The 68th San Francisco International Film Festival has arrived, carrying with it a host of fascinating films. Even when we did not fully connect with them, we love to highlight the indie spirit and champion telling all kinds of unique stories. Check out our full coverage of the festival after the jump!
Films
3670
Intimate and character-driven, South Korean import 3670 hails from first time feature writer/director Park Joon-ho. Few things feel more rewarding than stumbling upon a queer gem, then proceeding to sing its praises for the remainder of the year. Judging by overall vibes, 3670 looked promising enough to fit that bill. Certainly, Park Joon-ho should be given kudos for taking aim at difficult subject matter straight out of the gate, especially concerning the complexities of its central character, Cheol-Jun (Cho You-hyun), being a defector from North Korea. When they turn twenty, all North Koreans are forced into a mandatory draft. Cheol-Jun spends his days doom scrolling on the gay dating apps, longing to find a real connection. As his schoolmates pressure him to date a girl, Cheol-Jun instead finds camaraderie in Yeong-jun (Kim Hyeon-mok), a flirtatious fellow student he meets while working a shift at a convenience store. The duo do not have much chemistry. Actually, there seems to be more drama hatched from the dating apps than whatever connection hatches between Cheol-Jun and Yeong-jun. Joon-ho does not push for big drama or conclusions—a basic, meditative character study emerges instead. Themes of identity, belonging, and desire quietly unfold. Yeong-jun, despite his confidence, sees himself as pathetic and unworthy, while Cheol-jun gradually becomes more secure in his identity. Subtle yet maybe a little too understated at times, 3670 is still a decently heartfelt character piece, if entirely forgettable.
HAPPYEND
(Written by Intern, Alecia Wilk) Happyend delivers on its title’s promise, with a tinge of bitterness which superlatively captures the departure of high school graduation. Neo Sora’s worldbuilding gracefully allegorizes the uncertainty of the times—not just for a Japan succumbing to nationalism and on the brink of environmental disaster, but also for grade school kids soon to lose that label and lifestyle. Set in a future as near as tomorrow, Yuta (Hayato Kurihara), Kou (Yukito Hidaka), Tomu (ARAZI), Ata-chan (Yuta Hayashi), and Ming (Shina Peng) seek thrill and defy their school administration’s authoritarian progression. Sora invents modestly futuristic technology to propel the world into an imaginative, and still immediately recognizable place, and uses it to start a war: teenagers versus the march of fascism. His sparing approach to the dystopian pays off. Plot, effects, and futuristic elements of this storyverse are all explored with a frugality that saves runtime for its technical flourishes—Sora’s treatment of sound standing out in specific. In the fast-paced yet lollygagging turn of events, visuals and audio come together tactically, like cues unlocking successive chapters in the game-like lives of rambunctious students. Playing with acoustics and silence to communicate the essential, Sora manipulates the senses. Tense exchanges are limited to one perceptive element—either speakers’ faces are seen or their own words heard. Geniusly doubling as moments to inject its own tropes, Happyend comes to feel timeless. Placing the pieces of his narrative in meticulous harmony, Neo Sora translates the feeling of ending high school at what is possibly the end of times. With thoughtful imagery, Happyend carries the tugging of everything one has known being lost, and the shaking certainty of what is in store, even though virtually nothing yet has changed.
THE LAST FIRST TIME
Full review at the link.
OPERATION TACO GARY’S
For the right subset of viewers, Operation Taco Gary’s may prove to be a stoner’s dream. It has all the right ingredients: a preposterous premise involving aliens and celebrity conspiracy theories, a charismatic duo of reliable comedians in Simon Rex and Dustin Milligan, and plenty of dick jokes. A major cameo also adds a dash of pedigree to the clearly low budget feature. However, unpacking just where we went wrong may take some time. For starters, the film begins with Rex’s Danny character running down the street in his underwear before being hit by a car. Nothing much has been accomplished from this opener, other than a throwaway gag that requires Danny to later show up in a neck brace with some tire marks on his chest. We find Luke (Milligan) in the midst of a move to Ottawa, Canada, with neighbors showing face to thank Luke for using his Wi-Fi password against his will. We learn nothing about Luke’s living situation or previous life before not-so-estranged brother Danny shows up. Luke says he hasn’t seen Danny in years, and does not even know if he’s alive or dead. When they have a reunion mere minutes later, none of that comes across in their interaction. If these writers don’t care about their characters, why should we? Any scene featuring driving looks so fake that it felt as if minimal effort was put in there. A running gag involving being dosed with ketamine is funny the first time, but quickly overstays its welcome. By the time an elder/alien played by the indomitable Doug Jones finally shows up, how can we care? In theory, an alien that can make a human secrete guacamole from any orifice should be hilarious. Instead, Operation Taco Gary’s, as with most of its jokes, serves as a stale reminder that we could be watching much better material from either of its two leads.
THE QUIET SON
The Quiet Son follows a path of similar movies exploring the general downfall of a young adult as they fall into the wrong crowd. This French import caught my eye due to the presence of Benjamin Voisin (Summer of 85, Lost Illusions), who plays lead character Fus. Voison is undoubtedly the best aspect of this middling film; although directed well by duo Muriel Coulin and Delphine Coulin, it feels overall a needlessly overlong, depressing experience. Devoted father Pierre (Vincent London, Titane, The Measure of a Man) has built a bond with his two sons over the course of many years. Their relationship is thrown into complete disarray when Fus begins hanging up fascist posters. Will Pierre stand by idly as Fus becomes brainwashed by extremist thugs? Fus’s descent grows worse each time we revisit him, always falling back into destructive habits. Perhaps the bleakness is the point, but the minimal emotional payoff fails to justify a nearly two-hour runtime to drive it home. Despite being an obvious bit of constantly-shirtless eye candy, his appearance as an overtly unlikable protagonist makes it difficult to care about Fus and his plight. Heavy themes require depth in their execution. Expecting the familial bond to do the heavy lifting only works if we actually believe that one has been intact. From the second we meet Fus, he has already firmly checked out of a relationship with Pierre, or with his “perfect” brother, Louis (Stefan Crepon, Peter Von Kant, Making Of). Once we arrive at the courtroom-set finale, an interesting moral question arises too little too late. By dodging the majority of the violence and allowing the audience to fill in the blanks, The Quiet Son never evolves into a compelling bit of cinema. Instead, it leans on simplistic relationships and motivations to culminate in an empty experience.
For more information about the festival including ticketing, head over to the official website.