Canada heads to the polls today!! Will something change? More importantly, will a majority of the Canadians even bother to exercise their democratic right? All the questions will be duly answered before the night is over. Ofcourse, chances are we will have a new set of questions once the votes have been accounted for.
Until then, X marks the spot.....
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
The Emotional Trader & Manipulative Money Man
Two films that could describe the current financial mess are Ben Younger's Boiler Room and Sameer Hanchate's Gafla.
Emotional meltdown...
In Boiler Room we see how young men are trained and even encouraged to cheat people out of their money. The brokers lie and do whatever it takes to get their clients to throw away their hard earned money because they all want to be quickly rich so as to emulate their hero in the form of Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas) from Oliver Stone's Wall Street. There is a scene near the film's where the brokers are taught, from Ben Affleck's character, not to sell stocks to women because they are told that women are too emotional and would constantly phone in when the stocks fluctuate every hour. While Ben Younger may have gotten away with writing this line back in 2000, he could not have inserted these words if he had to make the film today. That's because in today's wall street it is the male brokers and traders who are emotional and are simply gripped in a panic state. Some male traders have suspended their rationale and are even emotionally judging the cold hard logic of software programs. In last month's New York Times, there was an article which talked about how automated trades are triggered by robotic algorithms. This certainly has the potential to cause a lot of damage as it did back on Sept 7 when in "a matter of about 12 minutes more than $1 billion in stock-market value [of United Airlines] evaporated".
This is how things unfolded:
At 1:36 a.m. E.D.T. last Sunday, Sept. 7, Google’s search “crawler” picked up a 2002 news article about United filing for bankruptcy from the Web site of The South Florida Sun-Sentinel; for some reason the outdated story had been listed on The Sun-Sentinel’s list of most popular business stories. (United emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2006.)
The next morning, an employee of the investment advisory firm Income Securities Advisors saw the story and posted it to the company’s own wire service, which is available over Bloomberg’s trading terminals. United’s stock plummeted soon after.
The story tries to underplay the human error: Human error seems to have played only a minor role. The financial damage was mostly the result of the interplay between the algorithms that search and compile information from the Web and the ones that Wall Street firms and hedge funds use to make trades automatically.
I disagree. The problem with this flow of events is clearly down to human error. The first fault lies with the programmers who created the web robot -- the algorithm should only have picked up new stories but in this case it picked up an old story. Even if the story was posted on Sept 7, I am sure a timestamp somewhere on the story would have indicated it was an old story. But the bigger error took place when the employee unleashed the story on their wire service without even checking the timeline of the events.
Can any of these panicked men take a minute to calmly think things through? Seriously...
Manipulating the markets..
What was more worrisome about the above story was the following situation:
Witness another recent case that had the potential to cause a stock market wipeout, but benefited from serendipitous timing: after the close of trading on Aug. 27, Bloomberg News inadvertently released an obituary of Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple — who, despite frequent rumors of ill health, was, and is, very much alive. The story was quickly retracted.
How on earth does someone "inadvertently" release an obituary of someone? The story does not elaborate on this at all. But in another article, the following lines attempt to justify this mistake: It's not out of the ordinary at all that Bloomberg would have this written; all major news outlets have notable persons' obituaries prepared in advance so that only minor changes need be made at the actual time of death. That way, the news can be reported almost immediately and can be updated with further detail.
Uh-huh. Sure. But did it occur to anyone that this might be a ploy to actually manipulate the stocks? Maybe someone was not happy with release of the iPhone?
Sameer Hanchate's Gafla is based on the life of Harshad Mehta, a man charged with stock manipulation. But the film shows a different take on the situation and depicts powerful men purposely trying to manipulate the stock market for their own interests, while turning Mehta into a scape-goat. Ofcourse, the truth will never be known because Mehta died in jail but it is not hard to believe that the markets can sometimes be manipulated to suit certain people's needs.
[Update, Oct 14: It seems there was a temporary relaxing of the panic state in Canada today, following the record surges in Wall Street on Monday, Oct 13.]
Emotional meltdown...
In Boiler Room we see how young men are trained and even encouraged to cheat people out of their money. The brokers lie and do whatever it takes to get their clients to throw away their hard earned money because they all want to be quickly rich so as to emulate their hero in the form of Gordon Gekko (played by Michael Douglas) from Oliver Stone's Wall Street. There is a scene near the film's where the brokers are taught, from Ben Affleck's character, not to sell stocks to women because they are told that women are too emotional and would constantly phone in when the stocks fluctuate every hour. While Ben Younger may have gotten away with writing this line back in 2000, he could not have inserted these words if he had to make the film today. That's because in today's wall street it is the male brokers and traders who are emotional and are simply gripped in a panic state. Some male traders have suspended their rationale and are even emotionally judging the cold hard logic of software programs. In last month's New York Times, there was an article which talked about how automated trades are triggered by robotic algorithms. This certainly has the potential to cause a lot of damage as it did back on Sept 7 when in "a matter of about 12 minutes more than $1 billion in stock-market value [of United Airlines] evaporated".
This is how things unfolded:
At 1:36 a.m. E.D.T. last Sunday, Sept. 7, Google’s search “crawler” picked up a 2002 news article about United filing for bankruptcy from the Web site of The South Florida Sun-Sentinel; for some reason the outdated story had been listed on The Sun-Sentinel’s list of most popular business stories. (United emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2006.)
The next morning, an employee of the investment advisory firm Income Securities Advisors saw the story and posted it to the company’s own wire service, which is available over Bloomberg’s trading terminals. United’s stock plummeted soon after.
The story tries to underplay the human error: Human error seems to have played only a minor role. The financial damage was mostly the result of the interplay between the algorithms that search and compile information from the Web and the ones that Wall Street firms and hedge funds use to make trades automatically.
I disagree. The problem with this flow of events is clearly down to human error. The first fault lies with the programmers who created the web robot -- the algorithm should only have picked up new stories but in this case it picked up an old story. Even if the story was posted on Sept 7, I am sure a timestamp somewhere on the story would have indicated it was an old story. But the bigger error took place when the employee unleashed the story on their wire service without even checking the timeline of the events.
Can any of these panicked men take a minute to calmly think things through? Seriously...
Manipulating the markets..
What was more worrisome about the above story was the following situation:
Witness another recent case that had the potential to cause a stock market wipeout, but benefited from serendipitous timing: after the close of trading on Aug. 27, Bloomberg News inadvertently released an obituary of Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple — who, despite frequent rumors of ill health, was, and is, very much alive. The story was quickly retracted.
How on earth does someone "inadvertently" release an obituary of someone? The story does not elaborate on this at all. But in another article, the following lines attempt to justify this mistake: It's not out of the ordinary at all that Bloomberg would have this written; all major news outlets have notable persons' obituaries prepared in advance so that only minor changes need be made at the actual time of death. That way, the news can be reported almost immediately and can be updated with further detail.
Uh-huh. Sure. But did it occur to anyone that this might be a ploy to actually manipulate the stocks? Maybe someone was not happy with release of the iPhone?
Sameer Hanchate's Gafla is based on the life of Harshad Mehta, a man charged with stock manipulation. But the film shows a different take on the situation and depicts powerful men purposely trying to manipulate the stock market for their own interests, while turning Mehta into a scape-goat. Ofcourse, the truth will never be known because Mehta died in jail but it is not hard to believe that the markets can sometimes be manipulated to suit certain people's needs.
