Among the slew of independent filmmakers who had a lot of things to say in American cinema, the duo of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck are among those who emerged from the world of independent cinema in making stories about characters not living in traditional society or dealing with issues that make them apart from the world. Although they’ve made five feature films so far including a massive commercial hit with Captain Marvel that is part of the highly successful Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. The two haven’t strayed from their ideals to tell stories about real people whether they’re from the fringes of society or part of a cosmic world.
Both born in 1976, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck both met at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts where they were film students. Boden was Newton, Massachusetts while Fleck was from Berkeley, California as the two both had similar interests in film before they met. It was through the films of Robert Altman that they bonded as they became collaborators where Boden helped Fleck finish a thesis film. After finishing NYU, the two would make a few documentary short films that would eventually lead to a narrative feature entitled Gowanus, Brooklyn that starred an unknown in Shareeka Epps who plays a young girl that befriends a school teacher struggling with drug addiction. The 19-minute short film would be shown at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival in January of that year where it won a prize and gave Boden and Fleck the chance to develop their first film at the Sundance Writer’s Lab.
Half Nelson
Inspired by the work they did on their short film Gowanus, Brooklyn, Boden and Fleck uses their time at the Sundance Writer’s Lab to expand the story into a feature film as it would explore this unlikely relationship between a drug-addicted school teacher and one of his students in the inner city. Boden and Fleck would expand the character Drey who had been portrayed by Shareeka Epps in the short as she would reprise her role for the film while the film would explore a man struggling with his addiction as well as help this young girl who is poised to embark on a bleak future as he grows concerned for her well-being. The script would attract the attention of Canadian actor Ryan Gosling who had just gained attention for his performance in the 2004 romantic film The Notebook as the film would mark a different path for the young actor.
After gaining funding for the film with a budget of $700,000 as well as a cast that would include another up-and-coming actor in Anthony Mackie as the drug dealer Frank, production began in 2005 in Brooklyn with Fleck serving as director while Boden would take part as a producer and as the film’s editor though she wouldn’t receive credit as a director due to rules from the Director’s Guild of America. With cinematographer Andrij Parekh being a key collaborator for Boden and Fleck early in their career as well as production designer Beth Mickle and costume designer Erin Benach. Boden and Fleck wanted to maintain an element of realism into the story though their attempts to get Gosling to ad-lib wasn’t easy though a compromise was made as it eventually lead to a smooth production and trust between Gosling and the filmmakers. Boden and Fleck would also ensure that they get a realistic approach to the world of drugs as it play into the struggle that Gosling’s character Dan Dunne and the demons he is carrying which would hinder his attempt in trying to have a normal life.
Through Gosling’s suggestion, Boden and Fleck hired the Canadian indie rock band the Broken Social Scene to do the score as it would help set a mood for the film. The film made its premiere on January 2006 at the Sundance Film Festival where it was a major hit at the festival leading to the distributor ThinkFilm to buy the film as it got a limited U.S. theatrical release later that August where the film won rave reviews and grossed nearly $2.7 million and an additional $2 million worldwide. Following a successful home video release with help from Sony Pictures in February of 2007, the film garnered several accolades including an Oscar nomination for Gosling for Best Actor as well as winning three Independent Spirit Awards to Gosling for Best Actor, Epps for Best Actress, and Fleck winning Best Director.
Sugar
After the success of their first feature film, Boden and Fleck wanted to do a film about the world of immigration in relation to baseball as well as players from the Dominican Republic and how they come into the system in America. Doing research about Dominican players coming to America and never making it to the major leagues prompt Boden and Fleck to create a film about the immigrant experience and how Dominicans come to America with dreams only to face some harsh realities. Retaining many of their collaborators including cinematographer Andrij Parekh, production designer Beth Mickle, and costume designer Erin Benach with Boden getting full credit as a director while also serving as editor. Boden and Fleck also decided to take some risks for the film.
Rather than get up-and-coming actors or someone on the rise, Boden and Fleck turned to casting director Cindy Tolan to get unknowns including Dominicans for the film as the lead role of the titular character is given to Algenis Perez Soto while much of the roles went to lesser-known character actors and other unknowns including Andre Holland as an American minor league player helping Sugar to understand American culture and the game. Much of the film was shot on location in Iowan towns of Davenport and Burlington as it is where much of the minor league system happens as it showcases how young Dominicans had to adjust to their new situations as well as having to learn English and the rules of the game. Boden and Fleck also play into the reality of what happen to those who don’t succeed in the minors and don’t make it to the majors as it adds to the pressure for players to succeed as they know they have a spot to protect. It also play into the pressure of Dominicans wanting to succeeds so they can help their families as Boden and Fleck would shoot on location in the Dominican Republic as well as parts of Arizona and New York City where many Dominican players would be at following their failures at the minors.
The film made its premiere in January of 2008 at the Sundance Film Festival where it was well-received but it would take a year for the film to get a theatrical release as it would be released by Sony Pictures Classic in April of 2009. The film would receive rave reviews and make over a million dollars in the box office due to its limited release. Yet, the film would make the American Film Institute’s list of the 10 best films of 2009 giving Boden and Fleck some clout as filmmakers that are willing to tell stories about people living on the fringes of society.
It's Kind of a Funny Story
With two back-to-back critical successes and some buzz from those films, Boden and Fleck were approached by producers Kevin Misher and Ben Browning about doing an adaptation of Ned Vizzini’s 2006 novel about a teenage kid who checks into a mental hospital citing exhaustion and anxiety over his future following thoughts of suicide. Vizzini’s book was a hit as Paramount Pictures and MTV Films bought the film rights for an adaptation to be made but development fell apart until Focus Features were able to secure the film rights as Boden and Fleck worked on the screenplay with Vizzini’s involvement as he would make a cameo appearance for the film. Retaining many of their collaborators for the film including cinematographer Andrij Parekh, production designer Beth Mickle, casting director Cindy Mickle, and the band the Broken Social Scene in providing the music score. Production would begin in November of 2009 in New York City and Brooklyn where the book was set.
The film’s ensemble cast would feature a group of up-and-comers and established stars as it would include Keir Gilchrist, Emma Roberts, Zach Galifianakis, Lauren Graham, Jim Gaffigan, Jeremy Davies, Viola Davis, Zoe Kravitz, Thomas Mann, Aasif Mandvi, and Bernard White. For the production, Boden and Fleck would use Woodhull Medical Center as the hospital where the film is set as well as Poly Prep Country Day School as the school that the film’s protagonist Craig Gilner attends. It play into this need of wanting to succeed and be part of something where Gilner is tasked to finish an application to attend a prestigious summer school program with his father wanting him to attend this program. Boden and Fleck doesn’t just play into people having difficulty with the expectations of society but also unable to live up to what the world wants as well as the ideas of conformity. The film would provide Zach Galifianakis, who is known primarily for comedies, a rare dramatic performance as a man dealing with anxieties as well as uncertainty of where to go after he is to be discharged. Boden and Fleck would also infuse bits of style that has elements of surrealism as it relates to the ideas of depression and anxiety where Gilner would eventually find an outlet through drawing.
