Monday:
Zack and Miri Make a Porno (Smith, 2008): I liked the earlier film The Amateurs (Traeger, 2003), which has the same basic premise but an older cast, much better than this one. Somehow the story seemed more believable, and the side storylines were better developed throughout. Once the romance plotline of Zack and Miri comes to a conclusion at the end, the plotline involving the porno and the other characters pretty much drops out. We don’t get detailed characterizations of the supporting characters, leaving the whole plot feeling like a rather awkward vehicle for a typical romcom plot. This is a shame because Rogen and Banks just aren’t that funny in the title roles. In fact, I was left wishing that Justin Long’s character had a more sustained role to play, as he was the funniest one. Rating: 2.5/5
Lars and the Real Girl (Gillespie, 2007): I can’t really describe what I felt was missing from this film, but I was left with the feeling that it had great potential and didn’t quite live up to it. There were some solid performances, the premise is fairly interesting, it didn’t devolve into absurdity, but it didn’t stand out much either. Solidly acted and constructed, but not all that compelling. Rating: 3.5/5
Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son about His Father (Kuenne, 2008): The filmmaker sets out to make a documentary about his friend Andrew, who was murdered by his ex-girlfriend Shirley. While Kurt is in the process of filming, Shirley flees to Canada, avoiding arrest for the murder. As the extradition process drags on, Shirley announces that she is pregnant with Andrew’s child. At this point, Kurt decides to make the film a letter to the unborn Zachary so that he will have something to know his father by when he grows up. That’s as much as I knew about the plot going into it, having refused to read more detailed reviews: Kurt keeps aspects of the story hidden until the end, and I suggest you don’t read about them. The way information is revealed is part of the power of this film, which makes you work through the stages of grief with Andrew’s family and friends. With no pretense of objectivity, this is the most emotionally intense movie I’ve seen in quite a while. You should see it, but only if you're willing to surrender a few hours to raw emotions. Emotions aside, I thought it was fairly well done. I liked Kuenne’s style of editing and use of home movie footage. The style is over-the-top, but so is the situation, and thus I thought it worked well. Rating: 4/5
Man on Wire
(Marsh, 2008): After 15 minutes or so, I considered turning the film off. The black and white re-enactments seemed heavy-handed and distracting, and I scoffed at the film’s attempt to turn its key event—a man walking a wire strung between the towers of the WTC—into a thriller. But it did work as a bit of a thriller by the end. The suspense that captured my attention, though, didn’t come from wondering whether or not Philippe Petit and his crew would succeed (for they clearly did) or whether or not he would fall (he obviously didn’t), but from wondering just how Petit (who comes across as a bit of a playful yet arrogant bastard) convinced so many people to help with the endeavor. Why were so many people willing to help Petit achieve his bizarre goal? Where did they get the time and money required for the equipment and the several trips across the Atlantic? The film doesn’t fully answer these questions, but it did leave me with one more: Where do any of us get the drive, motivation, time and nerve to pursue our goals? Rating: 4/5
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (Gordon, 2007): Deceit, treachery, injustice—the world of competitive video gaming is filled with outrageous scandal. Or so The King of Kong would have us believe. Indeed, the film succeeds so well in exaggerating the drama of rivalry that I absolutely hate Billy Mitchell—the world Donkey Kong champion and “villain” of Gordon’s documentary. This is not to say that I unconditionally rooted for Steve Wiebe, the film’s “hero,” as he challenged Mitchell for the world record either. In fact, some of the most poignant moments of the film, I thought, were critiques leveled at the competitive gaming culture by Wiebe’s own children. Wiebe’s daughter remarks that she didn’t realize the Guinness Book of World Records was such a big deal, and he tells her that “a lot of people read that book.” Her response critiques the seriousness with which the film has us treat its subjects: “A lot of people ruin their lives trying to get into it too.” Even as the film critiques its subjects, though, we can’t seem to shake our investment in the dramas of gaming culture. When it comes down to it, it’s fun to submerge ourselves in that drama. So much so that after the film, I checked the Donkey Kong records on Twin Galaxies and was quite dismayed to see the title back under Mitchell’s name. Damn you, Kong! Rating: 3.5/5
Thursday/Friday – Foreign Films:
Withnail & I (Robinson, 1987)
Country: UK
Convinced by his roommate that they need to escape from their apartment—and the drug-induced ennui that goes with it—Withnail asks his Uncle Monty if they can stay in his cabin in the country for a while, but doesn’t realize that Monty will be dropping by unexpectedly. Will Marwood escape the clutches of Monty—a “raving homosexual”? Or will the Jake the poacher murder them all as they sleep? Watch as hilarity ensues. Thanks for the recommendation, Julia! Rating: 4/5
Chungking Express (Wong, 1994)
Country: Hong Kong
I finally got around to seeing this, and it’s simply beautiful. I’m not sure how to explain the beauty of this movie, but if you enjoy the visual and kinetic aspects of film (and aren’t too turned off by somewhat incoherent narratives), you should see it. My three favorite shots are: the pager clipped to the fence, the model airplane resting on the woman’s shoulder, and the flip-flop floating in the water. Out of context these probably don’t sound very enticing, and I’m likely not doing a good job of convincing you to see the film. But the film moves at such a rapid pace that when it slows down for a bit and lingers on a shot, it nearly takes your breath away. Rating: 4.5/5
4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days (Mungiu, 2007):
Country: Romania
The story is simple, and the style minimalist, leaving viewers trapped in the dark mise-en-scene and unrelenting long takes to experience the horrors of life in Communist Romania along with the film’s two central characters—Gabita, a college student trying to procure an illegal and quite dangerous abortion, and her roommate Otilia, who takes care of all the gory details. If this sounds stark and depressing, it is, but in a very powerful and moving way. I wanted to be trapped in the world Mungiu creates longer and was disappointed when it ended. Rating: 4.5/5
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