SXSW 2012, Day Nine: So Much to Do
Day nine, and the SXSW Film Festival has finally come to a close as it makes way for the last days of the Music fest, which is already underway. At this point, choosing films for the last couple of days has become difficult. In part, this is because the music fest crowds make downtown Austin something to be avoided more than usual. Not only that, but the "Catch a Chevy" and the Film Fest Flyer shuttle services have been cut back. Many slots the last couple of days are filled with shows I've already seen or have little or no interest in checking out. Yes, there's always the chance that something will surprise you, but after a week of constantly surprising yourself, most of the films with even slightly interesting descriptions have been exhausted.
My last couple of days included a couple of those "take a chance and be surprised" selections, one of which worked, and one that didn't. Both days, I confined myself to the Alamo Drafthouse at the Village, where long lines would not be a problem. No doubt, this was a response to lining up three hours early for Iron Sky on Wednesday. It feels like I spent more time waiting in lines this year than I did sitting to watch films! Consequently, I also skipped several earlier screenings just so I could relax at home and catch up on sleep.
The one I most regret skipping, based on word of mouth, is the Matthew Lillard-directed movie Fat Kid Rules The World. The synopsis of the film didn't really grab me, however. Likewise, I had scheduled the documentary Wikileaks: Secrets & Lies, but I'm already familiar enough with the story, and reactions were mixed among friends. My friend and Movies.com writer Jacob Hall (@JacobSHall) tweeted regarding the movie, "Essential if slightly dry viewing. If you want to understand the whole debacle. Made for TV and looks it."
Sleepwalk With Me is the semi-autobiographical film Mike Birbiglia directed and co-wrote with Ira Glass, based on Birbiglia's off-Broadway show. This was a lighthearted trip through his early career that highlights the struggles of a fledgling comic. It was entirely unclear which parts of the story were fiction and which were true. The movie never falters, but if at any point it did, Birbiglia has the charisma to carry it past that point. Lauren Ambrose and Carol Kane were delightful casting choices as his girlfriend and mother respectively.
Sad to say that my final viewing choice this year was a film that tortured me through every second. Keyhole was directed by Guy Maddin and stars Jason Patric, Isabella Rossellini, Kevin McDonald and Udo Kier (and was Kier's second appearance at SXSW this year, after Iron Sky). This was a film I think you could easily say someone walking in an hour late would know just as much about what's going on as anyone who watched from the beginning. It was a confusing morass of non sequiturs cut between infuriating shots of pointless nudity. A haunted house story told from the point of view of the unfortunate ghost trapped within it, there is never a clear plot, and the characters run on flights of talking to themselves that are more mind-numbing than the little girl in Terry Gilliam's Tideland.
While I was torturing myself with Keyhole, several friends were enjoying themselves with Charles Bradley: Soul of America, which has received good buzz. At the Stateside Theatre, the final screening of Trash Dance played, and a newly restored print of The Beatles' Yellow Submarine screened twice today at the Paramount. The last of the midnighters are beginning even as I write this, including God Bless America, Thale and Beast. So, even on the last day, there were many great options to check out.