Chimps and trash.The next two films I saw were brilliantly made documentaries. I love a good documentary. I could watch one on just about anything. A friend used to tease me when he found out I watched a documentary on Tupperware. But you know what? It was fascinating and I’d do it again.

3. Project Nim
Directed by James Marsh
Premise: A chimpanzee was taken from his mother at birth and raised in a New York human family. He was the subject in an experiment that aimed to explore a chimpanzee’s capacity for learning language. Unfortunately for Nim, chimpanzees grow up and become stronger than their handlers, which mostly leads to disaster. What to do with a chimpanzee who is caught between human and animal? Chimpanzees who were raised as humans is an especially interesting topic for me. Have you ever heard about Lucy?

Chicken with early cinema.The Abu Dhabi Film Festival is wrapping up today. The event is always highly anticipated. During the 10 days of the festival, movie-goers can view interesting and independent films from around the world. The usual cinema offerings are typically the major blockbusters from home (and sometimes edited).

This year I saw seven films and I thought it would be fun to share a few clips or trailers from each one.

1. Chicken with Plums (2011)
Directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
Premise: After his tar is ruined, acclaimed muscian Nasser Ali loses his will to live. He retires to his bed and decides to die. Over the next 8 days the story of his life unfolds, revealing the real significance of his tar and musical career. It sounds like a downer and it is pretty sad. However, the film was very fun to watch and included humorous elements. It is based on Satrapi’s graphic novel of the same name. If you liked Persepolis, you’ll probably like this although the two are very different.

xo, jill

xo, jill

xo, jill