by Larry Richman
March 12, 2008 8:08 PM
Tuesday was my last full day of moviegoing at the 2008 SXSW Film Festival. By day's end, I will have seen three more documentaries -- four out of my last five films, in fact. I didn't plan it that way, but it was a nice way to end my stay in Austin. I spent the entire day at the relatively laid back Dobie Theater on the University of Texas campus -- no running from place to place.
When
Body of War premiered in Toronto, it reportedly received the longest standing ovation in the festival's history. I wasn't able to see it at the time, and I missed it in Santa Barbara as well. So I jumped at the chance to see it here at SXSW. Co-produced by Phil Donahue,
Body of War is about one man's struggle to survive after returning home from Iraq. It takes the news headlines and puts flesh on them. The consequences of a simple Congressional vote have come home to roost in people like 25-year-old Tomas Young, who is now a paraplegic and a physical embodiment of all that is wrong with our government's actions over the past five years.
Body of War is a masterpiece and one of the most powerful documentaries I've ever seen.
It would be hard to follow that up but I was so moved by
The Wrecking Crew that it's hard to contain my enthusiasm. What do the Beach Boys, Byrds, Association, Glen Campbell, Mamas & Papas, Monkees, Richard Harris, 5th Dimension, Sam Cooke, Cher, Captain and Tennille, Righteous Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, Frank Sinatra, Tijuana Brass, and
all these artists and songs have in common? The same small group of musicians played on almost all their hit songs of the last 40 years.
To say that this film is long overdue would be an incredible understatement. It's hard to imagine that anyone alive today hasn't been affected by the people who are profiled in this documentary. The session musicians who were known as the Wrecking Crew played on so many hit songs of the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and even 90s that it could be said they had a larger role to play in the culture of the last 40 years than any other group of people in the world. Denny Tedesco chronicles the musical history laid down by his legendary late father Tommy, as well as Hal Blaine and Don Randi (who were present for a Q&A afterward), Carol Kaye, Al Casey, Earl Palmer, Plas Johnson, Joe Osborn, and the dozens of others who sat in on the recordings.
Bootleg Wisconsin is the first film from director Brandon Linden. Falling generally into the category of unscripted films popularly known as "Mumblecore," this was a tough project to follow. Many walked out during the screening and I was the only one who stayed to speak with Linden at the Q&A. It's too bad nobody else had the patience to wait and at least express their feelings to him. How else does a filmmaker learn?
My final film was another documentary and a lot of fun. In
Bi the Way, Brittany Blockman and Josephine Decker travel the country in search of answers. The questions are, "what is bisexuality, is it more prevalent today than in the past, or have we just given a new name to something that's been here all along?" What the audience discovers is surprising and turns out to be more of an educational and history lesson than anything else. It was a real crowd pleaser.
As is the case every year, Tuesday ended with the presentation of the jury and audience awards at the Austin Convention Center and the Film Festival Closing Party/Music Festival Opening Party (commonly known as the "Overlap Party") as the music component of the festival takes over for several days. Encore film screenings of those shown earlier in the week also continue to take place through Saturday, March 15.
