Shadows: Arthouse Films ’03
THE CUCKOO | THE MAN OF THE YEAR | TOGETHER WITH YOU
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More mainstream art films have their own pages.
Even more offbeat films are at the SHADOWS FILM FESTIVAL.
last update
2.Sep.03
THE CLAY BIRD
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dir Tareque Masud; scr Tareque & Catherine Masud with Nurul Islam Bablu, Rokeya Prachy, Jayanto Chattopadhyay, Russell Farazi, Soaeb Islam, Moyeen Ahmed, Abdul Karim, Lameessa Reemjheem, Mohammed Moslemuddin, Shah Alam Dewan release UK 4.Jul.03 • 02/Bangladesh 1h38  REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
This is a gently effective film, slowly letting us get to know the characters and the various ways of thinking--strands of Islamic thought unfamiliar to many Western audiences--as well as the intriguing mix of Hindu and Muslim cultures. Against the sweep of history and the collision of conflicting religious opinions, there are several deeply personal stories about people trying to find the path that's right for them. Most moving is Anu's mother, and Prachy plays it beautifully--a restrained, emotionally transparent performance we really feel for. Meanwhile, Anu's journey from childhood to self-awareness is complex and beautifully traced through his relationships with his parents, uncle, classmates and teachers, each of whom has a different approach to both religion and politics. Masud's direction is understated as well, capturing the lush natural beauty with moments of humour, pain and colourful community life. There are a couple of amazing cast-of-thousands sequences, as well as some confusing flashbacks and choppy editing. But this is mostly an intimate, minimalist film that makes a subtle, well-articulated plea for understanding. [PG themes, language] 12.Jun.03
COWBOY BEBOP, THE MOVIE
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dir Shinichiro Watanabe; scr Keiko Nobumoto voices Koichi Yamadera, Megumi Hayashibara, Unsho Ishizuka, Aoi Tada, Tsutomu Isobe, Ai Kobayashi, Mickey Curtis, Hitoshi Hirao, Renji Ishibashi, Akihiko Nakajima, Tsutomu Taruki, Miki Nagasawa release US 4.Apr.03; UK 27.Jun.03 • 01/Japan 1h55  REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
Everything on screen looks so good that it's frustrating the story isn't more engaging. The problem is that the characters are simply colourful icons. There's plenty of personality but not enough depth to draw us in, so we just sit there trying to get involved, but never feeling anything at all. And as the story gets more and more complicated, we get lost in the mayhem. At least it's a feast for the eyes, with virtual "cinematography" that looks absolutely stunning. Alba City looks like a futuristic New York, with the same kind of multi-cultural mix and, strangely, buildings and bridges more than 100 years old (huh?). There's also a lot of eccentric music on the score. Apparently there's an English-dubbed version out there, which might bridge this gap (more Western style vocal emotions, less anachronistic music). But it still seems rather stilted, because while we never get tired of looking at the astonishingly gorgeous animation, the filmmakers miss the chance to either draw us in or draw out the Wild West parallels. Perhaps they thought continual Star Wars references would do the trick!
[12 themes, violence, language] 11.Jun.03
THE CUCKOO [Kukushka]
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dir-scr Aleksandr Rogozhkin with Anni-Christina Juuso, Ville Haapasalo, Viktor Bychkov, Aleksei Kashnikov, Mikhail Korobochkin release US 11.Jul.03; UK 28.Nov.03 • 03/Russia 1h39 REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
There's a disarming innocent charm here that belies the sophistication and worldliness of the three characters; these are lost and lonely people thrown together by a situation they have no control of, and each is trying to make the best of it somehow. The humour is constant--misunderstandings, innuendo, acting at cross purposes and even a heavy dose of irony woven into the screenplay by Rogozhkin, who directs in a straightforward 1940s-style that lets the setting and the characters to the talking. The scenery is stunning, distinctly capturing the isolation as well as the human interaction, which is shown almost at an sideways angle. (For example, we never see any sex, even though this is quite clearly the only thing on Anni's mind!) The performances are open and very honest, and the minimalist production values serve the story perfectly. There's a bit of a derailment in a surreal sequence near the end that's beautiful and evocative, yet takes us out of the story at hand. Otherwise it's a comical and surprisingly light and entertaining little fable that's well worth a look. [12 themes, some violence] 2.Sep.03
THE MAN OF THE YEAR [O Homem do Ano]
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dir José Henrique Fonseca; scr Rubem Fonseca with Murilo Benicio, Natalia Lage, Claudia Abreu, Jorge Doria, Jose Wilker, Agildo Ribeiro, Carlo Mossy, Andre Barros, Perfeito Fortuna, Moska, Lazaro Ramos, Andre Goncalves release Brasil 1.Aug.03; UK 29.Aug.03 • 03/Brazil 1h55 REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
This is a telling portrait of a life drifting into soulless brutality in the name of doing good. Writer-father Rubem and director-son Jose Henrique combine their talents here beautifully--a snappy script and visually arresting direction get well beneath the surface of the characters and situations. This is a funny, violent, sexy and moody film that plays with ideas of morality and integrity as Maiquel struggles to balance his new triple-life as a father, a killer and a celebrity with all that means, good and bad! The entire cast is superb, but the film runs out of steam in the middle when it tries to generate more emotion and energy than is strictly necessary. This makes it drag badly until things start cranking up for the finale. When everything turns back in on Maiquel, the film shifts into a more thoughtful gear--messy, shocking and quite sad. It becomes a startlingly effective parable about how difficult it is to go against the flow of life. And how fighting against that flow is the only way to survive. [15 themes, language, violence, sex, drugs] 26.Jun.03
TOGETHER WITH YOU [aka Together]
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dir Chen Kaige; scr Chen Kaige, Xue Xiaolu with Tang Yun, Liu Peiqi, Chen Hong, Wang Zhiwen, Chen Kaige, Zhang Qing, Chen Qiang, Liu Bing, Kim Hairi, Li Chuanyun, Tang Ruyun release US 30.May.03; UK 12.Dec.03 • 02/China 1h57 REVIEW BY RICH CLINE |
Chen directs the film with a natural yet brightly colourful tone that draws us into the story and characters--humour abounds, as do intricate interrelationships and lots of narrative complications. The central theme of art versus commerce is handled lightly and cleverly, making way for more intense father-son issues, while a deep love of music infuses the film from top to bottom (and is rather reminiscent of the Chinese chapter in The Red Violin). Where it falters is in the final third, when all this has to come together in a flare of overwhelming emotion and teen rebellion, which is simply too overstated and sappy to grab us. And the big cathartic finale, while well-conceived and seriously touching, is played out in a maddeningly manipulative way. There's also the problem of the first-time actor Tang in the pivotal role; he's mostly quite good as a surly boy, but struggles with the scenes of emotional openness. The surrounding cast is superb, adding textures to the film that make it intriguing and entertaining. A powerful film that should have been much better. [PG themes] 18.Jun.03
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