Hey folks, Harry here... this pair volunteered at the fest and sought to see a few jewels here and there. Seems they nabbed a few and got stung by others. Once again we have it confirmed that PRIMER, THE MACHINIST and THE DREAMERS are 3 to watch out for.
Hi Harry,
We're here at Sundance as volunteers and have sadly been unable to see many movies. But, I thought your readers might still like to hear about the few we have managed to get to when we're not working our eight hours per day. What kind of a vacation is this anyway?!? Also, I might add that we have yet to see any movies that we'd rate a five. Not that there aren't any here, just that we haven't seen them.
Primer - ****
Made for less than El Mariachi but ten times more interesting, Primer is essentially a time travel flick with a decent grounding in what sounds to these inexperienced ears like actual science. Or at least there are a lot of technical terms being thrown around. The director mentioned that his goal was to create a movie that people would see multiple times, each time picking up a few more details. I imagine that this is the truth, as the audience asked him to explain exactly what happened in the movie several times. You see, there's so much back and forth in time and so many duplicate characters that it's hard for some people to keep track of what's going on. But, if you try to suspend your disbelief and overlook some of the plot points that aren't fully developed (but yet play key roles in the story - the girl at the party, the father, etc-), it's an overall enjoyable film.
The Machinist - ***
The most interesting parts of this film have little to do with the plot itself. The color palatte, for example, is well-chosen - the shades of gray cast a pallor over the film and help to evoke the Hitchcockian feel that the director was going for. But, most outstanding and visually striking is Christian Bale himself. If you hadn't already heard, he lost 63 pounds for the film. Now, I don't know how much that means he weighed overall, but let's just say that he looked beyond anorexic. Really, You could see every rib, a caved-in belly, jutting shoulder blades. A couple of times characters mention that he looks as though he could disappear completely and this is the complete truth. If there's anything worth watching the film for, it's Bale's commitment to altering his physical form for the character of Trevor Reznik. It will absolutely shock you. In the Q&A, Bale mentioned that he was so weak from the weight loss that he only had the energy to sit in his trailer and smoke when he wasn't acting.
Otherwise, the film is fairly standard stuff. The mysterious Ivan, who appears at very strategic moments, the co-workers who hate Reznik after he injures a lathe operator, the clock that strangely focuses in on 1:30 a.m. All are clear hints to the ever-present thriller 'twist.' The story is a good one and the twist doesn't try to pull funny tricks, but the film lacks the creative oomph that a whodunit like Memento had. For that reason, we weren't totally blown away.
The Dreamers - ****
Ah, Bernardo Bertolucci's new film. Michael Pitt with full frontal nudity. An NC-17 rating. More than two hours worth of beautiful people in intimate situations. Hard to beat, right?? Aside from the above mentioned body part, the best thing about the movie are the clips.. Bertolucci weaves in snippets from several films, from Breathless to The Girl Can't Help It. Each clip is nearly seamless in transition - most striking is the scene where Jean Pierre Leaud rallies in front of the french cinema, cut with shots of a young Leaud doing the same thing in original 1968 footage. Also well-executed is the juxtaposition of Pitt and his two French friends racing through the Louvre, interspersed with similar footage from A Band Apart. In the Q&A it was confirmed that getting the rights to the films referenced was no easy task - there were even some that Bertolucci wanted to include that refused to participate.
The plot of the film is not terribly momentous. While studying in Paris, Matthew (Pitt) befriends French cinophile siblings. The brother and sister are already VERY close and Matthew quickly becomes an intimate part of their lives. Kind of twisted stuff. All set in the turmoil that was 1968 - the Vietnam War, communism, closure of cinemas, New Wave, etc- If you don't see it for the plot, at least go and support the fact that the MPAA has finally used the NC-17 rating.
Mean Creek -
Like the other films above, this one doesn't stand out for the plot. In fact, it seems to be the perfect melding of Stand By Me and Bully - and not a whole lot else. You've got the bully, the journey through the wildernesss of Oregon, the person yelling about one of the characters loony fathers - you get the drift. What does, however, stand out is the performances of the very young actors. They are all outstanding and set a very high standard for the actors of the future. Also of note are the particularly beautiful shots of Oregon. There were so many shots that did nothing to further the plot, but were beautiful, often close-up images of nature. Quite a departure from the storyline. So what's the story? The basic plot is that there's a bully who's the recipient of what is planned as a rather painless practical joke. Of course, it goes badly awry and the brothers and their friends must struggle with the outcome. For the first half of the movie, the lines are laugh out loud funny in parts. "Bring on the penis!" is a line that will stick with you forever.
Everyday People -
We can't even give this film any stars. Why? Because we walked out after less than an hour. The story revolves around a Jewish deli in a black neighborhood of New York that closes when developers decide to revitalize several blocks of the neighborhood. The owner has to communicate the change to his staff who then have three weeks to find new work. For the part that I saw, the acting was absolutely horrid, the plot was uninteresting and the dialogue ("You're a bourgeoisie nigger") was hokey at best. Now there's always the possibility that in the second half of the movie the owner burned down the restaurant for insurance money or something equally exciting. But I doubt it and I'd be hesitant to give this any more than one star.
We also saw Garden State, Napoleon Dynamite, Tiptoes and a few others. We're so busy that we haven't had time to write anything up, but might send something tomorrow if you're still interested.
Signed,
Scott and Boof