The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto Film Festival in September of that year as it would be given a wide release in the U.S. a month later with a release around the world to follow. While the film was well-received for its ensemble and dealing with the subject of mental illness, the film did received mixed reviews with critics feeling that it was lightweight and tried too hard to balance comedy and drama. Commercially, the film was considered a disappointment grossing only $6.5 million against its $8 million budget.
Mississippi Grind
Following the disappointing reaction of It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Boden and Fleck spent the next few years working on various TV projects for work while developing a project relating to the world of gambling. Inspired by trips to riverboat casinos in Iowa and in the areas of the Mississippi River, the film drew upon a primary influence for Boden and Fleck in Robert Altman. Notably his 1974 film California Split that was about two gamblers who team together to win money as Boden and Fleck both decided to borrow that scenario and update it involving two different gamblers in two different directions as they travel through cities on the Mississippi River and eventually go to a big game in New Orleans in the hope to win some big money.
The project was in pre-production and development as early as 2012 with Jake Gyllenhaal attached to play a role with Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn joining the project in early 2013. Yet with a lot of independently-funded films, financing would fall apart as Gyllenhaal left the project in the spring of 2013 until he was replaced by Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds in June of that year while British actress Sienna Miller joined the film in November as shooting began in January of that year with American actress Analeigh Tipton joining the film a week after shooting began. With the exception of cinematographer Andrij Parekh and casting director Cindy Tolan, Boden and Fleck would work with a new film crew as much of the production was set in cities near or around the Mississippi River with New Orleans as the film’s climax. Boden and Fleck didn’t just want to play up into this friendship between two different men where Reynolds’ character is a guy who always win and Mendelsohn is someone who always lose but both realize their worth for another but also have things they want that is more important than winning money. Boden and Fleck would get filmmaker James Toback to appear in a cameo as a famed gambler for the film’s climax as it would play into the fate of the film’s protagonists and what they want in their lives.
The film made its premiere on January of 2015 at the Sundance Film Festival where it was major hit at the festival followed by well-received screenings several months later at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic and at the Melbourne International Film Festival. The film would get a limited theatrical release through A24 and DirectTV in late August of that year where even though it didn’t make much money against its $6 million budget. The film would garner rave reviews from critics who saw it as a return to form for the duo following the mixed reaction of their previous film as it did help raise their profile in the world of independent cinema.
Captain Marvel
Following a break between projects including Boden’s own pregnancy as she had given birth to a child in 2015, Boden and Fleck were approached by studios about helming all sorts of films yet it was Marvel Studios that continued to court them. In April 2017, the duo agreed to work with producer Kevin Feige on developing a film project about Carol Danvers who would become Captain Marvel as part of Marvel Studios’ highly-successful shared film universe known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film had been in development since 2014 as it would be part of the MCU’s Phase Three slate of films as part of the Infinity Saga. While the film would be an origin story of how Danvers went from being a Kree soldier into going on her own as Captain Marvel, the film would be the first film from the MCU in which a female superhero would have her own solo film and origin story.
The film went through years of development that includes a script from Guardians of the Galaxy co-writer Nicole Perlman and Meg LaFauve writing a version of the script that would be re-tooled for years with Joe Shrapnel, Anna Waterhouse, and Geneva Robertson-Dworet taking part in shaping the story. It would be when Boden and Fleck took part in the film as they worked with Robertson-Dworet and Jac Schaeffer to write the script as it wouldn’t just be based on the original comics created by Stan Lee and Gene Colan but also Danvers’ own comic storyline by Colan and Roy Thomas. While the script would play with the tropes expected in an origin story yet it is more about a woman who is dealing with images relating to what might be old memories as she finds herself on Earth and discovers more about herself. Boden and Fleck knew that it had a human story to tell but also play along with the conventions of a superhero film. Like many films of the MCU and under Feige’s watch, Boden and Fleck knew they wouldn’t have final cut yet Feige would give them some control in what they wanted to do making the collaboration an easy one.
In 2016, Brie Larson, who had just won an Oscar for Best Actress for the film Room months earlier, was cast in the titular role while the ensemble would include MCU regular Samuel L. Jackson reprising his role as a younger version of Nick Fury and Clark Gregg also reprising his role as Phil Coulson. With the aid of casting director Sarah Finn, Boden and Fleck would reunite with Ben Mendelsohn who would play the role of the Skrulls leader Talos whose shift-shaping alien race would also disguise themselves as humans where Mendelsohn would also play then-S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Keller. Lee Pace would make a small appearance reprising his role as Ronan the Accuser from Guardians of the Galaxy as the cast would then include Annette Bening, Gemma Chan, Lashana Lynch, Akira Akbar, and Jude Law as Danvers’ Kree mentor Yon-Rogg. The film would also feature a cameo from one of the comic’s creators in Stan Lee who would make one of his final cameo appearances for the MCU. Shooting began in March 2019 with a budget of $152-$175 million as it would be the biggest film that Boden and Fleck would make.
Though Boden and Fleck wouldn’t have their regular collaborators on board and Boden stepping back from the editing, the two were able to keep the production grounded as the film would be set in the mid-1990s where Boden and Fleck worked with production designer Andy Nicholson in recreating 1990s California. The film would also mark the first film of the MCU to be scored by a woman as Pinar Toprak would help bring in some orchestral flourishes with the music soundtrack consisting of music from the 1990s. Boden and Fleck also played into Danvers’ lost identity as well as insight into this conflict between the alien races the Kree and the Skrulls that has similarities to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Though the film would share storylines that play into other things that would happen for other films of the MCU as well as how Nick Fury would become this somewhat-cynical head of S.H.I.E.L.D. The film would give Boden and Fleck not just a new energy to the MCU but also help introduce a new character that would become crucial to the cinematic universe.
The film premiered on February 27, 2019 in London followed a wide worldwide release a week later as it had so far as of May 2019 made over a billion dollars worldwide with over $425 million in the U.S. alone. While the critical reception wasn’t as high as other films of the MCU or some of Boden and Fleck’s more well-received films, it was still lauded by critics as a fun action-adventure film with praise for Boden and Fleck in grounding the story without emphasizing on visual effects. Larson, Jackson, Law, and Mendelsohn also received great notices as the film would also be popular with a female audience as female-lead superhero films hadn’t been successful until 2017’s Wonder Woman giving Boden and Fleck some praise for giving that demographic another hero to root for.
