sxsw 2007
SXSW 2007. 25 movies, 7 days.
I haven’t cooked, cleaned, watched TV, talked to friends or even had sex with the boyfriend in a week. I’ve eaten more meals at the Alamo Drafthouse than I’ve eaten at my own house and I’ve gotten too little sleep. I met some interesting people while waiting in line and I learned to navigate Austin’s public transportation system. But it was fun, I saw a lot of really great movies, missed a lot of really great movies and unfortunately caught some complete duds. You win some, you lose some.
I’m not a very good review writer, I don’t take notes and tend to forget important details as soon as the credits roll. So here are my reviews, with links to others who reviews I agree with but who are much more eloquent than I.
The Lookout
This one was pretty good, Jeff Daniels is excellent in the role of the blind roommate. It was a little predictable, but not bad. I was afraid it was going to be Momento 2, but it actually becomes more of an emotional movie than a thriller. It’s supposed to be set in Kansas City. One obvious problem with this is that the main character is a high school hockey star, but there are no high school hockey teams, or hockey teams of any sort, for that matter, in Kansas City. I kept watching the background to see if I recognized anyplace, but didn’t, which is because it was actually filmed in Toronto.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0427470/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/10/sxsw-review-the-lookout/
Mulberry Street
This movie was one of the worst I saw this week. It was just so clichéd and predictable. The kid sitting next to me fell asleep it was so uninteresting. The filmmakers tried to make it more horror-like by using a bunch of trendy camera work and jarring sound, but it eventually just became all about the visual effects. The characters were one dimensional and you really didn’t care about any of them. Which doesn’t matter because most of them die by the end of the movie anyway.
http://www.mulberrystreetmovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0473514/
Reel Shorts 1
Reel Shorts 2
I always enjoy the shorts. I try to catch them every year because I know that this is likely the only time I’ll be able to see them, it’s not like they usually get major theatrical distribution. This year, a few of the feature-length movies had shorts playing in front of them too. Out of the ones I saw, these are the ones that stood out: Morning, Trout, Heavy Metal Drummer, The Saddest Boy in the World, Death to the Tinman, The Job, Alive and Well
Some had websites:
http://modernfamily.ca/
http://www.screamingfrog.com/
http://www.raytintori.com/
Fish Kill Flea
Eh. This one was only okay. It seemed like it could have a lot of promise, but really failed to deliver. I think that the story they thought they were telling and the story they actually told were two different things. I admit, I was really tired when I saw this one, and dozed off for several minutes at a few points during the screening.
http://www.fishkillflea.com/
Sisters
Another one at the bottom of my list. It just wasn’t very interesting, it kind of plods along through the story until the ending which seems to come out of nowhere. It’s like the ending to another movie. The negative review on IMDB says it all.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0486652/
American Zombie
A mockumentary about modern day zombies in LA just trying to live their lives. This was an entertaining movie, not great film, but entertaining. It got a little blair witch-ey at the end, fortunately, they spared us the up the nose snot-shot. The end really seemed to drag and, I think, brought the whole movie down.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0765430/
http://www.americanzombiemovie.com/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/12/sxsw-review-american-zombie/
Animated Shorts
Again, I go to these because I will probably never have another chance to see them. Some that stood out: Guide Dog, Tragic Story With Happy Ending, Adicolor Red, Animation vs. Animator
http://www.nfb.ca/trouverunfilm/fichefilm.php?id=53705&v=h&lg=en&exp=${tragic}{story}{with}{a}{happy}{ending}#
Eagle vs. Shark
One of my favorite narratives of the festival. Dorky girl falls in love with dorky guy who has a revenge plot against the guy who used to beat him up in high school. The lead actors are incredible, the script is hilarious, the message is positive. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the stop motion animation sub-plot, but it was pretty easy to ignore.
