The site will not be covering the DOC NYC 2020 this year.However, one film will be mentioned and reviewed.
DOC NYC 2020 Film Festival (Special Review)
BARE (Belgium 2020) ***1/2
Directed by Aleksandr M. Vinogradov
This eye-opening dance documentary begins with shots of parts of the male human body.With close ups, its takes time to distinguish which part of the body the camera is focussing on.When the image of a hairy penis appears, it would seem that one should be comfortable with male nudity to watch this doc - just as one should be comfortable with male nudity in order to appreciate the choreography of Belgian dance Master Thierry Smits.
The doc continues with a short clip of the auction process where the dancers are selected and the unsuccessful ones sent off.Practices ensue.During the process Smits, speaking in a blend of French and English is totally respectful and polite to the dancers.One would envision some friction between Smits and his dancers, but none are shown.
Eleven naked men audition, rehearse and perform for the premiere of master Belgian choreographer Thierry Smits’s new contemporary dance piece called Anima Ardens.Mixing intimate rehearsal footage with extensive and breathtaking dance sequences, BARE follows the choreographer and his team as they work (from audition to premiere) to explore difficult, often taboo subjects through nudity and dance.It is a bold and enlightening exploration, erotic no doubt, with BARE skin on display, of artistic conflict, gender, and sexuality the one constant is the conceit that the body is the last bastion of personal freedom.
In the words of Smits, it is erotic nudity not obscene nudity but beautiful nudity on display.
Russian director Aleksandr M. Vinogradov is also of dance background.Together with Thierry Smits, they provide an unforgettable experience, with yet another insightful view of the art of dance.
The climax of the film is the premiere performance.This is reserved for the doc’s last 5 minutes which only short clips of the dance are shown.
The virtual 11th edition of America’s largest documentary festival, DOC NYC runs from November 11th to 19th and will be available online throughout the US.
DUST AND ASHES (South Korea 2019) *** Directed by: Park Hee-kwon
Nothing much appears to be happening in this extremely slow burn of a movie, likely the slowest film to be screened at Reel Asian this year.But careful concentration reveals that there is more than meets the eye.As the camera follows a young woman (Ahn So-yo i) over 3 days (dividing the film into 3 chapters) on the course of her daily routine of work at the factory by day and at a restaurant kitchen at night, the audience learns that she is scamming (which the audience can assume, but never 100% sure) the insurance company with the help of her reluctant brother of the life insurance money from the death of their recently deceased mother.Again, nothing is said whether the mother had died from natural causes or at the hands of her children.The camera often shows the protagonist’s back, reminiscent of the Dardennes films.DUST AND ASHES premiered at the Tallinn Film Festival and is an ok watch that demands lots of patience in its short running time of 83 minutes.
Nau is returning to his home country Vietnam from the United States with his boyfriend Van in tow.They are to spend some time with Nau’s family.Nau has not revealed Van to be his partner and the family pressures him to get settled with a wife and children.The matriarch of the family is also suffering from angina and diabetes.This all sounds too familiar a plot, and this story has been told countless times in gutless films.But the American boyfriend is not white but Vietnamese.The Vietnamese setting is new.Director Trinh also has great sympathy for his character making each one of them very endearing and ones that the audience will care for.The actors playing Van and Nau are also super cute.An altogether endearing film that ends up showing what true love (the airport scene where the two sit together waiting fro their flight back to the U.S.) between a male couple.
Zed is a British-Pakistani rapper who is based in New York, given the chance of a lifetime, to open for a well known band in Europe. Before his world tour begins, he gets an autoimmune disease.He returns to see his Pakistani family in London.MOGUL MOWGLI is a fierce film made even more intense from the angry rap songs performed by famous about to be more famous British rapper Zed, played by Riz Ahmed (JASON BOURNE, THE RELUCTANT FUNDAMENTALIST), who also lent his hand in writing the film’s script.This is evidently his movie, he giving the most to it, as can be seen performance-wise.The most moving line is still an effective one though used in many films of this genre : “Why is this (sickness)happening to me?” The title takes from the main character in Rudyard Kipling’s THE JUNGLE BOOK.The film’s best segment is the one where the father tells the son who in sitting in his wheelchair about to try walking without aid.“Show the doctors that you do not need their medicine.” the father tells the son after having his son treated on Pakistani cupping procedure.Zed gets up takes up two small steps and remains standing before sliding back in the wheelchair.The camera focuses on the face on Zed.It is booth a sad and funny scene, a combination that is rarely captured together on film. The film covers issues likerap, illness, family religions and life in general.