Additional TV Projects
Like many filmmakers who work outside of the Hollywood film system, Boden and Fleck would go to television not just for work but also to fund projects and go live without having to worry too much about money. Among the TV shows Boden and Fleck would direct include episodes for the shows The Big C, The Affair, and Billions for the pay-cable channel ShowTime. Fleck would direct episodes for a couple of shows for HBO in In Treatment and Looking while he and Boden would write and direct an episode for the horror-thriller anthology show Room 104 entitled Red Tent that would have the duo reunite with Keir Gilchrist who plays a young man trying to create a bomb to detonate for a political rally until an air condition repairman (played by Hugo Armstrong) keeps interrupting him making Gilchrist’s character paranoid about the man’s identity.
Fleck would also take part in directing an episode for ESPN’s documentary series 30 for 30 with Boden as an executive producer in the episode The Day the Series Stopped that was about the third game of the 1989 World Series between the Oakland A’s and the San Francisco Giants where an earthquake happened in the Bay Area that would stop the game during that terrible event. Fleck would interview players from both teams as well as survivors as they recall that terrible day in October as he would use mainly footage from not just the game but also news footage from various local affiliates covering the earthquake as the episode which premiered in 2014 was well-received by audiences and critics.
With five feature films to date so far and an upcoming TV project in Mrs. America starring Cate Blanchett as the controversial anti-feminist conservative writer Phyllis Schlafy in the works, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck have already created a small body of work that all have to something say about individuals or a group of people who don’t fit in with the conventions of modern-day society. Whether they’re movies set in the inner cities, Middle America, a mental hospital, gambling, or outer space, Boden and Fleck continue to emphasize on bring a grounded realism to their films with characters that audience can relate to no matter how big or small the films are. They make films that are about people who deal with a real world but find ways to make their lives extraordinary.
© thevoid99 2019
Written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Mississippi Grind is the story of two gamblers who meet at a poker game as they travel to New Orleans for a high stakes poker game as they bond through their love of gambling. The film is an exploration of gambling as two men in different paths come together in the hope to get a big score. Starring Ben Mendelsohn, Ryan Reynolds, Sienna Miller, Analeigh Tipton, Robin Weigert, James Toback, and Alfre Woodard. Mississippi Grind is an exhilarating and engrossing film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Two different gamblers in different directions of winning and losing meet at a poker game as they bond through their love of gambling as they travel from Iowa to New Orleans for a high stakes poker game hoping for a big score. It’s a film that is a road film of sorts but also a story of two men who live through gambling as they both have a love for it but also hope to get a lot of money for a better life. The film’s screenplay by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck follow the different paths of its protagonist as Gerry (Ben Mendelsohn) is a man that constantly loses and going through some financial issues as he owes money to a loan shark in Sam (Alfre Woodard) who is sympathetic to his issues but wants what he owes her. Gerry is also divorced and hasn’t seen his six-year old daughter in years where he knows he messed up and wants to do right but has a gambling addiction with a real estate job that isn’t going anywhere. It’s where he meets a young traveling gambler in Curtis Vonn (Ryan Reynolds) who is on a hot streak hoping to go to New Orleans for a score as he and Gerry meet up and share their stories of gambling and such.
Curtis agrees to take Gerry to New Orleans from Dubuque, Iowa as long as Gerry drives where they would make several stops to various cities down the Mississippi River and would make some money through greyhound races and card games along the way. During a stop in St. Louis, Curtis and Gerry meet a couple of prostitutes in Simone (Sienna Miller) and Vanessa (Analeigh Tipton) as Simone and Curtis have some history that Gerry notices. Gerry would reveal that he still has feelings for his ex-wife Dorothy (Robin Weigert) though his visit to her home at Little Rock, Arkansas would only bring trouble following a set-back for both Curtis and Gerry. The script does show that as flawed as both Gerry and Curtis are as men in their pursuit of gambling. They still carry some humanity and goodness as Curtis’ often talkative and energetic persona is a front for some of the pain he carries into his own life as he also has another reason to go to New Orleans.
The film’s direction from Boden and Fleck is largely intimate in its presentation as it is shot on various locations such as New Orleans, Little Rock, St. Louis, Memphis, and various parts around the Mississippi River. While there’s some wide shots in the direction, Boden and Fleck focus on this intimate friendship between Curtis and Gerry that slowly develops as the latter is someone that is in need of luck while the former is in need to find the next path in his life having traveled so much. The film would often feature Gerry listening to a self-help CD to be a better gambler as it would occur often during the course of the film. Boden and Fleck’s usage of close-ups and medium shots help play into the conversations between Curtis and Gerry in a car or what goes on during a poker game where Boden and Fleck would shoot something on a hand-held camera and focus on what one player is seeing in his head or how he’s reacting physically as it play into the things Gerry is listening to from the CD.
With Boden serving as the film’s editor, there is a fluid and rhythmic approach to the editing where the shots do last to get a sense of the location as well as the way the conversations are edited. The direction also play into these somber moments such as Gerry playing piano with Vanessa sitting beside him while Curtis and Simone listen in the other room. Boden and Fleck would also carry this somber mood into the third act as it relates to Gerry’s bad luck as well as Curtis’ own setbacks and his own insecurities once they reach New Orleans to play in this game that is run by a famed gambler that Curtis knows. It also play into two men who both aren’t sure when to quit but they have this need to win something no matter how much they lose. Overall, Boden and Fleck craft a riveting and compelling film about two gamblers working together to work to play a big game in New Orleans.
Cinematographer Andrij Pakeh does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of low-key and natural lights for many of the interior scenes at night including the casinos and bars while emphasizing on something realistic for the exterior scenes in the day and night. Production designer Jade Healy, with set decorator Selina van den Brink and art director James A. Gelarden, does excellent work with the look of the place where Simone and Vanessa work at as well as a few motel rooms and places where Gerry and Curtis play poker. Costume designer Abby O’Sullivan does nice work with the clothes from the stylish clothes that Simone and Vanessa would wear as well as stylish suits that Gerry and Curtis would wear at a riverboat casino.
Visual effects supervisor Luke DiTommaso does wonderful work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects as it mainly focuses on set dressing and a low-key dramatic scene during a simple conversation between Gerry and Curtis. Sound designer Abigail Savage does superb work with the sound as it play into the loud sounds of machines at a casino as well as the sounds of crowds at a casino or at a racetrack along with low-key moments in some of the different locations of the film. The film’s music by Scott Bomar is terrific for its blues-based score that help play into the atmosphere of the locations while music supervisor Jim Black provide a soundtrack that mainly focuses on blues, jazz, folk, and other traditional forms of music that play into the atmosphere of the Mississippi River and its many locations.
