Julien Donkey-Boy
In his second directorial effort, writer/director Harmony Korine embraces the hyper-realist aesthetic of Lars Von Trier's Dogma 95 film movement, which mandates handheld photography using only available lighting, among other restrictions. As in the controversial Gummo (1997), Korine abandons traditional narrative for a series of vignettes about bizarre characters, in this case centered on Julien (Ewen Bremner), a schizophrenic who works in a school for the blind. Julien lives at home with his pregnant sister Pearl (Chloe Sevigny); his brother Chris (Evan Neumann), who wrestles in his spare time; and their violent father (Werner Herzog), who slaps his children around, hoses them down with water, and offers to pay Chris ten dollars to dress up in his late mother's clothes and dance. Eventually Julien escapes from his home and interacts with people on the street (some of whom, reportedly, were not professional actors and had no idea that Bremmer was an actor playing a scene). more..
Director: Harmony Korine
Starring: Ewen Bremner, Chloe Sevigny,Werner Herzog, Evan Neumann, Joyce Korine
Korine remains unnecessarily smitten with sordidness, and there's plenty of it here.
It seems at first to be merely a jumble of discordant images ("Freaks" shot by the "Blair Witch" crew) but then, if you stay with it, the pattern emerges from the jumble.
Korine confirms his reputation as one of today's most experimentally minded filmmakers, helped by an inventive cast including German director Herzog in a surprisingly strong performance as the father.
At its best, it will impale you on its raw urgency. At other times, it's a slog through long improvisations that never achieve dramatic liftoff.
In his quest to capture truth and honesty, (Korine) has made a movie that is practically impossible to like.
Anthony Dod Mantle
Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema (2000)
Harmony Korine
Gijón International Film Festival (1999)
Best Cinematography
Independent Spirit Awards (2000)
Harmony Korine
Stockholm Film Festival (1999)
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