Early mornings and late nights is the way of things. Day three brings a special screening, a Cannes Premiere, Un Certain Regard, a midnight and Queer Palm eligibility.
Tangles ★★★★★
Directed by Leah Nelson / Special Screening Selection / Queer Palm eligible
Leah Nelson’s feature debut superbly adapts Sarah Levitt’s graphic novel memoir, Tangles: A Story about Alzheimer’s, My Mother and Me into an animated filmic lover letter, that is as joyful as it is bittersweet. Sarah (voiced by Abbi Jacobson) must come to terms with her mother Midge’s (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus) worsening condition with Alzheimers. Sarah must grapple with the uncertainty and grief of slowly loosing one’s mother. Charm, care, and tenderness radiate, spilling out and filling cracks in any hearts that may need it. Often hilarious, yet unafraid to take us to very vulnerable moments. Boldly stylish, passionate, and unapologetically sapphic.
Club Kid ★★★★★
Directed by Jordan Firstman / Un Certain Regard / Queer Palm eligible
An electric feature film debut from Jordan Firstman with a fierce kinetic energy that bounces with sharp wit. Writing, directing, and starring in Club Kid, Firstman generates a heartfelt story of Peter, a washed up New York party gay who is suddenly left with a son he never knew he had.
Firstman shines, bursting with a charisma, but then expertly able to rein it in when needed to hit you directly in your heart strings. Reggie Absolom in his first feature role as Arlo, brings out a new side to Firstman. Developing a lovable dynamic that is fun yet sincere. A fantastic debut.
Marie Madeleine ★★1/2
Directed by Géssica Généus / Cannes Premiere / Queer Palm eligible
An evangelical church sets up shop right across from a brothel in Haiti. Marie Madeleine, played by writer and director Géssica Généus, befriends the pastor’s son Joesph (Béonard Monteau) as the relationship between the two factions begin to become more and more hostile.
Beautifully shot with some breathtaking cinematography by Nicolas Canniccioni, Marie Madeleine is a slow, and at times meandering, story of self-discovery amidst an oppressive and opposing force. A standout subdued performance from Monteau allows us to catch a glimpse of a man wanting to break free.
Overall a decent sophomore film, that slightly overstays its welcome, but admirable for its rich characters and cinematography.
Colony ★★★1/2
Directed by Yeon Sang-ho / Midnight Selection
Train to Busan director Yeon Sang-ho returns to Cannes Midnights for another zombie romp. Unfortunately, it doesn’t reach quite the same high as the former, but it’s still an entertaining enough time.
A massive biohazard is unleashed upon a biotech conference, with its attendees becoming quarantined and locked in with a rapidly mutating virus that begins to learn to coordinate the undead. With no chance to escape, the few survivors must find the man who started it all who hiding somewhere in the building.
While it provides some new twists to the zombie formula, ultimately Colony falls back on some tired tropes. Surprisingly tame and safe as far as zombie films go and without that freak factor it more or less flatlines. An attempt was made for emotions amongst characters and their deaths. It is unfortunately not as gripping as it could have been.
A random grab-bag mix of REC, Dawn of the Dead, and Resident Evil. Fans of the genre and of Train to Busan will likely still get a kick out of it despite its shortcomings.
By Andrew Pankey
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