JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH (2021) Sundance 2021

 

This is the story of the death of Fred Hampton the head of the Black Panther Party after he was betrayed by William O'Neil.

Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield star as the two leads and they are absolutely wonderful. I fully expect them to get a boatload of awards for their work.

As for the rest of the film it never quite made the impact I think it should have.

For me the problem with the film comes from the way Hampton and O'Neil are handled. To me they came off more as mythic figures rather than men. There is a reverence for the men and a desire to make the tale  a mythic one that prevented me from connecting. He really does seem like the messiah of the title and not the man I have seen in the footage I've seen of him speaking.

This is not to say that the film is bad, it is not. However I have been living with this film as a probable front runner for the Oscar for the last few months and the expectation for a truly great film was high. Honestly it didn't live up to the hype and I just don't see it. It's good but it's not that good.

Worth a look when the film hits theaters and HBO Max on Friday

USERS (2021) and ALL LIGHT EVERY WHERE (2021)Sundance 2021

USERS
Natalia Alada's meditation on technology and how it is change existence is a gorgeous film. 

Playing like a modern version of the Godfrey Reggio SQATSI trilogy it is a visually compelling film. Narrative wise I was less compelled with much of the whispered narration echoing other sources that are pondering how the world is changing.

While it is good on it's own terms, and something you won't be able to look away from while it's on the fil will probably leave you once it's done.

ALL LIGHT EVERYWHERE
An examination and pondering of the nature of observation and how we effect what we observe.

Overly pretentious film is very intent on making its points by using text in place of narration and hammering home its ideas by having some sequences go on way too long. Watching the film trying so hard to prove its point prevented me from ever really connecting.

While I admire what it was tying to do, and while I could intellectually see what it was proving, I never connected to it emotionally with the result I just wanted to say That's nice dear and pat it on the head and send it on its way.

PRESIDENT (2021) Sundance (2021)

Observational portrait of Nelson Chamisa's attempt to become President of Zimbabwe after Robert Mugabe was forced from office. 

This is an excellent look at the state Zimbabwe in the aftermath of a coup. While it is a bit hopeful the reality is the corruption has run deep and the deck is stacked. It is also a film you can't stop watching because it pulls you along.

While I could quibble about the length, I won't, However I will say that the only really flaw is that the film could explain Mugabe a bit better than it does.

Recommended

AMY TAN: UNINTENDED MEMOIR (2021) Sundance 2021

 This film is nominally the story of writer Amy Tan largely in her own words, however it actually is so much more including a biography of her mother, and exploration of mother/daughter dynamic, families, the creative process, mental health and several other things that I'm forgetting.

To be honest I saw the film simply because it was there. I had seen pretty much anything I had wanted to for the day and it was there. I figured I's watch a little bit and then do some writing. The only writing I did the night of the premiere was to text and email fiends to say how much they needed to see the film. That may sound like hyperbole but once you see the film you will know how that is true- you too will want to press copies of the film into the hands of your friends.

This film moved me on any number of levels. One moment, an unexpected phone call from her mother wrecked me to the point I had to stop the film and cry for a while. Once I finished the film I wanted to pick up a pen and start writing.

AMY TAN: THE UNINTENDED MEMOIR is a magnificent literary achievement. It is a film that transcends definition  to be something universal.

How good is it?

Right before seeing the film I filled out my ballot for the Sundance Critics Awards figuring the film wouldn't enter into it. I am annoyed because I couldn't redo my picks for the awards.

This is a must see.

Brief thoughts on Writing With Fire (2021) Sundance 2021

 This is the story of the a group of Dahlit women, a caste considered the lowest of the low,  who started their own newspaper. The film picks up as they begin to put coverage up on You Tube and their work is getting more and more attention. They are bringing matters such as sexual violence and illegal mining to light and thus taking on the patriarchal society. Its a battle that they face  head on.

This is a good look at a bunch of women fighting the good fight and changing their world. I love that we get to know a good number of the women so that we can really understand what they are doing and what is at stake. Its a dangerous job especially consider that being a reporter in India is tough enough, never mind being one from a lower caste.

Recommended. One of the great discoveries at Sundance.

Searchers (2021) Sundance 2021

 SEARCHERS is look at New Yorkers trying to find love on the internet via apps. 

