TRIBECA REVIEW: "The Wolfpack"

I thought no one could ever truly be or feel alone in New York City until I observed the lives of the Angulo brothers. Living everyday above the hectic metropolitan and isolated from the hustle and bustle of everyday life these siblings grew up in their own reality surrounded by films and imagination. Premiering at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, documentarian Crystal Moselle conducts an insightful and heartfelt portrayal of an alienated family living life apart yet completely within society in her film “The Wolfpack.”

Going back to the beginning, Susanne and Oscar Angulo moved to the Lower East Side of Manhattan in 1996 and decided for themselves that they would raise their sons at home away from the outside world. From then, the Angulo brothers, Jagadesh (16), Krisna (17), Mukuda (20), Narayana (22), Govinda (22) and Bhagavan (23) grew up hearing from their father, Oscar Angulo that the outside world was dangerous and untrustworthy. Yet by hiding his family away from the reality of society Oscar denied his sons their freedom of normalcy.

Forced to define and create their own personal escapism in the form of re-enacting films, mostly from director Quentin Tarantino, these brothers began to find happiness in their own crafted illusions. As the viewer watches the “wolfpack” shoot fake guns while reenacting “Pulp Fiction” and creating Batman costumes out of yoga mats, they may wonder if ignorance can truly be bliss. Raised at home, they were educated by their mother Susanne, and while they were unable to attend public school they were also able to avoid the harsh interactions that come with growing up different; away from the bullying, the teasing, the insecurities, the Angulo’s grew up above the difficulties of adolescence.

Towards the end of the film the boys find their own way outside of the demanding shadow of their father, able to travel to Coney Island, go to the movies and branch out on their own. Like a long lost tribe, one that has been locked away since the dawn of computers, the introduction of Facebook, the fall of DVDs, these siblings realize how much they don’t know and how sheltered they have truly been. Yet their world of television and movies still overtake them. At his new job Mukunda Angulo, the alpha of the pack and arguably the most outspoken, asks, “Who here watches ‘Game of Thrones?’” and then “I finished three seasons of Breaking Bad in two days.” Even immersed in the outside world his insular obsession with film commands his psychology and prompts his conversations. 

The harsh reality of “The Wolfpack” is how easily it is to get lost in a world of your own. A film that is genuine at its core and entertaining throughout, documentarian Crystal Moselle conducts a heartfelt exploration into a lifestyle that is so far removed from society that it teaches its audience that it is never too late to change who you are and expand what you think you may know about the world. 

The Wolfpack Won the Grand Jury Documentary Prize at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival

Ballet 422: A Review & Interview

Jody Lee Lipes’ newest film “Ballet 422” is hypnotizing and inclusive as it guides its viewer behind the scenes of the revered New York City Ballet. The film is elegant and majestic like the subject it portrays, giving a more distinguished quality to the art of ballet. Shot in cinema vérité style, this documentary shadows the 25-year-old New York City Ballet performer Justin Peck as he faces the challenge of creating the company’s 422nd ballet.

Lipes graduated from Tisch School of the Arts in 2004, and he credits his education there for the production of “Ballet 422.”

“I would not have been able to make this film without going to NYU,” he said. “Many people who worked on this film, I met at NYU. Nick Bentgen, Anna Rose Holmer, Mark Phillips, Joe Anderson and I all met while attending Tisch.”

Lipes first conceived the documentary, after he and his wife went to see Peck’s second ballet, “Year of the Rabbit.”

“After that, we began talking about documenting his next piece, because I knew one day he would become an important choreographer,” Lipes said. “I just know I would have loved to see what renowned choreographers were like earlier on in their careers.” 

Peck is quiet and contemplative in his planning; the gears of his mind are perpetually working to make improvements to his ensemble. He never looks directly at the camera or acknowledges its presence. Like a fly on the wall, we see him but he never sees us.

“The subject matter definitely required [cinema vérité], because ballet is such a physical art form,” Lipes said. “I loved how it was active and able to communicate without people having to talk. With vérité, it’s also like a ticking clock, so I also enjoy the style because you’re able to be physical while having a timeline
for structure.” 

Lipes, who became instantly immersed in the world of the New York City Ballet, followed his subject everywhere. The audience glimpses the entire process of creating a ballet ensemble. From costume design fittings to conversations with the orchestra, Peck controls every aspect of his piece to the best of his ability. 

“Most people don’t understand the inner workings and mechanics of the institution,” Lipes said. “A lot of people outside of the production never think about how many people go into the process, the intricacies, and the costumes. The orchestra, particularly in ballet, is overlooked a lot as a creative partner; the audience doesn’t usually think about its importance to the piece.” 

While creating this new piece, Peck also had to fulfill his role as a dancer in the Corps de Ballet. As soon as the curtains closed on the New York City Ballet’s 422nd production, his responsibility as choreographer came to an end and he returned to his role as a dancer. Like a chameleon, a jack of all-trades, he eases right back into his home onstage.

The film is a subtle portrayal of metamorphosis. Lipes follows Peck’s transformation from beginning to end, as his subject becomes a quiet-yet-masterful butterfly taking on the challenging waters of the New York City Ballet.

Courtesy of Washington Square News. 

Read the online version here. 

