Short films from 2012 and Tangerines and Leviathan from 2014

Nominated Short Films, 2012
The great thing about short films is even if you have a stinker in the bunch, they're less than an hour and it will be over before you suffer too much. Or even better, they're all really good and you wish they were longer, and that's the case with the short films from 2012, I liked them all and thought it would have been hard to pick a winner.

Curfew was the winner and it is a drama with a touch of dark comedy about a man, Richie, who is shown at the beginning of the film trying to commit suicide when his phone rings. It's his estranged sister, Maggie, who makes it clear she is calling Richie as a last resort only to watch her daughter. Maggie has some strict rules that Richie has to follow, OR ELSE. Richie shares with his niece, Sophia, some flip books he drew for Maggie when they were kids; the star of the flip books is a character named "Sophia". He tells Sophia how much he admired Maggie and how they used to be closer until he started using drugs. When Richie brings Sophia back home, he sees that Maggie has been beaten up and that she had been out getting a restraining order against her boyfriend/husband. Richie offers to help watch Sophia again or in some way, but Maggie is angry and upset and just not interested. Richie goes home to finish what he started that night, and even unplugs the phone when it starts to ring. I really liked this film, it was only 19 minutes and yet I felt like a lot happened and I learned about the characters, and thought I would like to know more about them. There was a sadness in Richie that was lightened when he spent time with his niece that he barely knew, and maybe saw a little of his sister when they were younger. It had an element of hope and redemption that I really appreciated.

Dood van een Schaduw (Death of a Shadow) was an entry from Belgium and it was totally surreal and to me had an element of Edgar Allen Poe. I feel like there was a lot there that I missed the first time and might get if I watched it a few more times. The main character, Nathan Rijckx, was killed during World War and he is now a shadow collector. The shadows he collects are of people that are dying (I couldn't really tell if they were going to die anyway and he just put himself in the position to capture their demise). He has to collect 10,000 shadows and then the 'shadow collector' (the being who displays the collection) will let him temporarily leave to go back to a place in time that he remembers. The problem is the time to which he returns does not exactly turn out the way he thought it would, and he is devastated. It's true, you can't go home again. This would be a perfect story for Halloween or around the campfire. This is another film that I would like to be longer so we could learn more about the collector and more about Nathan's past.

Henry is a Canadian short that takes a look at memory loss/dementia in Henry, a World War II veteran who is desperately missing his wife, whom he met in France, and who does not recognize his daughter. Henry goes wandering around town and is occasionally quite aggressively handled by hospital. It seems that there have been more films including short, features and documentaries that focus on memory issues (or am I just more attentive?) and I think that's what made this short hit home.

The next two shorts feature children and I will defy you to not cry, just a little.
Asad is set in Somalia, but was actually filmed in South Africa with Somalian refugees. Asad is a young man who fishes to help support his family, but he would rather go out with the young men who attack foreign ships. Unfortunately, Asad doesn't have a lot of success in his own right as a fisherman, but he is grateful when Erasto, an older fisherman, gives him a large fish for his family. He could easily say he caught and nobody would have known, but it would be bad luck to lie. When a young friend of Asad's is harassed by a group of rebels, Asad gives them the fish. The netxt day, after the rebels injure Erasto, Asad must go out by himself (the boat is huge and it's amazing that he's able to row it). He comes upon a boat that the pirates attacked and there are no survivors except for a white cat; Asad brings the cat back and is asked if he caught it. He can honestly say he did. Asad has an indomitable spirit and I really felt for his difficult situation, one that many young men face: providing for their families and deciding whether to do the right things or fall in with the bad elements. I liked this kid (the actor and the character he played).

