Jason goes to Docfest--Closing Night

Well, once again I've fallen about a week behind on my updates. Here are the final two movies:

First up, the ultimate fan film, THE PEOPLE VS. GEORGE LUCAS. Made with contributions of fans around the world, it is at parts a love-fest of the original STAR WARS trilogy (and of the first INDIANA JONES movies), at parts a diatribe against the "improved" versions (of course Han shot first! In my mind, he shot, then hacked in and edited the security footage to escape prosecution). And then memories of the great expectations for the prequels, and the disappointment that followed (okay, mitichlorians (don't care how it's spelled) determine how much Force you have, but lifestyle, training, and concentration can increase your mitichlorian count. Can we all be cool with that? Didn't think so...) And it's a celebration of fan edits--as I said, it's the ultimate fan-made movie (and now I have to check out that Silent Star Wars). It would be ridiculous to say that you can enjoy this without being a STAR WARS fan. But on some level, it's really a movie about a lot of people who take one piece of pop culture way too passionately. In theory, a similar movie could be made about anything else--except there's nothing else like STAR WARS.

And while I'm at it, I'll throw in my one "STAR WARS changed my life" story. Actually, it's the story of my very first memory of being at a movie. I was 3 when STAR WARS came out. And I have a very vague memory of being in the back seat of my parents' car at a drive-in theater, and Princess Leia's face on the screen. Considering most of my very early memories are completely wrong, this might be as well, but I'll still count it as my first movie.

Anyway, the next movie started with a short, BABBLE. People speak gobbledygook impersonating various foreign languages (and English gets it, too). Very short, and kind of amusing.

And the final film, TOYLAND. Partly a fun history lesson, with the creators of such classics as Slinky, Lite Brite, Twister, Ant Farm, Operation, etc. And it's partly a cautionary tale of one toy inventor trying to hit it big. The inventor part is at the same time the most fascinating and the most painful. See, he has this big idea for Crazy Chins. You know, you draw an upside-down face on your chin (as simple as two dots for eyes) and make movies by blocking off the rest of your face with a sheet and shooting it upside-down. It just struck me that as fun as it may be, it's so effort-intensive and requires so many extras (chiefly a video camera and a friend to film it and possibly help apply it) that the kids who would be so inclined are already doing it (or would do it without the kit). I don't know, I could be totally wrong, but no big toy dealer at any of the shows bought it, and one made essentially the same criticism I had above.

This movie was an interesting pairing with THE PEOPLE VS. GEORGE LUCAS, in as much as it featured a whole lot of grown men playing with toys. But I was really struck how middle-aged STAR WARS fans are a whole lot more passionate (or a whole lot crazier on camera) about their thing than people who made millions off the toys they invented.

Total Running Time: 160 minutes

My Total Minutes: 213,546

Jason goes to Jewfest South--Wednesday, Oct 27

Just one film, down at the Camera 7, and that film was JUMP, starring Patrick Swayze in one of his final roles. It's the story of Philippe Halsman, one of the most famous photographers of all time, with over 100 covers of Life magazine. As the movie opens he's in his Manhattan penthouse studio taking pictures of Marilyn Monroe jumping. He did a whole series of celebrities (even Richard Nixon) jumping, and he talks about how when someone jumps you get all of their natural, unguarded, "real" movements (as opposed to the mask we wear the rest of the time). An interview is the framing device to take him back to the traumatic events of his earlier life in Austria. While on a hiking trip with his father, they had a fight and later his father fell after a heart attack and died (or was murdered while Philippe was going to get help). However, as antisemitism was on the rise in the area, he was accused and put on trial, what some claim is the first Nazi trial of a Jew. Swayze plays his lawyer, and does an admirable job. And there are quite a few very good scenes in the movie. But there are also far too many overly melodramatic, unsubtle monologues. I can't help but think there's a better movie to be made about the same story.

That feels unfair. This really is a good movie, just with a few scenes that I felt were overdone.

Running Time: 102 minutes

My Total Minutes: 213,386

Jason goes to Docfest--Day...12?

I don't know, I've missed too many days. Anyway, it was last Monday. Two movies.

