The House Next Door

Toronto man and House contributor Adam Nayman is the subject of today's link. He's written a beautiful wrap-up of the 28th Vancouver International Film Festival for the Auteurs Notebook. Here's an excerpt, from his section on Mario Llinás’ Historias extraordinarias:

"Then there’s the question of the film’s generally ugly video aesthetics, but this too deserves closer attention. Besides the not unimportant note that Llinás pulled off such a physically ambitious epic for very little money, there’s an impressive continuity to the visuals despite the ever-shifting locations. I’d also argue that the TV-style presentation comments subtly on our willingness (or not) as filmgoers to accept run-on cinematic narratives, as opposed to television, where twists and turns and the illogical distension of character arcs is not only expected but welcomed. Perhaps the best way to describe and to recommend Historias extraordinarias, at a time when even very devoted cinephiles seem more willing to mainline DVDs of Mad Men but blanch at the prospect of a festival movie running more than 90 minutes, is to say that it feels finally like a great, short-run season of high-end television (and also that it won’t lose much being viewed on DVD)."