Post-Fest Schedule and Opportunities

Well, the post-fest MPSIFF schedule is out (they call it Best of Fest--I call it "Festival Leftovers"). You can see a couple of things I really liked or come to something I haven't seen yet but heard good things about.

Films I liked and are showing May 1-6:

Sunday, May 2, 4:30 pm: Nora's Will
Thursday, May 6, 7:30 pm: Letters to Father Jacob (my favorite film of the festival)

Films I heard good things about and will see May 1-6:

Saturday 1 pm: Tahaan
Sunday 1 pm: Woman with 5 Elephants
Monday 5 pm: No More Smoke Signals
Monday 9:30 pm: Tears of April

And I'm tempted to see Letters to Father Jacob again on Thursday. Especially if anyone wants to go with me.

Finally, Minnesota Shorts Program 1 and Program 2 are rumored to shown again. I'll post that as soon as I know when because they're worth making effort to see--shorts don't get shown at theaters or even at Netflix.

Best of Fest

Hey folks! I'm going to be updating this blog post most days with the films I loved seeing at MSPIFF. I'll post a link to the MSPIFF website and I'll also post a link to the trailer if there's one available, and I'll make a few comments at each film. You could add most of these to your Netflix queue or be on the lookout at your local art theater for them.

The newest films are at the top.

Letters to Father Jacob is my best of fest in the feature film category. It's about a woman who has been pardoned from prison, and we don't know her crime until the end. She gets placed with a blind pastor, Father Jacob, tasked with reading letters requesting intercessory prayers, and responding to them. It's a simple but beautiful tale; there wasn't a dry eye in the theater at the end. Trailer.

Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls is a documentary about the Topp Twins, a yodeling lesbian country music singing and comedy duo from New Zealand. I know that sounds too weird, but my face hurt after I watched this film from smiling and laughing so much. Hold onto your hats if you go to this one. My best of fest in the documentary category. Trailer.

Nora: A beautiful visual poetry story about Zimbabwe-born dancer Nora Chipaumire--she does all the choreography in this film. The light, the dancing and the story are all amazing. Sorry, no trailer.

Nora's Will: A man finds his very controlling ex-wife's body after she commits suicide, and does everything he can to subvert her well-laid plans. I loved this funny and tender story. The filmmaker does a nice job catching and keeping your interest. Trailer.

Over the Hill Band: A bittersweet and funny film about a woman and her sons after her husband's death. She and her two friends rejoin with her wayward son to create a band. Unexpected. Funny and tender. Trailer.

La Pivellina: A "Roma" woman (gypsy) finds a two-year-old girl in a park and cares for her after she finds a note asking her not to call the police, that she'll come back for the girl. An astonishing performance by the two-year-old, and a sweet story. Trailer.

El Paso: No, this is not a film from Texas or Mexico. It's a Czech film about a Roma woman (gypsy) who is evicted and is facing massive fines. It's also about the bias and oppression she faces as a Roma. A delightful story about a not-so-delightful situation. Not only can you learn about the situation in Europe for this oppressed group of people, you can gain some insight into our own culture and the ideas (the collective) we have about some segments of our population. Trailer.

Today's Special: A heartwarming tale of an American man who reconnects with his Indian roots. As my friend and movie critic Colin Covert says, "Don't attend this screening with an empty stomach!" Written by The Daily Show's Aasif Mandvi, who also plays the main character. Sorry, no trailer.

Night Catches Us: A powerful drama about a man who comes home to Philadelphia in the summer of 1976 to face demons of the past after his father dies. I loved Anthony Mackie in Brother to Brother and now in this (and these make me want to see The Hurt Locker, finally). To top it off, it was written and directed by Tanya Hamilton, an African American woman. Yay women directors! Yay people of color in the director's chair! She was the only African American woman director at Sundance this year. Sorry, couldn't find a trailer.

Alamar: A stunningly beautiful film of a boy and his father, bonding. Yay for brown people telling their own stories from their POVs. The audience can relate directly, and they become human instead of people to be "helped" or pitied. See it on a big screen if you can. Trailer.

Oath: A documentary about Osama bin Laden's driver and the supreme court case that basically slapped Bush's hand about how he handled prisoners of war. It's amazing what kind of access this woman director and woman cinematographer got. The Oath is riveting. Trailer.

Looking for Eric: Yeah, yeah, a movie about a straight white guy. But he's deeply working class. This movie made me want to be a Manchester United football* fan, and I'm still grinning from the experience. It's a chick flick that both men and women can like. And you don't even have to like football*. (Another one I think Nils and Peg will like). Be sure to turn on English subtitles because the English in this film is heavily accented. Trailer.

*football: soccer to us Americans.