[Update, Oct 14: It seems there was a temporary relaxing of the panic state in Canada today, following the record surges in Wall Street on Monday, Oct 13.]
Sunday, October 12, 2008
VIFF 2008 Trailers
For the last two years I have enjoyed the VIFF trailers shown before all the film screenings. I missed out on VIFF this year but thankfully the trailers are online. All the 8 Trailers hilariously describe the possible audience members who attend a VIFF screening.
But these are my three favourites in order of preference:
1) Overanalyzer:
2) Die Hard -- I narrowly avoided being this person last year.
3) Foreign Film -- Love this. I have been guilty of dragging people into a film they didn't want to see. If they had seen this trailer, they might have run away :)
But these are my three favourites in order of preference:
1) Overanalyzer:
2) Die Hard -- I narrowly avoided being this person last year.
3) Foreign Film -- Love this. I have been guilty of dragging people into a film they didn't want to see. If they had seen this trailer, they might have run away :)
The Blame Game
It is a universal human trait to blame one's problems on someone else. But in Friday's Globe and Mail, Marcus Gee took the blame game to absurd heights in his column "China Should save less, spend more". Gee agrees with U.S. Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson, that China should "encourage its citizens to be more like Americans and open their wallets". In his explanation:
China's government, too, has been building up a hoard. Years of huge trade surpluses and rising foreign investment has given Beijing foreign exchange reserves of $1.8-trillion (U.S.), a staggering figure that is rising more and more quickly. This surplus sloshes around dangerously in China's bilges, causing inflation and overinvestment.
Beijing could reduce the surplus by letting its currency rise against the U.S. dollar, a natural evolution for a country whose goods are in high demand. That would make Chinese products more expensive for Americans, reduce China's trade surplus with the United States and slow the flood of dollars to China.
The statement that it is up to China to make their "products more expensive" for Americans is completely absurd. The truth is that American companies have been taking their business to China in order to maximize their profits. The American companies (and even some British companies) play hard ball to ensure they can get Chinese products for as little money as possible. Proof is provided by the insightful documentary China Blue which shows how a representative from one of the big jean corporations negotiates the per jean price to a lowly figure of $1 and some odd cents. I cannot remember the exact figure but the representative brings the price down from $1.20 to something like $1.13. The Chinese factory owner in the film complains that if he didn't comply, another company would have beat them to the huge order. In the film's end, we follow the jeans from this factory via a gigantic ship containers to its destination in an American mall. There a sales girl opens the box of fresh jeans and puts them on the rack under a sign proclaiming "SALE" for a price of $40. Ofcourse, the same jeans would be sold for $80 at a different time during the shop's non-sale. Either way, there is a huge profit margin being made. So who gets the profit? Not China or the Chinese factory workers but the Multinational company.
If China starts demanding more money for its products, then you can be sure these companies will take their business to another country who would make the products for less. The basis of the capitalist system is that companies will take their business to where they can get more profits. So why is Marcus Gee not concerned with this? To prove his point Marcus quotes an American author: "As the U.S. author Ted Fishman put it in China Inc., "China lends America all the money it needs to spend itself silly." Why is Marcus not questioning the inherent greed that is buried in a capitalist system? At the end of the day, the current problems are down to greed, not only from the companies but individuals who spent more than they could have afforded to, and not about another nation.
The Carrie Bradshaw School of Journalism
This is not the first time Marcus Gee has written an article which reeks of personal agenda. In fact, this problem plagues a majority of the newspaper writers in Canada, especially those writing for the Globe and Mail and even the National Post. It seems most of the newspaper writers in this country do very little investigation or original thinking but merely voice their personal opinions just like Carrie Bradshaw did on her show Sex and the City. So are these personal newspaper articles considered a journalistic output or a personal blog? Are a majority of the newspaper writers merely churning out blogs but only in print? Considering how so many recent newspaper film critics have attacked film blogs for not being creditable, I find the same criticism can be thrown towards the newspapers writers who simply spend too much telling us how they feel on a particular morning or simply get their frustrations out.
China's government, too, has been building up a hoard. Years of huge trade surpluses and rising foreign investment has given Beijing foreign exchange reserves of $1.8-trillion (U.S.), a staggering figure that is rising more and more quickly. This surplus sloshes around dangerously in China's bilges, causing inflation and overinvestment.
Beijing could reduce the surplus by letting its currency rise against the U.S. dollar, a natural evolution for a country whose goods are in high demand. That would make Chinese products more expensive for Americans, reduce China's trade surplus with the United States and slow the flood of dollars to China.
The statement that it is up to China to make their "products more expensive" for Americans is completely absurd. The truth is that American companies have been taking their business to China in order to maximize their profits. The American companies (and even some British companies) play hard ball to ensure they can get Chinese products for as little money as possible. Proof is provided by the insightful documentary China Blue which shows how a representative from one of the big jean corporations negotiates the per jean price to a lowly figure of $1 and some odd cents. I cannot remember the exact figure but the representative brings the price down from $1.20 to something like $1.13. The Chinese factory owner in the film complains that if he didn't comply, another company would have beat them to the huge order. In the film's end, we follow the jeans from this factory via a gigantic ship containers to its destination in an American mall. There a sales girl opens the box of fresh jeans and puts them on the rack under a sign proclaiming "SALE" for a price of $40. Ofcourse, the same jeans would be sold for $80 at a different time during the shop's non-sale. Either way, there is a huge profit margin being made. So who gets the profit? Not China or the Chinese factory workers but the Multinational company.
If China starts demanding more money for its products, then you can be sure these companies will take their business to another country who would make the products for less. The basis of the capitalist system is that companies will take their business to where they can get more profits. So why is Marcus Gee not concerned with this? To prove his point Marcus quotes an American author: "As the U.S. author Ted Fishman put it in China Inc., "China lends America all the money it needs to spend itself silly." Why is Marcus not questioning the inherent greed that is buried in a capitalist system? At the end of the day, the current problems are down to greed, not only from the companies but individuals who spent more than they could have afforded to, and not about another nation.
The Carrie Bradshaw School of Journalism
This is not the first time Marcus Gee has written an article which reeks of personal agenda. In fact, this problem plagues a majority of the newspaper writers in Canada, especially those writing for the Globe and Mail and even the National Post. It seems most of the newspaper writers in this country do very little investigation or original thinking but merely voice their personal opinions just like Carrie Bradshaw did on her show Sex and the City. So are these personal newspaper articles considered a journalistic output or a personal blog? Are a majority of the newspaper writers merely churning out blogs but only in print? Considering how so many recent newspaper film critics have attacked film blogs for not being creditable, I find the same criticism can be thrown towards the newspapers writers who simply spend too much telling us how they feel on a particular morning or simply get their frustrations out.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Psst...Have you heard?
In these times of financial crisis, we need strong leadership! We need someone to tell us the word. Thankfully, we now know the word!
Family Guy BIRD IS THE WORD! - The most popular videos are a click away
Family Guy BIRD IS THE WORD! - The most popular videos are a click away
Thursday, October 09, 2008
The 2008 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded today to Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio. Unfortunately, I have never read anything by him because very few of his books have been translated into English. But hopefully this award addresses that and English translations of his work appear in the near future.
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
When the truth is much scarier than scripted fiction...
Imagine a scene 6 years or so ago.
A meeting room packed with “important men”.
