| NOTHING
MORE Rating:   Director: Juan Carlos Cremata Malberti Producers: Thierry Forte, Sarah Halioua, Antonio P. Perez, Camilo Vives Writers: Manolita Rodriguez, Juan Carlos Cremata Malberti Director of Photography: Raul Rodriguez Cabrera Cast: Thais Valdes, Nacho Lugo, Daisy Granados, Paula Ali, Veronica Lopez Visit the IMDB page for full cast and crew |
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Review by: Ryan
Kugler
11/17/02
I don't really consider myself a connoisseur of foreign cinema. Sure, I'll catch the occasional subtitled flick (which usually turns out to be far more satisfying than standard Hollywood fare), but it's usually one of the mass appeal ones (like Run, Lola, Run or Crouching Tiger) or something that I check out at a film festival. In fact, I can honestly say that the closest contact that I've had with Cuban cinema to date is DePalma's Scarface. Having just seen the Cuban produced Nothing More, I've learned that the romantic comedy genre is a universal one and can be just as silly (stupid even) in the hands of a Cuban director as it can in those of an American.
Writer/director Juan Carlos Cremata Malberti has made an overly experimental (think Aronofsky's Pi mixed with the Keystone Cops) first film. There are a few nice moments in the story and a couple of likable leads, but the tone of the piece is all over the map and Malberti's ambitions ultimately sink the project.
The story (which bears a resemblance to the French sensation Amelie) concerns bored postal worker Carla (Thais Valdes), who intercepts mail meant for others, so she can write responses that she thinks the intended would like to here. It's a well-meaning notion, but one that begins to consume her life. It also makes some of the others in the office (including the Postman that she has a crush on and the new Nazi-like office manager) overly suspicious.
Nothing More really is an appropriate title, because it really is nothing more than a routine romantic comedy. I could tell from the beginning that this wasn't going to be a film that I was going to rave about, but if it stayed on track, I might have enjoyed it as a minor diversion. As is, it's a major annoyance.
One of the main problems is the film's look. I have no problem with black and white photography (hell, I usually appreciate it), but throughout Malberti has chosen to have random objects (a pencil here, a cup of coffee there, etc.) colorized. It looks kind of neat, but the usage is totally random and therefore, pointless and distracting. There's also an overuse of gimmicky camera tricks that come straight out of film school. Again, this stuff looks sort of cool, but there isn't one example when the trickery actually fits in with the story.
The biggest problem that I had though was with the seismic shifts in tone. Throughout, Malberti alternates sweet, romantic (not to mention quiet) scenes, (which would usually get me involved again and force me to rethink my nasty thoughts) with loud and obnoxious slapstick ones straight out of a Three Stooges short (especially when it comes to the ridiculous characters of the manager and her henchwoman, who looks and acts like a retarded version of Mary Woronov from Rock and Roll High School). The biggest offense of this comes in the closing moments as the manager tries to run down the biking postman in the truck that she had just stolen. This out-of-control sequence is seriously as wild and over-the-top as what we get in a Road Runner cartoon.
When Nothing More ended (after a thankfully brief and fast-paced 88 minutes), I didn't know what exactly to think, but I knew that I needed Advil.
As Tony Montana would exclaim, "Say goodnight to the bad guy!"
(Screened at 2002 AFI Film Festival)
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