THE HORSE THIEVES.ROADS OF TIME (Japan/Kazakhstan 2019) ****
Directors: Yerlan Nurmukhambetov and Lisa Takeba
A western set in the vast Central Asian plains with bad men and horse herding.The hero of the piece is a stranger who suddenly appears to a family akin to the man with no name in the Sergio Leone westerns of perhaps akin to the classic SHANE by George Stevens.The father of a family with mother and three children is killed by horse thieves when the stranger appears to help the mother and family as they move from their village to live with a relative.The setting is spectacular with scenes seen that are uncommon to western audiences courtesy of cinematographer Aziz Zhambakiev.The horse herding segments are grand to observe as in the way of life of these people. Don’t let the slow pace fool you.The film comes with suspense and exciting action scenes.All the events are seen from the point of view of the 10-year old son, Olzhas who tells the stranger that he recognizes the watch with the cracked glass worn by his father’s killer at a tavern.
Cinéfranco 23rd annual festival of International and Canadian Francophone cinema will be held online from Friday, November 20 – Saturday, November 28 with 17 features, 2 shorts programs, post-screening Conversations, and Panels, using the Eventine festival platform, accessed at www.cinefranco.com Two new films will be added daily with 48 hr for a household to view once a stream is activated. Closing Night on November 28 will see three new films on the platform.
Because of Covid-19, the films in Cinefranco this year will be screened virtually instead of in physical theatres. This allows for the first time, Cinéfranco to expand its reach across all of Canada, where lovers of French language cinema can also discover the Cinéfranco community.
Cinéfranco 2020’s program includes feature films from Belgium, Canada, France, Lebanon, Morocco, and Senegal reflecting the diversity of the Francophone world. The festival also celebrates filmmakers from Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick with the return of the popular Courts toujours (In Short) programs.
“In a year to remember, full of challenges for everyone, we at Cinéfranco are blessed and privileged to be able to continue bringing the best of International and Canadian francophone cinema to our audiences”, said Marcelle Lean, Artistic Director and Founder. “During the pandemic we’ve stayed in touch with our community online, presenting films and conversations and are looking forward to embracing new audiences across Canada during the festival. The pandemic has given us all reason to pause and reflect as well as witness amplified inequities. We’ve curated this year’s film selection with that, as well as a need for some levity, in mind.”
Marcelle Lean, I am proud to say, is a personal friend of mine, whom I known since the festival’s inception.She is always cheerful, helpful with an astonishing passion for film notably francophone films.
For complete information of the festival including descriptions of the films, please click the Link:
(Keep checking the article for more updated reviews)
AU NOM DE LA TERRE (In the Name of the Land) (France/Belgium2019) **** Directed by Edouard Bergeon
A modern JEAN DE FLORETTE tale of farming the land, AU NON DE LA TERRE tells the hardship of a farmer and his family.According to the film credits there is a farmer who commits suicide every 2 minutes in France.The film is based on a true story which will literally jolt you out of your seat at the film’s climax when reading the tombstone.The film begins with a young Pierre Jarjeau (Guillaume Canet) returning home from Wyoming at the age of 25 to marry his fiancee (Veerle Baetens) and take over the family farm, Les Grands Bois (the grand woods) which he purchases from his strict no-nonsense father (Rufus).Pierre and family work extremely hard with their hired help with crops and goat breeding.The goats and kids are extremely adorable and thank God the audience is spared from seeing these any of these creatures slaughtered.It is the human beings that do the suffering as the farm goes into debt, followed by a huge fire that destroys the farm buildings.Director Bergeon captures the beauty and hardships of farm life aided by superb performances all around with newcomer Anthony Bajon as the young son deserving mention.Not an easy watch, seeing human beings suffer so much but the Jarjeau family story is a story that needs to be told.
