i am putting together my dubai film fest reviews and was reminded of old joy- my personal film of the 2006 diff- by dilettantsia’s recent post on kelly reichardt’s latest wendy and lucy.
old joy
watching 2 or 3 things i know about her at the film forum where there always seems to be a godard playing when im in ny, definite highlight. beautiful shots of urban paris, a free-flowing film essay on who knows what – society falling apart, evil america and its capitalist ways, consumerism and it eating morality? it doesnt matter really, easily one of my favorite godards. funny scenes of housewife’s occasional dabbles in prostitution and beautifully designed chapter-titles linger. very brechtian + very 1968 i imagine.
old joy was one of the few films i managed to see at diff. beautifully and tenderly scored by yo la tengo who are on incredible form, kelly reichardt’s journey on film of two friends that have lost touch and go on a road trip to reconnect with themselves, their selves and the natural / real world via oregon’s hot springs. nothing much happens really, except subtle questions about aging, losing a sense of purpose, losing friends / friendship, fatherhood (one of the guys is soon to be a dad and the other still totally unable to comprehend settling down) and other open-ended life subjects.
will oldham plays one of the characters (the chain-pot-smoking non-committal friend that instigates the road trip) and was at the screening as well taking questions with kelly (i still think its rad that will oldham was in dubai!), he’s better known as the incredibly talented bonnie prince billy. there’s a depth of emotion, mostly sad and longing between the two characters and a deep sense of loss, a loss of intimacy, kinship and much else you feel that’s is less than defined.
the film is very simple and very open, beautifully shot with many silent, long shots of the two friends against various green nature scenes. i also found it depressingly sad and deeply touching. you feel sympathy with both characters and also relate to their helpless pointlessness and the insignificance of their lives and dreams. on my flight back to dubai a few days before diff i finally got round to watching sideways which in many ways is a similar film, but kelly replaces all the lightness and humor with an all too real despair and emptiness.
kelly also asks questions about the state of america’s politics (which i wouldnt have known had she not explained to her audience afterwards) and weaves very faint undertones of macho male competitiveness amongst the seemingly new-age, post-metrosexual 30 year old friends (also helpfully pointed out by kelly in the q&a) which made me smile.
devastatingly tender. my film of the year.
i couldnt understand malick’s new world and really would like to revisit it as everyone i know who knows film seems to love it.
saw the adel imam yacoubian building movie which was fun and funny.
departed was good (and supremely acted) apart from that whack ending. can we give the man an oscar so that he gets back to making movies for himself?
squid and the whale was another find for me.
rip bob altman.
