Hey everyone! I'm back with my second round of short reviews for this year's South By Southwest Film Festival.

OBJECTIFIED

After loving Gary Hustwit's 2007 documentary Helvetica, I was eager to check out his latest design-doc Objectified. I figured if he could make an enlightening and entertaining feature about a font, then surely his next effort would follow suit.

The film is about industrial design and how it impacts nearly every moment of our lives. From brushing our teeth to sitting in a chair, every object that we use and see around us was once a sketch on the page of a designer. As one commentator quotes Henry Ford who said, "Every object has a story," the film aptly illustrates that while most of us take for granted the utility and usefulness of everyday objects, a most innovative and arduous design process is what initially brings even the most mundane tools and gadgets to fruition.

The film features interviews from a bevy of industrial design rock stars including a head honcho from Apple who dissects one of their latest computers to further help the audience get a sense of what type of thought process goes into the architecture of some of the most revered industrial design of today. The film ends on a rather poignant note where the commentators admit that today's design is not predicated on form and function alone as in the past, but on the whole new urgency to create more eco-friendly, sustainable products that won't end up in the land fill.

Though beautifully shot and executed, I'm afraid that the film just failed to completely draw me in. The beautiful cinematography and talking heads were just not enough to hold my attention this time around. While I enjoyed the mesmerizing sequences of plastic and metal being machined by a whirring army of robots like a shiny, souped-up version of How It's Made, and the various interviews by the design giants were interesting, I just felt that the overall effect was just a bit too hypnotizing. Unfortunately, a bit of relief actually swept over me as the final credits began to roll.

If you are a fan of industrial design, you'll probably really dig this one, but the rest of you may want to down a double espresso before viewing.

MOON

Wow. Moon is exactly what I needed to see. There's nothing quite like a small, but totally well done sci-fi film to get me really excited! I'm sure many of you have read about Moon already, but for those who haven't, here's the breakdown.

Earth's energy salvation has been discovered, and it is the clean-burning helium 3 that is being harvested by Lunar Industries on the far side of the moon. Under a 3 year contract to helm the day to day operations and maintenance at the actual site, Sam Bell is the solitary employee at the corporations lunar base. With a Hal-ish robotic computer as his only companion and his 3 year commitment coming to a close in mere weeks, it is apparent that the loneliness and isolation of space is beginning to take its toll on the otherwise dutiful worker. When weariness and longing for his wife and daughter back on earth get the best of him and an unexpected injury lands him in the infirmary, Sam begins to learn things about his current employment that throw him for a complete loop to say the very least. I would love to go on about what Sam discovers, but I will only say that it is a complete mind fuck that I wouldn't want to ruin for anyone who might see Moon. And, as far as I'm concerned, everyone needs to go see Moon.

Even if you're not a fan of sci-fi or films like Logan's Run or (of course) Silent Running to which Moon will inevitably be compared, Sam Rockwell is totally captivating in this incredible character study. As the story's Sam solo-commands the base, the actor Sam equally and even more masterfully captivates the audience for the duration of the entire film.

Director Duncan Jones totally creates a wonderfully tangible sci-fi universe with his debut feature. From the set design to the mostly practical visual effects, my hat is off to Jones for using what little budget he had and making the whole thing look fantastic. Not just terrific-for-a-low-budget, but terrific as in every director should take notice at how amazing practical effects can and should look and be utilized to make a movie come alive and not just look like a PlayStation game.

I really can't say enough about how much I loved this film. It's the overall package- from the story to the set design, from the effects to Rockwell's amazing performance- this film has it all. I hope you get the chance to see Moon and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Annette Kellerman