Brazil Reviews

Out of Time: The Material Issue Story (2021)

Too Short of Documentary About Too Short of Life

[20 March 2024]

The title of this worth-seeing documentary "Out of Time" refers to the short life of Chicago power pop trio Material Issue's lead singer, Jim Ellison. It could also refer to the fact that Material Issue's music seemed out of place in the early 1990s, the time of their meteoric rise and slow fade out.

The documentary covers the band's formation in the mid 1980s through their brief stardom, slow decline, and sudden tragic end with a hyper focus on lead singer, primary songwriter, and band leader Jim Ellison. The best interviews are with the two surviving members of Material Issue, Jim Ellison's family, and two producers who worked closely with the band - Jeff Murphy and Mike Chapman.

While engrossing for those who followed the band in the 1990s and were left wondering "what went wrong?", the documentary doesn't dive deeply enough into the band or main character Ellison, a shame since the running time is only about an hour. A lot of things are left unsaid or only hinted at, and big Chicago/alternative personalities of the time like Billy Corgan and Liz Phair are not interviewed. There are a few famous name like Steven Albini but they appear and disappear quickly, some after only a single comment about the band.

At one point in the documentary, an interviewee compares Material Issue to Green Day - a comparison that couldn't be further from the reality of the time. In the early 1990s, bands like Green Day, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Nirvana (mentioned only briefly here as well) were seen as the vanguard of a cultural revolution. Material Issue were retro power pop (obvious even to themselves, confirmed in music videos featured in the documentary), and out of step with the zeitgeist of Gen-X. In retrospect, the band's production and bravado put them more in line with some of the British bands of the era, a part of the music scene totally unexplored in the documentary.

Other things missing or only briefly covered in the documentary include Ellison's relationship with women. He's best known for songs about women (or songs about being in love with women), so commentary from ex-girlfriends may have been enlightening. Ellison's love of hot rods and Americana (apparent in the band's aesthetic of the time) only comes up when family mentions that he loved Evil Knievel as a child. The documentary doesn't totally ignore but mostly glosses over the fact that Material Issue was in decline long before the group's tragic ending, having been dropped by their label over a year before Ellison's suicide.

An article about "Out of Time" includes the line: "Material Issue were on the cusp of success when bandleader and songwriter Jim Ellison died by suicide." The story of a band on the edge of superstardom losing it all to sudden tragedy makes for great fiction. The real Material Issue story - the one about a talented and confident artist touching the edge of stardom only to see it all start slipping away - is potentially more interesting. Had the filmmaker dug into things only hinted at, this documentary had the potential to be truly enlightening. I still rate "Out of Time" ten stars because it's the best documentary ever made about a fascinating band and a fascinating person who should still be making music today.

Jajo (1984 TV Movie)

Half Of A Good If Confusing Monster Movie

[5 November 2023]

Jajo is a movie about a girl, an egg, two scientists, and a monster. It's a monster movie without more than a few seconds of footage of the monster, it sometimes veers into near comedy, and they may have run out of money (or script) half way through, but it's still a fun short watch (and available in full online).

The plot involves a young female scientist arriving at a research facility where two rival scientists (and one of their wives) are involved in a professional and personal drama. The lab research adds a science fiction element to the story, leading up to the monster's appearance. An early shot of a "Leda and the Swan" artwork on a wall will come back later during a scene that may shock some.

The real problem with the film is that once the monster finally appears (and quickly disappears), the film seems to be missing a reel. We fast forward without adequate explanation and most characters act like the monster may never have been there. If this wasn't a short, the best part of the movie may have been in that missing last 30 minutes. That makes the film a bit frustrating, but it's still worth a watch.

Also be aware that there is at least one scene of what looks like a real mouse being harmed in a laboratory scene.

A Life on the Farm (2022)

Interesting Main Character With Some Questionable Commentary

[24 May 2023]

Charles Carson was a quirky farmer from England who produced a series of VHS videos and photo artworks for friends, as well as for his own amusement, in the 1980s and 1990s. He's a unique character, and his story has potential as a documentary. The strength of the material produced by Mr. Carson keeps the film interesting, but the documentary production itself is less successful.

"A Life on the Farm" may serve as a lesson for other documentarians on how not to use "experts". Mystery Science Theater has its fans, but the last thing viewers want to see in a documentary is people totally unrelated to the source material explaining what we ourselves just watched on screen and what we should think of it. Other than those directly related to the subject, most of the "experts" here appear to have as much knowledge of Mr. Carson as anyone else doing a quick Google search.

Also questionable, some guests in this documentary appeared to be using the background of some interview shots to promote various websites, companies, or products. You might be watching a segment about mental illness, or a funeral, and the experts appear on screen with a banner for their latest YouTube episode in the background.

The documentary was worth watching, and I appreciate the director's effort to keep the outsider art of Mr. Carson alive for future generations. Hopefully the next project from this filmmaker will skip unrelated talking heads, focusing on people with first hand knowledge of the source material.

My Hero the Hitman (2022)

Good Documentary For Fans of 1990s Pop Culture

[10 May 2022]

"My Hero The Hitman" is a documentary that should appeal to fans of popular culture, especially 1990s pop culture. The film looks at how a person may or may not be defined by the worst thing they ever did. In today's world where many people strive for "fame" at any cost, and the debate over "cancel culture" rages, the issues examined in this film are more relevant than ever.

The film starts with a montage of crazy things that happened in the early 1990s, and then introduces us to a main characters in one of those stories - Shane Stant. Stant is the man hired by associates of Tonya Harding to take figure skater Nancy Kerrigan out of the 1994 Winter Olympics. The plan didn't work (Kerrigan won a silver medal), but it changed several lives forever.

Shane Stant's life is examined from two main angles - how the public saw him, and how his younger sister, a baby when the attack occurred, saw him. The public saw a thug/monster in the attack's immediate aftermath. His sister, knowing only the post-prison Stant, saw him as a role model and father figure. The same person, seen by different audiences at different times in his life, appears as two totally different people.

The documentary examines the abusive childhood of both Stant siblings, as well as covering the details of the Kerrigan attack and its aftermath from the viewpoint of an insider. Shane Stant appears honest and forthcoming in his interviews, recalling how the attack and resulting prison time helped him grow into a better person. Many viewers will feel sympathetic that a single act committed decades ago continues to define his life in many ways. Shane's story is similar of that of the actor Danny Trejo, who also got off to a bad start but then redeemed himself later in life.

The documentary isn't perfect, partially because the budget appears to be very low. The soundtrack consists of original music by the director, but might have benefited from pop songs of the early 1990s. A few of the segments with Stant's sister or her friends probably could have been cut without any detriment to the film (although the runtime is already short). After more than five years in production by a first time director, the documentary manages to mix pop culture with relevant societal issues in an original and very personal way.

Ebola Syndrome (1996)

Sex, gore, and more!!!

[3 January 1999]

This movie starts out with a charged sex scene which quickly degrades into a violent multiple-murder. A man with a deadly virus goes on a rape spree (which passes the virus around) and the authorities try to find him. Lots of quality gore, nudity, rape, and anything else deprived you can think of. One of the stronger plotted movies of this kind I've seen. Worth picking up.