The Brother's Grimm cast includes Matt Damon, Heath Ledger and Jonathon Pryce, all directed by Terry Gilliam --- and I wish it were rare that this much talent was wasted this badly.
From the previews, it looks quite good --- a comedy with the Brother's Grimm being con artists pretending to rid the world supernatural evil, until they run across the real thing and have to deal with it.
It does have its moments, though mainly dramatic ones. For the most part, however, it just doesn't come together. For one, the entire element of France vs Germany, especially including Jonathan Pryce's character and underlings would improve the movie by not being in it. It's a ludicrous bit of farce apparently included to give the characters motivation to go into the forest, but just made me want to leave the theater every time that thread of the story was onscreen. If you want the evil king and minions to drive the plot, go back and watch the Princess Bride again to see how to do it.
The special effects are as good as one would expect these days...mostly. The wolf jerkily bounds about like something out of the 50's, and there was one early forest scene where they forgot to remove some of the wires. The trees are the high point here --- when they move, they really look alive. One more thing to thank the Lord of the Rings for, I suspect.
As expected, they throw in elements of many of the popular fairy tales, but more as throw away gags than key elements of the story.
Finally, at the end there is a scene that at first glance is stupidly homophobic. The action itself isn't so much so when you think about what the characters are doing and who they are, but when you think about why it's even in the movie in the first place (to shock the mostly straight audience), you realize that your first impression was right. Not that such situations can't be funny, it's just that in this case, it's sole purpose is to play up and reinforce the "ick factor" that two guys might actually kiss, however unromantically or justified in the situation. It is simply inexcusable today.
I confess, I'm not that big a fan of Terry Gilliam's farces, and his fans will probably be happier with this movie than I was, but I am a big fan of Matt, Heath and Jonathon, and it's really sad to see them in a movie this disappointing.
I went to see this movie Saturday, and while it's good, it's not great and certainly not worth all the fuss being made over it. Ebert & Roeper oooohhhed and aaaaaahed over the crash scene, which certainly gave you a good perspective, however it was not at all realistic: a plane would not simply fly along straight while a wing on one side slices through a house. It might slice for a little bit, but only until the drag pulled the fuselage into the house demolishing both the plane and the house.
The special effects, while outstanding for say, 5-10 years ago, are mediocre at best these days, particularly golfing: the ball looked like the golf ball in the game in the movie Outland, floating along rather than a realistic arc. The water was done better in Titanic, and while it was probably done as a "stylistic" choice, at times the movie looks like a B&W film badly colorized. No thanks.
As far as the acting goes, it was pretty good, save that I don't understand the Oscar nomination for Cate Blanchett's portrayal of Katherine Hepburn, who must be rolling in her grave at the caricature here.
Leonardo does do a good job playing Howard Hughes, but the script is a little disjointed and the movie, albeit long already, ends before it really shows just how far Howard fell before the end.
In the end, I recommend seeing it, but only at economy hour.
Master and Commander, the new "seafaring of olde" movie, starring Russell Crowe, is, as the reviews I've seen have pointed out, not a typical swashbuckler of Errol Flynn's days. And at almost 2 and 1/2 hours, it would probably be mind numbing if it were. Instead, it's more a character study of life at sea and playing cat and mouse, hunter and hunted, between warships.
One thing I will warn you about up front, as it surprised me: it's not a movie for the squeamish. They do not shy away from the realism of medicine in 1805, and it is not for the faint of heart! It is, however, also not excessively gory --- and that is one of the great strengths of the movie as a movie, and for the actors in question: the ability to make a couple of scenes as intense as they are without actually showing the operation in detail.
The movie is very well done, special effects every bit as good as modern technology allows, and yet I expected more. While a good movie, it's not a great movie, as I'd hoped and expected.
Perhaps, even in this lengthy of a movie, they attempted to tell too much of a story. We got a decent look at a lot of characters, but the primary focus of the story, well, there wasn't one. On the surface, the story is about two captains of warships chasing and hunting each other, much like many of the submarine movies about WWII, but as with those, the story is actually about the people on the one ship we're on.
The primary story of these character studies is about the captain and doctor, who are old friends, yet, while there is conflict between them, the relationship is not explored very deeply. Certainly not enough to justify a critical decision in the last quarter of the movie.
Still, there's a lot to like about the movie --- the stories are interesting, the view of ship life appears very realistic, these is tension and suspense, and there's even an amusing twist at the end. I give it a 7.
Unfortunately, I have to end this too soon --- my dad's birthday is Wednesday, and I'm going to visit instead of seeing Sylvia Scarlett (apparently a rare print of an old Katherine Hepburn movie), the sneak preview, and the festival closer, Goldfish Memories.
