Advanced Style is a documentary about seven elderly women who know style!
Think high-end fashion is only for the young? Advanced Style proves that fashion is for the old too. And these seven elderly fashionistas could easily give Coco Chanel a run for her money.
The film begins as an introduction first to Ari Seth Cohen, co-writer and creator of the blog Advanced Style about fashionable seniors. Then we meet the seven senior women in focus: all from New York and aged between 62 to 95. The first part is an introduction of the seven about who they are and what they buy. The film continues focus on the women but soon these women don’t seem so cartoonish as one would first think. All the women seem to enjoy life and have a positive outlook on themselves. Some are grandmothers, some are widowed, one or two never married, one or two are with their husband or a new mate. Some live the relaxed life of a senior citizen while some stay active by singing, dancing and even teaching art classes.
When you watch the film, you can easily see your perception of elderly women change. You first think they’re nearing the end of their life but they’ll show you they’re living it as if they were youthful twenty-somethings. Seeing how they go about in terms of their choice of clothes, their socializing and their activities will really surprise you and make you rethink growing old.
It’s not to say that their uniqueness isn’t immune to some negative aspects out there. Once they made an appearance on the Ricki Lake show and 80 year-old Joyce Carpati is intoxicated by the red light and looks foolish while singing a song. Even the fact of death is unavoidable as the women attend a fashion show in New York by a leading fashion designer (whom of course has young thin models) and Zelda Kaplan, the eldest of the seven at 95, is taken to the hospital and later dies. Nevertheless it was fun to watch from start to finish. Even seeing one woman strut her stuff down Beverly Hills will make you want to say “You go girl!”
Ari Seth Cohen is of course the brains behind the film. He knows this subject from head to toe because it’s the subject of his blog inspired from the joie de vivre of his own grandmother. He even wrote an Advanced Style book. He shows them in a mostly positive manner in both what they wear and who they are. Even if some of the choices look ridiculous like some of the hats worn or the big Edith Head glasses or even the woman who makes eyelash extensions out of her own hair, he presents them as them being themselves and not caring. He made the right choice in picking fashion film director Lina Plioplyte to direct and co-write the film.
As far as a film, I don’t see it being too much of a big screen release. This looks like something that will mostly fare well on an educational channel like BC’s Knowledge network or a documentary channel. Also I believe this might be Ari’s only documentary unless he shells out a sequel with some new seniors to show their stuff.
Advanced Style is definitely a charming documentary of elderly women who are young at heart in both the way they dress but the way they live too. One said fashion is about confidence. You can bet they’re full of that.
Also those interested in the Advanced Style blog, here’s the link.
All is fair in love and war for a grown-up Billy Rowan (played by Callum Turner) in John Boorman’s Queen And Country.
Remember Hope And Glory from 1987? The sequel to it, Queen And Country, came out this year and it’s a good film on its own even for those who didn’t see Hope And Glory.
Seven years have passed since the end of World War II. Billy Rowan is now 18 to 20. Since the war he and his family live on an island surrounded by the Thames River which has become a popular spot for filming. Billy however is still a bit of a sissy for his age. However being commissioned for military service may just change that. Before he arrives for training, he meets another young man his age named Percy Hapgood on the train. However he also meets an older woman named Ophelia in the town nearby his training base.
During military service, he goes from simply training to actually having positions of authority, albeit in typewriting class. Both he and Percy do not take well at all to their general Redmond whom they feel to be a hard-heart with no sense of humor at all. Also at their age, they want to have fun with the ladies. A certain girl at the local pub Sophie fancies Billy but he’s off pursuing Ophelia.
Over time Billy gains the respect of the elders and the friendship with Percy grows to the point he helps Percy to steal an office clock Redmond values. Billy even makes returns to the family, one time bringing Percy along whom younger sister Dawn fancies and another time bring Ophelia. Despite all the fun, realities do settle into Billy. The age of Ophelia will prove to be an unavoidable factor. The truth about the prank to steal the clock will come to light for both Billy and Percy as one head officer had already been stripped of his title. And the reality of war becomes more and more eventual for Billy as Britain enters the Korean War. This paves the way for an end that’s both happy, sad and funny for all who are involved.
The best thing about the film is that it is excellently made and it is entertaining. Seeing a young male of 20 being drafted with the British armed forces and all the irresponsibility and shenanigans that come with it does make for an entertaining show. It’s also a treat for those who saw Hope And Glory to see Billy now all grown up and now being placed into the possibility of fighting in a war himself. Whatever happens all turns out for the humorous and things do work out in the end despite paying the consequences.
It also makes one question if this film is autobiographical from Boorman just like Hope And Glory. I will admit it doesn’t have the same special uniqueness Hope And Glory had. For those who remember, Hope And Glory was World War II through a child’s eyes. It was actually one of three films in 1987 that showcased World War II through a child’s eyes. The other two being the French film Au Revoir les Enfants and Spielberg’s Empire Of The Sun which starred a 14 year-old Christian Bale and a not-yet-famous Ben Stiller. Queen And Country was not as unique as there have been other stories before. Nevertheless it’s very entertaining and more comedic than Hope And Glory.
This film is not too heavy of a political statement. However it does have some political messages with the potential of fighting in the Korean War. Another notable underlying message is the change of power after King George dies and the monarchy is transferred to Queen Elizabeth. We forget that Elizabeth was a mere 26 when she came onto the throne and a lot of people were not that confident in her at first. Interesting because she would be the one who turned the British Empire into a Commonwealth. Even British attitudes of what’s ‘manly’ also add to the theme of the film.
