abcmcgin Reviews

Beyond Clueless (2014)

Gimcrack - showy but of little value or effectiveness

[2/10 · 9 October 2014]

I saw this at Branchage in Jersey and was very disappointed. I was expecting behind the scenes footage, interviews with actors, directors and writers. Instead, we got hit with the plot and supposed subtext of each film, most of which were obscure and crap. I even thought they might link back to the classic teen films that actually had value but no, they stuck with the crap like Cruel Intentions 3.

First off, giving subtext to films that have no subtext is a futile exercise i.e. She's All That has nothing interesting to say at any point, the characters are as deep as a paddling pool, it was crap then and its even worse now. It's about vanity, we get it.

The next thing is discussing subtext that is actually the context i.e. Josie and the Pussycats. The plot revolves around brainwashing to sell things, for the 2 people (I think I was one of those) that actually saw the cinematic release we got this. We don't need you to tell us that again, it was painful enough the first time.

The Q&A with the director informed us that most of the budget was spent on lawyers in LA authorising the clips, they must have been rubbing their hands when you came a-knocking.

Avoid unless you wrote any of the crap films used in this doc so you can have a good laugh as they over-complicate your one-track stoner comedy/girl takes off glasses and is now hot/girls being out of order to each other/jocks having a sensitive side screenplay.

Mean girls is a good movie though.

Yugoslavia: How Ideology Moved Our Collective Body (2013)

Art-house Interpretation of archive footage

[4/10 · 18 August 2013]

Saw this at the Sarajevo film festival and was not blown away. It reminded me of watching archive footage at a museum while a Lefty hipster tells me about how good it was back in the Socialist days.

She made some interesting points about the links between working bodies and the state but her unenthusiastic tone didn't engage me.

The opening scene was interesting as it linked her into the story but that was all we saw of her, more of these videos of her linked to the changing face of Yugoslavia would have hooked in the audience more.

I agree that it needed narration otherwise it's just archive footage but it could have shown more emotion and not been art-house sterile, even at the point when she is supposed to be angry, you can't feel it.