(descriptions and information gathered from IMDB. The opinions rendered below these, however, are mine. Using a 5 star rating system.)
Shaun of the Dead** 2004
A man decides to turn his moribund life around by winning back his ex-girlfriend, reconciling his relationship with his mother, and dealing with an entire community that has returned from the dead to eat the living.
Director: Edgar Wright, Writers: Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, Stars: Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Nick Frost.
I noticed that SIFF was showing this film and two others that make up a trilogy, so I thought I'd check this one out. It's very funny, but, you know, it's still a zombie film and its stars (all top rate), still get torn apart and eaten and still turn into zombies. The fact that it's funny doesn't mitigate the horror and the gore. In fact it's almost worse, you've got your eyes wider open because you're laughing.
Swimming to Cambodia**** 1987
Spalding Gray tells about his participation in the film, "The Killing Fields" & the background story about the troubles of Cambodia.
Director: Jonathan Demme. Writer/Star: Spalding Gray
Spalding Gray has acted in a number of films, but is known mostly for his filmed monologues, this being the first of them. I watched this because I had recently seen The Killing Fields and thought this might be an interesting adjunct. Funny. Fantastically performed and written. The filming doesn't draw attention to itself, but lets you feel as though you are at the theater watching Mr. Gray perform live. Thank Jonathan Demme for that. Mr Gray talks candidly, and thus can be a bit off-putting when he expresses his views about women. I say this, but must also say that my favorite part is when he describes (after setting us up much earlier in the monologue), what the whores can do with their vaginas in Thailand...
Looper** 2012
In 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, the target is sent 30 years into the past, where a hired gun awaits. Someone like Joe, who one day learns the mob wants to 'close the loop' by transporting back Joe's future self.
Director/Writer: Rian Johnson, Stars: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt
Fantastic acting by everyone in this unbearably bleak time travel parable. This was a great opportunity to play with time, always fun to watch, but I think the main idea behind this script was already presented quite well in the Disney film The Kid also starring Bruce Willis. In that film, no children are murdered. Sorry I can't say the same about this one. To go one step further, a future dystopia with time travel, again starring Bruce Willis and again involving him coming into contact through time travel with his younger self, was 12 Monkeys. That film was bleak as well, but had heart and a clear belief in the human capacity for good, this one does get there, but not until the very last, (via an extremely unreliable narrator), moment.
Lola Versus**** 2012
Dumped by her boyfriend just three weeks before their wedding, Lola enlists her close friends for a series of adventures she hopes will help her come to terms with approaching 30 as a single woman.
Director: Daryl Wein, Writers: Daryl Wein, Zoe Lister Jones, Stars: Greta Gerwig, Joel Kinnaman, Zoe Lister Jones, Bill Pullman, Debra Winger.
I watched this because I loved Frances Ha at SIFF this year. I was glad to see that Greta Gerwig is not just playing herself in these movies, though I imagine they are versions of herself. In Frances Ha, she is truly still a child who hasn't yet filled out her grown up body. She's also struggling with her connection to her best friend. In Lola Versus, she's her own age - just about to turn 30 - and struggling with boyfriend connection. I loved the arc in both of these films. They are satisfying and moving and feel very real. The writing is definitely a big part of this movie, but, I think it's this lovely actress's chops that really pulls it off. A very enjoyable story that stays with you.
The Crash Reel*** 2013
Fifteen years of verite footage show the epic rivalry between half-pipe legends Shaun White and Kevin Pearce, childhood friends who become number one and two in the world leading up to the Vancouver Winter Olympics, pushing one another to ever more dangerous tricks, until Kevin crashes on a Park City half-pipe, barely surviving. As Kevin recovers from his injury, Shaun wins Gold. Now all Kevin wants to do is get on his snowboard again, even though medics and family fear this could kill him.
Director: Lucy Walker, Stars: Kevin Pearce, Shaun White
This is a very well produced documentary, exploring family, addiction and the drive for personal best. It's a strong and interesting piece.
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