Trailer:
BAAMUM NAFI (Nafi’s Father) (Senegal 2019) ***1/2
Directed ny Mamadou Dia
From theAfrican country of Senegal comes this Shakespearean ROMEO AND JULIET tragedy of a couple in love amidst warring families.The families in this case are two brothers, who live in a small town, one, Tierno, the acting imam and the other, his rich brother Ousmane who wishes to control the two by means of controlling the people by means of bribing them with money from who Tierno terms a terrorist.Nafi is Tierno’s only high spirited daughter who is engaged to be married against his wishes to Ousmane’s son.Tierno is totally against the marriage despite his wife and daughter’s wishes.Politics get ugly and everyone suffers especially the young couple. The two brothers have affiliations to two different forms of Islam.Director Dia’s drama is a slow burn but no less effective as he engages his audience to examine the detrimental effects of personal differences an personal and political gain.The film also provides a welcome change of an unfamiliar Senegal setting with a universal story with a strong message.
A high concept comedy that turns out too smart for its execution. This French comedy follows an old fashioned cartoonist, Victor (Daniel Auteuil) now out of work with print making way to websites that do not favour cartoons.To make matters worse, his wife, Marianne (Fanny Ardant) is totally modern with her self driving Tesla, virtual reality and artificial intelligence.She is bored with him.Victor engages in a service called ‘Time Travellers’ that takes clients to their desired past historical moments.Victor picks 1974 the time he had first met and fallen in love with his wife.Writer/director Bedos (MR. & MRS ADELMAN) creates an original premise blending modern technology with old-fashioned French romance.Bedos edits his film at quite the manic pace so that the audience has hardly any time to breathe, thus often missing the simplicity of comedy. Still this is Bedos’ unique style that is still entertaining, nevertheless.Auteuil and Ardant are a delight to watch on screen.
Trailer:
LA BONNE EPOUSE (HOW TO BE A GOOD WIFE)(France/Belgique 2020) ****
Directed by Martin Provost
French director Martin Provost returns with his SERAPHINE star Yolande Moreau in a more playful yet no less engrossing piece centred on the role of the female in society.The society here is set in the year 1969 when life in France expects females to be selfless, obedient and docile. These ‘ideal’ traits are taught to young girls in an institute founded by Van Der Beck (François Berléand) who has a keen eye for young flesh.L’ecole is run by his wife, Paulette (Juliette Binoche), sister (Moreau) and a ultra-strict disciplinarian nun (Noémie Lvovsky).The girls are less than thrilled and like most girls of their age are more interested in mischief and sex.Binoche, Moreau and Lvivsky are so entertaining to watch that they cloud any appearance of the students and their antics.The film also questions when a good wife can become her own woman when the husband dies from choking from his sister’s rabbit dish and she has to take control. Director Provost is here in lighter vein and in control of the subtle hilarity.
ÉNORME stars Jonathan Cohen and Marina Foïs s a couple expecting their first baby.Foïs plays the world famous concert pianist while Cohen plays her husband who also acts as her PR, assistant, manager.a baby is out of there question for the busy couple.But when the husband changes his mind after delivering a baby on board a plane, he tricks her into a pregnancy.She grew totally enormous as a result while he gains weight in the process.Sounds funny, and at times it is, especially for couples who have had a baby since they can relate to this kind of comedy.To her credit, Director Letourneur tries everything in her power to make her film funny, from gross jokes like smelling the water when the water is broken, to her actors hamming it out to the fullest.The camera angles showing the enormity of the wife’s pregnancy are at times overdone but funny.Sometimes the humour works, and at other times it does not.
NADIA, BUTTERFLY (Canada 2019) *** Directed by Pascal Plante
NADIA, BUTTERFLY begins with a lengthy 20 minute swimming session that introduces Olympic swimmer Nadia (Laterine Savard) ending with the race itself when her team of four win the bronze medal.The segment shows her doing laps, her arms plunging into the pool water, her arguments with her trainer and interview with the press.NADIA, BUTTERFLY has its setting in Tokyo 2020 where the Summer Olympics is held, according to the film.With all of Plante’s efforts to give his film the feel of authenticity, the efforts fall flat since the Olympics in Tokyo had been postponed indefinitely.Plante could have changed its setting to the Olympics to the 4 years prior.The heart of the film is Nadia dilemma’s of whether to continue or quit swimming.If she quits, she goes against the grain of her teammates and coach and if she continues, she will be untrue to herself.The success of the film also rests on the lead performance by Savard.Fortunately, being a Bronze medal swimmer herself, she looks the part and also must have given a lot of consideration to her role.
