恐龙世界

　　1932年，红军挥师南下去创建川陕革命根据地，给红军当向导的付家林，曾遭受当地恶霸和土匪的欺压，被逼逃离家乡投奔了红军，陕西镇巴县天池寺一带的百姓翻身得解放后，拥护红军，使红军队伍迅速壮大……

　　富商段宇宸（姜皓文 饰）因为意外失忆，踏上了一段追寻真相的旅程，却在途中揭出被隐藏多年的秘密。在这个故事中，姜皓文同时饰演段宇宸及另一角色魏星，让人期待他如何展现这两个不同的人生……

　　肥胖邋遢的左翼导演迈克•马隆（Kevin P. Farley 饰）致力于揭露美国政治、军事、经济和医疗等方面的阴暗面，他所拍摄的纪录片更在国际上获奖（影射迈克•摩尔）。他为自己的成就沾沾自喜，美国国内也有一批狂热的粉丝对他疯狂追捧。有些飘飘然的马隆更提议取消7月4日的独立日，他甚至大张旗鼓搞起了宣传活动。
　　这时候，三个美国历史上重要人物的鬼魂：肯尼迪（Chriss Anglin 饰）、华盛顿（Jon Voight 饰）和巴顿（Kelsey Grammer 饰）先后拜访了马隆。他们一次次将马隆带入假定的历史中，向其展示纵容绝对民主和恐怖主义可能产生的各种后果。曾经坚定的左翼分子终于开始动摇了……

　　Fraught with over obvious symbolism, Hartley's early feature is nonetheless a joy to watch. Hal here shows us his uncanny ability to cast his characters perfectly came early in his career.
　　Adrienne Shelley is a near perfect foil to herself, equal parts annoying teen burgeoning in her sexuality (though using sex for several years); obsessed with doom and inspired by idealism gone wrong she is deceptively – and simultaneously – complex and simple. Her Audrey inspires so many levels of symbolism it is almost embarrassingly rich (e.g., her modeling career beginning with photos of her foot – culminating her doing nude (but unseen) work; Manhattan move; Europe trip; her stealing, then sleeping with the mechanics wrench, etc.)
　　As Josh, Robert Burke gives an absolutely masterful performance. A reformed prisoner/penitent he returns to his home town to face down past demons, accept his lot and begin a new life. Dressed in black, and repeatedly mistaken for a priest, he corrects everyone ("I'm a mechanic"), yet the symbolism is rich: he abstains from alcohol, he practices celibacy (is, in fact a virgin), and seemingly has taken on vows of poverty, and humility as well. The humility seems hardest to swallow seeming, at times, almost false, a pretense. Yet, as we learn more of Josh we see genuineness in his modesty, that his humility is indeed earnest and believable. What seems ironic is the character is fairly forthright in his simplicity, yet so richly drawn it becomes the viewer who wants to make him out as more than what he actually is. A fascinatingly written character, perfectly played.
　　The scene between Josh and Jane (a wonderful, young Edie Falco . . . "You need a woman not a girl") is hilarious . . . real. But Hartley can't leave it as such and his trick, having the actors repeat the dialogue over-and-over becomes frustratingly "arty" and annoying . . . until again it becomes hilarious. What a terrific sense of bizarre reality this lends the film (like kids in a perpetual "am not"/"are too" argument).
　　Hartley's weaves all of a small neighborhood's idiosyncrasies into a tapestry of seeming stereotypes but which delves far beneath the surface, the catalyst being that everyone believes they know what the "unbelievable truth" of the title is, yet no two people can agree (including our hero) on what exactly that truth is. A wonderful little movie with some big ideas.

　　吉村公三郎代表作，也是蘇珊．桑塔最喜愛的日本經典片之一。吉村愛向難度挑戰，喜歡實驗，討厭被歸類，是松竹的壞孩子，卻因此為日本電影開創出不少可能性。影片描寫日本戰後，末落貴族變賣大宅前舉行的最後一場舞會。吉村親歷這樣的一個舞會，他用所見所感，寫出一個個玲瓏浮凸的人物：戀棧風光的父親，目空一切的兒子，不肯放下身段的大女兒...道盡大時代的種種細碎。也是原節子代表作，這個洞悉世情的次女兒與父親起舞，成為全片焦點，也為時代作了精采的解讀。
　　World War II is over, and the once-prominent Anjo family has fallen on hard times. They must finally sell the family home - but not before one last ball to recapture their glory days. However, old secrets and high emotions threaten to turn the evening into tragedy. Proud patriarch Tadahiko (Takizawa) can barely keep his unruly offspring in check, and tries every last trick to keep the house where he has spent the happiest years of his life. In his darkest hour, daughter Atsuko (frequent Ozu heroine, Hara Setsuko) shows her beleaguered father the hard-won dignity in starting over.
　　SummerIFF 2007