Mid-August Lunch: An Italian man and his mother take in three other elderly women for the mid-August holiday. I enjoyed its meandering story and the end; I've put it on this list because I think my friends Nils and Peg would enjoy it. Trailer.

Harlan: In the Shadow of the Jew Seuss: Veit Harlan was a cinematic film director who made the most anti-Semitic film used by the Nazis to encourage people to hate Jews (about a powerful man from the 17th century named Joseph Oppenheimer), and in this film, Harlan's children and grandchildren talk about their experience of Harlan, and of having his name, carrying guilt because Harlan always claimed he was forced to make the film. It's on my list because it's a powerful film about not guilt but repercussions and reparations.Trailer.

S.O.S.:Summer of Suspense: Another great Scandinavian film with a powerful girl. Think seventies made-for-TV kids movie where the hero is a bi-racial girl who faces off with drug dealers, and definitely updated for this century. Race is acknowledged, but isn't THE issue. Great entertainment for everyone. Trailer.

Forbidden Fruit: A Norwegian girls coming of age film--we don't see many "coming of age" films about girls, and this one is surprising in many ways because we Americans are trained well by American media and Hollywood. It reminded me why I wipe out my calendar for two weeks to spend so much time at this film fest. Trailer (no subtitles in the trailer, but you can get a sense of the film from it).

Max Manus: The best WWII film I have ever seen. Ever. Seeing this will help you understand why Inglorious Bastards is a shadow of a movie rather than a really good one. Trailer.

MSPIFF Calendar 2010

MSPIFF 2010 has come and gone. Won't you join me at the Best of Fest? Or put some of my favorites on your list?

MSPIFF Films Directed by Women

Well, the films have started to show up on their website (look to the right, click on films, and choose by category, though there seems to be some cross-over). I'm going to list here the films directed by women. It's sometimes hard to tell because the films come from all over the world and some names don't indicate a gender. But I'll do my best (thanks to Google image search). I'll also update this weekly until the final program is out and I list my film schedule.

Documentaries

If You Dare
No More Smoke Signals
The Oath
Summer Pasture

Sun Behind the Clouds: Tibet's Struggle for Freedom

Global Lens

My Tehran For Sale


World Cinema

My Only Sunshine
Nora's Will
Poto Mitan: Haitian Women Pillars of the Global Economy
St. Louis Blues
The Sicilian Girl
Ward 6
Dear Lemon Lima

Bluebeard


Not Directed by Women (but of interest to this feminist).

Power and Control
Pink Taxi
The Snow Queen
Gods

Men Who Hate Women

Today I got to see a preview of the film, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. If it weren't for the subtitles, you might not know this is a Swedish film. This suspense movie doesn't make you work like some European films do--the plot makes traditional turns through a narrative arc that keep you engaged with compelling characters. It's like an artistic version of a Dan Brown novel.

The plot is that an old rich man named Henrik Vanger wants to find out who killed his niece forty years before. He hires a then-disgraced but previously respected investigative journalist Mikael Blomkvist, who teams up with punk goth hacker hero Elisbeth Salander to find out "who did it."

The most interesting and compelling character is Elisbeth Salander who has an complex history that's only hinted at in the film (and in the book). But we get to see some of that history on screen. She's abused by a man who has some power in her life, and she gets her own brand of revenge and takes her power back. (No, I'm not ruining anything for you).

I loved the film because, like in the novel, Salander is brutalized but is never a victim. She has sex only for her own pleasure. She takes control of her life.

But most of all, I liked her because she's not a "consumable" on screen. We see her naked. She's got tiny breasts and she's so skinny you can see her ribs and spine. Her eyes are heavily lined in black, and she is just about as butch as they come. Salander gives no coy looks and never bats her eyes at men. She slouches and stomps. She's clearly in the story as a character in her own right with her own purposes.

Some are saying that this film, about to be released in the US, won't make it as big as it should because it's subtitled.

I don't think it will make it either, but not because of subtitles. I can think of several successful subtitled films in the US. Slumdog Millionaire's first forty minutes was almost entirely subtitled. Other films include Life is Beautiful, Letters from Iwo Jima, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo could be as well loved. Dan Brown fans would come out to Girl in full force. But they won't.

Why?

Because Salander isn't consumable in our culture that prefers its strong women to be sexual fantasy fodder.

Think about Sarah Palin (you know who she is), Danica Patrick (race car driver who has beaten the boys), and Venus and Serena Williams (you know why they are). Then do a Google image search for all of them.

Only four of the first twenty one images of Danica Patrick are of her in her racing outfit. Over half of Venus Williams' pics are of a scantily clad Williams. You can guess what I found for Serena Williams. Even one of the three photos of Williams playing tennis highlighted her boobs and her butt.

