Getafilm

CDtZ: School of Rock (2003)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 04:59:00 +0000

[Note: This is a submission for Counting Down the Zeroes, a brilliant, year-long project headed up by Film for the Soul's ambitious chief, Ibetolis. By the end of this year it will exist as a comprehensive collection of the best movies of the decade (2000's). My first submission was Boiler Room (2000), and I look forward to taking on more in the upcoming months. Check it out!]

Jack Black just has one of those faces, doesn't he? The kind that you see once and never forget, that can exhibit every range of human emotion, and that can believably slip into any supporting role in any genre of movie - Demolition Man, Waterworld, The Neverending Story III, Dead Man Walking, The Cable Guy, Enemy of the State, High Fidelity, Saving Silverman, Orange County. This fact shouldn't be a surprise, but yet it is: Jack Black had a solid 50 acting roles under his belt before his career-making turn as Dewey Finn in School of Rock.

Prior to Richard Linklater's sleeper smash hit, Black's biggest starring turn had been opposite Gwyneth Paltrow in the underrated Farrelly Brothers rom-com Shallow Hal, where he demonstrated for the first time that he could play the straight guy for a whole movie, without even one air-guitar foray or memorably wacky scene. Ironically, it was probably during this time in Black's life (the early 2000's) that he lived in the same apartment building as Mike White, who wrote Orange County and was inspired to write School of Rock after frequently witnessing Black blast classic rock music and run through the halls naked.

High Fidelity director Stephen Frears was originally tapped to direct, but the job ultimately went to Linklater, who had the slacker movie cred (Slacker, Dazed and Confused) but had never made a film as "kid-friendly" as School of Rock (he would go on to make a poorly received Bad News Bears remake two years later). The film opened in the U.S. on October 3, 2003, less than a month after its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

I remember seeing it with a friend on opening weekend at Universal City in L.A., then a few weeks later again with friends in San Diego, and then a few weeks later again with my brother and sister in Minnesota (ah, the Roseville 4). A crowd-pleaser that never tired, School of Rock was the first movie I saw three times in the theater since Jurassic Park a decade earlier. Maybe in part thanks to my efforts, School of Rock remained in theaters for almost 6 months, grossing more than $80 million on an estimated budget of only $35 million. In the Chicago Tribune, Mark Caro perfectly summed it up: "The movie is the cinematic equivalent of a near-perfect three-minute pop song. It makes you laugh, smile and tap your toes over a brisk 88 minutes, and when it's finished, you're ready to hit repeat."

What makes this movie so enjoyable through repeated viewings? It's hard to narrow it down to just one or two aspects, but each time I see it the answer becomes more clear: Jack Black's performance and Mike White's screenplay. Without either of these two elements, the movie would suffer considerably, despite the sure-handed direction of Linklater and some great performances from the kids, Joan Cusack, and even Mike White himself as Jack Black's roommate.

When we see Black (or more likely a stunt man) take a stage dive onto an empty floor during the opening credits, we get a pretty good idea of the kind of energetic comedy in store for us. As Dewey Finn, Black fully commits to the role of a sensitive slacker with a passion for music so pure that it overshadows otherwise sacred values (until he discovers the students' musical talent, he's happy enough to completely waste their educational time). In his 3 1/2-star review, Roger Ebert observed, "Jack Black remains true to his irascible character all the way through; he makes Dewey's personality not a plot gimmick, but a way of life."

Of course, it would be hard for anyone not to have fun playing Dewey Finn, a wannabe rock star who doesn't play by any of the conventional rules of life. But Black doesn't overdo it; we actually believe that, despite his own selfish interests in winning the "Battle of the Bands", Dewey really does care about the students' wellbeing. In fact, as he grows closer to them it becomes clear that Linklater is making something resembling a Disney movie, complete with positive lessons, family values, and a heroic, sappy ending. Ebert, again: "Here is a movie that proves you can make a family film that's alive and well-acted and smart and perceptive and funny -- and that rocks."

In other words, as vital as Black's balanced energy is to the success of School of Rock, the material he is working from cannot be overlooked. Mike White's stories were a bit hit-and-miss to that point (Dead Man on Campus, The Good Girl, Orange County), but as Ebert described it, "White's movies lovingly celebrate the comic peculiarities of everyday people", and School of Rock remains both the funniest and most endearing screenplay of his career (the upcoming School of Rock 2 has potential to replace it, but I'm skeptical). Praising the film for Newsweek, David Ansen wondered, "It's a bravura, all-stops-out, inexhaustibly inventive performance. I don't know how much was improvised, and how much comes from White's sharp screenplay, but Black may never again get a part that displays his mad-dog comic ferocity to such brilliant effect."

Unfortunately, Ansen has so far been right on the mark. Black has been given steady work in the past six years, but while much of it has been significant (opposite Kate Winslet in The Holiday, under the direction of Michel Gondry in Be Kind Rewind, and in the star-studded cast of Tropic Thunder), the role that's perhaps best fit his talents was as the voice of Po in last year's animated hit Kung Fu Panda. I'm not proposing an actual theory here, but it might be worth noting that both Kung Fu Panda and School of Rock are essentially kid's movies - maybe Black is best suited for roles that are more obviously juvenile? Food for thought to go along with a last bit of trivia: School of Rock (which was originally The School of Rock) was shockingly given a PG-13 rating due to "rude humor and some drug references", whatever that means. Lamenting the situation, Ebert offered a parting shot: "There's not a kid alive who would be anything but delighted by this film."

And finally, while I don't mean to diminish the work of Linklater at the helm here, for the most part it appears he took a hands-off approach and simply let Black run wild with his young co-stars. It worked beautifully and in the hands of another director this movie could have been bogged down with all kinds of unnecessary "stuff". There is one scene that displays Linklater's casually perfect directing chops, however, and it's the thrilling, emotionally moving finale (or, as Lou Lumenick admitted in the New York Post, "an inspirational climax that's as rousing as it is predictable."). Enjoy:

Local Theater Love #2: The Trylon microcinema

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 05:02:00 +0000

Welcome to your new Minneapolis home for repertory film programming...

It's a steamy late June afternoon as I slowly drive around the corner of E 33rd St. and Minnehaha Ave. in Southeast Minneapolis, trying to locate the new Trylon microcinema. I neglected to double check the address before I left, and as I aimlessly drive down an alley between Minnehaha and Snelling, the sun is blinding me, my back is sweating like crazy and my girlfriend is annoyed because I've called her at work asking her for navigation assistance.

Where is this place? I think back to when I had originally planned to come in February, when it was little more than a screening room hosted by Take-Up Productions and friends. Kathie Smith was going to show Chungking Express on Blu-Ray on a Tuesday night, and I couldn't wait to see it. Unfortunately, neither could a certain local film critic, thus sending the Strib my way seeking someone to attend the screening of Friday the 13th that same night. Conflicted, I accepted the assignment and missed out on Chungking. Thanks a lot, Colin...

Bam, there it is! A stark white sign on the back corner of a brick building: Trylon microcinema. I hurriedly hang up with my girlfriend, park on the street and, briefly distracted by a colorful mural lining the windowless building on the south side, find my way to the only door along 33rd St. Is this the right place?

Yes, in so many ways (and to be clear, it's really not that hard to find). With help from his friends and associates, Barry Kryshka has, in just over a year, wholly transformed the space in this building from empty retail/warehouse space to a.) a functional office for his own business, and b.) the newest and perhaps most intimate theater space in town. After three years of dutiful saving and hard work programming series and festivals around the Twin Cities, Take-Up Productions has secured its own space: the Trylon microcinema.

Featuring a 20' screen, two 35mm projectors, feels-like-you're-there sound, shockingly good digital capability, frosty air-conditioning and 60 real theater seats (plush, red velvet-upholstered, and graduated seats, to be specific), the Trylon is at first glance simply a smaller version of any cheeky theater at an AMC multiplex. But it has character (the seats, from an old theater in Waseca, were reupholstered by prison inmates in St. Cloud), intimacy, and maybe most importantly, freedom from corporate control.

While the space was still under construction when I visited, Take-Up had already hosted a couple of preview screenings and Barry was confident everything would be in place for the July 17th opening. The first row of seats (above) still needed to be installed instead of placeholder chairs, some lighting, painting, and soundproofing needed to be finished, and the matte around the screen had not yet been added. But there was no question that this was a legit theater, and one that had been constructed with the utmost regard for the cinematic experience. As an added bonus, Barry gave me a look at a few minutes of Blu-Ray projected on the screen, and the picture can only be described as eye-popping.

After spending a good chunk of the afternoon admiring and discussing the space with Barry, he was gracious enough to answer some additional questions via email as a kind of summary of our conversations. Before or after reading this I highly recommend you read up on Barry's discussion with Kathie Smith back in February about the process of programming repertory series at local theaters. Also, find more information on the July 17th opening further below, or on Take-Up's website.

Daniel: Take-Up Productions has established itself as a regular and well-respected fixture in the Twin Cities film scene over the last 2-3 years. Aside from the opening of the Trylon, what would you consider your biggest challenges and proudest achievements so far?

Barry Kryshka: The biggest hurdle/accomplishment was getting our first series on the screen at a local moviehouse. We spent a couple of summers bouncing around, showing films any way we could, usually outdoors, we showed The Hot Rock in a back alley behind a coffee shop, and Groundhog Day on the wall of the Soap Factory. So our first series at the Parkway was a big deal for me. We had 71 people for our opening night show: Stanley Kubrick's classic - The Killing, and we put in a ton of work at The Parkway to that stage. Since then just about every series has been bigger than the one before.

In terms of content, my favorite bill has to be the double feature of The Blue Dahlia and The Glass Key at the Heights last winter.

DG: What can people expect when they show up at the Trylon for the Buster Keaton series, "The Great Stone Face: Six from Buster Keaton", beginning July 17?

BK: I'm not even sure I know anymore, this project is taking on a life of its own. Dreamland Faces originally told me to plan for two people on accordion and musical saw...now it's 3-4 people playing each night, there's a piano involved, and I'm now hearing about "a very small drum set".

People should know that we're kind of like a speakeasy at this point. Our main entrance will be through the currently in-construction XYZ Gallery at 3258 Minnehaha. Just walk through the gallery and you'll find us at the back.

DG: Take us through the process you went through deciding on a name for your new space.

BK: I was looking for a name that would be unique, but with some cinema heritage. I considered "the Falls", because I'd heard about the Falls Theater on Minnehaha Ave, about six blocks from our space. The Falls was demolished in the 40's and replaced by Riverview.

But I don't really have a personal connection to that theater, and I eventually chose the name Trylon after the theater of the same name on Queens Blvd., where I grew up. The original Trylon was named for the 1939 World's Fair structure, and seated 600, including the balcony. I like the reference to the 30s, and the connection to a neighborhood moviehouse. The Trylon wasn't the biggest or most impressive in New York, but it was a neighborhood movie theater that served its community for 60 years.

DG: You've paid considerable attention so far to screening classic films in 35mm (and for the record, each of the ones I've seen has looked fantastic, most recently "To Catch at Thief" at the Riverview). How do you plan to balance the programming at the Trylon between 35mm and video formats (including Blu-Ray)?

BK: There's something about the look of 35mm film, and the sound of the projectors running, that reminds people they're out at a theater, having an experience you can't duplicate at home.

I'm extremely proud of our video image. It's a real 1920 x 1080 projector, the first in an independent Twin Cities movie theater, it has the same level of detail as the hundred thousand dollar 2K DLP projectors used by AMC's digital screens at the new Roseville theater.

I think the picture we project from Blu-Ray disc on our 20 foot screen is a match for 35mm film, but I never considered for a moment opening the Trylon without 35mm projection. The construction would have been so much easier, we could have had room for a bunch more seats, and a far lower electric bill, if we were digital only, but it wouldn't be a movie theater, not the way I think of them.

DG: It seems like the possibilities for series themes are endless. How you decide which genre, actor/actress, or time period to build a film series around?

BK: I talk to everyone I see at our shows, running ideas past everybody to see where there's interest. I also watch the calendars from the big repertory theaters in NY and LA, and I often go digging though my collection of Oak Street calendars for inspiration (does anyone out there have Summer 1998?). With the Trylon we're going to have much more flexibility in our programming. I can't wait.

DG: Considering the success you have had with series like "First, You Need a Crime...Six From Hitchcock", how do you see Take-Up balancing its programming between series and regular screenings at the Trylon, and series and retrospectives at bigger local theaters (The Heights, The Riverview, The Parkway)?

BK: We're going to start regular Friday/Saturday night screenings at the Trylon in September, with monthly themes. But we have no intention of slowing our pace with the Monday night shows. We've already confirmed a series in collaboration with the Heights this September.

DG: Do you foresee the Trylon ever moving toward more first-run or limited release films that don't get picked up by local theaters, or retaining a focus more on retrospectives/repertory programming?

BK: I'm going to keep Fri/Sat programming strictly repertory, but the Trylon will also run other films on occasion. For one example, we've started a partnership with Sound Unseen. They were looking for a venue to do monthly screenings in between their annual festival, so we'll have more screenings like last month's Bjork film, Voltaic.

DG: Describe the picture in your head of the Trylon microcinema five years from now.

BK: Five different films each week on one screen, that's the dream. I'm very satisfied with the Trylon technically. We were under a tight budget, working with the profits we had from 2 years of screenings, but we weren't forced to scrimp, and I think the quality of picture and sound at the Trylon is extraordinary.

What I want now, which is a much bigger task, is to slowly build the organization from four screenings a week to shows every night, and as many films each week as possible.

_____________________________________________________________

There may still be some tickets available for the Trylon's July 17th grand opening, but with only 60 seats in the house you'd be wise to get tickets ASAP. In addition the occasion of welcoming a new theater space to the Cities, I'm just as excited that the first series are these Buster Keaton films, accompanied live by Dreamland Faces as Barry describes above.

Also, know that Kathie Smith and I are reconvening the Film Goats at Town Talk Diner following the 7:00 PM shows on Friday night. Any and all are welcome to celebrate the Trylon's opening and pretentiously complain about the popularity of summer blockbusters like Transformers 2. Or openly admit to loving Transformers 2. There's room for that, too; we're goats, of course.

