend the film

FAREWELL MR HAFFMANN (2023) opens Friday

One of the best films of 2023’s New York Jewish Film Festival was a tense tale of the Second World War. The film tells the story of a Jewish jeweler who sends his family to safety  in the country, while briefly staying behind to “sell” his business to his apprentice before fleeing himself. However unable to get away himself he is forced to stay in the basement. 

Suspenseful and chilling, this film is a great thriller that also is a telling discussion of life under the Nazi’s in France.  An absolute must see.

PROPERTY (2023) Make Believe Seattle 2024

This is a thorny thriller that kind of works on the most basic level, but fails as a film that wants to say more about (Brazilian) society

The plot of the film has a well off husband and wife heading to their farm in the country in a new armored SUV. The wife was the victim of an attempted kidnaping and become reclusive. They arrive just as the workers on the farm have been informed that they are being sent off because the land is being sold to make a luxury hotel…and they aren’t getting owed wages because they were all essentially working as indentured servants and they have to pay back certain monies. The workers have decided to take the land and everything on it as their own. Things quickly spiral out of control and the woman is left locked in the car alone with lots of angry homicidal people outside.

I really didn’t like this film much. The problem is that the film is so stacked against everyone and everything there really is no one and nothing to root for. The rich couple are an annoying rich couple who are abusing their help. If the wife wasn’t suffering from trauma there would be no reason to side with her. The help are seen to be abused by the system, but at the same time are portrayed as monsters. Their desire to destroy their masters is understandable but at the same time they are not anyone we can root for either. Everyone sucks so why not let them have at it?

Because PROPERTY wants to be a be more than a thriller it falls on its face. You can’t want to explore social dynamics like this and paint everyone in a bad light. If there is no grey only black  there is no real way to have a meaningful discussion. I mean what can you say the rich are bad and need to be taken down a notch, and while the poor are abused by the system, they are really animals so they so it was okay for them to lash out? Honestly they have to be portrayed as animals since it's thats the only way they can make the suspense last.

On the other hand if you can ignore all of the political social commentary the film is a good thriller.  There is a real tension to being trapped in something that will keep you safe but not giving you an exit. On that most basic level PROPERTY is good.

The Listener (2023) opens Friday

THE LISTENER consists of Tessa Thompson’s mental health hotline operator taking calls over night as she wanders around her home. Thompson is the only one on screen for the entire film which consists of her talking to unseen people.

A solid performance from Thompson is what keeps this film watchable. Thompson’s steady and seeming never riffled is everything. While Thompson keeps it cool, we get to see that she is moved by what she is hearing thanks to the looks, gestures and little throw away motions of her performance. It’s one that is all in the details and if you are watching closely you will end up rocked by what you see. In a better world there could be talk of an Oscar nomination in the mix, but realistically I don’t think it will happen because it's not a showy role and won’t get noticed.

The film itself is going to end up being argued over. The fact that there is no dramatic through line, just a series of differing calls is going to drive some viewers mad. Some people want high drama, and while some of the calls provide that, the fireworks (say a pervy caller or an unrepentant cop) only last as long as the call.  Additionally because unless you are really watching Thompson, she is going to come across as mechanical.  As much as I like the film I described the film as walking the fine line between riveting and boring. Steve Buscemi’s choices not to have Thompson react big and bold is probably closer to life but it’s going to alienate a chunk of the audience. And while I briefly thought this might make a good stage play, I really don’t think so since we need to see Thompson up close for this to work.

I like this film, but I can see some people not doing so. If you are adventurous it’s worth a look.

Avoid Donnie Yen in Polar Rescue (2022) (Some Rambling thoughts)

While on a winter vacation with his family Donnie Yen's son acts up. Fed up, Yen drives off without him in the hope of teaching the kid a lesson. When he goes back five minutes later the kid is missing. A manhunt results.

This is hands down the worst Donnie Yen film I've ever seen. I hope never to see it again. (It's even worse than the film Donnie Yen personally apologized to me and Hubert about before we saw it)

The film begins by giving us a family unit we instantly don't like, the filmmakers then up the ante by having them behave badly. Not only don't we like them we kind of want them to die. I truly hated the son. As  the film shifts into the rescue mode the film things go farther off the rails as the narrative has Daddy Yen do things that make zero sense. He's just wandering randomly in the wilderness. Worse Yen is required to do things that no one who has ever had even the slightest contact with snow and ice would ever do. I mean he walks across cracking ice, jumps into a frozen river.

I've never seen a Yen film where I simply said "and then he dies" every three or four minutes.

Who wrote this? 

Actually I want to know why Yen and his family are so badly written, but all of the other characters, all the police and rescuers, are so well written. Sure they have have to do movie sort of stuff, but they actually seem like real people. 

This movie is terrible. It's so bad that it may make you rethink what you feel about Donnie Yen.  I wouldn't care, but he produced this film. WHY? What do the other producers have on him? 

No. you do not want to see this. This isn't a so bad it's fun film, this is just a bad film.

LA CHIMERA (2023) opens Friday

Alice Rohrwacher‘s latest LA CHIMERA is an interesting, if rambling portrait of an Englishman wandering through Italy.

