Tribeca ’19: Two/One

This review might have made some dude in Shanghai oversleep. Mysterious, tenuous relationships are what the film in question is all about. In this case, it is the unknown connection between a Canadian ski jumper and a successful but lonely Shanghai executive. When one is awake, the other is asleep. It is not a relationship either is aware of, but it will eventually cause complications in Juan Cabral’s Two/One, which screens during the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.

Kaden Russell is over the hill, but he has already sacrificed too much to give up on his Olympic dream. That most definitely includes relationships, but things might be looking up when the great love of his life suddenly comes looking him up again. His athletic prospects also start to brighten when Russell pulls a monster jump out of the vault, qualifying himself for the world championships. However, the competition will be in Japan this year, which will be an issue.

Meanwhile, Kai has steadily climbed the ladder at an ad agency with clients throughout Asia. Like Russell, he has not had anything happening from a relationship standpoint, until Jia joins the firm as a junior associate. She is beautiful, but self-conscious about her prosthetic foot, the unfortunate by-product of a recent accident. It has been a tough time for her, judging from the revealing photos her ex posted on a revenge website. Even though Kai stumbles across the online photos, he is still deeply attracted to her. Yet, he cannot help worrying what other people might think. Inconveniently, he will have to give a presentation in Japan exactly when he should stay to repair his relationship with Jia.

Although the first two acts largely feel like two unrelated storylines braided together, Cabral brings them together in a devilishly clever way when the film shifts to Japan and Korea (where both characters’ flights are forced to divert). Things get crazy down the stretch, but in a way we have never seen before.

Boyd Holbrook is so earnest and convincingly Canadian as Russell, viewers will really feel for him as he faces up to life’s disappointments. Yet, arguably the most touching work comes from Zhu Zhu (the rising star of Marco Polo), who overshadows Song Yang’s ultra-reserved Kai as the sensitive and insecure Jia. Dominique McElligott also makes a strong impression as the former lover stirring up Russell’s emotions, while Beau Bridges chews the scenery shamelessly as his restless father.

It is hard to neatly fit Two/One into a genre box, but it sort of fits the unnamed sub-genre, in which fate is shown to play games with the oblivious characters, exemplified by films like Kieslowski’s Blind Chance. It is an odd duck of a film, but also very definitely a distinctive one, in terms of tone and structure. Recommended for viewers who want to see something different, Two/One screens again tomorrow (4/30) and Thursday (5/2), as part of this year’s Tribeca.

Rushlights: Hot, Dry, and Noir

In the Lone Star State, estate law is a big deal.  Smelling the money, crack-heads and secret progeny will come out of the woodwork for a Texas-sized inheritance in Antoni Stutz’s sweaty small town noir, Rushlights (trailer here), which opens today at the Picture House in Pelham, New York.

Not long after Billy Brody finally puts the moves on Sarah, the greasy spoon waitress he has been swooning for, she calls him in a state of panic.  Ellen Niles, her crack-addict roommate has overdosed.  Normal people would simply call the police, but not Billy and Sarah.  They are heading out of town as fast as his beater can take them, but not without a dubious plan.

Sarah bears an uncanny resemblance to her dearly departed roommate, who just received a letter informing her she is the sole heir of the rich uncle she hardly knew.  Billy and Sarah are off to Texas to collect in her place.  However, problems will follow them from the big city.  It turns out there is a reason Sarah was rooming with a hardcore druggie.  It also seems there might be an unacknowledged son looking to claim the estate for himself—and he’s a real bastard.

It is kind of amusing to watch Rushlights string along one highly improbable scene after another, with a perfectly straight face.  Right from the first ridiculously convenient accidental gun discharge, viewers should realize what they are in for.  However, veteran character actors Beau Bridges and Aidan Quinn are actually a lot of fun to watch doing their suspicious Jim Thompson thing as good old boy Sheriff Robert Brogden, Jr. and his glad-handing lawyer brother, Cameron Brogden, respectively.  Both are in fine form strutting about and chewing the scenery.

In contrast, the young leads are decidedly lightweight, particularly the underwhelming Josh Henderson and his high school freshman starter moustache as Brody.  Haley Webb has a bit more presence as Sarah, Ellen, or whoever she is, but she does not project the femme fatale sense of danger the genre demands.

At least cinematographer Gregg Easterbrook gives it the right hot-in-the-shade inflamed passions noir look, in the tradition of Red Rock West and Blood Simple.  As a director, Stutz also maintains a respectable pace, but as a co-writer, with Ashley Scott Meyers, he overindulges in contrivance while avoiding logic like the plague.  Frankly, Rushlights would be perfect viewing for a lazy somewhat hung-over weekend afternoon, but its probably not worth commuting from the City to Westchester when it opens today (6/21) at the Picture House, as well the Chinese 6 in LA and the Premiere Renaissance in Houston.