The following words stand out from Anthony Lane's article for the New Yorker:
There’s only one problem with home cinema: it doesn’t exist. The very phrase is an oxymoron. As you pause your film to answer the door or fetch a Coke, the experience ceases to be cinema. Even the act of choosing when to watch means you are no longer at the movies. Choice—preferably an exhaustive menu of it—pretty much defines our status as consumers, and has long been an unquestioned tenet of the capitalist feast, but in fact carte blanche is no way to run a cultural life (or any kind of life, for that matter), and one thing that has nourished the theatrical experience, from the Athens of Aeschylus to the multiplex, is the element of compulsion.
................
As Justine’s mother says of marriage, and as the movie tries to say of mortal life, so we should say of cinema: “Enjoy it while it lasts.”
His words may be applicable to those who live in New York City but they hold very little relevance outside New York. The truth is that for people living in North American cities aside from New York and to some extent LA or Toronto, home is the only logical option to watch foreign films. There are no choices for people in majority of North American cities to catch Melancholia or even The Turin Horse in their local cinema. I can confidently vouch for the latter because no Bela Tarr film has ever played in my city. As for Melancholia, it might eventually get here but it won't be until the summer of 2012, more than a year after its Cannes premier. Is that considered a valid choice? Not really especially if the film is going to be available officially in Europe via DVD or by digital pay options much earlier than that.
Talking about the pure experience of cinema is not relevant for people whose weekly cinematic choices are Spider Man 1: the 10th remake, Shrek 7, Transformers 5 or Harry Potter, the diaper years. If these are the only theatrical options that I have each week, then I rather not visit a cinema hall.
Thankfully, there are great films being made around the world every year even though access to such films is getting more and more restricted via traditional theatrical means. Even rental DVD is getting hard as local independent DVD stores across Canada are vanishing at a fast rate. Before anyone else blames Netflix, they need to have a look at the dismal selection of films available on Netflix Canada. As for digital/pay-for-view options, they mostly carry the same Hollywood titles that play in every Canadian multiplex. However, the foreign films are out there. The onus is now on each cinephile to look hard to find those precious films lurking in some region free DVD zone or via other digital means.
Here are just a few worthy films from the last few years that I was lucky enough to see via the film festival circuit. For the most part, these films are still invisible to the rest of the world. That is a shame because they demand to be seen:
Manuel di Ribera (2010, Chile, Pablo Carrera/Christopher Murray)
This visually stunning film is a fascinating mix of Lisandro Alonso and Bela Tarr yet is completely original. The lonely journeys of Manuel, conducted with the aid of boats, has touches of Alonso (from both Los Muertos & Liverpool) while the mostly grayish/dark environment and the drunken locals' distrust of Manuel feels similar to Tarr's The Outsider and Satantango. Also, the film brilliantly plays with the concept of reality by having two almost similar scenes of an event incorporated into the film -- one real and one imagined. The audience is left to figure out what the reality is.
The Intern (2010, Argentina, Clara Picasso)
Clara Picasso's sublime film cleverly uses a Buenos Aires hotel setting as a springboard to examine wider issues, such as male-female power games and the thin boundary that exists between private and public life. Not a single minute is wasted in the film's brisk 64 minutes. Almost at each 20 minute segment, the viewer has to track back to the previous segment to get a clue as to mystery or relationship tussle taking place on screen. The end result is an engaging film.
R (2010, Denmark, Tobias Lindholm/Michael Noer)
The tag 'dark film' is easily thrown around but in the case of R, the tag is entirely justified. The film makes the wonderful Un prophète look like a feel good happy film. Besides being completely savage, R is intelligent and that is demonstrated by a clever perspective shift two-thirds into the film which shows the similar hierarchies of two rival gangs.
Hunting & Zn (2010, Holland, Sander Burger)
This powerful Dutch film shows how a complicated relationship can be strained when lies and a pregnancy enters the equation. Like Maren Ade's brilliant Everyone Else, this film is bold enough to look at the nasty side that exists in all relationships and thereby causes the audience to get deeply involved with the film. As a warning, pregnant women or couples expecting a child might want to brace themselves for an emotionally challenging film.
Breathless (2009, South Korea, Yang Ik-June)
This debut feature by Yang Ik-June packs quite a punch and as per the title leaves one breathless. There are many movies which claim to be anti-violence but instead end up glorifying violence because the consequences of violence is never fully explored. On the other hand, Breathless clearly depicts the danger of a violent life, whether that life is in a household or in a gang. There is a consequence to every violent action and Yang Ik-June’s film has a purpose for every scene of violence and abuse.
The Happiest Girl in the World (2009, Romania co-production, Radu Jude)
Winning a free car is supposed to usher in new freedom for Delia Fratila. All she has to do is act in a 35 second car commercial and drive away with her new car. But things don’t turn out to be that simple. Her parents want to exchange the car for money to finance a better future and the commercial shoot turns out to be an artistic and physical challenge. Funny and engaging. Another vintage film from Romania.
Katalin Varga (2009, Romania co-production, Peter Strickland)
Devastating cinema! After Katalin is kicked out of her home along with her son, she undertakes a journey. The music points to a dark past and even a darker future. Indeed, there is some darkness for Katalin Varga is a revenge tale. But it is unlike any other revenge movie. In fact, it carves out its own rules for vengeance. That means no dramatic dialogues but instead we are treated to beautiful images and haunting music which conveys the hovering tension in the air.
Call If You Need Me (2009, Malaysia, James Lee)
A visually sharp film that combines the sensibilities of diverse film-makers such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang and Quentin Tarantino while still retaining a unique Malaysian flavour. Hou Hsiao-Hsien elevated a gangster film to an art form with Goodbye South Goodbye and James Lee does a very job in carrying on that tradition. Call if you Need me is about gangsters and kidnappings but there isn’t a single gun or drop of blood to be found on screen. All the violence is kept out of the frame and we are instead shown events that precede or succeed a violent act. The lack of violence allows audience to focus on the characters and their day to day lives, including their love interests and their choice of food and drugs.
Rough Cut (2008, Korea, Hun Jang)
Rough Cut has taken some aspects of the extraordinary Korean film Dirty Carnival and gone in a different direction with good effect. Dirty Carnival showed how gangsters complained about movies not having authentic fight scenes and in order to correct things, a local gangster (Byeong-du) helped his old college friend (Min-ho) to make an authentic gangster film by giving pointers to the actors and fight instructors. In Rough Cut, a once popular action star asks a local gangster to play a villain in his movies so that the actor can save his career. The gangster, who always dreamed of being an actor himself, agrees provided that all the fight scenes in the film are real and not staged. The end result is a no holds barred on screen contest where even the film’s director has no idea if the end result would hold true to his original script.
Wonderful Town (2007, Thailand, Aditya Assarat)
Wonderful Town is a tender love story between a Bangkok architect Ton, who comes to the southern Thai town Pakua Pak to work on a new beach resort, and Na, the owner of the hotel that Ton stays in. Everything in the film exists in harmony, be it the haunted house, the construction of the new resort, the empty hotel, the isolated beach or even a road-side garage. The town is empty, almost a ghost town, where everyone knows each other. Yet this loneliness never feels oppressive but just a natural cycle of life.
Kill the Referee (2009, Belgium, Y.Hinant/E.Cardot/L.Delphine)
This Belgium soccer documentary does not have any narration or title cards to guide the audience but instead dives right into the action. Like the Zidane film, this documentary gives a completely different perspective to what one experiences when watching a soccer game. One gets to see the game from an on-field angle, but instead of a player's point of view, we see the game from a referee's angle.
This film is essential viewing for anyone who has ever seen a soccer game. And since the film is artistically shot and edited, it offers non-soccer fans plenty to chew on as well. The games shown in the film are from Euro 2008 and if a person is familiar with some of the players, then that enhances the experience. This film does an excellent job in showing us the human side of the refs and also some of the egos that operate in the game.
Steam of Life (2010, Finland, Joonas Berghäll/Mika Hotakainen)
A beautifully shot contemplative film that places the viewer in an awkward position of a voyeur observing Finnish men pour their heart out while sitting in a variety of saunas. The film remarkably shows that any enclosed space can be transformed into a sauna, even a phone booth, and the calming effect of the steam is essential to allow men to tackle life's daily burdens.
Woman without a Piano (2009, Spain, Javier Rebollo)
A sublime film that uses a low key treatment in depicting a single night's events. The camera quietly follows Carmen around and the events that unfold around her are hilarious and sad at the same time. The film is set in Madrid and in some alleys we see situations which Pedro Almovodar uses in his films but Woman without a Piano is an art film through and through, with a pinch of comedy.
Note: I have mentioned these films previously but I still get puzzled looks when I talk about these films to people. Since I have no power over these film's distribution, all I can do is repeat my words.
Showing posts with label Malaysia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Malaysia. Show all posts
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
Around the world in 24 films
Just a brief mention of some worthy newer films from around the world. Some of these films will surely end up in my year end best list.
Note: films arranged as per country.
El Camino du punto (2010, Argentina, Sebastián Díaz Morales)
The title's translation, The Way Between Two Points, perfectly sums the film which is about a character's journey from point A to point B. There are only a few minutes of dialog at the start and these dialogues are the weakest aspect of the film as the words needlessly try to give the story a higher worldly purpose. After the words are delivered, the film settles into a beautiful journey where we get both an overhead shot of the landscape that is to be covered and the ground level footage of the journey. The singular focus of the journey at all costs reminds a bit about The Limits of Control and Birdsong but El Camino du punto is free from any dramatic or religious baggage of those two other films.
