The 11-day orgy of film is over. No more standing in the Magnolia lobby comparing notes with other moviegoers, no more stealing Archer Farms snacks from the Target Lounge, and no more hurling softball questions at directors during Q&As ("So, did you know the film would turn out so great when you were making it?"). Not that I did any of those things -- I'm far too antisocial -- but most people did. And thank the lord for them. They helped create that geeky film-fan vibe that festivals set out to achieve.
I was lucky enough to have a screening pass, so I spent more time sitting in theaters listening to other people shovel popcorn into their mouths than anyone should. But the noise pollution was worth it, considering I got to see so many killer documentaries. In fact, looking back at what I saw, not one of the features could hold a candle to the real-life stories.
Here's a list of the official AFI award winners (the audience awards, to me, are most important). After the jump is my personal best-of list (surprise, all documentaries).
1. Please Vote for Me -- Three Chinese third-graders campaign to be elected class monitor, displaying a strange mix of childish silliness, steely determination and surprising political skill. In just under an hour, the doc covers the full range of emotions involved in politics. You'll laugh, you'll cry and, in the end, you'll realize that you've seen something pretty important -- a Chinese institution's unlikely experiment in democracy.
2. Nerdcore Rising -- You don't have to be a nyerd to appreciate the humor in director Negin Farsad's examination of nerdcore hip-hop. It's a style of music that mixes funky beats with rhymes that just happen to be about things like Magic the Gathering, Star Wars, and sometimes just geeky awkwardness. Cameras follow nerdcore pioneer MC Frontalot and his band on small tour and capture moment after moment of hilarity, while making the larger point that, really, everybody has a nerdy side.
3. Joy Division -- I read a description of this film before seeing it that called it "Behind the Music on crack," but that doesn't quite do it justice. The documentary does what the recent feature about Joy Division, Control, didn't -- it relates the story of the band and the tragic fate of its lead singer to their effect on their birthplace. You see, hear and feel the transformation of Manchester, England, from an industrial wasteland to some sort of post-punk capital of the world.
4. Afghan Muscles -- I certainly didn't know that bodybuilding was the premier sport of Afghanistan. But it is, and competitors consider it to be the only way to live out the hopes and dreams of their families. The film's first few minutes demonstrate that all too well, making the story of the "main character" that much more effective. Muscle man Hamid Shirzai brings unbelievable integrity and humility to a sport most commonly associated in America with cheesy poses and facial expressions.
5. Lou Reed's Berlin -- This concert film (directed by Julian Schnabel of Diving Bell and the Butterfly fame) was a test of endurance for some. Entire rows of people walked out because they just couldn't take another second. They probably expected it be a film of Lou Reed talking, rather than performing obscure 1973 album Berlin in its entirety. But the music and lyrics were what kept me interested. Berlin is a concept album built around the story of a seriously effed-up relationship. As Reed and his mini-orchestra (including backup singers Sharon Jones and Antony) pour themselves into the songs, filmed dramatizations of the story are cut in to give visual aid to the lyrics. I'm not a Reed diehard, but his ideas behind the songs and the live presentation of them would inspire any fan of music.
What did you see? What did you like? Weigh in with comments.
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