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by Jonathan W. Hickman
Sundance Status Report Capsule Reviews Day Two.
On Day Two of screenings I was able to watch four feature length films: "Lonesome Jim;" "The Matador;""Pretty Persuasion:" and "Reel Paradise." Short Films: "Eating;" "Planet of the Arabs;" "Flotsam/Jetsam;" and "Waiting for the Man."
While I will have more time to devote to longer reviews of these films later, here are the highlights:
"Lonesome Jim" is a fine film directed by Steve Buscemi and starring Casey Affleck and Liv Tyler. Strong performances permeate this film with a clear stand-out by Mary Kay Place as Affleck's mother. Place takes the seemingly one dimensional role of a doting but overbearing mother and makes it layered and perhaps the heart of the piece. I was reminded of the performance of Ian Holm in last year's favorite "Garden State" but in "Jim" we see more of Place and I was impressed.
"The Matador" is all about Pierce Brosnan. Of course, I've always been a fan of the suave actor but it always seems as though he is playing the same guy. In "The Matador" we see the vulnerable side of him as he plays what his character refers to as a "parody." You see, Brosnan plays a hitman who has broken down emotionally and just can't do it anymore. Greg Kinnear is solid as the everyman who attempts to help the hitman end his career with dignity. Oddly and darkly funny with a hint of sadness "The Matador" ought to play well throughout the world having something for just about all tastes. And Brosnan is a delight when he reels off crude one liners or melts into an emotional puddle.
"Pretty Persuasion" is a tawdry little tale of sexual politics in the high school setting. Starring Evan Rachel Wood as a super intelligent student who uses her brain as well as her body to achieve her twisted goals this film is "Heathers" meets "Elephant." But the humor and the drama sometimes collide making me wonder whether "Persuasion" knows just what it wants to be. Still, the fusion of comedy with dramatic flourishes is what dark humor is all about and this film achieves that goal. And damned if James Woods isn't perfect as the wretched father who has never taken time to understand his daughter obviously the product of his own ignorance.
"Reel Paradise" is a documentary that I hadn't really considered until I overheard Roger Ebert talking about it with another film critic. Hearsay like that is golden. The film directed by Steve James is about famed independent film maven John Pierson's experience with his family for a year on a tiny island in Fiji. It was Pierson's decision to take his wife and two children to a remote island and purchase a movie theatre to bring the cinema to the poor. Early on, it looks like a paradise but soon things begin to get out of control on a real and believable level. In time, Pierson has lost control of his theater and his daughter and maybe a little of his sanity. The film is a remarkable take on reality programming in that it feels very much like "The Osbornes" meets "Survivor" call it "Real World: Survivor Island: Fiji." Long but never uninteresting the viewer wants to see how things end rooting for Pierson to pull it all together.
The coolest short film I've seen so far has been "Flotsam/Jetsam." At five minutes, this movie is an little odd shocker. "Planet of the Arabs" will undoubtedly make an impression. It looks like it was created on a Mac weaving together clips from hundreds of big Hollywood films to convey the point that in American cinema all we see an Arab as is a terrorist or someone who might kill us. The worst short I've seen so far has got to be "Waiting For The Man" because it shows good promise by putting a Sheep and an Beaver in a bar waiting on someone but fails to give them anything interesting to say. "Man" should have been funny like a bar joke with a punchline but just plays flat and weird.
I hope to shoot some video at Sundance on Sunday evening and Monday morning. Looks like I will be interviewing Hal Hartley on video on Tuesday about his new film "The Girl From Monday." Tune in for more updates and watch Joe's video interviews.
For information about Sundance visit the festival website: http://www.sundanceonlinefilmfestival.org/
Jonathan W. Hickman
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