World Beat

Argentinean Cowboys, Tajik Thugs, Italian Gay Dwarf Taxidermists

Comments (0) Tuesday, Mar 25 2003

The GlowOne of the most philosophical of Israeli directors, Igal Bursztyn turns a comedy of manners into a science fiction allegory, predicated on the arrival of an alien presence. Among other attractions, The Glow features Israeli performance artist Tinkerbell in the role of a middle-aged ex-general's trophy girlfriend. March 31 and April 1 (JH)

Wild BerriesWith the exception of the long-suffering daughter, everyone lies, for all too transparent reasons, in Japanese first-timer Miwa Nishikawa's mild wacky-family riff. As in Time Out, Dad keeps his unemployment a secret, but his cover is blown at granddad's wake, where the estranged son, now scamming funeral parlors, re-enters the picture, offering to put his parents' finances in order. March 31 and April 1 (DL)

photo: courtesy FSLC

Reality TV: Brazilian hijacker and hostage in Bus 174

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New Directors/New Films
March 26 through April 6, at Alice Tully Hall, the Walter Reade, and MOMA Film at the Gramercy Theatre

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Black Tape: The Videotape Fariborz Kam-kari Found in the GarbageThe subtitle spells out the Blair Witch-y premise. In choppy, motion-sick fragments, a camcorder records the intensifying mind games between a Kurdish teen bride and her monstrous Iranian husband. There are plenty of harrowing moments in Fariborz Kamkari's first feature—some more oblique than others—but as a conceptual stunt, it has curiously little regard for structural integrity. March 31 and April 1 (DL)

"New Directors/New Films" coverage continues next week.