Sundance 2007 will forever go down in my mind as the “year of the tear-jerker.” I cried at more movies this year, then ever before. Of course, you have to understand, I cry at the slightest sentimentality – children singing, professions of love and even (I can’t believe I’m confessing this) A Very Brady Christmas. Hillary Clinton’s got nothin’ on me.
I bet you can figure out which of the 12 films we saw made me cry. Those films are:
Away from Her
Julie Christie, Gordon Pinsent and Olympia Dukakis in a film adapted from a short story that illustrates the struggles of Alzheimers. Yup, it’s another uplifting Sundance film. Actually, in the hands of three such seasoned and respected actors, and a young, risk-taking director (Sarah Polley), the film becomes a love story, rather than a film about dementia. (You guessed it –I cried.)
Hear and Now
This was another love story – within a documentary. Irene Taylor Brodsky (A Portland filmmaker – yay!) turns the camera on her childhood, her family, and most importantly her deaf parents. Not only did they raise three hearing children, but they decide in their 60’s that they want to get cochlear implants and join the hearing world. The result is a deeply moving and personal account of these two remarkable people. The only nod to Portland is a brief sound clip of Pink Martini (totally fun Portland band) when Brodsky brings her now-hearing parents the CD to listen too. After the film, her whole family came to the stage and her parents received a standing ovation. Ok, got to go, I’m starting to tear-up all over again.
War Dance
See this movie if you have the chance! This documentary tells the story of three children in Northern Uganda who have experienced unimaginable atrocities at the hands of the rebel group, the Lord’s Resistance Army. They live and go to school in a refugee camp and their school is the first in the war zone to qualify to compete in a national music and dance competition. The documentary weaves their horrific stories in with joyful singing and dancing, and follows their preparation for and performance in this contest.
Children witnessing the violent deaths of their parents, children recruited as child soldiers and children singing – I was a mess. Then, to make matters worse, the filmmakers came out and took a picture of us to send back to the children, as we were the first audience to see the finished film. We gave those kids a standing ovation and the waterworks started all over again. I still get “misty” just thinking about it.
Four Sheets to the Wind
Although this movie starts with a suicide and an unceremonious dumping of the body into a pond, it was actually a warm story about family, tradition and the struggle to find oneself in a small, rural community. The mostly Native-American cast, an unseen ancestor who interjects words of wisdom throughout, and the rural Oklahoma scenery gave this film a simple charm, while telling a contemporary story.
Rocket Science
Jeffrey Blitz was at Sundance several years ago (before my time) with his film, Spellbound, a documentary about children competing in the National Spelling Bee. If I remember right, Rocket Science is his first fictional work and he also wrote the screenplay. Drawing somewhat on his experience as a stutterer, he casts Reece Daniel Thompson as a high school boy who stutters, yet somehow gets talked into joining the debate team. As painful as it is to watch him struggle to get his words out and be teased mercilessly, the film is chock full of humor and heart.
Snow Angels
I probably put this on my ticket-buying list because Amy Sedaris is in it (along with Sam Rockwell and Kate Beckinsale). I typically think of Sedaris as a comedic actress, but it seeems she can be a serious, dramatic actress as well. This was no comedy. It’s about a divorced couple who, while still trying to cope with that change, experience a tragedy that rocks their world even further. Let’s just say children in peril (not my favorite) and a tragic ending (also not a fan.)
Starting Out in the Evening
Frank Langella plays an out-of-print novelist who has sheltered himself away from the world while he tries to complete a book he’s been working on for 10 years. His sheltered life is disrupted when an overly ambitious graduate student shows up on his doorstep and decides to make him the subject of her thesis. At the same time, his daughter (played by Lili Taylor) is having a mid-life crisis of her own. This is a quiet movie – there’s not much action when the main characters are writers and researchers – but it touched on the real-world issues of aging, family and living an examined life.
On a Tightrope
Like War Dance, this film followed the story of four orphaned children. In this documentary, the children are Uigher, which is China’s largest Muslim minority. They live in Northern China under the strict control of the Chinese government. The children featured in the film are training to be tightrope walkers, a Uigher tradition. During production, the Director was under ongoing scrutiny by the Chinese government. I believe they also reviewed and edited all his film footage. It’s a fascinating story about a population I know little about. Unfortunately, we saw War Dance, with its stunning cinematography and gripping story, first, so this film paled in comparison.
Driving with My Wife’s Lover
This Korean film (with English subtitles) just didn’t translate for us. We had a hard time following the story and keeping the characters straight. At 9:00 at night, after a day of great movies, it definitely wasn’t worth the effort.
Clubland
This very fun Australian flick was released in the U.S. under the title: “Introducing the Dwight Family.” What a watered down name! It sounds way too much like other recent American movies (i.e. Meet the Fockers.) It stars Brenda Blethlyn (I had never heard of her, turns out she is an extremely well-respected British actress) as an aging performer who is trying to keep her career afloat while juggling a day job, resenting her contentious ex-husband, and caring for a disabled son. She really relies of the help of her other son, so when he falls in love, it throws their life into turmoil. Full of wacky characters, energy and life – we thoroughly enjoyed this film.
Dedication
Billy Crudup is absolutely gorgeous in this movie, even though he plays a fairly unlikable character – a psychologically unstable author of children’s books. (He and his illustrator/friend are inspired to write "Marty the Beaver" after seeing a porn movie -- how warped is that?) I think this was my favorite movie of this trip. (Although the fact that I haven’t seen any sign of it since, indicates that I may not be the best judge of movies.) Oh well, it had a great cast (Mandy Moore as the love interest, Dianne Weist as her mom, and Bob Balaban as his agent); a quirky, root-for-the-underdog story, and just enough comedy.
The cast was there for the Q & A. My palpitations for Billy cooled off a bit when I saw him in person – I’m hoping the facial hair was for a role. And, in a bid for stupidest Sundance question of all time, a guy in the audience asked Mandy Moore if she would marry him.
Delirious
This film did make it into theaters and I didn't like it nearly as much as Dedication. It may be because the story revolves around a Brittany-, Paris-, Lindsey-type and they seem to be the newsmakers these days. It tells the story of a homeless kid who befriends a slimy freelance photographer and together they get tangled up with the “pop-starlet-of-the-month.” Steve Buscemi (who looks like he hasn’t been outside in the past 10 years), Michael Pitt and Alison Lohman star in it. It has some funny moments, but much of the premise is too unbelievable for my taste.
Shorts Program III
(Just an aside, there are usually 5 Shorts programs, plus a documentary shorts collection to choose from -- thus the numerical titles.)
Cubs: a 10-minute, intense film about kids chasing and abusing a fox. The Tube with a Hat: 23 minutes of a boy and his father struggling to carry their broken TV (also their most prized possession) through the bogs of Romania to the repair shop. BITCH, it barely takes any time at all to realize the main character is one -- truly wicked. The Grass Grows Green: A look at the military through the eyes of a Marine recruiter. Bomb: I don’t remember this flick at all. The Substitute: this was a charming 15-minute Italian film about a business man who ducks out of his day job and pretends to be a substitute teacher for awhile.
Movies we could have seen in 2007, but didn't: Black Snake Moan, Once (excellent soundtrack), and Waitress (a breath of fresh air with a tragic real life backstory.)
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