5150 RUE DES ORMES (2009)

5150 RUE DES ORMES (a.k.a. 5150 ELM'S WAY, 2009)
Country: Canada
Directed by: Éric Tessier
DP: François Dutil

This is a nice Quebecois family drama/understated horror thriller.

A film student meets a family with a dark secret.

I CAN SEE YOU (2008)

I CAN SEE YOU (2008)
Country: United States
Directed by: Graham Reznick
DP: Gordon Arkenberg

David Lynch, no-budget style. The visuals are interesting enough.

A small group of co-workers take a trip to the woods to take pictures for a Windex clone's ad-campaign.

The movie's tag: "A psychedelic campfire tale."

KANTOKOU · BANZAI! (2007)

KANTOKOU · BANZAI! (a.k.a. GLORY TO THE FILMMAKER!, 2007)
Country: Japan
Directed by: Takeshi Kitano
DP: Katsumi Yanagijima

In his most personal film to date, "Beat" Takeshi spoofs, parodies and reflects upon Japanese cinema and his own work.

A struggling filmmaker (Kitano) tries various popular Japanese cinema genres.

If you needed more proof after Getting Any? and Takeshis' that Kitano is crazy, here it is.

In many scenes Kitano is inexplicably replaced by a plastic life-size doll (as seen in bottom-left still).

RUBBER (2010)

RUBBER (2010)
Country: France
Directed by: Quentin Dupieux
DP: Quentin Dupieux

Quentin Dupieux is a true one-man show. The film was written, edited, directed and co-scored by him, along with being the DP.

Goodyear plays a silent serial killer with telekinetic powers called Robert, who wanders around a desert in the American Southwest murdering animals and people as a crowd watches from afar with binoculars.

The tagline reads: Are you TIRED of the expected?

Dupieux is a director to watch for in the future.

STORYTELLING (2001)

STORYTELLING (2001)
Country: United States
Directed by: Todd Solondz
DP: Frederick Elmes

Storytelling is a film divided in two segments: Fiction and Non-Fiction. This post only concerns the latter.

A dysfunctional family is the segment's focus. A "documentarian" (Giamatti) makes a documentary about the eldest son of the family. So there are some meta themes in there. Storytelling spoofs and satirizes one of my least favorite films, American Movie (1999). The spoof is called "American Scooby".

The movies where Frederick Elmes has participated in directing the cinematography or other technical aspects seem to follow a certain trend: broken or dysfunctional American families (Brothers, Blue Velvet, A Woman Under the Influence, Broken Flowers, The Ice Storm, etc.).

A defining quality of Solondz's films is that, no matter how terrible the characters may be, they are never treated without warmth or fondness by Solondz.

And yes, the man in the bottom left still is Conan O'Brien.

ABRE LOS OJOS (1997)

ABRE LOS OJOS (a.k.a. OPEN YOUR EYES, 1997)
Country: Spain, Italy, France
Directed by: Alejandro Amenábar
DP: Hans Burman

Alejandro Amenábar’s international breakout film borrows more than a few elements from Philip K. Dick’s novels, especially Ubik.

A man becomes disfigured as a result of a car accident.

Although the visual palette has become a little dated, there are a few impressive shots, and the story still holds up quite well.

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD (2007)

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD (2007)
Country: United States
Directed by: Sidney Lumet
DP: Ron Fortunato

Sidney Lumet's last film. He was 83 when he made it. It is also his first and only film to be shot in digital.

Two brothers in need for money decide to steal a jewelry store. Desperate times, desperate measures indeed. Only it isn't as simple as it looked like.

Top-notch performances from everyone involved.

CALVAIRE (2004)

CALVAIRE (a.k.a. THE ORDEAL, 2004)
Country: Belgium, France, Switzerland
Directed by: Fabrice Du Welz
DP: Benoît Debie

Effective drama with some horror elements. Benoît Debie (IRREVERSIBLE, SPRING BREAKERS) excels with his wonderful shots, as always.

CHOP SHOP (2007)

Chop Shop (2007)
Country: United States
Directed by: Ramin Bahrani
DP: Michael Simmons