SXSW Preview: Ten Must-See Narrative Features (Part Two)

Scott Von Doviak — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 17:00:00 GMT

Can there possibly be more SXSW Film Festival preview? Why, yes! We have five more narrative features that may be of interest you.

MODERN LOVE IS AUTOMATIC

This looks like fun – two roommates, one a nurse, the other a mattress salesman. Loraine “is drawn into a secret, seedy world of lonely men, cheap motel rooms, and whips and chains” while Adrian “dreams of becoming a glamorous fashion model.” Director Zach Clark tells eFilmCritic, “I like to make movies about things that are awesome” and promises full frontal nudity in the first ten minutes. The title comes from a Flock of Seagulls song, but let’s not hold that against it.

(Screens March 15th at 7:30 pm, Alamo Ritz, March 19th at 9 pm, March 21st at 7:15 pm, Alamo South)

THE PARANOIDS

Luciano is an aspiring screenwriter in Buenos Ares who is shocked to learn he’s the basis for a character on the hit TV show The Paranoids, produced by his childhood friend Manuel. “When Manuel leaves on a business trip to Chile, his beautiful new girlfriend Sofia (Jazm’n Stuart) decides to stay with Luciano, a turn of events that amounts to a nightmare for her fearful host.”

(Screens March 16th at 2:30 pm, Alamo Ritz, March 19th at 2:15 pm, Alamo South)

PONTYPOOL

Canadian director Bruce McDonald (Highway 61, Hard Core Logo) returns with a blood-soaked zombie tale he insists is not a horror movie. I know, it seems like the day is fast approaching when there will be nothing but zombie movies, but McDonald insists this one is different. It has “elements of screwball comedy…a little French semiotics ... a little political allegory. ... It's a very curious movie.”

(Screens March 14th & 15th at 11:59 pm, Alamo South)

SPLINTERHEADS

Producer Darren Goldberg describes Splinterheads as “a cross between a punk rock romance and a balls-out comedy set in a carnival.” Small town schmoe Justin Frost (Thomas Middleditch) falls for “sexy con artist” Galaxy (Rachael Taylor, hubba hubba), and wackiness ensues. Turkey legs optional.

(Screens March 14th at 7 pm, Alamo Ritz, March 17th at 1:30 pm, Paramount Theater, March 19th, 12 pm, Alamo South)

THE SQUARE

Former stuntman Nash Edgerton’s directorial debut is already available on DVD in its native Australia, but it has its North American premiere at SXSW. It’s a neo-noir about a construction supervisor and his mistress who get in over their heads when they steal from her criminal husband. “In an escalating spiral of blackmail, kickbacks, cover-ups, arson and murder, they find themselves in a nightmare of unforeseen events stemming from their simple plan.”

(Screens March 13th at 7 pm, Alamo South)

Part One

Movies We Missed: Transformers (2007)

Peter Smith — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 20:00:00 GMT

Wait a second, you say, what the hell do you mean a movie "we" missed? With box office tallies swelling to over $700M worldwide (pre-DVD!) it's pretty obvious that this one didn't exactly fly under the radar. But admittedly being somewhat of a film snob and guessing that many Screengrab readers and writers may fit in the same category, I thought this might just fit the bill. Who knows, without a thirteen-hour flight to sit through, I may never have discovered this effects heavy, pleasant surprise of a mega-blockbuster myself.

Why we missed it:
Director Michael Bay's last attempt, The Island, was a waste of film, not to mention millions of dollars, and would probably make many people's Top 10 "I Want My Time and Money Back" lists.

As a child of the '80s, (and a proud fan of Clash of the Titans) these all-CGI-all-the-time movies can be more nuisance and nonsense than popcorn classics.

Why we should have known:
As a child of the '80s, I should have remembered one simple fact. Transformers = AWESOME!

Why we ended up kicking ourselves:
A well-cast group of actors, led by the likable Shia LaBeouf, who carries the movie with his manic chattering and off-track humor. For men, there's the jailbait vision of Megan Fox and the fresh face of Rachael Taylor. For women there are ebony-and-ivory hunks Tyrese and Josh Duhamel. And for fans of Kangaroo Jack, there's Anthony Anderson.

The big-budget effects work much better in a story about alien robots than they do for those centered around superheroes or snakes. The Transformers themselves actually manage to integrate well with actors and real settings making for some very satisfying action sequences.

The movie rests on a simple but effective formula that seems unearthed from an '80s blueprint itself. Think Back to the Future and/or any of the countless other movies where the social nobody/nice-guy fuck-up turns out to be a lovable hero who saves the world and gets the girl, by using nerd knowledge and inner strength that nobody knew he had in him. It still works because there are more Shia LaBeoufs than Will Smiths in the world.

Why we may have been better off without it:
Believe it or not, indie stalwart John Turturro is the film's weak link as an overzealous cop.

There is probably an age cap on this one. If you were an adult when kids were playing with the toys, you probably didn't get it then, and it's unlikely you'll feel much different now. But to the film's credit, it's able to bring a young generation of fans up to date with the franchise much better than the many other movie attempts at reviving old TV favorites. (Dukes of Hazzard anyone?)

— Bryan Whitefield

The Screengrab : rachael taylor

SXSW Preview: Ten Must-See Narrative Features (Part Two)

Movies We Missed: Transformers (2007)