Dark Matter (2019 short)

What a rush!

(2019) Sports Documentary Short (1091) Travis Rice, Elias Elhardt, Graham Tracey (narrator). Directed by Curt Morgan

 

Elite snowboarders Travis Rice and Elias Elhardt head up to the remote northern Alaska mountain range, most of which is only accessible by helicopter to shred down ridges that, some of them, seem to be only wide enough to walk single file along  Couple this with narration that talks about the insignificance of our place in the universe and you have maybe the most unusual snowboarding doc ever. Or maybe not. To be perfectly honest, I haven’t seen a whole lot of them

I guess it takes a special personality to want to get on a fiberglass plank and rocket down the side of a mountain at breakneck speeds. And, I suppose it takes a different but equally special personality to want to watch someone doing just that. The four different cameramen capturing the footage show us a pristine Alaska, beautiful mountains covered in snow. The helicopters that drop off the snowboarders capture some of the footage; some of the rest of it comes off of Go-Pros mounted on the athlete’s helmets.

The narration talks about carbon footprints and the effects of climate change on places like this, but the crew uses a helicopter to get where they’re going and to capture footage. That seems kind of at odds with the message of ecological responsibility, but maybe that’s just me.

I will be the first to admit that I’m not the target audience of these sorts of documentaries and I totally get that there are people who love these sorts of films. This is only 25 minutes long but there is a bit of repetitiveness to it; how many times can you see two snowboarders rocketing down the side of a mountain before it starts to blend together. The answer to that question is going to determine how much you’re going to be into this film.

REASONS TO SEE: Some spectacular footage.
REASONS TO AVOID: Somewhat pretentious narration.
FAMILY VALUES: There’s nothing the entire family would enjoy (assuming the entire family is into extreme sports).
TRIVIAL PURSUIT: This marks the fifth project that Rice and Morgan have worked on together.
BEYOND THE THEATERS: Amazon, Vudu
CRITICAL MASS: As of 12/28/19: Rotten Tomatoes: No score yet: Metacritic: No score yet.
COMPARISON SHOPPING: Depth Perception
FINAL RATING: 6/10
NEXT: BlacKKKlansman

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The Biggest Little Farm

Farmer, farmer’s best friend and beautiful farm.

(2018) Documentary (NEON) John Chester, Molly Chester, Alan York, Beauden Chester. Directed by John Chester

If you are someone who watches a lot of documentaries about farming and food production, you’ll be aware that small family farms are essentially endangered species, being pushed to the brink of extinction by factory farms that loads up their crops with pesticides and growth hormones and practices inhumane (to say the least) practices in regards to the livestock.

John Chester is a cinematographer who started out doing nature documentaries. His wife Molly is a chef, food blogger, cookbook author and advocate for healthy farm-to-table cuisine. The two lived in a cramped Santa Monica apartment but dreamed of farm life. They adopted a rescue dog, a big black Labrador-like guy named Todd. When the two would leave the apartment to go to work, the dog suffered from acute separation anxiety, barking non-stop to the point where the landlord finally asked them to get rid of the dog. Instead, the couple opted to get rid of apartment life. They decided to live their dream instead of just discussing it.

They purchased 200 acres near Moorpark, California – about an hour North of downtown L.A. in Ventura County. Not knowing much about farming, they took the sage advice of Alan York who preached the gospel of biodiversity, raising as many crops as possible instead of just a single one and relying on pesticides. The Chesters wanted to integrate flora and fauna, and York had the know-how to make it work.

The film – largely shot by Chester and directed by him – is a chronicle of the first seven years of their journey into Green Acres territory and all the challenges they faced, from predators such as coyotes and mountain lions attacking their chicken population, or pests like snails and various bugs eating the fruits of their labors (literally). In all instances the Chesters tried solutions that incorporated natural elements, like getting ladybugs for the insect pests and so on.

There are obstacles that don’t necessarily have easy and natural solutions, like a drought that has been proclaimed the worst in 1,200 years, or the destructive wildfires that have beset California the past couple of years. The fact that the climate is changing doesn’t seem to deter the very persistent Chester family; however, it must be said that farms like theirs is part of the solution to climate change.

One wouldn’t think that a farm would be an ideal location for nature photography but Chester certainly has an eye for it and some of the images are absolutely stunning. In fact, they are almost too stunning; sometimes we get so caught up in the beautiful images for the underlying message of biodiversity and ecological responsibility to register. What will certainly register is the personality of the various farm animals, starting with Todd the Rescue Dog on down to Millie the pig, Greasy the rooster and onward.

The farm does offer tours (we see one near the end of the film) and there is a URL at the end of the film for which you can follow the Farm where, as they say, the story continues. Those who don’t want to wait to see the film to check out the farm and their activities out can go here.

Watching this simple yet heartwarming film is going to get some viewers to long for a simpler life. Maybe you too will be motivated to start a farm of your own although watching this might convince you that the very prospect is nothing short of crazy. This was a big hit at the recent Florida Film Festival and will be making a run at the Enzian in the coming weeks. Keep an eye out for it; this is truly chicken soup for the soul.

REASONS TO SEE: The cinematography is absolutely extraordinary. Nature photography on the farm – also extraordinary. Makes one long for a simpler life. Very sweet and inspiring.
REASONS TO AVOID: Sometimes the message is lost in the beautiful pictures
FAMILY VALUES: There are some scenes of animal peril.
TRIVIAL PURSUIT: The film debuted at the Toronto Film Festival last year.
CRITICAL MASS: As of 5/10/19: Rotten Tomatoes: 96% positive reviews: Metacritic: 73/100.
COMPARISON SHOPPING: After Winter, Spring
FINAL RATING: 9/10
NEXT: Charlie Says