My tour of the SIFF venues continues today with the Admiral Theater in West Seattle. Some people dislike that venue; I don't really mind it. True, the screening room is so long that most seats feel too far away, and the projection is too dark. But the long room also means good viewing angle, and there is ample leg room.
Touch (USA) - B+
This half-Vietnamese, half-English film centers around the special relationship between a young Vietnamese-American woman Tam, who newly became a manicurist, and one of her clients, a Caucasian car mechanic who is trying to save his faltering marriage. By "special relationship" I don't mean an affair - It is indeed quite unusual and intriguing. The secondary storyline is about Tam's relationship with her parents, both currently and in flashback. The unconventional turn of events is not always convincing, and the multiple subplots seem to compete instead of gelling together. That said, "Touch" is a beautiful and touching tribute to the power of human connection as conveyed by physical touch. Writer/director Minh Duc Nguyen deserves major kudo for presenting a story that's both culturally authentic and universally relatable. This is a must-see for anyone who has a romantic streak.
"Touch" Q&A; me with writer/director Minh Duc Nguyen,
star Porter Lynn, and star Melinda Bennett
The Trip (UK) - C-
So much of this movie is built upon Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon's rambling, bantering, voice impressions and self-referential indulgence, that I imagine you would find it absolutely hilarious - if you are already a fan of Coogan, Brydon, and that particular style of comedy. I am not one, unfortunately, so this became a very long and very random sequence of footage to sit through for a few weak chuckles. The main story is thinner than Kate Moss and hollower than a tin can. The side points, including the numerous shots of beautiful food, are completely inconsequential and often pointless. By the time we got to watch Coogan and Brydon comparing their vocal ranges, I found myself playing a game in my head to see how many ways I can pronounce the word "insufferable."
I read your review of The Trip on SIFF's website, and I definitely see where you're coming from. The Trip, the movie, is a somewhat insufferable string of Michael Cain impressions and pithy food-related one-liners. However, the film is an edited-down version of a six-episode, 300-minute television series, which is very much a trip worth taking. If you're looking to be genuinely moved, then I very much recommend seeking it out (even though that's understandably difficult for US audiences). I watched the movie with someone unfamiliar with Coogan or Brydon's work - we were both disappointed - and then convinced her to watch the show, and she agrees that it's one of the best series of 2010: poignant, and rambling, and beautiful, and really unlike anything else on television right now.
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