The Florida Project (2017)

I went into this as an Odeon screen unseen, I had never heard of it at this point. Going in completely blind. The opening was bright and sunny and had natural seeming kids running around. The first thing I noticed was how often the name Sean Baker came up on screen. I do preemptively judge a film if I see that one person has an unmatched level of involvement. As many independent filmmakers, Baker directed, produced, wrote and edited The Florida Project. He also did the same for Tangerine (2015) a film that made a mark due to being shot entirely with iPhones. I believe this can affect the showing of a story sometimes, like tunnel vision, having a secondary opinion can make a difference.

This for the most part was ignored until the end. The 'story' if you want to call it that, follows Moonee a 6 year old girl who lives in a motel room with her mum and runs around over summer making friends and causing trouble. The film doesn't have much of a narrative, more a social commentary of Florida's lower class residents. It plays like a memory or a diary of someone who grow up in those conditions. Because I think you do find yourself wondering not just how it will end but when. It's hard to pace something that isn't necessarily going anywhere.

The cast was great, the only big recognisable face was Wilem Dafoe, the motel owner, and father to the building. I have always thought he's a wonderful actor and he does make a point of choosing quite dissimilar roles. He has the fine balance of being at wits end with the children and protecting them dearly. Moonee is played by young Brooklyn Prince, sweet and annoying in equal measure just like a normal 6 year old. She sporadically uses language and attitude as if shes in her twenties, a clear notation of how much time she's spent with her mother, who treats her like a friend more than her daughter. Bria Vinaite, the mother, Halley, is again a natural. Being her first feature length and first film in general its easier to see her as the character as we don't know anything else. It seemed so genuine that I would struggle to see her in any other way with any other accent. The rest of the cast are similar, the children young and real but still showing the traits of their respective parental figure.

The cinematography was gorgeous. Natural lighting was apparent from the get go, lots of sunrises and sunsets colouring the frame with warm reds and orange evenings. The motel was a giant purple building, a man made backdrop to a lot of scenes. Moonee and her friend Jancey have free reign of outside but inside we only have a few rooms as motels do. The few locations mimic their lives of having a bedroom and a bathroom and nothing else. The sound does the same, no score or music in the film until the final scene. Everything gives a raw documentary feel to it.

My only beef was the end of the film. And I'm sure many others feel the same. People in the cinema laughed out loud then asked amongst themselves, is that gonna be the end? Then when the credits rolled there was audible groans. It's the first piece of music we have from the film and its a dampened down version of Cool and the Gang's 'Celebration'. No spoilers but the film ends in Disney World and you can tell this not just due to the iconic castle but due to Baker obviously not wanting to pay for consent to film professionally. The footage goes from smooth wonderfully coloured shots to jagged phone footage. It's abrupt and kind of undercuts the visual world that had been created.

Subtle social commentary on the poor people living so close to the money making Disney World and it's ever coming tourists. A definite eyeopener to the status that some people live though somewhat disappointing ending. If you're open minded and like your artsy films, a solid 7/10 otherwise you might find the lack of conclusion frustrating.

CINEMATES - A

Patti Cake$ (2017)

P B N J. P P B N J. Don't worry that will be be in your head for days after watching this film. Patti Cake$ is wonderful. Small film, relatively small release and I wouldn't say has had a great deal of advertising. Nonetheless I heard of the film a few weeks ago, story seemed unoriginal but fun and the trailer sold me. Patti Cake$ is the story of underdog Patricia, AKA Patti Cakes$ AKA Killa P trying to break out of New Jersey and start her live over as a rapper. 

So the casting was spot on. Completely. Australian actor Danielle Macdonald killed it as Jersey born Patti Dombrowski. Carries the characters troubles well, shows off her hard work in all aspects of her life. And of course raps incredibly well. So after P we have B (P B N J) B is for Basterd, played by Mamoudou Athie, an outsider who Patti meets with her best friend Jheri at an open mic event. He screams for people to break out and not to be sheep whilst rocking facial piercings and a single white contact lens. His quietness is a contrast to Patti though they are compatible. Jheri, played by Siddharth Dhananjay, Patti's best friend is an extrovert like her, enthusiastic and passionate about music. He pushes her to become her best and it works, he's there for her debatably more than he's there for himself but they make a great team. See also his youtube channel Dhananjaythefirst and you can see why his performance seems so genuine. 

Patti's Nana plays a big part in Patti Cake$ career and not just her life, the first time we see her Patti is keen to share a new limerick she's made up and Nana is joyous to hear it. She believes in her granddaughter and it's clear that Patti wouldn't be the Killa P we end up loving without that. She even gets to perform on one of the tracks. It's apparent Patti gets her support here and not from her alcoholic attention seeking mother. Bridget Everett who we usually see in comedic roles pushes herself to a more dramatic character. Granted yes there's comedy in the film but not often with her, she has an understandable sadness to her. Manages to be somewhat redeemable even though she's not particularly likeable. 

