DANCES WITH THE ARTHOUSE: The Long Dark January of the Independent Soul

December 21st, 2007 · No Comments

Greetings everyone, bitter 2007 film buffs disappointed with the year that is coming to an end, or satisfied spectators ready to embark on another exciting year in movies. 2008 is approaching, and, in Fantasy Moguls, just as in Hollywood, there are no weeks off. Films keep opening, players keep strategizing and columnists keep … well … columning. (Oh come on, that could be a word!).

So here I am with the first Dances with the Arthouse to delve into 2008. I know, I know, January isn’t the most exciting month of the year when it comes to the movies. In fact, when it comes to independent films, quality won’t be as much of an issue as quantity. There’s just one film opening Jan. 4, and another one on Jan. 11. As I know that’s not really enough to keep you, me, or any real Hollywood hot shot (oh yes, they read my columns … well … one can dream) happy, I’ll also be regaling you with my insights about a film opening in March.

Sometimes you forget how important a title can be for a film. Whether because it’s good, bad, long, sharp, dumb, funny, intriguing or just dull, a title can make an impact, can draw attention (or have precisely the opposite effect). The Killing of John Lennon (Jan. 2) is one strong title. Maybe a little abrupt, but certainly clear and easy to remember. And with the name of the late Beatle in it, you can be sure that this is a film that won’t go unnoticed. Written and directed by TV helmer Andrew Piddington, this British production was launched at the Edinburgh Film Festival back in summer 2006, before heading to the States this year. It arrived in New York last spring, at the Tribeca Film Festival, where it won a Special Jury Prize.

Do I really need to tell you what the film is about? I’m sure you guessed all by yourself (did the title help?), but for the benefit of everyone who’s been wandering in the Gobi Desert for the last 50 years and never heard of Lennon … The Killing of John Lennon recounts Mark Chapman’s plan to kill John Lennon, which came to fruition back when I was a baby boy (OK, actually I wasn’t even born yet). That would be John Lennon the former co-leader of The Beatles, one of the biggest music bands ever. (Another update for those who’ve just gotten back from the desert.) (I don’t have enough time to tell you all the other things you missed, ask someone else.) Chapman seems to interest filmmakers these days, as another film, with Jared Leto in the lead, that takes aim at more or less the same subject (Chapter 27, presented at Sundance in January) should open in theaters this spring.

Tribeca’s buzz, a few solid reviews and the film’s strong theme should make up for the lack of cinematic “names” associated to the project. Will that be enough for Ultimate Moguls players to put $7 on it? This sort of “small time” indie is often easily overlooked by spectators, but The Killing of John Lennon has a couple of trump cards: First of all, there won’t be anything else that’s brand new on this weekend; and second, a very limited release. The Killing of John Lennon is scheduled to open in just one theater in New York. Strong holdover business for films like There Will Be Blood and Persepolis may prevent it from hitting gold, but the Andrew Piddington drama could score one or two PTA points. The User Rating, currently at 7.4 with fewer than 100 votes, should settle in the high 6s.

A week later comes a film (not available in December-February Fantasy Moguls leagues, but let’s hope it will be in play when the January-March leagues get here) that should make some (discreet?) noise thanks to the brouhaha it caused in its native country. The film is Summer Palace (Jan. 11), the country is China. Those of you who follow the Cannes Film Festival may recognize that name, as the film was selected on the Croisette in May 2006, in competition for the Palme d’Or. The Chinese government, as you may already know, is very picky when it comes to cinema, especially about allowing foreign films to be distributed in China, or about allowing filmmaker to shoot their films in China.

Lou Ye is a director who’s had some difficulties with his country’s officials in the past. In 2000, his feature Suzhou River won him a two-year banishment from directing in China. Six years later, the Chinese filmmaker once again faced up to the Powers That Be with Summer Palace, a historical and romantic epic that follows a young country girl leaving her small village for 1980s Beijing, embracing university, love, revolution and many more of the adventures you might expect out of a true, dense human saga. Summer Palace is far from being a perfect film, but the sincerity of the director, and his ability to forge a strong historical, political and social film on the basis of a moving human adventure make it a must-see for cinephiles in need of an intelligent and dense film (the running time is 140 minutes).

Apparently, Chinese Officials did not appreciate that Lou Ye brought Summer Palace to Cannes without first showing it to them, and when they finally saw it, they didn’t like the way the 1989 Tiananmen incidents were portrayed. As a result, in September 2006, Lou Ye was officially, once again, banned from making films in China, only this time not for two years, but for the next five years. All of this makes the film rather more interesting, and it will also probably boost its PTA a bit. As it surely won’t open in many theaters, it might be strong enough, in this desert of a month, to grab a PTA point (accompanied by a decent User Rating). If it becomes available in the January-March leagues, it might be interesting to have it on your slate, though only if it’s cheap.

As I can’t bring myself to chronicle just two movies when covering two weeks, I thought I might make a jump in time to sample the early vibe of another nice-looking indie film. And I set my heart on Snow Angels (March 7), the fourth feature film by David Gordon Green.

Some of you have probably noticed by now my admiration for Terrence Malick’s films. And some of you probably know by now that David Gordon Green could be perceived as a spiritual Padawan of Malick’s, absorbed in the making of deliberate, visually lavish films, and the creation of a specific cinematic atmosphere. The comparison is even more natural if you know that Malick produced Green’s most recent film, Undertow.

If 2008 will mark an unexpected comedic turn in David Gordon Green’s career, thanks to next summer’s Pineapple Express (written by and starring Seth Rogen), Snow Angels will remind people once again what an accurate and poetic bard of small-town America Green is.The film interweaves the lives of a teenager discovering love, a 30-something woman having an affair with a colleague’s husband, and her ex-husband trying to win her and their daughter back.

If we review David Gordon Green previous films’ box-office results, George Washington, All the Real Girls and Undertow, then it’s pretty clear the man still needs to find an audience, having yet to encounter any kind of public success. Pineapple Express should have no problem selling tickets, but that will be a tougher task for Snow Angels. Warner Independent Pictures, which acquired distribution rights to the film, will probably hope that Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell, who topline the feature, can help attract filmgoers. We’ll take another look at it in a couple of months.

As you can see, 2008 will begin slowly. Like every year, distribs fear New Year’s Eve hangovers (long ones apparently, lasting several weeks). Speaking of hangovers, next week will be a 2007 recap for Dances with the Arthouse, surveying what films went wrong or quickly vanished into oblivion, and which ones showed class and burned brightly in the independent skies of 2007. I’ll tell you my personal foavrites, you’ll tell me yours. Heck, maybe Terrence Malick will pass by and tell us his. As I’m fond of saying, one can dream …

Indie Jones knows that it’s a fool who plays it cool by making his world a little colder. Remember to let him into your heart at danceswiththearthouse@gmail.com.

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