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Day 4 of TIFF 2007Up for 11 to catch a screening of "The Orphanage" which is most likely my favourite film of the festival so far. It's got about 5 well earned seat jumpers in it, which is pretty incredible. When it gets its theatrical release, be sure to see it. Then a bit of lunch and then some used laserdisc shopping. I now own the "Aliens" CAV boxset which I longed for back in high school, but could never find for a price that agreed with my grocery store wages. Purchased today for... $6. Also picked up the Japanese "Evil Dead" disc, "Black Caesar", "The Bird with the Crystal Plumage", "The Beasts", and then some. I wish I had time to watch them, but they'll have to wait until after the festival. After that, I met up with a couple friends to see "Operation Filmmaker." (Watch an interview with the director, Nina Davenport, here: http://www.filmcatcher.com/festivals/Toronto_Film_Festival/day_10/26/) REVIEW!!! Nina Davenport's "Operation Filmmaker" is an entertaining doc about a 25 year-old Iraqi film student named Muthana, whose film school was bombed by US troops. When Liev Schreiber sees a piece about him on MTV, Liev invites Muthana to visit Prague and work on the set of his directorial debut, "Everything is Illuminated". A good idea on paper (maybe a bit white of him), but once Muthana hits the set, it's like oil poured in water. Muthana isn't interested in most of the small jobs he's assigned, and even more upsetting to his hosts I think, is that he doesn't agree with their left-wing politics which are a large part of why the invitation was extended. When Muthana says that he loves George W. Bush, they're genuinely taken aback, and seem to distance themselves from him even more. Originally merely a promo piece for the "Everything is Illuminated" DVD, once the shoot was done, Davenport realized she had a film-proper on her hands and continued following Muthana as he tried to extend his visa, get another film job, and pretty much anything he can get his hands on. Just as long as he doesn't have to go back to Iraq, where he says his life would be in danger for having worked with not only Americans, but even worse, Jewish-Americans. Able to somehow always manage to find someone who's willing to help him out to extend his visit, Muthana, it becomes clear, is a bit of a user. The film raises the questions of whether or not he can be blamed though. Plucked from the only place he's ever known and put into a world completely foreign to him, expected to know how to act, Muthana's reaction to his new situation isn't completely unreasonable. "Operation Filmmaker" is often very funny, but more important than that are the parallels between Liev Schreiber trying to help Muthana, and the United States trying to help Iraq; both knowing very little about the reality of the situations. It's a bit of a stretch, but Davenport pulls it off well. What keeps the film from being great is how irritating Muthana becomes. He's clearly a very intelligent and entertaining person, but it becomes tiresome to watch him refuse to be honest, over and over again. A documentary where its subject doesn't open up and keeps a thin layer of bullshit between him and the camera at all times doesn't work as well as one where its subject is open and forthcoming. This is "Operation Filmmaker's" biggest problem, but since it still manages to make you laugh and think, it’s well worth a viewing. END REVIEW!!! END BLOG!!! (It's late, and I'm sure you don't want to read anymore about my "shopping spree".) -Jeff. Posted on 09/10/07 by: Jeff. 2 Comments
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nice shopping diary, idiot.