MIFF 2016 - Day 7

Tower

Stylised animation is used to recreate August 1, 1966, when a sniper on the rooftop of the tower at University of Texas in Austin killed and wounded dozens of people. We get the stories of many of the people who became involved that day, with their memories and footage from the day forming the basis of the movie. The animation allows the film to recreate the day without becoming too "fake", the look of the people approximating how they really were so long ago. The different stories of heroism, helplessness and horror form an arresting portrait of the day.

Elle

I'd heard someone say this was Paul Verhoeven's best film, and I didn't believe it was possible. He's made many great films, and some genuine stinkers. But my goodness, this is a hugely complex and provocative study of a person. Michelle is sexually assaulted at home, then tidies up and carries on as if nothing has happened. She's traumatised, but she's already been traumatised before. When she was a child her father murdered everyone in the entire street. She's also negotiating an affair with her best friend's husband, an ex-husband with a new and younger partner, and a dropkick son with a pregnant girlfriend she dislikes intensely. And so we move between all these different elements, meanwhile she's being stalked by her attacker. But because of her father she refuses to go to police. There are points where you wonder if she's a psychopath herself, especially when it becomes clear she kind of enjoys the drama of it all. I'm not sure what I make of the whole thing, I probably need more time to think about it, but this is a brilliant film.