COMING TO A LIVING ROOM NEAR YOU; or, JUST THE FACTS

the art and artifice of the culture critic aren't always appreciated for their scopic influence and import. if anything, the critic is most widely embraced for the ease with which he can be pilloried for espousing an opinion. established or otherwise, authority is authority -- which also denies the critic the satisfaction of playing the martyr.

so it's incredibly validating when hard work and honest observations are rewarded with public recognition of their merit. they might not have been the most popular films at this year's international film festival, but this critic's picks were nonetheless assiduously considered. thankfully, someone was reading.

"the housemaid" from south korea, our number five pick, is currently showing at living room theaters at sw 10th ave and stark st, a prelude to the opening of "heartbeats" by xavier dolan, our festival favorite, on april first. that's just the facts, no martyrdom no sainthood. claiming either would just be an embarrassment, knowing now that theater management is going to see this.

it's almost certain now that both films will get dvd releases (there are probably places -- places of course beyond the strictly critical purview -- where it's possible to find out things like that), but the theater has done its good deed. maybe that deserves a reward. you'll feel like you were at home anyway, because living room only screens digital projections. "heartbeats" will probably suffer for that, but it's worth the while to see dolan's pretty face on the big screen. get up and go.