Capone's Art-House Round-Up with A BRILLIANT YOUNG MIND, GOODNIGHT MOMMY, and THE BLACK PANTHERS: VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION!!!

Hey, folks. Capone in Chicago here, with a few films that are making their way into art houses or coming out in limited release around America this week (maybe even taking up one whole screen at a multiplex near you). Do your part to support these films, or at least the good ones…


A BRILLIANT YOUNG MIND
Rough around the edges but fairly easy to handle overall, A BRILLIANT YOUNG MIND (known in some parts of the world and festival circuits as X+Y) is the story of young math genius Nathan (Asa Butterfield of HUGO and ENDER’S GAME), who also happens to fall on the Aspergers's syndrome spectrum, making it difficult for him to communicate with and read the expressions of even those closest to him. The one person he always had a bond with was his father, but in an early scene, the father dies in a car accident, leaving Nathan in the hands of his caring, overworked and overly attentive mother Julie (Sally Hawkins).

When Nathan's true potential in math begins to surface, he attracts the attention of a teacher at his school, Martin Humphreys (Rafe Spall), a former math whiz himself who sees Nathan's potential to make it all way to the UK national team at the International Mathematics Olympiad. While Julie is somewhat frustrated that Nathan responds better to Martin than to her due to their math connection, she's also somewhat relieved, especially when Mr. Humphreys takes a liking to her as well.

Nathan makes the team and travels for the first time alone to, of all places, Taiwan where he must learn to be social and fend for himself in many situations. In Taiwan, he meets the coach of the British team, Richard (Eddie Marsan) as well as Zhang Mei (Jo Yang), the daughter of the Chinese coach, who seems to have a crush on Nathan—another new set of emotions for him to deal with while he's also attempting to hone his math skills so he can take a final exam that will determine whether he makes it into the actual international competition.

Butterfield is the perfect choice for Nathan since he's always seemed mature for his age as an actor. Nathan's angst-ridden face and super-serious manner seem a natural fit for Butterfield, who seems to be drawing a bit from Luke Treadaway's performance in the UK production of the play “The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time” (also about an autistic math genius). Director Morgan Matthews (an established documentary filmmaker making his feature debut) takes a fairly straight-forward approach to the material, although he tends to let his camera linger a bit longer on the serene, colorful scenes in Taiwan, as one would expect.

I particularly liked the way James Graham's screenplay allows the supporting players to have lives of their own (to a degree) outside of revolving around Nathan. In particular, the relationship between Martin and Julie has an extra dimension beyond just being a pairing of convenience; Martin has his own health issues that cause him a great deal of anxiety and mental anguish, and Julie helps to soothe him in a way he desperately requires.

A BRILLIANT YOUNG MIND also wraps up in a way I hadn't anticipated, and I'm always happy to give a film a few points for surprising me. Nathan is certainly an unlikely protagonist, and his abrasive tendencies may simply grate certain audience members the wrong way, but the second half of the film, as Nathan learns to be more independent, is ultimately what makes the film successful as a unique coming-of-age story.


GOODNIGHT MOMMY
This film is a classic example of the less you know going in the better. I'm going to do my job as a critic and not reveal too much detail regarding the plot of this shocker of an Austrian horror film, GOODNIGHT MOMMY, a film that asks impossible questions about identity and guilt. The film begins with twin 9-year-old brothers Elias and Lukas (played by real-life twin brothers Lukas and Elias Schwarz) playing in the fields that partially surround their family's country home.

Their unnamed mother (Susanne Wuest) has just come home from a round of substantial cosmetic surgery, which we assume was voluntary since there are indications that she is a television personality and might be more apt to have a few things nipped and tucked. Her face is entirely bandaged, and before long, the boys have convinced themselves that this woman is not their mother. What begins as suspicion becomes full-out subversive behavior, which is made all the worse by the fact that the mother clearly favors one of the boys, almost refusing to acknowledge the other when she gets angry.

GOODNIGHT MOMMY becomes a series of encounters and small tests that escalate into something so much worse before it's over. Co-writers/directors Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz have an uncanny gift for pacing and atmosphere, and when we eventually realize that we will see the mother's face before the end of the film, it's also clear that the boys have worked themselves up into such a frenzy that no matter who they see under those bandages, they won't believe this woman is their mother.

The Schwarz brothers are absolutely terrifying, and there isn't an inch of their performance in which they are attempting to be that way. There's just something in the combination of their good looks, dead eyes, and conspiratorial nature that makes you completely sure that they are capable of the worst things. It's an awful and absolute necessary feeling to have as an audience member, and it makes GOODNIGHT MOMMY great. Lovers of full-on creepy, moody, original horror are going to eat this one up and want more from this highly effective directing team.


THE BLACK PANTHERS: VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION
You've heard the names. You might even know some of the stories. But the sweeping documentary THE BLACK PANTHERS: VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION pulls it all together in a stunning work that tracks the rise, the fall, and the lasting impact of the Black Panther Party, from its founding in 1966 Oakland to its fracturing and ultimate dissolution as several members fault over the direction and vision of an organization founded to put an end to police harassment.

Using a treasure trove of priceless and often uncensored archival footage, director Stanley Nelson (JONESTOWN, FREEDOM RIDERS) has assembled a more or less complete timeline for the group, best known by some for providing free breakfasts for young school children in communities across the country. But Nelson also covers some of the Party's most vocal and, as a result, most targeted members, including Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale, David Hilliard, as well as Fred Hampton, who was gunned down during a police and FBI raid. A major component of this film is how FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover specifically targeted the Panther Party, planting informers in their offices and running a well-organized, divide-and-conquer campaign.

VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION also examines the inner workings of the party, from the development of its 10-point program/list of demands from the government to the way women in the Party had an additional fight on their hands attempting to be treated as equals among their male counterparts, despite the fact that a majority of party members were women. The film gets into detail about the Panthers' practice of carrying guns and how they brandished them when the police were spotted unjustly bothering someone. The movie digs into everything from dress codes to the way the Party began to influence elections, even running its members in various local contests.

VANGUARD OF THE REVOLUTION is also a tale of dissension, from within and without, and the Party's ultimate demise is both unfortunate and inevitable, as members begin being labeled domestic terrorists, stockpiling weapons and planning the overthrow of the government. They didn't stand a chance, but their emphasis on pride and giving back are still evident in many cities. The more recent interviews for former Panther Party members are not your run-of-the-mill talking head pieces. There is still a fire in these people that is evident and vital, and it spreads throughout this exceptional work.

-- Steve Prokopy
"Capone"
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