This trip up to Seattle has been very well worth it, both for visiting friends and the three great movies on Sunday. The venues were all great: Cinerama, Experience Music Project and Harvard Exit (though the screen at the Experience Music Project wasn't a whole lot bigger than the one I have at home!). The festival is put on by Three Dollar Bill Cinema, which does queer films year round and reminds me that big cities really do have some advantages (though I can't stand Portland traffic, much less dealing with Seattle's regularly). Anyway, I had a great time, and maybe now that I've gotten into the habit of posting here, I'll find other things to write about more often...
My last film in the Seattle festival was Leaving Metropolis (IMDB, Monday 9:30pm). Usually you say "last, but not least", but in this case, it was. That's not saying it's bad, it's just that the three movies yesterday were so good, this one simply had too much competition.
David is a painter who's running dry of inspiration. Some of his best work was done before when he was a waiter, getting inspiration from the constantly changing flow of people he met. He decides to get a job as a waiter at a small out of the way cafe run by Matt and Violet. It turns out that Matt has a suppressed dream of being a comic book artist, and bonds quickly with David. The problem is he's straight. Or thinks he is. The expected complications ensue. As if that wasn't enough, there's a parallel thread with David's pre-op transexual roommate with AIDS.
This movie reminded me a lot of Making Love, in that a married "straight" guy essentially comes out. It was pretty well done, though I didn't really go for some of the surrealness near the end. One part I particularly liked was one sex scene, which was fairly typical in cutting from one partner to the other, but in this case it was Matt, David, Matt, Violet, etc. back and forth. It worked extremely well.
The first half of the movie was definitely the best part, with some great lines (which I've unfortunately forgotten now --- I'm going to have to see it again!). In addition, Vince Corazza, who plays Matt, does an outstanding job and really makes you care about him.
The rest of the details are spoilers, so they're in the extended entry below, but I give this a 7.
****************************SPOILER****************************
A movie like this can either be a fantasy with a happy ending, or it can be realistic. Making Love was the latter, but tried to mollify the downer ending by showing everyone years later after they've recovered. Leaving Metropolis doesn't, although it does show them starting to move on. This is especially a downer because Matt and David had great chemistry and David could really have helped Matt become the artist he really wants to be. And following up on the comments in the main part, because I cared so much about Matt, I thought he got short shrift at the end, where we just see him going to the train station, but we have no clue where he's going. Actually, that's sort of how most everyone gets left, but I cared more about Matt.
I'm afraid I'm one of those people who like happy endings. I don't go to movies to find out how bad the world can be --- I already know it's rarely a happy place. It would have been hard to have things work out realistically and still be happy, but I would have enjoyed it a lot more if that work had been done. I also could have done without the AIDS thread. I know AIDS is still here, and even though the "cocktails" work for a lot of people, they don't for some. But. "Been there, done that" in the movies. It would have been ok if it had had more relevance to the main thread, but it had the feel of being filler because the main thread didn't make a whole movie. I give it a 7 because overall it was a good movie, but just...
Diary of a Male Porn Star (Sun 9:30pm) makes three great movies in a row. It's another emotional movie, though not nearly as much so as Latter Days, but a great movie nevertheless.
Riki Kandinski (played by writer/director Marco Filiberti) is a highly successful porn star, estranged from his family for 11 years. When his father dies, and his older brother tries to get to know him better, there is learning to be done on both sides, and it's further complicated when Riki helps an orphaned boy.
While not "predictable", there are no great surprises in this movie. For starters, the movie is premised on some journalists looking to document his life, so you know he's dead at the start. It is, however, a very good story, well acted and well produced. While I think Riki is idealized in his role as a porn star, I know someone who's been in porn movies, and another who's been at least in porn magazines. I think he did a couple movies too. Both are nice guys, and not at all deserving of the attitude I think a lot of people would have of them just knowing what they had done.
Unfortunately having seen this right after Latter Days, I'm having a hard time deciding if I'm overrating this in the afterglow, or underrating it because it just can't compare, but I give it a 9.
Wow. I thought I'd already seen the best movie of the festival earlier today, but it pales in comparison to Latter Days (IMDB, Sun 7pm). It's a roller coaster ride, and anyone who doesn't have tears at the end is a brick. I won't say whether they're tears of joy or sorrow, because you know it's going to be one way or the other practically from the beginning, and you wonder all through it. At some points, I was ready to be really mad because a lesser film would have ended abruptly, sometimes up, sometimes down, and I couldn't see how they could get themselves out of the corners they'd boxed themselves into in a believable way, but they did pull an ending out of it that worked well.
