“My only regret of winning an Oscar last year was that it was the same weekend of this festival.”
As these words poured out of Oscar-winning director Morgan Neville’s mouth late Thursday night before his film, “Best of Enemies,” I realized the fascinating personality of the True/False Film Festival.
This being my first year at the fest, I didn’t know what to expect. I assumed the movies would be good and that downtown would be a bit more crowded than normal. However, what I saw was a four-day long film junkie’s nirvana.
Columbia transformed into a cultural hub complete with awesome bands, enlightening conversations and movies that could make anyone fall in love with filmmaking.
So, here are some of the best films I saw at True/False 2015.
**Best of Enemies**
Neville, who won his Oscar for his film, “20 Feet From Stardom,” artfully describes the precursor to the maelstrom that is political commentary in the media today. The film follows Gore Vidal and William F. Buckley Jr. as they comment on the Democratic and Republican National Conventions in 1968. The two’s relationship can only be described as absolutely vitriolic (think Bill O’Reilly and Rachel Maddow in terms of the political spectrum), but this staunch difference in ideals allows for many moments of hilarity and clarity. This film engages its audience by blending hyperbole personalities with clever political and media commentary.
**Meru**
This intense climbing tale details the journey of three men as they overcome mountains of both the natural and personal kind. It highlights the desire for adventure without dismissing the insanity of the mountain-climbing sport and the emotional toll it can take. Climber and director Jimmy Chin provides absolutely breathtaking shots of Mount Meru with stunning cinematography. The impossible angles and nauseating heights capture the unimaginable beauty of the landscape the group traverses.
**Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck**
I entered the weekend praying that Brett Morgen’s compilation of Kurt Cobain’s lost footage would meet my expectations. I’ve long considered Cobain to be one of the most interesting people in pop culture history, and Morgen does him proud. Many of Cobain’s journals, drawings and audio montages are successfully incorporated in this honest portrayal of a man long considered to be an ungrateful rockstar with drug problems. The film is emotionally draining and wildly introspective with its incredible weaving of Cobain’s many artistic mediums. Casual fans and music lovers alike will adore this long-overdue glimpse into one of the most creative minds of the last 30 years.
**Tales of the Grim Sleeper**
When two white Englishmen team up with a former crack addict from Los Angeles, an engrossing yet gruesome narrative plays out before its audience. The story of Lonnie Franklin Jr., aka the Grim Sleeper, who allegedly murdered over 180 black women from the impoverished south-central district of LA, begins as a simple crime documentary before growing into a disturbing review of institutional racism and total police incompetence. Director Nick Broomfield does a splendid job including a copious amount of interviews with people from a disaffected neighborhood that was forced into silence for so long. I wish every serial killer movie included this type of inner look into the involved community.