The casting by Cindy Tolan is fantastic as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from famed country-rock singer/songwriter Marshall Chapman as a club singer in New Orleans, Robin Weigert as Gerry’s ex-wife Dorothy who harbors some mistrust and issues with him, filmmaker James Toback as a revered poker player that Curtis claims to know, and Alfre Woodard in a superb performance as a friend of Gerry who loaned him money as she is sympathetic but also serious about wanting her money back. Analeigh Tipton is excellent as Vanessa as a young prostitute who befriends Gerry as a woman who has a lot more to offer than be pretty as she is still trying to figure things out for herself while finding some support from Gerry in what she wants to do.
Sienna Miller is amazing as Simone as a prostitute and on-off companion of Curtis as she is suspicious about Curtis’ intentions for Gerry while is also unsure about embarking on a serious relationship with Curtis. Finally, there’s the duo of Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Reynolds in incredible performances in their respective roles as Gerry and Curtis. Mendelsohn displays a physicality as someone who has been on a major losing streak as well as this humility where Mendelsohn sells his character’s insecurities as well as his determination to win. Reynolds’ performance as Curtis is showier in terms of its energy and being very talkative about anything and everything with a sense of charm yet also displays some vulnerability as someone that really wants a better life for himself. Mendelsohn and Reynolds together are a joy to watch as two men who both want to win but also realize their worth to each other as they have this natural chemistry and rapport where they both bring the best in each other.
Mississippi Grind is a sensational film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck that features great performances from Ben Mendelsohn and Ryan Fleck. Along with its supporting cast, gorgeous locations, themes of gambling and friendship, and a sumptuous music soundtrack. It’s a film that definitely explore two men who bond through gambling as well as not being afraid in showing how flawed they are as well as this sense of hope that gambling can bring for them. In the end, Mississippi Grind is a spectacular film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck Films: Half Nelson - Sugar (2008 film) - It's Kind of a Funny Story - Captain Marvel - The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
© thevoid99 2019
Based on the novel by Ned Vizzini, It’s Kind of a Funny Story is about a teenage boy who checks into a hospital following an attempted suicide jump where he is hospitalized for depression as he meet other individuals struggling with their own mental illnesses. Written for the screen and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, the film is an exploration of a teenage boy dealing with the pressures of society and his own shortcomings as he would try to understand himself as well as those suffering from anxieties. Starring Keir Gilchrist, Emma Roberts, Lauren Graham, Jim Gaffigan, Jeremy Davies, Zoe Kravitz, Thomas Mann, Aasif Mandvi, Bernard White, Laverne Cox, Viola Davis, and Zach Galifianakis. It’s Kind of a Funny Story is a witty and engrossing film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
With the pressure to succeed both in school and in life just before it’s really about to start, the film is about a teenage boy who checks into a hospital following a suicide attempt where he would stay for nearly a week as he meets various people with similar struggles as well as other forms of mental illness. It’s a film that explores the anxieties of a sixteen-year old kid where he would meet people around his age who also deal with problems as well as adults who are also coping with some form of illness. The film’s screenplay by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck is told mainly by its protagonist Craig Gilner (Keir Gilchrist) who attends a prestigious high school in Brooklyn as he’s due to finish an application for a prestigious summer school as his father George (Jim Gaffigan) expects him to do so while he is also in the shadow of his friend Aaron Fitzcarraldo (Thomas Mann) who is dating his longtime crush Nia (Zoe Kravitz). After imagining the idea of jumping off the Brooklyn Bridge where he would think about how his family would think, it would force Gilner to check into a hospital thinking he would stay for a short period of time.
Yet, the stay would be for a week for observation and therapy where Gilner meets an adult patient in Bobby (Zach Galifianakis) who is dealing with his own issues as well as trying to get a home to stay after he gets discharged. Gilner would also befriend another teenage patient in Noelle (Emma Roberts) as all of the teenage patients are staying at the adult ward due to renovations for the teenage ward. Noelle is there for self-harm as Gilner deals with the fact that he’s got a lot going for him but the pressure to succeed eventually got to him where he is able to gain sympathy from the other patients and the hospital’s therapist Dr. Minerva (Viola Davis) who is aware of his troubled thoughts.
The direction of Boden and Fleck is largely straightforward in terms of its compositions and setting while it does have some stylistic elements in the film as it relates to the drawings that Gilner would create. Shot on location in Brooklyn as well as parts of New York City, Boden and Fleck would use some wide shots but maintain an intimacy into the hospital setting such as its hallways, rooms, and common rooms for patients to socialize at. The usage of close-ups and medium shots as well as stylish moments of fantasy help play into the film’s quirky and offbeat tone while Boden and Fleck would know when to keep the film grounded in reality. Even in the group therapy sessions, simple conversations between Gilner, Bobby, and Noelle, and other moments where Gilner has to deal with elements of reality including small meetings with his family.
With Boden also serving as the film’s editor, she and Fleck would also create some stylish montages that play into the anxieties in Gilner’s life as well as some surreal sequences about the idea of what his future might be. Much of Boden’s editing would have some stylistic flair in the montages and in some jump-cuts that include a dream sequence of Gilner and other patients playing Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie. With the aid of animation director Brian Drucker, the animated backgrounds would play into this idea of fantasy but also hope for Gilner. The sense of realism does occur for its third act but there is also this element of hope as it relates to the time Gilner spent as well as realize that there’s nothing to be ashamed of when it comes to depression and mental illness. Overall, Boden and Fleck craft a touching and heartfelt film about a teenage boy seeking help at hospital where he learns about those that are also in need of help.
Cinematographer Andrij Parekh does excellent work with the film’s cinematography as it is largely straightforward for many of the interior scenes at the hospital and at Gilner’s school while there’s some low-key lighting for a few interior/exterior scenes set at night. Production designer Beth Mickle, with set decorator Carrie Stewart and art director Michael Ahern, does fantastic work with the look of the rooms, common rooms, and hallways at the hospital as well as the homes of Gilner’s family and friends. Costume designers Kurt and Bart do nice work with the costumes as it is largely straightforward with the exception of the glam-inspired costumes for the fantasy sequence.
Special effects makeup artist Michael Marino does terrific work with the makeup for the fantasy sequence as well as the look of the scars that Noelle is sporting on her body. Visual effects supervisor Anthony Luigi Santoro does brilliant work with the visual effects in bringing the animation to life as well as be used as an element of hope in the real world. Sound editor Paul Hsu does superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the hospital and some of the sparse sounds that are made throughout the film. The film’s music by Broken Social Scene is wonderful for its indie-folk approach with melodic guitars and offbeat rhythms while music supervisor Andrea von Foerster provide a mixture of different musical genres from indie, punk, rock, hip-hop, and pop as it includes some songs by Broken Social Scene as well as the xx, Drum, Queen and David Bowie, the Damned, the Wowz, Pink Mountaintops, White Hinterland, Kurtis Blow, the Tom Robinson Band, Pharoah Sanders, Method Man and Redman, Common, Rachid Taha, and Black Sabbath.