While the film has a  great deal of interesting material, I mean its great the way everyone really opens up, I grew weary of the physical form of the film. The staring at the faces of people looking at things on computer screen we can only marginally see grows tiring especially after this so many other films are using this new cinematic style. I honestly didn't know why I was watching this since there is so little to look at.

Worth seeing for the discussion  but not for the presentation.

Ailey (2021) Sundance 2021

 

Portrait of choreographer Alvin Ailey, his company and his influence in the world of dance and beyond.

This is a very good documentary about a man I knew nothing about and whose company I've enjoyed over the years. I loved that this film opened my eyes about a whole bunch of things I never knew. I never knew about Ailey. I only kind of understood what he was doing with his dancing. I love it when I see something that truly opens my eyes to something.

If you are interested in Ailey you are going to love this film. If you love dance you are going to love this film.

If I have any complaint about this film its that the telling isn't anything special. Sue me the structure of the film is kind of run of the mill, and while that might work for someone of a lesser stature than Alvin Ailey with a man who changed the form of dance and how we see  the world I was hoping I was hoping  something more.

Still this is a super film and worth a look.

Random Sundance 2021 Notes and capsule reviews

With Sundance all done I want to begin to wrap things up. While I will be running some reviews past this I want to take tie to say a few things and mention some films not getting full reviews

I had a good time covering Sundance remotely. It was a kind of return to the festival going since because of the way things were done I got to talk to friends about the same films about the same time we all were watching them.

 I may have questions as to how they did things, forgive me I am a dinosaur in some regards, but I once I got things going and I understood how everything worked I was fine.

Also had I known going in that I know now I would have taken the days off to cover instead of trying to multitask. I think it would have gone better- largely because I could have slotted more films.

---

As this posts I'm still working on the last bunch of full reviews but there are still some films I need to mention in passing or as capsule reviews

I want to note some films I started but stepped away from for one reason or another

For example I tried the film FLEE about an Afghani refugee in Denmark after seeing three of the best films of the festival in rapid succession. Not long after starting the film I realized that what I was seeing was very good but it was paling in comparison so I stepped away. Since the film has been picked up for regular release I'll try it again down the road.

PINK MANSIONS lost me early. This has the feel of the off beat inde films from the 1980's and early 1990's that I never really liked. Those films always seemed to be trying to be clever than they were. I couldn't give myself over to the film so I stopped.

By the time I hit MASS I was winding down in the day. An incredibly intense film (expect Oscar nominations for the performances) I was not in a place to handle it emotionally. Its a tough film at times. And I had to step away and try it on another day when I could give it my fullest attention.

And then there were other films that I just am not up to writing up as full reviews:

PASSING was one of my must sees at Sundance and I couldn't connect to it. I kept seeing the hand of the filmmaker instead of the film. Worse I kept wondering what an African American writer/director would have done with it.

THE SPARKS BROTHERS is good. I dare say it is my favorite Edgar Wright film, but there is zero need for it to run almost two and a half hours.

TAMING THE GARDEN is nominally about the moving of a giant tree and other things. However the only thing that remains are the images of the tree on a barge traveling across the ocean. The rest faded.

BLAZING WORLD is a mess. The story of a young woman seemingly breaking apart mentally has some incredible moments but never pulls it together. yea the sound design and craft can soar but the story never amounts to much and reminded me of other films.

PLEASURE is a look at the adult film industry and while it is a good film, and wonderfully not like Hollywood's portrayal of the industry, it doesn't do anything unexpected. On the other hand its frank handling of the material and refusal to paint things as purely black or white has left me still pondering the  film and unable to write more  than this little bit (for now). This one is worth a look.

THE DOG WHO WOULDNT BE QUIET is an off kilter film  that starts off about a man and his dog and then it turns left into the story of a pandemic where to be safe you can't be higher than four feet off the ground. You either click with the quirky nature or you don't. I didn't and while I could  appreciate what it is it just didn't work for me.

MAYDAY is a weird tale of a young lady thrown through dimensions to a time full of war being fought by an feminist army. It's a film that felt like a strange Off Broadway play turned into a film that couldn't shake the constraints of the stage. I was fighting with it, waiting for it to seem like it was more than a mannered theater piece.

And now to finish up the remaining full reviews  and look forward to next year,

And a big THANK YOU to the people at Sundance for letting me cover the fest this year.

