BandofInsiders

Israeli writer and directors Eran Kolirin debut is a beautifully restrained tale of learning to face unfamiliarity with nobility and dignity. The Band's Visit delicately constructs a small scale masterpiece that achieves more with mood and body language as compared to spoken language. The writing is clever and gives actors the room to explore their characters with physicality and never once does it feel unauthentic.

Stranded in the middle of Israel's Negev Desert, eight men of The Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra try to handle cultural and language barriers with modestness. As a bus pulls away we are left with 8 men dressed to the nines in robin blue uniforms helplessly stuck in an airport on their way to perform at an Arab Cultural Center in Petah Tiqva. After a few phone calls and some sweet talking with the help of Chet Baker the band arrives in the town of Bet Hatikva. The groups tight lipped leader Tewfig is confronted with a series of setbacks and is forced with the task of making sure his men are taken after. With no hotels in town and no transportation leading out Tewfig is reluctantly excepts an offer from a heaven sent restaurant owner by the name of Dina.

Over the course of the night Egyptian and Israeli culture intertwines awkwardly yet charmingly in multiple small scale adventures. Tewfig and Haled (the band's young ladies man) stay at Dina's house while Simon and two others spend the night at an employee of the restaurant while the other three just sit outside all night and play music. Tewfig and Dina decide to take a night out on the town, in this case a simple bleak restaurant and begin to get to know each other. The two don't get to know each other by asking a lot of questions about each others personal history but rather embrace the chance to enjoy the simple beauty of just physically being around someone. An especially touching scene has Tewfig showing Dina how he conducts his orchestra by the gentle movements of his arm. Haled opts to take a look around the city with crushingly shy Papi and his set up date which has them ending up in a roller rink. Haled acts almost as an older brother to Papi and helps the inexperienced boy land the girl he is too shy to make the moves on. And while all of these character come together and share each others melancholy they still remain isolated and self-reflective.

Simon and the rest of the gang spend their night entertaining and being entertained by an Israeli family. Over the course of an awkward dinner Simon and his band mates quietly sit back as the family argues over various things such as how the husband and wife met until a comically genius impromptu version of George Gershwin's "Summertime." More than any other point in the film does Simon's stay seem to bring out the old ghosts of Egypt and Israel's broken relationship. While Kolirin never hits the audience over the head with a political statement it's presence can still be felt like a recovering wound. While other members of the band attempt to make phone calls while fending off a dedicated boyfriend waiting for a phone call, Simon spends more time with the family. Upon viewing the families young child with the slightest change in facial posture it is evident that Simon has finally completed his unfinished sonata. It is moments like this that really show how skillful Kolirin is for a first time director.

While not a whole lot happens in this short 87 minute film we are left with a lasting impression. The mixture of comedy with melancholy balances each other out and leaves a bittersweet touch on the overall feel of the film. The film's musical selection could not have suited the story anymore impeccably and compliment the feeling of longing the entire film has. The films strong point is that it relies on nuances and not theatrics, substance and not style, honesty and not distraction. Not only does The Band's Visit evoke the beauty in language but it shows beauty in the communal power of the language of music. While the characters in this film may think they are lost it doesn't necessarily mean they are and with The Bands Visit it seems they are stuck out of necessity rather than mistakenly.

Keys is an African American dog trainer assigned to reprogram a white dog who has been trained to attack and kill black people. While the premise for this film might seem simple it manages to remain extremely immense enough in context that it enables itself to convey profound themes and messages in a purely "cinematic" fashion without seeming pretentious. All at once "White Dog" manages to be a strong critique on racism, corruption, and the loss of innocence without seeming self important or aggrandizing. The beauty of this film is that it works perfectly for two totally different types of film viewers. For the passive "adult" moviegoer this film will be a concise 90 minute tale of a untimely dog owner, unfortunate dog trainer and victimized dog which manages to be different than their normal film experience yet remain accessible enough to not be disregarded (hopefully). For the subjective moviegoer two main things manage to stick out upon viewing which happen to be the juxtaposition of sub-par acting against such an intelligent script and social assessment. To a certain degree the level of acting manages to make the script stronger in the sense that is emphasizes the faults in humanity (on screen and off) as compared to the guiltlessness of corrupted "animals." To most the dog's white coat is a symbol of race or contrasting values but at the real core of the film the white coat symbolizes innocence and how easy it is to corrupt. The prospect of witnessing man's best friend transform into man's worst enemy all because of his own faults is an extremely bleak yet extremely powerful framework to contemplate. And while may it be hard for certain people to come to terms with, this is the perfect commentary on how humans alienate themselves in the process of trying to impose individual politics on a situation, no matter how noble the cause might be. While having the blatant potential to be hopelessly romantic, Fuller ends the film the only possible way the film could have ended. Everyone tries their hardest to rectify a situation that will not only offer personal gain but mutual gain but is inevitably destroyed by everything we have naively worked towards. In retrospect "White Dog" stands out as a genuinely ambitious film in a time of stagnant film-making and still lacks the accolades it deserves.

It's no coincidence that Mickey Rourke is responsible for the comeback performance of the year if not the decade. Rourke's life and tumultuous past parallel Randy "The Ram" Robinson's own life so eerily close it becomes clear that no one else could have ever played this role. Darren Aronofsky's fourth feature is not only his most intimate but also his most accomplished to date. Aronofsky offers his most simplistic film both visually and narratively and ends up creating a film that has more depth and layers to it than any of his previous films.

Everything about Randy's life is in a state of decay. He retains a body that is on the verge of collapse, he hasn't seen his only daughter in years, financially he is exhausted, and the only thing that brings him solace in life is the same thing that threatens to end it. The most effective aspect of Randy's character is that no matter what mistakes he might have made in the past his sense of regret is so strong and genuine that it is impossible not to forgive him. As beaten down and alone as Randy might be he never looses his fighting spirit or sense of hope, no matter how little it may be. Regardless what hardship Randy is confronted with he never retreats and is admirably courageous even if being courageous might not be the smartest settlement.

For the general public who tend to find professional wrestling laughable and are quick to judge as a form of entertainment rather than a sport will find a deadly adversary in Aronofsky. The Wrestler shows that while outcomes of matches may be fixed the physical tolls these men take on their body are often more extreme and long lasting than most other "respectable" sports. The fact that Randy gives so much of himself and is ridiculed from everywhere to the trailer park he lives in to the job he keeps while not in the ring, makes us even more empathetic to the struggle Randy goes through to try and make it back on top. Overall The Wrestler is a constantly engaging and compelling character study with some of the finest acting, writing, directing I have seen in recent years. Oh and I forgot, the last shot will leave you speechless.