http://www.eaglevsshark.net/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0494222/
http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=15697&reviewer=360
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9861
What Would Jesus Buy
I went to the Sunday premier of this movie at the Paramount. It was packed to the roof, 1200 people. The Reverend Billy, the choir and Morgan Spurlock were there and gave a very entertaining Q&A after the screening. The movie itself was pretty inspiring in that it makes you want to be more aware of what you’re buying and where it’s coming from. As a documentary, it was entertaining, but not very substantial. It felt like they were trying to cram so much into the film and didn’t really get a chance to go in depth with the issues. It was entertaining and it makes you think, so I think it accomplished its goal.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0939681/
http://www.revbilly.com/
King Corn
This one had a little surprise for me right in the middle. They featured my middle-of-nowhere hometown and a few of the people who live there. I was so shocked, that I had trouble thinking for a few minutes. I had to call my mom when I got out of the show. It’s a good documentary, it presents a lot of information, They don’t just talk about what happens to corn when it’s harvested, but about the modern farming industry. It’s a very well researched film with cute, kooky little stop-motion animation scenes involving a Fisher Price farm set. It has a Supersize Me feel to it, while managing to maintain more objectivity. It will definitely make you think about where your soda came from.
http://kingcorn.net/
http://www.httwww.cinematical.com/2007/03/16/sxsw-review-king-corn/
Fall From Grace
Who doesn’t hate Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church? This documentary is surprisingly objective given the strong feelings most people have against him. It’s not a very polished film, there are some sound issues and choppy editing, but presents the information in a very unflinching way from little kids telling us how fags go to hell to Phelps’ children who have been excommunicated talking about the physical abuse they used to suffer from their father. The filmmaker shows Fred as the petty, egocentric, rageaholic he is and shows how completely brainwashed his children are.
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/13/sxsw-fall-from-grace/
Helvetica
I admit, I’m a font geek. It comes with the job. This was the only film I had heard anything about prior to SXSW and the one film I really wanted to see. It was a sold out film, thanks to the interactive festival. Fortunately, I was one of the few lucky pass people to make it in, being first in line helped. The interviews were what made this film, the director chose a wide variety of graphic and font designers who all had different opinions on the font and what it stood for. It covers a brief history of graphic design from about 1950’s on and how Helvetica played a huge role, not only in people using the font, but the movements born as people rebelled against it. One idea the director was trying to get across was that once you know Helvetica, you will see it everywhere. He does this by shot after shot after shot of Helvetica being used all over the world in signage, corporate logos, even your tax forms. This got a little tiresome after a while and by the end of the movie seemed like more of an attempt to fill space. There were also some sound issues, like a surprising number of films this year, the director admitted to only finishing this one about a week ago, so hopefully they will have a chance to go back and fix them.
http://www.helveticafilm.com/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/14/sxsw-helvetica/
The Price of Sugar
This was another guilt-inducing documentary. Haitian workers in the Dominican Republic sugar plantations are basically sold into slavery trying to escape the dire conditions in Hati. They think they’re going on to better lives in the DR, but are then stripped of their documents and the held captive on the plantations living in squalid conditions getting paid next to nothing and with no hope or chance of ever getting out. Many are born on the plantation and most expect to die there. This documentary is about Father Christopher Hartley and his efforts to change the system despite dramatic opposition. It wasn’t the best documentary I saw all week, but it was far from the worst, it didn’t make as big of an impression on me as some of the others
http://www.thepriceofsugar.com/
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9865&archive=&match=&page=0
Lost in Woonsocket
This was the only documentary I saw that made me cry. Even sitting in the front row at the Drafthouse with a serious crick in my neck, I was overwhelmed by this film. The movie is based on a TV series on A&E about two guys who travel around the country and try to connect people with people. The people featured in this movie are both homeless alcoholics and their attempts to get clean and get their lives back on track. It was so inspiring and it makes you think twice about the panhandler on the street corner. We can all help people, we just have to make the effort.
http://www.random1.com/
Election Day
Another decent documentary. Made me a little sad about the state of the election process in the U.S. It was a complicated project, 14 crews in 14 cities with only one day to film. The filmmakers claim that there was no intentional political bias in the film, but it’s obvious that it has a Democratic lean. It wasn’t spectacular, it wasn’t awful, it was okay.
http://www.electiondaythemovie.com/
He Was A Quiet Man
Eh. This one was okay. Slater gives a good performance, Macy is underused. The story and the script is where this movie lose it and the ending was just bad. I had higher expectations.
http://www.hewasaquietman.com/flash.html
http://imdb.com/title/tt0760311/
Call of the Hummingbird
This one was just bad. The only good thing going for it was it was only an hour long. It’s about a multi-national group of people that meet in Brazil for a sort of eco-summit and an attempt to live off the earth with as little impact as possible. It was hard to tell from the movie if it was the group that didn’t have a purpose or the film that didn’t have a purpose. Either way, about 15 minutes into this one, I was plotting my exit strategy. The interviews were boring and uninformative and didn’t advance any sort of narrative about the group. It was basically a bunch of hippies playing drums in the mud. There was a very preachy narration by the director who appeared in the movie unnecessarily. Ugh. It’s an hour of my life I want back.