Arthur has just gotten out of prison. He just wants to go back home and pine for his lost love. His friends want to put his skills as a dowser to good use and help them find lost tombs and buried antiquities.  As things go he tries to stay out of trouble and debates going after his love’s grandmother’s student.

Nice slice of life with people living on the edge of society, LA CHIMERA mostly works. It’s good time with some interesting characters. I enjoyed myself.

If the film has any trouble it’s in the final fifteen minutes or so where the films rambling nature begins to wear thin. You begin to wonder when the film is going to end…and how. When the end come its kind of out of left field and it left me, and the others I spoke with at my screening, feeling as though it came not so much having a place to end but a need to stop (I’ve run out of film, I’ll end here)

Odd ending aside, LA CHIMERA is worth a look.

NIGHTCAP 3/24/24: Making Waves New Romanian CInema Starts this week, good bye NYICFF, random bits

The annual New Romanian Cinema Making Waves is playing NYC at IFC Center, Roxy and DCTV we are better for it.

Highlighting some of the best films Romania. The festival will open your eyes as to films outside of the art house. Films beyond the very serious films that American distributors pick up are high lighted so aren’t getting dark sides of life.  

What kills me is that the distributors here go for the sturm and drang films where as they don’t bring the comedies which, I’ve discovered thanks to this festival, are very funny.

I’ve not finished seeing films for the festival, so I’m not certain if there are comedies, but I do know that they are running good films (reviews are coming).

I suggest that if you want to see some great off Hollywood films that you check the schedule and buy tickets.

Screening Venues:

Firehouse: DCTV’s Cinema for Documentary Film, 87 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10013 (The cinema’s entrance is around the corner on White Street between Lafayette and Centre Streets)

IFC Center, 323 6th avenue, New York, NY 10014

Roxy Cinema New York, 2 Avenue of the Americas, Cellar Level, New York, NY 10013

Tickets:

DCTV’s Firehouse Cinema: $17 General, $8 DCTV Members. Visit www.dctvny.org/s/firehousecinema for more information.

IFC Center: $18 adult/$15 senior/$12 IFC Center members. Visit www.ifccenter.com for more information

Roxy Cinema New York: $17 General. Visit www.roxycinemanewyork.com for more information.

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I am increasing of the opinion that people getting upset about the use of the wrong terminology, as in the case of CHASING AMY not mentioning the term bisexual,  or in the case of older films using offensive language or stereotypes is simply a refusal to deal with the world as it is and was. These things happened and a desire to ignore that won't make them go away or make a great film any less great because it doesn't fit in your box.

Film fans don’t want to think or consider or go outside their cocoons and deal with the big bad world. Of if they want to deal with it, it is to cut loose anything doesn't fit with their world view or experience.

The refusal to watch a film, or see a work of art, because of something "offensive" or wrong in today's eyes is to narrow a world view, especially if the offensive thing can be seen in context.  Perhaps the term they want used wasn't readily used or invented.  You can't fit today's views into the eyes of people decades or centuries ago.

Additionally dismissing something because it isn't as enlightened as today is wrong, just like saying the the ancient Romans were stupid because they didn't have cellphones.

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For those who are interested, the plan for the next month or two are a bit free form, more so than the last few months where I was trying to be free form.

This week is a whole bunch of new releases.  That will bleed into coverage of New Directors New Films. From there I have a smattering  more of new releases, and then things are kind of vague until the mid-year festivals.

I do know that there will be more streaming reviews  of Netflix, Amazon and other streaming films. Yes they are late, but they are coming.

If you want a steady stream of what I’m watching with early reactions, as well as Randi’s favorite things- blind comments on embargoed films follow my on Twitter or Blue Sky.

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This is a reminder that Peter Gutierrez has two new books out. One is a collection of short stories and the other is a novella. Both are excellent

Details and links to buy them can be found here.

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I am enjoying the post awards silence. It’s so nice not to have to listen to talk of the same four of five Oscar films and which is better than another.

I am enjoying that we are back to discussing a wide variety of films that cross all sorts of genres and nationalities.

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Ran into some clips from CODA on You Tube recently and I realized that I want to see it again…

…and I also realized that the streamers exclusive lock on films is a bitch. There are so many recent films that either I missed or saw before their release that are now locked behind a pay wall that it’s likely I will never see them.

I have Amazon and Netflix (and Max because I subscribe to HBO) but I don’t have anything else. I don’t have time or the cash to have a stack of streaming services I probably won’t watch beyond the odd title. It might be different if I wasn’t dealing with Unseen, but I could potentially have a new film every night chose for me.

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Related- I’ve largely stopped buying physical media- not because I don’t want it- rather because I don’t have time to watch it.

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Lastly I want to thank everyone at NYICFF for another wonderful festival.

Thank you for putting it together.

Thank you for  your kindnesses.

I can’t wait for next year.

Born To Fly (2023)

After realizing that their planes aren't as good as those made in America, the Chinese Military decides to develop the  best fighter aircraft in the world tested by the best pilots China can muster.

This is a jingoistic rah rah Chinese piece of propaganda that is their answer to TOP GUN MAVERICK.  It is a 100% hooray for our side film that is their version of the Tom Cruise films. It's just as macho and over the top as the American counterpart. It is also has 100 times more soap opera with the narrative sequences taking turns that you only see in over done pot boilers.  I laughed myself silly with some of the turns (one characters meaningful death speech and later, a control room full of teary eyed pilots). The plotting is so boiler plate that you can't help but know how this is going to go.

