The Film Society of Lincoln Center has today announced the fourth edition of Art of the Real, their essential showcase for boundary-pushing nonfiction film, scheduled to take place April 20 – May 2. Billed as “a survey of the most vital and innovative voices in nonfiction and hybrid filmmaking,” this year’s showcase features an eclectic, globe-spanning host of discoveries, including seven North American premieres and eight U.S. premieres.
“In our fourth year we’ve put an emphasis on placing works by first-time and emerging filmmakers alongside established names, with the aim to highlight the experimentation happening across generations, and to trace a new trajectory of documentary art that points to its promising future,” said Film Society of Lincoln Center Programmer at Large Rachael Rakes, who organized the festival with Director of Programming Dennis Lim.
The Opening Night selection is the New York premiere of Theo Anthony’s “Rat Film,” which has...
“In our fourth year we’ve put an emphasis on placing works by first-time and emerging filmmakers alongside established names, with the aim to highlight the experimentation happening across generations, and to trace a new trajectory of documentary art that points to its promising future,” said Film Society of Lincoln Center Programmer at Large Rachael Rakes, who organized the festival with Director of Programming Dennis Lim.
The Opening Night selection is the New York premiere of Theo Anthony’s “Rat Film,” which has...
- 3/20/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Mia Wasikowska’s Madame Bovary Sells For Radiant Films
Radiant Films International has completed multiple sales deals in territories worldwide for Madame Bovary starring Mia Wasikowska including all French-speaking rights to Jour2Fête and Italy to Paco Pictures. Additional sales include Benelux to A-Film, Scandinavia to Svensk Filmindustri and Portugal to Nos Lusomundo Audiovisuais, Latin America to Swen, Australia to Transmission Films, South Korea to Noori Pictures, Turkey to Aqua Pinema, Middle East to Gulf Film, Greece to Odeon and Iceland to Myndform. Radiant is handling all foreign sales on the project which they are actively selling at Efm.
The Solution Boards Tokyo Vice Starring Daniel Radcliffe
The Solution Entertainment Group is handling international rights to Tokyo Vice, produced by John Lesher’s Le Grisbi Productions. The Solution’s Myles Nestel and Lisa Wilson will exec produce and present to buyers at the Efm. UTA is representing Us rights. Adam Kassan is also producing.
Radiant Films International has completed multiple sales deals in territories worldwide for Madame Bovary starring Mia Wasikowska including all French-speaking rights to Jour2Fête and Italy to Paco Pictures. Additional sales include Benelux to A-Film, Scandinavia to Svensk Filmindustri and Portugal to Nos Lusomundo Audiovisuais, Latin America to Swen, Australia to Transmission Films, South Korea to Noori Pictures, Turkey to Aqua Pinema, Middle East to Gulf Film, Greece to Odeon and Iceland to Myndform. Radiant is handling all foreign sales on the project which they are actively selling at Efm.
The Solution Boards Tokyo Vice Starring Daniel Radcliffe
The Solution Entertainment Group is handling international rights to Tokyo Vice, produced by John Lesher’s Le Grisbi Productions. The Solution’s Myles Nestel and Lisa Wilson will exec produce and present to buyers at the Efm. UTA is representing Us rights. Adam Kassan is also producing.
- 2/7/2015
- by Ali Jaafar
- Deadline
Films gods be damned. After guesstimating its eventual arrival on the film fest circuit and tracking it since it first went into production back in 2012, I’m inclined to think that the shot in state of Washington production either hit a rough patch, needed a longer production schedule due to seasonal shifts in backdrops or, my latest theory: Robinson Devor concurrently worked on not one, but two projects: the other being Pow Wow, his latest documentary project. Devor began editing the film at the start of the year and as part of Park City fabric in the naughts with successive releases of The Woman Chaser (2000), Police Beat (2005) and Zoo (2007) – we may see the filmmaker double up his presence with You Can’t Win finally cutting the finish line ribbon. Cast includes Jeremy Allen White, Charles Baker, Julia Garner, Will Patton, Hannah Marks and Louisa Krause (look out for her perf...