My big dilemma is I wonder why Boorman took so long to make a sequel to Hope And Glory. Queen And Country takes place at least seven years after the setting of Hope And Glory. It’s a wonder why such a film was not released back as say 1994. In fact I think that has to be the biggest weakness of the movie, its late release. I’m sure the movie can attract people who saw Hope And Glory back when it was first out but twenty-seven years is a long time to release such a follow-up story. Also I’m sure most of today’s movie crowds may not be familiar with the story of Hope And Glory. If it was released as say 1994 as I suggested, I’m sure there would be more of an audience interest especially since a lot of them can remember the adventures of Billy Rohan and would want to see how Billy grows up.
John Boorman again delivers a film of excellent direction and writing. Calum Turner did a very good job playing the grown-up Bill Rohan both in his character and as a young adult getting in trouble. Caleb Landry Jones was a scene-stealer as Billy’s partner in crime. Tasmin Egerton was very good as the seductive but confused Ophelia. Pat Shortt however did the best character acting as the shrewd Officer Redmond. The supporting actors also added into the film even if their parts were minor.
VIFF Note: The Vancouver International Film Festival is where Queen And Country made its North American debut. Aren’t we lucky?
Queen And Country is an excellent sequel to Hope And Glory, albeit badly timed. Nevertheless it was entertaining and worth watching.
New Boobs is a documentary by Dutch film director Sacha Polak pursuing a unique breast operation that isn’t simply cosmetic. It’s to prolong her life.
At first when you hear the title New Boobs, you’ll think it’s about trying to conform to an idealized body types. However you shouldn’t misjudge it as such. It’s a lot more than that.
This is an autobiographical documentary by Dutch film maker Sacha Polak. Not even 30, Sacha has established herself as a rising director in the Netherlands with numerous shorts and films to her credit including one film, Hemel, which won her a FIPRESCI Prize at the 2012 Berlin Film Festival. However not even 30, she’s also hindered by a health problem of her own. Her mother died of breast cancer at the age of 29 just months after Sacha was born. Sacha goes for gene testing if she possesses the BRCA1 gene. The gene poses as a huge threat to contracting breast cancer before the age of 40 and increases the threat of ovarian cancer by 40-60%. She gets the doctor’s results. It’s a positive.
There are a lot of things running through Sacha’s mind upon hearing the news. First is how long she’ll live. Second is whether she’ll be able to have a child with her boyfriend before she gets her ovaries removed: something she wants to do before she turns 35. Third is about her next production. However the one that stands out is what to have done with her breasts. Removal of both? Surgery with implants? An operation will greatly improve her odds of avoiding breast cancer. She goes to one plastic surgeon and learns of the implants that would be used in their operation. However she soon hears of a plastic surgeon in Ghent, Belgium who performs a unique breast operation that would involve removing the breast tissue and filling it with body fat. That operation becomes Sacha’s focus.
Things are frustrating as the surgeon moves her consulting from November to March. Finally she does have the consultation and she learns of the surgery and what it entails. She agrees to it. During the waiting time she tries to conduct her life as usual doing filmwork and keeping the relationship with her boyfriend intact. She eventually does have the first operation. She shows the outcome and talks over time how she’s felt about it and how others including her boyfriend have felt about it. She then has her second operation and is happy with the end result. The film ends with her talking about her thoughts on the future, about her next film, about having a child in time. However she’s happy that she has solved one problem in the meantime.
The film wasn’t strictly about a cosmetic operation. It was also about a woman fearing for her health and hoping that this operation that would prolong her life will come out well in the end. It’s also about the mother she never knew. Frequently the film shows images of her mother and even the book her mother wrote to Sacha before she died. It’s also about family relations such as the support she receives from her boyfriend that isn’t immune to friction. Even the fears from both her father and her stepmother are showcased. The father himself is especially concerned as his wife just fell ill, entered the hospital and died. It still upsets him to this day and it especially bears down on him sensing that it could happen to Sacha. This documentary is as much about the human factor as it is about the medical factor.
The theme about being born with a bad gene is very present in the movie. This was definitely a theme that would stick in a lot of audient’s heads especially after they had just seen a documentary short of a close friend of Jason Ritter and Bryce Dallas Howard learn of her positive diagnosis for a Huntington’s gene. After seeing that short before, we’re reminded of the hard luck and the physical threats people that have genes that make them prone to certain illnesses face.
This documentary is not meant for the big screen. This is mostly filmed with minor technical cameras and even Skype footage. This is a documentary that’s more meant for broadcast on a television channel like BC’s Knowledge network.
New Boobs is an intriguing documentary that is more than just about an operation. It’s about dealing with illness-prone genes and even family relations surrounding it. A reminder that the person doesn’t fight this alone.
NOTE: For those interested in Sacha’s next film, she had just finished filming Zurich and is due for release in the Netherlands in February 2015.
The Other One is a documentary of Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir who often gets overlooked for Jerry Garcia.
When you think of the Grateful Dead, who’s the first person that comes to mind? Jerry Garcia, right? Even though Jerry is the most famous member, rhythm guitarist Bob Weir is also a key part of the band. The Other One: The Long Strange Trip Of Bob Weir is a documentary focusing on Weir both as a member of the Grateful Dead and his own personal life.
