Wrap-Up - Part II
THE MOVIES
I HAVE RESERVATIONS ABOUT

The Brown Bunny
I have little respect for a man who continually goes on about a film critic's personal illness as though it was deserved and no respect for a man who takes the position based on a movie review. I misspoke… he is not a man, but a pathetic little boy who is terribly desperate for attention. Brave though Chloe Sevigny was for performing fellatio on screen with the intent of serving art, I see it as little more than a form of abuse from a man who likes to take advantage of people who want to support his aspirations.

That said, they should be calling this one "The Sixth Blowjob," since for all intents and purposes, it is a pathos-enriched version of the Shyamalan movie, shot through a gauze of self-indulgence. The rage about the film is a bit of a mystery, but I am guessing that the limit on irritation in Toronto is a result of a full 30 minutes cut from the movie. The movie is essentially one long whine followed by a last second revelation that is, indeed, a somewhat satisfying payoff. And like prayer, there is some value in experiencing the journey. It's hard to say how significant that value really is. I don't think any of us will really know until it is 2am some morning next year when the film turns up on Cinemax and we choose to sit or not to sit through the 75 minutes.

Casa de los Babys
A John Sayles film that is all too brief. Great actresses giving great performances and not quite enough time to spend with them all.

Dallas 362
Scott Caan is going to be a good director. He needs a more focused writer to work with.

Easy
Jane Weinstock is really an hour-long TV person, judging from the work here. But part of good TV is great casting and Weinstock has a great eye for talent that is just about ripe… well, at least with the women. Her lead, Marguerite Moreau is good looking in the Jennifer Jason Leigh range… not a drop dead beauty by Cosmo cover standards, but beautiful enough and deeply compelling from the heart out. Emily Deschanel, currently best known for having a sister named Zooey, has her own unique thing going on, with much of Zooey's on-screen intelligence, but with a more conventional look. Weinstock does not do as well with the guys, who are fairly boring. And perhaps that is why the film does not fly as it should.

Go Further
Ron Mann's alleged hemp doc is really just a Woody Harrelson & Friends roadtrip, which is compelling enough, but not what the doctor ordered. As it turns out, the most compelling character on the trip is the young co-ed that gets picked up for a portion of the trip… she is the only character in the movie with an arc. It is entertaining and it will make you thing, but it is not the movie you hoped for when you sat down in the theater.

Haute Tension
The English title for this one is Switchblade Romance, which is kind of off the point. Essentially, this is an odd combination of Dressed To Kill and Halloween. It is a kind of fun, bloody romp, if you are up for that kind of thing. But I can't day it was as good as it should have been. There is room for a 20% improvement in a remake, which would put it on the top shelf of kill flicks.

In The Cut
This one's not an unmitigated disaster, but it is kind of a mess. You can see what drew Jane Campion to this Looking for Mr. Good Cop, circa 2003, but there is too much story for a movie that is all about mood. We never really get to the core issues, even though they are more compelling than the police procedural we are often stuck watching. And from what I am told, the ending of the book is much, much more interesting than what we get stuck with here.

Love Actually
The film needs some restructuring and pruning, but regardless, many will fall in love with this one. As I wrote before, the difference is between success and the next level… $140 million versus $190 million… Oscar nominations vs. a big February video release…

Mayor of the Sunset Strip
A very good doc about a sprite who made Sunset Strip his sycophantic domain. But something was missing. Maybe it is the sense of celebrating the pathetic, which occasionally turns its teeth on its subject, who seems like a lifelong success victim.

Noi Albinoi
Not really my cup of comedy. But if you loved Songs From The Second Floor, you will surely love this one too.

Nine Souls
The very best remake opportunity of this year's film festival. It is so well designed that and American indie version budgeted under $10 million would not only be highly profitable, but could well turn out to be legendary. The story about nine convicted murderers who escape and go on a road trip is both a well-structured character comedy and a drama of redemption and loss. I don't know what kind of business the film can do in America in its current version. But the version loaded with young, hip, indie talent is a small dunk.