The casting by Cindy Tolan is amazing as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from novelist Ned Vizzini as the hospital’s music teacher, Laverne Cox as a transgender patient, Ethan Herschenfeld as a Hasidic Jewish patient named Solomon, Mary Birdsong as Bobby’s ex-wife, Aasif Mandvi as Dr. Mahmoud who would be the first to analyze Gilner’s problems, Matthew Maher and Adrian Martinez as a couple of adult patients in their respective roles as Humble and Johnny, Morgan Murphy as a young patient in Joanie, Dana DeVestern as Gilner’s young sister Alissa, Bernard White as an Egyptian patient named Muqtada, and Jeremy Davies as a hospital monitor named Smitty who watches over everyone as he makes sure everyone is fine.
Thomas Mann and Zoe Kravitz are terrific in their respective roles as Gilner’s friends Aaron Fitzcarraldo and Nia with Mann as an overachiever who always get what he wants and Kravitz as Gilner’s crush who becomes interested in him during his time at the hospital. Lauren Graham and Jim Gaffigan are fantastic in their respective roles as Gilner’s parents in Lynn and George with the former being more concerned about her son’s well-being while the latter is hoping his son will get better and get back on track unaware of the pressure he’s putting towards his son. Viola Davis is excellent as Dr. Minerva as the hospital’s therapist who analyzes Gilner as well as be someone who is understanding and willing to listen as it’s a low-key yet somber performance from Davis.
Emma Roberts is brilliant as Noelle as a teenage patient with issues of self-harm as someone who is intrigued by Gilner as well as being also witty and aware of her own situation. Zach Galifianakis is incredible as Bobby as an adult patient who is going through issues of his own but also offers a lot of wisdom to Gilner about life as well as the fact that things do get more complicated in adulthood but there’s also hope. Finally, there’s Keir Gilchrist in a remarkable performance as Craig Gilner as a teenage boy with a lot going for him as he copes with the pressure to succeed as well as a lot of the anxieties where he learns how to cope as well as not be afraid of seeking help.
It’s Kind of a Funny Story is a marvelous film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Featuring a great ensemble cast, a superb music soundtrack, touching study of mental illness and depression, and the desire for hope in a complicated world. It’s a film that manages to showcase a young man trying to deal with his own anxieties and demands of the world where he finds solace through people who are also going through similar struggles. In the end, It’s Kind of a Funny Story is an exhilaratingly rich film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck Films: Half Nelson - Sugar (2008 film) - Mississippi Grind – Captain Marvel - The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
© thevoid99 2019
Based on the Carol Danvers comic series by Roy Thomas and Gene Colan and the Captain Marvel comic series by Gene Colan and Stan Lee from Marvel Comics, Captain Marvel is the story of an alien warrior who has arrived on Earth to find some alien beings where she finds herself dealing with images that possibly relate to her past. Directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck and screenplay by Boden, Fleck, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, and Jac Schaeffer from a screen story by Nicole Perlman, Joe Shrapnel, and Anna Waterhouse, the film is an origin story of sorts of how Carol Danvers became Captain Marvel as she tries to figure her identity and role in this intergalactic conflict as she is portrayed by Brie Larson. Also starring Ben Mendelsohn, Djimon Hounsou, Lee Pace, Gemma Chan, Lashana Lynch, McKenna Grace, Akira Akbar, Clark Gregg, Annette Bening, Jude Law, and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. Captain Marvel is an adventurous and exhilarating film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
It’s 1995 as a conflict between an elite group of alien warriors known as the Kree and an alien faction of shapeshifters known as Skrulls is heating up as a young Kree warrior named Vers is fighting the Skrulls where she lands somewhere in Los Angeles just as the Skrulls have also landed on Earth disguising themselves as humans. It’s a film that has this young woman who is dealing with images that could be lost memories as she finds herself on Los Angeles after a battle with Skrulls on their ship as it lead to all sorts of question. The film’s screenplay by Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, and Jac Schaeffer, with additional contributions by Bek Smith, does play into many of the tropes and schematics expected in a superhero film that is a part origin story as well as a part fish-out-of-water scenario. Even as it has twists and turns as it relates to this conflict between two alien races as this young warrior in Vers is haunted by what could be memories of a previous life as she would later learn to be a former Air Force pilot named Carol Danvers.
The first act does have this strange narrative as it relates to Vers living in Kree’s home planet of Hala as she is mentored and train by Yon-Rogg (Jude Law) who tells her to keep her emotions in check as she is still dealing with her powers and is becoming unsure due to the images in her head. Once she lands on Earth at a Blockbuster video store, she would meet S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Nick Fury who had been through a lot and thought he had seen it all until he sees what Vers is about as well as getting his first encounters with Skrulls as the second act is about the two teaming up together to discover a project called Pegasus created by Dr. Wendy Lawson (Annette Bening) who looks similar to the projection of Kree’s ruler known as Supreme Intelligence. It is also where Vers learns about her true identity as well as the events into what happened to her as well as more revelations about this conflict between the Kree and Skrulls.
The direction of Boden and Fleck does play into what is expected in a superhero film that is partially set in space but it is grounded with some dramatic elements that play into Vers’ journey as well as discovering her true identity. Shot on various locations in Los Angeles, parts of Southern California and Louisiana, the film does play into a world that is quite vast that Vers is a part of from the planets she’s in such as Hala and a border planet that play into this war between the Krees and Skrulls though not much established into the root of their conflict at first. The direction does become straightforward once Vers arrives on Earth and has to find the Skrulls as well as Boden and Fleck use some wide shots to establish the locations as well as the vast world of the universe and its surroundings. Even in scenes where Vers is meeting the Supreme Intelligence as an image that one would believe to be the Supreme Intelligence to be as it’s in this surreal world that bends the idea of reality and fantasy.
Much of Boden and Fleck’s direction emphasizes more on simple shots through close-ups and medium shots that include scenes of Vers and Fury trying to find some clues as they’re later joined by a mysterious cat named Goose as they also try to fight off against the Skrulls while Vers is making contact with Yon-Rogg through some 1990s tech that is barely working. The stuff involving 1990s technology is definitely played for laughs in how slow they were back then as the humor also play into Fury’s first interaction with the Skrulls and him getting to understand a world that is bigger than just Earth. Still, Boden and Fleck do become concerned with Vers coming to terms with her identity as she would meet Danvers’ friend in a former pilot in Maria Rambeau (Lashana Lynch) who would tell Vers what happened as it would relate to something much bigger relating to the Kree/Skrulls conflict. It would force Vers to not only accept what happened to her but also realize what needs to be done to save the universe. Overall, Boden and Fleck craft a compelling yet exciting film about an alien warrior who learns about her true identity in an intergalactic conflict.
