Revisit: The Holy Mountain

An ABKCO Film 1973

Written & Directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky

A Christlike figure wanders through bizarre, grotesque scenarios filled with religious and sacrilegious imagery.



An epic exploration of the connections between religious and socio-political trends, Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain aims to be a spiritual experience of its own. Mixing traditional religious narrative with shockingly grotesque imagery, the film attempts to expose art and religion as tools of mass-mind-control. As with many of Jodorowsky's films, the bombastic and eclectic imagery often overshadows the thematic intent, resulting in a film that is more fun to simply absorb rather than analyze. But Jodorowsky has a lot of ideas working in here, from the artificial nature of film to the corruptive powers of prominent social/religious stature and the fraudulent nature of spiritual guru's. Decoding all of the film's symbols would be a herculean task -- objects ranging from the solar system to a war between frogs and cameleons act as representative figures -- with much of the film's icons rooted in occultism, astronomy, and alchemy.

From a production standpoint, Holy Mountain is drop dead gorgeous, particularly aided by a 2006 restoration effort, which brings much of Jodorowsky's harrowing imagery to brighter, more detailed heights. Jodorowsky is a master of the surreal, and the restoration process certainly did this film justice. Dada would be proud.

Holy Mountain is an interesting experience chock full of controversial imagery and engaging ideas. While it may not be a spiritual experience that will rock you to your core, it will certainly leave a lasting impression, most likely different for every person.

Revisit: Undertow

A United Artists release 2004

Directed by David Gordon Green

Written by Joe Conway and David Gordon Green

Based on a story by Lingard Jervey

Tragedy besets a broken family when a mysterious uncle returns from prison with more on his mind than a happy reunion.



An unsettling film with a strong Southern voice, Undertow is a fine representation of David Gordon Green's skills as a director. While far from perfect - the script takes a while to get going, stumbles in some information reveals and relies a little heavily on Christ metaphors - Undertow is a captivating mix of melodrama, suspense, and horror. Green really makes the most of the setting, a Southern bayou, letting cinematographer Tim Orr really stretch his camera and get a good feel for the murky, hot, muddy surroundings. Performances from Josh Lucas, Jamie Bell, and Dermot Mulroney are more than passable, elevating the somewhat leaden script to a much scarier place. Ditto for composer Philip Glass's music, which certainly adds to the tension and moves many of the scenes. Under anyone else's supervision, Undertow may have been a sub-par or downright silly affair. But David Gordon Green and his crew make it something more: a sort of modern day Night of the Hunter, fairy-tale-esque and all the more tragic. Worth a watch.

Revisit: Blood Hook

A Troma Films release 1986

Directed by Jim Mallon

Written by Larry Edgerton & John Galligan

During a local fishing contest, people are being mysteriously dragged into the lake and killed by a giant fish hook.



For a D-list film revolving around "Muskie Madness" and a fishing rod wielding killer, Blood Hook is a surprisingly satisfying (and unsurprisingly hilarious) adventure. Shot in 6 weeks with a cast and crew of non-professionals, the film looks like crap but is campy fun and a testament to the independent spirit. It's no surprise the director, Jim Mallon, went on to be part of Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Blood Hook is the exact kind of film those guys love to trash. Yet at the same time, it manages to be aware of the inner-workings of the genre, subverting some of the slasher flicks most timeworn cliches, including characters like the idiotic punk-rock teen, shell-shocked war vet, among others. While the plot may be completely ridiculous and full of Midwestern inside jokes, information is never revealed too quickly, and the story keeps you guessing up until the very end. Far more intelligent than it looks, Blood Hook is perfect for anyone who loves well thought out, shoe-string DIY horror trash.

Review: Synechdoche, New York

A Sony Pictures Classics release 2008

Written & Directed by Charlie Kaufman



Of Synechdoche, New York, Manohla Dargis of the New York Times writes: "To say that Charlie Kaufman’s “Synecdoche, New York” is one of the best films of the year or even one closest to my heart is such a pathetic response to its soaring ambition that I might as well pack it in right now."

I wish I shared her enthusiasm.

