PSIFF 2014: MOTHER, I LOVE YOU

Raymond (Kristofers Konovalovs) in Mother, I Love You.

False word to your mother

By Don Simpson

Like most 12-year-old boys, Raymond (Kristofers Konovalovs) does not really think before he does things, rather he acts upon naive impulses that seem to be fueled solely by hormones. Raised by a single mother (Vita Varpina) who works as a doctor at a birthing center, Raymond is adequately loved and cared for, so he is not necessarily acting out for attention. She gives Raymond all of the freedom that he desires, which might be a bit too much; but, if anything, Raymond is probably just bored.

Raymond spends most of his free time with his best friend, Peteris (Matiss Livcans), a classmate from a less privileged pedigree. When the two boys are together, their decisions grow increasingly reckless. Peteris’ mother (Indra Brike) works as a cleaning lady, which gives Peteris uninhibited access into her clients’ homes. When Raymond gains possession of a key, he begins to use that client’s apartment as a home away from home, for no other reason than because he can.

It is not long before Raymond finds his bad choices snowballing hopelessly towards a point of no return. He tries to cover-up each of his crimes with one lie after another. In retrospect, some of Raymond’s actions may seem ridiculously absurd, but writer-director Janis Nords sets up each event so perfectly that Raymond’s decisions make perfect sense as they are occurring. As Nords slowly reveals the web of lies that Raymond’s mother has crafted for herself, a window into Raymond’s thought processes opens wide. It seems as though Raymond might have learned how to lie from his mother’s own example.

Mother, I Love You is Latvia's Oscar submission for Best Film in a Foreign Language.

PSIFF 2014: THE GREAT PASSAGE

A scene from The Great Passage.

If on a winter's night a computer

By Don Simpson

A large publisher’s Dictionary Editorial Department finds itself on the brink of extinction in 1995 as new technologies such as laptops and mobile telephones become more commonplace in everyday households. The Internet is on the verge of explosion and emails are about to replace handwritten letters as the primary form of “written” communication. Prognosticating that the world is about to become very used to communicating, researching and learning via their sparkly new electronic devices, the head of the department (Go Kato) wants to develop a new kind of dictionary.

The titular dictionary of his dreams will be Japan’s first to capture youth culture’s lexicon, embracing modern day mutilations of the Japanese language — slang words, modern expressions and acronyms — while skillfully providing the proper roots and definitions for words alongside the popular-yet-incorrect new meanings.

Dictionaries can take decades to develop, and before they commence this daunting task, the department’s longtime chief editor (Kaoru Kobayashi) wants to retire in order to care for his ailing wife. The problem is, in this trendy new world of technological innovation, no one wants to take on a boring, decade-spanning project like a dictionary — you might then see a photo of the Dictionary Editorial Department beside the definition of “uncool,” “nerdy” or “lame.”

Enter Majime (Ryûhei Matsuda), a socially awkward and frigidly shy young company employee who is currently mismatched in the Advertising Department. Armed with a degree in Linguistics and an unwavering love for language, Majime appears as the ideal candidate to take on the “modern living dictionary.”

As the baton is passed to Majime at work, the perspective of Yûya Ishii’s The Great Passage quickly shifts to follow Majime. We observe as a complete immersion into his work allows Majime to mature into a more confident person. Majime begins to develop an unlikely new friendship with a loud and obnoxious co-worker (Jô Odagiri) who slowly drags him out of his shell. It is not long before Majime even develops a romantic interest in his landlady’s granddaughter (Aoi Miyazaki), thus finally realizing the true meaning of love.

Time in the Dictionary Editorial Department passes excruciatingly slowly, so Ishii is forced to take significant leaps in the timeline. While this causes the narrative to feel disjointed and unstructured, it does allow for us to witness the changes in Majime’s persona over a longer period of time. Just as the purpose of the new dictionary is to allow its words the opportunity to establish a more natural dialog with readers, Majime learns how to use his internalized verbosity to express himself verbally.

It is not without bitter irony that a majority of press about Japan’s entry for 2013′s foreign-language Oscar will be consumed online. As the world continues to drift farther away from the printed word, Ishii’s The Great Passage preaches to us about the power of words on paper. Though their new dictionary will only capture a snapshot of an ever-[de]evolving language, there is an undeniable permanence to the printed and bound nature of its publication. For Majime, turning the pages of a book with the perfect paper stock is practically an orgasmic experience; the touch of the paper establishes an incomparable connection between the reader and the publication.

