Zoo (Robinson Devor, 2007)

[jbeall]

NY Times review

Salon review (You have to watch brief ad to access the site.)

Thinkfilm is definitely going after some edgy stuff (first Shortbus and now this).

[Barmy]

Noo

[miless]

I saw this here in Portland a little while ago (the filmmakers were in attendance) and I was a bit dissapointed.
It was beautifully shot (poetic, even) and had some interesting segments, but the soundtrack was a bit hazy (it was often difficult to hear the voices through the music) and one segment really just took me out of the whole thing (a story told by an actor about how a child died in his arms... that has nothing to do with the rest of the film, and seems to have been added to add length to this already short film)
I reccomend it as an interesting film, but not a great (or even good) one.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

The Village Voice

[Derek Estes]

Miless, I too saw it at the PIFF screening, and many of the sound problems were due to the Whitsell Auditorium, because I also saw this film at Sundance only a few weeks earlier and the presentation was much more clear, both in image and sound. Though, the film was difficult to sit through the second time around.

[miless]

Miless, I too saw it at the PIFF screening, and many of the sound problems were due to the Whitsell Auditorium, because I also saw this film at Sundance only a few weeks earlier and the presentation was much more clear, both in image and sound. Though, the film was difficult to sit through the second time around.

okay... I've always had a bit of a problem with the Whitsell (especially for Satantango).
although, my thoughts about the actor's story still stand.

[Derek Estes]

Miless, I too saw it at the PIFF screening, and many of the sound problems were due to the Whitsell Auditorium, because I also saw this film at Sundance only a few weeks earlier and the presentation was much more clear, both in image and sound. Though, the film was difficult to sit through the second time around.

okay... I've always had a bit of a problem with the Whitsell (especially for Satantango).
although, my thoughts about the actor's story still stand.

Oh , I can't stand the interview scene. I also hate the shot of the two dolphins. I had a chance to talk with Devor at a party at Sundance, and he mentioned that those were the two biggest complaints about the film, but that it had become split 50/50 between those that loved it and those that hated it. I don't know if this is true or not, but I think he is gambling that it will impress the right people, whomever they are. What I do have say is that, Devor's intentions for this film are somewhat admirable. The subject is very sensational, but it is obvious that there is an attempt to humanize the subject. Also, the cinematography and musical score are unusually beautiful for this type of documentary.

[rumz]

Oh , I can't stand the interview scene.

When I first saw "Zoo" the scene in question removed me entirely, yet now I think it's absolutely crucial to the film. It lends humanity to the actors in the reenactments. After this scene, you're prompted to realize that the actors aren't merely stand-ins in a reconstruction of a peculiar tragedy, but participants, people who have also been affected by tragedy. What I'm saying is that the interview scene serves to validate the film's noble intentions; without it, those intentions are much easier to overlook.

[miless]

When I first saw "Zoo" the scene in question removed me entirely, yet now I think it's absolutely crucial to the film. It lends humanity to the actors in the reenactments. After this scene, you're prompted to realize that the actors aren't merely stand-ins in a reconstruction of a peculiar tragedy, but participants, people who have also been affected by tragedy. What I'm saying is that the interview scene serves to validate the film's noble intentions; without it, those intentions are much easier to overlook.

true, but my problem is that they only did it once... if the other actors were to all give a personal story it would have been one thing, but to just include the one is just not committing fully to their aim.

[Oedipax]

It's really bumming me out that the score to this isn't available somewhere - in particular the melancholy, reverb-heavy piano piece that plays at several points in the film (including the last scene) really struck me as beautiful. Likewise with Sean Kirby's stunning cinematography - I can't imagine he's had any shortage of offers since this and Police Beat.

Both of these elements resulted in my desperately wanting to like the film more than I really did. I really do appreciate Devor's decision to make a beautiful, lyrical film about what most would consider to be an extremely ugly subject. But the fragmentation of the V.O. simply did not always work with me - I had a great amount of difficulty at some points figuring out who was speaking, and more problematically, what exactly they were addressing. In theory, I like the idea of this kind of ambiguity, but I felt like it simply detracted from what could've been a more powerful piece if it were just a bit more willing to commit to some of the people involved.

The movie manages to hit a lot of remarkably subtle notes, considering its subject matter, so I guess my real complaint is that with such a great team assembled, and with this unique a concept, the fact that the film has its share of problems is that much more bothersome, as it feels like it could've been magnificent. As it is, I still can't get it out of my head, and I'll certainly be visiting it again. The best kind of "failure" one could ask for; I look forward to Devor's next film.

[pemmican]

I had no problem with the interview - it not only connects us more to the actors, it argues for taking a respectful approach to KP's death, which most media commentators didn't do. Speaking of interviews, my brief one w/ Mudede here.

(They changed an atrocious pun at the beginning - it's supposed to read "the men had been coming together at the barn for some time," not "meeting. Hnar, hnar.)

I've met Mudede a couple of times - he's a very sharp, funny man. Anyone wanting a future collectable should track down a collaboration with Diana George that he did on the Green River killer, published by Vancouver's Artspeak (if they have any left).

There's a longer version of the above - I'll post if it sees print.

P.