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At the Movies
April 4, 2007
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By: Gary Kramer - gkramer@aroundphilly.com
Gary M. Kramer is a film critic who loves Latin American cinema as much as he does movies starring Seann William Scott. He is the author of Independent Queer Cinema: Reviews and Interviews and has written for Out and Playboy and the Film International journal.
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Featuring more than 300 films from over 50 countries, the 16th annual Philadelphia Film Festival will begin April 5 with two showings of The Ten, a comedy starring Winona Ryder and Paul Rudd. The festival, which runs through April 18, showcases many different films from around the corner (The Burglar, set on the Main Line and in Atlantic City, N.J.) and around the world (Ten Canoes, set in Australia).
Here's a list of a dozen films to catch, consider or miss for the first week of the fest, April 6 through 11.
BEST OF THE FEST:
The Little Things
The Little Things is a great big smile type of movie-a charming, low-key independent American film that truly captures the rhythms of dating and relationships. Miranda (Sarah Megan Thomas) is involved with Jace (Johnny Lin) but can't deny the attraction she feels when she meets Michael (Adam D. Scheinman). It would seem Miranda and her boyfriend would be better off apart judging by the way Miranda interacts with (i.e., nags and ignores) him. Michael feels the same way about Miranda, wanting to spend more and more time with her-even if just to re-park his car-and less with his girlfriend who is pressuring him to buy a place. As writer, director and producer Stephen Padilla addresses this romantic tension, he shows his would-be lovers' character flaws-her neediness, his indecision and inability to change. Miranda and Michael may grate on audiences' nerves but the naturalistic performances by the two leads are incredibly winning, and viewers will rooting for these two to get together. The Little Things never insults its characters or its audience, and Padilla shows himself to be a fresh new voice on the independent American film scene.
Sat., April 7, 2:30pm, Constitution Center; Mon., April 9, 7pm, Bryn Mawr Film Institute.
Fay Grim
Don't worry if you missed Henry Fool. This sequel to Hal Hartley's 1998 film stars Parker Posey in the title role as the widow of terrorist Henry Fool. As the CIA asks Fay to help recover Henry's eight notebooks of his confessions, she shows the American government operatives, who embroil her in espionage, that she has a few tricks up her own sleeve. Shot from a deliberately tilted perspective, Fay Grim courses through CIA history and bad behavior as it hopscotches from New York andParis to Istanbul and Afghanistan. If it is at times confusing-a scorecard is required to keep track of some of the characters and their connections-Posey pulls the witty film together with her best performance to date. Posey is ably supported by Jeff Goldblum, James Urbaniak and Saffron Burrows. Shot in high definition, this is not a sequel to miss. Sat., April 7, 5pm, Bridge; Sun., April 8, 7pm, Prince Music Theater.
A Comedy of Power
A blistering drama about Jeanne Charmant-Killman (Isabelle Hupert), a magistrate judge who is investigating corrupt businessmen, A Comedy of Power is graced with an amusing, cynical edge. Charmant-Killman makes life miserable for a CEO sent to jail as she pries into the professional and personal lives of his cronies. However, Charmant-Killmansuffers her own setbacks both professionally (a promotion comes with an unexpected twist) and personally (her marriage takes a turn for the worse). Director and cowriter Claude Chabrol never misses a beat in this crackling drama as he reveals who is really manipulating whom. Huppert is an absolute dynamo, shrewd behind her desk, relaxed with her nephew Felix and empowered with her equally tough female colleague. And while Huppert's outstanding performance is reason alone to watch this masterful film, Chabrol's critical views of high-powered fraud are icing on the delicious cake. Wed., April 11, 7:30pm, Ritz East; Sat., April 14, 2:30 pm, Ritz East.
STRONGLY RECOMMENDED
After the Wedding
Director Susanne Bier's latest drama may not be as devastating as her previous films Open Hearts and Brothers, but it is still pretty damn compelling. Jacob (Mads Mikkelsen of Casino Royale), who manages an orphanage in India, is summoned to Copenhagen for a meeting with benefactor Jørgen (Rolf Lassgård). But when Jacob returns to India, he encounters some staggering revelations. Bier and screenwriter Anders Thomas Jensen adroitly unveil the characters' bad behavior and selfish manipulation tactics. After the Wedding benefits from the superb performance by Mikkelsen, who is incredibly expressive as Jacob and bristles with every bombshell. However, the film never quite rouses the audience's emotions like it does the characters'. Sat., April 7, 7pm, Ritz East.
The Boss of It All
Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier's comedy opens with a voice-over narration that explains that the film is meant to be light and funny. And it is, mostly, as Kristoffer (a vain Danish actor played byJens Albinus) poses as a company president so it can be sold to an Icelandic businessman. A series of reversals delay the deal, allowing the staff to finally meet and interact with their boss, who has been unseen until now. Some of these encounters are funny-one employee punches Kristoffer -but other miscommunications stretch on too long. When Kristoffer's ex-wife (Sofie Grabol) is introduced, the film takes off with some fun twists. If von Trier's previous films, Breaking the Waves, Dancer in the Dark and Dogville proved to tough for some, The Boss of it All is a worthy change of pace for the Dogma filmmaker. Sat., April 7, 5pm, Prince Music Theater; Sun., April 8, 7:15pm, Ritz Five.
