Boy Golden
Director: Chito Roño
With: Jeorge Estregan, KC Concepcion, John Estrada, Eddie Garcia, Gloria
Sevilla, Dick Israel, Leo Martinez, Roi Vinson, Tonton Gutierrez, Mon
Confiado, John Lapus
Crystal Fairy
Director: Sebastián Silva
With: Michael Cera, Gaby Hoffmann, Juan Andrés Silva, José Miguel Silva, Agustín Silva
It's always a pleasant surprise whenever you watch a film where you don't have any clues about the plot, and ended up LOVING it. I only read about Crystal Fairy in a Buzzfeed article with the list of 2013 great films people probably haven't seen. Found it interesting, so I looked for a copy and watched it. As I was watching it, I realized that Gaby Hoffmann was playing Crystal Fairy, an eccentric hippie who was accidentally tag-alonged by Jamie (Michael Cera) in his trip with his friends to a Chilean beach. I haven't seen any Gaby Hoffmann film since Now and Then so it was delightful to see her in this especially in a challenging role like Crystal Fairy.
Despite having completely opposite roles, Both Michael Cera and Gaby Hoffmann gave equally marvelous performances. Most people would probably give Gaby Hoffmann the recognition of being the best actor in this film, I can see why, she's amazing. But for me, Michael Cera is the superior actor in this. From megalomaniac levels of annoying, he morphs into a vulnerable and lovable character. And he's convincing and natural throughout the film. Having said that, Gaby Hoffmann won my heart because she's too adorable in this. I always have a soft spot for weird and quirky characters in films and even on TV. Hello Phoebe Buffay! and Crystal Fairy is a great addition to these characters. I think she just climbed up as my top favorite 2013 film character but we'll see. :) I also love that its soundtrack mainly consists of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros' songs, suits Crystal Fairy's hippie persona so well.
Aside from great performances and awesome soundtrack, Crystal Fairy is one heck of a hilarious adventure. With Sebastián Silva's articulate screenplay and sharp direction, Crystal Fairy succeeds in making me uncontrollably laugh so hard. Imagine being in a trip, where you secretly abhor one of your companions while the rest of your friends are fine being with that person. Hah! It maybe slight for some, but I reckon that the key to appreciate this film is to not take it seriously and trust me, it will lead you to a happy place and when you're finally comfortable in that happy place, it will shock you with a wistful twist. Everything about Crystal Fairy fell into its right place and I feel like I understand the whole point of the film because of my attitude towards it. :3 Also, isn't it fun watching people in a drug trip being high and funny? You know you do! Just imagine you with your friends being the only sober one while the rest of them are drunk as hell. :)
The Hunt
Despite having completely opposite roles, Both Michael Cera and Gaby Hoffmann gave equally marvelous performances. Most people would probably give Gaby Hoffmann the recognition of being the best actor in this film, I can see why, she's amazing. But for me, Michael Cera is the superior actor in this. From megalomaniac levels of annoying, he morphs into a vulnerable and lovable character. And he's convincing and natural throughout the film. Having said that, Gaby Hoffmann won my heart because she's too adorable in this. I always have a soft spot for weird and quirky characters in films and even on TV. Hello Phoebe Buffay! and Crystal Fairy is a great addition to these characters. I think she just climbed up as my top favorite 2013 film character but we'll see. :) I also love that its soundtrack mainly consists of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros' songs, suits Crystal Fairy's hippie persona so well.
Aside from great performances and awesome soundtrack, Crystal Fairy is one heck of a hilarious adventure. With Sebastián Silva's articulate screenplay and sharp direction, Crystal Fairy succeeds in making me uncontrollably laugh so hard. Imagine being in a trip, where you secretly abhor one of your companions while the rest of your friends are fine being with that person. Hah! It maybe slight for some, but I reckon that the key to appreciate this film is to not take it seriously and trust me, it will lead you to a happy place and when you're finally comfortable in that happy place, it will shock you with a wistful twist. Everything about Crystal Fairy fell into its right place and I feel like I understand the whole point of the film because of my attitude towards it. :3 Also, isn't it fun watching people in a drug trip being high and funny? You know you do! Just imagine you with your friends being the only sober one while the rest of them are drunk as hell. :)
The Hunt
Director: Thomas Vinterberg
With: Mads Mikkelsen, Thomas Bo Larsen, Annika Wedderkopp
Adding up to Doubt, Atonement and A Separation, The Hunt is another riveting film about a person being falsely accused of a misbehavior. The film follows Lucas (Mads Mikkelsen), a kindergarten teacher who becomes the object of his community's hysteria after being accused of sexually assaulting his pupil, Klara (Annika Wedderkopp).
A film with a subject like this is always captivating (and frustrating) as the audience knows the truth while the characters surrounding the person being falsely accused are blinded by the wrong and malicious information, especially in this film where the false information came from a little girl. People are taught by the saying that children always tell the truth but in this film, it's proven otherwise.
Mads Mikkelsen showed a poignant performance portraying a man with a complicated background. His performance, however, made ordinary by his co-star, Annika Wedderkopp who certainly gave a breakout performance at such a very young age. I am uncertain about her age but the fact that she played a little girl involving serious and mature stuff like stiff penis and blasphemous accusations, she is definitely someone that stood out in this film. Not to mention, there's a scene where someone spit on her face.
Overall, The Hunt for me is alright. It's an inferior version of other films with the same subject. As much as I love the climax of the film, the first part is way stronger than the rest. There are several characters in the film where I felt like many of their storylines didn't come to full circle and even if it did for some, it ended up anticlimactic and lame. It's unsatisfactory in terms of storylines, where most of what happened felt skimpy. I like the ending though, as it gives another layer to a story like this that's been done with similar endings before.
A film with a subject like this is always captivating (and frustrating) as the audience knows the truth while the characters surrounding the person being falsely accused are blinded by the wrong and malicious information, especially in this film where the false information came from a little girl. People are taught by the saying that children always tell the truth but in this film, it's proven otherwise.
Mads Mikkelsen showed a poignant performance portraying a man with a complicated background. His performance, however, made ordinary by his co-star, Annika Wedderkopp who certainly gave a breakout performance at such a very young age. I am uncertain about her age but the fact that she played a little girl involving serious and mature stuff like stiff penis and blasphemous accusations, she is definitely someone that stood out in this film. Not to mention, there's a scene where someone spit on her face.
Overall, The Hunt for me is alright. It's an inferior version of other films with the same subject. As much as I love the climax of the film, the first part is way stronger than the rest. There are several characters in the film where I felt like many of their storylines didn't come to full circle and even if it did for some, it ended up anticlimactic and lame. It's unsatisfactory in terms of storylines, where most of what happened felt skimpy. I like the ending though, as it gives another layer to a story like this that's been done with similar endings before.
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