In the Shadow of the Moon (UK)

A documentary that tells the story of the moon landing through interviews with all surviving members of the Apollo missions. Alternating between very funny and inspiring it's also quite beautiful to behold. Simple and to the point, this was a very enjoyable film. The fact that it served as a bit of a mental palette cleanser after the complexity of Slipstream didn't hurt either. Makes a nice combination with Fever of '57 (4.5/5 stars)

A Friend of Mine (Germany)

Sort of a buddy / slacker / finding oneself type story. A young, (very) mild-mannered insurance man gets assigned to investigate a car rental business his company is considering insuring. He gets a job there and starts hanging out with Hans, an always happy sort of goofball who can't seem to believe his luck being paid to drive nice cars back and forth all day. Though very different they become friendly and the movie goes from there. Either nothing much happens or both men's lives are changed forever. Sort of depends how you look at it. Myself, I very much enjoyed watching. (4.5/5).

Salty Air (Italy)

A man abandoned by his father meets him later in life. The twist is that his father is a prisoner serving a long stretch for murder and the main character is an assistant at the prison. I enjoyed this different take on the child getting to know his father late in life sort of film, along with the flipped family dynamics. Sort of a quiet movie that just worked for me. (4/5 stars)

Slipstream (USA)

When Anthony Hopkins (writer/director/actor) introduced his film he repeatedly described it as "Strange." An apt description but an engrossing film. This is not his standard fare - after "strange" the next thing that comes to mind is David Lynch. There's a lot of insider film jokes I didn't quite get, but if you're in the mood for a jolt and a mental stretch this is well worth seeing. Hopkins plays someone who appears to be a screenwriter who's experiencing something. A hallucination, dream, flashback, a film - you be the judge. To say more would take something away. There are parts that feel a little too experimental for my taste, but most of it seems to tie back into something complete at the end. It's not so much that there's one big twist in the film - the ride is the experience. More satisfying for me than the last things I've seen by Lynch. Hopkins stayed late answering questions as well - always a nice bonus. (4.5/5 stars)

Manufactured Landscapes (Canada)

A documentary that follows photographer Edward Burtynsky as he takes large format stills of industrial landscapes. Basically areas where man's footprint has altered a huge swath of land. Largely centered in China for this series of photos. I'd been very excited to see this based on the trailer I saw during festival previews. There are some powerful moments in this film, but overall I was underwhelmed. There's a great tracking shot in the beginning, but for some reason on film I don't think it carried the same power that I suspect the individual photos do. I would definitely check out a show of his work where you could really take the time to study each piece in detail. (3/5 stars).

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soapbox (USA)

As described in the catalog: "The amazing true story behind the famous peppermint soap and the "Moral ABCs" printed on every label. A 3rd generation master soap maker, Dr. Bronner left Germany as the Nazis were coming to power, then escaped a Chicago insane asylum on his way to California to create his organic soap empire." Basically an accurate description of this film other than the fact that I think they said he's more like a 6th or 7th generation soap maker. It's an interesting documentary covering Dr. Bronner and the current generation of Bronners. What I particularly liked is the balanced treatment. It probably would have been easy to paint a blemish free picture of this man. Instead you see the cracks, and some of them are pretty significant. Children largely abandoned and an obsession with spreading a religious message where getting the word out to the world was more important than his family. A calculus that may be logical in some way but is extremely cold. The only thing I would have liked to have seen is a bit more explanation as to his "Moral ABC's". Maybe it's as incoherent as it comes across in the film, but it would have been nice to see someone attempt to explain it. At the end I was left with a picture of a man who was trying to do good but often does come across as unbalanced. The one clear message of the film - everyone loves the soap. :-) (4/5 stars)

Monkey Warfare (Canada)

What's the deal with 4 out of 5 Canadian films I've seen this year seeming to have a marijuana soaked plot? I'm guessing at this point they must have multiple Cheech and Chong bio-pics under development up there.

