Two More from Tribeca

Actually, I saw these in August, days apart. Yes, I still have August reviews to write. Boy A is on DVD now; In Search of a Midnight Kiss doesn't have a date, but it is in the Netflix system. That was at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival.

Oh, I have two movies left from August I'll review one of these days. (Maybe by the end of the year?) I also have another Tribeca movie, Run for Your Life, but I plan to incorporate that with a look at another running documentary I saw recently.

1) Boy A (seen Aug. 13, fifth movie seen in August)
Recalling James Bulger, the British toddler murdered by two 10-year-olds in 1993, the fictional drama Boy A raises questions about forgiveness. After several years in prison for a similar crime, Jack (Andrew Garfield) - known in the tabloids as “Boy A” - has been released into a world he doesn’t know, given an identity, job and social worker (Peter Mullan). Director John Crowley, working from Mark O’Rowe’s adaptation, carefully parcels out the specifics of the transgression as we see Jack make his way in society, find a girlfriend (Katie Lyons) but still struggle with his past. Alternately horrifying and heartbreaking, Boy A features of a portrait of vulnerability in Garfield, whose omnipresent hoodie says so much. Not an easy film, but certainly a thought-provoking one.

2) In Search of a Midnight Kiss (seen Aug. 15, sixth movie seen in August)
The latest branch from the Manhattan tree, In Search of a Midnight Kiss wants to be this decade’s Before Sunrise, but the characters aren’t as captivating. It’s the morning of New Year’s Eve in black-and-white Los Angeles, and failed writer Wilson (Scoot McNairy) places an ad on Craigslist, seeking a date for the big night. Along comes Vivian (a Joey Lauren Adams-like Sara Simmonds), one of those sarcastic, neurotic women often found in indie date movies. Writer/director Alex Holdridge takes us, and his sometimes obnoxious, something funny characters, on a talky night before introducing a jolting secret the next morning. Of course, I liked Before Sunset better than its predecessor, so perhaps Wilson and Vivian will be more appealing in 10 years.

Still Catching up on August

For the current reviews, I'm using my "regular" writing style, alternating among 100-, 250- and 500-word critiques. For those summer musings, I'll continue to follow the five-sentence format.

I went to see Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer mainly because it had played at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007. I wasn't crazy about the film as a piece of art. As an advertisement for her music, though, it's fantastic: I rushed to iTunes that night to hear more.

Anita O’Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer (seen Aug. 22, ninth movie of August)

The documentary Anita O’Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer, well, sings when it showcases its subject, delighting us with several uncut performances that highlight her perfect timing and silky vocals. In talking-head mode, the film flounders, sketchy with its timeline and enamored with presenting its dizzying array of voices in 1950s graphics. The last living artist of the Billie/Sarah/Ella era, the “Jezebel of Jazz” survived a 15-year heroin addiction, multiple marriages, a rape, arrests and poor health to perform into her 80s. O’Day should be filmed in a style fitting of her vivacity, so it’s ironic that the footage from her then manager, Robbie Cavolina, and co-director Ian McCrudden shot just before her 2006 death (which isn’t mentioned) has such a bleached-out quality. Fortunately, hearing a doped-up O’Day scat for her life on “Sing, Sing, Sing” or linger over “Sweet Georgia Brown” at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival carries enough of an impact to overcome most of these flaws.