freekyfridays

Sundance veteran Ira Sachs continues to use legendary Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu as his starting point to explore contemporary New York City. Like his previous gem LOVE IS STRANGE (2014), which structured itself around Ozu's TOKYO STORY (1953), Sachs tackles the difficult issue of gentrification and makes it especially challenging to his viewers by presenting the story from the gentrifier's perspective.

Using both of Ozu's films I WAS BORN BUT… (1932) and GOOD MORNiNG (1960), the moral dilemmas of modern society encroaching on the present (and perhaps old fashioned) world is explored from a child's viewpoint. Sachs seems to have nestled himself nicely into a mature genre of strong character-driven, social issue films.

With standout performances by both the glorious Chilean actress Paulina Garcia (from 2013's Gloria) and newcomer Michael Barbieri, who plays the wise-talking "little man" Tony with the kind of natural charm that Anthony Michael Hall projected in John Hughes' SiXTEEN CANDLES (1984) and Jodie Foster in Martin Scorsese's ALiCE DOESN'T LiVE HERE ANYMORE (1974). Ira Sachs is on an Ozu roll. Let's hope he reimagines LATE SPRiNG (1949) or EARLY SUMMER (1951) next.

This hilarious "period-piece mockumentary" of NASA's Apollo landing hoax not only "talks the found-footage talk" (similar to Johnson's brilliant 2013 debut feature THE DiRTiES, which won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative at the Slamdance Film Festival) but his sophomore effort truly "walks the rebellious walk." Astoundingly shot in a purposefully grainy 16mm (that was blown up to HD) and looks remarkably like it was filmed in 1967, writer-director-actor Matt Johnson actually tricked modern day NASA officials into allowing him to film inside the real headquarters. This Q&A revelation after the world premiere screening was one of the festival's highlights.

Johnson explained "We contacted NASA and we told them we were making a 'documentary' about the Apollo program. They surprisingly agreed to let us film on the premises, so all of the scenes that are actually in the film, where I'm introducing myself as Matt, a documentary filmmaker? That was all real."

Johnson has crafted a genuine "Cold War" thriller here. And while there's a ton of cinematic references — that go well beyond the obvious Stanley Kubrick surface — keep a close-eye open for each movie poster hanging on walls. They each seem to significantly (and psychologically) relate to a different character. But nothing can prepare you for the film's climactic, single-shot driving scene that now ranks pretty damn high on my favorite chase sequences in film history. This is not just a young Canadian filmmaker to watch; Matt Johnson is a genuine force who has now completed two fully realized films that contemporary audiences should embrace.

While Taika Waititi takes over Hollywood with his next two projects: THOR 3: RAGNORAK (2017) and a sequel to his funniest film to date WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (2014), hysterically entitled WE'RE WOLVES, his latest "little film that could" should put Sam Neil back on the map with a wonderfully gracious performance.

This magical realist New Zealand adventure drops an unloved, rebellious, little fat kid into the wild, wild southwest — and I'm here to say that this was the feel good film of Sundance this year. Luckily writer/director Waititi has held onto his unique dry-humor, which dates back to his debut feature EAGLE VS. SHARK (2007) as well as his underrated second film BOY (2010). But this krazy kids flick is not just satisfied with referencing all of the 1980s films its creator grew up loving: The movie itself is an actual throwback to the kind of children's fare that were laced with some very heavy adult issues like Walter Murch's RETURN TO OZ (1985) and Nicolas Roeg's THE WiTCHES (1990). Make sure to catch this truly loving film upon its initial theatrical release. It's the kind of experience that you'll be talking about years from now, perhaps even sharing with children of your own.