I personally loved the style of the film. It opens with a big rap number, lots of colour and aesthetics, smoke, lights, make up and Patti giving it her all. Then she wakes up. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the film from one characters perspective, getting her point of view is great. We see her dreams and daydreams, and how she perceives different characters and key moments in the film. I loved the editing of the film too, it mirrored this, went well not only with the music but with the theme of the moment. Some parts were cut as if to be a music video, not just performances but how Patti saw the world. Emphasising how big of an influence music has on her life. 

And the music was great. Original music was fantastic, written by Jason Binnick and director Geremy Jasper. Being his feature length directorial and writing debut, alongside being composer for the film. And fair play to him, great piece all round there. You can tell the few things he's work on previously have been music related but this is the film to show that off in if any. Still needs a little work, a little rough around the edges but that is to be expected from someone with less experience. And with the fact he did so much on one project, that is often a recipe for a clustered film. 

Yes it hits that, life is hard for a fat girl thing but it doesn't rely on it. It's a tiny slice of who the character is and makes Patti much more than just a cliche

Predictable? Yes. Unsatisfying? Not in the slightest. It'll get you in the mood for live music and you'll undoubtedly be listening to the soundtrack on the way home 7/10

CINEMATES - A

The Transfiguration (2016)

The Transfiguration movie, oh my goodness. Just wonderful. So interesting. Great storytelling. So first time feature length writer director Michael O'Shea brings us the story of vampire obsessed troubled teen Milo as he befriends alienated young girl Sophie. As their relationship grows his obsession slips further from fantasy into reality. This film created buzz at numerous film festivals and after watching Raw earlier this year I was heavily invested in realistic coming of age stories with a twist and I'm so pleased I am. Which means unfortunately for me I have to add another director to my list of people to keep an eye on.

Milo our protagonist is played by a young Eric Ruffin, who I think was somewhat captivating. Our first interaction with him is as he sucked the blood from a strangers neck, followed by him sat in a school counsellor's office ready to start his summer break. We see how he behaves slightly differently with them as with his brother. And different again with the gang living in the same block of apartments and again with Sophie, played by Chloe Levine. Their relationship is a somewhat beautiful one though different. His character doesn't emote all that much, his independence on vampire lore takes the forefront so he struggles to begin with to relate to her. After finding that they have both lost their parents they spend more time together and a relationship forms. He misses some normal social cues and even walks a little odd, as if he glides and doesn't step, all small things that match both with his lack of social practise and his obsession with creatures that have similar traits. Levine is believable as a teenage girl, clearly having to deal with difficult times way before being old enough to deal and adjust with them. She's taken by Milo and it's very sweet to see her deal with her own feelings separate to his.

The style of the film is something I picked up on immediately. The entire film is shot handheld. Whether it's the intimate close ups with high depth of field, focusing on one part of Milo's face. Or the wide location shots with Milo and Sophie very very small on the edge of the frame, there's actually a shot so wide that I didn't spot them at first. But the style is purposeful, so it lingers and you don't miss anything. It's rarely from the protagonist's perspective, we watch everything from the outside often with a wide angled distance. All you could say in a predatory manner, we are hunting throughout the film.

Another thing I noticed within a few minutes of the film was the lack of music. Only a handful of moments in the film was any extra sound used. And it was the same high pitched ringing, an uneasy alert that wasn't all that loud, it never stole focus, but it highlighted the action at the time. From not appearing at all they got more and more prominent in Milo's vampire homages as the film went on. Both the sound and the visuals were realistic, something Milo says a few times, is that he only liked realistic vampire movies. The film appears to be shot using almost all natural lighting, it takes place over the summer between the school year. Mostly during the day, in Milo's room or in the city's night. So some shots get quite dark with only the streetlights to spark the dim screen. Some shots have a bit of noise in them because of this but I enjoyed the cinematography greatly.

Horror/drama is accurate, there are some tense scenes that could be regarded as scary, both due to the visceral images and the possible real life repercussions. The normality of the violence is arguably as unsettling as the violence itself. We watch online videos with Milo as well as many clips from vampire movies. Some with uncomfortable potential but none worse than what we see the actual characters do. There is a good balance between Milo's relationships and his own personal gain and his actions. The ending of the film was in my eyes, perfect. I've said it before and I will say it again, it is always great when a film has a purpose. It started knowing where it was going to end. It was well rounded and came full circle with the character development. Could not think of a better way for it to end.

8/10 Unsettling, intriguing and almost delicate. Wonderful independent film. What Milo says about vampires not being able to kill themselves will sit with you for a while.

CINEMATES - A