First up, ON COAL RIVER, a movie about coal mining (particularly strip mining and mountaintop removal), Massey energy, and the effects on the local population. Taking as a jumping off point a "fill" (not waste, that would be illegal) pool that is poised just above a local elementary school. The heroes work to get a new school, clean water, etc. Even walking all the way to D.C. to meet Senator Robert Byrd. It's pretty easy to sympathize with them, and the movie seems to make a conscious decision to keep it a personal narrative rather than digging too deeply (no pun intended) into the economic questions. There are quite a few people shown who support Massey in particular and mining in general--it's the economy there, and they don't see a lot of alternatives. But by keeping it a personal narrative, I think it makes it a more engaging movie.

And I followed that up with BAS! BEYOND THE RED LIGHT. It's about a dance school for girls who have been rescued from the brothels of Mumbai. And that's quite a jarring dichotomy. One moment, they'll be talking about how they were abducted (often sold by their own family) or we'll see an interview with a trafficker, and then the next minute you see them practicing their dance routine and you see quite a lot of joy. I have to admit I dozed off from extreme exhaustion at a couple of points during the movie. But what I stayed awake for was alternately traumatic and inspiring, and the final dance video is really good.

And that was last Monday at Docfest

Total Running Time: 158 minutes
My Total Minutes: 213,009

Jason hosts Bad Movie Night--THE WOLFMAN

That would be the 2010 version with Benicio Del Toro. And it's soooo daaaamn sloooow. Except for the moonrise/moonset scenes, which are shot in time lapse and are extremely fast. I couldn't help but wish the whole movie was shot like this.

So excruciating, that even with my hosting duties (I was supposed to make smart-ass comments all through the film) I left halfway through the movie to go get more beer*.

Running Time: 103 minutes (but it could've done the same in about 20)

My Total Minutes: 212,851

*For legal reasons, I must point out that root beer is a type of beer.

Jason goes to the Niles Film Museum for a Creature Features show

I love Niles, and especially when they go nuts for Halloween.

Ernie Fosellius (HARDWARE WARS) was there to show PLAN 9.1 FROM OUTER SPACE. A remake/parody of Ed Wood's classic PLAN 9, with nods to GLEN OR GLENDA and a little dig at George W Bush's intelligence. Hilarious, and the 'outtakes' are even better.

Then, after Ernie played with dolls right in front of us (having James Lipton interview Tor Johnson), we settled in for an actual Creature Features show. It was THE CREATURE WALKS AMONG US, the third and final in the CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. In this one the creature is burnt, captured, and his scales are replaced by skin and his gills give way to lungs (which he had all the time). So he's no longer a sea creature, he's a land creature. And there's stuff about science vs. religion, nature vs. nurture, and whether man can create a new species or just use what nature gives him.

Whatever, the important things are the wacky old commercials and Bob Wilkins doing his sly, comic thing (like jolting awake during a break in the film). And an interview with Forrest J. Ackerman. Hilarious good fun. I feel bad that I had to split right when the movie ended.

Total Running Time: 110 minutes (estimating at least 10 minutes for the Creature Feature extras)
My Total Minutes: 212,748

Jason goes to Docfest--Day 10

Last Saturday, after the two Berlin and Beyond films I caught 3 Docfest films. It's been a while since I've done 5-a-days...feels good.

First up, THE VANISHING OF THE BEES. I've heard reports on the news and stories here and there about mysterious bee disappearances. I think I've probably heard the term "colony collapse disorder" before, too. But this movie tackles it in a comprehensive and entertaining way. There's plenty of alarmist doom and gloom--without bees pollinating we'd lose the majority of our fruits and vegetables. Bees dying (or just disappearing, the odd thing is there aren't piles of dead bees near the collapsed colonies) is a sign of an environment badly out of balance, etc. But it's also a personal story of the beekeeper who first sounded the alarm, it's a political thriller as he attempts to get action, it's even an engaging narrative about the science around it--the breeding of bees, the systemic pesticides used on modern crops, etc. All in all, a well told story. Oh, and it's narrated by Ellen Page. I like her, although I didn't recognize it was her voice until the end credits. She just did a good job, the narration was helpful and not intrusive.

