Sundance Review: “You Won’t Be Alone” (2022)

February 2, 2022 by Keith Garlington

Yet another debut feature that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival was “You Won’t Be Alone” from Goran Stolevski. The Australian-Macedonian writer-director has over 25 short films to his credit, and here he brings a unique and fresh twist to the familiar witch story. His folk horror concept is intriguing. His visual style is stunning. And at different times his film can be both chilling and beautiful. If only it played as well as it sounds.

Snatched up by Focus Features prior to the festival, “You Won’t Be Alone” is already slated for an April 1st release. It will be interesting to see the reactions considering how shockingly gruesome it can be. Yet it can also be quiet and soothing, with the meditative rhythm and visual sensibility of a Malick film. It fully embraces the ghoulish and grotesque, while also taking an often tender and poignant look at what it means to be human. Unfortunately, certain indulgences keep it from seamlessly combining those two extremes.

Set in a remote mountain village in 19th century Macedonia, the story begins on an disturbing note. A mother finds a hideously scarred crone (Anamaria Marinca) hovering over her newborn baby’s crib. Legend says she’s a shape-shifting witch known as the Wolf-Eateress. Others in the village refer to her as Old Maid Maria. The mother breaks down and begs the ghastly woman not to take her child. The two come to an agreement – the mother can raise her daughter until she turns 16. At that point the crone will return and take the girl for her own. But before leaving the old woman leaves her mark on the child (not an easy watch).

The mother takes her daughter to a sacred cave in the mountains. Her motives are good – hide and protect her daughter (named Nevena) from the witch. But by raising her in such stark isolation, Nevena has no understanding of the real world when Maria inevitably finds her. The old maid takes her prize to the forest and endows Nevena (now played by Sarah Klimoska) with her shape-shifting ability. But Nevena’s childlike and open-hearted curiosity infuriates Maria who casts out the young witch. Alone, Nevena wanders into the nearby village where the movie’s bigger interests unfold.

To say much more would be a disservice, but broadly speaking, Nevena begins (rather gruesomely) inhabiting the bodies of villagers. And with each new person she inhabits, she gets a new perspective on the world. It’s a captivating conceit – living and experiencing humanity through the bodies (and in turn the experiences) of others. It gives Nevena the opportunity to see both the ugliness and the beauty of the human condition. It also allows Stolevski to explore a number of social themes that are still relevant today.

In addition to Klimoska (Macedonia), Stolevski puts together a well-tuned international group to play the witch’s different incarnations. Noomi Rapace (Sweden) plays an abused wife who vividly portraying the travails of women, Carloto Cotta (Portugal) is a handsome village beefcake who embodies patriarchal privilege, and Alice Englert (Australia) as a sweet innocent little girl who allows Nevena a taste of the childhood she never had. Each offer moments of insight and challenge many modern-day norms despite being set in the 1800s.

While the film impresses with its surprising amount of emotional depth, some of the more practical things aren’t as convincing. Take Nevena’s strangely eloquent internal monologue which doesn’t exactly ring true considering all her time spent disconnected and in isolation. She was barely a step above a feral child when Maria found her and took her away. Yet the mellifluous and poetic flow of thoughts in Nevena’s mind at times sound like the words of a seasoned lyricist rather than a wild and untamed girl. Perhaps it’s meant to simply convey feeling, but it doesn’t come across that way.

There’s also Maria’s appearance which too often looks like a rubber suit and thick makeup. It’s unquestionably a reflection of the film’s budget, but it also keeps Maria from being as visually forbidding as she could be. But that’s okay because it’s her backstory that’s most haunting. As is often the case in stories like this, the history behind Maria’s scars are both horrifying and tragic, and Stolevski brings it to light with unsettling clarity.

With “You Won’t Be Alone” Goran Stolevski has created something that defies categorization. He brings with him an undeniably artful vision and a truly thoughtful mind. Along with it comes a few needless excesses, such as the sometimes weird and almost obsessive way he uses sex and gore. But beyond that is movie of impeccable craft. An arthouse drama with a folk horror veneer that doesn’t reach every mark it’s going for. But at least it’s reaching for something.

