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REVIEW BY: Toronto International Film Festival

posted 17 years ago by DenaliBear
11 replies | jump to latest

Here is the Little Athens review by Piers Handling,
the Director of the Toronto International Film Festival:
http://www.e.bell.ca/filmfest/2005/films_description.asp?pageID=&id=151
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Featuring a smart young cast of rising stars, Tom Zuber’s second feature is a caustic and consuming look at disaffected small-town American youth. Little Athens is as ironic as its title suggests. If Athens is the birthplace of Western civilization and democracy, representing a legacy of supreme achievements, how then does Little Athens, a small, sleepy town in Arizona, represent the state of the world two thousand years later?

The picture painted is grim, even if its canvas is filled with sunny vistas, manicured lawns and crystalline pools. Caught in a dead-end, post-high-school void, the youth of Little Athens are a strange assortment of ragtag characters, constantly at each other’s throats. As in a Robert Altman movie, a series of stories overlaps over a twenty-four-hour period, each one finely conceived and convincingly performed. Heather (Erica Leerhsen) is a neurotic EMS worker convinced that her boyfriend, a handsome young cop, is cheating on her. Jimmy (John Patrick Amedori), wide-eyed and tousle-haired, delivers pizza, works in a gym and deals drugs to get out from under a sizeable debt. Two slacker roommates, Corey (DJ Qualls) and Pedro (Jorge Garcia) clean pools, but their meagre earnings are not enough to pay the rent. And then there is Jessica (Jill Ritchie), living on her mother’s couch, who learns that her boyfriend is out to get her for giving him an STD.

The film evokes so many other films about troubled teens - Rebel Without a Cause, Splendor in the Grass, American Graffiti, Kids - but it is very much its own entity, a distinctive and arresting accomplishment. Each encounter in the film is a confrontation, oppositional and antagonistic. Close friends do little to comfort one another; they are too busy protecting their own selfish interests, clawing to get ahead or simply to maintain their position. Surviving in this Darwinian world requires a special skill set that Zuber and his co-screenwriter and brother, Jeff Zuber, capture with unerring precision. Quite a portrait of the new millennium!

- Piers Handling

[–] kasparhauser44 17 years ago

what a pretentious and overblown review of this film. if the point is that life in america is detriorating to the point of aimless idiocy, then this movie has hit the nail on the head. i didn't need 100 minutes of film fiction to tell me this. i've seen this idea, if this is in fact the point of this film, much better in kids and gummo. weak and about a decade late.

[–] JimHaze37 17 years ago

True -- I have hours of Camcorder footage of my screw ball friends wasting away from my chilhood -- never thought it was movie worthy until now -- you think anyone will give me a huge advance to streamline this crap into a feature and peddle it around film festivals.

.....Or My Name Ain't Nathan Arizona

[–] canwriter2 16 years ago

I could not agree with you more. What a pile of pseudo-artsy indie whining garbage. What is the point. Why are independant movies so void of joy and fun?

[–] juliet-88 16 years ago

I have to totally disagree with the reviews stating the the film was devoid of joy and chock full of aimless idiocy. This was one of the most poignant films I've seen of late, not only was the dialogue convincing, you have to admit it was freaking hilarious at each turn. I much prefer Little Athens, to say, a truly dark, depressing (and malevolent) film like Naked, which is also a good film in its own right, but really leaves one depressed. Little Athens pays homage to Jim Jarmusch and reveals a reverence for the mundane and inconsequential. At the same time, the film takes on heavy topics but manages to quietly maintain an ethical vantage. The relationships are right on. Every brother and sister has had the same exchange that Corey (Qualls) and Emily (Horn)'s share on the swingset. The moral obtuseness and contradictions in Jimmy (JP Amedori) are endearing. Superb acting from the entire cast and the emotional complexities of the story-lines make it a great film.

[–] larry-411 16 years ago

Great writeup, juliet-88! Nice to hear from somebody else who "gets" this film. Here is my review:
http://www.pronetworks.org/forum/story75599.html

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The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.

[–] juliet-88 16 years ago

Hey Larry, Thanks, I liked your review very much. I totally agree with you about JP Amedori. He is without a doubt a phenomenal actor with soul. I was arguing with a friend after seeing the film the other day, because my friend thought the film was derivative and copped every cliche in the book. I totally disagree. My friend said it was like Quentin Tarantino meets Magnolia meets Jim Jarmusch. No way (except for the Jarmusch comparison). Each of the characters in Little Athens is likeable, I'd even say loveable. Despite their flaws, each of the characters is endearing, and reminds me of people I know, unlike the over-the-top fools in Tarantino films and Magnolia. I will watch this film over and over. I'm looking forward to seeing a lot more of JP Amedori.

[–] larry-411 16 years ago

Thanks so much for the kind words. It's funny how people who like a film that evokes other work call it an homage while those who don't call it derivative. All art is derivative -- it has to be, because no artist creates work in a vacuum. The question is, are you seeing something done differently than its been done before? I like it when films remind me of others I've seen and liked.

John is a terrific actor who has, unfortunately, done precious little on the big screen. He has a lot of television experience. The films he has done, with the exception of The Butterfly Effect and Stick It, have been indies that are hard to find. They are worth tracking down, though.

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The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.

[–] juliet-88 16 years ago

That's so true, Larry, what a great insight. I'm trying to track down John's other indie work, but they seem impossible to get a hold of. Is Love is the Drug coming out on DVD? Is there any way to see Kara's File? Hey, maybe this info is already on John's IMDb page...?

[–] larry-411 16 years ago

Hehe. Yes, John's aunt and I try to keep that board up-to-date. I also post about his other films at those respective boards as well whenever I get new info.

He has a new project coming out called Lowgrounds which we've posted some stills and vids of.

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The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.

[–] juliet-88 16 years ago

Awesome, thanks Larry-411 for taking the time to do that. I am psyched about Lowgrounds.

Hey, by the way, I like your top 25 picks for 2007 list.

[–] larry-411 16 years ago

My pleasure, and thanks so much for the kind words! It is much appreciated.

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The world moves for love. It kneels before it in awe.