Film Movement – Year 11 Film 5: “Three Worlds” (AKA Trois mondes)

Every day of our lives there are seemingly insignificant incidents that cause people to inhabit other people’s worlds, people who otherwise might never have even met. Usually we don’t give much thought into such everyday and uneventful occurrences, then again, usually were not confronted with a tragic hit and run scenario and all of the anguishing drama that would no doubt unfurl within the wake of such an ordeal. Luckily, for those of us who have never been a part of such a crime, we can live it vicariously through Catherine Corsini‘s escapist drama, Three Worlds. Oh joy. Drama!

Naturally, in the spirit of not wanting to have an obscure title, there are three main characters in the film. There’s the young, recently promoted, soon-to-be married Al (Raphaël Personnaz) who, while in the prime of his life, goes and does the idiotic thing of speeding off after accidentally mowing down a pedestrian. Well, that’s one way to sober up rather quickly. And why wouldn’t he simply call an ambulance, or drive the victim to the ER, one might ask. Well, because aside from being the sensible thing, it would also make for a less entertaining drama. Thankfully, for this voyeur’s viewing pleasure, Mr. Brains opts to drive away and cover his crime, and as a result spends the rest of the movie riddled with immense feelings of guilt and fear. Welcome to world number 1 of 3.

San Francisco Silent Film Festival 2013: Day Three – “Gribiche”

Day three of silent film watching and my hopes of seeing more than one film today turned out to be just that – hopes. Truth is I was exhausted from only haven gotten a few hours of sleep the night before and having already worked a morning shift at my part-time coffee bar job prior to this early afternoon screening. Now, as comfortable as the Castor Theatre’s seats may be for a double, or even triple feature, lets face it, when it comes to nap time they simply will not do. Besides, I’ve been told, though I don’t really believe it, that I’m a snorer. If that is true, the Silent Film Festival is not the place where I want to find out. Besides, nobody wants to be that guy, right? So in order to be well rested for a slew of films tomorrow  (I’m hoping for three) I heeded to my body’s call and made a B line for my bed, but before doing so I watched director Jacques Feyder‘s Gribiche. Now I will tell you about it.

Gribiche is without a doubt one of the strangest coming-of-age stories I have ever seen, and while it does have its share of flaws; jokes used more than once, questionable character motives, and stretched out scenes, it is not without its share of noteworthy moments either; flashbacks, flashforwards, set designs, including a sweet merry-go-round, and my favorite part of the film, an hour-by-hour account of what a day in the life of a boy with a “rationale, inflexible schedule” (quoting the title card) looks like.

Oliver Assaya’s “Something In The Air” (Après mai) – Review and Trailer

Oliver Assaya‘s “Something In The Air” blew me away.

The film centers around a few late teen/young adults in post 1968 (starting in 1971) France. I say post-1968 because the political stage set by that period of unrest serves as the backdrop for the film. The main characters are introduced as radical dissidents in high school, operating and executing various acts of civil disobedience. As the film continues, they are forced to leave France, and their lives progress, sometimes intersecting, sometimes not.

The scope of the film’s themes is remarkable. A primary theme I encountered was the relationship between radical politics and art. The main character, Gilles, grows from a staunch to a reluctant member of the radical society and, in a parallel, grows from an amateur painter to one driven by it. The portrayals of the artists in the film versus those more dedicated to their politics capture the basic identity question of the film – when does one know that this is what one needs to do? When is one being true to oneself, versus to society? The question of the comparison between individualism and socialism (when one does something solely for oneself, or for the good of society) and the artist’s relation thereof is still a worthwhile topic in today’s society.

The Kid With A Bike Review and Trailer

Fantastic.

This film presents itself in as unassuming a way as its title – subdued in tone and seemingly so as well in scope. But underneath its exterior lies a very intense, human story of a child at risk of becoming lost.

