Writer/Director Randall Cole’s first feature is a refreshing comedic drama that forces us to see life in real time. When an endearing deadbeat is $68,000,000 in debt, a thoughtful and compassionate hitman lets him have one last free hour before he pays for his debt with his life.

We first meet Andy Hayes, played by Jay Baruchel (Knocked up, Million Dollar Baby), walking down the icy streets of Hailton Ontario, or a “shit hole”, as Andy puts it.  Constantly cursing, he smokes a cigarette and blurts out “cocksucker” like there’s no tomorrow.  This isn’t too far from the truth, as moments later Reuben (Randy Quaid, The Last Detail, Brokeback Mountain), an Aussie in a Lincoln towncar, forces Andy to get into the car where he tells him that he will kill him at 3pm.  It is 1:47, and Reuben offers Andy a final hour to do anything he wants in his last minutes of life.

Andy, who has a deadly gambling addiction, has never learned the right moment to walk away.  Reuben has known Andy since his first bet when he was “a 13-year-old goofball”, and becomes his father figure, in replace of Andy’s “deadbeat” dad. Andy knows he is a “bad guy”, but blames the majority of it on bad luck and the fact that he is undeniably “cursed”-everyone but himself is at fault. But Reuben challenges Andy’s assumptions, forcing him to examine the place where “everything that has ever happened to him”, happened.  Complete opposites, Rueben is quiet, stern, and strong, while Andy is squeemish, loud, and endlessly talkative.  Unfortunately, this is one situation out of which he cannot seem to talk himself.

In real time,  we follow Andy and Reuben through dozens of cats, a fat hooker, peeing in the snow, fast food, and a visit to Grandma’s house (Jayne Eastwood, who steals the scene), while Reuben challenges Andy to  really see the place around him- Quaid plays with Rueben, a tough but endearing hitman, whose blunt compassion and no-bullshit attitude force us to learn along with Andy.

Baruchel tackles the serious, quirky character with honest precision.  His performance leaps above his comedic roles in teen flicks, as he brings depth to Andy, who we can’t help but root for, despite his inability to do anything right.

Baruchel and Quaid have a playful camaraderie and refreshing give and take that carries the film’s raw approach towards life, taking an hour to meditate on what really matters in the end.  As they drive, the radio’s scan button dictates the soundtrack, while the men share stories of love, loss, and luck.

Between the delicious discovery of chocolate-rasberry truffle cake and jumping off of a roof,  Real Time makes us examine how we choose spend the time we have.

by Lily Saltzberg, FilmClick staff

I’ll Come Running, written and directed by Spencer Parsons, weaves a familiar tale of Euro-American romance.  Veronica, a twenty-something-year-old waitress, played by Melonie Diaz, meets Pelle, a young Danish tourist, and right away sexual attraction is a-brewin’ between the two.

SPOILER ALERT: A one night stand suddenly evolves into a weekend of sexual escapades, which is basically the premise for the first thirty minutes of the movie.  The steamy rendezvous comes to an end when Pelle is forced to return to Denmark.  On his way to the airport, he makes a spontaneous decision to turn back.  While attempting to return to Veronica, Pelle is unexpectedly killed in a car accident.  Feeling responsible for his tragic death, Veronica propels herself into a state of distress.  Yearning to find out more about Pelle, whom she barely even knew, Veronica travels to Denmark to mourn alongside his family and friends.  And, what better way to mourn a dead lover than to sleep with his best friend?  Being in a foreign land and feeling extremely vulnerable, Veronica latches onto Soren, the best friend of Pelle, for guidance and comfort.  Sparks fly and a newly-found love emerges.

What first attracted me to see this movie was Melonie Diaz.  I recently discovered this upcoming indie actress through the 2007 film, Itty Bitty Titty Committee, a feminist driven comedy focusing mainly on lesbian characters.  While I was impressed with her performance in Itty Bitty Titty Committee, I cannot say the same for her role as Veronica in I’ll Come Running.  In fact, the film as a whole was rather unimpressive.  There were several things that disagreed with me regarding this film; the semi-predictable story-line, the sloppy camera work, the ineffective transitions from comedy to drama and vice-versa, for example.

One character I found interesting was Soren, played beautifully by Christian Tafdrup.  The audience witnesses his inner struggle to repress his attraction to Veronica in order to remain loyal to his now deceased friend.  However, his fascination with Veronica seems to get the best of him.  This film would’ve been more interesting if Soren showed more self-control.  But, like Pelle, he ends up following his heart.  Soren seemed to be the only one who showed some sort of character development, which is unusual considering that the film is mainly focused on Veronica and her journey to “find herself”.  Honestly, the only thing that she seems to have found is another lustful rendezvous.

