Category: Movie Reviews

LFM Reviews Easton’s Article @ The 2012 Fantasia Festival

By Joe Bendel. It is 1997. The internet bubble has yet to burst and dial-up is still commonplace. Easton Denning is an internet expert who has seen the future. Unfortunately, he is not a part of it. Time will bend as the computer wonk challenges fate head on in Tim Connery’s high concept, low-gloss science fiction drama Easton’s Article, which screens at the 2012 Fantasia Festival.

After high school, Easton left Iowa and never looked back, until now. He had his reasons, which will be revealed as he deals with his current crisis. One night, his internet spiders retrieved a massive data dump. Most of it was just corrupted files and the like, but there was one document that spooked Denning: his future obituary.

Along with his death notice, the scanned file includes hand written notes instructing him to be at certain places at certain times. He will know why when he gets there. Obediently, Denning returns home, duly encountering the father and girlfriend of his close high school friend, who died under murky circumstances their senior year. Somehow, karma appears to be using the internet to do its thing.

Frankly, the time travel elements in Article are basically hocus pocus, likening a digital information deluge to a flood of water, effectively spilling over into the past. However, the characterizations and the overriding vibe of tragically unfinished business are strong enough to overwhelm logical pedantry. Perhaps the closest comparison film would be John Weiner & Danny Kuchuck’s clever Cryptic, which deserved more attention when it played the festival circuit.

Indeed, Article represents the road not taken often enough in the science fiction genre, telling an intimate yet speculative story, with little or no special effects required. Connery’s completely linear script fits together the pieces without any distracting seams, while fully immersing viewers in his characters’ lives and Midwestern environment.

Looking like everyday regular people, the small ensemble is smart and engaging throughout Article. Given the anti-social protagonist’s myriad flaws, Chad Meyer has a somewhat tough road to hoe, but he portrays Easton as a haunted, fully dimensional human figure. Likewise, Kristina Johnson brings substance and sensitivity to Hayley Reed, Easton’s potential love interest. A more sharply drawn role than typically expected in low budget genre fare, Reed is a refreshingly active participant here and not simply stuck on the sidelines wringing her hands.

Easton’s Article might just be the definitive Iowan science fiction film. Moody and thoughtful, it is definitely for the high end of science fiction fandom’s bell curve, but by the same token it is also quite accessible to non-genre audiences. Recommended accordingly, Easton’s Article screens this coming Wednesday (8/1) at this year’s Fantasia Festival up north.

LFM GRADE: B+

Posted on July 30th, 2012 at 12:41pm.

IFC Midnight: LFM Reviews Rites of Spring

By Joe Bendel. It’s time to spring forward into Spring—although not the way you might prefer. There is a reason a small rural Mississippi county always has perfect weather for their crops. Initially, a ruthless band of kidnappers couldn’t care less about agriculture when they abduct a young girl for ransom, but they soon will in Padraig Reynolds’ Rites of Spring (trailer here), which began a run of midnight screenings Friday night in New York at the IFC Center and will also be available nationally on VOD.

Rachel Adams is drowning her guilt at a local tavern. Thanks to a mistake she made, the office doormat got canned. Unfortunately, it is also the first day of spring. That means an old farmer has to find five sacrifices to the “it” living under the trap door in his barn to maintain the supernaturally good local weather. Adams and her friend Alyssa Miller are about to see the inside of his psycho-stalker van.

Ben Geringer is the dumb jerk from Adams’ office. Somewhat disappointed by recent events, Geringer agrees to a dodgy plot to kidnap the daughter of his now former boss. However, Paul Nolan, the ostensive mastermind, seems to nurse an even deeper grudge against their well-heeled target. Naturally, Geringer and company hole-up in a shuttered high school not far from the old coot’s farm, so when Adams manages to escape, she blunders into their abduction drama. Of course, the ravenous beast also follows.