- 11/14/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Hovering around the twenty-one to twenty-four feature film mark with at least a quarter of those films belonging to first time filmmakers, the Quinzaine des Realisateurs (a.k.a Directors’ Fortnight) has in the past couple of years, counted on a healthy supply of French, Spanish and Belgium produced film items, and has been geared towards the offbeat genre items as with last year’s edition curated by Edouard Waintrop and co. To be unveiled on the 22nd, as we attempted with our Critics’ Week predix, Blake Williams, Nicholas Bell and I (Eric Lavallee) are thinking out loud and hedging our bets on what the section might look like or what the programmers might be looking at for 2014. Here is our predictions overview:
Alleluia
Six years after presenting Vinyan at the Venice Film Festival, Fabrice Du Welz finally returns with potentially not one, but a pair of works for the ’14 campaign.
Alleluia
Six years after presenting Vinyan at the Venice Film Festival, Fabrice Du Welz finally returns with potentially not one, but a pair of works for the ’14 campaign.
- 4/16/2014
- by IONCINEMA.com Contributing Writers
- IONCINEMA.com
You Can’t Win
Director: Robinson Devor
Writers: Robinson Devor, Michael Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede
Producers: Robert Scarff, Zach Sebastian, Michael Pitt
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available
Cast: Jeremy Allen White, Michael Pitt, Charles Baker, Julia Garner, Will Patton, Hannah Marks, Louisa Krause
If the movie gods were fair to us, they’d unveil Robinson Devor (The Woman Chaser (2000), Police Beat (2005) and Zoo (2007)) in the year that ends in ’14.
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, , this is an adaptation of adventurer Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of the same name which tells of his experiences in the hobo underworld, freight-hopping around the still Wild West of the United States and Canada while he explores the topics of crime, addiction, criminal justice and human folly from various viewpoints. The drama is centered on the unusual friendship between Black (Pitt) and a young prostitute (Marks).
Release Date: Cannes if hopefully it’s first “pitt” stop.
Director: Robinson Devor
Writers: Robinson Devor, Michael Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede
Producers: Robert Scarff, Zach Sebastian, Michael Pitt
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available
Cast: Jeremy Allen White, Michael Pitt, Charles Baker, Julia Garner, Will Patton, Hannah Marks, Louisa Krause
If the movie gods were fair to us, they’d unveil Robinson Devor (The Woman Chaser (2000), Police Beat (2005) and Zoo (2007)) in the year that ends in ’14.
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, , this is an adaptation of adventurer Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of the same name which tells of his experiences in the hobo underworld, freight-hopping around the still Wild West of the United States and Canada while he explores the topics of crime, addiction, criminal justice and human folly from various viewpoints. The drama is centered on the unusual friendship between Black (Pitt) and a young prostitute (Marks).
Release Date: Cannes if hopefully it’s first “pitt” stop.
- 2/26/2014
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
A return visitor at the festival for all three of his feature films The Woman Chaser (2000), Police Beat (2005) and Zoo (2007), I’m feeling good about the chances of seeing Robinson Devor make it a four-peat. A period film that was shot over a pair of seasons, we’ve been anticipating this passion project for a while now. You Can’t Win stars Michael Pitt, Jeremy Allen White, Will Patton, Hannah Marks, Louisa Krause and Julia Garner.
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede, this is an adaptation of adventurer Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of the same name which tells of his experiences in the hobo underworld, freight-hopping around the still Wild West of the United States and Canada while he explores the topics of crime, addiction, criminal justice and human folly from various viewpoints. The drama is centered on the unusual friendship between Black (Pitt) and...
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede, this is an adaptation of adventurer Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of the same name which tells of his experiences in the hobo underworld, freight-hopping around the still Wild West of the United States and Canada while he explores the topics of crime, addiction, criminal justice and human folly from various viewpoints. The drama is centered on the unusual friendship between Black (Pitt) and...
- 11/22/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
London, Nov 7: "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe will essay the role of Jake Adelstein, a journalist, in an upcoming movie called "Tokyo Vice".
The 24-year-old has signed in to portray real life journalist Adelstein in the film, which is adapted from the writer's memoir, Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan, reports contactmusic.com.
The project chronicles the American's experiences as a member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club, during which he exposes a corruption scandal and help end Yakuza gang boss Goto Tadamasa's reign of terror.
"Tokyo Vice" will go on floors next summer.
Ians...
The 24-year-old has signed in to portray real life journalist Adelstein in the film, which is adapted from the writer's memoir, Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan, reports contactmusic.com.
The project chronicles the American's experiences as a member of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club, during which he exposes a corruption scandal and help end Yakuza gang boss Goto Tadamasa's reign of terror.
"Tokyo Vice" will go on floors next summer.
Ians...
- 11/6/2013
- by Diksha Singh
- RealBollywood.com
FilmNation Entertainment will finance and commence international sales at the AFM on the thriller.
