clark_kent_10 Reviews

First Winter (2012)

keeping it simple after a modern disaster

[8/10 · 13 October 2012]

More "whisper" than "shout", this worthwhile film, that I saw at the Woodstock (N.Y.) Film Festival, is a story about strong issues (sexual influence, narcotic drug usage, and survival when the outside world doesn't exist) but done in an intimate look at emotions, with lots of closeup camera work, during a relatively short span of time.

Rather than being a big budget apocalyptic multi character visual orgy, this almost biographical film looks at a narrow range of characters- it conveniently even pares down the total number of characters early in the film- with just an on location set of a multi room farm house interior and the snow covered surrounding countryside, and how one person relates to one person, within the commune dynamic.

The film doesn't invite complexity, ignoring the "baggage" of the future or the past, but for the few months that the film's actions portray- it is about depicting individual traits and conflicts within a subservient cult hierarchy. "Can we all get along", referring to a broad incident of an entirely different societal issue, is perhaps, in this small independent film, reflected in the ending- food will be found, Yoga continues to be practiced, music will be played, the commune will survive.

The Sublet (2008)

warm quiet comedy

[9/10 · 14 July 2008]

this is a character-driven comedy; featuring several little scenes of cats, assorted quick scenes of "urban stereotype" ethnic and lifestyle people, an old man and a young girl- and an assassin.

The old man, Walter, has a routine solitary New York City life, and when his little-used rotary dial telephone rings one day with a wrong number, it sparks in him an idea to spice up his life temporarily. Through his idea, which gallops along hilariously, comes the other two main characters- Maggie, the young girl from suburbia ("Poughkeepsie") and the assassin. With much of the film being comedy, the hit man provides an element of tension in the film, ably supported by the background score, and the development of the characters of the old man and the young girl are very well written and realistic. The ending leaves the viewer with a little ambiguity and either a happy ending or sad- depending on your interpretation.

This the Romanian-born director's first feature length film- she co-wrote it, edited- no film school background, she just has an ear and an eye and a talent, and picked exactly the right actors for this easy to watch comedy.