Kill the Referee (2009, Belgium, Y.Hinant/E.Cardot/L.Delphine)
This Belgium soccer documentary does not have any narration or title cards to guide the audience but instead dives right into the action. Like the Zidane film, this documentary gives a completely different perspective to what one experiences when watching a soccer game. One gets to see the game from an on-field angle, but instead of a player's point of view, we see the game from a referee's angle.
This film is essential viewing for anyone who has ever seen a soccer game. And since the film is artistically shot and edited, it offers non-soccer fans plenty to chew on as well. The games shown in the film are from Euro 2008 and if a person is familiar with some of the players, then that enhances the experience. This film does an excellent job in showing us the human side of the refs and also some of the egos that operate in the game.
A Simple Rhythm (2010, Canada, Tess Girard)
A poetic and mesmerizing look at simple day to day rhythms that shape our lives. The film artfully layers images with sounds to create a calming and fascinating experiencing. In between the images are thoughtful interviews on a variety of subjects, ranging from music to mathematics.
Viva Riva! (2010, Congo co-production, Djo Munga)
In the TIFF write-up, Cameron Bailey noted:
Finally! An African feature film that merges the pleasures of Nollywood with sleek camerawork, satisfying genre thrills and a rare look inside the very heart of the continent. Viva Riva! is unprecedented: a story set in contemporary Democratic Republic of the Congo full of intrigue, music and a surprisingly frank approach to sex.
That is a perfect description as Viva Riva! molds elements of oil trafficking, corruption, violence and sex into an enjoyable film. In the fashion of Nollywood films, the villain is sinister and over the top while the hero, Riva, is a charming intelligent man who can have any woman he wants. Ofcourse, Riva falls for the one woman who will lead him into trouble but Nora is too seductive to resist. The camera ensures that Nora's beauty and Kinshasa's buzzing street life are captured nicely.
Valhalla Rising (2010, Denmark/UK, Nicolas Winding Refn)
The film starts off in an ancient time when men settled their disputes face to face in a bloody hand to hand combat. However, as the warrior crew enters a new land, the change in warfare tactics ensures that man will have to learn to adapt in order to survive. In the new land, arrows fired from unseen enemies lead to death meaning one could die at the hands of someone they do not even see.
A savage bloody film that is also one of the year's best.
Scheherazade Tell me a Story (2009, Egypt, Yousry Nasrallah)
The film uses a soap opera/talk show format to probe at deeper issues not only within Egyptian society but the rest of the Middle East especially regarding the treatment of women in households and at workplaces. It helps that the film is well acted and packed with more gorgeous women than one would find even in a Pedro Almodovar movie. Overall, a pleasurable film.
Steam of Life (2010, Finland, Joonas Berghäll/Mika Hotakainen)
A beautifully shot contemplative film that places the viewer in an awkward
position of a voyeur observing Finnish men pour their heart out while sitting in a variety of saunas. The film remarkably shows that any enclosed space can be transformed into a sauna, even a phone booth, and the calming effect of the steam is essential to allow men to tackle life's daily burdens.
Win/Win (2010, Holland, Jaap van Heusden)
This Dutch film about a stock exchange manages to find a calm balanced middle ground in between Ben Younger's Boiler Room and Aronofsky's Pi. In fact, the main character in Win/Win Ivan looks like a more laid back version of Max from Pi. Win/Win artfully shows that it is possible to find zen like moments even in a high octane stock market setting.
Gallants (2009, Hong Kong, Clement Sze-Kit Cheng/Chi-kin Kwok)
A homage to the 1970’s Shaw Brothers films, complete with amazing fight sequences, memorable characters and over the top hilarious situations. Even if one is not familiar with older kung-fu movies, this film stands on its own. Knowing about the Shaw Brothers films will just enhance the experience. There are some moments when the action stalls but the film has many high energy moments. The homage would have been perfect if the film title was something which captured the story’s spirit such as “Gates of Law” or if the title used a variation of the words “Dragon”, “Tiger” or “kick”.
Ocean of an Old Man (2008, India, Rajesh Shera)
Simple. Beautiful. Meditative. Haunting. Tragic.
The old man in the title is played by Tom Alter, easily recognizable to Bollywood fans because he always played an evil villain in Indian films, and was almost always an evil British general in period films. In Rajesh Shera's film, Alter's character plays a school teacher who is devastated by the loss of his wife and daughter in 2004's tsunami. Unfortunately, he can never forget his loss as he has to cross the same ocean everyday to teach his students. To make matters worse, he has to listen to the ocean waves crashing onto the shore and rocks every night while in the day, his students paintings and stories revolve only around the ocean.
There isn’t much dialogue in the film but that does not matter because the beautiful images and fascinating sounds convey the tragedy and gravity of the situation. Also, the sound track is smartly turned off when the sounds of the ocean fill the screen. The minimalist style might frustrate some viewers but patient viewers will be rewarded with an absolute gem of a film.
Peepli Live (2010, India, Anusha Rizvi)
A smart satire that uses the real life story about farmer suicides to poke fun at the mercenary Indian satellite tv channels preoccupied with ratings. However, Peepli Live does feel like two films in one. The film starts off in the village but then lets the media circus take things over. At times, the two stories (farmer suicide, tv ratings circus) compete with each other and eventually the farmer story is brushed aside. Also, there are some moments where the film un-necessarily goes over the top (such as the mention of Saif Ali Khan's grade 8 kiss) when a more subtle approach would have sufficed.
Overall, it does feel like a lost opportunity to make a truly great film. That being said, the ending is perfect when the camera shows us images without any words.
Gorbaciòf (2010, Italy, Stefano Incerti)
The sound of Gorbaciòf's proud walk on the streets and the sound of money stay long in the memory after the film ends. Many films show bundles of money but not many films actually let the sound of crisp notes being counted filter through to the audience. Gorbaciòf counts money everyday both in his day job and at night with his bribe money. The dangerous combination of taking bribes and gambling is never a safe bet for a trouble free life but Gorbaciòf's problems multiply when he falls for a Chinese woman who does not speak any Italian. Gorbaciòf wants to be the woman's knight in shining armour and in order to ensure a better life for her, he needs more money. That need leads him down a slippery yet predictable slope. The love angle is the film's weakest aspect and if it were not for the love story, Incerti's film would be one of the year's best films.
On another note: the male leads in The American, Gorbaciòf and The Robber are all related with their dangerous ways of life. It is not surprizing that the ending of all three films finds these three very different men (an American, Austrian and an Italian) in the exact same situation looking through the glass towards a better future.
The Tiger Factory (2010, Malaysia/Japan, Woo Ming Jin)
The film follows a young girl, Ping, in her attempt to gather money to illegally leave Malaysia for Japan. Ping's life is controlled by her aunt who witholds her passport and pays for men to get Ping pregnant so that the aunt can sell the baby. The story sounds bleak but thanks to the cinematography and lighting, the film does not feel gloomy and instead makes for a fascinating viewing. The style evokes the Dardennes, albeit with a bit of lightness.
Woman on Fire Looks for Water (2009, Malaysia/South Korea, Woo Ming Jin)
This is one of the most visually beautiful films of the year!! The film is about two love tales on opposite ends of the age spectrum. One story shows how a young boy is forced to take his family's fortune into account before deciding upon marriage while the other story shows if love is not truly acknowledged, then even at old age, it continues to torment and bite. In between these two stories, there are many remakarable shots which show the fishing business and every day life, plus there is plenty of humor shown in a subtle manner.
Kinatay (2009, Philippines, Brillante Mendoza)
The first 20-30 min of Kinatay perfectly capture the sights and sounds of the street life. After that, the camera moves inside a van and this is where the negative publicity regarding the film starts. Although it is hard to understand what all the fuss is about because there is nothing graphic or gory that is shown but instead we mostly listen to sounds of the horrible butchering and only see a tiny glimpse of the murder weapon. The briefly lit scenes allows viewers to fill in the horror themselves using the audio cues. Maybe in a theater, these audio cues are magnified thereby causing a claustorphobic effect.
Still, the film is powerful in how it goes about showing what it does and it is hard to be not shook up by the ending. I can see why Mendoza was awarded the best director for this film in Cannes 2009.
Lola (2009, Philippines, Brillante Mendoza)
Lola is a touching film regarding two grandmothers and how they go about dealing with their lives while finding themselves as opponents in a criminal case. One woman is seeking justice for her grandson’s murder, while the other is trying to save her grandson from going to jail for murdering the other woman’s grandson. The film switches perspective from one grandmother to the other and this method highlights many relevant points such as the true price of justice for people who are trying to make ends meet.
Manilla Skies (2009, Philippines/USA, Raymond Red)
The start gives a false impression of being another film depicting the frustration of being jobless in a major Asian city but the story then takes a dramatic turn towards a heist and an even more unexpected turn towards a plane hijacking. The cyclic nature of the ending, when one of the final scenes is neatly tied with the opening shot, depicts a beautiful pattern to the story. The lead performance is amazing and the film grows in strength as it moves along. Also, the dark/grayish visuals perfectly echo the gloomy mood of the character's situation. Amazingly, the film is inspired by a true story.