Christian is a pretty boy waiter, who lives life rather like Brian on Queer As Folk: he can have anyone he wants, and usually does. When cute newbie Mormon missionary Aaron comes to town, and then moves in next door with three other missionaries, it's clear from the start he's attracted to Christian, and vica versa. When Christian tells his co-workers at the restaurant about them, they bet he can't get one of them. If there's one flaw in the movie, it's that bet: you just know that a. they'll fall in love and b. Aaron will be hurt when he finds out and think Christian doesn't really love him. As it turns out, it's handled better than most and it can be overlooked, but there it is. They also gloss over the aftermath of a fight between Christian and his roommate near the end, but again, it's a minor point.
This is the first film for Steve Sandvoss, who played Aaron. He was there, and while I went up and congratulated him on his excellent performance , I wish I'd asked him more about how he got to where he is. His performance is absolutely spot on, and his chemistry with Wes Ramsey (Christian) was great. It was all the more excellent considering it sounds like he's straight from the way he answered the question about how he prepared for the film.
This movie really gets at the heart of one of the key reasons why I have no use for most mainstream religions (intolerance). Apparently TLA Releasing is preparing it for a theatrical release, and I'm really glad it's going to be shown in Salt Lake City in the first phase of that release. It may save some people's lives, and hopefully open some eyes at the very least.
I can't recommend this film enough. It is an emotional movie, but this one I think I can watch periodically and I can't wait for the DVD. I just have to give it an 11...
I'm very pleased to say that Gone, But Not Forgotten (IMDB, Sun Noon), the main reason I came up to Seattle this weekend and missed the end of the Portland film festival to see, was well worth it.
Drew is a Park Ranger, who has rescued Mark from a nasty fall, but Mark has amnesia, and initially can't even remember his name. Drew isn't spilling much about the circumstances of the rescue either, but befriends Mark as he recovers.
This was an excellent story, with good acting and production values, for the most part. The shortcoming was in the audio and dialogue area --- the big problem was that there wasn't enough ambience to make it sound real. Also, the "normal" dialogue seemed just a little not quite real, but some key dramatic scenes that were so well done, and the overall story is so good, that you're willing to overlook everything else.
Gone is a beautiful romance, in a similar vein as Big Eden, though the small town isn't as supportive as the one in Big Eden. It keeps you interested by doling out tidbits, one bit at a time, of both how Mark came to be where he is, what Drew knows and where the two of them are headed. I'm very pleased to hear that TLA Video will be releasing it on DVD in December. It'll be high on my list! 9 out of 10.
Immediately after watching Body Beautiful in Portland, I headed up to Seattle to meet up with friends there and go to a birthday dinner for a friend of theirs. I got way too stuffed on Moroccan Chicken, then headed to my first Seattle film: Porn on the Cob. As it turns out, this is another collection of shorts, and in the porn category (the last one, I promise). Unlike the one in Portland, these weren't just run of the mill porn, but, with one exception, actually artistic and interesting to more or less degrees outside of the erotic aspects.
The first one was the exception noted above: it's basically a trailer for a real porn video, albeit notable for being shot in Seattle rather than LA. 1 for not being a real film.
The Bait Bus was broken up into three segments shown in between some of the other shorts. Each segment was basically some people in a van with a video camera, pull up to a straight guy on the street, lure him into the van with a girl showing her tits and promising sex, then switching and convincing him to have sex with a guy for money. They then hand him far less than they promised and drive off leaving a ticked off guy behind.
It's funny, but I hope they didn't do it for real (I can't imagine the straight guys agreeing to being in it under the circumstances). I'll give it a 6.
Smoke Rings was very short, 2 minutes, and basically a guy smoking a cigarette blowing smoke rings proceeds to blow a ring from a couple feet away that perfectly encircles an erect penis. An interesting feat; not one that bears much repeated watching I don't think, but worth a 7.
Another very short piece, shot in fuzzy black and white. It appears to be live sex stage performers going out into the audience and performing on them, but it was hard to see and really pointless. I can only give it a 3.
This was the highlight of the collection: done in a documentary style, it purports to document the rise of a 60's porn star, who moved behind the camera, but we find out isn't aging. An interesting variation on the Dorian Grey story, with a good ending. It rates a 7.
This is just a series of emailed pictures people sent of themselves over the Internet. Not very interesting... 5 out of 10.
An interesting experimental piece, the story is told somewhat by the choice of music over its length. Basically, a Canadian man crosses into the US at Niagra Falls, picks up a cute hitchhiker, they have sex, then they pick up some more hitchikers and have a picnic. Mildly interesting... 6.
I think this is a fantasy of some guy on the beach, but it didn't really make much sense. I can only give it a 4...
