Day on Fire

I saw this movie twice. On the first take I made it to first 20 minutes and thought it was great. It was a late night broadcast and especially two things got me; poetic storytelling, which doesn't need too much action, or people describing what's-going-on. Second thing was the music performed by Judy Kuhn and John Medeski; so calm and pleasing and yet very strongly supporting the movie. So I bought the DVD, since I had no chance to see this at our local cinema. I really enjoyed watching those people with their fates. Even if it wouldn't go anywhere, I'd still like it. And it DID go somewhere, which is the worse thing on this piece. Not that it's predictable (well... is it? ;), but after the 1st half we'll get some corny and some cliché. First half 10/10, second 5/10. All and all 7/10.

And now I NEED to get that soundtrack. ;)

It blows me away that such good directing and editing work were put into a story that lacks the basics of what it takes to achieve what it aims for.

So many characters that occupied significant parts of the film had virtually NOTHING to add to the story, and the causes that supposedly drive the plot were either badly overblown or completely unrelated. The level of disconnectedness actually puts to question the otherwise fine acting of almost everyone in 'Day On Fire'.

Come to think of it, I had another issue with this film...why is it called 'Day on Fire'? Even on a symbolic level, nothing really was on fire!

In short, nothing is connected and nothing is clear in this film...hence your left with asking yourself the question...'Why?'

Jay Anania's new film, "Day on Fire," is a haunting story about a Palestinian journalist and a Jewish model who meet by accident in New York, and whose lives become inextricably, and shockingly, intertwined. The remarkable cast is led by the always-excellent Martin Donovan, playing an enigmatic man, handsome, solitary, and fastidious, who's on a kind of quest through the streets of the city that will bring him into contact with one of these women, in a way one could never predict. Carmen Chaplin (granddaughter of that other Chaplin), gives an exquisite performance of a woman who is carrying on her shoulders a personal grief, as well as the weight of her people's struggles, as she pursues her own search for understanding. And Alyssa Sutherland, an actress I hadn't seen before, plays the model with great dignity and unusual intelligence. The struggles that are playing out on the other side of the world are reflected here, both in the sadness that darkens their lives, and in the hope their shared emotions gives rise to. A lovely performance by Olympia Dukakis, and a cameo by the wonderful Richard Bright (The Godfather, among many others), playing a homeless man, and filmed shortly before his untimely death, are worth the price of admission. A gorgeous series of duets by the singer Judy Kuhn and the pianist John Medeski provide a kind of poetic counterpoint to the main story. The cinematography, by Kathryn Westergaard, shooting in hi-definition video, is beautiful, unsurprising for this filmmaker who always makes us look at the world through fresh eyes. A movie to see again and again.

Don't expect a good film, because it isn't. It's like the series big brother, constantly focusing on daily life. While I was waiting for something meaningful to happen, something to finally draw me into the film and enjoy it. But this moment never came. The throwing around with filmed hints and details of the main figures just gets boring. Why? Because you never get to connect with these people. The music is quite nice, but nothing is really developing in the film itself. You just see and hear fragments of the life of the main characters that happened before. And then in the end, there is a sick twist. The film promises a portrait of ordinary people under extreme circumstances. But actually it's a boring film about a bunch of extremely sad characters in everyday situations. Except for the end, that is. Nothing in it for me. All in all: it's just a film about time passing by, accented by small or big events until it's time to die. A waste of my time it was.