November
8
Weekend Viewing: Dear Zachary a Must-See
What was New York critic David Edelstein thinking when he disclosed the big reveal in the doc Dear Zachary, which I knew going in was a tear-jerker about a guy who died, but did not have the sordid details. (He has apologized and posted SPOILER ALERTS online.) As you watch the movie, the lack of professional distance on the part of the filmmaker is obvious, and somewhat disconcerting---until the truth-is-stranger-than-fiction plot twist. The movie is devastating. (Metacritic ranks it 81%.)
I'm not driven to see the new mainstream Hollywood pics this weekend. Now that Nora is in college, I don't have to go see animated movies unless I want to. And Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa just doesn't lure me like a Pixar movie would (it's getting 62% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). Jeff Katzenberg knows how to play for the wide audience better than anyone. But he doesn't always add that extra poetry for adults. I did like Kung Fu Panda.
The guys seem to be going for Role Models, which is 74% fresh. I'm not convinced. Didn't David Wain make The Ten? I loathed that movie. I'm not eager to see Soul Men (44% Tomatometer) either, fond as I am of the late Bernie Mac and Samuel L. Jackson.
So I will catch up on screeners for foreign films. Friday night some pals and I watched Otto Preminger's hugely entertaining black and white drama Advise and Consent, based on the 1959 bestseller, which we read in my book group this month. That's yet another movie that wouldn't get made any more. Here's New Yorker critic David Denby's splendid profile of Preminger.
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I loved 'Dear Zachary' too - the intensity was unbelievable. Incidentally, don't you think it's a tad hypocritical to start pointing the finger at Edelstein for revealing spoilers when your editor Mr. Bart inexplicably spoilt 'Burnt After Reading' by revealing crucial plot points without warnings on his blog? Even worse was the fact the guy refused to edit his post after numerous comments criticised him for potentially ruining the film.
Posted by: Scott | November 09, 2008 at 01:53 AM
The Ten was indeed horrible. Loved Wet Hot American Summer but can't give The Ten a pass. It was rancid. Quite liked Role Models though. Wain proved a good fit for that material.
Posted by: Jeff Sneider | November 12, 2008 at 01:49 AM
Advise and Consent is an amazing film!! Kudos to you for the mention.
Posted by: James Thomlin | November 12, 2008 at 11:00 AM