Below is a preview of the six films - also note that advance tickets are now on sale at Take-Up's brownpapertickets.com page.

The Great Stone Face: Six from Buster Keaton, beginning July 17

Sherlock Jr. (1924)
July 17 and 18 at 7pm and 9pm
Woody Allen's Purple Rose of Cairo is a delight, but Buster Keaton did it first. Projectionist Buster — dreaming he’s an ace detective — jumps right on to the movie screen, finding himself furiously edited from garden bench to city street to cliff — but finally becoming the ace detective of his wildest cinema fantasies.

Preceded by the short: The Electric House (1922) Buster designs a house with all the latest gadgets for a real estate tycoon who will buy thousands if the model home impresses him. But during the demonstration, everything that can go wrong, does - hilariously!

The Navigator (1924)
July 24 and 25 at 7pm and 9pm
Keaton’s top money-maker began with the biggest prop of his career: an ocean liner. Pampered playboy Buster is stranded on same with equally helpless airhead Kathryn McGuire. The ship finally runs aground on a desert island where the two unfortunates are chased by cannibals. One of Keaton's most revered films.

Preceded by the short film: The Ballonatic (1923) Buster rises to new heights as he sails heavenward in a balloon. He bumps into clouds, and in trying to bring down a duck, punctures the gas bag and crashes in the woods where he saves Phyllis Haver from a bear and falls in love. His courtship and the 'balloonatic' events that follow are hilarious!

Seven Chances (1925)
July 31 and August 1 at 7pm and 9pm
Buster gets word that if he can be married by 7 o'clock that evening, he will inherit $7,000,000. When his sweetheart refuses, he proposes to everyone in skirts, including a Scotsman! Hopeful still, he advertises for a bride and is horrified to discover 500 would-be brides hot on his trail in a hilarious chase to the finish!

Preceded by the short film: The Goat (1921) A mistaken-identity crisis precipitates an almost continuous - and continuously brilliant - chase through two adjoining towns where Buster is taken for 'Deadeye Dan, Public Enemy'.

_____________________________________________________________

Perfect Song, Perfect Scene #6

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:31:00 +0000

[Originally this post was going to be my only tribute to Michael Jackson, as it features one of the best, if not the most recent, uses of his songs in a movie. A secondary choice, and I'm completely serious, would be "Will You Be There" over the closing credits of Free Willy. Anyway, I'd rather not remember why I saw 13 Going on 30 in the theater, but I will never forget the ear-to-ear grin I had on my face throughout this scene as I resisted the urge to actually get up out of my seat and start dancing, as is always the case when MJ comes on.]

Party for Poise Magazine, 13 Going on 30 (2004): "Thriller" by Michael Jackson

300 Words About: Moon

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 04:49:00 +0000

[Moon opens this Friday at the Landmark Uptown Cinema. These thoughts follow the preview I wrote after seeing Moon at MSPIFF, followed by a Q & A with writer-director Duncan Jones.]

Like driving in Minnesota in January...

As I mentioned in that meme thing a while ago, one of the things I love about movies set in the future is that the imagination can run completely wild. Even when this blank slate leads to perhaps overly ambitious ideas, it's still fun to consider the possible delights. Or in the case of a movie like Moon, consider the possible horrors. It's not a frightening movie to watch, but the core elements of the story are enough to keep any technophobe up at night, possibly terrified of impending developments in biomedical engineering and astrophysics.

Based on its production budget alone (if not also your ticket price), Moon is likely the biggest bank for the buck you'll see all year. Working with a paltry $5 million, writer-director Duncan Jones constructed an astonishingly impressive lunar surface by using the ancient technique of scaled models. I'm of the opinion that for the most part, bigger budgets and bigger CGI developments have led to less impressive and less realistic effects, and I'm even tempted, for example, to argue that the effects in the original Star Wars trilogy are better than the prequels. But I refuse to spending enough time watching the prequels to find that evidence. Anyway, in addition to appreciating the story potential and the high production values of Moon, I was bowled over by the elegant, haunting piano score by Clint Mansell (Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain).

Unfortunately, what Moon boasts in technical achievements it lacks in emotional depth. Our protagonist is Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell, a personal friend of Jones for whom the part was specifically written), a contract employee of Lunar Industries who is finishing a 3 year-term living alone on the moon - that is, aside from the a sentient computer, Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey). His work mining Helium-3 from the lunar surface is monotonous and isolating, and as he begins to prepare for his trip back home to his wife and child, Sam makes a highly disturbing discovery.

While Rockwell does his best to bear the emotional burden of his character, there was something missing at a deeper level of the story for me. Maybe Jones felt that more involvement from Gerty, for example, would make Moon more of a knock-off of 2001 than it already is. Whatever happened, Moon ultimately didn't horrify or disturb me nearly as much as I expected, or, to be honest, as much as I hoped.

Jones is next directing Mute, "about a woman whose disappearance causes a mystery for her partner, a mute bartender. When she disappears, he has to go up against the city’s gangsters." He has $25 million to work with this time, and considering he made Moon look so good for so little, I hope he invests more resources this time in somehow developing a little more emotional "oomph" from another promising premise.

Underrated MOTM (Special Edition): The Truman Show (1998)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:44:00 +0000

(Despite being a huge fan of his music and dancing, I didn't plan on posting anything about Michael Jackson here for the very reasons that I'll mention, namely my unease about celebrity (and especially non-celebrity) idolization. All I had in mind was a Perfect Song, Perfect Scene clip as a tribute, but on second and third thoughts I ended up with this additional post. Plus my girlfriend wanted me to write something about MJ, and I was ultimately happy to oblige.)

__________________________________________________________

With three Oscar nominations and solid 95 RT and 90 MC ratings, one of the things June's Underrated Movie of the Month (MOTM) is not is underrated; many people consider it one of the greatest movies of the 90's. But let's just nevermind that this month, especially since "underrated" is always defined by me anyway. The truth of the matter is that I've been voluntarily and involuntarily caught up in the Michael Jackson madness since last week, and now, just as the media coverage graduates from somber commiseration to sickening commercialization, my thoughts have led me to choose here between The Jacksons: An American Dream and The Truman Show. I ended up choosing the latter, but first I have to reflect on the former.

If you were to ask me I wouldn't have had any idea what year it was when I watched The Jacksons: An American Dream. I remember it as an engrossing mini-series about a pop star that I saw all over the TV and radio, and whose songs ("Heal the World") we sang at school. I would have been about 11 years old when it aired in 1992, old enough to become a fan of the then-current "Dangerous" album, but too young to understand the background of the Jackson family and the influence of their music. Disturbingly, what I remembered the most from The Jacksons: An American Dream is this scene, in which Joe Jackson instructs Marlon to "Go! Outside! Get a switch!". Whether that incident of abuse was dramatized doesn't matter at this point; both Joe and Michael admitted that abuse occurred during the famous children's formative years.

My reaction to that scene may not have immediately changed my impression of Michael Jackson, but as the years went by I gradually realized that this man's life was a complete construction, and the public's confusion about him was probably not nearly as bewildering as the isolated confusion he must have been experiencing in his own head. At least to me, then, his physical changes and bizarre behavior made perfect sense.

He didn't understand and perhaps wanted to escape his own identity, so he changed his appearance. He never - literally, never - had a childhood, so he tried to relive those fantasies as an adult (not that he might have understood what that meant), even if not always in the most appropriate ways (not that he understood what that meant either). "The public at large has yet to really understand the pressures of childhood celebrity, which, while exciting, always exacts a very heavy price," he said in 2000. "More than anything, I wished to be a normal little boy. I wanted to build tree houses and go to roller-skating parties. But very early on, this became impossible."

At the end of the day, I think Michael Jackson never had any idea of who he really was. Sure, he understood his status as a pop culture icon, but he never really knew who he was as a human, what his identity was comprised of and how it related to the identities of others. Even other childhood celebrities get the relief of a drug-addled teenage meltdown or a quickly faded career. Not so Jackson - his relief away from the spotlight only came when he was in his 40's, far too late for him to discover himself.

I don't think he was Norma Desmond-crazy and I don't think he was a perverted child molester. I think, aside from being unquestionably and unconditionally the greatest all-around entertainer and pop icon in my lifetime (and undoubtedly the very last of his kind), Jackson was relegated to being a moonwalking, talking, pop culture commodity. We made him, bought him, sold him, abused him (know the background on "Billie Jean"?), scolded him, celebrated him, provoked him, and in many cases, literally bowed down and worshiped him:

Watching that clip, is it any surprise that his self-awareness, and thus individual identity, was on a completely different level than the rest of us? How would you feel if complete strangers reacted to you like that? Like Truman Burbank, the main character of The Truman Show, Michael Jackson was not just a marketable product, but a literal source of life for millions of his fans. We were much more dependent on him than he ever was on us; it's as if we drained the humanity from him like leeches. I mean really, watch the last minute of the above video (truth be told, I haven't been able to sit through the whole thing yet - it's just too insane). Sadly, this phenomenon continues with the increasing popularity of conflict-based "reality" television shows - truly The Truman Show brought to life.

Last year I called The Siege "eerily, presciently ahead of its time", and the same came be said for The Truman Show, which was also released in 1998, just two years before "Survivor" would fatefully change television programming forever (or at least what appears to be forever). As Christof (Ed Harris) explains in the freaky opening to The Truman Show, "While the world he inhabits is in some respects counterfeit, there's nothing fake about Truman himself. No scripts, no cue cards. It isn't always Shakespeare, but it's genuine. It's a life."

Maybe the most disturbing aspect of this analogy, then, is that unlike Truman, Michael Jackson was a real person, and a real person that could always see Christof's control booth and the cameras in his face. He knew that his life was a show, and there was nothing he could do about it other than fight back in song, earlier (1987) with the frustrated pleas of "Leave Me Alone", and later (1995) with the angry hysterics of "Scream".

Or, just as likely, maybe he didn't realize that his life was a show. Never having experienced any other life situation (unlike the Beatles, and Elvis, and Madonna, and every other larger-than-life star), he has to be literally the only person outside of a royal family to live his entire life, from age 5 on, as a prominent international celebrity.

You can ignore everything I've already written here and understand my Michael Jackson-as-Truman Burbank analogy really easily by watching the following five-minute interview on the set of the classic "Beat It" music video. In it, a 24 year-old Jackson admits that he never really went to school and, when pressed, answers that he doesn't really have any "close personal friends" outside of Quincy Jones and Diana Ross. Clearly, he has no concept of any normal social relation to people outside of his family.

Not surprisingly, he casually admits, "I get afraid of...well, I don't know people...I get afraid of people sometimes. It's a whole other life that I - I haven't really experienced that. Like friendship is a thing I'm just beginning to learn about. I was raised on the stage, and that's where I'm comfortable. And everything else is like foreign to me. I'm just beginning to know and learn about people, friendship, things like that."

(Addendum: Well, this is really unbelievable. I honestly had no notion of this fact beforehand, but just now, after having finished and revised this entire post, I poked around the internet to see how many other millions of bloggers focused on the Truman-Jackson connection. There were many, if not nearly as many as I thought.

But what really shocked me was the discovery of an unconfirmed quote, supposedly made in 2002 and supposedly made by The Truman Show director Peter Weir: "You watch The Truman Show and, I mean, Jim Carrey did a fantastic job, but Michael Jackson is Truman. He’s who I based him on and he is the nearest thing to Truman. And Michael Jackson, he is also the real life Victor in Simone. He had a talent and all he wanted was to share this and bring people happiness and escapism through entertainment. And people turn it around, they make it about the individual rather than the creation. It is the actual films, the actual music - that’s what it’s all about… People lose sight of this and the media make it all about the celebrity.”)

On the Horizon: A Serious Man

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 05:01:00 +0000

This is the first "On the Horizon" movie I haven't actually seen, but it's worthy of a preview if for no other reason than the fact that so far all anyone's heard has been crickets. As a Minnesota resident and amateur biographer of Joel and Ethan Coen, I therefore consider it my duty to get some buzz going, despite the negligible fact that a trailer, poster, and stills haven't been released (other than these on-location shots that I drummed up from www.coenbrothers.net).

The lack of excitement around A Serious Man, at least among the blogs and newswires I follow with any regularity, is baffling. Since Oscar night a few months back there's been about a million posts on "Movies to Watch" in 2009, and almost none of them mention A Serious Man. Even outside of the current marketing assaults for all of these summer blockbusters, it seems like most of the excitement for the end of the year is reserved for Cannes attention getters (The White Ribbon, Bright Star, Antichrist) or heavy hitters like Nine, 9, District 9, Inglourious Basterds, Taking Woodstock, Sherlock Holmes, The Lovely Bones, Invictus, The Hurt Locker, The Road, Shutter Island, Amelia, and so on.

I'm not saying A Serious Man should necessarily be considered Best Picture-worthy at this point, or even that it's going to be good. It could be categorically awful. I have no idea, but either way I'm shocked at the lack of curious anticipation for what amounts to an autobiographical film written and directed by arguably the best filmmaking team in Hollywood and filmed in their childhood home of St. Louis Park, MN (and costumed by Mary Zophres and designed by Jess Gonchor and, oh yeah, also shot by Roger Deakins and scored by Carter Burwell).

What am I missing? Are the Coens - just two years removed from a near Oscar sweep - not as highly respected as I thought? Did Burn After Reading ruin their reputation or something?

Maybe it's the lack of a big name star. The Coens dug deep into the local Jewish community here for supporting parts and extras, but even their leads - Richard Kind and Michael Stuhlbarg - are mostly recognizable by face alone. Or maybe it's the fact that nobody has seen even a rough cut of A Serious Man, and it's hard to get excited for a movie if you haven't seen a trailer (you know, similar to the lack of comments about a movie that's not even in pre-production yet).

Nah, neither of those reasons really explain it, especially when you consider the similarities with the other end-of-year movies I listed. Puzzling...

