Category: Film

REVIEW: Tiger Stripes

Ella Larsen Leave a comment

7:30pm • Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023 • State Theater

Directed by Amanda Nell Eu and brought to Ann Arbor by the annual Halaloween film festival, Tiger Stripes follows Zaffan, an 11-year-old girl living in rural Malaysia, and her friends Mariam and Farah. When Zaffan has her period, drastic changes begin occurring in her body and she becomes a social pariah, only to discover her own power.  Tiger Stripes captures the fraught experience of adolescence through a combination of thoughtful character development and body horror. 

In the beginning of the movie, scenes where Zaffan dances for TikTok videos in the school bathroom and rough-houses with her friends develop her feisty, rebellious nature. At the same time, Farah’s disgust and Mariam’s admiration for Zaffan’s behavior set the stage for the relational conflicts which occur later in the story. Something I thought was brilliant in the way Eu portrayed the friends’ responses to Zaffan’s rebelliousness, and then her period, was how they hinted at the process of socialization and the intergenerational transfer of beliefs and values. Farah’s story about how mad her father was when her older sister bled on the couch revealed how Farah’s personal experiences informed her understanding of menstruation. 

Also brilliant was the way that Eu projected beliefs and values about purity and cleanliness present in Zaffan’s community directly onto her body. When Zaffan gets her period, the first thing her mother says is “You’re dirty now,” shepherding Zaffan into the shower. Later, Zaffan’s former friends bully her, saying that she smells and questioning whether she is taking showers. Zaffan becomes afflicted with angry red rashes all over her body, her nails peel off, and her hair begins falling out, a physical manifestation of her friends’ teasing. Zaffan’s fear and disgust at the changes occuring in her body reflected the feelings many girls experience during adolescence.

Even in the midst of all of these horrors, Zaffan remains true to her bold, joyful identity, emerging from the trials of adolescence as a powerful, liberated new version of herself. Eu brings moments of levity into the story using tongue-in-cheek special effects and comedic jump-scares that seem to infuse the movie with Zaffan’s bright personality. I loved the way Tiger Stripes brought joy and humor together with horror to portray adolescence and coming of age. It was a new experience for me to embrace horror as a genre that can be playful, even funny, and made me ask new questions about the balance between serious subjects and making fun out of their representation. I cannot recommend this movie enough, and encourage you to watch it if you have the opportunity.

REVIEW: Stop Making Sense

aesteele Leave a comment

Stop Making Sense is essentially a Talking Heads concert in movie form. Originally released in 1984, the movie was re-released and remastered in September of 2023. The movie starts with David Byrne playing “Psycho Killer”, arguably the band’s most famous song, on acoustic guitar with a boombox in the background. The second song in the lineup features Tina Weymouth (the band’s bassist), and gradually more and more members join alongside them. As the band plays, members of the crew assemble the set in real time. The band has multiple outfit changes but only wears neutral colors, allowing the focus to be almost entirely on the music and choreography.

What surprised me the most about the movie was how physical the performance was. Once each member of the band started playing they did not stop continuously moving one way or another. David Byrne even started running laps around the stage at an early point in the movie. The dancing that accompanied each song was very deliberate, and sometimes required every member of the band to move in unison. There was a particular emphasis on mirroring each other’s dance moves, making everything feel put together and sharp.

Light was another important aspect of the performance. The band at one point altered the lighting so they could disappear in and out of the darkness behind them. Byrne even dances with a lamp at one point, which is in direct contrast to the industrial lighting available to them on stage.  The performance also has a brief intermission by the band Tom Tom Club which was formed by Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, the band’s bassist and drummer. 

Going in as a casual listener of the band, I was a little hesitant to go see the movie for myself. All of my reservations were completely thrown out of the window as soon as the first song started. It was definitely a worthwhile, and incredibly unique experience. Stop Making Sense  is perfect for the big screen, and seeing it reignited my love for the Talking Heads music.       

 

Photo from Fandango.com

REVIEW: The Rocky Horror Picture Show

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The Rocky Horror Picture Show is an internationally appreciated cult classic musical film, often performed around Halloween. The hit movie (and musical) held two performances this past weekend at our very own Michigan Theater. I was lucky enough to catch their annual performance on Saturday at 9:30, and it lived up to every expectation as an absolute riot from start to finish. It’s a lively and goofy movie with notable characters like the innocent Brad and Janet, thoughtless yet sincere Rocky, and the tremendously memorable transvestite, Frank-N-Furter. This performance is absolutely an 18+ experience, with many sexual innuendos, violence, intense language, and adult themes (which is no surprise if you know the show). The film has the longest-running release in film history and was even adapted again into a more modern TV film in 2016 on Fox. Forty-eight years later, the film still plays in theaters all around the country, often with a live amateur ‘shadow cast’ that mimes the actors on the big screen. There were shouts and roars from the costumed audience of classic lines to be accurately called out at certain points in the film. It is not your average ‘night at the movies’ at all…

