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Porcupine Lake

Life for 13-year-old Bea (Charlotte Salisbury) is in a state of transition. Living with her mom Ally (Delphine Roussel) in Toronto, the two head north to Parry Sound, Ontario to spend time with her father Scotty (Christopher Bolton).  Her parents are separated and on the brink of divorce but take the summer to re-evaluate their marriage. Scotty runs a diner, the Snack Shack, the central hub for the small community. It’s there that Bea meets Kate (Lucinda Armstrong Hall), another girl her age. The two lock eyes and instantly connect. They’re as opposite as they come. Bea is awkward, quiet, thoughtful and  Kate is outspoken, self-assured, abrupt. They both come from broken homes but where Bea has caring parents, Kate has a strung out mother, angry sister and mentally disturbed brother. Bea and Kate quickly develop a bond that goes deeper than just friendship. On the cusp of womanhood, these two sort through their feelings for each other and must deal with the escalating dramas in their respective families. Bea and Kate’s story is one of love and friendship told over one glorious summer.

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Porcupine Lake was written, produced and directed by Canadian filmmaker Ingrid Veninger, founder of pUNK films. In an interview Veninger said about the film: “Porcupine Lake is a story I’ve wanted to tell for years.”  The idea came to her while she was in a writing workshop led by actress Melissa Leo. Veninger goes on to say,

“All of my films have been personal — not autobiographical but always a combination of fiction and real experience. When I was 12, my father managed a roadside snack bar in northern Ontario. I spent many endless summers wanting a best friend so badly, but mostly I was left alone to be with my boredom and solitude, and ultimately, my imagination.”

The film was shot on location in Parry Sound and the surrounding area. During production another movie, a behind-the scenes documentary called The Other Side of Porcupine Lake, was film simultaneously.

Over 50 girls auditioned for the parts of Bea and Kate. Veninger was looking for young actresses who were natural in their instincts but could also be true to the characters. She found two gems with Salisbury and Hall.

Porcupine Lake is a sensitive portrayal of two young girls on the precipice of change. It brilliantly depicts the attraction between two people who are totally captivated by each other. It also does a fantastic job exploring family dynamics and capturing small town life. The lead actresses were totally convincing. I was drawn in by the story so much that I was already craving a sequel by the end. It’s like a quieter Heavenly Creatures (1994) without the tragic intensity.

If you’re looking for a good coming-of-age LGBT story, look no further than Porcupine Lake.

Porcupine Lake is distributed by Breaking Glass Pictures and will be available on DVD and digital on August 14th. The DVD includes the behind-the-scenes documentary.

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Posted Film Reviews

En el Séptimo Día

Representation matters.

En el Séptimo Día (On the Seventh Day) tells the story of José (Fernando Cardona) a Mexican immigrant working and living in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. He lives in an overcrowded apartment with his friends. Every day they work at a local restaurant, washing dishes, delivering food and bussing tables. Others sell cotton candy on the street, work construction jobs, etc. On the seventh day, Sunday, they’re free to do what they love the most: play soccer. The story follows José and his friends during one week which starts with a semi-final tournament and ends with the much anticipated final game. The problem is José’s boss, who considers him the most valued employee among the immigrant workers at the restaurant, needs him to work on Sunday for a private event. But this means José, who is also the most valued player on his soccer team, will have to miss the game. With each new day we are exposed to aspects of José’s life including his coworkers, his friends, the blue collar workers he meets on his delivery route as well as the pregnant wife waiting for him in Mexico. In the end, José has to chose between the work that feeds him and the joy that sustains him.

 

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“I don’t see any other way. Either we get slaughtered or I get fired.” – José

En el Séptimo Día is a poignant drama about an underrepresented group of individuals who are an important part of the fabric of American society. This quiet film is about finding small joys in a life filled with endless work. You just don’t see stories about Hispanic immigrants. Perhaps first and second generation Latino Americans but not immigrants who are starting a new life in America. And in a time where ICE reigns and our nation is plagued with fear mongering, a humane story about Mexican immigrants adds some empathy and understanding where it was lacking before.

