TIFF ’17: Simulation

They are like characters in a Persian Pirandello play, but at least they are well accessorized. Existence is absurd and tragic, yet everyone sports ultra-sparkly blue boots. It is not realistic, but it is not meant to be. Probably the only thing true to life is the gut-punching conclusion, but that comes relatively early in Abed Abest’s experimental, reverse-sequence Simulation (trailer here), which screens during the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

Abest starts with the third act and then rewinds to the second and first. Yes, it ends badly, but that is what you should expect if you’ve been dragged down to an Iranian police station. Living in Abadan near the Iraqi border means the Iran-Iraq War remains high in people’s consciousness, even for Abed and his two delinquent friends, Aris and Vahim, who are all far too young to have served. They have been arrested for causing disturbance of the home of Esi, a well-to-do merchant who is plenty old enough to remember the war.

The exact nature of their relationship is sketchy, but you probably would not call them friends. For obvious reasons, the tell-tale signs are double or triple coded, but we start to suspect Esi is somewhat openly closeted and the three young punks are pretending to be on the down-low to get close to him for nefarious, non-sexual purposes.

The action takes place on a stripped-down stage that is Spartan to the point of being surreal. Despite the deliberately “staged” presentation, Abest’s restless camera and distorted sound effects constantly bust us out of the proscenium arch. He does everything humanly possible to undermine the on-screen drama, yet somehow we get pulled in anyway.

Simulation partly derives its potency from the hot-button issues that divide contemporary Iranian society. Regardless of his sexuality, we can infer Esi is relatively wealthy and more secularly inclined in his values. On the other hand, Abed and company have little prospects, but even though they hypocritically indulge in alcohol and drugs, they most likely voted for Ahmadinejad, if they were old enough.

Despite playing a character at least twenty years older than himself, without the benefit of special make-up or costuming, Daniyal Khojasteh is terrific as old Esi. It is a portrayal of rage and dignity that leaves a deep impression. As Abed, Aris, and Vahin, Abest, Majid Yousefi, and Vahid Rad personify alienated malevolence, but Abest somewhat humanizes his namesake through Abed’s relationship with his adoring niece.

Frankly, Simulation is considerably more accessible than it sounds. There really isn’t that much not to get. However, Abest’s bold aesthetics will inevitably put off many viewers. Nonetheless, it is rather invigorating to watch him go for broke and mostly pull it off. Highly recommended for adventurous viewers, Simulation screens again tomorrow (9/17) as part of this year’s TIFF.

TIFF ’17: Mrs. Fang

Fang Xiuying is sort of like a Chinese Mr. Lazarescu, but her passing is much less drawn out. She was also a real person. After years of faithfully documenting life in China as it really happens, Wang Bing finally captures some death in the brief (by his standards) but discomfiting Mrs. Fang (trailer here), which screens during the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

Mrs. Fang has suffered from Alzheimer’s for years, so when death finally comes, it will probably be a relief for her. Certainly, most of her family will feel that way too. They have all duly assembled for her final moments, but they are starting to get restless. Most of them are obviously annoyed by this ritual, but a handful look genuinely distraught. However, the former take great delight in criticizing one of her grandsons, who will no doubt take flak for his absence at every family gathering going forward.

At a mere eighty-six minutes, Mrs. Fang practically qualifies as a short subject compared to Wang’s previous films, like the nearly four-hour ‘Til Madness Do Us Part and the nine-hour Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks. However, it displays the same uncomfortably intimate aesthetics. Frankly, it is hard to look at Mrs. Fang’s face, because she has essentially wasted away, leaving her desiccated features tightly drawn-looking. Yet, Wang forces us to look, with long, extended close-ups.

It is almost impossible to not feel intrusive while watching these final personal moments. Yet, it is important to take into account Wang was filming with the full cooperation of her adult children and he had met his silent subject well before her health declined so sharply (however, she had already been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s by the time of their first encounter).

Like many of Wang’s documentaries, Mrs. Fang is not expressly political, but it is hard to imagine it getting any noticeable theatrical release in Mainland China, since any censor worth their salt would recognize it is just bad for Party business. As a resident of Maihui Village Zhejiang Province from 1948 to 2016, Mrs. Fang lived under mean circumstances and she died under mean circumstances. That is an incontestable truth that comes through loud and clear in Wang’s film.

In fact, Wang’s films are always about getting at truths, through patient observation. Mrs. Fang is not as emotionally engaging as Ta’ang, Fengmeng: A Chinese Memoir, or Three Sisters, but it is more substantial and compelling than his previous shorty, Father and Sons, which was cut short by outside interference. Recommended for admirers of boundary-pushing documentaries, Mrs. Fang screens again tomorrow (9/15), as part of this year’s TIFF.