For more information on I’ll Come Running visit:

http://mvff2008.inticketing.com/filmevent.php?eventid=27873&browse_type=etitle&browse_value=all&page=1&ssl=6JNNqd4u7M56zgN

By Nikki Zhang, FilmClick staff

nzhang@filmclick.com

A year after befriending her wheel-chair bound neighbors, film student and first-time filmmaker Hannah Guggenheim, began to shoot them as subjects for her master’s thesis project at SFSU. She continued to pursue the story for years after finishing her degree.  The result is Benji and Judah, an emotionally powerful story centered around twin brothers born with spina bifida, (a birth defect that involves the incomplete development of the spine during pregnancy) and their mother, Jeanette, who struggles to find a home for her physically-challenged sons and seven other children. The film screened at this yearʼs  Mill Valley Film Festival as part of the Home In the Heart series.

Benji & Judah

The film chronicles the twinsʼ lives from infancy to teenage years and begins with Jeanette explaining, how while pregnant, she had been given the grim news of their condition. She was advised to terminate the pregnancy but chose against it. Soon after the boys were born, she and her husband divorced, leaving Jeanette a single mother of eight. As the documentary unfolds, Jeanette is illustrated as the rock of the family, whose quest to provide a safe environment for her children inspires independence and strength in her sons. The family, living in limited-term government housing,  face eviction and Jeanette exhausts every possible resource to find a wheel-chair accessible home.

Much of Benji and Judah is filmed from the twinsʼ perspective. Guggenheim taught the brothers to use cameras, realizing that their story would be better told with their assistance. Four years of footage was slimmed down to just thirty-one minutes of joy, struggle and persistence.

With camera in hand, Benji and Judah come alive with the silliness of teenage boys, making faces at the camera and picking on each other as siblings do. But they also allow us an intimate view into the ups and downs of their experience. We are invited to their 17^th birthday party, bowling excursions, senior prom and long hospital visits. The bond between the brothers is evident but we are also provided insight into the different nature of each twin: Benji who exudes quiet strength and Judah, whose hard shell masks a lifetime of frustration and pain.

Benji and Judah is a story about defying the odds. An inspiring story of the determination of the human spirit, it will certainly find a home in your heart.

by Arami Reyes, FilmClick.com

Now playing in our series of interviews with filmmakers, actors and craftspeople is Peter Hawkins discussing digital cinematography and the look created for James Savoca’s new film Around June.
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Kelly Reichardt’s (Old Joy) new film Wendy & Lucy tells the simple, anonymous story of Wendy, played by Michelle Williams, and her dog, Lucy, on a cross country trek from Indiana to Alaska in hopes of making a new start in life.  When her car breaks down in Oregon, Wendy is forced to make difficult choices and adapt to the choices made by others in relation to her struggle. The film played over the weekend at the Mill Valley Film Festival and will be showing again at the festival on Sunday Oct 12 at the Sequoia Theatre in Mill Valley at 7:45 PM. 

Wendy & Lucy

When Wendy loses her beloved Lucy in the town, she is thrown into a downward spiral of desperation as the situation continues to deteriorate in her search for the dog and a way out of the town.  Wendy is helped and hindered by anonymous, sometimes rigid, characters, in fact she herself is anonymous but for the title of the film.  The only named character in the film is the canine Lucy, whose name permeates the film throughout the search and before.  The beauty of the world that Reichardt presents is that it isn’t black and white, it presents a grey landscape of moral choice and purpose. The anonymous characters that Wendy meets are sometimes caring but always tempered by caution, as in the case of the security guard who helps her every way he can.  Others are rigid in following the rules or easily influenced by the opinion or fear of others who don’t see situations as grey rather than black and white.