Bobby weir was born in San Francisco in 1947 and was adopted by a well-to-do family. He had an adopted brother and a sister born to his adoptive parents. However Booby grew up a very restless boy. He was expelled from schools within a matter of months. However he developed a passion for the guitar at a young age. There’s even mention of how excited he was when he got a guitar for Christmas. At a young age, he caught the attention of a band playing in the back alley of a Palo Alto spot. They were the Grateful Dead. They took a liking to Booby and the rest is history.
The funny thing about Bobby is that he was a bit of an oddity with the Dead. The other members of the Dead describe themselves as ‘uglies’ and Booby as a ‘cutie’ and they describe the Grateful Dead in its early days as ‘Bobby and the four uglies.’ It seemed like a good break to be welcomed into a band at such a young age but his parents were firm on his education and reminded the other dead members of that.
Over time the San Francisco music scene of the 60’s would rise and eventually become a permanent fixture on pop culture and even definers of the counterculture of that period. The Grateful Dead themselves would become synonymous with the psychedelia of that time. But even before that happens, the documentary pays attention to the band’s first few years trying to make a name for themselves. It reminds you they had to struggle with small gigs just like many other bands before them. Then they signed onto a big label. Then they went from playing in bars to playing in concert halls. Then came the Deadheads: a group of people that stayed loyal to the band year after year, decade after decade. A loyalty not seen before in rock ‘n roll.
Even despite playing music and hitting the big time, the documentary shows of the friendship Weir had with the band. It was of a family nature to the point that Weir almost ignored his own family. The family relation with the other bands did take challenges of their own. The first sign was in the 1980’s when they made a comeback which included a chart-topping album for the first time with 1987’s ‘In The Dark’ and the single ‘Touch Of Grey.’ There was the focus of Jerry Garcia’s cult-of-personality: something Jerry didn’t really welcome in his life. There were even times Bob took personal vacations. Then there was the time Jerry was going through rehab and Bobby acted as a support for him up until his dying day.
It doesn’t stop there. It also focuses on how Weir decided to finally settle down after decades of womanizing with Natascha Munter. The two wed when he was 52 and they have two daughters. Even then the trip wasn’t over. Weir tried to learn of his birth parents. He learned of his mother after she died that she had gave birth to 12 children. He was able to meet up with his birth father and the two have been close ever since.
This documentary is definitely one for people who like biographies of musicians or biography shows in particular. No question Deadheads young and old will want to see this. In fact I remember seeing a wide range of people in the audience watching this documentary. It’s possible some of the seniors in the audience may have been amongst the first generation of Deadheads. If you only care about musicians and their star power, this is not for you. Also if you’re a Deadhead simply because of Jerry Garcia, this will remind you that you’re not a true Deadhead. It’s not just a biography but gives you a feel of the music Bob helped create and continues to play whenever he performs with surviving members of the Dead. The mix of biography with live performances of his music really adds into the feel of it.
The documentary doesn’t really offer anything original as far as documentary film making goes. What it does is showcase a musician’s life that is a life less ordinary. The stories of how he was adopted and how he got into a lot of trouble as a kid will surely raise eyebrows and even a giggle or two. However seeing how he was able to settle down in his older years and even meet up with his adoptive father in recent years shows this is no ordinary life. The intimacy of the biography doesn’t stop with his personal life. It also shows how Bob treated the other Dead members like family even more than he treated his own. In fact hearing from Jerry’s daughter how Bob was like a brother to Jerry up until his last days shows how much the other members meant to him.
The are some flaws with the documentary. Most noticeably, it focuses almost exclusively on his music with the Grateful Dead and hardly ever focuses on his music with his other bands like Kingfish, RatDog, Booby and the Midnites and Furthur. Also the documentary made him look like he was a swinger all his life before Natascha. There’s no mention of his seven-year relationship with Frankie Hart back in the 70’s.
The Other One: The Long Strange Trip Of Bob Weir is a very good documentary to watch even if you’re not a fan of the Grateful Dead. It was time well spent for me. It reminds you there are a lot of great rock ‘n roll musicians that contributed a lot to the genre but don’t get the star status as many others.
You may remember at last year’s VIFF, I saw the Reel Youth Film Festival. The Reel Youth Fest was back again at this year’s VIFF. Again it was entertaining and creative.
Last year the main focus was to get the works of a lot of young filmmakers on screen. It didn’t matter if the quality was amateurish or professional. Its focus was to get the filmmaking images of the youth–whether it was making a point or just having fun– and get them on the big screen. This year did feature a lot of films done by the young. However it also featured a lot of productions by professional companies with a message to give to the young.
One of the top themes of the short films was bullying. This was especially the case as the United Way showcased the top three anti-bullying films by students. It was also focused on in a short film by a young Scottish director. Environmentalism was also a top theme of focus. With the controversial subject of shipping LNG’s, that was reflected in a BC film of three girls who have what starts as an innocent water balloon fight. There was the theme of youth representation which was focused on in a film done by five Hamilton teens. There was also the theme of digital media overkill that was shown in one young man’s film. There was also the theme of pressures young people face today–both socially and academically–as seen through the eyes of a young teen girl. Even teen love triangles were also focused. The theme of sexuality was included in a few films too including one on the topic of transgenderism from Portugal of a girl who always felt she was a boy.
