Another Day In Paradise (Larry Clark, 1997)

Larry Clark is really a love or hate director for most people. I personally love him, a lot. When I worked at a university library one summer in special collections, I would hide in the air conditioned rare books basement and read dirty books; particularly, old issues of Playgirl, High Times, and Larry Clark photography. I love the maligned Ken Park -- it's a film with no real plot to speak of, but short vignettes about how hard it is to be a teenager. That's what most of Clark's films are about, the in-between period when you're not an adult, but certainly not a child, and what sex and love and fun means to you then. In Another Day In Paradise, Clark takes on adulthood, or at least two adults who are in a state of arrested development, and two young people who want to be adults. James Woods and Melanie Griffith (with whom I was surprisingly impressed) play Mel and Sid, two junkie thieves who end up hooking up with Bobbie and Rosie (played by Vincent Kartheiser and Natasha Gregson Wagner, who both give wonderful performances but seem to have fallen victim to the strange young actors of the 90s curse), two teenage junkie hoods who want to become big time. Mel and Sid become like parents to Bobbie and Rosie, but, like most things, the good times only last so long. The plot isn't so much what's important about Another Day In Paradise; rather, it's the movie one can point to when detractors try to claim that Clark isn't a director, but instead is an exploiter of underage sexuality. This film has lots of beautiful and occasionally poignant moments. All four of the leads are remarkably well acted, and in all these people at the bottom of society, we see glimpses of failed dreams and vulnerability. But it wouldn't be a Clark film without some sex, and although this was the director's cut, there was some of the most straightforward sex talk I've seen in film in a while. Wagner in particular is fantastic as Rosie, who wants to be rich and have her fun like with Bobbie, but also wants to settle down and be a mother (hard with a heroin addiction), but fails in the end. The only real problems I had with the movie is that there was no way that Wagner plays for a teenager, as she was almost 30 at the time of filming; and I could see where the plot was going long before it got there. But like I said, plot isn't the most important thing in this film, but rather the actors' reactions to the situations. Those are all amazing. Not Clark's best film, but certainly a really good one, no matter who the director. 8.5/10

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Ken Park (Larry Clark and Ed Lachman, 2002)

Larry Clark is one of the most divisive filmmakers in the independent world, I think. I mean, just look at this post I made of stills from the film, and how much controversy erupts from a film most people HAVEN'T EVEN SEEN. Now that's a divisive filmmaker. And most people haven't actually seen Ken Park, as it's never been released theatrically or on DVD in the United States; in fact, it more or less disappeared after its appearance at the Toronto Film Festival (I think). I believe that in the immediate post 9/11 climate in the US (although this film has absolutely nothing to do with terrorism, I know that), controversial art was pushed to the side, and no distribution companies wanted to pick this one up. If you've seen This Film is Not Yet Rated, you understand why the industry would be so hostile toward a film this sexually explicit. And explicit it is - everything you might have heard about the movie is true, there's sex in almost every scene, and none of it simulated. As well as graphic sex, there's incest, murder, suicide, drugs, and just general teen ennui. Again, no wonder this hasn't gotten distribution. But all the controversy around Ken Park, and around Clark and screenwriter Harmony Korine (who had a falling-out with Clark around this time) themselves, has shadowed the fact that this is actually a good, thought-provoking movie. Call it Kids for the new millenium; actually, it works pretty well as a sequel of sorts to the first Clark-Korine collaboration, looking at the same kinds of kids, only in a suburban environment, and ten years later. They're aware of things like AIDS and the dangers of partying too hard, but they don't really care. Or, if they do, they're hiding it well. Onto the movie itself: there are some stellar performances, especially from James Ransone as the absolutely insane Tate. Tate isn't in the least likeable in the movie, but Ransone kept me from hating him. Also pretty good is Tiffany Limos as Peaches, although there's so much drama on her imdb page that I wonder what the big deal is. Apparently she was dating Clark at the time of the filming. Hm. I love the framing of the story of a group of friends who marginally know Ken Park, but we never (really, except in one scene) see the kids hanging out. The movie beginning with the end of Ken Park's life (a brilliant scene) and ending with right before the end of his life ("Aren't you glad your mother didn't abort you?" is one of my favorite final lines) was a great stylistic choice. The performances are solid, the direction of Clark and Ed Lachman is solid, and Korine's screenplay is solid. The result is less than perfect, but much more than some would have you believe. 8.5/10 RIYL: Kids, Gummo

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