Ploy (Thailand)

A man and his wife travel home to Thailand from the US to attend a funeral. Their marriage is 7 (or eight) years old and at a precarious point. The husband invites a 19 year old girl up he meets at the bar to their room - to rest while waiting for her mom. The wife is suspicious of his motives and a sleep deprived morning of jealousy and angry discussion ensues. Mostly set in the hotel room this slow but engrossing movie blends reality and fantasy's to the point where it's a little difficult to truly know where the line is. The intense physical relationship (real or imagined) between a hotel maid and a bartender is superimposed on the main story line - I suppose drawing a contrast on the main relationship where lust has faded and love may or may not remain. There are some uncomfortable moments which I haven't fully gotten my head around. But it definitely worked for me. It's a quiet drama and the style is probably a matter of taste so your mileage may vary.

Captain Ahab (France)

An imagining of the famous Captain Ahab's (mostly) outside the years of Moby Dick. I found this interesting but not amazing. Sort of a 3/5 experience. I've not read Moby Dick so it's possible a richer understanding of that material would have made me appreciate it more. It's told in five chapters with the last two being a period after losing his leg to the white whale and the last during the period of the novel.

Btw - if you're thinking this is a good movie for kids you might want to reconsider. There didn't seem to be anything that'd scar anyone emotionally. But the dad next to me was getting awfully stressed looking over what his 10-12 year old was watching (and eventually left with him). Outside of the "Films 4 Families" series you might want to avoid festival films at SIFF unless you really do your research. 'Cuz if seeing the occasional naked body isn't in your current child development plan you might want to avoid French films not intended for kids.

Shorts 2008

I caught my second group of short films this weekend. SIFF has taken the step of grouping all shorts into a multi-day mini festival as opposed to past years process of spreading them out over a longer period. This new plan definitely works for me. The Stranger has labeled this a "film ghetto" which seems unnecessarily snotty - if you like shorts there's nothing wrong with that. It's not a type of film most folks get to see much of and there are some real gems mixed in which wouldn't work in a full length format.

Both packages were pretty reasonable, though I thought the first one on opening night was more consistent than last night's (Strange Days). It's hard to say which are worth buying individual tickets to, but if you've got a pass and a hole in your schedule it's a great way to try something new.

On the Wings of Dreams (Bangladesh)

A morality play from Bangladesh. Simple and well done and not nearly depressing as I was expecting. A poor (but surviving) family has things turned upside down by the discovery of a wad of foreign bills. They're illiterate and have no idea what country the bills are from or exactly how to find out. They're reluctant to let anyone know spend the film trying to understand the value of what they've found. As they start to dream about their impending fortune it starts to affect their current lives. Nothing startling here in the conclusions reached but pleasant to watch the characters voyage of self discovery.

Ain't Scared (France)

Follows the friendships and rivalries of a group of young adults in the lower income projects of Paris. The film has had a lot of buzz due to the interesting style of the young filmmaker who lived in a similar background. The film is sort of a split narrative following a group of the boys and then retelling the story from the girls view. It's an interesting insight into the social and gender issues at work in the environment. It's probably worth seeing for that peek into another group's world. At the same time I didn't feel pulled into the story itself. Overall was below my expectations somewhat.

Let the Right One In (Sweden)

A rare treat which will probably make my top 10 for this festival. A young boy with internal rage at being tormented at school makes friends with a new girl at his apartment complex. Who turns out is a vampire. This coming of age story blended with a revenge fantasy, vampire horror flick is both scary and sweet.

It totally worked for me as the film yo-yo's your emotions between rooting for the young boy and his friend vs. being aghast agast at what they're actually doing. Not for the super squeemish but it's not especially a gore fest and far more interesting than your average horror film. Hopefully goes without saying - NOT FOR KIDS. Good messy fun...

Up the Yangtze (Canada)

Described by the director as "The Love Boat meets Apocalypse Now" this is a documentary about the impact of the Three Gorges Dam project on the lives of two Chinese families. Both have children working on luxury cruises that operate in the region providing "farewell cruises" of the doomed region. Most of the story is told by following them along on these cruises.

It's a super well done documentary that brings an issue that's impacting millions of lives in China down to a very personal level. Even without the looming catastrophe of the dam the cringe inducing aspects of the foreign tourism on the boats would probably be worth the trip to the theater.

A Man's Job (Finland)

I'm sure it could happen to anyone. You lose a job, don't want to tell your wife. So you start leaving the house early and hanging out with your alcoholic friend at the local diner. He's the biological father of your youngest child which creates a bit of tension at times, but he's generally a supportive friend. When he's not trying to steal your family back that is. But eventually the money starts to run out and having found nothing steady you try to find some work as a handyman. Even with the best of intentions a good looking guy in such circumstance may find himself accidentally sliding from handyman to male prostitute. You know, these things just happen...

The films protagonist tries to make the best of the situation in this often downbeat but involving character study from Finland. Be clear - this is not a comedy in vein of Deuce Bigalow. Though I'd be willing to guess that film probably wasn't much of a comedy either.

Liked the film, but do be in the mood for a human drama before going, this is interesting, but not light fare.

Today's plan

I'm officially on the start of my vacation for the rest of the festival. Happily catching up on entries before I start the day's screenings. I could have caught up to three press screenings but nothing really caught my eye. Plus it seemed like a good opportunity to catch up on sleep and other key life activities.

So, in case anyone is wondering what's on the agenda today... Here's the plan in order, subject to constant change.

Ain't Scared - France - looks very interesting and the buzz has been strong for this one.

ShortsFest Opening Night - This year SIFF has grouped all the shorts presentations into a single weekend. I usually try to catch some of the packages during the festival as I almost always really like a few of the offerings. The great things about a shorts package is that if you don't like what you're watching you just wait a few minutes and you can try something new. Just like the weather in Seattle.

Let the Right One In - Swedish kids and vampires flick. You know you want to try it too...

