In the first part of my Sydney Film Festival review series last week, I looked at four of the films I saw during the festival, and gave you my impressions of the festival as a whole. In short, I thought they nailed it. This week I conclude my review series with another four films I caught, including the closing night premiere screening of Safety, Not Guaranteed .
Feature Film: The Comedy
Starting Tim Heideker of Tim & Eric fame, The Comedy is peak into the life of an ageing hipster, who deals with a dying father and sick brother by being a complete twat, living on a boat and lacking any sense of behavourable responsibility.
Some people may argue that this is a unique character piece portraying a hopeless individual, whose boredom makes him interesting. I would argue that it does not. There are a couple of interesting scenes, and the film consistently feels like it’s on the verge of being more than what it was, but it never comes up with the goods. Ultimately, this is a fairly painful film with little to love.
Review Score: 4.4 out of 10
Feature Film: Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Starring Ed Helms from The Hangover and Jason Segel from Forgetting Sarah Marshall, this film by The Duplass Brothers is a simple but well executed tale about a small town man, constantly on the search for meaning in his life. It’s a film that has struggled to find an audience, but is destined to be a quietly unassuming favourite amongst fans of the actors within the film. Very much worth a viewing and something I definitely intend to see again.
Review Score: 8.1 out of 10
Documentary: Sing Me The Songs That Say I Love You – A Concert for Kate McGarrigle
From the director of Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man comes a heartwarming journey through the lives of the McGarrigle/Wainwright families as they celebrate the life and music of Kate McGarrigle through a concert following her tragic passing. It’s a joy to see this family and their musical friends join together in song, and talk about the influence Kate had on their lives off the stage. A must see for music fans everywhere.
Review Score: 8.5 out of 10
Closing Night: Safety Not Guaranteed.
Destined to become an cult classic, Safety Not Guaranteed – starring Aubrey Plaza from Parks and Recreation – is a beautiful film, with excellent direction from newcomer Colin Trevorrow. I won’t say anything about the storyline as it will spoil some of the fun of the bizarre, yet very human, rollercoaster ride the director and his fine cast takes you on, but the script is stellar and you’re never quite sure which road they’re going to take. With an annual film calendar full of predictable shite, this is an exception to the rule that will remind you why we go to the cinemas in the first place: to take some time out of our already predictable lives and see something truly remarkable.
With Safety Not Guaranteed, Trevorrow has done just that. An excellent choice by SFF programmers to end the festival on this note.
Review Score: 9.5 out of 10