Synechdoche is ambitious, for sure, but that doesn't make it good. Mr. Kaufman misses the mark so spectacularly it's surprising he hasn't committed suicide yet.

I don't say that because the film isn't well made -- it is, particularly for a debut director, technically impressive. But the ideology behind it is so sickening and sad that it prohibits me from appreciating it. Synechdoche isn't a reflection or exploration of life -- it's an active stance against it.

Philip Seymour Hoffman plays an unsuccessful theater director named Caden Cotard. Being a Kaufman film, we know from the very first frame that this character is doomed. Doomed from the start. As he struggles with his creative bankruptcy, Caden opts to analyze every instance of his life through recreation and reenactment, thanks to the help of a sizable grant and a cast of dedicated actors. This would be fine, if it weren't a tactic deployed by depressed teenagers everywhere, and Caden were a likable character. He's not.

Caden is depressed, you see. Understandable. His life sucks and he is doomed. Perhaps if there were some light at the end of the tunnel he might cheer up a bit (and so would the audience). But there isn't any -- only death. And so it goes, over and over, with a dab of surrealism here and there to keep things interesting (and confusing. What the hell was the burning house metaphor for? It appears in the film at least three times and seems to be a differently symbol each time, but for what? Nothing as far as I can tell).

Ultimately the film is about life, death, and trying to make your mark. Caden fails, miserably, to impact the people and world around him because he is selfish, self-absorbed, and scared. He's an asshole. That's fine, but I don't want to watch that character get nowhere for 3 hours of my life. I could use that time for something else.

That's my biggest beef with this film -- ideologically it's so bleak and asinine that I don't understand why anyone would want to watch it to begin with. The character appears to be trying to make something of himself, but his tactics are so childish and futile it prevents him from moving forward. He is stagnant from the first frame onward, and in turn the film is stagnant.

There is some humor in there -- especially in the beginning -- but it wears thin as the film moves towards its final act. By the last third, I was just bored. I didn't care about Caden, I didn't care about his play, and I didn't care about the movie.

Interestingly enough, a lot of this years big movies have dealt with the concept of life and death -- Benjamin Button and The Wrestler, being two standouts. While The Wrestler was equally depressing, I found myself rooting for the main character. I couldn't do that with Synechdoche -- there is simply no one or nowhere to latch on to.

Several film critics have pointed out that this is a film that demands multiple viewings, and it will be analyzed and scrutinized by film students for years to come. I only have one question for those people: Why?

Remembering the Pioneer Theater

Dear Pioneer Friends, Filmmakers, & Film Lovers,

Ten years ago, when we began construction on The Pioneer, we were told we were crazy - that no single screen, indie-oriented, 99 seat theater, east of Avenue A, could possible survive. But for nine years, we did - showcasing the best of truly independent cinema, presenting restored classics (from The Last Picture Show to Ace in the Hole), curating special programs (from Luis Guzman Night to the 42nd Street Smut Show), hosting guest filmmakers (from Robert Altman and Robert Downey to Steve Buscemi and Richard Kelly) and partnering with local film organizations including the IFP, Filmmaker’s Co-op, Cinema Tropical, Fangoria, Women in Film and Television, Cinewomen, Third I, Slamdance, Docfest, and many more...

We’ve been blessed that The Earth Mother, Mel Cooley, The Dude, and the other Two Boots pizzas have been able to support our labor of love all these years, but now, with our lease ending and a rent hike looming, it’s no longer economically feasible to keep the theater going. Friday, October 31st at midnight, will be our last regular screening, appropriately: Night of the Living Dead.

We want to thank our amazing staff, past and present, and we want to thank you, our loyal audience, for your patronage over the years. Please, PLEASE, keep supporting independent films and independent theaters.

Finally, on Friday, November 7th, we’ll be having a goodbye party starting at 6pm - free movies, popcorn, and reminiscences. Please come by!


I used to live a few short blocks from this theater, one of the only true "independent" art houses left in New York City. These guys showed everything, from
classic Kubrick and Sam Fuller, to pop horror, splatter, and grind, to thought provoking documentaries. They often supported local artists, allowing patrons to rent screens and arranging one-off screenings of no-budget features and shorts. They also screened a lot of Gay/Lesbian themed works and were a great outlet for progressive film-making.