Man #1: War, War, War.
Man #2: Oil, Oil, Oil.
Man #3: Is this all really good for us?
Man #1: No doubt sir. We will win in one week. Everyone will love us.
Man #2: Who Cares if we are loved or not? We are who we are. We are #1. The rest can go to hell.
And so it was. A one hour meeting. And the nightmare continues 6 years on. The worst part of all of this is that these men will get away without any blame. They have washed their hands of this problem and the rest of the world is left to pick up the pieces.
Now Imagine another scene about three decades ago.
A university room packed with some “intelligent minds”, plus some world politicians and a dictator or two.
Professor #1: There is only one perfect system. Open everything up. Privatize and free markets.
Dictator #1: But there will be problems.
Professor’s follower #1: No pain, no gain. The people will suffer but they will get used to it.
Professor’s follower #2: For those people that cause problem or oppose the ideas, lock them up and throw away the keys.
Men sitting in rooms thinking they had all the answers. Men who never traveled outside of their country yet they treated the world as their private experiment. Men who are still called “intelligent”. Well the truth is out now. Those men were fucking wrong. They were plain fucking wrong. The think tanks were full with men with no practical experience. There were no computer simulations back then. And even if there was evidence to show that these men were wrong, they would have ignored the advice. These men were just too arrogant to factor in the human element into their “intelligent” ideas.
And this is where we find ourselves in. These “intelligent” men still make more money than the average person. Yet it is their mistakes that are fucking the system up.
History is filled with instances where people fail to learn from the mistakes of the past. Systems and ideas can fail. Sure that is acceptable. But if one is arrogant and convinced they are right while everyone else is wrong, then they are doomed to failure.
For the last 4 years, the team which plays the best football on the planet continues to make the same mistakes and constantly fails. If an intelligent man like Arsene Wenger can continue to make the same mistakes, then what about the countless arrogant men who are in charge of much more important issues which they have no idea how to solve? Ha, they will never admit their mistakes. But even if they did, what good will that do now?
The damage has been done. And it will continue to get worse.
5 years ago, I thought greed and stupidity of some “intelligent men” was going to result in some severe situations. Yet, I could not have imagined how severe the situations would end up being. My mistake? I truly underestimated the stupidity of these men. These men are beyond stupid. And the only thing worse than stupid men is stupid men with power to implement their foolish ideas.
There are some things a good soccer game or film cannot cure.
A meeting room packed with “important men”.
Man #1: War, War, War.
Man #2: Oil, Oil, Oil.
Man #3: Is this all really good for us?
Man #1: No doubt sir. We will win in one week. Everyone will love us.
Man #2: Who Cares if we are loved or not? We are who we are. We are #1. The rest can go to hell.
And so it was. A one hour meeting. And the nightmare continues 6 years on. The worst part of all of this is that these men will get away without any blame. They have washed their hands of this problem and the rest of the world is left to pick up the pieces.
Now Imagine another scene about three decades ago.
A university room packed with some “intelligent minds”, plus some world politicians and a dictator or two.
Professor #1: There is only one perfect system. Open everything up. Privatize and free markets.
Dictator #1: But there will be problems.
Professor’s follower #1: No pain, no gain. The people will suffer but they will get used to it.
Professor’s follower #2: For those people that cause problem or oppose the ideas, lock them up and throw away the keys.
Men sitting in rooms thinking they had all the answers. Men who never traveled outside of their country yet they treated the world as their private experiment. Men who are still called “intelligent”. Well the truth is out now. Those men were fucking wrong. They were plain fucking wrong. The think tanks were full with men with no practical experience. There were no computer simulations back then. And even if there was evidence to show that these men were wrong, they would have ignored the advice. These men were just too arrogant to factor in the human element into their “intelligent” ideas.
And this is where we find ourselves in. These “intelligent” men still make more money than the average person. Yet it is their mistakes that are fucking the system up.
History is filled with instances where people fail to learn from the mistakes of the past. Systems and ideas can fail. Sure that is acceptable. But if one is arrogant and convinced they are right while everyone else is wrong, then they are doomed to failure.
For the last 4 years, the team which plays the best football on the planet continues to make the same mistakes and constantly fails. If an intelligent man like Arsene Wenger can continue to make the same mistakes, then what about the countless arrogant men who are in charge of much more important issues which they have no idea how to solve? Ha, they will never admit their mistakes. But even if they did, what good will that do now?
The damage has been done. And it will continue to get worse.
5 years ago, I thought greed and stupidity of some “intelligent men” was going to result in some severe situations. Yet, I could not have imagined how severe the situations would end up being. My mistake? I truly underestimated the stupidity of these men. These men are beyond stupid. And the only thing worse than stupid men is stupid men with power to implement their foolish ideas.
There are some things a good soccer game or film cannot cure.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
CIFF 2008 Summary
By the numbers..
I saw 18 films over 9 days -- I skipped the opening night gala of Blindness and saw no films on Wed, Sept 24.
I ended up seeing three films from Iceland as this year's Spotlight shone on that Northern European nation.
Saw single titles from the following countries -- Canada, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, France, Italy, Macedonia, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Uruguay and USA.
Films in order of preference with some ratings --
Wonderful Town (2007, Thailand, Aditya Assarat): 10
Gomorra (2008, Italy, Matteo Garrone): 10
Children (2006, Iceland, Ragnar Bragason): 10
Parents (2007, Iceland, Ragnar Bragason): 10
Used Parts (2007, Mexico, Aarón Fernández): 9
Alexandra (2007, Russia/France, Aleksandr Sokurov): 9
One Week (2008, Canada, Michael McGowan): 8.5
The Grocer's Son (2007, France, Eric Guirado): 8.5
Let the Right One in (2008, Sweden, Tomas Alfredson): 8.5
Corridor #8 (2008, Bulgaria, Boris Despodov): 8
The Pope's Toilet (2007, Uruguay, César Charlone/Enrique Fernández): 8
REC (2007, Spain, Jaume Balagueró/Paco Plaza): 8
Paraiso Travel (2007, Colombia/USA, Simon Brand)
Time to Die (2007, Poland, Dorota Kedzierzawska)
Driving to Zigzigland (2007, Zigzigland, Nicole Ballivian)
Jar City (2006, Iceland, Baltasar Kormákur)
I am from Titov Veles (2007, Macedonia, Teona Strugar Mitevska)
Alice’s House (2007, Brazil, Chico Teixeira)
Favourites and overall comments:
Thailand’s Wonderful Town was a refreshing film with its dreamy and relaxed feel. It was also the only film which provided me with a genuine satisfaction of having spent my time wisely. Other films that I appreciated were Gomorra, the Icelandic films of Ragnar Bragason (Children & Parents), One Week, Used Parts and Alexandra. Children & Parents were very well made considering the non-existent budget Ragnar had to work with. I also had high hopes for the Canadian film One Week and thankfully the movie delivered -- it was a genuine pleaser.
There were quite a few films playing at the festival that I had seen previously or previewed. Of that bunch, I think the best film that played overall at CIFF this year had to be José Luis Guerín's beautiful En la ciudad de Sylvia. Also, close behind would be Reygadas' third feature Silent Light. Bill Plympton's wicked and dark animation Idiots & Angels is also worth the watch. There were plenty of excellent docs at this year's festivals with My Life Inside featuring a gut-wrenching topic & Meadowlark being a very brave personal journey by the director Taylor Greeson. Also, the Canadian doc Junior gives a rare insight into the cut-throat world of Canadian junior hockey. Many of the issues depicted in the film could easily apply to the professional world of the NHL.
