Vortex Media Film Review - Lorelei

A small Oregon town where the prospects for success are scarce is the setting for Writer-Director Sabrina Doyle's Lorelei. Wayland (Pablo Schreiber) and Dolores (Jena Malone) have both built up several layers of scar tissue in their relatively young lives. Wayland just released from prison after serving a fifteen-year sentence is living at a halfway house in the local church. Delores has three kids one born just after her high school sweetheart went to jail then two more followed suit. She works as a cleaner at the local motel where the guests are not the family vacation type. The pair soon rekindle their affections with Wayland quickly moving into Dolore's home becoming a de facto father to the kids. 

Doyle's script lingers on the small special moments mixed amongst the grind of daily life for the working poor in a small out of the way rural town. A simple spontaneous gift of flowers. A family dinner out at the local diner funded on saved coupons or fashioning a birthday gift out of an old tire and some rope. The narrative recounts the hopes and dreams the pair had back in high school that never came to pass. A strong recurring dream displays the need to get to the ocean but when it's within reach the dreamer always walks head-on into a glass barrier then awakes. 

Pablo Schreiber is physically imposing yet kind as Wayland. He went to jail on an armed robbery charge. Taking all of the blame on his shoulders when he could have named names to get a better deal. He lands a part-time job at a salvage yard but money is tight so he falls back into bad habits bringing them to the work place. Jena Malone continues her run of solid in performances. Here she's been a mother for half of her young life not getting the chance to build anything for herself. She went a little wild after Wayland went to prison and now finds herself picking through clothes in the motel lost and found to find a birthday gift for her daughter. Trish Egan stands out in a limited role as Pastor Gail. She runs the church halfway house where Wayland lasts after returning home She makes the rules divvies out the chores. A true straight shooter. She also answers the call for Wayland in a time of need doing a major service for the makeshift family. 

Lorelei is very much a character study on the erosion of hopes and dreams into mundane adult life. The two leads both end up not where they expected due to personal choices. The scenery is gritty, money evasive and the chances for a change of fortune shrinking by the moment. However, Doyle takes the story off of its likely trajectory to an unexpected direction. A choice that many a viewer will find satisfying in the end. 

*** Out of 4

Lorelei | Sabrina Doyle |  U.S.A. | 2020 | 111 Minutes. 

Oregon, Ex-Con, Biker, Maid, Swimmer, Video Poker, Armed Robbery, Birthday Party, Waterfall, 

Fantasia '21 Film Review - Agnes

Agnes (Hayley McFarland) is suddenly inhabited by a demonic force in the opening frames of the film. She is speaking in tongues, lashing out, and cursing loudly at her fellow Nuns at a remote strict convent. The order is so adherent to rote that it's a major act to let two men into the building al be it that the men are Father Donahue (Ben Hall) a veteran priest on set away from permanent banishment due to past acts and a neophyte Benjamin (Jake Horowitz) who has not taken his vows who is seen as a particular threat by the Mother superior. The Priest at first going on the description of the events see this as a potential medical issue but upon meeting with and attempting to exorcise the visitor find that the presence is too powerful for them and resort to call in some backup.

Rising Indie director Mickey Reece takes a bit of a mickey out on the religious possession genre in the opening portion of the film. The nuns are shown as following rules that are highly out of step with modern society with a select few straying from the path when out of view and range of Mother. Agnes' closest friend Mary (Molly C. Quinn) is an interesting study having come to the order later in life after the real world tragedy of losing a son. Agnes has also suffered the loss of a loved one which gives the pair a ready made connection. Reece turns up his sarcastic lense as Father Donahue turns to Hollywood cool TV ready Father Black (Chris Browning) to come in for the save. Mother is totally appalled Father Black's meeting with Agnes is catastrophic the as sudden as the film started events take a sharp turn to focus on Mary who has left the Convent after the botched exorcism and is now working retail as a cashier. 

Reece again shows that he is willing to chase after a narrative anywhere it lies be it unconventional or even jarring to his audience who had settled into a particular style of film to have that level of comfort upended for something completely different. Molly C Quinn plays Mary completely understated a kid of outie observer into her own life. An Angus link pops up again as Mary begins to spend time with stand-up comic Paul (Sean Gunn) an ex  of her friend. Quinn is effective in both sections of the film inside and outside of the convent. Ben Hall is equally as compelling in the first section of the film. He is the veteran priest who though an earlier misstep or misunderstanding has taken to his flask more than his bible and is well aware that he is a target for banishment by senior church administrators. Mary Buss is deep into character as Mother Superior. Her number one goal is to protect her charges from evil outside temptations. Her reactions to the ground shifting under her feet as events unfold around Agnes' possession are priceless especially her nonverbal body and facial contortions and movements behind her spectacles. 

Agnes may be the project that brings writer-director Mickey Reece more into the mainstream. His take on the church it's traditions rules,and bureaucracy morphs into a study of loss and isolation and how people deal with both. Anchored by a quiet yet commanding performance by Molly C. Quinn in completely opposite settings it's a film I can recommend and likely one that will be remembered as a launching point for a future top-level storyteller. 

***1/2 Out of 4

Agnes | Mickey Reece | U.S.A. | 2021 | 93 Minutes.

Tags: Convent, Possession, Exorcism, Sexual Misconduct, Neophyte,Temptation, Cashier, Loss, Regret.

