The film festival magic continues, but this time with an entirely new one! Similar excellent options, although sadly some were relegated strictly to drive-in theaters. Obviously, since I do not live there I cannot attend. Sad. No worry though, because I did get to catch a film I’d had my eye one since the start of the year!
That special film is called Monsoon. When I first heard about it I was creeping on Henry Golding’s Wikipedia page (since I liked The Gentlemen so much) and was clicking through his projects. This one is technically a 2019 endeavor, but sometimes they don’t make it to the masses for a very long time. It intrigued me because it was again, something entirely different than what I’d seen Golding in before.
Monsoon is very much a drama film, as it follows his character Kit who’s just traveled back to his birthplace in Saigon, while also visiting his parent’s birthplace of Hanoi. While he lived there until he was six, he has limited memories of his time there since his parents escaped with him just after the Vietnam War. While back in Saigon, he is able to reconnect with a cousin, strike up a friendship, and a meaningful relationship with an American tourist. It’s clear Kit is working through a lot of confusion about his Vietnamese identity, and his cousin describes the look his face is giving throughout most of the film: pain. As time passes, we see some of that pain ease during his time there, and the journey is quite touching to watch.
Next up was not a film festival entry, but rather one of Netflix’s latest releases in a string of hits, Rebecca. Based on the book of the same name written by Daphne du Maurier, this was best described by Armie Hammer on a talk show recently as “a ghost story without a ghost.” It’s also an odd mix of psychological thriller and romance. It’s hard to see what the dominating genre is, and it’s not typically what I see mashed together in films. A large part of me watching this had to do with the fact that it was reuniting Free Fire director Ben Wheatly back with actors Hammer and Same Riley. I loved that film so I think I’d watch anything the three of them are involved in.
Having never read the book, nor seen any of the other four film adaptations (including Hitchcock’s Oscar winning turn with it), I literally had nothing to compare this to, so I quite liked it. My sister complained that it was slow, but while it was slow it was certainly not boring. Although, I will say that most of the action happens in the last forty minutes of its runtime, so prepare yourself for that. Do I wish that the events leading up to all the twists and turns would have felt more falsely supernatural? Sure. But I’m still happy with what I got. Hats off to Kristin Scott Thomas as Mrs. Danvers. That woman was vile and I it made me hate her whole heartedly.
All in all, yesterday’s films were certainly not for everyone. Both were slowed paced dramas (for the most part), and took a real hard look at relationships in totally different ways. Monsoon was definitely the winner for me, so if it interests you, definitely check it out! And for all of you Netflix subscribers, Rebecca will be out there for you whenever you feel like it. More film festival movies are coming up tonight, so stay tuned!