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SXSW Review: Get More of Harmony Korine with ‘The Beach Bum’

Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers is a cult fav’ among film goers. One half exclaims brilliance while the other half detests it, but regardless of what you think of his work, Korine’s style and flare is undeniable. Bombastic, absurdism is the name of the game, and his films are more or less mood pieces rather than your traditional narrative films. His latest film, The Beach Bum, is more of that, and you can tell right from the get-go that Korine’s signature trademarks are all over it.

Moondog (Matthew McConaughey) is our titular character who drifts along the Florida coast as a washed up poet doing anything and everything. Living off his wife’s (Isla Fisher) money, he galavants from beach to beach, smoking weed, drinking PBRs, and living without a care in the world as he struggles to channel his prior successes.

For narrative purposes, it seemingly doesn’t matter to the point of the film. The synopsis I gave you exists simply as a vehicle for the crazy sh*t Moondog. Each scene is a non sequitur from the prior, and it plays out like a series of sketches where absurdist comedy runs rampant. Smuggling weed out of your friend’s house with a blind airplane pilot. You bet. Swimming with sharks that you mistake for dolphins that take your foot. Why not? Cheating on your wife in the back of sleazy burger bar minutes before your daughter gets married. Sure thing. It’s all incredibly insane, off the wall, and par for the course for someone like Harmony Korine. 

It may be hard to believe but this film tones back the overt stylings of Spring Breakers. This one is just in it for the vibes, which may totally be your thing, but the film is one giant joke about itself and a responsive Xanax to the state of discourse in the country. There’s one scene in particular which I won’t spoil here, but just know that when Moondog reads his final poem, the film has reached it’s long running punchline and given its last eff’ to give (in a semi-good way).

The cast is wild. I already mentioned McConaughey as the eccentric and sun-crisped Moondog, and Fisher as the semi-faithful wife Minnie, but there is a slew of others in here as well with their own zany characters. You have Jonah Hill as playing Moondog’s manager. Snoop Dogg as Moondog’s supplier and closest confidant. Martin Lawrence as a fish boat captain. Zac Efron as an accomplice in Moondog’s escape from an AA retreat. And Jimmy Buffet as himself. Everyone is playing a caricature in this film. Not a relatable character, an off the wall, kooky caricature, and they’re all having a great time doing it. They each get their own segments to shine in, and their disparate, random connectivity feeds into the fluid, carefree nature of the film.  

You may be thinking at this point, “This sounds like a fun ass time.” And to that I would say, “Yah, if you’re into Harmony Korine.” Like I said, this film is one giant joke for an hour and half, and by the hour mark it really grades on you. Or at least me. I’m indifferent to Korine; I admire his audacity in some moments and other times times I can’t believe someone thought this was a good creative decision, but that’s kinda what makes his films his films. Those who have seen his prior work and enjoyed it will surely feel the same about The Beach Bum, but at the same time, I don’t think this will do anything to change the minds of those who already have baggage with Korine.

Also in a totally random note that somewhat ties into the absurdism of this film, before we entered the film, we were given scratch and sniff cards to use whenever weed played an important part in the film. You know, like those scratch and sniff cards you got from Burger King for The Rugrats Go Wild movie? We got those, and it was as pungent as you would expect. 

Score: 3/5

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SXSW Review: The Unlikely Kindred Friendship in ‘The Peanut Butter Falcon’

Time: 10:30pm on March 15th, 2019. On the outside of the Alamo Lamar in Austin, Texas a line of festival goers await to see a little film called The Peanut Butter Falcon. At this point in the festival, it already made its initial three screening run, but managed to pick up a fourth screening thanks to all the buzz it was generating. A random dude goes up and down the line handing out free coffee to attendees in a totally bizarre act for a late night film. He thanked everyone for coming out, greeted everyone, and appreciated everyone’s attendance.

That random dude was the director, Tyler Nilson, and his sincere appreciation for the late night crowd matched that of the work he put into his film, because The Peanut Butter Falcon ended up being one of the most pleasant surprises of the entire festival. 

The film follows Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a boy with downs syndrome living in a nursing home with dreams of becoming a professional wrestler, but who is kept in check by Eleanor (Dakotah Johnson) and the staff of the facility. One day he escapes their custody and stumbles upon another runaway named Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a fisher fleeing to Florida after destroying another man’s gear. Together they go on a journey to fulfill Zak’s dream of attending The Salt Water Redneck’s wrestling academy while pursuing parties chase them. 

A great deal of the film’s pleasantries come from Tyler’s and Zak’s relationship. The two meet under unlikely circumstances and come together under a mutual understanding of their on-the-run status. Together, they represent a carefree duo that finds joy in drinking on the beach, firing guns, and developing Zak’s wrestling persona, The Peanut Butter Falcon. With parts humor, sympathy, and rebellion, the two are an indomitable pair that generate much of the film’s long lasting appeal, and which only grows stronger as the film progresses and as external forces try to tear them apart. Though their pairing unlikely, you can’t help but leave the theater feeling warmed by the kindred friendship the two form on their journey.

Shia LaBeouf’s performance as Tyler is nothing short of authentic and kind. Who initially comes off as corse and abrasive ends up being someone who befriends an unlikely stranger and treats him as a normal human being. Tyler’s character is unbiased in how he sees Zak, and doesn’t let his disability come to define him. His determination and commitment to making Zak’s dreams come true is wholesome, and feeds into the film’s themes about how we treat people with disabilities.

