Sam Rockwell in "Confessioni di una mente pericolosa"

Oggi Sam Rockwell (Daly City, 1968) compie 41 anni. Qui di seguito il trailer del film di Tom DiCillo del 1996, Box Of Moonlight, che ha visto il futuro protagonista dell’esordio alla regia di George Clooney, Confessioni di una mente pericolosa (2002), recitare al fianco di John Turturro. Si tratta del suo primo ruolo importante, quello che gli ha fatto guadagnare le attenzioni internazionali e della critica. Box Of Moonlight, definito dal suo autore un “film d’azione esistenziale”, all’epoca fu presentato in anteprima al Sundance Film Festival e partecipò al concorso della Mostra Internazionale d’Arte Cinematografica di Venezia. Malgrado la vetrina veneziana il film in Italia, denigrato dalla critica, credo proprio abbia avuto solo due passaggi televisivi; la versione italiana, non a caso, è difficilmente reperibile. Quando anni fa lo vidi a notte fonda su Rete4 mi strappò varie volte la risata e mi sembrò davvero ben recitato. Prima di allora avevo giusto intravisto Sam Rockwell in qualche ruolo minore in altri tre film indipendenti: Basquiat (1996), In The Soup (1992) e Somebody To Love (1994).

Estoy un poquito desilusionado. Permanent Vacation, la primera peli de Jim Jarmusch de 1980 no me gustó para nada. Es como esas obras de arte que uno intenta entender pero siente que es un artista dándoselas de intelectual y que no hay mucho más que entender que algo aburrido y chato.

Si, de pronto es demasiado fuerte y estoy juzgando demasiado estricto a Jarmusch a sabiendas que era la primera peli y que otros en el pasado también me han dejado como con ganas de más.

Errores en la edición, en el audio, en las actuaciones y en lo plano de los dialogos me hartaron. El esfuerzo de verme el final no fue congraciado, muy por el contrario fue bastante simplón. Tratar de exlicar que “la soledad grabada en una ciudad tan movida como Nueva York es síndrome de la juventud que sólo siente que existe ella y sus amigos” me parece un argumento forzado.

Lo único que rescato es que la peli me dejó pensar y elucubrar cuál podría ser el actor o los actores fetiche de Jim Jarmusch en su obra; en principio podría ser John Lurie que actuó en esta y Stranger than Paradise, Isaac de Bankolé que actuó en dos, Roberto Benigni que actuó en tres o podría ser Bill Murray que también actuó en tres y ahora en The Limits of Control que estrena este año. Pero no, la pareja de personajes que siempre acompañan las pelis de Jarmusch son los cigarrillos y las tazas de café bien oscuro.

No recomiendo esta peli a personas de concentración baja, impacientes o demasiado perfeccionistas. Prefiero compartirla con esnobistas, intelectualoides e incluso con paternalistas sobreprotectores que entienden la ingenuidad e inmadurez de Jarmusch en esta peli como algo tierno y filológico en su corpus cinematográfico.

]]> http://elblogdelrock.wordpress.com/2009/10/05/when-youre-strange-una-pelicula-sobre-the-doors/ Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:28:42 +0000 lopezartetxe http://elblogdelrock.wordpress.com/2009/10/05/when-youre-strange-una-pelicula-sobre-the-doors/

Para empezar este nuevo regreso del blog tras un par de meses, empezaré dedicando la entrada a la película sobre el grupo californiano The Doors que vi hace una semana con un amigo. El documental está dirigido por Tom DiCillo y el nombre está basado en la canción “People Are Strange”. Es la canción que interpretan en el vídeo en el mítico “Ed Sullivan Show”. 

La película narra la evolución del grupo liderado por el extragavante Jim Morrison desde su fundación hasta la muerte de éste último. Está narrada por el conocido actor Johnny Depp y, según el ex-teclista de la banda Ray Manzarek, será “la verdadera historia de The Doors”. El que fue una de las claves del sonido del grupo ha declarado también que la película será “anti-Oliver Stone”, en referencia a la película sobre la banda que el director dirigió en 1991.