The standout theme amongst the short films was to do about the promise and hope of a better tomorrow. That was reflected in one short film from Mexico about a boy who has to vacate his home to a new home. Another film showing the daily life of a Mexican-American girl’s mother while the daughter narrates in the background shows hope for her family. It was also reflected in an Iranian film of a young boy who sees hope in a piece of trash. It was even focused creatively in one film of a Bengali boy doing pretend filming. There was even one film from ex-street youth from Sierra Leone who showed what happens when they get $2000 handed to them immediately. The outcome isn’t what they expected but they all learned from it. I felt the message of hope for the future was best reflected in a film about a Peruvian youth orchestra where the orchestra is their escape from the poverty and harsh lives.
Sometimes the films weren’t always thematic. Sometimes they were reflections of people. There were two films which were of two different elderly people living in Greater Vancouver. One was the first black quarterback in professional football. Another was of a woman who just turned 91. Both were nice stories to hear. There was even a film about children in a small town in the Northwest Territories. It was just them playing in the background as the stories they tell of themselves and their family are told. It was a simple film that’s a nice eye opener.
Then there were films that try to get creative. This is where the young directors started to have fun. One was a story of a hitman’s murder attempt with poisonous muffins gone wrong. Another of a toy car getting lost and going on an adventurous trip. Another an animated adventure of a polar bear. Even an animated story of a fish dinner gone awry. No major point to it. Just a chance to have some fun and even possibly make a future out of it.
The films either came from all over the world or were shot in many places around the world. It made for an eclectic look at the lives of young people from a global perspective. Needs and concerns differ from one place to the next but they all share that common desire for hope for the future. There were at least eight films from Canadian filmmakers. There were six of which that were done locally. There was even one that was done by New Westminster youth and shot in areas I frequently visit. That was the film where it appears they’re giving adults a glove. Then they show they’re spreading the love. It left me wondering when it was filmed and how I wasn’t there at the time. I’m sure if they gave me the glove at first, I too would think: “What on earth is this?”
Just like last year, they gave all the attendees a ballot to fill out of their Top 3 films and favorite local. It’s hard to play favorites but here’s what I voted for:
Orchestra For A Dream – I rated it first because it had the best message of hope by showing a way out for disadvantaged youth.
Sin Madre – The film of the young girls’ mother and the daughter’s admiration for her really made me like this a lot.
What If There Was A Place? – Five Hamilton youth make their message heard that they demand to be taken seriously. Excellent two-minute film.
Best Local: And That’s Remarkable – A creative film that sends the message that you can either let bullying comments hurt you or you can defy them.
And there you go. That was the Reel Youth Film festival for this year. If you want to learn more about the Reel Youth Fest coming to your town or if you want to book a showing of your own, just go to the Reel Youth website.
Housebound is a thriller-comedy from New Zealand that’s put together way better than anything you can get from Hollywood.
Housebound was another one of those 11:30-at-the-Rio films I wanted to check out. It was my first of such. Glad I saw it. Very funny and entertaining.
Kylie Bucknell attempts to commit a robbery on an ATM. The robbery doesn’t work out as her partner is knocked out and she totals her getaway car thanks to driving fast over a big speed bump. The judicial system decides the best thing for her would be house arrest at her mother Miriam’s house. It seems like the right choice to do but the house is old and leaves Kylie with an eerie feeling.
Kylie’s feelings are justified when she hears Miriam call into a radio show talking of how weird it is around there. Then Kylie gets a taste of the eeriness as she notices things like an animated stuffed toy suddenly coming to life and even an old Motorola phone ringing out of nowhere. Even a dental partial has her suspicious. Kylie tries to alert authorities and others but they won’t believe her. Guests and other neighbors around the house are actually pleased at the possibility of a ghost.
Nevertheless Kylie and Miriam are persistent. The only one who believes her is Officer Grayson who knows of past incidents associated with this house such as this being a halfway house for young offenders. In fact the first person who’s the prime suspect in all of this is their shady neighbor. Despite his nasty attitude, he doesn’t register as a positive. However things become more suspicious when a friend of Miriam’s appears suspicious. Eventually the murderer is solved but not without an eerie chase.
For a horror-comedy like that to fly, it had to be done with the right acting, the right direction, and the right story. There have been horror-comedies done before but they would mostly come across as looking ridiculous in the end. Even Hollywood can get it wrong sometimes. This film got it right. From the start with a clumsy robbery attempt to the sense of something wrong in the house to the moment of climax at the end, it was done right. Even the parts intended to be dramatic didn’t come across as ridiculous nor did it dip into sentimentality that was too sappy. Looking back, it would be hard for me to see where the movie did things wrong. Even in terms of the gore, the film didn’t overdo it and it did its most gory part at the right time.
I will admit there were some parts that left me confused about what was happening. However they’d make sense in the end. Simply this is a movie that shouldn’t be taken too seriously. Its intent was to deliver a humorous thriller/horror story and it came across as way better than something Hollywood would do. It even had excellent balance between the dramatic parts and the humorous parts. If it didn’t, it would look ridiculous. I would have to watch over and over again to see if it made a false note. Even the death of the perpetrator didn’t come across as ridiculous despite it actually being a ridiculous death.
The comedic acting was just right in order to make this movie work. Morgana O’Reilly needed to deliver a protagonist character that had dimension despite having one that could come across as wooden. Instead she did a good job with Kylie and it came across very well. Rime Te Wiata was the show-stealer as the mother. Her role as the mother added to the comedy to the film thanks to the excellence of the performance. The male actors also did a good job in their roles despite being the supporting players. This is Gerard Johnstone’s first feature -length film and it’s an excellent finished product. Very entertaining and very professional. Another great thing about the script is that it didn’t deliver an awful lot of one-liners and instead delivered more on situational comedy. That worked for the better in this movie.
