Aardvark

Screened on Friday, Kitao Sakurai’s debut film is very unique work, mixing dark comedy and thriller. Aardvark (Aardvark review) centers on a blind and alcoholic middle-age man who decides to learn BJJ (Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu) and in the process get involved in a shady world. The film is intriguing, using long contemplative shots and distilling dark humor. It never plays the pity card regarding its central character's handicap, making him a strong giant, and toward the last third of the movie, Aardvark takes an unexpected turn which celebrates the originality and talent of this new filmmaker.

AFI Fest 2010 Selection

Here is our selection, aiming at exploring colorful and international horizons.

List of films we will cover:

• 13 Assassins (13 Assassins review)
• Aardvark (Aardvark review)
• Certified Copy (Certified Copy review)
• Chico & Rita (Chico & Rita review)
• The Housemaid (Housemaid review)
• Outrage (Outrage review)
• The Princess of Montpensier (The Princess of Montpensier review)
• Uncle Boonmee (Uncle Boonmee review)

About AFI Fest

This second edition of the AFI fest reboot seems to get back to what AFI fest used to be, a festival of festivals. The selection includes several entries presented at other festivals such as the Cannes film festival and Toronto fest, making for a quite solid program, following last year's chaotic edition.

For the second year, AFI fest is not only shorter - a week instead of the usual 10 days - but also giving away tickets for free, which is far from being the idea of pure genius they think it is. Why? Mostly because in one of the only towns where film aficionados are actually willing to pay $10 to watch some great picture, they are once again giving away tickets at a time when people who would actually buy them can't get them because they are at work. Because tickets were free, they "sold out" within minutes, while the AFI website crashed again, these tickets mostly ending up in the hands of amateurs of freebies instead of just film fans - just notice the number of people leaving the screenings early.

While AFI fest used to be the strongest festival in town, this is clear that these last couple of years, it lost its spot, which was gladly taken by the LA film festival. This year's edition of AFI fest is certainly interesting but to reclaim its glory, the festival should get back to its 10-days paying formula.