Imprint
This was a decent movie. Another “we just finished this last week” projects that will benefit from some additional work (sound and editing). The opening sequence makes you think you’re getting into some sort of horror movie and there are some “gotcha” moments, but it’s more thriller than horror. It’s got a nice ending that is somewhat unexpected, the actors all do a decent job, it’s very polished for what was essentially a family affair even with the support of Chris Eyre. This seems like straight to DVD type of movie.
http://www.imprintmovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0816530/
Confessions of a Superhero
I loved this movie, it was one of my favorite documentaries. The look and feel of the movie was so beautifully done. Each character they interviewed had a distinct look. The interviews were intersperced with gorgeous still photography. The movie is quirky and funny and sometimes sad as you watch these people who are just trying to catch their big break in Hollywood. The director doesn’t mock the subject, and doesn’t make them seem pitiful, he makes you empathize with these people who are doing their best to get by. One of the best scenes is “Batman” in full costume at his therapists office talking about his shady past and the “body count” he left behind.
http://www.myspace.com/therealsuperheromovie
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/11/sxsw-review-confessions-of-a-superhero/
http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/03/sxsw_confession.html
The Unforseen
Oh boy, there’s still a lot of emotions surrounding the topic of this film here in Austin. It was sometimes hard to hear over the boos and hisses of the crowd. Not that they aren’t justified in booing and hissing. Two underwater shots, one of Barton Springs in 1996 as a beautiful, clear spring and the other in 2004 where it looks like you’re swimming through a fog say it all. It does a good job of showing the effects thoughtless development can have on the environment and the clout that big developers have in our local and state governments.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0912596/maindetails
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9656
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/01/29/sundance-review-the-unforeseen/
Audience of One
I felt for the subject of this documentary, I really did. He really, really believes that God wants him to make this movie and he really, really believes that because God wants it, it will happen. This was ultimately a very sad documentary about a minister who has a dream but one that will never be realized. The whole thing is a the train wreck that you would expect when a bunch of people with no experience try to make a big budget science fiction movie using volunteers who have a prayer service before each filming. This movie speaks to the lengths that people with extreme faith will go to.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0976087/
http://www.myspace.com/audienceofonedoc
Big Rig
I enjoyed this movie, probably because I grew up in the Midwest and knew a lot of over the road truck drivers. It gives a little insight into the men and women who haul our produce and ball bearing and Barbie dolls from one side of the country to the other. The graphics were beautiful, done by Tomorrow’s Brightest Minds and the soundtrack was excellent. They delve into the politics of big rig driving (the increasing cost of gas is a huge problem) and the stereotypes (one man is the former VP of a Fortune 500 company). This was a well done, visually interesting film.
http://bigrigmovie.com/bigrig/
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/31820
Hell on Wheels
This is a perfect example of the old adage “a work of art is never finished, it is merely abandoned.” This is a documentary that was 5 years in the making. The filmmaker was lucky to get in on the very beginning of the roller derby resurgence in Austin and be able to follow it all the way though. It’s an interesting look at modern feminism, as it says in the movie “we walk a fine line between sexy and slutty.” It’s something of a social experiment as a group of women consciously decide to exclude men and to see if they can create and run a company based on roller derby. It doesn’t work, but it ultimately does work in the end. It’s not so much about roller derby as it is about the egos of the people involved.
http://www.hellonwheelsthemovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0384162/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/18/sxsw-review-hell-on-wheels/
I’m a Cyborg But That’s OK
This movie was only OK. Visually, it was beautiful, it was the story that brought it down. It was long (2 hours), and kept coming to what you thought was a conclusion but then it would keep going, and keep going and keep going. It was something of a sweet love story, but it was slow to develop and then slow to conclude. The characters were rather one-dimensional, they were their illness, not a person, even the main characters failed to develop fully. I hope it will be edited before it is released to the US market.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0497137/
http://koreapopwars.blogspot.com/2006/12/do-cyborgs-dream-of-eclectic-conceits.html
Oh, yeah... there was some music stuff going on too.