Essential Killing (2010, Poland co-production, Jerzy Skolimowski)
Like in Valhalla Rising, the male lead in Essential Killing never speaks a single word. Yet, Vincent Gallo's character does not need to talk as his expressions of pain and anguish perfectly convey his inner feelings. Gallo plays a taliban fighter who is captured in Afghanistan but finds himself on the run in a frozen European country side after a series of events lead to his escape. From then on, the film alternates between chase scenarios as the dogs/soldiers close down on Gallo's character and survival scenes where his character does anything just to survive in the brutal cold. It is understandable to see why Gallo won best actor in Venice for this film as his raw performance shows how much can be conveyed without needless dramatic dialogues.
Between Two Worlds (2009, Sri Lanka, Vimukthi Jayasundara)
This Sri Lankan film is a good example of what Bresson mentioned in his book, Notes on the Cinematographer, in the Sight and Hearing section:
”What is for the eye must not duplicate what is for the ear."
”If the eye is entirely won, give nothing or almost nothing to the ear. (And vice versa, if the ear is entirely won, give nothing to the eye.) One cannot be at the same time all eye and all ear.
”If a sound is the obligatory complement of an image, give preponderance either to the sound, or to the image. If equal, they damage or kill each other, as we say of colours.
Between Two Worlds has a beautiful visual and aural language while the story has a nice fable and mythical element to it. There are some scenes which fluidly mesh the imagined and real with a smooth easy manner. The only minor complaint is that some scenes appear staged, drawing attention to themselves and thereby weakening the dramatic effect of the situation. Two such examples are the youthful mob at the film's start and the dance by the river near the end.
Guest (2010, Spain, José Luis Guerín)
Guest is José Luis Guerín's travelogue of his year long film festival circuit tour from September 2007 till September 2008 with his film In the City of Sylvia. Even though Guest starts and ends at the Venice Film Festival, Guest is not a documentary about film festivals. Instead, it is a truly global film that gives a glimpse into everyday life in open public squares in various places such as Bolivia, Columbia, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba and Hong Kong. Places that do not have open squares are not covered by his film which naturally means that Canada and the US are not shown on the screen. For example, Guerín was in Vancouver in 2007 to premier In the City of Sylvia but Vancouver does not get a single shot in the film. Basically, any place that did not have adequate public space would not have allowed Guerín to interact with the locals and get their views. Guerín freely filmed everything around him and was not shy to keep his camera rolling. As a result, we get to witness some fascinating parallels regarding religion in diverse places such as Brazil and Hong Kong. Guest takes about 20 minutes to spring to life but once it awakens, it has plenty of interesting stories to share.
Woman without a Piano (2009, Spain, Javier Rebollo)
A sublime film that uses a low key treatment in depicting a single night's events. The camera quietly follows Carmen around and the events that unfold around her are hilarious and sad at the same time. The film is set in Madrid and in some alleys we see situations which Pedro Almovodar uses in his films but Woman without a Piano is an art film through and through, with a pinch of comedy.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010, Thailand co-production, Apichatpong Weerasethakul)
Joe's film is a visual treat like his previous works but instead of the two part structure found in Tropical Malady and Syndromes and a Century, Uncle Boonmee is a single flowing work that manages to blend the two worlds of humans and spirits. This is his most accessible work and also his most openly political. In Blissfully Yours one could faintly hear the tank fire going on in the distance but the soldiers were not shown. However, in Uncle Boonmee we get to see futuristic pictures (really the present) of army actions. As enchanting as the film is, it pales slightly to the hypnotic beauty of Tropical Malady and Syndromes... Still even a Joe lite work is better than most current world cinema.
Four Lions (2010, UK, Christopher Morris)
A well made and acted film from the two writers of the witty In the Loop. Four Lions tries to use the same humour style of In the Loop with mixed results. The humour style of In the Loop made sense because it dealt with the circus like world of politics where a single sentence can be endlessly interpreted and rehashed. However, that style is more difficult to pull off with a topic of terrorism and suicide bombers. In that regard, one can watch Four Lions in a state of shocked horror and find it entirely offensive. The film is also brave in its treatment of the subject, especially since neither of the writers or director is Muslim.
Spoiler note:*****
Credit must go to the film-makers for remarkably maintaining the same consistent tone throughout even after the characters start dying whereas it would have been easier for the film to have taken on a more serious tone after the first accidental death.
Monogamy (2010, USA, Dana Adam Shapiro)
A fascinating modern day treatment of Antonioni’s Blow Up. Blow Up was made during the free love decade where the main character had no problem getting any woman he wanted so solving the murder mystery became a more important challenge for him. But in modern times, free love isn’t that readily available. And the presence of email and text messaging has changed the nature of relationships by limiting face to face hook ups. As a result, Theo’s (Chris Messina) “free love” is reduced to a voyeuristic kick. Things are complicated by the fact that Theo is on the verge of getting married and already he feels the walls closing in on him.
The acting is stellar, especially in the scene where Theo’s fiancée catches him looking at pics of another girl. The ending is not as dramatic as we are led to believe. The true identity of Theo's subject is quite clear but maybe the ending was supposed to emphasize that Theo was so blinded by the little details in the photos he took that he missed the obvious bigger picture.
Top 5 in order of preference:
1) Kill the Referee
2) Ocean of an Old Man
3) Woman on Fire Looks for Water
4) Valhalla Rising
5) Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
I cannot praise Kill the Referee enough. The fact that the film is about soccer is also its biggest handicap because that would mean limited release and certainly no press coverage in North America. I have read rumours that UEFA might have had the final say on what could make the final cut but regardless of the truth, what is presented on screen is fascinating enough. The footage allows the audience to identify some of the egos, heroes and villains that operate in the game.
Note: films arranged as per country.
El Camino du punto (2010, Argentina, Sebastián Díaz Morales)
The title's translation, The Way Between Two Points, perfectly sums the film which is about a character's journey from point A to point B. There are only a few minutes of dialog at the start and these dialogues are the weakest aspect of the film as the words needlessly try to give the story a higher worldly purpose. After the words are delivered, the film settles into a beautiful journey where we get both an overhead shot of the landscape that is to be covered and the ground level footage of the journey. The singular focus of the journey at all costs reminds a bit about The Limits of Control and Birdsong but El Camino du punto is free from any dramatic or religious baggage of those two other films.
Kill the Referee (2009, Belgium, Y.Hinant/E.Cardot/L.Delphine)
This Belgium soccer documentary does not have any narration or title cards to guide the audience but instead dives right into the action. Like the Zidane film, this documentary gives a completely different perspective to what one experiences when watching a soccer game. One gets to see the game from an on-field angle, but instead of a player's point of view, we see the game from a referee's angle.
This film is essential viewing for anyone who has ever seen a soccer game. And since the film is artistically shot and edited, it offers non-soccer fans plenty to chew on as well. The games shown in the film are from Euro 2008 and if a person is familiar with some of the players, then that enhances the experience. This film does an excellent job in showing us the human side of the refs and also some of the egos that operate in the game.
A Simple Rhythm (2010, Canada, Tess Girard)
A poetic and mesmerizing look at simple day to day rhythms that shape our lives. The film artfully layers images with sounds to create a calming and fascinating experiencing. In between the images are thoughtful interviews on a variety of subjects, ranging from music to mathematics.
Viva Riva! (2010, Congo co-production, Djo Munga)
In the TIFF write-up, Cameron Bailey noted:
Finally! An African feature film that merges the pleasures of Nollywood with sleek camerawork, satisfying genre thrills and a rare look inside the very heart of the continent. Viva Riva! is unprecedented: a story set in contemporary Democratic Republic of the Congo full of intrigue, music and a surprisingly frank approach to sex.
That is a perfect description as Viva Riva! molds elements of oil trafficking, corruption, violence and sex into an enjoyable film. In the fashion of Nollywood films, the villain is sinister and over the top while the hero, Riva, is a charming intelligent man who can have any woman he wants. Ofcourse, Riva falls for the one woman who will lead him into trouble but Nora is too seductive to resist. The camera ensures that Nora's beauty and Kinshasa's buzzing street life are captured nicely.
Valhalla Rising (2010, Denmark/UK, Nicolas Winding Refn)
The film starts off in an ancient time when men settled their disputes face to face in a bloody hand to hand combat. However, as the warrior crew enters a new land, the change in warfare tactics ensures that man will have to learn to adapt in order to survive. In the new land, arrows fired from unseen enemies lead to death meaning one could die at the hands of someone they do not even see.
A savage bloody film that is also one of the year's best.
Scheherazade Tell me a Story (2009, Egypt, Yousry Nasrallah)
The film uses a soap opera/talk show format to probe at deeper issues not only within Egyptian society but the rest of the Middle East especially regarding the treatment of women in households and at workplaces. It helps that the film is well acted and packed with more gorgeous women than one would find even in a Pedro Almodovar movie. Overall, a pleasurable film.
Steam of Life (2010, Finland, Joonas Berghäll/Mika Hotakainen)
A beautifully shot contemplative film that places the viewer in an awkward
position of a voyeur observing Finnish men pour their heart out while sitting in a variety of saunas. The film remarkably shows that any enclosed space can be transformed into a sauna, even a phone booth, and the calming effect of the steam is essential to allow men to tackle life's daily burdens.
Win/Win (2010, Holland, Jaap van Heusden)
This Dutch film about a stock exchange manages to find a calm balanced middle ground in between Ben Younger's Boiler Room and Aronofsky's Pi. In fact, the main character in Win/Win Ivan looks like a more laid back version of Max from Pi. Win/Win artfully shows that it is possible to find zen like moments even in a high octane stock market setting.