The Imitation Game: A Review

Cyphers and mathematics have never before been so emotionally triumphant than in the Imitation Game. Set during the Second World War, this film is not your average biopic. Told in a series of flashbacks and flash-forwards, The Imitation Game tells the story of the genius mathematician Alan Turing and his mental pursuit to decipher the German Enigma codes.

While other World War II films show the deep and enduring struggle of soldiers that physically fought against hatred, The Imitation Game tells the other side of that historical coin. Instead of fighting it out on the battlefields of Normandy or Stalingrad, five mathematicians try to defeat the Third Reich with wit and smarts. Nestled behind the iron gates of Bletchley Park a military operating camp in the South of England, Turing and his intellectual counterparts Joan Clarke, Hugh Alexander, John Cairncross and Peter Hilton fight their own private intellectual and emotional war. From day to day these geniuses are put up to the task to solve an impossible code that would take nearly twenty million years to complete, in approximately eighteen hours.

Turing himself is portrayed as an isolated narcissist that is as much as an enigma as the Nazi code he is trying to solve. Benedict Cumberbatch plays Turing almost too well, we see him collapse and become broken inside as he is seen as a robotic monster. However, in a layered and poignant screenplay from beginning screenwriter Graham Moore, The Imitation Game does not keep the action of the story at surface level but dives deeper into the emotional struggle of its protagonist, Alan Turing. As Turing loses himself to his work, his past and personal life illuminates the screen. The audience finds out about Turing’s homosexuality and later sees him persecuted for his actions. 

With its beautifully conducted score by Alexandre Desplat and vintage style images The Imitation Game transports its audience into the past of World War II but also to witness another side of a revolutionary event. While the outside world of WWII is shown as earth shattering and apocalyptic the quiet and composed arena of Bletchley Park shows a different war to be won.

Solving Enigma is the goal in this film but it is not the resolution. The audience realizes that even after Turing and his peers decipher Enigma they are still forced with the challenge on how to stop oncoming German attacks without drawing attention to their discovery. In a way this group of well-dressed and clever mathematicians are given the opportunity to play God; deciding what cities are destroyed and which are saved, who lives and who dies. Ultimately their efforts assisted the military in a clandestine fight to halt the war two years earlier than predicted, saving millions of lives.

The story is one of bravery and acceptance and overcoming the odds to produce remarkable and life changing results. The film gives heart to an otherwise non-feeling and technical field as viewers witness that the greatest of heroes were found in the most unlikely of places, snuggled in a tiny village in the South of England.

 The Imitation Game hits theaters Nov. 28th

Courtesy of Washington Square News

Read it online here

Chelsea Peretti's "One of the Greats": A Review

“Do you think it’s worse to wear a fedora or kill fifteen people?”

— Chelsea Peretti

This generation has a new female heroine, and her name is Chelsea Peretti. The Netflix comedy special “Chelsea Peretti: One of the Greats” is truthful and undeniably relatable to millennials everywhere. Peretti, who stars as the outgoing and witty Gina on Fox’s “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” gives her comedic commentary on everything from the #nomakeup tag on Instagram to her desire for a fulfilling marriage.

Peretti’s humor is over-the-top in a satirical way, which adds to her effortless charm. “One of the Greats” begins with an intro that looks like it was taken from the deleted scenes of “Fast and Furious.” Peretti zooms down the San Francisco streets on a motorcycle while a grizzled, overly serious voice-over narrates her journey to the theater. This segment sets the tone for the hilarious hour that ensues.

From her first few minutes on stage, it is evident that the live audience and the Netflix audience are seeing different perspectives of the act. The Netflix audience can look inside Peretti’s mind as various edits show her in the audience or off-stage in a clown costume, mocking herself as a strange version of herself. “One of the Greats” in some ways plays out like a stylized sitcom, one where the in-house audience is also a part of the production. Every cut to the audience is planned and adds to the humor in a bizarre way. Clips of dogs, babies, people sipping tea and even strange janitors interrupt the performance on stage to add their own comedic reactions. It is like a kitschy alternate reality, showcasing that the comedy does not stop where the stage ends, but continues into the velvet seats of the arena.

While Peretti is open and spews out what is on her mind for her audience’s pleasure, she adds relatable commentary for the modern world.  She fearlessly states her opinions on various topics, such as what she dubs “comment culture” and online bullying. In one bit, she makes her audience imagine all of the inventions that would not have happened if people were allowed to comment on social media when Einstein was around. She says that he would have gotten picked on for his “Jew-ness” and mocked for not figuring out the theory of relativity in a timely manner. Through all of the raunchiness and political incorrectness, it is impossible to not be charmed by her truthful perspective on today’s society.

In addition to the incisive commentary, Peretti also showcases her emotional side when she states that she is in love. She is open about her life and her father’s various marriages, and expresses her wish to have a happy life and a long and loving marriage. She covers these desires with humor, but it is endearing to see a confident woman unveil her secret dreams and pains — “I want to be a good person,” she says at one point in front of hundreds of people.

One will find an array of unpredictability in “One of the Greats,” a sarcastic title that holds some form of truth. Peretti is a rare comedic gem who puts on a truly unforgettable performance.

Courtesy of Washington Square News. Read it on the website here