THE WHISTLERS, which I watched at the Roxie Virtual Cinema
Independent films are still here, even though we can’t go to the art house theater in the Age of COVID. Not all the top acclaimed indies can be streamed right away from the major VOD services, but you watch them now at home on platforms like Virtual Cinema. Expect to pay $8-10; yes, that’s more than the $5-7 you pay at Amazon and iTunes, but it’s often the only source, and your ticket purchase supports your own local art house theater.
If you want to support a Silicon Valley theater, the Pruneyard Cinemas has just launched its own Pruneyard Virtual Cinemas through eventive.
Notably, the Laemmle Theaters in Los Angeles has jumped in, too. In my book, this is the best art house chain in the US, and a whopping 32 films are now available to stream from its Laemmle Virtual Cinema.
I’m not planning to go to a real indoor movie theater anytime soon. Some film festivals and film society film series are pivoting to on-line screening, with uneven success. Right now, the best bet is Virtual Cinema at your own own favorite theater.
THE 11TH GREEN, which I watched on Theatrical-at-home
The fine director Lynn Shelton has died at age 54. Shelton’s drama Outside In begins when a man (Jay Duplass of Transparent) returns to his small town community after 20 years in prison. Having been incarcerated since he was a teenager, he’s a bit emotionally stunted; he was a good kid who is now trying to be a good man. He tries to negotiate his way among his not-so-supportive family, some former friends who share a secret and suspicious townspeople.
He’s free only because of a persistent campaign for justice by one of his high school teachers (Edie Falco). The case has been an obsession for the teacher, much to annoyance of her blue-collar husband. Now that the campaign has ended, the teacher must fill that vacuum with another passion.
There isn’t much passion in her marriage. Shelton brilliantly depicts a husband who has expectations of their relationship and their future – he just doesn’t communicate them to his wife, or check to see if those expectations are shared. He’s not a terrible person, and the relationship isn’t abusive – it’s just lapsed into staleness.
The freed convict and the teacher are comforted by each other. There are several ways that this story could go, several of them trite. Let’s just say that Shelton takes us in some unpredictable directions, while maintaining authenticity.
Outside In is a story of self-discovery. The teacher must assess what will make her happy and make some hard choices. In a tour de force, Falco takes us through her confusion, dissatisfaction, longing, passion and, finally, determination.
Kaitlin Dever (Justified) is also excellent as the teacher’s teen daughter. Outside In is an acting showcase for Falco, Duplass and Dever. Falco’s performance, however, is stunning.
I saw Outside In before its release at Silicon Valley’s Cinema Club. It can be streamed on Netflix, Amazon, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie and Ben Foster in a scene from Debra Granik’s LEAVE NO TRACE. Courtesy of SFFILM.
Here is the best movie of 2018 – the unforgettable coming of age film Leave No Trace. Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie star as a dad-daughter team who challenge conventional thinking about homelessness and healthy parenting. Leave No Trace is writer-director Debra Granik’s first narrative feature since her Winter’s Bone (which I had rated as the best film of 2010).
When we meet Will (Foster) and his daughter Tom (McKenzie), they are
engaging in extremely low impact camping in a fern-rich Oregon forest,
to the point of solar cooking foraged mushrooms on a mylar sheet. Dad
and daughter are both survivalist experts and work together as a highly
trained team. They have the fond, respectful, communicative
relationship that most families with teen children aspire to but can
only fantasize about.
But Will and Tom are not on vacation. They do not consider themselves
homeless, because the forest is their home. However, their lifestyle
just isn’t consistent with contemporary thinking about child welfare.
Furthermore, living in a public park is illegal,and when they are
discovered, social service authorities are understandably and
justifiably concerned. Investigators find Tom to be medically and
emotionally healthy, Will to be free of drug or alcohol abuse, and there
has been no child abuse or neglect – other than having ones child
living outdoors and not going to school.
