Reviews

It could have been so much more. Instead it slid into one-sided propaganda about illegal immigration and the Trump administration, and that's going to be a political commercial and not going to change minds and opinions about how best to protect the border.

Whether you oppose or support abortion on demand in principle, you will find this docudrama to be an eye-opener. In a largely matter-of-fact way, this film tells the story of the atrocities committed by an abortion doctor whose crimes amount to no less than genocidal acts which have been largely ignored by the establishment media. The film is not propaganda, but it is thought-provoking and well-made, and it just might make you reconsider how abortion should be better regulated to prevent these inhumane acts from ever happening again.

This looked like it had laugh potential along with the promise of some knowing social commentary to add to the mix. In fact, the premise (not to mention the poster art of grown men in bunny suits) was clever and wacky enough that I thought it might turn out to be a slyly funny, slightly raunchy, at time hilarious movie. However, I found it to be just the opposite. The actors do a credible enough job, and the film clearly had a micro-budget. There were points early in the story where I expected the movie to break out and really hit its potential, but either the writer or director (or both) missed these opportunities. All in all, it turned out to be genuine disappointment and unfunny waste of time and money.

For those who appreciate the intersection of silent cinema and social commentary, this is a unique film. Part homage to German expressionism, part allegory, the film is replete with visual symbolism and an artistic style that rivals anything seen since the 1920's. Moreover, the attention to period detail and the visual composition of the scenes as an instrument for advancing the story is stunning. Aside from this, the plot offers an interesting commentary on the role of the media in society and its effect on social voice, perception, and opinion. In truth, it's not so much the silence that permeates the film as it is the loss of voice and the loss of words to communicate and express thought that inevitably follows. In sum, this film is something not often seen and, as the producer of the film said in the Q&A that followed, will leave you thinking about its meaning well into the next day.

I saw this film at the LA Film Festival and found it to be a boring talk-fest between two largely unsympathetic, unconvincing characters. If Hawke was trying to channel Linkletter's Before Sunrise/Sunset, he should have also created characters whose motivations and reactions are at least somewhat plausible, even if they happen to be 20 year olds. On the other hand, the character portrayed by Laura Linney (the mother of male lead) is refreshing in her contribution of realism to the story. Otherwise, if you like lots of self-involved rambling about nothing much, punctuated by music videos and a few moments of soft-core porn, this is your movie.