But then consider Kelly Kulick. Who's that, you ask? Well, the first woman to ever beat a man in bowling. Do a search for pics of her, and you find a woman scowling, clenching her teeth and raising her hands in victory. You see her bowling, in a short sleeved, high necklined shirt and long pants. You even get to see a hint of a muffin-top at the edge of her belted pants. But no bikinis. (Some people are saying Kulick isn't getting any attention because bowling isn't really a sport. I bet no one would say that if she'd just show a little tits and ass so men could fantasize about her.)

This isn't just true in sports--it's true in films and television too. Strong women have to be sexy. We don't like it when they're not.

While there are probably a few men who will find Salander sexy, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, most won't and so it won't get much play outside of art film houses.

See it if you can. My rating: Worth $10, hiring a babysitter, and $10 for crappy popcorn and a pop that'll make you get up in the middle of the film to pee.

Oh, and why is this blog post titled "Men Who Hate Women?" Because that's the literal translation of the book's and the film's title. And another reason this film won't be popular: if it were, we'd have to acknowledge that misogyny exists right here in the west (and not just in all those faraway places we like to cluck our tongues about).

Women With Vision 2010

Here's what I'm planning to see!

Friday, March 12, 7:30 pm
35 Shots of Rum (35 rhums), Directed by Claire Denis

A personal film about relationships and letting go, 35 Shots of Rum was inspired by the subtle, graceful work of Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu. Depicting a widowed father sharing an apartment with his adult daughter, the story is built around the pauses between their activities as they both make new plans for the future. “Sublime . . . Denis’ warmest, most radiant work” (Village Voice). A provocative director recognized for her explorations of cross-cultural tensions, Denis was the subject of the Walker’s 1998 Regis Retrospective, and has screened two films at previous Women with Vision film festivals. 35 Shots of Rum was included on several critics’ top ten lists. 2008, 35mm, in French with English subtitles, 100 minutes.

Saturday, March 13, 7:30 pm
The Runaways, Directed by Floria Sigismondi

“We shared the dream of girls playing rock and roll.” —Joan Jett

One of rock’s quintessential girl groups, the Runaways exploded onto the scene in the mid-seventies, playing hits such as “Cherry Bomb” to huge audiences around the world. Based on vocalist Cherie Currie’s shocking book Neon Angel, The Runaways chronicles the band’s brief rise to fame and all that came with it. In her debut feature, Sigismondi—best known for photography and music videos for Marilyn Manson, David Bowie, and Björk—enlisted Dakota Fanning for the role of Cherie Currie and Kristen Stewart for Joan Jett. 2010, 35mm, 105 minutes.

Sunday, March 14, 1 pm
WIFTI Short Film Showcase

Celebrating films from New Zealand to the Twin Cities, this annual short film showcase includes works from festivals around the world. Organized by Women in Film & Television International (WIFTI) and copresented by its Minnesota chapter (MNWIFT). Approximate running time 120 minutes.

Thursday, March 18, 7:30 pm, Free
Visiting Artist/Premiere
O’er the Land, Introduced by director Deborah Stratman

Gun shows, historical war reenactors, cheerleaders, and motor homes are touchstones in this experimental documentary that delves into America’s concept of manifest destiny. O’er the Land reflects powerfully on the ways Americans have come to understand freedom and heroism in the light of increasing militarism and perceived threats to our national borders. Winner of the Best International Film Award at Images Festival (Toronto). A Q&A with the director follows the screening. 2009, 16 mm, 52 minutes.

Friday, March 19, 7:30 pm
Lourdes, Directed by Jessica Hausner

People flock to the purportedly miraculous healing waters in the French town of Lourdes when they think science has failed. Exploring religion and the origin of belief, Lourdes focuses on Christine (Sylvie Testud), wheelchair-bound with multiple sclerosis, who uses the pilgrimage to create a social life. “Hausner walks a tightrope . . . between medicine and the Madonna—and the result is an austere, measured, skeptical, sensitive film that lingers in the mind for days” (London Evening Standard). Winner of the FIPRESCI Prize, Venice Film Festival. 2009, 35mm, in French with English subtitles, 96 minutes.

Sunday, March 21, 3 pm
Vision
Directed by Margarethe von Trotta

A portrait of the fascinating Hildegard of Bingen, a central figure of the medieval Catholic Church, is the latest film from “the most important woman director to emerge from the New German Cinema” (Senses of Cinema). Hildegard, a 12th-century Benedictine nun, was also a mystic, author, linguist, scientist, philosopher, herbalist, healer, poet, and composer—a range of talents that invited controversy, leading the Church to sanction her for expressing her visions from God. Barbara Sukowa renders a bravura performance. 2009, 35mm, in German with English subtitles, 111 minutes.

