My first walk out for MIFF 2022. I guess this film about a somewhat dysfunctional family going on and on about themselves doesn’t remind you enough of your own regular experiences, perhaps this might appeal. A surprising disappointment, given the talent of the cast.
FALCON LAKE – ★★★☆
Nicely made French-Canadian coming of age film set on a lake. A summer is spent with a visiting family sharing a cabin with family friends who own it, and the story focuses on the friendship that forms between a near-14 year old boy and a 16 year old girl. Did a reasonable job of showing the awkwardness of the age, with a couple of minor slips in the story for me, but mostly hits the right notes.
MILLIE LIES LOW – ★★★
Was looking forward to this New Zealand comedy. Its premise was of an architecture student who wins a scholarship to work in New York, suffers a panic attack on the plane, and ends up staying in Wellington, trying to pretend she’s in NY to her friends and family. This one had a good concept, but was a bit of a mixed bag, and didn’t seem to know whether it was a bleak-ish drama or a comedy. Ultimately it was hard to be on-side with any of the flawed characters, and many of the plot points weren’t entirely watertight.
Vietnamese documentary about a remote village, where the a courtship ritual for marriage that consists of 14 year old girls being kidnapped and then pushed into marriage with their kidnapper is not unusual. This was filmed over three years and shows the conflict of old ‘tradition’ against a more modern set of thinking, thanks to a school that tries to educate people to behave in better ways. Deeply troubling scenes as you see the main subject’s parents participating in the old way, with obvious protest by the subject herself.
COSTA BRAVA, LEBANON – ★★★★
Eight years after disconnecting from society by moving to a remote area away from others, a Lebanese family has society come to them, when a garbage dump is built literally outside their front yard. Wonderful portrayal of the families relationships with each other, society, and a bigger lesson about the greater risks of not respecting the land we live on. If you liked Digger (MIFF 2022) this one is worth a look.
Documentary about a new student who attends a high school in Scotland, and the secret that is discovered after his year there. It was an entertaining and often funny film, though I felt like it could have been edited a little better to get to the grand reveal sooner, and have less recounting of the same information after it. Worth a watch, but certainly doesn’t require seeing it on a big screen. I’ve added Jon Cryer’s ‘Hiding Out’ to my list of films to re-watch.
A Danish period drama set in the late 1800s about a priest sent to Iceland to build a church a form a parish. Much like Lord of the Rings, he chooses to take a journey across the land instead of a more direct path that may have made for an easier time for all. He faces all kinds of trials along the way, which lead him to having to deal with many of his own shortcomings. Iceland’s scenery is incredible in this, as was the film-making. It wasn’t fast paced, but didn’t bore either, despite being about 2.5 hours long.
6 FESTIVALS – ★★
Having recently re-watched Strictly Ballroom, Muriel’s Wedding, and Love and Other Catastrophes, I was hoping for the best with this Australian film. Ultimately I was disappointed. It’s about three teens who decide to attend as many music festivals as they can when one is diagnosed with brain cancer. Fairly one dimensional, and some missed opportunities to make it a special film.
SILENT LAND – ★★★
A Polish film, shot in Italy, about a couple who are holidaying at a fancy house on the coast while their apartment is being renovated. The pool they were promised isn’t working, and the owner organises an illegal immigrant to repair it. The film focuses on what happens when it doesn’t go to plan, mainly focusing on the relationship of the couple, but touching on others too. It reminded me a little of Force Majeure in regards to showing the aftermath of an incident. Neither were entirely my cup of tea.
Polish documentary about a pawnshop that has seen better days, in an industrial town that also feels like it has as well. Much of the context wasn’t shared, but it seems like times are hard for many in the town, and this fly on the wall documentary has a share of funny and tender moments as well as ones that have you clenching in fear of what would be severe occupational health and safety risks. The characters are all heroes in some ways, and flawed in others. I liked the honest approach in introducing the various staff and customers.
DIAMOND HANDS: THE LEGEND OF WALLSTREETBETS – ★★★☆
Entertaining and well made documentary about the WallStreetBets sub-reddit, which attempted to squeeze large firms who had shorted GameStop stock. When an intelligent young man realised that Wall Street had bet against GameStop by 140%, he had a theory that if enough people bought GameStop stock, it would create a situation where the stock would skyrocket as those who’d bet against it had to buy out their losses. Having watched some of this occurring at the time, I felt it was a good representation of the nature of the people who were pushing for this, and the various memes associated. Congratulations to those who sold their GME at $400+, I sure wish I had right now.
ON THE COUNT OF THREE – ★★★★
A powerful Canadian comedy/drama about two best friends, both who decide they don’t want to live anymore and agree to mutual suicide. A pretty dark comedy that avoids following the expected path one might predict, and lends to giving a voice to try and understand how tragedies can occur. The second ‘comedy’ about suicide at MIFF this year, and we’re only two days in.
HIT THE ROAD – ★★
Maybe it’s been too long since I went to the movies, but this counts as the third film (or the fourth? I’ve lost count) at MIFF this year where I felt like any introduction to the setting around the story has been skipped. From what I could work out, it’s about an Iranian family taking their son on a road trip to a destination so he can be sneakily taken somewhere. Maybe they were trying to sneak him across a border? Possibly to skip bail? I don’t know. I was looking forward to this one, but would have likely left, if I’d snagged an aisle seat. Several unnecessarily long takes with little to watch but a person walking from point A to point B (or a motorbike being ridden from point A to point B), interjected with an annoying child that would nag/scream/yell incessantly. If there was one redemption, it was the performance by Pantea Panahiha, who played the mother.