La película ha recibido buenas críticas en general y mi opinión es también favorable, ya que es muy interesante de ver para todo aquel a quien le guste el Rock y la música en general. Y de paso, te refresca la memoria para voler a disfrutar de los muchos clásicos de esta grandísima banda.

Delirious (2006)
★★ / ★★★★

“Delirious,” written and directed by Tom DiCillo, is a satire about paparazzis, tabloids and celebrities. Although it had a certain bite from time to time, it lost its way somewhere in the middle only to find its core once again toward the end. I really enjoyed watching Steve Buscemi as a photographer who wants to prove to everybody that he’s the best as what he does. There was a brilliant scene when he visited his parents’ house and neither the mom nor the dad approved of his job. Although Buscemi is convinced that what he does is art, that void inside him is never really filled because he always wants somebody (regardless of their overall importance) to tell him that he’s doing a great job. When no one feeds his ego, he goes off on rather amusing temper tantrums yet still retain a certain sadness to his situation. I also really liked Michael Pitt as an initially homeless aspiring actor who Buscemi takes under his wing and eventually rises to superstardom. Even though he eventually gains a status among celebrities and the media, he remains true to himself and that was nice to see. In most movies, characters like him get corrupted so it’s refreshing to see that change. As tension rises between Buscemi and Pitt, (Buscemi’s character declares that Pitt’s character is ungrateful for all the things he’s done when Pitt was homeless–completely unaware to the fact that he’s been nothing but a jerk/parasite) themes such as jealousy, envy, self-reflection and companionship are explored in meaningful ways. My problem with this picture is that a scene is either really good and focused or it’s really irrelevant to the overall scope of what it’s trying to satirize. If DiCillo had tweaked the middle portion a bit more (such as minimizing the “love” aspect between Pitt and Alison Lohman which felt superficial at most), this would’ve easily been a solid film. Still, this is an interesting movie with funny cameos and interesting subject matter. It’s not that I didn’t like it–I just think that it could’ve been a lot stronger with its smart script and talented actors.

Just a quick update about the Doors documentary, though as usual, I am late in commenting on it.  Johnny’s narration was indeed incorporated into When You’re Strange in time for it to screen at the LA Film Festival.  In addition, the original print of Jim Morrison’s experimental film, HWY, was found in time to cut some footage into the film. The footage is said to be so good that some may assume they are re-enactments.  But DiCillo assures us, “THERE ARE NO FUCKING RE-ENACTMENTS.”

The screenings took place on June 21 and June 24.  I haven’t seen any formal reviews yet, but the comments on Tom DiCillo’s site and some Doors message boards have been extremely favorable.  DiCillo reports that Johnny saw the completed film last weekend and was “extremely complimentary.”  There will be a buyer’s screening in NYC on June 30th, and I hope that will result in a purchase and a theatrical release!

Cathy

Johnny Depp Rocks!

Jak to się stało, że świat oszalał na punkcie karłów? Otóż trend ów zapoczątkowali przeróżni monarchowie – w pewnym momencie było zwyczajnie w dobrym tonie przysposobić sobie miniaturową świtę.

W starożytnym Egipcie faraonowie przypisywali małym ludziom niezwykłe zdolności połączenia z sacrum, a czasem widzieli w nich zreinkarnowanych bogów.

Machiavelliczna władczyni Katarzyna Medycejska zyskała sobie określenie „karlej fetyszystki” – niemal nigdy nie rozstawała się ze swoim małym dworem, który wyposażyła w cenne ubrania, futra, zapewniła im służbę, osobistych krawców, praczy i nauczycieli. Do jej ulubieńców należeli „Kasia Ogrodniczka”, „Mnich” i „Maur”.