Closer to home, perhaps the reason nobody wants to talk about this movie is because the last time the brothers filmed in their home state the result arrived with a warning label. For many people the memories of Fargo still stings, and it stands to reason that the Coens will be applying their always-sharp analytical scalpel to the cultural quirks of Minnesota once again in A Serious Man, albeit Jewish-Minnesotan culture in 1967.

Whatever the reason for the blaring silence, only a fool could argue that A Serious Man will arrive so quietly in just 120 days. Opening weekend (Oct. 2) here in Uptown and St. Louis Park will be an absolute zoo, and away from home I'd comfortably bet on at least Best Original Screenplay consideration, if not also a shot at a Best Picture nom in a newly-expanded field.

But I haven't seen it and maybe I'm way off. Maybe it's an impossible movie to market and nobody is excited or cares about it because they think it sounds really boring, even if it hits closer to home - both literally and figuratively - than any film the Coens have made to this point. Maybe all those people who complained about No Country for Old Men winning Best Picture were right when they said that "nobody saw it", and thus the Coens, celebrating their 25th year making movies, actually have to prove their writing and directing talent again before anybody can get excited.

It just doesn't seem possible, but...could it be true?

A Brief Pause in the Conversation

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 03:44:00 +0000

I've known for several months that I'm being furloughed at work (our whole staff is) for the next week. It comes with the territory, I suppose, working at a nonprofit in a down economy. Not a huge deal except for the loss of five vacation days.

Since my original pie-in-the-sky travel plans didn't come together, it's going to be a week busying myself, for fun, in Minneapolis. There are literally a million things I'm hoping to do during this free week and just as many that I won't find time to, but to make it easier I'm also going to take time off from what feels sometimes like a second job - Getafilm. So, I won't post anything new until early next week. Seeing as how I'm not accountable to anyone but myself here, it's a pretty liberating feeling.

In the meantime, there are some marathon posts to read below from the last couple of weeks. Thanks much for reading and I look forward to coming back online and continuing the neverending movie conversation next week.

2009 P.O.V. Series Preview

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 15:59:00 +0000

(POV logo courtesy American Documentary, Inc.)

I briefly highlighted the 2009 schedule for the PBS award-winning P.O.V. documentary series a few months ago, and since it starts this Tuesday, here's a more thorough preview of the 21st season. Remember that you can sign up for email reminders for one or all of these documentaries according to your local TV schedules, as well as read interviews and join the conversation at the P.O.V. blog throughout the season.

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Week 1 (June 23) - New Muslim Cool
*Puerto Rican-American rapper Hamza Pérez pulled himself out of drug dealing and street life 12 years ago and became a Muslim. Now he's moved to Pittsburgh's tough North Side to start a new religious community, rebuild his shattered family and take his message of faith to other young people through hard-hitting hip-hop music. But when the FBI raids his mosque, Hamza must confront the realities of the post-9/11 world, and himself. New Muslim Cool takes viewers on Hamza's ride through streets, slums and jail cells — following his spiritual journey to some surprising places in an America that never stops changing.

Week 2 (June 30) - Beyond Hatred
*In September 2002, three skinheads were roaming a park in Rheims, France, looking to "do an Arab," when they settled for a gay man instead. Twenty-nine-year-old François Chenu fought back fiercely, but he was beaten unconscious and thrown into a river, where he drowned. The acclaimed French vérité film Beyond Hatred is the story of the crime's aftermath; above all, of the Chenu family's brave and heartrending struggle to seek justice while trying to make sense of such pointless violence and unbearable loss. With remarkable dignity, they fight to transcend hatred and the inevitable desire for revenge.

Week 3 (July 7) - Life. Support. Music.
*In 2004, Jason Crigler's life was taking off. He was one of New York's hottest young guitarists, his new CD was due for release and his wife, Monica, was pregnant with their first child. Then, at a gig in Manhattan, Jason suffered a near-fatal brain hemorrhage. His doctors doubted he would ever emerge from his near-vegetative state. The astonishing journey that followed, documented by friend and filmmaker Eric Daniel Metzgar (The Chances of the World Changing, POV 2007), is a stirring family saga and a portrait of creative struggle in the face of overwhelming tragedy.

Week 4 (July 14) - The Reckoning
*Over 120 countries have united to form the International Criminal Court (ICC) — the first permanent court created to prosecute perpetrators, no matter how powerful, of crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. The Reckoning follows dynamic ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo and his team for three years across four continents as he issues arrest warrants for Lord's Resistance Army leaders in Uganda, puts Congolese warlords on trial, shakes up the Colombian justice system, and charges Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir with genocide in Darfur. Like a deft thriller, The Reckoning keeps you on the edge of your seat. Will the prosecutor succeed? Will the world ensure that justice prevails?

Week 5 (July 21) - The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
*Filmed over 23 years, The Betrayal is the Academy Award®-nominated directorial debut of renowned cinematographer Ellen Kuras in a unique collaboration with the film's subject and co-director, Thavisouk ("Thavi") Phrasavath. After the U.S. government waged a secret war in Laos during the Vietnam War, Thavi's father and thousands of other Laotians who had fought alongside American forces were abandoned and left to face imprisonment or execution. Hoping to find safety, Thavi's family made a harrowing escape to America, where they discovered a different kind of war. Weaving ancient prophecy with personal testimony and stunning imagery, The Betrayal is a story of survival and the resilient bonds of family. Find my capsule review here.

Week 6 (July 28) - Hold Me Tight, Let Me Go
*Variety describes it as a film "mixing ferocity with tenderness, delicacy with tenacity" — exactly like the unusual school it explores. In Hold Me Tight, Let Me Go, one of Britain's leading documentary filmmakers takes a verité look at Oxford's Mulberry Bush School for emotionally disturbed children. Mulberry's heroically forbearing staff greets extreme, sometimes violent behavior with only consolation and gentle restraint. Kim Longinotto's unblinking camera captures an arduous process and a nearly unhinged environment, but it also records the daily dramas of troubled kids trying to survive and the moments of hope they achieve with Mulberry's clear-eyed staff.

Week 7 (August 4) - ( Encore presentation) Johnny Cash: The Man, His World, His Music
*In this classic 1969 documentary, the Man in Black is captured at his peak, the first of many in a looming roller-coaster career. Fresh on the heels of his Folsom Prison album, Cash reveals the dark intensity and raw talent that made him a country music star and cultural icon. Director Robert Elfstrom got closer than any other filmmaker to Cash, who is seen performing with his new bride June Carter Cash, in a rare duet with Bob Dylan, and behind the scenes with friends, family and aspiring young musicians. Johnny Cash: The Man, His World, His Music paints an unforgettable portrait that endures beyond the singer's 2003 death.

Week 8 (August 11) - (Encore presentation) Made in L.A.
*Follow the remarkable story of three Latina immigrants working in Los Angeles sweatshops as they embark on a three-year odyssey to win basic labor protections from a trendy clothing retailer. In intimate verité style, Made in L.A. reveals the impact of the struggle on each woman's life as they are gradually transformed by the experience. Compelling, humorous, deeply human, Made in L.A. is a story about immigration, the power of unity and the courage it takes to find your voice.

Week 9 (August 18) - P.O.V. Shorts Selection

Week 10 (August 25) - This Way Up
*This is a story about a wall — the separations it's meant to enforce, and the unintended ones it gives birth to. The security wall being constructed by Israel on the West Bank has divided Palestinian families and communities. It has also isolated the Catholic-run Our Lady of Sorrows nursing home outside of Jerusalem, leaving its feisty residents to face old age in the throes of one of the world's most bitter conflicts. With beautiful imagery, moments of laughter and use of a quietly eccentric older guide, This Way Up examines the social, economic and religious barriers that arise from physical ones.

Week 10 (September 1) - Ella Es el Matador
*For Spaniards — and for the world — nothing has expressed their country's traditionally rigid gender roles more powerfully than the image of the male matador. So sacred was the bullfighter's masculinity to Spanish identity that a 1908 law barred women from the sport. Ella Es el Matador reveals the surprising history of the women who made such a law necessary and offers fascinating profiles of two female matadors currently in the arena: the acclaimed Mari Paz Vega and neophyte Eva Florencia. These women are gender pioneers by necessity. But what emerges as their truest motivation is their sheer passion — for bullfighting and the pursuit of a dream.

Week 11 (September 8) - The English Surgeon
*What is it like to have power over life and death, and yet to struggle with your own humanity? This is the story of acclaimed British neurosurgeon Henry Marsh, who has traveled to Ukraine for 15 years to treat patients who have been left to die; of his friend and medical colleague in Kyiv who carries on the fight despite official hostility and archaic surgical conditions; and of a young patient who hopes that Henry can save his life. Tense, heartbreaking and humorous, The English Surgeon is a remarkable depiction of one doctor's commitment to relieving suffering and of the emotional turmoil he undergoes in bringing hope to a desperate people.

Week 12 (September 15) - The Principal Story
*The Principal Story tells two stories, painting a dramatic portrait of the challenges facing America's public schools — and of the great difference a dedicated principal can make. Tresa Dunbar is a second-year principal at Chicago's Nash Elementary, where 98% of students come from low-income families; in Springfield, Illinois, Kerry Purcell has led Harvard Park Elementary, with similar demographics, for six years. Tod Lending (Omar & Pete, POV 2005) and David Mrazek followed both women over the course of a school year, discovering each one's unique styles yet similar passions. The Principal Story takes the viewer along for an emotional ride that reveals what effective educational leadership looks like in the 21st century.

Week 13 (September 22) - Bronx Princess
*Rocky Otoo is the Bronx-bred teenage daughter of Ghanaian parents, and she's no pushover. She is a sassy high-achiever bound for college. With freedom in sight, Rocky rebels against her mother's rules. When their relationship reaches a breaking point, Rocky flees to her father, a chief in Ghana. What follows is captured in Bronx Princess, a tumultuous coming-of-age story set in a homeland both familiar and strange. Her precocious — and very American — ideas of a successful, independent life conflict with her father's traditional African values. Reconciling her dual legacies becomes an unexpected chapter in this unforgettable young woman's education.

Fall Special (November 11) - The Way We Get By
*On call 24 hours a day for the past five years, a group of senior citizens has made history by greeting nearly 800,000 American troops at a tiny airport in Bangor, Maine. The Way We Get By is an intimate look at three of these greeters as they confront the universal losses that come with aging and rediscover their reason for living. Bill Knight, Jerry Mundy and Joan Gaudet find the strength to overcome their personal battles and transform their lives through service. This inspirational and surprising story shatters the stereotypes of today's senior citizens as the greeters redefine the meaning of community.

Winter Special (December 30) - Patti Smith: Dream of Life
*Shot over 11 years by renowned fashion photographer Steven Sebring, Patti Smith: Dream of Life is an intimate portrait of the legendary rocker, poet and artist. Following Smith's personal reflections over a decade, the film explores her many art forms and the friends and poets who inspired her — William Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Robert Mapplethorpe and Michael Stipe. She emerges as a crucial, contemporary link between the Beats, punks and today's music. Shot in lush, dark tones, featuring rare performance clips and narrated by the artist herself, Patti Smith: Dream of Life is an impressionistic journal of a multi-faceted artist that underscores her unique place in American culture.

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So there are the selections for Season #21. They might not beat "The Real Housewives" or "Jon & Kate Plus 8" in the Nielsen ratings, but I can almost guarantee they'll make you feel better about humanity.

REVIEW: Lovely By Surprise (B+)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 04:04:00 +0000

Maybe the strangest thing about Stranger Than Fiction was that, despite all the gags and big stars preening for the cameras, the movie ultimately wasn't really about much of anything; it was simply an entertaining and decidedly quirky lesson on the perils of neuroticism.

Significantly more thought-provoking, but perhaps less polished, is writer-director Kirt Gunn's Lovely By Surprise, which naturally brings to mind a Charlie Kaufman-esque story about the tortured mind of a talented writer. Here, it's Marian (Carrie Preston), a novelist writing about "fictional characters who are affected by real life": brothers Humkin (Michael Chernus) and Mopekey (Dallas Roberts).

The infantile pair lives aboard a boat in a desolate field, and they survive on milk and cereal. It's clear Marian isn't willing to take many risks with her characters, consequently leading her mentor, Jackson (Austin Pendleton in a terrifically brief role), to convince her that no good story is complete without a tragedy: she has to kill off one of the brothers.

Meanwhile, in an apparently different (and real) place and time, lives Bob (Reg Rogers), a widower and helpless father to his traumatized daughter, Mimi. Bob is a car salesman who can't sell a car; his greatest talent is convincing people they don't actually need one. As Bob gradually works himself out of a job, we see Marian also gradually worrying herself out of a writing career. In a bizarre twist of fate, Marian's character, the clownish Humkin, escapes from her fictional world and shows up in Bob's actual life, thus setting into motions events that will change Marian and Bob forever.

Humkin makes a break for it...
(photos courtesy Trey Clark)

In addition to maintaining an effectively delicate balance between drama and comedy, Kirt Gunn deserves a lot of credit for keeping all of the moving pieces of this complex story together. What initially feels like a loosey-goosey plot with unnecessary tangents soon matures into a touching parable with a storyline as tight as a drum. Impatient viewers may become frustrated trying to figure it all out, but the unforgettable final scene ties things together in a powerful way. In fact in that way, watching Lovely By Surprise is kind of like reading a novel.

But books have the significant advantage of time to affect a reader emotionally. Movies need to draw you in quickly, and the fact that you can watch a significant portion of Lovely By Surprise without knowing what's going on somewhat works against its ability to move the viewer. Because it has so much more emotional potential than Stranger Than Fiction, I would have liked to get more out of it along the way, not just toward the end (especially since the cast appeared so capable).

Nonetheless, Lovely By Surprise offers a tender-hearted story with a focus on characters as intense as Marian's. If it doesn't feature as many laughs as Stranger Than Fiction, Lovely By Surprise is, at the very least, likely to provide for better conversation after viewing. Kirt Gunn's next film, Metalhead, sounds as bizarre (if not more so) than Lovely By Surprise, which means it's probably just as surprisingly lovely.