The plotting doesn't matter, what matters here are the the action sequence and they are quite good. While the CGI is uneven, especially early on, flying sequence still grab us and hold our attention. There are some great aerial sequences here, with the final test flight a nail biter, even if the shots of the crying pilots make it seem less serious than intended.

To be certain the over the top anti-American stance is a bit much and similar to the anti Russian stances many Hollywood films took in the 50's, but it really doesn't matter since this is a film about manly men trying to do something heroic in ways that they only do it in the movies. Because the film is supposed to be silly macho BS you can't take it too much to heart. (Besides in many ways we earned the ribbing by sending our jingoistic nonsense out into the world).

To be certain BORN TO FLY isn't high art but it entertains enough that it's worth a look.

THE WORLD ACCORDING TO ALLEE WILLIS (2024) SXSW 2024

The World According to Allee Willis is a magical film. The story of a woman who wrote some of the best known songs of the last 50 years, won Tonys, Grammies and other things. She started out poor and climbed to the top of the heap ending up in a house that would have (and did) make Pee Wee Herman envious). She was a crazy, lovely woman who influenced and delighted generations.

I fell madly in love with this film early. I never met Allee Willis but I have several friends who were/ are are soul sisters. One in particular was named Sally Willis, which was what the autogenerated subtitles on the print I was watching kept calling Allee. Watching the film I was spending time with an old friend I never met.

What makes the film work is that Willis filmed her life and as such we get to see the story through her eyes, yea, her friends and family talk about her, but mostly we see her being her wonderful self, the friends and family simply add slight shading and context (such as talking about her Tony Award winning work on the musical COLOR PURPLE)

Seeing the film after its premiere at SXSW I’m kind of left flabbergasted, how is it that this film not being talked about. This is wonderful celebration of a wonderful woman. It’s a film that will make you feel things and glues a big goofy smile on your face.  We should all be this lucky to have a film like this made about our lives.

I’ve seen this film a couple of times now and I had a blast each and every time… this is truly great time with a great person.

One of my favorite films of 2024 it is highly recommended.

A MOST ATROCIOUS THING (2024) Make Believe Film Festival 2024

Don't let the fact that is horror comedy only cost 5 grand to make influence your opinion, it would be still be amusing if it cost more. The only thing that extra money would have added would be minutes to the run time.

A bunch of friends head off into the woods for weekend hunting and carrying. However things take a turn for the worse when they eat tainted venison and are turned into blood thirsty killers.

You know we aren’t entirely serious territory when a film opens with a deer puppet drinking from a watering hole with a warning that the water is contaminated. Any remaining doubt is quickly put to rest when the silliness starts when we meet the human cast, and we realize that we are going to silly woods.

This is a low budget (the film cost 5 grand) film that is a lot of fun. Bloody and funny the film is more comedy than horror. Actually outside of the blood and the stereotypical horror set up there is no real horror just laughs. Unlike most recent similar films I’m perfectly fine with that because the film is genuinely funny. Too many filmmakers seem to be going into the realm of comedy to cover up the fact that they can’t make a good film so they go for laughs so we laugh at the cheapness/badness. That isn’t the case here since the jokes land and the filmmaking is good enough that everything else leans into making the film work.

I had a blast watching the film because everyone involved was too. More importantly everyone was leaning in and whispering to us “just go with it- we know what we are doing”.

A MOST ATROCIOUS THING  is a great deal of fun.

Recommended

Magic Candies/ Klutzy Witch Double Feature at NYICFF 2024

MAGIC CANDIES
World premiering at NYICFF this short film from TOEI Animation is based up upon Heena Baek‘s picture book, The film tells the story of a young lonely boy who loves marbles. Buying a cool bag of them he finds they are actually candy, magic candy. Each candy will give him the ability to speak to or hear something hidden. First his couch talks to him, then his dog… and then… well that would be telling.

Photo realistic backgrounds are mixed with a stylized animation in a little film that may have you tearing up. This is a lovely tale that reals the connections we have to each other, even if they aren’t readily apparent.  I smiled and laughed… and teared up.

The screening was attended by a lot of people connected to the film including director Daisuke Nishio and author Heena Baek who wrote the book.  The Q&A was a joyous event and the kids asked some good questions (see it here - though I bounced my camera, again, so it's better as radio).

They also brought along a lot of goodies, bags, paper hats and other things for the kids. They even had  cut outs that the kids could use to enhance photos of themselves on the red carpet.

It was, as most NYICFF special events are, truly special

KLUTZY WITCH
Hour long tale of the daughter of a white witch who is a bit of a klutz. She ends up a pawn in the plans of a banished dark witch who wants to escape her imprisonment and get revenge on those who locked her away.

This is an hour long short feature should have been turned into a series. While the film covers a lot of familiar territory (no doubt the result of it’s short length) there is enough here that it’s clear this could have been expanded. While what here is really good, I would have loved to see more with all of the characters. Back stories are hinted at that would make for fantastic little films/episodes.  That is not a knock at the film, rather an explanation that this film is so rich material you’ll want to revisit.

If there is any real flaw it’s that the short run time causes a bit of friction in the telling between the klutziness of the early part of our heroines tale and the serious of the second.  Things don’t blend as well as they would have in a longer telling.