Car Piotr Wielki miał obsesję na punkcie karłów, urządzał im luksusowe śluby i pogrzeby, zamawiając wszystkie potrzebne artefakty w rozmiarze mini, od zastawy przez stoły kończąc na katafalkach i trumnach.

Dzięki królewskiej protekcji karły szybko zajęły swoje miejsce w sztuce, także filmowej. Każdy zna ikoniczne małe postacie z „Czarnoksiężnika z krainy Oz”, „Willow” czy też serii „Austin Powers”.

Dziś karzeł powoli przestaje być śmiesznym małym człowieczkiem z samej swojej definicji i pojawia się na ekranie jako równoprawny bohater, który na swoich barkach bez problemu potrafi unieść cały film.

A więc niech żyją karły! Oto moje ulubione sceny i filmy z ich wielkim udziałem:

The Man with a Golden Gun (1974) reż. Guy Hamilton

Nick Nack vs. James Bond – karzeł walczący

Casanova (1976) reż. Federico Fellini

Wielka pani śpiewa – karły myjące

Twin Peaks (1990) reż. David Lynch

and there’s always music in the air… – karzeł tańczący

Living in Oblivion (1995) reż. Tom DiCillo

Nawet karły nie śnią o karłach! – karzeł zbuntowany

The Station Agent (2003) reż. Thomas McCarthy

Karzeł, który mieszkał przy kolei – karzeł jednoczący

by: Maria Durska 2009

Tom DiCillo gives some excellent news about his upcoming Doors documentary, When You’re Strange, by confirming on his website that Johnny’s narration for the film has been completed!  He sounds really enthusiastic about what Johnny has been able to contribute, calling the narration “fantastic,” “personal,” and “crucial.”  In various blog posts on his site, he has given huge compliments to Johnny’s intelligence and talent as an actor, as well as his emotional connection to the music and to Morrison.  These are exactly the kinds of comments I love hearing, and make me feel more than ever that Johnny is perfectly suited to be a part of this film!

As I mentioned a couple of months ago, I was a little nervous about when Johnny would possibly have the time to provide his narration, given that The Rum Diary filming in Puerto Rico has taken up most of this spring, and Public Enemies promotion will likely be starting soon.  I’m so glad that he had the time to shoehorn this into his busy schedule!  It would be interesting to hear where and when the recording was done- did Johnny have facilities in Puerto Rico, or was he able to travel to a recording studio on his days off?  We may never learn the details, but perhaps Johnny or DiCillo will give us some info about that in the future.

The big question now is, when and where will When You’re Strange have any future screenings?  DiCillo pulled out of this past March’s South By Southwest Film Festival when it was apparent that the film would not be completed with Johnny’s narration before the screening.  Now that he finally has the recording in his hands, he estimates that it’ll take a week to cut it into the film.  It’s probably too late now for some early summer film festivals, but hopefully he’ll be able to enter it in time for some late summer or fall festivals.  The best news of all would be to hear news of a theatrical release.  In his remarks, DiCillo has promised it will happen.  Let’s hope so!  Keep an eye on Tom’s site, as well as the When You’re Strange Official Website for any updates.

Huge props to DiCillo for being so forthright in his posts on his site.  Even when he didn’t have news to report, he has always kept the line of communication open with his readers (even lurkers, like me!)  Hopefully, he’ll continue to update everyone in terms of festivals, screenings, and a theatrical release!

May 27 UPDATE: When You’re Strange has been accepted to the LA Film Festival, which takes place from June 18-28.  DiCillo reports on his website that he’s still working on integrating the narration into the film, but it is excellent news that it will be ready for screening this soon!  Best wishes to the film for a successful and productive screening!

Cathy

Johnny Depp Rocks!

Something odd is happening. No one believes the footage of Jim Morrison is real. 10 minutes into the 1st screening a distributor walks out cursing, furious that we’d used a “re-enactment.” I find him later and explain nothing was re-enacted. It really is Jim, from his own film called HWY. This makes the guy even angrier, as if I’d played another trick on him.

