All posts by Larry Christopher

Netflix

Summer of 2014 a Flop For Film Industry

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According to figures from Rentrak:

Film Industry Has Worst Summer Since 1997

Some of this summer’s disappointments include unforgettable titles such as:

Transformers: Age of Extinction
Amazing Spider-Man 2
The Expendables 3
How to Train Your Dragon 2
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

Could it be that audiences are finally getting saturated with superheroes, sequels, remakes and other typical mindless Hollywood fare? With ticket prices and refreshments skyrocketing, alternatives like Netflix and Hulu are seeming like better deals all the time.

Netflix

Your Last Chance to See Attack of the Crab Monster!

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Yes, Attack of the Crab Monster (a movie I’ve never heard of before a minute ago) is one of 71 movies that will be taken off Netflix Streaming on August 1. Perhaps more tragically, this list also includes films such as:

Easy Rider
Clockers
Airplane
Braveheart
Paper Moon

71 Movies Are About to Disappear From Netflix

I’m not familiar (or particularly interested) in the politics/economics of how Netflix works, but it is a shame that what should be the most convenient way to see movies ends up providing the public with such a relatively mediocre selection.

As I mentioned in a recent post, I am glad that Netflix features some hard to find indie films, but it would also be nice if they could find a way to get and keep a larger selection overall.

indie films

Do Movies Still Matter on Netflix?

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A recent article on Yahoo Finance attempts to explain “why movies on Netflix just don’t matter anymore.”

As the article points out, Netflix is now becoming more popular for its original shows, namely House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, while its selection of streaming movies is sadly limited. The article goes on to allude to the “decreasing importance of film in pop culture.”

One thing that this analysis leaves out is that some people don’t seek out Hollywood blockbusters on Netflix. The site, for all its limitations, can be a good source for finding smaller, lesser known indie films. Granted, some of these are direct-to-video, low budget (and in many cases low quality) flicks.

There are, however, also quite a few good ones that deserve more attention than they receive. Just to name a few recent examples, while the average person may not have seen or heard of The Institute or Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus, some Netflix customers subscribe to the service mainly for the pleasure of finding such hidden gems.

There are also plenty of in-between films -not quite mainstream yet not obscure or art house. To give an example of such a recent release, check out Mr. Nobody, which was released in 2009 but only recently became available on Netflix Streaming.

It’s a little sad to see people equating movies with mainstream movies.

1970s films

Magic in the Moonlight -Latest From Woody Allen

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Woody Allen’s latest film sounds like a rehashing of what he’s been dutifully releasing year after year for the last four decades. Magic in the Moonlight has a basic Pygmalion theme and has a glamorous 1920s South of France setting, factors which Allen’s usual upscale and sophisticated (at least by 20th century standards) audience will find hard to resist. I haven’t seen the film and probably will wait until it’s available on Netflix streaming (if ever), so I’ll refer you to what sounds like a trenchant critique of it (see link at the end of this article).

Personally, I’m ambivalent about Woody Allen. It’s hard not to admire some of his films from the 70s and 80s, though even then they were on the verge of being anachronistic, with Allen so fond of quoting Sartre, Freud, Nietzsche, Dostoyevsky, a practice he has continued. By the 90s and 00s, it was hard to find much original in even his better efforts. The only differences seem to be that the scenes have shifted mostly from New York to Europe and, rather than starring in his own films, he’s mainly using stand-ins -in the latest case, Colin Firth.

If you consider Allen’s personal life and the recent accusations made against him, you probably would want to avoid his work altogether. I don’t take this stance, because, let’s face it, great art (and great deeds in other aspects of life) have often been created by highly flawed human beings. Additionally, how much do we really know about any of the celebrities and heroes out there, even those with the most pristine images?

My main complaint with Allen is that his work and point of view hasn’t really evolved over the decades. In fairness, though, even a mediocre Woody Allen film is wittier and more entertaining than the average Hollywood romantic comedy, though that’s not saying very much.

In the following article, Kate Arthur and Alison Willmore discuss Magic in the Moonlight, as well as their own views on separating artists’ personal lives from their work.

Why Woody Allen’s Lighthearted New Movie May Still Tie You In Knots

indie films

Movies That Make You Question Reality

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“Question Reality” was always one of my favorite bumper stickers and some movies actually provoke this reaction in viewers.

