An extremely timely viewing (I turned 30 six weeks ago) for John Sayles’ directorial debut, a talky ensemble melodrama about a group of former pseudo- radical college friends reuniting for a weekend in the country. Inspired equally by Cassavettes and Bergman, this is especially fascinating as an early example of truly independent American filmmaking- Sayles raised the miniscule budget himself, and shot on location using largely unknown actors, most of whom have stayed that way (but who would’ve put money on the goon in the baseball cap being the one nominated for Best Actor almost three decades later?). It’s been an inspiration for small scale personal filmmakers ever since- directors like Jim Jarmusch, Spike Lee and Hal Hartley may have imposed their personal idiosyncracies, but the basic blueprint remains Sayles’. And I hope he sued the hell out of Lawrence Kasdan when The Big Chill came out.
by Tom Huddleston | Source: Actionmax
03 Apr 2006 6:12 AM | Submit Comment