“Yes!!” the audience returns. A woman raises her hand. “I understand there are no re-enactments,” she says. “But in the desert scenes why did you use an actor to play Jim Morrison?

http://www.tomdicillo.com/blog

I told myself I would write more posts in 2009, but between being busy at work and waiting and hoping (in vain, mostly)  for final information on some potential projects, I kept putting it off!  Now that nearly a quarter of the year is over, though, I feel that I’m overdue to at least drop a few lines.

The big music news so far this year is that Johnny will provide a permanent narration for a Doors documentary entitled When You’re Strange.  With a temporary narration by director Tom DiCillo, the documentary already had its World Premiere at the Sundance International Film Festival on January 17, 2009, and it also screened at the Berlin Film Festival in February.  DiCillo has been somewhat criticized for his dry and wordy voiceover, but he has assured fans that his narration was always intended to be just temporary.  He has supposedly tweaked the wording for Johnny’s reading and vows not to screen the film again until Johnny’s contribution has been added.

Johnny would’ve been a small child during The Doors’ heyday in 1966-1970, but his love and respect for rock legends makes him a perfect fit for this film.  I’m thrilled that in the last few years, Johnny has lent a hand to several music documentaries (Taraf de Haidouks, Joe Strummer, Tom Petty) and I’m sure he’ll do the story of The Doors justice!  According to DiCillo, Johnny may be recording the narration as early as this weekend.  If  it does not happen soon, his schedule is going to be pretty tight for the next few months, between filming The Rum Diary and doing press for Public Enemies.  So I just wish the project well and hope that the film can be completed soon so it can start getting some screenings!

I’ve already corrected my 2008 year-end post regarding the Glenn Tilbrook release, Pandemonium Ensues.  Johnny does indeed participate on the album, but not on guitar as had originally been reported by Teletext.  Glenn himself states in this interview that he asked Johnny and Vanessa Paradis to sing on the album, but while Vanessa duets with Glenn on the song Interest & Love, Johnny was uncomfortable about singing and therefore did a spoken voiceover on the song Too Close To The Sun.  While I love any form of musical participation on Johnny’s part, I admit that I wish that Johnny had played guitar.  In Glenn’s interview, he mentions that the album was pretty much finished and was being mixed in LA by the time Johnny and Vanessa came on board, so I guess that there were no more instrumental parts left to add.  Next time, Glenn! The CD has already been released in the UK, and will come out in the US on April 9.

I’ve seen no news so far this year on the status of the Do It For Johnny or Rock And A Hard Place: Another Night At The Agora documentaries.  Neither web page has been updated in quite awhile.  I’m also anxious to hear more about the possible Rogue’s Gallery follow-up, but there has been no info about that since the BBC report last summer.  Here’s hoping for more news soon on any or all of these potential projects!

Cathy

Johnny Depp Rocks!

Roll that motherfucking camera, Wolfie!

Synopsis

Following up his debut, Johnny Suede, director Tom DiCillo presented this filmmaking comedy that allegedly draws much from DiCillo’s experiences on the set of the 1991 Brad Pitt vehicle. Steve Buscemi stars as Nick Reve, the long-suffering director of a no-budget independent film. If he’s not dealing with his heartbroken director of photography Wolf (Dermot Mulroney), Reve is trying to keep his leading lady Nicole (DiCillo mainstay Catherine Keener) happy or ignore the pseudo-auteur suggestions of Pitt-inspired name-actor Chad Palomino (James LeGros). All the while, the audience can’t ever be sure if the scene they’re watching is a dream or reality.

Director: Tom DiCillo
Producer(s): Michael Griffiths, Marcus Viscidi
Screenplay: Tom DiCillo
Cast: Steve Buscemi, Catherine Keener, Dermot Mulroney, James LeGros, Peter Dinklage, Kevin Corrigan.

