The list below is alphabetical. If you just want me to pick-out the really great stuff for you that would include Headhunters, Sound of My Voice, Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, and The Sandman. With very solid props to Le Havre, Bullhead and Almanya as well. Tilt has enough to recommend sneaking it in if possible. Honestly, the only one I've seen that I didn't really care for at all is The Squad.
Update 12/28 - I just saw Pariah tonight - a thirteenth film playing in Palm Springs this year. While I can't publish my full review until it opens in Seattle on 1/6 I can say it was a truly wonderful experience and is a solid contender to make my top films list for 2011. So even though it's going to be hitting theaters in many places at the same time it will be in Palm Springs it's still worth serious consideration as you make up your schedule.
Update 1/11 - If you're looking for film recommendations for the festival you might want to checkout this related post I did after attending the first week of festivities.
OK - onto the full set of info for the readers amongst you...
- All Your Dead Ones(Columbia) - According to the festival description,"this scathing allegory for a country’s apathy centers on Salvador, a Colombian farmer, who gets up one morning and finds fresh tire tracks running through his cornfield that lead to a pile of dead bodies. ... All Your Dead Ones uses dark humor to turn the spotlight on the complicity of Colombia’s political institutions in violent crime. " That's all pretty true and not what I'd call subtle. Bodies are found, people are stressed, in part because every time someone comes to look at the bodies they're clearly considering if it wouldn't be easier to just kill the family members and add them to the pile. And Salvador clearly knows this. It's not really that humorous to me, but it's well made and if you think it sounds interesting there's I suppose a chance you'd enjoy it more than I. Frankly, I thought I'd be in the "love it" camp. Admired the craft but never fully was pulled in.
- Almanya, Welcome to Germany (Germany) - Screened at SIFF under the slightly shorter title Almanya this festival closer is worth seeing. Maybe not necessarily worth what I believe is the closing night surcharge. But it's a nice, enjoyable film that is the sort of the audience friendly fare some might tease Palm Springs about. But that doesn't mean it's not good. And how often does a multi-generational humorous and occasionally touching piece also leave you with an understanding of the history of guest worker programs in Germany? No, not very often.
- Bullhead (Belgium) - isn't an entirely easy film to describe. Set amongst farming communities of Belgium it's a character study of bovine related criminal activity, testosterone fueled violence, and a family tragedy buried for years. When a young boy suffers horrific violence at the hands of a son of a local organized crime figure there's not much to be done for him. With his sense of manhood deeply (and quite literally) crushed his overcompensation and emotional betrayal is palpable onscreen. He's a brute of a man, mostly quiet, but one senses with a tremendous and powerful rage simmering just below the surface. In an agricultural world awash with illegal drug use (mostly on the cows) there's a lot that can go wrong. And this dark character study takes us through it. It's not a fun watch, but it's a fascinating one - well organized and viewable on several levels. Though all of them are likely to keep you sticking to certified organic milk. Absolutely dynamite performance from both the adult lead actor and the boy who plays the same character as a child.
- Elite Squad: The Enemy Within (Brazil) - One of my top films from Fantastic Fest 2011 and Brazil's submission this year for the Foreign Language Oscar category. I really dug this one. Smart, intense and a view of Brazil only hinted at in Fast Five. I liked the earlier Elite Squad too - but maybe this one more. The action/thriller aspect of it was top notch. And the real world political underpinnings of it were fascinating. Not to mention scary as heck. I heard folks after comparing it to The Wire. The two do feel very different to me (outside of corruption) but I think the quality and realism made the same connection for me at some stages of the film. Do ... not ... miss ... it!
- Headhunters (Norway) - This story of a corporate headhunter with height based self esteem issues and a side gig as a high end art thief ... rocked. It looks great and takes a turn from caper to revenge picture without missing a beat. The lead actor does a terrific transition through some key milestones making it a pleasure to watch from start to end. See it in Palm Springs while you can before Summit who bought the English language rights does heaven knows what to the film. Maybe adding teen vampires and Eddie Murphy for all I know.
- Le Havre (Finland) - sometimes a minimalist film feels like it needs more. But when done right it has just enough and not a drop more. Le Havre is solidly in the latter category. The main character Marcel Max shines shoes for small amounts of dough which he brings back each night to his wife Arletty. It's clear things haven't always been this good (and it ain't great) for him - but thanks to his wife they manage on the edges of society, in a neighborhood where as Arletty bluntly puts it, miracles don't happen. Into his life stumble an illegal immigrant boy who's just trying to reach his mother in London. Marcel is drawn in, Arletty deals with her issues - and it's just an engrossing and sweet ride. Mix it in between some more adrenaline focused features and it'll make a wonderful bridge.