Next up was TRAMPOLINE, a shockingly intimate look at a family falling apart over the course of the year. Osla and Nathaniel are the parents--or rather Osla is the mother and Nathaniel is the stepfather. And Nathaniel is apparently diagnosed as psychotic, although I don't see it. The kids are a freakin' mess--mostly drug use but also other forms of teenage rebellion (make that super-rebellion). Family friend Mark Wojahn filmed it all. And it looks like a home movie, and obviously jumps around in time (particularly Nathaniel's haircut is a giveaway), but it's still pretty compelling. They're interesting people, and the film gets into their lives pretty deeply.

And finally, the night ended with AMERICAN MYSTIC. A parade of deeply religious, non-Christians (or even non-Abrahamic). We meet several, mostly living in secluded, rural landscapes (desert retreats are popular). Most swirl around nature worship of some sort--call it Wicca or Paganism or whatever. What we don't get is much explanation of the beliefs and practices themselves. I suppose that gives us a view of several people who live happy, spiritually fulfilling lives with religions other than the dominant ones in America. But without the hook of 'they believe/practice this' I was left with little reason to care about them. I know it's way more of a task than this movie set out, but I really could've used some brief explanation of the religions.

Total Running Time: 267 minutes
My Total Minutes: 212,638

Jason goes to Berlin and Beyond--Saturday, October 23rd

First, as a fan let me express some frustration with the festival's move from January (where it was unchallenged on the calendar) to October (where it's up against practically everything). I've preciously gone every day, this year I'll only make this one day and only two movies.

Since I'm not really in the know, I won't discuss the rumors I've heard about the move being connected to the circumstances of Ingrid Eggers departure. I will just say that for years Ms. Eggers ran a great festival, as a fan I will miss her and hope for nothing but the best for her.

Also, I like the fact that they have added a San Jose day (Saturday Oct 30, at the Camera 12) in the festival, although I won't be able to attend.

Okay, with that out of the way on to the movies:

First up, THE WOMAN WITH 5 ELEPHANTS, a charming documentary about Swetlana Geier. Considered one of the greatest Russian-to-German translators, her "5 elephants" are the translations of Dostoyevsky's 5 great novels. But this is not just a movie about translations, it's a movie about a deeply fascinating old woman. She's well in her 80's now, and walks painfully hunched over, but is meticulous and careful in everything she does. There is a sort of care she takes with everything in her life, like she's in the moment observing, appreciating, and reacting to it. That's true whether she's discussing translations with a colleague, baking a pie, or ironing. And she manages to drop subtle and humorous bits of wisdom. Particularly good was her "translate with your nose in the air" story (which doesn't mean be stuck up, it means read a passage, internalize, and look up and speak/write it in the translated language without going through word by word).

I had a bit of an epiphany while watching it--this is why I love movies. My mind tends to wander all over the place and I think of many things at once. When I'm in a meeting, I'm likely to be thinking about what I did just before or (more likely) what I'll do after the meeting. But while watching movies (and not during all movies) I can focus on just the movie. Being in a darkened room with a lighted screen, in a social atmosphere where having a conversation or checking my cell phone is taboo...calms me. That's also why I don't watch many movies on DVD at home--there's not the same forced attention. I readily admit that I couldn't keep my mind from wandering at times. I would catch myself thinking about something else (usually how much time there would be between films and if I had time to get a bite to eat), and then I'd be brought back to the film by a particularly beautiful or intelligent scene. As I felt that increased focus, I thought this must be how Swetlana Geier feels all the time, and it's pretty cool.

For the record, I had time enough that I could've gotten some food, but chose to stay in the theater and chat with friends before the crowd-pleasing MEN IN THE CITY. It's a story of five men and their romantic tribulations/adventures. There's a shy weakling who falls for the checkout girl at the pet store. There's her extremely violent ex, who wants her back but has also caught the eye of his father's nurse. There's a music producer/party animal with tons of women, none of whom he loves (and the flamingly flamboyant pop star whose music he produces). And there's the (seeming) loser with the pregnant girlfriend and no job, but a grand plan for a chain of healthy, organic fast-food restaurants. And finally, there's the normal guy with a plan for his whole life and a beautiful fiancé. But he's got a complication when a hot young model throws herself at him, forcing him to make a choice. Oh, and although they are strangers (at least at the start), they all go to the same gym, making it a sort of comic intersection for all their problems. As I said, it's a crowd-pleaser, and it's pretty darn good at that (they're filming the sequel right now).

Total Running Time: 200 minutes
My Total Minutes: 121,371