The film was released in the fall of 1975 in the UK and USA. It was directed by the Australian director Jim Sharman, who was widely known for producing many kinds of experimental theater. He has a decorated list of theatrical directing credentials from across the world, with a few major films that hit the theaters through the 70s. The screenplay was adapted by Sharman and the UK’s own Richard O’Brien based on O’Brien’s original 1973 musical. The musical premiered that year in the UK, including the iconic Tim Curry, who reprised his role as Frank-N-Furter in the 1975 original movie. The first West End cast performance was dubbed a ‘creative and commercial success’. Initial reception to the film, however, was extremely negative, but it later became a hit as a ‘midnight movie’ that aired late into the evenings on television stations, and from there, a quintessential cult classic. 

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is understood to have been a great influence on countercultural and sexual liberation in the 1960s and even today. It was one of the first popular musicals that depicted fluid sexuality during a time of generational divisiveness and growing advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights. Today, this continues to be true as queer folks work to create more LGBTQ+ friendly space in the arts, and annual productions of Rocky Horror reinforce the necessary space yearly through this vessel. This precedent is set by the characters in the show: they are not confined by gender, and many different identities of performers take on the ‘shadow cast’ roles, keeping the show undoubtedly fresh. The “look” of each character does stay consistent, their costuming/hair and such, but many things can and have been adapted in various performances. Historically, the costuming of the show affected the development of many punk rock fashion trends, with colored hair, fishnet stockings, and colorfully flamboyant make-up. 

The ‘shadow cast’ of this production did a fantastic job of depicting the drama on screen. A ‘shadow cast’ is not something that is often seen in movie theater settings, so it was a lot of fun to experience. It was difficult to light the actors because the movie playing right behind the stage, so often it was hard to see. However, the energy of the acts was understood from the back of the house, and their exuberant costumes filled the space left by a lack of set. I commend these folks for their accurate and entertaining work as the ‘shadow cast’ of the film, and their commitment to the tradition of Rocky Horror! 

The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a must-see musical film and a hilariously memorable experience. I sincerely enjoyed the performances from the ‘shadow cast’ and seeing this movie for the first time in theaters. The actors and the crowd were absolute pandemonium, and I enjoyed my time from start to finish. The experience in theaters is a unique one, and I would urge folks interested to make an evening of it and enjoy the show. Rocky Horror is an annual occurrence at the Michigan Theater and sells out nearly every time, so be sure to get your tickets early. It’s a Halloween festivity not to be missed! 

 

 

Image from the film, thanks to IMDb.

REVIEW: Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour

Sappy Leave a comment

Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour was a crazy 2-hour and 45-minute-long film, and I enjoyed every second of it. I highly recommend experiencing it in theaters instead of at home; unlike regular movies, people sang, danced, cheered, and clapped in their seats (some even stood)! Although nothing could ever compare to seeing her perform live, the energy of the crowd was great and I felt like I got a glimpse of the ecstatic atmosphere at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles: the last stop of Taylor’s tour in North America and where the movie was shot. Not only was her tour sold out, but the movie the night I watched it was too!

Like most people, if you weren’t lucky enough to see her live, then the film is the next best thing. I’m not a Swifite, though I was in my elementary days. That’s why I especially enjoyed the discography in The Eras Tour, which covered all the music she’s released in the past 17 years of her career, including the three albums she never got to tour with. As the title of the tour suggests, it was truly a journey through all of her musical eras, and she ended the night with her most recent album Midnights (2022). My favorites were the classic You Belong With Me and Love Story.

The cinematography was absolutely amazing and truly captured Taylor’s stage presence and control over the crowd. The camera work showcased everything so well, such as the great chemistry between her and the backup dancers and singers, the stage set-up, and the graphics. The most breathtaking transition was right after she finished performing Our Song; as she walked towards the back of the stage she suddenly jumped down and became one with the ground, swimming with her striking red dress. She had several wardrobe changes throughout the night, ranging from black cloaks and white flowy dresses to glittery skin-tight bodysuits. They helped express the emotion of each era and she pulled off each one. In addition to being a phenomenal singer, Taylor also proved that she was a great dancer, guitarist, and pianist throughout her performances.

Though it was the longest movie I’ve ever seen it never felt like it dragged on. I highly recommend watching it, even as a casual fan or listener. It simply won’t be the same as watching it at home, so get a ticket soon! There will be multiple showings up until October 26th at the Michigan Theatre.