Sabaya (2021)

 The sabaya of the title are the Isis sex slaves they take from the lands the conquered.  They grabbed young women and brutalized them for their pleasure. Using a mobile phone and a gun, Mahmud, Ziyad and other volunteers from the Yazidi Home Center go into the  camps holding Isis warriors and their families and attempt to find and grab the sabaya being hidden inside.

Watching the film I was initially thinking that the film was going to be the a simple recounting of the efforts to get the women out of the camps.  However as I was watching the film I realized that the film was actually something much more frightening. Its a chilling cat and mouse game that never really ends.

I loved  this film. I loved that the film went from my watching this and pondering the rest of Sundance to  just staring at the screen and repeating several sequences because I just had to see them again.

This is a great film. Its a story of good people trying to help free people from the darkness. I can't recommend it enough.

FAYA DAYI (2021) Sundance 2021

Jessica Beshir's FAYA DAYI is one of the hidden gems of this years Sundance. A gloriously filmed black and white tone poem on  the Ethiopian crop of Khat. Khat is a plant that is turned into a drug that Sufi Muslims use to commune with god and others use just to get high and feel good.  

I really don't know what to say but you should see this film, preferably big and without distractions. This is a film you will fall into. It's hypnotic and compelling. Beshir's presentation is such that she creates an amazing headspace in the audience where we are in a place that we have never been before.  Watching the film I found myself just staring at the film going along wide eyed.

I'm sorry that I'm not going into detail into the things we see in the film, but what we see isn't as important as the ride.

I love this film.

Highly recommended 

Bring Your Own Brigade (2021)Sundance 2021

 Chilling look at the wild fires that are running through the American west. This is a film that explores  why it is happening, how we can stop it and ends up revealing some unexpected bits of information.

This is a tough film. Much of the first hour are images of the recent wild fires that scorched California. In telling a detailed story of what happened and why we are dropped into the fires themselves. It becomes a crushing experience. Once we truly grasp the horrors of the fires we begin to  look into the whys and hows. 

This film is a stunner. This is a film that we all need to see. Partly because it tells the story f the fires now, but more important it does something so few documentaries of any sort does and that is put its subject into a historical context. For example the original Europeans who came to California didn't land because the land was on fire.... no one mentions that, and as a result we really can't fix the problem. 

I really loved this film. I love the images and the depth of the discussions. Mostly I love the humanity of everyone on the screen.

I can't recommend this film enough.

Highly recommended. (Though be warned the fire footage is truly frightening)

MARVELOUS AND THE BLACK HOLE (2021) Sundance 2021

 

MARVELOUS AND TH E BLACK HOLE may not be the highest of high art but damn is it entertaining.

The story is about 1 year old Sammy. She is trying to deal with the death of her mom. Unfortunately she has anger issues Her father tells her to either finish a course he has signed her up for r she is going to boot camp. She hates the course and tries to walk out on the first day and right into the path of an older woman who is a magician. Sammy is forced to become her assistant and the meeting changes her life.

Okay yes, you know how this is going to go, but you know what you won't care. This is a wonderful little film with heart and great characters. Its a film that simply charms you. Yes you've been here before, but you really don't care because you like everyone on screen. 

And I need to say one thing while you know where it's going I don't think you'll sort out how it's gonna get there. There are a couple of gentle turns that keep everything fresh.

I don't know what to say other than this is a big hug of a film that put a smile on my face.

Recommended.

We're All Going To The Worlds Fair (2021) Sundance 2021

 

A young girl gets lost while playing an on line video game and chatting with another player.

I haven't figure out if I didn't like ...WORLD'S FAIR because it's not that engaging or because I'm not connected to the online world as much as Casey our heroine.  I know part of my dislike is the device of having most of the film being  either people sitting staring at the computer screen or images of the computer. Yes there are other images but so much of the film is computer related my interest waned.  

My interest waning was not because what was there was bad, more that too many of the sequences run on way too long. The opening shot of the film is roughly ten minutes long.  While it sets up the sense of isolation and the character and the "world" it goes on way too long. Several other sequences do the same thing, staying  much too long.

I should point out that my dislike of the film is not the result of anything being wrong with the story, the acting (Anna Cobb is excellent in a demanding role) or the actual technical filmmaking, my problem is more with the presentation which is uneven. While there were sequences that impressed the hell out of me, the hands out of the computer sequence had me talking to the screen (and rewatching it), the pacing was off and the static meandering of much of it made it a tough slog to get through.