Williams’ portrayal of Wendy is intense and gratifying.  We are forced to be alone with her and share her situation.  We know little of her character or how or why she got to the point of this trip, besides some enigmatic phone calls home.  She is obviously scarred and wounded, and there is much exposition that is pointedly unexplained in the film, like the injury to Wendy’s  ankle.  Williams makes us feel for the character, who makes choices, bad and good, and struggles forward in any way she can.  Her love for Lucy is clear, her determination is clear, and we’re left hoping Wendy will make it through the tough world presented.  The film builds emotionally from this one character and her one final loss, the symbol of love and safety in her world.  Williams carries this film with the strength and vulnerability of her performance and Reichardt’s direction and script are simple and purposeful enough to let her do her thing.  Recommended.

by Christopher Potter, FilmClick.com producer, http://www.filmclick.com/cspotter,  cpotter@filmclick.com

Watching James Savoca’s San Francisco fairytale, Around June, at the Mill Valley Film Festival reminded me that perspective in any situation, even watching a film, is crucial.  Angelic June (Samaire Armstrong) falls in love with penniless Juan Diego (Oscar H. Guerrero), despite her father’s (Jon Gries) disapproval. The acting at first glance seems over the top, particularly the rainy opening scene where doe-eyed June meets her charming prince. When they notice each other while passing through a green field in the rain, these two strangers share an intimate moment. Juan Diego approaches her and on bended knee, kisses the hand of his fair maiden. June blushes and quickly flees the scene and Juan Diego, like any good potential suitor, runs after her.  Love ensues.  Their love encourages June to break away from her father and charter her own life.  She lives happily ever after.  Pretty simple, seen it before, right? As the film begins from this direction that seems too sweet and predictable to swallow, I slowly find myself thinking that this film is looking purely through June’s mentally-challenged uncle’s eyes; simple, straightforward and loving.  This is the subversion of the fairytale we can feel coming, as Savoca presents the film from the uncle Henry’s (Brad William Henke) point of view.  Uncle Henry’s childlike presence is always watching and prodding events, and I take it that it’s his perspective that’s being told.  In the end, his wonder at the beauty and imagination of life that his brother can’t see and his real, abounding love for June and her happiness are the heart of this film. 

Around June

June is a lost soul, entrenched and manipulated by her family’s marred, hidden past and her troubled father.  Admittedly, the changes she undergoes after falling in love and finally confronting her unhappy life are predictable.  Many questions are left unanswered as to who June really is…  At times, she seems too simplistic a character to invest real interest in until you think about her basic, quiet love for Henry, her innocent adoration of Juan Diego, and her complex relationship with her father.  June’s father, Murray, is the sympathetic villain of the story, and probably the character with the most depth. Murray loves his daughter in a selfish way, keeping her close as his only living connection to his deceased wife.  The confrontation between June and her father brings the film firmly to the ground like the second act in a good play, and this may be where the film fails in its consistency to present Henry’s view, if that was the intention.  

San Francisco in this film feels more like a sleepy fishing town than the tourist magnet of its usual portrayal.  The conscious choice of using San Francisco’s Portrero Hill area as a setting for anywhere is refreshing.  I think most producers would say that you’d be crazy not to show off the Golden Gate bridge and other assorted landmarks in a “So I Married an Axe Murder” orgy of San Francisco sights.  Instead, the Bay Bridge could be a bridge almost anywhere, and this small part of the city becomes intimate and simple, just like the story.  Peter Hawkins’ cinematography in the film is lithe and unobtrusive.  It emphasizes the fairytale quality of the film through use of a bright palette and low depth of field.  The soft, misty quality of light that permeates the film engulfs the characters in the drudgery of their static lives at times and pushes them into the bright, crisp world at other moments.  Charlie Canfield’s animation brings home the emphasis on Henry’s perspective, breaking up the film with imagination and simple moral lessons that underlie the film’s themes.  It’s an interesting mix of animation and live-action, sometimes breathing out of the film’s images and at other times merely adding to and over them.  Certainly, it adds to the suspension of disbelief necessary to identify with characters that are pushed to edges of believability by some of the acting in the film.

As each of these characters evolve to look at their life and choice in a new way, the fairytale ends and begins again.  In the end, it seems that June, Juan Diego, and Uncle Henry will all live happily-ever-after.  There is a happy sadness in an ending as innocent as these characters and their story.    It is a fairytale, after all. 

by Christopher Potter & Arami Reyes, FilmClick.com

New in our series of interviews with filmmakers, actors and craftspeople is Charlie Canfield discussing animation and the animated sequences he created for James Savoca’s new film Around June.

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It’s been said that in a small town, the high school is the heart of the town. Filmmaker Mike Goldstein’s Reunion, a tribute to Marin County’s Tamalpais High School, played this afternoon at the Sequoia Theater in Mill Valley, CA.  The film combines interviews, archival footage, and images of the school throughout its 100 year history.  The film is an important local work for Mill Valley, a personal choice for festival programmers about a personal place to many Marin County residents. 