Crazy Love
As engrossing as it is disturbing, this true-crime-is-stranger-than-fiction film recounts the unbelievable relationship between Burt Pugash and his girlfriend Linda from their meeting in the 1950s. When Burt does something horrendous to Linda in the name of love, their destinies become inexplicably entwined. As the years after the shocking incident pass, more outrageous events take place. The less viewers know about this Crazy Love affair, the more fun and entertaining the film is. The fact that this story is true is baffling as the audiences discover the amazing revelations that defy logic. Sun., April 8, 7:15pm, Constitution Center; Thurs., April 12, 7pm, Bryn Mawr Film Institute.
Diggers
A real sleeper of a film, this American independent gem charts the lives and loves of a quartet of working-class guys in 1976. As Hampton's clam diggers, these close-knit friends each face a transitional point in their lives as big business slowly takes over the area. If the characters are all stereotypes-the sensitive photographer (Paul Rudd), the wise stoner (Josh Hamilton), the lothario (Ron Eldard) and the bully (Ken Marino)-the film depicts their world so realistically that they transcend expectations even when their storylines get predictable. The performances by the entire cast are pitch-perfect, and the oil and water relationships between the guys and their women (Lauren Ambrose, Maura Tierney and Sarah Paulson) truly resonate. Diggers also features nuances that generate a warm feeling, such as how people greet each other by giving them the finger or by chucking a moon. Thefilm gets every period detail-the costumes, the music, even the wallpaper-absolutely perfect. Sat., April 7, Noon, Ritz East;
Mon., April 9, 7:15pm, Prince Music Theater.
Red Road
The mesmerizing visuals and outstanding sound design create plenty of atmosphere in director Andrea Arnold's gritty drama about revenge and forgiveness. Jackie (Kate Dickie) works for a closed-circuit TV security company in a crime-ridden area of Glasgow, Scotland. The sudden reappearance of ex-con Clyde (Tony Curran) on one of her monitors forces her to seek him out and get closure for an initially unspecified event. As Jackie doggedly pursues her prey, her provocative actions, which include a bout of explicit sex and some emotionally difficult moments, will cause viewers to question her behavior. Unfortunately, Red Road tries to tie things together too quickly by its end to be completely effective. However, the film benefits immensely from Dickie's amazing and brave performance as a woman whose surveillance work allow her to get passively caught up in other people's lives, but she goes to extremes when it comes to managing her own. Fri., April 6, 7pm, Ritz East; Sun., April 8, 4:45pm, Ritz East.
Sweet Mud
Sweet Mud is a bittersweet film about life on an Israeli kibbutz in 1974. Based on the filmmaker's own childhood, Sweet Mud is filled with gentle humor-12-year-old Dvir (Tomer Steinhof) gets instructions from his grandmother about who to deliver jam to and who to avoid-as well as serious life lessons. After the community crushes his mother's hope for happiness, Dvir tries to keep things together as mom slowly starts to lose it. While the best scenes feature Dvir and his mother bonding-digging for potatoes in the rain-there are other episodes that remain underdeveloped. The uneven tone of Sweet Mud hardly detracts from the winning, poignant relationship that develops between Dvir and a French girl forced to stay on the kibbutz. The film, which won awards at Sundance, contains strong messages about conformity and its uniformly excellent performances makes it a true crowd-pleaser. Sat., April 7, 7:15pm, Ritz Five; Tues., April 10, 4:30pm, Ritz Five.
White Palms
Switching between the life of the adult Dongó (Miklós Zoltán Hajdu) (a trainer in a gym in Calgary, Canada) and 10-year-old Dongó as a teenage gymnast in Hungary, White Palms builds to a very intense finale. While the film's handheld camerawork is sometimes irritating and the storyline episodic, this based-on-a-true tale is highly engaging and ultimately features a strong payoff. When his sadistic coach beats Dongó, he finds various ways of escape until one outlet-the circus-may prove to be his calling. The adult Dongó, reprimanded for hitting a student, is assigned to coach Kyle (Olympic gold medalist Kyle Shewfelt), a troublemaker in preparation for a competition. Both Hajdu and Shewfelt are simply poetry in motion and their athletics on the mat are reason enough to see White Palms. Fri., April 6, 2pm, Ritz East; Sun., April 8, 7:15pm, Ritz East.
OF MINOR INTEREST
Who Loves the Sun
Who Loves the Sun is set on a patch of Canadian land and involves five characters, each dealing with issues of fidelity and jealousy. Will (Lukas Haas) reappears after a five-year absence after he caught his wife Maggie (Molly Parker) in flagrante delictoI with his best friend Daniel (Adam Scott). While Will and Daniel fighting with and curse out each other, Daniel's parents reveal a secret of their own that drives their son further into despair. Meanwhile, Will and Maggie attempt to reconnect. Who Loves the Sun is ultimately too slight to have any resonance; it feels surprisingly stage bound, despite the outdoor environment. The cast does their best with the subpar material, freighting every glance and every profanity with meaning, but hardly improves what is really just a made-for-TV movie. Sun., April 8, 5:15pm, Ritz East; Tues., April 10, 7:15pm, Ritz East.
Wholetrain
This German melodrama about graffiti artists paints its characters in broad strokes. The conflicts of the lead David (Mark Adler) to reform his ways hardly registers, whereas his friend Tino (Florian Renner) is so despicable, his character takes over the narrative. This is a disappointing effort. Filmmaker Florian Gaag keeps trying to generate suspense as a quartet of taggers attempt to cover an entire train with their artwork all while evading the law, their family and other responsibilities. Wholetrain has all of the expected marks: upholding a tagger code of honor, having contempt for the system and making a statement through graffiti. The film's ending is satisfying even if the film as a whole is not. Don't miss the soundtracks. Fri., April 6, 9:30pm, Ritz 5;
Sun., April 8, Noon, The Bridge |
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