Will is a veteran who has been scarred by his military service, and
he is clearly anti-social. But Will is not your stereotypical
PTSD-addled movie vet. He is a clear thinker. His behavior, which can
range to the bizarre, is not impulsive but deliberate.
Fortunately, the Oregon, social services authorities are remarkably
open-minded, and they place Will and Tom in a remote rural setting in
their own house at a rural Christmas Tree farm. Will can work on the
farm, Tom can go the school, and there’s a liberal non-denominational
church filled with kind folks. It’s a massive accommodation to Will and
Tom’s lifestyle, only with the additions of living under a roof and
public education.
Tom blossoms with social contact, and particularly enjoys the local
4-H and one kid’s pet rabbit named Chainsaw. Tom begins to understand
how much she needs human connection – and not just with her dad,
But Will can’t help but feel defeated. When Tom suggests that they
try to adapt to their new setting, he scowls, “We’re wearing their
clothes, we’re living in their house, we’re eating their food, we’re
doing their work. We’ve adapted”. She argues, “Did you try?”, “Why are
we doing this?”, and “Dad, this isn’t how it used to be”.
Ben is so damaged that his parenting can nurture Tom for only so long. Leave No Trace
is about how he has raised her to this point. Has he imparted his
demons to her? Has he helped her become strong and grounded enough to
grow without him?
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie and Ben Foster in a scene from Debra Granik’s LEAVE NO TRACE. Courtesy of SFFILM.
Winter’s Bone launched the career of Jennifer Lawrence, and Leave No Trace
might do the same for newcomer Thomasin McKenzie. McKenzie is riveting
as she authentically takes Tom from a parented child to an independent
young woman. At the San Francisco International Film Festival
screening, producer and co-writer Anne Rosellini said “there’s an
‘otherness’ to McKenzie,” who had “tremendous insight into the
character”. Rosellini added that McKenzie and Ben Foster bonded before
the shoot, as they rehearsed with a survivalist coach.
Foster is no stranger to troubled characters (The Messenger, Rampart, Hell or High Water).
Here, he delivers a remarkably intense and contained performance as a
man who will not allow himself an outburst no matter what turbulence
roils inside him. Rosellini noted that “Will is elusive, a mysterious
character to everybody”. It’s a performance that will be in the
conversation about Oscar nominations. Actors Jeff Kober, Dale Dickey,
Dana Millican and Isaiah Stone (the little brother in Winter’s Bone) are also excellent in smaller roles.
Leave No Trace is thoughtful and emotionally powerful. Superbly well-crafted and impeccably acted, it’s a Must See. Leave No Trace is available for streaming from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
Bitter Melon is H.P. Mendoza’s dark indie comedy on an issue that a Bay Area family must finally face. The dad has long abandoned the family, and it’s almost like he has moved to a different city (but he hasn’t). Two of the adult sons have moved to New York City and Philadelphia. The third son, Troy, lives in the mom’s family home with his wife and kid – and this guy is a nightmare. Troy (Patrick Epino) has a delusional self-image that he is somehow super-talented, even though he is unemployed and living off his wife and mom; worse, he has an anger management problem, and the entire family tiptoes around on eggshells – trying to avoid any disagreement with him.
It should be no surprise that Troy, who thinks he is entitled to his way all of the time, also beats his wife. The wife is too traumatized to seek help, Troy’s mom is in denial and the siblings, having put the family’s day-to-day life in their rearview mirrors, all combine to enable the abuse. When the two brothers return for the Christmas Holiday, the situation becomes unbearable and the family members decide that they must take an extreme step to deal with Troy.
I’ve just described a pretty grim story line, but Bitter Melon is very funny.
Bitter Melon invites us into a Filipino-American family, which is a welcome look at an underrepresented subject. But Bitter Melon is much more than cultural tourism – the characters and story here are universal, from the adult kids coming back to sleep in their childhood rooms for the holidays, the differences between first and second generation immigrants and the family issues of abuse and denial.
