Sundance 2006 Screenings
KINKY BOOTS
We been seeing so many films that I've gotten behind on my bloggins and reviews. So, this post will attempt to catch you up on some of the films we've been seeing. One of my favorite films thus far is KINKY BOOTS. Although a tad predictable, the film is a terrifically entertaining look at a clash of cultures in rural England. I was particularly impressed with the performance by CHIWETEL EJIOFOR as a cross-dressing dancer in desperate need of a great pair of boots. A failing shoe factory stumbles onto a new niche market serving these customers who are very different from the working class factory workers.
Of course, since there were two shoe factories in my home town of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, I really enjoyed watching the factory workers! All of my sisters, my mother, and I worked at the shoe factory at one time or another. I lasted the LEAST amount of time (one week almost to the minute) while my mother retired after 20+ years of service. The clash of the transvestites and workers was most entertaining. And, of course, their is the scene where LOLA explains to CHARLIE that "Red is the color of SEX. And, shoes! Shoes, Charlie, are sex. Boots are 2 1/2 feet of hot, tubular sex." Funny and entertaining.
COME EARLY MORNING
Starring Ashley Judd, COME EARLY MORNING is actor turned director Joey Lauren Adams autobiographically-inspired film about a woman coming to terms with the people in her life and their limited ability to provide what she needs and wants. Judd gives a powerful, nuanced performance as a woman who uses sex to avoid intimacy and alcohol to dull the depth of her loss.
Laura Prepon was wonderful as Judd's roommate and friend. Jeffrey Donovan was tender and under-stated as the Tennessee muscle-car lover who tries to connect with Judd's Lucy. The film could have used a stronger "B" story to take the pressure off Judd's journey to acceptance but overall a worthwhile, enjoyable film. And, since it was shot on location in Arkansas, it has a wonderful sense of place.
THE GIANT BUDDHAS
I wanted to love THE GIANT BUDDHAS. I was horrified when the Taliban ordered the destruction of the mammoth statues that were carved in a Gobi desert cliff over 1300 years ago. I was eager to see footage of the Buddhas and what had occurred since in Afghanistan. There was some (not enough) of that footage.
It appeared that the director was torn about what story he wanted to tell. There was the story about the order to destroy and subsequent explosions that reduced the Buddhas to rubble. There was also the story of the cliff dwellers who had lived in the caves for three generations and were ultimately relocated when the world decided to "preserve the site." And, there was the story of the family who left Kabul as the Taliban came to power and the sad return of the daughter years later. As you might be guessing, I thought BUDDHAS was trying to tell too many stories. Any of those stories would have been satisfying and enjoyable ... and preferable to the film we actually watched.