Regardless this was a delight and I would happily line up for a sequel.

Legend of Lake Hollow (2024) hits VOD March 26

A group of friends rent a house in the woods and soon realize that there is something in the woods, and it isn't friendly.

Let me say up front I had a great time with LEGEND OF LAKE HOUSE. It's a well made horror film that has a great cast who are invested in their roles and so they end up selling the story even before the weird stuff starts. It's so good that I'm kind of scratching my head as to why this film didn't get a noticed previously since it is a film made with care and love.

I also love that the film puts some spin on the typical story like this. The filmmakers give us enough clues that we don't instantly march to the end in our minds knowing how it all goes. We are pretty much along for the ride to the end.

My only problem with the film is that the ending kind of disappoints.  It's not that it's bad, more that for a film that tries for much of its running time to do something different, it's rather run of the mill. It isn't bad, just not not as satisfying as it could have been. Thought to be honest how it's presented it quite good

That said, I had fun with LEGEND OF HOLLOW LAKE and it's recommended.

Shorts One NYICFF 2024

Thoughts on the films that made up the Shorts One collection at NYICFF

TWO ONE TWO
his is a lovely little film about a baby and it’s mom out traveling around. Done in a style that makes thins expressionistic the film is destined to make you smile. Sitting in the SVA theater you could hear all the adult sighing in recognition.  This is an absolute delight.

PUFFERFISH
Breaking the usual formula that many of the films that Julia Ocker’s film follow, this is the story of  a pufferfish trying to remain alive by inflating itself in the wake of danger, How it plays out is a delight. This is probably the best of Ocker’s films at this year’s NYICFF

LITTLE FAN
A little fan plays with an origami swan.

When the film started I heard a could of kids mention that it seems to be a riff on LUXO JR, the Pixar film, however while the set up may seem similar, where the film goes is entirely different.

I had a great time with this film. It made me smile and laugh. I had such a good time with the film that I ended up talking to director Sveta Yuferova in the lobby after the screening for a good chunk of time. After I explained how much I liked the film and loved how the photorealitic animation had a weight to it that most  big budget features don’t have.  She then regaled me with the story of her seven year quest to finamce and create the film. My  mention of all of the easter eggs in the background resulted in her hinting at goodies hidden there as well as a discussion of the creation of the soundtrack which is full of all sorts of hidden audio treats including lions roars. (I would have recorded the “interview” except that it was an off the cuff and unexpected happening)

If you want to see a great little film check this film out.

MARIE
This is an animated look at a young girls school note book and the doodles that come to life in it. Another delight.

HOW TO LASSO
This is a sweet film about a decked out young lady teaching herself to throw a lasso. It’s a wonderful that played in the front of some features at the fest.

MY NAME IS EDGAR AND I HAVE A COW
A man named Edgar goes to a slaughterhouse and takes home a cow which he raises in his apartment.

This is a funny and thoughtful about the fangers of raising a cow in an apartment and about how we treat other living things. It’s sweet.

RICE BALL
One of the joys of the collection and the festival is about a young girl sharing her lunch with friends.  This is such a delight  that I want to see director Kristina Pringle make a feature film. (This also played with other films at the festival)

COQUILLE
Awesome film about a couple of crabs traveling across a hot beach. Along the way they become friends. 

Another great film (that’s so good it played before other films) this is another film I’d love to see expanded, I want to see what happens to the buddies next.

FOREVER SEVEN
Based on a book this is the story of how a box went into and out of the lives of seven people and ended up bringing them together.  It’s a sweet little film that only suffers because of the company it keeps in the collection.

HOOFS ON SKATES
A pig and a cow go ice skating and discover some big fish under the ice.

I had no clue where this was going, but I was real curious as to where we would end up. The film has a wonderful through line punctuated by some great set pieces and some wickedly wonderful character animation. I mention this because  I want posters of some of the cow’s expressions which are very funny. (As I said to friends it has one of the greatest cartoon images of a goofy face I’ve ever seen)

Track this one down.

Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World (2023)

Radu Jude (Last at NYFF with BAD LUCK BANGING OR LOONY PORN) is a back...and if you liked his earlier films you'll possibly like this and if you didn't stay away.

The film follows a girl named Angela as she goes through her day as a production assistant. She is scouting locations, filming people who were hurt on the job for an upcoming film, and doing her errands as she sits in traffic and drives around. At the same time Jude intercuts life of this Angela with that of another girl named Angela from a 1983 communist film traveling in the same locations.

How you react to Jude's sense of humor and his love of long takes where nothing happens will determine if you like this film or not. If they click great, if not you'll get up and leave.

His sense of humor is such that he has Angela talk about how in America you can buy all the guns you want at a grocery store and that if buy a bazooka they'll send a machine gun to Ukraine. He starts off with a poke in the eye about how the world sees America, which he pushes too far and neuters the jab (it ends up a nerf ball and not a stick).  A lot of the satire is like that, obvious points pushed too far. It might have worked but the writing isn't as clever as it thinks it is.

