Category: short film

Part One & Part Two

We end our look at Ari Aster’s short films with some of his best works. We start with Basically, a monologue/character piece starring Rachel Brosnahan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel). She appeared briefly in Munchausen, and Aster liked working with her. Basically was part of what would have been a web series that featured residents of Los Angeles talking to the camera about themselves and their lives. One thing the director does so magnificently is allowing his characters to take us through an emotional roller coaster. We might start hating them, then grow to empathize, then be taken back to despising them, and finally feel the pathos again. Brosnahan is a perfect actor for this task, and Shandy Pickles is a complicated & funny character.

Continue reading “The Short Films of Ari Aster Part Three”

Part Two and Part Three

This week, Ari Aster’s third feature film, Beau Is Afraid, will be released in theaters. I am a big fan of Aster mainly because his aesthetic and sensibilities match with filmmakers I already enjoyed when I saw Hereditary for the first time. The director has openly talked about his admiration for Swedish filmmaker Roy Andersson (Songs From the Second Floor, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence). Both directors employ a dark sense of humor in their work, along with framing & blocking that gives scenes a slightly unreal atmosphere. Aster is also hugely influenced by The Coen Brothers, particularly when they blend elements of their Jewish background into their work (A Serious Man, for instance). Albert Brooks (Modern Romance, Defending Your Life) is another Jewish filmmaker who has shaped Aster’s cinematic eye. And then there’s Ingmar Bergman, whose movies Persona, Fanny and Alexander, and more are the source for much of Aster’s interest in exploring suffering. 

Continue reading “The Short Films of Ari Aster Part One”