2020 NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL: IN REVIEW

Due to COVID, the ever-prestigious New York Film Festival shifted its program online, making it available to all moviegoers for a small fee. I purchased tickets to a few films, and I'll share my thoughts here. Hopefully, this gives some impression as to what I think are important movies to see in the future (whenever they find release) and, perhaps, older films to watch that might give a taste of the talents present at this year's 58th edition of the New York Film Festival.

THE HUMAN VOICE (2020), Pedro Almodovar's latest film is also a short film. Clocking in at exactly 30 minutes, Tilda Swinton spends most of that run time walking around her impeccably decorated apartment, wearing AirPods, and talking on the phone to a recent ex-lover. It's astonishing what Almodovar manages to do in 30 minutes, crafting a claustrophobic narrative of panic, drama, and intrigue. The film almost begets a longer run time, as you can never have too much of Tilda Swinton wearing beautiful clothes and delivering a masterful performance. Sony Pictures Classics has acquired rights to distribution and will release The Human Voice in late 2020/early 2021.

FRENCH EXIT (2021), a film in which Michelle Pfeiffer galivants around Paris following the loss of her late husband's fortune. The film is really an ensemble comedy with dramatic undertones, and it's mostly successful. What may surprise viewers is director Azazel Jacobs' indulgence in surrealist humor that occasionally feels out of place. By far, the best part of French Exit is Pfeiffer's gloriously unhinged performance as a frigid widow navigating her loneliness in the most eccentric of ways. It's less a mixed-bag than a lightly touching, beautiful-to-look-at, slight work centering on a profound performance. Sony Pictures Classics has acquired rights to distribution and will release French Exit on February 12, 2021.

MALMKROG (2020), a three-and-a-half-hour Romanian drama focusing on the philosophical musings of Russian aristocracy. What sounds like an intimidating slog proves to be a fruitful exercise in deep discussion concerning the purpose and ultimate inutility of humanity. The film is alienating, difficult, exhausting, much to the disregard of director Cristi Puiu. What's left is a deliberate, thoughtful, expansive dialogue on the absurdity of theological debate. Malmkrog is awaiting acquisition and distribution in the United States.

UNDINE (2020), German director Christian Petzold's follow-up to the excruciatingly good Phoenix and Transit, this is a slighter work from the major director. And yet, it's often quite stunning. Undine is entangled in German in the social and political implications of German history and mythology. This feels almost impenetrable to the viewer, but Undine is ultimately a tender love story about sacrifice and romance. It is, after consideration, my favorite film of the festival. IFC Films has acquired rights to distribution and will release Undine in late 2020.