Hohokam **
Frank V. Ross, 2007
US
@ IFC Center

Named after the native civilization which predated European settlement of the Phoenix area, this is another film that stands out in the New Talkies series due to the unusual location. Basically it explores an unexciting yet fulfilling relationship between two people somewhere in the Valley of the Sun, which looks harsh and inhumane, full of undeveloped lots and pedestrian-hostile highways. Ross focuses a lot on bodily functions (excretion, sickness, hydration, etc.) at least partially as they are affected by the Arizona climate. His was perhaps the most edifying post-screening Q&A I've attended thus far. The score was recorded by Happy Apple, and is probably roughly what you might expect if you're familiar with them.

See also: Website

Team Picture *
Kentucker Audley, 2007
US
@ IFC Center

Audley, who stars in the film and answered questions after the screening, used neither opening nor closing credits, apart from a mention of a filmmaking group in Memphis, and suggested that the budget for the film was approximately $100. He plays a young man so laconic he at times seems nearly catatonic. A rather different type of city from New York or Chicago, aimless drifting in Memphis looks a bit more sluggish onscreen. For example, the characters lounge in the front yard trying to keep cool with their feet in a kiddie pool, something you probably wouldn't see in Aaron Katz's Park Slope or Andrew Bujalski's Boston. Audley also mentioned that the stepfather was played by a local sportscaster, about whom he was very enthusiastic and hoped to work with in the future.

See also: MySpace

Quiet City **
Aaron Katz, 2007
US
@ home on DVD

Stylus Review

A city bereft of noise, populated by characters without a past. The key to Quiet City seems to be elements withheld to make the whole new and fascinating. Of course, that's nothing revolutionary in an art form based on framing, editing, and timing, by which the filmmaker attempts to fashion his own version of reality through what does and does not appear to exist in his universe. But set in a Brooklyn largely devoid of sounds, distractions, or frequently even other people, the world onscreen seems a very obviously redacted version of the one we might experience walking down an avenue in Park Slope on an autumn evening.

We are introduced to this ghostly version of New York City on an IND subway platform, quickly abandoned except for a confused-looking Jamie, played by Erin Fisher. Before ascending to the unfamiliar streets above she stops Charlie (Cris Lankenau) to ask him for directions to a diner at Fourth & Seventh. He graciously agrees to accompany her there, where—once arrived—she reveals that she was supposed to meet a friend, but with no address or working phone number, she's more or less on her own with luggage and time to kill.

This, we soon discover, is a godsend for the directionless, occupationless, girlfriendless Charlie, perhaps the archetypal character in films like this. Not so much a failure as in between potentially successful periods in his life, we don't realize how just little we know about him until a childhood pal accosts him at an art show with questions about unreturned phone calls, lost love in his home state of Florida, and a potential exit from city life. Charlie mostly feigns ignorance, glancing cautiously from time to time at his newfound companion.

While Jamie has much more dialogue, peppering Charlie with questions, proposing an impromptu race in Prospect Park, etc., we discover hidden facts about her as well, most memorably in a haltingly awkward exchange in which she reveals her embarrassingly unhip place of employment. She brings an exuberance to the pair without which the first half of the film would likely fall flat. We may question the sanity of someone who would fly from Atlanta to New York without the address of her destination or even a reliable way of getting in touch, yet awkward, foolish choices are often key to the plots, such as they are, of films associated with that much-maligned signifier, “mumblecore.”

Jamie and Charlie's relationship exists largely in their heads for most of the film. We're required to interpret offhand comments to others, posture, or other oblique signals as to what they're thinking most of the time. Katz provides plenty of time for reflection with his use of pillow shots, frequently twilight images of planes taking off in the distance or smoke rising lazily from factory towers. There's a sense of development within a sort of cocoon, pupal humans maturing before us, yet not in ways apparent to the naked eye. Then again, isn't that kind of how we observe many people whom we actually know?

The Old Garden ***
Im Sang-soo, 2007
Korea
@ Cinema Village (New York Korean Film Festival)

A stunningly beautiful film. Interesting both historically and dramatically. Great use of weather and natural settings. It does drag a bit toward the end, but that's relative, since most of it's just so good.

