Philadelphia Film Festival 2008 - Day 2
Friday, April 4th, 2008
Today I saw three films.
Shakey Gonzales’s Pistoleros told the story of the Copenhagen crime world in a Roshoman-esque style. A heist gone wrong, lots of colorful characters, and an interesting idea just don’t hold up. The direction was over the top and the script was lacking.
On the other hand, American Teen really blew me away. In many ways, it was the complete opposite of what I saw yesterday, Young@Heart. Where Young@Heart had an intriguing premise, American Teen did not. It tells the story of a group of teens (and the usual problems, dreams, etc, that teens have) during their senior year of high school.
Where Stephen Walker coasted through directing Young@Heart by using its endlessly appealing subject matter, Nanette Burstein directed American Teen in a skillful and intelligent style. The movie was a documentary, but it was structured like a film. There were no interviewers. The teens just went about their days and occasionally talked to the camera. Interspersed throughout were animated sequences of the teens dreams, fears, and desires. The whole thing had a very narrative, filmic feel. The problems experienced by these teenagers, even though we all heard them before, take on new life and meaning. This is a thoroughly engaging and entertaining documentary. Highly recommended.
On the other end of the spectrum lies Bad Biology. I’m sure most of you have heard of the director, Frank Henenlotter. He directed Basketcase, Frankenhooker, and Braindamage amongst others. This film is his newest and continues the tradition of bizarre, exploitative gross-out.
It tells the story of a girl who has some extra clitoris’s and some other strange biological absurdities. She enjoys having sex with men, killing them, and then minutes later giving birth to freak-babies which she immediately abandon. There is also a man who has a penis he can’t control that is growing bigger and bigger and is addicted to drugs.
It’s absurd stuff, and it has some interesting set-pieces. What can I say? It’s got lots of naked women, bloody humor, and a giant roving phallus. If you enjoy that sort of thing then you will love this film.
More to come tomorrow!