Grade:
Writing - 9
Acting - 9
Production - 9
Emotional Impact - 8
Music - 5
Social Significance - 4

Total: 44/50= 88% = B+

Lovely By Surprise is currently playing select cities in the U.S. and will be available via download and DVD (including Netflix) on July 7. More details at www.lovelybysurprise.com.

An Inconvenient Food

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 21:31:00 +0000

(Food, Inc. opens tomorrow at the Landmark Lagoon Theater. This is a long and scattered follow-up to my preview of the film from April.)

It wasn't too long ago that Morgan Spurlock's mischievous Super Size Me successfully, and perhaps surprisingly, ended any argument in this country about the ill effects of consuming fast food. McDonald's immediately swapped their triple cheeseburgers (I remember eating one as a part of a Jurassic Park promotional meal that was literally fit for a dinosaur) and Super Sized fries for garden salads and apple slices; their audacious recent marketing campaign spelling out slogans in fruits and vegetables only brings to mind the music video for Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer", not necessarily a new identity.

Kentucky Fried Chicken, on the other hand, recently went so far as to launch a risky marketing campaign that wags a finger at their very own brand - fried chicken - in favor of a new line of Kentucky Grilled Chicken. Ooh. Whether these blatant about-faces in the fast food industry will result in a healthier populace is, in my opinion, unlikely, but that won't stop people from believing it. You may have noticed that in the face of this recession, fast food corporations haven't appeared to suffer quite as much as other American businesses.

So we're still eating plenty of fast food (or not, in my case), but we're making sure to order the side of fruit salad instead of cheese fries. Spurlock helped transform an industry and at least indirectly affect people's eating habits, while those of us who were not fast food loyalists in the first place, well we've just been able to scoff at the whole affair and continue to indulge in our own self-righteously "healthy" diets.

Until now.

Fast food establishments aside, it's evidently also no longer even safe, or in some cases even moral, to eat food from your local supermarket.

Like the indigestion that follows when you have one too many toaster-ovened Tyson Stuffed Chicken Cordon Bleu Minis (I looked them up), Robert Kenner's convicting documentary Food, Inc. leaves you squirming in your chair with a sweaty brow, taking a silent oath that you'll never eat that way again. Of course, decisions are always easiest made away from their corresponding action, and when your friend slides a basket of crisp, seasoned fries your way at the restaurant after the movie, well then you'll discover if your fears will really change your actions.

It should be noted that Kenner's documentary is arriving a little late in the game. Since Super Size Me, the documentaries Our Daily Bread and King Corn have criticized the food industry, while Richard Linklater's Fast Food Nation proved both that slaughterhouses are hellish dungeons and Avril Lavigne can't act. But where those films tried to deliver shock treatments that would send you out of the theater in an ill state, Food, Inc. uses a bit of a softer approach. Not quite as soft as Al Gore's soothing voiceovers behind shots of idyllic creeks, but still relatively gore-free, if not Gore-free, as it were. Kenner rightly assumes that legal injustices, animal abuse, and human rights violations can be just as disgusting as bloody carcasses, making Food, Inc. much more watchable than you might expect walking into the theater.

The film's central thesis, as I understand it, is that the industrialization of food production in the United States has created a perfect storm of greed and carelessness, which has in turn led to countless economic, health-related, and community-based problems, including but not limited to obesity, unemployment, exploitation of factory workers, bacteria-laden meat produced in mass quantities, special-interest legislation, and a complete lack of awareness of where our food actually comes from. Indeed, in a state of blissful ignorance, the majority of Americans fuel this fire with every meal we eat and food item we purchase. The solution: eat as much organic, unprocessed, locally-grown food as possible. Of course, "possible" is a very relative term, because organic, unprocessed, locally-grown food is neither accessible or affordable to millions of people.

That fact aside, authors Eric Schlosser ("Fast Food Nation") and especially Michael Pollan ("The Omnivore's Dilemma") and have been leading this charge for a few years now, but most people are as unlikely to read as they are to grow their own vegetables, so for some viewers of Food, Inc. these may be revolutionary new ideas (i.e., "Hmm, I wonder why every chicken breast I buy is identical in size, shape, etc.?"). Unsatisfied with simply giving Schlosser (a co-producer on the film) and Pollan a forum to speak, Kenner also makes a strong case that agricultural monopolies and food conglomerates such as Tyson, Perdue, and Cargill are fully aware, and thus liable, for a host of the aforementioned problems.

Kenner positions agricultural company Monsanto, for example, as quite the evil empire (I began imagining the "Monsanto crime family" ruling some old world Italian hamlet), accusing them of running small farmers out of business and essentially infiltrating government agencies, including the U.S.D.A., with former Monsanto employees and board members.

It's all very scary and sinister - and backed by a Mark Adler score reminiscent of Philip Glass's haunting work - but honestly it did little to convince me that fighting these companies will amount to much change. Like the tobacco companies, they're well-funded and well-supported by all the right lobbyists and interest groups, and any attack will be met with a slippery rebuttal (how many companies have their own response blog?). Furthermore, as evidenced by the tragic case of Barbara Kowalcyk, in some cases it is literally against the law to make critical claims against these companies, even if they are thought to be complicit in the loss of life (her 2 year-old son died after eating E. coli-contaminated beef).

Much more persuasive, at least to me, was the voice Kenner gave to farmers like Joel Salatin, a philosophizing owner/operator of a Virginia farm with as much charisma and analytic panache as a star politician. I found his astute arguments both brilliant and entertaining, and it was important to hear from someone who is actually doing the work, not just prescribing it. His message of hope and doability may come off to some as naively optimistic, but it nonetheless leaves you feeling a little better on the way out than you did after flammable documentaries such as The Corporation or Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room.

Moving forward then, will Food, Inc. change the national conversation in the same way An Inconvenient Truth did? Both films were produced by (the fantastic) Participant Productions, and a visit to their blog will give you a sense of the grassroots support behind both the film and the local food movement. If there is anything standing in the way of this film exhibiting its full power, I think it's the economy and socioeconomic disparity. If people can afford to see it, it's highly likely that won't be able to afford the lifestyle that goes along with it.

John and Jane Public, if still employed, are living in 2009 with an emaciated retirement plan, a refinanced mortgage, and zero discretionary income. Even if they have access to the co-op groceries and organic farmers in their area (which is unlikely), how will they able to afford and then justify a monthly grocery bill 3-5 times higher than what they pay now at the local big-box supermarket? Despite the Inconvenient Truth-style laundry list of tasks within the closing credits, the affordability of "good" food is the one question I felt was left unanswered here, at least to my satisfaction. Yes, as Pollan or Schlosser (I can't remember which) mentions at the end of the film, we'll know things are right when a bag of chips costs more than a bag of carrots. But I just don't see that happening anytime soon, and financially speaking, the best food remains the most inconvenient food.

But despite a couple of unanswered questions and a propensity for giving the issue a "good vs. evil" storyline that felt a little too black and white for my taste, Food, Inc. is possibly the most thought-provoking documentary so far in 2009. As it claims, "you'll never look at dinner the same way again". But then, you might not look at your grocery bill the same way again, either.

Letters to the President: Returned to Sender?

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:30:00 +0000

As I follow the coverage of the presidential election and ensuing chaos in Iran over the last week, I'm continually reminded of the documentary Letters to the President, which I saw and briefly highlighted at MSPIFF in April. It deserved a little more discussion at that time, but I was so impressed by another Iranian film, The Song of Sparrows (which I saw about an hour later), that the immediate relevance of the documentary may have been diminished. However, I do remember that at the conclusion of Letters to the President is a simple title card informing the viewer that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is planning to run for re-election in the summer of 2009 (the film originally premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in February of this year).

And now here we are, in the summer of 2009, and an imperfect film has foreshadowed a perfect political storm. (And here are some thoughts on what the storm might do to Iranian film in the future.)

Here are the broad details as I understand them for those of you who may not be keeping as close an eye on the situation: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (pictured above) took a populist approach on the way to winning the Iranian presidential election in 2005. Since that time he has received both love and loathing from Iranians and the international community ("Axis of Evil", anyone?). As in the U.S., the office of president is a four year term (though unlike the U.S., it's not the highest official position), and Ahmadinejad ran for re-election this year.

The election took place last week and what was predicted by some to be a very tight race between Ahmadinejad and his rival, Mir Hossein Moussavi, ended up being a landslide, nearly 2-to-1 in favor of Ahmadinejad. Moussavi's supporters, numbering in the hundreds of thousands, have taken to the streets in protest.

Photos: The New York Times, Vahid Salemi/Associated Press

What does all of this mean in the context of Letters to the President? Two things, from my possibly misinformed observations:

1.) As evidenced by the interviews in the film, there appears to be a silent (but now vocal) majority of Iranians who oppose Ahmadinejad, and they appear to be concentrated in the capital of Tehran, which has seen the brunt of the action this week.

2.) Despite Ahmadinejad's showy display of populism in creating an entire government department to reply to the letters that are sent to him, a number of those responses must have been lost in the mail. Or, more likely, his opponents weren't the ones sending him letters in the first place, but the ones simply waiting and strategizing to replace him in this election.

It's one of the weaknesses of Petr Lom's film that we don't get a better sense of the history of Iran or the official policies surrounding democratic freedom, but in broadly surveying the opinions of the Iranian people, Letters to the President offers fascinating food for thought. The film is currently still on a worldwide festival tour, though it doesn't look like it will be back in the U.S. anytime soon, at least not in theaters. In the meantime, check out these clips offered from the film's official website:

Twin Cities Film Grazing - June

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:53:00 +0000

I promise I'm only going to take the "film goat" imagery so far, but as in April, there are about a million local movie meals to keep you full in June.

In addition to new releases, consider...

MONDAY, JUNE 15: Soldiers of Peace
Where: The Heights, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $25

From the film's website: "This documentary film illustrates the connections between individual acts of heroism and the systematic changes we now need, if we are to survive the 21st Century. It depicts the reconciliation between IRA bomber Patrick Magee and the daughter of one of his victims; religious fundamentalists in Nigeria who now preach peaceful co-existence; the Colombian musician Cesar Lopez, who makes guitars from AK47 machine guns, and many others who are making a difference...Incorporating stories from 19 countries, "Soldiers of Peace" includes interviews with Sir Bob Geldof, Hans Blix, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Sir Richard Branson...Narrated by Michael Douglas with music by Michael Franti, "Soldiers of Peace" focuses on some of the countries in the ground-breaking Global Peace Index, and the many unsung heroes who are striving for peace, either individually or in co-operation with others...In a world bombarded by negative imagery and messages, the film showcases the alternatives to conflict, revealing countless inspiring examples to prove that peace can be achieved through greater equality, emancipation, tolerance and understanding. "

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16: Revolution Reel (ongoing through July 7) - Short Film Showcase
Where: Intermedia Arts Theater, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $5

The Cinema Revolution Society's Revolution Reel "screens local films by emerging and mid-career filmmakers in a social setting. Dramatic, sarcastic, ecstatic, hilarious, beautiful, informative, shocking or just plain bizarre, the series exhibits the breadth of filmmaking talent that this community has to offer. Beer and wine will be available at the events on a donation basis."

The Short Film Showcase will feature the following shorts:

Nathaniel (2008, 10 min.) directed by Brian Murnion

Oldmeal (2008, 9 min.) directed by Britni West (Official Selection, Cannes Short Film Corner 2009, Walker Art Center Women With Vision)

Winter Lilacs (2008, 6 min.) directed by Stephen Gurewitz (Official Selection, South by Southwest, Vail Film Festival 2009)

Ouroboros (2007, 5 min.) directed by David Camarena

The Garden (2009, 40 min.) directed by Ryan Philippi (Official Selection, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Athens International Film Festival 2009): "In the vast inland wasteland surrounding Los Angeles, at a point where the accelerating expanse of suburban sprawl meets the Mojave Desert, The Garden observes the inner life of a young man as he labors anonymously in tract housing developments. With slow and sensuous precision, the evolution of the landscape is played out upon the face of this young worker - a face arrested by loneliness and apprehension. In the mundane and in fleeting glimpses of radiant beauty, we witness this man and the world he creates bind together, each half-formed and resting upon the Earth.

Most of the filmmakers will be present for a Q and A following the program."

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TUESDAY, JUNE 16 - THURSDAY, JUNE 25: 48 Hour Film Project

Where: The Riverview, 7:00 & 9:00 PM
Tickets: $8

"The 48 Hour Film Project comes to Minneapolis on the weekend of June 12th. Filmmakers from all over the Minneapolis area will compete to see who can make the best short film in only 48 hours. The winning film will go up against films from around the world."

Note: My friends' film, "For the Love of Film", will be showing on Wednesday night at 9:00 PM - vote for them!

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THURSDAY, JUNE 18: The Saddest Music in the World
Where: The Heights, 7:30 PM
Tickets: Lots of options, click here

Tim Massett brings The Talkies back to the Heights Theatre with Guy Maddin and his The Saddest Music in the World. Read more details at my previous post here, or visit The Talkies website.

Also, check out Erik McClanahan's interview with Maddin from last week's Vita.mn.

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THURSDAY, JUNE 18 - SATURDAY, JUNE 20: Solstice Film Festival
Where: Suburban World Theatre, Uptown
Tickets: Lots of options, click here

"The 4th annual Solstice Film Festival rolls out the red carpet June 18-20 in Uptown Minneapolis. SFF will be screening some of the best independent Films from around the country and across the globe. Plus there will be quite a few from filmmakers right here in Minnesota.

Suburban World Theatre in Uptown Minneapolis, MN will play host to the 2009 SFF. The Uptown location allows for attendees to screen films steps away from the high-energy commercial corridor in and around Calhoun Square."

Check out the schedule here. Both Don McKay and The Last Passport sound pretty interesting to me. Thomas Haden Church and Elizabeth Shue will be in attendance for Don McKay on opening night (Thursday).

