#31: Strange Culture (2007)

On the eve of his new exhibit, artist and professor Steve Kurtz was shocked by the news that his wife had died of heart failure. The medics on the scene became suspicious of Kurtz's artistic media, which includes genetically modified foods, and the FBI accused him of bioterrorism. This disquieting true story is brought to life by actors Tilda Swinton, Josh Kornbluth and Peter Coyote in Lynn Herschman Leeson's chilling dramatic documentary.

Chilling and terrifying and almost too much to watch and take in. The technique of reenacting some scenes in the documentary is interesting -- and works, completely. Interviews with the actors, film running while they talk about the real people they're playing, all contribute to the large mosaic they're building about the artist and this case.

As the opening line reads:

"Steve Kurtz is unable to comment on events that occurred immediately prior to his arrest. Actors have interpreted his story."

Hence the reenactions. Because he has a story, and has told it at various points (and others have pieces of the story to tell, as well), but while he can give interviews on events occurring after the arrest, he can't tell the substantive part of the story on camera.

This easily surpasses "Jesus Camp" as the most terrifying movie I've seen in the last year.

#30: Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day

After losing yet another nanny position because of her gruff demeanor, Guinevere Pettigrew (Frances McDormand) mistakenly lands an assignment as the assistant of an American starlet (Amy Adams) and finds herself swept up in a dizzying world of glamour and high society. Based on the novel by Winifred Watson, this charming 1940s-era tale also stars Ciarán Hinds, Lee Pace, Shirley Henderson and Mark Strong.

Cute and fun.

#30/25

#29: Meet Bill (2007)

Beleaguered bank employee Bill (Aaron Eckhart) has his hands full with his wife's (Elizabeth Banks) infidelity with a local television reporter (Timothy Olyphant), his oblivious father-in-law (Holmes Osborne) who runs the bank, and his own frustrated attempts to change careers in this screwball comedy. But when he's persuaded to mentor a teenager known as the Kid (Logan Lerman), things just might turn around for Bill. Jessica Alba co-stars.

#28: Red Without Blue (2007)

This provocative and insightful film documents three years in the lives of identical twins Mark and Alex Farley as they come to terms not only with their homosexuality, but also with Alex's decision to physically change his gender. Haunted by a troubled past --including divorced parents, discrimination and a joint suicide attempt -- the brothers struggle to affirm their identity and learn what it means to be a family outside of traditional norms.

This is not a film about any of the subjects referenced above -- it's really a film about growing up and figuring out who you are, who you're supposed to be, and the journey of life. That the subjects are identical twins -- gay identical twins -- is just a detail that begins the story and breaks the ice.

It's a little bit of a jigsaw puzzle in terms of time, but it's not too distracting. Just don't expect to be able to get a timeline of the twins' relationship with each other or with their family.

#27: The King of Masks (1999)

Nearing the end of his life, Wang -- a locally renowned street performer and wizard of the venerable art of mask magic -- yearns to pass on his technique. But custom prescribes that he can only hand down his craft to a male successor. Anxious to preserve his unique art, the heirless Wang buys an impoverished 8-year-old on the black market. When the child divulges a dreaded secret, Wang faces a choice between filial love and societal tradition.

Lovely and kinda plot-heavy, surprisingly. The summary above really only captures a piece of the film -- there are many little twists and turns, nearly all revolving around Wang's desire for a male heir to whom he can teach his art. So many things about these lives are hard: the selling of children, the lack of value placed on girl children, the need for a male to inherit knowledge and name, life on the street, infant/child mortality, et cetera.

A couple things that struck me while viewing:
There was something about the score and cinematography seem very melodramatically Western to me at moments, but that's likely an artifact of my own limited film knowledge. Is there a parallel with Sichuan opera? (which has a minor role in the film)

Calling the boy "doggie" was more than a little odd, though -- it would be interesting to hear from someone who can offer an alternate translation of the actual dialogue.


And hm... with King of Kong and King Corn, this is kind of a humorous run I'm having here (though I had to abandon King Corn for now due to audio problems). I wonder what else there is... the Last King of Scotland (which is already in the queue), the King of Comedy (haven't seen for a LONG time), the King of New York, King of California (Michael Douglas), and Ping-pongkingen (the King of Ping-Pong). The last is now at the top of my queue.