VERDICT – 3 STARS

First Glance: “After Yang” (2022)

February 1, 2022 by Keith Garlington

If you have followed my Sundance 2022 coverage you probably already know that I was a huge fan of “After Yang”, the new film from Kogonada. In many ways it’s the perfect followup to the filmmaker’s 2017 feature film debut, “Columbus”. Both films are thoughtful and moving meditations and both feature Kogonada’s easy narrative rhythm and elegant poetic visual style.

“After Yang” was high on my ‘most anticipated’ list and it delivered exactly what I hoped for. This endearing yet melancholy story of a family working through the sudden loss of their android turns out to be a deeper reflection on humanity, life, family, and finding your place in the world. I won’t rehash my review, but I loved the film and now A24 has released its first trailer. It has me even more excited to see it again.

“After Yang” is believed to be heading towards a March 4th release although the trailer simply says “coming soon”. Regardless, check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Sundance Review: “Alice” (2022)

February 1, 2022 by Keith Garlington

Genres galore make up the craziness that is Krystin Ver Linden’s “Alice”, a film that teases big things but is ultimately undone by both its ambition and execution. It’s a movie centered around an idea that has all the potential to be a wild and stylish Tarantino-esque revenge thriller. Instead, “Alice” never gets its footing and is compromised by woefully underdeveloped characters, a scattershot script, and narrative shortcuts galore.

With a twist that would make M. Night Shyamalan blush, the title character Alice (Keke Palmer) escapes from a late 19th century Georgia plantation only to discover the year is actually 1973. If the premise sounds familiar that’s because 2020’s “Antebellum”, a movie that wasn’t nearly as horrible as the pounding it took would indicate, was built around a similar twist. With “Alice” it’s mostly about the revenge…kinda.

Without question, Palmer is the film’s biggest strength and she does her best with the haphazard screenplay (written by Ver Linden). But neither the early scenes on the plantation or the 1973 scenes that follow allow her room to do anything interesting with her character. And as the movie spirals from perplexing to laughably bad, Palmer is left stranded with little to do but stick with it till the end.

Minus some missing details (possibly due to budget constraints), the early scenes are pretty convincing. In fact, another strength is in the production design and how well Ver Linden captures two vastly different periods. The plantation setting is believable in large part thanks to the location, costumes, and the immersive way Ver Linden shoots it. The issue (as it is throughout the film) is the storytelling.

While the antebellum plantation scenes look great and the performances are solid, they check more boxes than tell a good story. You have the slaves working the crops while the berating white foreman looks on. You have the by-the-book wicked plantation owner Paul Bennet (Jonny Lee Miller). You have the seemingly mandatory one scene of a slave being tortured. And you have the various attempts to escape. In between it all is Alice who we first meet as she secretly weds her love Joseph (Gaius Charles), a smart, strong and passionate fellow slave.

After learning he’s about to be shipped away to another plantation, Joseph attempts an escape, vowing to come back for Alice. But when he’s captured and beaten to a pulp, Alice can’t take it. She tries an escape of her own, running to the point of exhaustion. With little strength left, she wanders out of the woods onto a paved highway where she’s nearly hit my a big rig. Yep, it’s 1973. After fainting, the truck’s driver, Frank (Common, working at the exact same temperature and tenor as he does in every film) takes her to an area hospital, convinced she has amnesia. Oh how little he knows.

After some truly silly and narratively convenient guesswork, Frank decides to take her to his house (with little thought and practically no buildup) to help jog her memory. He starts by sharing life’s finer pleasures such as “Sanford and Son”, soul music, and bologna sandwiches. But who knew all it would take was an encyclopedia, a few newspaper clippings, and Pam Grier’s “Coffy” for Alice to get caught up on African-American history and current day fashion. Quite literally, within 24 hours Alice is fully adjusted to 1973 society and in full avenging angel mode.

“Alice” hits a point where its Blaxploitation motifs kick into gear and the movie teases something it never fully delivers. Yes, Alice puts together a plan to return to the plantation so she can free her people and dish out some good old-fashioned revenge on the Bennets. But the Pam Grier vibes are paper-thin, and other than her look, Alice never feels anything like her inspiration. Nor does this movie have any of the energy or style of those 70s era genre flicks.