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FRIDAY, JUNE 19: West Side Story (through June 25)
Where: The Heights, 7:15PM
Tickets: $8

"Get ready to see this landmark classic as you have never seen it before in the HIGH DEFINITION splendor of 70MM and DTS Digital sound!! This film won and deserved 10 Oscars, including Best Picture of 1961. Due to the high cost of bringing this film in all seats for WEST SIDE STORY are $8.00."

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TUESDAY, JUNE 23 - THURSDAY, JUNE 25: Queer Takes: Standing Out
Where: Walker Art Center
Tickets: $6/$8

"Now in its fourth edition at the Walker, Queer Takes is back with a group of films diverse in style and genre exploring LGBT issues that range from homophobia in sports to AIDS activism to gay parenting. Unless otherwise noted, all films are screened in the Cinema and tickets are $8 ($6 Walker, Quorum, and OutFront Minnesota members)."

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THURSDAY, JUNE 24: Voltaic: The Volta Tour Live In Paris And Reykjavik
Where: The NEW Trylon microcinema, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $8

Barry Kryshka squeezes in one more showing before Take-Up Productions hosts the grand opening of the Trylon microcinema on July 17 (see below).

"Björk's Voltaic: The Volta Tour Live in Paris contains filmed highlights from the Volta tour, recorded in Paris and Reykjavik, with performances of songs from Volta as well as tracks from previous albums including Hunter, Joga, Army of Me, and Hyperballad.

Björk’s band on the Volta tour included Mark Bell (LFO) on computers and keyboards and Damian Taylor on keyboards and programming. Drums and percussion were played by Chris Corsano (Sonic Youth, etc.); Jónas Sen played piano, harpsichord, and church organ; and Björk’s all female Icelandic 10-piece brass section rounded out the group. A dynamic, grand live experience, the Volta tour has been acclaimed around the world."

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SATURDAY, JUNE 26: Regis Dialogue - Director William Klein with Paulina del Paso
Where: Walker Art Center, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $15 ($12 Walker members)

The William Klein retrospective at the Walker Art Center I highlighted a couple weeks ago is finishing off with a conversation with the director himself.

"Meet the legendary William Klein in conversation at the Walker with Paulina del Paso, filmmaker and associate programmer for FICCO 2009 (Festival Internacional de Cine Contemporáneo de la Ciudad de México). The Regis Dialogues and Retrospectives program, now in its 20th year, brings to the Walker the most innovative and influential filmmakers of our time for in-depth conversations about their creative process, illuminated by film clips, anecdotes, and personal insights."

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So is that enough for the next two weeks, or what?

Lastly, a preliminary plug for the grand opening of the Trylon microcinema on July 17. Here are the details: "The all-volunteer staff of Take-Up Productions has worked for three years to put together the money for our own theater. On July 17th, we're opening The Trylon in south Minneapolis, a few blocks from the Lake Street LRT station. We've decided to open our microcinema with a film series starring Buster Keaton, featuring the accompaniment of Dreamland Faces on accordion and singing saw."

I'll be checking out the space and posting a profile of it here prior to the big opening, but in the meantime do these two things:

1.) Buy tickets - they went on sale today, and there are only 60 seats in the cinema.

2.) Check out Randall Throckmorton's video of Dreamland Faces performing at the Fitzgerald, and imagine yourself stepping back into time with Buster Keaton...

REVIEW: Away We Go (B)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:25:00 +0000

(Away We Go opens today at the Landmark Uptown Cinema)

One of the things I've never understood about screenwriting is the propensity for unrealistically realistic character details. In Away We Go, for example, why must Verona (Maya Rudolph) be a medical textbook diagram artist? Why can't she simply be a regular artist, or a writer, or a consultant - something that people actually do in real life?

No matter - Away We Go isn't really about real life, but about the search for the "real life" that Verona and Burt (again, unnecessarily uncommon names?) think is waiting for them as they reach their mid-30's. Preparing for the birth of their first child, the couple bounces from coast to coast, ostensibly in search for the the perfect city to raise a family, but really because they don't know what else to do.

They are obsessed with the family of their future and the families of their individual pasts, never considering what might be there for them in the present. In searching for the "truest" versions of themselves they look out the window instead of in the mirror, and to that end Away We Go will probably hit home for many people, particularly those in the 25-35 year-old demographic that have been waiting for a sequel to Garden State (that the films share a similar soundtrack cannot be a coincidence).

On this soul searching journey, however, director Sam Mendes appears to lose his way. I think he's at his best in a static setting (e.g., Revolutionary Road, Jarhead, Road to Perdition) where he can develop atmosphere and character and an overwhelmingly bleak mood. Here, husband-and-wife screenwriters and celebrated novelists Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida have him working on the fly, desperately trying to maintain the same semblance of character from city to city. Alas, it doesn't quite work, and the running tactic ends up being scenes of promisy pillow talk between Verona and Burt (John Krasinski) at each stop on the road.

What surprisingly does work is the back-and-forth between quirky comedy and punch-to-the-gut, plaintively serious drama - like Mendes' American Beauty but not nearly as smug. Sure, it feels like it was designed as an emotional rollercoaster ride, but that's mostly true of life, even if our interactions with real people aren't quite always as fleeting. There's almost no continuity in their journey and we're often here and gone with thinly developed, easily abandoned characters.

Honestly, as far as adorable indies go you're better off with a little more substance and self-awareness from something like Medicine for Melancholy.

All that being said, and in spite of its identity crisis, Away We Go somehow, impossibly ended up winning me over, almost entirely due to the strong acting. Maya Rudolph was always a favorite cast member of mine on "SNL" and I was glad to see that her dramatic range has a lot of potential for future films. And maybe because I don't watch "The Office", Krasinski proved me wrong in thinking that he doesn't have much depth. The character of Burt appears to be tailor-made for him (or Zach Braff), but he wears it well. Add in a howlingly funny few minutes from Allison Janney, a disappointingly tired but still terrific performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal, and a great piece of acting by Chris Messina (who was also fantastic in Vicky Cristina Barcelona), and it's easy to overlook all of those flaws in the story. In fact, with Jeff Daniels, Catherine O'Hara, and Jim Gaffigan, this might be best work by an ensemble cast in 2009 so far.

Is that enough to win you over? Maybe not. A wrong character here or one too many indie-folk songs there might have spelled doom for my experience with Away We Go, but in the end it was a charming enough reminder of the well-worn cliché that life's a journey, not a destination.

Grade:
Writing - 7
Acting - 10
Production - 8
Emotional Impact - 8
Music - 4
Social Significance - 5

Total: 42/50= 84% = B

REVIEW: Break (F)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:30:00 +0000

Break is the new movie "featuring" David Carradine in one of his last roles (he has several more films yet to be released), and it inexplicably opens for a one week engagement today at St. Anthony Main before a DVD release in July.

Find my 0/4 star capsule review from today's Star Tribune here.

Grade:
Writing - 4
Acting - 5
Production - 5
Emotional Impact - 4
Music - 4
Social Significance - 1

Total: 23/50= 46% = F

Hijacked Creativity: The Taking (and Remaking) of Pelham One Two Three

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 05:11:00 +0000

I challenge anyone to give me a new answer to this simple question: What is the purpose of Tony Scott's remake of Joseph Sargent's The Taking of Pelham of One Two Three?

It's a trick question, of course, because there is no new answer, and there has never been any acceptable answer for the dozens of remakes Hollywood has churned out over the last couple of decades, including the completely ignored (also by me) 1998 version of The Taking of Pelham 123, starring Edward James Olmos and Vincent D'Onofrio.

It's not good enough that Scott's glossy blockbuster is an updated version for "a new generation". It's not good enough that it's an updated version for the fans of the original (or for that matter, a reimagining of the original - everything is the same except the ransom is up to $10 million). And it's certainly not good enough that it's a critic-proof "summer popcorn flick".

This is a movie considered by many people to be one of the great crime dramas of the 1970's. It boasts a unanimous 100% fresh RT rating, and blogging pals Chuck Bowen and Matt Gamble have recently sung its praises. Having also seen it recently, I'll add that it's an effortlessly entertaining thriller featuring great performances in the wholly unique setting of the NYC underground. The general consensus since its release 35 years ago is that, despite some dated technology (and the fact the hijackers only ask for $1 million), The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is an otherwise excellent movie.

So why bother pouring millions of dollars into a remake of a movie that simply doesn't need to be improved upon? What's the rational, and in the absence of any, why not just start remaking other great films? Give The Godfather to Michael Mann; Citizen Kane to Ron Howard, and, sure, Psycho to Gus Van Sant. I'm not being sarcastic - why isn't this happening more frequently with classic movies?

I imagine it's probably just a matter of time. Honestly, at this rate we can expect a Godfather remake any year now, and soon enough remakes of instant classics like No Country for Old Men. It will be like those idiotic "(Genre) Movie" movies that spoof movies still in theaters. Don't believe me that the remake situation is this serious? Check this out, or consider the remakes proposed by Jeff Wells, who unabashedly contends that the new Pelham is better than the original.

Why? Just...why?

Maybe the most recent trend started when dozens of hit British shows - "Britain's Got Talent" (America's Got Talent),"Pop Idol" (American Idol), "The Office," "Life on Mars", "The Weakest Link", "Hell's Kitchen", "Changing Rooms" (Trading Spaces), "Strictly Come Dancing" (Dancing With the Stars), "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" - crossed the pond and became big hits here. Soon enough Hollywood figured out, hey, we can make bigger hits out of foreign shows, so we can probably make bigger hits out of foreign movies, too (hold your nose for the upcoming American remakes of Let the Right One In and Tell No One).

Or maybe it was George Lucas and The Phantom Menace that started Hollywood's decline. If he could dust off a twenty year-old franchise and make millions from it, why couldn't everyone else? In fact, why not just make any new movie (Rush Hour, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Paul Blart: Mall Cop) a franchise to begin with?

So here we are at the peak of this trend, and desks and inboxes at production companies and studios in Hollywood are inundated with another 5-10 years worth of remakes, "reboots" (see, we even had to create a new term!), and sequels. And the worst part is, it's really difficult not to be tempted into seeing these new versions (as was the case most recently with Terminator Salvation). When somebody remakes The Godfather, are you telling me you won't end up seeing it? You'll have to see someone's attempt at an impossible feat, if only to see how miserably they fail. And while we're standing in line to watch the latest disaster, filmmakers with fresh, original stories (e.g., Ballast) are basically forced into self-financing and self-distributing their projects. Is this OK?

What's really being hijacked in the remake of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three is not the subway car but the plot of the original film. There's a ransom demanded for the safe return of creativity to Hollywood. Anyone want to chip in? We should start by pooling the money we'll spend at the box office this weekend.

UPDATE: So I ended up seeing it (opening weekend), and can confirm it's one of the worst movies I've seen so far this year. What a waste.

Reel Life #5

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 21:51:00 +0000

It's been too long since my last edition of Reel Life, the occasional feature where I highlight news stories that have the potential for future film adaptations, so this edition is jam packed with material from the past few months. Here's the explainer from my first installment:

"This feature gets to the heart of my blogging and general film philosophy: bringing that which I see on screen into real world applications for my daily life. With these examples, the flow just happens to be in the opposite direction. Please feel free to share your comments on these stories and suggest or email me others that you find. All rights reserved if any Reel Life stories ever make their way to the big screen...just kidding...but not really..."

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"Child Elopers' Africa Plan Foiled"

When I was 3 or 4 years old I proposed to a girl in my preschool class, whispering in her ear, "Let's get married when we grow up" - or something to that effect. She shrugged her shoulders in affirmation; I don't remember her name. Maybe not the best story to base a movie on, but not too far off from this amusing report out of Germany about two romantic kids, aged 4 and 5, who stole off to the airport in the middle of the night to get married in Africa, "where it is warm", as they described it. Packing sunglasses and bathing suits and with an official witness (one of the kid's sisters) in tow, the trio made it less than a mile to their destination before being picked up by a security guard as they waited at a train station. Not the ending they might have hoped for, but obviously not the ending that we'd see in the movie. Done tastefully, this could be an adorably adventure movie for kids.

Story Potential: Moderate
Project Possibilities: Feature length film

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"Recruited For Jihad? What Happened to Mustafa Ali?"
and "Somali Youth from Minneapolis dies in homeland"

Living in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, home to more Somalis than any other place in the U.S. or Canada, I don't really have a sense of what the majority of people elsewhere know about Somalia or its people. My guess is that the general knowledge is tragically limited to the jingoistic Black Hawk Down and the recent Somali pirate madness, which is why a film about someone like Mustafa Ali, an 18-year old from St. Paul who was among a group of almost 20 young Somali men who disappeared earlier this year and are suspected to have been recruited by terrorist cells back in Somalia, could be extremely illuminating.

Although I admit Gran Torino tackled intercultural understanding in questionable fashion, the majority of people left that movie with a much better understanding (or likely an initial understanding) of the Hmong people and their culture. This movie, or a related documentary about Ali, could also shed light on the challenging transition many Somali refugees have had to make in Minnesota and elsewhere in the West.

Update: This story was published in February, and just this weekend it was reported that Burhan Hassan, a 17 year-old teenager from Minneapolis who left Somalia as an infant and returned around the same time as Ali last year, was recently killed in Mogadishu, the details of his death unclear. What is going on...?

Story Potential: High
Project Possibilities: Feature length film; feature length documentary; documentary short

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"Komodo Dragons Kill Indonesian Fisherman"

So there have been tons of movies already made about killer dragons, alligators, lizards, and other scaly reptiles, but has there been one specifically focusing on the venomous and razor-sharp-toothed Komodo dragon, the threatened species native to Indonesia? Not that I'm aware of, though monster movies aren't really my bag so I've probably missed one. This story about the horrifying attack on a fisherman who was "trespassing on a remote island in search of fruit" is tailor-made for an Anaconda-like thriller.

Story Potential: Moderate
Project Possibilities: Feature length film

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"The Tigers' Last Days"

Until a few weeks ago, Sri Lanka had been mired in a brutal civil war for 25 years. Fighting between the government and the rebel Tamil Tigers claimed the lives of 70,000 civilians during this time, with hundreds of thousands more displaced by the fighting. This violence, compounded with the devastating tsunami of 2004 (31,000+ killed in Sri Lanka), has to have caused severe physical and psychological damage to the people of this island country. What's going on in Sri Lanka now? How has this country recovered, and how did this horrible war eventually come to an end?

