Hey...is that from a Clash song?
There's a neat piece in this morning's NYT about the flagship flicks of the 46th annual NY Film Festival, and if what they're showcasing is any indication, this fall may coincidentally be all about what it means to have hope and what it's really like to have change.
First in the line-up is Steven Soderbergh's 257-minute - that's Two. Five. Seven. - bio of Che Guevara as portrayed by Bencio Del Toro, which the Times describes as "Ocean's Eleven with better cigars"; other reviewers, however, have not been so kind. It'll be interesting to see first hand how his Soderberghness does on such a big, broad canvas, since my favorite Soderberghs - Solaris (2002), Bubble (2005) - have been so minimal.
At least, if La Darghis has it, Che's interesting: Clint Eastwood's Changeling, which Wikipedia describes as "a period thriller" based on an infamous 1920s murder in California (and subsequent media circus), apparently "adds no luster to Mr. Eastwood's reputation or the festival's." Yikes.
That's just Manohla Dargis, though, for whom "cranky" would be a compliment; other looks at Che and Changeling can be found here and here, respectively.
I guess it begs the question, then, with the aforementioned W. opening in another week or so, is it going to be an overtly crass political season fall and winter at the movies, instead of a subtle and poetic one, like last year's?