See also: Koreanfilm.org

Family Ties
Kim Tae-yong, 2007
Korea
@ Cinema Village (New York Korean Film Festival)

I was shocked by how little I enjoyed this one. It won all kinds of awards and played a ton of festivals. There was a lot of laughter among the Koreans in the audience that I really couldn't understand all that well, so I have to assume that I missed out on some part of the movie culturally or linguistically. That said, I suppose I'm not as into really overwrought performances as the people who hand out acting awards or many types of critics. Perhaps it just seemed like we didn't really spend enough time with any of the characters to really care about their problems as much as we were clearly expected to. The film ties together various dysfunctional family groups over the course of a couple of decades. The families are all humorless and masochistic.

See also: Koreanfilm.org

Hannah Takes the Stairs ***
Joe Swanberg, 2007
US
@ IFC Center (w/ ex-Stylus editor Todd Burns)

Stylus Review

Like many films of its ilk, Hannah Takes the Stairs lacks a strong framework. Some of the material may be slowly re-assembled by the unconscious, but upon first viewing, much is left to develop in the mind of the viewer. With no background, a camera frequently thrust in the actors’ faces, and little plot beyond that revealed through dialogue, the motivations of the characters (often unclear even to them) fit together, if at all, only in retrospect. Thus it seems believable when director Joe Swanberg says that he and the actors improvised much of the dialogue, developing the material daily and editing footage each night, so that most of the project was finished in only one month. And when you realize that each main cast member, excepting Greta Gerwig, has directed at least one film, a strategy like that makes a lot of sense.

The scenario is rather similar to Andrew Bujalski's Funny Ha-Ha: Charming but slightly confused young woman gets involved in various ways with three young men, with vaguely unpleasant results. Hannah, here, is much more manipulative than Kate Dollenmayer's Marnie. Like much of Swanberg's work, the film is very sexually frank and focuses on unhappiness in romantic relationships seemingly caused by emotional immaturity. Hannah slips boyfriends on and off as if shopping for a new pair of shoes, never finding fulfillment.

The film begins with a shot of her in the shower with Mike, a.k.a. Boyfriend #1 (Duplass). Mike has just left his job to spend some time focusing on "doing nothing," and invites Hannah to spend the day at the beach with him, although she claims she needs to show up for work. Her ambivalence toward spending time with him is hilariously expressed through an aborted cell phone call and some effective deep staging.

A current of pessimism and unhappiness flows through the film, from Mike's job- and music-related malaise, to Hannah's "chronic dissatisfaction," admitted while discussing Matt's (Kent Osborne) anti-depressant medication with him in his apartment. Paul (Bujalski) seems the most successful of the core group of characters, though his potential book deal seems to consist largely of fielding vague phone calls from Marvin, his agent in New York. And, of course, Hannah dumps him.

Hannah suggests at one point that she'd prefer to be back to college, a not uncommon sentiment for her peer group, longing to return to a familiar environment with limited risks and rewards. Perhaps she realizes that her life to this point hasn't adequately prepared her for the responsibilities of adulthood. Swanberg's characters often seem at bit adrift on the sea of post-college life; for example, his own character in the Web series, Young American Bodies, goes into a tizzy when his roommate announces that she's moving out at the end of their lease. His character in Kissing on the Mouth collects interviews with other twentysomethings on the subject of marriage. The discussions don't center exactly on the possibility/probability of marriage in the near future, but rather a sense of bafflement that anybody could make such decisions of such consequence before the age of thirty. (Note: Swanberg and frequent collaborator, Kris Williams, who married this past June, seem not to be affected by such a malaise.)

That feeling of youthful inexperience seemingly carries over to the style of the film as well. Most scenes are shot indoors with bright white backgrounds, tight framing, and little movement. The soundtrack remains largely unspoiled by background music, although a couple of trumpets, played by Hannah and Matt, figure into the mix toward the end of the film. Compared to the rest of Swanberg's work, though, this film focuses more on dialogue and relationship dynamics than the intimate one-shots and silent depictions of loneliness and confusion found elsewhere in Swanberg's work. It'll be interesting to see how style and form will evolve for the mumblecore set (so many of whom are involved here) as, presumably, their characters age and mature with time.

After This Our Exile (Fu zi) *
Patrick Tam, 2007
Hong Kong, Malaysia
@ BAM (New York Asian Film Festival)

A strong film but just brutal to watch. It's kind of like Bicycle Thieves if the mother ran away and the father had severe emotional issues, soaring gambling debt, and no moral compass. And if it were set in Malaysia.

See also: IMDb

The Simpsons Movie *
David Silverman, 2007
US
@ AMC Empire

I didn't enjoy the action toward the end nearly as much as the straight comedy at the beginning.

See also: IMDb | Metacritic