Coming off her career best in Meek's Cutoff (which was one of our top films of the year regardless if you think of the title as a 2011 or 2010 release -- as we saw this in Toronto the year before), we hope that Reichardt has a long-lasting wind in her sails. Her she tacks the rarely explored subject matter of eco-terrorism and would be joined by actors (Dano for a second time in a row) in touch with their indie roots. Watch the doc If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front to get prepped for this work.
This is not some kind of subjective filmmaking experience like Cloverfield, for Reichardt never calls to attention her use of perspective. There’s no “high concept” here. She only uses the point of view camera work when it serves a purpose, and it’s never one of those shaky handheld situations meant to simulate the character’s eyes.
It's difficult to contain my excitement for the loads of must see titles in this fall festival movie-going season and perched high above the titles without domestic distribution deals already in place, we have Kelly Reichardt's Meek's Cutoff.
Iconic director Ken Russell was in town to receive a lifetime achievement award from Fantasia for his 50-plus years in the business, a career that has spawned many genre classics including Altered States, Gothic, and The Lair of the White Worm. But it was the little-seen and hard to find The Devils from 1971 that proved to be Russell's most controversial work, and Fantasia managed to snag a copy to be screened on Russell's big night. In the video, Russell discusses the true story behind the film and receives his award with the grace befitting one of the great filmmakers of all time.