In all honesty there is a good chance that I am not the audience for this film. In the press notes writer director Jane Schoenbrun talks about how she is making the film for a specific audience who will find hope in her discussion of dysphoria. There is a good chance that my not being trans or nonbinary I can't fully connect with what she is trying to say simply because it is outside my experience. There is nothing wrong with that. It simply means that I will have to walk away until I can find a way to connect.

While I didn't like the film as a whole I will say that there is enough good here that I want to see what writer director Jane Schoenbrun does next.

Street Gang Or How We Got To Sesame Street (2021) Sundance 2021

 

Wonderful portrait of Sesame Street from the initial idea through the death of Jim Henson. While Henson is not always the focus of the film, his death was the point where the show changed.

I've been sitting on doing a review for this film since I saw it a couple of days ago for a couple of reasons. The first is that I got over whelmed with other films. The review could wait as I watched the other films at Sundance.  

The other reason is I didn't know what to say. 

Yes you've been here before. Yes you've seen some of this material. At the same time the presentation is such that it will make you cry in both sadness and happiness. If you grew up on the show you will nostalgic. If you have been there, like me, from the start it will connect up your entire life.

Ultimately I simply decided to do a short piece and simply say- this is like the best episode of Sesame Street -it will entertain you while showing you something you didn't know.

Highly recommended.

World to Come (2020) Sundance 2021

THE WORLD TO COME is going to split audiences. Either you are going to fall in love with its measured "inde" feel of gorgeous cinematography, lowkey performances, and meaningful narration or you're going to fall asleep and giggle at it's pretentions.

The film is the story of two couples living in the wilderness in 1856. Abigail is married to Dyer. Her world goes upside down after their daughter passes away. A short time later Abigail meets Tally, her red haired neighbor. She is married to Finney. The women quickly realize that what is between them is more than friendship. 

With its mostly great  to look at, low key to the point of being underground style, and a whispered literary narration that wants to impart deep meaning, the film feels exactly a stereotypical inde film. This is a film that is going to be manna for many. It was designed and put together exactly for a specific audience.

Sadly I'm not one one of those.

While I can appreciate the actor's craft of this film it ultimately left me cold. 

Part of the problem is the glacial pacing. While I appreciate that it mirrors the pacing of life on the frontier, how it plays out for much of the running time is too measured. I drifted off.

The other problem with the film, for me, is the almost non-stop breathy narration. While I would love to listen to the narration as a book on tape, in the context of the film the narration works against the film. Why?  Because it largely removes the need for the images. Why are we watching the film when the narration tells us everything. Okay not everything, but damn near everything. So much is revealed in the narration that it effectively tells us how to feel and what to think. I thought movies were supposed to show not tell.

Forgive me I don't watch films to have my thoughts and feeling of what I'm seeing given to me, I would rather engage with film then be hit over the head by it.

Watching the film I couldn't not think of Portrait of a Lady on Fire from last year. Both films cover similar grounds, however Portrait is a much better and infinitely less pretentious film- and one that I would gladly watch again

Life in a Day 2020 (2021) Sundance 2021

 Kevin Macdonald fashions a look at one day across the globe based upon the short clips sent in to him. From birth to death it's all here as we watch life happen on July 25,2020.

I can't really critique this film subjectively. There is simply so much material here from the birth of several children, people protesting, children reading, road trips, last rites, parties and anything you can think of that there is something here for everyone. The question is how you take to the arrangement of things. I loved some bits I didn't like others, which I suspect will be your reaction as well.

What I did like about the film is that where many films made up of material from cellphones and other home video equipment only looks small, most if not all of the footage would look spectacular on the big screen. Half way into the film, during some sequence with drone footage all I could do was curse out Covid for preventing me from seeing the film on a big screen.

IS it worth seeing?

Oh hell yea. I can't wait to see this again away from Sundance where I can just take in the images and discuss them them friends and family. Honestly I wanted to stop and rewatch several sequences repeatedly, something I couldn't do the first time through simply because I had to get on to the next festival film.

Recommended. 

The film will hits YouTube on February 6th

PRISONERS OF THE GHOSTLAND (2021) Sundance 2021

 

Nic Cage plays a bad ass bank robber in a post apocalyptic world forced to go get the "granddaughter" of a war lord.

