FFF Review: AMER

Like me, you'll be staring at those pictures here right now. That looks cool, doesn't it? Somehow, this would have been my summary for AMER, but I feel obliged to say some more about the film than just post pictures out of it.

AMER is most of all an homage to the Giallo-genre. If you have no idea what a Giallo is, just follow this link. If you do know what a Giallo is, you might be drooling all over your keyboard right now. But AMER is not a straight Giallo - it also includes elements of avant-garde cinema, reminiscent of the works of Kenneth Anger, Luis Bunuel's UN CHIEN ANDALOU or Alejandro Jodorowsky's EL TOPO. Most of all, it is a coming of age drama, and a film about sexuality.

Amer is the brainchild of two belgian artists: Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani. The film is loosely cut into three acts: the first is centered on Anna as a little girl and both looks and feels very much like Dario Argento's classic gothic horror film SUSPIRIA, including some supernatural elements.

The second act concerns Anna as a teenager, rather resembling Lucio Fulci's early Giallo, such as LIZARD IN A WOMAN'S SKIN, than SUSPIRIA. Less colorful than the previous part, but with a great original 60s/70s soundtrack, this was my favorite part of the film. We really see the world through the eyes of a teenage girl, and feel what she feels.

The third act concerns Anna as a woman, inheriting the house she grew up in as a child. This one feels a lot like Argento's PROFONDO ROSSO, and is the act that is closest to the straight Giallo genre. This was in my book the weakest part - it still wasn't bad, but it was overtly cryptical and came quote out of nowhere. I'm not really sure if this is in synch with the other two parts, as it shows a side of Anna that has been obscured for the viewer and that isn't thoroughly explained.

Amer does belong on the big screen, even though it isn't a usual film. It follows nothing but its own rules, as the directors try to make us see and feel what Anna experiences. Close ups, silent sounds and subjective shots with mostly no dialogue set the atmosphere, and boy, is it a gorgeous atmosphere.

In the end however, the film leaves a bit to be desired. The ending is quite strange (as is the entire third act), and even though it's all quite easy to analyze and to understand, the background to the world of Anna is never fully supplied, questioning what else it is this woman has experienced in her life. We know her experiences - but we don't know her story.

But maybe it is this elusive plot that creates the magic of AMER, one of the most unique and thrilling films in recent years. I will re-watch this film as soon as I can, because I can see myself appreciating it a lot more the second time around, focusing a bit more on analytical subtext - but even without a second viewing, I am sure that this is a cult film in the making, pleasing both arthouse and horror fans!! There's nothing like it - really!!

Rating - 8.5/10

FFF Review: THE SCOUTING BOOK FOR BOYS

This seems to be the right moment to mention a few things concerning this years filmfest. First of all, the FRESH BLOOD category was absolutely outstanding this year. There was no film I disliked, and according to the organizers, there was only one film that on a scale from 1 to 6 hasn't had a 1,x ranking (the irony being that FOUR LIONS, which I skipped, seems to take away the audience award is proof of just how good this year was).

Second of, this year was a great year for british films. Whenever I see an independent film from the UK, I can be sure it at least has something to it that makes it worth paying money for.

And last but not least, this years filmfest managed to pull some of the most stunning and brilliant independent films out of nowhere. Seeing that some actually criticized this trend to arthouse cinema, I can only wonder what they were anticipating, since most of these films were a lot more thrilling and shocking than the horror films that aired.

And with this, we are at SCOUTING BOOK FOR BOYS, the debut feature of Tom Harper, that tells a tale of two teenagers, living in a british seaside resort.

The film opens with Emily and her best friend David jumping over some trailers, with David falling off of one. The two know each other since childhood, being the only two kids in what is a tourist infested spot near the seaside - there's not much there but trailers and their parents, who in turn aren't very great when it comes to their parental duties. Emily, who slowly grew into a young woman, is sick of being under her mothers thumb, and so she comes up with a scheme - David must help her in retreating to a nearby cave, hoping that by disappearing, she could force her mother to love her.

However, David has other ideas. As Emily is very uncomfortable with living in a cave (well, who would like it?), the young boy comes up with new ideas to care for her - he brings her food and clothing, and tries his best at proving to her that he could be - maybe - a perfect boyfriend, able to take care of her - kudos to Thomas Turgoose and Holliday Grainger for delivering powerful performances as the teenagers in question. They are both believable and likable.