This will probably disappoint many potential viewers, but they should know there is no Stravinsky on Spring’s soundtrack. And as a genre hybrid, the film is somewhat uneven. However, it is surprisingly effective as a rather dark and nasty crime drama, at least for a while. Sonny Marinelli makes a particularly entertaining villain as the all kinds of bad news Nolan. As Geringer and his Lady Macbethish girlfriend, indie genre vets A.J. Bowen and Katherine Randolph also fare quite respectably in the straight crime scenes.

Anessa Ramsey in "Rites of Spring."

Conversely, the supernatural-slasher side of the coin is often pretty silly. It is hard to believe the old farmer still has enough gas in his tank to lug about full grown adults, while the what-ever-it-is monster just looks like a dude with gauze tied around his head.

Reynolds team scouted some good locations, most notably the big spooky industrial-looking school building. He also builds some nice claustrophobic tension, only to let it deflate as soon as the action shifts to the evil farmhouse. The rather abrupt ending does not help much nor does the brief but befuddling stinger. Frankly, the film has its moments, but it just doesn’t pan out. That’s life. A serviceable midnight movie candidate, but highly flawed when judged on its merits, Rites of Spring screens round midnight at the IFC Center.

Posted on July 30th, 2012 at 12:40pm.

LFM Reviews Shanghai Calling @ The 2012 Asian American International Film Festival

By Joe Bendel. Go-getting corporate attorney Sam Chao is used to doing things his way. So is China. China’s bigger. Temporarily posted to the go-go city on the East China Sea, Chao is in for a steady diet of culture clashes in director-screenwriter Daniel Hsia’s Shanghai Calling, the 2012 Asian American International Film Festival’s opening night film, produced by this year’s Asian American Media Award recipient, Janet Yang.

Chao is not thrilled with his new assignment, but it is clear the partnership he covets depends on his performance opening the Shanghai office. His firm has come to China because that is where their most important client, eccentric industrialist Marcus Groff, has relocated. Never really in touch with his Chinese heritage, Chao does his level best to offend all his new colleagues as quickly as possible, particularly his assistant Fang Fang and his expat relocation specialist, Amanda Wilson. Unfortunately, Chao is going to need their help when makes a hash of Groff’s latest deal.

For reasons that remain elusive, Fang Fang has eyes for the boss, whereas Chao finds himself attracted to Wilson. That would also seem to be an odd choice on his part, but it fits with Chao’s cultural identity. He is the whitest guy in the room, especially compared to Wilson and expat business community leader Donald Cafferty, the “Mayor of Americatown.”

Hsia’s screenplay is quite astute observing the dynamics of the American business community in Shanghai, contrasting the old school old guard, represented by Cafferty, with the yuppie upstarts. It definitely feels like Calling reflects an insider’s perspective. However, the vibe of the romantic subplots are a bit too Gary Marshall (even the poster looks a bit reminiscent of New Year’s Eve). At least Hsia keeps the cast of characters manageable.

Daniel Henney (geek-famous as Agent Zero in X-Men Origins: Wolverine) maintains an easy likability, even when he is cruising for his ego bruising. Likewise, Eliza Coupe is like a cross between vintage Meg Ryan and Bonnie Hunt as Wilson, the harried single mother. However, some of the brightest lights are found in the supporting cast. In what could have easily been a shticky caricature, Bill Paxton brings out the wit and humanity of “Mayor” Cafferty. Not just window dressing, Zhu Zhu (of the Chinese remake of What Women Want) plays Fang Fang with real spirit and sensitivity, while Geng Le has a nice understated nerd charisma as Awesome Wang, a journalist-fixer often hired by the expats.

Clearly, Calling is not interested in muckraking. When Chao crashes the factory bootlegging Groff’s revolutionary cell-phone, it looks nothing like the Foxconn NPR describes. Nor does the film have anything to say about China’s internet freedoms, or lack thereof. That might limit its documentary value, but it is rather pleasant as an East-meets-West courtship (of both the personal and professional varieties). Though becoming more common, such American-Chinese co-productions still must present challenges (indeed, such is the basic premise of the film), so 2012 honoree Yang’s contributions as producer are surely considerable. Recommended for those who enjoy light cross-cultural rom-coms, Shanghai Calling screened last night as part of the 2012 AAIFF’s opening gala and also on Saturday (7/28), but both showings are sold out, so good luck queuing stand-by.

