SXSW 2008: DAY FOUR

I managed to see 5 movies today. First up was a documentary about Crawford, Texas and the social & economic impact of George W. Bush’s residency, entitled “Crawford.”



There was really nothing wrong with this movie, but I didn’t really feel like it covered any new ground. I think I’m just completely burnt out on Political Documentaries.

Next up was a movie that I missed on Saturday called “Explicit Ills” which “stars” Paul Dano & Rosario Dawson, although it’s really an ensemble piece, and they’re no more in it than anybody else.

The film was Executive Produced by Jim Jarmusch and it sort of feels like one of his movies, slow paced and meandering, but never boring. It was definitely one those films that I had to think about for a while before eventually deciding that I liked it.

The story revolves around several poor people (many of whom are young first time actors) living in Philadelphia whose lives are all interconnected through their healthcare needs.

After “Explicit Ills,” I went to the Paramount for a screening of the Universal Pictures Comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall.” This one falls under the Judd Apatow umbrella due to the facts that it was produced by him and written by & stars “Freaks & Geeks” aluminous Jason Segel.

All I’ve got to say about this Apatow crew is that they seem unstoppable. It’s not just that they make really funny movies, as much as it is that they really good adult comedies. This was so immensely enjoyable!!

I then went back to the Ritz and watched “One Minute to Nine,” a documentary about a woman who has 5 day left with her sons before beginning her 10 year prison sentence for the murder of her insanely abusive husband.

This one was pretty gut retching, and uniquely done, in sense that it avoided traditional documentary techniques like narration and outside exposition, opting rather to focus entirely on the situation at hand and allowing to story to unfold as it happens. It has a pretty shocking twist at the end as well.

Lastly I saw yet another Round Midnight movie, this one was called “Not Your Typical Bigfoot Movie.” It was a documentary that I honestly wasn’t sure was real for most of it, but it slowly sunk in that these people were real. It’s basically about 2 aging “hillbillies” who for 24 hours a day, are consumed by finding and documenting a Bigfoot.

What it’s really about though, are their lives and their rocky friendship. It’s funny, but it’s the kind of funny you feel guilty about laughing at because the people seem so genuine. The filmmakers themselves seemed like really nice guys, and unlike some of the directors I’ve seen over the past few days, they seemed very overwhelmed and pleased with their inclusion in the festival.

This is my last day for seeing movies, if all goes well, I should end up seeing about 25 movies in 5 days. Tomorrow the music coverage begins.

--Popkoff