Housebound is an excellent horror-comedy that both keeps you intrigued and makes you laugh without having ridiculous moments like so many other horror-comedies are prone to do.
Les Combattants is an unlikely French romance between a girl with a tough attitude and a boy who’s more sensitive.
It was all a result of timing and availability for when I was able to see Love At First Fight or Les Combattants (working title in the US is Fighters). Even though it’s nothing too special, I’m glad I saw it.
Arnaud is a young Frenchman who works for his family’s contractor job in a French coastal city. That all changes when he does work in a family’s yard. He meets Madeleine, a young woman who’s beautiful but has a tough-as-nails personality. It’s tough because she has ambitions of being in the French army. Arnaud on the other hand is more sensitive. Sensitive enough to care for a stray ferret found in the yard.
The first meeting doesn’t go so well. They have as squabble and he bites her! The second time he thinks she’s crazy because she swims with a backpack full of ceramic shingles. Nevertheless he’s still drawn to her despite her negative attitude towards him. He even has army ambitions of his own. However it interferes with the family business while they still have a lot of jobs to do.
The two eventually do things together. However she still maintains a tough hard-as-nails attitude towards everything from a harmless ferret to even nightclubbing. He himself joins the army. The two help each other out and challenge each other along the way. Then an incident happens that causes Madeleine to run away. Arnaud soon finds her. However it’s once they’re out of the training area that they start to reveal their true feelings to each other. Finally Madeleine’s love for him comes out. However all fun ends when Madeleine suffers from food poisoning and Arnaud tries to take her to aid while the town they’re in is engulfed with smoke from a forest fire. The film ends predictably but not as fluffy as your typical Hollywood romance.
This film is an example of how France is making movies of their own. Sure the French are famous for making films. This would qualify more as a movie. Nevertheless there are some film qualities. One is the lack of a score in the background. Yes, there is background music at times but the film is mostly scoreless to get the environment of the story. Even though it’s not as artsy as your typical French film, there are some elements such as when Madeline hits Arnaud during a paintball exercise. Some could say it could resemble cupid shooting an arrow through his heart. Even the place of gender roles as the girl is the hard-ass one compared to the boy can be a French element in film.
As a movie, it’s good. However it’s not all that attention grabbing. It does have a story that can keep one interested once they watch more of the movie but only in that case. One thing I will say is that it does come across way more sensible than most teen romances, especially those from 20 years ago.
The film is devoid of big-name actors, even from France. Nevertheless they did impress. The young actors did well too. Adele Haenel was best as Madeleine. Madeleine could have come across as this stockish hard-ass army girl but her character had dimension to it. She was able to make the transition into the more sensitive feelings of her character very smoothly. Kevin Azais was also good in his role even though he wasn’t given too much of a role to work with. This is the first feature length film by director Thomas Cailley. This film for which he also co-wrote the script with Claude Le Pape is a good story and a good first effort and should lead to more promising work in the future. I can easily see the story itself being made into an American version.
Love At First Fight or Les Combattants is a good young adult romance even if it lacks what would normally bring young adults to the screen. Still it will keep your intrigue.
Mexico has delivered a lot of unique films over the years. One such film that has caught festival attention is Güeros which is filmed entirely in black and white. It makes for a unique story and a unique message within the story.
The film begins with Tomas, a young teenager from Veracruz, getting in trouble for tossing a water balloon off the top of his apartment. It lands on a baby. The baby’s fine but the mother’s had it with him and sends him to his student brother in Mexico City. There he meets his brother Federico, nicknamed ‘Sombra,’ who is supposed to be in university but the college is under strike for five months and has become almost threatening territory. Instead he lives in an evaded apartment with his friend Santos. One of the first things Santos notices is how Tomas is unlike his dark-skinned brother. He’s a Guero: a Mexican of light skin and hair. The apartment they live in is without electricity until Aurora, a mentally impaired girl in the suite down below, hands them an orange cord to steal electricity. It’s not easy for Sombra especially since the nights are cold and he has a hard enough time trying to sleep with the images of tigers in his mind because of his panic attacks but he has put up with it since the beginning. Their one getaway is the car but Sombra is too nervous to leave. Possibly because of his panic attacks.
Tomas already finds the first few days frustrating with limited time for electricity and relying on his Walkman to hear the music of Epigmenio Cruz and his camera to take pictures whenever he wants to. Epigmenio Cruz is no ordinary musician to the boys. He was a musician that ‘made Bob Dylan cry’ and almost launched Mexican rock into the mainstream. Then Tomas reads that Epigmenio was admitted to the hospital with cirrhosis of the liver. Tomas wants to meet him but Sombra won’t let him. Tomas then leaves in a fit of anger, especially after three hellish days of living with what Sombra puts up with. To make matters worse, the neighbors down below find out Sombra’s scheme to get electricity and the father chases after them. It’s then that they finally find Tomas who left to find Epigmenio. Sombra’s reluctant to leave the apartment but agrees to do so temporarily. It’s in the trip to the hospital to find Epigmenio that Sombra’s panic attacks come back.
