Chop Shop
So last week I watched what is probably my favourite film this year, ‘Chop Shop’ by American filmmaker, Ramin Bahrani. Now I had never heard of him before and I happened to watch the film almost by accident but it reminded me of another favourite film of mine, Uzak (Distant) by Turkish filmmaker Nuri Bilge Ceylan.
Like Uzak, Chop Shop is brilliantly understated and economical in its storytelling. There are a lot of quiet sequences, people doing work, the monotony of real life, something that few filmmakers get right.
Another reason to like the fim is where it ends. Often, when halfway through really interesting books and films I wonder how or where the author or auteur is going to end the story without taking the piss out of it. The simplicity with which Bahrani ends Chop Shop would have brought a smile to the face of one of my film school professors, SB. ‘This is catharsis!’ he would say excitedly.
I also watched Bahrani’s earlier film ‘Man Push Cart’ but it didn’t live up to my expectations after watching Chop Shop.
Also whats with the bullshit taglines and blurbs you always see on the US release covers of films? Specially foreign language ones? The americans can dumb down just about anything.
I stayed up all night last night and read ‘The White Tiger’ by Aravind Adiga. What hooked me about this extremely average book was that it was/is dedicated to Rahmin Bahrani. The book started out strong but ended on a very meek note. The final, 4 a.m. verdict? Meh.. I’ve read much much better Booker Prize winners.