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Naturalism's
Grace MARIA FULL OF GRACE: Written and directed by Joshua Marston. Produced by Paul S. Mezey. Cinematography, Jim Denault. Editors, Anne McCabe, Lee Percy. Production design, Debbie De Villa, Monica Marulanda. Costumes, Lauren Press, Sarah Beers. Original music, Leonardo Heiblum, Jacobo Lieberman. Visual effects, Adam Hawkey. Starring Catalina Sandino Moreno, with Yenny Paola Vega, Guilied Lopez. Also, Jhon Alex Toro, Patricia Rae, Wilson Guerrero, Jaime Osorio Gomez, Orlando Tobon, HBO Films. Fine Line Features, 2004. R. 101 minutes. 2004 Sundance Film Festival Dramatic Audience Award. Best First Film at Berlin International Film Festival; Catalina Sandino Moreno — Silver Bear for best actress.
The first feature film written and directed by Joshua Marston, Maria Full of Grace is an accomplished, searing portrait of the human cost of international drug smuggling. Women as young as 16 and men act as human mules to move the product — usually heroin or cocaine — to the U.S. consumer market. As icily exact and calculating as indentured servitude was in earlier centuries and apparently is again, this Colombian drug practice preys on young people with aspirations for a better life. Maria (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is such a woman, although she's only 17. Around the time she quits a demeaning job de-thorning roses at an industrial plantation near her village, Maria discovers she's pregnant by her deadbeat boyfriend Juan (Wilson Guerrero). Then she meets Franklin (Jhon Alex Toro) at a dance club, and they hit it off. Franklin takes Maria to Bogota the next day. She sits behind him on his motorcycle, holding onto his black leather jacket. As Franklin learns of Maria's predicament, he offers to take her to meet his boss, Javier (Jaime Osorio Gomez), who sometimes hires people to travel for him. Later, on the bus home, Maria spots a woman she saw earlier in Javier's club and strikes up a conversation. Lucy (Guilied Lopez) is from Maria's village and teaches the younger woman what she needs to know to swallow sizable, latex-wrapped drug pellets. Javier hires Maria to transport a big shipment, paying her $5,000 — a minute portion of the drugs' street value — for risking her life. Maria's childhood friend, Blanca (Yenny Paola Vega), also gets involved, despite Maria's best efforts to talk her immature friend out of taking the job. The three women — Lucy, Blanca and Maria — fly out on the same plane for New York. A fourth woman also carrying doesn't make it past U.S. customs. She may be the lucky one. Marston's surprisingly expert direction and Jim Denault's revelatory cinematography coupled with Sandino's powerful hold on Maria's dignity keeps the audience for this gripping film from feeling hopeless or depressed. Maria is a compelling character; she learns quickly that her fate is in her own hands. Without mawkishness, Sandino shows Maria's determination and inner strength. The last "unknown" actress who made this strong an impression on me in her film debut was Emily Watson in Lars Von Trier's 1996 melodrama, Breaking the Waves. While Watson kept me enthralled with her childlike, innocent trust, Sandino captures my interest through her calm but thoughtful presence. Maria encounters a number of residents of the Lower East Side's Colombian community, including Lucy's sister, Carla (Patricia Rae), who wants to be helpful but is wary; and Don Fernando (Orlando Tobon), who does help the girl call home and figure out what she has to do to survive. Don Fernando's a great character, played by a non-actor in a memorable first performance. Tobon actually works on behalf of drug mules and their families. Working with medical workers, families and the police, Tobon has helped to ship more than 400 bodies home to their families. For the 2000 Race, Class and Criminal Justice Film Festival sponsored by the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics, Eugene Weekly brought two films produced by Paul S. Mezey, the producer of Maria Full of Grace. David Riker's 1998 black-and-white cinema verité, La Ciudad (The City), captures the gritty essence of the new immigrant's experience of New York, while Jim McKay's 2000 Our Song used non-professional actors to tell their personal stories. If you liked these films, you will love Maria Full of Grace, which is also wholly original. It opens at the Bijou Oct. 8, with my very highest recommendations.
Arcane
Practices A DIRTY SHAME: Written and directed by John Waters. Produced by Ted Hope and Christine Vachon. Executive producers, Merideth Finn, Danny Fisher, Jack Fisher, Mark Kaufman, Mark Ordesky, John Wells. Cinematography, Steve Gainer. Editor, Jeffrey Wolf. Production design, Vincent Peranio. Costumes, Van Smith. Original music, George S. Clinton. Starring Tracey Ullman, with Johnny Knoxville, Selma Blair, Chris Isaak and Susanne Shepherd. Also, Mink Stole, Patricia Hearst, Jackie Hoffman, Wes Johnson. Fine Line Features. New Line Films, 2004. NC-17. 89 minutes.