Buzkashi Boys is a joint Afghan-US production filmed in Kabul, Afghanistan and it features two young friends, Ahmad, a boy who lives on the streets and Rafi, who lives with his father, a blacksmith. In a lot of ways they are like other boys all over the world, getting into mischief, quarreling with parents/adults, dreaming about what they are going to do when they get older. Ahmad, for everything that he lacks, has a great imagination and hopes for his future; he wants to be a Buzkashi rider. Buzkashi is described as a type of polo played with a headless goat carcass (it seemed brutal and it was hard for me to grasp the allure). Rafi is grounded by the tradition of blacksmiths in his family. What happens next left me just looking at the screen, taking it in, but not believing it. Even though this is a fictional film, the fact that it was filmed in Afghanistan and really shows the stark harshness and devastation in this country made gave it a very realistic feel. The two boys were very natural and captured my heart. I did cry at the end of this movie. I hope you watch all of these films (they are available on Amazon) because they are all wonderful and different and all the things that make films so meaningful.


10/24/15 Leviathan, nominated Best Foreign Film, 2014

10/29/15 Tangerines, nominated Best Foreign Film, 2014 

After watching these two films, I have seen all of the nominated movies excepted Virunga, a documentary soon to be released on video. As far as the foreign films go, the winner Ida irritated me and I did not think it should have won; nominee Wild Tales did less for me. I was very moved by Timbuktu and thought that was really well done and had a story and characters that I cared about. Leviathan was the entry from Russia and won the Golden Globe for 2014. Leviathan is set in very northern Russia, near the Arctic Sea; that sense of cold and desolation permeates the film, and I swear it got colder in my house. The story is really nothing new: corrupt public officials pushing around hard working citizens (something about the despondency of the story just reminded me of Thomas Hardy), even though the hard working citizens may be a little fond of their vodka (I think I got cirrhosis of the liver). Kolya is engaged in an unfair battle against the incredibly corrupt mayor who wants the Kolya's land to build something (we do not know what it is at first, and the hypocrisy of the fact that it turns out to be a church is not lost on anyone). Kolya does not want to let his land go, the house where he lives with his second wife and his son so he brings in an old army friend who is now a lawyer. Dmitri does not necessarily have any legal grounds to challenge the mayor, but he does have some good old fashioned scoop to use as 'pressure', but the mayor is not having any of it. In the meantime, Kolya gets into trouble because of his temper and the vodka, and it becomes obvious that his wife may not be very happy. Lilya finds comfort with Dmitri and seems to consider running away with him to Moscow. The Russian Orthodox Church plays a role, and there is more than a hint that there is corruption in the upper echelons of the church, even as the priests closer to the people may truly believe in God. Kolya is not a believer, especially as his world comes crashing in on him. There is no happy ending to this story. I don't mind depressing movies, and I thought this was well done, I did not think it was the bet movie ever, nor did it provoke any deep philosophical questions. I did find the scenery gorgeous in its starkness. I would say this would be my third favorite foreign film from the nominees.

This brings us to Tangerines which gave me a couple of moments where I talked back to the television and held my breath with disbelief as events unfolded. Tangerines is an Estonian/Georgian film and is set during the war in Abkhazia in Georgia as two friends are practically the last people in their village; it seems everyone else has joined the war or fled to their homeland of Estonia. Margus is trying to harvest his tangerine crop before it becomes too dangerous to stay where he is; Ivo is his neighbor and the film opens with Ivo in his workshop making crates to hold the tangerines. Two Chechen soldiers come by and while they could be trouble makers, they seem to have some respect for the elderly man and just ask for food. Things get a little hairy when the Chechens come across three Georgian soldiers and they exchange fire. Ahmed survives his wounds and Ivo brings him in to take care of him; as Ivo and Margus bury the dead soldiers, they realize that one of the Georgians, Niko, is still alive. There is no hesitation as Ivo brings Niko into his house and gets the local doctor to assist. When Ahmed realizes that one of his 'mortal enemies' is alive and his friend is dead, he vows to kill Niko. Ivo, in a very quiet but strong way, tells him he will not kill anyone in his house. There is a lot of tension as Margus and Ivo work to harvest the tangerines, waiting for help that will not come. Some local soldiers come by and knowing that Niko is at risk, Ivo tells Niko not to say a word, blaming his muteness on the head injury; Ivo also asks Ahmed for his word that he will not betray Niko. There's a lot of trust in this movie, or requests for trust. Ahmed is a big man and despite his wounds, he could wreak serious havoc if he chose. Niko and Ahmed coexist out of grudging respect for Ivo; occasionally asking why he has not fled to Estonia, although he never answers them. All hell breaks loose towards the end of the movie as other Chechen soldiers come to the farm and they do not believe that Ahmed is on their side, and fighting breaks out. I have to admit, the subsequent scenes are where I was talking to the screen, not totally comprehending the action that unfolded. I cried too. I don't want to ruin it because I hope you watch it. It really does show how asinine war is, and that if people are allowed to get to know one another, they may be less inclined to try and kill each other. Maybe that's too pollyanna or naive, but I do believe that. The actor who plays Ivo, Embit Ulsfak, is amazing: quiet and strong, determined and fair. Eventually we do learn why Ivo refuses to leave his farm for Estonia. When I watch a movie, I want to care about the characters or the story (both would be ideal), and I really cared about these people and their stories. My one complaint is that it was really hard to read the subtitles, they were teeny tiny and that can be a problem since I really don't speak Estonian, Georgian or Chechen. But I hope that doesn't dissuade you, because, in my mind, this should have been the winner.