#26: Free Zone (2005)

Hana Laszlo won a Cannes Best Actress award for her portrayal of Hanna, an Israeli taxi driver, in this drama. Headed to the Free Zone to collect money owed to her husband, Hanna picks up Rebecca (Natalie Portman), a frazzled American who begs to come along. But retrieving the money won't be easy; the two wind up on a strange journey with a Palestinian woman (Hiam Abbass) who reveals that Hanna's debtor has vanished, along with all of his loot.

Disappointing, but still interesting. The film feels long, as if this very long day in the film is compressed only slightly to bring the viewer along. The purpose and details of the journey are revealed over time, along with the situation of Rebecca, who is still not terribly clear to me by the end of the film. There's some superimposed footage at times, of things each woman was remembering. The technique was effective, and seemed to fit the rest of the mood of the film. And all the performances were understated but intense (these are three powerhouse actors), and the nuanced look at life in this tumultuous part of the world was interesting. But in the end, I'm not sure it's a satisfying way of telling a story.

#25: Sherrybaby

Golden Globe-nominated Maggie Gyllenhaal stars in director Laurie Collyer's feature film debut about a young woman's struggle for normalcy. After being released from prison, Sherry Swanson (Gyllenhaal) returns to the realities of life, visiting with her parole officer, finding a job and being a mother to her 5-year-old daughter. But complications arise when Swanson learns that in her absence her brother and his wife have become surrogate parents.

With the always-excellent Maggie Gyllenhaal, it's hard to go wrong -- but the writing is also fantastic and detailed, but not sentimental.


25/18 -- yes, time is catching up to me.

#24: Conversations With Other Women

Conversations with Other Women

Sparks fly at a wedding reception when a man (Aaron Eckhart) and a woman (Helena Bonham Carter) with a mysterious past are reunited in this bittersweet tale inventively shot in split screen. The complex layers of their past relationship are slowly revealed as the pair rekindles their flirtation. One thing leads to another and the old flames leave the party for a private hotel room, but passion gives way to regret when the champagne wears off.

Another split screen film, though I really didn't mind it. It's largely used as a device to allow flashbacks, but it's also a welcome relief from the intensity of shooting in one room (mostly), with only two people (mostly), just doing a lot of talking. More unusual, I thought, was the casting of Aaron Eckhart as a lawyer with a terminal case of nostalgia. I'm used to seeing him as the King of Asses (and a mighty king he is).

Though it's structurally similar, this is a much more engaging piece (imho) than Yes, and definitely more grown-up than Before Sunrise/Sunset (the non-Fiddler kind).

84 minutes, and not too long at all.

#23: Jesus Camp

This riveting Oscar-nominated documentary offers an unfiltered look at a revivalist subculture where devout Christian youngsters are being primed to deliver the fundamentalist community's religious and political messages. Building an evangelical army of tomorrow, the Kids on Fire summer camp in Devil's Lake, N.D., is dedicated to deepening the preteens' spirituality and sowing the seeds of political activism as they're exhorted to "take back America for Christ."

Astounding, and terrifying.

Just a couple thoughts at the moment:

I suppose the filmmakers found it necessary to situate this in a particular time, but given the fall of Haggard and a variety of other events leading up to the recent election, the appointment of Justice Alito hardly seems like a pivotal moment in recent history. Still, it's a reminder to viewers that this is a pre-Obama film, if that makes a difference.

I'd love to believe that most of these kids will grow up and have children and live and work in the town where they grew up and won't bleed their hate out onto the world around them any more their parents did. But who knows -- the leader of the camp sees this as the tip of the iceberg. God help us all.

#22: Paper Clips

Whitwell Middle School in rural Tennessee is the setting for this documentary about an extraordinary experiment in Holocaust education. Struggling to grasp the concept of 6 million Holocaust victims, the students decide to collect 6 million paper clips to better understand the enormity of the calamity. The film details how the students met Holocaust survivors from around the world and how the experience transformed them and their community.

#21: Following Sean

In 1969, writer-director Ralph Arlyck filmed an intimate conversation with 4-year-old Sean Farrell -- the son of free-spirited parents living in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district -- who talked openly about smoking marijuana and walking among speed freaks. Revisiting his subject 30 years later, Arlyck finds a much-changed man with thoughtful reflections about his childhood, his parents and the contradictions of the 1960s.

Fantastic.

Progress

End of month 1, so I suppose it's time to make a note on my progress so far. As I knew would happen, my large early lead slipped as the semester began, and I'm back to being basically just on target for the month now.