At the hospital, they don’t find him there. They know he’s still alive but information of his whereabouts are kept secret. In the pursuit to find Epigmenio, the three boys first encounter a gang of thugs. Fortunately they leave before they could get into any more trouble. Then they come across a garden of carrots where they can finally have a chance to eat some real food. The next place they head to is the campus but Sombra is hesitant as he knows how dangerous it is. The three are able to make it in there where they’re able to retrieve Sombra’s girlfriend Ana, one of the activist leaders during the strike. Ana shows all the territories of the strike where the students set up their living quarters. Ana soon agrees to go with the boys to find Epigmenio before he dies.
Along the journey, they go to the city zoo and aquarium and Ana is able to help Sombra confront his fear over tigers. They go across the rich area of town and amongst people staring at their smart phones. They also go to the outer part of the city where they encounter store thugs and a boy who drops a brick from a bridge. Yeah, more bad apples in all shapes and sizes. They also come across a woman who was actually a model for the album of Epigmenio’s the boys have. They’re even introduced to his drawings. It’s right after they learn of his restaurant whereabouts of his that they leave town. This leads them to their destination and finally their chance. After the outcome, they return to the campus in the midst of the protest which Ana joins immediately and Sombra approaches without fear and with no panic attack whatsoever.
The thing about the film is that you think it’s going to be about a certain thing but no matter what you thought it would be about, it’s about something else too. And something you didn’t expect it to be about. I first thought it would be about Tomas growing up or learning something about student life at first. I’m sure most of you thought it was about that trip to see Epigmenio. Even though it was about that as far as the plot is concerned, it’s about more. I’ve sensed it’s about Mexico and its art. The boys are immersed in Epigmenio’s music but they also see and hear other art. They hear the poem Ana says as it talks of the struggle of Mexican people and hope coming from it. We hear Mexican music. We see art amongst the student protesters. We see the superficiality of the rich. We see the pettiness and the struggle of the poor from all sides. We’re also given the plot of student protests. A key factor since news has come out about killing and abductions during student protests in Mexico. Then the four meet Epigmenio for the first time and they tell his they realized why his music means so much to Mexicans including their late father and themselves. Interesting that we never know if they got his autograph or not.
Spoiler Alert: For discussion of the theme, the ending will be revealed in this paragraph. I think that what the top point of what the film was. There was the point of the hardships Mexican people have gone through before and now it’s the young’s turn to be fighters for a better tomorrow. But the top point I believe was to take a visual snapshot at Mexican life through all the four experience both on campus and throughout their trip all over Mexico and show what makes the message of hope in Mexican art. Then the film ends with Tomas taking a picture of his brother in the midst of the protest. It’s like his picture is the making of Tomas’ art. Sometimes in looking back I often think that the scene where Tomas and the three others approaching Epigmenio is almost like the ‘passing of the torch’ of Mexican artistry from Epigmenio who’s near death to Tomas who’s young and full of pictures to take.
Interesting that this is Alonso Ruiz Palacios’ first ever feature-length film. He’s done short films and television before but this is his first feature-length and it’s an excellent work. Sebastian Aguirre also did very good as Tomas. He did a very honest portrayal of a young Mexican teen that wasn’t too over the top or showy. Tenoch Huerta and Ilse Salas were both good in their supporting roles. Sometimes you’re tempted to think the film’s about them. A bonus note is that Gael Garcia Bernal is an associate producer of this film. Unique that a story like this can attract a big name like him. The film has already won awards like Best Debut Feature at the Berlin Film Festival as well as Best New Narrative Feature and Cinematography In A Narrative Feature at the Tribeca Film Fest
Güeros is a unique Mexican film that is worth watching. It’s been said ‘the journey is the destination.’ Such is the case here where the journey is an eye-opener for the four and a message of hope for young Mexicans.
1987 is an autobiographical movie about director Ricardo Trogi in his teen years played by Jean-Carl Boucher (extreme right).
Remember last year when I talked about movies from other countries as much as I talked about films? Well I had the good luck of catching my first movie at the VIFF just recently. It’s a movie from Quebec called 1987 and it’s very entertaining.
The film begins with 17 year-old Ricardo Trogi breaking up an organizational meeting where the ‘powers that be’ organize that a teen should decide at 17 what he wants to do with the rest of his life. Ricardo breaks it up because he knows it won’t work. He’s 17 and he can’t decide.
Flash forward to the plot. Ricardo is about to graduate from high school and he has four big goals for this year: lose his virginity to his girlfriend Marie-Josee, get into night clubs, get a car and strike it rich with his big plan. Sound like big dreams but it’s not going to come true easily. His parents want him to get a job to learn responsibility. All the attempts from him and his three friends to get into Quebec’s top club fail. Marie-Josee is reluctant to go all the way. And his big goal is to open a night club for teens. That takes some doing since he has a $50 bill from Columbia House after falling for their 10 tapes for a penny ‘deal.’ Yeah, I fell for that too.
Things start pretty bumpy. He does get his first car but it’s a shabby Lada. He has a chance to lose his virginity but it’s postponed as he starts work on the one day Marie’s parents are away. His moneymaking chance flops with his first job as a valet. Hey, totaling a BMW will get you out in a record-short two hours. Then it’s by chance with his friends that they notice an expensive car stereo. Fortunately for them, no one’s around to see them steal it. That gives Ricardo an idea of being a stereo peddler to get the money for his night club. It starts to pay off. The more stereos he and his buds get, the more they can sell. Once he reaches 18, he can get into night clubs with his friends and be ‘the man.’ He even gets the notice over there of a Sara, female classmate he liked but the other boys called ‘STD’ behind her back.