Story Potential: High
Project Possibilities: Feature length film; feature length documentary

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"Galaxy May Be Full of 'Earths', Alien Life"

While the graphic looks right out of Danny Boyle's Sunshine, the story is right out of Alien, Contact, Star Trek, or, well, any movie ever made about intelligent beings living on other planets in our galaxy and beyond. With this new "evidence", why not one more? Or how about a documentary on the subject, from an expert's perspective but for a layperson's understanding? I'd like to know what the future plans are for space exploration, and I'll probably never tire of sci-fi movies about it.

Story Potential: Extremely high
Project Possibilities: Feature length film franchise, feature length documentary

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"Dutch Harbor, Alaska: The Police Blotter Read 'Round the World"

This article makes the Dutch Harbor area of the port city of Unalaska, Alaska sounds like the Wild West - drunkards, brawls, wild animals, crazy people, etc. Though kind of amusing, the actual police blotter doesn't appear to show anything too exotic. Nonetheless I think there might be potential for a zany comedy - maybe even a Shaun of the Dead style horror comedy - to come out of this piece.

Story Potential: Moderate
Project Possibilities: Feature length film, feature length documentary

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"How Do You Get to Sesame Street?"

Recently I read that President Obama is the first U.S. president to have grown up watching "Sesame Street", or at least grown up within the first generation that watched it. Surprisingly, this show has been broadcast into the living rooms of American households going on four decades now. What is the lasting power, the secret behind its success? Also, what about the controversy in recent years that older versions of the show (from the 70's and 80's) are no longer appropriate for children to watch (you know, Oscar the Grouch being homeless, etc.)? I want to know more.

Story Potential: Very high
Project Possibilities: Feature length documentary

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"Young Couple Moves In With Her Ex-Husband"

For as quickly as Hollywood is able to fasttrack movies through production, it's almost surprising there haven't been more "recession comedies". How about this one? To save money, a woman, her husband and their two children moved in with the woman's ex-husband (20 years older than the new husband), who lives with his mother. Get me Kristen Wiig as the woman, Danny McBride as the new husband, Kathy Bates as the ex-mother-in-law, and - why not - Will Ferrell as the ex-husband.

Story Potential: Moderate
Project Possibilities: Feature length film, reality show

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"S.D. Rancher, 23, Lassos a Powerball Fortune"

Boom, you wake up tomorrow and you have $88 million in the bank. What happens next? I'm always curious as to how and why certain types of people win the lottery, like the most recent winner, a 23 year-old rancher from South Dakota who insists he'll just keep on ranchin'. I'm not really interested to see another Mr. Deeds or Billy Madison style comedy, so give us the straight story - maybe even make us feel a little better that we didn't win (or didn't even pay to play). How about a thoughtful drama or a documentary about the winners of these massive lottery purses?

Story Potential: Very high
Project Possibilities: Feature length film, feature length documentary

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"Chinese Hunger for Sons Fuels Boys' Abductions"

From China comes this horrifying story about abducted children in the southern rural areas of the country, "where a tradition of favoring boys over girls and the country’s strict family planning policies have turned the sale of stolen children into a thriving business." It's a nightmare of a situation that at the very least deserves some consideration as an awareness-raising documentary. Perhaps framed like 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, somebody also could make a powerfully affecting thriller from this piece.

Story Potential: Very high
Project Possibilities: Feature length film, feature length documentary, documentary short

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"Is Abu Omar al-Baghdadi a Terrorist or a Mythic Symbol: A Tale of Iraqi Politics"

In the last 18 months we've seen a sharp decline in the number of movies about Iraq, though that will be on the uptick again this year with The Hurt Locker and Green Zone. I think the combat situation has been covered enough for the time being, but there's so much more going on behind the scenes of this war. In this story lies a potential mystery thriller about Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, a jihadist leader and vapor of a man who's impossibly been captured, identified, and killed multiple times. The Iraqis have somebody in custody right now but aren't entirely sure who it is, or if al-Bagdadhi is even a real person. Why is this an important and/or otherwise interesting issue? As one source notes, "“the jihadists have been pledging allegiance to a state and a man they can’t see, and they have willingly given up their lives for that.”

Story Potential: High
Project Possibilities: Feature length film, feature length documentary

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Up: "You Know, That Disney Pixar Movie"

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:44:00 +0000

Carl recalls the days when a Disney movie was known as a "Disney movie"...

In the week or so since seeing Up, I've heard about a dozen people refer to it in conversation as "that Pixar movie", which, of course, it is. But it's also a Disney movie, officially, as all Pixar movies have been since Cars. There is a long and tumultuous relationship between Disney and Pixar, and if you don't know about it I'm not going to take the time to fill you in now, but I do urge you to track down and watch the excellent documentary The Pixar Story as soon as possible. The important point here is that "Disney-Pixar" is the agreed upon branding at this time, but "Pixar" is all that seems to matter - and all we should expect to matter from this point on.

Like millions of people, I grew up watching Disney movies. In fact the very first memory I have of seeing a movie in a theater is the rerelease of the classic Pinocchio in 1984, when I must have been three going on four years old. This was followed up over the next 10 years of my childhood by surely hundreds of viewings of Disney movies, culminating with what remains arguably my favorite (musically): Aladdin. Hours upon hours of my young life must have been spent watching Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia (also in its theatrical rerelease), Bambi, Dumbo, Alice in Wonderland, Cinderella, Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians, Robin Hood, The Fox and the Hound, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, The Rescuers Down Under, and The Lion King, to name most of the popular animated ones. Additionally, I have fond memories of these live-action Disney movies: Mary Poppins, The Love Bug, Herbie Rides Again, Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo, Herbie Goes Bananas, Never Cry Wolf, Return to Oz, Flight of the Navigator, The Mighty Ducks, and Cool Runnings. All of these were produced and/or distributed by Disney, and they were cherished entertainment for the kids of my generation (note that we never saw these propagandic shorts) .

Then two things happened: 1.) I grew older, and 2.) Disney began a slow decline in both the quantity and quality of their original films, to the present state where the brand is almost meaningless. At least it's meaninglesst in the semi-tangible way that I once knew it: imaginative, original, durable, wholesome entertainment for children.

To be honest, these days I have to throw up my hands when thinking about what constitutes a Disney movie. The Princess Diaries? The Rookie? Remakes of both Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap? Pirates of the Caribbean? National Treasure? Howl's Moving Castle? Miracle? Glory Road? High School Musical? Invincible? The movies in The Chronicles of Narnia series? Hannah Montana? Meet the Robinsons? College Road Trip? Though I'm not making any judgment on the quality of these films (a few of them are even good), I have trouble reconciling them with the Disney movies of my childhood. They are still G- and PG-rated films made for families, but I fear the "Disney"-ness as I knew it is lacking from them, even if I can't exactly describe what that means. Am I alone here, or am I just missing the mark because I'm no longer the target demographic?

Either way, you could be forgiven for not realizing some of those were actually Disney movies. But then, without referencing an official list (from a tremendously helpful website) you might also not realize that Disney went from releasing one movie per year up until the early 1980's, then a few movies per year up until the early 1990's, to more than a dozen a year by the 2000's (exactly 12 last year, eight so far in 2009). Therein lies the rub: Disney grew too large in the last two decades, and in the process it diluted its own unique identity.

I realize I'm not breaking any news here to people who have been paying attention, and especially to those who know about the Pixar situation. But for whatever reason it wasn't until hearing so many people call Up "that Pixar movie" that the decline of Disney really hit home (even though the same phenomenon occurred with Wall-E last year). It's hard to complain when Pixar (excuse me, Disney-Pixar) continues to deliver such dazzlingly impressive films, yet a part of me fears that after this Christmas's The Princess and the Frog, Disney really will fall into a deep sleep, never to be woken again. Pixar is the Princess, and Disney is the Frog, and when lost in the memories of my childhood, well, I find that fact a little saddening.

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Incidentally, instead of reviewing the dreamy magnificence of Up (which I would now like to call La maison en petits ballons), I'll simply share my surprise that nobody else was reminded of La maison en petits cubes, the earth-shattering, mind-blowing, Oscar-winning animated short by Kunio Kato, he of "Domi arigato, Mr. Roboto" acceptance speech fame. Now, I realize 99% of people who have seen Up have not seen the short, but even those who have seen La maison apparently haven't noticed its similarity to the simultaneously intoxicating and heartbreaking montage of Carl and Ellie's marriage. Considering the set-up of the main character, the melancholic piano score, and even the use of a tree as a romantic rendezvous point, I'm baffled. (And it should go without saying that I'm not accusing one of copying the other; both obviously took years to develop.)

And so I leave it up to you now. When I reviewed the 2009 Oscar Animated Shorts I embedded this short and I'm not sure who was able to see it before it was taken down. I have once again found it but can not guarantee it will be around for long. I can imagine Kunio Kato is not happy about his film continuing to pop up online, but I consider the man a talented genius and I only hope that he can forgive my enthusiasm in showing his work to as many people as possible. Before or after your next viewing of Up (or, La maison en petits ballons), take twelve minutes in a quiet place and enjoy La maison en petits cubes (may take a moment to load):

Revanche, Jerichow, and the State of the American Suspense Thriller

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:42:00 +0000

In discussing the Underrated MOTM for May, Breakdown, I lamented that American suspense thrillers are about as prevalent and dependable as American cars these days:

"...shouldn't we appreciate it and movies like it more during this absolute drought of American thrillers? Over the last two years, for example, every first-tier No Country for Old Men or Zodiac, or second-tier Transsiberian or Gone Baby Gone, is outnumbered by an Eagle Eye, Vantage Point, 88 Minutes, Righteous Kill, or Untraceable, to name just a few. That I've seen none of those last five is, well, the point. American directors and studios are in far too deep with remakes, sequels, and "reboots" to think of anything new, while across the pond there's a seemingly constant stream of quality suspense. But this is really another rant for another time."

Like now. If anyone has any evidence to the contrary I'm all ears, but you'll be hard-pressed to convince me that big-budget projects like State of Play, Valkyrie, Traitor, or Body of Lies can sit on the same shelf as imports like last year's Three Monkeys, Let the Right One In, Boy A, Tell No One, and Roman de Gare, or this year's Revanche and Jerichow.

What's the problem? Well for one, Hollywood is in the midst of a decade-long remake/reboot/sequel bonanza that defies all logic, reason, and, in my young memory, precedent. I may not be happy with it, but I think I get it: moody suspense thrillers ain't exactly the easiest films for studios to market, and if you're developing a film that doesn't have a major star and can't dominate a box-office weekend, you might as well forget about it. Which leaves us, for the most part, with mediocre "suspense blockbusters" and very good foreign films with extremely limited releases. (Although in addition to the recent second-tier American thrillers I already mentioned, I would even add a third-tier of halfway decent, if not at least admirably original thrillers like Lakeview Terrace, Reservation Road, and We Own the Night.)

Secondly, I'm increasingly convinced that the majority of American directors just aren't using the right formula to create true suspense. Admittedly there are a handful who have done some solid work in recent years, including the Coen Brothers, David Fincher (Zodiac), Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects - and also Valkyrie), Christopher Nolan (Memento), Sam Raimi (A Simple Plan), and Scott Frank (The Lookout). But on balance, the American market is flooded with films that are "suspenseful" because of their action sequences (e.g., the Bourne series) or suspenseful because you're on the edge of your seat wondering if you're the only one who has absolutely no clue what's going on (e.g., Syriana).

What's frustrating is that American directors used to be masters of suspense (but not, of course, The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, who is above and beyond this discussion); consider Orson Welles, Jules Dassin, Sydney Lumet , Alan Pakula, Francis Ford Coppola, Stanley Kubrick, John Boorman, William Friedkin, Sydney Pollack, John Frankenheimer, Jonathan Demme, David Lynch, and even Steven Spielberg. Many of these directors have unfortunately passed on, but those who are still with us (Spielberg) seem to have lost their creative touch, and their successors have done little of significance in recent years.

Meanwhile, in Europe (and particular Germany), a group of young filmmakers is churning out original thrillers of extremely high quality. In addition to the directors of the foreign films I mentioned earlier, as well as Germans Tom Tykwer (The Princess and the Warrior) and Fatih Akin (The Edge of Heaven), we have two very promising writer-directors with new films out this summer: German Christian Petzold and Austrian Götz Spielmann.

See these movies if possible, and then ask yourself why, on this side of the Atlantic, we haven't figured out that simple story + well-developed characters we can relate to + a bad decision or two - manipulative musical cues - obligatory sex and action = real suspense. It's a pretty elementary formula, but then I suppose we've always been behind the rest of the world when it comes to math, right?

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(Revanche opens today at the Landmark Lagoon Cinema)

As the global economy continues to go through, oh, a rough patch, conventional wisdom would say that a rise in crime and illicit activity would follow along. People might start getting desperate and robbing banks, for example, and as most of us are not professional criminals, things are bound to go awry. Such is the case in Revanche when Alex (Johannes Krisch, a striking Colin Farrell lookalike) and his Ukrainian girlfriend attempt to hit a small bank on the outskirts of Vienna.

What goes wrong is for you to find out, but I'm giving little away to disclose that Alex is soon hiding, or rather living, at his grandfather's pastoral country cottage. He spends his days moping and cutting wood, and his nights moping and having an affair with one of his grandfather's neighbors (Ursula Strauss). In his mind he is always plotting his revenge (revanche), but the further he gets from the bank incident, the less sure he is that revenge is really the answer.

The tagline for the film is "Whose fault is it if life doesn't go your way?", which is somewhat misleading in that it suggests an answer would be sufficient. More appropriate would something like "What do you do when life doesn't go your way?", because while much of Revanche is about assigning blame to the right person when an accident happens (hint: you can't), on a deeper level it's more about what happens when you think you've figured who that is.