Zak’s down syndrome is often brought up as a rationale to restrict him, but what PBF rightfully asserts is that it shouldn’t matter. He is not seen in the same light as others because of what others project onto him, and not what Zak knows true about himself. Elenor’s character is perhaps representative of the audience and the realization that comes from the film’s message. To see someone with a disability is to automatically assume inability, but what comes to fruition is that their hopes and dreams shouldn’t be shelved because of labels.

It’s to co-directors Tyler Nilson’s and Mike Schwartz’s credit that something as thematically delicate and socially pertinent didn’t miss the mark. The film was made out of a promise to Zack Gottsagen after knowing him for years and while the directors were still living in tents, so they come from a place of understanding. They treat this odyssey road movie as a vehicle for opening new perspectives on those with disabilities, and they do so with a warm, southern authenticity. With no ridicule or malice, PBF constantly embraces the idea of what it means to treat others as equals in spite of differences.

If there is a point to critique, it is the ending. To put simply it drops like a brick. When the climax finally hits, you are taken aback by the fact that the film ends within three minutes of its peak. It could have benefited from some more resolution surrounding both runaways, and while the closing shot is definitive in where the characters go, the transition between climax and ending stumbles on execution.

In the deluge of festival films to watch, there are usually more disappointments than there are standouts, but when a festival film makes such an impact as this one did, it makes it all worth it. To round out my opening anecdote, the film was so positively received that it went on to snag a fifth screening after winning the Narrative Spotlight award — which it too ended up being sold out. During a post screening Q&A, the directors emphatically told the audience that they needed positive word of mouth so they can get a distributor. After seeing the film, I would be incredibly remorseful for wider audiences if it didn’t eventually get a deal because the legend of The Peanut Butter Falcon shouldn’t be limited to the festival circuit.

Score: 4.25/5 Stars

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SXSW Review: ‘Adopt A Highway’ Finds Humanity in Second Chances

Last year’s Upgrade starring Logan Marshall-Green made its debut at SXSW. A year later, Logan Marshall-Green returns to SXSW, but instead of being in front of the camera, he steps behind the lens and into the director’s chair with his directorial debut, Adopt a Highway. This small film stars veteran Ethan Hawke as ex-convict Russell Millings who is released from prison after the state repeals its Three Strike Law. After twenty-one years behind bars, he makes his transition back into civilian life, unfamiliar with the changes society has undergone in his absence. One night at work, he finds a baby in a dumpster, and decides to take it upon himself to take care of her in the face of breaking his parole.

Narratively speaking, the film is all about second chances. Russell is a freed man who has been released into society with his life in pieces. Displaced and in isolation, he tries to pick them up as he finds everything has been taken from him. When he finds Elle, the abandoned baby, he has the opportunity to give her a second chance he never had. The two, one with her whole life in front in her and the other trying to find something moving forward, end up with a shared kinship through their experiences. The pairing of innocents on the opposite end of the age spectrum gives the film something to grip onto; as events transpire that challenge them, you hope both parties end up with the second chance they knowingly deserve.

The strongest element of Adopt a Highway is how well it depicts humanity through Russell. For a person who has been wronged by society, it’s easy to see how he could feel slighted, but instead of making him exact revenge, Marshall-Green makes him a man of sincere compassion. He is a genteel and righteous man who just wants to do right and move forward. The actions Russell takes elicits waves of sympathy as you admire his generosity, revere his selflessness, and lament his dejection. 

The vehicle for all these emotions is carried on the back of Ethan Hawke’s well nuanced performance. The long time actor has proven his range, but here he goes for subtly, making  Russell humble and reserved while also being emotionally vulnerable. With minimal dialog we can see how Russell struggles to readjust. Connecting to the internet or using a cell phone for the first time are presented with humor at first, but through Hawkes subtleties, you begin to see a sad sense of helplessness. A man trying his best to do right, but struggling all the same is heartbreaking, and you can’t help but feel sympathetic to his character.

The film taps into the current of political debate surrounding criminal sentencing for low level offenses, and how something as lowly as a petty drug crime results in a mandatory minimum. Injustice in contrast with humanity and compassion is what evokes such a strong sense of human connection to Russell. He has an inherently good nature to him, but because of a mistake when he was younger, he had his life ripped out from under him. 

It’s a heart wrenching sight, and Marshall-Green’s direction really lets it speak for itself. There isn’t overt direction style here in the sense that it is overdone. While subject matter like this can topple over into sappy indie filmmaking, Marshall-Green exercises discipline in just letting things be as they are. It’s simple, clean, and efficient in showing pertinent elements, and when you have someone like Ethan Hawke doing most of the heavy lifting, it’s probably best not to interfere with that. But, for a first time directorial debut, it’s remarkable how something like this didn’t go wrong. It effectively builds up expectations, tears them down, stretches your heart strings, and rounds it out with an emotionally well-deserved payoff at the end. It also doesn’t hurt that Marshall-Green wrote the screenplay so bonus points there.

When you saw Marshall-Green as a robot cyborg kicking ass last year, I bet you didn’t think he had directing chops. And good ones at that. With the right balance of heart and empathy, he strikes a winning formula for a story about redemption in the face of extraneous circumstances. Adopt a Highway shows that despite all the things that can go wrong in our life and how dire it can get, with a little hope, humanity, and compassion, we can all get a second chance at life.

4.5/5 Stars