Me Myself I - Joan Armatrading times two

10/10/15 Joan Armatrading Hopkins Center for the Arts, Hopkins, Minnesota
10/17/15 Joan Armatrading Humphreys by the Bay, San Diego, California

Sometimes I think I may have some kind of obsessive/compulsive issue, and then a friend or two will comfort me and tell me that it's great that I go on these adventures and do these crazy things and I feel better. Back in April of this year I went to see Joan Armatrading in Kent, Ohio because there was no indication that she was coming to my time zone, and it was a good excuse to see my mom (just don't tell my mom that). I knew I would have a great time, but I was caught up in the magic of that night, and upset that this would be Joan's last international tour, that I quickly looked for other concerts in my neighborhood. I'm directionally challenged, but I do know that San Diego is not exactly driving distance to Minnesota, but I like San Diego and know that's it's not as sprawling as some cities. Anyway, I found a ticket for the 10/17 show and waited. And then, about three weeks ago, I learned that Joan added a show in Hopkins, Minnesota. Damn. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound, and I bought a ticket to that show as well.

Kristina Train opened for the Hopkins show and played fiddle and guitar. She played songs from her latest album "Dark Black". Joan has a knack of having opening acts that really complement her own style (Susan Werner, Marlee McLeod are among those whom I have seen). Kristina was no different, bringing a folk, bluesy style that was really embraced by the audience. Kristina was joined by Paul Olsen (from St. Paul, Minnesota) on guitar and backing vocals. The set was a half an hour, and then the stage was set for the incredible Joan. Joan walked on the stage, picked up her guitar, and thanked announced it was her 202nd (I think that's what she said) show, that she was tired and this would be the last song. The crowd good-naturedly booed and started to yell out songs they wanted to hear. She started off with "All the way to America" on one of her acoustic guitars and moved through her extended catalog of songs and genres, switching between three guitars a twelve string acoustic, 6 six string acoustic and a baby blue electric guitar and the electric piano. Joan played "My Baby's Gone" on the electric guitar and just tears it up, blues style, using a slide. Songs were accompanied by videos, some just visual effects and some 'videos' and "In these times" was a song with the latter type of visual effect, film clips from different war periods over the past 70 years, intermixed with individuals known for their peace efforts. It gives me chills every time; I just love that song it's so simple and yet packs a punch. Joan's fans are a pretty devoted bunch, responding to songs like "Woncha come on home" and "Rosie" after just a few chords. Roughly about halfway through, Joan spoke to the audience about her career, using a pretty impressive collection of photographs to illustrate the point. It might surprise people not familiar with her extensive history in music (and there were several at all three shows I attended) of the depth and breadth of her c.v: she has played with Elton John, been an ambassador of the Prince's Trust in the U.K., was a favorite of Nelson Mandela and his compatriots, played downstairs at Ronnie Scott's in London, was photographed by Lord Snowden, Robert Mapplethorpe and Annie Lebovitz and has been nominated for several Grammys. After this recap, she played more from her catalog; I think she played all of my favorites: "Weakness in Me", "Drop the Pilot" (how many songs include "mahout" in their lyrics?), my theme song "Me, Myself, I" and the crowd singalong "Willow". "Willow" is one of those songs that gives me chills and that has meant a lot to me over the years, and I never tire of hearing it. Even though Joan was playing solo, she had some musical bits pre-recorded (a sax solo during "Love and Affection" and some other things); that didn't bother me at all, it was fully disclosed and they were just enough to highlight what she was playing; it was all her, all live when she was ripping on the guitar. I really liked the venue out in Hopkins (which, from where I live, is like a million miles away), I had a great seat up in the balcony, but I could see everything. The sound was decent as well. The coolest thing was that I played nerdy fan, and hung out by the stage door after the concert and got my poster signed. I guess Minnesotans are just too cool.

