BUBBLE (2005)
This is a really great film.
On an austerity budget of $1.6 million, Steven Soderbergh directed, shot, and edited this film on location in Belpre, Ohio. BUBBLE was filmed gorgeously on digital video, using non-actors recruited from the local community. Soderbergh's lead actor, for example, had been a manager at a local KFC for 23 years. She was discovered by the casting director as she went through the drive through. The other two leads were a hairdresser and someone who worked at a pizza parlor. The scenes were all filmed in unaltered local locations, including some of the actors' homes, using only available light. Rather than give his cast lines to memorize, Soderbergh had them improvise their scenes according to certain objectives, which were in turn molded to sync with actual events in the the actors' lives. The cast was not told the full story, but discovered it in pieces during the filming, just as the audience does.
The characters' workplace is a doll factory, and there are fascinating images of them assembling and painting the dolls from plastic molds. Soderbergh is smart enough to mine the metaphoric possibilities. The characters live in an stimulation poor environment, and their conversation consists mostly of commonplaces, which somehow speak volumes. Watching these real people makes you aware of how artificial film performances can be, such as in the other dead-end town drama I saw recently, WAITRESS (2007). There is a murder, and the "actor" who investigates is a real local police detective, and you would not believe what a difference that makes.
Roger Ebert called BUBBLE a masterpiece, and I agree with him.
The DVD comes with two full-length commentaries, one featuring Soderbergh and another director, the other with the writer and principal cast. At best, commentary tracks are like taking a master class in film--and the best I can recall is Sam Mendes' commentary for AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999). These days, however, commentary tracks are obligatory, and usually insufferable. I watched both the BUBBLE commentaries straight through back to back, and was riveted the whole time.
On an austerity budget of $1.6 million, Steven Soderbergh directed, shot, and edited this film on location in Belpre, Ohio. BUBBLE was filmed gorgeously on digital video, using non-actors recruited from the local community. Soderbergh's lead actor, for example, had been a manager at a local KFC for 23 years. She was discovered by the casting director as she went through the drive through. The other two leads were a hairdresser and someone who worked at a pizza parlor. The scenes were all filmed in unaltered local locations, including some of the actors' homes, using only available light. Rather than give his cast lines to memorize, Soderbergh had them improvise their scenes according to certain objectives, which were in turn molded to sync with actual events in the the actors' lives. The cast was not told the full story, but discovered it in pieces during the filming, just as the audience does.
The characters' workplace is a doll factory, and there are fascinating images of them assembling and painting the dolls from plastic molds. Soderbergh is smart enough to mine the metaphoric possibilities. The characters live in an stimulation poor environment, and their conversation consists mostly of commonplaces, which somehow speak volumes. Watching these real people makes you aware of how artificial film performances can be, such as in the other dead-end town drama I saw recently, WAITRESS (2007). There is a murder, and the "actor" who investigates is a real local police detective, and you would not believe what a difference that makes.
Roger Ebert called BUBBLE a masterpiece, and I agree with him.
The DVD comes with two full-length commentaries, one featuring Soderbergh and another director, the other with the writer and principal cast. At best, commentary tracks are like taking a master class in film--and the best I can recall is Sam Mendes' commentary for AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999). These days, however, commentary tracks are obligatory, and usually insufferable. I watched both the BUBBLE commentaries straight through back to back, and was riveted the whole time.