PERSONAL TRANSCENDENCE // A FILM REVIEW OF "STANLEYVILLE"

BY MATEO MORENO

STANLEYVILLE is a bizarre movie, and it wears that like a badge of honor. In fact, that's the main thing that drew me to it initially. Think of it starting as a sort of oddball version of Squid Games but forgetting to include any real payoff for the viewer. Julian Richings announces himself as a man named Homunculus and he straight away approaches a lonely woman named Maria (Susanne West) in the middle of a shopping center. They are strangers, but Homunculus seems to have chosen Maria for a contest, or an experience of sorts. One that will let her experience "authentic personal transcendence." There's no real reason for her to take this man at his word, but she's tired of her home life and is excited to hear that she has been chosen among thousands of millions. She happily accepts his offer, without knowing anything truly about it.

Maria then finds herself in an office building of some sort, along with four other "contestants:" Felicie (Cara Ricketts), Manny (Adam Brown), Andrew (Christian Serritiello) and Bofill (George Tchortov). They are a mix of lost toys, of sorts. One is caught up in a protein powder pyramid scheme, one is in the world of finance, one is a delusional actor and one (Felicie) simply wants the main prize: the orange SUV. Felicie may be the one that's not as bizarre as the rest, but she also has intense tunnel vision. No one will get in her way of winning this contest and that makes her the most unpredictable. Homunculus begins a series of tests that they must all compete in, all of them quite ridiculous. As they progress, some contestants form alliances, while others grow suspicious of the others. 

The title of the film comes from a real person: Henry Morton Stanley, a controversial Welsh/American explorer who's portrait hangs in the room, looming over them. But what is the true connection of the film to the explorer himself? Well... that's a mystery, at least to me. The film doesn't try to connect any dots, merely tends to throw out strange and unusual circumstances and experiments. Who Homunculus is or how the contest picked anyone in the first place remains a mystery that's never revealed, or even hinted at. It does seem that Stanleyville is making a comment on the easily fracturing of society and how monstrous humans can become over a prize, any prize, even if it's just a car. Each actor brings a unique strangeness to the film and it does start out quite funny and strange and intriguing. But by the time you figure out that almost nothing is going to have an answer, frustration begins to overtake any enjoyment and the third act peters out with a less than stunning finale. Stanleyville is an interesting experiment, indeed. But like many experiments before it, nothing quite comes of it.

GRADE: B-

WRITTEN BY Rob Benvie, Maxwell McCabe-Lokos DIRECTED BY Maxwell McCabe-Lokos STARRING Susanne Wuest, Cara Ricketts, Christian Serritiello, George Tchortov, Adam Brown, Julian Richings 

NEW DIRECTORS/NEW FILMS // A FILM REVIEW OF "GOODNIGHT MOMMY"

By Chrisena Ricci

The Museum of Modern Art and the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s 44th edition of New Directors/New Films is being presented in New York City from March 18 – March 29. For 44 years New Directors/New Films has been an annual rite of early spring in New York City, bringing exciting discoveries from around the world to adventurous moviegoers. All aspects of cinema, from production to exhibition, have changed dramatically over the years, but the spirit of innovation and the element of surprise that have always defined this festival remain intact. Dedicated to the discovery of new works by emerging and dynamic filmmaking talent, this year’s festival will screen 26 international feature films and 16 short films.

We here at TheArtsWire Weekly are bringing you our take on the films we're screening during the festival.

First and foremost, let me begin by saying, I do not like horror movies. I do not enjoy the gore, the unbelievable plot lines and most of all the terror that it instills in my soul. When I sat in the theatre on this happy Thursday, I could feel my palms start to sweat. The film starts with some terrifyingly simple footage of a cookie cutter family singing a melodic and chilling German lullaby.

As it turns out, I do not like lullabies very much either.

It only gets creepier from there. This film has all of my fears in it. Creepy twins who have mastered the vacant stare, a corn field, face bandages, weird torture, and a box of roaches. That’s right, I said a box of roaches. The roaches are actually a common theme that runs through the entire film, which does not hesitate to dive deeply into your darkest fears surrounding those creepy-crawlies.

As you can see, Chrisena in her notes definitely noticed the BOX OF ROACHES quite vividly.Basically, the film tells the story of twin boys, Elias and Lukas, and their mother. When mom comes back from plastic surgery, the boys become convinced that she is not their mother, but an imposter sent back in her place. The boys’ imaginings escalate to a final cataclysmic point, where they tie up their mother and an onslaught of torture occurs.

The thing that is truly terrifying about this film is the true simplicity of each nail biting moment. The torture implements are simple home objects. The boys use super glue to permanently close one eye, and to seal mom’s lips. They use a magnifying glass to burn flesh, and a toy bow and arrow loaded with nails to keep mom in line.

It’s really messed up. And it’s really good.

This film does a great job of balancing humor with terror, and gore with child-like light-hearted playtime. I do wish that some things had been different. It seems as though the filmmakers thought that the audience wouldn’t understand the “big plot twist” without a lot of help. The dialogue early on however, gives away the entire would-be-twist. We are smart enough to figure it out. Plus, audiences enjoy getting to work out the mystery themselves. If two lines of dialogue were cut out, it really would have turned the film from ‘interesting concept’, to ‘chilling execution’. I also felt as though there were beautiful opportunities that were completely bypassed. For example, early on in the film, the boys discover a burial mound, where they also find a stray cat. I kept expecting the burial mound to make another appearance since the cat is an integral part of the plot. I thought the final show down between mom and children would happen there, instead of the home. 

All in all, I totally bought the story. I thought it was simplistic, without being completely predictable. The gore existed but wasn’t over the top. The fear elements were perfectly chosen to create a true “edge of your seat experience”, and one that you won’t stop talking about anytime soon.

VERDICT: MUST SEE

WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Severin Fiala & Veronika Franz STARRING Susanne Wuest, Elias Schwarz, Lukas Schwarz

Playing as part of The Museum of Modern Art and the Film Society of Lincoln Center's 44th New Directors/New Films Fest. For tickets: http://newdirectors.org/

FINAL THOUGHTS: If the twins from THE SHINING were placed into the movie MISERY and set in Germany, you would get this film. Also: BOX OF ROACHES

CHRISENA RICCI once went to a costume party dressed in an all black dress and black wig. No one there could guess who she was. So she shouted out, "I'm Christina Ricci, without the T or I and add an E!" Everyone stood there confused, she was annoyed, so she stormed off. She never returned to that apartment ever again. Which is fine, because she later realized she was at the wrong party. She now lives in New York City.