It was a great move on CIFF's part this year to book some screenings in a multiplex (Westhills 10) located in the suburbs. From the few screenings I attended there, people showed up in big numbers. On top of that, the French film The Grocer's Son played to a sold out show in this very multiplex hall on Sat, Sept 27. It was great to see people attending a foreign film in a hall that normally only plays Hollywood stuff. I just wish that more international and independent films are booked on multiplex screens across the country as opposed to having all the nation’s screens hogged by a few nonsense flicks.
Even though I love film festivals, the idea of watching multiple films while working in a day job can become tiring very fast. This year was probably the first time I truly felt the strains, both physical and mental, of attending films while juggling everything else in my life. An ideal film festival viewing situation would involve the one I had in Vancouver last year when I was able to view 24 films over a 6 day period. It was tiring but being on vacation and dedicating all my energy into only seeing the films helped a lot. By the end of the 6 day period, I was knackered but I was still able to walk into each film with high spirits.
Festival Diary
Days 1-2
Day 3, Day 4
Days 5-7
Days 8-9, Day 10
Wonderful Town (2007, Thailand, Aditya Assarat): 10
Gomorra (2008, Italy, Matteo Garrone): 10
Children (2006, Iceland, Ragnar Bragason): 10
Parents (2007, Iceland, Ragnar Bragason): 10
Used Parts (2007, Mexico, Aarón Fernández): 9
Alexandra (2007, Russia/France, Aleksandr Sokurov): 9
One Week (2008, Canada, Michael McGowan): 8.5
The Grocer's Son (2007, France, Eric Guirado): 8.5
Let the Right One in (2008, Sweden, Tomas Alfredson): 8.5
Corridor #8 (2008, Bulgaria, Boris Despodov): 8
The Pope's Toilet (2007, Uruguay, César Charlone/Enrique Fernández): 8
REC (2007, Spain, Jaume Balagueró/Paco Plaza): 8
Paraiso Travel (2007, Colombia/USA, Simon Brand)
Time to Die (2007, Poland, Dorota Kedzierzawska)
Driving to Zigzigland (2007, Zigzigland, Nicole Ballivian)
Jar City (2006, Iceland, Baltasar Kormákur)
I am from Titov Veles (2007, Macedonia, Teona Strugar Mitevska)
Alice’s House (2007, Brazil, Chico Teixeira)
Favourites and overall comments:
Thailand’s Wonderful Town was a refreshing film with its dreamy and relaxed feel. It was also the only film which provided me with a genuine satisfaction of having spent my time wisely. Other films that I appreciated were Gomorra, the Icelandic films of Ragnar Bragason (Children & Parents), One Week, Used Parts and Alexandra. Children & Parents were very well made considering the non-existent budget Ragnar had to work with. I also had high hopes for the Canadian film One Week and thankfully the movie delivered -- it was a genuine pleaser.
There were quite a few films playing at the festival that I had seen previously or previewed. Of that bunch, I think the best film that played overall at CIFF this year had to be José Luis Guerín's beautiful En la ciudad de Sylvia. Also, close behind would be Reygadas' third feature Silent Light. Bill Plympton's wicked and dark animation Idiots & Angels is also worth the watch. There were plenty of excellent docs at this year's festivals with My Life Inside featuring a gut-wrenching topic & Meadowlark being a very brave personal journey by the director Taylor Greeson. Also, the Canadian doc Junior gives a rare insight into the cut-throat world of Canadian junior hockey. Many of the issues depicted in the film could easily apply to the professional world of the NHL.
It was a great move on CIFF's part this year to book some screenings in a multiplex (Westhills 10) located in the suburbs. From the few screenings I attended there, people showed up in big numbers. On top of that, the French film The Grocer's Son played to a sold out show in this very multiplex hall on Sat, Sept 27. It was great to see people attending a foreign film in a hall that normally only plays Hollywood stuff. I just wish that more international and independent films are booked on multiplex screens across the country as opposed to having all the nation’s screens hogged by a few nonsense flicks.
Even though I love film festivals, the idea of watching multiple films while working in a day job can become tiring very fast. This year was probably the first time I truly felt the strains, both physical and mental, of attending films while juggling everything else in my life. An ideal film festival viewing situation would involve the one I had in Vancouver last year when I was able to view 24 films over a 6 day period. It was tiring but being on vacation and dedicating all my energy into only seeing the films helped a lot. By the end of the 6 day period, I was knackered but I was still able to walk into each film with high spirits.
Festival Diary
Days 1-2
Day 3, Day 4
Days 5-7
Days 8-9, Day 10
From the archives...
The Globe and Mail have put up their 1972 film review of The Godfather. The review was published a day after the film was released and it certainly makes for an interesting read. I love the last few lines which describes the movie in a nutshell:
"Yet the movie isn't just about this family. It's about secret horrors and false fronts. It's about how people turn themselves into monsters to maintain power and wealth -- and that's what makes it the all-American nightmare".
It is too tempting to apply the last line to a certain financial situation right now. Must resist rant.....
Also of interest is the article below The Godfather review. It talks about the mobile film studios which have become commonplace now.
"Yet the movie isn't just about this family. It's about secret horrors and false fronts. It's about how people turn themselves into monsters to maintain power and wealth -- and that's what makes it the all-American nightmare".
It is too tempting to apply the last line to a certain financial situation right now. Must resist rant.....
Also of interest is the article below The Godfather review. It talks about the mobile film studios which have become commonplace now.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Final Day of CIFF!!
Tired and jaded. I managed to take in 3 films on the closing day but I really should have only watched 1. The last two really tested any endurance I had whatsoever.
Day 10, Sept 28
Corridor #8 (2008, Bulgaria, Boris Despodov): 8/10
Jar City (2006, Iceland, Baltasar Kormákur): 6/10
The Pope's Toilet (2007, Uruguay, César Charlone/Enrique Fernández): 8/10
If there is a new wave in Romanian cinema, then Bulgaria may be becoming a hotspot for interesting documentaries. Last year I enjoyed the Bulgarian doc Mosquito Problem and Other Stories and this year Corridor #8 does not disappoint. With a short running time of 75 min, Corridor #8 is an interesting look at life between Bulgaria, Macedonia and Albania using trade, a proposed highway and cultural perception as a focal lens.
Jar City was a disappointing film even though it does feature some very stunning overhead visuals of the Icelandic landscape. It is a genre murder mystery with some slight variations to the conventional murder puzzle solving plots. The background score which attempts to evoke a spiritual essence around the film does not blend with the story and ends up being needlessly overpowering.
I was looking forward to seeing The Pope's Toilet but watching it at 9:45 pm on the final day of the festival was a bit too much to bear. On any other day, possibly an afternoon show, I might have enjoyed this film a bit more. Despite its charm, it felt too lightweight to sustain my tired eyes. Still I managed to stay awake despite the 90 minute running time taking forever to cycle through. How I wish this film had played at an earlier time in the festival!
That's a wrap..
Once I have caught up on my sleep, I will attempt to do a recap of some sort.