Michou d'Auber (France)

A slightly creepy concept that by the end sort of worked for me. In the years before Algerian independence a man with a dying wife makes a decision to place his boys into French foster care. Though the younger one grew up outside of Paris everyone around them views the boys derogatorily as "Arabs." The foster mother who takes him in is worried about the reaction of her ex-soldier husband and disguises him by dyeing his hair and changing his name. A series of uncomfortable scenes follow showing her trying to hide everything from the kid's lack of knowledge of Christianity to his aversion to pork (in rural pig country). But of course the big loveable racist of a husband takes a liking to the boy and things mostly work out. It sometimes feels as though they're shooting for comedy, but it think it works better seen as a coming of age film (or as allegory for a changing France)..
I couldn't get a sense from the writeup I saw if this is based on any true events. I kept wondering if it was given the stranger than fiction aspect to it.

Intellectually something still feels a bit off about this. But for some reason I did like (though not love) the movie - maybe through the efforts of the actors more than the script. Even Gérard Depardieu was pleasant to watch. Weird on many levels ;-)

Jar City (Iceland)

Police procedural from Iceland with a noir feel throughout. Good stuff. The characters are more interesting than the mystery itself, especially the lead detective on the case. Taking place in a setting so small that the cops and criminals all seem know each other adds an interesting dimension to the film.

Plus, how often do you watch someone think through a whodunit while eating takeout sheep head at his kitchen table. Perhaps not often enough.

This is playing again on June 6th and worth checking out.

Tues night check in (Mongol and Blood Brothers)

Last night I did a double feature at the Egyptian. My first time there for this festival. Given a choice I'd probably skip it for the entire run. I know a lot of folks love that theater but I've never really taken a shine to it. Perhaps related to it being a large theater with a bathroom so ridiculously under capacity that people literally throw their used paper towels over your shoulder as you use the sink. Did people not use the bathroom in the era when it was built? Coupled with what seems like a higher rate of technical issues means I'm pretty happy to visit SIFF Cinema given a choice.

Anyway...

My main reason for writing was to offer a quick opinion until I can get a full update in.

I saw Mongol and Blood Brothers. Mongol is worth seeing if you're in the mood for the "origin story" of Genghis Khan. Can't speak to the historical validity, but as a sweeping epic type of thing it was pretty reasonable. Picture went dead for the last minute or so - they brought it back up but didn't seem to rewind. I'm not sure it was really a big deal - but always a bummer when it happens (has been notably rare this year).

Blood Brothers is a Chinese gangster/love story/tragedy type things. More style than substance in my view. Nice style but I wouldn't rush out to see it again.

Sita Sings the Blues (USA)

An animated musical treatment of the Ramayana full of humor and a questioning, feminist slant. Great all around. The "sings the blues" part of the title is from the fact that almost all of the all the singing is jazz recordings of Annette Hanshaw from the 1920's. It's almost impossible to give this film it's proper due in words. You just need to see it. I'd heard that several times before this screening - and truth be told I wasn't super convinced. Thankfully I went and I am not at all sorry.

I found the film laugh-out-loud funny, interesting and great to both watch and listen to. One frequent filmgoer who'd read the Ramayana often earlier in his life mentioned that on top of really liking the film as entertainment it made many points he'd missed as a child. The audience seemed to really love it as well. I'm pretty sure this isn't just me recommending the film. My only regret is that I didn't get a chance to see the director, who for some reason was able to attend the press screenings but not this film.

Update - later posts on the adventures of the film can be found here.

Heartbeat Detector (France)

An often fascinating, sometime maddeningly wandering story of a corporate psychologist who unwinds a simple but important assignment to eventually uncover his companies role in the holocaust. It's a pretty grim movie which draws parallels between the way the Nazi's went about their evil and the neutral language with which corporations focus on single minded profit objectives. Or perhaps more broadly on how optimizing any process divorced from ethics is a short throw from becoming evil. Either way - agree or disagree it made for compelling viewing.

Parts of this movie I'll admit were likely too deep for me to get. It's based on a French book which I plan to read more about to try and understand the myriad themes that play across the screen. The film is not short and felt a bit long at times. But it held my attention throughout. I suspect reviews will be divergent on this film (I heard a few negative ones from audience members on the way out) - but I'm glad I saw it.

Try to see this with someone if you go - you'll appreciate having a discussion partner later.

The Last Mistress (France)

I'm not exactly sure why this movie left me feeling a little flat. It's set in the 1830's and follows a young man about to marry into money while everyone around the bride's grandmother is warning her to call off the match. It seems the "gentleman" has been in a 10 year on again off again affair with another woman of questionable virtue. He tells the grandmother the story of his past relationship while she decides on how to proceed. It's told in the present and in flashback. There's lots of period costumes and sexual intrigue. But at the end I just kept wondering why I should care that much. Which as you can imagine makes it hard to recommend...

Love and Honor (Japan)

The third in the series of films from this director following The Hidden Blade and The Twilight Samurai. As in the previous two films this tells a story of Samurai that differs from the types of movies you may have caught on weekend TV. It's not about the fighting but living within that structure in feudal Japan. In this case the film centers around a young lower ranking samurai who is working as a food taster in the castle of their lord. He's part of the group that confirms if the master's food has been poisoned. At an early point in the film he's blinded and almost dies doing his duty. The question then becomes how will he and his wife survive when he can no longer do anything of value within the structures his lives. As it turns out the disability coverage for an injured samurai appears to be even worse than that of the average American. His wife is forced to make some very difficult choices in her quest to keep the family together. Her acts taken out of love come in conflict with his sense of honor, setting up a conflict about balancing these needs throughout the film. I liked this film quite a bit - in keeping with my experiences with the other 2 films in the trilogy. If you liked either of those you're likely to enjoy this one. If you haven't seen the others there's no real need to go in order so you might give this a try if you can catch it on a big screen. The film making is quite beautiful showing rural Japan visually as well as aurally as the seasons change over the course of the movie.