Gallants (2009, Hong Kong, Clement Sze-Kit Cheng/Chi-kin Kwok)
A homage to the 1970’s Shaw Brothers films, complete with amazing fight sequences, memorable characters and over the top hilarious situations. Even if one is not familiar with older kung-fu movies, this film stands on its own. Knowing about the Shaw Brothers films will just enhance the experience. There are some moments when the action stalls but the film has many high energy moments. The homage would have been perfect if the film title was something which captured the story’s spirit such as “Gates of Law” or if the title used a variation of the words “Dragon”, “Tiger” or “kick”.
Ocean of an Old Man (2008, India, Rajesh Shera)
Simple. Beautiful. Meditative. Haunting. Tragic.
The old man in the title is played by Tom Alter, easily recognizable to Bollywood fans because he always played an evil villain in Indian films, and was almost always an evil British general in period films. In Rajesh Shera's film, Alter's character plays a school teacher who is devastated by the loss of his wife and daughter in 2004's tsunami. Unfortunately, he can never forget his loss as he has to cross the same ocean everyday to teach his students. To make matters worse, he has to listen to the ocean waves crashing onto the shore and rocks every night while in the day, his students paintings and stories revolve only around the ocean.
There isn’t much dialogue in the film but that does not matter because the beautiful images and fascinating sounds convey the tragedy and gravity of the situation. Also, the sound track is smartly turned off when the sounds of the ocean fill the screen. The minimalist style might frustrate some viewers but patient viewers will be rewarded with an absolute gem of a film.
Peepli Live (2010, India, Anusha Rizvi)
A smart satire that uses the real life story about farmer suicides to poke fun at the mercenary Indian satellite tv channels preoccupied with ratings. However, Peepli Live does feel like two films in one. The film starts off in the village but then lets the media circus take things over. At times, the two stories (farmer suicide, tv ratings circus) compete with each other and eventually the farmer story is brushed aside. Also, there are some moments where the film un-necessarily goes over the top (such as the mention of Saif Ali Khan's grade 8 kiss) when a more subtle approach would have sufficed.
Overall, it does feel like a lost opportunity to make a truly great film. That being said, the ending is perfect when the camera shows us images without any words.
Gorbaciòf (2010, Italy, Stefano Incerti)
The sound of Gorbaciòf's proud walk on the streets and the sound of money stay long in the memory after the film ends. Many films show bundles of money but not many films actually let the sound of crisp notes being counted filter through to the audience. Gorbaciòf counts money everyday both in his day job and at night with his bribe money. The dangerous combination of taking bribes and gambling is never a safe bet for a trouble free life but Gorbaciòf's problems multiply when he falls for a Chinese woman who does not speak any Italian. Gorbaciòf wants to be the woman's knight in shining armour and in order to ensure a better life for her, he needs more money. That need leads him down a slippery yet predictable slope. The love angle is the film's weakest aspect and if it were not for the love story, Incerti's film would be one of the year's best films.
On another note: the male leads in The American, Gorbaciòf and The Robber are all related with their dangerous ways of life. It is not surprizing that the ending of all three films finds these three very different men (an American, Austrian and an Italian) in the exact same situation looking through the glass towards a better future.
The Tiger Factory (2010, Malaysia/Japan, Woo Ming Jin)
The film follows a young girl, Ping, in her attempt to gather money to illegally leave Malaysia for Japan. Ping's life is controlled by her aunt who witholds her passport and pays for men to get Ping pregnant so that the aunt can sell the baby. The story sounds bleak but thanks to the cinematography and lighting, the film does not feel gloomy and instead makes for a fascinating viewing. The style evokes the Dardennes, albeit with a bit of lightness.
Woman on Fire Looks for Water (2009, Malaysia/South Korea, Woo Ming Jin)
This is one of the most visually beautiful films of the year!! The film is about two love tales on opposite ends of the age spectrum. One story shows how a young boy is forced to take his family's fortune into account before deciding upon marriage while the other story shows if love is not truly acknowledged, then even at old age, it continues to torment and bite. In between these two stories, there are many remakarable shots which show the fishing business and every day life, plus there is plenty of humor shown in a subtle manner.
Kinatay (2009, Philippines, Brillante Mendoza)
The first 20-30 min of Kinatay perfectly capture the sights and sounds of the street life. After that, the camera moves inside a van and this is where the negative publicity regarding the film starts. Although it is hard to understand what all the fuss is about because there is nothing graphic or gory that is shown but instead we mostly listen to sounds of the horrible butchering and only see a tiny glimpse of the murder weapon. The briefly lit scenes allows viewers to fill in the horror themselves using the audio cues. Maybe in a theater, these audio cues are magnified thereby causing a claustorphobic effect.
Still, the film is powerful in how it goes about showing what it does and it is hard to be not shook up by the ending. I can see why Mendoza was awarded the best director for this film in Cannes 2009.
Lola (2009, Philippines, Brillante Mendoza)
Lola is a touching film regarding two grandmothers and how they go about dealing with their lives while finding themselves as opponents in a criminal case. One woman is seeking justice for her grandson’s murder, while the other is trying to save her grandson from going to jail for murdering the other woman’s grandson. The film switches perspective from one grandmother to the other and this method highlights many relevant points such as the true price of justice for people who are trying to make ends meet.
Manilla Skies (2009, Philippines/USA, Raymond Red)
The start gives a false impression of being another film depicting the frustration of being jobless in a major Asian city but the story then takes a dramatic turn towards a heist and an even more unexpected turn towards a plane hijacking. The cyclic nature of the ending, when one of the final scenes is neatly tied with the opening shot, depicts a beautiful pattern to the story. The lead performance is amazing and the film grows in strength as it moves along. Also, the dark/grayish visuals perfectly echo the gloomy mood of the character's situation. Amazingly, the film is inspired by a true story.
Essential Killing (2010, Poland co-production, Jerzy Skolimowski)
Like in Valhalla Rising, the male lead in Essential Killing never speaks a single word. Yet, Vincent Gallo's character does not need to talk as his expressions of pain and anguish perfectly convey his inner feelings. Gallo plays a taliban fighter who is captured in Afghanistan but finds himself on the run in a frozen European country side after a series of events lead to his escape. From then on, the film alternates between chase scenarios as the dogs/soldiers close down on Gallo's character and survival scenes where his character does anything just to survive in the brutal cold. It is understandable to see why Gallo won best actor in Venice for this film as his raw performance shows how much can be conveyed without needless dramatic dialogues.
Between Two Worlds (2009, Sri Lanka, Vimukthi Jayasundara)
This Sri Lankan film is a good example of what Bresson mentioned in his book, Notes on the Cinematographer, in the Sight and Hearing section:
”What is for the eye must not duplicate what is for the ear."
”If the eye is entirely won, give nothing or almost nothing to the ear. (And vice versa, if the ear is entirely won, give nothing to the eye.) One cannot be at the same time all eye and all ear.
”If a sound is the obligatory complement of an image, give preponderance either to the sound, or to the image. If equal, they damage or kill each other, as we say of colours.
Between Two Worlds has a beautiful visual and aural language while the story has a nice fable and mythical element to it. There are some scenes which fluidly mesh the imagined and real with a smooth easy manner. The only minor complaint is that some scenes appear staged, drawing attention to themselves and thereby weakening the dramatic effect of the situation. Two such examples are the youthful mob at the film's start and the dance by the river near the end.
Guest (2010, Spain, José Luis Guerín)
Guest is José Luis Guerín's travelogue of his year long film festival circuit tour from September 2007 till September 2008 with his film In the City of Sylvia. Even though Guest starts and ends at the Venice Film Festival, Guest is not a documentary about film festivals. Instead, it is a truly global film that gives a glimpse into everyday life in open public squares in various places such as Bolivia, Columbia, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba and Hong Kong. Places that do not have open squares are not covered by his film which naturally means that Canada and the US are not shown on the screen. For example, Guerín was in Vancouver in 2007 to premier In the City of Sylvia but Vancouver does not get a single shot in the film. Basically, any place that did not have adequate public space would not have allowed Guerín to interact with the locals and get their views. Guerín freely filmed everything around him and was not shy to keep his camera rolling. As a result, we get to witness some fascinating parallels regarding religion in diverse places such as Brazil and Hong Kong. Guest takes about 20 minutes to spring to life but once it awakens, it has plenty of interesting stories to share.
Woman without a Piano (2009, Spain, Javier Rebollo)
A sublime film that uses a low key treatment in depicting a single night's events. The camera quietly follows Carmen around and the events that unfold around her are hilarious and sad at the same time. The film is set in Madrid and in some alleys we see situations which Pedro Almovodar uses in his films but Woman without a Piano is an art film through and through, with a pinch of comedy.
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010, Thailand co-production, Apichatpong Weerasethakul)
Joe's film is a visual treat like his previous works but instead of the two part structure found in Tropical Malady and Syndromes and a Century, Uncle Boonmee is a single flowing work that manages to blend the two worlds of humans and spirits. This is his most accessible work and also his most openly political. In Blissfully Yours one could faintly hear the tank fire going on in the distance but the soldiers were not shown. However, in Uncle Boonmee we get to see futuristic pictures (really the present) of army actions. As enchanting as the film is, it pales slightly to the hypnotic beauty of Tropical Malady and Syndromes... Still even a Joe lite work is better than most current world cinema.
