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| Scene from What Marielle Knows |
By Jonathan Bilski
Ending our reviews from the Palm Springs International Film Festival are two very different movies, though both deal with some parenting where you would call in Child Protective Services.
*These two ending films we're held to the easier to access LA Quinta Regal Theaters, about 30 or 40 minutes from downtown Palm Springs. It's easier for some locals of Coachella Valley to travel there as it's the closes theater on the other side of the valley.
Back to these two films.
Gotta give props to the trailers for each of these films, both sell them. The first as a revenge/heist movie and the latter a dark comedy. Both reach for that, but don't do anything to elevate themselves for a must watch.
Project Y is about two women, Mi-sun and Do-kyung, basically sisters, struggling to make it Gangnam, Korea. Mi-sun is an escort, but refrains from sex acts at a Gentleman's Club and Do-kyung is a chauffeur. They lose all their savings they had, which was for a nice place to live and not having to work gritty jobs. They are tied to the crime in the city and learn of money the can steal and do, but they also find gold bars worth millions. Then, there's another hour of movie.
I'm sorry, but this movies drags on. It's like moving through molasses or tar, which is depicted as a very un-fun way to die in this film. Props on those scenes, there just the right amount of unsettling to watch. This Korean drama, which I've seen dark and faster paced ones. Just drags like the tar. This could have been a series, but to my dismay it was a just a longer runtime.
It's all kind of by-the-book, what's gonna happen next if you've seen enough of these. I'm not saying anyone did a bad job of acting. There's great subplots on a fixed betting scheme and whose out to screw who. But, you easily could have cut an hour for this movie to work. Not every scene need last that long.
There's even some great bad guys to hate, like a shaved-headed, strong woman in a leather coat that's the enforcer for the main bad guy. She brutally kicks butt. And, you learn to love to hate her.
Back to child services thing I mentioned. The depiction of the sisters drug-user Mom, was both over-the-top and explained a lot of back story, but came so late in the story, I was like, "Really, your adding a Mom subplot now?" She was a terrible Mom, so don't worry about her.
I just wish her kids could have moved quicker to the ending, which I have to say, could have just been edited in a lot faster.
No other real claims on style or anything that stands out, just made well enough, but nadda on, why we needed another film we've seen before.
Loving the high concept dark comedy premise for this one from Germany. In What Marielle Knows, said Marielle gains the telepathic ability to see and hear what her parents are doing at all times. That's a nightmare for both parties. This is all caused by a slap at school. Nothing very sci-fi or fantasy, just this strange power Marielle gains.
What happens next would have been fine as a good short film. I'm gonna tell you now, the director doesn't even want to resolve this one by the end leaving it ambiguous if her powers are gone or if she just hates her Mom.
And, good reason to hate her Mom, as she confronts this new power her daughter has by having a an affair. Not something you want to see in HD in your head. Her father reacts out in another way with violence at work, both in very silly manners as they know that somehow their daughter is watching them. Uh, when it comes to her Mom. Ugh... she can't really grasp the situation, wink, during her extra-martial going-ons, but still manages to probably scar her daughter forever.
By the end, the movie is saying how the parents need to be more honest with themselves, each-other and their daughter. And, parents are people too and make mistakes and sometimes you need to remember as a kid you can be a jerk.
Or, her Mom was trying to get out of being hated by her daughter.
I feel like there were many more moments or a better way to end this than to just trail off. Hearing behind me, "That it." Not the best sign. I get as a drama and a think piece it does get you, the idea of a kids monitoring their parents is such a great reverse. And, for some scenes it leads to great comedic moments.
Was the headless bird photo so bad for the book cover and too Magritte? Yes. So, it did leave in impression, it's a whole running gag in the movie at the Dad's office. But, no matter how many cuts to Marielle's hair slowly flowing to transition to another scene, it isn't gonna be anything more like that pretentious book cover.