- Perfect Sense - The world is ending, Eva Green and Ewan McGregor fall in love and it's all directed by David Mackenzie. Yes, I realize that sounds beyond awesome. To be totally honest my memory of the film from SIFF is a bit vague. What I remember thinking is that it's part of the recent collection of sci-fi/fantasy films that are really just genre wrappers on personal dramas (Womb, Another Earth, etc.) but that it wasn't quite as good as most of the other examples that came to mind. Going back to "the record" on twitter yields the following contemporaneous utterance "Suspect many will disagree. just not especially impressed by Perfect Sense. Eva Green plenty nice to look at. But Womb way better." So, there you go.
- Restoration (Israel) - comes to Palm Springs via a bunch of awards in Israel and a best screenplay award from Sundance. It's chock full of family drama, serious acting, loving shots of restored furniture, and the dark yet rich look that's all over Israeli films these days. If you tend to like films of that description it's worth a watch. There's something about the story that left me less than completely sold - but I'm having a hard time putting my finger on it. But it definitely is nice looking cinematically. So statistically there's a good chance that you may be in the (apparently) large population that loved the film more than I did. Though come back if you see it and tell me if you didn't just want to smack a key character due to a particularly (I guess) poignant business transaction in the final reel.
- The Sandman (Switzerland) - Bright, beautiful, romantic, and incredible bizarre The Sandman is a must see film. It would easily have been one of my top films of SIFF 2011, except for the fact that it playing at STIFF 2011 instead. Main character Benno is an ultra-uptight neat freak who works in a stamp shop. When he's not ripping off the gullible he obsesses about his weight each morning, provides brutally critical feedback to friends about their life's work and gives untold grief to a young woman who works in the coffee shop below his apartment. All in all a real mensch - or perhaps not. Then out of nowhere he develops and unusual affliction. He begins to leak sand. And nor just regular sand but magical instantaneous sleep inducing sand. Which similarly (I'd image) to normal sand tastes horrible in pasta.
This explosion of essentially dirt doesn't really fit in with his other lifestyle choices. Especially when it causes his hot girlfriend to think he's bedding the coffee shop girl (it makes perfect sense in context). Even his earnest protest that it can't be true that he's hooking up with the presumably frumpier woman because "looks are important to me" fails to mollify her. Oh, almost forgot. In the meantime he's also beginning to share a recurring dream with the waitress he professes to hate. This is a strange film - in a very colorful visual way that reminds me of a Michel Gondry creation, though more fun for me than his recent work. If you're not sold by now there's nothing I'm going to be able to help you with... - Sound of my Voice (USA) - Peter and Lorna are a couple whose work on a documentary about cults has them seeking to infiltrate one. Specifically one worshipful of the eerily compelling Maggie (Brit Marling). They earn enough trust to be brought to meet Maggie in an undisclosed basement location. She never leaves this basement where cult members grow her food, donate blood to her and listen to her lessons about the upcoming crisis about to beset the earth. I'd strongly suggest not reading anything else about this film and just making sure you see it at Palm Springs. If I haven't sold you already then let me add that it features both the creepiest use of patty-cakes in a motion picture and the best use of a Cranberries song ever. 'nuff said.
- The Squad (Columbia) - About a squad of soldiers trying to figure out where everybody went in the area they're sent to storm. And what to do with the crazy seeming lady buried inside a chamber within one of the buildings. But for all the attempts at tension it was rather boring. Ultimately felt a lot like recent M. Night Shyamalan films - aka not one of the good ones. Given all the positive hype I'd heard about this film ahead of Fantastic Fest there are clearly some who would differ greatly with me on the content of the picture. If you choose to see it I sincerely hope you fall into that blessed category.
- Tilt (Bulgaria) - Skateboarding, pinball, love and broken dreams in 80's Bulgaria. Snappy music and a kinetic style. Lots to like here. I didn't quite enjoy it as much as I thought I might from the description - though it's certainly not bad - even engrossing at times. My less than 100% stellar reaction might only be because it's possible that the Bulgarian concept of a happy ending of a romantic drama may be bleaker than I'm used to from Hollywood and beyond. Worth a look if you can sneak it into your schedule.
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