Tribeca Film Festival 2013

Capsule reviews by 

GEORGE BALDWIN / GB
AHMER BASHIR / AB
LAURENCE WEAVER / LW

Including: Big Bad Wolves, Big Joy: The Adventures of James Broughton, Bridegroom, Byzantium, Fresh Meat, Mr Jones, Northwest, Odayaka, Out of Print, Raze, Stand Clear of the Closing Doors, Sunlight Jr, What Richard Did.

Big Bad Wolves
Aharon Keshales/Navot Papushado / Israel / 2013

This unconventional crime-drama-thriller-comedy by Israeli duo Keshales and Papushado focuses on three characters: Miki (Lior Ashkenazi), a rogue cop; Gidi (Tzahi Grad), a father of a murdered kid who is out for revenge; and Dror (Rotem Keinan), a school teacher and the prime suspect for the murder. With the help of Miki, Gidi captures Dror and proceeds to torture him for information and the ensuing sequences are equal parts horrific and hilarious. This film challenges popular perceptions of horror by mixing it with brutally dark comedy. A must watch / GB

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Big Joy: 
The Adventures of James Broughton
Stephen Silha/Eric Slade / USA / 2013

James Broughton was an experimental filmmaker who contributed to the creation of the indie film scene that flourishes today. Born to a family that earned its success in the banking industry, Broughton started out as a poet in the San Francisco renaissance during the 1940s. Big Joy celebrates Broughton’s life and work with testimonies from those in his closest circles, including his ex-wife Suzanna Hart. While it utilises generous excerpts from Broughton’s films and his poetry, the most intriguing part of the documentary deals with his personal life. Broughton lived a double life like many gay men before Stonewall. Using testimonies from the love of his life, Joel Singer, and family members, the film demonstrates that Broughton might have been loved and resented at the same time. The documentary is an enlightening portrayal of an artist who challenged what films could accomplish, such as in the visual presentation of the human body, but also provides a thoughtful insight into his life / AB

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Bridegroom
Linda Bloodworth-Thomason / USA / 2012

Bridegroom considers the personal and legal nightmares that gay couples experience but are rarely faced by heterosexuals. It opens with a powerful narration by Shane Bitney Crone, followed by a ghostly recording from the love of his life, Tom. Shane and Tom had been in a committed relationship for six years. With compelling personal testimonies from their friends and relatives, the documentary examines the frustrating and heart-breaking events that followed Tom’s accidental death. And yet, the film is humorous at times, especially the interview with Shane’s grandmother, and makes good use of personal video footage. Not a film that will be forgotten in a hurry / AB

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Byzantium
Neil Jordan / UK/USA/Ireland / 2012

Byzantium is Neil Jordan’s second attempt at tackling the vampire genre after Interview with the Vampire (1994). It tells the story of the dark secret two women share set to the backdrop of a small coastal town. Clara (Gemma Arterton) uses her sex appeal to keep the two girls afloat with money trickling in while the intelligent Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan) wishes for a more meaningful life after 200 years of the same thing. The film does a good job balancing the exposition and moving the plot along. You are rarely bored and even the less captivating sequences use interesting visuals to keep you occupied. It is an enjoyable consideration of vampires following the over-saturation of the Twilight films / LW

Written by award-winning playwright Moira Buffini, whose previous work has elements of metaphysical theatre, it is no surprise to see a ritual of blood-letting self-sacrifice in a bat-cave to attain immortality. Fleeing from men who know their secrets, Clara (Gemma Arterton) and Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan) arrive at a seaside resort. Clara poses as the big sister to entice men to pay for sex, but often feeds on them instead, while Eleanor has perfected a routine of feeding off the ill and the elderly. Eleanor befriends a local called Frank but Twilight fans will be disappointed by the lack of romance. The mystery of Clara and Eleanor’s origins are uncovered by a series of flashbacks. Blood is used in artistic fashion, such as long shots of waterfalls turning red or in beheadings. Unfortunately, these scenes are too few or are shown in repetitive fashion. The drama that fills the gap befits a non-primetime television audience. Byzantium ultimately does not seem to know who it intends to please: the art-film aficionado, the vampire horror fan or Twihards / AB

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Fresh Meat
Danny Mulheron / New Zealand / 2012

After a group of criminals break one of their gang out of prison, they crash into a suburban Maori family’s home to escape the police. While they think they are safe and they can easily overpower the family, they are unaware that the family have a secret: they are cannibals. This results in some hilarious situations, filled with both gruesome and titillating images that make for an enjoyable experience. While it maybe not the best film to come out of New Zealand, it does hold true to the tradition of Kiwi Splatstick horror. If you are looking for sexual innuendos mixed with cannibalism and comedy then Fresh Meat is your film / GB

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Mr Jones
Karl Mueller / USA / 2013

