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Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (+ Interview With Simon Pegg)

Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (+ Interview With Simon Pegg)

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Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (+ Interview With Simon Pegg)

In my second batch of films I dive into three that are very emotional, some wild at times – but also very original. There’s still much more to come!

All I Can Say (Danny Clinch, Taryn Gould, Colleen Hennessy)

Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (Plus Interview With Simon Pegg)
All I Can Say (2019)- source: Shannon Hoon, Tribeca Film Festival

To say I was blown away by All I Can Say would be an understatement. For me, this documentary gave me the same sentimental feeling I get whenever I listen to a Blind Melon song. That happy balance of soulful proclivity and hopeful yearning. There’s a lightness and an obscurity, and, after watching Shannon Hoon’s personal videos, I was greeted by it again and the sentiment made even more sense.

This film is a unique experience. There’s no narration, no talking head interviews. This is entirely Shannon’s perspective, mostly from his own filming, over the course of several years, including up until hours before his death. At the very start of the movie you see the timestamp, knowing it’s his last day on this world, and that pit in your stomach only grows throughout the movie. There’s a tension, but it’s also a sort of release, as you get that nagging sensation over with and are brought back to the beauty of his life.

Hoon’s interactions with his band-mates and his family, along with lots of conversations directly with the camera make this a deeply intimate affair. You can trace his rise to stardom as well as his struggles with addiction in a way that is told by him or by observation, which is a beautifully tragic, but ultimately also entertaining, thing.

The team behind the documentary, Danny Clinch, Taryn Gould and Colleen Hennessy, edit it exquisitely, knowing just the right moments to include and the order to finalize them (read my interview with them here). If not for these keen hands this might have felt overwhelming (or potentially underwhelming) though the magnetism of Shannon Hoon makes that seem unlikely.

As one of my favorites this year at Tribeca Film Festival I would recommend any fan of Blind Melon to check this out, but even if you aren’t – do it anyway. This is a movie that deserves to be seen, heard, and experienced.

Lost Transmissions (Katharine O’Brien)

Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (+ Interview With Simon Pegg)
Lost Transmissions (2019) – source: Tribeca Film Festival

With Lost Transmissions, a new drama from production companies Pulse Films and Royal Road Entertainment, Theo (Simon Pegg) is a music producer who meets Hannah (Juno Temple) a young singer. Through their connection and their combined dealings with mental illness, they become close.

The two both feed off one another, spurring the other on creatively. Hannah takes prescriptions for her depression, but Theo doesn’t believe in them and thinks that it negatively impacts their work. As one would imagine eventually things start to go bad, and Hannah notices Theo acting strangely. This leads him to streaks of paranoid delusions and eventually he has a break. It’s clear that he desperately needs assistance and Hannah’s response is just as powerful as Theo’s descent.

I liked that the two weren’t sent down a romantic road, because the film doesn’t need it. Their friendship and intimacy were enough to distinguish a viable narrative that you can connect with.

Even in his most comical roles there’s a kernel of dramatic resonance, even if it’s teasing to come out, and he clearly shows here that his ability goes beyond being just hilarious. Pegg gets an opportunity here to be stripped down and brutally truthful. It’s a soulful portrayal, delivering an inspired account of the effects of mental illness. Lost Transmissions really finds its identity in the softer moments between our two leads, as the heartbreak comes to the surface and they acknowledge their own (and each other’s) struggles. It’s about mental illness and how hard it can be to help someone who is suffering.

As prevalent as this is (most of us have some experience to a degree)  the story is highly personal and also very sensitive, and it’s luckily handled with care by its cast and writer/director Katharine O’Brien. It is also her first feature film. There’s a lot to appreciate about Lost Transmissions, and while I could talk about the occasional meandering of the writing at times, spending too much on the extreme, I’d rather end this review with an applause and hopeful expectations for O’Brien’s future.

I was able to speak with Simon Pegg on the red carpet.