One of my fondest memories of that place was the night I met Bill Plympton there. He was screening his latest feature Hair High (which is an incredible film, by the way, if you're an animation junkie like myself). I arrived like an hour or so early and got to sit with Bill and chat about animation, John Kricfalusi, New York, Plymptoons and much more. He signed a bunch of DVD's for me and was a truly gracious guy. To get to meet one of my heroes - and then watch him introduce his latest work - I can only thank the Pioneer for that.

The Pioneer is/was probably the only theater in New York still brave enough to house low-brow and high-art under one roof. The fact that they're closing down - regardless the reason - is a tragedy for the current New York cinema scene. It will truly be missed.

Revisit: Bad Taste

A WingNut/New Zealand Film Commission release 1987

Written & Directed by Peter Jackson

A crackpot team of agents investigate a group of aliens that chase human flesh for their intergalactic fast-food chain.



Peter Jackson made this film over a series of weekends across four years, starting in 1983. Hard to believe that twenty years later he'd be picking up a trove of Oscars. Continuity errors and goofs abound, but Jackson's distinct sense of humor and visual language finds its footing here. Lots of crazy close-ups and meandering hand-held pans.

The plot is paper-thin and there's a lot of scenes with characters just running through the woods, but Jackson's effects are stellar and the sound design is unbelievable. One of the grossest sounding movies I've ever seen.

If you're a fan of splatter, you've already seen this. Worth a gander if you're a fan of Peter Jackson or just enjoy cheesy horror.

David Lynch on the iPhone

Top Movies of 2007

My favorite films of the year thus far:





























And there are still many more I have to see... Things may change after voting for this year's Independent Spirit Awards begins.

Here's this year's NYC Screening Room dates

Revisit: Trust

A Fine Line Features release 1990

Written & Directed by Hal Hartley

A pregnant teen (Adrienne Shelly) meets a moody genius (Martin Donovan) with a hand grenade.



Hal Hartley's satirical view of suburban drama is arbitrary, but interesting none-the-less; a soap-opera world of absurdisms stuck in a Long Island vacuum, where things just happen. Roger Ebert once wrote "when a Hartley film plays on TV, you won't be tempted to go channel-surfing because the movie will seem to be switching programming for you", and it's true, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Trust has just enough American-indie, dysfunctional family quirk to keep it from feeling manufactured; considering the time of its release, it's probably more responsible for influencing the modern commodified indie backlash. The film is a ball of ideas, some work and some don't, but they all seem to point towards the fucked-up-ness of east coast suburban living, a theme Hartley has dealt with his entire career. The performances here are amusingly dead-pan, and the colors drab. If you like your hopeless romanticism with a bit of restraint, this film is for you.

Revisit: The Killing of a Chinese Bookie

A Faces Distributing Company release 1976

Written and Directed by John Cassavetes

A proud strip club owner (Ben Gazzara) is forced to come to terms with himself as a man when his gambling addiction gets him in hot water with the mob, who offer him only one alternative.



Gazzara and Cassavetes were frequent collaborators, but their individual efforts culminate in this film, which tells the story of a drunk gambler who gets in over his head. Cassavetes uncomfortably close shots and lingering camera, mixed with the improv, emotionally driven acting style results in a rich, full protrayal that leaves a bitterswett mix of sadness, humor, and the complex emotions of real life. Gazzara's strip club owner character is constantly emasculated while trying to maintain his high roller image, setting up an interesting play in sexual politics. Make sure to watch the 138 directors version - its worth the extra thirty minutes.

NY Asian Film Festival

The Annual New York Asian Film Festival starts this Friday at the IFC Center. Highlights include a screening of Takashi Miike's unreleased in the US Zebraman, anniversary showing of John Woo's Hard Boiled, shorts from Old Boy helmer Chan Wook Park, and more. This seventeen day orgy of new films will introduce you to buffalo-busting action flicks from Thailand, cartilage-cracking gangster films from Korea, and the first gore flick ever made in Pakistan!

