Time to get crafty!

I'm starting to get an itch.
It's one that I've had many times.
I know the symptoms.
I know the cause.
And, luckily, I know the remedy.

During the summer I was steadily working, either full time at my regular job or working on various films. But then the fall rolled around. On set work started to dry up, and my hours at work were reduced for the fall/winter as expected. I've had time to sit back, relax, and do absolutely nothing.

Now here's the problem.

While in high school I always had something to do. I started working at 15 (if you don't count working for family) and never stopped all the way through to graduation. Pile on some extra curriculars and some volunteering and I was a busy person. My life since starting college, however; could be mapped mapped out like a drawing of a sound wave. Full of peeks and valleys in responsibility vs. free time. It's a trend that's continued even after receiving my diploma. So in this cycle I get really busy and have tons of things to do and then suddenly I wont be busy at all. And it's always nice and refreshing.. at first.

Then I start to get bored. All of a sudden I start needing something to do. Something to keep me busy and occupied. I need a goal, a task. Anything to say that I have accomplished something. That is my itch.

Now for the remedy.

In times like these when I am short on things to do, I get crafty. And my itch is scratched.

Woops!

More business and forgetfulness has prevented me from posting. So, long overdue, here are the rest of my quick TIFF film write ups.

Che Parts 1 & 2

This film was long. Four hours of revolutionary ups and downs. Part 1 chronicles Ernesto Che Guevara's experiences during the Cuban revolution and his time speaking in New York at the UN. It's quite fun to watch and ends on a high note.
Part 2 chronicle's Che's time in Bolivia, trying to bring revolution to the country. The film tells a near polar opposite story, with the Bolivian revolution starting out badly and continuing to get worse as time goes on, until the film ends with Guevara's capture and execution by the Bolivian Army.

Good

This film was not good. It wasn't really bad though... I'd say that it just lacked any real emotional weight, despite being about WW2 through the eyes of a German. The film basically glossed over all of the interesting plot points and used character dialogue to catch the audience up on all the juicy bits you never get to see.

El Greco

This film was just terrible. It was like watching a bad TV movie. It was terrible to the point of being both sad and hilarious. It was full of cheesy sight gags and terrible acting. Every time something bad happens to El Greco he would look up, fists clenched and shout "No.. NO.. NOOOOO!!!" towards the sky. This film could end up becoming my record holder for worst festival film of all time.

At The Edge Of The World

A pretty good documentary about a volunteer crew of "pirates" who aim to get in the way (or destroy) as many japanese whaling boats as possible. It's pretty entertaining, but completely one sided as it only follows the crew... although I guess it could be difficult to get a statement from Japanese whaling boats. Anyway, the film includes some amusing moments and great scenery.

Pontypool

A zombie film unlike any other zombie film.

Pontypool mainly takes place at a small town AM radio station following shock jock Grant Mazzy and his crew as they receive reports of strange acts of violence occurring throughout their small town. Even stranger is the growing realization that the virus spreading through town may not be spread through physical means, but through the English language itself.

Slumdog Millionaire

I caught this film through rush lining for the Press and Industry screening, in my two hour break between seeing The Wrestler and Pontypool.

It's a film about an Indian "slumdog" (one of the many orphaned children who live outside the system) who makes his way into becoming a guest on the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire.. and wins. He is then arrested on suspicion of fraud and the story is told through his interrogation by police which reveals his past and how he was able to answer each question correctly. Overall it's a pretty good film with great visuals and an interesting and energetic soundtrack.

The Wrestler

This film should not be missed.

It's a bit different than Darren Aronofsky's earlier films, but it's just as good. The film itself is very character driven. Many scenes are shot documentary style with long takes following Randy "The Ram" Robinson (Mickey Rourke) through his routine. The supporting actors do well in their roles (Marisa Tomei as Randy's stripper - not quite girlfriend, and Even Rachel Wood as his distant daughter) but the they really only exist to fill out Randy's world.

It's hard to tell whether the film is telling the story of Randy's tragic decline or triumphant comeback. The abrupt end to the film doesn't make it any easier to decide, but it doesn't really matter because his story is compelling no matter how you see it.

Harvard Beats Yale 29-29

This is mostly a film about a 1968 football game that ended unexpectedly. And as a film about a football game, I found it to be pretty entertaining (much more so than actually watching a game). What makes the film are the interviews, with the players who were there, that are interesting and often funny. There's also added entertainment through their descriptions of ivy league life in the 1960's.

JCVD

JCVD at Midnight Madness. I can't think of a better way to have started my film festival experience this year.

Despite any reservations that people may have about seeing a Jean-Claude Van Damme film, this one is completely worth both the time and money spent. The audience (myself included) was laughing, cheering and completely captivated throughout the film. It was just a good film watching experience.

TIFF Tickets

My ticket request has been processed and I got all the tickets I wanted! Yay!

No scrambling to the box office for me.

TIFF '08!

The Toronto International Film Festival is fast approaching!

I have been attending the film fest regularly for the past couple years and this will be my second year volunteering for the festival as well. I have just completed and handed in my ticket requests last night, so here's hoping they all come through.

My Choices:

JCVD (The return of Jean-Claude Van Damme!)
Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 (Documentary about a football game from 1968, featuring many celebrities and politicians who were students at the time.)
The Wrestler (Mickey Rourke as an aged, former professional wrestler)
Pontypool (Canadian, small town, zombies!)
Che: Parts 1 & 2 (Four hours of biopic fun.)
Good (A story about how a regular, good, German citizen could become a Nazi)
El Greco (Biopic about the famous painter.)
At The Edge of the World (Real life environmentalist pirates!)

Volunteering for the festival pays in ticket vouchers, so expect more films to be added to my list in the days to come.

Acting Professional Like

My online CV and demo reel is finally up and running.
It will probably go through a million changes in the next little while, but it's up!

Check it out here.