Heavy Metal in Baghdad (USA)

This documentary follows the ups and downs (mostly downs) of Baghdad's only heavy metal band from the invasion of Iraq to the present day. At the surface it's the story of this one band's (Acrassicauda) fortune as they try to survive and record their music. If it were practically any other country that's all the story would be. Instead this story could easily be that of any young Iraqi wondering why their talents and dreams are being wasted and questioning the value of the "democracy" they're living in.

I've seen several of the Iraq oriented documentaries and fictional films make in the last few years. This is probably one of the hardest to watch. Maybe because the men who make up the band are the least "foreign" by American standards. They all grew up learning English from American movies and their heavy metal heroes. They're all very articulate and seem musically talented. Their big dream is to become true rock stars, but at the same time their smaller dreams are being constantly thwarted - ones such as the goal of being able to wear their hair long, play gigs and wear their favorite band's shirts in public. Not to mention the simple goal of being able to live without ever present threat of bombs and the killing. You can follow the continuing struggle of this group on the blog associated with the film.

In telling the smaller story of one band the filmmakers humanize the impact that constant fear of death must be having on an entire generation of Iraqi's. And when you see it happening to people who are so similar to folks everyone has known it really hits home. This is not really a political movie - it doesn't go into the causes that drove the war, or what anyone could have done different. But it's hard to wonder if the people of Iraq weren't better off before than the US invasion. It's not a perfect documentary - but it tells a different side of the story in a way that makes it worth the time.

Transsiberian (UK)

Seems like this was a bit of a blown opportunity. Great locations, some good actors, thriller set on an exotic train. But it does have Woody Harrelson so maybe I should have known. If you take this as a how not to travel safely abroad then this film is genius. Just do the exact opposite of the two American characters at practically all times. At other levels though - not a festival highlight.

Boy A (UK)

One of the best films so far. A young man is released from prison after being involved in an infamous crime as a child. He's given a new identity and gets off to a good start making use of his second chance. But he remains haunted by his past which is slowly revealed in flashback. I don't think it does the viewer more to really know that much more going in. This isn't a happy, cheery movie but one I'm quite glad I saw.

Slingshot (Philippines)

Hmmm - what to say about this one? I think it may have won an award in Berlin. And technically it manages to string a lot of disparate pieces together fairly fluidly. But it just didn't work for me. If the goal is to give a sense as what life in the Manila slums is like it does do that well. It also makes a strong point about how politicians may use the people's poverty more as a way to stay in power than to affect meaningful change. But as a story it wasn't really that interesting. You can sort of get the same feel for the environment from last year's Bet Collector which is I'd recommend more - and is likely available on video at this point.

Continental, A Film Without Guns (Canada)

A story about loneliness and alienation told through a series of loosely coupled characters. It's listed as a black comedy - but I found really nothing funny about it. I thought it was reasonably well done, but I didn't really see anything interesting enough to make me want to follow these characters comings and goings. Sort of a downer without an upside for me. 'nuff said.

The 3 Little Pigs (Canada)

Yuck - possibly going to make my bottom 5 for the festival. For me there's not much point in even describing this one. If you want to see it go ahead - but don't say I didn't warn you. ;-). Maybe you'd prefer Love and Sex 101 from last year. At least I laughed at it even though it was far from a favorite. Let me just say this - if you're going to make a sex comedy you might want at least make the sex part compelling on screen.

The title refers to three goofy brothers with monogomy issues. They're boring - they throw away good relationships in some cases, less good ones in others. They have an older, more mature brother who of course has issues of his own. And I bet you can guess what those are 10 minutes or less in.

I've heard this was a big hit in Quebec - and much of the audience seemed to like it. So your mileage may vary.

One to catch and one not to rush to

Sort of a mixed bag to end the day. I'll try to circle back for a more complete writeup. But just in case I don't catch up before the next screening...

If you haven't seen it already you'd be well served to try to catch the monday screening of Boy A. I've heard some describe it as their favorite of the festival. I still think I'd put Edge of Heaven above it, but Boy A is still pretty darn good.

Less good is Transsiberian. It's one of the better movies I saw today - but the bar on that is fairly low. I think I'm going to have to institute a Woody Harrelson rule for future festival choices - meaning be very, very wary of anything he's in.

Finally - on a helpful note be sure to checkout this recent post from fellow SIFF blogger The Voice of Reason on Film. She's seen a bunch of stuff playing at SIFF this year and has some quick yes/no votes for your benefit. If only I'd read this post earlier in the day I could have made some better choices. Ah well - the highs and lows of random choices is part of the festival fun... :-)

Quick entry from the road

Just sitting in a coffee shop waiting for my next film. Really hoping to turn my luck around. The first three films of the day have not been wonderful. In fact I feel like I'm on a downward slide.

First off I watched Continental: A Film Without Guns. That actually wasn't bad, just a bit bleak. It's ostensibly a black comedy of loneliness and despair. The latter part is pretty accurate, and it probably works OK at that level, though I've seen more interesting treatments - including a film at last year's SIFF from Germany that also featured a life insurance salesman who equally loved his job. But comedy - that part I missed as I don't recall laughing. If the description sounds reasonable to you and you're not expecting to laugh then this one might be OK.

Next up was The 3 Little Pigs which is a film from Quebec about three brothers who seem fated to wreck their relationships in their quest for sex with those other than their wives. It claims to have been a runaway hit in Canada - but I just don't see it. The audience was laughing quite a bit, so it could just be me. I laughed maybe once or twice the entire time. I didn't love Love and Sex 101 from last year, but to me this was about similar themes and MUCH better. And that movie I'll say again was not great in my book.

Last I (hopefully) hit rock bottom with Slingshot. It's a pulled together series of vignettes of life in the slums of Manilla and won an award in Berlin. This just totally didn't work for me. If you're looking for a view of life in such surroundings I'd suggest The Bet Collector or maybe seeking out a true documentary. This just didn't work as a movie for me. There's some social commentary implicit in it which is a better model for showing vs. telling and therefore might serve as a guide for the folks who did Battle In Seattle. But otherwise I was very much ready to leave by the end.

