SIFF Saturday 2
May. 31st, 2009 12:08 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ironymaidenno movies yesterday - got caught up at work and then there was D&D. my character is the only survivor from the party. everyone tried to stop me from spending my dailies to help them and so i did too little, too late. (and ended up with all the experience from the encounter, and leveled. hmm. maybe this isn't as bad as i think.)
two films today, and then a Sounders FC match.
The Beast Stalker
City of Borders
this is supposed to be a Hong Kong action film. hopefully it runs on schedule so that i can run from here to Pacific Place. (i bought a cheap water bottle and it tastes bizarre, even after a couple days. i am disappointed. i've washed it, i don't know what else to do.)
made it to Pac Place, it's a zoo here because there's some kind of corporate day at the movies. also, i passed the saddest little protest - a whole two dozen people who were against socialized medicine. looked like they were all greyhairs, which means that i'm already paying for their health insurance with my taxes (unless they're refusing to accept social security. i have my doubts.)
The Beast Stalker...there is a story about young George Lucas. supposedly he said that he could get an emotional reaction out of any audience - show them a kitten and wring its neck. there were many "kittens" in this film. (oh, the little girl is the sweetest thing, and completely believable.) it's a pretty standard story about a cop redeeming himself. what makes it interesting is that the villain has dimension and we cannot help but have sympathy for him. it's marred by heavyhanded and unintentionally goofy use of slow motion and desaturation in a pivotal incident that is replayed from several angles. the kittens do make it affecting, and it's rare to see the heavies in a Hong Kong actioner cry. flawed, but worth a rental.
i loved City of Borders. i think it's my favorite of the fest so far. it deals with an incredibly complex political situation and maintains a neutral POV, allowing the people involved to speak for themselves. it follows a few of those who gather in Jerusalem's only gay bar. we see Palestinians sneaking through border fences and climbing walls to get there, we see Jewish settlers, we see a Jewish Israeli/Palestinian Israeli couple. we see them in their homes, at work, with their families. we hear the voices of religious and social leaders. there's no leading to conclusions, just a portrait of life. it's a finer film and more affecting than something like Food Inc, better constructed than the one last year about Iranian gender reassignment. highly recommended. it will be back in Seattle for the Gay & Lesbian Film Festival and will be on PBS in 2010. looking forward to it getting wider recognition.
two films today, and then a Sounders FC match.
The Beast Stalker
City of Borders
this is supposed to be a Hong Kong action film. hopefully it runs on schedule so that i can run from here to Pacific Place. (i bought a cheap water bottle and it tastes bizarre, even after a couple days. i am disappointed. i've washed it, i don't know what else to do.)
made it to Pac Place, it's a zoo here because there's some kind of corporate day at the movies. also, i passed the saddest little protest - a whole two dozen people who were against socialized medicine. looked like they were all greyhairs, which means that i'm already paying for their health insurance with my taxes (unless they're refusing to accept social security. i have my doubts.)
The Beast Stalker...there is a story about young George Lucas. supposedly he said that he could get an emotional reaction out of any audience - show them a kitten and wring its neck. there were many "kittens" in this film. (oh, the little girl is the sweetest thing, and completely believable.) it's a pretty standard story about a cop redeeming himself. what makes it interesting is that the villain has dimension and we cannot help but have sympathy for him. it's marred by heavyhanded and unintentionally goofy use of slow motion and desaturation in a pivotal incident that is replayed from several angles. the kittens do make it affecting, and it's rare to see the heavies in a Hong Kong actioner cry. flawed, but worth a rental.
i loved City of Borders. i think it's my favorite of the fest so far. it deals with an incredibly complex political situation and maintains a neutral POV, allowing the people involved to speak for themselves. it follows a few of those who gather in Jerusalem's only gay bar. we see Palestinians sneaking through border fences and climbing walls to get there, we see Jewish settlers, we see a Jewish Israeli/Palestinian Israeli couple. we see them in their homes, at work, with their families. we hear the voices of religious and social leaders. there's no leading to conclusions, just a portrait of life. it's a finer film and more affecting than something like Food Inc, better constructed than the one last year about Iranian gender reassignment. highly recommended. it will be back in Seattle for the Gay & Lesbian Film Festival and will be on PBS in 2010. looking forward to it getting wider recognition.
