The fourth Afro-Punk Festival is well underway at BAM and has already provided some truly sweet treats. One of these treats did not happen to be my experience watching the skate park action in the parking lot next to the theater. My initial excitement turned into immediate terror as I realized that this gathering was pretty much a free-for-all of unexceptional skaters who were trying their best but were closer to breaking their arms than to landing their attempted tricks. It was seriously excruciating. Before giving up completely, I decided to watch one last ramp jump by a kid who seemed to know what he was doing, only his timing was off and he proceeded to smack his face on the pavement when he landed. That's when I got the hell out of there and jetted for the comfort of a theater.

It had been ten years since I'd seen Bill Gunn's Ganja & Hess on crappy DVD, so it was quite a revelation to watch it on the big screen with an audience (some of whom couldn't take it seriously, many of whom could). Brandon Harris captures the spirit of the film's nearly indescribable mood and content over at Hammer to Nail, so read that if you haven't already.

Next up was Larry Clark's debut feature from 1977, Passing Through. No, not that Larry Clark. After listening to this Larry Clark tell stories about fellow classmate and collaborator Charles Burnett (Killer of Sheep) and his own experience making the film, I realized that I'd choose this Larry Clark any day of the week. My favorite quote was this:

"The budget tells me not to do it, so I don't do a budget."

I personally thought the film was exceptional, a striking blend of art and entertainment that was aware of recent cinematic trends (most directly, Blaxploitation) without ever succumbing to them completely. The film's opening sequence, which consists of twelve superimpositions of jazz instruments being played at a frenetic pace, is breathtaking.

There's more Afro-Punk to be had, beginning with today's second screening of Stanley Nelson's haunting and brilliant Jonestown: The Life and Death of Peoples Temple (4:30pm). Read my review over at Hammer to Nail. It might be too early to say, but I genuinely consider this film to be one of my favorite documentaries ever. Another personal favorite of recent memory, on the narrative side, is Shane Meadows' This is England, which shows again Tuesday night at 9:40.

While everything looks interesting, the film I'm most looking forward to is Hal Ashby's The Landlord, which screens Wednesday night at 9:40. I missed it in its limited Film Forum run last fall, and have avoided watching clunky bootlegs of it up to this point, so I am ridiculously excited to finally see it after so much anticipation.

The Afro-Punk Festival is a legitimate presence on the New York City cinematic landscape, and I recommend that you take advantage of the opportunity if you live anywhere near Brooklyn.