Next up (if my strength holds) is Boy A and Transsiberian. I've heard good things at least about the first so I'm hoping for a stronger end to the day.
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Quick update after day 1

I'll be coming back tonight or sometime this weekend to write slightly more in depth updates on what I saw yesterday - the first full day of screenings. Things got off to a very solid start with three good films, The Fall (USA), Before the Rains (India), and Elite Squad (Brazil).

The Fall was a very nice surprise. I wasn't too impressed with the short catalog description and originally hadn't planned on attending. But I ended meetings early and the The Stranger had it on their recommended list so I decided to roll the dice. It's a very beautiful looking film with shooting having gone on in over 20 countries. I'm not sure it'll be on my top 10 by the end, but I'm glad to have caught it in a theater as it'll definitely lose something on a smaller screen.

Before the Rains was a different but also positive viewing experience. This one does match up reasonably well with the catalog description telling the story of an English/Indian relationship gone horribly wrong. Not a fun movie but an interesting one.

Elite Squad rounded out the day taking things in a decidedly gritty, action oriented dimension. If you've seen any of the films of the last several years set in Brazil's slums you'll recognize the backdrop. This tells the story from a viewpoint I hadn't seen before, that of the police. And more specifically from what's presented as one of the few non-corrupt police units operating. I can't say it was great, though there are some very strong moments. We follow two men trying to join this elite unit and one pushing to find his way out to a calmer life. If you've found other movies in this world interesting it's definitely worth checking this out.

Today's plans are still in flux for me - though I'm thinking to head over to Pacific Place for the first screening and take things from there.

Elite Squad (Brazil)

Elite Squad was sort of review proof for me. The film description indicated it took a look at police corruption in the slums of Brazil. That description plus the note that it had won a significant award at the Berlin festival (meaning to me that at least someone liked it) meant I'd want to give it a shot. I find that if I try a few films at SIFF from Brazil I'm bound to like at least one of them each year. As I'd mentioned in an earlier post I'd seen a few interesting films set in the impoverished areas of Brazil, but none from the police's point of view. So this looked like something different. And it was - mostly in a good way. If you've found movies like City of God to be good uses of your time I'd recommend checking out Elite Squad. It's not nearly as good but sort of fleshes out a more complete picture. For all I know it's completely inaccurate - but still interesting.
The movie follows one member of the elite police force for whom the film is named as he tries to get out. He prides himself on being an member of the best trained of Brazil's police - who view themselves as being literally at war with the drug gangs. They fight these gangs with the tactics of war and not law enforcement - which repeatedly see them going in and killing anyone with a gun and using interrogation tactics that would warm Dick Cheney's heart. The regular police are portrayed as so corrupt that he'd just as soon shoot them as the drug dealers who control the slums. But the stress of the job has started to get to him and with a child on the way he wants out. But his loyalty to his unit means he needs to find a replacement. So he follows (as do we) two potential recruits who may be able to take his place. In order for that to work he needs them to become as well trained and as quick to kill as he is. This isn't quite an action movie though there are quite a few gun fights. It is hard to say how realistic it is - but if you've wondered while watching other Brazilian movies how the authorities could let things get as bad as they seem - this sort of rings as though it could be true. Either way, I'd put it in the sort of good but not great camp - 3/5 stars type territory.

Before the Rains (India)

Before the Rains is a story from India of an Englishman (Henry) in 1937 seeking to expand his plantation by building a road to a prime spice cultivation area. If he can't finish it before monsoon season he'll be wiped out financially. To achieve this goal he's highly dependent on the help of TK, an Indian from the local village educated at an English school who's become a "partner" of sorts. Of course being colonial India the partnership isn't quite that of equals.

Turns out that Henry makes the classic entrepreneur mistake of excessive multitasking. When he should be focused on the key goal of the road, he starts a side venture in the guise of an affair with his (admittedly tempting) housekeeper. As I'm sure anyone who's read or seen a story in this life will suspect nothing good will come of this. Part love story, part tragedy, and a tale of another man caught between worlds this made for a good film going experience. It's not unbelievably amazing but it's nice to look at and interestingly done.

The Fall (USA)

This movie is well worth checking out as long as you go with an open mind.

In some ways a very simple story at its core. A silent movie era stuntman meets a young girl in the hospital. He's been badly injured and is suicidal over the loss of his love to a famous actor. She's hurt herself working in the orange fields of California. They bond over a fantastical tale that he that's vividly rendered through the young girls imagination. Which occasionally leads to amusing misunderstandings between his words and her differing visual interpretation. There's a somewhat dark theme underlying the movie and I don't think it's a great bet for kids. But if you go in with an open mind I think it's an interesting ride. In some ways the surreal story with a parallel to their reality sort of reminds me of Pan's Labyrinthm. I have a feeling this one may leave me with fonder memories as they settle in. Not absolutely amazing for me - but definitely the sort of thing I wouldn't ordinarily go to without the flexibility of a pass. I'd recommend reading the longer description in the festival guide (much better than the short blurb) but I do recommend.

SIFF Opening Night Party

Last night was the opening of the 2008 Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF). A full review of the film itself was posted a little while ago. This is the one night of the festival that tends to give itself over more to spectacle than to the best film It's held in a huge venue (at least for a movie) - Seattle's McCaw Hall which seats roughly 2900. I've included some photos below to get a sense of it's scope. I got there fairly early - around 5 and the place was already buzzing with activity. They'd rolled out a red carpet which is visible in the first photo taken when things were still getting started.

This year I treated myself to what they call the "VIP experience" which is translated into the following extras

• A pre-show party
• valet parking (which I didn't use as I'd bought a pass for parking right across the street for the festival which avoided having to wait for my car)
  
• a gift bag
  

As you can sort of expect the main reason to do it is as an additional fundraiser to SIFF plus an opportunity to hang out with more crazy film people. As I was driving home myself last night it also had the advantage of the opportunity to drink (included) way before I needed to head out for the night.