The concert in San Diego was pretty much a carbon copy of the others, but the opening act was different and the venue was outside near the water. Bobby Lee Rodgers opened and played a mean acoustic guitar and was well-received by the audience. It all kind of sounded the same to me. Some fans seemed, er, lubricated, and by the end of the night, they were pretty obnoxious. This was the first concert in a really long time where the ushers actually helped you to your seat, instead of saying, 'you're down on that side'. Um, thanks. I liked Humphrey's Concerts by the Bay, it's outside, near water and if you choose, there are a lot of restaurants nearby and hotels. I probably would have tried to stalk Joan again, but it was dark and I had no idea where to start looking. I wish I had some pictures from the shows, but she specifically requested that no photos be taken; it makes sense, it can get annoying with everyone whipping out their camera phones, but still. If I could figure out how to see her again before she goes back to England, I would do it in a heartbeat. Most of my friends (I would say all, but I'm sure I would offend someone) have never heard of her, and it's hard to explain her style since she does do different kinds of music. I should just make them listen to "Track Record" which was the first Joan Armatrading CD I owned and it's a collection of her greatest hits up to that point (late 1980s, I think, without looking it up). Anyway, three shows in six months, and I do not regret a single minute.

I'll be off to Milwaukee and Cleveland in December to see Steve Hackett. Back with more movie reviews shortly.

Citizenfour, Newman and Redford in a double feature and Jurassic Park

I don't have any real long introduction for this entry; I saw a bunch of movies, some documentaries, some 'classics', a couple of action films. 

9/28/15 Citizenfour, Best Feature Documentary, 2014
10/10/15 The Salt of the Earth, nominated Best Feature Documentary, 2014

I've seen all of the nominated documentaries except Virunga, and I have to say, I would have had a difficult time picking a winner, not necessarily because they were so great (to me, they were very good, but nothing really moved me like other films I have seen), but because they were so different. It's a lot like comparing apples to potatoes to cookies. Citizenfour was the Documentary winner. It introduces us to Edward Snowden, a contractor for the National Security Agency who cast a huge spotlight on the spying that the NSA was doing on American citizens. The interviews with Snowden were recorded with great secrecy in Hong Kong.Tthe director, Laura Poitras and one of the interviewers, Glenn Greenwald, were under surveillance after Snowden's leaks were released. At times much of Snowden's insights and information seem like something out of a Le Carre novel; at other times, I seriously thought about deleting my entire online presence. A parallel is drawn between Snowden and Daniel Ellsberg (Ellsberg of the Pentagon Papers, who was initially charged with conspiracy, espionage and theft of government property), except, as I noted in the blog linked above, Snowden fled the country. After watching the documentary, I kind of don't blame him, but I think he could do more for his cause in a hearing, and I'm guessing the government really doesn't want that. There's a lot that goes on in the documentary and I would watch it again to try and put the pieces together in my mind. I'm wondering if it won in part because it was a victory for free speech (the film's/director's, not necessarily the freedom to disseminate confidential information) and the fear that the Academy members may have of being spied on. I'm not sure if I'm expressing it clearly enough, and for that I apologize. I do think that Snowden was brave, and if he was the only one yelling, he would be written off as a nutjob, but he isn't alone. It's worth watching the movie if only to make yourself aware of all the portals of data collection. Information is power.

