June happennings

Movies and Documentaries:

Before I get to the few documentaries I have recently seen, let’s get some of the commercial flicks out of the way.

1) National Treasure (2004): Rating 6/10

This movie feels like a rip off of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ with the only difference being that the story is set in USA with a few elements of American history tied together. Also, tied in the story thread are elements of Knights Templar and the Free Masons. The result: another typical commercial flick. For all the potential, the movie screws up on its own accord. Firstly, the start of the movie is terribly boring. In fact, the first 30 minutes or so are wasteful and not at all interesting. Secondly, Nicolas Cage is wrongly cast for his role as Treasure Hunter. He looks bored and un-interested for most of the movie. Thirdly, Diane Kruger is wrongly cast as well. But after the first 30 minutes, the movie settles into a fairly entertaining story with the only problem being that the story feels like an episode of the Amazing Race.

2) Meet the Fockers: Rating 5/10

I was never a fan of the original ‘Meet the Parents’ and this movie does not add anything to the series. Maybe the only positive is that Ben Stiller’s parents are interesting characters played by Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand (Note: The parents do feel like clones of Greg’s parents in ‘Dharma and Greg’). Roberto De Niro acts just like he did in the first movie, maybe because he does not have any different or interesting material to work on. Throughout the movie, you just feel sorry for Ben Stiller as it is obvious things will keep getting worse for him before they get better.

3) Victory (1981 movie directed by John Huston): Rating a solid 8/10

I had never heard of this movie. And when I saw the names on the cover, I felt it merited a seeing. The names were ‘Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, Max Von Sydow and Pele’. It was obvious this was a soccer movie with Pele, Bobby Moore and Osvaldo Ardiles credited on the back cover. The story revolves around a ‘friendly’ soccer game between the German National team and a team of captured British Allied Prisoners of War in 1942. Max Von Sydow (who plays a German General, Karl Von Steiner) spots Colby (Caine) teaching soccer for the captured prisoners. Since Steiner was a former soccer player for the German National team, he recognizes Colby as a former professional player (Colby played for West Ham and England). He proposes a soccer game between Colby’s students and a collection of German soldiers/captains. After negotiating for extra food rations and better sports equipment, Colby agrees. When news of the games reaches the German high administration, they decide to use the game as a means of propaganda. The stakes are raised with the German National team playing not just against Colby’s boys but an allied World team of British colonies. The game would be held in Paris. The British hate the idea of the game, and decide to hatch a plan to let the entire team escape – they feel this is the only way they can make the Germans look bad.

What is interesting about this movie is that real soccer players were used, with the exception of Caine and Stallone. The soccer game footage is shot very well and the match is quite interesting. The movie came long before ‘Lagaan’ or other sport movies of the 1990’s. And Pele was a joy to watch.

Documentaries:

It is that time of the year again when documentaries flood the festival circuits. Here are some notable ones that I have been fortunate to have seen:

1) The Future of Food (Directed by Deborah Koons): Rating 9/10

This is chilling documentary about the abuse of genetically engineered foods and spray chemicals used by some of the major food corporations. Also shown are the illegal and stupid methods that some corporations are using to patent seeds, food genes and even food itself. A must see movie. The movie is along the lines of ‘The Corporation’ and ‘Super Size Me’ but it is much more relevant because it tackles the topic of everyday common food, whose quality is increasingly being tarnished by some companies.

2) Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land (Directed by Sut Jhally and Bathsheba Ratzkoff): Rating 7.5/10

This is an interesting movie which outlines the methods and techniques used by the American Media to portray a one-sided account of the Middle East conflict. The movie is not as interesting as ‘Check Point’ and ‘Control Room’ but it puts forward a lot of interesting ideas. The scenes which show Israel’s plan of establishing settlements in the West Bank in strategic locations are very interesting and eye opening indeed.

3) The Letter: An American Town and the Somali Invasion (Directed by Ziad Hamzeh): Rating 8/10

What happens when a bunch of Somali refugees are dumped into a quiet all white American town? A timer starts and the tension keeps building until something explodes. In this case, a tragic situation is averted but not before the entire town and even the entire country is dragged into a mess perpetuated by a single incorrect and racist letter written by the town’s mayor.

4) Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (Directed by Alexandra Cassavetes): Rating 9/10

A movie for all movie lovers! I had no idea what Z Channel was before I saw this movie. And after watching this movie how I wish we had such a great channel in this day and age. A channel dedicated to only showing foreign, independent and even commercial movies rejected by the main-stream audiences. A channel dedicated to providing information about film makers, genres and showcasing great actors.

This documentary talks about the famous Z channel and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey, who brought the best in cinema to households in L.A. Not every region in L.A got this pay cable channel but those that got it, cherished it. The movie has notable interviews with film-makers and critics (Robert Altman, Jim Jarmusch, Alexander Payne, Tarantino to name a few) and includes clips from some long forgotten gems of cinema.