The film was written, produced and directed by Jim McKay, best known for his stories about average folks including Girls Town (1996), Our Song (2000) and Everyday People (2004). According to an interview on the Cinema Guild website, McKay’s inspiration for the film came from a variety of sources including his own work on Our Song and Everyday People, his wife’s documentary La Boda, and his own experience working in a restaurant alongside Mexician immigrant workers from the Yucatan. The biggest source was Mexican New York by Robert Smith, a book profiling a community of immigrants from Puebla, Mexico who had settled in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

The majority of the cast members, including the star Fernando Cardona, are non-actors. McKay said, “the film is about Mexican immigrants and I was determined to make it with Mexican immigrants.” He sought out not only Mexicans but ones based in Sunset Park where the story takes place. However in the interview McKay makes it clear that the actors are playing characters and not themselves. The film was shot over 19 days in June and July of 2016 in Sunset Park, Park Slope and Gowanus in Brooklyn, NY. A few scenes were shot on a rainy day on October. McKay injects as much realism in his film which watches like a hybrid feature film/documentary.

The movie is primarily in Spanish with several conversations in English. It adds authenticity to the story. McKay and his team did a great job casting the variety of players especially Fernando Cardona who delivers a fine performance and is just captivating to watch on screen. I fell in love with this movie and its characters and was rooting on for José. I particularly enjoyed one scene when José is waiting outside a building where he’s going to make a delivery. He meets a blue collar worker who speaks Spanish and they chat about their mutual love for soccer. It’s a brilliant moment when commonality brings together two people from seemingly very different worlds.

En el Séptimo Día stole my heart. This is one you won’t want to miss.

 

 

En el Séptimo Día is showing in theaters across the country through August and September. Visit the Cinema Guild website for details.

Posted Film Reviews

Kings

Released on the 25th anniversary year of of the L.A. Riots, Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Kings explores the dynamics of this turbulent time in US history. Ergüven, born in Turkey but raised in France, was deeply affected by the 2005 French Riots. In an interview at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival where Kings had its world premiere, Ergüven said that as a Turkish woman in France she could relate to the feelings of being an outsider, a minority. In 2005 she could sense that “a big societal issue was coming to the surface.” This began her fascination with riots and the desire to make a film about them. Her research led her to the L.A. Riots of the early 1990s. Ergüven began working on a script for what was supposed to be her feature film debut. Finished in 2011, she wasn’t able to get it financed. A friend suggested she make another film in the interim which led Ergüven to make Mustang, released in 2015. That film served as a platform to get Ergüven’s script attention and funding. 11 years in the making, Kings was finally born.

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Kings follows the story of Millie Dunbar (Halle Berry), a single woman and foster mom who takes the impossible task of raising eight children on her own. The oldest, Jesse (Lamar Johnson), is quiet and observant. He tries to make sense of the racial tensions in his neighborhood and develops an attraction to his fiesty and outspoken classmate Nicole (Rachel Hilson). When Millie brings home an abandoned teen, William (Kaalan Rashad Walker), the family dynamic shifts as William lashes out at authority and introduces the younger kids to shoplifting. He also develops a romance with Nicole that both angers and confuses Jesse. The family’s next door neighbor, Obie (Daniel Craig), is an eccentric writer who lives in relative seclusion. Obie and Millie frequently butt heads. When the Rodney King trail verdict angers the neighborhood setting off a riot, Obie, Millie and her family are embroiled in a fight for their lives.