Tokyo Vice is based on the true story of journalist Jake Adelstein who covered murder, extortion and the Yakuza in his Japanese underground beat.
Music video and commercial director Anthony Mandler will direct from a screenplay by Jt Rogers adapted from Adelstein’s book Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter On The Police Beat.
Production is set to begin in mid-2014 with John Lesher and Adam Kassan on board to produce. Binn Jakupi will serve as executive producer for Le Grisbi Productions.
UTA packaged the project and handles Us sales. Alison Cohen brokered the deal on behalf of FilmNation.
Tokyo Vice is based on the true story of journalist Jake Adelstein who covered murder, extortion and the Yakuza in his Japanese underground beat.
Music video and commercial director Anthony Mandler will direct from a screenplay by Jt Rogers adapted from Adelstein’s book Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter On The Police Beat.
Production is set to begin in mid-2014 with John Lesher and Adam Kassan on board to produce. Binn Jakupi will serve as executive producer for Le Grisbi Productions.
UTA packaged the project and handles Us sales. Alison Cohen brokered the deal on behalf of FilmNation.
- 11/5/2013
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
While Emma Watson is certainly doing some interesting work in her post-Harry Potter career, you can also say that the boy wizard himself, Daniel Radcliffe, is making equally exciting choices with his recent tendency for dark and mature roles.
First, we saw him do some horror work in The Woman In Black. Then there was Kill Your Darlings, which made quite a splash at Sundance back in January. Radcliffe has also signed on to star in Horns, a film that has him playing a man accused of rape and murder. And how can we forget about the upcoming adaptation of Frankenstein that the actor may be involved in.
So, Mr. Radcliffe has been keeping very busy and it doesn’t look like he’ll be slowing down anytime soon. Today we’re hearing that the young actor has taken the lead role in Tokyo Vice, which is based on Jake...
First, we saw him do some horror work in The Woman In Black. Then there was Kill Your Darlings, which made quite a splash at Sundance back in January. Radcliffe has also signed on to star in Horns, a film that has him playing a man accused of rape and murder. And how can we forget about the upcoming adaptation of Frankenstein that the actor may be involved in.
So, Mr. Radcliffe has been keeping very busy and it doesn’t look like he’ll be slowing down anytime soon. Today we’re hearing that the young actor has taken the lead role in Tokyo Vice, which is based on Jake...
- 5/2/2013
- by Matt Joseph
- We Got This Covered
Following the star-making run as the titular boy wizard in the Harry Potter franchise, British actor Daniel Radcliffe has been taking some pretty dark and interesting roles. His turn as Allen Ginsberg in Kill Your Darlings received plenty of praise at Sundance in January, and this fall he'll be seen in the adaptation of Horns from writer Joe Hill (son of Stephen King). Now Radcliffe has lined up another gritty project in the form of Tokyo Vice, an adaptation of Jake Adelstein's memoir Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan, which chronicles the surprising danger and intrigue that happened there. More below! Deadline reports Radcliffe will play Adelstein, an American reporter working at the Yomiuri Shinbun newspaper in Tokyo where he worked the crime beat. However, Adelstein ended up getting into trouble with Yakuza boss Tadamasa Goto, who has been called the John Gotti of Japan.
- 5/1/2013
- by Ethan Anderton
- firstshowing.net
You Can’t Win
Director: Robinson Devor
Writer(s): Devor, Barry Gifford and Michael Pitt
Producer(s): Parts & Labor’s Lars Knudsen and Jay Van Hoy, Robert Scarff, Zach Sebastian, Michael Pitt.
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available
Cast: Michael Pitt, Jeremy Allen White, Will Patton, Hannah Marks, Louisa Krause, Julia Garner
With such a strong filmography to date in The Woman Chaser, Police Beat, and Zoo, Robinson Devor’s fourth feature is certainly his most challenging endeavor yet. You Can’t Win includes the heavy participation from its lead actor in Michael Pitt and it takes on what is referenced as “one of the most influential books in the American literary underground.” Could be a great indie surprise that didn’t debut in Park City.
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede, this is an adaptation of adventurer (Pitt) Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of...
Director: Robinson Devor
Writer(s): Devor, Barry Gifford and Michael Pitt
Producer(s): Parts & Labor’s Lars Knudsen and Jay Van Hoy, Robert Scarff, Zach Sebastian, Michael Pitt.