H.P. Mendoza is a Bay Area treasure, having written the screenplay and music for the rollicking and refreshing comedy Colma: The Musical and written and directed the genre-bending art film I Am a Ghost. I recommend the delightful Colma: The Musical for anyone, especially Bay Area residents; you can stream it from Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
Bitter Melon begins a Bay Area theatrical run tomorrow.
The fine Lynn Shelton drama Outside In begins when a man (Jay Duplass of Transparent) returns to his small town community after 20 years in prison. Having been incarcerated since he was a teenager, he’s a bit emotionally stunted; he was a good kid who is now trying to be a good man. He tries to negotiate his way among his not-so-supportive family, some former friends who share a secret and suspicious townspeople.
He’s free only because of a persistent campaign for justice by one of his high school teachers (Edie Falco). The case has been an obsession for the teacher, much to annoyance of her blue-collar husband. Now that the campaign has ended, the teacher must fill that vacuum with another passion.
There isn’t much passion in her marriage. Shelton brilliantly depicts a husband who has expectations of their relationship and their future – he just doesn’t communicate them to his wife, or check to see if those expectations are shared. He’s not a terrible person, and the relationship isn’t abusive – it’s just lapsed into staleness.
The freed convict and the teacher are comforted by each other. There are several ways that this story could go, several of them trite. Let’s just say that Shelton takes us in some unpredictable directions, while maintaining authenticity.
Outside In is a story of self-discovery. The teacher must assess what will make her happy and make some hard choices. In a tour de force, Falco takes us through her confusion, dissatisfaction, longing, passion and, finally, determination.
Kaitlin Dever (Justified) is also excellent as the teacher’s teen daughter. Outside In is an acting showcase for Falco, Duplass and Dever. Falco’s performance, however, is stunning.
I saw Outside In before its release at Silicon Valley’s Cinema Club. It can be streamed on Netflix, Amazon, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie and Ben Foster in a scene from Debra Granik’s LEAVE NO TRACE. Courtesy of SFFILM.
Here is the best movie of 2018 – so far – the unforgettable coming of age film Leave No Trace. Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie star as a dad-daughter team who challenge conventional thinking about homelessness and healthy parenting. Leave No Trace is writer-director Debra Granik’s first narrative feature since her Winter’s Bone (which I had rated as the best film of 2010).
When we meet Will (Foster) and his daughter Tom (McKenzie), they are engaging in extremely low impact camping in a fern-rich Oregon forest, to the point of solar cooking foraged mushrooms on a mylar sheet. Dad and daughter are both survivalist experts and work together as a highly trained team. They have the fond, respectful, communicative relationship that most families with teen children aspire to but can only fantasize about.
But Will and Tom are not on vacation. They do not consider themselves homeless, because the forest is their home. However, their lifestyle just isn’t consistent with contemporary thinking about child welfare. Furthermore, living in a public park is illegal,and when they are discovered, social service authorities are understandably and justifiably concerned. Investigators find Tom to be medically and emotionally healthy, Will to be free of drug or alcohol abuse, and there has been no child abuse or neglect – other than having ones child living outdoors and not going to school.
Will is a veteran who has been scarred by his military service, and he is clearly anti-social. But Will is not your stereotypical PTSD-addled movie vet. He is a clear thinker. His behavior, which can range to the bizarre, is not impulsive but deliberate.
Fortunately, the Oregon, social services authorities are remarkably open-minded, and they place Will and Tom in a remote rural setting in their own house at a rural Christmas Tree farm. Will can work on the farm, Tom can go the school, and there’s a liberal non-denominational church filled with kind folks. It’s a massive accommodation to Will and Tom’s lifestyle, only with the additions of living under a roof and public education.