I haven’t cooked, cleaned, watched TV, talked to friends or even had sex with the boyfriend in a week. I’ve eaten more meals at the Alamo Drafthouse than I’ve eaten at my own house and I’ve gotten too little sleep. I met some interesting people while waiting in line and I learned to navigate Austin’s public transportation system. But it was fun, I saw a lot of really great movies, missed a lot of really great movies and unfortunately caught some complete duds. You win some, you lose some.
I’m not a very good review writer, I don’t take notes and tend to forget important details as soon as the credits roll. So here are my reviews, with links to others who reviews I agree with but who are much more eloquent than I.
The Lookout
This one was pretty good, Jeff Daniels is excellent in the role of the blind roommate. It was a little predictable, but not bad. I was afraid it was going to be Momento 2, but it actually becomes more of an emotional movie than a thriller. It’s supposed to be set in Kansas City. One obvious problem with this is that the main character is a high school hockey star, but there are no high school hockey teams, or hockey teams of any sort, for that matter, in Kansas City. I kept watching the background to see if I recognized anyplace, but didn’t, which is because it was actually filmed in Toronto.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0427470/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/10/sxsw-review-the-lookout/
Mulberry Street
This movie was one of the worst I saw this week. It was just so clichéd and predictable. The kid sitting next to me fell asleep it was so uninteresting. The filmmakers tried to make it more horror-like by using a bunch of trendy camera work and jarring sound, but it eventually just became all about the visual effects. The characters were one dimensional and you really didn’t care about any of them. Which doesn’t matter because most of them die by the end of the movie anyway.
http://www.mulberrystreetmovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0473514/
Reel Shorts 1
Reel Shorts 2
I always enjoy the shorts. I try to catch them every year because I know that this is likely the only time I’ll be able to see them, it’s not like they usually get major theatrical distribution. This year, a few of the feature-length movies had shorts playing in front of them too. Out of the ones I saw, these are the ones that stood out: Morning, Trout, Heavy Metal Drummer, The Saddest Boy in the World, Death to the Tinman, The Job, Alive and Well
Some had websites:
http://modernfamily.ca/
http://www.screamingfrog.com/
http://www.raytintori.com/
Fish Kill Flea
Eh. This one was only okay. It seemed like it could have a lot of promise, but really failed to deliver. I think that the story they thought they were telling and the story they actually told were two different things. I admit, I was really tired when I saw this one, and dozed off for several minutes at a few points during the screening.
http://www.fishkillflea.com/
Sisters
Another one at the bottom of my list. It just wasn’t very interesting, it kind of plods along through the story until the ending which seems to come out of nowhere. It’s like the ending to another movie. The negative review on IMDB says it all.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0486652/
American Zombie
A mockumentary about modern day zombies in LA just trying to live their lives. This was an entertaining movie, not great film, but entertaining. It got a little blair witch-ey at the end, fortunately, they spared us the up the nose snot-shot. The end really seemed to drag and, I think, brought the whole movie down.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0765430/
http://www.americanzombiemovie.com/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/12/sxsw-review-american-zombie/
Animated Shorts
Again, I go to these because I will probably never have another chance to see them. Some that stood out: Guide Dog, Tragic Story With Happy Ending, Adicolor Red, Animation vs. Animator
http://www.nfb.ca/trouverunfilm/fichefilm.php?id=53705&v=h&lg=en&exp=${tragic}{story}{with}{a}{happy}{ending}#
Eagle vs. Shark
One of my favorite narratives of the festival. Dorky girl falls in love with dorky guy who has a revenge plot against the guy who used to beat him up in high school. The lead actors are incredible, the script is hilarious, the message is positive. The only thing I didn’t like about it was the stop motion animation sub-plot, but it was pretty easy to ignore.
http://www.eaglevsshark.net/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0494222/
http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=15697&reviewer=360
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9861
What Would Jesus Buy
I went to the Sunday premier of this movie at the Paramount. It was packed to the roof, 1200 people. The Reverend Billy, the choir and Morgan Spurlock were there and gave a very entertaining Q&A after the screening. The movie itself was pretty inspiring in that it makes you want to be more aware of what you’re buying and where it’s coming from. As a documentary, it was entertaining, but not very substantial. It felt like they were trying to cram so much into the film and didn’t really get a chance to go in depth with the issues. It was entertaining and it makes you think, so I think it accomplished its goal.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0939681/
http://www.revbilly.com/
King Corn
This one had a little surprise for me right in the middle. They featured my middle-of-nowhere hometown and a few of the people who live there. I was so shocked, that I had trouble thinking for a few minutes. I had to call my mom when I got out of the show. It’s a good documentary, it presents a lot of information, They don’t just talk about what happens to corn when it’s harvested, but about the modern farming industry. It’s a very well researched film with cute, kooky little stop-motion animation scenes involving a Fisher Price farm set. It has a Supersize Me feel to it, while managing to maintain more objectivity. It will definitely make you think about where your soda came from.
