| | Baghead
The Duplass Brothers (The Puffy Chair) are back at Sundance again and this time, with a documentary-style homage to film festivals, art and the responsibilities of creativity. Baghead achieves the nearly impossible in 85 minutes. It plays as an all-out comedy, a horror film and a saucy romance drama. The comedy runs throughout but there are moments that are truly scary and also moments that are truly human. The four leading actors are dead-on portrayals of two couples---one recently broken up but still interested in one another and one just in the beginning stages of friendship, where the guy likes the girl more than the girl likes the guy---and this struggle is strong amidst the "baghead" dilemma going on in the woods outside of Los Angeles. With an ending as surprising as it is emotionally affecting, Baghead may appear to be art-house-minimalist cinema but instead it functions more as a small gift, funny and creepy and in the end, moving. Neville's Grade: B+
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Sleep Dealer
It's really depressing when a film has such great ideas and yet, gets bogged down and diluted by them. This is the case with the science fiction/faction fantasy Sleep Dealer, a mess of a film that's predictable, "over" photographed and suffering from a screenplay written by the director who really needed someone tell him to "simplify, simplify!" Additionally, the film feels preachy and treats its audience as if they know nothing about what's going on in the world today. Yes, we know America attacks innocent people in other countries. Yes, we know the world is disconnected and cheap labor is outsourced overseas. But the problem is, the director/writer takes this "travesties" and rubs your face in it and says "this is the future!" On top of all this, the central character is one-dimensional...which is surprising for such a good actor in the role. His eyes resonate within us (or at least wants to) but the script doesn't resonate with him. Someone will one day make a solid, focussed motion picture about the future and the age of the disconnect (with immigration, global economy and water shortage) but this movie is not that one. The worst movie I've seen at Sundance 2008. Neville's Grade: D
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Towelhead
(REVIEW COMING SOON)
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| | Posted 1/24/2008 8:13 PM - 51 Views - 0 eProps - 0 comments
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