My Knees Burn At Night

Reviews "Sugar"


SUGAR
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck

2009 Appeared in the journal Sequences

Glory in the detour

In the enclosure of sport movies , Sugar stands handily, pushing the cloakroom platitudes and endless odes to the esprit de corps or neglected. The second feature film of the duo behind Half Nelson overestimated dare get out of what promised to be another simple uptake feat to earn a place in the sun of the professional leagues, a bold step for a genre to be telegraphed.

Land of all controversies, baseball has lost the nobility of his status as American national sport - but also Latino or Asian, should we still remember it - accumulating in recent cases of forfeiture, cheating and 'swelling wage. But if we are to believe his credo "It's not over until it's not over," the discipline rooted in the customs for over 150 years still has many stories before it, so that wondered how that Sugar has been able to remain unexplored in cinema long ago that American players Latin certainly constitute more than half of the troops working under the lights of American major league baseball stadiums for a long time.
Anna Boden and Ryan
Fleck, who had watched from the documentary Young Rebels (2005) the abundance of talent Hispanic - those of Cuban rappers in this case - were interested in the nursery Dominican, which had fueled the alignment Montreal Expos for several seasons, creating the character of Miguel 'Sugar' Santos out of the experiences of several teenagers with the hopes of leaving forever the shallows of San Pedro de Macoris, winning recruiters Major League Baseball (MLB) and thus belong to the American dream.

Santos, a young pitcher on the arm of steel, do not speak English and knows nothing of living in the United States, like most other Dominican prospects. Although we do understand quickly that his impeccable moral could lead to lucrative professional contracts from Uncle Sam, it is difficult to judge its ambitions intimate, introverted as this seems to stifle his passion under a rigid discipline training .

suite fails to clarify the little things being spotted by scouts the MLB then invited to join the camps of recruits in Arizona and Iowa, Santos does not fits in her foster family and in his new environment, yet ideal to hatch his talent. The last third of Sugar , it is difficult to prove without undermining the impact of the film, takes an unexpected tangent, in which Santos jeopardizes his career and let chance dictate his fate rather than statistics and championships. The authenticity of

Sugar is definitely his best asset, you can count on the expertise of the former Expos' Jose Rijo in front and behind the camera is in itself indicative of the seriousness of this company, away from fireworks most other films of the ball. Fleck and Boden also show some dramatic insight to forge links between the modest living conditions of the Dominicans and the humility of populating the rural Midwest, whose enthusiasm for baseball is matched only by their faith in Christian ideals .

The film does not shy clichés and abused by the candid moments of the main character to emphasize the cultural gap between Santos and his adopted home, as evidenced by the scenes of bickering interracial bigotry juvenile and the temptation of anabolic steroids, presumably in an effort to frame as wide as possible on the temptations and setbacks of adulation could contaminate the brightest hopes in the evolving physical and moral guidelines as strict as those of military schools.

Sugar is one of those cases where the solid play of actors and filmmakers will get out of the mysteries of a sort are sealed by the schematic characterization - even fatalistic - the characters and their environment. But taking advantage of the efficiency of the sociological literature and the popularity of a practice inseparable cement Community U.S., Boden and Fleck have been able to avoid the pitfalls of either pan-Hollywood independent film, which is to let the story dictate cultural hierarchies without ever challenging, original or not.


© 2009 Charles-Stéphane Roy

Kates Playgroundfull Gallery

Review "Sin Nombre"


INS NUMBER
Cary Fukunaga

2009 Appeared in the journal Sequences

The mare rails

Cary Fukunaga, who signed with Sin Nombre his first feature film, was born to Japanese and Swedish. His film is nevertheless a reality any other, that of illegal immigrants from Latin America, while addressing the issue by the band gang enjoying the exodus of capital to impose their rule along the Gulf of Mexico.

This could feed a whole movie in itself, in fact, are rife Mara Salvatrucha expanded along an axis including El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua, who erected a true Pan-American human trafficking cartel, open war with security forces and killings in all layers of society in Central America.

Like many other Latino filmmakers of his generation - to Like Alex Rivera ( Sleepdealer ), Fukunaga took advantage of the many development programs available in the United States against the directors of cultural communities Afro-American, Chicano, Native and Asian as those provided by Sundance Lab, before turning his camera to issues outside of Yankee territory.

