The
31st Florida Film Festival is right around the corner and it looks to
be filled with films, fun and food, all in-person and on a galactic scale.
The
special guest of the 31st is an
actor/author/producer/director/musician. Someone who, throughout his
career, has travelled among worlds on the big and small screen, one
who recently flew on Blue Origin and was transported to the true edge
of space. On April 15th, Mr.
William Shatner will
be appearing with his film Star
Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
Those lucky enough to have purchased a ticket to this sold-out event
are anticipating stories about his boldly going where few men, or
women, have actually gone before.
Unfortunately,
I'm not one of those lucky few. Had I been, I would have inquired if Mr. Shatner ever watched any of the Trek shows that followed his original,
what he thought of them if he had, and what gizmo he used on Trek
that he wished were currently in use. Maybe I'll be able to pass
along a note to a ticketed participant.
Trek precedent was set in 2019 when Nichelle Nichols' Women in Motion was the opening night film for the Florida Film Festival. Due to her groundbreaking role on Star Trek as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, NASA chose Ms. Nichols to be the face of the Agency. Her role was pivotal to the growth of NASA, which historically, was basically male and white. She reached out to women and minorities, successfully convincing them there was a place for them at NASA.
Back
here on Earth, in Winter Park, Florida, I've already pre-screened
films with some of the big name draws, some of whom have previously been honored
with awards in multiple acting categories, including Dame Helen
Mirren, Jim Broadbent, Charlotte Rampling, Aaron Paul of Breaking
Bad,
Karen Gillian of Doctor
Who. Additional stellar celebs soon to be revealed here so get your tickets NOW.
Passes are limited and, as you'll see, some of these films are out of this world.
And
speaking of star-power, opening night, April 8, 2022 should be heavenly. The film is Pre:Fab!, a biopic based on the memoir by drummer Colin Hanton, about his early
years as a musician with a fellow Brit, a man by the name of John
Lennon, and his fledgling band, The Quarry Men. He and his mates soon
eclipsed the world of music.
Now let's transport you into the
Festival orbit and illuminate the horizon of some of the films. All systems GO!
Hit The Road,
a narrative by Persian Director - Writer Panah Panahi, will be most
remembered for the outrageous antics and deadpan wit of young Rayan
Sarlak, making his debut in this film as 'Little Brother'. A
family of four has embarked on a road trip for a variety of murky reasons, with a
sick dog in tow. Dad, with a cast on his leg that proves more of a
help than a hindrance, believes he is running the show. But it's
really Mom who is driving the family towards a destination which may
or may not result in the upcoming marriage of 'Big Brother'. Hit The
Road is a discourse on whether it is right or wrong to dissemble,
even if your motivations are well-intended. At the 3/4 mark, the story loses its way
a little bit, leaving the viewer uneasy about the family's final
destination.
If
you care anything about animals, documentary Tigre
Gente
will break your heart. We first travel alongside Marcos, Director of
Madidi National Park in Ixiama, Bolivia. Marcos is one of a handful of recruits
engaged in the perilous battle against those participating in the
illegal trade of jaguar teeth, skin and bones. There are only
100,000 jaguars left in the wild. Their survival is being further
threatened by decimation of their habitat through global warming and
human avarice. As the oceans rise, the jaguars lose their canopy
home of trees, acre by acre. Meanwhile, construction crews are
mowing down the heart of the jungle, with new towns and cities pushing
the jaguar out of existence.
Those big cats who try to survive enforced relocation are hunted
by Chinese nationals, who have so ravaged their own population of native
wild tigers for fake “ancient Chinese medicines”, that there are
currently more tigers living in captivity than in the wild. We walk
alongside a journalist in Hong Kong, who is searching through urban
and rural wet markets to expose sellers actively contributing to the
extinction of both species. We are left with the understanding that we must change minds if we want to
change the future for these animals.
Those
who love a good sci-fi, or are searching for a film that encourages repeat viewings, should look no further than Dual.
Lead character Sarah (Karen Gillian), awakens in a pool of blood,
but treats it as if this is just another day, nothing to be concerned
about. She corresponds with her emotionally distant boyfriend
through online video chats and occasional text messages. When she
receives a fatal diagnosis regarding her recent bloodspew, one delivered unemotionally by her physician, she is given a choice that, on first
examination, appears be the “best” thing for her family, who will
soon face life without Sarah. She can have herself cloned. In this
future, once your original passes on, your clone steps right into
your shoes. No muss, no fuss. The catch – if you don't die, your
clone must be eradicated. You can't have two of you in this world,
it's just not done.
But what happens if your situation changes and
your clone refuses to go quietly, triggering a duel to the death? Why, you enlist the services of a
personal trainer, of course. Aaron Paul is delightfully deadpan in that role. The film will leave a psychological imprint long after the
lights go on. Dual
is definitely a “be careful what you wish for” tale, in a new world
where survival is uncertain.
Which
brings us to the star-vehicle, ripped from the headlines true story
of the theft of a Goya painting, The Duke of Wellington. Acquired by Britain's National Gallery in 1961, The Duke had been
purchased for an outrageous sum and was due to be put on display,
when it was stolen and secreted somewhere in Newcastle. According to the film, the thief went so far as to send a
series of ransom notes to the local constabulary. However, the notes
indicate that the theft was perpetrated not expressly for
the ransom or personal gain, but for 'the greater good' that ransom would benefit; those
who want to watch their telly in the UK without paying an exorbitant government tax.
The
Duke, co-starring Dame Helen Mirren and Jim Broadbent, is directed by the
late Roger Mitchell, and packed with loads of hysterical one-liners,
usually proffered by Dame Mirren towards her husband, Jim Broadbent.