Lots of movies of recent years can be said to be “consciousness expanding” in one form or another. In trying to put together a brief but meaningful list, I decided to exclude certain types of films -specifically documentaries and movies whose action or special effects aspects outweighed their mind expanding qualities, at least IMO.

This list is obviously incomplete and highly subjective! I will publish more lists of this kind in the future.

Some of these films have already been reviewed on this site, in which case I’ll include a link to the review.

Dark City (1998)

The premise is that the reality we experience is a false construct, created by an alien race. This has some of the same concepts covered in The Matrix, but I believe in a more thoughtful and less hyped up manner. This basic idea goes back to Plato and Gnosticism and is at least as relevant today as in ancient times!

What the Bleep do We Know? (2004)

Ok, this one is at least 1/2 documentary (though skeptical critics say it’s pure fiction, naturally), but since it also includes many dramatized sequences, it can’t be said to be a true doc. Whether you agree with its interpretation of quantum physics or not, it’s certainly extremely thought provoking.

Waking Life (2001)

Richard Linklater’s animated exploration of philosophy, consciousness and the perennial question -“How do I know I’m not dreaming right now?” This will be of particular interest to anyone fascinated with lucid dreaming. Waking Life has recently been added to Netflix Streaming.

Mr. Nobody (2009)

I just saw this recently, so it’s fresh in my mind. This film explores the fascinating possibility of multiple timelines. Rather than wondering about the road not taken, imagine if many roads are taken, but in different realities!

The Stunt Man (1980)

I’m listing this one partly because it’s a great film that’s not very well known. While many movies have dealt with the boundaries between movies and real life collapsing, none does it better than The Stunt Man, where an egoistical director played by Peter O’Toole orchestrates events that have life or death consequences.

indie films, science fiction

Mr. Nobody Traverses Multiple Timelines

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Mr. Nobody (2009), directed by Jaco Van Dormael, is a long (140 minutes), ambitious, fascinating and sometimes confusing film that is both highly original and reminiscent of a few other experimental films of recent years. Whereas many movies deal with the question of decisions and how they impact our fates, none does so in a way that’s more thorough and deep than Mr. Nobody.

The film starts off with a premise that’s quite perplexing, even by the standards of science fiction. The protagonist, whose actual name is unknown, is an apparently confused 117 year old man who is publicly recognized as the last mortal human, in an age when medical advances in stem cell technology have conquered death. This brings up the question of why this man has been singled out for this fate and how, if he’s unknown, they even know how old he is. The film may or may not answer these questions satisfactorily.

The film then focuses on flashbacks, dreams and/or hallucinations that Mr. Nobody has about his past, where he experienced (or imagined) several mutually irreconcilable lives. Not only was he simultaneously married to different women, in certain “lifetimes” he actually died at a young age. We are first taken back to his childhood, where he is compelled to choose between his parents when they split up. The pivotal moment is when his mother is riding away on a train and the boy chases the train and either does or doesn’t -or, rather, does and doesn’t- catch up to it. From this point onwards, the boy’s life starts to branch off into different timelines.

Fans of fantasy, science fiction, and even certain alternative news and conspiracy websites, will be familiar with the concept of timelines. This is also related to possible worlds theory in the realms of academic philosophy and quantum physics. The premise is that every possible reality actually exists in some dimension. Yet Mr. Nobody isn’t content to “merely” examine the notion of timelines. It takes us even further afield, invoking the Butterfly Effect, a future when humans visit Mars and, as alluded to, the technological defeat of death itself. If that wasn’t enough, there is even a sequence with angels and a unicorn, to portray the alleged moment before babies are born and choose their parents.

What can we make of such a complex and seemingly over-ambitious film? I actually found it more enjoyable and accessible than this summary probably indicates. While it is overly complex, convoluted and, ultimately, indecipherable, it is also thought-provoking and philosophical. It also manages to avoid being overly dry and cerebral. Indie actress and director Sarah Polley, plays Elise, a bipolar (or perhaps borderline personality) love interest of Mr. Nobody, and one of the women he marries. Their tumultuous relationship is one of the factors that gives the film some emotional weight. His other two wives are also aptly portrayed by Diane Kruger and Linh Dan Pham.