I don't know that I've seen anything really fantastic (shout to all my friends kind of fantastic) this month, but there were some that stayed with me a while. Most memorable this month: Jesus Camp, Wall-E, Anytown USA, The Bothersome Man, 4 Months...
The only thing I really disliked was Marilyn Hotchkiss School of Ballroom Dancing. Uck. And I really don't plan on seeing Benjamin Button.

Progress on some goals:

Film Movement: 6 (Arranged was particularly good)
Foreign: 9 (Men at Work, The Bothersome Man, and 4 months all very memorable)
Documentary: 15!! (I'm liking the political ones, as well as the other conspiracy-lite ones, like The Business of Being Born, and Strange Culture)

#20: The Forest For the Trees

Naive educator Melanie Pröschle (Eva Lobau) leaves her small town behind to teach at an upscale metropolitan high school in this engrossing character study. Determined to make a good impression, the socially inept Melanie instead commits one faux pas after another -- unwittingly alienating nearly everyone she meets. As she struggles against a tide of loneliness, aloof colleagues and disorderly students, she slowly begins to melt down.

This film had good reviews by Netflix members, and I've rarely disliked a Film Movement title. But it was hard to get through -- partly just because of the way it was shot (on DV, in harsh lighting).

20/10

#19: The Business of Being Born

Director Abby Epstein's controversial documentary takes a hard look at America's maternity care system, juxtaposing hospital deliveries against the growing popularity of at-home, natural childbirths that many expectant parents are now opting for. Former talk show host Ricki Lake was inspired to produce this compelling exposé after a dissatisfying birthing experience with her first child left her with many unanswered questions.

Informative, interesting, and important to see.

87 minutes.

19/10

#18: Brother Born Again (2001)

Seeking to renew her relationship with her born-again Christian brother, documentary filmmaker Julia Pimsleur traveled to a remote Alaskan island, where brother Marc has lived for 10 years with his spiritual family. The resulting film captures Pimsleur -- a bisexual Jewish New Yorker -- as she searches for an understanding of her sibling's chosen life path, and in the process, delves into the definition of family and explores family dynamics.

Very nice. I so appreciated the tone of the film, and the patience and courage of everyone involved. In other hands, this could have been incredibly messy. It's clear that Pimsleur has great respect for ideas and people, for dialogue and intellectual sparring, but her affection for her brother is also clear. And his distance must be painful, and yet the film isn't about pain, it's about the quest to understand and find a new way to relate to each other.

A perfect way to end the evening.

18/9

#17: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)

In the last days of communism in Romania, Gabita (Laura Vasiliu), a young college student, wants to end her unplanned pregnancy. With the help of her best friend, fellow student Otilia (Anamaria Marinca), she seeks an abortion, illegal under the oppressive Ceaucescu regime. Director Cristian Mungiu's searing portrait of life under dictatorship received a slew of film festival awards as well as a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film from the Golden Globes. 113 minutes.

Intense. This'll take a few days to comment on.

By now, I'm sure most anyone reading this has heard about the lack of added sound on this film (Palme d'Or winner at the 2007 Cannes festival) -- no music, no effects, just dialogue and any additional sound the mics picked up. It makes for an intense experience, and one without the usual breaks to remind you that you're just a viewer, watching a film. It's bleak and hard and completely unsentimental. The hard work just of living, let alone the work to obtain an abortion (punishable as murder, if the pregnancy has progressed to 4 months) isn't a romantic sort of struggle, it's just a struggle.

#16: I Like Killing Flies

Documentarian Matt Mahurin peers into Shopsin's, a hole-in-the-wall Greenwich Village restaurant that's been dutifully serving comfort food to satisfied customers for more than 30 years. Lording over the eatery is hilarious, ersatz philosopher/owner Kenny Shopsin, who caters to such regulars as writer Calvin Trillin. Shopsin dispenses tough love with his okra chowder and is just as likely to throw out customers as take their food orders.

A true New York poet-philosopher -- with an incredibly foul mouth. The film mostly gets a running narrative from Shopsin as his family and their East Village restaurant prepare to gut the place and set up shop in a new neighborhood further west in the Village. Leaving his place is clearly traumatic, for Shopsin and his customers, but the film is about this unique group of people and Shopsin's take on the world. He's crude and loud and doesn't suffer fools, but he still seems like a good guy -- and an honest one.

