"Take This Waltz" Sarah Polley (2012)

Sarah Polley's "Take This Waltz" might be the most delicate film I've ever seen about the breakdown of a marriage.
  It's been 5 years since Polley's underrated "Away From Her" and this latest film cements her status as one of the most important directors working today.

The film is elegantly written and executed with a remarkable subtlety. 
 
This all sounds like high praise and it is.

The only problem is I'm pretty sure I hated this movie.

The film follows Margot, played by Michelle Williams, a happily married woman who suffers from an infatuation with her new neighbor, Daniel.

Daniel is one of those guys who thinks he's seductive but really just comes off as creepy.

Seth Rogen gives a surprisingly muted performance as Margot's clueless and then heartbroken husband, Lou.

The relationship between Margot and Lou is much more interesting than her crush on Daniel.

The couple has a touching playfulness about them, but it's hiding a lot of insecurity, pain and vulnerability.

As always, Williams gives a truly gorgeous and penetrating performance.

She more than deserves her third Oscar nod in a row. 

And Sarah Silverman plays Geraldine, Margot's sister-in-law and the film's voice of reason.
For most of the film, I wasn't sure Geraldine's character was necessary, but at the end, she ties up the point of the film nicely.

Ultimately, "Take This Waltz" is about the pitfalls of discontent.

Polley is a remarkably understated talent and I can't wait to see her next film.

However, I don't ever want to see "Take This Waltz" again.

"96 Minutes" - Aimee Lagos (2012)

"96 Minutes" is a fairly impressive feature debut by newcomer Aimee Lagos. 
 
The premise of the film is a good person who does bad things is more of a monster than a straight-up bad guy.
 

The story follows Carley and Lena, two college students and Dre and Kevin, two high-school students. The characters are frantically trying to figure out what to do after Kevin shoots Lena in the face.
 

The narrative flips back and forth between the adrenaline-filled crisis sequence and the problems of the characters' everyday lives.
 
Lena is in love with a boy who treats her like something he dug out of his ear.
 

Carley is neglected by her father and anxious about starting law school.
 
Dre is a kid working hard to graduate and escape from street life.
 

And Kevin has trouble dealing with his foul-mouthed mom and her physically abusive boyfriend. But what Kevin really wants is to be a gangsta.
 
Eventually, the two timelines merge and we see exactly what led up to the shooting.
 

The film starts slow, but somewhere in the middle of the second act, the pacing catches up and we find ourselves involved in a fairly engrossing melodrama.
 
Dre makes mistake after mistake as he tries to dig himself and his friend out of a bad situation. The scenario makes for some very nice tension.
 

Ultimately, "96 Minutes" leaves us with little hope for mankind which puts it right in line with reality.

"Womb" - Benedek Fliegauf (2011)

"Womb" is brilliant and revolting.

I still don't know if I liked it or not.

But hey, anything with the 11th Doctor (or Eva Green, for that matter) is worth a look.

I believe I will wait a few months and watch it again.

Here's my review.

Also, I may have mispronounced Benedek Fliegauf's name.

If I did, apologies.

Von Trier's Cast Stands Behind Their Filmmaker (sort of)

Okay, let me explain. No, there is no time. Let me sum up.

Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier was kicked out of Cannes earlier this week for saying that he found pleasure in the fact that he was “really a Nazi.”
Not only that, but the distribution company decided to bail on him because of the controversy.

So, the cast was asked about the whole mess.

When asked if she would work with Lars von Trier again after his incendiary remarks at the press conference for “Melancholia” at Cannes, Kirsten Dunst said, "Yes, I would work with him, yeah.” But she qualified her endorsement of the filmmaker, saying, “It's unfortunate that he joked about that, it is very inappropriate."



But Stellan Skarsgard, who worked with von Trier in “Breaking the Waves,” threw all his support behind his director. "He can say anything, but what you always have to consider is the thought and meaning behind the words, not the words themselves and everybody knows he is not a Nazi, he was a Jew for 33 years,” Skarsgard argued. “It's absolutely ridiculous and it's embarrassing for the Cannes Film Festival that they behave like this."

Cracks - Jordan Scott (2011)

Yes, I know "Cracks" made its debut at the 2009 Toronto Film Festival yet my title says "2011."

I've been going by U.S. Theatrical release dates. I decided to just pick a standard for the dates I use and stick with it for consistency's sake. So for the record, when there's a disparity between my dates and imdb.com's, that's why. It occurred to me that I have never explained that.

At any rate, "Cracks" was released in New York and L.A. on March 18, so it should be making its way here to Kansas City for a short run at some point this spring.

It has gotten mediocre reviews, but I thought it was a brilliant character study of a woman unable to tell narcissism from love.


If that sounds pretentious, there's a reason why the word "Snob" is in my title.

Here's my video review.

Winter's Bone - Debra Granik (2010)

Here's my review of the decent but radically overrated "Winter's Bone."

Animal Kingdom - David Michôd (2010) A Video Review

Here's my video review of David Michôd's "Animal Kingdom."

It's an unbelievably brilliant crime drama that deservedly won the International Grand Jury at Sundance this Spring.