Day 10, Sept 28
Corridor #8 (2008, Bulgaria, Boris Despodov): 8/10
Jar City (2006, Iceland, Baltasar Kormákur): 6/10
The Pope's Toilet (2007, Uruguay, César Charlone/Enrique Fernández): 8/10
If there is a new wave in Romanian cinema, then Bulgaria may be becoming a hotspot for interesting documentaries. Last year I enjoyed the Bulgarian doc Mosquito Problem and Other Stories and this year Corridor #8 does not disappoint. With a short running time of 75 min, Corridor #8 is an interesting look at life between Bulgaria, Macedonia and Albania using trade, a proposed highway and cultural perception as a focal lens.
Jar City was a disappointing film even though it does feature some very stunning overhead visuals of the Icelandic landscape. It is a genre murder mystery with some slight variations to the conventional murder puzzle solving plots. The background score which attempts to evoke a spiritual essence around the film does not blend with the story and ends up being needlessly overpowering.
I was looking forward to seeing The Pope's Toilet but watching it at 9:45 pm on the final day of the festival was a bit too much to bear. On any other day, possibly an afternoon show, I might have enjoyed this film a bit more. Despite its charm, it felt too lightweight to sustain my tired eyes. Still I managed to stay awake despite the 90 minute running time taking forever to cycle through. How I wish this film had played at an earlier time in the festival!
That's a wrap..
Once I have caught up on my sleep, I will attempt to do a recap of some sort.
CIFF Notes -- Days 8 & 9
Day 8, Sept 26
Time to Die (2007, Poland, Dorota Kedzierzawska): 7/10
One Week (2008, Canada, Michael McGowan): 8.5/10
The Polish film Time to Die is mostly a soliloquy, beautifully shot in black and white. Credit goes to an excellent performance from Danuta Szaflarska for playing such a vibrant character. While the film is technically sound, like most recent Polish films, it took me a while to warm up to this story. Even though I was not bowled over this film, I did find a certain charm to it, not only from Danuta’s performance but the dog in the film whose actions and expressions were appropriate.
All it took for me to go see One Week was reading that Joshua Jackson plays a character who goes on a motorcycle journey from Toronto to Tofino. I love journey films and one set in Canada was definitely worth checking out. Thankfully, the film does not disappoint. In a way, the film is a postcard for Canada, showcasing the beauty of this country, along with snapshots of those small towns whose fame depends on that one big icon (largest mosaic, etc). Joshua Jackson plays Ben, a character whose life is turned upside down when he learns he has cancer. Unsure about what to do, he heads for a quiet moment with his newly acquired motorcycle and a cup of coffee. The sold out theater erupted with laughter when they recognized what coffee Ben was drinking. And the laughter increased when Ben ‘rolled up the rim’ to see what prize he won. He didn’t win anything but the message in the rim proclaimed ‘Go West Young Man’. And so it was. The Tim Horton's cup sealed Ben’s destiny and he undertakes a beautiful journey that ends at the beaches of Tofino.
Day 8, Sept 27
The Grocer's Son (2007, France, Eric Guirado): 8.5/10
Driving to Zigzigland (2007, Zigzigland, Nicole Ballivian)
REC (2007, Spain, Jaume Balagueró/Paco Plaza): 8/10
The Grocer's Son is a charming film set in a beautiful small French town. While the story deals with the title character and his life, we get a glimpse into the farmers and town folk he interacts with on his daily grocery deliveries via his father’s truck. There is a tiny reference to some of the farmers being in debt even though that is discussed in passing. The film would form a perfect companion piece to the excellent French documentary Modern Life, which is about the decline of farming in France and played in Cannes this year.
Sometimes the best way to deal with tragedy is via comedy. And in the international political world the issue of Palestine and the occupied territories is no laughing matter. So credit goes to the film-makers of Driving to Zigzigland that they manage to portray the issue of occupation, homeland security and racial profiling in a humorous manner. The film is about a theater actor (Bashar) from Palestine who dreams of working in Hollywood. He leaves his home and daily problems of checkpoints behind to make his living in the promised land where he ends up driving a cab in order to pay his bills while constantly auditioning for small acting parts. In conversations with his passengers, whenever he mentioned his homeland as Palestine, the discussions often ended up in an argument. So he decided to name his country as Zigzigland, a trick that works surprisingly well.
It has been almost 9 years since The Blair Witch Project was released, yet its legacy lives on. Blair Witch.. came up with a very smart formula for a horror film by using a handheld camera to shoot their film in darkness. The absence of light does evoke fear in some people and the film-makers cashed in on that idea and proved that if one had a good myth, there was no need of nasty creatures or even gory blood because the darkness would cause the audience some jitters. Cloverfield tried this idea but one reason I didn’t think it worked was because the film was not confined to closed quarters. And the reason the Spanish horror film REC works is because it takes the Blair Witch concept into a confined space of an apartment building. There is plenty of opportunity for the spooks and screams while the camera moves around in darkness.
REC has a short running time of just under 80 minutes and gives enough screen time to develop the characters before turning into a screaming pitch dark film. The story is about a television crew (the lovely reporter Angela and Pablo, her cameraman) who follow two firemen into an apartment building after the fire-station received a call that an old lady was trapped in her apartment. Early on, it is clear something strange is going. A bite and some blood later, the film pauses to catch up with the other residents in the apartment. And then the jerky camera goes into over-drive as the actors engage in a screaming match. What strange force is at work in the apartment building? Thankfully, the film does give a glimpse into the mystery near the end, with a taped recording voice that reminded me of the radio messages in John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness. Plenty of nods to Blair Witch and it seems that Hollywood has already noticed as their remake Quarantine will hit theaters in a few weeks. It is certainly fun to watch such a movie in a packed cinema hall because the nervousness and anxiety of the audience raises the decibels of the on-screen screams. And the directors do give the audience plenty of time to prepare for the oncoming danger. There are plenty of moments when the camera moves around a darkened space and one knows that something will appear in front of the camera and when it does, there will certainly be a few screams among the audience.
Time to Die (2007, Poland, Dorota Kedzierzawska): 7/10
One Week (2008, Canada, Michael McGowan): 8.5/10
The Polish film Time to Die is mostly a soliloquy, beautifully shot in black and white. Credit goes to an excellent performance from Danuta Szaflarska for playing such a vibrant character. While the film is technically sound, like most recent Polish films, it took me a while to warm up to this story. Even though I was not bowled over this film, I did find a certain charm to it, not only from Danuta’s performance but the dog in the film whose actions and expressions were appropriate.
All it took for me to go see One Week was reading that Joshua Jackson plays a character who goes on a motorcycle journey from Toronto to Tofino. I love journey films and one set in Canada was definitely worth checking out. Thankfully, the film does not disappoint. In a way, the film is a postcard for Canada, showcasing the beauty of this country, along with snapshots of those small towns whose fame depends on that one big icon (largest mosaic, etc). Joshua Jackson plays Ben, a character whose life is turned upside down when he learns he has cancer. Unsure about what to do, he heads for a quiet moment with his newly acquired motorcycle and a cup of coffee. The sold out theater erupted with laughter when they recognized what coffee Ben was drinking. And the laughter increased when Ben ‘rolled up the rim’ to see what prize he won. He didn’t win anything but the message in the rim proclaimed ‘Go West Young Man’. And so it was. The Tim Horton's cup sealed Ben’s destiny and he undertakes a beautiful journey that ends at the beaches of Tofino.