Four Lions (2010, UK, Christopher Morris)
A well made and acted film from the two writers of the witty In the Loop. Four Lions tries to use the same humour style of In the Loop with mixed results. The humour style of In the Loop made sense because it dealt with the circus like world of politics where a single sentence can be endlessly interpreted and rehashed. However, that style is more difficult to pull off with a topic of terrorism and suicide bombers. In that regard, one can watch Four Lions in a state of shocked horror and find it entirely offensive. The film is also brave in its treatment of the subject, especially since neither of the writers or director is Muslim.
Spoiler note:*****
Credit must go to the film-makers for remarkably maintaining the same consistent tone throughout even after the characters start dying whereas it would have been easier for the film to have taken on a more serious tone after the first accidental death.
Monogamy (2010, USA, Dana Adam Shapiro)
A fascinating modern day treatment of Antonioni’s Blow Up. Blow Up was made during the free love decade where the main character had no problem getting any woman he wanted so solving the murder mystery became a more important challenge for him. But in modern times, free love isn’t that readily available. And the presence of email and text messaging has changed the nature of relationships by limiting face to face hook ups. As a result, Theo’s (Chris Messina) “free love” is reduced to a voyeuristic kick. Things are complicated by the fact that Theo is on the verge of getting married and already he feels the walls closing in on him.
The acting is stellar, especially in the scene where Theo’s fiancée catches him looking at pics of another girl. The ending is not as dramatic as we are led to believe. The true identity of Theo's subject is quite clear but maybe the ending was supposed to emphasize that Theo was so blinded by the little details in the photos he took that he missed the obvious bigger picture.
Top 5 in order of preference:
1) Kill the Referee
2) Ocean of an Old Man
3) Woman on Fire Looks for Water
4) Valhalla Rising
5) Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
I cannot praise Kill the Referee enough. The fact that the film is about soccer is also its biggest handicap because that would mean limited release and certainly no press coverage in North America. I have read rumours that UEFA might have had the final say on what could make the final cut but regardless of the truth, what is presented on screen is fascinating enough. The footage allows the audience to identify some of the egos, heroes and villains that operate in the game.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
(East + South East) Asia Spotlight
Ten films covering four countries:
China -- Fujian Blue, Fish Eyes
South Korea -- Rough Cut, Daytime Drinking, My Love Yurie
Malaysia -- Call If You Need Me, Karaoke, This Longing
Philippines -- Independencia, Adela
Call If You Need Me, Karaoke, Daytime Drinking, Rough Cut and Fish Eyes were mentioned previously in CIFF previews I & III. These five films are included here with shorter comments.
So in order of preference:
Call If You Need Me (2009, Malaysia, James Lee)
A visually sharp film that combines the style of diverse film-makers such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang and Quentin Tarantino while still retaining a unique Malaysian flavour. Hou Hsiao-Hsien elevated a gangster film to an art form with Goodbye South Goodbye and James Lee does a very job in carrying on that tradition. Call If You Need Me is about gangsters and kidnappings but there isn’t a single gun or drop of blood to be found on screen. All the violence is kept out of the frame and we are instead shown events that precede or succeed a violent act. Because there is no violence shown on screen, we can instead focus on the characters and their day to day lives, including their love interests and their choice of food and drugs.
Karaoke (2009, Malaysia, Chris Chong Chan Fui)
This beautifully shot film attains a level of beauty normally associated with the cinema of Thai film-maker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, especially Tropical Malady. While the images are mesmerizing, one must also pay careful attention to all the sounds that can be heard. The lyrics of the Karaoke videos are also important as they provide a clue to the film’s three act structure.
This Longing (2008, Malaysia, Azharr Rudin)
Original title: Punggok rindukan bulan
The minimalist style of This Longing will frustrate some viewers but patient viewers will be rewarded with moments of beauty spread throughout the film. There are two stories here which are loosely tied and both show the gradual decline of an apartment complex in Johor Baru which is slated for destruction. The 90 minute long first segment is about the relationship between a young boy (Sidi) and his father. The second segment (about 30 minutes) features a completely different character, Riza, who returns home to have another look at the place where she grew up. After she arrives, Riza finds that the complex is almost empty as most of the residents have been relocated. Her walks through the same halls that Sidi passed through makes one question all the scenes in the first segment and whether Sidi and a younger Riza had crossed paths.
This Longing blurs the line between documentary and fiction not only because of its style but also because it was shot in a real apartment complex which was about to be destroyed. Seeing the cranes crunching away at the building at the film’s end (without any background sound) lends a haunting perspective to the story.
Fish Eyes (2009, Korea/China, Zheng Wei)
Zheng Wei makes an impressive debut with this well shot film that does not burden the screen with needless dialogue. The minimalist style works to perfection here as we witness the everyday events of a father and his son. Their daily routines are altered when a mysteriously girl shows up. While the father cares for the girl, the son sees the girl as someone who can be used to gain an advantage with the local gang.
Fujian Blue (2007, China, Weng Shou Ming)
The film takes place in the Fujian province and observes a slice of the human trafficking operation. On one hand we witness the methods of the local gangs seeking to profit from people wanting to leave China and on the other, we see the reasons for these people’s departure. Leaving one’s country illegally isn't easy and not without danger, but it isn't any easier to carve out a respectable living at home when crime and poverty are close-by. In this aspect, the film shares sentiments of Italian films set in the port cities during the 30's-50's when Italians sought to leave for America.
The vibrant look of Fujian Blue makes for a very calm watching experience despite the negative characters and situations on display. Overall, a worthy debut film and it is easy to see why it won the 2007 VIFF Dragons and Tigers award.
Independencia (2009, Philippines co-production, Raya Martin)
Raya Martin has certainly carved a unique style for this film with the studio sets, black and white film mixed with some staged newsreel shots. The controlled set environment allows Martin to play with the lightning (example, a studio light serves as the shining sun) and sound, thereby providing some of the film's best moments. The story spanning two generations is set against the backdrop of the island's historical aspects between the departure of the Spanish and the arrival of the Americans, with the American involvement in the Philippines growing steadily during the course of the film. The film's title proclaims Independence but that is an elusive concept as depicted by the film. Even at the film's end, we get a clue to impending blood shed that will take place on the islands when two foreign countries (America and Japan) will go to war.
It took me two viewings to appreciate the beauty of Independencia but I still missed out on some of the symbolism on the second viewing. When I saw the film the first time, the controlled set surroundings didn't produce a natural reaction in me because I could not bounce any emotional resonance off the stage settings. Only after the news reel appeared around the 30 minute mark, did I being to appreciate the film's humour and pokes at history. The second viewing was far more rewarding and allowed me to observe things with a different perspective.
Independencia could form an interesting double-bill with Kon Ichikawa's Fires on the Plain. While Independencia ends with the Japanese yet to arrive on the Philippines, Fires on the Plain shows the American and Japanese soldiers locked in brutal war on the islands. Atleast, in Independencia we see the local Filipinos but the locals are hard to come by in Ichikawa's masterful work.
Daytime Drinking (2008, Korea, Noh Young-seok)
A delightful film that provides plenty of laughs with its sincere tale of love, friends, alcohol and good food. When I was not busy laughing, I was craving hot ramen noodles with cold beer just like the characters in the film.
Rough Cut (2008, Korea, Hun Jang)
Rough Cut is a fascinating no holds barred action film that puts a new spin on the traditional gangster genre. Some aspects of the film within a film story are similar to the extraordinary Korean film Dirty Carnival but Rough Cut has gone in a far more gritty direction with good effect. Kim Ki-duk's screenplay is different from anything he done before, and that includes the gangster film Bad Guy that he directed early in his career.
Adela (2008, Philippines, Adolfo Alix Jr.)
The film resides on quite an emotional and powerful performance from the 85 year old actress Anita Linda. The usage of the slum location adds to the film's realism and invites a glimpse into the character's lives. In this regard, the film is similar to other recent fascinating Filipino films set in real slum/shanty town locales such as The Bet Collector (directed by Jeffrey Jeturian) and Foster Child, Slingshot (Brillante Mendoza).
My Love Yurie (2008, South Korea, Ko Eun-Ki)
Donga falls for his neighbour Yurie but he can't have her because of one tiny problem -- Yurie’s father is the devil! To complicate things, Yurie's father forces his daughter into prostitution, something which further torments Donga. Desperate to gain Yurie's love, Donga has no choice but to make a deal with the devil. After the deal is made, Donga is happy but his happiness has restrictions because a deal with the devil always has consequences.
The film has a creative take on Goethe's Faust tale and the interesting set-up of two houses in the middle of nowhere is a great idea as it gives the film a timeless look. After a very good opening, the film goes off track around the point when Donga makes a deal with Yurie's father. As part of the deal, Yurie's father gives Donga a picture book which shows his future with Yurie. The scenes that follow do not sit in the film's previously developed ideas of the purity of love that Donga wants and the devilish nature of the trade that Yurie is involved in thanks to her father. Instead, these picture book scenes halt the film's flow and grind the story to a halt.
China -- Fujian Blue, Fish Eyes
South Korea -- Rough Cut, Daytime Drinking, My Love Yurie
Malaysia -- Call If You Need Me, Karaoke, This Longing
Philippines -- Independencia, Adela
Call If You Need Me, Karaoke, Daytime Drinking, Rough Cut and Fish Eyes were mentioned previously in CIFF previews I & III. These five films are included here with shorter comments.