You can find the full screening list and purchase tickets here.


Hard Boiled


Exiled

Watch Four Eye Monsters for Free!

Four Eyed Monsters was one of last year's best and most innovative films, and now you can watch the whole thing for FREE on Youtube! I highly suggest checking it out, it's only 71 minutes and well worth the time and admission. But catch it soon, it's only gonna be available for one week. Also, be a good sport and sign up for Spout.com. It's free and for each person who signs up, Arin and Susan each get $1 towards paying off their debt. So help these guys out!

Santasm

This is a pretty good gauge of what it would look like if I made a movie.

Revisit: Love Me If You Dare

A Paramount Classics release 2003

Directed by
Yann Samuell

Writing credits
Jacky Cukier
Yann Samuell

As adults, best friends Julien (Guillaume Canet) and Sophie (Marion Cotillard) continue the odd game they started as children -- a fearless competition to outdo one another with daring and outrageous stunts. While they often act out to relieve one another's pain, their game might be a way to avoid the fact that they are truly meant for one another.



While at times wonderful to look at, Love Me If You Dare suffers from that sort of French cinematic whimsy that starts off sweet but ends in a dizzy spell. The protagonists are two of the most mean-spirited characters I've ever seen, and the events in their life represent nothing grounded in reality or truth. Rather, the film is carried along by this sort of lovesick current, a strand of illogical, emotionally driven beats. The effect makes certain scenes hard to swallow, while others seem fatastic and otherworldly. Not for the cynical or the black-hearted.

2007 Indie Spirit Awards Winners

Well the Spirit Awards aired tonight on IFC and the results are in.

Best Feature: Little Miss Sunshine
Best Female Lead: Shareeka Epps (Half Nelson)
Best Male Lead: Ryan Gosling (Half Nelson)
Best Female Supporting: Frances McDormand (Friends with Money)
Best Male Supporting: Alan Arkin (Little Miss Sunshine)
Best Director: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine)
Best Screenplay: Jason Reitman (Thank You For Smoking)
Best First Screenplay: Michael Arndt (Little Miss Sunshine)
Best Cinematography: Guillermo Navarro (Pans Labyrinth)
Best First Feature: Sweet Land
Best Documentary: The Road to Guantanamo
Best Foriegn Film: The Lives of Others
John Cassavettes Award: Quinceañera
Truer Than Fiction Award: P.O.V.: The Tailenders (#19.5)

I'm glad to see that many of the films I voted for won awards, although I am disappointed at Little Miss Sunshine's semi-sweep. Sarah Silverman hosted again this year, and the vibe was pretty much the same - a bit dirty, a bit sexy, and a lot more informal than most other award shows. Here's a clip from last year, to give you an idea.

Horsefucker Movie Poster

I can not wait to see this movie.

Whitney to host Film as Art event

The Whitney Museum is hosting a near two month long event celebrating art on film, featuring works by Matthew Barney, Andy Warhol, Joseph Cornell, Chantal Ankerman, Chris Marker, David Salle, Larry Clark, Jean-Luc Godard, Yoko Ono with John Lennon and many more. The line-up is incredible, frankly, including some seminal films and must sees. I for one can't wait to catch Marker's La Jetée and Godard's Breathless back to back. You can check the full schedule here.



Press Release:

Since the invention of film, cinema has been an inspiration for artists, and moving image installations have become a major part of the fabric of contemporary art. In recent years, artists primarily known for their works in other media--sculpture, photography, drawing, painting--have also begun to produce films meant to be viewed on the cinema’s single screen.

The exhibition’s program ranges from classic early films by Samuel Beckett, and Robert Frank and Alfred Leslie; to key narrative works of the 1960s and 1970s by Babette Mangolte, Yvonne Rainer, and Andy Warhol; to rare screenings of films by artists who first came to prominence in the 1980s and 1990s such as Robert Longo, David Salle, Julian Schnabel, and Cindy Sherman.

