Today, an article in Variety details the struggle to prevent far-right wing elements of French politics from stamping Gaspar Noé’s Love with an Under-18 rating (our equivalent of NC-17 in the States). The piece is articulate and informative, and likely portends the difficulties that Love will face in other nations as well. If you’re at all interested in discussions of film standards, censorship, the treatment of sexuality in film, or things of that nature, I would suggest you give it a read. I will stay away from recounting the particulars of the story, and instead react to how I anticipate this will affect the latest offering from Noé here in the States. I may hop on an anti-censorship soapbox, as well.
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Tag: Indie Film
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The revenge genre has experienced a small renaissance of late with films like Taken and John Wick portraying purposeful and expert killers running roughshod through those who have wronged them in some way. The audience is generally encouraged to recognize the protagonist’s ability, and celebrate his or her violence. The low-budget film Blue Ruin, from director Jeremy Saulnier, turns this dynamic on its head by providing us with an everyman thrust into a revenge situation. The resulting story arc follows familiar beats, but the unique perspective infuses this stark film with a beauty and realism that is rarely approached in this exploitative genre.
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In an exclusive story from The Wrap, production company Open Road Films announced that they would be allowing tickets for their film Dope to be purchased with the digital currency bitcoin. The indie comedy, which was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival this year, prominently features bitcoin as a plot detail when the main characters look for a way to exchange a drug windfall into some quick cash. This film was already in my sights as an understated coming-of-age comedy full of ‘90s references and weird web humor, and while this bitcoin move seems to be largely a marketing ploy, it has definitely piqued my attention further (and to be fair, what isn’t a marketing ploy these days?).
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Plot and Theme 