We don't really know how long it takes Alex to fully understand this, because writer-director Götz Spielmann has given us a tense, moody character who, like Benjamin Button, primarily communicates with his eyes. The difference is that Johannes Krisch completely owns this performance, no make-up or CGI required. What is he thinking? What is he planning? We can only guess, and in the meantime we're wracked with gripping anxiety about how and when he might snap.

One of the interesting things about Revanche (as well as Jerichow) is that unlike in Breakdown, the typical Hitchcock set-up of "innocent character trying to escape situation and/or clear their name" is thrown out the window. Alex is not innocent, yet you almost have to convince yourself of that fact as you begin empathizing with him throughout the film. This is a pretty amazing achievement by Spielmann, and despite a legendary year for foreign film in 2008, it would be hard to argue with the Academy Award nomination he received for Revanche.

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(Jerichow opens July 10, 2009 at the Landmark Edina Cinema)

Despite all of my whining and complaining about remakes, I find I forgive such movies if they're able to play by their own rules and establish their own identities, maybe thus disqualifying them as actual remakes. A popular term recently is "retread", and so maybe as Breakdown was a retread of The Vanishing, Christian Petzold's noirish Jerichow is a retread of The Postman Always Rings Twice.

It doesn't get much simpler than this: Thomas (Benno Fürmann, who also starred in The Princess and The Warrior) is a strapping army veteran who's recently completed a tour in Afghanistan and moved into his late mother's house in the formerly East German town of Jerichow. Unemployed and with little direction in his life, he fatefully meets Ali, a Turkish businessman, and Laura, Ali's beautiful blonde wife. Despite (or perhaps because of) his jealous tendencies, Ali asks Thomas to work for him as a delivery truck driver. Thomas and Laura predictably fall for each other and bad decisions are soon made by everybody.

Judging by the trailer you might think Jerichow plays like a soap opera, but as in real life, the dilemmas faced by Thomas, Laura, and Ali are believable, and the consequences of their actions are grave. Moreover, Petzold keeps the intrigue high by gradually allowing these complex characters and their backstories to fully bloom over the course of 93 riveting minutes. You don't get to know somebody after a five minute discussion in real life, so why shouldn't it be the same in movies? Because of Petzold's patience (and because there are only three characters), by the climactic ending our loyalties are torn among the three.

Immediately after seeing Jerichow at MSPIFF in April I regretted missing Petzold's Yella at last year's festival. As in Revanche, greed, lust, guilt, and distrust are simmering under the surface, discussed but never spoken. Jerichow, however, also has urgent real-world issues on its mind, including the fact that German-Turkish cultural tensions (a must in any contemporary German film) are no longer relegated to the big cities.

I should mention that Jerichow's finale, while not necessarily contrived, wasn't what I had hoped for. In other words, you can sense what's coming but you hold out hope that it won't happen in predictable fashion. Nevertheless, it was a pleasant surprise at MSPIFF and frustratingly better than its recent American counterparts. By that, I mean there are none.

Whatever Happened To: Michael Douglas?

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:01:00 +0000

["Whatever Happened To:...?" is an occasional feature about an actor or actress who, despite having had a highly successful film career at some point, has for some unknown reason faded from the spotlight in recent years. ]

If I didn't know better I'd propose a ridiculous theory here. While acknowledging the well-cataloged evidence of gender-based age discrimination in Hollywood (you might remember a rich discussion after I asked "Whatever Happened to: Meg Ryan?"), the case of Michael Douglas could fool you into thinking that the market isn't really flooded with opportunities for older men these days, either.

I even found a recent argument in favor of this idea, but a simple look back at Best Actor nominees this decade reveals a veritable AARP membership roster: Frank Langella (age 71), Richard Jenkins (age 62), Clint Eastwood (age 79), Peter O'Toole (age 76), Tommy Lee Jones (age 62), David Strathairn (age 60), Ben Kingsley (age ), Jack Nicholson (age 72), and Michael Caine (age 76). To be generous you could add Anthony Hopkins (age 71), who is perhaps deserving of a "Whatever Happened to...?" feature of his own (like Sean Connery), even though he was still great as recently as five years ago in Proof and The World's Fastest Indian.

So yes, I do know better than to make the age discrimination argument for Douglas, and even contrarians could continue arguing that there are even older (mostly British?) women landing major roles in recent years (Helen Mirren, Meryl Streep, Imelda Staunton, Judi Dench). But...yeah, that's a pretty short list.

In any event, where does all of this leave 64 year-old Michael Douglas, a well-respected Best Actor winner who could command as much as $20 million per picture as recently as 10 years ago?

Fatal Attraction (1987), Falling Down (1993), Disclosure (1994)

I think the secret to much of his success, in addition to acting talent, confidence, a gravely voice and good looks, was a keen sense of self-awareness. He appeared to know exactly which roles suited his look and his style, like Tom Cruise or George Clooney behind him. This made him an easy target for the criticism of "always playing the same misogynistic/womanizing character", but the other side of that coin is "always playing the same misogynistic/womanizing character really, really well". Which is not to say that Douglas never took off his suit and stepped out of the office and away from the women. Movies like Falling Down (highlighted as an Underrated MOTM last summer), The Game, and even Wonder Boys showed Douglas in more emotionally tormented roles, while other performances (Romancing the Stone, The Jewel of the Nile, The Ghost and the Darkness) showed that he wasn't afraid to break a sweat out in the wild.

Somewhere around the year 2000, however, Douglas must have become restless in these roles. Wonder Boys was a bit of risk for him artistically, and despite the positive reviews the film received, he was pretty hurt by his peers' cool reception to it. IMDb quotes him as saying, "Wonder Boys was a huge disappointment personally. I loved the movie and we didn't even get critically acknowledged as far as awards go. I thought it was a fucking disgrace. I'll be honest - it really hurt my confidence. It was a punch in the gut."

How this affected his future choices in roles I can't say, but as I see it, 2000 was the year his career took a downward turn. Coincidentally - and I really do think it's a coincidence - it was also the year that he married Catherine Zeta-Jones, his junior by 25 years to the day (they share the same birthday, which is completely useless information that you now have stuck in your head).

The Game (1997), Traffic and Wonder Boys (2000)

But what actually happened after the year 2000? Well, he began exploring roles in comedy films (as well as a guest appearance on TV's "Will & Grace"), and almost immediately had two of the worst years of his career: 2001 (One Night at McCool's and Don't Say A Word - the latter maybe being an unintentional comedy) and 2003 (The In-Laws and It Runs in the Family, the latter of which also starred his father, Kirk, the screen legend-turned-MySpace blogger). As with Meg Ryan, these duds were followed, perhaps coincidentally, by a complete hiatus from any acting roles - nothing at all until 2006, when the terrible trend unfortunately picked right back up where it left off with The Sentinel and You, Me, and Dupree, both of which were almost universally panned. (Ironically, the same year he wisely declined to reprise his role opposite Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct 2.)

Those two movies in 2006 marked my last sightings of Douglas on the big screen, because by the time The King of California arrived in very limited release in 2007, it wasn't clear whether Douglas was still taking acting seriously. Either that or nobody recognized him in a wild-eyed, bearded role as an estranged father living in a mental institution. The movie earned moderately positive reviews but did little to revive his acting career, which may not have been his motive in the first place, since in recent years he has been an advocate for nuclear disarmament as well as an announcer for the NBC Nightly News.

Which brings us to 2009, where Douglas has just played - this is unbelievable- a supporting role to Matthew McConaughey in the ridiculous Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. Roger Ebert deadpanned in his review, "Michael Douglas is widely said to have modeled his hair, eyeglass frames and general appearance on the noted womanizer Bob Evans, but actually he reminded me more of Kirk Douglas playing Bob Evans. It's an effective performance either way you look at it." Meanwhile, my neighborhood critic Colin Covert observed that "Michael Douglas, as the playboy uncle who raised the orphaned Connor, returns from the dead, introducing the spirits that will teach his nephew a cautionary lesson. Douglas, radiating an arid narcissism, does look as if he was recently exhumed. Whether this is a deliberate makeup choice or unfortunate lighting is hard to guess." The movie comfortably holds a 28% on RT and 34 rating on Metacritic.

What is Douglas doing in these movies? We can't be entirely sure, but if not for Oliver Stone it nearly would have been time to completely write off Douglas' career from this point on. Stone, who directed Douglas in his Best Actor-winning performance in 1988's Wall Street, has recently announced plans for a sequel titled Wall Street 2 (originally Money Never Sleeps), due out in 2011. Douglas will reprise his role as Gordon Gekko, with Shia LaBeouf (man, I'm getting so good at spelling that) and Javier Bardem in supporting roles.

Hopefully it will be a return to form for Douglas, even if his character is a complete weasel. As Gekko, he boasted, "I look at a hundred deals a day. I pick one." Douglas himself could have said the same thing 10-15 years ago, but sadly, these days it doesn't appear those deals are landing on his desk very often.

Underrated MOTM: Toy Soldiers (1991)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 04:51:00 +0000

Before I write anything about May's Underrated Movie of the Month, Toy Soldiers, I'm obligated to make it known that I haven't seen Red Dawn, the 1984 controversial classic that inspired it. So for those of you are devoted to that movie, or to 1981's Taps, or to 1984's Toy Soldiers - you can save your breath as I'm not making comparisons to them.

That out of the way, I settled on Toy Soldiers after seeing it on a list of some kind recently, as well as hearing the unrelated Martika ballad (the sappiness of which hasn't stopped YouTubers from combining the two). It's a movie that I haven't seen in years but that I'll still find myself watching in surprised horror when I come across it. Also, what better way to celebrate the end of the school year (nevermind that I'm not in school) than a fantasy about destroying your school in a battle against a Colombian druglord?

Written and directed by Daniel Petrie, Jr., who also wrote Turner and Hooch and the Beverly Hills Cop trilogy, Toy Soldiers is the rare movie that was marketed precisely to the audience (teen boys) who couldn't see it due to its R-rating. Whether this led to a theater full of boys pretending they were men or men wishing they were boys, I can't say. In fact I don't even know when I first saw Toy Soldiers, but it definitely wasn't in the theater. Seems to be the norm, though, since the movie took in a measly $15 million upon its release in late April of 1991. Opening weekend it came in third to Stallone and Tomei in Oscar and Matt Dillon in A Kiss Before Dying, a fact which can only be explained, in my opinion, to Toy Soldiers' R-rating.

Or maybe it also had to do with Roger Ebert's grouchy 1-star pan: "Was there any way to make this material original? To find a new twist? Was there anything the filmmakers wanted to say about the situation - other than the crushingly obvious fact that troublemakers in peacetime often become heroes in war? Did anyone connected with the production notice that they were making a movie that, in essence, had already been made? That there was no need for it? That given a budget and a cast, locations and shooting schedule, they had not justified their effort by even trying to make a film it is necessary to see? Or would that be asking too much?" Easy, Roger, easy - and don't think I won't expect you to insert that exact paragraph into your review of the Red Dawn remake next year. Isn't it ironic?

So sure, Toy Soldiers was nothing new. But that doesn't mean it wasn't awesome for a generation of boys daydreaming heroic fantasies during their high school English classes - one major difference likely being the lack of any girl to woo in the movie. No, the Regis High School is an all-boys boarding school in Virginia where "the country's best families send the world's worst students". Among these mischievous teens, Billy Tepper (a pre-Rudy Sean Astin) is the biggest thorn in Dean Edward Parker's (a post-Iron Eagle Louis Gossett, Jr.) side. He's whip-smart, influential, and fearless - the perfect hero-in-waiting when Colombian druglord Luis Cali (Andrew Divoff) and his posse take the entire school hostage.

I think what Ebert misunderstood about Toy Soldiers was that it wasn't really meant to be an analysis of U.S. foreign policy, or about international relations at the end of the cold war. To me the evidence shows that it was just meant to be a rollicking good time for the testosterone-fueled boys who were able to see it. I mean, this is the guy who wrote Beverly Hills Cop, right? In fact, if anything Ebert should have focused on the surprising brutality of the battle. The coarse language and frequent violence against teens (beatings, whippings, shootings) makes it unlikely likely this movie would even be released in 2009 and marketed to a generation that's advanced through their school careers with horrifying school shootings and classroom lockdowns. It's pretty disturbing to consider, but it automatically comes to mind when you see Wil Wheaton emptying the magazine of his machine gun.

Rather than focus on the alleged unoriginality or the harsh violence in Toy Soldiers, it's better to consider the more positive aspects: the stunts are spectacular, the villains are over-the-top (Cali: "If any of the individual explosives are tampered with, theywillEXPLODE!!"), and the comedy is corny and crass. The title Toy Soldiers is actually very symbolic: as "real" as the scenario sometimes seems, it always remains a kind of playground for the viewer, particularly for a generation raised on G.I. Joe. As evidenced by the spoilerific clips below, it's ultimately just a B-movie about the "good guys" vs. the "bad guys", and all of the messy international politics can be safely left on the sideline as ancillary material, like those extra pieces that came with your action figures that you never used.

REVIEW: The Song of Sparrows (A)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Sun, 31 May 2009 03:38:00 +0000

(The Song of Sparrows opens this weekend at the Landmark Edina Cinema)

Sometimes I watch movies like The Song of Sparrows and shake my head (out of a sense of righteous global-mindedness, of course). There couldn't be more obstacles in its way in catching on with American audiences: it has subtitles, it's one of "those artsy foreign films", and - hide the women and children - it's from Iran. I get it, we don't want to feel anything or think about anything when we go to movies, and in the midst of this recession we're desperately looking to escape as much as possible. To Las Vegas (The Hangover), to prehistoric times (Land of the Lost), or even to outer space (Star Trek).

But is it really true that people are looking to take nothing from the movies they see? Really? Nothing but a few laughs to distract us from reality? Just seems like a strange way to spend our money; it's not like there's a shortage of free entertainment these days. My point is, movies like The Song of Sparrows, which truly is accessible, charming, and relevant to people from all countries (especially the U.S.), are too often tossed aside or overlooked because people fear they're weird, boring, overlong, serious, tragic, or something worse. Well here's a surprise: this movie is none of those things, and its comedy is sure to be both more original and more humanistic than repetitive scenes of Will Ferrell fleeing dinosaurs (though truthfully, he'll probably make that pretty funny).

