Watched 10 films at the http://www.iffboston.org Boston 08. I was expecting to see something which will sweep me away, none could actually match my expectations. There were a few good ones, though.
Transsiberian, the opening thriller was about a Transsiberian train journey with wicked strangers, with Ben Kingsley. It had a terrific characterization in the script, almost like reading a book. The lead actress acted phenomenally, with minimal dialogues and complete with subtle facial expressions. However the ending was contrived, as if the director had to rush into something. Phoebe in Wonderland was a children’s story, more so of a 10 yr old girl who dreams of Alice in Wonderland, party due to her medical condition of not concentrating on things around her, in the house, with her parents and in the school. Wasn’t extraordinary, wasn’t bad either. Natural Causes, was the worst film of the lot, marketed as a “different” relationship movie. Almost shot in hand-held with cheap cinematography (was there one?) and a lack of story or script in the first place. This is the result of what young kids do when they’re excited about art and have very little understanding of love and relationships. Throw in frontal nudity, booze and sex — call it love and break up, it’s almost impossible to calibrate at this level, sometimes. Ballast, a movie which won the Grand Jury award at the Sundance wasn’t impressing, either. Shot in wide 35mm shots of almost greyish missisippi lands. A story of african american struggle with drugs, family bonding and education. The director (who was present for Q&A) was honest in bringing a true story but he failed in translating the emotions into a film, almost making it flat tonal, in range; should have been a documentary. To add to the dissappointment, this was followed by Frownland, something which the Program Director of IFFBoston recommended to me, personally, comparing it with the likes of “Requiem for a Dream”. It not only pales in comparison but irritates the hell out of you with incoherent script, music, acting, grainy camera work — all at the same time. If not for the impossibly terrific acting by the lead actor, this could be passed on. One of the 2008 Academy award’s best foreign film nominees – Mongol was screened at the biggest screen of the festival. And it was well worth it. Epic scale production, breathtaking cinematography, great ensemble of cast and very detailed script, narrating the life and struggle of Genghis Khan. If not for the liberty that the director took in altering the facts (maybe? No one knows, actually) and exploring the humane side of Genghis Khan (he was virtually shown as a hero in this epic), this movie deserves great applause. Time Crimes was perhaps the best of the festival. A different take on time travel by a relatively unknown Spanish director, this movie transcends all the other time travel movies in a completely different concept. It will blow you away towards the last twenty minutes or so. The documentary – Crawford, the home of George W Bush and the impact on the local people on war, politics and economics was an honest interpretation. Shorts -5, a collection of 6 short stories from around the world was an interesting ensemble. A couple of them, specially the one titled “Chief” were remarkably well done for a 12 minute short. The closing documentary, Encounters at the end of the world was a visual treat for those who dare to dream to goto Antarctica one day.
It’s hard to pick the best movie, but overall I liked the characterization in Transsiberian, Mongol’s epic scale and Time Crime’s innovative script.