PSIFF 2014: OF HORSES AND MEN

A scene from Of Horses and Men.

Human-ing around

By Don Simpson

An Icelandic saga of sorts, Benedikt Erlingsson’s Of Horses and Men is structured as a series of loosely intertwining parables about horses and the rural community whose lives revolve around them. These stories seem like they probably might have possessed some greater moral purpose at one time, but the points have since worn away with the passage of time; the tall tales have grown so exaggerated and romanticized, they hardly seem to be rooted in truth at this point. But I don’t know, maybe a rider really has found themselves practically sandwiched between a horny stallion and a mare in heat and lived to tell the embarrassing story -- regardless it certainly makes for entertaining cinema.

Equally absurd is a drunkard who rides a horse out to sea to purchase two jugs of a potent elixir from a passing ship, or a novice rider who is forced to recreate the Luke Skywalker tauntaun scene in order to survive a frigid night. While each vignette of this visually poetic film seems like it could be a part of a grand absurdist farce, the tone is so subtle that the comedy quickly mutates into stoic seriousness, especially when told against the dramatic natural environments of Iceland that are captured with such astoundingly magnificent cinematography by Bergsteinn Björgúlfsson.

Juxtaposed with the beauty and power of the horses, the townspeople mostly seem to be idiotic mortals who repeatedly fall prey to desire, greed and anger. The horses closely observe the tomfoolery of the humans and even though their judgments (or, lack thereof) remain unknown, Erlingsson seems to be telling the sprawling narrative from their perspective. Unfortunately, the horses must sometimes shoulder the punishment for human stupidity, making this Iceland's Oscar submission for best foreign language film an occasionally difficult film to stomach -- thought it is important to note that no horses were hurt during the making of this film.

PSIFF 2013: CAUGHT IN THE WEB

Ye Lanqiu (Yuanyaun Gao) in Caught in the Web.

Spinning yarns

By Miranda Inganni

Caught in the Web tells the tale of a terminally ill woman’s online character assassination in director Chen Kaige’s (Farewell My Concubine) latest film.

One day, budding news reporter Yang Jiaqi (Luodan Wang) secretly records on her phone a seemingly rude and selfish woman on a bus. Through Jiaqi’s cousin’s girlfriend (and Jiaqi’s housemate), Chen Ruoxi (Chen Yao) -- a young woman establishing herself as a reporter -- the video goes viral and becomes the topic of the day. Unbeknown to them, the video’s subject, Ye Lanqiu (Yuanyuan Gao), has just learned that she has advanced lymphatic cancer.

Lanqiu becomes an Internet villain overnight. Known simply as “Sunglasses Girl,” until her jealous colleague identifies her online, the scandal sends Lanqiu into hiding, but not until Jiaqi and her cousin, Yang Shoucheng (Mark Chao) film Lanqiu’s sincere apology for the ordeal.

In the meantime, Lanqiu has asked her boss, company president Shen Liushu (Xuegi Wang) for a loan and time off from her executive assistant position. Unfortunately for all involved, Mr. Shen’s wife (Chen Hong) interrupts the tearful moment and misreads the situation.

Lanqiu ends up hiring Shoucheng to ostensibly protect her from herself and to experience as much as possible out of the time that she has left.

And that’s only the first part of this China's most recent Oscar submission for Best Film in a Foreign Language. Whew!

With more plot twists and turns than any historic (or histrionic) romance, Caught in the Web is entertaining and intriguing. Mrs. Shen finds herself in a loveless marriage to a husband who relishes his power more than his wife or wealth. Mr. Shen enjoys manipulating the lives of those who he believes have caused him some harm, including his wife. Ruoxi will stop at nothing to establish her career in the industry while Jiaqi merely wants to play ball in the big league. Shoucheng wants to be a loyal boyfriend to Ruoxi, but finds himself falling for Lanqiu. Lanqiu on the other hand, as the only one who knows that her time is limited, doesn’t want to allow herself to get too close to anyone, even at the cost of her own reputation.