The film it most closely resembles is the better known Cloud Atlas (2012), which, at 172 minutes was even longer, had the advantage of some big name stars such as Tom Hanks, Hugh Grant and Halle Berry. Both movies deal with long periods of time and individuals living out multiple lifetimes. Although Cloud Atlas, which was based on a book, got more attention and, in general, better reviews, I actually preferred Mr. Nobody. I found Cloud Atlas overly long and somewhat sanctimonious. Mr. Nobody, despite what could be called its flaws (but which I’m more inclined to simply call its style), was more an open-ended exploration of some fantastical (but not implausible) theories and possibilities. For what it’s worth, both Cloud Atlas and Mr. Nobody envision a future where guys with intricate face tattoos are prevalent.

Other films that Mr. Nobody can be compared to include Richard Linklater’s exploration of lucid dreaming (among many other things), Waking Life, the reverse aging saga, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and a number of David Lynch films that deal with issues such as multiple identities. Finally, anyone who saw the quasi-documentary What the Bleep do We Know? will recognize the rather farfetched interpretations of quantum physics, such as multiple dimensions.

Mr. Nobody combines philosophy, science fiction and drama in a way that is difficult to reconcile. It’s probably better if you just watch it without trying to understand exactly what it’s all supposed to mean. If nothing else, you should take away from it that life is more complicated and multifaceted than most of us realize most of the time.

indie comedies, musicals, Quirky comedies, science fiction

Future Folk: Hipster Aliens Invade Brooklyn

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The History of Future Folk (2012), directed by J. Anderson Mitchell and Jeremy Kipp Walker and starring Nils d’Aulaire and Jay Klaitz, is a strange, extremely quirky low budget independent film. Since the movie is based on an actual musical duo called Future Folk that is currently touring the country, you might say that it opened with a built-in cult following.

The movie is a science fiction-comedy-musical with an extremely thin plot that is full of holes, but this scarcely matters as the whole point is to give a showcase for the pair’s folk-bluegrass musical numbers (which they perform dressed in ridiculous red costumes and helmets). The film, however, isn’t really a musical. A few great songs are present, but overall the movie is more about the transformative power of music.

The gimmick here is that General Trius and Kevin, two aliens from the planet Hondo, arrive on earth and discover music for the first time. Although their original mission was to colonize earth and wipe out the population, they are so enamored of music that they abandon their plans and start a band instead. The audience must suspend disbelief on issues such as how these aliens arrive speaking fluent American English. It’s also a bit odd that they go from being wholly ignorant about music to expert musicians within minutes. Realism, however, is far from the point here.

The History of Future Folk is certainly not a great movie. It is, however, fun, energetic and original. If you look up reviews, you will probably end up reading accolades posted by prior fans of the group. If you’re new to the whole concept, you will probably still enjoy the film but won’t be quite as enamored by it as hardcore fans. The film also references Brooklyn’s hipster scene, as the duo play in a trendy club where the audience dresses up in space costumes just like the musicians.

All in all, The History of Future Folk is a good choice if you like campy, low budget independent films and/or bluegrass style music. If you demand logical plots and/or you hate hipsters, this is not the film for you.

Documentary, indie films

The Institute -Blurring Art, Myth and Reality

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The Institute (2012) -Directed by Spencer McCall

The Institute is another entry in that emerging genre that lies on the borderland between documentary and mocumentary. In the tradition of fascinating yet frustrating docs such as Catfish and Exit Through the Gift Shop, The Institute relays a story that obviously has some elements of truth, yet it’s impossible to determine how much of it was re-enacted or even fabricated for the film.

In this case, the subject itself is so nebulous and deliberately confounding that separating fantasy (or, in this case, a game) from reality is a futile enterprise. Yet, that very ontological quandary could very well be the whole point of The Institute -as well as the game upon which it is based.

The Institute is about a city-wide role playing game/social experiment/art project that was (presumably) carried out in San Francisco between 2008 and 2011. It involved a cult-like organization called The Jejune Institute, presided over (allegedly) by a Scientology-like leader. Participants were drawn in after seeing cryptic flyers around the city. Those who followed up were led to a building where they watched a video explaining the Jejune Institute’s vague but noble objectives. Participants were assured, for example, that their view of the world would be utterly transformed. Even more grandiose claims were made, as the Institute allegedly had possession of inventions and formulae that would solve all of humanity’s problems.

