Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with Memento Man's report for today. He's been on the ball like nothin' this Sundance. Thanks, man! We appreciate the words! What we got below is a look at Steve Buscemi's newest directorial outing and MM seems to agree with the other review I put up a couple hours ago... Also at the end of this series of reports MM has more celebrity sightings, including a run in with Buscemi in the bathroom. Does he wash his hands after pissing or is he a Mr. Bungle? Curious minds want to know!
Here are the three films I saw today:
LONESOME JIM * * * (Steve Buscemi, 2005)
Wonderful little film detailing the “chronic despair” of Lonesome Jim (Casey Affleck), who returns home to his parents’ house after a string of failures. He tells his older brother: “this life is meaningless, so why haven’t you killed yourself?” and—wouldn’t you know it—his brother tries just that; like Jim, can’t even succeed at that either. Meanwhile, Jim reunites with a crazy, drug-dealing uncle named Evil, and gets to know a “fun and happy” nurse Anika (Liv Tyler) and her little boy, Brandon. Casey Affleck and director Buscemi are both talented in painting pictures of hopelessness. Several audience members couldn’t take it all, and had to leave the film early (perhaps to go throw themselves in front of trains.) Strangely enough, though, if they’d waited until the end they would have come across an ending that seems a little out of place (perhaps the film’s biggest flaw.) Nevertheless, if you’re ready for a good dose of nihilism, Lonesome Jim stands ready to medicate you.
JUNEBUG * * ½ (Phil Morrison, 2005)
Often funny film about a quirky family living in the south that adjusts to having an older son, George (Alessandro Nivola), and his cultured wife Madeleine (Embeth Davitz) come for a visit. This is troubling to the surly younger brother Johnny (Benjamin McKenzie), but delightful to his pregnant, chatterbox wife Ashley (Amy Adams). The film is cute at times, but it also wanders a bit. Both director Phil Morrison and screenwriter Angus MacLachlan were interested in making a film that was truthful to the South; often they succeed, but sometimes they are close to falling back into stereotypes (particularly regarding Celia Weston as the mother.) Nevertheless, Sundance Programming Director John Cooper, who introduced the movie this morning, explained that he always does a cartwheel for the film he feels the biggest personal connection to—this was the film for this year and he indeed did a full cartwheel on stage in front of the 1270 people in the Eccles theater. I wouldn’t quite do a cartwheel for this film, but perhaps a small leap.
HEIGHTS * * ½ (Chris Terno, 2005)
A web-of-life film [where many lives somehow intertwine] which also delights in romanticizing NYC. Famous actress Diana (Glenn Close) auditions—as well as hits on—young Alec (Jesse Bradford). She also expresses discomfort at her daughter Isabelle’s (Elizabeth Banks) upcoming marriage to Jonathan (James Marsden). Glenn Close wonderfully tears into this film like a raging beast. HEIGHTS is based on a one-act play by Amy Fox; it was then expanded by Fox and director Terno into this feature film. Just as the film weaves through the labyrinthine streets of the City during the events of one day, so do we travel though the secrets which these characters deign to reveal or to hide from each other. By the end, however, I felt a little weary from the journey.
CELEBRITY ALERTS!
Today I rushed to the bathroom during the end credits of LONESOME JIM and imagine my suprise at finding Steve Buscemi, the director, doing the same thing, just 30 seconds away from having to go up on stage for the Q&A. He was very personable, nonetheless. And he did wash his hands.
Also fun today was watching HEIGHTS about four feet away from Glenn Close and James Marsden.
Until next time, this is the shuttle-riding Memento Man, signing off!
