CIFF 29, Reel 6
Storytelling
Another of the series of films by Todd Solondz. I liked it, but it's hard to articulate exactly why. It's actually two separate stories, titled "fiction" and "nonfiction", respectively featuring students in a fiction writing class (except that some of the stories aren't fictitious), and a wannabe documentary filmmaker working on his first project (except that his focus seems to be more on his own inner demons than the reality of his subject). Solondz seems to have a knack for putting together deeply flawed characters, but making us care about them anyway--basically, his films (this applies to Happiness as well) have what I found missing in Lonesome Jim.
Deadlines
Hmmm.... This one completely failed to grab me, despite having all of the elements that I usually look for (sex, violence, lying, cheating, backstabbing, corruption, stuff gettin' blowed up). The wannabe journalist who is willing to cut pretty much any corner to get the scoop, and then has to deal with the consequences (pretty severe, considering that the setting is the Lebanese civil war, and "consequences" involve some pretty serious weaponry).
Maybe if I wasn't already too jaded about the news media (Control Room, anyone?) I would have been more into Deadlines. It definitely didn't suck, but I walked out thinking "well, that was nice, now what?"; no attachment or interest whatsoever.
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