14th Philadelphia Film Festival Report 1
By: David Canfield |
Saturday September 10, 2005 |
| Founder Todd Brown and I were treated, was the quality of the programming. Across a wide range of arthouse and genre cinema I encountered wildly entertaining, deeply moving and intellectually stimulating films made me sorry I hadn't gotten there on day one. And yet each film surprised me in a way that was different from what I had expected. |
| DAY ONE: KARAOKE TERROR
Todd Brown of Twitch Film picked me up from the train station where I promptly did two foolish things. On less than six hours of fitful train ride sleep I had a huge cheesesteak sandwich and attempted to take in my first film of the fest Karaoke Terror. But the ten o'clock starting time proved too much for middle aged me and instead I nodded off hard for several long stretches. Even then though I knew I was off to a good start. Karaoke Terror aka: The Complete Japanese Showa Songbook Japan 2004, 113 min 
Directed by Tetsuo Shinohara, Karaoke Terror is adapted from a novel by
Audition scribe Ryu Murakami. The premise had me giggling before the first
frame. Imagine a gangwar between a two groups, one comprised of nerdy
juveniles and the other of bored upper middleclass housewives. If it sounds
like a simple spoof of Japanese disaffected youth cinema it might help to
mention that comedies rarely get this dark. The battles these unlikely
combatants engage in put Scorcese's Gang's of New York to shame. Arterial
spray and other body fluids place this film solidly in exploitation
territory, but also the realm of reasonably smart satire.
In one of the films most hilarious sequences we follow the boys to a beach area where they dress up in spandex outfits and perform what I can only describe as hari karaoke- murdering the pop song they lip sync and play air instruments to. In another grotesque but hilarious sequence features a duel involving a mop handle a kitchen knife and a moped. The escalating violence leads to an ending that spoofs a well-known Takashi Miike film I haven't seen. I fell asleep too often to offer a deeper critique but am glad to tell you I'll be seeking this out again. DAY TWO: FAR SIDE OF THE MOON, THE PROMISE, THE SOUP ONE MORNING, ARAHAN It's amazing what a little sleep can do. I was ready to tackle a four-film day and considered this the real start of my coverage. Far Side of the Moon Canada 2003 105 min  Far Side of the Moon opens with a large moon hovering over the city of Quebec. A voice explains that the side of the moon we can't see was dubbed The Disfigured Side of the Moon by scientists due to it's many pockmarks caused by repeated meteor strikes. The juxtaposition of the two lunar images, the hidden scarred one and the face presented to the world is a perfect metaphor for what follows. Meet Phillippe, a graduate student and telemarketer who just can't seem to connect with anyone. His mother has died, he keeps failing to defend his thesis, and his boss and his well-known TV weatherman brother, are both on his back to drop all the theorizing and become a "success." It would be easy for Phillippe if he weren't so sure he was right. But his thesis, that mans space exploration has been driven by narcissism, is counterbalanced by his own existential blues. Unsure of everything he finds himself increasingly bitter and introspective becoming a parody of his own theory. Lepage has pulled off a remarkable feat. He plays a dual role as Phillippe and Phillippe's gay brother Andre' managing to invest each character with it 's own separate humanity But as good an actor as Lepage proves himself to be he excels at filmmaking itself using the visuals and special effects to illustrate and underscore rather than overpower, moving effortlessly from philo heavy dialogue to winsome childhood flashbacks. The film bends space and time continually but even the casual viewer won't feel lost. One moment we are looking through the window of a spacecraft the next through the door of a laundramat washing machine. One tumbles through space the other through that Twilight Zone where socks wind up. Phillippe proves equally lost in wither spectrum. The ending of this movie will bother people who want a slick resolution but I found it to be lyrical and poetic and highly recommend it. The Promise Spain 2004 104 min 
The American Horror movie scene has been pretty dreadful lately. While I
have encountered some truly interesting direct to DVD titles like Dead Birds
and Dead End it has been a while since I sat in an American multiplex and
felt the hairs bristle up on the back of my neck. Instead I've had to settle
for having my gag reflex over stimulated by dreck like The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre remake or the atmospheric but ultimately failed promise of films
like The Boogeyman. When I read in the description of The Promise that it
was a combination of Turn of the Screw and Women on the Verge of a Nervous
Breakdown I was hooked.