Words of Wisdom from Kenny:
- respect everyone, even people who don't deserve it, because you never know who's just temporarily undeserving. That's the mark of high civilization.
- don't be so nice. you shouldn't be nice to people.


fyi: The place moved again after this movie came out, to the Essex St. market just around the corner from Babeland.

#15: Dolls (2002)

Director Takeshi Kitano demonstrates his masterful storytelling technique with this movie that interweaves three somber love stories featuring three star-struck protagonists. Young Matsumoto is chosen by his company's president as a fitting man to marry the president's daughter, but complications arise. An aging Yakuza boss keeps a date and takes a fateful chance. And pop idol Haruna Maraguchi realizes how deep fan obsession can become.

Lovely. The summary above doesn't really do it justice. The film is told as if it were a traditional puppet play brought to life (and begins/ends with the puppets themselves). The pace is slow, but it didn't bother me. Actually, slow isn't really accurate; there's a rhythm to the varying tempo, and it's easy to settle into it. I have a feeling it would have been a better experience in the theatre, though, or at least on DVD. I watched on Netflix' streaming service, and it has its limits (not to mention the limits of my 15" screen).

Definitely recommended.


Random thought alert:
I wonder how much of the filmgoing experience is dependent on (and how much the filmmaker relies on) shared culture? Presumably, my experience watching this is going to be very different from a Japanese viewer, and very different from a Norwegian viewer, etc. An American with knowledge of Japanese culture and film would bring even different things to the film, as well.

15/9

#14: Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing (2005)

Buzz: "Writer-director Randall Miller's heart-achingly sweet drama finds at its soft center Frank Keane (Robert Carlyle), a baker deeply despondent over the death of his wife. Frank finds redemption and hope in tragedy after he helps a stranger (John Goodman) who's sidelined by a fatal accident. It appears the man was on his way to a fateful reunion, so Frank, sparked only by good intentions, decides to show up for the rendezvous in his place."

I don't know where this came from -- I'd never heard of it before, I don't remember putting it in my Netflix queue, and I don't know how it got to the top of the queue without my noticing. The cast list is leggy: Mary Steenburgen, Sonia Braga, Sean Astin, Marisa Tomei, Adam Arkin, David Paymer, and Donnie Wahlberg are all packed in there, and it's not really an ensemble piece. But that's not an upside -- they're mostly wasted.

The story is implausible, and even more implausibly told, but it's all just an excuse to get Carlyle's character into these social situations, and give us a chance to get to know him. I could forgive it that, if the story was more compelling, but it's just not. I can't say whether it failed more in plan or execution -- there are lots of movies that have fantastical plots, but work nevertheless because of something deeper. Not that I tend to like those movies, mind you. I still can't get anyone to explain to me why Forrest Gump was such an Academy favorite. Or Cast Away, for that matter.

Anyway, this isn't a winner. Steenburgen seems out of place, even if she is lovely to watch, but it's almost like she's in a different movie. Robert Carlyle is intriguing, but nothing else really supports him well enough, including the script. Yuk, overall.

104 minutes.

#13: Stone Reader (2002)

Buzz: "Eighteen-year-old Mark buys a novel by a little-known author and starts reading it, but is unable to get through the whole thing. Twenty-five years later, Mark decides to give the book another try and finds the story absolutely spellbinding. When he tries to buy more copies of the book, he finds that it's out of print and no one seems to know where the author can be found, sending Mark on a yearlong search for the elusive writer."

129 minutes.

What a great little film... I wasn't sure at first if I was going to like this. But eventually I became almost as interested in finding this writer and listening to what he had to say as the filmmaker was -- he makes a compelling case for the book, but he also continues to press the idea of what a writer's career trajectory can and should look like, why someone might only write one novel, etc. The film drags at times, and there were definitely moments when I tuned out because someone was going on and on about a book I wasn't interested in, but it's a big long fan letter to writing and to great books, and I didn't mind that.

I read after watching that Ebert included this film in his Overlooked Film Festival, which is held here in Champaign-Urbana every spring, and that the author attended. I wonder what he was like, what kinds of stories locals could tell about meeting and talking with him. After seeing this film, I think he might even be more interesting to talk to than Sam Shepard (not that I'm a regular at Fat Jack's).