Cinematographer Ben Davis does excellent work with the film’s cinematography with the straightforward and sunny look of the daytime exteriors in California to the more naturalistic look of the scenes in Louisiana as well as some stylish lighting for some of the spaceship interiors. Editors Elliot Graham and Debbie Berman do terrific work with the editing as it has some stylistic usage of slow-motion shots and some quick-cuts to play into the action and some of the suspense and humor. Production designer Andy Nicholson, with set decorator Lauri Gaffin and supervising art director Andrew Max Cahn, does amazing work with the set design from the look of the spaceship interiors as well as the look of the archives section at a secret government facility and Rambeau’s home. Costume designer Sanja Milkovic Hays does fantastic work with the costumes from the look of the Kree uniforms as well as the more casual look of the people on Earth that play into the look of the 1990s.
Key special effects makeup artist Sabrina Wilson do brilliant work with the look of the Kree aliens as well as the look of the Skrulls as well as some minimal work in the younger versions of Nick Fury and his rookie partner Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg). Special effects supervisor Daniel Sudick and visual effects supervisor Christopher Townsend do incredible work with the visual effects from the look of Fury and Coulson in their younger versions in the 1990s as well as the design of some of the planets including Hala and some of the powers that Vers is able to use. Sound designers David Acord and Kyrsten Mate, with sound editor Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, do superb work with the sound as it play into the sounds of some of the spaceships, jet engines, alien weapons, and other noises that play up the world that was the 1990s.
The film’s music by Pinar Toprak is wonderful for its soaring orchestral score that play into the sense of adventure and drama that occurs throughout the film while music supervisor Dave Jordan creates a killer music soundtrack that features a lot of the music of the 1990s from R.E.M., Nirvana, TLC, Salt-N-Pepa w/ En Vogue, Garbage, Hole, Elastica, No Doubt, Des’ree, and a couple of 80s songs from Heart and Lita Ford.
The casting by Sarah Finn is great as it feature some notable small roles from London Fuller and McKenna Grace in their respective roles as the 6-year old and 13-year old versions of Danvers, Algenis Perez Soto and Rune Temte as a couple of members of Yon-Rogg’s team in their respective roles as Att-Lass and Bron-Char, Azari Akbar as the five-year old Monica Rambeau, Vik Sahay and Chuku Modu as a couple of Skrulls, and Stan Lee in a cameo as himself reading a script for a film role as he is also given a fitting tribute in the film’s pre-opening logo sequence. The performances of Reggie, Archie, Rizzo, and Gonzo in their performance as the cat Goose is a total joy to watch as it’s a cat that just knows where to steal a scene as well as be powerful in its own way. Akira Akbar is terrific as Maria Rambeau’s daughter Monica who would help Vers find herself again as well as be the one to provide her with a look that would be her own.Clark Gregg is superb as a younger version of Agent Phil Coulson as a rookie S.H.I.E.L.D. agent trying to get his ropes in the job while doing things that would make him a key ally for Fury.
Gemma Chan is wonderful as a Kree sniper in Minn-Erva who has a dislike towards Vers whom she sees as a threat to her position with Yon-Rogg. Djimon Hounsou and Lee Pace are fantastic in their respective roles as Korath and Ronan the Accuser in their early versions as two Kree figures who art part of the conflict with Korath being Yon-Rogg’s second in command and Ronan as a high-ranking official hoping to destroy the Skrulls. Annette Bening is excellent in her dual role as the artificial intelligence leader of the Kree known as Supreme Intelligence as she is who Vers sees during their meetings while Bening also plays a scientist in Dr. Wendy Lawson who was conducting a major experiment known as Pegasus that is key to what happened to Danvers. Lashana Lynch is brilliant as Maria Rambeau as Danvers’ long-time friend and wing-woman who hadn’t seen Danvers in a long time as she tries to help her regain her identity but also get back in the game of flying. Ben Mendelsohn is amazing as the Skrull leader Talos who disguises himself as then-S.H.I.E.L.D. leader Keller where he plays a straight-laced official trying to defuse the situation with the Skrulls while he displays more humor and reason as Talos as someone who is complex but also has valid reasons for his issues with the Kree.
Jude Law is marvelous as Yon-Rogg as a Kree military leader who leads a band of mercenaries as he is also Vers’ mentor where he tries to get her to control her emotions while is also hiding some secrets about her. Samuel L. Jackson is remarkable as a younger version of Nick Fury who was then a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent that believes he’s seen it all and isn’t the cynic that audiences would know him for in other films as someone that is upbeat as well as having a soft spot for cats. Finally, there’s Brie Larson in an incredible performance as Carol Danvers/Vers/Captain Marvel as a Kree warrior who is troubled by images that could be past memories of a pilot named Carol Danvers as she struggles with her identity and her role in a conflict as it’s a performance full of charm, determination, and drive as it’s one of Larson’s finest performances to date.