“Alice” is a movie chock-full of squandered potential. Outside of Keke Palmer’s committed performance and some visual touches showing Ver Linden’s promise as a director, there’s little here to latch onto or get excited about. Its issues really come back to the writing which ranges from dreadfully shallow to glaringly on the nose. It keeps “Alice” stuck in a weird gear and never allows it to get as crazy as it could be or as insightful as it should be.

VERDICT – 1.5 STARS

First Glance: “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (2022)

January 31, 2022 by Keith Garlington

I’ll say it again – I hate this current trend where horror movie sequels rehash the same title as the original film in their franchise. “Halloween” did it. “Scream” just did it. And now “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” is doing it (they actually did it back in 2003, but that was a remake rather than a sequel). This latest slasher flick comes courtesy on Netflix. And while I can’t say we really needed a new TCM, I gotta admit the new trailer looks pretty cool.

Directed by David Blue Garcia and written by Chris Thomas Devlin, this incarnation of “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” was conceived by Fede Álvarez and Rodo Sayagues, the Uruguayan duo behind the “Evil Dead” remake and “Don’t Breathe”. The film is considered a sequel to the classic 1974 original film and sees Leatherface once again after some unfortunate travelers. But this time someone comes to their rescue – Sally Hardesty, the lone survivor of the ’74 movie. Will this be good? I don’t know. Am I going to give it a shot? Absolutely!

“Texas Chainsaw Massacre” premieres on Netflix February 18th. Check out the trailer below and let me know if you’ll be seeing it or taking a pass.

Sundance Review: “Lucy and Desi” (2022)

January 31, 2022 by Keith Garlington

(CLICK HERE for my full review in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

On its surface, “Lucy and Desi” looks like a fairly by-the-books documentary. There’s little to its style or approach that sets it apart from countless other docs. But don’t be misled. In addition to its compelling subjects, the feature is energized by director Amy Poehler who isn’t just throwing out facts and old footage. Instead she frames her film as the love story of two beloved entertainers who forever changed television and our culture.

That warm and sincere focus is what makes Poehler’s film such a delight. As you might expect, the movie will resonate most with those familiar with the wild and improbable success story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. But Poehler’s approach results in something that’s both endearing and insightful which should open the documentary up to anyone regardless of their history (or lack of) which the iconic couple.

“Lucy and Desi” is full of entertainment history but it’s also intimate and personal. One of my favorite touches is in how much is told in the couple’s own words and through their own voices. Clips from a number television and radio interviews give us their true perspectives on the ups and down of their incredible journey together. Meanwhile interviews with their son, Desi Arnez Jr. and daughter, Luci Arnez Luckin shed even more light but from yet another personal angle.

And of course, we also hear from entertainers who not only knew them but were inspired by their work – Carol Burnett, Charo, Bette Midler, among others highlight the impact Lucy and Desi had on generations of performers. Words like “fearless”, “effortless” and “extraordinary” often were used especially in describing Lucy. She had a natural talent for comedy, but she was also a fiery straight-shooter which proved invaluable in an industry ran predominantly by men.

Poehler rightly gives time to the couple’s years prior to meeting. As Lucy left New York City for Hollywood, Desi was escaping Cuba for Miami. Only a short time later, the two met for the first time in the commissary at RKO Pictures and were married six months later. From there the couple’s personal and professional lives took off in large part thanks to the massive success of “I Love Lucy”.

Poehler takes time to stress the importance of “I Love Lucy” and the impact it made on the television industry, both on screen and behind the camera. We hear about how each show was performed in front of 400 studio audience members and with no retakes. About how they once did 41 shows in 41 weeks. And how “I Love Lucy” would help establish the rerun model that would be used forever after. And of course there was the relationships with their co-stars Vivian Vance and William Frawley.

Their business partnership extended beyond “I Love Lucy”. The film covers the formation and success of their own studio, Desilu Productions which would produce such shows as “The Untouchables”, “Mission: Impossible”, and “Star Trek”. The couple would grow Desilu into the second-largest independent television production company in the United States. And of course there was their later purchase of RKO Studios.

