November 15–22, 2001

movies

Screenpicks

by Sam Adams

Released

(Nov. 20, 10:30 p.m.; Nov. 21, 2:30 a.m., DUTV Ch. 54)

Produced by one-time Swarthmore prof Alexandra Juhasz and featuring a segment on the making of Cheryl Dunye’s Stranger Inside, Released crams five short films into a half-hour of TV, all exploring the experiences of women inside the penal system. The more traditional documentary segments feel truncated and sometimes half-explained, and the points they set out to make — each segment is preceded by a brief statement of purpose — seem a bit entry level. But considering the lack of widespread attention on the subject, you can understand the filmmakers’ desire to make their case simply and quickly. Still, it’s a relief when the collection switches style with Breathe, an animated look inside a prisoner’s psyche. And though Dunye’s comments in Making the Invisible Invincible are a good deal less interesting than Stranger Inside itself, Irwin Swirnoff’s evocative Super-8 imagery gives her words added depth. If you miss it this time around, Released will be re-broadcast Dec. 18.

L’Atalante

(Wed., Nov. 21, 4:15 and 9:15 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 25, 4:15 p.m.; Mon., Nov. 26, 7 p.m., County Theater, 20 E. State St., Doylestown, 215-345-6789, www.countytheater.org)

One of the strangest, most wondrous films ever made, Jean Vigo’s 1934 work is like a trance transferred onto film. The story involves a barge captain who marries a young village girl and the confusion and discomfort of their life aboard his barge as it travels down the river. But it’s clear right from the beginning that literal interpretations won’t be of much use here. When the bride boards her home-to-be by swinging over the river on a boom — and still in her wedding dress, yet — you know you’re in for a wonderful ride. From the garrulous, tattoo-covered first mate to the mysteriously multiplying cats who crowd the barge more at every turn, Vigo loads the film with perplexing, even indecipherable elements, but unlike, say, Mulholland Dr., L’Atalante doesn’t thunk you on the head with each new cool image, and it doesn’t even promise that you’ll be able to figure anything out. In this restored 89-minute print — a 10-minute introduction details how the film was butchered after the 29-year-old Vigo’s death from tuberculosis — Vigo moves with lightness and whimsical grace, tinged always by a hint of deepest melancholy. (On one level, the film is simply about two people who’ve married rashly and aren’t quite sure if they can stand each other.) After watching the film in May, I walked out of the theater with an unusual sensation: I had no idea what to think of it. That in itself is a rare enough experience to be worth pursuing, but L’Atalante grows in the mind. There’s no telling what a second viewing will do.

Termite TV

(Mon., Nov. 19, 7 p.m., County Theater, www.termite.org)

Philadelphia’s most ravenous video collective heads northwest for a showing of its ever-expanding "Life Stories" project. Currently at work on a show about the Sept. 11 attacks, the Termites will be showing a handful of brief pieces on the same theme created for national PBS. And if you can tell your life story in under five minutes, you’ll have a chance to do it for the camera.

MAESTRO!

(Fri.-Sun., Nov. 16–18, Prince Music Theater, 1412 Chestnut St., 215-569-9700, www.aivf.org/maestro/philadelphia.html)

A joint program of the Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers and the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture, this touring media arts celebration — if you’re not capped out, it stands for Media Arts Environmental Scanning Tour of Regional Organizations — is basically a series of workshops and screenings aimed at building and showcasing Philadelphia’s independent film community. Or, you can just go for the free beer.

In addition to discussions like "Group Therapy for Artists!", the weekend features a handful of great local work. Friday night at 7, show up for "Philadelphia Local Making All Stops," a shorts showcase featuring Sean McBride’s That Special Monkey, Nadine Patterson’s LoqueeshaAshley FranklinJoséBrown (an accompaniment to Ursula Rucker’s spoken word piece), Lisa Nelson’s Nappy Stories, a video by Philadelphia Student Union and Schmidt’s, a "eulogy" to the once-mighty Schmidt’s Brewery by Termite TV’s Dorothea Braemer. $7 gets you the movies and free Victory suds.

The highlight of Saturday’s programs (which start off with a talk on DV-to-35mm transfers and a panel on media advocacy) is "Pitching to the Pros: The Art of Selling Your Product" (3-6 p.m., $12). Panelists from HBO, MTV, WHYY, WYBE and TLA (how’s that for caps?) will discuss what gets their attention and what makes them fiddle in their leather chairs, then watch and critique a half-dozen pre-selected pitch artists. That’s followed by a screening of Chris Deaux and Chris Emmanouilides’ Talk Fast ($5). Even if you’ve had your fill of stories about the cruelty of the biz, Deaux and Emmanouilides’ documentary finds a fresh approach to a familiar story — in this case, by focusing on Pitchmart, a biannual script fair where production executives take turns listening to would-be William Goldmans trying to cram the strangest of ideas into a two-minute spiel. Most surprising is the presence of Candace Hilligoss, star of the creepy cult classic Carnival of Souls, who’s now trying to sell a story about South Dakotans trying to live through the Dust Bowl years. Wynnewood’s Deaux and Philly’s Emmanouilides (both employees of Arch Street’s Banyan Productions) will be on hand, and the evening closes out with drinks at Nodding Head.

Sunday starts with more panels (check online for complete schedule), then closes out at 8 with Kathleen Harty’s Smoke and Mirrors, which stars Vera Beren as a Cuban lesbian who’s thrown out of the country in 1962, moves to Miami and is forced by the government to assassinate a series of sex symbols, rock stars and high-powered businessmen. The film, which Harty was still tweaking at press time, is set in Cuba, Miami and L.A., but was shot entirely in Philadelphia on DV and features John Lumia as the obnoxious boyfriend of a Marilyn-ish waitress. $5, or free with a ticket to Talk Fast.

The Ref

(Tue., Nov. 20, 7:30 p.m., free, Chestnut Hill Free Library, 8711 Germantown Ave., www.armcinema25.com/tuesdaynights.html)

If only because it’s one of the most vicious, gnarled holiday movies ever to come down the snow-covered pike, I’ve always had a soft spot for this particular slice of poisoned fruitcake. While Denis Leary’s performance is miles beyond irritating, Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis have rarely had a chance to bare their fangs as fully as they do here; you get giddy on their venom. A married couple whose life has degenerated into a suburban nightmare, they’re so desperately unhappy that you have to laugh at them (which is better than doing the American Beauty mope). Unrepentantly black yet rarely mean-spirited outside of Leary’s self-righteous diatribes, it’s the kind of movie you wish Hollywood would get away with more often.