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Reviews
The Wall to Wall War (1963)
Images have stayed with me after all these years.
I was in High School when this episode aired in the early 60's. The Richard Boom TV Show was another of those great presentations of TV "plays". The play was about a former soldier now working in an office. I don't remember if it was "live", but they often used the same actors. I don't really remember the plot, but I do remember images:
An office turned into a "No Man's Land" by sprinklers pouring rain, overturned desks, papers everywhere.
I didn't quite believe the death by hand grenade, but anything more realistic couldn't have been shone.
I'd love to see this again.
La Mime (2014)
And you though you hated mimes
IMDb requires a certain number of lines of text for a review to become accepted. I understand the policy, but this is a short film and I hate padding a review just to get it published. I enjoyed this film and I think other people should try to see it. It has humor and style. This short film mixes very deft miming with a clever story, a good use of sound effects, appropriate music and some CG. It's a battle between a male mime and a female mime which engages the observers in realistic/fantasy ways, and builds to a nice payoff. Nicely shot, too. Saw it at Woods Hole Film Festival. Takes skill to make a film look this effortless. Enjoy.
Angels (2011)
Evocative, poetic fable about a painful birth
The setting is a farmhouse in the 1800's. The doctor has saved the mother, but not, apparently the baby. It is born with a problem. Something is wrong with it. The father is bitter, but glad his wife, the mother, has survived. The maid goes about her business. Only the young handicapped sibling wants to help the newborn. She knows what it's like to be different. The help the young girl offers is both painful and appropriate. This deceptively simple little film is beautiful on every level. The performances, camera-work, and music take us into a world where the unexpected seems totally right. I saw this film in rough cut, and was intrigued but not blown away. What a difference a few cuts and the right music can make! Some people might feel the ending is a bit abrupt. Perhaps it is, but the film has already reached a satisfying climax.
Fanny, Annie & Danny (2010)
A family Christmas dinner from hell (and it's a week early!)
I'm sure there more dysfunctional families than the one depicted in "Fanny, Annie & Danny" but I wouldn't want to watch them on screen. The characters presented to us in this beautifully made film teeter on the edge of black comedy. But writer/director/cinematographer Chris Brown keeps his characters painfully rooted in reality. That reality is certainly odd enough, but it also manages to be believable. That it IS believable is a tribute to the entire cast, who fearlessly present these flawed people. There are several standout performances. Colette Keen is the grating, dominating Mother. She would would be a complete monster, if we didn't realize that her desire to control her family mirrors the ferocious hold she has on herself. Jill Pixley (wonderful), as the possibly autistic daughter, along with George Killingsworth, as the hopelessly ineffective Father, are the closest to traditionally sympathetic characters. But nothing is easy in this steadily building train wreck of a family dinner.
Like Chekhov (an appropriate model), the film makes use of an off screen gun shot. And it has the most effective use of source music/sound (there is no score) I've ever heard.
It's a rocky ride, but worth taking.
Frontman (2011)
Can a British rock group make a comeback with a new Frontman?
FRONTMAN tells the story of a British rock band ("Stanley and the Knives") trying to reunite after years of separation when their Frontman (lead songwriter/singer Stanley) dies. Well, yes, of course, (think "Full Monty") but not without difficulties and surprises. The style of the film is documentary, with music videos used very cleverly to define character, provide catchy tunes, and give a rest from the somewhat claustrophobic documentary style. What makes this film a standout, however is the story, acting and direction. Following these seeming misfits (all beautifully played) as they find their way back to performing together is a real joy. As I say, the entire ensemble is superb but Dougal Porteous is specially good as the snake loving drummer who probably did too many drugs back when and David Hepple wonderfully strong and sympathetic as the brother of the dead Frontman.