I was fairly impressed with the pre-show party. There was plenty of food, a good selection of beverages and a nice relatively quiet atmosphere. I had an assigned seat for the show so I could really hang out and enjoy things up until the last minute. The food was mostly sushi - not the greatest ever but plentiful and tasty enough. I'd wanted to take some more pictures but with folks moving around and my lame cell phone camera it was a bit tough. You can almost make out a fellow SIFF blogger in this shot. So I'd put the pre-party on the good reasons to spring for the upgrade list.

The after party was fun as I got a chance to catchup with people I know. The reserved section was super packed - seemed like at least twice as many people in that section as before the film started. I didn't get a chance to check out all the offerings. There was some deserts available - but mostly during this time I was talking rather than eating. I couldn't quite find the cupcake section - I remember really enjoying that last year. :-)

Maybe slightly less on the awesome scale was the gift bag itself. No complaints - that's not why I did it and went with low expectations. It's just that during the party I'd heard talk about bottles of alcohol and nutella showing up in the bags. The highlight of mine was the coffee from Cafe Vita. Seems like someone swiped the t-shirt that was supposed to be in the bag (there was a note included explaining how to exchange). That's probably OK as it seems to be a shirt for the SUV they were advertising before the film. My earlier post mentions the ad and why you won't be seeing me advertising the vehicle for them anytime soon.

Overall it was a fun night and well presented. With the possible exception of the film. ;-)

Some stock photos of McCaw Hall follow - of the sweeping lobby and the empty theater itself.

Battle in Seattle (USA)

Some may remember that in an earlier posting I'd expressed a belief that local productions sometimes get an easier ride into SIFF than other films. Often leading to underwhelming viewing experiences. In the best of these cases a super charged local audience can make the screening a fun event even with weaker content. Last year's Blood on the Flat Track is a great example. But there are some films that even the most enthusiastic audience can't save. I totally understand how a movie with this theme (WTO protests/riots) and known Hollywood actors must have been an irresistible draw for programmers. And I'm not even going so far as saying that they should have passed on this film - the theater was packed - and therefore as Stephen Colbert would say the market has spoken and this was a great choice. But regardless of your view of the WTO or the protests in Seattle there wasn't much to like about this movie from my perspective. Clearly much of the attendees would disagree as the audience seemed to love it - or at least were vocally cheering throughout. My summary review in two words - strangely underwhelmed. And not because I don't love fightin' the power as much as the next guy.

The movie follows multiple characters through the events of the Seattle WTO protests. A cop and his (ironically) unfortunate wife, several protesters, and in smaller roles "good" WTO attendees, and the local political establishment. Oh wait, almost forgot about the local newscaster with suicidal tendencies with respect to her career. They do a fantastic job telling you over and over (and over again) about the evil that is the WTO and the awesomeness that were to protesters. Sure, they briefly tell you that the ones smashing windows were bad and point to some sympathetic establishment types. But there's way too much telling and not enough showing in this film. Add in some pretty uninspired dialog, acting and hard to swallow story points and your get Battle in Seattle. Just add hundreds of cheering local fans and you can imagine opening night.

There are a few fun things mixed in - many intentional, some probably not. I sort of enjoyed the dynamic between the activist partial to turtle costumes facing off against the wall of Seattle PD. Turtles speaking truth to power, and interesting concept explained in some depth by the character involved. See, you're not going to get that from the mass media treatments of the topic...

I'm not sure if this was their intent, but the film makes me sympathetic to the mayor. Which I don't recall feeling during the actual period of the riots. Largely around the difficulties in managing a situation where people take things a bit too literally and don't ask for clarifying questions. The big one (and one of the few parts of the movie where they don't shove a detail in your face) is around the decision to not arrest anyone breaking the law. That's the message you see him giving - but a reasonable question from those receiving the orders could have been - "up to what point?" For example, don't arrest people blocking an intersection non-violently even if that's technically illegal. But maybe arrest the smaller number of people engaging in direct destruction of property with the intent of escalating the situation. Of course it's just a movie...

There's probably a lot of points to agree with politically here. So this is wholly a review on the film itself and not it's message. My hope is that on that all sides can agree this wasn't a great film to watch - and it's hard to imagine it inspiring people to any great extent. Though if gets some folks to read up in more detail that would be a good thing.

other minor peeves...

• filmmaker telling you over and over again how this is "as indie as it gets".
• Ads for SUV hybrids before the film that proudly declare they get better mileage than a 6 cylinder Camry - the least fuel efficient model of the line
• people who text during the movie (3 times if I counted right), regardless how amusing they are afterwards calling friends to see this amazing flick.
• Michelle Rodriguez's response to practically everything during the Q&A
  

Ballast (USA)

An often bleak, but equal parts engrossing drama about three people struggling to find something positive in life. The movie starts with a neighbor finding a man at home in almost a comatose state of depression after his twin brother has committed suicide. The other two characters are the young son of the deceased twin and his mother. The mother and child have been estranged from the father since birth. The mother is struggling to barely make ends meet, the son seems headed on a path towards serious drug problems and the surviving twin is becoming suicidal himself. Further problems push the three into closer contact as we follow them throughout the film. It's certainly not the feel good movie of the summer, but there's a glimmer of hope that makes this more positive than it sounds. What really makes it work is the unhurried pace of the film and the acting with the silences telling as much of the story as the talking. I thought it was a good film, which would probably reward a second viewing. The film played at this year's Sundance festival and won both Best Director and Cinematography Awards.

I've attached some footage from the Sundance Channel of the film's director Lance Hammer. Haven't watched it yet myself but hopefully it'll be interesting. Finding a trailer has proven pretty difficult. I suspect it's not the easiest movie to cut an exciting trailer for as this is more of a sucks you in as you understand the characters movie than something you sell in 90 seconds.

My only complaint is that in the interest of authenticity some of the dialog is a bit hard to make out. I think I caught most of it but missed a small but key piece of discussion about why the boy's mother and father split.