So in order of preference:
Call If You Need Me (2009, Malaysia, James Lee)
A visually sharp film that combines the style of diverse film-makers such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang and Quentin Tarantino while still retaining a unique Malaysian flavour. Hou Hsiao-Hsien elevated a gangster film to an art form with Goodbye South Goodbye and James Lee does a very job in carrying on that tradition. Call If You Need Me is about gangsters and kidnappings but there isn’t a single gun or drop of blood to be found on screen. All the violence is kept out of the frame and we are instead shown events that precede or succeed a violent act. Because there is no violence shown on screen, we can instead focus on the characters and their day to day lives, including their love interests and their choice of food and drugs.
Karaoke (2009, Malaysia, Chris Chong Chan Fui)
This beautifully shot film attains a level of beauty normally associated with the cinema of Thai film-maker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, especially Tropical Malady. While the images are mesmerizing, one must also pay careful attention to all the sounds that can be heard. The lyrics of the Karaoke videos are also important as they provide a clue to the film’s three act structure.
This Longing (2008, Malaysia, Azharr Rudin)
Original title: Punggok rindukan bulan
The minimalist style of This Longing will frustrate some viewers but patient viewers will be rewarded with moments of beauty spread throughout the film. There are two stories here which are loosely tied and both show the gradual decline of an apartment complex in Johor Baru which is slated for destruction. The 90 minute long first segment is about the relationship between a young boy (Sidi) and his father. The second segment (about 30 minutes) features a completely different character, Riza, who returns home to have another look at the place where she grew up. After she arrives, Riza finds that the complex is almost empty as most of the residents have been relocated. Her walks through the same halls that Sidi passed through makes one question all the scenes in the first segment and whether Sidi and a younger Riza had crossed paths.
This Longing blurs the line between documentary and fiction not only because of its style but also because it was shot in a real apartment complex which was about to be destroyed. Seeing the cranes crunching away at the building at the film’s end (without any background sound) lends a haunting perspective to the story.
Fish Eyes (2009, Korea/China, Zheng Wei)
Zheng Wei makes an impressive debut with this well shot film that does not burden the screen with needless dialogue. The minimalist style works to perfection here as we witness the everyday events of a father and his son. Their daily routines are altered when a mysteriously girl shows up. While the father cares for the girl, the son sees the girl as someone who can be used to gain an advantage with the local gang.
Fujian Blue (2007, China, Weng Shou Ming)
The film takes place in the Fujian province and observes a slice of the human trafficking operation. On one hand we witness the methods of the local gangs seeking to profit from people wanting to leave China and on the other, we see the reasons for these people’s departure. Leaving one’s country illegally isn't easy and not without danger, but it isn't any easier to carve out a respectable living at home when crime and poverty are close-by. In this aspect, the film shares sentiments of Italian films set in the port cities during the 30's-50's when Italians sought to leave for America.
The vibrant look of Fujian Blue makes for a very calm watching experience despite the negative characters and situations on display. Overall, a worthy debut film and it is easy to see why it won the 2007 VIFF Dragons and Tigers award.
Independencia (2009, Philippines co-production, Raya Martin)
Raya Martin has certainly carved a unique style for this film with the studio sets, black and white film mixed with some staged newsreel shots. The controlled set environment allows Martin to play with the lightning (example, a studio light serves as the shining sun) and sound, thereby providing some of the film's best moments. The story spanning two generations is set against the backdrop of the island's historical aspects between the departure of the Spanish and the arrival of the Americans, with the American involvement in the Philippines growing steadily during the course of the film. The film's title proclaims Independence but that is an elusive concept as depicted by the film. Even at the film's end, we get a clue to impending blood shed that will take place on the islands when two foreign countries (America and Japan) will go to war.
It took me two viewings to appreciate the beauty of Independencia but I still missed out on some of the symbolism on the second viewing. When I saw the film the first time, the controlled set surroundings didn't produce a natural reaction in me because I could not bounce any emotional resonance off the stage settings. Only after the news reel appeared around the 30 minute mark, did I being to appreciate the film's humour and pokes at history. The second viewing was far more rewarding and allowed me to observe things with a different perspective.
Independencia could form an interesting double-bill with Kon Ichikawa's Fires on the Plain. While Independencia ends with the Japanese yet to arrive on the Philippines, Fires on the Plain shows the American and Japanese soldiers locked in brutal war on the islands. Atleast, in Independencia we see the local Filipinos but the locals are hard to come by in Ichikawa's masterful work.
Daytime Drinking (2008, Korea, Noh Young-seok)
A delightful film that provides plenty of laughs with its sincere tale of love, friends, alcohol and good food. When I was not busy laughing, I was craving hot ramen noodles with cold beer just like the characters in the film.
Rough Cut (2008, Korea, Hun Jang)
Rough Cut is a fascinating no holds barred action film that puts a new spin on the traditional gangster genre. Some aspects of the film within a film story are similar to the extraordinary Korean film Dirty Carnival but Rough Cut has gone in a far more gritty direction with good effect. Kim Ki-duk's screenplay is different from anything he done before, and that includes the gangster film Bad Guy that he directed early in his career.
Adela (2008, Philippines, Adolfo Alix Jr.)
The film resides on quite an emotional and powerful performance from the 85 year old actress Anita Linda. The usage of the slum location adds to the film's realism and invites a glimpse into the character's lives. In this regard, the film is similar to other recent fascinating Filipino films set in real slum/shanty town locales such as The Bet Collector (directed by Jeffrey Jeturian) and Foster Child, Slingshot (Brillante Mendoza).
My Love Yurie (2008, South Korea, Ko Eun-Ki)
Donga falls for his neighbour Yurie but he can't have her because of one tiny problem -- Yurie’s father is the devil! To complicate things, Yurie's father forces his daughter into prostitution, something which further torments Donga. Desperate to gain Yurie's love, Donga has no choice but to make a deal with the devil. After the deal is made, Donga is happy but his happiness has restrictions because a deal with the devil always has consequences.
The film has a creative take on Goethe's Faust tale and the interesting set-up of two houses in the middle of nowhere is a great idea as it gives the film a timeless look. After a very good opening, the film goes off track around the point when Donga makes a deal with Yurie's father. As part of the deal, Yurie's father gives Donga a picture book which shows his future with Yurie. The scenes that follow do not sit in the film's previously developed ideas of the purity of love that Donga wants and the devilish nature of the trade that Yurie is involved in thanks to her father. Instead, these picture book scenes halt the film's flow and grind the story to a halt.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
CIFF 2009 Diary, Days 6-8
Day 6: Wednesday, Sept 30
The 10 film Maverick competition kicked off on September 30 with 4 screenings, followed by a further 4 on Thursday and the final two on Friday night.
Schedule for the 10 Maverick films:
Wednesday -- Juntos, Everyone Else, Unmade Beds and Karaoke.
Thursday -- Be Good, Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, Wrong Rosary and Fish Eyes.
Friday -- My Suicide and Be Calm and Count to Seven.
I had seen four stellar films prior to the festival (Be Calm and Count to Seven, Everyone Else, Fish Eyes and Karaoke) and I was looking forward to seeing a few more.
Juntos (2009, Canada/Mexico, Nicolás Pereda)
Before the screening, Nicolás Pereda mentioned that he felt strange talking about Juntos as a movie because originally it was intended to be an art gallery project. He then asked the audience to watch the film with an open mind.
It is easy to see why this work could have been an art gallery project. One can imagine seeing the footage beamed on walls as audiences walk by a particular moment and then return later on to see what the three characters are up to. The film contains long static takes and gives a glimpse into the relationship between three people living in an apartment -- Gabino, his girlfriend Luisa and his friend Paco. Gabino finds himself in the middle of this awkward dynamic as Luisa's dislike at Paco's presence means that Gabino's relationship with Luisa is put under stress. The stress is conveyed early on and reaches breaking point in a stellar 10 minute long dialogue less scene with Gabino and Luisa sitting quietly at the kitchen table. With each passing second in this scene, one can feel the tension rise between the two and had Gabino dared to speak a word, then the relationship would surely have been over then and there.
The title Juntos refers to Gabino's dog that goes missing at the film's start. The dog's disappearance also signals the degradation of the relationship Gabino has with Luisa and Paco, although Gabino's easy going manner with Paco suggests that he will eventually forgive any of Paco's mistakes (a beautiful dialogue exchange between the two when Gabino is working on the sink pipes is another strong highlight of the film). There is also a scene that will inspire walkouts or discontent from the audience. In this particular scene, the camera does not shy away from watching Gabino take a bath in the nude. The scene starts off with Gabino's member slightly covered but slowly, everything is out in the open. This long sequence, which features Gabino lathering himself with soap, brought laughter from some of the women in the crowd and caused one man to loudly blame another woman for bringing him to see this movie. The man walked out a few minutes after the scene was over. But the scene does bring up the question that if it was a woman shown bathing instead of a man, would there have been any walkouts or even any laughter?
There are also some precious moments of humour derived from watching the characters and their crumbling household appliances. The film certainly requires an investment from the audience and does reward those who are patient enough.
note: Robert Koehler's review is worth reading.
Karaoke
After Juntos I headed down to the Plaza to meet up with Chris Chong Chan Fui and introduce his film. As it turned out, Karaoke proved to a frustrating challenge for quite a few of the audience members, including some good friends.