Tom blossoms with social contact, and particularly enjoys the local 4-H and one kid’s pet rabbit named Chainsaw. Tom begins to understand how much she needs human connection – and not just with her dad,
But Will can’t help but feel defeated. When Tom suggests that they try to adapt to their new setting, he scowls, “We’re wearing their clothes, we’re living in their house, we’re eating their food, we’re doing their work. We’ve adapted”. She argues, “Did you try?”, “Why are we doing this?”, and “Dad, this isn’t how it used to be”.
Ben is so damaged that his parenting can nurture Tom for only so long. Leave No Trace is about how he has raised her to this point. Has he imparted his demons to her? Has he helped her become strong and grounded enough to grow without him?
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie and Ben Foster in a scene from Debra Granik’s LEAVE NO TRACE. Courtesy of SFFILM.
Winter’s Bone launched the career of Jennifer Lawrence, and Leave No Trace might do the same for newcomer Thomasin McKenzie. McKenzie is riveting as she authentically takes Tom from a parented child to an independent young woman. At the San Francisco International Film Festival screening, producer and co-writer Anne Rosellini said “there’s an ‘otherness’ to McKenzie,” who had “tremendous insight into the character”. Rosellini added that McKenzie and Ben Foster bonded before the shoot, as they rehearsed with a survivalist coach.
Foster is no stranger to troubled characters (The Messenger, Rampart, Hell or High Water). Here, he delivers a remarkably intense and contained performance as a man who will not allow himself an outburst no matter what turbulence roils inside him. Rosellini noted that “Will is elusive, a mysterious character to everybody”. It’s a performance that will be in the conversation about Oscar nominations. Actors Jeff Kober, Dale Dickey, Dana Millican and Isaiah Stone (the little brother in Winter’s Bone) are also excellent in smaller roles.
Leave No Trace is thoughtful and emotionally powerful. Superbly well-crafted and impeccably acted, it’s a Must See.
In her contemporary Western The Rider, director Chloé Zhao has made a beautiful and emotionally powerful film and announced herself as an American filmmaker of significance. In The Rider, 20-year-old Brady is a rodeo rider and horse trainer who lives on the least romantic ranch on the windblown South Dakota prairie. Brady lives with his 15-year-old sister, who has a cognitive disability somewhere on the autism spectrum, and his non-touchy feely dad. The mom has died a few years before. The family lives in a trailer on a hardscrabble working ranch.
Brady’s soaring career as a rodeo star has been ended by a bronco’s hoof; Brady now has a metal plate in his skull and seizures in his hand. His rodeo career – and his only shot at fame and fortune – is over. But Brady is also a gifted horse trainer – and he may not even be able to ride horses without risk to his health and life. What makes that risk not at all theoretical is that Brady’s rodeo friend Dane is in even worse shape and lives in a rehab facility. So Brady’s story is one of confronting loss and figuring out how to negotiate the rest of his life without access to his passions.
Brady’s story is emotionally powerful and devoid of cheap sentiment. The Rider is not even the least bit corny.
I went to see The Rider knowing almost nothing about it. When the end credits rolled, I was stunned to see that the actors playing Brady, his sister and his dad are a real family. Indeed, ALL of the cast are non-professional actors.
Director Chloé Zhao met The Rider’s star, Brady Jandreau, when he wrangled horses on her first film Songs My Father Taught Me, also shot on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Reservation. After the making of that film, she reached out to Brady after he suffered a serious real life rodeo injury. When he told her that he would risk his life to continue training horses, she determined to make Brady’s story into this movie.
THE RIDER
Zhao’s partner, the Brit cinematographer Joshua James Richards, shot both of her films. The cinematography, in The Rider is exceptional, especially the weather in the Big Sky above the prairie. There’s a cowboy campfire scene which may be the most beautifully shot scene in movies this year. The Jandreaus live on a scruffy working ranch, neither romantic or picturesque.
I’m not fascinated by horses, but I found the horse training scenes in The Rider to be riveting.
It’s clear that Zhao and Richards are major artists. The Rider is a significant movie and one of the year’s best.