The Edge of Heaven (Germany)

The festival description doesn't quite do justice to the scope of this film. Just to give you a sense here's the official blurb, "In The Edge of Heaven, writer-director Fatih Akin gives us an exquisitely moving yet resolutely unsentimental story of six people whose lives intersect in Germany and Turkey. When a Turkish septuagenarian hires a prostitute as his live-in lover, their children are sent on a journey of loss, discovery, and love." The description is technically accurate but gives the impression that the movie is a movie centered around one character. Instead it's a far more complex series of goings on that you get to ride along for.

Strongly recommend this film. I'm not going to get into the storyline details as I thing that would detract from the film. It's probably my favorite press screenings so far this year. Likely one of the top things I've seen this year. The characters are interesting, the storytelling technique is non linear without being confusing and the film truly doesn't let you guess where the story is going. This is not a happy movie but I left feeling positive. Either it's the message or just the experience of enjoying the ride. Truly not sure which but I'm glad to have seen it.

BTW - I've included the IMDB link for this film. But do yourself a favor and don't check it out until you've seen the movie. It's "summary" is far too specific and pretty much lays out some of the bigger moments in the film when you should get to enjoy them as they happen on screen.

Tickets for festival screenings are available here.

My Effortless Brilliance (USA)

It's possible that this was just a movie that hit my strange mood for the day - but I've got to say I really liked this film a lot. Not much happens, just a bunch of guys talking, but I felt like I was watching something interesting and very real. But with the benefits you expect from a work of fiction vs. watching a reality series.

This film is directed by Lynn Shelton and if I recall correctly written by one or both of the actors in the movie. It's a small cast, just four folks on screen over the course of the film. The film was called out as worth watching during the programmer's preview last Thurs. I'd sort of taken that recommendation with a grain of salt. The film is a local production and in some cases that can mean a film hyped a bit more than it otherwise would be. While that almost always means a fun screening with cast, crew and friends in attendance (such as Blood on the Fast Track last year) it doesn't necessarily mean great cinema. But this exceeded expectations - though I'll admit it took a few minutes to grow on me.

From the start I had a hunch I'd either strongly enjoy it - or intensely dislike it. Maybe that's from the starting feel of the film which opens with a writer procrastinating around the house in the sort of hyper-realistic feel of the digital video. I tend to find that look a little disconcerting and really require being pulled in by the characters to avoid the sense that I'm watching The Real World on MTV. Probably not fair - but I think that's how I react most of the time to that sort of look on-screen. Add in the fact that the writer character is sort of a jerk (something stronger than "jerk" is more appropriate) and I was a bit worried. Nevertheless I was drawn into the story pretty quickly. Contrary to my initial fear it is not a 90 minute story about writers block. It's a talky take on the healing of a lost friendship (if it ever originally was a friendship) between two men. I say talky - but not too much, with a good deal of humor mixed in to break up the uncomfortable moments.

Much of the film takes place in a cabin in Eastern Washington state - which provides some great backdrops to the story. If you're a serious reader you'll also probably get the benefit of truly understanding some of the jokes I probably missed. And if nothing else you'll probably remember this movie fondly the next time you see Liv Tyler's from the rear on the big screen...

You can (and should) buy tickets here.

SIFF 2008 - By the Numbers

This year SIFF has been nice enough to allow open access to the press website. There's a nice bunch of info, photo's etc. I stumbled upon a pdf list of all the titles playing in the festival this year. One thing I wanted to do (and maybe this is already somewhere and I just missed it) was get a quick count of how many films are showing per country. During the preview there was a mention that the list was much broader this year than most. At first I felt that way as I flipped through the guide. But as I drilled in (the search function on the website lists both shorts and features) I started to wonder how much depth there really was. For example, India has a HUGE film industry - but how many slots did they take up at SIFF in 2008? I decided to play around with the pdf and see if I could do some basic counting.

Just a few minutes later thanks to Excel I had my answers. It's probably not perfect as many films are listed as coming from multiple countries in the guide - but in the source list only the first listed country is included. This makes analysis simpler, but may under count things which are cross border collaborations. Even so it's good for a quick bit of fun. I've posted the excel file that resulted so you can play around yourself or have a master list of films wanted that for some other purpose. The file includes fields for film name, country, director, and the series each movie belongs to (for example Face the Music, New American Cinema, etc.) From what I can tell shorts are not included in the list.

The data seems to show 56 countries represented with a pretty long tail (only 9 countries have 5 or more films playing). I would have expected slightly more depth but I realize I've got nothing to compare it against. The selection does look pretty good overall - so nothing here so far to lower my expectations. You should be able to click on the graph above to see more details about the distribution.

SIFF it turns out, like most things is all about the Pivot tables. ;-)

Redbelt

I've been pretty psyched to see this movie since catching a preview a month of two back. Even before I saw his name on the trailer it was pretty clear this was an effort from David Mamet. And not just because Ricky Jay (and all the other regulars) was prominently featured. The tale of a "pure" martial artist fighting to stay afloat financially while steering clear of the increasingly lucrative world of mixed martial arts pro bouts. There's a fair amount of time establishing why he makes the choices he does - he teaches people not to fight but "to prevail" and believes that competition weakens a true warrior.

Being Mamet one goes into the film expecting a BIG twist. There's of course some of that in here - but I think it's better viewed more at the surface level - a story about a man who's studied to be the best he can and works hard to impart that knowledge (and not just the technical skills) to others. In some ways it would work as well with any discipline that requires hard work and perseverance and can be used for both good and evil. Though of course violence tends to work best on the big screen. :-)

There's a fair amount of chat on IMDB about if the storyline really adds up at the end. My take is that if it's supposed to be a huge conspiracy, then perhaps not. But if you look at it more as a bunch of actors (not in the movie sense) optimizing for their own selfish goals and the tale of a man moving through this world who is not compromising for the sake of money then I think it does stay together well.

Either way, it's a pleasure to watch. Which is what counts for me at the end of the day/film. I definitely recommend - especially if you can avoid reading any more about it first. You might not want to wait. I saw it on the opening night weekend - Saturday at 8 and there were probably less than 10 folks total in the theater. Not sure how long it'll be out there unfortunately.