The show also features films by a generation of artists who emerged in the 1990s and pursued a dual approach, making both films specifically for the cinema, and installations using the moving image. These include Matthew Barney, Tacita Dean, Tracey Emin, Douglas Gordon, Johan Grimonprez, Sharon Lockhart, and Clemens von Wedemeyer. Also on view are works by a small group of independent filmmakers who have not only influenced artists moving into film but also explored the gallery context themselves: Chantal Ackerman, Jean-Luc Godard, Derek Jarman, Isaac Julien, and Chris Marker.

Lights, Camera, Action brings many of these films together for the first time, allowing us to see the variety of ways in which artists have interpreted the language of cinema and to appreciate the specific qualities of cinema that artists have passionately recognized, and made their own.

Independent Spirit Awards Ballots Due

Voters for the Independent Spirit Awards have to send in their ballots by this Saturday, Feb 10th. I just finished filling mine out, plan on dropping it in the mail tomorrow. You can vote online, as well, but I think the ballot is more fun. It's interesting - you only have to vote for the movies you've seen, they expect you to leave all others blank. Thanks to those screenings and the free netflix I got, I've managed to see a good majority of them. I think Half Nelson will be the big winner this year; expect a review/Q&A with director Ryan Fleck posted soon. Overall it's been a fun experience. I look forward to doing it again next year.

Check out all the Spirit nominees here.

You can catch the Independent Spirit Awards live on IFC or Bravo February 24th @ 5PM ET/2PM PT

DIY Filmmaking

With the winter award season well on its way and the summer blockbuster stretch just around the corner, I think now is as good a time as ever to reward those filmmakers who understand that you don't need a ninety million dollar budget to make that epic gangster remake you've always been talking about. After all, with YouTube and Final Cut and all that digital crap, it's like pretty much anybody can make a movie nowadays. Right?

The theme for this post is Do It Yourself (DIY) Filmmaking. I’ve rounded up a selection of films released this past year that embody the DIY attitude. The quotes are all real and, yes, I've seen them all. They're great. Most of them can now be found on DVD. Check 'em out:



The Guatemalan Handshake
Dir. Todd Rohal
96 minute DV Narrative

A mysterious power failure in a small mountain town coincides with the disappearance of one of its most eccentric young residents. Mystery piles upon mystery as his family and friends search for him, fail, and ultimately try to forget about him, an undertaking that results in many unexpected, and in some cases bizarre, effects on the town's already peculiar community.

At age 19, Rohal was nominated for a Student Academy Award and he is a recipient of a Princess Grace Foundation grant. Guatemalan Handshake features actor/musician Will Oldham and was the winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 2006 Slamdance Film Festival.



Head Trauma
Dir. Lance Weiler
84 minute HD Narrative

After a 20 year absence, drifter, George Walker, returns home to settle his grandmother's estate. As if awakening from a long dream, he finds his childhood home condemned and littered with the remnants of squatters. In the midst of trying to save his past, George falls and strikes his head, triggering an onslaught of vivid nightmares and waking visions. As the horror intrudes on George's reality, his conviction grows that someone or something is trying to kill him.

Weiler made cinema history in 1998 when his directorial debut The Last Broadcast became the first all digital release of a feature film via satellite. His follow up, the psychological horror film Head Trauma, makes use of a digital cinema solution called IndEx that allows Weiler to carry an HD digital version of the film where ever he goes. A near perfect example of DIY, Weiler says the film was “shot, converted to HD, self-distributed, and pressed to mass-market DVD for about $125,000” - pretty impressive.



Four Eyed Monsters
Dir. Susan Buice & Arin Crumley
71 minute DV Narrative

The autobiographical Four Eyed Monsters didn't really break through until the directors created a video podcast documenting their journey creating and promoting the film. Thanks to a powerful MySpace community, the 17 videos posted on their iTunes feed over the past 9 months that each have received an average of 75,000 downloads. I got the chance to sit down with the directors of this wonderful film a couple of months ago - I'll post the interview in a few days. If you're interested in how new media is going to change the world SEE THIS FILM!



