Once is a unique film about a singer-songerwriter in Dubln who works at his dad’s vacuum repair shop and spends the rest of his time busking on a street corner with his guitar. He eventually meets a girl and tries to make more of his music, and that’s pretty much the whole story. The film has been described as a musical because whenever the guy sings a song, we hear the whole thing. If you like the music, the full songs will work for you. I’m not going to go out and buy the soundtrack, but I still got into everything about this movie because it looks and feels like a documentary with characters who seem like real people. The plot (if you want to call it that) doesn’t feel contrived. You meet these people, you like them and you want find out what happens to them. It’s a simple equation that works on a nice, quiet, genuine level. It’s not a visually spectacular movie, but it doesn’t need to be. Once — once it gets noticed — is likely to become a favourite of independent singer-songwriters everywhere.
Black Snake Moan is definitely the coolest movie of 2007. This movie sweats cool. From Berardinelli’s review: “Black Snake Moan… opens with a hot sex scene followed shortly thereafter by the sight of a girl writhing on the ground in apparent sexual frustration. Later, there’s booze and blues and black-and-blue marks. There’s a (white) girl in chains [Christina Ricci] and a (black) man holding the key [Samuel L. Jackson]. The film pushes more buttons than an elevator operator but, in the end, Black Snake Moan works to turn expectations upside down. The movie has things to say about race and religion and the pain of loneliness, and it does so with considerable offbeat wit.”
Everyone Says I Love You is a musical by Woody Allen, and ya know, it ain’t that bad. People breaking out into song usually doesn’t work for me, but the acting is good, the story is entertaining and the songs are fun. It’s well done. I enjoyed it.
The Devil and Daniel Johnston is a documentary about a mentally unbalanced guy who can’t play or sing worth a damn, but is a brilliant songwriter. His music may be hard to take (I wouldn’t want to listen to him sing for more than 5 minutes), but the film is a well-told story of the relationship between creativity and mental illness.
I’ve seen the Townes Van Zandt documentary, Be Here To Love Me, and it’s not exactly great. As a big fan of his music, I had high hopes. But this documentary didn’t tell me anything I didn’t already know about him, nor will the film enlighten many newcomers to his music. If the filmmakers’ intention was to present the life story of Townes Van Zandt, they only got it half-right by presenting bits and pieces of his life; they didn’t tell much of a story. The most interesting aspect of the DVD is the bonus material, unused fragments of interviews with Guy Clark, Emmylou Harris and others, along with performances by Townes and others who knew him. J.T. Van Zandt, the oldest son of Townes Van Zant, does a remarkable job of the song, “Nothin’.” He looks and sounds a lot like his father. Guy Clark recalls this story Townes told him about something he learned in science class in grade 3 (short MP3 clip, contains profanity). As the only biographical film of Townes Van Zandt out there, it’s worth a look, but otherwise it;s not a must-see film. Too bad.
If you like Johnny Cash, you’re going to like Walk the Line. It’s a typical biopic that glosses over the hard stuff, but excellent performances by Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon keep things going. (They sing pretty good too.)
Wonder Boys stars Michael Douglas as a writer who can’t finish his second novel, a novel that keeps growing and growing and growing. I saw the movie when it first came out a few years back, and I enjoyed it even more this second time around. Well drawn characters. All the actors are perfectly cast, and fun to watch. Some might think it’s slow, but it feels honest (and therefore hilarious) to me. Anyone who’s ever worked at their writing, and knows how much fun that blank page can be, will enjoy this movie. It also features Bob Dylan’s excellent song, “Things Have Changed.” (The DVD includes the video, which I laughed at all the way through.)
I saw a documentary over the summer called Festival Express. In 1970, artists including Buddy Guy, The Band, Janis Joplin, and The Grateful Dead hopped aboard a train going across Canada, stopping at a few cities along the way to play concerts. Deadheads are going to love watching The Grateful Dead perform. The Band plays a few of their big hits. A young Buddy Guy has the best time of anybody on stage, walking off stage playing his guitar, making the song go on for as long as he can. But the highlight is watching Janis Joplin sing “Cry Baby” (MP3). I’m normally not a fan of her screaming-like-a-banshee vocal style, but her performance here stuns the crowd into submission. It is a sight to behold. One of those moments where you turn to the person next to you and mouth the words, “Holy shit.” And considering how everyone is completely wasted, it’s remarkable they’re able to play anything at all. In between the concert footage are scenes from the train ride itself where Janis Joplin, members of the Grateful Dead, the Band and others, stay up all night and day for one long free-for-all jam session. If you like the music of Woodstock, you might want to check out Festival Express. (Lots of bonus concert footage on the DVD.)
Himalaya tells the story of some Nepalese villagers who trek down the mountains to trade their mountain salt for grain and try not to get killed along the way. The plot is simple but contains all the elements of a great story. The magnificence of the Himalayan landscape provides an epic feel to every single frame of the film. The DVD bonus material, “Himalaya: The Making Of,” shows how it was shot entirely on location under environmental conditions that put all their lives at risk, and makes you wonder how they ever finished it. Deeply moving, astounding, and compelling in every way. This is my favourite movie of 2005.
Click the image for non-subtitled YouTube clip. It’s a good clip.
Once is a unique film about a singer-songerwriter in Dubln who works at his dad’s vacuum repair shop and spends 
the rest of his time busking on a street corner with his guitar. He eventually meets a girl and tries to make more of his music, and that’s pretty much the whole story. The film has been described as a musical because whenever the guy sings a song, we hear the whole thing. If you like the music, the full songs will work for you. I’m not going to go out and buy the soundtrack, but I still got into everything about this movie because it looks and feels like a documentary with characters who seem like real people. The plot (if you want to call it that) doesn’t feel contrived. You meet these people, you like them and you want find out what happens to them. It’s a simple equation that works on a nice, quiet, genuine level. It’s not a visually spectacular movie, but it doesn’t need to be. Once — once it gets noticed — is likely to become a favourite of independent singer-songwriters everywhere.