Posted on July 26th, 2012 at 9:49am.

Danes Behaving Badly: LFM Reviews Klown

From "Klown."

By Joe Bendel. At last, the Dogme Hangover is here, via Denmark, where they prefer their humor raw and black. Even if you wanted to, you are not likely to see a raunchier film in an art-house theater this year than Mikkel Nørgaard’s good-taste defying Klown, which opens this Friday in New York.

The feature film follow-up to the successful Danish television show (just like Sex and the City, in this one limited respect), Klown picks up with comedians Frank Hvam and Casper Christensen playing crude, self-absorbed versions of themselves. The lads are about to embark on a canoe trip that Christensen envisions as a smorgasbord of cheap illicit sex, but Hvam has other issues on his mind.

After doing something unspeakably heinous (think the “styling mousse” scene in Something About Mary raised to the power of ten), Hvam’s pregnant girlfriend starts questioning his potential as a father.  Naturally, he responds by kidnapping her socially awkward twelve year-old nephew Bo to burnish his paternal cred on their tour of debauchery. (Actually, Christensen uses a more colorful word than “debauchery,” which you can probably guess.)

Looking like a taller, slightly less pear-shaped Drew Carey, Hvam is basically a decidedly blue Costello, while the wiry Christensen is a real horndog of an Abbott. While they have a good bantering rhythm, the fundamental essence of their humor is their willingness to go “there,” as in you can’t believe they just went there. Based on the movie version of Klown, it seems like no joke is too naughty for them, but consistency can be an issue.

From "Klown."

By the way, Klown is absolutely not for children. The fact that a minor like Marcuz Jess Petersen appears as Bo might be grounds for prosecution in a few jurisdictions, especially given the questionable taste of some of his scenes. Good luck to him at school now that this is out there. Yet, it is Christensen and particularly Hvam who always suffer the worst humiliations.

In a bizarre, tripped-out way, Klown could be interpreted as a pro-life movie, because Hvam goes to ridiculous lengths to convince his girlfriend not to abort their unborn baby. Nonetheless, it is impossible to imagine the Church endorsing it any time soon, or GLAAD for that matter. While it is a bit slow out of the blocks and Nørgaard’s approach lacks breakneck energy, there are some genuinely huge laughs to be found down the stretch. Bracing in its tasteless outrageousness, Klown is recommended for those who rather enjoy being shocked and are weary of the phony uplift of Will Farrell-Judd Apatow Hollywood vehicles. Have no fear of that when Klown opens this Friday (7/27) in New York at the Village East.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on July 26th, 2012 at 9:51am.

LFM Reviews Deranged

By Joe Bendel. For a slacker-copper, the good news is his latest dodgy stock recommendation appears to be panning out. The bad news is pretty much everything else. A pandemic is sweeping Korea and the pharmaceutical company he was tipped to may be somehow involved in Park Jung-woo’s Deranged (trailer here), which opens this Friday in select cities.

Thanks to Jae-pil’s dubious stock picks, his beleaguered brother Jae-hyeok found himself deep in debt, with a wife and two children to support. Once a promising medical researcher, he now kowtows to doctors on behalf of Joa Pharm, an industry bottom-feeder. Things are bad for the brothers and they will quickly get worse when Jae-pil investigates one of the first victims of a mutated parasite. At first, it stimulates the appetite, but hosts never gain weight. They become increasingly thirsty, eventually feeling compelled to submerse themselves in water, at which point the parasites burst out Alien-style, leaving a desiccated husk behind. It is not a pleasant way to go, but pandemics never are.

As the scope of the epidemic becomes apparent, Jae-hyoek’s family starts showing symptoms of contamination. Again, there is some good news. A consumer drug evidently fights off the parasitic agents. It is even one of his company’s products, but they recently discontinued production due to low demand.

From "Deranged."

