It’s easy to judge young men who hang out at skateboard parks. “Get a job” we like to say and we look at them as children afraid to grow up, many times. But what about murder? The tragically hip youth of the millennials and Generation Y’s must come under scrutiny and judgement when murder is committed, mustn’t they?

Paranoid Park (2007)
R | 1h 25min | Crime, Drama, Mystery | 24 October 2007 (France)

A teenage skateboarder’s life begins to fray after he is involved in the accidental death of a security guard.
Director: Gus Van Sant
Writers: Gus Van Sant (screenplay), Blake Nelson (novel)
Stars: Gabe Nevins, Daniel Liu, Taylor Momsen

Gus Van Sant (“Good Will Hunting”) is our director here and he is doing what he is great at: simply showing us an average day-in-the-life of his protagonist. When he picks up his skateboard to take with him on his journey, we are taken with him. We follow him, taking notes in this mystery. As the detective starts to unravel the facts, you may guess who the killer is before anyone in the room. Or, you may just postpone your judgement, waiting to see some hint of emotion in the protagonist’s eyes that will reveal it for you. You’ll be waiting forever.

This young man is cold and not innocent. There is something about him I hate in myself: laziness and indifference. If you find yourself cheering for him, I would question why. The final act serves to seal the deal of what I am trying to say about him. In the end we are left with the question of how should we view such a person and are we all like him in some way, a way we must avoid? This was an engaging film. I don’t think I’d recommend it in a huge way but it has an amazing director and the characters are certainly developed, when they’re supposed to be. I gave this one an 8/10 for the interested crowd.

Frigid is a word to describe the girl in high school who won’t have sex with you. She always has other plans like her future, college, volunteering, a job. You might use the word to describe a wife that is never interested in sex. I don’t recall ever hearing this word used to describe men. I’m not sure why that is. Plenty of men don’t want to have sex. I’m not sure what you would describe them as.

As a closing thought, isn’t it strange how the frigid girls and wives usually end up the most successful? Maybe we put too much emphasis on sex.

from Damien Riley’s Blog https://blog.damienriley.com/frigid/
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Name that movie!

Churn is what you do when you know the whole school has an idea about you that is false. You also know something you said as a white lie in confidence to a friend got “leaked” and the rumor mill ran with it. You know as a rational person it will fade and the rumor will be fixed but for now, everywhere you walk on campus you think people are saying to themselves, “There’s that floozy.” What’s more, you’re still a virgin.

from Damien Riley’s Blog https://blog.damienriley.com/rumor-that-makes-her-churn/
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Mike Leigh is a different sort of cool director. As I watched this film I kept thinking, “Something’s different about this movie.” It’s certainly a great and entertaining drama comedy but there is one big “under the hood” aspect that really makes it special.

Life Is Sweet (1990)
R | 1h 43min | Comedy, Drama | December 1991 (USA)

A waitress, her cook husband, & their twin daughters ponder their lives over a few weeks in a working-class suburb north of London.
Director: Mike Leigh
Writer: Mike Leigh
Stars: Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Claire Skinner

When Mike Leigh makes a film, he hires the cast without a script. From there, he pays the actors to improv with the basic story and develop their own script which is later used for the movie. This is organic and it promises to make the film more human and realistic I think. The film doesn’t have a twist and there is no notable escalating of action. It works perfectly as is.

Seeing Jim Broadbent in this recalls Harry Potter. He is so much younger in this though. All the actors in this went on to have hearty UK roles in TV shows and movies. If you like British media, this would be a walk down memory lane for you to see these actors in their youth. We learn lessons like one parent is often a better provider than the other and there may be something wrong with a twin sister that we didn’t realize as a result of her odd behavior. She’s not just stuck in post-adolescence.

In keeping with the style of organic writing, the script is just people living their lives. You pay more attention to their wallpaper as they talk than to clues to solve any mysteries, because there are none. You do experience people who love each other and do what it takes to keep the day to day going. Isn’t that what we’re all doing, if we’re lucky?

This film was very enjoyable and I give it an 8/10.

The post Life is Sweet appeared first on Riley on Film.

from Damien Riley’s Blog https://blog.damienriley.com/life-is-sweet/
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Mike Leigh is a different sort of cool director. As I watched this film I kept thinking, “Something’s different about this movie.” It’s certainly a great and entertaining drama comedy but there is one big “under the hood” aspect that really makes it special.

Life Is Sweet (1990)
R | 1h 43min | Comedy, Drama | December 1991 (USA)

A waitress, her cook husband, & their twin daughters ponder their lives over a few weeks in a working-class suburb north of London.
Director: Mike Leigh
Writer: Mike Leigh
Stars: Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Claire Skinner

When Mike Leigh makes a film, he hires the cast without a script. From there, he pays the actors to improv with the basic story and develop their own script which is later used for the movie. This is organic and it promises to make the film more human and realistic I think. The film doesn’t have a twist and there is no notable escalating of action. It works perfectly as is.

Seeing Jim Broadbent in this recalls Harry Potter. He is so much younger in this though. All the actors in this went on to have hearty UK roles in TV shows and movies. If you like British media, this would be a walk down memory lane for you to see these actors in their youth. We learn lessons like one parent is often a better provider than the other and there may be something wrong with a twin sister that we didn’t realize as a result of her odd behavior. She’s not just stuck in post-adolescence.

In keeping with the style of organic writing, the script is just people living their lives. You pay more attention to their wallpaper as they talk than to clues to solve any mysteries, because there are none. You do experience people who love each other and do what it takes to keep the day to day going. Isn’t that what we’re all doing, if we’re lucky?

This film was very enjoyable and I give it an 8/10.

I haven’t done a long written review on this one so I am posting the podcast I recorded. After picking this film based on its Metacritic score, I watched and learned of a unique talent in our times: Harvey Pekar (pronounced “Peek-are”). Listen to the episode below.

He was a comics artist who lived the artist’s life. I was hugely inspired by his story and specifically, Paul Giamatti’s portrayal of him in this film. I give it easily a 10/10 but be aware it is droll and sometimes very nerdy. In other words, it’s not for everyone. The film really touched me though and I talk about how at length in this episode. Thanks for listening, may Harvey Pekar rest in peace. My next film for commentary is “About Schmidt.” See you next time.

from Riley on Film https://rileyonfilm.com/ep-69-american-splendor/
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