Sylvia Stickles (Tracey Ullman) is a sight in the early sequences of John Waters' sex-a-thon, A Dirty Shame. Sylvia is clearly a harried housewife, cooking breakfast for her over-developed daughter, Caprice (Selma Blair), who's under house arrest for indecent exposure down at the local biker's bar, where she's known as Ursula Udders. Anyway, Sylvia is frying up some scrapple in the skillet when her husband, Vaughn (Chris Isaak) comes sniffing around, hoping to lure her back to bed for a little morning frolic. But Sylvia is having none of it. She's a driven, uptight woman with no yen for sex. But that very morning Sylvia drives to work at the family convenience store run by her mother, Big Ethel (Suzanne Shepherd), her head reeling from the unrelenting barrage of sexual innuendo bombarding her from every house in the 'hood. Then, Sylvia's car runs out of gas at a busy intersection. When something hanging out of a passing pickup bonks Sylvia on the head, down she goes, flushed by erotic fantasies as she lies on the highway. Her hallucinations are out of control, and so is she after a charismatic, muscular tow truck driver named Ray-Ray Perkins (Johnny Knoxville) comes to her rescue. The sexual act Ray-Ray performs on her prone body not only returns Sylvia to consciousness but also turns her into a raging sex-addict. Now when she looks around, Sylvia sees fellow addicts everywhere. Except at work. There Big Ethel and Marge the Neuter (Mink Stole) plot to clean-up the neighborhood by holding a rally to get rid of all the oversexed weirdos who've moved in and made life unpleasant for the straight-arrow, family-values folks living there. OK, you see where Waters is going with this — right down to the gutter with potty-mouth miscreants taking every opportunity to discover a NEW sexual perversion or at least practice the ones they've got. Ray-Ray appoints Sylvia an apostle in his church. The other apostles are really kinky, like the guy who licks tires or the burned-out cop who regresses to infancy. Now, wrapped around and through the rather shabby shreds of plot, Waters works in a number of jokes, some visual, some verbal, some … well, you gotta see 'em. There's a reunion between Sylvia and Caprice, followed by a scene at the bar where Caprice's suitor, Fat Fuck Frank (Wes Johnson), persuades her to dance for the crowd one more time. There's a Waters' send-up of the 12-step process for sex-addicts, the evangelical overtones of converts to the sex-addict movement, and a whole lotta sexin' goin' on. Even the trees in the neighborhood harbor unusual instincts aroused by the mere presence of Ray-Ray's magical, sex-cure aura. As my friend Sean Axmaker noted in his review for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, "Title aside, even the smuttiest of sexual perversions come off as harmless fun in the world of Waters, where everything in OK as long as it's safe and consensual." Great performances by Ullman, Knoxville and Shepherd plus fabulous one-liners make the film a simple delight. Like all of Waters' one-joke movies, it goes on too long — over the top, over the edge and out of sight. Totally forgettable, A Dirty Shame opens Oct. 8 at the Bijou. If you suspect you are now or have ever been a sex-addict or a sexual neuter, this is the picture for you. Recommended for its astute satirical voice.