Ergüven stays true to the era by weaving archival footage of news coverage throughout the film. There is a reenactment of the Latasha Harlins murder as well of footage of Soon Ja Du’s trial and eventual release. There is also plenty of footage of the Rodney King beatings and his trial. These are the two inciting incidents that set off the riots. The film really captures the paranoia, the tension and the desperation of a very volatile time. We sense the anger of the African-American community, the paranoia of the police force and the confusion of the young ones who are not capable of understanding where they fit in all of this. Something Ergüven does really well is she includes moments in which the characters experience joy. I was particularly taken with one scene in three of Millie’s foster kids are joined by other kids with the intent of burning down the local Burger King. An employee comes out and begs them to reconsider. Other employees come out and bring free milkshakes and fries for the kids to enjoy. Instead of burning down the establishment, the kids instead go elsewhere and throw their fire sticks over a bridge. This is not something a lot of movies do. Finding even a single moment of happiness during time of turmoil is the only thing that can keep us sane and help us move forward.

Where Kings excels in capturing the unrest of a particular time in history, it fails in character development. I didn’t get to know Millie, Obie or any of the other characters. The romance between Millie and Obie felt a bit forced to me. Two people who hate each other yet come together during a difficult time is a storyline that could work but doesn’t here. There was also a bizarre sex/dream sequence that felt out of place, unnecessary and briefly took me out of the movie. I wanted to know why Millie had all these foster kids and why Obie was so eccentric. And I wanted to know more about the trio of teenagers William, Nicole and Jesse. The actors all delivered fine performances but they couldn’t overcome what was lacking in the story. It felt like the riots overshadowed any potential this film had to be a good character study.

Kings is available on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital download and will release on demand 7/31.

Official website

Ferrari: Race to Immortality Poster
Posted 1 Comment on Ferrari: Race to Immortality Documentaries

Ferrari: Race to Immortality

“It was an era of great glamour and great risk.”

In the 1950s, races like Le Mans and Grand Prix thrilled spectators and made racers celebrities. It was an exciting and scary time in the history of auto racing. This was a gentleman’s sport with much respect for the car and adoration for its driver. A first place win guaranteed immortality. During this time the sport wasn’t quite new but was still suffering from growing pains. Technological advancements ensured faster and more efficient vehicles and racers were beating speed records left and right. However the sport was still incredibly dangerous. From 1950 to 1959, 39 drivers were killed on the racetrack, an alarmingly high mortality rate.

Was the risk worth the glory? Enzo Ferrari thought so.

 

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In a new documentary by director Daryl Goodrich, Ferrari: Race to Immortality explores the pivotal years of 1955-1958, when Ferrari’s Formula One team was celebrated as one of the most successful teams in racing history.  Told through stunning archival footage and audio and interviews with historians, biographers, former racers and those closest to the drivers, we learn about these drivers who lived for the thrill even when death stared them right in the face. Key figures in the documentary include:

Mike Hawthorn
Peter Collins
Luigi Musso
Eugenio Castelotti
Marquis Alonso de Portago
Juan Manuel Fangio

 

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“These guys are warriors.”

The film also offers background on the figure behind the team and the brand, Enzo Ferrari. He had a very complicated relationship with his business and his drivers. Driven by unwavering ambition, he worked tirelessly to bring prestige to his brand Ferrari. It paid off because Ferrari is still known as one of the most important luxury car brands in the world. He felt little emotion for this team members, with the exception of Peter Collins who had a bond with Enzo’s terminally ill son.

A key takeaway from the documentary is how death was perceived by the drivers, team members, their significant others and by society as a whole. Today we can look back at this time and be both horrified at what happened and relieved that the sport is much safer now. But in the 1950s, society embraced death in a way we wouldn’t understand today. In the 1955 Le Mans disaster that killed one driver plus over 80 spectators, the race continued and Mike Hawthorn won. Whenever a fellow competitor died on the track, the wins were tempered with sadness but there was also a resilience to keep on. This is a reminder of what people would do for glory and immortality.

Race To Immortality at Brands Hatch

 

This documentary fully immerses you in the world of 1950s racing. Instead of seeing the talking heads we hear narration over all of the archival footage. The faces of the interview subjects are only revealed in the last 10 minutes. This was an interesting filmmaking technique. The footage keeps you in their world and breaking away to footage of interviews would have just taken the viewer out of it. Also there was a build up of curiosity about the interview subjects. There was some added some emotional resonance at the end when we finally get to see their faces.