As Jae-hyeok desperately scours the black market for the suspiciously scarce pills, Jae-pil peels away layers of the nasty corporate conspiracy. Indeed, Deranged suffers from a rather pronounced case of Big Pharma-derangement syndrome. Yet, in a way, it serves as a reminder that the pharmaceutical industry produces products that save lives, whereas politicians do not produce anything at all of lasting value.

Nevertheless, Deranged is an awfully darn scary depiction of the mob mentality in full force. It is not pretty to witness. In fact, it takes on classically tragic proportions when each time Jae-hyeok tries to act decent and compassionately, the irrational rabble only further stymies his efforts to save his wife and children.

As the frantic Jae-hyeok, Kim Myung-min is convincingly guilt-ridden and distraught. Yet, it is former pop idol Kim Dong-wan who really commands the screen as the slightly roguish Jae-pil. Unfortunately, former Miss Korea and current vegan cooking show host Honey Lee (a.k.a. Lee Ha-nui) does not get to do much more than look concerned as Yun-joo, Jae-hyeok’s former colleague and Jae-pil’s beleaguered lover. However, Lee Hyeong-cheol totally perfects evil smugness as Joa CEO Jason Lee.

Slickly shot by cinematographer Ki Se-hoon, Deranged shrewdly avoids the gruesome in favor of the more horrifically human. Despite the not so occasional soap-boxing, it is a rather tight, character-driven outbreak thriller. Recommended for those who can easily overlook its anti-corporate bias, Deranged opens this Friday (7/27) at the CGV Cinemas in Los Angeles, the AMC Cupertino in the Bay Area, and the AMC in Ridgefield Park, NJ, sort of near New York.

LFM GRADE: B

Posted on July 26th, 2012 at 9:48am.

The Ambassador on VOD August 4th, on iTunes August 24th, and in Theaters on August 29th

By Govindini Murty. As regular Libertas readers know, one of our favorite films from Sundance 2012 was Mads Brügger’s scandalous and politically incorrect documentary The Ambassador. In it, Brügger impersonates a diplomat and travels to the Central African Republic to uncover rampant corruption. Now you can finally see the film yourself, because The Ambassador was recently picked up for distribution by Drafthouse Films.

As Libertas readers know, we did an in-depth Sundance interview with Mads Brügger earlier this year at The Huffington Post, in which we declared Mads “the most provocative filmmaker in the world.” We chose our words about Mads carefully, because we do think he may just be “the most provocative filmmaker in the world.” It would be hard to find another filmmaker like Mads who is willing to risk his life to expose tyranny – and yet who also has the intelligence and ironic sense of humor to know how to satirize that tyranny on-camera. As Drafthouse Films’ recent press release says:

Drafthouse Films, the film distribution arm of the world-famous Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, announced their acquisition of The Ambassador, a darkly comic, genre-bending documentary that exposes the corrupt business of selling diplomatic titles to exploit the lucrative and limited resources of war torn, third world nations. Filmmaker/journalist/provocateur Mads Brügger (Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner for Red Chapel) uses humor in his jaw-dropping descent into one of the most dangerous places on the planet: Central African Republic. From each absurdly terrifying and hilarious situation to the next, The Ambassador is a one-of-a-kind excursion from the man whom The Huffington Post has called “the most provocative filmmaker in the world.”

The Ambassador is scheduled to launch on VOD and digital platforms August 4th and theatrically in New York City (IFC Center) on August 29th, Los Angeles (The Cinefamily) and Austin (Alamo Drafthouse locations) on August 31st. The film will also be available through iTunes on August 24th.

Brugger’s prior film, The Red Chapel, was a striking expose of communist North Korea for which Brugger won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize in 2010. In that film, Brügger infiltrated North Korea by pretending to be part of a Danish communist theater troupe – when in reality he was only there to ‘punk’ the North Korean regime.

Again, here’s our Huffington Post interview with Brügger in which we discuss all this and more. We wish Mads and Drafthouse Films the best with their release.

Posted on July 23rd, 2012 at 10:02pm.