From celebrated Iranian director Majid Majidi (Children of Heaven), The Song of Sparrows is at its heart a parable about capitalism and the conditioned human tendency to perpetually want more than what you have at any given time, even if you don't know why (see: greed). It's an Aesop's Fable brought to life, and like Aesop, Majidi (who also co-wrote the film) knows how to effectively draw us into the lives of his archetypal characters. Here, it's Karim, a devoted husband, father and ostrich farmer living in a modest rambler on the dusty outskirts of Tehran. His family doesn't live lavishly, but Karim is a talented handyman and provides for his wife and children what others in the community may not have, such as fuzzy television reception and massive ostrich egg omelets.Although Karim is not inundated by advertising in his daily life and the local culture doesn't appear to put much value in material possessions, when hard luck takes Karim's steady job from him he gets an idea in his head that there must be more lucrative - not just steady, but lucrative - opportunities awaiting him. Maybe he's influenced by his son, who along with his young friends want to start a goldfish farming business, but regardless of the reason, when Karim eventually does get a taste of easy money in Tehran, it becomes an almost overpowering elixir. He's discovered that you can make a lot of money without necessarily toiling away in the fields all day. More specifically, he's discovered entrepreneurship, and his outlook on life will never be the same.

If it still sounds like The Song of Sparrows actually is "weird, boring, overlong, serious, tragic, or something worse", I guess I suggest you check out the trailer below, though even that doesn't fully illustrate the outstanding performance by Mohammed Amir Naji, or the striking cinematography by Turaj Mansuri, or the dry comedy lingering behind so many scenes. The movie is simultaneously operating on multiple layers and, under the sure hand of Majidi, successfully avoids farce even when some twists in the story feel contrived. Just when you want to casually dismiss another emotional outburst or bizarre occurrence as a you've-gotta-be-kidding-me gag, you realize that, well, it's true - everybody has some amusing experiences like that.

And really, isn't that how you learn lessons in life? About taking risks, appreciating what you have, getting through difficult times, raising a family, and everything else? Of course, and like one of those humorous learning experiences you had years ago and still share with friends and family, you may find The Song of Sparrows offers similar anecdotes that you aren't likely to forget.

Grade:
Writing - 9
Acting - 10
Production - 10
Emotional Impact - 9
Music - 4

Social Significance - 5
Total: 47/50= 94% = A

300 Words About: Drag Me to Hell

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Thu, 28 May 2009 04:33:00 +0000

(Drag Me to Hell opens wide this Friday, May 29)

"You said I would get a free checking account if I refinanced my mortgage!"...

As if the economy and housing market weren't already frightening enough, along comes Drag Me to Hell, a wickedly rendered depiction of what could happen if we lowly bank customers sought vengeance on the hand-wringing loan officers who have lured us into this mess. Of course, brothers and co-writers Ivan and Sam Raimi didn't have the mortgage-anchored recession in mind when they wrote this film in the early 90's, but it's still an ironically amusing set-up to their new horror comedy.

Comedy being the operative word, because I'm not sure why the advance word on this was that it lacked laughs. They come in spades, and the frustrating thing is that the Raimis make it look so easy - why can't others get this formula down? A bare-bones story (young loan officer tries to escape a demonic curse unleashed on her by the old woman whose loan extension she denied) featuring sassy dialogue, goofy gags and responsibly restrained special effects. Sam Raimi must be used to a massive production budget from his work on the Spider-Man trilogy, and it's nice that he avoided the temptation to over-CGI the stunts here. While there's only so many times an old lady's shrieking face can actually spook you, it's such a confident production that you can forgive some repetition from a director having fun at the top of his form.

Not quite as impressive are a few typical annoyances (the climactic finale is ruined by an easy tell, and again we have twenty-somethings with a million-dollar view of downtown L.A. from their Echo Park bedroom window), and some blah acting from Alison Lohman and Justin Long. The Raimis probably just followed horror film dogma to make the female character the protagonist, but I almost think Long might have added more spark to the role if he'd been cursed instead, similar to his jumpy breakout role in Jeepers Creepers. In any event, Lohman is essentially just on screen to receive nasty punishments and cue the audience on when to scream, so you can't fault her for not filling out an already empty character.

In the end, Drag Me to Hell succeeded for me mostly because I didn't feel like Sam Raimi was trying to brutalize me with graphic torture, gore and violence. While other directors appear to get some sinister satisfaction from their unnecessary attempts to send us a "message", Raimi understands that horror, in its most marketable (see: PG-13) form, should simply be a rousing ride for the audience. Drag Me to Hell is just that - a refreshingly boisterous, nostalgically freaky flick, like the haunted house tours at your local amusement park that left you giggling as you gripped your friend's arm in giddy terror. Yes, thankfully and despite a disturbing rise in bloodlust from movie-goers over the past decade, Raimi has bucked the trend and delivered chills and thrills instead of kills and drills.

The Favorite Movie Period/Place Meme

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 26 May 2009 05:01:00 +0000

What's so great about Pittsburgh circa 1987, anyway?

Believe me, I'm as surprised as you are that I'm attempting to initiate a meme. A year ago I didn't even know what one was (I still only have an idea), and here am I trying to get one going.

It started with the thought I was having while watching Greg Mottola's Adventureland, namely, "What's the point in setting this story in Pittsburgh circa 1987 as opposed to Anytown, USA, circa 2009"? There were things that just didn't seem to jive with the period (i.e., too frequent use of "What's up?" as a greeting), and aside from the fact that Mottola attended Carnegie Mellon in the mid-80's, most of the setting and period dressings felt like a gimmicky strategy to play indie 80's music and have fun with costumes and hairstyles (I mean really, did anybody buy Ryan Reynolds as that character in that setting?). It didn't take away from my enjoyment of that charming film very much, but unlike Cameron Crowe's personal touches on Almost Famous, or Jonathan Levine's on The Wackness, or even Ang Lee's reported obsession over production accuracy in the upcoming Taking Woodstock, the time and place in Adventureland really didn't add much to the meaning, either, in my opinion.

This brings me to the idea for this meme, particularly these questions: What's my favorite cinematic period, anyway, and what movies portray a place that I would love to visit in real life? Essentially, during which movies have I thought, "Wow, I would really love to be there and experience that place at that time"?

You become almost paralyzed considering the possibilities. Of all the movies you've seen set in an almost infinite number of times and places, which one looked the most appealing? Rome in the age of the Roman Empire (Gladiator)? 1990's Los Angeles (Grand Canyon)? 1970's Manhattan (Manhattan)? 1920's Chicago (Chicago)? 2000's Bruges (In Bruges)? 19th-century American West (any Western)? Victorian-age England (numerous possibilities)? 20th-century Europe (numerous possibilities)? 16th-century Mesoamerica (Apocalypto)? Present day? The future (Minority Report, Children of Men, Demolition Man)?

These options are a frozen drop of water on the tip of the iceberg, and I'm laying out a challenge to choose one favorite, or at least a few. You can even list ones that haven't been seen on film yet - or consider the times and places we're headed in these upcoming summer movies: Public Enemies, Year One, Land of the Lost, the aforementioned Taking Woodstock, Inglourious Basterds, Moon, Tetro, and so on and so forth.

THE RULES:

1.) Think of a place (real or fictional) and time (past, present, future) portrayed in a movie (or a few) that you would love to visit.
2.) List the setting, period, applicable movie, and year of the applicable movie's release (for reference).
3.) Explain why, however you'd like (bullet points, list, essay form, screenshots, etc.). If this is a time and place that you have intimate knowledge of, feel free to describe what was done well and what wasn't done well in portraying it.
4.) If possible, list and provide links to any related movies, websites, books, and/or articles that relate to your choice (s).
5.) Modify Rules #1-4 to your liking. And come up with a better name for this meme.
6.) Link back to this Getafilm post in your post, please.
7.) Tag at least five others to participate!

I'll lay this out in the format that I hope it will spread for easiest reading, but you're welcome and encouraged to modify it to your liking if you decide to participate. Also, I'm putting less thought into my own selection than I hope you will because I want to get this going, but my choice isn't necessarily a lazy one because it's been a favorite of mine for years: Hill Valley, CA, circa 2015.

_________________________________________________________________

Place/Setting: Hill Valley, CA
Year/Period: 2015
As Seen In: Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Why: I saw Back to the Future Part II in the theater during the height of my boyhood fixation with awesome cars and cool gadgets. When Marty and Doc dropped in on Hill Valley in 2015, it was like a fantasy land for my imagination. Flying cars! Hover boards! Holographic billboards! Self-drying jackets and self-tying shoes! Personalized home entertainment channels! And to make a good thing better, rapidly hydratable pizzas! I couldn't wait for 2015 to arrive when I walked out of the theater, and now, twenty years later, we're on the verge of realizing this utopia.

But seriously, I think part of the reason I'm fascinated with the future portrayed in movies is because it's a complete unknown. In my optimistic moments, I like to think of what could be instead of what has been, and the future allows for unending possibilities...

Best Aspects of Hill Valley: Incredible technology, instant news, California weather, people speak English, clean and mostly safe streets, Pepsi and Pizza Hut are still around

Worst Aspects of Hill Valley: Incredible surveillance, ubiquitous advertising, lack of privacy, air traffic, Pepsi and Pizza Hut are still around

Further Reading/Viewing:
* Blade Runner, set in 2019
* Hill Valley 2015 fansite
* 11 Points' "11 Predictions that Back to the Future Part II Got Right", April 2009
* 11 Points' "11 Predictions that Back to the Future Part II Got Wrong", April 2009

_________________________________________________________________

In explaining my choice I ended up focusing more on the year (2015) than the setting (Hill Valley). That may not be the case for you - maybe you'll look at place over period, or give both equal love. And actually, if you're a contrarian and you'd like to do your least favorite movie period or place, go for it. I'd have to think about mine a bit, but 18th-century Eastern Europe comes to mind first.

Anyway, before "launching" the meme, some of the other times and places I would like to visit off the top of my head are: Casablanca circa 1942 (Casablanca); Brooklyn circa 1989 (Do The Right Thing); Endor circa a long time ago (Return of the Jedi - I actually did visit the Redwood Forest a couple years ago and it was indescribable, otherworldly); 20th-century India (Gandhi); 1980's Rio de Janeiro (City of God); Paris circa 2001 (Amélie); Los Angeles throughout the 90's (Falling Down, Boyz in Da Hood, The Big Lebowski); Arabia circa medieval times (Aladdin); the South of France circa 1955 (To Catch a Thief), etc., etc., etc.

See, it's hard to stop, and just think of all the thousands of movies you've all seen that I haven't.

And so, have at it:

Fletch at Blog Cabins
Nayana at The Center Seat
Miranda at Cinematic Passions
Rick at Coosa Creek Cinema
Jason at The Cooler
The Mad Hatter at The Dark of the Matinee
Pat at Doodad Kind of Town
Marilyn at Ferdy on Films
Elgringo at He Shot Cyrus
Piper at Lazy Eye Theatre
T.S. at Screen Savour
RC at Strange Culture
Fox at Tractor Facts
Matt & Co. at Where the Long Tail Ends
Sam & Co. at Wonders in the Dark

I primarily chose these people because I'm pretty certain they've participated in recent memes, and as such they're likely to spread it on to others. At least I hope they do. If they don't I'll take no offense, just as I hope those who weren't listed don't take offense.

This is open to anyone and everyone reading this, whether I know you or not, and especially if it's your first meme! Write a post on your blog, write in the comments section here, whatever you want to do. Thanks for playing and passing it along - I'm really curious to see where people would like to go with a ticket to anytime, anywhere...

300 Words About: Terminator Salvation

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Tue, 26 May 2009 02:08:00 +0000

If you look really closely, you just might recognize some elements of James Cameron's creation...

There are a few things that don't belong in Terminator movies: little kids, huge talking heads on screens explaining the plot, celebrity cameos, inexplicable romance that threatens to overtake scenes, and talking dogs. The guy who insists on referring to himself by his childhood nickname has haphazardly inserted the first four of those elements into Terminator Salvation, and in all likelihood we can look forward to the fifth one in the upcoming sequel.

What bothers me about the utterly mediocre Terminator Salvation is not simply the fact that it was made. I'm not necessarily a Cameron purist and I actually liked Jonathon Mostow's Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, even if was significantly inferior to Cameron's first two. No, what bothered me about Terminator Salvation is that despite, or maybe because of, the frequent references it made to the quotes and action elements from the earlier movies, it severely lacked vision, terror, originality and confidence. Worse, the guy who insists on referring to himself by his childhood nickname thought that he could actually adapt or update or otherwise modify this story for a new generation by adding "fresh" ideas that simply leaving you scratching your head.

For example, what in the world is a mute child doing as an important character in a Terminator movie? Where were the typically heavy - and heavily intriguing - dialogues/monologues about the war and Judgment Day? In the future, shouldn't the aiming accuracy of both the humans and machines' weapons be far more advanced, not worse than ever before? And why was Common given any face time in a completely worthless role? (And don't think I'll let slide the fact that he was wearing stylish aviator sunglasses during the climactic nighttime assault.)

I imagine the guy who insists on referring to himself by his childhood nickname would explain these bizarre decisions by saying he was trying to bring his own style to Cameron's vision, but it almost seems from Terminator Salvation that he didn't even see the first two movies, but just heard about them and picked up on the popular catch phrases. After this movie, well I'm tempted to say we'd be lucky if Judgment Day actually arrives before his tentative sequel comes out in 2011.

Short Cuts: "Haooo - Hup!" (Drill Captain Command)

getafilm@gmail.com (Daniel Getahun) — Sun, 24 May 2009 22:32:00 +0000

A Few Good Men (1992). Directed by Rob Reiner; written by Aaron Sorkin; starring Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kevin Pollack, Kevin Bacon, J.T. Walsh, Kiefer Sutherland, Christopher Guest, Cuba Gooding, Jr., and Noah Wyle.