REVIEW: Joan Baez: I Am A Noise

Ella Larsen Leave a comment

8:30pm • Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023 • Michigan Theater

Joan Baez: I Am A Noise is a deeply introspective documentary delving into the life of legendary folk singer and activist Joan Baez. The film navigates the intertwined themes of family history, relationships and mental health running through Baez’s experiences, weaving together an intimate picture of a public icon’s private life. 

One of the central themes explored in the film is Baez’s lifelong struggle with mental health. Using archival footage, drawings, diaries and letters between Baez and her family, the film sheds light on the alternating anomie and anguish she faced privately during the peak of her career. Baez’s candid discussions about the feeling of being “broken,” inhabited by a “darkness” she sometimes describes as “demonic” illustrate how she characterizes her own mental health. Baez uses words like “crazy” to describe herself during her son’s early childhood, conveying her feelings of failure and inadequacy as a parent during that time, as well as reflecting cultural narratives about women, motherhood, and mental health. 

As I watched the documentary, I kept thinking about how Baez’s pain might have been alleviated had mental health been less stigmatized and better understood earlier in her life. There was a sense of helplessness in the way Baez described her and her sister Mimi’s struggles to understand and live with their mental turmoil. Their experiences represent those of countless others who, even now, don’t have access to a common language to express or understand these problems. My overwhelming thought for the Baez sisters and others was, “I wish we could have cared for you better.” 

For me, one of the most intriguing aspects of the film is Baez’s exploration of childhood traumas through hypnosis. Using hypnosis, Baez identified abstract parts of her own consciousness, such as “Diamond Joan,” enabling her to piece together fragments of memories from her childhood. The documentary conveys these “parts” with some ambiguity, reflecting the tension around how Baez and her family conceptualized the process. Both Baez and her family sometimes refer to these fragments as “personalities,” elements of a dissociative identity disorder, implicitly discrediting the process with some level of “craziness.” 

I appreciate how Baez’s revelatory process challenges conventional notions of reality and what is “really real.” Baez asserts that the experiences she remembers from her childhood are no less “real” to her, even if they didn’t conventionally “happen.” This feels like a particularly valuable perspective in our present historical moment where we are constantly reckoning with past wrongs. Often, it is essential to set aside our personal reality so we can hear and empathize with someone else’s. 

REVIEW: Shoebox

Ella Larsen Leave a comment

7:15pm • Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023 • State Theater

Shoebox was a thought-provoking film that stood out for its deliberate and introspective approach to storytelling, coupled with cinematography that beautifully captured a city in transition. The story, which took place in Allahabad on the cusp of its renaming, followed Mampu as she watched her father struggle to maintain his deteriorating movie palace in the midst of a health crisis. The narrative drew me slowly and quietly into a world where local politics intersected tragically with personal daily struggles.

One of the standout features of Shoebox was its cinematography. The film took its time, offering long, meditative shots of a city in the midst of transformation. These visuals provided a vivid backdrop to the characters’ lives, showcasing the beauty and decay of the urban landscape. Allahabad itself became a character in the film, reflecting the societal shifts and economic challenges faced by its inhabitants. Each frame was a work of art, and the cinematographer’s mastery was evident in every scene.

For me, the most meaningful aspect of the film was its understated portrayal of Mampu’s struggles to care for her father against a backdrop of corrupt politics. The characters’ daily lives were punctuated by the effects of political decisions made far beyond their reach. The powerlessness of the family was palpable, and their attempts to navigate a system riddled with corruption were both poignant and frustrating. Mampu’s experience reflected that of many who had to choose between protesting the injustices dealt to them and protecting themselves and those they cared for.

One of the most impactful moments in the film occurred during a simple yet profound scene involving a pack of cigarettes. This moment of intimacy between Mampu and her father became a lens through which the family’s dynamics were clarified. It revealed the unspoken connections and tensions that existed within the household, adding depth to their characters and relationships. This subtlety in storytelling was another of the film’s great strengths, showcasing the actors’ ability to convey emotions without the need for grandiose displays of drama.

In conclusion, Shoebox was a mesmerizing and quietly powerful film that invited viewers to contemplate the intersection of personal and political challenges. Its deliberate pacing and exquisite cinematography created a sense of immersion in a world where beauty and decay coexisted. The film’s understated storytelling style allowed the audience to connect deeply with the characters. Shoebox was a masterclass in subtlety and a testament to the impact of quiet moments in cinema. It was a poignant exploration of the human spirit in the face of daunting challenges, leaving a lasting impression long after the credits rolled.