13/5

#12: The Tracey Fragments

Buzz: "On a quest to locate her missing brother -- who believes he's a dog after she hypnotized him -- Tracey Berkowitz (Ellen Page) traverses a city full of hazards. Meanwhile, her neglectful parents make plans to send her to an equally dysfunctional therapist. Unhappy and insecure, Tracey consoles herself with rock 'n' roll fantasies about the new boy at school, Billy Zero, in this quirky indie drama."

Quirky doesn't even begin to describe it... but it was interesting. Crazy split-screen stuff makes it a little hard to get into, but eventually I settled in.

12/4

Random thoughts

This is a project I really love, and am quite happy about getting back to -- watching movies, keeping count, tracking various categories, and then talking/writing about them and talking to other people about things I've enjoyed (or not).

I've always loved movies, and was fortunate to come of movie-viewing age at a time when home video was just emerging on the scene, and even the kids in the square states had access to art films. Growing up mostly in a mitten-shaped state was a little boring at times, and the only movies I ever saw were those that made it to my single-screen downtown Main theatre. And then along came home video, and Roger Ebert with his encyclopedia full of films and instructions on how to get even the hard-to-find titles shipped to my door (Home Film Festival and Facets Multimedia... I can hardly find much mention of the former online anymore)... I thought it couldn't possibly last, it was too good to be true. Fast-forward to today, when I can browse the catalog of any one of a number of movie services (Netflix, Blockbuster, iTunes, Amazon Unbox, Hulu... take your pick) and download or stream a film instantly to my computer, even in Starbucks while I'm working on class prep. Not that I do that, but I could. Or I can still run by Blockbuster on the way home if a title isn't available for download/streaming, or tell Netflix what I like and just let movies stack up in my mailbox. The last time I did this project, I had to bump up my Netflix program to 8 at-a-time, but that's not even necessary anymore, there are so many choices for screening. Fabulousness.

The hardest thing about watching so many movies isn't what you might think -- it's picking what to see. I try to go for the first title from the list that grabs me (favoring foreign and docs). And if I hit a stinker this time around, I'll probably turn it off and blog it briefly, but not count it. No sense wasting time if I'm not enjoying something. But I don't miss series television, or channel-surfing, or news on tv (all of which I had to pretty much abandon in order to commit to 365 films). Not at all. Though, ask me again once Lost starts up again...

#11: Through Deaf Eyes

Buzz: "Emmy-winning actress Stockard Channing narrates this documentary that chronicles the history of deaf culture in America from the 19th century to the present day. Interviews with actress Marlee Matlin, community leaders and other deaf Americans provide an up-front and diverse perspective of this segment of society. Short films created by deaf artists are interspersed throughout the in-depth program."

Wow. Very interesting, compelling, informative. Love (10).

It raises a lot of interesting issues within the deaf community; a panoply of perspectives that the filmmaker doesn't try to synthesize, but rather presents as a very understandable and realistic picture of the diversity of views within the community. It's a diversity very similar (it seems to me) to the diversity of views within the gay community, which I understand fairly well.

But upon viewing this, I'm angry that I didn't learn some things earlier in life. I'm angry at the world for continuing to evaluate people against something called "normal;" angry at the medical profession for continuing to medicalize (and pathologize) difference; and I'm more than a little angry at myself, for taking so long to understand that the simple struggle to live in this world -- as a common characteristic -- is more important than all these labels that just tend to divide us. A label tends to imply so much difference, other-ness: we must fit into different boxes, live different lives, how could we possibly relate to each other? One man in the film notes that when communicating with hearing people, he takes time to adjust for lighting, ambient noise, and positioning in order to create better conditions for communication. But he's describing the logistics of communication, not the subject of their conversation. It makes sense to me now, but I don't think I really got it until recently. People connect on common interests, common (or opposing!) views about the world, shared recollections, etc., not about the features that the world uses to divide us up into categories. I don't communicate with a deaf person about being hearing or about deafness (beyond some preliminary questions, perhaps)... we have conversations about food, or shoes, or global politics, or knitting, or McDreamy or whatever.

The other point I'm glad the film makes is that deaf people don't generally see their lack of hearing as a disability -- they're *proud* to be deaf, and proud of the community that they're part of. Which makes all the sense in the world to me, as I don't want to wake up tomorrow morning and be heterosexual. Simple as that -- I like me, and I'm proud of who I am, and I shouldn't expect anyone else not to have that same pride.

11/4

p.s. I have no idea why I'm on an alliteration kick, but I promise to stop.