Monkey Warfare is a film about a couple who scavenge garbage for its resale online, ride bicycles and live "off the grid." When in the need for a new pot dealer the man meets a young (bicycle riding) dealer whom he develops a slightly more than professional interest in. He starts spending a lot of time with her and imparts his love of radical politics and direct action.

It's not quite a comedy and not a full on drama either. Overall I thought it was OK, but not great. The performances were good but I just wasn't that interested in the storyline. According to the director it advocates overthrow of the Canadian government. I sort of missed that but maybe it's advocating it in a very subtle and polite way. Or perhaps I'm just not a proper child of the revolution. Heard that The Stranger loved it - I'll need to grab a copy to read why. (2.5/5 stars).

First '07 Catch-up

It's most of the way through the opening Memorial Day weekend. Which means I'm already behind a bit on writing up what I've seen. The festival count stands at 32 so far. In case I don't get a chance to writeup each film individually I'm going to blast through an update. I'll also give a try to assigning ratings to each film using the standard 1-5 SIFF scale (5 best) as a shorthand. Time permitting I may come back and write more on the individual films.

Monster Camp (USA) - Documentary about the Seattle branch of Nero. Nero is a live action role playing group (think Dungeons and Dragons) and is in no way related to fiddling while Rome burns. Though I suppose you could draw that analogy depending on your views... Draws a very human portrait of the participants and does a good job of not making this a, "hey let's look at the freaks" exercise. Not all the folks are completely loveable so there is definitely balance there. You're still likely to feel this isn't the most healthy activity for all the participants, but you'll probably look at it differently than when you went in. (3.5/5)

Exiled (Hong Kong) - action shoot 'em up with a heart. Sequel from a film I haven't seen. Hit man friends sent to kill one of their own. Feel a bit bad about it and sit around with the target discussing how to help his family before they kill him. Some funny scenes, and a bit of gun violence for good measure. All around pleasant enough if observed in a moral vacuum. I'm not a huge fan of the Hong Kong standoff so not sure where this fits in on the quality scale. Seemed like a good collection of likeable hit-men but can't really be sure. (3/5)

My Best Friend (France) - Man realizes he has no friends. Immediately has a mid-life crisis. Either because he has no friends or because he just bet someone over $500k that he can produce his best friend in 10 days. Less a meditation on the meaning of friendship than a comedy. And a good one at that. (5/5)


Golden Door (Italy/France) - Interesting take on the coming to America experience. Way better than the film with Mr. Murphy. (5/5)

The Island (Russia) - Man forced to make a horrible choice by the Nazi's lives the rest of his life atoning for it. Quite, beautifully shot and very, very Russian. In the most depressing way. (3/5) if you're not in the mood, (4/5) if you are.

Secret #1 - You didn't miss that much. Serviceable attempt at a genre, in a country, with actors that must remain unspoken.

Battle of Wits (Hong Kong/China) - Tale of a lone warrior/strategist sent to defend a city-state against forces far superior in number. A more realistic (read as no flying people) view of battle in China. Not usually my genre but very good. (4/5).

The Singer (France) - French lounge singer at the wane of his career. Sort of an interesting view of an aspect of things you don't typically see in the average French export. I liked but didn't love. (3/5)

Fair Play (France) - Sort of a French Neal LaBute play. Competition gets way of hand in a small company. Well done and interesting at times, but I wasn't quite sure what to make of the point by the end. (3.5/5)

Waiter (Netherlands/Belgium) - Waiter takes issue with the crappy life being provided for him by the screenwriter. Barges in to say so. Even though this may sound a bit like a recent film it's different enough to recommend. Though personally I liked the Hollywood one too. (3.5/5).

