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Reviews
The New World (2005)
A rewarding and humbling experience that the audience has to work for, rather than just sit back and watch.
If you are going to see The New World, be prepared to have to pay close attention and keep an open mind. For the fist half an hour I was immensely frustrated, both with the rambling editing and seemingly out-of-place music, but once I realised that what I was seeing was not a standard dialogue and scene-driven drama, but an exploration of love, colonisation and nature at its best. Once you surrender yourself to the jagged style and that every second of a scene might be the last and that many of them don't last more than two shots, you appreciate every little detail and cherish every word. This is not a film, this is a private video of a part of history, and you are invited to follow these characters around, privy to their most intimate moments. Seeing such touchingly realistic acting, I was amazed at how staged and stylised scripts have become, and how this director seemed to say so much with so little words. I was so refreshed after seeing this movie that I felt like running off into the wilderness and escaping the constraints of society forever. So much is crammed in to every minute that it seemed a bit hap-hazard; sort of a two and a half hour long trailer. It is not so much a slow pace that bores many viewers (the man in front of me left halfway through) but the need for them to expect nothing more than what they are shown. In other words, do not expect to be handed character motives and themes on a plate. My only grievance is that on its second night in West Australian cinemas, it was only given three sessions a day, as opposed to Mission Impossible 3's twelve. A great film for devoted and hardworking audiences, but not for the faint-hearted.
The Million Dollar Hotel (2000)
This film is a very personal insight into a love story of a different kind - one which touches viewers who pay attention long enough to understand what it means.
At first I thought this film was pretty poor - owing to the ponderous pace, almost random dialog and hard to understand narration - until I understood that Tom Tom actually is 'special' and not just annoyingly peculiar. I think that the opening scene where he leaps off the building ties the story together well - it added a sense of tragedy to the plot and I was intrigued as to who he was waving to, which kept me going.
The mix of characters also maintains humor and interest, and the part where he is used by his friends made me quite angry and frustrated. The film's strength is the wonderful soundtrack and the lovable Tom, who makes up for a string of poorly written characters. His death was so moving because he was used by such a cruel world and though he was a witness to this he retained such a sense of purity and childlike wonder I was at the same time touched and enraged.
I was drawn to this film through being a fan of U2, and was disappointed up until the third act, when everything was explained and given so much more weight. It is a very unusual and unconventional film; probably because it was created largely by musicians (but altogether rewarding for those of a sentimental disposition). I think it's flaws almost make it more complete, in a strange way, because the characters are so flawed themselves and their environment so damaging. It personified mental illness in such a way that I almost felt like signing in to the Million Dollar Hotel myself.