However things don’t work as planned. First he finds out Marie-Josee kissed another man. He hears it right on prom night. He leaves her and then goes to the night club where he’s able to win over Sara. However he finds out that ‘STD’ is actually a virgin and confused with life. To make things worse, he finds out his friend and ‘partner in crime’ spends too much time with Marie-Josee. Then comes the Waterloo for him as the police know of his stereo theft. It all ends there. Nevertheless it ends with the director giving a final reflection at the end.
The thing that grabbed me most was that this movie was possibly the most truthful about the 1980’s of all 80’s-themed movies. You know how sometimes when you see a retro movie they don’t entirely get it exactly retro? They include some modern stuff but try to make it look classic? Like those 70’s-like hairstyles worn by the teens of Happy Days? Not in 1987. It grabbed me that this was the 80’s retro film that had to be the most exact when it came to 80’s style from multitude of armbands to plastic glasses on women and aviator glasses on men to girls in big hair to guys in tight jeans. I noticed very little present styles in this. And I’m an 80’s teen! Also that talk of opening a night club for teens. That was a unique 80’s thing. I even remember a teen night club in Winnipeg in the 80’s called Changes.
It’s not just the clothes and teen clubs that made it very precise in depicting the 80’s but also the entertainment they talked about and music played in the soundtrack. They played a lot of signature 80’s songs like Forever Young and Cum On Feel The Noize and there was talk about a U2 song affecting Marie-Josee’s mood. Having the Pet Shop Boys’ It’s A Sin fit the chase scene perfectly and even reminded me that I liked it. There were also a lot of lesser known 80’s gems in there too like Flock of Seagulls’ Space Age Love Song (which I prefer over ‘I Ran’), Run DMC’s It’s Like That and even uniquely Canadian 80’s gems like Luba’s Every Time I See Your Picture and even a Quebec 80’s gem from Martine St.Claire. Another such is the movie poster of The Untouchables which Ricardo thinks it’s about Al Capone being tough. The poster actually is a symbol of Ricardo’s teenage delusion as The Untouchables was about Al Capone getting caught. Eventually the Quebec police would become Ricardo’s Eliot Ness.
Another thing about it is that it was able to make light about a lot of teenager difficulties. Especially the age of 17 when you’re expected to decide what you want to do with your life and a lot of unexpected changes happen. Sure, you graduate high school but often your friends and even your high school sweetheart move on to pursue other things. First off the movie was able to make light of the shitty attitudes in both Nadia’s reclusiveness and Ricardo’s frustrations. It was also to make light of the romantic confusions of Marie-Josee and Sara. It was also able to showcase a lot of the typical teenage stupidities in a funny way. Especially Ricardo’s stupidity of thinking he’s ready to take on the world with his idea and that he can make it big on stealing car radios. The radio heist was especially amusing because he was acting like he was Don Corleone but he was a complete amateur. 16 year-olds in the ‘hood are better at playing the game than Ricardo. Nevertheless it’s funny to watch as most of us have passed the age of 18 and can even see their own past in it. We laugh because all Ricardo and his teen friends go through, even the toughest stuff, are all a case of ‘you live and you learn.’ Even cruel stuff like Sara being nicknamed ‘STD’ can be laughed off as the stupidity we once had.
I didn’t know until recently that 1987 was actually a sequel to 1981, another autobiographical film by Ricardo Trogi in which Jean-Carl Boucher also played Ricardo. I’ve never seen it so I can’t compare 1987 to 1981 at all. I will say it’s a very entertaining film in its own right and Trogi should be very proud of the movie he delivered. Like I say, any 80’s teen can identify with this and laugh along to it. It’s almost like they’re laughing at themselves. Jean-Carl Boucher was very good in his role as Ricardo. He was naturally comedic in the role without coming across as too stockish of a character. He made the comedic side of teen awkwardness look 3D. Actually all the teen actors were very good in their roles as they came off very believable especially in terms of showing teenage confusion and frustration in both comedic and serious lights. The adult actors were also good but it was Sandrine Bisson as the mother who was the best scene stealer. She reminds you of every mother and the crazy frustrated attitude they have. Yeah, juts when you though your mom was weird, it becomes apparent it’s a mom thing.
1987 is a funny movie that can appeal to all sorts of people like teens and grown adults or even people who just like 80’s stuff. It will bring back memories of the time. And of you.
Li’l Quinquin is a story of a young French boy and the summer that changed his life forever.
Last year the first film I saw at the VIFF was a French movie that was three hours long. I’m sure most of you know which one I’m talking about. This year the first movie I see at the VIFF is another three hour long French movie. This time it’s titled Li’l Quinquin and it’s a very different French film.
Quinquin is a young boy growing up on a farm in northern France where his parents for the Lebleu family. He likes playing games with his friends and being bad by razzing people with his firecrackers. He also has a crush on Eve, the girl from the neighboring farm who plays trumpet for the legion and has a sister Aurelie with singing ambitions. It’s the summer and it should be fun time for all the kids in the village.
However the village is hit with shock as one of its people was murdered. Mme Lebleu’s remains were found stuffed in the carcass of a cow found inside a war bunker located near the Lebleu farm Quinquin’s family works. On the case is Commandant van der Weyden: an incompetent officer with uncontrollable facial twitching and a suspicion for certain people like young people like Quinquin. He is assigned to look into this along with his partner Lieutanant Carpentier.