In the outside world, things don't go that easy as they do in the cave: Emily's mother panics after the sudden disappearance of her child (well, who wouldn't?) and calls upon the police, who start a huge investigation, and gradually come up with some raunchy facts about Emily, which slowly undermine David's sympathy for her, providing various reasons why she could hide in a cave that are much darker than parental abuse.

Shot in an aesthetic remarkably close to that of directors as Sofia Coppola or Shunki Iwai, THE SCOUTING BOOK FOR BOYS is a calm, haunting and beautiful film about the pains of growing up and the everyday problems of both teenagers and the british lower class. There was some discussion about the ending of the film (in short - those who found it realistic loved the film, those who didn't hated it), but all in all, this is one more remarkably well made and engaging british independent drama that I'll surely add to my DVD collection.

Rating - 9/10

FFF Review: THE APE

A man wakes up. He seems in shock. His clothes are stained in blood. He washes himself, puts on new clothes, leaves the house. He mounts a bicycle and drives to work - he's giving driving lessons. His speech is aggressive, he suddenly snaps and shouts at his driving student. Shocked by his reaction, he leaves the car and walks away - not minding the disturbed woman he just gave the shock of her life.

He walks empty streets, stops by a car, kicks and punches it, then runs away. What's left for him to do? Sport - why not some sport?! He goes to play some tennis, trying to take his mind off of something, but soon he's shouting at a formless opponent. As he goes under the shower, he tries to make contact to a young boy. "Can you lend me some shampoo?" The boy throws the bottle at it, and another one, and another one. "Clean yourself" he cries out, "and then go home! Go home to your family."

Our protagonist cleans himself, puts on some clothes, and then goes to a mall to buy a saw.

THE APE is a sober and unforgiving piece of filmic realism. In contrast to films like L'ENFANT (which I regularly trash due to its clueless and underwritten plot and unbelievable characters), the film holds up pretty well. Most of the time, it is an intense, bleak and disturbing watch, but the film indulges so much in its aesthetic it hardly entertains or enlightens. Which makes the second half of the film a bit of a painful experience - all that is left for the audience to do is wait for a resolution, whilst our protagonist stumbles through his day.

So in the THE APE is a nice small arthouse film, slow, bleak and quiet as realist filmmaking is - sadly, it would have made a much better short film due to its own emptiness. However, the best moment of the film occurs in its last minute, nicely tying the plot together, and saving the film from itself.

Rating - 7/10

FFF Review: MONSTERS

It is always a joy to watch a unique, imaginative and daring film that 10 years ago would not have existed due to the high price of film equipment. Funding can be a pain in the ass (especially if you aim for a genre film, and ESPECIALLY if you aim for a genre film that breaks the genre's rules), so it's truly refreshing to see a film shot for approx. 8000$ in mexico, with two actors, dozens of voluntaries, a cheap camera and a 35mm filter.

A lot has been said about MONSTERS, how unusual the film is, how dedicated the director and how daring his work schedule: Gareth Edwards drove to mexico with two actors to shoot a love story in an alien/monster infested zone. As mentioned before, he had only a camera, a 35mm filter, a mike, and a van. Everybody apart from the two main actors are genuine mexican people going about their everyday work (acting is reduced to a minimum, with few lines spoken aside from the protagonists).

Instead of focusing on the monsters and their attacks, Edwards set out to explore the rich landscape of human emotion. As the two protagonists get to know each other better, so do we. In this aspect, the film is a lot closer to Lost in Translation or Y Tu Mama Tambien. However, it has to be noted that the visuals are absolutely stunning, the (very well done) CGI and special effects are gorgeous and the above pictured scene that takes place in a destroyed village is absolutely haunting nonetheless.

So what exactly is MONSTERS? It could be seen as an allegory for post 9/11 or post Katrina america, in which couples are not only faced with their internal struggles, but also the sudden realization that the world around them is crumbling. And this is where MONSTERS packs its punches: it makes the protagonists (and us) realize that life is too brittle to waste the chances that are given to us, because in a few more hours, we might be confronted with a lot bigger problems than that our camera was stolen, our food too salty or our partner upset about something we've done.

MONSTERS is not perfect - it is very slow, though could have lasted for another 30 minutes to convey the inner life of the characters - but it is an absolutely essential and stunning film that gives the promise of a brilliant director who's just delivered his debut feature.

Rating - 9/10