Sion Sono makes his first English Language film and it is completely batshit crazy and then some. Mannered, over the top and completely crazy PRISONERS is set in another place and another time part old Japan, part old spaghetti west and part post apocalyptic toyland. Its as if every idea anyone ever had was thrown into a blender and this was what survived when it was poured out.

No one acts, they over act. Everyone is deadly serious and not.

The script looks like it was made up on the spot with sequences often playing like it was a rehearsal instead of a take.

Its all over the place and a complete and total mess.

It's a horrible film and not.

Its a one of a kind nightmare that Sundance did a disservice by running streaming since this film needs an audience. This is a movie that MUST screen  in a theater (or living room) with audience as big as possible. It need to be talked to, talked at and cajoled. It needs to be made fun of and embraced.

How you see this film will determine you love or hate of it.

Misha and The Wolves (2021) Sundance 2021

 This is the story of Misha. She was a survivor of the Holocaust  who as a child lived with wolves after her parents were deported. Years later after moving to America she got a book deal, a shot at Oprah and her story was turned into a movie. Unfortunately there was also a lawsuit over royalties that resulted in story unraveling until things took a weird turn

This is a hell of a story. This is a tale that will grab you and drag you along. This is a twisting turning film that moves like the best mystery movie you've seen. Unless you've heard this this story there is no way to know when this is coming. Time and time again it took a turn I never expected. You will not want to look away.

How compelling is this film? I was enthralled to the point I was literally carrying my laptop around my house because I couldn't pause it to see what was coming next.

While this may not be the best film at Sundance it is quite simply the most entertaining.

Highly recommended

A pointer toward Wierdo Night (2021) Sundance 2021

 

Weirdo Night is a cabaret style show performed before empty seats. It’s a mix of monologues, music and performance pieces  by people you would see in small clubs in New York City that cater to the offbeat tastes.

I'm going to kind of end this piece there. Its not that there is anything wrong with the show, though to be honest the pieces run from great to just okay, rather the problem is that I can’t really critique this.  Part of it is this is video of something that would play very differently if you were there and in the moment as opposed to seeing it recorded. The other problem is there is no way that I can honestly say how this will play for you.  If you are not open minded and very straight laced this is going to be torture while if you are open minded and like the envelope pushed you may love it.

The biggest problem for me is this is the pilot episode. One of the reasons I don’t as a rule look at pilot episodes of TV is they aren’t always a good indicator of how the series will be. I’ve signed on to a good number of pilots over the years only to find the series dies. I don’t do TV or streaming series since I want to see a run of the show before reviewing so  I know if I am being fair with what I say.

That said as a stand alone episode Weirdo night is a good little show. I would have been perfectly happy to see it live. I would also be very curious what later episodes will bring.

Is it worth seeing? If you miss the club scene or are adventurous it is.

CAPTAINS OF ZAATARI (2021) Sundance 2021

 

This is the story of Mahmoud and Fawzi who are living in the Zaatari Refugee Camp in Jordan. They are Syrian refugees and they are dreaming of making it big and becoming professional football (soccer) players. They are focusing on football to the point that it is making their parents a little crazy. However they are good enough that when scouts come to the camp they have a chance of actually making their dreams come true.

Shot over six years Captains of Zaatari is a documentary that more often than not looks like a narrative film. To be perfectly honest I had no idea what it was going in only the subject matter. However when I was watching it I was completely confused since there was a naturalness that you only see in documentaries but at the same time the sequences often look like they were from a narrative. Additionally the film frames the discussions between Mahmoud and Fawzi in such a way that this is actually a true life buddy film. If you need proof just watch the final sequence.

Clearly director Ali El-Arabi managed to make everyone on screen feel at ease because other than one or two times where a little kid mugs for the camera no one pays it any mind.

As observational documentaries go this film is top of the line. It is a film that firmly puts us into the lives of Mahmoud and Fawzi and their friends.  I kept watching the film in large part because I really had a sense of life passing before my eyes, both the ups and downs.

If there is anything wrong with the film it is that the film can be a bit too low key or matter of fact.  Kudos to director Ali El-Arabi for not manipulating our emotions, but at the same time I really wished once or twice he had goosed us a bit.

At the same time this is a solid film and worth a look for anyone in search of solid observational documentary.