Captain Marvel is a marvelous film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck that features a sensational performance from Brie Larson in the titular role. Along with its ensemble cast, sprawling visual effects, quirky humor, themes of war, and a killer music soundtrack. It’s a film that delivers in what is expected in a superhero film as well as provide some ideas of an intergalactic world set during the 1990s despite a few issues with the script. In the end, Captain Marvel is a remarkable film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck Films: Half Nelson - Sugar (2008 film) - It’s Kind of a Funny Story – Mississippi Grind – The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
Marvel Cinematic Universe: Infinity Saga: Phase One: Iron Man - The Incredible Hulk - Iron Man 2 - Thor - Captain America: The First Avenger - The Avengers
Phase Two: Iron Man 3 - Thor: The Dark World - Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Guardians of the Galaxy - The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Ant-Man
Phase Three: Captain America: Civil War - Doctor Strange - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming - Thor: Ragnarok - Black Panther - Avengers: Infinity War - Ant-Man and the Wasp - Avengers: Endgame - Spider-Man: Far from Home
Multiverse Saga: Phase Four: Black Widow (2021 film) - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Eternals – Spider-Man: No Way Home – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Thor: Love and Thunder – Werewolf by Night - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special
Phase Five: Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – The Marvels – (Deadpool & Wolverine) - (Captain America: Brave New World) - (Thunderbolts*)
Phase 6: The Fantastic Four: First Steps - (Avengers: Doomsday) - (Avengers: Secret Wars)
Related: MCU is Cinema: Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 – Pt. 4 – (Part 5) – (Part 6) – (Part 7) - The MCU: 10 Reasons Why It Rules the World
© thevoid99 2019
Written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Sugar is the story of a young pitcher from the Dominican Republic who dreams of making it to the big leagues where he deals with the reality of chasing that dream when he arrives to America in the minor leagues. The film is an exploration of a young man who wants to give himself and his family a chance at a better life away from poverty while coping with the gift he has when he has to endure culture shock and the demands of the game. Starring Algenis Perez Soto, Andrew Holland, Rayniel Rufino, and Michael Gaston. Sugar is a rapturous and intoxicating film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
The film is a simple story of a young baseball pitcher who is given the chance to travel to America to play in the minor leagues as he hopes that he can make it and give his mother and siblings a good life back at the Dominican Republic. What happens instead is that he would face challenges upon arriving into a new environment where there’s so much to be expected not just from himself but also others who would come and go. The film’s screenplay by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck is largely a study of ambition and its fallacies as well as what it takes to make in the majors despite the fact the protagonist in Miguel “Sugar” Santos (Algenis Perez Soto) doesn’t speak much English and doesn’t know very much about American culture. The first act partially takes place in the Dominican Republic where Sugar is like every other player dreaming of making it to the Major Leagues like many before him where he is at an academy to learn about the game while learning to speak English. Upon learning that he and another player are going to Arizona for spring training with a minor-league rookie team, Sugar is excited as he hopes to do good things for his family.
Though he experiences culture shock and confusion during his time in Arizona, he was able to bond with players from the Dominican Republic along with players from other Spanish-speaking countries. When Sugar is sent to the A level in Iowa, the culture shock becomes greater where he would live with an old couple in the Higgins as he has trouble adjusting to his new environment while the only person he could really talk to is a Dominican player in Jorge (Rayniel Rufino) who has been in the minors for years as he helps Sugar out. While Sugar takes a liking towards the old couple’s granddaughter Anne (Ellary Porterfield), he does cope with some of the prejudice of being an outsider as it leads to this air of isolation that is prominent for much of the second and third act. Even as Sugar would endure an injury that would sideline him as he’s unable to get back on track prompting him to question a lot of things around him including himself.
The film’s direction of Boden and Fleck is definitely evocative in the way it captures not just this air of realism about the struggle in trying to make it to the major leagues but also in the study of isolation and culture shock. Shot largely in Iowa with additional locations shot in New York City, the state of Arizona, and the Dominican Republic, the film does play into idea of a man caught between two different worlds where one is a place that he’s familiar with as it’s his home and the other is just completely different. Boden and Fleck’s usage of the wide shots would capture the many cultural and social differences that Sugar would encounter as it adds to the sense of culture shock upon arriving somewhere like Iowa with its farmland, cornfields, and areas that doesn’t have much to offer like the small town he was in Arizona nor in the Dominican Republic. Yet, much of their direction involve intimate shots such as close-ups and medium shots to play into Sugar’s struggle with being on the pitcher’s mound and outside of the baseball field.
With Boden also serving as editor, she and Fleck would maintain something straightforward in the editing with a few jump-cuts such as a scene of Sugar meeting his many relatives wishing him luck that just adds to the pressure he’s in to succeed. Still, it just adds to this sense of isolation such as this amazing tracking shot sequence of Sugar walking out of his hotel room and into the bar, the arcade, and later the bowling alley as it shows him really lost he’s in. The third act is about this sense of continuation and awareness that Sugar has to endure when another player from the Dominican Republic emerges as someone who has the same gift that Sugar had. It’s a reality that is quite common where Boden and Fleck don’t sugarcoat it yet it would have an aftermath about what happen to those who don’t make it but still have a love for the game. Overall, Boden and Fleck craft a riveting and sobering film about a young man chasing his dream to become a major league baseball player only to deal with the realities and expectations of that dream.
Cinematographer Andrij Parekh does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography from the usage of natural lights for many of the daytime scenes as well as some lighting for some of the scenes at night including many of its interiors. Production designer Beth Mickle, with set decorator Richard Bailey and art director Michael Ahern, does fantastic work with the look of the baseball camps and places that Sugar goes to including the home of the Higgins family and the locker room for the team he plays for. Costume designer Erin Benach does nice work with the costumes as it is largely straightforward including the uniforms that Sugar wears during his time playing.
Sound editor Tom Efinger and sound designer Abigail Savage do excellent work with the sound in capturing the atmosphere of the baseball games as well as some of the places that Sugar and the people he’s with go to. The film’s music by Michael Brook is wonderful as it’s mainly low-key in its folk-based score while music supervisor Lynn Fainchtein creates a soundtrack that mixes all sorts of music from merengue, bachata, salsa, hip-hop, rock, and indie music from acts like Aventura, TV on the Radio, Cassie Ventura, Celia Cruz, Moby, Leonard Cohen, and Juan Luis Guerra with Ruben Blades and Robi Rosa.
The casting by Cindy Tolan is superb as it feature some notable small roles from Jose Rijo as a player named Alvarez, Kelvin Leonardo Garcia as the young pitcher Salvador who becomes a threat to Sugar’s spot in the third act, Alina Vargas as Sugar’s girlfriend in the Dominican Republic, Ann Whitney and Richard Bull as the old couple in the Higgins who would take Sugar in during his time in Iowa to make sure he does well, Ellary Porterfield as the Higgins’ granddaughter Anne whom Sugar takes a liking to, and Jaime Tirelli as a man named Osvaldo that Sugar meets late in the film. Michael Gaston is terrific as Sugar’s Iowa coach Stu Sutton who sees talent and potential in Sugar while is trying to understand where his control is once his performance suffers.
Andre Holland is fantastic as Brad Johnson as a player that Sugar befriends as he tries to help him with his performance and understand American culture. Rayniel Rufino is excellent as Jorge as a player from the Dominican Republic in Iowa who is the closest friend that Sugar has where he is someone that has seen a lot as he knows what will happen to him but would accept his fate. Finally, there’s Algenis Perez Soto in an incredible performance as the titular character as a young pitcher who has a gift for his pitching while hoping to succeed so he can get his family out of poverty but the demands of the game, the culture shock, and isolation would get to him as it’s an understated and mesmerizing performance from Soto.
Sugar is a phenomenal film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous images, an intoxicating soundtrack, and themes of isolation and culture shock, the film is a unique study of ambition and its fallacies as it relates to the idea of the American Dream. In the end, Sugar is a sensational film from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck Films: Half Nelson - It’s Kind of a Funny Story – Mississippi Grind – Captain Marvel - The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
© thevoid99 2018
Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 2/17/07 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.