So, that's it for the Portland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. I have a couple final comments:
Overall, I think my favorite film was Merci Docteur Rey. If I had to rank them, I guess it would be:
The 14th and final entry for the Portland festival is Body Beautiful, a collection of shorts themed on bodies and our attitudes towards them:
David is a nice looking, but relatively average guy who meets up with a gym bodybuilder hunk and then proceeds to develop an inferiority complex. A film that explores a number of areas, from body building obsession to the pressure, sometimes within, to "improve" looks (personally, I don't like beefy hunks, but prefer bodies that are simply well defined, like swimmers and ice skaters) and even the destructive aspects of gossip. It was ok, but shied away from actually resolving anything, just raising the issue, so I give it a 6.
This disturbing piece documents people who deliberately gain weight (and I mean fat) for affection. As someone who sits at a computer all day and can't look and food without gaining, the idea of deliberately trying to do it is mind boggling. We see pictures of the main interviewee, and he goes from very good looking, to pudgy to fat in mere months! I don't really know how to rate this: it's hard to watch, but I suppose it's interesting to know that people like that exist, but uggh. I can only give it a 5.
Another of those experimental pieces, it's interesting if you're into them. This one seems to be about disabled bodies, from the perspective of someone with an artificial lower leg. I prefer movies that actually tell a story, so I can only give this a 5 also.
Sexo was in one of the previous collections, one of the experimental styles that actually works as it comments on people's hypocritical attitudes towards pornography. I still liked it the second time around --- an 8.
This was the only film of the entire festival that I would have walked out on. It started out ok, filming and documenting a smoking room at a GLAAD event. But they carried it beyond that into harassment by asking retorical questions they don't really care about the answers to. It's not like anyone really doesn't know that smoking is bad for them. This one just pissed me off (and I'm not even a smoker!). 1 out of 10.
This one documents the culture around big beefy "clone" culture. All well enough, except that they document it as "gay" culture. Maybe in some limited or even not so limited subsets (in some areas, like SF), but certainly not all gays even like beef. 6.
This one made them all worth sitting through: it's all done in the point of view of a guy in a bar looking for "Mr. Right", but being very picky. It's probably the funniest short in the whole festival. 9 out of 10.
Finally, the third movie Friday night, my 13th, was El Paso Wrecking Corp. This is a vintage 1977 gay porn flick. The festival program describes it in terms of "pioneering positive images", relatively long shooting schedules and actually having a story with realistic men rather than hairless twinkies, but when it comes down to it, it was a porn flick.
The original negatives were apparently destroyed, so this video master from theatrical originals leaves a lot to be desired in quality, but other than that, it wasn't too bad (if you like hairy hunks --- if all you like is hairless twinks, then this is not the movie for you). This is the movie that should have had the title "1000 Cumshots", but many of them were shot in slow motion, which actually made them interesting artistically. I also liked the images of a number of buildings being torn down during the final orgy scene.
The director was in attendance and introduced the movie, but after three movies, it was quite late and I didn't stay for any Q&A. I couldn't really think of much to ask about a 25 year old movie anyhow. Discounting the quality of the presentation due to available media, and relative to other movies in this category, I have to give it a 7.
The second movie Friday night was My Life On Ice (IMDB). The premise is that 16-year old Etienne has just received a video camera as a gift, and the movie is his filming his life for about the next year. He is a talented ice skater, but is also coming to terms with his sexuality.
I have very mixed feelings about this movie: it was interesting to watch --- you really did have the feel of watching Etienne film his life, and he is a good skater, and it is enjoyable to watch him skate (the actor, Jimmy Tavares, apparently is a real life champion skater). Both Etienne and his best friend Ludovic are very cute, which doesn't hurt.
What does hurt is that you really did have the feel of watching Etienne film his life. After watching this, I swear I'll never shoot handheld video again. Some parts early on just about gave me a headache. And it is interminable. My comment after the movie was over was "that's the longest coming out story I've ever seen". On the one hand, it is realistic: when you're in the closet, you don't tell anyone. He films people he likes, but relatively discreetly or with excuses. It's very late in the movie when he actually makes real progress in coming out. On the other hand though, reality rarely makes for a good movie, and I'm afraid this is a good example (even though it's only pretend reality).
Because it is interesting, even when you're looking at your watch wondering how long it has to go, and the skating is good, and Jimmy Tavares (Etienne) and Lucas Bonnifait (Ludovic) are very cute, I'll give it a 6.
Well, we're nearing the end of the Portland festival --- last night saw me reach break-even on the "half pass" I bought, so all the rest are "free"! ;-) The first one Friday night (my 11th) is Party Monster (IMDB). This movie is based on the true story of Michael Alig (played by Macaulay Culkin), a kid from the midwest who wants to follow in the footsteps of James St. James (played wonderfully by Seth Green), a major party organizer. Michael soon outstripped his mentor, but clawed his way up on the backs of friends and strangers alike, getting deeper and deeper into drugs, culminating with the murder of friend, roommate and drug dealer Angel (played by Wilson Cruz).