Takva - A Man's Fear of God (Turkey/Germany) - A simple, very religious man is tapped as the new rent collector for his mosque. He struggles with his physical desires in this new role. An interesting film, though not an upbeat one. Good for conversation post-screening (4/5)

Pleasant Moments (Czech Republic) - Altogether not that pleasant. At times clever, other times just a bit annoying. Shrink sees a steady string of clients all pretty unbalanced. Of course at home she deals with her own issues. If nothing else you'll spend the film wondering why she doesn't buy a lock for her office door (2/5)

12:08 East of Bucharest (Romania) - Citizens of a small town in Romania try to figure out if they'd been active participants in the revolution. I dozed off a bit which is more likely me than the film. I'm giving a bonus point because I might have missed something. A few fun performances, but didn't really leave me caring much one way or the other (3.5/5)


Son of Rambow (UK) - Opening night film. Two unlikely childhood make their own Rambo film after watching a pirated version of First Blood. Sort of fun crowd pleaser that tends to be chosen for the 1st day of the festival. Better than last year's choice IMHO. (3/5)

Sakuran (Japan)

I'm running out of steam a bit here (1st day with three films and one more to go later). So I'm going to rest a bit and use the festival's description of Sakuran. "A tale of life, love and intrigue in the pleasure quarter of 18th century Edo, following the ascent of the staunchly independent Kiyoha from street urchin to supreme courtesan. Renowned photographer Mika Ninagawa’s manga-inspired directorial debut has been called "Memoirs of a Geisha done right”." I haven't seen Memoirs (liked the book though) so I'm in no position to comment on the implication that Geisha wasn't good. This does have a similar feel to the book, though there are some differences, especially in the type of work Kiyoha does.

I enjoyed Sakuran more as a feast for the visual senses than the actual story. The photography is drop dead beautiful. If you've never understood how an entire nation can be so smitten with the cherry tree (without someone chopping it down) you'll get it after seeing this film. The story of Kiyoha's life is a bit less interesting in my opinion - but not to the extent that it distracts from watching the pretty pictures. :-) If I had a chance to watch it again on video I likely would, just because I think there may be a bit more in the story to appreciate than I caught on this viewing.

The Fever of '57 (USA)

A back to basics sort of documentary telling the story of the year following the launch of Sputnick. What I mean is that this documentary doesn't go in for the fancy graphics or storytelling. But it does effectively tell the story of the kicked into motion after the Soviets launched the first satellite into orbit. Even though I had some familiarity with the story I definitely learned new things (did you know we accidentally dropped a nuke on ourselves that year?). It held my interest throughout. If this topic is of interest it's certainly worth a look. On the other hand, if the topic doesn't make you perk up your ears there's no particular reason to drop everything to see this. I haven't seen the other space program film in the festival this year but now I'm sort of in the mood to check that out and catch the full story arc.

Outsourced (USA)

Outsourced tells the story of a Seattle based call center manager who's sent to India to train his replacement. Along the way he seems to find each and every stereotype of the ugly American in India, and possibly his true path in life. Oh - did I mention he also finds most of the cliche's of the fish out of water style romantic comedy?

That said, I enjoyed the film. Turns out I'm a complete sucker for romantic comedies. If there's anyone remotely like able (read not Sarah Jessica Parker post Square Pegs) I'm going to get into it at some point. The male and female leads were very like able and it seemed they were having a good time making this film. Let's just say I wouldn't turn away a free ticket to this if I were you. Though I'm not sure I'd hire this guy to run my call center.

Rocket Science (USA)

I'm sort of starting to feel the pressure of keeping up with these film descriptions. So to save time I'll quote form the official SIFF guide, "This ingenious and disarmingly quirky film from writer/director Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound) is a bittersweet Election-like comedy about a young stutterer trying to make it in the cutthroat world of high school debate. Moving beyond the clichés of most coming-of-age films, this perfectly (and hilariously) nails the dilemmas and ironies of adolescence, love and self-realization."

I think the Election comparison is reasonable, though it's not really complete. It has a lot less of an edge than that film. I enjoyed the screening, but I felt for some reason I can't quite articulate that it fell just short of greatness. And that potential was definitely there. But there's no way I'm not going to enjoy a film that couples fast talking hardcore debaters with a good selection of the Violent Femmes back catalog (listen for it even during what at first seem like classical compositions).

