Todd Solondz’s PALINDROMES goes nowhere very slowly
VIEWS OF YOUTH IN FILMS FROM THE COLLECTION: PALINDROMES (Todd Solondz, 2004)
MoMA Film, Museum of Modern Art
11 West 53rd St. between Fifth & Sixth Aves.
Thursday, August 9, 4:15
Series runs through August 14
Tickets: $12, in person only, may be applied to museum admission within thirty days, same-day screenings free with museum admission, available at Film and Media Desk beginning at 9:30 am
212-708-9400
www.moma.org
New Jersey native Todd Solondz busted out of the gate with a trio of fascinating, dark films — Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995), Happiness (1998), and Storytelling (2001) — that explored childhood and adolescence in controversial yet captivating ways, examining such subjects as bullying, child abuse, and burgeoning sexuality. But the eclectic writer-director goes way too far with Palindromes, a complex tale that makes for an extremely painful cinematic experience. Opening with the funeral of Dawn Wiener (the lead character in Dollhouse), the film tells the tale of a thirteen-year-old girl who is desperate to have a baby so she can share the love she feels inside her. Her parents (Ellen Barkin, who could use some hand cream, and Richard Masur, from One Day at a Time) adore her, but they can’t prevent her from pursuing her needs. As young Aviva ventures out into the world, she is played by very different actors in every scene (including Emani Sledge, Valerie Shusterov, Hannah Freiman, Rachel Corr, Will Denton, Sharon Wilkins, Shayna Levine, and Jennifer Jason Leigh), a tactic that ranges from being cute and clever to manipulative and annoying. Aviva is so dispassionate about everything in her life except wanting a baby, you’ll want to shake her out of her malaise and yell at her to speak faster. Stephen Adly Guirgis costars as a truck driver with a thing for young girls, and Debra Monk plays a Bible-lovin’ woman who runs a halfway house for children with physical and mental disabilities that is disturbing to watch — and not in a good way. We’d love to think of a palindrome (words or sentences that are the same backward and forward) to further knock this film, but it’s not worth our time, or yours. Palindromes is screening August 9 as part of the MoMA film series “Unaccompanied Minors: Views of Youth in Films from the Collection,” being held in conjunction with the new exhibit “Century of the Child: Growing by Design, 1900-2000.” Running through August 14, the festival includes such other films about childhood as Irving Cummings’s Curly Top, Charles Laughton’s The Night of the Hunter, Maria João Ganga’s Hollow City, Laslo Benedek’s Sons, Mothers, and a General, and Peter Brook’s Lord of the Flies.
One of the ultimate cult classics and the best bowling movie ever, the Coen brothers’ The Big Lebowski has built up such a following since its 1998 release that fans now gather every year for Lebowski Fest, where they honor all things Dude, and with good reason. The Big Lebowski is an intricately weaved gem that is made up of set pieces that come together in magically insane ways. Jeff Bridges is awesome as the Dude, a laid-back cool cat who gets sucked into a noirish plot of jealousy, murder, money, mistaken identity, and messy carpets. Julianne Moore is excellent as free spirit Maude, Tara Reid struts her stuff as Bunny, and Peter Stormare, Flea, and Torsten Voges are a riot as a trio of nihilists. Also on hand are Philip Seymour Hoffman, David Huddleston, Aimee Mann, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, David Thewlis, Sam Elliott, Ben Gazzara, Jon Polito, and other crazy characters, but the film really belongs to the Dude and his fellow bowlers Jesus Quintana (John Turturro, who is so dirty he is completely cut out of the television version), Donny (Steve Buscemi), and Walter (John Goodman), who refuses to roll on Shabbos. And through it all, one thing always holds true: The Dude abides. The Big Lebowski is screening Thursday night in Tompkins Square Park as part of Two Boots’ twenty-fifth anniversary celebration, so there will be free pizza as well as a live performance by the Luddites and the East Village All-Stars. (And just for the record, the Two Boots specialty pie known as the Dude consists of tasso, ground beef, and cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, a Cajun bacon cheeseburger delight.)
