Image courtesy of the Toronto Film Festival
Presence
Steven Soderbergh brings his Sundance acquired “Presence” to the Toronto Film Festival and you can see why it’s gotten the buzz. Soderbergh has always been known to subvert filmmaking conventions (remember when he shot “Unsane” on an I-Phone?) to enhance the overall movie going experience. In “Presence,” a tight, condensed, and isolated chamber piece about the definitive choices we make and drawing a line between life and death, Soderbergh tells the film from the perspective of a ghostly presence, but this isn’t a haunted house thriller, though it may, on the surface, seem like one.
It follows a family (Lucy Liu, Chris Sullivan, Callina Liang, and Eddy Maday) who have just moved into their new home and are dealing with various struggles. Their daughter (Liang) is grieving the death of a friend who recently lost her life to an overdose and is feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders. Her life, in addition to her parents and older brother Tyler (Maday), is passively observed by this unseen entity, which hovers and frantically moves through the house. And thanks to Soderbergh’s deft cinematography it moves very seamlessly throughout the movie. I’d describe it like being a fly on a wall, just watching the action unfold. We don’t know what this presence is, or why it’s stuck inside this house, but Soderbergh creates a visually engaging flick that is more prone to creating tension and anxiety than it is cheap scares.
It’s a simple, yet effective approach that is built on long tracking shots and single take sequences, and Soderbergh cuts to black often, creating mini vignettes within the movie. It’s not a powerful film nor does the story fill you with emotions, but it’s always fun watching Soderbergh cook and “Presence” is never boring.
Grade: B
PRESENCE will be released by Neon in January 2025.
WILLIAM TELL
World premiering in the Gala section of the Toronto International Film Festival, Nick Hamm’s “William Tell” desperately wants to be the foundation for a new franchise. Taking place in 1307 as Austria and Switzerland are on the brink of war, a mad Austrian king played by Sir Ben Kingsly is trying to fuel the flames of rebellion and exert dominance over his rivals. He does this by sending out cruel tax collectors and soldiers to do his bidding. It’s this chaotic violence that sees a lowly farmer be driven mad with bloody revenge and seek refuge with the only man willing to offer aid, William Tell (Claes Bang).
As the lore will tell you, William Tell is that of legend and whose story, of being forced to shoot an apple on the top of his son’s head, has resonated beyond generations. He may or may not have existed, but Hamm’s film isn’t so keen in exploring the validity in the claims, rather he’s trying to deliver his own variation of “Braveheart.” On the battle sequence front, “William Tell” is posh and shot with dexterity. When it moves, it moves. The sweeping, glorious views of the Italian and Switzerland countryside are intoxicating even as the story, which deals with various royal lineage backstabbing, a peasant uprising, and a sniveling, evil guardsman (played by Connor Swindells - who, to his credit, is having fun), come across silly and mundane. There comes a time when a character mutters, “If we want peace, prepare for war.” Well, no shit.
There is one thrilling sequence, and it’s the pivotal one where Tell has to take the shot at his son's head, but it’s not enough to sustain the rest of the film. Let alone a sequel that the movie hilariously tee’s up at the tail end. Are we really about to get the William Tell cinematic universe? For our sake, I hope not.
Grade: C-
WILLIAM TELL debuted at the Toronto Film Festival. It is still seeking distribution.
NUTCRACKERS
Stiller plays big-wig real estate developer Mike who has temporarily relocated from Chicago to Ohio in order to look after his four, undisciplined, nephews while a social worker (Linda Cardellini - completely wasted in a thankless role) tries to find them a foster home. All the kids are played by newcomers Homer, Ulysses, Atlas, and Arlo Janson and they cause all kinds of havoc. They break into local fairs and hop on the ferris wheel, try to steal Mike’s bright yellow Ferrari, and don’t have the best manners in public.
All Mike cares about is ensuring a big deal he’s been working on for 6 years makes it over the finish line, not the wellbeing of his four nephews who, you know, just lost both their parents in a terrible car accident. He’d rather pawn them off and the second leg of the movie turns into this bizarre search for someone who will take the children under their wig. Their big idea involves putting on a version of the ballet “Nutcracker” (in a brief aside that’s never explored deeply, the kids mother was a dance instructor) in a bid to have the children sort of “audition” for the community. Which makes him extremely hard to root for or care about when the tides inevitably turn and he starts warming up to the children.
Green and screenwriter Leland Douglas never let the characters breathe and deal with their trauma and “Nutcrackers” succumbs to a series of predictable, cliche and formulaic plot beats that doesn’t have a single authentic bone in its body.
Grade: D+
NUTCRACKERS world premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and is currently seeking distribution.
LUCKIEST MAN IN AMERICA
The true story of how unemployed ice cream truck driver Michael Larson (Paul Water Hauser becomes the most winningest contestant in Press Your Luck History is given a taunt, engaging cinematic treatment in Samir Oliveros' "The Luckiest Man in America". It's one of those stories you have to see to believe. Hauser turns in some career best work as the hapless schmuck who figured out a way to game the system and send CBS executives spiraling.
Oliveros’ and co-writer Maggie Briggs have gone to great lengths to keep the true story element somewhat a secret (although you can just do a quick Google search), and, I have to say, it’s probably the weakest aspect of the script. I won’t spoil it, but it’s not as twisty or shocking as the filmmakers would have you believe. It’s a solid story, grounded by terrific performances. Aside from Hauser, Walton Goggins yuks it up as iconic “Press Your Luck” host Peter Tomarken while David Strathairn and Shamier Anderson are solid playing producers realizing they got swindled in real time.
The production design and post '80s aesthetic keep the movie cruising. Luckiest Man in America is an entertaining, very commerical film with minimal award prospects. I wouldn't be shocked if this sneaky little caper got picked up by a major streamer or even found its way into theaters. It would be a real get.
Grade: B
THE LUCKIEST MAN IN AMERICA premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and is currently seeking distribution.
