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Reviews
Dealbreaker (2005)
Dealbreaker was hilarious!
I saw Dealbreaker at Sundance Film Festival in January. Since I have never watched an episode of Sex in the City, I didn't notice any similarities to it or any other film. But you may be onto something, since Gwynneth Paltrow herself says: "I find "Sex and the City" (1998) irreverent and shocking. It's one step beyond how girls really talk. I would do a cameo on that show in a flash." (IMDB). Wherever she got her inspiration, this film was my favorite short! I thought it was hilarious from start to finish, and I would love to see it again. My only complaint was that there was only one star from the short there to represent the film at the Q&A at the end, and the other suits didn't have much to say about it. I did think I spotted the star of the film, Arijia Bareikis, on the streets of Park City, but I cannot be sure. I thought the writing was great, the story line was easy to understand, and my girlfriend and I were totally howling out loud at some of the scenes, screaming: "OH MY GOD!! We've been there, done that!" I thought it was a great bit of entertainment, as well as all the shorts in that program.
What Remains (2005)
Saw this at Sundance 2006
Steven Cantor took almost 10 years to make this documentary on Sally Mann, the photographer made famous by her "pornographic" coffee table book titled: Immediate Family. Of course, this description is in the eye of the beholder, as I found the montage of pictures used from this book in the documentary to be absolutely beautiful. Mr. Cantor did a previous documentary on the backlash which came about following the release of Immediate Family by the conservative Christian Right, and wanted to make another documentary which really focused on Sally Mann the Photographer, her family, and every day struggles. Thus, What Remains was born. Sally's husband is afflicted with a rare nerve disease, and in my opinion, her latest work from 2004 is an effort to deal with her husbands inevitable death. She has switched subject matter from her children to nature scenes, but has a macabre fascination with decaying corpses, whether it be one of her beloved greyhounds, or bodies donated to a forensic lab in her home county. She gains access to one of these labs, and takes pictures of bodies in various states of decay. What sounds completely bizarre, turns out to be a really beautiful exhibit, which is counter-displayed by pictures of her now-adult children's faces, up close and personal, and still incredibly beautiful. Kind of a life vs. death type of image bombardment. The film documents her struggles to get her exhibit a showing, her husbands declining health, and her own personal doubts regarding her talent. According to the producer: soon to be showing on HBO. Not to miss. A+.
Quinceañera (2006)
Quinceanera was great!
Although it wasn't a first pick, I was able to get the time slot I wanted at Sundance to view this film. We were so impressed with the film that it was almost a post viewing panic session that we could have missed a film this awesome just because it didn't have any "big names" in it. Jesse Garcia is the next "big name" in Hollywood! Keep your eyes on this guy. His portrayal of a gay Hispanic gang member just blows all stereo types out of the water. Chalo González is a national treasure, and outshines the entire cast as Uncle Thomas. Emily Rios is also a great find, and really does a great job in her first big role. Listening to the writers/directors in person detailing their own experience of moving to Echo Park California, and witnessing the gentrification of the area which inspired the film, made this screening even more sweet. The only flaw that I could find was that I wanted to see more of Magdalena's family, and thought those relationships could have been fleshed out more to better understand why they did the things to her that they did. The entire cast was so approachable after the screening and Q&A, that it made me want to go out and do all their PR work for free! Glatzer and Westmoreland said to look for this film on HBO, so hopefully that will be the case really soon for the general public. Catch it if you can; it's worth the time.