OPENING
OR RETURNING: Dirty Shame, A: Written and directed by John Waters, this sex-talk filled romp stars Tracey Ullman, Johnny Knoxville, Selma Blair, Chris Isaak and Susanne Shepherd. Potty-mouthed miscreants take every opportunity to discover a NEW sexual perversion or at least practice the ones they've already got Like all of Waters' one-joke movies, it goes on too long, but it's laugh-out-loud funny. NC-17. Bijou. See review this issue. Friday Night Lights: High-school football is a big deal in 1988 Odessa, Texas, and director Peter Berg has fun with the fictional locals played by Tim McGraw, Billy Bob Thornton and Jay Hernandez. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Hijacking Catastrophe: 2004 documentary covers two decades of neo-conservative Republicans such as Paul Wolfowitz, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney setting the stage for the so-called Bush Doctrine (of American imperialism). Must-see viewing, the film features commentary by Noam Chomsky, former Chief UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter, Daniel Ellsberg, Norman Mailer, Jody Williams and others. Written and directed by Jeremy Earp and Sut Jhally, it's an excellent, cogent political film. Plays Sat. and Sun. at 1 pm. NR. 68 minutes. Bijou. Iron Jawed Angels: Hilary Swank, Anjelica Huston and Julia Ormond star in this spirited film about women's fight for the vote, 1912-1920. These brash heroines face down an establishment that labels them "hysterical" and also old-school suffragettes whose goal is a Constitutional amendment. An edgy tale with a contemporary beat, this movie will leave you eager to register to vote and to vote. NR. AT 6 pm and 8:30 pm on 10/7 in 150 Columbia, UO campus. Free. Lord of the Wu Tang: Marital arts action star Sammo Hung directed and costars with Jet Li. Classic tale of orphaned boy adopted by a kung-fu master and taught secret fighting techniques. NR. LateNite Bijou. Maria Full of Grace: Joshua Marston's memorable debut film stars newcomer Catalina Sandino Moreno as a desperate, third-world 17-year old who becomes a drug mule for Colombian smugglers, but who retains her dignity and her purposeful urge for a better life. One of 2004's better films. R. Bijou. See review this issue. Planet of Storms (1962, USSR): Visually stunning sci-fi masterpiece directed by Pavel Klushantsev about Russian cosmonauts who land on Venus to find an "ancient civilization and carnivorous monstrosities." At 9:45 pm on 10/12 in 115 Pacific, UO campus. Free. Raise Your Voice: Sean McNamara this predictable coming of age movie about a talented girl (Hilary Duff) who runs away from her hometown to attend an LA performing arts school. Also stars Oliver James, John Corbett and Rebecca De Mornay. PG. Cinemark. Shall We Dance: American remake of the sublime Japanese film of the same title. I regret to inform you that Jennifer Lopez plays the dance teacher and Richard Gere the shy man who learns to dance. PG-13. Sneak at 7:30 pm on 10/10. Cinemark. Taxi: If you've seen the trailer for Tim Story's movie, you'll recognize the inept police detective (Jimmy Fallon) who takes a taxi to work on his cases. Of course, with Queen Latifah behind the wheel, anything can happen. PG-13. Cinema World. Cinemark. Team America: World Police: With animated wooden marionettes, Trey Parker and Matt Stone (South Park) create an action adventure film about an international police force devoted to global stability and battling bad guys. R. Sneak 10/09 at 7:30 pm. Cinemark. Village, The: M. Night Shyamalan's new suspenseful film stars Joaquin Phoenix, Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody, William Hurt and Sigourney Weaver. PG-13. Movies 12. Films open the Friday following EW publication date unless otherwise noted. See archived reviews at www.eugeneweekly.com
CONTINUING: Alien vs Predator: The scary monsters from earlier film franchises duke it out on Earth. Wow! PG-13. Movies 12. Anchorman: Subtitled "The Legend of Ron Burgundy," this comedy stars Will Ferrell as an unctuous, untalented newscaster who's a legend only in his own mind. Funny moments. Recommended. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Bourne Supremacy, The: Paul Greengrass (writer, director of Bloody Sunday) directs Matt Damon as assassin Jason Bourne in the second installment of Robert Ludlum's espionage thrillers Also stars Joan Allen, Brian Cox, Julia Stiles, Kurt Urban and Franka Potente. One of the summer's best films. Highly recommended. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. Cinderella Story, A: Teen romance comedy stars Hilary Duff, Jennifer Coolidge, Chad Michael Murray and Regina King. Mark Rosman directs. PG. Movies 12. Collateral: Michael Mann's thriller stars Tom Cruise as an LA hitman and Jamie Foxx as his taxi driver, who's surprised to discover he's a hostage. Together, they're like fire and ice, feeling and nothingness. A character study in action, the film is one of the best movies of the year. Very highest recommendations. Don't miss. R. Movies 12. Online archives. Festival Express: This 1970s rock doc chronicles Festival Express, the multi-band, multi-day extravaganza featuring Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, and The Band. R. Bijou. First Daughter: Presidential daughter (Katie Holmes) just wants a normal college life. When she falls for her dorm's resident advisor, she finds out what it's like to fit in. PG. Cinemark. Forgotten, The: Julianne Moore is a grieving parent. She learns from her psychiatrist (Gary Sinese) and others that her 8-year-old son never