Cinebanter #90 - ROBIN HOOD

The mp3 of this show can be found here.

In this episode, Michael and Tassoula aim their arrow at various targets as they review Ridley Scott's ROBIN HOOD. In the Last Five®, Michael unveils a triumphant indie, while Tassoula revisits a classic novel. Plus, this hosts answer a Listener Last Five. The breakdown is as follows:

• 00:00 Intro
• 00:32 Discussion of ROBIN HOOD
• Break
• 20:09 To Sum It Up
• Break
• 20:43 The Last Five®
• Break
• 43:39 Listener Last Five (Luke in Regina/Toronto)
• 52:54 Credits & Outtakes

Michael's Last Five in this episode were: EXTERMINATING ANGELS, SHIRI, MAMA MIA, CHLOE and WINTER'S BONE. Tassoula's Last Five were: THE HOST, THE BONE MAN, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, THE BOX and THE EXECUTION OF WANDA JEAN.

If you'd like to subscribe to the show (it's free, of course) via iTunes, click here. Please leave comments if you like what you hear.

Want to donate to the show and help with production costs, server fees, etc.? Click on the "Make a Donation" button to the left of this blog.

Special thanks to Brad Daane and Mark Cummins for providing the original music in this episode.

Tassoula has reviews, musings and movie-related product links at Tassoula's Movie Review Blog.

Reviews and/or notes of every movie Michael sees can be found at his MichaelVox website.

Feedback is always welcome - you may leave comments here or e-mail the hosts at cinebanter@gmail.com.

We hope you enjoy the show!

SIFF Sighting: MARWENCOL (documentary; USA)

A brutal attack in the neighborhood bar left Mark Hogancamp in a coma for nine days in August of 2000. When he regained consciousness he had to re-learn all of his basic functions—speaking, reading, writing, etc. His former life was a mystery to him. He had just begun therapy when his insurance benefits ran out and he was forced to improvise. There began a creation of his own making: Marwencol.

In this film of the same title, we take a trip inside Marwencol, a fictional place constructed from dolls and hobby props by Mark himself, aimed at helping him heal. An amateur artist before the attack, Mark retained a gift for creativity and meticulously fashions action figures and Barbies to look like real people in his life. Then, he places the characters in World War II era clothing and situations to have them survive battles, get married, have catfights (girls only) and drink at the local bar. While improving his motor skills, he psychologically goes where many of us only allow ourselves to go when we dream. Fascinating, eh?

The situation is compelling in itself, but what makes the film work are the quality of Mark's creations, his good humor in sharing them, and the non-exploitive way the 'extra' details about his life are revealed.

He was an alcoholic before the attack, now he only drinks coffee; he's still fearful of groups of people and treats his dolls with a special reverence.

Director Jeff Malmberg has done a beautiful job sharing Mark's gifts with the world and documenting an incredibly unconventional road to recovery.

Marwencol screened at the 36th Annual Seattle International Film Festival. It will open in limited release this October, and appear on PBS next spring. To visit Mark's world, visit Marwencol.com.

~~~

SIFF Sighting: BROWNSTONES TO RED DIRT (documentary; Sierra Leone)

The Sierra Leone Civil War, which began in 1991, caused thousands of deaths and created millions of refugees.

Many of these young refugees, who were orphaned as a result of the war, are featured in this touching documentary, Brownstones to Red Dirt.

In the film, we meet a class of youngsters in the region who have been paired up with pen pals in Brooklyn, New York. They are getting to know each other the old-fashioned way—through handwritten letters and photos sent through the mail. As the envelopes arrive, we see the reactions on both sides of the globe as the children share their personal stories and form genuine friendships. The New York kids don't live the high life, but they certainly don't face the same dangers and poverty as their African counterparts.

After learning of their pals' extreme hardships (many don't have electricity or proper beds), the New York students decide to host a barbecue to raise funds for them. The money is then donated to help buy necessities (including a new building) and the lives of both groups of students are changed by the generosity.

What makes this movie so sweet is that the filmmakers let the kids do the talking. From start to finish, they are the ones sharing their experiences in their own words, clearly unscripted, which creates a raw authenticity that would be difficult to duplicate with actors. One heartwrenching scene shows the African children re-enacting the war; another shows the disappointment of the New York kids when their barbecue isn't reaching their desired dollar amount.

It's a pleasure to get to know these young, compassionate souls, and feel thankful someone is making a difference in their lives. If only there were enough pen pals to go around.

Brownstones to Red Dirt screened at the 36th Annual Seattle International Film Festival. To learn more about how you can help build schools in Sierra Leone, visit the Schools for Salone website. If you are a teacher interested in setting your students up with refugee pen pals, visit the Respect for Refugees website.

~~~

SIFF Sighting: WINTER'S BONE (drama; USA)

When we arrive in the Winter's Bone world of backroad Ozarks, we immediately know that 17-year-old Ree (Jennifer Lawrence) is tough. Tough from poverty, tough from cold Missouri weather and tough from growing up too fast.