Those participants who chose to continue (we can assume that there were many dropouts) were drawn into an increasingly complex and murky scenario where the line between game and reality were collapsed. To make matters even trickier, viewers of the film have another layer of ambiguity to decipher -reality/game/film.

At first, it seems fairly straightforward that the film is simply documenting an extremely ambitious art project. Interviews with the game’s creators, such as Jeff Hull, indicate that it was a long term, open-ended and extremely creative project that encompassed multiple locations, many players and several overlapping plots.

Yet by the middle of the film, viewers will no doubt begin to wonder how much of this really happened as reported. For one thing, this game would have required substantial funding. For another, certain scenes and incidents seem to have been filmed during the time of the game, long before the movie was made. Does this indicate that the documentary was, from the start, a key aspect of the project? Or that some of these scenes were filmed for the movie and were re-enactments or utter fabrications? It’s impossible to say.

One of the bizarre yet interesting plot lines of the game involved making players immediately distrust the very Jejune Institute that had supposedly recruited them into the game. The Institute’s leader was labeled a fraud, someone who had betrayed the cause of “divine nonchalance.” The latter is revealed as the mystical quality that was, once again I must insert the word allegedly, discovered by a mysterious teenager named Eva who disappeared shortly after revealing her discoveries. Eva’s father was said to have been the inventor of some of the Institute’s inventions.

Divine Nonchalance, as the term implies, can be understood to mean going through life in a way that’s open to endless possibilities. It could also be compared to the Taoist concept of Wu Wei, or acting without effort. One image connected to the concept in the film is the tarot card, The Fool -the character who fearlessly stands at the edge of a precipice.

It’s almost impossible to describe the “plot” of The Institute without getting mired in uncertainty and confusion. What’s interesting is that, if you’re open to it, it can motivate you to ask some very basic questions, such as “what is reality?” Parts of it reminded me of Robert Anton Wilson’s Illuminatus Trilogy, a cult classic that involved (among many other things) warring secret societies, where you never knew exactly who the good guys and bad guys were. Wilson was also part of a movement/pseudo religion called Discordianism, which certainly could have been an influence here as well.

Those who are left with questions after watching The Institute might Google some of the people and terms from the film, such as Jejune Institute and Eva Lucien (Eva-Lucien -get it?). In fact, the Journals of Eva Lucien are available for sale online. Yet such a casual search will not prove whether these entries and characters preceded the film.

The Institute will fascinate some, bore/confuse/confound others and be of mild interest to still others. If you like to ponder the borders between fiction and fact and suspect that films such as The Matrix are not mere science fiction, The Institute may be just what you’ve been looking for. It’s available on Netflix streaming right now.

indie films

Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus

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Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus (2013) is a drug movie that is not really about drugs as much as a group of people who use them as an excuse for a pilgrimage in search of meaning. Written and directed by Sebastian Silva, the movie can be viewed in a number of ways.

On one level, it really is about the modern fascination with the transformative potential of psychedelic experiences. It’s also a kind of anthropological study of contemporary backpackers who drift around the world seeking memorable experiences. Finally, it reveals how people in other countries (Chile in this case) have very stereotyped views of Americans -which are, no doubt, justified in many cases.

Even though the film is about a group of youths -2 Americans and a group of Chileans, the spotlight is on the Americans, who are indeed stereotypes. Jamie (Michael Cera) is obnoxious, impatient and immature. He apparently lives from one drug experience to the next. He is obsessed with finding the hallucinogenic San Pedro cactus, a mission for which he recruits his native Chilean friends (Juan Andres Silva, Agustin Silva and Jose Miguel Silva).

Joining them is Crystal Fairy (Gaby Hoffmann), who is -if her name doesn’t give this away- a flaky, new age-hippie type who spouts spiritual platitudes and psychobabble. The film is largely about the ongoing tension between Jamie and Crystal Fairy, as the others in the group look on with resigned amusement at the antics of the crazy Americans.