The other problem is Jude loves the long take. Some directors can make it work, but I've never found that Jude has been able to pull it off. In his previous film BAD LUCK BANGING he had one of his characters wandering across a city for no real reason for the better part of an hour . While there is nothing as long as that in this film there are numerous sequences where I don't know why they are running so long. The sequences could have been trimmed.  (There is no reason this needs to be almost 3 hours long)

To be honest as with Jude's other films, if he trimmed it down it would be the winner it could of been  and not the bore it actually is.

Black Guelph (2023)

Canto is a not so young  man in a lower class part of Dublin is looking to get out but it doesn’t seem to be possible. He’s been thrown out of his house by his girlfriend who doesn’t want him near his kid. His dad is just out of jail and is squatting in an abandoned orphanage. The past is haunting everyone, as is a local kingpin who is trolling the neighborhood looking to get paid back – and Canto owes more than he can come up with.

This is a bleak examination of life on the downside of Dublin. Everyone is hamstrung by toxic traditions, bad choices and dark secrets in the past. It’s the story of a group of people who can’t get out of their own way even though they desperate to do so.

One of the best films I’ve seen for this year’s Dances With Films THE BLACK GUELPH is the feel sad film of the festival. It’s film that feels more like real life than a drama and as such it hits hard. I didn’t want to watch the lives imploding and wanted to look away, but I liked them so much I couldn’t not see what happened to them. It’s such  a good film that I can’t believe it’s director John Connors‘ first feature.

I really liked the film, but the downbeat edge to it makes it a film I may not revisit.

My reservation about revisiting it aside, this is definitely one you’ll want to see at least once.

American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders(2024)

I wanted to say that I saw the Netflix documentary series AMERICAN CONSPIRACY: THE OCTOPUS MURDERS

I saw it when it dropped at the end of February and I’ve been trying to figure out what to say.

The problem is that I’ve been reading and following the story since it all went down and my opinions of the series are tied to that.

For those who don’t know the series follows the story of journalist Danny Cosolaro who was found dead in a hotel room. He had been working on a story about corruption involving people inside and outside the government which he called the Octopus because it had so many tentacles they reached everywhere. Along the way he uncovered some bad things the government was doing as well as he brought some bad people into the light. The thought of many people was that he was killed to silence him.

It’s clear that he did find something was going on but how much of it past a certain point is really a conspiracy is open to debate. I say this because the grand conspiracy that he proposes and that many people have grabbed onto is so huge as to be unwieldy. You can’t have something that big and not have it slip into the light. Is it absolutely possible it was a bunch a rogue bad guys trying to make a buck, but the idea that they actually are controlling so much is pretty near impossible, even if they cast shadows over some corners.

Yes, that’s convoluted but so is the alleged uber conspiracy.

Just because bad people know other bad people doesn’t mean they are in connections in their badness. It’s a fact that is best seen in the various JFK conspiracies, many of which link up all these unconnected people because they were in and near Dallas  or had met tangentially somewhere along the way.

I mention this because the Netflix show at times seems to get a little lost and spins its wheels. My interest drifted in and out. It also didn’t help that the focus on Christian Hansen who was trying to finish what Danny Casolaro started prevented the series from dealing  with certain aspects that could have been more interesting.

Still this conspiracy’s legend is one of the reason that people don’t trust the government and are buying the bullshit of a deep state or hidden cabal controlling the world, and as such it’s worth a look.

Wendy Feinberg on PLASTIC PEOPLE (2024) SXSW 2024

 

While sitting here composing this review of PLASTIC PEOPLE, I find myself surrounded by so  much plastic, from picture frames to remote controls, from my cable box to the buttons of my  blouse and much, much more. Ben Addelman and Ziya Tong’s PLASTIC PEOPLE, which  premiered at this year’s SXSW Film Festival, gives us a brief history of plastic (a derivative of  oil), which, when invented, was often used as a substitute for more expensive or rare products.  Examples include women moving from wearing silk stockings to “nylons” and the use of  celluloid and then bakelite (the first synthetic plastic materials) as a substitute for ivory. Soon  there was an increase of plastic in shoes and fabrics and the manufacture of vinyl records  beginning in the 1940’s. We are now living in a “plastic world”, inundated with millions of tons  of plastic bags, bottles and cups, with only about 10% of plastic being recyclable! 

Microplastic (extremely small pieces of plastic debris) has been found in the carcasses of birds  and in the foods we eat. The sheer process of making plastic causes pollution in the air we  breath. There is plastic in snow and rain. I watched with horror as scientists spoke of their  discovery that microplastic has unfortunately invaded our bodies, being found in our cells and  even in small amounts in our brains! It has been found that chemicals in plastic can cause  infertility and plastic has been found in the cells of a baby’s placenta. 

The film is a cautionary tale of where we may be heading if we don’t find alternatives to plastic  use. In the film, to paraphrase, we see that we can’t live without plastics, but we must change  how we use them. A few communities around the globe are attempting to address the issue,  but it’s going to take much more than a village to succeed! 

Although dealing with some technical scientific info, PLASTIC PEOPLE is presented in a clear  and interesting way that I feel will be understood by a layperson, including older adolescents. I  believe it is an essential film for anyone who is interested in saving our environment and is  concerned about the future of mankind in general! In other words, EVERYONE! 

Perfect Day for Caribou (2023) plays 3/22 and 3/29 at NYC's Roxy

A father is recording a message for his estranged son  in the time before he kills himself. As he is doing so his son calls and asks to meet him.  An awkward meeting results.