U.S. Distributor: Rights Available
Cast: Michael Pitt, Jeremy Allen White, Will Patton, Hannah Marks, Louisa Krause, Julia Garner
With such a strong filmography to date in The Woman Chaser, Police Beat, and Zoo, Robinson Devor’s fourth feature is certainly his most challenging endeavor yet. You Can’t Win includes the heavy participation from its lead actor in Michael Pitt and it takes on what is referenced as “one of the most influential books in the American literary underground.” Could be a great indie surprise that didn’t debut in Park City.
Gist: Scripted by Devor, Pitt, Barry Gifford and Charles Mudede, this is an adaptation of adventurer (Pitt) Jack Black’s 1926 autobiographical novel of...
- 1/14/2013
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Naturally, helmer Robinson Devor is a great fit for Park City – a former lab participant, his entire filmography in The Woman Chaser (Sundance ’00), Police Beat (Sundance ’05) and Zoo (Sundance ’07) have been presented at the fest: For his fourth feature, Devor took on the weighty task of adapting what is referenced as “one of the most influential books in the American literary underground.” Unless there are seasonal inserts to be added, we consider You Can’t Win to be full prepped as filming began in Devor’s backyard (state of Washington) in April/May of this year (set pics here). Worth noting is that Michael Pitt makes a return of sorts to the big screen — not since 2007′s Funny Games U.S. had he been on film and its appears to be a passion project for the thesp who is credited as a contributing writer and producer. Cast along his side is...
- 11/22/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
Since the NYPD evacuated Zuccotti Park late last night, celebrities have taken to Twitter to express their frustration, affirm their politics, and offer encouragement to Occupy Wall Street protesters. Even funnyman Russell Brand offered a serious response to the news: “#Ows moved out of Liberty Park “because they’re blocking 1st responders”- here’s my 1st response ‘that’s bulls***.’” See what other celebs tweeted below.
Michael Moore: “Phase Two of this massive, nonviolent Majority movement will now commence. Wall St will wish they had just left it alone in the park. #ows”
Wil Wheaton: “Dear Congress:...
Michael Moore: “Phase Two of this massive, nonviolent Majority movement will now commence. Wall St will wish they had just left it alone in the park. #ows”
Wil Wheaton: “Dear Congress:...
- 11/15/2011
- by Lanford Beard
- EW.com - PopWatch
More celebs weigh in after Roots drummer tried to warn Occupy Wall Street protesters of police action via Twitter.
By Gil Kaufman
Russell Simmons
Photo: MTV News
Roots drummer ?uestlove just happened to be driving by New York's Zuccotti Park late Monday night when he noticed something odd happening at the Occupy Wall Street site.
"Omg, drivin down south st. near #Ows. Somethin bout to go down yo, swear I counted 1,000 riot gear cops bout to pull sneak attack #carefulyall," he tweeted around midnight.
He wasn't wrong, as a short time later the NYPD stormed the site of the sit-in protest and forcibly removed the residents of "Freedom Park" in order to clean up the public square. Quest continued to issue his warnings for about an hour after his initial tweet, finally getting confirmation from fellow Twitter users a short time later that his suspicions were true. "I was tryna...
By Gil Kaufman
Russell Simmons
Photo: MTV News
Roots drummer ?uestlove just happened to be driving by New York's Zuccotti Park late Monday night when he noticed something odd happening at the Occupy Wall Street site.
"Omg, drivin down south st. near #Ows. Somethin bout to go down yo, swear I counted 1,000 riot gear cops bout to pull sneak attack #carefulyall," he tweeted around midnight.
He wasn't wrong, as a short time later the NYPD stormed the site of the sit-in protest and forcibly removed the residents of "Freedom Park" in order to clean up the public square. Quest continued to issue his warnings for about an hour after his initial tweet, finally getting confirmation from fellow Twitter users a short time later that his suspicions were true. "I was tryna...
- 11/15/2011
- MTV Music News
Even Japan's infamous mafia groups are helping out with the relief efforts and showing a strain of civic duty. Jake Adelstein reports on why the police don't want you to know about it. Plus, more coverage of Japan's crisis.
The worst of times sometimes brings out the best in people, even in Japan's "losers" a.k.a. the Japanese mafia, the yakuza. Hours after the first shock waves hit, two of the largest crime groups went into action, opening their offices to those stranded in Tokyo, and shipping food, water, and blankets to the devastated areas in two-ton trucks and whatever vehicles they could get moving. The day after the earthquake the Inagawa-kai (the third largest organized crime group in Japan which was founded in 1948) sent twenty-five four-ton trucks filled with paper diapers, instant ramen, batteries, flashlights, drinks, and the essentials of daily life to the Tohoku region. An executive in Sumiyoshi-kai,...