Her father Jessup, a meth-mixer, has gone missing. He's on the run from the law and may or may not already be dead. Her mother is on site, but not present. She's ruined from drugs and maybe some mental illness thrown in for good measure. There are also two younger children: Sonny (Isaiah Stone) and Ashlee (Ashlee Thompson), who just want to be fed.

Ree learns that unless her father materializes, the family will soon lose the log cabin home they're living their miserable existence in, so she sets out to find him. Under normal circumstances, this would probably be no big deal, but in this rural nightmare it proves to be extremely dangerous. She is threatened, beaten, chased off—you name it—because she shouldn't be asking questions.

Resourceful, if not intelligent, Ree tries to join the Army to earn the money to save her home, not realizing that she can't take her siblings with her to basic training. If you think this scenario sounds sad, it is. But it's also a series of quiet occurrences that you can't take your eyes off of.

Everyone is punished at one time or another for someone else's stupid mistakes, and to watch this poor girl endure a life sentence of other people's mistakes is practically unbearable. Ree is a martyr for sure, but all of the characters in the film are tragic.

I didn't like riding out the pain of her struggles, but I certainly appreciated the writers' brilliance to get me there. Every situation, however horrific, was made believable by the realistic dialog and the impressive, understated acting.

A fine triumph in independent film.

Winter's Bone screened at the 36th annual Seattle International Film Festival.

~~~

SIFF Sighting: TURTLE: THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY (documentary; United Kingdom)

Each year at SIFF, there is always a nature documentary that makes you want to leap from your chair and dedicate your life to saving our ocean's creatures. Last year it was The Cove, the year before that Saving Luna. This year, the front-runner for 'heart-tugging champion of the festival' is Turtle: The Incredible Journey.

When we meet the star of the show, a female loggerhead turtle named FeeBee, she has just hatched from the sand on a beach in Florida and is enduring a race similar to that of the classic Centipede video game to get to the water—through a maze of 'enemies' ready to devour her in one bite. We watch a crab obliterate one of her siblings, and large birds swoop down to capture a few more. Luckily, our heroine prevails and launches herself into the deep blue sea, learning to make her way alone, guided only by primal instinct.

Just like any traveler, FeeBee encounters beautiful, breathtaking sights along her route and also endures several layers of danger. Her foes come in the form of larger sea life, oil spills (which were all the more painful to watch in light of the recent accident on the Gulf Coast), human garbage, large boats and fishermen. One scene will leave those who use grocery store plastic bags with a horribly guilty conscience.

The miles she covers are truly impressive: from Florida she swims around the brisk North Atlantic, over to Africa, on to the utopian-like Azores (a particularly gorgeous part of the film) and finally back to her own beach, where she will become a mother.

The narration by Miranda Richardson is calming and helpful, but the score of the film bordered on intrusive (though I'll admit, I smiled when the Jaws-like notes arrived as a shark was infringing on FeeBee's territory).

There are also moments that aspire to a Disney-like preciousness that weren't necessary to establish our love for the main character. Turtles are endearing by their expressions alone—allowing us to follow one along on their dangerous, but meaningful journey of life certainly conjures up enough emotions that the "Oh, look! Babies!" routine isn't essential.

What I enjoyed more were the metaphorical implications of FeeBee's trip. We all struggle to fit in and survive when we're young, and by the time we learn the ropes, it's time for another cycle to begin.

Following this gentle creature's life was a beautiful way to illustrate that.

Turtle: The Incredible Journey screened at the 36th annual Seattle International Film Festival.

~~~

SIFF Sighting: THE FREEBIE (comedy; USA)

A Mumblecore film can command an organic, thoughtful audience experience or exhibit such a level of pretentious arrogance that it destroys itself. The Freebie thankfully leans more toward the former, but to say that it was a perfect movie wouldn't be true.

I went into this film expecting a comedy (as its billing would indicate), and sure, I laughed a few times, but the subject matter wasn't really funny.

Darren (Sean Nelson) and Annie (Katie Aselton—also the film's director) are a normal married couple with friends whom they see regularly, a home nicer than their careers would allow, and no children to complicate things. Pretty great life, except they're having challenges in the bedroom. It's not that they've fallen out of love: they're clearly still very much in love, but they don't seem to connect physically anymore and neither seems to care.

When they realize it's been months since they last made love, they launch into a marathon discussion (literally a fourth of the movie) about how they're not worried about their lack of sex, but hypothetically it may be a good idea to sleep with other people to recharge the relationship batteries.

Compelling concept and certainly something that many couples have contemplated, with one another or not. We know the instant they begin discussing it, the pair will take the conversation one step further. To allow each other one "freebie" on the same night, and pledge to ask no post-extramarital-sex questions.

