United States
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James Frisa has created an experimental comedy/drama where life imitates art and dream imitates film. Out of Sync follows a man who examines his life out of step with the universe. --Matthew Aquino
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The Jewish Defense League (JDL) was founded in the '60s by the children of holocaust survivors and others in search of a cause. Following their leader, Meir Kahane, members of the JDL labeled themselves "chayas" (wild animals) and engage in what have been labeled terrorist acts against Blacks, Arabs and Soviet diplomats. Visually compelling, Never, Again, Forever provides an intimate portrayal, as JDL members reveal personal confessions for the first time on camera. --Mike Rabehl
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And live she does. At least through her words. Jennifer Jason Leigh remembers herewith her incredible portrayal of the infamous Dorothy Parker, a tragic figure whose fall from literary grace and relentlessly bad luck with men fueled her propensity for morbidity and cynicism. Dorothy Parker was the most famous member of the Algonquin Round Table, a group of N.Y. writers who met for lunch daily in the 1920s.
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In the spirit of 19th century Gothic tales, reminiscent of Edgar Allan Poe, Morella takes bio-technology as its bogeyman and sets it in its own cold and drafty "haunted mansion"--a gene-splicing research lab. In an effort to survive her impending death from a rare form of multiple sclerosis, the beautiful and ruthless Dr. Morella (played by Angela Jones of the recent film Curdled) recruits a fellow researcher to help clone herself into a viable embryo. The enraptured Dr.
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Fred Frenger (Alec Baldwin) is a wanted ex-con whose devil-may-care attitude surprisingly hasn't yet led to his capture. Upon reaching Miami he meets up with Susie (a hooker played by Jennifer Jason Leigh) adopts her as his fiancee, and sets about supplementing their income with a string of petty thefts. Upon acquiring the cuffs, badge, and other accouterments of cop Sgt. Hoke Moseley (Fred Ward), he discovers that larceny has never been easier. This disarming black comedy stands out among others in the pack because its offbeat plot turns make for an intriguing, often unpredictable, pacing.
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Meeting Daria, a coming of age fable by Joelle Ehre, tells the story of Aggie, a high school freshman whose secret body brace isolates her from other teens. Will Daria, a young girl murdered in Central Park, help Aggie overcome distress? --Hayet Ennabli
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For artists and poets, Mary Paradox and Grace describes one person's approach as an answer to those who need inspiration in the pursuit of a meaningful life. Very few films successfully blend art, philosophy, poetry and music, but to gain a full appreciation of an artist requires just such a blend. In Karen Watson's film, the life and thoughts of the artist Mary Holmes, a founding professor at U.C. Santa Cruz, are gracefully combined to produce a rounded picture of a woman who has devoted her long life to art without many of the compromises that are usually required along the way.
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Marriage a la Mode is a fish-out-of-water comedy by Rick Hays. Our mail-order bride heroine, Svetlana, comes to America to her new husband, who promptly dies. The resulting hunt for a husband spins out of control. --Matthew Aquino
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In Laura of Albania, Margret Run depicts the life of a nine-year-old Albanian girl who sought asylum in Germany. Laura resorts to a creative, somewhat nightmarish, imaginary world to balance the lack of beauty her everyday life. --Hayet Ennabli
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"Love stories are about people who find love in happy times. Tragedies are about people who seek love in unhappy times." -- Roger Ebert, The Chicago Sun Times Brooklyn in the 1950s was a hellhole. And there was no way to get out, no way to escape the ensuing madness. The union official cannot admit to being left wing. The strike leader cannot reveal he is homosexual. The father cannot express his love for his child. The prostitute cannot accept her love for the sailor. The drag queen is not able to love himself.