The movie is pretty funny for the first half or so, but as Michael's life starts to unwind, the movie necessarily gets darker and darker. It's very well done, with great performances from the cast (with one possible exception), but like Ordinary People and Boys Don't Cry (though this isn't nearly as intense as those), it's not a movie I will want to see again for some time.
The "possible exception" is Macaulay Culkin's performance: it was very much a "stage" performance. I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, as it's entirely conceivable that Michael acted as though he actually was on stage all the time, and gave a "stage performance" in real life, but contrasted with the rest of the cast, and especially Seth Green's performance, that's not the way it came off.
I recommend seeing it once, but having done that myself, you're on your own... 7 out of 10.
After the Gaydar shorts, Merci Docteur Rey (IMDB) was the tenth film in my list. The film festival guide describes it as "a whimsical homage to film and celebrity, and a plot reminiscent of Agatha Christie at her best", and I missed the "whimsical" part and was expecting more of a mystery story. That is there, but it's very funny as well. It got a rather bad review by someone on the IMDB, but I think they were taking it way too seriously.
Elisabeth (Dianne Wiest) is an opera diva and mother to Thomas (a very cute Stanislas Merhar). He's closeted and doing personal ads, without much success, but one older gentleman talks him into a voyeuristic scenario where he doesn't have to do anything but watch from a closet. Watch he does, as the older gentleman (Simon Callow) is stabbed to death right in front of the closet door (the kind with horizontal, angled, slats so you can see through). The rest of the movie is Thomas' attempt to find the murderer as he goes from one misadventure to another with various revelations and plot twists keeping us both interested and in stitches. I have to give this an 8, but I think it's the best feature so far in the festival.
Tonight, I started with Gaydar: Boys' Shorts II, the ninth outing for me in the Portland Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. This was another, and much better than the first, collection of short films, also on digital projection.
This Car Up was one of the experimental styled shorts that worked, and quite well, thankfully. The basic story is office worker expecting delivery, bike messenger boy making delivery, see each other, are attracted, but have no reason to talk and don't, but can't stop thinking about each other.
A nice, simple, romance, but what sets it apart is that you see it in four sections: office worker activity in the lower left, bike messenger activity in the lower right, and over each is a section showing what they're each actually thinking. The premise is how chance affects our lives, and love lives in particular, so the sections showing what each is thinking are each divided up into 3 segments side by side spinning like slot machine wheels. This worked really well and you completely get the story with the barest minimum of dialogue. For a short, I have to give this 9 out of 10.
On their mutual 70th birthday, a straight best friend of a gay man decides to give his friend everything he's ever wanted for his birthday. Things don't quite go as planned in an amusing little short. 7 out of 10.
Leon and Noel are twin brothers (it dawned on me for the first time in the opening credits that Leon is Noel backwards). Leon -> Abi -> Noel form a classic love triangle with the interesting twist that Leon and Noel are twins, and Noel finally comes out in a rather amusing way. It was good up till this point, and then they must have run out of money or hit a time limit of some sort, as shortly after this, they start an interesting plot development that has a lot of potential, and suddenly it's wrapped up Deus Ex Machina and it's over. For this, 6 out of 10.
But wait, there's more: the audio was so bad, it was impossible to make out much of the dialogue. I'm inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume it was a local technical problem, except the showing was digital, and none of the other shorts had the problem. If it really was a bad production mix, I have to downgrade it to a 4.
Very straight carpenter is having fantasy dreams about being naked and about to have sex with another man. He's upset and confused, and confides in his co-worker, who must be a *very* good friend (I personally can't imagine someone like that admitting to those dreams to anyone). There is a bit of a twist at the end that's amusing, if a bit confusing. I suppose it gives you something to think about, but I didn't believe most of it and what there was to think about wasn't that interesting. 6 for being mildly amusing.
There seems to be no IMDB entry for this very confusing mess. This is one of those "experimental" pieces that doesn't work. The one redeeming part is that there is one bit of narration at the end that pulls a message out of the thing, so I'll give it a 5.
An odd little piece about a squash player who develops an obsession with the skirt a female squash player is wearing. Strange, and never really went anywhere: I can only give it a 4.
Things picked up nicely again with this fun little short: an average joe in a gay bar tries to pick up a gorgeous hunk, only to be squelched pretty rudely. In the men's room shortly thereafter, what must be his Fairy Godmother gives him a ring that lets him change into the object of his selected target's dreams. What follows is a very funny commentary on the variety of sexual interests people have, with a moderately predictable ending. Stay through the credits though --- the disclaimers at the end are very funny too. Also, be careful not to miss a short bit that shows the couple from Judas Kiss --- apparently in the same bar at the same time for their big scene. 7 out of 10.
