28 Days Later

Imagine if you opened the newspaper (you do remember what those are, right?) and turned to the movie reviews and read:

"Oren Moverman's THE MESSENGER is a powerful military drama that had the audience laughing in their seats and rolling in the aisles."

That would be weird, right?

But that's kind of how I felt. It was a good film; it covered heavy, serious subject matter. But it didn't wear you down and make you weep for the tragedy of existence. It said: this is life and this is how we live in the face of death; this is how we cope.

And it was also funny. (As the film went on, I started to pay just as much attention to audience reaction as to the movie itself.) Perhaps that's inevitable with an actor like Woody Harrelson in one of the starring roles... but maybe that's what made it real for me - my life isn't a comedy, nor is it a sad, stony drama. Humor is a classic coping mechanism; as many times as I teared up during the screening, there were just as many (and probably more) things to laugh about. The balance was incredible.

The Q&A with the cast and filmmakers after the film was a nice bonus. The most amazing things - that the film was done in 28 days; that Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson didn't know who was on the other side of the door, or what exactly would happen until they knocked - really translated into intensity and focus and creating the 'reality' of the film.

If you missed it, I hate to say it, but you kind of missed out. Fortunately, the 2009 Sarasota Film Festival is off to a great start - and there will be a lot more amazing films and events to catch over the next week.

See you there!
Wendy