Ferrari: Race to Immortality is a poignant documentary about an exciting yet dangerous time in the history of auto racing. It’s available on digital download and is coming to VOD on 7/24.

 

Posted 4 Comments on Lady Bird DVD Netflix

Lady Bird

This post is sponsored by DVD Netflix.

 

Lady Bird’s story is your story. But it wasn’t mine.

I don’t call myself a film critic. I call myself a film writer. Why? I can’t be completely objective about a movie. Emotions always get involved. When I watch a movie I feel things. I experience joy, sadness, enlightenment, confusion, anxiety, fear, shock or awe. I’m overwhelmed or underwhelmed. Some movies open my eyes to new experiences. Some unlock something within me that’s been dormant for years. Sometimes a movie makes me so mad I want to punch something. Sometimes a movie makes me so happy I want to share it with anyone who will listen.

Recently I asked myself the question, how does someone appreciate a film when they have no emotional connection to it?

Greta Gerwig’s critically acclaimed and award winning film Lady Bird (2017). Released to much praise, the story follows Lady Bird (Saoirse Ronan), a high school senior living in Sacramento circa 2002. We follow her as struggles with her transitional year. She has a strong hate/love relationship with her home town, butts heads with her strong-willed mother Marion (Laurie Metcalf), loses her close bond with her best friend Julie (Beanie Feldstein), and pretends to live in a fancy house in the rich part of town to impress a popular girl at school. Then there are the boys. She falls for Danny (Lucas Hedges) and Kyle (Timothee Chalamet), two very different boys but both relationships offer the same potential for heartbreak. Lady Bird, whose real name is Christine, is opinionated, brash, and desperate to find some happiness in what she deems a bleak existence.

 

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In one online review, a viewer pointed out that Sacramento could be any town and that Lady Bird could be any teenager. This is true. Lady Bird’s story is one many people could relate to. Many of us have complicated relationships with our hometown, with a parent, with a friend, with a teacher and with our first love. In the film Lady Bird goes through the whole gamut of life experiences from losing her virginity, to fighting with her mom, to watching her dad go through depression, to losing and regaining a best friend and to losing, finding and losing again that romantic connection with another person. And her name change to Lady Bird is symbolic; she’s a young woman who wants to spread her wings and fly away. And as for Sacramento, the hometown she thought she hated so much… It took her leaving for New York, shedding her self-appointed moniker and experiencing a new life to realize how much she actually loved that town and missed it.

When I was 17 years old, my experience was the complete opposite of Lady Bird’s. I hated my hometown of Milford, MA and still do to this day. Every visit back is filled with dread. In fact I despised Milford so much as a teenager that I attended an agricultural high school in another county. Mostly because I wanted to spend as much time away from my town as possible. In the film, Lady Bird who once joked about living on the wrong side of the tracks begins to feel peer pressure to please the popular crowd. I felt none of this pressure in high school and I thought the popular kids, barring one notable exception, were all idiots. I butted heads with my dad not my mom. I didn’t have a sibling growing up, Lady Bird has a brother. My parents didn’t have any opinions or influence on my college applications. I didn’t go to my prom. I didn’t have a best friend or boyfriends. While many of you were Lady Birds growing up, I was not. At all.

People talk about stories being mirrors (reflecting yourself) and windows (with a view to someone else’s experience). Watching Lady Bird was like looking through a window and not fully understanding what was happening on the other side. I had to break down this film into its parts. Great actors? Check. Well-developed characters? Check. A deep connection to a particular time and place? Check and check. Good dialogue, pacing and storytelling. More checks. Lady Bird is a brilliant film. Greta Gerwig, Saorise Ronan and Laurie Metcalf are a fierce female filmmaking trio. This movie is for many people even if it wasn’t for me.

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As a DVD Nation Director, I earn rewards from DVD Netflix. You can rent Lady Bird on DVD.com

Further Reading: My review of Brooklyn (2015)

 

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