The story is rather simple: a child is abandoned by his last family members, goes into a foster home, is more or less adopted by a hairdresser, and becomes involved with the darker sides of society which are so alluring and welcoming to the down-and-out. But the way the film is portrayed is what allows it to shine – that is, the directors feel no need to hurry and drill into our skulls that this film is a story. There is no senseless verbal exposition. Rather, the characters are allowed to breathe.

Le Havre Review and Trailer

“I heard about your husband. My condolences.”
“What for? He was a fatalist.”

This is what cinema is about.

Aki Kaurismäki is a singularly unique filmmaker. He is a master of tone, and the tone in “Le Havre” is so complicated and beautiful, and adds further to the excellence of the film. It is full of counterpoint, that old concept adapted to film by Eisenstein and perfected by Kurosawa – but the counterpoint in this film goes further than just sound to image. It also is stylized so heavily, with such bright, vibrant colours, which contrasts with the often dark themes. This darkness itself contrasts with the charming and wittiness which the film is full of.

French Cinema Now Film Festival 2011 – The Minister Review & Trailer

From The Minister’s intro, reminiscent of Kubrick‘s Eyes Wide Shut, where we witness a dream of a naked woman crawling into the gaping mouth of an alligator, to its final frames, Pierre Schoeller‘s film portrays the carnivorous world of public office.  This talky yet well-paced drama isn’t made for everyone, which is exactly why it’s one of the better films of 2011.

French Cinema Now Film Festival 2011 – The Long Falling Review and Trailer

The Long Falling is an interesting and dark Belgian film. Centering around a woman who is kept largely in fear by her husband, an abusive fellow who, purposely or not, killed a young girl on a road. The wife follows suit and ends her husband in the same place and by the same manner.

The film then takes us to Brussels, where the woman tries to reconnect with her son. This is the meat of the film, as the police slowly close in and the personalities and histories of the characters show through their behavior and conversations. They are shown as complicated beings, and their motives are never completely transparent – our idea as to why the woman killed her husband, for instance, changes multiple times, as does our idea as to why the son was so upset about this man’s death.

The Hedgehog Review and Trailer

Let’s get this out of the way, there is not one hedgehog in this entire film.  Bad news for those expecting an animated romp starring a hedgehog, but good news for those who like their movie titles to be of the metaphorical kind.  So, even though there were no rodents in the film it did have a few cats, a goldfish, and three well developed characters intriguing enough to draw me into the bourgeois apartment setting of this finely crafted comigedy.

Comigedy: Definition – A film that is part comedy part tragedy.  This word is the first of two new words that you will be introduced to during my review for The Hedgehog. Feel free to use them as you see fit.

SFIFF 2011 Films in Brief: “The Whistleblower”, “I’m Glad My Mother Is Alive” and “The Ballad Of Genesis And Lady Jaye”

The Whistleblower

There are moments in life that we all regret, for me it was the moment I foolishly decided to catch The Whistleblower instead of Werner Herzog‘s Cave of Forgotten Dreams.  What was I thinking?  I’m pretty sure this film is director Larysa Kondracki‘s pitch to CBS for yet another generic version of CSI, albeit one with gratuitous and unnecessary photos of rape victims so as if to seem edgy.  Okay, maybe not CSI, but at least one of those generic crime shows where one or two good actors surround themselves with cheese-ball script writers, hammy actors, clichéd musical score cues, rushed plot development that leaves no time for setting any sort of interesting atmosphere, and most of all, predictability.

It’s the film’s obvious predictable nature that makes my task of writing a brief plot outline without giving anything away a difficult one.  So here it is in a nutshell:  Divorced woman married to her job as a police officer takes a job with the UN where she’ll be stationed in post-war Bosnia for the sake of peacekeeping.  From there generic suspense ensues courtesy of a generic sex trafficking plot, and one do-gooder who must overcome insurmountable made-for-television movie odds.

Showtimes for The Whistleblower:

TUE Apr 26 – 9:15pm (Kabuki)

THU Apr 28 – 9:30pm (Kabuki)

Follow the jump to see brief reviews of I’m Glad My Mother Is Alive and Detroit Wild City