Moody black and white film is a potent slice of life as fathers and sons try to come to terms with each other. Bouyed by first rate performances, which will criminally be overlooked in the year end gold rush, this film is one of the first gems I’ve seen in 2023.

The film opens with a kick ass monologue by Jeb Berrier as Herman, the eldest of the men. Sitting in his truck and talking into a tape recorder about life, this is what cinema is all about. While we eventually get inserts, most of the first fifteen minutes is simply Berrier talking and it is as thrilling a cinematic experience as most of Hollywood’s exploding superheroes. Berrier’s performance pulls us in and connects us up to life in ways that few films ever do. More is said and done in this brief sequence than most full features.

The only problem with the sequence is that what follows, a quasi real time meeting between father son and grandson, seems slightly off.  It’s not that there is any problem with what follows, only that the rhythms of the last 75 minutes requires a readjustment.  As words are fumbled and silences creep in between the men. If you can make the adjustment what follows is just as kick ass, just in a different way.

This is a super film.

Recommended, and as I said at the top this is one of the first gems I’ve found of 2023.

The Concierge (2023) (aka The Concierge at Hokkyoku Department Store ) NYICFF 2024

 

A young woman takes a job working as a concierge at department store that serves animals. 

Episodic tale feels more like the manga that it  is sourced from. It feels like three episodes of a TV show more than a feature film. The first is her first day of work, the second is her involvement in several stories of romance and the final is a number of Christmas stories.

This is a wildly uneven and very messy film that wanders all over the place. At  times it feels like it is juggling way to much. There are so many idea in this film, from the basic tale of finding your place in the world to serious pondering of how humanity is destroying environment and killing off species.  It was such a mess that I thought I was going to write a review trashing the film. However by the time the film ended the film had pulled it all together and I was getting misty. 

What a joy. Sure it's messy, but it's a joy.

Recommended

You'll Never Find Me 3/22 on Shudder

 

On a dark and stormy night a frighten man hears a knock at the door. It's a young woman who is looking for a ride home. 

An almost stage play between a man and an unexpected guest was  the best of Tribeca's Midnight section this year. While the film isn't perfect it goes the wrong sort of weird in the last 20 minutes, it is for most of its running time a scary nerve wracking  experience as we are never certain what is happening and who is who. It was a film that had the writers I was with grinning at each other when it ended. This was a film that kept us locked and loaded until the end.

The only problem with the film is the last 20 minutes or so which show signs of not knowing how to end. It was an ending that resulted in a wonderful discussion with a filmmaker about what can happen when you don't know how to end something...basically you end up like this.

Ending aside, YOU'LL NEVER FIND ME is a pretty little suspense machine and is recommended.

Make Believe Film Festival starts this week

This week the Make Believe Film Festival in Seattle starts this week. This annual event highlighting genre films is showing some truly great titles. If you are in the Pacific North West of America you should make an effort to go see some of the films.

The reason I know the festival is showing great film is because I’ve seen a number of them and I recommend them all:

HUMANIST VAMPIRE SEEKING CONSENTING SUICIDAL PERSON

LOST SOULZ

QUEEN OF THE DUECE

SHARI AND LAMB CHOP

WHEEL OF HEAVEN

DICKWEED

I AM GEORGE LUCAS

Of course I will be reviewing some other titles when the embargoes drop.

Do yourself a favor and buy some tickets and go.

Gasoline Rainbow (2023) First Look Fest 2024

Five high school aged kids set out in a van to travel 500 miles to see the ocean. Along the way life happens.

This is a form over content docudrama that succeeds as a work of art but is less successful as a narrative. This feels like a beautiful documentary, that might have worked had it been obvious by the shot choices and the way that things lay out that this free flowing trip across the Pacific Northwest was constructed by the cast and crew.  I say this in part because it's true and because the film moves the cast across the country in a way that only movies can move people. There is no real sense of danger, nor is there any real questioning when things go on, the kids just keep going.

Sure this a hymn of freedom and of impending lost innocence, but it's a professionally polished one. The result is a film that I admire  a lot more than I like. Its a film I would gladly watch with the sound off for the glorious pictures.

Samsara (2023) First Look 2024

Lois Patiño​ tells two stories, one of a man named Amid in Laos who meets a young monk. And the other of a young girl in Africa who wakes up to find her goat has given birth.

Quiet and meditative this is a film more about what you find in the contemplation of what it is showing you rather than with in what we are told. Actually what we are told isn't much since the film more or less is simply life unfolding. We are left to ponder the spiritual side of everything.

While I am a fan of Patino's, I kind of think he missed the mark with this film. While I know his films can be meditative, this time out I'm not certain there is enough to hold together a feature. My attention drifted off and my eyelids got heavy, and while I made it to the end I'm not certain there was enough here for me.

Worth a look for the interested, but not for the casual film goer.

Wulver’s Stane (2024) hits VOD 3/17

Joseph Cornelison’s film is a one of a kind merging of horror art house and grindhouse. Less horror film and more character study. The film is essentially the internal narrative of a girl named Claire. She is an ex-werewolf selling a mind altering drug as she comes to terms with her nature as a wolf.

Beautiful images mix with voice over dialog and a disjointed film which is not so much a narrative but a journey into the soul of heroine. If yu are in the right mood this is hypnotic trip.