Saturday, March 27, 7:30 pm
Before Tomorrow (Le jour avant le lendemain)
Directed by Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Madeline Piujuq Ivalu

“A profound, elemental, and hauntingly beautiful period drama that makes an intimate story of endurance into a metaphor for an entire culture.” —Variety

In 1840, shortly after Inuit tribes had began to encounter foreign fur traders, a boy and his grandmother return from drying fish to find everyone in their village dead from smallpox. As they look for a new community, they struggle to survive in the Arctic wilderness. This is the third work in a trilogy of Inuit dramas created by the Arnait Video Collective (Antanarjuat: The Fast Runner and The Journals of Knud Rasmussen). 2008, 35mm, in Inuktitut with English subtitles, 93 minutes.

A New Hero

Or should I say heroine?

She is Melody Gilbert from Frozen Feet Films. If you live in the Twin Cities, you've probably seen some of her work, or at least seen trailers for them. There's her film about people who want a limb amputated called Whole. Or how about the movie about Urban Explorers or the film, Married at the Mall, where she stakes herself out at the Mall of America marriage chapel to show us weddings at the world's largest mall. I'm watching her documentary Disconnected right now on Hulu for free so you can too. It follows students at Carleton College who decided to do without computers.

I met Gilbert at a screening for Urban Explorers. During the Q&A she let the audience know she never studied film, but instead has a deep background in journalism. Afterward, I asked about her outsider's take on the male dominated film industry from her point of view as a woman. Before I could finish my question, she said, "That's why I work alone."

Gilbert talked about the difference between how she holds a camera and how men do. She talked about her interviewing style and how it changes when men are around. I was hoping for some insight or helpful tips about women in the film industry, but I'll just keep supporting women in their efforts to break the celluloid ceiling.

I'm looking forward to a local showing of Gilbert's documentary about Fritz Mondale, showing at the Women with Vision Film Festival at the Walker Art Center this spring and whatever my hero is doing next.

Off and Running

I want to be an official movie reviewer not because I want that as a career or because I want the free films but because I want to be in the middle of the stream of information that flows to reviewers so I don't have to miss films like Off and Running.

I found Off and Running by accident browsing Apple's trailers.

This documentary is about an African American girl who was raised by Jewish lesbians in New York. She has decided to find her birth mother to figure out who she is.

Now I'm going to do all I can to get Off and Running to one of our upcoming film festivals, Sabes JCC Jewish Film Festival (because the family in the documentary is Jewish), Women With Vision at the Walker Art Center (because the film is about women and directed by a woman), and finally, my dark horse candidate (because Al Milgrom, the guy who chooses most of the films, is who he is), the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival (April 15-29).

The Lovely Bones

A group of friends and I got to see a preview of The Lovely Bones, Peter Jackson's upcoming flick based on Alice Sebold's book by the same name. As we argued back and forth about the religiosity of the interpretation and the room the film left for the viewer to make up his or her own mind, I wondered what impact Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens had on the choice to make The Lovely Bones. In a pause, I asked the question out loud, and all but the film critic looked at me with blank stares. One asked, "Who are they?"

There were about a dozen of us in the room, all of whom love film and see lots of movies. They knew who played the predator in The Lovely Bones (I couldn't name him, but it was Stanley Tucci) and knew all the films Peter Jackson had directed. But they didn't know the names Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. Maybe you don't either, but these are people who pride themselves with their knowledge and understanding of the film arts.

If I have my way, I won't let you be clueless about these women.

Other than Walsh being Jackson's wife, and Boyens being the couple's neighbors, they are Jackson's closest collaborators, and why, in my opinion, movies like The Lord of the Rings trilogy and even King Kong are films that women can love as much as men. The threesome write together, and Jackson calls Walsh his "first assistant director." In a recent interview in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Jackson says:

They're very important right across the board, not just in writing characters like Susie. We write as a team, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens and I. I don't really categorize people as male or female in a funny kind of way, maybe because I've spent most of my life working with women. My producer is a woman and I've had a woman first assistant director for 20 years. I like women more than men in a funny kind of way, to where I'd rather work with them as collaborators. They're more refreshing, they're funnier and I find with women there's no ego involved. None of that blokey kind of macho nonsense.

Now if only the rest of Hollywood could get the impact women could have on film, beyond chick flicks.

I've read two of Alice Sebold's books, The Lovely Bones and Lucky, and it's hard for me to see this film from the point of view of someone who hasn't read her work, so I'm biased. I'm also a survivor, and The Lovely Bones is a tale for survivors. Outside of these facts, it's visually beautiful in both the fantastical scenes and the real-life scenes. The screenplay is an appropriate adaptation and is faithful to the book. Sebold's imagery and themes are reflected in both the screenplay and cinematography. It will knock your socks off if you see it on the big screen.

My rating: Worth $10, hiring a babysitter, and $10 for crappy popcorn and a pop that'll make you get up in the middle of the film to pee.