The performances throughout this drama/comedy are equally as excellent as the levels of intrigue. The human capacity for a knee-jerk response to even perceived gossip is an overwhelming theme to Caught in the Web, as is the point that anyone at any time can be destroyed by the power of the inter-webs.

 

PSIFF 2013: KON-TIKI

A scene from Kon-Tiki.

No our way

ByMiranda Inganni

On the Academy’s short list for Best Film in a Foreign Language, Norway’s Kon-Tiki takes viewers back to 1947 when Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl (Pal Sverre Hagen) and five other men travelled 4300 nautical miles across the Pacific Ocean on a balsawood raft.

A visionary who insisted Polynesia was first found by indigenous people from South America (namely, Peruvians) Heyerdahl could not convince anyone that the much-held notion that Asians from the East founded and populated the area was incorrect. If he wanted scientists, journalists and the world to take him seriously, he would have to make the journey they made some 1500 years ago using the same materials. Proving to the world that his theory was correct was worth risking everything to Heyerdahl and so they set sail from Peru.

Once on their way, the six men have to face the reality of their journey and the real possibility that they might not survive, or end up nowhere near their destination. Between fights, fending off sharks and men falling overboard, Heyerdahl documents the trip (the resulting documentary film won the Academy Award in 1950).

While there are a few overly dramatic moments and a few unnecessary CGI shots, co-directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Ronning’s Kon-Tikiis an extravagant, energetic and entertaining film depicting an epic historical journey.

 

PSIFF 2013: JUST THE WIND

Birdy (Katalin Toldi) in Just the Wind.

Branded outsiders

By Miranda Inganni

A Romani neighborhood is the target of violent attacks in this year’s Oscar entry from Hungary.

Influenced by a real racist crime spree that occurred in a Romani (AKA gypsy) neighborhood in Hungary in 2008-2009, Just the Wind (Csak a szél) is a “day in the life of” tale of a family similar to the one that was brutally murdered. It focuses on hard working Birdy (Katalin Toldi) and her two children -- adolescent Anna (Gyöngyi Lendvai) and not-quite teenage son, Rio (Lajos Sarkany).

Anna is studious, dutiful and keeps her head down – sometimes to a fault. Rio is sinewy, defiant and breezy, skipping school to stock his secret emergency bunker. Just what he is expecting is unclear, but he is a boy prepared. He steals from nearby houses, including the one of the recently murdered family -- bloodstains still seemingly dripping on the walls -- but is thoughtful enough to include items, such as nail polish, for Anna. (It’s during this break-in that he overhears two policemen discussing what kind of Romani are the “right” ones to kill.) Brassy Birdy works two manual labor jobs and not only cares for her children, but also her father (Gyorgy Toldi), who is unable to care for himself. The four live together in close, dark quarters with no running water. With the tightknit community on high alert after the viscous attacks, Birdy and her family try to go about their day and night like nothing has changed. But it has.

Director Benedek Fliegauf’s Just the Windsinks its teeth into the true grit of this family’s life for one day, bouncing between each one’s activities for that day. The three main actors, each of who is making their movie debut, are remarkably adept at bringing their characters to life. Sadly, the plight of this family (as is true of so many Romani families) is a tragic one.

Just the Wind is as tense as it is intense. Its somber realism is jarring, but telling at least this tale of Hungary’s largest minority is a necessary one.

PSIFF 2013: LORE

Lore (Saskia Rosendahl) in Lore.

(N)eins kinderverhaal

By Miranda Inganni

Set at the end of World War II in Germany, Lore is the story of five siblings who must fend for themselves when their SS officer father (Hans-Jochen Wagner) and Nazi sympathizer mother (Ursina Lardi) are off to prison for war crimes.

The eldest child, 14-year-old Lore (Saskia Rosendahl), must lead younger sister Leisel (Nele Trebs), her twin brothers, Günter (André Frid) and Jürgen (Mika Seidel), along with baby Peter (Nick Leander Holaschke) through the forests and mountains from their home to Hamburg and their awaiting Grandmother (Eva-Maria Hagen). Along the way, they meet Thomas (Kai Malina), a mysterious man with Jewish papers. Lore knows they need Thomas’ help in order to survive, but she struggles with her hatred for the Jews.