http://kingcorn.net/
http://www.httwww.cinematical.com/2007/03/16/sxsw-review-king-corn/
Fall From Grace
Who doesn’t hate Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church? This documentary is surprisingly objective given the strong feelings most people have against him. It’s not a very polished film, there are some sound issues and choppy editing, but presents the information in a very unflinching way from little kids telling us how fags go to hell to Phelps’ children who have been excommunicated talking about the physical abuse they used to suffer from their father. The filmmaker shows Fred as the petty, egocentric, rageaholic he is and shows how completely brainwashed his children are.
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/13/sxsw-fall-from-grace/
Helvetica
I admit, I’m a font geek. It comes with the job. This was the only film I had heard anything about prior to SXSW and the one film I really wanted to see. It was a sold out film, thanks to the interactive festival. Fortunately, I was one of the few lucky pass people to make it in, being first in line helped. The interviews were what made this film, the director chose a wide variety of graphic and font designers who all had different opinions on the font and what it stood for. It covers a brief history of graphic design from about 1950’s on and how Helvetica played a huge role, not only in people using the font, but the movements born as people rebelled against it. One idea the director was trying to get across was that once you know Helvetica, you will see it everywhere. He does this by shot after shot after shot of Helvetica being used all over the world in signage, corporate logos, even your tax forms. This got a little tiresome after a while and by the end of the movie seemed like more of an attempt to fill space. There were also some sound issues, like a surprising number of films this year, the director admitted to only finishing this one about a week ago, so hopefully they will have a chance to go back and fix them.
http://www.helveticafilm.com/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/14/sxsw-helvetica/
The Price of Sugar
This was another guilt-inducing documentary. Haitian workers in the Dominican Republic sugar plantations are basically sold into slavery trying to escape the dire conditions in Hati. They think they’re going on to better lives in the DR, but are then stripped of their documents and the held captive on the plantations living in squalid conditions getting paid next to nothing and with no hope or chance of ever getting out. Many are born on the plantation and most expect to die there. This documentary is about Father Christopher Hartley and his efforts to change the system despite dramatic opposition. It wasn’t the best documentary I saw all week, but it was far from the worst, it didn’t make as big of an impression on me as some of the others
http://www.thepriceofsugar.com/
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9865&archive=&match=&page=0
Lost in Woonsocket
This was the only documentary I saw that made me cry. Even sitting in the front row at the Drafthouse with a serious crick in my neck, I was overwhelmed by this film. The movie is based on a TV series on A&E about two guys who travel around the country and try to connect people with people. The people featured in this movie are both homeless alcoholics and their attempts to get clean and get their lives back on track. It was so inspiring and it makes you think twice about the panhandler on the street corner. We can all help people, we just have to make the effort.
http://www.random1.com/
Election Day
Another decent documentary. Made me a little sad about the state of the election process in the U.S. It was a complicated project, 14 crews in 14 cities with only one day to film. The filmmakers claim that there was no intentional political bias in the film, but it’s obvious that it has a Democratic lean. It wasn’t spectacular, it wasn’t awful, it was okay.
http://www.electiondaythemovie.com/
He Was A Quiet Man
Eh. This one was okay. Slater gives a good performance, Macy is underused. The story and the script is where this movie lose it and the ending was just bad. I had higher expectations.
http://www.hewasaquietman.com/flash.html
http://imdb.com/title/tt0760311/
Call of the Hummingbird
This one was just bad. The only good thing going for it was it was only an hour long. It’s about a multi-national group of people that meet in Brazil for a sort of eco-summit and an attempt to live off the earth with as little impact as possible. It was hard to tell from the movie if it was the group that didn’t have a purpose or the film that didn’t have a purpose. Either way, about 15 minutes into this one, I was plotting my exit strategy. The interviews were boring and uninformative and didn’t advance any sort of narrative about the group. It was basically a bunch of hippies playing drums in the mud. There was a very preachy narration by the director who appeared in the movie unnecessarily. Ugh. It’s an hour of my life I want back.
