Independent Films to See
One of the things Alec and I love to do is see independent films to motivate ourselves into making one of our own. We pick out the things we like the most and the things we would change. In the last week, I think we've watched ten films. Here then, our very biased views of the films we've been seeing.
REQUIEM FOR A DREAM was my absolute favorite of all the films we watched. The acting was powerful. Ellen Burstyn won an Academy Award for her portrayal of Sarah Goldfarb, the woman that no one needed. Jennifer Connelly and Jared Leto were nuanced and profoundly shameless in their descent into addiction. And the EDITING. I loved the editing. It added to the chaotic feel and disconnection of the characters. And the bonus features were good, too.
ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW is Miranda July's tour de force that took Sundance by storm. Playing a quirky performance artist who falls for a quirkier shoe salesman, the writing was witty and authentic. All of the characters were so odd and unforgettable. The actors inhabited the skins of these oddballs to near perfection. To be sure it was odd ... and wonderful.
It's hard to go wrong with Robert Downey Jr and Val Kilmer but KISS KISS BANG BANG just didn't hold together well enough to make me happy. The characters were fun and odd. The acting was strong but, sometimes, the quirky character bits dragged the story to a virtual halt. I kept thinking, "Move on, people, move on." You knew who the bad guy was ten seconds into the movie so there were very few surprises. The electrocution of Robert Downey Jr's "private parts" was gratuitous, as was the dog eating the severed finger. It just wasn't funny. I wouldn't say to skip it ... watch it ... but reduce your expectations and you'll be a lot happier.
Another Sundance hit, HUSTLE AND FLOW was fun to watch although it took me half the movie to be able to understand what they were saying. It's embarrassing to have to put subtitles on for an English-language film but I just couldn't catch what they were saying. I don't love the whole pimp 'n ho scene and rap isn't really my thang but it was done well.
Of course we had to go see, NACHO LIBRE because of the Sundance connection to Jared Hess and NAPOLEON DYNAMITE. There were some good moments.
DATE MOVIE was horrible. (I didn't pick that ... even when I want mindless entertainment, I can't do that.) I couldn't make myself get interested in RENT. I know I shouldn't say that (and I'm going to get a whole pile of grief for it) but I lost it when Jesse L. Martin got mugged and sang about it. I just couldn't hang in there. I'll have to give it another shot some other time. I rewatched the series finale of SIX FEET UNDER and all of the bonus tracks.
I've still got BAD EDUCATION with one of my favorite actors GAEL GARCIA BERNAL doing a turn as a cross-dressing blackmailer. I'll watch that tomorrow. Oh, and I have WAITING FOR THE MOON, Wendy Godmillow's Sundance winner about Alice B. Toklas and Gertrude Stein. I think Alec will be skipping that one.