Every gay man has talked about their "gaydar", wishing they had one so they didn't have to waste time chasing cute straight boys they have no chance with. In this movie, that wish comes true. While funny, if a little stereotypical, and complete in its own right, it leaves a some key things unanswered. The star and co-producer, Terry Ray, was at the showing, and said that one of those questions in particular would be answered in a feature length version in the planning stages. There is a cat in the movie that's almost worth the price of admission alone. I'll give it a 7, just.
My overall impression was that this collection of shorts was much better than the previous collection. I think giving the previous one a 7 may have been a little generous, given the real stinkers in it, since that's all I can justify this collection with given the number of mediocre ones in it. On the other hand, the ones that were good were really good, and none of them were real stinkers, so I could be talked into giving it an 8.
After Blue Gate Crossing, I went ahead and stayed for Bulgarian Lovers (IMDB). I hadn't originally planned to, as there's four tv shows on Wednesday nights I like: Enterprise, Jake 2.0, Smallville and Angel. But, on rereading the synopsis before heading down to the theater, particularly seeing that it was a comedy-drama rather than a drama, I decided to give it a chance. It was a good decision.
Bulgarian Lovers is set in Spain, into which Bulgarian men apparently travel in search of a better life. Often, it seems that means finding a "Sugar Daddy". There's a line in the beginning of the movie that "Bulgarians think Spanish men are either cops or faeries because those are the only ones that talk to them". The movie is about one particular couple, Daniel and Kyril. Daniel is infatuated with Kyril, who has a girlfriend back home and seems to come up with surprising amounts of cash. As the relationship grows, the more questionable is Kyril's extra-curricular activities, but Daniel's attachment to Kyril, while stretched right up to the breaking point, never quite makes it. As a result, he gets drawn deeper into Kyril's activities himself.
The movie is a wonderful exploration of the lengths people will go for love, or even infatuation. Even though Daniel knows he's being used, he goes along with it. Not being a heavy dramatic movie (though the comedy is mild), the end result is probably more upbeat than it would be in real life, but it's still believable
One thing that probably impressed me more than anything else was the special effects, starting from the opening credits. They were incredibly well done, by far the best I've seen in any independent film short of a couple of SciFi shorts. There are some cute transitions and lighting effects, but they fit well and do not give one the impression of a kid in a special effects candy store like some films do. And there's one truly memorable scene, when Daniel is envisioning the possible outcome of what he's doing at the time, that would hold up against some of the things you see in $100 million action/adventure blockbusters.
After all that, you might wonder why I don't give it a 9 or a 10 instead of an 8, but I reserve 9's and 10's for the strongest stories that are watchable over and over and still have the same impact each time. Nicholas Nickleby is one I give a 10 to, for both excellent story and ability to watch over and over again. This one is good and very well done, but I can only really give it an 8...
Up to seven now, with Blue Gate Crossing (IMDB). I actually confused this one with the first one (You'll Get Over It) because they are superficially the same: unrequited love because one is gay and one is straight. Also, one of the main characters is on the swim team in both.
In Blue Gate Crossing, we have Yueh-chen asking her close friend Kerou to help her get the adorable Shihao of the swim team to notice her. In a relatively predictable plot development, Shihao of course falls for Kerou instead and thinks that "Yueh-chen" is made up. Unfortunately for him, Kerou is actually interested in Yueh-chen herself, and doesn't really want him interested in either of them.
I really liked this film --- Bolin Chen (Shihao) and Lunmei Guey (Kerou) have a lot of chemistry on screen, and they make it a touching coming of age story. I realize that's a bit thin, but you can't really say more without saying too much. I will add some in the Extended Entry, because there is one aspect to the film that I didn't like and that's why I give it a 7 out of 10 instead of an 8...
****************************SPOILER****************************
Even though the ending is actually rather upbeat, it left me with the implication that "all you need to do is meet the right person and you'll go straight". It could be that Shihao is just really cool and they'll be good friends; it was ambiguous, so I'll only dock it one point for that, but there it is. I still recommend seeing it though.
After Yossi & Jagger, I stayed for a collection of short films titled Sexo (also the name of one of the shorts). This was a definite mixed bag of films, mostly because many of them are "experimental", i.e. non-narrative. Sometimes this can work, but more often than not, it doesn't. One thing that was nice about it is that most were shown using digital video projection. There was some occasional pixelization, mainly in the first film, but overall it was bright and with good color.
Here's the individual reports:
I think I'd have to give the program as a whole a 7 --- overall it probably wasn't that good, but the good ones were worth sitting through the bad ones for.
The fifth film in my film festival schedule was an Israeli import, Yossi & Jagger (IMDB).
