Mrs. LanceAround: “I Fell Like I Just Got Punched in the Stomach”
Elgin Park
In Richard Bach’s bestseller, The Bridge Across Forever, he talks about how his writing teacher in high school used to pound his fist on the desk and say, “Don’t TELL me, SHOW me! INCIDENT! and EXAMPLE!” Elgin Park is a bit of a teaser. It gives a glimpse of a man who creates entire scenes out of models and photographs them. He talks about how he knew he was gay in kindergarten. He was bullied throughout school. He became reclusive. He retreated into creating incredibly detailed and accurate scale models of scenes from his hometown. The problem with the movie is exactly what Richard Bach was talking about…there’s way too much footage of the man talking about his models and not enough of seeing the models. Too many questions are unanswered. How many models are there? Where does he display them? Why does he create them? I could go on and on. I enjoyed the documentary. But I felt teased and wanted more.
Tomorrow We Disappear
Mrs. LanceAround grabs my hand at the end of this film and says, “Oh my God! I feel like I’ve just been punched in the stomach!”
She’s absolutely right.
This was a very emotional film that details a slum in Delhi, India, were artisans have lived for generations. They built their lives there. But the government has sold the property to a developer who is tearing down the slum to build one of the largest skyscraper in India. The developer has to build temporary, then permanent, housing for the current residents. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that they are being displaced from their homes. And Mrs. LanceAround thinks the temporary housing looks like a prison.
A very moving story as was evidence by the reaction of the audience. For me, my review is a little more measured. Matthew Curtis, the programming director of the FFF, is fond of saying, “I LIKE every movie in the festival. I don’t LOVE every movie.” I really liked this film. But I didn’t love it. As I contemplate the reasons for this, I come to the conclusion that the filmmaker was too close to the subjects of the movie. Shots were held just a little too long. At places, the story drug just a bit. It wasn’t much, but enough to take me out of the movie.
Yet the power of this story was such that it overcomes these obstacles. Very much a “must see” movie. But Mrs. LanceAround wants to warn you; be ready for a wallop in your gut!
Reactions From the Audience
One of the ways the Enzian Theatre raises money is by selling memberships. For a modest fee, members receive perks such as reduced ticket pricing, invitations to special events and…best of all…free popcorn during the movie! As Mrs. LanceAround and I walked into the theatre, four ladies at the table beside us had a free bucket of popcorn they graciously offered to share with us. As the movie ended, I decided to interview them about their impressions of the movie we just saw…
LanceAround: Hello, and you are…
Melinda...
Becky…
Leslie…
And Andrea took off…
LanceAround: Andrea left, but you just told me her name so we’ll mention her in the blog as well! How long have you been members?
Two Years, I don’t know…7 years? 8 years? 3 years.
LanceAround: What’s your favorite thing about the FFF?
So much! Just the huge diversity of films. Even at the Enzian every week you don’t get this diversity; all the international directors and artists. And then the shorts, too, seeing the shorts. I don’t know of any theatre in this town that shows shorts.
LanceAround: What did you think of the movie you just saw?
For me it was timely. I’m going to India in November. And I’m purposely taking a trip that’s uncomfortable because it’s so out there. So seeing it for me was frightening in a good way. Because I know that’s what I’m going to see. The movie was amazing because I’m also in the home building development business. I’m a consultant. I can see what razing a community and building on it does to the people that were originally there. So it hit me in both those directions. It was a movie I would have never seen if I didn’t come to the film festival. When would I ever see anything like that? So eye opening to even know…you see these street performers…everyone has a story. We don’t really know someone else’s story until someone documents it and puts it up for us to view and then we react to it.
By this time, the large theatre staff is busily clearing tables and cleaning up to get ready for the next film. I am amazed at their efficiency. I know it’s a slight annoyance for me to finish my interview. But they are, as always, polite and respectful. I ask for any last comments.
Time doesn’t wait for any of us. And it’s sad…Kind of throw out the baby with the bathwater…really sad.
Thanks so much!
See, that’s another interesting thing about the film festival…meeting people like you! Bloggers who are doing cool blogs!
I blush as I spend the rest of the evening trying to convince Mrs. LanceAround that they were attempting to flirt with me. “They were just being polite,” she corrects me with an impish smile on her face.
Lance Around Orlando 
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