The Photographer

I saw THE PHOTOGRAPHER at the durango film festival in March 2001. Although I didn't quite understand what was going on (until someone briefly explained it to me, then it all made sense), it was an enjoyable film, mainly because of the supporting cast, especially the guy the the photographer saves from almost getting killed. To me, the film began to remind me of THE WIZARD OF OZ because this photographer meets individuals on his journey, and each one joins his quest.

From acting to visuals this film is a gem - a diamond in the rough. I was blown away by the performances headed up by the star, Reg Rogers, a master of his craft. This is Maggie G's first big role and it is a wonderful start to a now star studded career. Rob Campbell and Chris Bauer are fantastic. The writer/director, Jeremy Stein, has created a remarkable movie that not only is about something but is also vastly entertaining. It's films like this that make you believe that there is still hope for modern cinema. I can't wait to see the next film from this gifted filmmaker.

This movie is a dream-like parable of a pretentious N.Y. photographer who has learned that art must come deep from the heart and be authentic. He has lost his native ability in the glamour of the artistic "in-crowd" and finds his way with the help of underclass mentors. The importance of his pictures pale in comparision to the image of life he derives in his journey.

Occasionally, surfing through the late night flicks, you run across a gemstone that grabs you by the pajama lapels and shakes you awake until you've finished reading the credits: such was my reaction to The Photographer a few nights ago. Jeremy Stein made an absolutely enchanting film: ignore comments here to the contrary.

The theme is that one can never anticipate how unexpected turns in our lives will contribute to our personal growth. In this case, Max overcomes a form of creative paralysis and re-discovers himself and his art through chance encounters with complete strangers. Shot in New York City's seedy back streets (lower East Side?) the collective odyssey of Max and his new-found pals (the supporting cast are very good) laces in bar scenes that, for me at least, are archetypal moments when we have chance encounters with people who turn out to have so much in common with us in hidden ways that it makes us reflect on who we really are most comfortable with, why we made the choices we've made, and what the hell we're doing with our lives.

There's a kind of magic in this film (the search for Violet) that isn't overplayed but that's important to tying everything up into a neat little package. Terrific score (Andrew Hollander) and beautiful cinematography (Vanja Cernjul) sustain the mood throughout. If you don't come away feeling better about life after seeing this film, you've missed it.

Jeremy Stein, who wrote and directed, is very talented indeed, and I hope this one is available on DVD: it's one you want in the library.

Jeremey Stein's maladroit "The Photographer" is one of those films that has an uneven balance of good and bad qualities where the bad outweigh the good. This is a film filled with some lyrical magic, but the direction is just so inept. "The Photographer" feels shallow, although the characters are relatively well-written and the story is thorough. When the film should draw you in, it turns you off with a constant feel of unintentional silliness. Stein should consider choosing a director for his scripts.

"The Photographer" is something of a modern day fairy tale about a, you guessed it, photographer who luckily finds success with a collection of beautiful stills that make him eminent. A year later, he looks through the art he has preserved for his follow-up and finds that it is all less than satisfactory. Later he goes to a bar only to find gorgeous photographs sitting next to him, belonging to a strange man he had been speaking with. Then he helps a man being mugged on the street, gets knocked unconcious, finds his pictures are gone as well as the parts of his car. He begins a late night journey to find the missing stills.

The problems arise when more and more and more unappealing characters join him on his quest. They are all ultimately annoying in their own ways, irritating, distracting and fatally pointless. For some it's the acting, but others just a bland feel of nothingness. Not even Maggie Gyllenhaal can save the dorkiest of characters.

The long night isn't terribly paced or aimless, it's just where it ends up. The film has an all too Hollywood conclusion not seen in many indie films these days. I liked some of the style used in this film, like cleverly placed clocks seen as the night goes on and a fun use of yellow, but the the bad qualities fastly eat away at a potentially good premise.

There are better films in this sub-genre. I would not reccomend watching "The Photographer" even if the premise is as intriguing to you as it was to me. I would recommend the other films, like John Shear's "Urbania" or Kubrick's "Eyes Wide Shut".