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A SLIPPING DOWN LIFE -- SXSW -- needs distribution!
For the rest of the reviews of SOUTH BY
SOUTHWEST, I’m going to attempt to try to stick to
the reviews, and not go off as much as I did
yesterday. This is... to facilitate the ability and time
to write the reviews themselves, lest some get away
from me.
Yesterday I saw two excellent movies, here, I’ll
review the first of them.
A SLIPPING DOWN LIFE.
First off, before I get into this I have a wish to make.
I wish this movie wasn’t shot locally for one reason...
So you wouldn’t think there was any of that... how to
say it... well localized loving that often times happens
with critics and movies filmed in their area. And to
tell the truth, this film doesn’t look anything like
Austin, but rather it was shot in and around here. But
it could’ve looked like Georgia or Louisiana or just
about any southern world. (The film is set in Georgia
btw)
I never went to the set, I was invited but the time got
away from me. It would have been a wonderful set to
visit I assure you though. The spirit and love in this
film is so tangible that it had to come from a loving
set.
The movie does not have distribution for some insane
reason. It was shown up in Sundance and was
nominated for the Grand Jury Prize... and till I see the
one that won... well...
For me, thus far this year, THIS movie is my favorite.
Lili Taylor and Guy Pearce are sooooo good in this
movie that it just killed me.
Lili Taylor is one of those actresses that comes along
only if you clap your hands and think a happy
thought... she’s magical... but so tangible and real. In
my opinion there isn’t another actress on the planet as
honest feeling on screen as her. The shyness, the
clumsy, the insanity, the heart pangs she illicits and
the laughs feel genuine.
I’m not going to spoil anything in this movie for ya,
but it feels a bit like a co-production of Tim
Burton-John Waters-Coen Brothers.
Taking place in that common world where characters
are not just folks like you and me... In fact... they are
exactly like us. The do stupid impulsive things that
we give passing thoughts to, but they give reality to
their fancies.
For example, this isn’t something in the movie, but
have you ever had a ring on your finger that wouldn’t
come off... No matter how hard you pulled or twisted,
lubrication didn’t do anything. Soaking your hand in
water didn’t do it. And you thought.... “Maybe I
should just chop it off?”
Well, if you had that thought in this movie... you may
very well end up chopping your finger off.
This movie is my favorite type of comedy. You
might remember during the Tarantino Film Festival,
we talked... God Harry, we didn’t talk... you typed...
Anyway... I discussed the type of film that would
make you laugh and laugh and laugh... then your
heart would be torn out... you’d be sobered then
laughing again and again.
This film is so solid in that respect that you have to
stand back and look at this FIRST TIME director and
writer Toni Kalem and think... DAMN WHERE’D
SHE COME FROM?
You see this movie is a film that I think Penny
Marshall has been trying to make for a while, but
never as adept as Toni has here. Toni seemed to
intuitively know exactly where the fence was dividing
comedy and drama and managed to gerrymander it so
that it could mix in a very very very great way.
The laughs in this film will hurt you, and pathos and
drama is as affecting as you’ll see. Oh.... then there is
Guy Pearce’s singing...
WHAT?
Well... I won’t say how or why, but just that he sings
in this film... alot. And I want the damn CD. It
doesn’t exist, the rights haven’t been sold yet, but
goddammmmmmmmn, this film has a lot of crossover
appeal if you know what the hell you are doing.
Lili Taylor has her first BIG film this summer with
THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE. If you
realease this film in the September or October world
it could very well perform. I’m not going to comment
on the audience because there were a lot of locals
associated with the production there.... But I just can’t
imagine this film not having broad appeal.
Well.... Next I go onto my next film.... ABILENE...
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I have a friend who is in this movie, and he says it got booed at Sundance. He may very well be wrong, but I have no clue as to why it'd be nominated for the Grand Jury prize when everyone at the festival thoroughly hated it. maybe he just got the wrong impression, but he was there, and he said they booed at the screen on more than one occasion. Anyway, I'll see it if Harry likes it.
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"Everyone at Sundance" did not hate A Slipping-Down Life!!! A number of those who attended the film festival -- including Kenneth Turan of the L.A. Times, Andrea Basora of Newsweek Online, Patrick McGaven of The Hollywood Reporter and Karen Hershenson of the Contra Costa Times -- had very good things to say about the film. And there sure wasn't any booing at the Sundance screening I attended!
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Dear Harry,
I wish you had come to the set. You were dead on about the loving environment. I have been a script supervisor for ten years and I have never felt so happy to go to work-Toni set the tone...just wanted to help her tell her tale.
Thanks for your perception and for seeing the film -
Did not SDL, but hear it is good. DEAD PET fuckin' rocked the Dobe on SAturday. Other screenings are Wednesday @ 4:15 pm at the Dobe 3 and Saturday at the ALAMO at 10 pm. Also good are THE HANK GREENBERG STORY (if you like American Heros and baseball), DRYLONGOSO (Colleen Smith is one of the 10 FilmMakers to Watch from Sundance 99), and for PORN, the ANNABEL CHONG STORY (I spent sometime with her after the screening on Saturday and she is suprissingly smart. Take care and see some good films.
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Yes this film got some great reviews at Sundance, I missed the SXSW show but I've only heard good things about it. So when it is eventually released everyone go see it and support the Austin film scene and DVC Entertainment!!
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Didn't get out to Sundance this year to see it, but I can't believe what I hear was done to the original story. Aging the characters to Lili's age?? A sacrilege, if you've read the original. It could have remained faithful to the book and still been a fantastic film.
Read the book, Harry -- I know you loved the film (and I hope I get a chance to see it myself) but I hate when a story is changed just to get "stars" or because someone decides it won't be viable by remaining true to the original source.
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