It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley

I struggle with how to assess documentaries in general. If you know nothing of the subject matter, then you should care about the subject matter by the end of the doc. At least that's how I feel about documentaries. Musical biographical docs are particularly tricky. Sometimes I worry that I'm biased. For example, earlier this year I blogged about Becoming Led Zeppelin. I love Led Zeppelin, so I was already invested. I still believe it to be a fascinating doc. Whereas I knew nothing about Jeff Buckley. I knew his name and I assumed I would know his music - I don't pay a great deal of attention to the names of songs and who sings what (or as much as should). I was expecting to hear songs that I knew and be like, "Oh yeah, so that's Jeff Buckley." However, those revelations did not come. I grew up in the grunge era, the same time Jeff Buckley was touring with his first album, Grace. Jeff's life is a fascinating one, trying to distinguish himself from his somewhat famous father, Tim Buckley, and yet wanting to have a relationship with a man who didn't want to have one with him. Jeff's musical tastes were all over the map, from Edith Piaf to Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, to his favourite, Led Zeppelin. Buckley had a friendship with Chris Cornell, and David Bowie called Grace the best album ever made. I had no idea about any of this. When Robert Plant told Buckley he was the next greatest thing since slice bread (I'm paraphrasing) Buckley turned white and disappeared for two days. Interviews conducted with ex-girlfriends and his mother tell a story of a brilliant young man with self doubt and lots of ambition. This is a portrait of a musical genius who left the world tragically too soon. This documentary will make you care, make you feel for a man you don't know, and that's the best a doc can do. Catch it in theatres now.  

Sorry, Baby

Writer, director, and star, Eva Victor needs to be nominated for all the awards this season. I'm truly impressed. I would say she is extraordinary, except after watching Sorry, Baby the word "extraordinary" might be triggering. This is a portrait of a woman, Agnes, an academic college professor of literature, who undergoes a traumatic event and its aftermath. It's personal. It's also funny despite the heavy subject matter. The characters are fully formed and the dialogue is very well written - natural, witty, and smart. Naomi Ackie plays Lydie, Agnes's best friend and trauma confidant. Lucas Hedges plays Gavin, the next-door neighbor and potential love interest. And then there is the small role of character actor, John Carroll Lynch as Pete, the sandwich maker. I love Lynch in everything he does. He always fills the frame with warmth (or terror, depending on the role). Sorry, Baby is a story about surviving trauma. It's also about healing and friendship. It's intelligent, funny, honest, and empathetic. It is another clear example of why I go to the movies. It will no doubt make my list of best films of the year. In Ottawa it was playing at the Bytwone (maybe it will come back). No doubt it is likely to show up at the Mayfair. And I know it's on order for rent at Movies 'N Stuff on Kilborn. Catch this one for sure. 

Inland Empire

Recently we lost filmmaker David Lynch. Here in Ottawa, the Mayfair Theatre has once again stepped up and has been putting on a David Lynch retrospective - applause, Mayfair; job well done. I had the good fortune to catch "Inland Empire," one of only two Lynch films I hadn't seen. I like weird, I like surreal. The films of Alejandro Jodorowsky for example, "The Holy Mountain" and "El Topo." And such recent wonders as, "Titane," and "Beau is Afraid." Lynch's other films, "Blue Velvet," "Wild at Heart," "Lost Highway," and "Mulholland Drive" all fall into this dreamscape world. "Inland Empire" might just be Lynch's most ambitious work. It's a movie about a dream, set inside a movie about a dream - maybe? Yes, that makes no sense, and neither does "Inland Empire." It might just be the strangest and most challenging of Lynch's works. Days later I'm still digesting it. Packed with strange situations and repeating themes, it's a mental workout in a gym where everyone suddenly breaks into dancing. Lynch is painting in dreams. As a result, sometimes it feels impenetrable, you're grasping for something to hold onto but the handrail has turned into a homeless person begging for change. This is not for you Marvel film goer. This might not be for those folks who like art films. This is for hardcore Lynch fans and people who like to sit around in coffee shops and pretentiously say, "I watched 'Inland Empire' and it was simply brilliant," (insert person sipping a cappuccino, pinky extended). I jest, although I think there might be some pretentious Criterion film nerd shit going on with anyone who says they love and/or understands this film. It's certainly a film I'm glad I saw and I think it may be Lynch's masterpiece, at least in his own mind, or did I dream that? Go rent it from Movie 'N Stuff here in Ottawa or watch it on the Criterion channel.  

Scarecrow (1973)

 As you are likely aware, we recently lost the great Gene Hackman. Here in Ottawa, the Mayfair Theatre (Ottawa's oldest movie theatre and my favourite place on earth) has been putting on a Gene Hackman retrospective to honour the late actor. Class act, Mayfair. Last night I went with a good friend to watch "Scarecrow," staring Hackman and a very young Al Pacino. I took film very seriously at a young age and there was a time when I sought to watch all the films of actors like Gene Hackman - if they weren't available for rent at my local video store, didn't play at the Mayfair, or weren't shown on TV, there was no other way to find them. "Scarecrow" was one of those films I missed. What a delight this movie is. From the opening shot, watching Hackman come down that sun-soaked hill to the credits, I thought, "They just don't make them like this anymore." Hackman plays an ex-con looking to open a car wash business and runs into Pacino, an ex-sailor. Their adventure begins. Part "Midnight Cowboy," part "Cool Hand Luke," part "The Last Detail," it's a whole lot of nostalgia - for both the actors, a time before cellphones, and an are when you could smoke a cigar inside a department store. I don't think it has the emotional punch of "Midnight Cowboy" but "Scarecrow" certainly features two wonderful performances by two great actors in their prime. Definitely a film to seek out. Go rent it from Movies 'N Stuff here in Ottawa.