Jason Reitman's Up in the Air closes Austin Film Festival 2009Part Three: October 28 - 29
By Don Simpson
American Cowslip – Ethan (Ronnie Gene Blevins) is an unemployed agoraphobic heroin addict, and his only ambition is gardening. Ethan’s parents are long gone, but he is still rents the same house that he was raised in. His neighbor, Trevor (Rip Torn), is his evil landlord who has been trying to evict Ethan for several months (as an unemployed heroin addict, Ethan cannot afford his rent). Most of the other residents of Blythe (a small California desert town) try to help Ethan get by. A few old ladies occasionally drop by for a game of cards (letting Ethan win in order to give him much needed cash). The aged prostitute across the street has also taken a liking to Ethan; as has Georgia (Hanna R. Hall), a 17-year old who seems to be the only person in Blythe who feels more existentially trapped in Blythe than Ethan. American Cowslip is one of the strangest films I have seen in a long time (which says a lot). The exaggerated characters, backdrops and colors all seem to be lensed by a camera on acid – the colors absolutely pop and facial expressions comically explode. Everything about American Cowslip is surreal, even unreal. The crazed over-the-top acting performances are mind-blowing and the cinematography is eye-popping, but the herky-jerky and half-assed plot left me craving a whole lot more.
Cummings Farm – What better place to meet for an orgy amongst friends than Cummings Farm, right? It is as if the place was named not to be a strawberry farm at all, but specifically for orgies…We first meet a young Jewish couple, Yasmine (Yasmine Kittles) and Alan (Adam Busch), as they bicker about which wine would be better suited for the orgy: Beaver or Platypus? (There are sexual innuendoes aplenty here at Cummings Farm.) Their sexual relationship has been on the rocks – Yasmine hopes that this orgy is going to kick-start their sex life again. Alan is a quirky tightwad hoping to get a piece of Yasmine’s friend, Rachel. Next, we are introduced to Rachel (Aimee-Lynn Chadwick) and Gordon (Jordan Kessler). Gordon is an alcoholic with no ambition – a source of tension between him and Rachel – so, like Yasmine and Alan, they bicker a lot. Rachel wants to get away from the perpetually drunken Gordon; and Gordon is drunk enough to not care about whom he’s having sexual relations with. The only married couple is Tina (Laura Silverman) and Todd (Ted Beck, also the screenwriter). Cummings Farm is owned by Tina’s family and it is where she grew up. Tina has had two children, and a very low self-esteem. Todd looks suspiciously like a child molester and he is the most in to the concept of the orgy, having planned out several warm-up activities. Tina is the least interested, haunted by thoughts of her children. We are never told who or what instigated this event and why – Cummings Farm is essentially the antithesis of Humpday, jumping straight to the main event rather than harping on the why’s and how’s. Andrew Drazek’s directorial debut may read like a low-budget independent soft-porn flick, but there is no nudity and very little sex. Prudes should beware: there are frank and mature discussions about sex and anatomy.
Downtown Calling – In the late 1970s, New York City was devastated by economic problems. The city crumbled and burned, literally, as the plethora of vacant buildings caught fire or otherwise fell to the ground. Up from the rubble came one of the most creative (and self-sufficient) movements in the history of the United States (if not the world). Concurrently, the music scene introduced the world to punk rock, no wave, new wave, post-punk, avant-garde, and hip hop; while from the art scene arose Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring and a plethora of graffiti artists; and the club culture brought us new forms of expression through dance. Most importantly, racism was all but erased during this time as artists of all colors were able to interact with and learn from each other with no tension. Produced, directed and edited by Shan Nicholson, Downtown Calling brilliantly intertwines archival film footage and still photos with talking head interviews of many of the major players reminiscing about the glory days. We are reminded by Downtown Calling that the most troubled and trying times have historically created the best art. The New Yorkers of the 70s created something amazing out of virtually nothing. They thrived off an atmosphere that most outsiders viewed as apocalyptic. The economic turmoil wound up making one of the most expensive cities in the world, a playground for poor artists. So if you are worried about the destruction of Wall Street or the plummeting housing market, just think of the affect this current economic downfall could have on the creative world. (Downtown Calling won the Documentary Feature Special Jury Mention.)
The Young Victoria – This costume drama, directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, is just that – a costume drama about Queen Victoria’s (Emily Blunt) courting of, and eventual marriage to, Prince Albert (Rupert Friend). Rife with historical inaccuracies, The Young Victoria focuses more on costume and set design than dialogue or character development. The scenes are purposefully chopped short, as the film barnstorms through the Cliff Notes of Victoria’s late teens. This is a mere outline of a plot, rather than a fleshed out story. Queen Victoria became Queen of England at age 18 and reigned for over 63 years; she was an intelligent and strong woman (for whom the Victorian era was named – a period of great industrial, political, scientific and military progress in Great Britain), but we would never know that from The Young Victoria.
Up in the Air – Jason Reitman (winner of the 2007 AFF Audience Award for Juno) closed the 2009 Austin Film Festival with Up in the Air. It seemed fitting that I too head up in the air to the balcony of the majestic Paramount Theater with Guinness in hand (the only way to fly, in my opinion). Loosely based on Walter Kim’s 2001 novel, Up in the Air, the protagonist of Reitman’s film, Ryan Bingham (George Clooney), is a career transition counselor; in other words, corporations bring him in to fire their staff. Ryan spends a majority of his life up in the air, and is quickly approaching a milestone of ten million frequent flyer miles with American Airlines (a landmark reached by only six others in the history of aviation). Ryan relishes his relationship-free life – separated from his family and no woman to hold him down…that is until he meets Alex (Vera Farmiga). Alex maintains an eerily similar lifestyle to Ryan (as Alex points out, she is like Ryan except with a vagina), but somehow by meeting his twin Ryan opts to eschew his old ways (including abandoning his subsidiary career as a motivational speaker about the virtue of a relationship-free life) and settle down. The question remains: does Alex feel the same way? Up in the Air effortlessly juggles critiques of: corporate downsizing, modern humans becoming antisocial beings (thanks to technological innovations – from the telephone to the internet), and the absurdity of frequent customer rewards.
It seems to be a tradition at the Austin Film Festival that I never attend screenings of the films that win awards. Other than Downtown Calling (which won the Documentary Feature Special Jury Mention), 2009 proved no different. And the winners are:
Documentary Feature Jury Award: Grown in Detroit
Narrative Feature Jury Award: Tobruk
Narrative Feature Special Jury Recognition for Acting: Myna Se Va
Narrative Feature Special Jury Recognition for Independent Filmmaking: Thor at the Bus Stop
