Movies You May Have Missed: 10/26/08
Brian Cox in Red
With another DVD new release Tuesday around the corner, here’s a look at some of films you may have missed when they played in theaters.
Red *** 1/2
This little low-budget number snuck in and out of theaters at the tail end of an exhausting summer season. It’s a simple, pulpy tale about a man exacting revenge for the murder of his dog. It’s mainly worth noting because it gives the terrific Brian Cox the chance to carry a film and he doesn’t disappoint. It’s a modest film and imperfect, but Cox is good. Read the whole LiC review here.
Billy the Kid
Jennifer Venditti’s documentary portrait of a troubled 15-year-old won the documentary prize at the LA Film Festival in 2007. I wish I could come up with a more compelling blurb, but I can’t. It’s pulling a solid 75 at Metacritic though.
Body of War
Documentary about Tomas Young who signed up for the US military on September 13, 2001, was paralyzed by a bullet in Iraq and returned home to become an anti-war activist. Back when this film was navigating the festival circuit in 2007 and even when it hit theaters in April 2008, there was a different urgency to the war in Iraq. Now there is relative calm on the ground and people are distracted by our own (and the world’s) economy running off the rails. Suddenly, Iraq is off the front page.
Elite Squad
This Brazilian crime drama tells the story of an elite police force that combats the drug trafficking militias and corrupt cops who control the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. It won the Golden Bear at Berlin but reviews have been mixed.
Tuya’s Marriage
In the grasslands of Mongolia, when Tuya’s husband loses a leg in an accident and she herself is unable to work due to a back injury, their only hope is to divorce and find Tuya a new husband who can take care of them both. This is the kind of synopsis that drives people screaming from the arthouse, but it got some terrific reviews.
Filed under: DVD
Tags: Billy the Kid, Body of War, Brian Cox, Elite Squad, Jennifer Venditti, Red, Tomas Young, Tuya's Marriage
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Another movie that hits DVD Tuesday: A Walk Into the Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory
The director of the film is Williams’ niece, and it’s a very good documentary about his life, Andy Warhol and the New York art scene at large, as well as Williams’ mysterious death, and whether it was an accident, suicide, or if he even actually died.
I saw it at BAFICI (Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente) this year, and recommend it.
I’ll put Red, Billy the Kid and Tuya’s Marriage in my fake basket, thanks for the tip =)
More like “Movies You Definitely Missed” this week.
Out of those, I’ve only seen ELITE SQUAD,which I didn’t like. There are scenes of uncanny intelligence on the crime state of Brazil, but they’re mostly drowned out in the rest of the movie, which is loud and overindulgent. I liked Padilha’s BUS 174 a lot, but this pales by comparison.
My review of Billy the Kid will be up at MovieZeal on Tuesday. I gave it a 3/5; interesting subject, interesting film, but it didn’t grab me like I would have liked it to. Definitely an uber-niche offering.
I think all the listings this week are uber-niche offerings Phillip, but then that’s kind of the focus of the column.
I’d heard good things about a number of them, but just…couldn’t….quite…motivate to see them in theaters. Sometimes those are the perfect DVD rentals.
Thanks for the tip on Walk into the Sea, Michael. I’d never even heard of it.
Danny, I think Nick shared your opinion of Elite. It was on my list for LAFF, but something else always came up.
RED was barely passable…the rest, well, I won’t even go there.
The week’s biggest releases???
a Universal box set ($86 at Amazon) containing all 28 Abbott and Costello movies made at the studio with lavish packaging and book.
a similarly comprehensive collection of every vintage Little Rascals short previously released by Cabin Fever, (over 80) for a terrific price of $45.
I liked TUYA’S MARRIAGE quite a bit…I think I just have a thing for films about native Mongolian life starring non-actors…like THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL.
And like The Cave of the Yellow Dog.
Alison saw and recommended Tuya’s as well. I missed at MSPIFF, so glad to see it back on the radar here.