The four reviews immediately beneath this post are all the entries (so far) in our 5th reader-review writing contest. Feel free to comment on your favorite. You can still submit a last-minute entry, but we will announce the winner on this Thursday, Jan. 2. Thanks to all who entered and good luck!
READER RECOMMENDATION: JACK AND DIANE (2012)
Reader Recommendation by Jason Steadmon
DIRECTED BY: Bradley Rust Gray
FEATURING: Juno Temple, iley Keough, Dane DeHaan, Kylie Minogue, Lou Taylor Pucci
PLOT: Somewhat immature Diane (Temple) meets and starts a relationship with the streetwise Jack (Keough) while also going through some strange blackouts and changes.
WHY IT SHOULD MAKE THE LIST: If you take the point of view that an analogy doesn’t make for weirdness, Jack & Diane may not immediately make the List. This movie, however, takes that analogy and leaves one to make one’s own mind up. Maybe Diane is turning into a creature in her blackouts – maybe not. It’s from this ambiguity that the movie derives its strangeness.
COMMENTS: Diane is a girl who has been getting nosebleeds lately, and those eventually lead to some scary blackouts, with her seeing a creature in the mirror in place of her own reflection. The idea that Diane may be going through some bodily change (cancer, maturation, exploration of her own sexuality, etc.) is a pure distillation of metaphor–except that it starts to have physical consequences for her lover Jack. Jack eventually gets jealous of Diane hanging around with her friends–Diane has a more fluid sexual nature as opposed to Jack’s straight-up lesbian orientation–even if she was willing to roll with the sometimes literal punches of the relationship. If this isn’t metaphorical, both Diane and Jack (and New York City) are in trouble, because one of them is turning into a very violent monster.
Diane’s other self is represented through some good old-fashioned prosthetic work by veteran effects artist Gabe Bartalos (the Leprechaun movies, most of Frank Henenlotter’s films). The impending coming of the Creature Diane is also represented in animation by the Brothers Quay in their characteristic and inimitable style. Bradley Rust Gray does good service to the iffy nature of the story and never beats you over the head with the creature. He is obviously bolstered by his experience with both independent and experimental film. As Diane, Juno Temple doesn’t necessarily break any new ground in the childlike yet sexually charged role–but does well with a part that seems written with her in mind. More astounding is Keough (Lisa Marie Presley’s daughter) as Jack, completely eschewing her normal glamorous looks to play the tomboyish role, and bringing depth to the character that one might not expect from someone who makes a regular living as a fashion model.
WHAT THE CRITICS SAY:
READER RECOMMENDATION: BRUISER (2000)
Reader Recommendation by Jason Steadmon
DIRECTED BY: George Romero
FEATURING: Jason Flemyng, Peter Stormare, Nina Garbiras, Leslie Hope, Tom Atkins
PLOT: Henry Creedlow works to provide for and please his cheating, social-climbing wife. An event from a masquerade party takes on a real world tangibility, signifying his nobody existence but also allowing him to take forceful and violent control of an out-of-control life.
WHY IT SHOULD MAKE THE LIST: George Romero’s filmography has never shied away from the strange, but the lack of an explicit reason for Continue reading READER RECOMMENDATION: BRUISER (2000)
READER RECOMMENDATION: CRANK: HIGH VOLTAGE [CRANK 2] (2009)
Reader Recommendation by Adam Brodie
DIRECTED BY: Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor
FEATURING: Jason Statham, Amy Smart
PLOT: Chev Chelios (Statham) is an arsehole, and triads stole his heart. Now he must fight to get it back.
WHY IT SHOULD MAKE THE LIST: The soul of oddity rests in commitment. “Weirdness” is a property of technique and the subversion of technique, Continue reading READER RECOMMENDATION: CRANK: HIGH VOLTAGE [CRANK 2] (2009)
READER RECOMMENDATION: SLACKER (1991)
Reader Recommendation by Paul Kemp
DIRECTED BY: Richard Linklater
FEATURING: Richard Linklater
PLOT: A “Day in the Life” movie revolving around the college scene of Austin, Texas.
WHY IT SHOULD MAKE THE LIST: It is scriptless fiction. Continue reading READER RECOMMENDATION: SLACKER (1991)