The Promotion

Answering the longstanding "what if..." question of Stifler marrying the receptionist from The Office, this film explores the (allegedly) amusing dog eat dog world of supermarket management. The setup is that two assistant managers are vying to move up to be the head of a new branch of their chain market. I sort of expected a War of the Roses (or Fair Play) slash and burn type of corporate warfare from the description. It turns out to be a more nuanced film where I had mixed feelings at various points as the characters become more or less sympathetic at different points. I'm not exactly sure where the director was really trying to go - straight comedy, a comment on the nature of competition, etc. Either way, it doesn't quite work so well. I did laugh at several points of the film - but nothing really that strikes me as big/memorable a day out from the screening. I'd recommend skipping this in theaters but perhaps doing it as a rental/cable choice if there's not much else around. Two positive things to say. First, way better than John C. Reilly's Walk Hard. Second, always nice to see any cast member of The Wire working (in this case - Maestro Harrell).

SIFF 2008 Programmer Recommendations - Take 2

Even better - I realized I could just scan in the doc. Wish I'd thought of that before I started typing the last post...

siff-picks - Upload a doc

Read this doc on Scribd: siff-picks

2008 Festival Preview Meeting

Last night SIFF held their annual members preview of the 2008 festival. This is an opportunity to hear from the programmers directly on their faves. Plus of course a chance to catch up with people you haven't seen since last year.

They also showed a preview reel at the end. Unfortunately, I was pretty tired and left before that. Overall though it was a good experience with plenty of tips on what to look for. They also distributed a printed list of some of the recommendations. I scanned it quickly - thankfully nobody recommended Apollo 54 - so I don't need to disregard anyone's complete list. ;-)

I'm not sure I've got the concentration to re-type everyone's recs. But I'll give it a shot - apologies if I miss something. The actual handout includes some of the reasons why these films are worth the special effort to catch. But I'm just going to list the names for now.

You can search for more details on any of these films at the festival website.

BTW - I noticed that Mysteries of Pittsburgh has both been made into a movie and that Beth (below) liked it. It's based on a book by Michael Chabon that I remember enjoying - so it's a nice surprise to see it's coming to the festival.

Beth Barrett - Programming Manager

• Man on Wire
• The Wave
• Chrysalis
• Mysteries of Pittsburgh
• Shortsfest Weekend
• The Last Mistress
• Idiots and Angels
• Garrison Keillor; The Man on the Radio in the Red Tennis Shows
• The End
• Otto; or Up With Dead People
• Night Tide
• Island Etude

Carl Spence - SIFF Artistic Director

• Battle in Seattle
• The Great Buck Howard
• Bottle Shock
• Fugitive Pieces
• Secret of the Grain
• The Edge of Heaven
• Mister Foe
• Murnau's Sunrise
• Everything is Fine
• Song Sung Blue
• EM
• Derek
• Creative Nature
• Pierre Rissient: Man of Cinema
• Newcastle
• Shall We Kiss
• Hidden Face
• Cherry Blossoms - Hanami
• Sonetaula
• Boy A

Actually Mr. Spence went on to give a fairly long list of other films. It might be better to list what he didn't like. ;-) I'm going to move on to the other lists for a bit

Maryna Ajaja - Programmer

• Mermaid
• Katyn
• You, The Living
• Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame
• Mongol
• Son of a Lion
• Alexandra
• Magnus
• Leroy
• Empties

Andy Spletzer - Programmer

• Captain Ahab
• Dust
• Girl Sparks
• Loos Ornamental
• Movie, Or an Introduction to the Philosophy of Auter Film Making
  Portraits in Cinema
• Stalags - Holocaust and Pornography in Israel
• Still Orangutans
• We Want Roses Too
• You, The Living

Dustin Kaspar - Programmer

• Ain't Scared
• Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame
• Elite Squad
• Fighter
• Flow: For Love of Water
• Great Speeches For a Dying World
• PVC-1
• Saving Luna
• Sita Sings The Blues
• Terra

Dan Doody - Programmer

• 32A
• New Ken Wardrop Short Films
• Seachd: The Crimson Snowdrop
• Scottish Shorts
• The Disappeared
• Once Upon a Time
• Idiots and Angels
• The Wild Bunch
• Mirageman
• Strange Days

Seattle Film Festival 2008 Guide is Onlne

The SIFF.net website now has information on the films screening at this years festival. As always, nice and interactive and less smudgy than the official Seattle Times guide.

American Teen (US)

A documentary that's sort of a cross between The Real World and every film by John Hughes that you've seen. It follows five students in a small Indiana town through their senior year. They're chosen to match the standard teen movie stereotypes, prom-queen, jock, stud, geek and weird girl who wears funny hats.

I was very much in the mood for a documentary by the time this screened at the press previews. So it's very much possible I liked it more than I would have otherwise. It's a good mix of humor and serious moments in the student's lives. The access seems pretty complete and they're remarkably natural in front of the camera. Maybe the age (or the prevalence of reality TV) lends for the ability to act without thinking how bad some of these moments might look on screen in the light of day (or sans the alcohol). The film manages to find stereotype breaking moments for each, and I do think it's worth checking out. The students are shown (figuratively) warts and all - but there's something to like about all of them by the end. Most of their parents don't quite do as well by comparison.

Even though you'll go from wanting to cheer to groaning every few minutes - there are at least two moments that are really rewarding to witness. The first is the the chance to watch a student stick to her guns regarding her plan to get out of the town that she knows is a trap for her. The second is watching the "nerd" break out of his shell, at least for a short period on his trip to San Diego to visit his older brother.

That said, there's one John Hughes stereotype that apparently cannot be broken. That of the girl who seems to think of herself (and by those around her) as not terribly attractive but turns out to be hot as soon as she ditches the unflattering hat. Which of course is obvious to everyone else watching the entire time. ;-)

Screens May 30th and 31st

Go in Peace Jamil (Denmark)

Caught this as a press screening - interestingly enough a last minute replacement for another middle-eastern themed film. From the official SIFF blurb: "A young Arab man, Jamil, is caught in the midst of a vicious cycle of revenge inside Copenhagen's Muslim community. After his mother and best friend are murdered, and his son is kidnapped, it seems all hope of peace is lost."