Kansas City filmmaker screens new film - NBCActionNews.com

“Numb” is the fifth in a series of short, experimental horror films from Kansas City filmmaker John Barnes. It’s the final chapter of the first volume of the “OV” film series. “Numb” is based on a man who has lost all emotion. He has a beautiful wife and child, but has no feelings and will go to any length just to experience an emotional sensation again.

The short film screened June 2 after the IFC meeting at the Westport Coffee House Theater at 4010 Pennsylvania in Westport. “Numb” will be followed by a screening of filmmaker Jerry White’s “0:22:43.”

John Barnes is a Kansas City native who has been making independent films since 2000. He says the pool of talent in Kansas City is surprisingly endless and sadly untapped.

And when it came to making his dark shorts, the network of filmmakers he has come to rely on is essential. That’s why he has called his production company “Drei Productions.” “Drei” meaning “three” in German. “’Drei Productions’ because it always takes more than one person,” Barnes explains. “You gotta have three or more people to make a short film.”

When I asked him what to expect from the screening of “Numb,” John said, “It’s very dark. It’s based on people that have hidden emotions that come out in extreme, most of the time violent ways.”

Watching "Numb" reminded how good of an artist John was in high school. His eye is brilliant.

After the screening at the IFC meeting, it’s off to other film festivals. There’s the KC Fringe Festival that runs July 23rd through August 1st. The Fringe Fest features art from different mediums and is new to hosting films.

Severe Clear - Kristian Fraga (2009)

I don't think I've looked forward to a documentary like this since Paradise Lost 2.

Severe Clear, comprised of clips from a video journal shot by Lt. Mike Scotti has made the festival circuit and is about to see a limited U.S. theatrical release.


Whether it will come to Kansas City remains to be seen.

From the clips I've seen, Scotti and the film's director, Kristian Fraga showed a great deal of courage in releasing footage that shows every aspect of what I can only imagine what it must be like to be over there.

I saw desperation, grief, terror, courage, determination, horror, more grief, more terror and above all, desperation again.

My heart sank as Lt. Scotti told about how he and his squad fired on a car they thought was hostile, but turned out to be a man with his daughter.

He talks about killing and burying a little girl with her pink shoes. I felt anger, grief, hatred, pity and revulsion all within the span of about ten seconds. The rate, range and intensity of emotions was staggering.

And this was in a couple minutes worth of clips that I managed to see.


That's my review of the couple of minutes. Severe Clear has made the festival circuit and from what I've heard, it's amazing.

I'm going to watch it as soon as possible and let you all know how it is.

Glorious 39 – Stephen Poliakoff (2009)

I have to tell you, I was a bit disgruntled early into the film because, without spoiling anything for those of who will see this film, an actor I adore was gone in the first 23 minutes.

Crap.

His part was short, but it was passionate and well worth the top billing his name got. As for the film, it takes a while to find its feet. I was not sure for a while what kind of movie it was and actually, that is more than okay with me.

To be honest, if I’m not sure if I’m going to be watching a love story or a political drama or a mystery or maybe even a ghost story, it enhances the entire experience and I went into this film completely cold.

Glorious 39 debuted at the Toronto Film Festival in September and it kind of slipped under the radar. I understand why. It’s the kind of film that quietly seeps into you.

I didn’t even know I was being affected by it until it was almost over and I wasn’t sure it was memorable until a week later I realized that I’d thought about it every day since I saw it.

The film opens with an ultimately dispensable bookmark. It’s an ominous introduction featuring Christopher Lee recalling the story of a girl who was lost long ago, before the war.

As the story unfolds, the turns it takes are gradual. It seems innocent on the surface, but it isn’t too long before there’s a menacing quality just under its skin.

By the time our heroine, Anne hears the menacing recording of poor Hector, presumably murdered Parliament member and foe of Neville Chamberlain screaming for mercy from God knows what, we are duly and properly unsettled.

As the conspiracy grows, Anne’s family members very gradually grow more menacing.

For those Doctor Who fans out there, if you remember Human Nature & Family of Blood, Anne’s siblings take on a very ‘mother-of-mine,’ ‘sister-of-mine’ quality to them. Especially her brother, Ralph.

I don’t want to give too much away because I want everyone who reads this to seek this film out and watch it. As far as political thrillers go, you really can’t do any better than this one. It works in so many ways.

There’s a sequence that revolves around taking pets in to be euthanized. Putting the family cats down is incidental to the plot.

It’s the other things happening around them at the time that are critical to the story, but that whole atmosphere of calm, tranquil death is just so terrible and peaceful at the same time. When we see the bodies of the animals being heaped onto pyres, it hardly seems awful.

That’s the kind of lull this film draws you into and then jolts you out of.

Truly, I don’t want to give away any more except to say that you will be disappointed by the ending bookmark, so be prepared for that.

But the end of the story itself is perfect. The revelations are timed beautifully and never feel manufactured even for a moment.

Each trust and each betrayal is genuine and painful. And the one final mercy shown in the film truly feels precious.

So, fans of the Doctor, seek out this film because you miss David Tennant. That’s why I got it. But then find yourself absorbed in one of those rare films that works as a character study, a theme and a narrative.