Probably the best part of this film is it doesn't go the way 99% of similar stories finish. It's sort of a simple story told that way and it generally stays along that path without devolving into something syrupy.

This is England (UK)

On the way to the press screening I was thinking this one could go either way. I don't really feel like summing it up, so I'll crib from the official description, "It's the summer of 1983 in northern England. Punks, mods and skinheads are on the rise, but employment is not. Eleven-year-old Shaun has lost his father but seems to find a surrogate family in a band of friendly skinheads. When they're joined by an older, overtly racist Con the tale takes a much darker turn." This is pretty much a dead on description. I'd only add that I found it a bit, "eh..." I'm not sure boring is the word I'd use, but a little close. Nothing specific bad to say about the performances, and it was sort of fun at times to watch (what seemed) an authentic view of a part of England through the eyes of a 12 year old taking place when I was basically the same age. In the beginning I thought it might suck me in, but ones it started getting darker (which is early in the film) I rapidly lost interest.

King of Kong (USA)

An epic battle of champions - think Rocky meets the Karate kid. Keep the mental endurance, the need for focus and then throw in a joystick, a hot sauce-mogul, a digital girlfriend stealin' monkey and the extras from Revenge of the Nerds. Then you start to approximate the documentary that is ... King of Kong.

As in most great sports stories the film tells the tale of the outsider upstart challenging the "establishment" to be the world champion. Except it's the world champion of the video game Donkey Kong. This movie is great fun - and likely will be even if you've never taken up Mario's heartbreaking quest. Hard as it may be to believe, it really does have a lot of the same appeal as the Rocky pictures. By the end you're rooting for the upstart all the way. Even if your rational mind isn't quite there the filmmakers cleverly pull out all the musical stops along the way. The music of some of Rocky's famous movies makes the cut, as does the song that plays over the final portion of The Karate Kid. You just get swept away.

The movie has a great cast of characters. There's the reigning champion with a record unbroken since '85. A hot sauce mogul with a bit of a sneaky bent and a personal style much like the Tom Cruise character in Magnolia (minus the crudeness). There's the challenger who's almost the polar opposite. A super nice guy who's portrayed as doing well enough for himself at life but always just missing out on coming out completely on top. Throughout you end up rooting not just for him to win, but realize the luck of having what's portrayed as a great family and friends. Probably the best summary comes from his young daughter on the way to a tournament - "I didn't know the Guinness book was so important ... Some people ruin their lives trying to get in."

Mix in a motley group that makes up the rest of the hardcore retro gaming universe for good measure and there's pretty much something for everyone.

One small caveat. This isn't exactly virtuoso film making - you're not going to be bowled over by the cinematography. But it delivers what it promises and it delivers the fun.

The Champagne Spy (Israel)

This is my pick of the press screenings to date. A documentary about a boy who learned at age 12 that his father was a spy for the Mossad. With great direction and narrative from the boy (now an adult) and the coworkers of his father this had me on the edge of my seat throughout. Both an interesting story of the world of espionage and very much a family drama it rewards on both levels. I don't want to say much more because if you don't already know the whole story you're going to be kept wondering about the outcome all the way through...

The Bet Collector (Philippines)

In a way this is probably my favorite film of the press screenings so far. Not that it's a flawless gem that you absolutely must see. Instead, this is the first film that really made me feel I was seeing the inside of a society very different than the one I've experienced. It follows Amy throughout a few days of her existence. There's not a strong story based plot instead taking us along for the ride. Amy takes bets for a numbers game popular in the Philippines (as explained in the helpful introductory text). You pick two numbers and if they're drawn you win. Amy's scraping by trying to make ends meet - her family also runs a small convenience store out of their house. It appears she's paid a percentage of the bets so she isn't above a bit of the hard sell. She has some trouble with the law, but even manages to get a few bets placed while in custody.

The photography is pretty basic, and occasionally so jumpy it can induce some queasiness. But I felt it's rewarded with what felt like a very ground floor view of the living conditions for the working poor in that country. She's a sympathetic character without being painted with a halo. My sense is that a lot of folks were less than enthused with this movie - I'll probably get a better sense of that as I ask around. For me, I'm glad I went.