Mutual Appreciation
Dir. Andrew Bujalski
110 minutes
Goodbye Cruel Releasing

A musician (Justin Rice) comes between his best friend (Bujalski) and his best friend’s girl (Rachel Clift). Director Andrew Bujalski, a local filmmaker fresh of his first release, Funny Ha-Ha, follows in the Cassavetes tradition, casting non-actors and promoting improvisation that results in a slice of life, rather than a constructed film. Self produced and distributed, Bujalski is a complete DIY-er; “I make films for myself, that I want to see,” he says. “If other people like them – that’s great.”



Jackass 2
Dir. Jeff Tremaine
95 min
Paramount Pictures

Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Bam and the gang are back in another gross-out stunt fest with no holds barred. Based off the popular ‘Jackass’ television series that aired on MTV, the film may be the most mainstream on this list – the only with major studio backing – but nothing shows the DIY aesthetic in its most extreme than an hour and a half of self-inflicted sadomasochism. Count on plenty of piss, puke, poop, and semen – the surrealists would have loved these guys.



American Hardcore
Dir. Paul Rachman
100 min
Sony Picture Classics

Inspired by Steven Blush's book "American Hardcore: A Tribal History", Paul Rachman's feature documentary debut is a chronicle of the underground hardcore punk scene, where DIY was pioneered, from 1979 to 1986. The film includes interviews and rare live footage from artists such as Black Flag, Bad Brains, Minor Threat, SS Decontrol and the Dead Kennedys. The definitive film about an amazing movement.

Review: The Dead Girl

A Lakeshore Entertainment/Pitbull Pictures/First Look International release 2006
Written & Directed by Karen Moncrieff

The clues to a young woman's death come together as the lives of seemingly unrelated people begin to intersect.

Karen Moncrieff's second feature film (following 2002's Blue Car, which I've never seen but hear is pretty good) attempts to piece together the tragic story of a murdered hooker (played with ease by Brittany Murphy) through seven separate mini-shorts. Each short follows a different character who is somehow connected to the dead girl - the woman who discovers the body, the coroner, the dead girl's mother, etc. Running about twenty minutes each, the stories are contained in terms of their protagonists, but each reveal something new about the girl who was murdered. That is, until the end, when we are given the dead girls story in it's revealed glory.

It's very difficult to make a movie that has seven different protagonists. First, you have to make sure each character is believable, or you'll lose the audience right away. Then you have to give them each a story purpose, and that also has to be believable or once again you'll find yourself without an audience. In the case of The Dead Girl, Moncrieff and her actors treat the subject with such emotional flair that it's hard not to feel empathy for her characters. However, the seriousness of Moncrieff's tone and tendancy towards exploiting the emotional punch makes the film strangely unpalatable. Some of the stories follow such obvious tracks that it turns the premise into something almost laughable - take, for example, the story of the coronary student (Rose Byrne) who, upon examining the body, imagines that it's her long lost sister who's disappearance has caused her and her family grief for over a decade. Others simply lack focus or any clear direction - the story of the recluse (Toni Collette) with the abusive mother (Piper Laurie), who has to confront death up close before she can 'really live' (which apparently means having rape-like sex). While these short sections certainly work to give small clues to piece together the story of the dead girl, they don't exactly work as their own contained storylines. They're boring, and the movie suffers for it.

That said, the middle section following the wife of the murderer features a stellar performance by Mary Beth Hurt and is easily the most interesting. It runs on the idea that sometimes the things we love most are also the things we hate (pretty obvious), but the way the characters interact is covered in layers, and it works suprisingly well. From a technical end, the film is quite pretty. Nothing too impressive, but well handled and visually compelling. Likewise, it features performances by some of today's best actresses, including Mary Beth Hurt, Marcia Gay Harden, and Mary Steenburgen.

All in all, The Dead Girl comes across as a high concept Lifetime movie of the week with a slightly larger budget. Mostly it's because the mini-narratives are simply unfufilling. I don't know what Moncrieff could have done differently, because the film is anchored in the individual stories, but I guess she could have been more adventurous in her writing, instead of relying on usual murder-aftermath story cliches. See it on video for the performances.

The Dead Girl is nominated for three Indie Spirit Awards, including Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Supporting Female for Mary Beth Hurt.