my mspiff picks: the final week

Thursday is closing night for the 3-week Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival, so it's your last chance to get in on the action.  These are the films that look most promising to me:

•Monday
Top Pick -- My Joy; 7:00

I'm attracted to post-Soviet Russian life and Eastern European artistry, so I'm a little biased toward this film.  There's not much of the story's description on the MSPIFF website, but there are nefarious activities, all captured by Romanian cinematographer Oleg Mutu, who worked on 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days.  Salon said it was a top pick at Cannes last year, writing, "I thought this mordant, slow-motion horror film about a truck driver's journey into hell -- the title is 100 percent sardonic -- was the most unexpected and arresting picture in the main Cannes competition. If your appetites extend to the bleak and grotesque, you'll want to seek it out."


•Tuesday
Top Pick -- Beginners; 7:00

Director Mike Mills tells the story of a man and his father, who revealed his homosexuality to everyone at the age of 75.  Indiewire writes, "Mills’s style is distinctly plucky, but never indulgent. It’s rare that a whiny character can get away with being likable, which is why “Beginners” stays true to the title and feels like something entirely new."

•Wednesday
This is the last day before the closing night film Stuck Between Stations, and I'm at a loss to suggest any one movie.  I'd probably see Garbo the Spy before anything else.  Not necessarily because I think the filmmaking is noteworthy; it may or may not be, I have no idea.  But the story of this World War II spy, who successfully convinced both the Axis and Allies he was working for each of them before faking his own death, sounds fascinating.  The movie plays at 5:15.

That's all for now.  I'm sure I'll have some fest recap or other fun tidbits for you later this week.  Until then, thanks for checking in everyone.