The Mill Valley Film Festival opens October 5 and closes October 15. On September 14, I gave you five short reviews of feature films playing in this year’s fest. Below are six other reviews. Most of the films are very good. One of them may win Best Picture.
A Fancy Dance
֍ Sequoia, Friday, October 13, 7:30pm
֍ BAMPFA, Thursday, October 14, 8:50pm
Here’s a modern story of America’s Original People, and one that can break your heart. A teenage girl has been raised by an aunt who loves her very much. But the aunt is obviously not a good mother. She sells drugs. She taught the young girl to steal. When a very white limb of the family comes to take the girl away, the aunt and the niece run away.
A They Shot The Piano Player
֍ Sequoia, Monday, October 9, 3:30pm
֍ Rafael, Friday, October 13, 7:30pm
This very serious animated drama begins with a love of jazz and ends with the fascistic horrors that turned much of South America into a bloodbath in the ’70s. It begins when a musicologist (voiced by Jeff Goldblum) sets out to find the brilliant pianist Francisco Tenório Júnior (a real person who disappeared in 1976). In those days, Uncle Sam worked hard to destroy democracy. The animation isn’t Disney smooth, but it’s beautiful in bright colors. An excellent film.
A- Water for Life
֍ Sequoia, Saturday, October 7, 7:00pm
֍ Sequoia, Sunday, October 8, 6:30pm, At Rush!
How do you review a political film? Do I give a good grade because it’s a well-made picture, or because it’s an important issue and I agree with the filmmaker? This time, it’s both. Water for Life is a very well-made doc that deals with a very important problem. The story (yes, documentaries need stories) tells us about water rights in Chile, El Salvador, and Honduras. It has heroes, villains, victims, and beautiful scenery.
A- The Persian Version
֍ Sequoia, Saturday, October 7, 7:00pm
֍ Sequoia, Sunday, October 8,: 6:30pm
Leila’s sex life (along with her desire to direct movies) causes problems between her and her whole Iranian immigrant family. This mostly comic story follows the family and this particularly wild daughter. But then her mother has her own strange life, running a New York City real estate company. There are serious moments, but most of The Persian Version is as wild as the colors that makes the film a joy to watch.
A- Another Body
֍ Sequoia, Saturday, October 7, 4:00pm
֍ Rafael, Friday, October 8, 12:30
We can now change a woman’s face and body on the Internet, turning anyone into an unwanted porn star. That happened to this film’s unnamed protagonist. When she dropped an angry ex-boyfriend, the young man put her privates on the Internet. In making this film she changed her virtual name and face in order to go public with her experience. The issues in this documentary are important and frightening.
B+ Demon Mineral
֍ Rafael, Saturday, October 14, 6:00pm
֍ Rafael, Sunday, October 15, 12:00noon
֍ Streaming throughout the festival ֍
This is a very sad and angry documentary. Some years ago, I went to Monument Valley as a pilgrimage to John Ford. What I didn’t know at the time was that the Navajo people living there were dealing with radiation. The Yellow rocks below the ground should never come to the surface. The film is simple, and gets to the point.
The festival runs from October 5 to October 15.
Bayflicks 