Movie trailer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjihNnEjnrk

Movie website
http://www.sonypictures.com/classics/living/living.html

por: Tsayo

Aka. Vivir Rodando

Dir. Tom DiCillo

1995

Steve Buscemi, Catherine Keener, Dermont Mulroney

La Ley de Murphy nos dice que cuando algo puede salir mal, seguramente saldrá mal; y cuando queremos hacer una película muuuuuuchas cosas pueden salir mal. Éste fue el hilo conductor que adoptó Tom DiCillo para presentarnos esta divertida introspectiva de la vida en las producciones independientes (y de presupuesto recortado).

La trama de la película refleja claramente el drama que se vive en una producción independiente, donde los participantes del rodaje (y principalmente el director) se encuentran una verdadera pesadilla, cuando a las actrices se les olvida el diálogo, cuando al gaffer le explota una lámpara (jijiji eso me pasó alguna vez), cuando la productora rompe relación sentimental con el camarógrafo (ups, algo parecido también me pasó)… bueno, una infinidad de calamidades que se sufren el la búsqueda de un sueño, terminar la película.

A los que gusten de ver buen cine disfrutarán de excelentes actuaciones, de un guión original y de una fotografía que va del blanco y negro de 8mm hasta escenas coloridas en 36mm.

A los que les gustaría hacer cine… aún es tiempo de arrepentirse.

Y a los que ya están en este tren, seguramente se sentirán identificados.

Independientemente de que cual sea tu filia por el cine podrán pasar 91 minutos de una divertida y complicada producción.

Por esa razón yo le doy 5 butaquitas de oro y 5 palomitas de maíz

1.- Por Steve Buscemi, maestro en la actuación

2.- Por Wolf, el fotógrafo (tuerto) de la película en la película

3.- Por el estrés colectivo del rodaje

4.- Por las mamás que siempre apoyan a sus hijos

5.- Por los que pagaron para salir en la película.

Satire, in this case, of a Madonna music video, is one of DiCillo's strengths.

The Real Blonde is similar to Life Is Sweet.And I do know for a fact that DiCillo likes Leigh’s work. I rewatched The Real Blonde a few nights ago while slightly drunk because I didn’t have the patience at the time to watch anything better. That should say it all, but… that would be unjust. I do like DiCillo, and maintain that Box of Moonlight is one of my favorite movies, and his very best work – and it’s the only one in which the typical DiCillo Hollywood Ending is more subtle. The same can’t be said for The Real Blonde despite its many wonderful moments of humor and outrage, in which DiCillo’s own personality comes out. I do admire his optimism, but I’m afraid I can’t share it.

Under the credits, it’s a day in the life of a street kid – sleeping, eating, panhandling, running away with something he stole.

Michael Pitt is Toby, self-described as not as homeless, but “moving around right now.” Steve Buscemi is Les, self-described as a “licensed professional photojournalist,” or what most people would call a paparazzo. He accepts Toby as an unpaid gofer in return for a place to crash. Toby can not only fix things, but take notes and elbow rival paparazzi out of the way. He makes himself nearly indispensable.

The photographer and his assistant go to a wickedly satirical benefit for STD sufferers, where Toby meets a soap opera casting director, and things are set in motion for his apotheosis. They visit Les’s parents, who are archetypal “get a real job” old folks at home, only nastier than some. You see why Les became how he is. In fact, you see a lot of things. It’s funny, how much can be illuminated by “black humor.”

There are plenty of synopses of Delirious available online, including writer/director Tom DiCillo’s own. He’s an independent who has not only made other films of his own, but filled such noteworthy roles as cinematographer for Jim Jarmusch’s Stranger Than Paradise.

Delirious was shot in only 25 days and has won a bunch of awards, and some viewers find it funnier than others. Stephen Holden, for instance says,

…you leave the movie feeling as though you have gazed into a closed circle of hell where everybody feeds off everyone else until there is nothing left.

Toby gets famous overnight, acting the part of a homeless serial killer (who, presumably, only kills really scummy bad guys.) In one scene he dallies in a sylvan setting with a lovely young thing who says, “You’ve taught me so much about being homeless….” which is a priceless line.

