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Dominic Corry talks about the first three screenings he attended at this year's festival: Homegrown: Works on Film; Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence and Delamu.
The case for the existence of the oft-talked about creative boom in local filmmaking we are apparently currently experiencing is well supported by this year's line up of Kiwi shorts in Homegrown: Works on Film. A maturation and confidence comes across in these movies that bodes well for the future of New Zealand celluloid. For this review I intended to focus on the film that stood out for me among the five screened, but instead I must make mention of three which could be described as outstanding. Taika Waititi actually bests his extremely well-received (and Oscar-nominated) earlier work Two Cars, One Night with the hilarious and affecting Tama Tu. Telling the dialogue-free tale of a small group of Maori soldiers briefly holed up in a blown out house during World War II, the film is pretty much perfect, presenting numerous laugh-out-loud moments and possessing the emotional resonance of a full length epic. Extremely impressive production values as well. Reina Webster's utterly awesome The Little Things tells the brief tale of a neglected young teenage girl's attempts to amuse herself on her birthday, and the unspoken friendship she shares with the younger boy next door. The Little Things feels very post-Two Cars, One Night, but more than establishes its own identity and features two amazing performances from its young cast. Despite the potentially depressing events of the film, it ultimately feels quite optimistic, even uplifting. Jonathan Brough's No Ordinary Sun features Antarctic location shooting and an enticingly confusing sci-fi-ish tale incorporating some Really Big Ideas. But he very much pulls it off, leaving the viewer dazzled not only by the remarkable visuals on display, but by the fact that as befuddling as the film is at times, it actually makes some sort of grander sense by the end.
In addition in Homegrown: Works on Film, the Moving Image Centre is also presenting this year Homegrown: Works on Video and Homegrown: Documentaries.
There are several exciting new anime films screening at this year's festival, but Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence has set the standard pretty darn high. Doing the best job I've seen yet of combining hand-drawn animation with CGI elements, the film presents visuals that the words "ridiculously mind-blowing" don't quite do justice to. And as if that wasn't enough, it also offers an unrelenting flow of heady ideas regarding the nature of existence and what constitutes a soul, successfully expanding on the themes of the first film. If the film had contained just one of these two elements (amazing visuals, provocative notions), it would've been successful, but coming out with a constant stream of both, it's almost too much. Not that I'm complaining. I found myself constantly slipping into moments of disturbing introspection (just so you know, I'm still not convinced I'm not a robot), only to be pulled violently back into the film by the visual feast on display. While director Oshii Mamoru presents several kinetically cool action set-pieces, the most visually impressive part of the film is an intoxicatingly colourful parade scene that must be seen to be believed. And the music, oh, the music! Not only achieving the borderline impossible task of living up to the grandiose vistas on display, Kawai Kenji's score actually serves to enhance the visuals, helping the film redefine the word "epic". Taking centre stage for the sequel, semi-cyborg cop Batou is the most kick-arse no nonsense silent cop type I've seen in ages - it seems like Hollywood has forgotten how to do this sort of character, what with all the "family friendly" action movies. Mamoru shows 'em how it's done here, on this front and many others. A groin-grabbingly exhilarating experience all around.
Many of the films I check out at the festival I have heard about in advance and been eagerly anticipating. But I also like to browse through the guidebook and just pick a cool-sounding flick that I know nothing about. This was the case with Delamu . It's a documentary that focuses on the 2000 year old mountain route the Tea Horse Road and the people who travel it. The Tea Horse "Road" is an extremely perilous, but remarkably breathtaking access route for the inhabitants of several remote villages and connects Southern China to the outside world. Delamu contains some breath-taking imagery - one memorable shot of a river at night sees the screen entirely blacked-out except for a jagged, glistening lightening bolt of water piercing through it. We hear from seven or eight of the varied indigenous peoples throughout Delamu, and each has a unique and affecting story to tell. Delamu is long, and at times may be slightly hard going (like Tea Horse Road!) but ultimately paints a richly rewarding portrait of a world about as separate to my own as I have experienced. Awesome music too.
Dominic Corry
