Austin Film Festival: The Descendant, Catch and Release, and Perfume: The Story of a Murderer

Austin, Texas is no stranger to the arts. Music is big here, sure. But so is film. Film is really big in Austin. Austin is the third coast after all. Austin doesn’t just do film, the city does film differently. That’s where the Austin Film Festival (AFF) comes in. You see, they focus on the strengths writers bring to film and television. Austin Film Festival has been doing it for thirteen years now – well, this is the thirteenth year. It’s the festival in town to catch to schmooze with the folks that will be the people to know tomorrow. That’s how it works in the film and television worlds – you're a nobody today and then you’re the hottest thing since sliced bread tomorrow. Austin Film Festival gives you the chance to meet everyone in between and make friends or contacts, but most importantly AFF gives you the inside scoop on the industry from all angles today.

Most of AFF’s venues are in downtown Austin and close enough to walk between. There are two that are in Northwest Austin and not exactly in walking distance – funny enough those two theaters are the more stereotypical theaters in the venue listing. Two theaters are at the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum: the IMAX and Texas Spirit Theaters. Basically across the street is the Landmark Dobie Theater; yep it is in a University of Texas dorm’s mall. If you jaunt to the other side of the state capital, you’ll find three venues within a block of each other. The Hideout is a coffee shop with two theaters in it, one upstairs and one downstairs. The Stephen F. Austin Hotel is housing a theater in their ballroom. And of course is the beautiful Paramount Theatre. The other two, the ones in Northwest Austin, are the Regal Arbor Cinema and then Alamo Drafthouse Lake Creek. Eight theaters make for eight full days of cinematic treasures to be sought.

I started tonight at The Hideout to see The Descendant’s US Premiere. The Descendant is a 95-minute Canadian film about family secrets. James Duke decides to dig for his family roots by doing what his mother made him promise to never do – contact his grandparents. James is welcomed to their home, but not with open arms. The entire town is less than thrilled with his showing up and snooping around. Before long, the audience is aware there is a huge secret the entire town of Ste Harmonie is hiding. Of course, knowing there is a secret makes James search further. I won’t spoil what the secret is, but it isn’t anywhere near what anyone would expect. It isn’t really that big of a secret – except maybe where a blanket comes into play – and certainly isn’t a secret that will please every viewer. Once James discovers what the secret is, the movie just kind of ends. I’m still not sure what I was supposed to walk away thinking. It was obviously made by someone who feels strongly about the issue at hand (the telling of which issue would ruin the secret!) and that is to be admired. I didn’t hate The Descendant but I didn’t leave the theater liking it either. And judging from what I heard others saying, the movie wasn’t a big hit for anyone.

The next movie was my guilty pleasure. Of the movies playing during the Austin Film Festival, it is one of two or three I’ve actually seen a trailer for. According to writer/director Susannah Grant, the AFF screening was actually the first screening of the recently finished Catch and Release. Recently finished as in the cut was finished Tuesday, three days ago. Catch and Release is a romantic comedy starring Jennifer Garner, Kevin Smith, Juliette Lewis and Timothy Olyphant. Garner’s finance dies days before their wedding and his life-long friends rally around to take care of her. It is a charming film focusing on the paternal way these men take care of each other and Garner as they re-find their footing in life. Together they overcome their feelings of guilt, clean up secrets, and rediscover themselves. Catch and Release is set for theatrical release in January 2007.

Given the setting of Catch and Release, there is certainly some beautiful scenery and the cinematography catches it wonderfully. The sets added to the characters with their homes showing elements of their personalities without needing to spell it out for the audiences. The acting was decent with small glances hitting at the right heartstring or Kevin Smith going on in the perfectly funny way he has a talent to do. The characters were a bit predictable, but that’s to be expected with a romantic comedy, isn’t it?

The writer/director Susannah Grant was in attendance for a Question and Answer session after the film. Catch and Release is her directorial debut but she has been writing successful films for a while (Erin Brockovich, In Her Shoes and 28 Days). Grant has wanted to direct for a few years and finally decided Catch and Release was the project she wanted to direct so “it wouldn’t be what is interesting to someone else because the finished film is what is interesting” to her. While Grant finds it limiting to write with an actor in mind, she immediately knew Juliette Lewis was the only one that could be Maureen. Grant said Sam was hardest to cast but as soon as she watched ten minutes of An Evening With Kevin Smith she knew it had to be Kevin Smith (who had to cancel his appearance at the film). The real gem of knowledge is discovering the 111-minute film was cut from its original two hours and 57 minutes.

The last movie of the night had me a bit nervous at first. I read the description and knew it sounded interesting. But then I realized it was nearly three hours long and set to begin at 10:15. That makes for some brave programming to have such a long movie begin so late during a festival. After having watched Perfume: The Story of a Murderer I understand – it is so well made it would be a powerful movie at any time of day. This was a regional premiere of Perfume and I honestly cannot wait until it is released because I want to watch it again. Based on the novel by Patrick Suskind, Perfume tells the tale of murder and obsession. The tragically beautiful story is of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille’s quest to capture the scent of perfect beauty. As he becomes more skilled in the art of perfume-making, his obsession turns to murder and a glimpse of paradise.

Directed by Tom Tykwer (Run, Lola, Run), Perfume relies on the body’s senses of sight and sound to portray the power of smell. The visuals provide such a depth of emotion, yet the images still manage to cancel out unnecessary background noise. The score fits with each flurry of emotion and movement of Grenouille. Together the sights and sounds of Perfume allow the sense of smell to maintain its important role in the story, which is obviously central in the novel and may have made it all the more difficult to translate into film.

While the film is long, cutting out any of the story would have made Perfume the story of murder instead of The Story of a Murderer. The details of Grenouille’s life from the moment before his birth until the last frame of the film are integral into telling the story. Each moment and experience gives insight into the world of the boy with no smell of his own who seeks to capture scents so they will last forever. Each leg of his journey shapes his determination to find his fate. And each minute of the film makes a serial killer the unlikely hero of this story. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer isn’t a happy movie with a happy ending, instead it is the story of love and it’s crushingly overwhelming power.

The 13th Annual Austin Film Festival is certainly off to a good start. You can catch the festival buzz at the festival’s website, where the schedule of films, panels, and special guests can also be found.