MWFF’09 Review: Refrain
The theme of women in abusive relationships has been absent from the mainstream film limelight, as if somehow Hollywood solved the problem years ago. It takes a no-budget independent from Montréal, writer/director Tyler Gibb, to revive the familiar story. In Refrain, the goal is not just to escape the cycle of violence, but also to break oneself free of the cycle of dependence, and to accomplish a personal change that can revitalize one’s talents. The result is a film that far exceeds the limitations of its budgetary restraints. Read more »
Film Festivals, Film Reviews | 
August 30, 2009 | No Comments »
Sonja Wyss’ Winter Silence (Winterstilte) is a hard film to review. At only seventy minutes, it managed to try my patience as well as frustrate my innate want to piece together the visual puzzle before me. Largely silent and set in a remote wintry mountain village, there is little plot development but much symbolic imagery. As a piece of visual art, it succeeds: the beautiful and haunting images are unforgettable; but it suffers from feeling all too much like a show of experimental pieces without any cohesive point. 
It’s a familiar tale. In German-occupied France, a family travels with an eye out for German soldiers at every crossroads. They are a hunted and oppressed peoples who, if caught, risk being sent to the concentration camps. Every country in Europe has its own version of these horrific times; but what of the people who belong to no country? What of Europe’s Roma, the wandering gypsies of many ethnicities? Tony Gatlif’s Freedom (Korkoro) tells their story, and while it treads familiar ground, it is told from a unique viewpoint. This standout film has an eye for drama that focuses on story and character to succeed rather than on the audience’s already well-tuned emotional reaction to the camps. 
Review: Inglorious Basterds (2009)
Genius Party Beyond, like Genius Party last year, is a collection of five shorts from Japanese animators. As a demo of what modern-day anime talent can do, it is has an impressive array of style, but it also lacks any kind of coherency. With fewer entries than the original compilation film and a shorter running time, Beyond feels more like an add-on, and works more as a portfolio for each director than a film to be digested by the masses. My review of Cencoroll, a short that preceded the main feature, can also be found below. 
South Korean film has had a strong presence at this year’s Fantasia, with many debut efforts by new voices of the dwindling ‘new wave’ movement. But even iconic filmmaker Park Chan-wook’s latest, Thirst, has failed to excite in the same way as the pioneer films. Yang Ik-June’s Breathless (Ddongpari) is the sole exception. It is a film that eschews polish for grit, and manages to find the humanity in even the most depraved people. For me, it is the only standout South Korean film of the festival, and among its best overall. 
Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Playing this Friday, July 24th and Monday, July 27th, the Canadian premiere of My Dear Enemy (Meotjin haru) is not likely to strike a chord with the usual Fantasia audience member. The reason is not because it is a lousy film - far from it: Lee Yoon-ki’s fourth feature is a slow-paced but surprisingly heart-warming little road trip film about how human kindness trumps economy. It’s the lack of action or gore that may turn off most. Regardless, it is worth discovering if you’re looking for something on the slower side. It may not be the most memorable South Korean film of recent years, but its minimalism is strangely alluring. 
First-time writer/director Na Hong-jin’s The Chaser (Chugyeogja) is another entry in the ‘new wave’ of South Korean films, most notably amongst its more violent contributors such as Park Chan-wook. Far from Oldboy, The Chaser is more like Na Hong-jin’s Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, a film that relied too heavily on coincidence and cliché. Worse, its mixture of horrific violence, melodrama, misplaced humour and Bourne-like chase scenes makes The Chaser a wholly uneven first effort. 
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