305 days, 305 films-20 Centimeters (20 Centímetros)

Mar 7, 2010 by Sami

Film #5 20 CM

I’m going to start by saying that I’m not a fan of musicals. I, think, most musicals are also categorized as dramas which does not make much sense in my head. How does someone’s death promote you to start singing, I often thought. That said, once in a while a musical falls on my laps and strikes the right note with me. I still remember seeing Singing In The Rain and how happy it made me feel. Many moons have passed since then and I still couldn’t find another musical that I admired as much as Singing In The Rain…then I stumbled upon 20 CM on Netflix. As I’m typing I am suddenly overcome with chuckles, remembering how dysfunctional a group of characters this film consisted of.

2o CM is about Marieta, a pre-op transsexual who longs to get rid of her 2o CM member but unable to do so due to financial restrictions. Played wonderfully by Monica Cervera, she tries to collect the cost of the surgery by moonlighting as a prostitute. One problem, Marieta has narcolepsy; at any given moment she falls into deep sleep. Once Marieta falls victim to this curse of hers we are transformed into her dreams that consist of the most beautifully colored environments, surrounded by people singing alongside her while she covers popular songs that range from Spanish to English to French. For the sake of not spoiling the film for you I will end by saying that she has a very amusing group of characters surrounding her at all times; from her neighbor who is involved with illegal business to the man that loves her for the wrong reason. More than anything I love the fact that 2o CM doesn’t take itself seriously. 20 CM should be readily available in your local video rental store if you’re a non-Netflixer.

There is one other musical that has a special place in my heart, but that’s for another post.

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305 days, 305 films- The Band’s Visit

Mar 5, 2010 by Sami

Film #4- The Band’s Visit.

Do you know Chet Baker? See this film and you’ll understand.

I’m actually worried that this post will not be noticed since it will be published on the notorious #FollowFriday and this film needs to be noticed. The solution? This post will be published today and again tomorrow, in the midst of my #ShakesepeareSaturday . Don’t worry, you’ll still get 305 films! I am only trying to make sure The Band’s Visit gets the exposure it needs because it’s such a good film.

I don’t like talking about Mid-East politics. In the words of Rodney King, “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along?” Seriously, why isn’t anyone taking that man’s advice?

Why bring up this topic? Because The Band’s Visit is the first film I have ever seen about an Israeli and an Egyptian group of people and it doesn’t even begin to touch any kind of politics. It’s a brilliant love story with a very honest feel that you don’t get from a lot of films these days. A Police Orchestra is trying to navigate their way to a metropolitan city in  Israel to perform for a cultural event. Thanks to some words being lost in translation, they end up in a remote town where there is “no culture at all”. That’s where The Band gets its funny, charming moments. Something needs to be said about the clever idea of creating a communication barrier between two groups of people but involving the music variable in the equation. The Band is also a story about self discovery and trying to close the door on pasts that have tortured the souls of some of these characters. It actually made me think that maybe one day we’ll look past where we came from and concentrate on the future ahead.

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305 days, 305 films- Fish Tank

Mar 4, 2010 by Sami

Film #3 Fish Tank

I wasn’t going to write about Fish Tank because it’s still in that unfortunate purgatory state. Not at theaters but not at your friendly neighborhood video rental store either. It’s somewhere in between and therefore you cannot be provided with the instant gratification of seeing it after you read this. There are some good news, however.  You can “save” it to your Netflix que, forget about it then be pleasantly surprised when it’s finally available to be mailed out to you. 

If you’ve read Catcher in The Rye and enjoyed it then I can tell you that you’ll enjoy Fish Tank. I couldn’t help but keep thinking about Holden Caulfield every time I witnessed the delusional ambitions that belonged to Mia. One scene that keeps coming back to memory is one when she gets into a fight with her peers by vocalizing her dislike of their dance routine. Mia, who is 15,  is a horrible dancer herself but she is also depressed (rightfully so) and the only way she chooses to cope with it is by living in the illusion that she’s much more talented then everyone surrounding her. There’s also the  undeniable  sexual desire she harbors for her mother’s new boyfriend that you know will lead to terrible results.

Fish Tank has a great cast and does a great job portraying a fatherless lower-class family in Essex, England. Katie Jarvis received much praise for her role as Mia but I can’t help but give my thumbs up to Sarah Bayes for her captivating portrayal of Mia’s mother, Keely. Finally, the film also contains an unpredictable twist or two in it’s storyline.

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305 days, 305 films- He Loves Me He Loves Me Not (À la folie… pas du tout)

Mar 3, 2010 by Sami

Film #2 He Loves Me He Loves Me Not.

You see someone across the room that you really like and immediately start fantasizing about the kind of future you’ll have together. Maybe you’ll both leave the party at the same time and he’ll offer you a ride, after that, you’ll plan to go out for dinner together. Before you know it you’re going through the options of where to have your wedding and the names of your children. He Loves Me is exactly about that kind of fantasy…multiplied it by a hundred or so.

I have seen few of Audrey Tautou films and she is always a pleasure to watch. It wasn’t a surprise  when I  started watching this film and liked how well she portrays someone who is madly in love. Not sure if it’s the fact that she is French, a great actress or both but ever since Amelie I’ve always thought she easily tapped into my inner overly romantic soul.  He Loves Me is about the delusions we sink ourselves in due to our overly imaginative brain cells but still allows us to have a laugh because we’re looking at it from the outside in.

He Loves Me He Loves Me Not is available on Netlix and, to no doubt, your local video rental store.

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305 days, 305 films- The New Twenty

Mar 2, 2010 by Sami

Unlike my “Go See It” category this is going to be a much shorter version of my reviews. There are 305 days left of this year. I will attempt to write a mini review of 305 films that you should see. Who said it’s ever too late clearly is unaware of my existence.

Film #1 The New Twenty.

I enjoyed The New Twenty for many reasons. One of them being that it’s a film about not having things figured out when you’re thirty. I feel like we live in a time where we are bombarded by the idea that we need to keep working for this near perfect life that society dictates for us with out giving any thought to what we really want to do in life. These people are 30 and think they have it together but in reality they are just as “new” as they were when they left college. It’s also very relate-able in the way that you think “I could see this happening to me and it’s very fucked up but I can’t help but laugh at the whole thing”.  I was discussing with a friend earlier today that I never considered “Shortbus” a gay genre film and she said that she always thought it’s a “pansexual” genre. Piggybacking on that conversation I’m going to call The New Twenty a pansexual genre film.

It’s on Netflix and most likely your local video rental store. Tomorrow film #2.

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