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Text of the page (random words):
a job i almost learned this the hard way as there were times getafilm actually threatened to damage my relationship with film as any amateur blogger can tell you the pressure entirely self created to post something on a regular basis can be overwhelming fortunately i gave up that concern some time ago and have since enjoyed not writing as much as i ve enjoyed writing why i devoted thought and digital space here to movies like elegy margot at the wedding observe and report and semi pro i have no idea by far my favorite writing is found in my taking it home reviews not only did those get to the heart of my relationship to film but they were also done on my own time and under no pressure i never started blogging with the idea that i would become a full time film critic and although i m glad for the opportunity to write freelance reviews when asked i m perfectly at peace as an amateur independent writer 3 nothing improves your writing like writing and reading the writing of others this should go without saying but if you are reading this as a beginning blogger or a potential blogger or writer of any kind i can t overstate how helpful it can be to write on a regular basis and also read the writing of others see my blogroll for a few of my inspirations putting words to a page forces you to distill and organize your thoughts helps you form persuasive and well reasoned arguments and perhaps most importantly for any writer improves the economy and efficiency of your expression at least for most people you can tell it s still not my greatest strength 4 maintain perspective this is basically an extension of 2 and should be true about anything in life but it s worth repeating people start blogging because they have creative energy they re trying to channel in some way but it would stand to reason they have interests in life entirely unrelated to their blog i know that s true for me at least i m passionately interested in film but also in quite a number of other things to which i d like to focus my limited free time and energy so i don t see this hiatus or hibernation as a departure from film and writing i m actually hoping to watch more movies than i have been recently but an indefinite break to give myself an opportunity to breathe without the weight of the blog reflect and maybe pursue some of my other interests but it s not necessarily the end i might feel compelled to write about a movie i see next month or next year or maybe not until next decade until whenever that may be thank you for reading i have learned more about film writing history and culture in this little corner of the internet than i ever could have hoped you ve helped me earn a four year degree in movie blogging and am going to enjoy my graduation and relax for a bit posted by daniel 22 comments labels on blogging august 29 2011 taking it home a better life the grass is always greener except when it s not i had the opportunity recently to observe removal hearings at a federal immigration court the calendar moved in quick succession 5 10 minutes per case and included the first appearances by respondents accused of being in the united states illegally these were not detainees or depending on your definition even criminals but they were nonetheless up against the law on this day some had been in the country for less than a year others had been here for decades maybe they hopped the border themselves or through the help of a mule or maybe they just overstayed their originally legal visas they didn t explain how or why they came only that they wanted to stay for the welfare of themselves in the case of asylum seekers or the welfare of others such as children or spouses each story was different and yet they were all identical in that they portrayed lives lived in two places at once here and abroad above ground and underground in comfortable peace and in extreme danger there were no tears or emotional speeches or really any kind of the desperation i might have expected in such an environment names were replaced by case numbers legal jargon was interspersed with yes or no questions interpreted in different languages and future dates and years were planned ahead matter of factly cases are so backlogged that follow up hearings were being scheduled on this day for mid 2014 it was in other words devastating in its banality the same can be said for a better life although it unfortunately dips its toes into schmaltz every 15 20 minutes so many recent movies have been made about immigration and so many of those movies have told the same story except sean baker s singular take out that it was a little disappointing to watch a better life drive down that heavily trafficked road and pass up possible detours to new cinematic territory it s predictable and occasionally pedantic and to be perfectly honest it s hard to defend as a good movie but my measure of quality here has always considered social importance above cinematic artistry and to that end a better life is as good if not better than most films i ve seen this year and it s not as if it s bad even on traditional cinematic terms it transcends most of its flaws thanks to lived in performances and a steady grounding in reality its characters are familiar not only from other movies but from your daily bus commute or restaurant meal or hotel stay perhaps the most conspicuous characteristic of undocumented immigrants on screen and on the street is their stoic work ethic so if immigration themed films are a dime a dozen why do they keep being produced first and most obviously because immigration both legal and illegal is an issue facing not only every state and community in the united states but nearly every country on earth and it will continue to be a relevant social issue until perhaps generations from now the world will be so globalized that borders will be virtual and national identities will be nominal until that time if and when it does come certainly not in our lifetimes immigration movies will continue to portray undocumented immigrants in a sympathetic light simply by virtue of their often narrow focus on the hard luck and difficult struggles these characters face every day we don t see them as job takers or drug smugglers or fraudulent voters but as honest workers family members and people of high moral character which the majority of them are as i saw in court and as i see everyday when i look in the mirror as a u s born child of naturalized immigrants from two countries secondly the movies often strive to portray one of the unappreciated realities of this issue it s not about the immigrants at all but about their families both now and for generations to come any emotion tied into these stories is related to these family bonds i can t think of a moving illegal immigration film about a loner character whose family ties are not central to the story though sugar and lorna s silence come pretty close so as filmmakers continue to try to emotionally engage us about immigration it will be an exercise in who can tell the most compelling story in the most unique way ramin bahrani is among the new pioneers i admire and lastly what of cinematic musings on immigration policies and politics put simply i d suggest that films about immigration are films about failed immigration policies and documentaries like 9500 liberty approach them head on the vast majority of these movies posit that current policies are either unfair or irrelevant