Combining elements of the horror film, the psychological thriller and the family drama The Promise the film features Carmen Maura, a mainstay of Spanish cinema, in a sympathetic and masterfully creepy performance as Gregoria an emotionally troubled woman whose life has been one series of broken promises after another. Caught in a childless loveless marriage to an abusive man she flees. When she's hired as a nanny, by a wealthy family she is content until she realizes that they are headed toward the same broken dreams. And then there are the visions. As in many psychological thrillers we question whether or not Carmen/Celia sees what the film shows us she sees. Is she mad or have her fervent prayers launched her into a spiritual battleground where demons and angels become visible. The film has a sublime ending that avoids all the clichés that usually render these kinds of films so toothless. The Soup, One Morning Japan 2004 90 min  Arahan South Korea 2004 114 min 
I reviewed Stephen Chow's Kung Fu Hustle just prior to departing for this
festival and remarked that though I liked the film very much it wasn't long
on character development. Arahan reinforces my opinion that you can have it
all when making a good spoof. Well-drawn characters, stunning action
sequences and a lot of laughs made this one of my festival favorites.
An upright but unbearably nerdy policeman is interrupted while chasing a suspect by a woman with supernatural kung fu powers. Instantly fascinated her follows her back to her home which is also the home of a secret band of kung fu masters. These masters teach him to control the flow of his chi and choose to train him to join in their battle against a renegade Supreme Master who seeks to control the world. I can't recommend this film more. It' s playing the Gene Siskel Film Center in June I'll gladly pay to see it again. DAY THREE: OFFBEAT, OLDBOY, STRATOSPHERE GIRL Off Beat Germany 2004 100 min  Holzemmann's visual style is punctuated by a busy camera, a kickin' soundtrack and a truly transcendant story offering deep character development and enough otherworldly atmosphere to support what some might mistake for metaphysical noodling. Far from it, as in another great film I saw this year, Far Side of the Moon,we are literally moving in and out of Crash as he moves in and out of the accidents around himself. Holzemann is clearly interested in the connections brought on by seemingly unrelated events but he's even more interested in helping us to understand what makes Crash such a compelling and loveable character. Off Beat is a call to love and spiritual curiosity as lifestyle. Oldboy South Korea 2003 120 min 
By now, any opinion offered up about Oldboy is in danger of being old news.
This wildly popular film has a following almost as fanatical as the movies
villain. This review is somewhat of a cheat as this was the third time I'd
seen Oldboy over the course of about a year and the second time I'd seen it
on the big screen. While I remain impressed with Chan Wook Park's attempt at
a sort of Shakesperean tragedy I can't help but feel the film just isn't
insightful enough to justify what it asks the viewer to sit through. Of
course some people just enjoy the sight of a man eating an octopus alive, or
removing peoples teeth with a claw hammer.
But Dave you say? You saw this movie three times! I confess I don't mind a little teeth pulling. But more importantly I have wanted to unpack this film prior to writing anything about it. Park throws some of the most remarkable visuals I've ever seen onscreen and he clearly cares about his characters enough for them to grow and develop throughout Oldboy. But my third viewing left me feeling that the whole thing had grown a little old. Some things in the film just seem right; Oldboy smiling as the man jumps off the building behind him (best poodle death ever), the astonishing fight between Oldboy and the army of thugs in the tight hallway. But the emotional resonance that usually accompanies epic tragedy or revenge films just isn't supported by the paper-thin plot, full of implausibility's that I won't discuss here for fear of spoiling your first viewing. Bottom line is Oldboy undercuts it's great performances with events that render the film as whole rather cold and clinical. You should view Oldboy if you are not bothered by violence in film. There is a breathtaking grace to the fight scenes and a visual flair that leaves no doubt Chan Wook Park is a great filmmaker, especially when it comes to making films about people who eat octopi alive and pull out people's teeth with claw hammers. Stratosphere Girl Netherlands 2004 90 min  A stunning Chloé Winkel plays Angela, an 18 year old teenager who wants to become a manga artist. Stifled by her European small town life she takes a handsome young acquaintance up on his offer to get her a job as a hostess in Tokyo, a job in which she and other young girls keep company with Japanese businessmen. Her once elegant simple drawings take on an increasingly violent edge as she begins investigate the disappearance of the girl before her and she uncovers a story involving men so powerful even the police won't touch them. As her comic's narrative draws to a close she'll either uncover the truth or her own doom. I really can't say enough about the look of this film. And it has an ending, which sublimely underscores it's comic book sensibilities while remaining rooted, in the real world. And it also features veteran actor Burt Kwouk whom many will recall as Cato Fong from the Pink Panther films. But beyond nostalgia and visual beauty, Stratosphere Girl immerses the viewer in its sense of mystery, danger, alienation and ultimately innocent adventure. Exhausted yet? By far the best festival experience I've had this year the 14th Philadelphia Film Festival just isn't coverable in one report. Next week. Look for reviews of The Voyage Home, Niceland, Cutie Honey, Survive Style Five, Soundless, Lonesome Jim, Quiet As A Mouse and Evilenko. |
