FACTOTUM

APOLOGY: To guest reviewer Matichu Pitchu (or MattyF) for the font-o (instead of typo for you hard to humour types) in last week's movie club email. MATT ONLY REVIEWED SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURERER AND NOT DAVID BOWIE'S COCK IN THE LABYRINTH that was all me!

MOVIE CLUB:

An important thought to remember is that a 6 o'clock dinner for 6 people with a 7 o'clock movie is not quite enough time! But I guess that's only for the cultured university educated filmy sophisticates to worry about. Life's hard really.

Has anyone else read Bukowski? I never had before I saw the film but I have been a support for friends of mine who have been through this experience that seems to effect people in ways one can't explain too articulately. The hard drinkin, mysoginist, unreasonable, "life is loss" Bukowski is an intoxicating (all pun intended) and facinating character. He is also, it must be put forth, hilarious, with a deeply dark, midnight black even, humour.

Like the library geek that I am I decided to borrow some books so I could read up on this infamous Art- TEE- st after the film. This extraciriccular reading has effected my review. And by the end of the review don't be surprised if you find me in a strip club and sucking down a bottle of burbon.

Factotum began with Matt Dillion as Mr Chinaski thumping ice with a jack hammer. As soon as I saw him in my fast-to-judge-and-"prove-to-me-your-worthy"-arrogant-film-critic mind I thought "oh shpfft I don't like Matt Dillion as Mr Chinaski". Then in my "come-on-lets-be-reasonable-dont-be-quick-to-judge" mind I thought I should let the film continue at least until he speaks to judge him.

The film is not immediately accessible; it doesn't open it's arms wide like with the well known set up and development that most films lovingly lay out for you. The narrative thus is merandering and is a sequence of events placed one after each other with no real climax or character "journey". This results in two things; firstly the first third or quarter of the film feels quite distant and difficult to be involved in. Secondly, the film feels incredibly close and intimate with the text and Bukowski's work and it is for this reason that Factotum the film is a masterstroke and really an awesome* film. Matt Dillion is really very good and his performance unwillingly and begrudgingly carries the film as many of the characters in Bukowski's stories do. They are anti-heroes not in their self destructiveness but in their pure unenthusiasm to be the main focus of a story. Marisa Tomey is of course the star of the film and she is only in it for a couple of scenes (but I'm a big fan of Marisa Tomey I may be biased). The other actress whose name has escaped me (my deepest apologies for disrepecting this actress by not crediting her properly due a lack of time)**, is also utterly convincing. The film manages and weaves through Bukowski's humour, darkness and poetry with every line, performance and visual artistry. I would reccomend reading Bukowski either before or after some of his writing because not only is it a great film it is also a respectful and genius adaptation.

* awesome in the "to inspire awe" sense of the word.

**Lilli Taylor is the name of the actress