After 5 days of decompressing, I decided that it was (finally) time to wrap up my coverage of the Tribeca Film Festival. The parties are dwindling (I think there is one last BBQ tomorrow), the news coverage has all but halted (NY1 has their wrap show tonight). By the time you are reading this, I am more than likely in a vegetative state, whether that be on my couch catching up on “The Killing” or in Central Park soaking in the sun.
In my last piece I mentioned several of my favorite films of the festival, but I saved my top three for the end. One is rather obvious (although the Tribeca Film Festival documentary jury, surprisingly, chose to ignore it.) And the other choices…well, if you really know me, you won’t be that surprised, but if you are new to my crazy ways, this will be the perfect introduction.
First up is what I consider the best (my quite a margin) documentary of the festival. “The Bully Project.” This film follows the lives of several bullied teenagers in rural, conservative towns in Oklahoma, Georgia, Iowa and Mississippi. There are two remarkable aspects of this film. First and foremost the message is relayed strongest not by preaching, but by observing teachers, politicians, and law enforcement taking the absolute wrong approach to bullying. Laid out for us side by side with actual footage of bullying, it becomes clear that even the officials who think they are doing right by the kids are truly in the dark. The film begins with a family who has lost their young son to suicide. It is a very sad tale of grief. Later on in the film, when the filmmakers travel to Perkins, Oklahoma to visit the Smalley’s mere days after their 11 year old (11 YEARS OLD!) son commits suicide, the film becomes incredibly difficult to watch and even more necessary. We see a family near collapse. The father tells us that they are simple people, and they are. Yet by the end of the film, Mr. Smalley begins a campaign to save bullied children across the world from his son’s fate.
Sticking with light hearted romps (that’s sarcasm, folks) we have “Artificial Paradises,” a narrative film I almost stopped watching after ten minutes. In the beginning, the film’s deliberate pace is a bit taxing…waiting for the story to kick in: a heroin addict escapes to a Mexican beach town in order to kick her heroin addiction. I was reading some reviews this morning that suggested the opening was like the musings of a person who had ingested mushrooms. Perhaps, but after seeing the whole film, I think the opening was setting up a realistic and beautiful backdrop for what we will later see. Luisa Pardos plays the heroin addict with such a level of honesty that (and I know you hear this often from me) is so rare, it almost feels inappropriate to listen in on her conversations with her new friend, the local, Salomon (played by Salomon Hernandez.) The scenes in which she is on and trying to get off heroin are like nothing I have ever seen depicted in film. There is no wide eyed, trippy, “I’m HIGH!”-ness from Luisa. She is an addict who is so far in that she doesn’t come close to enjoying it anymore, it’s simply a necessity…a way of life. When she tries to quit, there is no thrashing or screaming (although there is a bit of sweating!), just truth. The film is beautifully shot (winning the cinematography award) but I feel it the best acted film that I saw in the festival. Perhaps the best narrative overall.
I want to end my festival coverage with something a bit more fun after bombarding you for weeks with bleakness… giving a special mention to what could possibly be called my personal audience award winner, “Saint,” directed by Dick Maas. I learned from the wonderful Maitland McDonagh, a former TV Guide film critic and Argento expert, quite a long time ago, that’s it is perfectly acceptable to not only love, but respect horror films. It isn’t easy to blend the perfect balance of scares, story, the occasional laughs…and don’t forget…just enough skin… to make a fun, dare I say, great slasher flick. “Saint,” the over the top tale of a murderous St. Nick, who returns to Amsterdam every 30 years to murder anyone in his path gets all of those aspects right.
Early on, there are hints of “Halloween:” with three neighborhood teenage girls going home for the horror holiday weekend, chatting about boys and superstitions. We also have the obsessed “crazy man” trying to convince everyone that Sinterklaas is coming and he is going to wipe out the entire population unless he is stopped. There is also the oversexed teenage boy who appears to have slept with everyone. The great thing about “Saint” is that it truly throws subtlety out the window. Its scares are big. The blood is bright and flowing. And you have to laugh…lots…when, for example, Sinterklaas rides his horse on the rooftops of Amsterdam for everyone to see, and gawk. Already picked up by IFC, “Saint” is a must see for horror fans.
So, there you have it. 12 days of films…and 5 days of recovery. Almost 3 weeks of entertaining, and truly independent film. It has been a pleasure to share my thoughts with the AD readers once again. Until the next East coast festival, I’m signing off.
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Brian Whisenant
Awards Wiz:
briwiz.blogspot.com