hodgkinsc

This is a fascinating and poignant film, and particularly timely given the cartel-related violence in Juárez, Mexico. The strength of this story is in its characters. We follow a waiter who has been saving and planning to propose to his girlfriend. He has a repoir with his colleagues, from cooks to fellow waiters, that is particularly captivating and hilarious. And even funnier are his interactions with customers. The dialogue and effect of this film is reminiscent of early Tarantino, though it has an original voice. As a whole, this is a very creative, well-executed film deserving of its accolades as an honorably mentioned short at Cannes. The end of this film is sure to come as a surprise. I look forward to seeing more from these two filmmakers.

This film is a brilliant exposition of the manner in which Americans are manipulated and controlled by fear, promoted continuously by the George W. Bush White House in order to push the administration's policies. The film is very well done and particularly enjoyable when viewed under this context.

The Villagers are analogous to American citizens, Edward Walker (William Hurt) to Bush and "the one's we do not speak of" are the "threat." Warning levels (slain animals, markings of the bad color, etc.) are manipulated by the Village elders in a similar manner that the Bush Administration manipulates color-coded "terror threat levels" to keep the citizens in perpetual fear which ultimately and ironically makes them lean towards their leaders for protection, giving the leaders more control even though they are the one's manipulating the threat after all. There is much more to be said about this analogy but perhaps it is best to simply see the movie. I recommend it.