While the younger siblings can barely grasp the reality of what has caused them to be in this situation, Lore slowly comprehends her family’s new position and what it means. Once important and admired in Hitler's Germany, they are now the enemy.

All the children suffer, but it seems that only Lore is allowed to express it. While her character initially is unsympathetic, through her journey to save herself and her siblings, Lore's quest for survival brings out a sensitivity that can only be brought on through experiencing deep pain.

Lore looks at the toll of war from a perspective most audiences have not seen. Additionally, the cast does a remarkable job, especially considering their youth. Rosendahl is expertly cast as Lore and she strikingly captures her character’s physical and emotional journey. Kudos also goes Adam Arkapaw's lush, beautiful cinematography.

Based on “The Dark Room” by Rachel Seiffert, director and co-writer Cate Shortland’s Lore is Australia’s Official Selection for the 85^th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film. (It did not make the short list.) The film is a co-production between Australia and Germany and the dialog is almost entirely in German.

 

Lore screens at the Palm Springs International Film Festival: Jan. 7, 7:30 p.m., Camelot Theatres; Jan. 9, 10:30 a.m., Camelot Theatres. For more information: PSIFF 2013.

 

PSIFF 2013: WHITE TIGER

A scene from White Tiger.

A roar of war

By Ed Rampell

I recently watched an episode of Oliver Stone’s The Untold History of the United States Showtime documentary series, which made a compelling case that the Red Amy won the war in Europe during WWII. I also saw Russian director Sergei Loznitsa’s feature, In The Fog, recently, wherein Soviet partisans battle Nazis in Belarus. So I was intrigued to see another Russian fiction film set during the Second World War and Karen Shakhnazarov’s White Tiger is as sharply exciting as In The Fog was foggily slow paced.

White Tiger is about tank warfare during WWII, but this is no Battle of the Bulge straightforward type of tale. As the Red Army inexorably marches across the Eastern Front towards Berlin, the USSR soldiers are stymied by the appearance on the battlefield by a sort of super tank, the eponymous White Tiger. Although the combat sequences are tautly directed and exhilarating to watch, Shakhnazarov does something off-kilter that makes film extremely exceptional. The director/co-writer bends and blends genres, adding a supernatural element to what is otherwise a realistic war movie. This creative concoction not only captivates audiences but confounds the high ranking Soviet characters, since otherworldliness is contrary to these atheists’ Marxist beliefs.

So White Tiger works at several levels: As a war movie; history lesson painted with lightning; a ghost story; and also a film with a philosophical subtext. The soundtrack is thunderous (you’ll see what I mean) and Wagnerian, as this very Russian picture uses a score by the most Germanic of composers. Often thrilling, White Tiger is at all times absorbing, well-direct and stirringly acted.

Alexey Vertikov is haunting in an understated performance as a Clint Eastwood-like tank commander with no name who seems to rise, zombie-like, from the dead to do battle with the Nazi hyper-tank. His spectral character comes to be called Naydyonov and the depiction by Vertikov may give you vertigo. Vitaly Kishchenko likewise delivers a stellar performance as Fedotov, the hardened officer who puts aside official Communist dogma to confront and embrace Naydyonov’s extraordinarily uncanny utterances, which strike the doctrinaire Marxists as mumbo jumbo. As the real life Marshal Gerogy Zhukov, Valery Grishko is properly skeptical of the paranormal elements. Vitaly Dordzhiev provides some comic relief as Berdyev, one of the “Dirty Dozen” elite tank crew members assembled to counter the White Tiger and he reminds us that the Red Army was multi-culti and included Asian soldiers. The Nazis are all played by German actors, with Karl Kranzkowski chilling in a cameo as Hitler, with an Inglourious Basterds type of historical twist, as well as a meditation on the nature of evil.

Unfortunately, some in-the-know distributor hasn’t picked White Tiger up for theatrical release yet. So don’t let the gods of the tanks prevent you from seeing Russia’s official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, which -- like many important film festivals -- performs a valuable function as gateway and launching pad for offbeat cinema. Also, White Tiger did not make the Oscar shortlist, thus decreasing its chances of theatrical release in the U.S.

White Tiger screens at PSIFF Jan. 4, 1 p.m., Camelot Theatres; Jan. 7, 1 p.m. Camelot Theatres. For more PSIFF info: www.psfilmfest.org.