Directed by Ryan Fleck and written by Fleck and Anna Boden, Half Nelson tells the story of a young school teacher in the inner city who forms a friendship with one of his students who has discovered his drug addiction. Taking another relationship drama to a different level, it's a film that explores a young man's chance to try to save a young girl while dealing with his own demons. Starring Ryan Gosling, Anthony Mackie, Karen Chilton, Jay O. Sanders, and Shareeka Epps. Half Nelson is a haunting yet mesmerizing film from Ryan Fleck.
By day, Daniel Dunne (Ryan Gosling) is a young, middle school history teacher in an inner-city school where he's also the girls' basketball coach. Dunne's unorthodox yet edgy approaching to teaching history has won him over the praise of his students. Dunne's approach into teaching them history by having something they can relate to hasn't fared well with the school's principal despite the fact that it's worked. While his girl's team aren’t the best players, he does try and give them encouragement to get better. After school, Dunne goes to bars flirting with women and continuing on his troubling addiction to drugs such as cocaine and crack. Already, his life becomes out of control when he is caught in a bathroom dazed by one of his students named Drey (Shareeka Epps).
Drey is a young 13-year old student who lives at home while her mother Karen (Karen Chilton) works late as an EMT barely making by. The only help Drey gets in making money is through a drug dealer named Frank (Anthony Mackie) who owes her a favor after her brother Mike (Collins Pennie) is in juvenile hall. Dunne suddenly learns that his ex-girlfriend Rachel (Tina Holmes) is getting married while he starts to feel lonely and finds a kindred spirit in Drey. Drey knows his secret and keeps it that way while he takes her home since her father doesn't pick her up. Dunne is amazed by Drey's strength though she admits that her mother not being home all the time has made it tough. Dunne meanwhile, still revels into his own world of drugs as he is forced to face his own demons.
One day when taking Drey home, he takes her to his apartment where they have conversations about his work and his unconventional teaching approach. Helping him make dinner for a date with another teacher named Isabel (Monique Curnen), Drey is amazed at the kind of person Dunne is despite his troubles. While the weekend turned out to be good for Dunn and Drey in their own separate worlds, Dunne's demons get the best of him as he is troubled by a lot of things. The drugs and his weariness begin to affect his teaching and he starts to alienate everyone. When he sees Frank with Drey, Dunne decides to confront him about what he's doing to her. Unfortunately, Dunne's efforts is only troubled when his addiction worsens. During a night with his parents (Jay O. Sanders and Deborah Rush), his brother (Denis O'Hare) and his brother's girlfriend Cindy (Nicole Vicius), Dunne is forced to see his downward spiral while pondering Drey's own future.
While the film doesn't say anything new about drugs or addiction, the story of a young teacher trying to help a young girl escape into her own environment is a compelling one. Ryan Fleck and co-writer Anna Boden create a story that is gritty and very mesmerizing into how a man seeks redemption through a young girl while dealing with his demons. The film's story is simple enough though it's told in two different perspectives in both Daniel Dunne and Drey. While Dunne's world is often filled with a repetitive outlook of going to school on the day and party and do drugs at night. He makes a break for it in trying to help Drey. Drey's own world is just as tough since her mother isn't around much while the only adult that watches out for her is Frank. Though Frank isn't a total villain of sorts, he does watch out for Drey though his own intentions aren't what's best for her. The script is very drawn out by character while Fleck's subtle, observant, and very raw directing style works in conveying the atmosphere and drama that surrounds the situations and moments in the film. Overall, it's a very strong effort from Fleck.
Cinematographer Andrij Parekh is wonderfully exquisite in its realism while many of the exterior shots are haunting and almost dreamlike to convey the spiraling emotions of Dunn. Anna Boden's editing is also excellent for its straightforward manner and non-stylized cuts to draw the sense of emotion and intensity of the performances from the actors. Production designer Beth Mickle and art director Inbal Weinberg do fine work in taking the location of Brooklyn to reveal the location's gritty look but also a realistic feel to the apartment of Drey to the dilapidated look of Dunne's apartment. Costume designer Erin Benach adds to the grittiness with shabby shirts and ties that Dunne wears to the street clothes that the kids wear as well. Sound editor John Moros also adds to the tense atmosphere of the film to the alarm clock that Dunne wakes up on to the basketballs bouncing on the gym. The film's music features cuts from the Marshall Tucker Band, Lisa Vaughn and a few hip-hop artists while the rest of the music features a haunting score from the band Broken Social Scene filled with atmospheric, melodic guitar tracks.
The film's cast is wonderfully assembled with some memorable small performances from veteran actors Jay O. Sanders and Deborah Rush as Dan's parents, Denis O'’Hare as his brother, and Nicole Vicius in a funny scene as his brother's girlfriend. Other noted small roles from Collins Pennie, Monique Curnen, and Bryce Silver as fellow teacher Bernard plus a group of young actors like Tristan Wilds, Stephanie Bast, and Nathan Corbett as the students are equally memorable. Tina Holmes is excellent as Dan's ex-girlfriend Rachel while Karen Chilton is wonderful as Dre's hard-working, caring mother. Anthony Mackie gives a chilling yet superb performance as the small-time drug dealer Frank. Mackie brings a charm and danger to his role where he can be caring and do good things yet he runs a business and is doing some bad things so there's a complexity to Mackie's character and the performance is wonderfully balanced. Shareeka Epps is wonderfully amazing as the tough but confused Drey who has an understanding of what the adults around her are doing. Epps brings a strength and fragility that is haunting to watch as this young woman truly gives one of 2006's great performances.
Finally, there's Ryan Gosling in what has to be the performance of his career. Gosling has been known to display charm, a wit, and eccentricity. In this film, he strips it all down to bring a raw, restrained performance as Daniel Dunne. Gosling's sense of minimalism and observance shows the troubles of a man spiraling out of control while in the moment he acts charming only show a fragility to him that is underneath it. There's moments in the performance where his eyes does the acting for him and it's real proof that Gosling is the real thing. There's a lot of sadness and desperation in those eyes while the scenes he has with Epps feel real in how he tries to redeem himself. In roles where he played trouble youths and charming young men, Ryan Gosling proves himself to be one of the most brilliant actors of his generation.
Half Nelson is a phenomenal film from Ryan Fleck and co-writer Anna Boden that features a tremendous performance from Ryan Gosling. Along with strong supporting performances from Shareeka Epps and Anthony Mackie, it's a film that explores the world of a man troubled by addiction and his desire for redemption. In the end, Half Nelson is a remarkable film from Ryan Fleck.
Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden Films: Sugar (2008 film) - It's Kind of a Funny Story - Mississippi Grind - Captain Marvel - The Auteurs #71: Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck
© thevoid99 2014