Eagle vs. Shark (New Zealand)

I was going to say that this film was separated at birth from Napoleon Dynamite. But more accurately it's the younger sibling. A romantic comedy of two social outcasts who find some degree of happiness with each other amidst animal themed parties, dead-end jobs and a quest for revenge. It sounds like it could be a lot of fun, but it was a less sweet than it sounds. The intent to be a Napoleon-lite sort of flick is way less than subtle - at times it seems like an homage to the earlier film. That said, I probably did enjoy this more than it's intellectual forbearer. Be warned though, I didn't enjoy that film as much as many did so I may not be in the right position to judge this genre. Much as in Dynamite I found the male lead so convincingly unlikeable that I had difficulty enjoying the film at times. I guess maybe I didn't really want to be laughing directly at the characters without feeling some sort of attraction to them as people. At least in Eagle vs. Shark the female lead, Lily, is likable. You may not understand her attraction to the nerdy, yet ego-centric and somewhat delusional "Eagle" but she's herself a good person. S he starts off liking him for no clear reason, then sort of understanding that he's quite a bit less than she'd imagined him to be. That process has it's high points though I felt the movie generally was a bit lighter overall than I would have liked. Not at all bad overall. One of the more entertaining press screenings so far. As I may have mentioned earlier if your film isn't about someones life going into free fall or mystical bugs you've got a leg up on the pack. Heck, just not having someone combing their hair with blood is likely to put you into the top ten. But it's still quite early in the process. ;-) I feel things are just starting to warm up...

Mushishi (Japan)

I couldn't really explain this film if I tried, so I'll let the professionals do it for me - "Ginko is a Mushishi, a wandering shaman who rids humans from malevolent spirits known as Mushi. But while treating a young girl, her plight triggers memories from his forgotten past, some of which seek revenge. The second live-action film from the visionary director of AKIRA and STEAMBOY."

This is definitely in a category of its own. The film was really beautiful and otherworldly. A true fantasy where the computer graphics blend seamlessly in with the natural surroundings. Even with the pretty scenery I just couldn't get into the storyline. The spirits are subtitled as "bugs" and the main character who deals with them as a "bug master." I guess it's possible this is an accurate translation (many of them do resemble insects) but it kept pulling me out of the story. Could have just been the day, but the mythology or maybe the characters just didn't really draw me in. If you'd like a view of a magical world you likely have never seen before Mushishi is probably worth a try. It's certainly a treat for the eyes.

2 Days in Paris (France)

Maybe you've been wondering what it'd be like to watch Before Sunset without that annoying Ethan Hawke character. Maybe someone who still wouldn't really be entirely likeable but would argue back more while bringing along a full set of facial hair instead of the pretensious goatee. If so, have I got the movie for you...

Let's start with the official description which accurately captures 2 Days in Paris, "Clashes of culture, volatile in-laws and flirtatious
ex-boyfriends test the relationship of Marion and her American boyfriend Jack on a visit to Paris in this charming screwball comedy. "

It's probably not fair to compare this with Before Sunset or the stronger Before Sunrise. But it's hard not to have that thought watching Julie Deply (who also wrote and directed) talk her way through Paris with an American boyfriend (Adam Goldberg). It is a different movie, a lot less serious and more directly funny. Not terribly deep but entertaining nonetheless. Almost worth watching to see Goldberg get creative in securing a taxi when he' s behind a long line of American tourists on a DaVinci code tour (and wearing Bush t-shirts to boot).

There are parts that seem to drag a bit at times but overall I had a fun time with the positives outweighing the negatives. Not amazing, but for fun per minute it's leading the press screening pack for me.