Day 7: Thursday, Oct 1
Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench (2009, USA, Damien Chazelle)
This black and white free flowing jazzy film is a breath of fresh air and has shades of John Cassavetes. The story is simple enough -- Boy Meets Girl, Boy dumps Girl, Boy meets another Girl and eventually Boy realizes he made a mistake. But the film has such a beautiful free style to it, like a jazz piece, that one can forget about the story and enjoy the images that are musically conveyed on the screen. There are also a few musical numbers, especially the cute restaurant tap dance sequence, that are integrated nicely in the film's framework.
Note: originally I had intended on seeing Be Good but then I changed my mind because I figured that I might have better chance of catching Be Good on DVD than Damien Chazelle's film. As good as Guy and Madeline.. is, I do wonder what future the film might have outside of the film festival circuit.
Wrong Rosary (2009, Turkey, Mahmut Fazil Coskun)
There is a famous Indian song from the film Padosan: "Mere samne wali khidki mein ek chand ka tukda rahta hai..". which roughly translates to "a beautiful girl lives next door" (I think an exact translation for this song would lessen the impact). The words for that song perfectly describe the story in Wrong Rosary as Musa, a muezzin, is smitten by his neighbour Clara. While the two belong to different religions, it is not religion that forms a barrier in their relationship but instead Musa's shyness gets in the way. Gradually, as he takes takes baby steps to edge towards Clara, we see his confidence grow. And just when things look like heading towards a happy sunset over the Bosphorus, a heart breaking conflict is thrown in the mix, ensuring some tears will take place.
Overall, Wrong Rosary is a wonderful crowd pleasing film. At times, the two characters of Musa and Clara look straight out of a Chaplin movie as both are outcasts in the beautiful city of Istanbul.
Note: Wrong Rosary continues the trend of fine Turkish films I have seen this year. And like most of those Turkish films, Wrong Rosary is expertly shot and allows one to completely soak in the atmosphere. The previous Turkish films that I saw this year will be outlined in a “Spotlight on Turkey” post shortly.
Day 8: Friday, Oct 2
Zero films seen!!
Despite my best intention of seeing a film on friday, a bizarre sequence of events (rain + car troubles) ensured that I once again failed to see a film on each of the 10 festival days.
Still, the rest was welcome as I was able to take in a record 7 films on saturday.
The 10 film Maverick competition kicked off on September 30 with 4 screenings, followed by a further 4 on Thursday and the final two on Friday night.
Schedule for the 10 Maverick films:
Wednesday -- Juntos, Everyone Else, Unmade Beds and Karaoke.
Thursday -- Be Good, Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, Wrong Rosary and Fish Eyes.
Friday -- My Suicide and Be Calm and Count to Seven.
I had seen four stellar films prior to the festival (Be Calm and Count to Seven, Everyone Else, Fish Eyes and Karaoke) and I was looking forward to seeing a few more.
Juntos (2009, Canada/Mexico, Nicolás Pereda)
Before the screening, Nicolás Pereda mentioned that he felt strange talking about Juntos as a movie because originally it was intended to be an art gallery project. He then asked the audience to watch the film with an open mind.
It is easy to see why this work could have been an art gallery project. One can imagine seeing the footage beamed on walls as audiences walk by a particular moment and then return later on to see what the three characters are up to. The film contains long static takes and gives a glimpse into the relationship between three people living in an apartment -- Gabino, his girlfriend Luisa and his friend Paco. Gabino finds himself in the middle of this awkward dynamic as Luisa's dislike at Paco's presence means that Gabino's relationship with Luisa is put under stress. The stress is conveyed early on and reaches breaking point in a stellar 10 minute long dialogue less scene with Gabino and Luisa sitting quietly at the kitchen table. With each passing second in this scene, one can feel the tension rise between the two and had Gabino dared to speak a word, then the relationship would surely have been over then and there.
The title Juntos refers to Gabino's dog that goes missing at the film's start. The dog's disappearance also signals the degradation of the relationship Gabino has with Luisa and Paco, although Gabino's easy going manner with Paco suggests that he will eventually forgive any of Paco's mistakes (a beautiful dialogue exchange between the two when Gabino is working on the sink pipes is another strong highlight of the film). There is also a scene that will inspire walkouts or discontent from the audience. In this particular scene, the camera does not shy away from watching Gabino take a bath in the nude. The scene starts off with Gabino's member slightly covered but slowly, everything is out in the open. This long sequence, which features Gabino lathering himself with soap, brought laughter from some of the women in the crowd and caused one man to loudly blame another woman for bringing him to see this movie. The man walked out a few minutes after the scene was over. But the scene does bring up the question that if it was a woman shown bathing instead of a man, would there have been any walkouts or even any laughter?
There are also some precious moments of humour derived from watching the characters and their crumbling household appliances. The film certainly requires an investment from the audience and does reward those who are patient enough.
note: Robert Koehler's review is worth reading.
Karaoke
After Juntos I headed down to the Plaza to meet up with Chris Chong Chan Fui and introduce his film. As it turned out, Karaoke proved to a frustrating challenge for quite a few of the audience members, including some good friends.
Day 7: Thursday, Oct 1
Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench (2009, USA, Damien Chazelle)
This black and white free flowing jazzy film is a breath of fresh air and has shades of John Cassavetes. The story is simple enough -- Boy Meets Girl, Boy dumps Girl, Boy meets another Girl and eventually Boy realizes he made a mistake. But the film has such a beautiful free style to it, like a jazz piece, that one can forget about the story and enjoy the images that are musically conveyed on the screen. There are also a few musical numbers, especially the cute restaurant tap dance sequence, that are integrated nicely in the film's framework.
Note: originally I had intended on seeing Be Good but then I changed my mind because I figured that I might have better chance of catching Be Good on DVD than Damien Chazelle's film. As good as Guy and Madeline.. is, I do wonder what future the film might have outside of the film festival circuit.
Wrong Rosary (2009, Turkey, Mahmut Fazil Coskun)
There is a famous Indian song from the film Padosan: "Mere samne wali khidki mein ek chand ka tukda rahta hai..". which roughly translates to "a beautiful girl lives next door" (I think an exact translation for this song would lessen the impact). The words for that song perfectly describe the story in Wrong Rosary as Musa, a muezzin, is smitten by his neighbour Clara. While the two belong to different religions, it is not religion that forms a barrier in their relationship but instead Musa's shyness gets in the way. Gradually, as he takes takes baby steps to edge towards Clara, we see his confidence grow. And just when things look like heading towards a happy sunset over the Bosphorus, a heart breaking conflict is thrown in the mix, ensuring some tears will take place.
Overall, Wrong Rosary is a wonderful crowd pleasing film. At times, the two characters of Musa and Clara look straight out of a Chaplin movie as both are outcasts in the beautiful city of Istanbul.
Note: Wrong Rosary continues the trend of fine Turkish films I have seen this year. And like most of those Turkish films, Wrong Rosary is expertly shot and allows one to completely soak in the atmosphere. The previous Turkish films that I saw this year will be outlined in a “Spotlight on Turkey” post shortly.
Day 8: Friday, Oct 2
Zero films seen!!
Despite my best intention of seeing a film on friday, a bizarre sequence of events (rain + car troubles) ensured that I once again failed to see a film on each of the 10 festival days.
Still, the rest was welcome as I was able to take in a record 7 films on saturday.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
CIFF 2009 preview, part III
Asian hat-trick
Call if you need me (2009, Malaysia, James Lee)
A visually sharp film that combines the sensibilities of diverse film-makers such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Quentin Tarantino while still retaining a unique Malaysian flavour. Hou Hsiao-Hsien elevated a gangster film to an art form with Goodbye South Goodbye and James Lee does a very job in carrying on that tradition. Call if you Need me is about gangsters and kidnappings but there isn’t a single gun or drop of blood to be found on screen. All the violence is kept out of the frame and we are instead shown events that precede or succeed a violent act. In one instance, the gangsters surround a guy and are ready to beat him up but the next scene shows the victim playing cards with the gangsters. A few moments later, we learn that the guy is kidnapped and can’t go until the money he owes turns up so he is forced to pass the time by playing cards but you can sense his nervousness. Because there is no violence shown on screen, we can instead focus on the characters and their day to day lives, including their love interests and their choice of food and drugs.
The film also maintains a cool look and tempo similar to the cinema of Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (especially Invisible Waves) thereby making it a perfect film for a nice summer day. Even though the topic is about gangsters, one never leaves the film with a bad taste and the film does not glorify the gangster’s lifestyle, something that Ram Gopal Varma consistently does in his work.
Rough Cut (2008, Korea, Hun Jang)
Rough Cut has taken some aspects of the extraordinary Korean film Dirty Carnival and gone in a different direction with good effect. Dirty Carnival showed how gangsters complained about movies not having authentic fight scenes and in order to correct things, a local gangster (Byeong-du) helped his old college friend (Min-ho) to make an authentic gangster film by giving pointers to the actors and fight instructors. In Rough Cut, a once popular action star asks a local gangster to play a villain in his movies so that the actor can save his career. The gangster, who always dreamed of being an actor himself, agrees provided that all the fight scenes in the film are real and not staged. The end result is a no holds barred on screen contest where even the film’s director has no idea if the end result would hold true to his original script.
