Sara invited me to a special screening of “Canvas,” an independent film being released in October that portrays the hardships of a person with a mental illness and how it impacts the family and community. The film is the first for writer and director Joe Greco, and deeply personal as the script was largely based on his youth. The University of Minnesota Medical school Psychiatry interest group was able to fly Joe in from California to be at a reception before the movie (on campus), then appear at the Oak Street Cinema for Q&A following the film.
The audience was mostly medical students by intent, but the general public was welcome, and attended, along with members that support the Oak Street Cinema. Several medical doctors spoke along with Joe, sharing their experiences in treating and researching mental illness, specifically schizophrenia. Joe shared more information on his background and the background of the movie. He said the movie cost just $1 million, compared with a related movie “A Beautiful Mind” that cost $100 million (and had many millions more available for advertising), but was all raised by himself over a period of 10 years! The film was shot in just three weeks in Joe’s hometown of Hollywood, Florida.
The film is essentially a must-see because it is produced and written well, the acting is done well, but primarily because it sheds light on a topic that is still stigmatized (mental illness), and gives viewers insight as to what coping with mental illness is like for the victim and the family. Hopefully viewers are left with thoughts on how important it is to help people that suffer from mental disorders, and treat them the same as physical disorders.
Joe was a very personable guy, and we were even able to talk with him before the movie about unrelated stuff, such as his recently purchased iPhone, and how he is a huge Mac fan (geek points!). I’m a fan of Joe Pantoliano’s work, and in this movie he delivered another great performance, as did Marcia Gay Harden and Devon Gearhart. Go see Canvas when it is released this fall, then tell your friends about it.
Ruth finished her diploma program and became a stylist. My Aunt Jackie passed away after fighting cancer for several years. Andy graduated from the University of Minnesota with two bachelor’s degrees and began working as a Software Engineer. Sara started Medical School in August.
Music and Movies
- Thom Yorke solo debut album “The Eraser”, The Fray “How to Save a Life” (album released 2005, saw live at Basilica Block Party 2006), Muse album “Black Holes and Revelations” (saw Muse at State Theater), Minnesota Music Cafe and Mayslack’s Bar were cool (small) local venues
- Sin City, Rent, Born Into Brothels, Hable con ella, An Inconvenient Truth, The Squid and the Whale, Pursuit of Happyness
Vacations and Places
- Asia, Yellowstone, fun with Sara picking strawberries and inline skating in Duluth, got my geek on at inaugural Twin Cities Code Camp, Body Worlds exhibit, backup softball player in work league
- Chino Latino for Sara’s birthday, Legends Cafe, Kafe 421, Ol’ Mexico Restaurante & Cantina and Acapulco, Pannekoeken and Keys Cafe for breakfast, Pracna for Ruth graduation
Gadgets and Games
In the first movie Cameron Crowe wrote and directed since Vanilla Sky, Elizabethtown presents a story about a young male professional who feels like a failure, then is suddenly cured by falling in love with another young “plain Jane” (attractive, quirky) female. The first thing I noticed about the plot is the similarity to the plot of “Garden State,” although this movie failed where Garden State succeeded in my opinion.
I thought Orlando Bloom failed to convince me of being the powerful young businessman he was supposed to be, possibly because I think of him more as Legolas (Lord of the Tings) or Will (Pirates of the Caribbean), mostly “physical” characters that didn’t require any “emotionally” acting. He didn’t have enough convincing dialogue, or the dialogue he had was not delivered well (poor writing). I thought Kirsten Dunst was more successful as the young eccentric flight attendant, although Sara noted that her role was no different from the her previous roles.
The story, mood and acting from Zach Braff and Natalie Portman in “Garden State” was “fresh” to me, where the same things in this movie seemed to try too hard. Like other Cameron Crowe movies I’ve seen, the melodrama was enhanced or often brought to ridiculous heights with the soundtrack. Even though the original soundtrack contained more than two musicians, the only artists that caught my attention were Tom Petty and Elton John (and they got a little old). Sometimes the Tom Petty songs worked for “country home” scenes however in Elizabethtown (which is an actual town in Kentucky).
This movie will stick out a little from the crowd, but overall I felt like it was trying to be smart, clever, and provocative, but fell short in each area. Some people will be quick to write it off, but I think it is worth seeing if you are into “thinking” or “analyzing” and not “just watching.”
Last night I watched “Talk to Her (Hable con ella),” a 2002 film from Spain by renowned director Pedro Almodóvar (pronounced al-mo-DOH-var). If you are not familiar with Almodóvar, he has been directing award winning Spanish movies for decades, and fostered the star power of Spanish actors Antonio Banderas, Penélope Cruz, and Paz Vega. His movies always explore taboo themes like sexual orientation, drug use, or sexuality, making them stand out among international and Spanish audiences. Although Almodóvar has become iconic for Spanish cinema, he is not without his critics.
“Talk to her” explores a unique relationship that develops between two men that find themselves in similar situations, each with very different backgrounds. Other topics include the limits of friendship, relational boundaries, and although superficially covered, machismo with respect to female bullfighters in Spain. I agree with one reviewer in that this movie is a little dry to watch, but it is thought-provoking, and as usual, the acting, music and cinematography are top notch. I also love to hear the Castilian accent unique to central Spain, as this movie is set in Madrid.