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Reviews of Austin movies at Sundance
Just now trickling in are reviews of some of the Austin-related titles at Sundance.
About Margaret Brown’s doc “The Order of Myths” — which is nominated for the Grand Jury Prize — The New York Times’ Manhola Darghis writes:
There was the usual complement of fine documentaries this year too, including the celebrity-stuffed “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired” (about that filmmaker’s 1970s rape trial) and the more downtown “Patti Smith: Dream of Life.” The documentary that left the strongest impression is “The Order of Myths,” Margaret Brown’s examination of the history and present-day reality of the segregated worlds of Mardi Gras in Mobile, Ala. Handsomely shot and intelligently edited, with none of the maddening sloppiness that distorts too many nonfiction projects, the film explores the secret societies, the fancy-dress balls and the celebratory parades for a story that is at once very site-specific and seemingly simple and as big and richly complex as the United States itself.
And a take from IndieWire:
Many here were looking forward to Margaret Brown’s second feature after her well-regarded music doc “Be Here to Love Me: A Film About Townes Van Zandt,” but Brown surpassed expectations with her remarkably assured “The Order of Myths.” Beautifully shot by Lee Daniel and Michael Simmonds and expertly edited by Brown, Michael Taylor and Geoffrey Richman, the film examines the time-honored tradition of Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama, where celebrations remain segregated between white and black residents.
With a deft, observant touch, Brown does what several recent acclaimed nonfiction films have done (“Street Fight” and “Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore?” among them) by approaching issues of race from a side angle. But Brown surpasses her predecessors with a level of craft that stuns. But it’s clear from screenings here that “The Order of Myths” has the potential to spur conversations about race relationships that are simmering beneath the surface.
‘Order of Myths’
Variety’s Robert Koehler says this about “Trouble in the Water,” which was shot by Austin cinematographer-filmmaker PJ Raval:
A survivor of Hurricane Katrina gets it all on camera in “Trouble the Water,” a blend of DIY footage and filming by co-directors Tia Lessin and Carl Deal that considers the impact and aftermath of the New Orleans catastrophe from the perspective of a family that stayed at home during the storm.
Though tinged with the sheer gumption and personal resolve of amateur vidmaker and would-be rapper Kimberly Roberts, this is ultimately a minor doc contribution to the bulging library of Katrina-related films and TV reports. Roberts’ own material will be the major selling point, with buyers in cable arena more likely than theatrical.
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