Crystal Fairy does, however, manage to be more than a superficial portrayal of annoying American travelers. Both Jamie and Crystal Fairy evolve to some degree and become actual individuals. While the San Pedro cactus plays a role in this, it is not really the dominant factor. In fact, the film only deals very briefly with the psychoactive experiences of the drug. Much more time is spent cataloging their quest for the plant and the elaborate preparations of it. When the characters finally reveal something of their true selves to one another, we get the idea that it’s less due to the cactus than that they were simply tired of all the posturing.

Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus is a slow paced character study that will disappoint people who are expecting action, sex, raunchy humor or intense portrayals of people tripping (though there is considerable female nudity). The performances are quite realistic, which almost works against the film at times, considering how unlikable the two protagonists are in many scenes.

This film’s realism is grounded in the fact that much of the dialogue was improvised. Furthermore, the director and Chilean actors are brothers. According to IMDB, Cera actually lived with the Silva family to prepare for the film. So the naturalistic style of the film did not have to be faked.

Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus is a small film that is quite engaging in places while it drags in others. It does not offer any profound insights into psychoactive substances, but nor does it pretend to. Nevertheless, it will be of interest to anyone who studies this topic -or anyone who is fascinated by the myriad forms human interactions can take.


indie films

The Millionaire Tour -Suspenseful Direct-to-Web Movie

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The Millionaire Tour (2012)
Director: Inon Shampanier
Written by Inon and Natalie Shampanier

This direct-to-internet movie is a bit obscure, but it can be found on Hulu and perhaps other video streaming sites. Having never heard of the film or anyone associated with it, my expectations were not especially high. However, it turned out to be a surprisingly well-crafted and well-acted twisty suspense thriller, much better than not only the average streaming movie but the average Hollywood paint-by-numbers thriller as well.

The premise is simple, with a cast so small that it could almost have been a stage play -if it weren’t for the fact that it mostly takes place in a moving vehicle. It stars Jordan Belfi as Greg, a businessman who, just getting off a plane, is offered a ride by a cab driver named Sammy (Rick Gomez). Before they even leave the parking lot, the taxi hits a young woman. She is not badly hurt so she and her boyfriend arrange to share the taxi with Greg, which, naturally, proves to be a big mistake.

The young couple, Billy (Agnes Bruckner) and Casper (Dominic Monaghan) are a rough looking and talking pair who introduce the topic of The Millionaire Tour -a scheme where a wealthy victim is forced at gunpoint to drive from one ATM to another, withdrawing the maximum amount until all of his cards are maxed out. As we can expect, this turns out to be more than a hypothetical story when Casper pulls a gun and takes command of the taxi.

The film, which starts out as a suspenseful crime drama turns more complex when it’s revealed that Greg was not chosen at random. He is, according to Casper, a well known con artist who has allegedly ripped off Casper’s sinister boss The Roman. We are soon left to wonder if Greg is really who he claims to be (the victim of mistaken identity) or a true criminal mastermind. There is also the question of Sammy who, we learn early on, has a taxi license with someone else’s name on it. There is even the obligatory reference to Taxi Driver with Sammy uttering the familiar line, “You talkin’ to me?” Gomez actually resembles the young Robert DeNiro, which may or may not be coincidental as far as his being cast in this film.

Many of the best moments in the movie are small scenes that focus on tense dialogue or situations that can play out in a number of ways. For example, when Casper leads Greg into a crowded store to cash a check, there is a drawn out conversation with the naive salesgirl while we can practically hear Greg thinking about his options.

If you’ve seen quite a few suspenseful, noirish thrillers -especially the kind that became popular in the 1990s- you will not be too shocked by how things turn out. The real quality of The Millionaire Tour is in the quality of the acting, script and dialogue. Monaghan as Casper exudes the right amount of menace as a volatile thug. Billy is his confused and conflicted partner and/or girlfriend. Belfi does a masterful job at making Greg (if that’s who he really is) a resourceful guy who seems almost too adept at thinking on his feet. Gomez remains an enigma as the apparently fatalistic driver.

It’s always a nice surprise to find an impeccably created film of this type. Even if you can mostly guess where it’s headed, in this case the ride is enjoyable enough that it doesn’t really matter. Hopefully, we will see more from this talented crew in the future.