Vortex Media Film Review - For Madmen Only: The Stories of Del Close

Del Close's tentacles reach out to touch three generations of comedians from Mike Nichols and Elaine May in the 1950s to May to Jason Sudeikis star of today's IT show Ted Lasso. Close met Nichols and May while part of the Compass Players in St. Louis of the late '50s. This was the first comedy troupe (relocated from Chicago) that did a new stage show every night with no formal script taking suggestions from the audience for scenes. Elane and Del hit it off coming up together with the initial rules of the format that featured tenants including take the unpopular choice and always knowing where the objects were on stage. This period resulted in Del's first disappointment when Nichols who could only be funny when working with May changed the deal on plans for New York securing a contract for a nightclub act for only May and himself. Del drifted to San Francisco taking all aspects of the drug culture and landing the job as the director of The Committee Sketch troupe where Howard Hesseman and Peter Bonerz of Bob Newhart fame cut their chops. It's also where Close originated his lifelong work of long-form Improv workshops that he called The Harold.

Director Heather Ross roots the often absurdity of Del's stories with the writing of the comic book Wasteland in the late '80s. D.C. has started to run non-traditional content in titles such as The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen. They Hired Close and teamed him with comic book writer John Ostrander and D.C.outside the box editor Mike Gold to pen Wasteland that Del could fill the panels with his stream of consciousness along with some mixed in autobiographical moments. Another effective tool is the use of scrapbook type stop motion animation to display  Del's story and the people that drift in and out of the tale. There are clips mixed in from the hit shows and movies of Del's disciples along with spot on sound drops. The narrative is made up mostly of Del's own voice from tape recorded interviews including one conducted by Bob Odenkirk as a student journalist. The rest is by the calm soothing voice of Michela Watkins who can throw in  a well placed curse word or jolting turn of a phrase as required. 

Close's next big sprout of his comedy tree occurred at Second City in Chicago landing in 1973 as the director. Here he was able to influence the next generation of comics many of whom formed the first cast of Saturday Night Live. He did his long form improv workshops at night but the producer Bernie Sahlins would never let these potential train wrecks hit the main stage. The main stage was reserved for scripted  comedy pieces that started with audience suggestions but were crafted through planning and rehearsals. After butting heads with Bernie one time too many he was exiled to Toronto in 1976. Where the cast there went on to start SCTV and beyond. Here Del suffered a clean break ending up in an asylum back in Chicago still phoning in sketch ideas to Toronto. Here again like with Nichols and May Close saw his pupils exploding into film and on stage while he was left behind to toil in obscurity. 

The third pivot point was a meeting with Chana Helpern who taught him to make the Harold teachable that kept the art form on the rails and limited catastrophic failures. From here came Tina Fey, Director Adam McKay, John  Favreau, Tim Meadows, Chris Farley, and Amy Poehler all graduates of the Improv Olympics.Ross ties four decades of a journey together that finally clicks in the Me generation of the '80s with the counter message of working in a supportive encouraging group. Moss keeps the story moving anchored by a wonderful recreation scenes cast lead by comic James Urbaniak as Close. If you are a fan of comedy on the big or small screen chances ae your favourite comedic actor or creator was directly or indirectly influenced by Mr. Close.

**** Out of 4.

For Madmen Only: The Stories of Del Close | Heather Ross | U.S.A. | 87 Minutes.

Tags: Improv, Kansas, Suicide, Dr. Dracula, Wasteland, D.C.Comics, The Compass Theatre, St. Louis,Witches,  The Committee, Second City, Harold, Teaching Harold, Chicago, Toronto, Cook County Hospital.  

 

Vortex Media VOD/Digital Film Review- Running Against The Wind

Two childhood friends that embark on different paths is a tried and tested narrative path. Here two young best friends who heard goats by day in their native Ganda Abdi end up branching apart. One Abdi Getachew (Ferhane Beker young then Ashenafi Nigusu older) has dreams of being a long distance runner following in the footsteps of the great Ethiopian runner Haile Gebreselassie (who appears in the film). The other Solomon Terefa (Alamudin Abduselam then Mikias Wolde) is more restless moving inas a youth with Abdi after his father passes away. Solomon discovers he has a knack for photography then disappears off to Addis Ababa without a plan ending up on the streets, begging and stealing developing into a full-blown street boy.

German Director Jan Philipp Weyl has shot in other parts of the world before and is comfortable conversing in multiple languages. With Running Against the Wind he wanted to show multiple facets of Ethiopian society similar to the track of his next project Buena Vista Chicho shooting in Cuba.  The narrative moves deep into the guts of the seediest portions of the capital city spending meaningful time with those that try to survive on the fringes. Solomon his wife Genet (Samrawit Desalegn) alongside crew mates Kiflom (Joseph Reta Belay and Joker (Sintayehu) occupy that segment of the population. Cinematographer Mateusz is particularly effective in training his lens on the goings on in notorious Chichinea where no one ventures to at night. 

Mikias Wolde gives a nuanced performance as Solomon. He is trying to keep his family together by staying a few steps ahead and out of the direct line of fire from local boss Tatek, an intense wild eyed Sintayehu Arega. He collects garbage by day using his industrial sized wheelbarrow stealing at night when  forced to by Tatek. Young Solomon Alamudin Abduselam is the other standout performance in the piece. He's struck by tragedy as a youngster, betrays the friend that takes an interest in him by showing him photography and abandons his village to fight for scraps in the big City. 

Running Against The Wind is a take on Ethiopia that shows both the best and worst elements of the country; side by side. Long distance running is its staple. The training methods are at the top of the field. Sponsorship is strong and recognition for a runner great if successful. But others also struggle, especially in a big city like Addis Ababa. However, Weyl does showcase the capital as a thriving local setting that has the bright lights and a big city feel. It's a story helmed by someone who has  obviously spent plenty of time in the country and has a great affection for its people and culture. It's a visit to a seldomly represented location that is worth a watch

*** Out of 4.

Running Against The Wind | Jan Philipp Weyl | Ethiopia/ Germany | 2019 | 116 Minutes. 

Tags: Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Long Distance Running, Photography, Haile Gebrselassie, Street Boys, Stealing Cars.