Children of War (UK)

I was looking forward to this documentary but unfortunately it fell a bit short of my expectations. The festival's short description gives a better overview than I could - "This powerful documentary explores the roles of social causes and government agencies in the rise of the Mara Salvatrucha (also known as MS-13) in the US and Central America. Estimated to have more than 100,000 members, it has the distinction of being the largest and most violent street gang in the world." At times there are definitely some very powerful and disturbing images. I guess if you're completely unfamiliar with the topic it'd be informative. And the story as to how such a huge group grew out of US involvement in El Salvador and how our immigration policy spread it further is truly fascinating. But overall I feel I learned less about this group and it's members motivations from the movie than you would from a NY Times article about the same topic. I didn't feel as I was getting a really complete picture of a complex situation. It's clear the filmmakers wanted to make the point that trying to stop a gang like this through simple means (arresting or killing) the members doesn't work. I generally agree, though I'm not sure they make the strongest case. They could have deepened the amount of information provided. For example, they often mentioned that the organization provided an attractive financial alternative, but they didn't explain what. They sort of inferred there's no central control of MS-13, nor hierarchy - but didn't really cover what the structure was. All this would have been OK if they'd told it deeper and personalized it as a human interest story. It scratches the surface here as we meet the founders of the gang but takes a higher level view rather than diving into any one person's life. Something to catch on TV because it is an interesting and important story. But I can't recommend carving time out during the festival to seek this film out.

Out of Time (Austria)

I saw Out of Time from Austria at today's press screening. Stealing the description from the press notes description provided by the festival it's, "Ostensibly a look at four old-world Austrian businesses that won't survive gentrification, this rewarding documentary is really about the quiet moments and the banter that
takes place among the aging proprietors. Beautifully shot and absolutely charming, it recalls of a time when community was more important than consumerism."

I enjoyed the film, possibly because after a week of mostly drama I was really in the mood for a documentary. I doubt it's the strongest example of the form I'll see at the festival. At least I hope it's not. There is some interesting conversation between the store owners - mostly married couples that work together. There are four stores features, a leather goods store, a butcher, a button store, and a pharmacy. They differ in the who we meet, couples in the first two, basically aged single proprietors in the last two. I enjoyed watching the couples the most. In part because watching the relationship was the most interesting but also because I thought their businesses were more appealing than the others. The leather goods and the butcher seem like areas in which globalization may have traded cost and efficiency for true quality. The button business while interesting just didn't feel the same. And the pharmacy - it's hard at this point to see it as anything other than a business that just sort of hung on way too long. It isn't so much that he's being beaten out by larger stores for no reason - the reason is quite clear, he barely has anything in stock. Not to mention there are recollections of his experiences during the Nazi occupation that left me more than a bit uncomfortable with the "eccentric" 86 year old proprietor. The description from the festival is a little misleading because you really don't see much of the community aspect - largely because with the exception of the butcher the businesses seem to be hanging on by a thread.

To sum up - if you're in the mood for something a little slow that gives a slice of life - or more accurately a slice of the end of 4 businesses lives this might be for you. It's not as depressing as it sounds, but you won't learn anything too earth shattering either. As you can tell it's a less than rousing endorsement. But I am glad I saw it.

Offscreen (Denmark)

This is not a movie for the squeemish. I just want to put that right up front as the short festival description doesn't really explain what's going on. Sure, it mentions the flims blurs the lines between documentary and fiction through the story of real life actor Nicholas Bro taping a year of his life. But something tells me you're more likely to remember the insanity Bro spirals into as the film progresses than the exploration of today's reality TV culture. You may love this film - clearly a bunch of folks writing on IMDB and across the 'net do. Maybe I'm biased - I'm not really a fan of watching folks lose their minds onscreen. Well acted or not, I truly didn't see the point.

Frozen City (Finland)

Here's an example of where the short description from the festival isn't quite on point with the actual film. "Looking to outrun the horrors of his past, a tormented cabbie flees Helsinki for an apartment complex in the suburbs, only to discover that new neighbors bring new problems. What ensues is a raw, realistic tragedy with an unwaveringly humane core."