Cornelison is on record as saying that he know that the film is not going to be for everyone, I suspect anyone wanting a straight forward conventional horror film is going to hate it. At the same time if you are open to it, and seeing in a situation where you will have no distractions,  this film is going to become a favorite. As I said at the top this is a one of a kind film, made over four years by people who are not  normal filmmakers this film doesn’t feel like anything except itself. Yes there are bits of art films in here and of course visceral horror, but how Cornelison mixes them together makes the film something you take to heart.

You will forgive me if I don’t say a great deal about the journey, but this is a trip across a person’s psyche and what I felt is not going to be what you do.

If you are willing to give a film a chance to do what it is going to do and go for the ride  I recommended WULVER’S STANE

Peter Gutiérrez has two books out FROM BAD TO WORSE and THE TREES MELT LIKE CANDLES

 This is just a note to say that Unseen Films writer and friend Peter Gutierrez has just released two books and you should buy them.

FROM BAD TO WORSE is a collection of short stories that tell stories about things that go from bad to worse. They are a great collection of tales that get under you skin.

The second is the novella THE TREES MELT LIKE CANDLES. It's a dark tale of a reflection of a life gone sideways. It's a Lovecraftian tale that goes into places that are unexpected.

Both are genuinely really good and highly recommended.

To buy Peter's books from Amazon go here:

FROM TO TO WORSE

THE TREES MELT LIKE CANDLES

WHAT DID YOU DREAM LAST NIGHT, PARAJANOV? First Look Fest 2024

 

Filmmaker Faraz Fesharaki mixes some home video footage of when he was child performing in a school pageant with zoom calls between himself and other members of his family who have scattered all over the world after leaving Iran. Over the course of the film we see the state of the family and the country they left behind.

I’m going to be honest this film didn’t work for me. The fact that we are simply listening to family conversations is interesting for a while, but there was a point about a third of the way in where I kind of stopped caring.  The film is much too static with everyone sitting or laying down and simply talking to the camera. While what they are saying is interested there isn’t enough here to keep my interest. My gaze kept drift despite Fesharaki efforts to make it compelling.  Perhaps this will play differently in a darkened theater, but at home watching a review copy I drifted.

One Life (2023)

The Opening Night Film of this year's New York Jewish Film Festival has me wondering why it was held back from opening in the US until after the 2023 award season. Easily one of the best films of the year and containing the best work by Anthony Hopkins in years, ONE LIFE is a glorious celebration of one man and his friends who chose to do the right thing for as long as he could.

The film is the story of Nicholas Winton, who in months before the Second World War began rescues 669 children from Czechoslovakia. It was a story he didn't talk about until the BBC caught wind of it. 

This film reduced me to a sobbing mess. In an age of hate it is wonderful to be reminded that there are good people out there who will do the right thing simply because it is the right thing to do. 

Featuring a beautiful performance by Hopkins and matched by Johnny Flynn as Winton as a young man, ONE LIFE pays glorious tribute not only to Winton but also the other men and women who helped him.

I both am at a loss of words of words and desperate to talk about it.

Because the festival asked for reviews to be short I'm going to simply say this is the first great film of 2024.

Flying Lessons (2024) First Look Festival 2024

This is a chronicle of what happened when director Elizabeth Nichols meet Philly Abe, who was a tenant in her building at a community meeting. The pair were there because they were trying to do something about their evil landlord. The women bonded and Nichols became fascinated by punk Abe who was a performer, director and activist for decades.

Lovely portrait of a friendship and a life that might never have gotten noticed.

Abe was one hell of a figure. She was a woman who took no shit from anyone and changed the lives of the people around her. Nichols warts and all portrait is a fitting memorial to a woman who not so quietly rocked the pillars of heaven.  I am amazed that Nichols got  so much  from Abe since it seems we get to know not only about the life she led but about the woman herself beyond that. Normally we aren't allowed to see this deeply into an individual.

What connected me to the film was she reminds me of my late friend Sally Willis kind of looked like Abe and had her sense of life. I can only imagine what would have happened if they ever met.

This is a good look at a great woman.

Recommended.

 

EXHUMA (2024) Starts today in Los Angeles before opening around the country

Try to go into EXHUMA knowing as little as possible. I say that because you really don't want to have any idea where this is going...because it's one hell of a ride.

The plot of the film involves a rich family trying to lift the curse on their new born child. It is believed that one of their relatives was unhappy and taking it out on the baby. This leads to attempting to figure out which one and perform a ritual... To say it doesn't go as expected is an understatement. Never mess with the wrong grave.

Pretty much from the first frame to the last EXHUMA exudes an oppressive tone. I was a good chunk of the way in and not much had really happened but I wanted to get away and not see what happens. I mean all we had was bunch of great actors (Choi Min-sik among them) telling us spooky stuff and I was hopelessly lost in fear.

All hail writer director Jae-hyun Jang who thanks to this and the classic film THE PRIESTS should be getting sainthood in the pantheon of horror. I don't know how he does it but he has managed to make two films which reinvigorate and renovate the supernatural/ folk horror subgenre.  In an age of jump scares and over used horror properties Jang is carving out new roads and new ways to scare his audience shitless. And it isn't a matter of it being something about setting his horror in an alien setting, Priests was set in a Catholic (Western) mileau, while a lot of EXHUMA is set in modern "glass towers". I love what he has done and I want to see what is coming next.