The Salt of the Earth could not be more different from Citizenfour; The Salt of the Earth, at first glance, is about Brazilian Sebastiao Salgado, who left a promising career as an economist to become a photographer. Wim Wenders and Salgdao's son, Juliano co-direct the film, looking at how Salgado accidentally became interested in photography after borrowing his wife's camera, and then going off on various photo shoots. One of his first big shoots was going through remote parts of South America, photographing indigenous peoples. He was also in Ethiopia as the famine of the early 1980s was starting to manifest itself and then he was in Rwanda during the massacres between the Hutus and the Tsutsis. After these and other emotional and intense experiences, Salgado needed to pull back from his photography and went back to his family's farm in Brazil with his wife and sons. The family land had been decimated by deforestation and drought over many years and his wife had the idea to reclaim the land and make that the family's project. Over ten years they replanted acres and acres of trees and flora and eventually even the animals have returned to the land and the land is now a national park in Brazil. This rebirth gave Salgado the desire to go back out and photograph and go to remote parts of the world to capture animal. It took me a little while to get into the documentary, I wasn't really sure of the point or what I was going to get out of it. First of all, the photography of Salgado is amazing and some of the photos from Ethiopia and the oil fires in Kuwait and the fighting in Rwanda are heartbreaking, but powerful and beautiful; the cinematography is also wonderful, moving between black and white to color; and thirdly, I was moved by the part of the story that focused on the reforestation of the dried out farm land. It spoke to the ability of man to repair what it has ruined and how it re-energized Salgado to get back to his passion. Perhaps in a different year it might have won the Oscar; perhaps it's not important. I think Salgado would be philosophical about the whole thing. This movie about a photographer and his photography touched me more deeply than Finding Vivian Maier, another movie about a photographer and her photography. It's probably because we get to learn about Salgado and Maier remained a mystery even years after her death. If you are interested in photography and anthropology, you really should see this movie (it's certainly not a requirement).

10/3/15 Kingsman: The Secret Service, 2015

I seem to do this when I have a lot of movies to watch, I get something not on the list, kind of fun and not too intense, and that's what Kingsman: The Secret Service was, a fun twist on James Bond and The Avengers (Mr. Steed and Emma Peel Avengers, not Thor/Captain America Avengers). Colin Firth (not playing a character from Jane Austen) stars as Harry Hart, a veteran agent in the secret service; Mark Strong is Merlin ('Q', if you will) and Taron Egerton as Eggsy is their lead new recruit (among several); Samuel L. Jackson is the quirky, but lethal, Richmond Valentine. In some ways the story line is not terribly original, and even making it with the secret agent aspect wasn't totally new, and yet, it works. Firth and Strong are great as the mentors to the new recruits, a lot of tough love and stiff upper lips. Egerton held his own with them and it's nice to have a younger hero, bringing street smarts to the table. Jackson is terrific in a role diametrically opposite his Nick Fury character. There is action, witty dialog, great gadgets and a couple of twists. It looks like this was technically released in the US in 2015, so it could be eligible for an Oscar (effects?), so who knows. Regardless, it was a lot of fun, great for a Saturday night with pizza with friends (you know who you are).

10/3/15 The Sting, Best Picture, Best Director, Best Writing - Original Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Costumer Design, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Original Score 1973, National Film Registry

