Wow... Someone in the real world thought I was charming in reality... Obviously it was the drinks she had, or perhaps the magic of the Paramount, cause surely noone would describe me as 'Charming'. As for the documentaries... There are some really quite wonderful documentaries this year... I have seen HOMEPAGE and AMERIKAN PASSPORT and found both of them to be fantastic. Ahhhhhhh.... for the time to type about them... But anyway here's MexicoMay with her peeks...
It was so nice to meet you at SXSW. We didn't really talk for long, but I came up and introduced myself after the Desert Blue panel and was totally charmed. I am tortured that living in Dallas and job constraints forced me to leave Tuesday afternoon. I haven't ever sent you information before and am not sure that this is really your bag, but there are a couple of documentaries that I caught at SXSW that really deserve some mention.
Homepage is sure to be a hit with both film and web geeks. It is the personal exploration of web home pages by documentarian Doug Block. In Homepage, Block explores the lives and pages of a trio of fascinating computer junkies and their friends. As the film progresses, Block not only gets drawn into his own documentary, but he is drawn into the world of web diarists when he creates his own homepage. This movie is funny, poignant and warm, and the best part is that you can continue to follow the subjects' lives by checking out their pages. I still haven't totally come to terms myself with the cool and creepy aspects of what I think is going to be a new genre, but for a little taste, see www.d-word.com and www.links.net. Homepage is screening again at 10pm, Saturday, March 20 at Dobie 3.
Another touching and dramatic documentary is On the Ropes. This film truly kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what was going to happen to the subjects. You really get to know, respect, like and root for each of the subjects in this documentary about a trainer and three of his boxers at the Bed-Stuy boxing gym in Brooklyn. The trainer has so much world wisdom and the boxer's lives are presented in such a dramatic way that people asked during the Q & A if parts of the film were scripted. (They weren't). Also, the boxing shots are fantastic. You just can't help but wince when some of the punches connect. I'm not sure if On the Ropes is screening again at SXSW, but it goes into wide release in August, and I am going to go see it again with all of my friends, family and anyone that I can possibly drag in off the street.
Again, thanks for being so sweet in person and providing a place to chat about films on line. Also, thanks for convincing Guillermo del Toro to come to TX. He was absolutely charming and totally what I would expect from the director of such a rich and beautiful (and icky, creepy, twisted, fun) film as Cronos.
Thanks,
MexicoMay