The worst of times sometimes brings out the best in people, even in Japan's "losers" a.k.a. the Japanese mafia, the yakuza. Hours after the first shock waves hit, two of the largest crime groups went into action, opening their offices to those stranded in Tokyo, and shipping food, water, and blankets to the devastated areas in two-ton trucks and whatever vehicles they could get moving. The day after the earthquake the Inagawa-kai (the third largest organized crime group in Japan which was founded in 1948) sent twenty-five four-ton trucks filled with paper diapers, instant ramen, batteries, flashlights, drinks, and the essentials of daily life to the Tohoku region. An executive in Sumiyoshi-kai,...
- 3/18/2011
- by Jake Adelstein
- The Daily Beast
A month ago, novelist Andrew Klavan wrote a wild-eyed editorial at the La Times claiming that "Toy Story 3" was a "rebuke, not perhaps to the Obama White House specifically but to its underlying ideas." A major foundation of his argument was the point that Sunnyside Daycare Center stood in for a socialist society.
At the time, I wrote that "you'd be hard pressed to find another human being, American or otherwise, with any kind of interpretation of the film in the same ballpark as the one offered by Klavan." Well, allow me to eat those words, as The Stranger's Charles Mudede (who, incidentally, co-wrote the films "Zoo" and "Police Beat") offers a similar read on the film, this time as a complaint:
Things go dark almost immediately. The socialist utopia is not even given one chance to shine. A door opens and a bunch of noisy, dirty, ugly kids...
At the time, I wrote that "you'd be hard pressed to find another human being, American or otherwise, with any kind of interpretation of the film in the same ballpark as the one offered by Klavan." Well, allow me to eat those words, as The Stranger's Charles Mudede (who, incidentally, co-wrote the films "Zoo" and "Police Beat") offers a similar read on the film, this time as a complaint:
Things go dark almost immediately. The socialist utopia is not even given one chance to shine. A door opens and a bunch of noisy, dirty, ugly kids...
- 12/2/2010
- by Alison Willmore
- ifc.com
In a press release sent out this week, director Robinson Devor (Police Beat, Zoo, which scored on Filmmaker's Top 25 of the Decade list) is currently underway in San Francisco on a documentary on Sara Jane Moore, who attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford in September 1975 outside the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. Written by Devor, Charles Mudede and shot by d.p. Sean Kirby, Moore (pictured), now 80 and currently on parole after thirty years in prison, returns to San Francisco for the first time since the assassination attempt to be interviewed. The film also chronicles the lead up to the attempt, following Moore as a suburban wife to being involved with Marxist radicals to even being a narc for the FBI. "Like Man on a...
- 1/8/2010
- by Jason Guerrasio
- Filmmaker Magazine - Blog
- The toast of the town is Diablo Cody and the gift she gave to Jason Reitman. Juno picks up a trio of awards and trailing with two awards each is another Fox Searchlight flick The Savages and the Cannes Julian Schnabel and his cinematographer were well rewarded for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly's aesthetic brilliance. Here is the complete list of noms and winners below. Best Feature: Juno Best Director: Julian Schnabel Best First Feature: The Lookout Best Documentary: Crazy Love Best Foreign Film: Once Best Female Lead: Ellen Page Best Male Lead: Philip Seymour Hoffman Best Supporting Female: Cate Blanchett Best Supporting Male: Chiwetel Ejiofor Best Screenplay: The Savages Best First Screenplay: Juno Best Cinematography: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly John Cassavetes Award: August Evening August Evening Writer/Director: Chris Eska Producers: Connie Hill, Jason Wehling Owl and the Sparrow Writer/Director: Stephane Gauger Producers: Nguyen Van Quan,
- 2/23/2008
- IONCINEMA.com
ThinkFilm
PARK CITY -- Robinson Devor's "Zoo" removes itself from the realm of bawdy jokes to examine the shocking 2005 incident in which a Seattle businessman died of a perforated colon after having intercourse with a stallion. The death led to an investigation into a horse ranch near the town of Enumclaw, where videotapes were discovered of men having sex with horses. Since bestiality isn't a crime in Washington, no one was charged, but, ironically, the horse in question was gelded.