I've actually come away feeling good about this movie, and frankly, I'm not sure why --- probably because the Jagger character was adorable, and the romance between Yossi and Jagger clearly shown early in the movie. As an aside, in the subtitles, they call Jagger by another name, which I'm afraid I've forgotten. They finally explain why he's called Jagger near the end of the film, but in the meantime, don't be too confused when they call the guy you think is Jagger by another name...
Good feelings and cute actors aside, my biggest complaint is that this is an all too predictable movie. I should moderate that since it's apparently based on real events, but I just can't. Exactly why is a spoiler, so I'll include it in the Extended Entry and you can read it there if you wish (unfortunately, that's only a separate section while this is still on the main page --- in the archives, it's all one article, so beware below...). In addition, the story is just too thin. Again, explaining why is a spoiler, so most of my comments are in the extended entry.
Suffice to say, I give it a 6 out of 10, but I think the story could easily be an 8 or a 9 if fully developed in a different way.
****************************SPOILER****************************
OK, so you want the spoiler version: in short, Jagger just as well wear a Red Shirt and be in a Star Trek episode. He's the cute one, full of fun and totally adorable, loved by all, the closet door only held shut by Yossi, his commander and lover who has his closet door nailed shut. I spent the entire movie (well, from the scene with the two of them playing in the snow) knowing that Jagger was going to die in the end and hoping against hope that they weren't going to do something so obvious. Alas, 'twas not to be.
Worse, that's basically the entire movie: oh we're so in love, oops tension in the ranks "you won't even say I love you" (that Red Shirt just started glowing neon), dangerous mission almost over, let's leave, boom! Jagger buys it, Yossi finally says I Love You, even in front of witnesses, visit family, end of movie. This is a Movie Of The Week plot, and at the low end even there.
It's saved by the chemistry of the actors, but just. Given that it's based on a true story, they should have just started with Jagger getting killed and then told the story of how they got together and their trials being together in the military.
My two cents worth anyhow...
For the fourth selection in the film festival, I went to see 9 Dead Gay Guys (IMDB). People do seem to have a love/hate relationship with this from the preliminary IMDB voting (most votes are either 1 or 10).
The festival program says "Easily one of the most outrageous, over-the-top, and irreverent films ever made, 9 DEAD GAY GUYS has something to offend everyone!". While far from PC, you have to be pretty intolerant to actually get offended by it.
The movie starts out with Kenny, Byron's best mate from back home in Ireland, coming to visit. Byron's told him how great London is, lots of work, etc. and Kenny's come to find a better life. Instead, he finds Byron drunk and barely one step above homeless. Seeing as Kenny has one 5 pound note left, they decide to go to a nearby pub and drink it. Kenny is shocked to find that it's a gay pub, and not only that, Byron is well known there, and even more when Byron picks up 20 pounds giving a blow job ("legitimate work" he says in his best Irish accent) to "Jeff" (played deliciously by Steven Berkoff, who usually seems to get Nazi bad guy roles). It seems Jeff has been left wanting since "The Queen", his usual source of "relief", was found dead just last night. This starts a complex search for a treasure The Queen was rumored to have access to, and also heads an ever growing list of bodies that manage to accumulate as the straight boys try to track down their ticket to wealth.
This description makes it sound like it could be a decent drama, but this is all played for laughs and is wickedly funny. There were a number of points where dialogue in the movie was lost because the audience was laughing too hard to hear it. The only downside I found in the movie was the ending, which I can't really talk about without giving too much away, but I was expecting one thing, and then in the end, it looked like they used an outtake instead. On the other hand, the ending as it was was completely inline with the irreverent take on everything else in the movie.
I think it might not hold up to repeated viewing, but it was a fun and funny movie, and I do recommend it with a 7 out of 10.
PS: I can't end without commenting that Red Bull must've been a major product placement sponsor. You'll understand when you see it...
Last night, Oct. 12, I went to my third film of the Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival: The Event (IMDB).
The Event is a suicide party --- something I've been fortunate enough to avoid by not knowing anyone who's had one, but apparently is not uncommon among AIDS victims. I know if I had AIDS and the "cocktails" were not working, I would be having such a party. I consider it torture to force anyone to live (if one can call it that) through some of the things people have to when their body is failing them (whether because of AIDS, old age, or other reasons).
It's My Party has already dealt with the subject of the parties and the issue of commitment of disease-free partners, but this movie is focussed more on the assisted suicide aspect. It starts with the body being taken from the apartment after the party, and then is told as flashbacks while a NYPD detective (played by Parker Posey) investigates the death, as there have been a string of sudden deaths among AIDS patients of a particular doctor. She's also dealing with the recent death of her own father. Through her investigation, we learn of the events leading up to the party, from Matt's learning he has AIDS, through The Event, and a little of the survivors feelings afterwards.
