winnebago man Tagged Articles at Cinematical
New Zealand: Where Film Festival Awards Come Before the Festival
Filed under: Awards », Fandom »
In some opposite-ish corner of the world right now (from me anyway), the New Zealand International Film Festival kicks off today for the rest of the month, before making further provincial rounds through next November. (Damn, now that's a film festival!) It makes all the more sense that people might want to plan ahead for the highlights, and what better way to do that than to bequeath some awards for the films right from the get-go?Incredibly Strange programmer Ant Timpson (who's perfectly normal himself, I swear it; that's the name of their specifically oddball selections) has rightfully singled out SXSW '09 alums like Best Worst Movie, Drag Me to Hell, Grace, The Horseman and Winnebago Man for particular accolades (i.e. "Best Film to Show Filmmakers That Low-Budget Doesn't Mean Twenty-Somethings Sitting in Cafes Talking About Their Boring Relationships"), not to mention a couple of other picks.
Timpson sums up his mentality thusly: "I already know these films are very special. I don't need a jury to tell me what I already know. I'm giving these films awards in advance because 99% of the public don't care what films win awards AFTER they've screened, they want to know BEFORE they screen..." Believe me you, the man has a point. The real question is, how will such thinking play in the States?
The Cinematical Roundtable: Live from SXSW with James Rocchi
Filed under: Action », Comedy », Documentary », Drama », Independent », Thrillers », SXSW », Mystery & Suspense », Festival Reports »
Welcome to the second episode of The Cinematical Roundtable, our latest podcast here at the site, where we'll speak with writers and readers alike about the latest in film offerings. Joining us this round is James Rocchi, formerly of Cinematical and currently of MSN Movies and countless other outlets, as we tackle several of the more independent titles that graced us with their presence at this year's SXSW Film Festival.
Again, please bear with the overwhelming ambiance of the International House of Pancakes (a South By staple, and not always by choice). In the weeks to come, the podcast will actually be produced in much more conducive conditions, but when in Austin, keeping it weird is the name of the game. With that in mind, your feedback is appreciated, and feel free to spread the word. Preferably the word 'podcast'. And 'Cinematical'. Yeah, that is two words, what of it?
That's what I thought...
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SXSW Review: Winnebago Man
Filed under: Comedy », Documentary », Drama », Independent », SXSW »
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There's a fine line between being laughed at and being laughed with -- especially in an "instant video" culture that seemingly loves to see people humiliate themselves on YouTube. But what are we laughing at, really? For example, check out the (extremely profane and NSFW) video after the jump. I'll wait.
OK, the man you just witnessed is one Jack Rebney, an average citizen who got caught on film while having a VERY bad day on the job. Did the clip make you laugh? Was it the profanity? The frustration? The flies? And here's the question that interests me the most: As you watched Jack's meltdown, were you taking pleasure in his misery -- or were you able to empathize with Jack because you know exactly how he feels?
This is one of the themes that runs through Ben Steinbauer's excellent independent documentary Winnebago Man. It also touches on issues of privacy, frustration, friendship, and loneliness (stuff we can all relate to, obviously), but what I found most interesting was the theme of simple respect. Yes, Jack flipped out on camera 20 years ago and then became sort of a mini-sensation on the "funny clips" circuit (before YouTube showed up, I mean), but the question of WHY we laugh and what that laughter does to the man himself, well, that's a pretty fascinating theme to tackle.
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