The beating heart of this film is the relationship between the two men. They are mentor and protégé, master and novice, benefactor and charity-seeker, but they are also friends. The big irony is, when Toby first moves in, Les keeps wanting reassurance that his house guest isn’t gay. And he isn’t. But by the end, Les is feeling, thinking, and acting like a jealous lover. His elaborate, handcrafted revenge plot is pure hysterical over-wrought stagy queen – only he doesn’t know it.

In an interview conducted by Paulington James Christensen III, DiCillo said this about Les:

I just wanted to make this about a guy who is so isolated as a human being. He is so twisted, so crippled by what his life had done to him.

In an interview with Gary Goldstein, he said:

I love characters that have desperate qualities about them, but then other things that make them human…. I wanted people to see that Les was damaged–and that every one of us, in our own way, has some form of that damage.

Don’t miss the short scene after the end credits.

RECOMMENDED: great satirical videos about marketing, etc. – start at #2

I obviously haven’t been paying enough attention. Here’s the story:

By a strange coincidence, the last two movies I saw featured the same actor. This lad looked vaguely familiar, but that’s not surprising, because he has the tabula rasa quality that lets him be anybody. Michael Pitt isn’t exactly the most memorable name, either.

Why did I order these two movies, anyway? Funny Games, I forget where the recommendation came from, but I saw it first, and thought the Paul character was plenty creepy; reminiscent, in fact, of certain over-entitled youth who tend to show up in a college town like the one I live in. A 2007 Choire Sicha piece described him as “the cheeriest, cleanest, shiniest sadist ever” and Pitt told the interviewer,

In a lot of ways I had the easiest role. The straighter I played it, the sicker it’d be.

For Delirious, the “why” is easy: I’ll watch anything Steve Buscemi is in. What a great movie. As it turned out, this was when I really started to wonder, “Who is this Michael Pitt?” and looked up the filmography – DUH, of course I’ve seen him before. In the movie I adore, Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I hadn’t really paid attention to the actor’s name, just accepted him as Tommy Gnosis and thought no more about it. It was more important to know that Stephen Trask did the vocals in the movie, so that was the name I associated with the character.

Well, the veils of ignorance are cast aside, and now I know exactly who Michael Pitt is.

It’s like Mickey Rourke’s early days. I’m thinking of Teddy the arsonist in Body Heat – he was so compelling, and much hotter than anything else in the movie. I’m thinking of Rourke in Diner. And mostly I’m thinking of him in Francesco. He was incandescent.

Michael Pitt is the same way. This guy has got it, got it, got it. It’s more than erotic appeal, although plenty of that is present and accounted for. The sexiness isn’t in his body (there are a million just as nice), it’s in how he talks and mostly in the kinetic dimension of catlike grace when he puts his arms around a girl. Something in the way he moves, indeed.

The Delirious script was written years before Pitt joined the project, but there are eerie parallels between Toby the character and Michael, the aspiring actor and emancipated youth who panhandled and slept outside. The real-life Michael Pitt then, for a couple of years, shared a one-bedroom Chinatown apartment with several other struggling kids.

Pitt worked as a bike messenger, which is a hella rough life, whose awfulness is depicted in Tami Hoag’s terrific novel Kill the Messenger. Whoever owns the option on that book, take note: Michael Pitt would be great in the lead. I’m available to write the screenplay.

Apparently in the Cobain-based Last Days, Pitt does his own singing. He also plays guitar and sings in a band called Pagoda, which played at SXSW 2007. In an interview, he talked about finding somebody to play cello like it’s never been played before, which is a noble ambition. Pagoda’s rendition of “Hey Joe” is worthy. In their “Happy Song,” you can see where Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome influenced music videos.