I was frightened. I was really bothered. And when I was done I had to go out and walk around in the daylight for awhile.

I'm not going to say any more because I'm not going to ruin it for you. I'm going to let you discover the evil lurking here and get splattered by the blood of dead things.

Highly recommended 

Limitation (2023) First Look Fest 2024

Elene Asatiani and Soso Dumbadze take video found on the internet and weave together the story of how in 1991 Russian backed forces brought down the  first democratically elected government in the former Soviet republics. Using footage from both sides we are given a look at what happened, why and how it was spun.

Frightening and sad story of how larger forces worked to bring down a democracy for their own gain.  This is a reconstruction of the sort we never see, events from both sides filtered through enough time that we can get a good grasp. 

Watching the film shot by regular people I was frequently struck by the notion that they probably had no idea what they were doing was going to provide such a vital record of what happened. The footage from either side was what it was and was often bent for effected. It was the stuff that wasn't what I was intrigued by.

While I think the film is probably a bit too long at 125 minutes, I have to give the filmmakers kudos for being thorough. I also couldn't tell you what should be removed since it's all important.

Recommended for anyone who wants to see how a democracy falls.

Remembering Gene WIlder (2023) starts today

One of the best Hollywood documentaries is a must see for anyone who even so much as likes any of the man's films.  Filled with love and affection the film is very much a love letter to the man, and while that may not be enough for some people, especially those who want to see the darkness in humanity, for rest of us this is going pure joy.

Highly recommended.

COCO FARM (2023) NYICFF 2024

Max is forced to move to the country with his dad after his dad’s business goes belly up. Staying at a farm he realizes that if he uses all the free range chickens he can set up an egg business. However as he makes a go of it , the processes set up to protect the big companies from competition begin to cause him trouble.

I was not planning on seeing COCO Farm at NYICFF however talking to people who had seen it at the film’s two festival screenings had me asking to see it. I mean people were saying they felt so good that they got weepy.

While I did not get weepy, I enjoyed the heck out of the film. A wonderful film about great people I instantly fell in love with everyone on screen. I know people tend to favor the animated films at NYICFF, however every year the festival is full of great live action films like this. This is the sort of film that is going to find it’s audience and become a touchstone film for generations.

This, like most films at NYICFF is one you will want to track down- and I mean that for adults as well as kids.

Ariela Rubin on BUTTERFLY IN THE SKY (2022) which plays March 17th in select AMC Theatres, followed by Additional Cities

 

With BUTTERFLY IN THE SKY playing AMC theaters this weekend here is Ariela Rubin's review from 2022's Tribeca 

Butterfly in the Sky is a documentary about the history of Reading Rainbow. The directors, Bradford Thomason and Brett Whitcomb made the film because they grew up loving the show and were shocked that a documentary hadn't already been made about it.

For those who aren't familiar: Reading Rainbow was a show on PBS from 1983-2006 with LeVar Burton as the host. It starred children(who weren't actors) as they read children's books. The show was made to encourage kids to read.

I grew up watching the show. It was a part of my childhood and while I couldn't (prior to watching this) remember specifics anymore about the show, the theme song is one some of my friends and I randomly will still sing.

For me, this film was very nostalgic to watch, I absolutely loved it! I loved learning the history, some of the challenges, and learning how impactful having a show with a black host meant for black children.  I think anyone would enjoy this documentary. It's a feel good one, and we all need more of that! 

I went to the premiere which was attended by many of the people involved in the show so there was a lot of applause and excitement in the theater. There was a Q&A after which was very enjoyable. They discussed the experience of the directors when they first spoke to LeVar Burton, if LeVar was ever scared with any of the things he had to do on the show (be close to an active volcano, ride a horse, fly in a small plane etc) [the answer was no. he found it all exciting and was always up for the adventure], that LeVar couldn't imagine not doing Reading Rainbow even when he got cast in Star Trek, and more.

It was a lovely movie. Highly recommended! "Take a look, it's in a book, a reading rainbow."

Mimang (2023) First Look 2024

Filmed over four years MIMANG is the story of three chance meetings. First a man gets off a bus at the wrong stop and decides to walk to his destination. Along the way he meets a woman from his past. Jumping ahead the woman and the man meet again several years later and walk the same street. In the final section they meet at a funeral and ponder life.

How you react to the film will be determined by how you react to the nature of the film. There is no narrative, there are just three encounters. It's three conversations had while walking through the same parts of the city. As the characters have changed so has the world around them.

I suspect that some people are going to try and compare the film to Celine Song's film PAST LIVES, in that it's the remeeting of two people over time,  however MIMANG is something different, having been started five years ago. MIMANG is also not really interested in the arc of the characters but of the ideas discussed. We are only given the words of each of three conversations so that as a result be can only get to know the characters up to a certain point. In Song's film we are given a great deal more information.

While I enjoyed the film I was kept distant by the formality of the discussion. You can feel the construction and the hands of the director moving things along. Actually what this feels like is a theater piece that isn't really opened up. I would so absolutely buy this on stage, but on film, in real locations  feels less real and more artificial then it would on stage.

That said the discussions are heady and worth a listen.

Recommended.