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.

The First London Games in 1948: LFM Reviews The BBC’s Going for Gold

By Joe Bendel. Seventy-three year-old British artist John Copley became the oldest Olympic medalist at the 1948 London Games, taking silver for his etchings. It would be the penultimate artistic competition of the modern-era games, all of which have since been segregated from the official medal counts. He might have made history (for a while, at least), but fortunately this will not be his story. Instead, BBC America takes viewers to the Thames, where a hastily assembled British sculling duo carries the hopes of their nation in Going for Gold: The ’48 Games, a one-shot airing this Wednesday as part of the current season of Dramaville.

Bert Bushnell and Dickie Burnell both competed for a spot on the 1948 Olympic team, but fell short. Pairing-up was not their fallback plan, but the brainchild of five-time British medalist and Olympic committeeman Jack Beresford. The double sculls is an event close to his heart, since he and his partner upset the favored Germans in front of Hitler at the 1936 Berlin Games.

The stakes are not quite so high for Bushnell and Burnell, but the malaise-ridden United Kingdom could use a lift. London could also use the tourist dollars generated by a successful Olympiad. However, with mere weeks to go, they’re still woefully behind on construction. Evidently its déjà vu all over again.

From "Going for Gold."

Likewise, Bushnell and Burnell have just started training together – and it shows. Socially and temperamentally quite different, the pair clash rather badly. In fact, the respectably middle class Bushnell’s class resentment of Burnell’s privileged background becomes tiresomely repetitive, perhaps saying more about screenwriter William Ivory (whose credits include the labor drama Made In Dagenham) than two athletes who fundamentally share so much in common. They both have a passion for their sport, similar last names, and persistent issues with their fathers.

For many viewers (as well as for BBC America) the most important thing to know about Gold is the presence of Doctor Who’s Matt Smith as Bushnell. He is credible enough as the tightly wound rower, but Sam Hoare certainly looks more athletic as Burnell. He also has some of the better turned straight dramatic scenes. However, for longtime TV anglophiles, it will be Geoffrey “As Time Goes By” Palmer who stands out as Burnell’s severely reserved father.

If rowing races is your thing, Going for the Gold (a.k.a. Bert & Dickie) is your tele-drama. Smoothly helmed by TV veteran David Blair, it still is hardly Chariots of Fire-on-the-Thames (notwithstanding one eyebrow raising quote), but it is about on par with most subsequent Summer Olympic movies. An appealing period production with a decent payoff, Going for the Gold is a pleasant enough warm-up for the London Games, recommended for sculling and Olympic enthusiasts when it airs this Wednesday night (7/25) on BBC America’s Dramaville showcase.

Posted on July 23rd, 2012 at 8:41pm.

LFM Reviews Mr. Cao Goes to Washington @ The 2012 Asian American International Film Festival

By Joe Bendel. Anh “Joseph” Cao was elected to Congress in 2008, a generally bad year for Republicans. He was defeated in his re-election bid two years later—a decidedly good year for Republican candidates. In a mere two years, the idealistic former Jesuit seminarian received an eye-opening education in all manner of group-think politics. Cao’s short tenure in office is documented in S. Leo Chiang’s Mr. Cao Goes to Washington, which screens during the upcoming Asian American International Film Festival in New York.

Immigrating to America while his father was still a captive of a Communist Vietnamese re-education camp, young Cao led an eventful life before he even considered a political career. Choosing law school over a life of the cloth, Cao became an activist leader in Versailles, New Orleans’ small but enterprising Vietnamese community (profiled in Chiang’s previous documentary, A Village Called Versailles). Louisiana’s second congressional district was deliberately drawn to elect an African American Democrat, everything that Cao is not. However, the ethical issues dogging William “Cold Cash” Jefferson gave Cao a once in a lifetime opportunity to flip the seat—and he was precisely the transcendent candidate to do it.

The question throughout MCGTW is whether or not Cao can hold his seat against a relatively untarnished Democrat (if one can be found in the Crescent City). Unfortunately, most viewers already know the answer, undercutting the suspense, but also preparing them for the inevitable crushing disappointment.

Chiang and film editor Matthew Martin arduously walk a political tight-rope, trying to frame Cao to be as appetizing as possible to left-of-center film critics. Much is made of Cao’s relative liberalism within the Republican caucus, including many laments that he might be better suited to the other party. Yet Cao remains staunchly pro-life throughout his term of office, so so much for that idea. Frankly, Cao had no complaints with his Republican colleagues, getting more than his share of their earmarks for his ungrateful district. Conversely, the figure who emerges in Chiang’s doc as the poster boy for political hypocrisy and opportunism is none other than the current (but perhaps not long term) occupant of the Oval Office.

From "Mr. Cao Goes to Washington."

Initially wooed by Obama, Cao genuinely believed the President’s pretenses of friendship. Indeed, Cao took a lot of heat voting for the House’s first Obamacare bill. However, when Obama inevitably cuts a commercial for his Democrat opponent (a less than inspiring figure with a history of disbarments and barroom brawling), it is profoundly disillusioning for Cao. Indeed, for all the film’s attempts to distinguish Cao from the national GOP, time and again it is the Democrats (both nationally and in New Orleans) who refuse to look past party labels and racial identity. To their credit, Chiang and his team show this quite clearly.