For Delirious, writer/director Tom DiCillo wanted an actor who would be equally plausible climbing out of a dumpster or a limo. Here’s how he describes the character he chose Michael Pitt to play:

There are some people born in this world that are truly innocent. These strange and blessed people somehow keep going, keep the light of hope and trust in their hearts despite the fiercest disappointments. I believe the world is drawn instinctively to these people, partly out of joy and partly out of a desperate longing to somehow consume their beauty and their power.

That paragraph came from DiCillo’s production notes, which are well worth checking out.

——

Photo: courtesy of
icanteachyouhowtodoit
via this Creative Commons license.

RECOMMENDED: 2002 Michael Pitt interview in Movement

Delirious

Grade: C+
Cast: Steve Buscemi, Michael Pitt, Alison Lohman, Gina Gershon
Director: Tom DiCillo
Rated:
Runtime: 107 minutes
Release Company: Peace Arch
www.delirious-lefilm.com

Some are pretty and/or blessed, while quite a few more people inhabit less prestigious social rungs – and it sucks to suck.  So observes Tom DiCillo (Living in Oblivion, The Real Blonde), well-to-do MediocriVille inhabitant.  With a thoughtless smear of jet black, “kinda-funny-lookin” Buscemi’s character Les is painted – a misanthropic scavenger of celebrity, a paparazzi photographer.  Aside from being, like us all, a human being, he has not one redeeming quality.  Les encounters a charming, self-effacing young vagrant named Toby and takes him on as an assistant, letting him just-adequate closet space for sleep.  To no great surprise, seeing the two men stand side-by-side in public illuminates Les’s complete lack of character, kindness, and patience, especially when other warm bodies instinctively gravitate towards Toby.  Les gives Toby plenty of reasons to better-deal him, which Toby naturally ends up doing through no fault of his own (as he is virtually faultless).  Wannabe actor Toby is inevitably spotted and becomes involved in a perfect cover-story union with a perpetually cleavage-baring pop diva, performed well, as usual, by Alison Lohman.  The question becomes how can the utterly bitter Les go on living, having now had a true taste of the celebrity he’s whored himself for for years?

Really, celebrities, pretty people, happy stories, beauty personified in others – its why many people go to the movies in the first place; the vicarious experience of celebrity, fame, beauty, lust, adoration.  Could it be that those who view art, and don’t create it, are nothing more than paparazzi of a different nature?  Delirious is successful in its choice of subject matter – beyond that, it’s about as piercing as a TV movie.  The film is like the character of Toby – decent, earnest, but rather simple and ineffectual.  Alas, DiCillo.  He illuminated a world in which a select few are born into adoration and talent – God save the rest.

Slice of SciFi is doing a poll to determine the best independent sci-fi film of 2007. So go and vote.

Of the 7 titles only three — two fan-made Star Trek episodes and The Man from Earth seem to be available online and, unsurprisingly, The Man from Earth is winning. It’s as if the makers of the other four films didn’t want people to see their stuff, choosing obscure film festivals and unknown awards over wide audiences.

To be fair, The Man from Earth wasn’t released freely on the internet. Someone got hold of the DVD, ripped the film, and put it on the net illegally. Thanks to that “criminal”, the film shot to fame faster than a speeding bullet and the filmmakers are deliriously happy. Thanks to that “criminal”, The Man from Earth has sold more DVDs than it ever would have without the “help”. It’s current IMDB score is 8.4 with 6326 votes. It could make the coveted top 250.

Meanwhile the makers of quality indie films like Delirious have such a hard time finding audiences the old-fashioned way that director Tom DiCillo, wrote a letter to Roger Ebert about the “Kafkaesque nightmare” of indie film distribution asking why a film that Ebert gave 3.5 stars to (out of 4) failed financially and Ebert answered to the best of his ability in his Chicago Sun-Times column. Tom later posted a follow-up on his blog. I think it’s a lot simpler than what Ebert talks about: you just need to get the film out to as many people as possible in the cheapest way possible.

Releasing it for free online and selling the DVD later might not make a whole lot of sense, but, dammit, it works. And the alternative is a quiet death.