After the funeral for Mme Lebleu–which was bizarrely conducted with a happy organist, Aurelie singing her pop song and the baton team Lebleu instructed twirling at the burial– another murder happens with the remains also stuffed in the cow. This time it’s Mr. Bhiri, the African father whom Mme Lebleu had an affair with. The suspicion continues to grow and van der Weyden pursues others he feel may be linked like Mr. Lebleu and even Mme Campin, the new leader of the baton team who has been known to have an affair with Mr. Lebleu. Meanwhile Quinquin and the kids are still trying to be kids swimming in the ocean, performing during the Bastille Day parade, playing games, Aurelie competing in a local talent contest and winning and Quinquin falling in love with Eve.
Not all of it is innocent fun as two boys of African and Moroccan descent are harassed by Quinquin and his friends. One boy, Mohammed the African who was the son of Mr. Bhiri, is especially harassed. The harassment gets to him as he is interrupted by them as he’s sharing an intimate moment with Aurelie. Meanwhile van der Weyden and Carpentier are being pressed by their superior to find the killer behind all these murders. They try to find out more information like the bunker near the Lebleu farm, the connection with Mme. Campin and even the feudal situation with led to the younger Mr. Lebleu owning Dany, the mentally impaired nephew.
Then things take a turn for the worse in the town. Mohamed goes on a shooting rampage from the top of his house. The rampage ends with him committing suicide. Aurelie finds the news hard to bear. Soon she is found dead inside of a pig. Possibly also a victim of murder. Then Mme Campin is found murdered on the beach but all in one piece. This soon leads van der Weyden to pursue a final answer to who the murderer is. This leads to an ending that is unexpected and anticipated by nobody.
One of the things about this film is that it tries to blend bizarre humor in the midst of what is a grisly set of murders. There are a lot of tragic parts to it but the humor mixes itself into it. The humorous bits seem bizarre at first but later on you think that it did fit the film well and helped make it. I’m unsure what is big in terms of French comedy but it definitely worked well. Even a character like Commandant van der Weyden will remind a lot of people of Inspector Cluseau with his bumbling. One thing about van der Weyden is even with his clumsiness and his twitchy face, he does have a serious side. I think that’s what the focus of the film was: ironies and humor in what is a horrific situation in a town. The humor does fade away after each additional murder happens and as it leads to its conclusion.
The funny thing is how this story of a string of murders intertwines with the life of the little boy Quinquin. Quinquin is just a young farm boy doing what most boys his age do: play games, act tough with his peers and fall in love. He may have been questioned about the murders at first but they don’t begin to affect him. It’s only once those he knows dies within that circle that it does start to change him. Especially since one victim is his girlfriend’s sister. It becomes more obvious later on.
The crazy thing is that the ending is not the clearest. You first think it’s a murder story and we’ll get the answer to who did it at the end. However those who saw it were still left both surprised and confused. Almost as if to debate what the point of the film was. Or maybe the main purpose of the film wasn’t to be about the murders but rather about Quinquin. One thing we notice is how Quinquin only has simple curiosity in the murders or just giving Commandant van der Weyden a hard time at first that is until the victims become people he knows or had somewhat of a connection to. He didn’t have too much of a connection to Mr. and Mme. Lebleu or Mohamed’s father but he knew Mohamed and he knew Aurelie. He went from a typical boy who liked playing naughty games and just falling in love with Eve to having his childhood fun end and being the one person who can console Eve. That could be the main theme of the film rather than it being a ‘whodunit’ story.
The film features a wide variety of themes added into the story. One of the two most present is the theme of nationalism with the whole situation happening in the summer especially around Bastille Day. The theme of racism is present as France may be a country with a lot of immigrants from central and North Africa, there’s still a lot of racism and xenophobia especially in the smaller towns. The second is the theme of disabilities or physical awkwardness. Quinquin is a boy with a harelip. Commandant van der Weyden has uncontrollable facial twitching. Dany is mentally impaired and there’s even a conversation between van der Weyden and his superior in a restaurant while a British family with a mentally impaired son is trying to dine. I feel Dumont is trying to add a point here. I’m sure Dumont was trying to add in more points with bodies being found in animal carcasses or even about Aurelie’s song ‘Cause I Knew’ or even the ties of French inheritances but it’s too much to say and will require a lot of afterthought.
Overall this may be a long film by Bruno Dumont but it tells an intriguing story. Actually it’s not really a film but a four-part miniseries compiled as a big screen film. Most outside of France wouldn’t know this was originally on television. Nevertheless Dumont does a great job here by taking a dark story and mixing surprise humor in there but still keeping the story sensitive. I think he aimed for irony in this series. Bernard Pruvost was a great scene stealer as the commandant. He could have easily been seen as a ‘rip-off’ of Inspector Cluseau’ but he didn’t go over-the-top in terms of his character’s awkwardness or his klutziness. He also made his character’s facial twitching look natural as if it was uncontrollable rather than wooden. Alane Delhaye was very good as Quinquin. He was good at playing a child who was natural and not your typical sugar-coated child character. The end especially was the best part of Delhaye’s performance. Lucy Caron was also good as Eve as she was able to go from your typical carefree girl to a girl now hurt. There were additional good performances from Lisa Hartmann, Stephane Boutillier and Jason Cirot.
Li’l Quinquin is an intriguing film to watch despite it being long and despite the ending being unexpected. Actually it does fare best as the miniseries it originally was. Nevertheless regardless of the format, it will keep your attention onto what will happen next.
Jon The Blogcentric 