The Land of the Astronauts

I got a chance to see this at the Montreal Film Festival last week. David Arquette was there and spoke and that made things a lot of fun.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect. The synopsis of a limo driver and the title Land of the Astronauts was an intriguing mix.

Without giving away spoilers and there are lots I can give away but won't, It's about a former big shot composer in Hollywood who always looks back at the one film that apparently made him rich and well known in the industry. But years of drinking took it's toll on him and he has apparently bottomed out. Divorced. In AA. Driving a movie star around as his chauffeur, plus other spoiler like issues messing up his head.

He keeps trying to escape through dreams and waking nightmares and visions of himself, his old movie and the new woman in his life played by Bijou Phillips who is really awesome.

The line between reality and what's going on in his head blurs.

There's a few disturbing and cool music sequences.

It's a drama and oddly funny at times.

The ending is really interesting but I'm keeping this spoiler free. Me and my friend had a debate afterward of what it all meant.

One thing we agreed on is how good Arquette was.

Appealing in its dreamy look at life on the edge of LA movie world. A film set of outer space travel sits in the protagonists head as a dream to replace his current deflated status as a once successful theme score composer , living with loss. Whether he'll sink further into failure or rise up to the stars kept me watching to the end.

My high quotation has something to do with the ridiculously low quotation that was given to this film. I wanted to see it, because Carl Colpaert has made some very interesting films in the past. He's a filmmaker who single-handedly set up a production-company, Cineville, that specializes in alternative films. If a film has too much content to be considered commercial, then Cineville is likely to be interested to produce this film. Cineville makes films with small budgets and big ideas.

And 'Land of Astronauts' is one of these films, in which David Arquette gets the opportunity to do the kind of acting all actors dream about. He's a man who had some real bad luck in life. He doesn't play the man like a down-and out loser. His character is a composer who's still trying to make it in Hollywood, but while even big name-actors believe in his talent, life isn't treating him very nice.

Hollywood is a place that is really hard to people who don't have the luck of the stars. Jack MacKenzie is a composer that is played by Arquette. He wrote the excellent music for a big sci-fi film, 'Land of Astronauts', but the film flopped at the box-office, while Jack wasn't spoiled by reality before : he lost a daughter and his wife left him with his other daughter. Now he's surviving as a limo-driver, driving people around who used to be his collaborators. He remains human, and does all he can to become the man he used to be. He's on the wagon, is sober now, and regularly attends the AA-meetings. It looks like he's going to recover. The big-name actor he's driving around, Tom Bower, even seems interested in his music. Or at least, that's what he's pretending.

But one can't keep trying. Sooner or later, the truth takes revenge. Living in a world of appearances and false pretenses, he doesn't seem to believe reality anymore. He's real, that's a certainty, but whether Bijou Phillips and many others are what we see, one doesn't really know. Cause in a world where everyone tries so hard to make others believe things that aren't real, one doesn't know anymore.

Though 'Land of Astronauts' may not be a masterwork, it certainly is a movie that deserves to be watched.

Land of the Astronauts is fun. It's an art film. How often does that happen? Credits rolled, lights came up... I was in a strange mood. I appreciate the fact that it had an effect on me, like one of those textured segue songs on NPR or some ambient PBS special about space, or secondhand pot smoke in a small European car. The film made me want to sit in Elysian Park and contemplate loss and reinvention while staring at the LA skyline. Maybe listen to Pink Floyd or Brian Eno for a few days. The music and talent are great. My favorites to watch were David Arquette and Bijou Phillips and Tom Bower and Lin Shaye. Yay green face Shaye! I look forward to seeing another story from Carl and his team.

It's pretty rare you see an artistically made American film these days. Colpaert delivered on this one. I was fortunate enough to catch this at the Montreal film festival, along with several other great films.

To be straight forward, this film isn't for everyone. It observes process over form, and the result is a surrealistic trip, layered with dream sequences. The person expecting an average Hollywood turn might be a confused or dislike the story.

David Arquette shows a new side in this turn. He suffers deeply as Jack, the main character, and turns out a wonderful performance. Big thumbs up, this a truly great performance by him. I hope we get to see more of this from him in the future.

Bijou Phillips has really come into her own. She's matured as an actress and the character she plays is almost a reflection of past characters - a young lady, growing up, struggling with the issues she's created for herself. She handles the role with great ease.

Overall, there were several great performances and moments in this film. Carl Colpaert showed immense talent in handling of the material. It definitely has a European flair to it. Rare, and enjoyable.

There are moments where the film feels like it's lost it's way or that the actors slightly balk during their performances. Regardless it's a refreshing movie that will reward the viewer who appreciates the artistic side of film making.