What begins as another one of those violent and simplistic tales of the city turns into a manhunt credible and tragic way that few American independent filmmakers are able to do, at times recalling Maria Full of Grace of Joshua Marston. This is hardly surprising if the film was easily distinguished at Sundance last year, vowing with disembodied melancholy and occasional dark humor of many of the contemporary indies Fukunaga.

must see these trains can carry up to 700 passengers 'illegal' - impossible to miss as they are outside the cars - agglutinated pain and misery on the roof, even being whipped by the branches of trees around the track during their journey. The image is immediately striking, as the fatality in which most of they will be hit, while we repeat that only a handful of them manage to live through the Rio Grande.

This approach provides the film a more promising prospect than the usual parade of the pitfalls of each small group. Some want to escape from inhumane conditions while others are looking towards the north to escape their crimes. But among these "unnamed" (free translation of the title of the film) also roam the future bosses ready to eliminate their relatives, hoping thus to earn the respect and especially the protection of the gang. This unsavory alternative is taken here by Smiley, aged only 12, who prefers to go among the tormentors of his best friend Willy, now a fugitive, despite her after liquidating the leader of that band during an ambush in which he participated.

The ubiquitous circle of violence of the film is crystallized in this whole crescendo parallel between the fall of the dolphin and the ascension of his young companion - nothing very subtle or unusual here - but the fact remains that this chronic misery outer border has a frisky performance and unglazed that could foreshadow the introduction. The natural interplay of actors, all non-professional, easily captures our attention by screwing this incredible journey and all that manhood thundering in the dust, blood, sweat and garbage on the way to the Promised Land.

Like many Latin films (and even American) gender, values and moral flexibility characters illico determines their destiny, so the ability to identify those who manage to set foot on American soil seriously undermines efforts to polish up the gender, sociological acuity to the key or not. Fukunaga no exception to this trend, which will nevertheless permit digging up his pass to the U.S. market easier than most characters in his film.

Still, Sin Nombre confirms the revival of young Mexican cinema both uninhibited and having assimilated all points codes Hollywood, especially showing a clear potential for exploitation in the Latino market in the United States. With the consolidation of the industry around the hip new horde composed by Alfonso Cuarón, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Guillermo Arriaga, Guillermo del Toro and Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal (both credited as executive producers Sin Nombre) popular cinema Felipe Calderón of the country seems to be doing better than ever, capitalizing on a demonstrated expertise and a renewed interest for significant social issues.

© 2009 Charles-Stéphane Roy

Swingdaddy Vs Thule Revolver

Review "Tyson" by James Toback


TYSON
James Toback

2009 Appeared in the journal Sequences


A bully in the cables

Iron Mike, among manic manic ? Thus, many might consider the former boxer Mike Tyson before the release of curious documentary that signed his friend James Toback, during his own rehab. Embarrassment professional sports and is intimidating for anyone daring to approach them without caution, Tyson went into this business with the same candor that he was assigned throughout his public appearances, to engage with its legendary lisp a questionable enterprise, between the settlement of accounts (with journalists, his ex-wives, parasites having dispossessed of his fortune and the world of boxing in general) and repentance, self-aggrandizement and the recognition of his thirst for absolute (sexual and athletic, etc.).

After several years away, put away the bad boy - he has a half-dozen brats! - Back and front projectors that have flown past the peak of his popularity; Tyson, it must be remembered, was the only boxer with the exception of Muhammad Ali to fascinate the press and the general public who is interested Never ordinary to the sport. One who considered himself more as an 'entertainer' as a professional athlete was already used to exchange the ring for the sets, especially with Toback, but playing mostly his own role during appearances on TV shows such as Who's the Boss? at Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles and comedy Hangover .

life and career of Tyson were so publicized that this testimony does not bring new information or new insights on his exploits as his misdeeds. This unsuspected least, is this spirit that, failing to convey a coherent discourse, is able to feed and never falter a dizzying succession of essays on vanity, despair, rage, destroy 'his opponent rather than simply defeat him, and, like his flow, fear cruel to slow down, reflect or gloss too long on the significance of his actions, as if to stop, was to die.

Tyson never did stop, even if it means losing family, friends, money, respect, health, moral or right. This frightening fact, that goes beyond the simple moment of lucidity, nor excuse his errors, nor the relative honesty of achieving Toback, but is no less valid an excuse to say once and for all our fascination to these circus animals and dangerous megalomaniac, even long after they have been passed their last KO

© 2009 Charles-Stéphane Roy