Cinequest ran through this August 29. Here are the films that I hadn’t posted about yet:
Linoleum: Colin West’s gentle story of a lovable loser with a nose-diving kid’s science TV show is superficially about the guy’s eccentric attempt to build a real rocket in his garage; but it’s really three love stories – or are they one love story? Although West peppers some clues throughout, it’s not until the final act that the audience connects the dots about what is going on. Linoleum is hard to review – or even describe – without spoilers, but let’s just say that it is a highly original and sweet film.
Spin Me Round: The crowd at a well-attended screening loved this unpretentious and delightful comedy, a showcase for the comic talents of, among others, Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, Zach Woods and Molly Shannon. It’s a very zany comment on corporate sexual predators with a withering send-up of The Olive Garden. There are wild pigs, too. Spin Me Round is now streaming on AppleTV.
What We Do Next: Stephen Belber’s taut drama featured the best acting ensemble at Cinequest, with searing performances by Karen Pittman, Michelle Veintimilla and Corey Stoll. The story unfolds in seven segments over a a span of years, initially dealing with how an innocent miscalculation years ago could erupt into a career-killing political scandal. Each of the characters becomes more entangled by the choices of the others, and the dominoes fall.
Medusa: In this French drama, two adult sisters live in a house on a woodsy lane. Brain injury from a car crash has crippled one sister’s capacity to walk and to speak, and her sibling cares for her. The caregiving sister brings home her new, hunky boyfriend, who becomes fascinated with occupational therapy for the injured sister. As he helps her recover her speech and mobility (her libido has not been impaired), sexual tension and jealousy simmer. This is the first feature from writer-director Sophie Lévy, and she depicts sexual playfulness from a female perspective. There are several recent films with the same title, so it’s best to search for this movie under its French title, Méduse.
Shoebox: This sweet film is about a man who refuses to accept that his city is changing around him; he persists in trying to run a tiny neighborhood movie theater – kind of an Indian Cinema Paradiso. As it meandered predictably, I lost interest.
Free Renty: This earnest advocacy documentary has one thing going for it: one of the very most searing images from slavery in America. It’s a daguerreotype of Renty Taylor, a slave whose demeanor blares that he is fiercely expressing his human dignity. The film is about litigation by one of Renty Taylor’s descendants to recover the property rights to the image from Harvard University. The family is very sympathetic, but the doc loses credibility when it casts off all objectivity in the final act.
The Dinner Parting: This purported screwball comedy is actually an exercise in dark deadpan humor as three people try to foist a brazen lie on their acquaintances. The humor is supposed to stem from the absurd lengths they use to pull off the deception. But the premise is too obviously contrived, and some actors seem to be working in a different tone than the others. It’s a misfire.
Ghosting Gloria: This Uruguayan comedy was my biggest disappointment of the fest, because I so enjoyed the filmmakers’ witty entry at the 2017 Cinequest, The Moderns (Los Modernos). Here, the protagonist has lived to 30 without an orgasm until she moves to a haunted residence. She is then faced with a choice between a ghost and a real human guy. It’s uncommon that I find a sex comedy to be a yawner, but this was too predictable.
Bottom line: Linoleum and Spin Me Round join Trust, Charm Circle, 12 Months, The Grand Bolero, Out in the Ring and Tell Me a Memory as the Best of Cinequest. In 2023, Cinequest returns to its usual in-person time slot in late February.