#10: DIY or Die

Buzz: "This 60-minute documentary profiles a fascinating group of independent American artists working in various media -- including print, film, graphic art, performance art and music -- and explores their methods and motivations. Features interviews with Ian MacKaye (Fugazi), Jim Rose (Jim Rose Sideshow), Jim Thirwell (Foetus), Lydia Lunch, Mike Watt (Minutemen), Ron Asheton (Stooges), Madagin Shive (Bonfire Madagin) and many others."

10/4

#9: Wall-E

Buzz: "In a futuristic world, human beings have destroyed Earth and evacuated the planet, leaving the cleanup to an army of robots they've programmed to do their dirty work. Due to a mishap, the dutiful WALL-E is the only one left. But with the arrival of a female probe named EVE, the monotony of WALL-E's existence is broken -- and he experiences love for the first time"

LOVED this movie. Loved. Yes, it had a couple capital-M Messages, other than the usual eat-your-veggies and respect-your-parents stuff, but that doesn't bother me any. It's a kids movie, right?

As always, with Pixar films, the animation was flawless (and impressive beyond belief -- no detail, no texture left unattended), and the story is plenty interesting to hold grown-ups' interest as well. It's not a happy cheery story (what with the post-apocalyptic theme), but it's told in a generous, faith-in-humanity sort of way that inexplicably inspires some hope for the future of the inhabitants of Wall-E's world.

Some fun little bits: I particularly loved the use of the film of "Hello, Dolly" throughout (presumably just one videotape that survived, and Wall-E found in his work?), as it's also a sweet, hopeful sort of story of venturing out into the bigger world to find love. Also loved the sort-of-inside Mac jokes, too: Wall-E's happy-sound upon full solar charge is the mac startup noise, and Otto's voice is very reminiscent of the Mac's speech voice.

9/3

#8: Mondovino (2005)

Buzz: "An Official Selection at the Cannes Film Festival, Jonathan Nossiter's documentary examines the politics of the global wine industry and pits big business against the little guy. Nossiter toured Europe, South America and the United States for interviews with consultants from multinational corporations, "peasant" owners of family-run wineries steeped in tradition, and a variety of industry experts including influential wine critic Robert Parker."

I would much rather have been watching Bottle Shock tonight, but it's not out on DVD yet, and I don't think it came anywhere near me in the theatre. Not that I go out to see movies much, but anyway.

I wasn't thrilled with this -- it came off like a confused POV piece, with barely a coherent point to make for the general anti-Mondavi sentiment. Lots of implications, but not a lot of information for viewers to draw their own conclusions. And terrible dizzying camera work that seemed more interested in pictures on the wall (or crotches -- what was with the constant pan across middles?) than on the subject being interviewed.

As a total novice when it comes to wine, I would have appreciated some additional information in the form of statistics or history (other than from the interview subjects). Particulary if the filmmaker had a point to make -- about Americanization of the wine industry, the power of Parker or Mondavi and their Wal-Mart-ization of the wine industry, or even the conspiracy of marketing and winemaking. But I'm not sure the filmmaker's point really was terribly coherent. And I'm relatively friendly to arguments about big producers or distributors homogenizing products and running roughshod over individualization and quality, but I do have my limits. Let's say Mondavi wines aren't as nuaunced as terroir-centered French wines. Well then, buyers should choose. If people are sheep, then the French need better marketing people. But I'm not sold on an argument about the evils of a mass-producer simply because their product isn't as good (because it never is). I mean, who cares if McDonald's hamburgers don't taste as good as the burgers at my local diner? I prefer something a little more complex, but why should I care that my neighbor likes them? I'm not sure who would enjoy this, other than those who share the filmmaker's general sentiment about the wine business, and are fairly well-informed about the various players. 135 minutes.

8/3

#7: Street Fight (2005)

Buzz: "Raising hard questions about American politics, democracy and race, Marshall Curry's incisive Oscar-nominated documentary takes viewers behind the scenes of the Newark, N.J., cutthroat mayoral race in 2002. The candidates: young Ivy League upstart Cory Booker vs. incumbent Sharpe James, an old-timer who's not above employing questionable tactics to achieve victory. The gloves come off as the contenders lock horns in their battle to win voters."

Very, very compelling. Another film that speaks to the sheer audacity and hypocrisy of power. Booker's fight in the 2002 election was literally Sisyphean; it seems there's little chance for a new (and, admittedly outside) candidate to challenge the incumbent when the police are quashing dissent and removing campaign signs. But the struggle is necessary, even if the outcome is somewhat predictable.

