TFC Journal at TheFilmChair.com

The 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival ended Sunday and I only saw 16 movies during the 10 day festival. (I say only because a coworker decided to see 33 of the 317 films screened.)

Of course, day jobs, though helpful when it comes to paying the bills, do not make it easy to write about every single film seen. I was moved to write about Goodbye Solo, Sugar, Voy a explotar, Orz Boys, Ask Not, and Alexander the Last, but what about the rest? Well, my adoration of all things Twitter has inspired me to write flash reviews for the movies I didn’t get a chance to blog about. So in 140 characters or less…

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Alexander the Last (2009)–****

Mumblecore king Joe Swanberg told the audience at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival that he develops his stories after spending a week living with the people in his films. They bond, tell stories, and collaboratively develop the relationships, and thus the scenes, in the film.

Alexander the Last, which follows an actress and her musician husband as they try and maintain their marriage when their arts strain the relationship, is the first Swanberg picture to apply this method to professional actors. Some of the actors, who have actually worked on “real” movies, thought he was crazy, Swanberg confessed. But with these pro players, Swanberg, for the first time in his rather short, but revolutionary filmmaking career, has created a picture that forces the audience to consider, if not understand, what he does.

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I’m Gonna Explode (Voy a explotar) (2009)–***1/2
Quick Review

Two free-spirited teens, one a middle class girl and the other the privileged son of a Mexican congressman, attempt to abandon their lives for an existence outside the prescribed daily dramas. A film raging with the all passion and rebellion of teenage tumult, this Mexican drama is Harold & Maude cool and Badlands powerful. Even at its darkest moments, and it does get dark, I wished I was a teenager watching this movie, feeling its profound impact at a time when I would have mattered most. Directed by Gerardo Naranjo.

I’m Gonna Explode (Voy a explotar) was screened at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival. Catch it again today at 11:30 a.m. For tickets visit ClevelandFilm.org.

Sugar (2009)–****

Sugar says a lot about America’s pastime, but this drama following a rising Dominican baseball star says a lot more about the world outside of the game. Many people would say that’s true of other sports films, that there’s a grand lesson in defying the odds and being all that you can be. Yet, there’s something truly inspiring when a player, in this case Miguel “Sugar” Santos, just does it his own way. Read the rest of this entry »

Goodbye Solo (2009)–****
Quick Review

A Senegalese cab driver in Winston-Salem, North Carolina befriends an old man who wants to be driven to an area in the mountains where he plans to commit suicide. Another stunning film about people in the oft ignored corners of society, this quiet drama compels the audience to be aware of the selflessness and dignity of all people. Red West’s performance as the old man is deceptively understated, while Souleymane Sy Savane constructs a moving portrayal of a man discovering the ultimate meaning of friendship. The Blowing Rock mountain sequence is overwhelmingly affecting–physically, intellectually, and spiritually. A masterpiece from a filmmaker the world needs right now. Directed by Ramin Bahrani and beautifully shot by Michael Simmonds.

This film was screened at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival. More at www.goodbyesolomovie.com.

Orz Boys (2008)–***1/2
Quick Review

Two Taiwanese boys with rocky home lives rely on their imaginations (and a little mischief) as they make the journey to adulthood. Joyfully entertaining and, at times, rhapsodic, Orz Boy captures the spirit of childhood despite facing the turmoils of growing up. The cultural criticism combined with the story of early adolescents on the verge allows positive comparisons to The 400 Blows, while the animations give the film its unique artistic fingerprints. Directed by Ya-che Yang and starring Kuan-yi Lee and Chin-Yu Pang as the boys. From Taiwan.

This film was screened at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival. More at ClevelandFilm.org.

Ask Not (2009)–***

Don’t ask a film like Ask Not to be unbiased. This documentary about the U.S. Military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy has a single charge: to educate people in the absurdity of a policy effectively banning gays from military service.

For anyone not familiar with the failures of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Ask Not is a rapid fire, point-by-point argument for the abolishment of the ludicrous military law. But for your above-average news consumer, or even a regular “The Daily Show” viewer, the documentary isn’t an enlightening experience. More unfortunately, it’s not an emotional journey.

The fault is in Ask Not’s subjects, mostly activists touring the country educating college students or participating in sit-ins at recruiting stations. We don’t spend enough time with any given individual to see the true harm of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Their stories are brief, almost an afterthought, possibly because their military service always made their personal lives take a back seat to the mission. Only “Perry,” a gay serviceman on a tour of duty in Iraq, gives the audience something to hang onto as he risks his life serving in a military that would kick him out if it knew he was gay.

Still, Ask Not has one thing going for it: it gives the impression that the 15-year-old policy will soon come to an end. The glimmer of hope when a statistic saying 70 percent of military personnel would be comfortable serving someone who is gay makes sitting through a rather unexciting documentary worth it. And in the words of gay rights activist Harvey Milk, “You gotta give ‘em hope.”

Ask Not is directed by Johnny Symons and was screened at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival. More at www.asknotfilm.com.

Film festivals are about discovery.  Whether it’s Toronto or Telluride or Cleveland, you go there looking for something new, something you never would have encountered without the festival.

Despite making it into some huge film festivals (Berlinale, NYFF), I’m Gonna Explode never crossed my radar until appearing in the CIFF program. Now, it’s vaulted to the top of my must-see list. (Sorry, Goodbye Solo.) It looks like a hipster Badlands. How awesome is that?

I’m Gonna Explode, directed by Gerardo Naranjo, is part of the CIFF’s “Someone to Watch” program and screens on March 24 at 6:50 p.m. and March 25 at 11:30 a.m. Tickets. Here. Now.

The phrase “From the writer-directors of Half Nelson” is enough to get  me in the theater.

If you’re going to try and catch Sugar at the 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival, remember that this film is “stand-by only.” You’ll need to pay attention to the details.

Sugar screens Sunday, March 22 at 7:15 p.m.

The Cleveland International Film Festival kicks off in just one week.  At the top of my list of must-see movies is Ramin Bahrani’s Goodbye Solo.  Last year, Slumdog Millionaire or Rachel Getting Married were called movies that defined the Obama era.  Bahrani, an Iranian American born in North Carolina, is a filmmaker whose films heralded this paradigm shift years before with his films about culture and identity in America.

Bahrani’s Goodbye Solo, along with Man Push Cart (2005) and Chop Shop (2007), will screen at CIFF in the “Someone to Watch” program. For screening times, visit ClevelandFilm.org.