MIFF 2015 - Day 11
A good run today, some excellent documentaries and fun, weird one.
Chasuke's Journey
Heaven is populated with hack screenwriters, writing the scenarios of our lives. Chasuke is a tea server, serving tea to the writers and occasionally admiring their work. When another writer kills off one of his favourite characters, Chasuke descends to earth to save her. It's a bit of a spoof on Wings of Desire, but it's ripping on way more than that. The first half of the film deconstructs various hackneyed plot devices and storylines. But then things get extra weird. Chasuke decides that since he has the power to change things, he will, and becomes an angel who heals the sick and becomes a national celebrity. Only to realise he was once human, and then remembers he was a yakuza. The second half isn't as successful as the first, but it's pretty good all the same, as some outraged writers in heaven conspire to assassinate him and Yuri, the girl he saved. Seriously odd, and really fun.
Sherpa
An incredibly insightful look into the lives of the Sherpas, who live in Nepal and have made their name guiding people up to the summit of Mount Everest. But that work comes at a cost, and many men have died helping foreign climbers get to the top. The filmmakers were present for one of the worst disasters in Everest history, when 16 men died in a day, sparking what in effect became a union movement amongst the Sherpas. The tensions between the tour operators, tourists, government and the Sherpas are all examined, the sources of frustration, some of the causes and in particular the lack of recognition these men get for making the path to Everest achievable for so many. It's also a visually spectacular film, with breathtaking shots of Everest and the surrounding area.
Peace Officer
Dub Lawrence is a former sheriff, he founded one of Utah's first SWAT teams in the 70s. In 2008 that same SWAT team killed his son-in-law in a standoff that was totally out of proportion to the threat presented. Dub's an interesting man, a detective by trade and by nature, and he is our guide to the escalating militarisation of the US police force. Looking at his son-in-law's homicide, as well as two other cases of police violence, the film looks at the methods and tactics of the police, and asks how any of the behaviour demonstrated is in any way proportional to the threats perceived to exist. The point is made that when a police officer kills someone wrongfully, they receive the benefit of the doubt. However, when an officer breaks into a house unannounced brandishing a weapon, the homeowner does not receive the same benefit of the doubt. And in one case examined, that failure to announce led to a shootout resulting in the death of an officer and the suicide of the man who killed him. Police attitudes and actions in the US are coming under increasing scrutiny, and this is a timely film to question whether the training and tactics currently used need to be rethought. As one officer succinctly puts it, all it takes is one police homicide to turn an entire community against the people who are meant to be protecting them.
Chasuke's Journey
Heaven is populated with hack screenwriters, writing the scenarios of our lives. Chasuke is a tea server, serving tea to the writers and occasionally admiring their work. When another writer kills off one of his favourite characters, Chasuke descends to earth to save her. It's a bit of a spoof on Wings of Desire, but it's ripping on way more than that. The first half of the film deconstructs various hackneyed plot devices and storylines. But then things get extra weird. Chasuke decides that since he has the power to change things, he will, and becomes an angel who heals the sick and becomes a national celebrity. Only to realise he was once human, and then remembers he was a yakuza. The second half isn't as successful as the first, but it's pretty good all the same, as some outraged writers in heaven conspire to assassinate him and Yuri, the girl he saved. Seriously odd, and really fun.
Sherpa
An incredibly insightful look into the lives of the Sherpas, who live in Nepal and have made their name guiding people up to the summit of Mount Everest. But that work comes at a cost, and many men have died helping foreign climbers get to the top. The filmmakers were present for one of the worst disasters in Everest history, when 16 men died in a day, sparking what in effect became a union movement amongst the Sherpas. The tensions between the tour operators, tourists, government and the Sherpas are all examined, the sources of frustration, some of the causes and in particular the lack of recognition these men get for making the path to Everest achievable for so many. It's also a visually spectacular film, with breathtaking shots of Everest and the surrounding area.
Peace Officer
Dub Lawrence is a former sheriff, he founded one of Utah's first SWAT teams in the 70s. In 2008 that same SWAT team killed his son-in-law in a standoff that was totally out of proportion to the threat presented. Dub's an interesting man, a detective by trade and by nature, and he is our guide to the escalating militarisation of the US police force. Looking at his son-in-law's homicide, as well as two other cases of police violence, the film looks at the methods and tactics of the police, and asks how any of the behaviour demonstrated is in any way proportional to the threats perceived to exist. The point is made that when a police officer kills someone wrongfully, they receive the benefit of the doubt. However, when an officer breaks into a house unannounced brandishing a weapon, the homeowner does not receive the same benefit of the doubt. And in one case examined, that failure to announce led to a shootout resulting in the death of an officer and the suicide of the man who killed him. Police attitudes and actions in the US are coming under increasing scrutiny, and this is a timely film to question whether the training and tactics currently used need to be rethought. As one officer succinctly puts it, all it takes is one police homicide to turn an entire community against the people who are meant to be protecting them.
posted by Andrew Lee at 12:11 AM
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