Toronto Film Fest, Day Four
Sep. 12th, 2005 11:17 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
przedThe second four film day has come and gone. No Viggo or Cronenberg at the History of Violence rescreening, but the film itself rocked, so c'est la vie.
Title: A History of Violence
Director: David Cronenberg
Country: Canada
P's Rating: Highly Recommended
My most highly anticipated film this fest, and it was quite as excellent as I'd hoped. Cronenberg has constructed a tight yet complex tale of a man who's harrassed by gangsters after he kills two murderous thugs in his small town diner. As the family man who's surprisingly good with a gun, Viggo Mortensen is as fabulous as I knew he'd be. His performance is slightly mannered at the start, but that choice pays off and then some in the later sections of the film. As the leader of the gangsters who shows up professing to know Mortensen's character, Ed Harris is all controlled menace. And William Hurt, in a small cameo as a crime boss, is both unbelievably funny and terrifying.
Title: Seven Swords
Director: Tsui Hark
Country: Hong Kong
P's Rating: Okay
Director Tsui Hark has either directed or produced some of the most influential films in Hong Kong film history (Once Upon a Time in China, Peking Opera Blue, John Woo's early gangster successes) so I was truly hoping this wuxia swordplay epic would be a return to form for him. Alas, it's not. Not that it's awful--Hark is too good a filmmaker to produce something awful--but it's long and rambling and confused and fails to engage you with any of the characters. And the muted sepia-toned colour palette takes away from what could have been a spectacular look. On the other hand, the martial arts is good, and the final battle, where Donnie Yen battles the main bad guy for possession of the mystical Dragon sword, is pretty darn awesome. We just didn't need two and a half hours to get there.
Title: Bubble
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Country: U.S.
P's Rating: Recommended
One thing I've always admired about Soderbergh is his willingness to alternate big Hollywood projects with small, low budget, borderline wacko films, just to keep his creative interest flowing. (I was lucky enough to see his Schizopolis at the fest in '96 and it was a beautiful example of cinematic play.) This time, he's chosen to follow an odd almost love triangle set in a doll making factory in the American midwest. He used non-professional actors, and he and the screenwriter wove in elements of the actors' real lives into the story, to give the whole project an utterly authentic feel. It's a fascinating take on people living at the edges of the American dream, making just enough to get by, yet rocked by the same passions as the beautiful people Hollywood movies usually focus on. The film requires your patience, but it rewards that patience with a unique experience.
Title: Pick Up the Mic
Director: Alex Hinton
Country: U.S.
P's Rating: Highly Recommended
Though it started as a highly political musical form, the most visible hip hop and rap these days is focussed on pimps, hos and bling and tends to be extremely homophobic. So, what's a lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgendered hip hop fan to do? Make their own music. This fascinating documentary focusses on a number of LGBT rappers centred in various cities in the States (and a couple in England) who ignore the commercial rap paradigm and concentrate on art that reflex their own queer experiences. And to the last woman and man, they're an articulate, talented bunch. Truly an uplifting doc.
Title: A History of Violence
Director: David Cronenberg
Country: Canada
P's Rating: Highly Recommended
My most highly anticipated film this fest, and it was quite as excellent as I'd hoped. Cronenberg has constructed a tight yet complex tale of a man who's harrassed by gangsters after he kills two murderous thugs in his small town diner. As the family man who's surprisingly good with a gun, Viggo Mortensen is as fabulous as I knew he'd be. His performance is slightly mannered at the start, but that choice pays off and then some in the later sections of the film. As the leader of the gangsters who shows up professing to know Mortensen's character, Ed Harris is all controlled menace. And William Hurt, in a small cameo as a crime boss, is both unbelievably funny and terrifying.
Title: Seven Swords
Director: Tsui Hark
Country: Hong Kong
P's Rating: Okay
Director Tsui Hark has either directed or produced some of the most influential films in Hong Kong film history (Once Upon a Time in China, Peking Opera Blue, John Woo's early gangster successes) so I was truly hoping this wuxia swordplay epic would be a return to form for him. Alas, it's not. Not that it's awful--Hark is too good a filmmaker to produce something awful--but it's long and rambling and confused and fails to engage you with any of the characters. And the muted sepia-toned colour palette takes away from what could have been a spectacular look. On the other hand, the martial arts is good, and the final battle, where Donnie Yen battles the main bad guy for possession of the mystical Dragon sword, is pretty darn awesome. We just didn't need two and a half hours to get there.
Title: Bubble
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Country: U.S.
P's Rating: Recommended
One thing I've always admired about Soderbergh is his willingness to alternate big Hollywood projects with small, low budget, borderline wacko films, just to keep his creative interest flowing. (I was lucky enough to see his Schizopolis at the fest in '96 and it was a beautiful example of cinematic play.) This time, he's chosen to follow an odd almost love triangle set in a doll making factory in the American midwest. He used non-professional actors, and he and the screenwriter wove in elements of the actors' real lives into the story, to give the whole project an utterly authentic feel. It's a fascinating take on people living at the edges of the American dream, making just enough to get by, yet rocked by the same passions as the beautiful people Hollywood movies usually focus on. The film requires your patience, but it rewards that patience with a unique experience.
Title: Pick Up the Mic
Director: Alex Hinton
Country: U.S.
P's Rating: Highly Recommended
Though it started as a highly political musical form, the most visible hip hop and rap these days is focussed on pimps, hos and bling and tends to be extremely homophobic. So, what's a lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgendered hip hop fan to do? Make their own music. This fascinating documentary focusses on a number of LGBT rappers centred in various cities in the States (and a couple in England) who ignore the commercial rap paradigm and concentrate on art that reflex their own queer experiences. And to the last woman and man, they're an articulate, talented bunch. Truly an uplifting doc.
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no subject
Date: 2005-09-12 09:24 am (UTC)Tsui Hark = John Woo = one trick pony.
blah
Shame though ... historicals should never be in sepia. It's all about the exotic colour and dash...
no subject
Date: 2005-09-12 10:42 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-12 11:33 am (UTC);)
no subject
Date: 2005-09-12 05:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-12 05:50 pm (UTC)And yeah, they should be all about the colour. Sigh.