Day 8, Sept 27
The Grocer's Son (2007, France, Eric Guirado): 8.5/10
Driving to Zigzigland (2007, Zigzigland, Nicole Ballivian)
REC (2007, Spain, Jaume Balagueró/Paco Plaza): 8/10
The Grocer's Son is a charming film set in a beautiful small French town. While the story deals with the title character and his life, we get a glimpse into the farmers and town folk he interacts with on his daily grocery deliveries via his father’s truck. There is a tiny reference to some of the farmers being in debt even though that is discussed in passing. The film would form a perfect companion piece to the excellent French documentary Modern Life, which is about the decline of farming in France and played in Cannes this year.
Sometimes the best way to deal with tragedy is via comedy. And in the international political world the issue of Palestine and the occupied territories is no laughing matter. So credit goes to the film-makers of Driving to Zigzigland that they manage to portray the issue of occupation, homeland security and racial profiling in a humorous manner. The film is about a theater actor (Bashar) from Palestine who dreams of working in Hollywood. He leaves his home and daily problems of checkpoints behind to make his living in the promised land where he ends up driving a cab in order to pay his bills while constantly auditioning for small acting parts. In conversations with his passengers, whenever he mentioned his homeland as Palestine, the discussions often ended up in an argument. So he decided to name his country as Zigzigland, a trick that works surprisingly well.
It has been almost 9 years since The Blair Witch Project was released, yet its legacy lives on. Blair Witch.. came up with a very smart formula for a horror film by using a handheld camera to shoot their film in darkness. The absence of light does evoke fear in some people and the film-makers cashed in on that idea and proved that if one had a good myth, there was no need of nasty creatures or even gory blood because the darkness would cause the audience some jitters. Cloverfield tried this idea but one reason I didn’t think it worked was because the film was not confined to closed quarters. And the reason the Spanish horror film REC works is because it takes the Blair Witch concept into a confined space of an apartment building. There is plenty of opportunity for the spooks and screams while the camera moves around in darkness.
REC has a short running time of just under 80 minutes and gives enough screen time to develop the characters before turning into a screaming pitch dark film. The story is about a television crew (the lovely reporter Angela and Pablo, her cameraman) who follow two firemen into an apartment building after the fire-station received a call that an old lady was trapped in her apartment. Early on, it is clear something strange is going. A bite and some blood later, the film pauses to catch up with the other residents in the apartment. And then the jerky camera goes into over-drive as the actors engage in a screaming match. What strange force is at work in the apartment building? Thankfully, the film does give a glimpse into the mystery near the end, with a taped recording voice that reminded me of the radio messages in John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness. Plenty of nods to Blair Witch and it seems that Hollywood has already noticed as their remake Quarantine will hit theaters in a few weeks. It is certainly fun to watch such a movie in a packed cinema hall because the nervousness and anxiety of the audience raises the decibels of the on-screen screams. And the directors do give the audience plenty of time to prepare for the oncoming danger. There are plenty of moments when the camera moves around a darkened space and one knows that something will appear in front of the camera and when it does, there will certainly be a few screams among the audience.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
CIFF Notes -- Days 5-7
Day 5, Sept 23
Paraiso Travel (2007, Colombia/USA, Simon Brand)
Gomorra (2008, Italy, Matteo Garrone): 10/10
Border hopping
The Colombian co-production Paraiso Travel depicts the journey and struggles of a love struck couple (Marlon & Reina) who illegally cross the border into the USA. The film is divided into two portions starting off with the couple already in the USA and interleaved with their journey in flashbacks. Their journey takes them from Medellin to Panama to Guatemala via air followed by a river crossing and bus into Mexico. From Mexico, the duo make their way into Texas trapped in hollowed out tree logs along with a group of other Colombians. Once they get to New York, their troubles truly begin. After the duo get separated, Marlon is left to fend for himself on the streets of NY. The film has a good heart and tries to sprinkle hope, humour and even love into a story that could easily have headed towards complete darkness.
The wait is finally over!!!
Back in May after I finished Roberto Saviano’s well researched and written book Gomorrah, I found out that the book was going to be made into a movie by Matteo Garrone. I had no idea when the movie was going to be completed so I was completely shocked when I found out 3 days later that the movie was playing in competition at Cannes. Since then, I had looked forward to the movie. I figured even if the film tackled less than half of the book’s contents, then it would be a gripping and stellar flick.
Very rarely do sky high expectations translate into a satisfying film experience. But Gomorra did just that for me. The film dives straight into the world of mafia killings in Naples and continues to explore other areas touched by the Gomorra such as drug trade, fashion and even waste disposal. Reading the book is not essential for watching the film but the one benefit of reading the book is that it puts the different scenes and characters in context even before the film describes the situation. For example, in the film when you see two men scoping out a quarry, one can immediately decipher that the two men are looking for empty land for waste disposal as the final chapter in the book describes the operation in great detail. Also, one can pick out the subtle differences in between the book and film. Saviano talks about the incident where a dress that Angelina Jolie wore for the Academy Awards was stitched by a tailor with ties to the fashion underground. In the film, Scarlett Johansson is the one who wears such a dress.
The one aspect that stands out from the film is the use of guns to control power and commit crime. Two teenagers running up a sand-dune with guns in their hands while struggling to pull their jeans up. Two older fat men, wearing shorts and flip-fops, with guns in hand. It is hard to imagine the mafia operation existing without the hand-gun because any kid can be recruited off the street, given a gun to carry out a ‘job’ and initiated into ‘manhood’.
Day 6, Sept 24
Sleep. Zzzzzz. Skipped watching any films.
Day 7, Sept 25
Alice’s House (2007, Brazil, Chico Teixeira)
It came down to a choice between Brazil and Argentina. On one side was Alice’s House from Brazil and on the other XXY from Argentina. Normally, in terms of soccer and film, I prefer Brazil slightly over Argentina even though there are many excellent soccer players and films from Argentina. So continuing that trend, I once again opted for the Brazilian film, but I believe this time, I got it wrong. Even though I am not sure how XXY compares but I didn’t enjoy Alice’s House as the film is essentially a soap opera (affairs, romance, domestic issues) with some hair salon gossip and sexual urges thrown in the mix.
Paraiso Travel (2007, Colombia/USA, Simon Brand)
Gomorra (2008, Italy, Matteo Garrone): 10/10
Border hopping
The Colombian co-production Paraiso Travel depicts the journey and struggles of a love struck couple (Marlon & Reina) who illegally cross the border into the USA. The film is divided into two portions starting off with the couple already in the USA and interleaved with their journey in flashbacks. Their journey takes them from Medellin to Panama to Guatemala via air followed by a river crossing and bus into Mexico. From Mexico, the duo make their way into Texas trapped in hollowed out tree logs along with a group of other Colombians. Once they get to New York, their troubles truly begin. After the duo get separated, Marlon is left to fend for himself on the streets of NY. The film has a good heart and tries to sprinkle hope, humour and even love into a story that could easily have headed towards complete darkness.
The wait is finally over!!!
Back in May after I finished Roberto Saviano’s well researched and written book Gomorrah, I found out that the book was going to be made into a movie by Matteo Garrone. I had no idea when the movie was going to be completed so I was completely shocked when I found out 3 days later that the movie was playing in competition at Cannes. Since then, I had looked forward to the movie. I figured even if the film tackled less than half of the book’s contents, then it would be a gripping and stellar flick.
