Sundance 2021: "Marvelous and The Black Hole" Review
We all have to deal with pain and grief at some point in our lives. While there may be books and manuals that address how we cope with grief, it effects us all differently. “Marvelous and The Black Hole” is a funny, poignant look at how one young woman deals with loss, while gaining lifelong wisdom along the way.
Sammy (Miya Cech) is a teenage delinquent by definition. She has a chip on her shoulder after losing her mother. It doesn’t help that her father has a new love interest, Marianne (Paulina Lule) who happens to have her toothbrush and clothes lying around the house. Her older sister is entrenched in gaming. So everywhere Sammy looks within her family, she feels like her mother is being forgotten. To try and turn his daughter’s attitude around after she gets into some trouble, Angus (Leonardo Nam) gives her an alternative of taking college courses or going to a camp for troubled youth. It’s like Bill and Ted consequences, except Sammy is a one woman show with enough personality to cover both.
While ditching the Intro To Small Business summer course to tattoo herself in the bathroom stall (her form of cutting), Sammy bumps into Margot (Rhea Perlman). Margot is a magician with a soft spot for Sammy; she sees herself in her. She can see through her angry exterior and soon a relationship emerges. In part, it is forced upon Sammy as her instructor says she must learn from Margot as a business mentor. As time moves forward, a clear appreciation for one another and the wonder that magic creates shines through.
Margot tells Sammy that “Magic is about making an audience feel something.” Even though we’ve seen this story before, writer/director Kate Tsang certainly makes her audience feel something as she slowly melts Sammy’s heart over the course of the film, which in turn melts ours. The quote is representative of so much within the movie and in life as Sammy tries to bury her feelings to not feel the pain of loss, but simultaneously tattoos herself to feel alive. Wisely, like the magicians in her film, Tsang unpacks all the anger Sammy harbors through a certain sleight of hand by telling a universal story, using comedy and giving us endearing characters.
Miya Cech delivers a sincere performance as Sammy. She displays Sammy’s inner turmoil without falling into the angsty teen stereotype. Rhea Perlman reminds us that a veteran actor can bring a certain magical touch to a character that infuses said magic throughout the film as a whole. The overall ensemble is solid, but Cech and Perlman are certainly the heart of the film.
On one hand you could simply say that “Marvelous and The Black Hole” is the story of a young girl who gets the Madea treatment- if Madea was a magician and the script and characterization was way better. Tsang gives us a heartfelt examination of mentorship, grief, and the bond of family you’re born into and the family you make. It’s a great reminder and a fun watch!
Rating: B+
"Lez Bomb" Review
Lez Bomb is a classic movie game of kick the can. Cinematically it’s an extremely difficult game to play because you’re stringing out a big reveal for as long as possible. In this case, the strong cast of characters work with the plot points and crush the dialogue so you’re willing to engage. So while its central bomb feels more like a dud mortar, watching the game of kick the can play out is an absolute joyride!
Writer/director/star Jenna Laurenzo has penned a story in which Lauren (Laurenzo) plans to come out to her family during Thanksgiving by bringing her girlfriend, Hailey (Caitlin Mehner), home for the holiday. Her efforts are thwarted by her roommate Austin’s (Brandon Micheal Hall) arrival. This twist is hilariously smart in itself as Austin happens to be black, and the rest of her family automatically believes that this is the big news.
As Lauren tries to steer her family in the right direction, more family members continue to show up and block her goal for various reasons. Lauren’s on screen family is stacked with powerhouse talent who bring life to their characters as only they can. Kevin Pollak is George, Lauren’s protective father. He makes George a quirky, lovable, and hilarious dad who tows the line between realizing his daughter is a grown woman but still his little girl, which makes for hysterical exchanges between him and Austin. Lauren’s mom Rose (Deirdre O’Connell) is dealing with the recent death of her father, inheriting the family motel, and her misguided attempts to connect with her daughter in her own way. O’Connell’s ability to jump from thought to thought in her dialogue with minimal exterior expression makes Rose that member in your family...you know the one! Bruce Dern and Cloris Leachman make it look easy as Grandpa and Josephine respectively.
Credit has to be given to Laurenzo for her writing. It’s rare to find dialogue that doesn’t feel scripted, but captures the essence of the natural rhythm of family gatherings. The casting bolsters her words to create an on screen family that has a genuine sense of history in each line delivered. Laurenzo’s camera also catches both the mundane moments and verbal disses with a sprinkle of love and hate that every family can relate to.
