Spartan ➡️ Bruin
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Grand Tour 2024
A gusty, quite experimental piece. Reminded me of La Jetée in many ways. I was initially skeptical how a loose, dual-track love story based in the early 20th Century intercut with documentary-style travelogue footages of today would work. But, in the end, it did. I think the fact that the travel footages concentrated on the authentic culture, tales, and daily life of the ordinary people of various Asian countries made the film very immersive. And when that’s tied with a very simple yet well performed story, it just worked. A very special experience.
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Queer 2024
Personally thought the acting was pretty good overall. And the color palette and the texture really had that period feel. J.W. Anderson (designer of the luxury brand Loewe and one of the frequent collaborators of Uniqlo) was a great choice for costume designer, especially when the director himself wasn’t Tom Ford. I would say the first two chapters were good but the third one had a sharp tonal change that was just jarring to watch, kinda like a different movie.…
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Where Are We? Our Trip Through America 1993
(Part of the new Sundance Class of '92 series Criterion Channel just put out.)
Thirty years later, it still feels relevant; not so much that history repeats itself, just those faces are still there in middle America, feeling perhaps similar joy, anger, and sorrow. The thing that stood out for me was that the filmmakers weren't afraid of asking honest questions of which they might not like the answers. It's a collection of interviews from a rich variety of perspectives. The authenticity is admirable. Although structurally, it's tied together loosely by the titled question, it certainly evokes thoughts and emotion. An old travelogue that's worth reading.
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The Zone of Interest 2023
A little Haneke-esque, especially in the first forty minutes or so, perhaps partially because it shared the same lead actor, Christian Friedel, with The White Ribbon, which was my favorite Haneke's work. I was intrigued and impressed by the use of wide, waist-level framings, almost making the characters seem like human machines operating back and forth through dissected spaces while atrocities took place in the background behind the walls. The night-vision scenes were innovative and haunting. Daylight was used as a facade but the sound never ceased to convey the horror. And so well edited. Masterful work.
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