In the astonishingly brilliant Bikini Moon, actress Condola Rashad’s blazing performance ignites Milcho Manchevski’s provocative story, resulting in the Must See indie at Cinequest. A fictional movie crew discovers the potential star of their documentary project. That star is a mentally ill homeless women named Bikini. She says that she’s a military veteran and that she has a daughter. The documentarians see that her emotional volatility, with its sudden and extreme outbursts, makes for great drama. She’s also an enthralling raconteur with a gifted turn of phrase – and she’s beautiful.
Bikini is played by Condola Rashad in a performance so charismatic that it’s easy to see how the crew is seduced by her mesmerizing presence. These folks are way out of their depth with Bikini. They think she is their subject, but will she pull them, one by one, into her madness?
It turns out that Bikini really is a vet, and she has serious PTSD and, possibly, Military Sexual Trauma. She is suffering from a raging, unmedicated bipolar disorder. It seems like Bikini’s one predictable quality is the impulse to act inappropriately.
Will Janowitz, Sarah Goldberg and Condola Rashad in BIKINI MOON
Bikini Moon explores the natural tension between a documentary telling a subject’s story and a documentary exploiting a subject. Here, the crew members have mixed motivations. The director Trevor (Will Janowitz) doesn’t have any compunctions about exploiting his subject. His girlfriend/bankroll Kate (Sarah Goldberg) appears to be much more nurturing and well-intentioned, as does Krishna (Sathya Sridharan).
Unforgiveably, Trevor takes Bikini and the crew into a situation can only further traumatize Bikini and looks to be dangerous to other innocent folks, too. At first, we see Trevor, consumed by selfishness and a disregard for others, to be a jerk. He may be way more functional than Bikini but his narcissism might rate him as unhealthy as she is.
Bikini has no social boundaries because she’s crazy. Kate, on the other hand, seems like a conflict-averse doormat, and she has boundary issues, too. She may intrude the most deeply into Bikini’s life. Kate may take what she wants from Bikini through manipulation, all behind the guise of do-gooding.
Krishna is the least strong-willed and the most benign crew member. Yet he may be the one who can make the film tell Bikini’s story by adopting her perspective, however mad and feral that perspective is. That makes for a jaw-dropper of an ending to Bikini Moon.
Condola Rashad in BIKINI MOON
The core of Bikini Moon is Condola Rashad’s remarkable performance. Her big, expressive eyes and sudden, charming smiles intoxicate both the documentarians and Bikini Moon’s audience. As captivating as she is during Bikini’s outbursts, Rashad might be even more compelling in quieter moments, especially a moment of stillness on the courthouse steps late in the film; those around her are assured because she’s not flailing around but we can see something very unsettling in Bikini’s eyes. There’s also a remarkable solitary dance captured on the nanny cam. She’s an actress seemingly created for the closeup, and the camera loves her. An accomplished stage performer, Rashad was nominated for Tony Awards for her performances in Stick Fly, The Trip to Bountiful and A Doll’s House, Part 2. She currently can be seen on television in Billions.
Bikini Moon is co-written and directed by Milcho Manchevski from his own story. Manchevski was Oscar-nominated for his acclaimed 1994 Macedonian feature Before the Rain. That Manchevski debut won the Golden Lion at Venice and was singled out as a masterpiece by Roger Ebert and The New York Times. Since then, he has directed three European features and an episode of The Wire. Manchevski has been teaching in New York, and Bikini Moon is his first American feature.
All of Bikini Moon is photographed as part of the film-within-the-film documentary footage or as candid iPhone video or video from a security cam. The cinematography by Joshua Z Weinstein is remarkably urgent and authentic, and shooting in the cramped spaces of apartment corridors must have been especially challenging. (His Twitter handle, by the way, is “@WeinsteinFilm”, clarified as “Joshua Z Weinstein – No Relation”.)
This is the entirely fresh and original work of a master filmmaker. Condola Rashad’s performance is stunning. Bikini Moon’s US premiere is the Must See indie at this year’s Cinequest.