The issue with Lez Bomb is that the coming out portion of the film, the bomb, isn’t really a bombshell news item to Lauren’s family, nor is it set up that way. You get the vibe that her news won’t be that big of a deal along the way because her family seems pretty liberal. There’s never a sense of real stakes in what her confession may cost her. Even if relayed through Lauren’s words. Instead, Lauren constantly asks Hailey and Austin, who already know, to give her more time to tell her folks when it’s a good moment. Not every coming out film has to be super dramatic, but the comedy is so good here that a nice dramatic turn or a feeling of risk would have made this movie more memorable. In an honest moment with Hailey, we get a brief glimpse of Lauren’s internal struggle and self worth, but it’s gone before it’s truly explored.
Also, the chemistry between Mehner and Laurenzo lacks authenticity. There’s a real sense of love and history between Lauren and Austin in a playful moment in the beginning of the film. One that’s powerful enough to set up a love triangle in subtext. This missing link sets Hailey up to look like a one note, complaining girlfriend, rather than the true love of Lauren’s life that she gives lip service to being.
Lez Bomb is certainly a feel-good, family holiday movie that’s filled with laugh out loud jokes. It’s quick witted dialogue separates it from similar indie fair. Director Jenna Laurenzo said she “wrote Lez Bomb because it was the movie I wanted to see but couldn’t find.” Perhaps it will inspire others to do the same. It’s certainly the perfect arthouse film to see with a group in theaters.
Rating: B-
DCIFF '16: "Driving While Black" Review
If “Crash” had the slight edge of a stoner film it would be “Driving While Black”. The film blends comedy with the serious and timely subject of racial profiling and police brutality flawlessly. What makes “Driving While Black” so enjoyable is it makes its points without proselytizing. At its heart, the movie is about the ups and downs of a flawed individual trying to make ends meet while pursuing his passion. Dealing with the police just happens to be a part of the story woven into his daily life. In many cases we see play out in the news, I think this is what makes police brutality so appalling and the film so relevant.
Set to the sounds of hip-hop and the visual background of LA streets both seen and unseen in films, “Driving While Black” is a guaranteed conversation starter. Writer/star Dominique Purdy is Dimitri, a pizza delivery guy trying to make it as an artist in LA. He’s had his fair share of discriminatory run-ins with the police in his lifetime, which has left a distrustful taste in his mouth as evidenced through flashbacks in the movie. After his car breaks down giving him some time to take a tour of celebrity homes in LA, Dimitri has an opportunity to get a better job as a star maps guide. Each time he makes an attempt, something comes up that keeps him from the interview, and it’s usually the police.
The film also works at portraying a balance of both sides of the coin. Simultaneously throughout the film we are able to see the inner workings of a local police unit comprised of ethnically diverse cops that weave in and out of Dimitri’s storyline. The workplace banter amongst the cops is filled with realism that brings them down to a “next door neighbor” type of vibe that is relatable. From Officer Borty-Lio (Sheila Tejada) trying to get promoted to provide for her family in a squad full of men, to the bad apple Officer McVitie (Peter Cilella) whose past demons have created an over-aggressive monster behind a badge, the film does a good job of developing all characters involved on both sides of the issue.
“Driving While Black” doesn’t sugar coat its character’s decisions either. In one scene, Dimitri is pulled over with a friend who has been driving while high on marijuana, and in another a friend has a gun in the car. It almost makes you question Dimitri’s choice in friends, but these are real life examples that show we all aren’t perfect. It’s a great mixture of ingredients that help to allow the viewer to decide what’s right and wrong in the situation.
Director Paul Sapiano does a great job of pacing the film out and allowing the film to disarm you with its comedy. But when the film gets serious, it’s hair-raising. It’s the situation that black men prepare themselves and their sons for. It’s the type of situation that every move and word counts if you want to go home that night. It’s exactly what makes the film a great display and analysis of the subject matter that will have you talking after the lights come up.
“Driving While Black” takes a comedic approach to a controversy that has become all too common these days. Sometimes comedy is the best medicine. Hopefully, it can serve as another resource to open the door to conversation about this troubling issue in America.
Rating: B+
“Driving While Black” screens at the DC Independent Film Festival Friday March 11, 2016.