existed. Directed by Joseph Ruben, the film also stars Dominic West, Alfre Woodard, Linus Roache, Anthony Edwards. PG-13. Cinemark. Garden State: Zach Braff wrote, directed and stars in this funny, resonant romantic comedy, which co-stars Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard and Ian Holm. Braff and Portman help the film get to a truth about what it is to be 20-something in the early years of the 21st century. Highest recommendations. R. Cinema World. Online Archives. Going Up River-The Long War of John Kerry: George Butler, director of "Pumping Iron" profiles the presidential candidate and documents his tour of duty in Vietnam while serving in the U.S. Navy. He then follows Kerry through the tumultuous political times that followed, his involvement in the peace movement, and shows the influences that shape his future political career. NR. Cinema World Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban: Brilliantly directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), now teenagers, return to Hogwarts, where they confront an escaped prisoner, Sirius Black (Gary Oldham), who poses a great threat to Harry. They must also contend with the Dementors, who are sent to protect them from Black. PG. Movies 12. Online archives. Hero: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi and Donnie Yen star in this rousing martial arts epic. Set in a war-torn China at the violent dawn of the Qin dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, three opponents plan to assassinate the king, but one loyal subject stands in their way. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. I, Robot: Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow) directs Will Smith as a police detective investigating a crime thought to be perpetrated by a robot. Also stars Bruce Greenwood, James Cromwell, Chi McBride and Bridget Moynahan. Based on Isaac Asimov's classic sci-fi stories. Recommended for its strange ambiance. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Ladder 49: When Fire Chief Mike Kennedy (John Travolta) takes rookie firefighter Jack Morrison (Joaquin Phoenix) under his wing, the probationary firefighter matures into a seasoned, veteran at a Baltimore fire station. But after years of risking his life and watching his relationship with his wife and kids deteriorate, Jack is at a crossroads and questions whether or not it's worth it. PG. Cinema World, Cinemark. Napoleon Dynamite: Jared Hess' indie comedy stars Jon Heder as a high schooler, who lives in Idaho with his grandmother. The Village Voice says, "the film is an epic, magisterially observed pastiche on all-American geekhood, flooring the competition with a petulant shove." PG. Cinema World. Open Water: Chris Kentis directs this thriller based on real events. A couple gets left behind by a scuba diving group, in the middle of a shark-filled ocean. Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis spent 120 hours in the water with real sharks to make this movie. R. Movies 12. Shark Tale: In this computer-animated feature, a lovable tropical fish with the voice of Will Smith takes on the underwater Mafia when he assumes responsibility for killing the godfather of the Great White Sharks. Other voices include those of Jack Black, Robert De Niro, Renée Zellweger, Angelina Jolie and Martin Scorsese; Eric Bergeron. Directed by Vicky Jenson. PG. Cinema World, Cinemark Shaun of the Dead: When zombies invade North London, under-achiever Shaun and best friend Ed must fight for their for their lives, attempt to save Shaun's girlfriend, and escape. R. Cinemark. Shrek 2: Mike Myers returns as Shrek, Cameron Diaz is his new wife, Princess Fiona, and Eddie Murphy's his sidekick, Donkey. Now the newlyweds face Queen Lillian (Julie Andrews) and King Harold (John Cleese). Fairy godmother (Jennifer Saunders), Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) and the ferocious Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas). Sequel is so-so. PG. Movies 12. Online archives. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow: Starring Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie, this digital special effects sci-fi action film was shot without sets and locations. Brainchild: writer/director Kerry Conran in collaboration with producer Jon Avnet. Other stars include Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Gambon and Bai Ling. PG. Cinemark. Cinema World. Online archives. Spider Man 2: Peter Parker aka Spidey (Tobey Maguire) returns as a college student by day who still loves Kirsten Dunst and a superhero when needed against his new nemesis, Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina). Sam Raimi directs. Excellent film! See it. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Terminal: Steven Spielberg directs Tom Hanks as a tourist who has to live at Kennedy airport because his homeland disappeared in a civil war, so his passport is no good. He falls in love with Catherine Zeta-Jones, whose comic talent is wasted in a dumb-dame role, while Hanks only works part-time. Too long and too cute. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Wimbledon: Tennis champ (Paul Bettany) is about to retire from the game when he meets American tennis star (Kirsten Dunst), who encourages him to compete at Wimbledon. PG-13. Cinemark. Without a Paddle: High-speed comedy adventure stars Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard as clueless adventurers who go into the Oregon wilderness in search of lost treasure. PG-13. Cinemark.
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