Wisconsin Film Festival- Treeless Mountain

This is a South Korean feature film that was kind of what I had in mind as something that I would want to direct…until I saw it.  It was a very sweet story of two very young sisters are taken to their aunt’s to live as their mother searches for their father.  What exactly the father did was never explained, as well as a plethora of other bits of information that would have helped in enjoying the film.  The aunt is extremely selfish and not fit to raise children but is probably the most interesting character in the movie.  The film did everything right when it comes to capturing the quiet moments, and having ambiguity, and being introspective and meaningful, and having an ending that isn’t too “Hollywood”; but frankly this movie could’ve used a little more Hollywood in it.  It’s a bit too quiet of a tale and it seems that if you’re going to make a movie it should be about something bigger.  I appreciate that the movie didn’t hit any false notes but it also didn’t really reach that high.  Three out of five.

Wisconsin Film Fest- Harvard Beats Yale, 29-29

This film was a technically simple one-- a bunch of interviews with former players on both sides intercut with footage from the real game.  That's it.  In fact, that was kind of a theme for movies during the whole weekend-- you don't need to be fancy at all with camerawork or technology because all that matters is your acting and writing.  I gave this film 3 out of 5, simply because I though it was way too long, and every time something dramatic was about to happen in the game, the editor would cut to some interview of the players talking about the moment.  What made the movie was definitely one of the Yale players who was clearly made out to be "the bad guy."  He was very candid about looking to hurt opposing players so that they couldn't return to the game, and combined with his relationship with George W. Bush (who was a cheerleader at Yale) gives his action extra resonance.  What was seriously lacking in the film was what these players are up to today.  Maybe this will be included in the theatrical release but it was pretty frustrating to not know what happened to these guys (ala Animal House) and I felt it left the story incomplete.

Let the Right One In

This is a Swedish movie that a lot of critics have been raving about.  The film is definitely competent and intelligent but really, really slow.  It's a great movie to see if you're in the mood for something a bit blue.  It's essentially a vampire tale told through the lens of two twelve-year-old loners who form a bond against the often inhumane world.  The performances by the two young actors are what really keep the film grounded and their sweetness towards each other is authentic and heartfelt.  Maybe I shouldn't have had a few before the movie, because all I wanted was for the film to move along faster.  There are endless shots of the cold Swedish tundra replete with snow falling from the sky at night and WS of the general grayness and an overbearing lack of color.  Thankfully there's enough blood to add some red flourishes throughout the film.  The metaphor I would use for this film is an incredibly plain bowl of rice with a few really explosive nibbles within it.  There are some incredibly artistic touches that reinvent some vampire cliches (exposure to sunlight, the sounds the vampires make), and one thing I really liked was that a lot of the violent/suspenseful action was shot from a wide angle which somehow really heightened the surprise of it.  But overall I thought the film was a bit of a snore with an ending that was satisfying, if not a little inappropriate.

Tropic Thunder

This movie was terrible.  Ben Still needs to stop coming up with premises for movies, writing for movies, and directing movies.  The movie is essentially a series of inside-jokes about Hollywood and the process of making films - from the big asshole exec. producers, to the asshole agents, to the asshole actors, to the asshole groupies.  Nothing new is revealed about the cliche of Hollywood being full of assholes, and Stiller is probably the biggest asshole for thinking that putting Robert Downey, Jr. in black face and dressing up Tom Cruise like fat, balding executive and making him dance to rap during the end credits.  The plot itself is so contrived and unrealistic that I lost interest about a half hour in.  I watched the second half of the movie in fast forward with subtitles so I could save 15 minutes or so.  I think the most impressive thing about the movie was how deep Downey got into his character of an Australian actor playing a black character, to the point where there were no traces of the real RDJ and all you had was this completely different, completely believable human being.  Even in "Iron Man" he spends a lot of the movie being himself, but in "Tropic Thunder" he is really someone else.  Other than that, Stiller makes fun of the mentally challenged again for laughs and Jack Black is his usual zany (yawn) self.  I think the funniest part of the DVD is that there is an ad about respecting those with mental challenges on it.  What a bunch of assholes.

Slumdog Millionaire

There goes Danny Boyle again, getting me all excited with the premise of a film and dazzling me for the first hour before dumbing down his ending and leaving me ultimately unsatisfied.  There were some things about "Slumdog Millionaire" that were fantastic- the cinematography, the colors, the music-video paced editing, the soundtrack, and the access he had to Mumbai's slums, but the ending is terribly saccharine and the whole driving force behind the movie is sappy and predictable.  Granted, this movie probably wasn't made for my tastes.  It's definitely a crowd pleaser that delivers a fun, escapist experience but it's not really trying to reflect any type of reality in the world.  The same goes for Boyle's other films like "Millions" and "Sunshine" which were dazzling and fun and brilliant to look, but resolved themselves unrealistically at the end.  It's the kind of thing that separates the great filmmakers from the legendary ones.  You can either please audiences now, or please critics now and forever.  Anyway, I would still recommend anyone to go and see this movie because it does have some great moments and you will probably see some things you have never seen before.  

My Blueberry Nights

This movie was universally panned by critics, but somehow the cover of the DVD box still attracted me to check it out.  It stars Norah Jones in her first, and possibly only, starring role ever and was directed by Hong Kong legend Wong Kar-wai ("Chungking Express," "In the Mood for Love") in his first English-language feature.  Yes, Norah Jones' acting is atrocious as she spends the majority of the film eating so that she just doesn't sit there looking clueless.  But in terms of creating a mood and a feeling, this movie was a great success.  The cinematography and the editing do a great job in creating an America that doesn't look like America, but more of a romaniticized version seen from the outside-- resplendent with neon signs, a rushing subway, open roads and charming cafes/bars/diners.  It's clear that though it's not his best effort, Wong is quite adept with the subtleties of human interaction and his work still sucks you in-- even without a very good protagonist.  

Son of Rambow

So, this movie wasn't too good.  I think conceptually, somehow using Rambo: First Blood as part of the story was a cool idea and that probably drew people into watching it.  The guy that directed this movie is a famous music video director who has done a lot of stuff for Blur.  The problem is the same one that I see from a lot of music video/commercial directors in that they can do fancy visual camera tricks, but they think that stringing a series of these together will make a compelling story.  The mixing of reality with animation is done well here and the characters are somewhat compelling though a bit cliche.  It starts to feel like a Gondry knock-off pretty fast while we marvel at the creativity of the young protagonist who draws amazing worlds in the pages of his textbooks.  However, the story stumbles once it gets into more serious territory like religious cults, brothers that raise brothers and the true meaning of friendship.  The ending is borrowed a bit from "Cinema Paradiso" and the tears of the kid at the end make you want to toss the DVD out the window.  I guess this is worth watching if you wanted to direct an effects-heavy commercial or music video and saw this as part of his reel-- as a film it's too much gravy and not enough meat.  Mmm, Thanksgiving is right around the corner...