As one would expect, the media and its pundits had a field day with the sensational news. Devor takes such an opposite approach that anyone seeking a cheap thrill will be soundly disappointed with "Zoo". Whether meaning to or not, Devor and his accomplished crew expand our concept of the documentary film, which relegates this docu to art houses, not porn theaters.
Devor, whose previous films have been features ("The Woman Chaser", "Police Beat"), screenwriter-journalist Charles Mudede and cinematographer Sean Kirby reject many of the techniques one associates with documentary filmmaking in favor of an impressionistic study of men who surrender to extreme appetites.
Necessity may be the mother of invention here since the protagonist was dead and many individuals did not want to appear on camera. In any event, "Zoo" utilizes dramatization, much as Errol Morris did in 1988 with "The Thin Blue Line". With these staged scenes, featuring either actors or actual participants, the film examines the phenomenon of "zoophiles," a community that gathers first online and then in clandestine meetings where such appetites are taken for granted.
The men speak with remarkable candor of their "love" for animals, portraying this as a natural desire and not as a morally repugnant activity. While the repulsed judgments of others seep into the film through sound bites from talk radio, mostly the film lets members of the apparently all-male society of zoo speak for themselves.
When one man insists that the sex takes place "with an intelligent being who is very happy to participate," you recognize the need to rationalize. How do they know the horse is "happy to participate"? Mostly, these are men cut off from friendships in human society; indeed, they don't like to deal with human relationships all that much.
Cool, lush, dark colors reflect the gray Washington skies. Joe Shapiro's lyrical editing deliberately emphasizes the bucolic, while Paul Matthew Moore's score has an ominous, Philip Glass-like quality.
PARK CITY -- Robinson Devor's "Zoo" removes itself from the realm of bawdy jokes to examine the shocking 2005 incident in which a Seattle businessman died of a perforated colon after having intercourse with a stallion. The death led to an investigation into a horse ranch near the town of Enumclaw, where videotapes were discovered of men having sex with horses. Since bestiality isn't a crime in Washington, no one was charged, but, ironically, the horse in question was gelded.
As one would expect, the media and its pundits had a field day with the sensational news. Devor takes such an opposite approach that anyone seeking a cheap thrill will be soundly disappointed with "Zoo". Whether meaning to or not, Devor and his accomplished crew expand our concept of the documentary film, which relegates this docu to art houses, not porn theaters.
Devor, whose previous films have been features ("The Woman Chaser", "Police Beat"), screenwriter-journalist Charles Mudede and cinematographer Sean Kirby reject many of the techniques one associates with documentary filmmaking in favor of an impressionistic study of men who surrender to extreme appetites.
Necessity may be the mother of invention here since the protagonist was dead and many individuals did not want to appear on camera. In any event, "Zoo" utilizes dramatization, much as Errol Morris did in 1988 with "The Thin Blue Line". With these staged scenes, featuring either actors or actual participants, the film examines the phenomenon of "zoophiles," a community that gathers first online and then in clandestine meetings where such appetites are taken for granted.
The men speak with remarkable candor of their "love" for animals, portraying this as a natural desire and not as a morally repugnant activity. While the repulsed judgments of others seep into the film through sound bites from talk radio, mostly the film lets members of the apparently all-male society of zoo speak for themselves.
When one man insists that the sex takes place "with an intelligent being who is very happy to participate," you recognize the need to rationalize. How do they know the horse is "happy to participate"? Mostly, these are men cut off from friendships in human society; indeed, they don't like to deal with human relationships all that much.
Cool, lush, dark colors reflect the gray Washington skies. Joe Shapiro's lyrical editing deliberately emphasizes the bucolic, while Paul Matthew Moore's score has an ominous, Philip Glass-like quality.
- 1/26/2007
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
- White text over a black screen begins the story: a man is dropped off at an emergency room in a rural section Washington. The man is suffering from massive internal bleeding, his colon destroyed, and dies. Police use surveillance camera footage to track the car to an isolated horse farm and discover hours of video footage of men having sex with horses. And thus begins Zoo from director Robinson Devor (his third doc to screen at Sundance, his previous credits include the critically acclaimed The Woman Chaser and Police Beat), making it’s world premiere in the Documentary Competition. The film is very sympathetic to it’s subjects, many of which who agreed to appear as themselves on camera (several of which declined). Devor successfully creates a portrait of a group of men who connect with each other over the internet, and then eventually in person at an isolated
- 1/23/2007
- IONCINEMA.com
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