On working with the director, Katharine O’Brien:

Simon Pegg: Katharine is an amazingly assured and intelligent director. I think it’s probably because she was born in Santa Barbara, she’s laid back, she has that sort of beach kind of cool about her where everything is zen and it helps to create a very creative atmosphere on set. She knows exactly what she wants, and she has a extremely precise vision. And, as an actor, you really need that, you know? I was impressed and I felt very safe, and I was when I was working with her I didn’t feel like it was with a first-time director that I had to sort of like, look after in any way. I just sat back and let her direct me, and it was a delight.

On the challenges of the role:

Simon Pegg: I think just the subject matter, trying to portray a character who is in such pain, and still making him human, and also communicating the notion that people who have this are still people, you know? And they need to be helped. And how easy it is for people who have mental health issues to become homeless, and then just get lost in the system. They lose their house, and suddenly they’re on the street and there’s no way for them to get help or get back into a normal life. And it happens a lot, it’s very easy.

On people with mental illnesses feeling represented:

Simon Pegg: I hope so. It’s certainly is tackling the issue, it shines a light on it. I think people who have found themselves in that situation and hopefully managed to come through it, will recognize certain things for sure.

On getting to do this movie:

Simon Pegg: I’m thrilled. It’s nice to be able to do a film that is wildly different from anything that I’ve done before, and I’ve gotten a lot invested in this movie, emotionally, so it’s been a real trip, and I’m excited to be here.

On getting into character:

Simon Pegg: It was important for me to get this portrayal right. It was a priority of mine to actually find out what schizophrenia was, as it’s an often misunderstood condition. A lot of people think it’s about having multiple personalities or even referred to comically sometimes, like in our language: “it’s Schizo” and it’s sort of trivialized quite a lot, but I really wanted to get the portrayal right. So, I went and spoke with people who lived with the condition, who had survived it, and that was a really important part of getting ready to do the movie.

On what’s coming next for him:

Simon Pegg: I’ve got Dark Crystal coming up and I did a little spot on The Boys which premieres here as well, which was fun. I’ve got another two Mission Impossibles lined for next year, and a couple indies in the pipeline. And I’m also developing something with Nick Frost, which we will hopefully shoot this year.

We want to thank Simon Pegg for speaking with us at the premiere!

Bliss (Joe Begos)

Tribeca 2019 Round Up #2: ALL I CAN SAY, BLISS & LOST TRANSMISSIONS (+ Interview With Simon Pegg)
Bliss (2019)- source: Tribeca Film Festival

With Bliss, we follow Dezzy (Dora Madison) down a drug-fueled artistic hole throughout LA, that goes through some colorful – aesthetically and dark-tonally spirals. Writer/director Joe Begos has his lead eventually succumb to vampiric tendencies (with no shortage of blood) after a hallucinogenic excursion. This movie is very heady, like one long night of partying. Only, this one ends up with one hell of a hangover.

Dezzy is struggling financially and consistently has pressure to finish her work. Her relationship with boyfriend Clive (Jeremy Gardner) doesn’t seem to be going very well, and soon she’s sent on a tailspin of depravity. She is so desperately seeking inspiration to finish her piece, that the hunt for a muse turns into a very destructive whirlwind that eventually has her enjoying the taste of blood. While there’s a physical horror element, this is also a mental and carnal experience Dezzy goes through.

The cinematography by Mike Testin is shaky, but it is cohesive with the trajectory of the story. As Dezzy goes deeper down, consistently becoming more rampant, the visuals match.

It’s a great idea, one that, even at its short length, may be a little bit long-winded. I can really appreciate the sense of desperation from Dezzy (and I loved the end) but for me, the film still had a slightly lagging mid-section. The narrative becomes a little unfocused here, which may lose some viewers. Still, it picks up in its final act, as the story changes and it really slays any inhibitions. It’s dirty, it’s wicked, and its climax is intense, but bloody good fun.

Overall, Bliss boasts a very determined performance by Dora Madison, who really shoulders this film with no fear of getting her hands dirty, and an imaginative precipice for Begos to dive off.

Were you able to catch any of these films? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!

All three films had their premiere at Tribeca Film Festival 2019.

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