Reunion

Not having grown up in this area, I knew nothing about the high school or tradition of the area going in.  Goldstein presents the school as an anchor for the story of the community and nation as a whole through interviews with students of various eras.  It’s interesting to look at this school as a microcosm of our country throughout the last century.   In showing the highs and lows of the school’s history, this film shows the area and the country’s history from a single place.  The school becomes a constant that is changed by its students, faculty, and most importantly the events shaping the area and the United States as a country.

Reunion is most captivating when presenting how the high school dealt with the changes that effected it throughout and as a result of the second world war.  From the internment of a Japanese-American basketball player after the Pearl Harbor attacks to the infusion of a multi-racial composition of students from nearby war facilities, the war effort itself changes the community and high school throughout the 50’s, turbulent 60’s, the civil rights movement and beyond.  This is where this film shines. 

The unusal mixed racial quality of the school causes tension during the civil rights movement, and the film provides a glimpse into what the faculty did to address the problems these issues caused.  It doesn’t gloss over the issues faced by the school with changing funding and control through the years and a prevalent drug culture that exists there even today, according to one student.  In ending with the issues facing current students, which seem to center upon achievment in order to get into a worthy college, the film seems to trail off a bit into a celebration of the school as it is now, although touching briefly on the waning diversity of the student body.  It is a film about a high school, so this ending doesn’t offend, and it’s greatly enhanced by graceful montages of shots of the area, school, and archival footage.  I have to complement the editor, as well, although I didn’t catch his name in the credits.  The montage pacing is sharp, often frenetic, and ultimately entertaining in focusing on the beauty of the setting, the activities of students, and the school itself.  The pacing of editing during these moments is a nice switch in a film that consists mainly of interviews; giving a feel to the moments and places which also make up a big part of the life of the community.  The editor occasionally makes use of wipes and transitions that are common to the time period currently being featured, a fun little touch I adored.  I’ve rarely seen a star wipe that I liked so much.  I don’t know about this film’s prospects outside of Mill Valley, as one audience member asked at the end of the film, but, honestly, there are many people who will connect with this film as a memory of what they went through in high school and the years they lived through, no matter where they’re from.  It’s a well-shot and edited film with good music and an interesting subject that people can connect to: what more do you want in a film?  At worst, perhaps it becomes a sort of living history project with updates every ten years or so.  If so, I hope to see it again.

Head Nods: A Lexicon of Indian Head Shakes

The audience was clearly focused on Reunion, but I found Ivan Jaigirdar’s Head Nods: A Lexicon of Indian Head Shakes to be a delightful surprise.  There wasn’t much of a reaction from the crowd to this quirky short which parodies enigmatic Indian head nodding.  Made as a mockufomercial, Head Nods hits the mark in going right over the top in making fun of what seems to be a simple gesture.  Think Monty Python or good sketch comedy.  You’ll never nod your head the same again.  Check it out if it’s playing somewhere near you.

by Christopher Potter, FilmClick.com producer, http://www.filmclick.com/cspotter,  cpotter@filmclick.com

New Feature…interviews with filmmakers and actors. Up first is Brad William Henke who plays the mentally challenged Henry in James Savoca’s new film Around June.

See it in HD.

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“It’s always important for us to seek out women directors: but this year seems particularly strong. From our opening film by Gina Prince-Bythewood onwards there are significant features, documentaries, and shorts by women. It’s quite a line-up,” notes MVFF’s Director of Programming Zoe Elton. Elton proudly proclaims that this year’s program contains 56 feature films and shorts directed by women as well as a number of films that deal specifically with women’s issues and even more feature women in leading roles. Read on for a closer look into some of women’s films at this year’s festival, which runs October 2-12.

The MVFF welcomes back award-winning German director, Doris Dörrie (How to Cook Your Life, 2007 and Enlightenment Guaranteed, 2000), who brings Cherry Blossoms, the story of a loving married couple, Trudi and Rudi. When Trudi learns that her husband is ill, she cannot tell him, but takes him to Berlin to see his family for the last time. Their two grown children have little time or interest in their parents, and the couple make plans to visit their other children in Tokyo. However when Trudi unexpectedly dies, Rudi gains a new understanding of his wfe as he embarks on a solo journey to Tokyo, in the midst of the cherry blossom festival, a celebration of beauty, impermanence, and new beginnings. This 127 minute film plays Friday, October 3, at 9:30 PM and Monday, October 6, at7:00 PM.