TIFF ’17: Jodilerks Dela Cruz, Employee of the Month (short)

Life in Metro Manila is social Darwinism at its worst. For Ms. Dela Cruz, her sudden unemployment is the least of it. Small eruptions of violence threaten to flare up around her on her last night pumping gas at a foreclosed service station. By the way, this is a comedy. Needless to say, the humor comes in fifty shades of pitch black in Carlo Francisco Manatad’s short film, Jodilerks Dela Cruz, Employee of the Month (trailer here), which screens during the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

That would be her face we see dominating the Employee of the Month chart. That was then. Tonight, Dela Cruz is trying to sell RC bottles filled with gas, while her co-worker scratches off all the lottery tickets. Unlike her, he probably never really cared, but she will try to make up for lost time in one night. Unfortunately, some of their Clerky antics will not be taken in the spirit of Kevin Smith.

In terms of tone, we are talking really gosh-darn dark here, but it also funny, in a ruthless kind of way. Yet, we have to say, Manatad manages to capture that wistful end-of-an-era, last-day-of-school vibe. As a result, we can identify with Dela Cruz and her slacker shift-mate on an acutely personal level, even though we have (hopefully) never had a final day on the job like this.

Angeli Bayani (a well-established thesp, known for prestige pictures like Ilo Ilo) is a marvel of understatement as the quietly simmering Dela Cruz. Her bracing work is a perfect example why there should be more awards for acting in short films. Ross Pesigan also plays off her well as the more outspoken Randal to her Dante (another Clerks reference).

Although Employee is not explicitly political, it certainly serves as a withering indictment of Philippine social malaise in general. Regardless, it looks great. Manatad keeps it gritty and grounded, but he and cinematographer Teck Siang Lim still drench it in noir style. Very highly recommended, Jodilerks Dela Cruz screens again at TIFF this Saturday (9/16), as part of Short Cuts Programme 06.

TIFF ’17: Motorrad

The politics of Easy Rider and Electric Glide in Blue are radically different, but the endings are oddly similar. Two wheels are generally a hard mode of transportation in the movies, but what Hugo faces with his brother’s dirt bike running mates is something else entirely. The machete-wielding rival bikers are real enough, but there is something ominously uncanny going on just outside our range of perception in Vincente Amorim’s incredibly strange Motorrad (trailer here), which screens during the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival.

It’s not exactly Mad Max out there yet, but in Hugo’s provincial corner of Brazil, a carburetor is worth risking your life for. Rather awkwardly, the nebbish mechanic is busted red-handed trying to lift one from the body shop run by Paula’s grandfather (or whoever). Much to his surprise, she lets him go, with the part, after tending to a burn on his palm. As a result, Hugo is able to invite himself along when his brother Ricardo lights off on a road trip with some friends and dodgy acquaintances. Things get even better when they stumble across the very same Paula broken-down on a remote mountain trail. She will take them even further off the beaten path, which makes them sitting ducks when a black-clad gang of psychotic bikers starts picking them off, one by one.

Motorrad sounds like a simplistically conventional exploitation movie, but there is a lot more going on than initially meets the eye. Plus, the vibe is indescribably out-there. Clearly, Amorim is processing disparate influences, such as Picnic at Hanging Rock, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, perhaps Jonathan Glazer’s Under the Skin, and most of Jodorowsky’s filmography. The tone is weirdly unsettling, even though his sprawling visuals are frequently quite beautiful. Frankly, this film is light-years removed from Amorim’s moral dramas, such as Good and Dirty Hearts.

Therefore, it looks primed for cult-status, provided enough people see it at Toronto to build word-of-mouth momentum. Of course, it is guaranteed to be divisive, because of the curve-balls that come out of left field, but cineastes should still give all the credit in the world to the craftsmanship of Amorim, cinematographer Gustavo Hadba, and editor Lucas Gonzaga. This is an extraordinary looking field, but it is also pretty intense on a grungy genre level.

As Hugo, Guilherme Prates is a credibly gawky everyman and Brazilian TV regular Carla Salle is ambiguously seductive as the mysterious Paula, but this is not the sort of film that will launch actors to superstardom. This is Amorim’s show—and he constantly lets the bikes and harsh landscape upstage his competent ensemble.

As motorcycle movies go, Motorrad might just give Easy Rider a ride for its money (but Glide still takes the honors). It is one of the strangest films of the year, yet it also fulfills its slasher horror movie duties. Highly recommended for adventurous audiences, Motorrad screens again tomorrow (9/13) and Saturday (9/16), as part of this year’s TIFF.