SXSW Film Fest 2008: Final Thoughts/Reviews

Tom Waits once compared New York City to a ship floating on an ocean that’s on fire. Somehow the analogy fits SXSW, too. Even though I live in Austin I feel that when I go home each night I’ve left some sort of insane, big top outpost but I find myself perversely persuaded to return to it each morning. And no matter how selective you try to be you inevitably will miss the one event you told yourself you would absolutely make. But I’d do it all again, though maybe after a little more sleep.

The Music
Luckily, some of the best music of the festival was performed at Paste parties at Volume on Sixth Street. It was a treat to hear folks like Lightspeed Champion, Kaki King, The Weakerthans and lots of others including a band that sounded as good as their name: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. But my personal highlight was going to the taping of REM‘s performance on Austin City Limits. The band was great--simple, stripped down, with lots of guitar. Lead singer Michael Stipe was incredibly gracious to the crowd and his voice really soared.

More Films
Full Battle Rattle is one of the more interesting and enlightening docs to come out of SXSW. Somehow, directors Tony Gerber and Jesse Moss got the okay to film in the fictional Iraqi town of Medina Wasi which is actually located in the California desert where U.S. soldiers learn to work with the town’s citizens while they fend off terrorist attacks from Al Queda. It’s all make-believe, of course, but the film does shine some light on the difficulties the soldiers face when they get to Iraq. Most of the town’s citizens are originally from Iraq and the film follows their personal stories as well.

Even if you’re not a fan of the Harry Potter series of films and books, the characters in the documentary We are Wizards will charm you and maybe even convert you to their perspective on the fantasy world of witches and muggles. There’s the “Wizard Rock” movement with bands like Harry & the Potters and Draco & the Malfoys. Surprisingly, the music’s not bad. We also learn about a Potter web journalist who becomes a celebrity herself. Then there’s Brad Neely who has recorded his own unique narration of the first Harry Potter film. (Neely has also written for “South Park”.) We Are Wizards was one of the festival’s best.

This week’s national release Stop Loss made its regional premiere at SXSW. Starring Ryan Phillippe and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and directed by Kimberly Peirce (Boys Don’t Cry), the film dramatizes the U.S. Army policy of automatically re-enlisting soldiers after they’ve served their terms. A group of small town boys who served together cope with a variety of war-inflicted wounds, both mental and physical. Great performances from Gordon-Levitt and Abbie Cornish.

This year’s “Charmer” award goes to Young @ Heart. Director Stephen Walker documented the rehearsals, performances and personal lives of the Young at Heart Chorus, a group of senior citizens from New England who sing some very un-senior songs like The Clash’s “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” and James Brown’s “I Feel Good” plus tunes from Coldplay, Sonic Youth, The Ramones and others. Their relationship with chorus leader Bob Cilian is hugely entertaining but the serious medical problems that befall some of the members give the film its true heart.

The talented banjo player Bela Fleck makes a special trek to Uganda, Mali, The Gambia and Tanzania to explore the origins of his instrument in Throw Down Your Heart. Director Sascha Paladino has made something rare, a joyous film about Africa and its people.

This film won’t get a national release until late summer but those who were lucky enough to see The Assassination of a High School President at The Paramount were treated to a very funny movie. Bruce Willis plays the slightly mental principal whose obsession with catching gum chewers is actually more important to him than discovering who stole the SAT exams. Mischa Barton (“The O.C.”) is the sexy teen angel and Reece Thompson (Rocket Science) is the unpopular kid who is only remembered for being tied to a penis snowman.

SXSW, over and out.

SXSW Film Fest 2008: Day One
SXSW Film Fest 2008: Day Two
SXSW Film Fest 2008: Day Three
SXSW Film Fest 2008: Day Four