Photo courtesy of equinoxefilms.com

The MVFF also welcomes back Swiss-born, Quebec-based director, Léa Pool, who screened The Blue Butterfly in 2004 and also won international, critical acclaim for her 1998 film Emporte-Moi, translated Set Me Free. This year Pool brings MVFF Mommy Is at the Hairdresser’s (Maman est Chez le Coiffeur), which takes place in a small Quebec town during the summer of 1966 in which siblings Élise (Marianne Fortier), Coco (Élie Dupuis), and Benoit (Hugo St-Onge-Paquin) seem to have the ideal, carefree childhood. But when Simone (Céline Bonnier), their warm, feisty mother who is a Radio-Canada TV journalist, learns that the father is having an affair, she transfers her work to London, promising the children they will join her shortly. Accurately capturing the miscommunication that occurs between child and parent, the film tells a story of lost innocence and the children who try to keep their family afloat. This 99 minute film shows on Friday, October 10 at 7:00 PM and Sunday, October 12, at 1:30 PM.

photo courtesy of MVFF

Director Jennifer Lynch (director of Boxing Helena, 1993), daughter of notorious iconoclastic filmmaker, David Lynch, screens her gruesome and creepy psychological thriller Surveillance that showed this year at Cannes. Her film tells the story of two FBI agents, Elizabeth Anderson (Julia Ormond) and Samm Hallaway (Bill Oullman) who hunt a serial killer in a small, desolate town in the Santa Fe desert, with the help of three people who escaped his last slaughter: Bobbi (Pell James), a young coke-head, Stephanie (Ryan Simpkins), an eight-year-old girl who has just witness her parents brutal murder, and Jack Bennet (Kent Harper), a fellow-police officer who is strong but nevertheless shaken by the gory events. Through flashbacks full of lies and deceit, the truth becomes progressively more clear, and frightening. Lynch’s 97 minute thriller plays Wednesday, October 8 at 9:45 PM and Saturday, October 11, at 9:45 PM.

photo courtesyof MVFF

Actress Amy Redford (daughter of Robert), who studied acting in the bay area, directs The Guitar. The film follows the story of a young woman who lives in Manhattan, Melody Wilder (Saffron Burrows), who loses her job, boyfriend, and finds out she has terminal cancer all in one morning. Instead of giving into her desolate fate, Mel seizes the opportunity to live life to its fullest by savoring her deepest desires, in the fulfillment of what many merely wish they could do, but never dare to try. This ninety-three minute film is based on a true story and is playing Thursday, October 9 at 7:00 PM and Saturday, October 11 at 8:00 PM.

Returning director Pola Rapaport’s (Family Secret, MVFF 2000) documentary, Hair: Let the Sun Shine In pays homage to the 1960’s musical that captured the history and political power of a decade. Proclaimed as a “movement” and not a show, by actor Ben Vereeen of the original cast, the film takes us into the backstage of the writers, directors, and visionaries of the legendary piece of theater. The documentary shares the songs and uses past and present footage of the 40-year old musical to reveal the plays transcendent historical relevance in the era of Bush and the Iraq war. The 100 minute piece is preceded by two shorts, firstly, Jay Rosenblatt’s I Just Wanted to Be Somebody (US, 10 mins), an open letter to Anita Bryant, the American pop singer who, in 1977, led a crusade against homosexuality. Secondly Kara Herold’s Bachelorette, 34 (US 10 mins), is a comedy about a mother who goes on a heartfelt, hilarious mission to find a mate for her filmmaker daughter. Show times: Monday October 6, 9:30Pm and Saturday, October 11 at 4:00 PM.

photo courtesy of  childrenoftheamazon.com

Brazlilian filmmaker Denise Zmekhol’s active cinema, Children of the Amazon, uses pictures of the Surui and Negarote tribes that she took 15 years ago, and returns to the Amazon to document their dramatically different way of life. Plagued by rain forest deforestation that threatens their existence, the now grown children that she photograph struggle to balance their native traditions and the infringing influence of Western society. As footpaths give way to highways, the film teaches us how the combined effort of indigenous peoples, rubber tapers, and their allies have begun to preserve and defend the rain forest. Ultimately the film shows us that all people have a connection to the land, and a responsibility to one another. This 72 minute documentary shows on Saturday, October 4 at 7:15 PM and Sunday, October 5, at 4:00 PM.