I'm not sure the bet way to tell you about this movie without giving the best parts away, so excuse the vagueness, it's intentional this time. The Sting may be one of my favorite movies after watching it for the second time recently. Paul Newman and Robert Redford star in their second movie together, both were directed by George Roy Hill and both feature them as 'buddies' (if you will). The second (first chronologically) is Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. There is so much fun about this movie, from the double-crosses and scams that are pulled (big and small); the costumes by the legendary Edith Head; the Scott Joplin influenced score by Marvin Hamlisch; and a cast that included Eileen Brennan, Harold Gould, Robert Shaw, Ray Walston and Robert Earl Jones (James' father). Redford is Johnny Hooker, a small-time con man, whose partner Luther Coleman (Jones) retires, but is then killed. Hooker wants revenge for his friend's death and teams up with Harry Gondorff (Newman), an expert in the long con. The two men and a cast of dozens try a long con on gangster and meanie, Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw). A lot of the movie is the set up of the con, setting the trap, and getting all the pieces to work. The more I watch Paul Newman the more I love him, he seems so effortless as Gondorff (not Gandalf, although I think Newman would have been awesome as Gandalf the Gray), a wink and a nod, fast talking Lonnegan, he is the precursor to Hannibal Smith from the A-Team or Nate Ford from "Leverage".  Redford and Newman have great rapport and everything seems very natural, even when you think "this cannot be for real". It doesn't matter. In some ways it's disappointing that they didn't do more films together, but maybe that was their choice, not to beat it to death. Too bad for us. This is another movie for those cold weekends that are coming all too fast. One thing that I want to point out, because I like to fit in a Cleveland reference whenever possible (two if I can, and I can). Paul Newman was from the Cleveland suburb of Cleveland Heights (one) and the screenwriter, David Ward is also from Cleveland and he was the force behind the classic Major League about my beloved baseball team (two).

10/10/15 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Original Song, Best Original Screenplay1969 #73 AFI, National Film Registry

Paul Newman is Butch Cassidy and Robert Redford plays Sundance and the movie is directed by George Roy Hill. It follows the infamous pair as they rob some trains and then after it gets a little too dangerous in the U.S., they take off for Bolivia and learn enough Spanish to rob banks. Newman and Redford are fun to watch, but I just didn't enjoy this movie as much as I enjoyed The Sting, I really don't know why. If you haven't seen the movie, but are of a certain age, you may be familiar with the Oscar-winning song sung by BJ Thomas, "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head". The song plays while Butch and Etta (Katharine Ross), Sundance's girlfriend, are riding a bicycle. I didn't get it the first time I watched the movie and I didn't get it the second time. There are some scenes that you may have scene in an Oscar montage or two, like when Butch and Sundance are escaping from a group of lawmen and they need to jump into the river from a great height. I'm not saying it's not worth watching, especially to see this pair together, but I'll take The Sting.

10/11/15 Jurassic Park Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Visual Effects 1993

Apparently I watched Jurassic Park and rated a lowly 2 stars on Netflix. I honestly don't even remember watching it, much less disliking so much. I can believe that I wasn't interested, and perhaps that is what the rating reflected at the time, but in the interest of a fair review, and since Jurassic World has been released in the past year, I thought I'd give it another try. I enjoyed it, it's not my favorite movie ever, but I did like it. If you have been in fossilized amber for the past twenty years and have no idea what these movies are about (even I know the basic premise), Sir Richard Attenborough plays John Hammond a wealthy dilettante with a love of dinosaurs and he brings Drs. Alan Grant and Ellie Sattler (Sam Neill and Laura Dern), two experts in things paleo, as well as Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) an expert in chaos theory. Essentially, Hammond has created an island park with genetically engineered dinosaurs and plants from the period. You can imagine that this does not go as planned, otherwise the movie would have been forty-five minutes. The movie has plenty of action, great effects (remember this was 20 years ago, and I think they hold up today) for which it won an Oscar, and some pretty good dialog. It was pretty much an adrenaline rush for about 45-60 minutes - dinosaurs eating people, chasing them, learning how to turn a doorknob. My favorite character was John Hammond; Attenborough may be better known as a director (a small movie called Gandhi, A Chorus Line, Cry Freedom), but he does have extensive acting credits (The Great Escape, Doctor Doolittle, Elizabeth), and he brought a playfulness to a character that could have been really obnoxious, but I found him charming and eccentric. I also liked Jeff Goldblum's character; I have learned to appreciate his dry way of delivering lines. The movie does present an interesting discussion on the topic of genetic manipulation, but don't let that get in the way of the fun. Oh, and by the way, Steven Spielberg directed the movie based on Michael Crichton's book of the same name. I will never read the book, and possibly not watch the other movies (unless prescribed by The List), so I don't know how true the movies are to the written word. Overall I would have to say that all of the fictional movies reviewed here are great Saturday night movies.

Off to San Diego to see the amazing Joan Armatrading and those reviews will be presented next week. Ciao.