A documentary filmmaker (Jon Foster) moves to the woods with his girlfriend (Jessica Dowdeswell) to escape the city. They have various encounters with the titular character who turns out to be the guardian of the “wall” between our world and the dream world. This is an uninspired combination of Jeepers Creepers (2001), The Blair Witch Project (1999), Inception (2010), Cloverfield (2008) and The Hills Have Eyes (2006), with equally uninspiring performances. The film loses what little interest you may have had at the slow start by trying to break the constraints of found footage films with no explanation other than dreams are bleeding into reality. The endless night is an interesting idea but the performances turn it into a farce and you are just waiting for the main character’s senseless decisions to lead them to a quick and painful death. Not to be confused with the Richard Gere/Mike Figgis film / LW

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Northwest 
Nordvest / Michael Noer / Denmark / 2013

Northwest is a suburban district of Copenhagen in Denmark with a reputation for youth crime. This Danish film follows the life of two brothers that fall into the wrong crowd, going from petty antics to precarious organised crime. As the money begins to pile up so does the danger. Writer-director Michael Noer’s love letter to Mean Streets (1973) plays out through the eyes of older brother Casper (Gustav Dyekjær Giese) as he draws his brother Andy (real life brother Oscar Dyekjær Giese) into the web of deceit and intrigue. With an ending that will stay with you long after the film has finished and incredibly powerful performances especially from the ruthless Bjørn (Roland Møller), this is one you don’t want to miss / LW

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Odayaka
Nobutera Uchida / Japan / 2012

A film set after Japan’s devastating tsunami shows us the damage that was caused on an intimate level. The film follows Saeko (Kiki Sugino), who is caught off guard when her husband asks for a divorce, and Yukako (Yûki Shinohara), who finds her husband’s attitude to the tragedy very challenging. The film sheds light on issues that many would not be aware of such as the chastising of the more paranoid members of the community. Sugino’s performance is remarkable. Her gradual decline into paranoia and loneliness is brilliantly realised by the marriage of the writing and her performance. Shinohara has more challenging material to tackle but does an impressive job nonetheless / LW

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Out of Print
Vivienne Roumani / USA / 2013

Out of Print is an interesting documentary that examines the changing landscape of publication. For hundreds of years, books of the mashed-tree-kind have helped preserve information, or feature stories that affect our daily lives, or let ideologies and scientific advances take root. The arrival of e-books has transformed so many aspects of the traditional book world, which is cause for concern for many historians. Key figures ally themselves with academic institutions and libraries to ensure that technology does not kill our way of life. But hard copy book sales have declined. Some are concerned that we are entering a phase of decay. However, one scientist featured in the film says our brains were never built to cope with reading. The arrival of e-books has made reading more efficient, accessible and affordable and has increased access to self-publishing. Yet Out of Print also considers teenagers who are unable, or unwilling, to read long sections of text, and can’t remember or combine the snippets of information they skim in everyday life. Out of Print presents valid and timely issues for debate / AB

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Raze
Josh C. Waller / USA / 2013

Women are captured and forced to fight each other to the death, which usually involves them punching their opponent’s head into the ground. This is gratuitous violence on a mind numbing scale and lacks plot or character development throughout its run time. The only highlight was Rosario Dawson appearing briefly. It barely even works as an exploitation film. Avoid / LW

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Stand Clear of the Closing Doors
Sam Fleischner / USA / 2013

Stand Clear of the Closing Doors is the true story of a young Mexican-American autistic boy who gets lost for 11 days in the New York City subway system, losing track of time and himself in the process. His mother works long days cleaning for an unappreciative artist to support her family as her husband works away for long stretches at a time. This offers an intriguing insight into the mind of an autistic boy (played by autistic actor Jesus Sanchez-Velez) and his worried mother (Andrea Suarez Paz) as they traverse parallel systems that seem to work against them. Writer-director Sam Fleischner deftly navigates the more interesting parts of the subway and police systems, which are at the core of the emotional peril of the film  / LW

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Sunlight Jr.
Laurie Collyer / 2013 / USA

Sunlight Jr. is a beautifully depressing story of when the American dream doesn’t work out for two people clearly in love: Melissa (Naomi Watts) who works as a clerk and her paraplegic boyfriend Richie (Matt Dillon). As their past creeps up on them and new challenges arise, their relationship is tested. Watts puts in a moving performance that is elevated by her screen chemistry with Dillon. Dillon’s performance recalls moments of his character in Crash (2004) where he can be detestable but we still want him to succeed even in his flashes of rage. Written and directed by Laurie Collyer whose direction was stronger in the Maggie Gyllenhaal drama Sherrybaby (2006), but who writes sensitively and interestingly enough to make up for it. Worth a watch / LW

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What Richard Did
Lenny Abrahamson / Ireland / 2012

During their last summer together, a group of southern Dublin teenage friends get together to say their goodbyes. Richard (Jack Raynor), the charismatic leader of the group, starts a relationship with Lara (Roisin Murphy) that develops enough for one of the members of the group to grow unhappy about their relationship. This leads into an unexpected event that will change all of their lives forever. What Richard Did explores teenage relationships as well as the consequences of the actions of teens. Reynor’s outstanding performance will keep you on the edge of your seat / GB

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