confessions of an amateur cineaste

* The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. This is a lot of movie. It is also a *beautiful* movie, which should be no surprise as it’s lit by Roger Deakins, one of the few cinematographers I manage to know the name of. The others include Christopher Doyle, of course, and Conrad Hall, who made Sam Mendes’s films look much better than they actually were. (Famously, when Hall passed away, I wondered who on earth Mendes would get next. Mendes is no fool. He now works with Deakins. Who, by the way, also works a lot with the Coens.) ANYWAY. This was a horribly mis-managed film from a marketing perspective. I mean, this is a Brad Pitt film fer crissakes, but it sat around for ages, and then when it was finally released, in many cities reviewers weren’t even given the chance to see it. It’s long, the pacing is a little weird, it’s clearly influenced by Malick (which for me is a good thing, but I am not normal), Mary-Louise Parker is desperately underused, but Pitt is excellent, and the film is carried on Casey Affleck’s surprisingly capable shoulders. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I am really curious about a longer cut.

* Also lit by Deakins, No Country for Old Men is one freaky movie. I have two favorite moments. First, when Brolin & Macdonald are sitting on the couch early on in the film, both looking straight ahead, but in their demeanor & dialogue you can totally tell the depth & strength of their relationship. Second, when Bardem exits a house and checks the bottom of his shoes. Bardem, who I have long adored, and now? He terrifies me. THANKS, GUYS. Good thing Tommy Lee Jones was there being awesome. Also, it is probably worth noting that I had read the book a few weeks before seeing the film, and it was still totally engaging.

* I had really been looking forward to American Gangster, but it seemed to spend the whole time hanging on the edge of being a great film. It was good, well-cast, etc, but I couldn’t help comparing it to Zodiac which I loved. AG pales in comparison.

* I really enjoyed Michael Clayton, for Clooney, of course, but also for Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson & his touch of scenery-chewing. Satisfying!

* Finally, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead sort of destroyed me. I respect it, it was full of strong performances, but it was really draining to watch. Now I am looking for a film that will not make me want to slit my wrists. Suggestions?

A friend won a pair of party passes and shared with me, which means I went to four more movies than I had expected.

* The Walker. It was the Opening Gala, so clearly the programmers thought a lot of it. I didn’t love it. It was a very cold film. Woody Harrelson gave a very studied performance, but I felt that was in keeping with the character, who essentially performed as NonThreatening Gay Best Friend for DC society ladies. Here’s the thing I liked about it, though — whether it worked or not, it was a political thriller first, with a gay lead second. That is still rare enough to be comment worthy.

* Shelter. The folks sitting behind me thought *this* should have been the Opening Gala film, and they may have a point. I saw an awful film at SIFF a few years ago about a gay tagger, and this is everything that film *should* have been and a bit more. It still didn’t make it all the way up to objectively good, but the issues the lead character was dealing with had less to do with being gay and more to do with his co-dependent relationship with his sister. Which is a nice change.

* The Witnesses. Realistic & believable — though cold — film about the start of the AIDS epidemic. Well-acted, but there was just something missing. And I found the American character at the end really irritating because he had a strong Italian accent. Fail.

* The King and the Clown. This was easily my favorite of everything I saw at the festival.

* Eternal Summer. I didn’t love it. I wonder if I would have liked it better if I had *not* come straight from The King and the Clown.

* Itty Bitty Titty Committee. I really wanted to like this, but I kind of hated most of the characters. Sadness!

…I am so tired of mediocre gay cinema.