confessions of an amateur cineaste

And now, for the film festival! I started with a midnight, and I haven’t recovered yet. Them, a French thriller about a couple who makes the mistake of living in a spooky old house in the woods & awakens one night to strange noises… dun dun dun. It’s gritty and effective, keeping the tension high by not ever showing too much. I guessed the twist early on, but that didn’t make it any less creepy.

It was preceeded by a short, “The Eyes of Edward James”, which didn’t do much for me.

The next day was Monkey Warfare, which I picked because it starred Don McKellar & Tracy Wright, both of whom are always worth watching. It’s an extremely low-budget film about a couple living off the grid in Toronto, and how their lives get shaken up by their new pot dealer. I liked it a lot. It’s different, but dirtied up enough to not be quirky. Also, the soundtrack & the final credits are awesome.

It also was preceeded by a short, “Order Up”, a dark comedy which starred Illeana Douglas and about half worked.