It's a very accurate description - which is always nice. As to the film itself, I'm somewhat of a mixed mind on this one. I thought it was well done - both from the acting and the storytelling side. At the same time it's overall message that a cycle of revenge leaves everyone worse off just didn't really score with me. I guess at some level it didn't pull me deep enough into the world to help me understand exactly why the characters were motivated to take the actions they took. I was into it while I watched - I just didn't leave feeling much attachment to the film. Though I did wonder if the police in Copenhagen were on the job at all...

Playing June 1st and 4th

Apollo 54 (Italy)

A sci-fi retro (on purpose) space stinker. It seems like an interesting experiment - or maybe less kindly a student film. Some clever ideas and a grin here and there - but ultimately I spent most of my time wondering why I didn't walk out of the press screening.

Here's the official description - which probably merits a post on how to decode film festival blurbs to avoid this sort of thing, "As a mysterious television signal threatens to reduce the Italian populace to mindless drones, dashing fair-haired scientist Bobby Joe constructs an interstellar cable car and takes to the skies with his slightly less intrepid co-pilot Jim Bob to defeat the alien threat. This sepia-toned homage to 1950s space operas stands as a complete trip, in all senses of the word."

Some personal translations

• complete trip - you'll likely want to be fairly high high for maximum enjoyment. And I don't mean seated up in the balcony.
  
• fair haired scientist - dude wearing a wig that's funny for a second until you realize this is the main person you'll be watching on-screen for 90 minutes
• co-pilot Jim Bob - apparently redneck humor with respect to the dumb sidekick is the largely the same in the US and Italy - and equally funny (or not)
• television signal...mindless drones - at some point (or many points) there will be obvious points about how TV makes you stupid. While implicitly indicating that movies in no way make you dumb
• Sepia-toned homage to 1950's opera - interesting for a 10 minute film, not a feature length movie.

All I can say is at least it's nowhere near as bad as OffScreen. I write all the above knowing there are some will love it - so no judgment if this is your thing. ;-) Just didn't do it for me.

Frozen River (US)

Tale of two women from somewhat different worlds brought together through a need for money and a love of immigrant smuggling. True, not the official festival description but fairly accurate. That would probably center more on this films win of the Grand Jury Prize for Drama at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. The frozen river of the title is the body of water which joins a Mohawk reservation, particularly during winter when it's frozen enough to (usually) drive over. I went in with pretty high expectations which the movie largely met. It wasn't my favorite film of the past year - but it told a somewhat grim/gritty story well and without leaving me terminally depressed at the end. I liked it and recommend it if the less tongue in cheek festival description appeals to you.

Mermaid (Russia)

The first film I've seen this year at SIFF 2008 - though of course at a press screening as the festival hasn't officially started yet. I'm only 5 screenings in but I think this is my favorite so far. Since I'm playing catchup I'll take the easy way out and let the official festival guide summarize, "A fanciful urban fairytale about Alisa, a girl who lives in a seaside shack with her mom and grandma and who has special talents—she can influence the weather and make wishes come true. Dubbed the Russian Amèlie, Mermaid grapples with love, modernity, and the materialism of New Russia." I could probably provide some further analysis but I think it's worth it to just go and check it out. The Amelie comparison is more about the visual style than the content. So don't quite expect the same warm feeling after the film as you had in the French "version." But it's interesting to watch and far more engaging than a lot of the Russian fare of SIFF's past.

Playing at SIFF on May 24th and 26th

Random pre-festival catchup

I'm sure I'm missing a few things that I saw recently. Nevertheless, here's a quick recap before I head into full-on festival mode. In most cases I'm not even going to go with much a description - at best a link to IMDB and a quick opinion. The SIFF guide for 2008 should be out soon online - I just took a look at the official guide published today in the Seattle Times. I've seen a few press screenings so far with generally positive results. Quick reviews of those - hopefully with some tips from SIFF programmers will be coming soon.

Iron-Man - Sure - it's a super hero movie. But it's one of the best I've seen in a while. My expectations were high, but I still had a great time. Perfect casting, actually good acting and a pretty simple storyline make for some fun viewing. Stay through the end credits if you're a comics book fan. Otherwise no big deal if you missed that. And try to avoid the New Yorker review which manages to both trash the film and provide you with the last line of the movie. Sort of jerky if you ask me, even though it's not as though it's a big twist. :-)

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay - Yes, it's as dumb as you can expect. Yes, it was sort of fun. Not as good as the 1st - which even there was funnier in concept than execution. I've seen some reviews that treat it as a great satirical indictment of the political uses of the war on terror. I'm not sure it really carries much water in that regard - but it was still fun.

The Life Before Her Eyes - I'd pretty pretty shocked if you'd seen Jacob's Ladder (or any of the similar films) and didn't see what was going on fairly early in the film. Shot in flashback from a woman (Uma Thurman) who experienced a tragic Columbine like shooting at her high school. I saw this at a SIFF preview several weeks back (in theaters now). I think could have been a great movie if it had focused on the younger characters in high school instead of the split motif. I know it's based on a book so that's not the story they were telling. Mainly just saying the younger characters where much more interesting to watch than the movie they actually made.

Smart People - See the visitor instead. Not even sure it's worth a rental. A lot of folks mention the great dialog. I like all the actors in it (except not so much Sarah Jessica Parker), but even with the positive feelings going in I was pretty bored. See The Visitor instead. If you feel the need see Ellen Page - just watch Juno again after seeing the visitor.

The Visitor - One of the best movies I've seen in a while. I saw a preview with the lead actor in attendance a few weeks before it was released. The trailers don't quite give you a great sense as to the quality of this bittersweet tale. I'm not going to say much about it other than it's well worth seeing. Compelling story, great acting, and some though interesting topics around immigration policy to discuss after you've seen it. All around a solid film.