and that no matter what the politicians decide illegal entry across borders will continue and the stories we see on screen will continue to play out in real time all around us there will be consequences for everyone involved and there are no easy answers but as i ve said before i think the purpose of these films and all thoughtful films for that matter is not to set forth policy but to initiate a conversation about it or in the case of a better life serve as a conventional yet compassionate reminder of the importance of an issue what did you take home posted by daniel 4 comments labels cultural family immigration los angeles taking it home august 13 2011 300 words about stevie as steve james excellent the interrupters made its way around theaters this summer i caught up recently with stevie his deeply personal documentary from 2002 and only his second documentary at the time the first being of course hoop dreams stevie is the worst possible testimonial for the big brothers big sisters of america youth mentoring program that you might ever see it s also a perfect example of why programs like it are so important steve james was a big brother to stevie fielding in the mid 1980 s at the time little stevie was an awkward preteen living with his grandparents in rural southern illinois he was a little odd and had a troubled family history but was generally harmless james had a relatively normal mentor mentee relationship with stevie for a few years and then returned in the mid 90 s perhaps encouraged by the recent success of hoop dreams to see what stevie was up to as an adult what he found was troubling stevie was well on his way down a self destructive path with an extensive criminal record and no clear direction in his life devastated by stevie s situation and perhaps feeling guilty for not keeping closer tabs on his little brother james recommitted himself to helping stevie at least stay out of legal trouble if not actually become a contributing member of society and this is where stevie lays bare the profound challenge facing mentors in a program like big brother big sisters or for that matter parents teachers or any adult nobly attempting to better a young person s life i felt pangs of guilt for past students that i had let go during my teaching years or for that matter anyone in my life with whom i ve had a mentoring type relationship were there too many other opposing factors and influences to outweigh my efforts did i do as much as i could to make a difference did it even matter stevie is not meant to be an examination of guilt or regret and refreshingly james does not frame it as a naive agenda documentary or bookend it with tidy steps that can be followed to make the world a better place he instead asks raw honest heartbreaking questions and doesn t provide any easy answers about what happens when the best intentions are left unrealized and the horror doesn t end on the screen either as stevie s current situation is as disturbing as anything from the film s footage which is now more than a decade old they say the road to hell is paved with good intentions and critics of mentoring programs for troubled youth could use stevie as exhibit a in their case against program efficacy but to watch stevie is to understand a different reason why these programs exist not to save lives but to connect lives that wouldn t otherwise be connected to strip away the social barriers that keep us apart and put us the privileged face to face with the experience of the marginalized majority around us the reason i appreciate james so much as a filmmaker is because he doesn t wield his camera as a weapon of scrutiny and all knowing judgment instead he uses it as a mirror reflecting back on us images of ourselves that we can t or don t want to see what happens after that is for us to figure out posted by daniel 0 comments labels 300 words a s crime documentary family forgiveness poverty july 28 2011 getafilm gallimaufry midnight in paris x men first class the tree of life super 8 midnight in paris a having never been to paris i ve enjoyed exploring the city s iconic setting in various films from the 400 blows which i saw recently for the first time to amelie band of outsiders ronin before sunset 2 days in paris and even european vacation and ratatouille to name just a few i can see why it makes for such an enchanting setting for movies and midnight in paris hit all the right notes for me again the smells and spells of the city were a terrific complement to a dream like fantasy story owen wilson played essentially the same version of the same character he s played in every movie from you me and dupree to shanghai knights and while i wouldn t have expected that character to fit here it was a near perfect fit for the quirkiness of the narrative i didn t buy the chemistry between his character and marion cotillard s but then midnight in paris is not a love story between characters but between a director a city and his cultural and literary influences i like that woody allen doesn t go to really any length to explain why particular characters are where they are when they are the charm of this movie is easy to succumb to and that it s allen s highest grossing film to date speaks to the appeal for mature original simple cinema in the midst of the year round blockbuster bonanza x men first class b here s a movie for which i couldn t explain my interest ahead of time other than that some aspect of the original x men movie and the story has always intrigued me it involves the fact that this series is set in the real world and involves real people and places unlike batman for example why the endless fawning over and praise of that story i still don t know you could say watchmen is also set in the real world and while those graphic novels may well be interesting i haven t read them and hated the movie i still find x men to be among the most socially relevant comic book series around mutants are of course a metaphor for any marginalized minority group in history which makes the films both relatable and actually much more emotional than spider man or good grief the green hornet lending to the realism in this latest film is the excellent acting from michael fassbender james mcavoy and jennifer lawrence casting seasoned dramatic actors in comic book movie doesn t always work ed norton as the incredible hulk but it definitely did in first class and if the cast stays on for the next installment i ll follow along as well the tree of life b up until a few years ago i had no idea terrence malick was so revered by 25 40 year old male movie buffs among my peers in the blogging world malick s the new world was far and away considered the best film of the last decade i remember quite well seeing it in the theater and shrugging my shoulders on the way out so the devout praise for the film has always escaped me not baffled me because i didn t think it was bad but escaped me because i don t know maybe i just didn t get it or know what i should have been watching for or have enough patience and thought to consider its deeper meanings i never did give it a second watch but needless to say the hype around that film made me quite anxious to have a third shot at understanding malick i d previously seen the thin red line my verdict on the tree of life a visually captivating and ambitious meditation on the meaning of life and nature of family but a somewhat emotionally dull one at that really the only emotion i felt other than an utter sense of awe at...