Very rarely do sky high expectations translate into a satisfying film experience. But Gomorra did just that for me. The film dives straight into the world of mafia killings in Naples and continues to explore other areas touched by the Gomorra such as drug trade, fashion and even waste disposal. Reading the book is not essential for watching the film but the one benefit of reading the book is that it puts the different scenes and characters in context even before the film describes the situation. For example, in the film when you see two men scoping out a quarry, one can immediately decipher that the two men are looking for empty land for waste disposal as the final chapter in the book describes the operation in great detail. Also, one can pick out the subtle differences in between the book and film. Saviano talks about the incident where a dress that Angelina Jolie wore for the Academy Awards was stitched by a tailor with ties to the fashion underground. In the film, Scarlett Johansson is the one who wears such a dress.
The one aspect that stands out from the film is the use of guns to control power and commit crime. Two teenagers running up a sand-dune with guns in their hands while struggling to pull their jeans up. Two older fat men, wearing shorts and flip-fops, with guns in hand. It is hard to imagine the mafia operation existing without the hand-gun because any kid can be recruited off the street, given a gun to carry out a ‘job’ and initiated into ‘manhood’.
Day 6, Sept 24
Sleep. Zzzzzz. Skipped watching any films.
Day 7, Sept 25
Alice’s House (2007, Brazil, Chico Teixeira)
It came down to a choice between Brazil and Argentina. On one side was Alice’s House from Brazil and on the other XXY from Argentina. Normally, in terms of soccer and film, I prefer Brazil slightly over Argentina even though there are many excellent soccer players and films from Argentina. So continuing that trend, I once again opted for the Brazilian film, but I believe this time, I got it wrong. Even though I am not sure how XXY compares but I didn’t enjoy Alice’s House as the film is essentially a soap opera (affairs, romance, domestic issues) with some hair salon gossip and sexual urges thrown in the mix.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
CIFF Notes -- Day 4
Sometimes our reactions to movies are similar to how we behave when we meet people. There are some people we take an instant liking to -- within a few minutes of meeting the person, we could be chatting like we were old friends. And then there is the flip-side to that behavior. There are some people we not warm up to and no matter what the other person does, we may never see eye to eye. One could say that at times our preconceived notions and prejudices come in the way, but no matter how much we try, we just cannot mesh with some people.
I had such reactions to the two films I saw yesterday – one that left me cold, while the other charmed me easily.
Day 4, Sept 22
Two films seen:
I am from Titov Veles (2007, Macedonia co-production, Teona Strugar Mitevska)
Wonderful Town (2007, Thailand, Aditya Assarat): 10/10
I am from Titov Veles didn't work for me. Even though the production values were top-notch and the cinematography was very good, I just couldn't get over how the film was purposely trying to include a few elements to appeal to the audience – the few nude scenes of the lead actresses (and who plays the narrator), the sexual sequences, the dreamy shots with a vague biblical reference or the lovely overhead shots of everyday objects.
On the other hand, I was completely as ease just a few minutes into the Thai film Wonderful Town. The movie, set in the southern Thai town of Pakua Pak which was hit hard by the Tsunami in 2004, is a tender love story between a Bangkok architect (Ton), who comes to the town to work on a new beach resort, and Na, the owner of the hotel that Ton stays in. The film has a steady rhythm that is maintained no matter what happens. The scene could be a kiss or even a deadly crime, but everything takes place in the established dreamy and peaceful framework. 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.
Notes: As it turns out, Ton is the only one staying at the hotel as it is off season for tourists and most of the visitors stay in the expensive hotels near the beach. The isolated hotel setting reminded me of another Thai film, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s Invisible Waves, which was set in Phuket. Even the film’s leisurely mood and dreamy feel made me think of Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s work. The resort construction is almost an inverse of Jia Zhangke's Still Life. In Still Life, we see buildings taken apart while in Wonderful Town, we see a resort being constructed from ground up. Just something haunting about seeing a building’s skeleton. In Tsai Ming-liang’s I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone, we also see an under construction building but I never equated that building with the one from Wonderful Town. Maybe because in Wonderful Town we see sideways view of the empty resort while in I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone, we see the empty building from within, either from a higher floor looking downwards or from the ground floor looking up. And finally, the scene where Ton and Na enjoy a quiet moment in the lush green field made me think of the peaceful picnic that the characters in Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Blissfully Yours take.
Opposite feelings
I saw both movies with two cinephile friends and it was interesting to note their reactions to the two films. They both didn't mind the first one and one of them liked it more than the second one. But for whatever reason, I can’t bring myself to feel the same about I Am From Titov Veles. I find it interesting that my least favourite film of the festival so far and the one I liked the most were separated by a 30 minute interval.
I had such reactions to the two films I saw yesterday – one that left me cold, while the other charmed me easily.
Day 4, Sept 22
Two films seen:
I am from Titov Veles (2007, Macedonia co-production, Teona Strugar Mitevska)
Wonderful Town (2007, Thailand, Aditya Assarat): 10/10
I am from Titov Veles didn't work for me. Even though the production values were top-notch and the cinematography was very good, I just couldn't get over how the film was purposely trying to include a few elements to appeal to the audience – the few nude scenes of the lead actresses (and who plays the narrator), the sexual sequences, the dreamy shots with a vague biblical reference or the lovely overhead shots of everyday objects.
On the other hand, I was completely as ease just a few minutes into the Thai film Wonderful Town. The movie, set in the southern Thai town of Pakua Pak which was hit hard by the Tsunami in 2004, is a tender love story between a Bangkok architect (Ton), who comes to the town to work on a new beach resort, and Na, the owner of the hotel that Ton stays in. The film has a steady rhythm that is maintained no matter what happens. The scene could be a kiss or even a deadly crime, but everything takes place in the established dreamy and peaceful framework. 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.
Notes: As it turns out, Ton is the only one staying at the hotel as it is off season for tourists and most of the visitors stay in the expensive hotels near the beach. The isolated hotel setting reminded me of another Thai film, Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s Invisible Waves, which was set in Phuket. Even the film’s leisurely mood and dreamy feel made me think of Pen-Ek Ratanaruang’s work. The resort construction is almost an inverse of Jia Zhangke's Still Life. In Still Life, we see buildings taken apart while in Wonderful Town, we see a resort being constructed from ground up. Just something haunting about seeing a building’s skeleton. In Tsai Ming-liang’s I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone, we also see an under construction building but I never equated that building with the one from Wonderful Town. Maybe because in Wonderful Town we see sideways view of the empty resort while in I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone, we see the empty building from within, either from a higher floor looking downwards or from the ground floor looking up. And finally, the scene where Ton and Na enjoy a quiet moment in the lush green field made me think of the peaceful picnic that the characters in Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Blissfully Yours take.
Opposite feelings
I saw both movies with two cinephile friends and it was interesting to note their reactions to the two films. They both didn't mind the first one and one of them liked it more than the second one. But for whatever reason, I can’t bring myself to feel the same about I Am From Titov Veles. I find it interesting that my least favourite film of the festival so far and the one I liked the most were separated by a 30 minute interval.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Keeping it simple, Hank Moody style
The only reason I wanted to see Californication was because of David Duchovny. Even though I had not read anything about the episodes, I had no hesitation in renting the first season DVD, although I only got Disc 1 which contained 6 episodes. I figured if the show was good, I would get the second disc which had the remaining 6 episodes.