There is nothing like this Dame when it comes to tossing around some
memorable bon mots. Her sharp mind cannot be concealed behind the
dowdy dress, sensible shoes and greying hair of her character.
Digger
is part of the Fest's International Showcase. Nikitas is a farmer
who has devoted his life to keeping his small farm going, existing
with other local growers in the Greek mountainside. Civilization is
encroaching on their lands. Strip mining is literally flooding torrents of dirt and mud into their homes, each time it
rains. The farmers are fighting against the tide and against the
future, trying to keep their properties and memories intact. But the
corporate monster is hungry, intent on tearing down their livelihoods
to feed 'progress”. Nikitas has sacrificed all to keep his farm
going – his wife left years ago, taking their young son with her.
That son has now returned to Nikitas' farm, looking to claim
his inheritance.
The fallout from the
reunion of father and son are plot points that parallel the destruction of the land. For
me, Digger
lost its focus about an hour in. Motivations to stay and fight or flee become
murky. It's hard to decide if the choices the farmers are making
will benefit them, or are they just staying because it's easier than
facing an uncertain but potentially well-funded future. Do they give up their unofficial roles as guardians of the land, or fight it out?
Spotlight
Film Ali
& Ava
is having their East Coast Premiere at the Festival. A British
rom-com, with some social justice commentary about immigration and
immigrants built in, the story revolves around a British Pakistani man
(Ali) who meets and eventually falls for Ava, a slightly older Irish
immigrant. Ali, humiliated by the fact that his Pakistani wife is leaving him
for another man, keeps up the “happily
married” façade around his parents and neighbors. Ava, still
reeling from a bad marriage years before, has no intention of
becoming emotionally involved with anyone, finding solace in her job
as a teacher and in helping raise her own daughter's children. But
the couple find they can easily relate to each other through a shared
love of music and mutual respect. Their relationship blossoms and
grows until their families discover the truth. Ali
& Ava
explores the power of love and the fallout from the choices we
sometimes make. The characters are highly relatable, and you'll
find yourself cheering for them to succeed.
However, as is the case
with some foreign films, it's difficult to understand some of the
dialogue. I had an especially difficult time with any scene in which
one of the younger stars was present, and, without subtitles, had no idea what the child
was saying. It wasn't the slang, it was the muddy audio.
Stay
Prayed Up,
a music documentary, offers an extended look into the lives of the
people who make up the gospel group The Branchettes. Ma Perry is
quite the character, being in the music and soul-saving business for
more than 50 years. Wilbur Thorpe, their keyboardist, has been a
member of the group for almost as long. In their early years, The Branchettes faced down
unremitting racism throughout the South, while touring through North
Carolina, a state which once advertised itself as the “heart of Klan country”.
Present-day, Perry and the rest of the troupe are
truly devoted in using their talents to help raise up the downtrodden
and broken members of the communities they visit. However,
unless you're willing to listen to a lay-preacher singing about the
Lord and salvation for more than an hour, this may not be the film
for you. It would have made a mighty good long-form short. But as a
film, I'd have been more interested in hearing what they went though
and the battles they faced than listening to a multitude of lengthy old-time spirituals.
Which
brings us to Juniper,
the final film of week one of pre-screening, another Spotlight Film
and star vehicle for Oscar Nominee Charlotte Rampling.
Rampling's
Ruth is an irascible woman of an older age, with a taste for gin that
can only be sated by consuming approximately a bottle each day. She
is also emotionally withholding, unable to express love towards
anyone who crosses her path. This holds especially true for her
immediate family. She sent her own son away to boarding school when
he was a child, and now that man's son, Ruth's grandson Sam, has been
picked up from his boarding school and is tasked by his father to
take care of his ailing grandmother. Sam's dad quickly leaves town,
so Sam shares the most unwelcome burden with Ruth's helper/nurse,
Sarah.
We've
seen similar characters as Ruth before; the scared older woman, alone
and afraid, lashing out. The development of a character such as
Ruth is, sadly, a common celluloid representation of older women.
However, in this case, when the final scene played out, there was not
a dry eye in the theater, which is both a testament to Rampling's
skill, and to the film's Director, Matthew J. Saville. During one
of her abusive tirades, Sam asks Ruth what she wants. Ruth replies,
“one last love affair”. Everyone chuckles, including Ruth. And
yet....things do play out unexpectedly.
But even after the film ended, I found myself stymied by the title, Juniper. So I did a deep dive and here's what I was able
to infer. It's more complex than just the fact that gin, Ruth's beverage of choice, is derived from the juniper tree. As a war photographer, Ruth survived and flourished amid the bleakest, most depressing environs on the planet. With little sustenance, the juniper tree can thrive in similarly harsh and
bare climes. The luscious berries are protected by bristly
needles; you cannot simply pluck them off the tree without getting stung in
return. Ah... all is now laid bare. Recommended, with tissues.
Lisa Blanck is the Associate Editor for In Focus Magazine. She's been a News Editor at NBC affiliate WESH2 in Orlando for more than a decade. She was formerly with WKMG6 for 14 years as a News Editor. She spent nine years in advertising, marketing, promotions and live special events at Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite and MTV Networks. She also worked as an on-air host for local cable access programs. Lisa has covered the Florida Film Festival for the past 30 years as well as the World Peace Film Festival. She was a columnist for Lady Freethinker, ShelterMe.tv and Examiner.com. She has been a columnist for the Focus In Newspaper and now for In Focus Magazine.
Lisa Blanck can be reached at: [email protected]