Overall, it gives the right feel. But my take is that the taxi driver (and yes, there are several references to the film of that name) isn't really so tormented at the start. We meet him when his wife has left him alone with his three small kids. He's trying to make the best of the situation. As stressful as that start is things really go downhill fast once his wife decides to come back. And downhill is the direction things are consistently heading. I think this was my favorite from the first week of screenings. I'm still thinking on what the meaning of the overall story is - at the very least it could be an ad for why you probably want professional representation in your child custody dispute. Quite the cautionary tale in that regard ...

Death At A Funeral (US/UK)

This was listed as a UK/US production - which seems about right. It's set in England and definitely has the feel of a British comedy. At the same time it has a scatological bent at times that really feels more American - and not in a good way. I have to admit there are times I really laughed, but not often enough. A lot of the stuff felt stock - the accidental consumption of the hallucinogenic drugs, the relationship between the brothers, etc. There are some others which I won't describe to avoid spoiling things. I generally like this sort of film so I left a bit disappointed. Fine for a rental, or perhaps a plane. Four Weddings and a Funeral it's not.

Rescue Dawn (US)

Werner Herzog remakes his documentary from 1997 called Little Dieter Needs to Fly. Something tells me I might have enjoyed that more than the newer film. There's something that felt flat about this recent effort. The backgrounds looked realistic and the story about a pilot shot down and held prisoner early in the Vietnam war seems like it would make a compelling story. But I just couldn't shake two serious negatives. First, that the portrayal of Dieter (the downed German-American pilot) was hard to believe. He seemed completely unfazed by anything that occurred - to the point of seeming just mildly annoyed by torture. Even if you believed he was just compulsively positive (which he may well have been) there was something off about the cast of stock characters he was imprisoned in. Second, and more important the story as presented just seems way too simple for my taste. Maybe I'm drawing too much of a parallel with the state of affairs in Iraq, but it's tough to watch a film that seems so one sided. Dieter wants to fly and joins the Navy to do so. He's good. Almost everyone in Vietnam seems to come across as evil - right down to the kids he meets. To say what he's doing there is morally ambiguous is probably being kind - but that obvious issue about indulging his need to fly by dropping bombs is barely touched on. I'm sure making this movie wasn't easy, and I'm quite sure that surviving the experience must have been a feat of true strength and endurance. This isn't a bad film - just not nearly as interesting as I would have expected given the backstory and the director. I can't recommend rushing out to catch it.

Running on Empty (Germany)

Feeling lazy I'm going to crib from the festival press notes to describe this film, "An insurance salesman endlessly cruises the Autobahn, with a pay phone and the occasional unsuspecting customer as his only companions. Can a beautiful motel clerk release him from his spell? Top-flight performances bring an intriguing, Lynchian creepiness to this strangely compassionate retelling of The Flying Dutchman."

This was one of the better flix for me from the first week of press screenings. While I'm not 100% sure I've fully digested this film I was pretty involved throughout trying to figure out where it was going. It's not exactly the feel good movie of the summer but it kept me wondering. I wasn't particularly invested in how things worked out for the main character who wasn't particularly appealing. But I did want to understand his story - at least while I was in the theater. As I write this some time after the screening I realize it didn't really intrigue me much beyond the lights coming up. But I'm sure if I'd gone with others we at least would have been discussing it over coffee that night.

SIFF 2007 - Press Screenings Begin

May has started, which means SIFF 2007 isn't far behind. This past week marked the start of press screenings. It's doubly exciting as the new SIFF theater by Seattle Center is being pressed into service. Past years had pre-festival screenings at the Landmark Seven Gables. This is a huge step up in terms of location as well as theater quality. Not to mention parking. It seems to be paying off with much larger groups attending than I remember from last year. Sadly, I can't take full advantage of the 12 or so screenings per week. But I did manage to make it to 5 last week. I'll try to post quick impressions when I can. The members preview is coming up next week. I'll be posting programmer recommendations after the preview. May 10th will mark the full schedule being posted. I'm hoping some of the films I've seen in Vancouver will show up so I can provide some extra insight into what's worth a trip.