With each episode lasting 30 minutes or so, the first DVD was 3 hours in length. I had only planned to watch one episode at a time, but after I put in the disc, I only stopped after the 3 hours was up. In fact, I hardly noticed the time fly by. I found Californation to be such a fun show, very well written and cast. The on screen relationship between Duchovny & Natascha McElhone's characters is just refreshing.
Duchovny plays Hank Moody, a writer struggling to get his new novel out. He still lives off the fame (and money) from his previous book and never gets tired of the drink or the women. He is also in the process of separation from Karen (Natascha McElhone) but the two keep in touch, partly because of their 12 year old daughter Becca (Madeleine Martin). And then there is Charlie (hilariously played by Evan Handler), Hank's agent who grills him every now and then about his proposed new novel. Hank and Charlie are good friends who often share tales of their women adventures, and even offer advice to one another. Charlie also has an interesting relationship with his wife and secretary. Okay, interesting is an understatement! I cannot forget Karen's current boyfriend, Bill, and Bill's 16 year old daughter Mia who had a fling with Hank. To Hank's defense, he was not aware that Mia was Bill's daughter or that she was 16 when he slept with her.
Despite all the emotional pulls and tugs between the characters, the show is amazingly balanced -- mature yet playful, humorous but still keeping things in perspective. In a way, Hank shares some similarities with Nick Hornby's characters from Fever Pitch & High Fidelity but the presence of a daughter also gives Hank a level head.
And for the record, I finished off disc 2 also in 3 straight hours. Season 2 starts on Sunday, Sept 28. I can't wait to see more of Mr. Moody and Karen.
Average rating of all 12 episodes: 9/10
With each episode lasting 30 minutes or so, the first DVD was 3 hours in length. I had only planned to watch one episode at a time, but after I put in the disc, I only stopped after the 3 hours was up. In fact, I hardly noticed the time fly by. I found Californation to be such a fun show, very well written and cast. The on screen relationship between Duchovny & Natascha McElhone's characters is just refreshing.
Duchovny plays Hank Moody, a writer struggling to get his new novel out. He still lives off the fame (and money) from his previous book and never gets tired of the drink or the women. He is also in the process of separation from Karen (Natascha McElhone) but the two keep in touch, partly because of their 12 year old daughter Becca (Madeleine Martin). And then there is Charlie (hilariously played by Evan Handler), Hank's agent who grills him every now and then about his proposed new novel. Hank and Charlie are good friends who often share tales of their women adventures, and even offer advice to one another. Charlie also has an interesting relationship with his wife and secretary. Okay, interesting is an understatement! I cannot forget Karen's current boyfriend, Bill, and Bill's 16 year old daughter Mia who had a fling with Hank. To Hank's defense, he was not aware that Mia was Bill's daughter or that she was 16 when he slept with her.
Despite all the emotional pulls and tugs between the characters, the show is amazingly balanced -- mature yet playful, humorous but still keeping things in perspective. In a way, Hank shares some similarities with Nick Hornby's characters from Fever Pitch & High Fidelity but the presence of a daughter also gives Hank a level head.
And for the record, I finished off disc 2 also in 3 straight hours. Season 2 starts on Sunday, Sept 28. I can't wait to see more of Mr. Moody and Karen.
Average rating of all 12 episodes: 9/10
CIFF notes -- Day 3
Day 3, Sept 21
Two films seen:
Used Parts (2007, Mexico, Aarón Fernández): 9/10
Let the Right One in (2008, Sweden, Tomas Alfredson): 8.5/10
The Slovenian film Spare Parts was about illegal border crossing and focused mainly on the drivers who transported the people seeking a better life. The theme of border crossing also exists in the Mexican film Used Parts but the film instead focuses on the people who want to cross the border. The majority of the film looks at the lives of two teenagers (Ivan & Efraín) who work at odd jobs in order to make ends meet. Working with his uncle, Ivan eventually resorts to stealing car parts (hub caps, mirrors, etc) to make some fast cash to pay for their border crossing payments. The early part of the film spends time laying out all the characters and situations properly, so when things do go wrong, we know exactly the different paths that the characters would end up taking. In fact, one can say the ending could be seen coming for a long while, but still when it does arrive, it does not feel manipulated. If the options in front of people are limited, then there are only a few paths they can take.
The Swedish film Let the Right One In could be described as a coming of age tale spliced with a vampire story. But that generalization does not do justice to the fact that the film beautifully takes components from each genre and seamlessly integrates them into an original story. 12 year Oskar meets 12 year old Eli. But as Eli mentions, she is "more or less" 12. In fact, her real age is unknown as a vampire is trapped within 12 year old Eli's body. And the vampire may not even be female. The film highlights their innocent friendship, while depicting the blood lust that gargles within Eli's body. The thirst drives her to kill. Initially, an accomplice helps fetch human blood for Eli in a method akin to animal slaughter -- slitting of the throat and letting the blood drip out. But when the frailty of the accomplice takes him out of the equation, Eli is left all alone. Which is where her friendship with Oskar takes on more meaning -- two lonely people in a cold, snowy landscape.
The cinematography is very good and the best part of the film is that it does not descend into any end of the world scenarios but simply focuses on the solitary vampire's friendship with a human. Also, the film does a good job of making full usage of the screen. For example, in a scene where Oskar is being submerged into a swimming pool by a bully, the camera stays on Oskar's face but in the far end of the screen, we can see that help is on the way.
Two films seen:
Used Parts (2007, Mexico, Aarón Fernández): 9/10
Let the Right One in (2008, Sweden, Tomas Alfredson): 8.5/10
The Slovenian film Spare Parts was about illegal border crossing and focused mainly on the drivers who transported the people seeking a better life. The theme of border crossing also exists in the Mexican film Used Parts but the film instead focuses on the people who want to cross the border. The majority of the film looks at the lives of two teenagers (Ivan & Efraín) who work at odd jobs in order to make ends meet. Working with his uncle, Ivan eventually resorts to stealing car parts (hub caps, mirrors, etc) to make some fast cash to pay for their border crossing payments. The early part of the film spends time laying out all the characters and situations properly, so when things do go wrong, we know exactly the different paths that the characters would end up taking. In fact, one can say the ending could be seen coming for a long while, but still when it does arrive, it does not feel manipulated. If the options in front of people are limited, then there are only a few paths they can take.
The Swedish film Let the Right One In could be described as a coming of age tale spliced with a vampire story. But that generalization does not do justice to the fact that the film beautifully takes components from each genre and seamlessly integrates them into an original story. 12 year Oskar meets 12 year old Eli. But as Eli mentions, she is "more or less" 12. In fact, her real age is unknown as a vampire is trapped within 12 year old Eli's body. And the vampire may not even be female. The film highlights their innocent friendship, while depicting the blood lust that gargles within Eli's body. The thirst drives her to kill. Initially, an accomplice helps fetch human blood for Eli in a method akin to animal slaughter -- slitting of the throat and letting the blood drip out. But when the frailty of the accomplice takes him out of the equation, Eli is left all alone. Which is where her friendship with Oskar takes on more meaning -- two lonely people in a cold, snowy landscape.
The cinematography is very good and the best part of the film is that it does not descend into any end of the world scenarios but simply focuses on the solitary vampire's friendship with a human. Also, the film does a good job of making full usage of the screen. For example, in a scene where Oskar is being submerged into a swimming pool by a bully, the camera stays on Oskar's face but in the far end of the screen, we can see that help is on the way.
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