Rough Cut is a very good film that puts a new spin on the traditional gangster genre. Kim Ki-duk's screenplay is different from anything he done before, and that includes the gangster film Bad Guy that he directed early in his career.
Daytime Drinking (2008, Korea, Noh Young-seok)
A delightful film that provides plenty of laughs with its sincere tale of love, friends, alcohol and good food. When I was not busy laughing, I was craving hot ramen noodles with cold beer just like the characters in the film. In recent years, most of the Korean films that have showed at film festivals have been big budget slick productions. So it is great to see an independent Korean film like Daytime Drinking doing the festival rounds.
Call if you need me (2009, Malaysia, James Lee)
A visually sharp film that combines the sensibilities of diverse film-makers such as Hou Hsiao-Hsien and Quentin Tarantino while still retaining a unique Malaysian flavour. Hou Hsiao-Hsien elevated a gangster film to an art form with Goodbye South Goodbye and James Lee does a very job in carrying on that tradition. Call if you Need me is about gangsters and kidnappings but there isn’t a single gun or drop of blood to be found on screen. All the violence is kept out of the frame and we are instead shown events that precede or succeed a violent act. In one instance, the gangsters surround a guy and are ready to beat him up but the next scene shows the victim playing cards with the gangsters. A few moments later, we learn that the guy is kidnapped and can’t go until the money he owes turns up so he is forced to pass the time by playing cards but you can sense his nervousness. Because there is no violence shown on screen, we can instead focus on the characters and their day to day lives, including their love interests and their choice of food and drugs.
The film also maintains a cool look and tempo similar to the cinema of Pen-Ek Ratanaruang (especially Invisible Waves) thereby making it a perfect film for a nice summer day. Even though the topic is about gangsters, one never leaves the film with a bad taste and the film does not glorify the gangster’s lifestyle, something that Ram Gopal Varma consistently does in his work.
Rough Cut (2008, Korea, Hun Jang)
Rough Cut has taken some aspects of the extraordinary Korean film Dirty Carnival and gone in a different direction with good effect. Dirty Carnival showed how gangsters complained about movies not having authentic fight scenes and in order to correct things, a local gangster (Byeong-du) helped his old college friend (Min-ho) to make an authentic gangster film by giving pointers to the actors and fight instructors. In Rough Cut, a once popular action star asks a local gangster to play a villain in his movies so that the actor can save his career. The gangster, who always dreamed of being an actor himself, agrees provided that all the fight scenes in the film are real and not staged. The end result is a no holds barred on screen contest where even the film’s director has no idea if the end result would hold true to his original script.
Rough Cut is a very good film that puts a new spin on the traditional gangster genre. Kim Ki-duk's screenplay is different from anything he done before, and that includes the gangster film Bad Guy that he directed early in his career.
Daytime Drinking (2008, Korea, Noh Young-seok)
A delightful film that provides plenty of laughs with its sincere tale of love, friends, alcohol and good food. When I was not busy laughing, I was craving hot ramen noodles with cold beer just like the characters in the film. In recent years, most of the Korean films that have showed at film festivals have been big budget slick productions. So it is great to see an independent Korean film like Daytime Drinking doing the festival rounds.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Notes on recent films & emerging voices in Asian cinema
United 93 (Writer, Director: Paul Greengrass): Rating 9/10
I had avoided seeing this movie until now because I didn’t see a need for making a movie about the most televised event in recent history. Surely, an event that had gotten way too much press coverage and had resulted in more violence around the world didn’t need to be glorified by a movie? I held my belief despite all the positive film reviews. In the end, I changed my mind and I am glad I saw this film. The movie attempts to recreate that morning, first from the point of view in the air-traffic control center and then from events on United 93. The opening hour is spent mostly on the confusion in the air traffic control center when the two planes hit their target. The next 40-50 minutes showcase how an attempted hijacking of United 93 was thwarted. How true are the events shown in the movie? How accurate is the confusion in the air-traffic control center and army facility? We won’t know the true answer but that does not take away from this film’s efforts.
It is a gripping movie that moves at a fact pace. Shot in documentary style, the film does not attempt to judge or glorify anything. It tries to show events as they might have unfolded. And the fact that we know what is going to happen next only adds to the film’s tension. No matter what the reason, or which side is correct, killing of innocent people is not justified. Man is a devilish beast and if he continues his violent ways, then eventually everything will be destroyed. History might show events that started out with United 93 will eventually end with the future shown in Children of Men.
Calvaire, The Ordeal (Director, Fabrice Du Welz): Rating 8/10
I knew nothing of this movie when I picked it up. But what a film it is! The DVD cover is in bloody red indicating scenes of horror. However, the horror is not what I expected.
Marc Stevens (Laurent Lucas) is a traveling music performer who performs at a range of venues like senior homes. At a particular senior home, he attracts the affection of an elderly woman. He finds that inappropriate and quickly tries to leave when he finds that even the nurse there has feelings for him. On route through lonely and desolate Belgian country side, his vans breaks down. He finds Boris who takes him to Bartel’s Inn, about 3 km away. Boris’s words to Bartel are an indication of things to come. As opposed to merely saying that he has brought Bartel a tenant, Boris shouts "I have brought you someone." From then on starts Marc’s hell in a village populated by only older men. The movie is jam packed with odes and references to several films that director Fabrice clearly admires (Psycho to name just one). And the centre piece of all these references is Marc himself, a confused character who is hard to read. At the start of the film, he was the fancy of older women and then later on, in a mysterious village, he becomes the cause of feuding among the men. And the audience is left to wonder, why Marc is so helpless and weak at all this obvious insanity? De Welz has certainly made a unique first feature despite including quite a few horror film clichéd scenes.
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (Director, Adam McKay)
How can one rate this movie? It is one of those films that one either hates or one loves. But I seem to fall somewhere in the middle. I didn’t entirely dislike the film but was not convinced by everything shown. Adam McKay and Will Ferrell are certainly creating a different kind of humour genre in Hollywood. On a positive side, their dry humour with a few touches of satire is refreshing to see compared to all the brain-dead clichéd Hollywood films. Overall, I enjoyed moments of the film and did laugh out loud at quite a few scenes. At other scenes I either smiled or shook my head at the stupidity of the situation. The introduction of Sacha Baron Cohen as the French driver adds to the film’s bizarre energy. Now I want to see a film with Will Ferrell, Ben Stiller, Sacha Baron Cohen and Adam Sandler! Rating 6/10Emerging Voices in Asian cinema…
I was fortunate enough to preview these film as part of the Pan-Asian film festival.
Todo Todo Torres (Philippines, Director John Torres)
I was in Vancouver last year when John Torres picked up his prestigious “Dragons and Tigers Award for Young Cinema” at VIFF. The series programmer Tony Rayns mentioned that Torres’s film proves that home video can be captivating to watch. John’s feature is certainly an interesting blend of home video footage, video diary entries and scripted film. It gives a glimpse into the turbulent life of Manila where teenage angst combined with a police state can lead to acts of terrorism.
The next 6 films are part of Andy Lau’s production company, Focus Films, which is trying to give new talent an opportunity to make movies.
After this our exile (Hong Kong, Director, Patrick Tam)
This was the best of the six films with a lot of raw emotion. The story dives into the life of a troubled couple and how their breaking marriage impacts their child. The wife eventually leaves the husband who is forced to look after the child. Unemployed and having to pay off his gambling debts, the father teaches his son to steal so as to survive. This leads to an emotional ending which I don't want to give away. I felt this film is 20-30 minutes longer than it should be, but the emotional ending gives a nice soothing feel for the movie. Also, the movie contains a beautiful passionate love scene between the father and his girl-friend which is tenderly shot (shades of Wai-Kar Wong).
Joni's Promise (Indonesia, Director Joko Anwar)
This is a cute romantic comedy about a film reel delivery man who is responsible for shuttling film reels in between theatres because each theatre can’t afford to rent its own print. It starts off nicely but after a while, the overdrawn idea wears thin and some substandard acting ruins the movie.
Mukhsin (Malaysia, Director, Yasmin Ahmad)
I have to admit that I am starting to like Yasmin Ahmad’s refreshing approach to families and love stories. I adored her 2005 film Sepet which was just wonderful. Mukhsin is not as good as Sepet but contains enough wonderful moments to warrant interest. Also, some of the some characters from Sepet can be found in Mukhsin , including a touching cameo from the love-struck Sepet couple. Also, the name Orked is used for the leading love interests in both films.
Rain Dogs (Malaysia, Director Yuhang Ho)
Yasmin Ahmad makes a starring role in this film which really feels inspired from Hou Hsiao-hsien's Goodbye South, Goodbye. It is a movie that requires quite a bit of patience as the pace is very relaxed.
Crazy Stone (Hong Kong, Director Hao Ning)
A gangster heist comedy that has taken its inspiration from quite a few Hollywood films like Snatch. Even though at times the acting feels substandard, it is a well shot film.
Love Conquers All (Holland/Malaysia, Director Tan Chui Mui)
Made with partial fund from Holland, this is another independent film that I felt tried to imitate HHH's style, especially in the closing scenes. The main story follows the love-affair of a young woman who falls for the wrong man, despite all the warning signs (which includes a story narrated by the man about a scam where men trap girls like her). Despite the slow start, there is always a shade of darkness underneath the film which starts to unfold when we realize that the woman’s affair has gone all wrong. And we watch her sink into trouble, slowly and slowly.
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