I had mixed feelings going into this movie; I expected it to be on the depressing side, but as you may have noticed above, I have strong feelings on the assisted suicide issue, and I have yet to see a movie with Olympia Dukakis (Matt's mother) that was not good. The surprising part was that this movie is unexpectedly funny. Definitely black humor, but there was a lot of humor scattered through it that helped lighten it up considerably. The ending is necessarily emotional, especially if you've been to such a party yourself --- there were a number of people crying in the audience, but I did not feel it was a depressing movie.
I think John Ashcroft should see it (who's trying to get Oregon's Assisted Suicide law squashed), and if that didn't do it, he should have to spend some time with the people he's forcing to live against their will.
But I digress again... the movie will squick some people in a couple of places --- the movie doesn't hold back on the realities of life and death, but I do think it's a movie well worth seeing and give it an 8 out of 10.
The second movie in the Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival that I went to see was Die, Mommie, Die (IMDB).
This was a very funny spoof of 30's and 40's Bette Davis et. al. movies, complete with deliberately forced acting, and even an ode to synchronized swimming. They play trailers from some of the target movies beforehand to help show that they're not really that over the top with the spoof. The one thing that I would like to see is a filmography of the movies you should watch before seeing Die, Mommie, Die in order to get the most out of it. There are clear references to other movies scattered throughout, and you can tell who's seen the target movie by where the pockets of laughter are in the theater. It's not necessary by any means --- I've seen very few of them, and it was still pretty funny. I just think it would be even funnier if you got more of the jokes.
The basic premise is a classic murder story, complete with twists and turns, and it even works on that level. Charles Busch, who wrote both the original play and this screenplay, stars as Angela Arden, washed up singer, trapped in a loveless marriage, seeing apparently well-endowed Tony Parker (played by Jason Priestley, who, scuttlebutt has it, is well known for his real-life dimensions) on the side. Natasha Lyonne (star of But I'm a Cheerleader, and as Jessica in the American Pie movies) is the daughter, and Stark Sands (guest appearances on Six Feet Under and way cute!) is the son.
Needless to say, I highly recommend this film, with an 8 out of 10...
The Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival started last Thursday, and runs through next weekend; I'll be going to about a dozen of the films, and then going up to Seattle to their film festival, which starts Friday and runs for about a week --- shorter, but in more venues, for a total of more films with only partial overlap (about half the films in Portland will be up there also).
The first film I went to, was You'll Get Over It (IMDB). It played Saturday, Oct. 11.
This movie, French with subtitles, was a good movie --- kind of a modern coming out story to remind us that even today, it's still not easy. Vincent Molina is the star of the high school swim team, with a girlfriend, best friend and secret boyfriend. One day he meets Benjamin, and after they start to get to know each other, Benjamin accidentally lets a little too much slip in a confrontation with Vincent's teammates, and Vincent is outed. The main part of the movie is then about how Vincent and his friends deal with the situation as Vincent puts the pieces of his life back together.
I thought it was one of the more accessible foreign films, with a story that crosses cultures and is told in a standard narrative form. The acting was good, the story interesting and Julien Baumgartner, who plays Vincent, is very good looking. What more could you want? I give it a 7 out of 10...
I was very pleased with this movie: it's not a deep movie by any means, and one has to be willing to give them the nonsense about "if you believe, it will be so", but I like Sean William Scott, and I'm glad to see him taking a step up from the stoner roles he's been doing. Of course, Chow Yung Fat goes without saying! Except maybe why'd he bother? But I'm glad he did, he helps bring the movie up a level or two. I also like the resolution --- in the more complex world of today, it takes a little more to protect an item that powerful. Though I think they could have done a better job of maybe explaining what they were protecting it for... Presumably someday someone will be able to make use of it for good, but it would probably be safest to just destroy it. I think it's going to be a very long time before it would be safe to have around.
I went to see Agent Cody Banks tonight, and I was pleasantly surprised: it was much better than I expected. This was a fun movie, very much a teen James Bond, with some wonderful tips to the original, and even spoofs. For example, at the end, his phone rings with the ring from the Flint movies. And in one scene during the movie, you hear in the background, "Will the owner of the silver Aston Martin please move it" ;-) There's even tips to other classics, like a prisoner wearing "AR1138", likely a reference to Lucas's student film THX1138. But the movie itself, while not taking itself too seriously (holographic cell phones ala Star Wars), has a solid story (as much as any action pic) that's not overly predictable and takes you for a good ride. If you don't take it any more seriously than they do, you'll enjoy it as much as any Bond flick. I like Malcolm in the Middle, and also thought that Big Fat Liar was better than expected, and I'm looking forward to more from Frankie Muniz, though I thought Arnold Vosloo was pretty much wasted. He could have been a much more serious villain and made this picture even better.