Nonetheless, MCGTW is so intent on presenting Cao in non-partisan terms, it declines to correct a few inaccuracies. While Cao was the only Asian American Republican in Congress at the time of his election, he was eventually joined by Charles Djou, the first Thai American congressman, who won a special election in Hawaii (but was subsequently defeated in 2010, like Cao). Perhaps more problematically, MCGTW lets a local provocateur’s incendiary racial attacks on the GOP stand unchallenged. Still, it illustrates the sort of rhetoric Cao faced from some extremists.

Perhaps most importantly, MCGTW always treats Cao fairly, recognizing his earnestness and integrity. He is clearly the real Horatio Alger deal, with the attractive wife and cute kids perfectly suited for campaign brochures. Watching his re-election campaign unfold will be a frustrating experience for viewers of most political stripes. If anything, it suggests the greatest problem with the current political system is not money or PACs, but the voters themselves.

That is a real downer of a Pogo-like message, isn’t it? Still, Cao’s frank, vigorous spirit is quite refreshing. After viewing MCGTW, one hopes for a sequel with a more satisfying ending.  Clearly, Cao is talented man and Chiang has a keen understanding of the community he represents. Considering the mildness of its biases, the mostly fair and responsible Mr. Cao Goes to Washington is recommended for political junkies on both sides of the aisle, particularly those who following events in New Orleans from a distance, when it screens this Thursday (7/26) at the Chelsea Clearview as an official selection of the 2012 AAIFF.

LFM GRADE: B-

Posted on July 23rd, 2012 at 8:39pm.

LFM Reviews Chen Kaige’s Sacrifice

By Joe Bendel. Generally ascribed to Yuan Dynasty playwright Ji Junxiang, The Orphan of Zhao was the first Chinese play to be translated in Europe.  It was even adapted (quite liberally) for the French stage by Voltaire. Profoundly tragic and also rather violent in places, it has timeless elements that continue to appeal to audiences. Celebrated auteur Chen Kaige vividly captures both qualities in his grand big screen version, Sacrifice, which opens this Friday in New York.

General Tu Angu is not a man to take the slights of the Zhao clan lightly. Framing the patriarch and his son, General Zhao Shuo, for the murder of the ruling Duke, Tu uses the outrage as pretext for wiping out the Zhao clan. A swifter, more awe-inspiring massacre you are not likely to see on film anytime soon. However, he misses two of the Zhaos, the young General’s wife, Princess Zhuang, and her newborn baby. Sacrificing herself for her child, Zhuang entrusts the infant heir to her doctor, respected commoner Cheng Ying.

As fate would dictate, Cheng’s wife has also recently delivered. Suddenly having a newborn is dangerous business and Cheng has two. In a truly Biblical turn of events, Tu orders all the town’s babies to be collected at his palace to be duly vetted. Through a catastrophically Shakespearean turn of events, the Zhao and Cheng babies essentially trade places.

From "Sacrifice."

Growing up as Cheng Wu, the presumed son of Dr. Cheng, the Zhao orphan knows nothing of his birthright. However, unbeknownst to the boy, the doctor is grooming him to take wreak his vengeance at the appropriate time. To do this he plays a dangerous game, entering the service of the Tu retinue, manipulating his nemesis into serving as Cheng Wu’s godfather. Needless to say, some rather messy issues of filial loyalty arise.

Some have often knocked Chen’s films as pretty but rather bloodless historical dramas, but this is absolutely not the case with Sacrifice. While the period trappings are as richly detailed as ever, there is also plenty of blood. In fact, the first act is quite a spectacle of mayhem, segueing into a tense cat-and-mouse game, in which the fate of the city’s infants hangs in the balance. The film ultimately settles into a stone cold revenge drama.

Featuring several of Chen’s semi-regulars, Sacrifice’s talented ensemble is equally adept at the stately tragedy and the gutty action sequences. As Tu Angu, Wang Xueqi is in his element. Ruthless yet charismatic, he is the sort of villain viewers find themselves identifying with, in spite of themselves. While Ge You might be better known to American audiences for his shticky work in Let the Bullets Fly, he wrings real pathos from his performance as Dr. Cheng. While her character is not long for the world, Fan Bingbing is a typically ethereal presence as Princess Zhuang. Yet it is Mainland TV star Hai Qing who really lowers the emotional boom as Cheng’s equally ill-fated wife.

Admirers of Chen’s Chinese Opera sagas Farewell My Concubine and Forever Enthralled should still appreciate the classical elegance of Sacrifice. It is based on a play, after all. Likewise, fans of more action-driven Asian cinema should never get bored with the relentless scheming and vigorous swordplay.  Indeed, Chen integrates the intimate and the epic halves quite masterfully. Highly recommended for fans of literate historicals and the wuxia genre, Sacrifice opens this Friday (7/27) in New York at the Quad Cinema.

LFM GRADE: A

Posted on July 23rd, 2012 at 8:37pm.