TOUT SIMPLEMENT NOIR (Simply Black) (France 2020) ***1/2 Directed by Jean-Pascal Zadi and John Wax
The funniest film screened at Cinefranco, the documentary has the protagonist, a black Parisien, JP organizing a “Black Lives Matter’ type protest in the heart of the city, at the Place de la Republique.There is one problem.He is not very bright and hence having lots of trouble trying to recruit anyone to show up for the protest.It does not help that he is not that good looking either, with his buck teeth that many insult him with, after her offends them with his personal views.Oddly he is himself racist only recognizing himself as black and others as not being black enough or mixed (black) raced.The film is extremely funny when he is filmed on camera or when he has altercations with those that do to agree with him.The film lags a little in the middle unable o keep up with the hilarious humour at the start.Omar Sy, the most famous back actor in France has a cameo at the end, though Sy’s scene does not match up to the build up to his appearance.Still, TOUT SIMPLEMENT NOIR is an entertaining film allowing audiences to laugh at themselves in this politically incorrect rendering of current black matters.Cinefranco’s Marcelle Lean told me she fought really hard to get this movie, so put this on your must-see list.
QUEBEXIT (Canada 2020) *** Directed by Joshua Demers
Hot on the heals of BREXIT news, comes director Joshua Demers ambitious comedy about Quebec trying to exit Canada as the province tried to in real life in many unsuccessful referendums.QUEBEXIT adds an additional element of the indigenous people.So there is the sovereign question of land as argued upon by the Quebecois, the Canadians (in this case New Brunswick) and the Cree indigenous people. The film requires the dialogue to be spoked in three different languages with actions that will show the diversity of Canada.All this takes place when the construction of an interprovincial pipeline results in a successful third Québec sovereignty referendum, a small road at the Québec-New Brunswick border becomes a lightning of conflict between the new Québec military, the Canadian Armed Forces and two indigenous women who cross the border frequently.The film is quite funny and relevant, typically for Canadians.In the film, the groups are loud and intolerant of each other, making cooperation an almost impossible task.
The Blood in the Snow Film Festival is a unique and imaginative showcase of contemporary Canadian horror, genre and underground cinema that exists to challenge social boundaries, explore artistic taboos and support and exhibit independent Canadian genre media artists.BITS takes place in Toronto near the end of October, and brings together audiences, media coverage, community partnerships and the filmmaking industry to exhibit and celebrate Canadian genre film. BITS began in 2012 and was registered as a not-for-profit in 2015.
A good chance to see blood in the snow and horror films made in Canada.
Below are casual reviews of select films, a few of them well worth a viewing.
CAPSULE REVIEWS (of select feature films):
ANYTHING FOR JACKSON (Canada 2020) ***1/2
Directed by Justin G. Dyck
Premiering at Montreal’s FANTASIA film festival, ANYTHING FOR JACKSON refers to whatever it takes for a bereaved elderly couple to bring back to life their grandson who had been killed in an accident.The couple, Audrey (Sheila McCarthy) and Henry (Julian Richings) are Satanists who have devised a very detailed and somewhat foolproof plan to kidnap a pregnant woman and have the spirit of the grandson inhabit the new yet to be born baby.Audrey and Henry are no spirit conjuring experts and they end up summoning more than they bargained for. Writer Keith Cooper and director Dyck realizes the potential of the premise including the possibility of injecting some scary humour into the proceedings.McCarthy best remembered as the organizationally impaired secretary in Patricia Rozema’s I’VE HEARD THE MERMAIDS SINGING is back in top form here.Totally entertaining and totally watchable, ANYTHING FOR JACKSON, scary, funny and exciting was a hit at Fantasia and should do well at BIT and when it finally opens.The film comes with the clever caption: “Fear your Elders”.