What happens next is a predictable roller coaster complete with dangerous flirtations, satisfying actions, double standards, hurt feelings, anger, remorse and confusion. And these parts of the film are the strongest.

If Aselton, who also wrote the feature, had begun the story with "that night" she would have had me at hello. Instead, I was forced, along with my fellow viewers, to endure pointless establishing shots and directionless chatter (granted, some may call that a hallmark of mumblecore), which only resulted in a few glances at the watch.

The Freebie screened at the 36th annual Seattle International Film Festival.

SIFF Sighting: NOWHERE BOY (drama; United Kingdom)

The life of John Lennon has been explored many times in various films and books, but seldom has the focus been on his pre-Beatle years in Liverpool, when he was simply the difficult nephew of Mimi Smith. Nowhere Boy spotlights these formative years, zeroing in on the months when Lennon reconnected with his mother Julia, who lived nearby.

In Sam Taylor-Wood's feature debut, we witness the fragile relationships that existed within the family through Aaron Johnson's impressive portrayal of John, and a predictably solid performance from Kristin Scott Thomas as Aunt Mimi. What's disappointing is the one-dimensional take screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh offers of the family: John is troubled, Mimi is stern, Julia is flighty. While all of those characteristics may have been true, each person deserved to echo more complexity, and Paul McCartney deserved to be played by someone more believable than the youthful Thomas Sangster, who most will remember as the kid from Love Actually.

Nowhere Boy screened at the 36th annual Seattle International Film Festival.

Cinebanter #89 - IRON MAN 2

The mp3 of this show can be found here.

In this episode, Michael and Tassoula bust into the summer film season as they review IRON MAN 2. They also deliver their Last Five® and answer a Listener Last Five. The breakdown is as follows:

• 00:00 Intro
• 00:32 Discussion of IRON MAN 2
• Break
• 23:33 To Sum It Up
• Break
• 24:08 The Last Five®
• Break
• 46:29 Listener Last Five ("Mr. Chicago")
• 1:03:21 Credits & Outtakes

Michael's Last Five in this episode were: HOLLY, EXTERMINATING ANGELS, SHIRI, MAMA MIA and CHLOE. Tassoula's Last Five were: THE 27 CLUB, WILLIAM KUNSTLER: DISTURBING THE UNIVERSE, BETTER OFF DEAD, HOTEL GRAMERCY PARK and VOLLMOND (a.k.a. FULL MOON).

If you'd like to subscribe to the show (it's free, of course) via iTunes, click here. Please leave comments if you like what you hear.

Want to donate to the show and help with production costs, server fees, etc.? Click on the "Make a Donation" button to the left of this blog.

Special thanks to Brad Daane and Mark Cummins for providing the original music in this episode.

Tassoula has reviews, musings and movie-related product links at Tassoula's Movie Review Blog.

Reviews and/or notes of every movie Michael sees can be found at his MichaelVox website.

Feedback is always welcome - you may leave comments here or e-mail the hosts at cinebanter@gmail.com.

We hope you enjoy the show!

Cinebanter #88 - THE SQUARE

The mp3 of this show can be found here.

In this episode, Michael and Tassoula gasp and jump as they recall the suspense of THE SQUARE. They also deliver their Last Five® and answer a Listener Last Five. The breakdown is as follows:

• 00:00 Intro
• 00:32 Discussion of THE SQUARE/WHAT WENT WRONG AT THE THEATER
• Break
• 24:53 To Sum It Up
• Break
• 25:34 The Last Five®
• Break
• 54:25 Listener Last Five (Ty in Joliet, Illinois)
• 1:03:41 Credits & Outtakes

Michael's Last Five in this episode were: LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE, TOUCHING HOME, HOLLY and EXTERMINATING ANGELS. Tassoula's Last Five were: 13 CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ONE THING, MARRIED IN AMERICA 2, THE LAST WORD, THE PRIVATE LIVES OF PIPPA LEE and YOU DON'T KNOW JACK.

If you'd like to subscribe to the show (it's free, of course) via iTunes, click here. Please leave comments if you like what you hear.

Want to donate to the show and help with production costs, server fees, etc.? Click on the "Make a Donation" button to the left of this blog.

Special thanks to Brad Daane and Mark Cummins for providing the original music in this episode.

Tassoula has reviews, musings and movie-related product links at Tassoula's Movie Review Blog.

Reviews and/or notes of every movie Michael sees can be found at his MichaelVox website.

Feedback is always welcome - you may leave comments here or e-mail the hosts at cinebanter@gmail.com.

We hope you enjoy the show!

Cinebanter Featured on Sodapop Journal

Want to know what Michael and Tassoula are looking forward most to seeing this summer? Check out the feature over on Sodapop Journal where they share their picks along with other film podcasters who were part of a PIQ magazine piece two years ago.

Then, of course, share your own summer film choices by leaving comments here, there, or by sending the hosts an e-mail at cinebanter@gmail.com

~~~