Imprint
This was a decent movie. Another “we just finished this last week” projects that will benefit from some additional work (sound and editing). The opening sequence makes you think you’re getting into some sort of horror movie and there are some “gotcha” moments, but it’s more thriller than horror. It’s got a nice ending that is somewhat unexpected, the actors all do a decent job, it’s very polished for what was essentially a family affair even with the support of Chris Eyre. This seems like straight to DVD type of movie.
http://www.imprintmovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0816530/
Confessions of a Superhero
I loved this movie, it was one of my favorite documentaries. The look and feel of the movie was so beautifully done. Each character they interviewed had a distinct look. The interviews were intersperced with gorgeous still photography. The movie is quirky and funny and sometimes sad as you watch these people who are just trying to catch their big break in Hollywood. The director doesn’t mock the subject, and doesn’t make them seem pitiful, he makes you empathize with these people who are doing their best to get by. One of the best scenes is “Batman” in full costume at his therapists office talking about his shady past and the “body count” he left behind.
http://www.myspace.com/therealsuperheromovie
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/11/sxsw-review-confessions-of-a-superhero/
http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/03/sxsw_confession.html
The Unforseen
Oh boy, there’s still a lot of emotions surrounding the topic of this film here in Austin. It was sometimes hard to hear over the boos and hisses of the crowd. Not that they aren’t justified in booing and hissing. Two underwater shots, one of Barton Springs in 1996 as a beautiful, clear spring and the other in 2004 where it looks like you’re swimming through a fog say it all. It does a good job of showing the effects thoughtless development can have on the environment and the clout that big developers have in our local and state governments.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0912596/maindetails
http://www.filmthreat.com/index.php?section=reviews&Id=9656
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/01/29/sundance-review-the-unforeseen/
Audience of One
I felt for the subject of this documentary, I really did. He really, really believes that God wants him to make this movie and he really, really believes that because God wants it, it will happen. This was ultimately a very sad documentary about a minister who has a dream but one that will never be realized. The whole thing is a the train wreck that you would expect when a bunch of people with no experience try to make a big budget science fiction movie using volunteers who have a prayer service before each filming. This movie speaks to the lengths that people with extreme faith will go to.
http://imdb.com/title/tt0976087/
http://www.myspace.com/audienceofonedoc
Big Rig
I enjoyed this movie, probably because I grew up in the Midwest and knew a lot of over the road truck drivers. It gives a little insight into the men and women who haul our produce and ball bearing and Barbie dolls from one side of the country to the other. The graphics were beautiful, done by Tomorrow’s Brightest Minds and the soundtrack was excellent. They delve into the politics of big rig driving (the increasing cost of gas is a huge problem) and the stereotypes (one man is the former VP of a Fortune 500 company). This was a well done, visually interesting film.
http://bigrigmovie.com/bigrig/
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/31820
Hell on Wheels
This is a perfect example of the old adage “a work of art is never finished, it is merely abandoned.” This is a documentary that was 5 years in the making. The filmmaker was lucky to get in on the very beginning of the roller derby resurgence in Austin and be able to follow it all the way though. It’s an interesting look at modern feminism, as it says in the movie “we walk a fine line between sexy and slutty.” It’s something of a social experiment as a group of women consciously decide to exclude men and to see if they can create and run a company based on roller derby. It doesn’t work, but it ultimately does work in the end. It’s not so much about roller derby as it is about the egos of the people involved.
http://www.hellonwheelsthemovie.com/
http://imdb.com/title/tt0384162/
http://www.cinematical.com/2007/03/18/sxsw-review-hell-on-wheels/
I’m a Cyborg But That’s OK
This movie was only OK. Visually, it was beautiful, it was the story that brought it down. It was long (2 hours), and kept coming to what you thought was a conclusion but then it would keep going, and keep going and keep going. It was something of a sweet love story, but it was slow to develop and then slow to conclude. The characters were rather one-dimensional, they were their illness, not a person, even the main characters failed to develop fully. I hope it will be edited before it is released to the US market.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0497137/
http://koreapopwars.blogspot.com/2006/12/do-cyborgs-dream-of-eclectic-conceits.html
Oh, yeah... there was some music stuff going on too.