Trailer: (unavailable)
BLEED WITH ME (Canada 2020) ***1/2
Directed by Amelia Moses
A 90 minute slow burn psychological thriller/horror in which not much happens in the first half, which is a good thing as director Moses builds up her audience’s anticipation in which not much can be guessed regarding the horror that will occur.Rowan (Lee Marshall), a shy and awkward young woman, struggles to integrate herself on a weekend getaway with her best friend, Emily (Lauren Beatty) and her boyfriend, Brendan (Aris Tyros).Feeling like a lamp post, she drinks to calm her nerves, pushing her body and mind deep into a hazy trance, where she begins to witness nightmarish late-night visions that make her feel increasingly unwelcome, unsure and unstable. Moses drops little hints of the horror that islet to come like a revelation that Emily has just recovered from some breakdown or the scene where Emily sucks the blood from the Rowan’s cut finger.The best scene is when Emily serves Rowan tea that Rowan knows has been drugged and Emily says to her: “Don’t you trust me?”A good old-fashioned satisfactory thriller that makes good use of suspense tactics that is worthy of Hitchcock.
Trailer:
BLOODTHIRSTY (Canada 2020) *** Directed by Amelia Moses
Grey (Lauren Beatty) is an indie singer who has just had a successful first album out.She is worried that her second album may be a flop.Grey suffers from hallucinations and has to take pills for it.She sees herself as a wolf eating human flesh.She decides to work with a notorious music producer Vaughn Daniels (Greg Nryk).Vaughn had been tried for murder of his wife but had been acquitted.Vaughn invites her and her girlfriend, Charlie (Katherine King So) to his studio cottage in the woods to write the songs for second album .Charlie is weary of Vaughn and the two clearly do not get along.Vaughn is weird pushing Grey a lot in order to create superior songs for the second album.Grey accepts it as she is desperate to succeed.The things Vaughn says to push Grey are kind of odd: like asking her to run at top speed in the snow with him coming across like a weird asshole.Charlie wants Grey and herself to leave.But they stay.At half point of the movie, the audience is yet to know where everything is leading.Which is a good thing.All the weird happenings are explained in the second half as director Moses turns her film into a horror story, with the horror convincing though not entirely logical.
Trailer: (unavailable)
HALL (Canada 2020) **
Directed by Francesco Giannini
When a debilitating sickness spreads across a long hotel hallway (the HALL of the film title), a few scattered victims fight for survival, and try to escape from the dark narrow stretch of isolated carnage.The horror in this film comes from a Covid-19 like virus that affects human being.The virus causes repository problems visible by ugly veins that pop up on the neck.Apparently the villain of the film is Julian (Julian Richings), the man who spreads the virus believing he is creating a better world.The story narrows down two two protagonists, two females, Val (Carolina Bartczak) and Naomi (Yumiko Shaku).Naomi is a pregnant mother who gets infected.In the same hotel is the other female, who is trying to escape with her daughter from her husband (Mark Gibson) who she does not get along with.The husband becomes infected.Too much moaning and groaning in this otherwise silly movie that took 3 writers to pen.
Trailer:
THE RETURN (Canada 2020) *** Directed by BJ Verot
After the death of his father, a brilliant college student, Rodger (Richard Harmon) returns to his family home with his girl friend, Beth (Sara Thompson) and best friend Jordan (Echo Andersson).His mother and younger sister have died and Rodger is determined to solve the mystery of the deaths.The three encounter a scary ghost.Rodger learns that the horrors from his childhood aren't as dead and gone as he once thought and that he is somewhat responsible.This is the typical ghost coming through a portal and it must be destroyed.The film delves deeper into the characters spinning a web of puzzles that only Rodger can reveal.THE RETURN is an ok horror flick with sufficient scares (thongs that go bump int he dark) and with more character development than usually accompanies horror films. Jordan, Rodger’s best friend confesses she loves him.The film runs into trouble when it tries to give a logical explanation to the proceedings, when the film gets a bit confusing and tedious.In the end the ghost has to be destroyed with the film turning into GHOSTBUSTERS without the comedy.
LES FEMMES EN OR (Two Women) (Canada 2025) *** Directed by Chloé Robichaud
Violette and Florence no longer understand what's happening to them. Respectively on maternity leave and off...