Osama
I wish I could like this one more. But the tale of a girl who must pretend to be a boy to assist in her family's survival is intense, interesting and really, really dusty. And no, it has nothing to do with bin Laden.

Out of Time
This Carl Franklin film tries really hard to find its own place at the thriller table and in some ways, it works like a charm. Denzel is excellent, as is Eva Mendes in her first real role in any movie. But it is a tropical version of No Way Out that only works in stretches. That was enough to entertain me and not leave me frustrated, but it wasn't quite all the way there. That said, I expect it to make a significant dent in the domestic box office when it arrives here.

The Return
Much like Osama, a proud foreign effort that just didn't rock my world. There is more here to appreciate and the film kept my interest. But in the end, it seems to me that this is a classic Critic's Movie.

Shattered Glass
A great Showtime movie… a really good HBO movie… and underappreciated A&E movie. The performances are good. The story is interesting…. but more to press people than to real human beings, I fear. Only a writer could really spend this much time considering the details of a self-aggrandizing liar for any longer than it would take to throw him out of the bar... or to get him to exec produce your movie.

The Singing Detective
Robert Downey, Jr. and Mel Gibson are standouts in this posthumous return to the land of Dennis Potter. But the narrative balance and the emotional structure never quite come together. If you love Potter, you will want to see this film. It's imperfections are part of its many charms.

The Station Agent
Plays like a short…. ha ha ha.. I crack myself up. The ultimate festival film, this one meanders charmingly and seems to be in no rush to get anywhere. It's not easy being short… or dumb… or the parent of a dead child.

Undead
Sometimes, you just need a good zombie movie. What the Spierig Brothers did with less than $1 million and PC-made effects is remarkable. And unlike Cabin Fever, it really does deliver everything it claims. Perhaps too much so, as the film goes off into an alien tangent that is clever, but that noise you hear in the theater is the kitchen sink being removed so the guys can throw it in there. And while there is not a bit of female nudity to peruse, the mountain man guy goes the full monty.

Underworld
It is certainly the loudest movie of the year. There was a great idea here and I expect the sequel to be an improvement. Len Wiseman has first time directors disease in a big way… every frickin' thing is in close up. Scott Speedman gets better as the movie goes on, his acting moving from balsam to pine. Kate Beckinsale is lovely, but the constant close-ups of her face make her beauty boring after a while. And why in God's name did you put her in the latex pants if you aren't going to light her ass? I mean, really. This is not an art film… it's a vampire/werewolf showdown. You could put a shot of her ass in frame by itself for minutes at a time and I guarantee you, this audience would be thrilled. Instead, you spend the entire movie being teased, like a fan trying to find a non-Vaseline shot of Warren Beatty in a post-1976 film. Bill Nighy KILLS!!! He is great, as he is in Love Actually. On the flip side, Shane Brolly, who is very good looking, may be the single worst actor in the history of talking movies.

Veronica Guerin
A well made, well acted film that comes up a little short because of the truth of this true-life story. As right as feeling sympathy for the death of Veronica Guerin is, she is not a very sympathetic character. She went looking for trouble and found it. Was she really a crusader? Not really. A good person? Absolutely. But it's not the kind of story that leaves you full of righteous indignation… and I think it wanted to. Cate Blanchett is, as always, perfection.

Wilbur Wants To Kill Himself
I kind of which he had succeeded in the first act. There is a lot of lovely stuff here, but I didn't find the sad tale of a man who wants to kill himself and another who has to die to make life easier for others terribly compelling. I wanted to. And I liked all of the actors. But it felt like a long story in an AA meeting (I am guessing), not really like a movie. I guess that I am demanding more of the film than it chose to offer, but I felt like the aspirations were clear and they just weren't reached.

Part I: The Films I Liked | Part II: With Reservations
Part III: Disappointing | Part IV: Sorry To Miss