But in “Lucy and Desi” it always comes back to the personal – in this case the relationship between the two stars. The stress and demands of fame hurt their marriage leading to an eventual split. But as Poehler shows us, there remained a deep connection between them even as they were miles apart and with new spouses. The two loved each other as much as the country loved them. By stressing that truth, Poehler’s film, though very much a documentary, comes from a place closer to the heart. And that’s a choice which makes “Lucy and Desi” stand out.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

Sundance Review: “Speak No Evil” (2022)

January 30, 2022 by Keith Garlington

One of the more intriguing ‘horror’ films in this year’s Sundance program comes from Danish filmmaker Christian Tafdrup. It’s “Speak No Evil”, a smart but unsettling chiller but not in the traditional sense. In fact, the film didn’t start out as a horror movie. It was originally conceived as a psychological drama centered around a fairly simple idea. But as that idea grew, the movie took a new shape and Tafdrup begin utilizing horror elements in some shrewdly original ways.

Co-written by Taldrup and his brother Mads, “Speak No Evil” starts tame before festering into something unthinkably savage and deeply disturbing. But it’s the cinematic space in between that makes the film more than just a genre exercise in audience cruelty. With a surgical cunning, Taldrup cuts into themes of human nature, manhood, and social norms. But it’s the film’s bigger more ambiguous meaning that ultimately makes this such a terrifying experience.

The film opens with a first-person view of a car driving down a dirt road at night. The drone of composer Sune Kolst’s haunting orchestral score soaks the scene in dread. But in a flash the camera suddenly switches to a sun-soaked swimming pool where the sounds of happy chatter, splashing water, and kid’s laughter fills the air. It’s not the only time Tafdrup will lay eerie ominous music over a seemingly innocuous scene.

The pool we learn is at a resort in Tuscany which is where we meet a vacationing Danish family, Bjorn (Morten Burian), his wife Louise (Sidsel Siem Koch), and their young daughter Agnes (Liva Forsberg). While there, they hit it off with a Dutch family – an outgoing doctor named Patrick (Fedja van Huet), his good-natured wife Karin (Karina Smulders), and their unusually quiet son Abel (Marius Damslev). The two families have lunch where we hear that familiar throwaway line from Karin, “Well you should come visit us sometimes.”

The story jumps ahead in time with Bjorn and his family back home in Denmark. One evening they’re surprised by a letter from Patrick and Karin inviting them to come to Holland for the weekend. After some lighthearted debate, Bjorn and Louise decide to go, with Louise even uttering those ill-fated words “What’s the worst that can happen?”

The trio leaves Denmark and heads for the Dutch countryside. When they finally arrive at the address they don’t find the kind of house you would expect a doctor to live it. Instead it’s a dated two-story wood-framed place in the middle of nowhere. And there you have the first warning sign out of many to come. While things feel a little weird at first, the two families begin reconnecting much like they did in Tuscany. But over time Peter and Karin’s behavior gets stranger and more uncomfortable. Soon the nice weekend getaway with “friends” turns into a horrifying nightmare.

I’ll leave the rest for you to discover but be warned, “Speak No Evil” takes some shockingly depraved turns, and the final 30 minutes are as unsettling as anything you’ll see on screen this year. And by that I don’t mean that’s it’s gory and gross. I’m talking about the kind of brutal unpleasantness that you might find in certain Michael Haneke films. It will rattle you to your core.

Following its recent premiere at Sundance, “Speak No Evil” was quickly gobbled up by Shudder for distribution. So those of you who are interested (and gutsy enough), won’t have long to wait. To be honest, it’s not a movie I’m completely comfortable with recommending. Not because of poor quality (Tafdrup proves to be much too good of a filmmaker for that). But many will find it to be genuinely troublesome. Be that as it may, the sheer craft and control Tafdrup shows is top-notch, and I was glued to the screen throughout. I was thoroughly invested in the plight of this Danish family who were seduced by evil’s charms and then walked right into its trap.