7/3

#6: The Way I Spent the End of the World

"In 1989 Romania, plucky 17-year-old Eva Matei comes of age as she schemes to escape the country's tyranny with help from her recalcitrant neighbor. Meanwhile, as her parents endure the brutal dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu, Eva's 7-year-old brother plots to kill the despot."

Films like this always make me feel very inadequate in my knowledge of political history, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Cute kid, taciturn teen, and lots of heart all around.

6/2

#5: The Bothersome Man (2006)

The Buzz: "Mysteriously deposited in a perfectly serene but colorless city where every need is met, Andreas soon realizes that not even a new lover can change the sterile banality drowning him. Is this placid life a dream come true or an inescapable hell? Is the lovely music coming from a crack in the basement his ticket out?"

My take: Though the plot conjures up films like Being John Malkovich, Dark City, and The Forgotten, this one holds its own as a very, very dark comedy. The cinematography is gorgeous (though intentionally monochromatic through most of the film), and our guy is compelling -- though not entirely sympathetic, really. 91 minutes. Also from the Film Movement (screened via Netflix watch-instantly).

5/2

#4: Men at Work (2006)

The Buzz: "An allegorical comedy, this Iranian film follows the strange quest of four old friends as they return from a ski trip. When Sahar, Mammad, Moshen, and Jalil spot a giant rock jutting from the edge of a cliff, they become obsessed with shoving over the boulder. Repeated failures only push them to succeed, and their absurd efforts with the phallic stone begin to reveal some deeper issues."

My take: Funny times 10. It's such a treat to find comedy like this -- no tricks, no falls, no jokes, just people being people. Once again, Film Movement does not disappoint. And, at 75 minutes, it makes a very easy latenight viewing.
4/1

#3: Arranged (2007)

The Buzz: "When Rochel (Zoe Lister Jones) and Nasira (Francis Benhamou) -- an Orthodox Jew and a Muslim, respectively -- meet as new teachers at a Brooklyn school, co-workers and students expect friction. But the women discover they have a shared expectation of entering into arranged marriages. As they experience tension between their traditional cultures and life in contemporary America, Rochel and Nasira form a special bond."

My Reaction: It's really not as annoying as the description makes it out to be, but it's hard to recap without putting the labels out there. The film addresses the problem of labels and difference in several scenes, though, from a patronizing principal who actually tries to give the women money to get a makeover, to a "unity circle" activity one of the women leads in the classroom. There's one scene where the two women meet in the park, each with a couple of kids in tow. One young boy asks each person in turn, "Are you Jewish?", full of skepticism and certainty about this similarity/difference thing he's learned about, and the expectation of exclusion. It's partly a treatment of space for tradition in the modern world, and partly about individual people overcoming difference, and that's about it -- it's nice, heartwarming, and not too preachy. From Film Movement.

3/1

#2: Anytown, USA (2005)

Buzz: Documentary on mayoral election in Bogota, New Jersey. Small town quirkiness meets messy local politics.

My Reaction: I didn't set out to watch a bunch of documentaries all in a row, but that's how it turned out -- last night, Out of the Past and The King of Kong (both watched before midnight and thus pre-2009), and then #1 and #2 today. Overall, I was entertained by this one, but I wouldn't stop by your office to tell you about it. There were plenty of interesting things about it: that the challenger (an independent, write-in candidate known as a local sports hero) and the incumbent are both blind, and the way that issue is addressed (or not) by various people in and out of the campaign; the obsession in a small town with high school sports, football in particular; and just the total lack of content in the campaigns -- it really is just a popularity contest, and none of the three are particularly popular. Watching reminded me of many of the same themes as King of Kong -- ego, power, obsession, and living just a little on the fringe. All of politics is local, but only because everything is local in a small town.

film 2 / day 1

#1: Into Great Silence (2005)

Buzz: Documentary of life in an isolated monastery in northern France. Very very very long.

My reaction: The film is gorgeous, but it's painfully slow and intense, and tested the limits of my cinematic patience. It wasn't a great choice for a day cooped-up in the house with a cold -- I'm already too aware of the time passing, and keeping this up for more than 2 1/2 hours was nearly unbearable (though I did... mostly out of a sense of loyalty and first-day-motivation re: the project). Though I can appreciate the film, that appreciation ended about 40 minutes in. Not exactly an exciting start to the project.

film 1 / day 1