Our Top 5 Films From the 2024 San Francisco Film Festival
Reviews by Kate Zaliznock
The 2024 San Francisco Film Festival was a smashing success, and with a program that included over 80 films from 40 countries screened over five days, it was impossible to experience it all—but I had a great time trying. Here are my top five selections:
Mabel (Best Coming-of-Age Film)
Directed by Nicholas Ma
Written by Nicholas Ma and Joy Goodwin
Starring Judy Greer, Christine Ko, Quincy Dunn-Baker, and Lexi Perkel
As part of this review, I had the pleasure of interviewing Nicholas Ma, director and co-writer of Mabel. The film is centered on Callie, a sixth-grade transplant who has just left her forest-nestled home to move to a standard suburb. Her sole companion is Mabel, a potted plant whose leaves close at the touch (a reflection of Callie’s personality), until a determinedly friendly fourth-grader named Agnes makes an impression. Enter Ms. G, a botany-loving substitute science teacher played by Judy Greer, who becomes the first person to fully understand Callie’s utter devotion to plantlife.
When I asked Ma about his passion for botany and why he chose to use it as a vehicle for storytelling, he pointed to the sheer wonder of the plant world. He tells me there are certain species that can hear caterpillars munching on plants over ten feet away and, as a result, will start releasing defensive toxins to protect themselves. “Meanwhile, you know, I could walk down the street and not hear a car coming,” Ma says. “For me, it’s these things that bring wonder and amazement that are so often invisible to us—they are some of the greatest stories to tell.”
Our generalized ignorance of the incredible feats of nature occurring all around us every day also leant itself to the exploration of Callie’s character. Ma tells me, “People overlook Callie and the way that her brain functions in this beautiful way. Callie overlooks Agnes and the way that she functions in this beautiful way. We’re all guilty of it; we get trapped in our little worlds and assume, ‘The way it is in my brain must be the way it is in your brain.’ Things that jolt us into saying ‘Whoa, the world is extraordinary and people are extraordinary,’— that journey to figuring that out is our human journey, whether you’re 12 or 72.”
Ma tells me about his eight-week-old daughter and the wonder he sees in her eyes as she takes in the world: “She’s like, ‘You mean I get a bottle all the time?’ She’s just mind blown.” When it comes to parents, I share that I found myself focusing more on Callie’s relationship with her own than I thought I initially would; Ma credits a lot of this to actors Quincy Dunn-Baker and Christine Ko and the depth of their commitment to their performances. “To me, what makes great movies that embrace an audience of young people is that they also embrace the complexity of adults. I think the dilemma for [Callie’s parents] is very real… this idea of her being someone who will be fine as an adult but is really going to struggle in middle and high school. Those years are hard for all of us, and you think ‘I’m never going to make it to being an adult, for it to feel different,’ but you just sometimes have to endure. That process is slow and requires love. Sometimes, it’s ‘All I can do is hold on and hold the person I love.’ That to me is the challenge of parenting: those problems, those challenges that you can’t solve for your child, I think, are exquisitely painful.”
When it comes to the rest of the cast, Ma can’t applaud their abilities enough. “Judy Greer is one of those people who will take any character and add seven more dimensions than you realized were there.” He also considers working with child actors like Lexi Perkel (Callie) and Lena Josephine Marano (Agnes) to be a privilege, and references Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, the 2018 documentary on Fred Rogers he produced (Ma was a guest on Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood as a child alongside his father, Yo-Yo Ma). He says of Rogers, “His mantra was to take the challenges of young people seriously, as opposed to calling them ridiculous or saying ‘It’s not a big deal,’—it really is a big deal, otherwise [the child] wouldn’t be having such a strong reaction.”
Despite a few challenges (including having to stock up on many, many Mabels), Ma has presented a simultaneously unique and universal tale that resonates with audiences. He says, “I’m really interested in those stories that grow and evolve with us. It’s interesting, you watch Mary Poppins as a kid and it’s delightful, you watch it as a teenager and you’re like, ‘Mary Poppins wasn’t that nice,’ and then you watch it as an adult and you think, ‘So Mary Poppins is sort of like an anti-capitalist fable about… taking down the banking system?’ Without those kinds of elements it could be suggested that kids can’t really process complexity, and I think they can. We obviously don’t understand the banking system when we’re six, but we appreciate that depth of what’s there and that’s what makes us hungry and curious to understand new things. For me, I want people to enjoy a film obviously, I want people to come away happy that they’ve watched it and feeling nourished by it. What I really want is in six months for them to think back on the film and for something in that film to have stayed with them. That’s what keeps me going.”
As for other filmmakers, Ma says, “I admire those creators who bring such specificity to the way they tell a story and yet somehow it feels universal. I think Charlotte Wells with Aftersun did something truly extraordinary on film, and a very dear friend of mine named Kate Marks has this script that I just think is mind blowing. It seems to exist in this surreal, different place, but as you go through it you realize ‘No, this is an environmental, ecological, human question that we confront not just when we’re feeling depressed and doom scrolling, but that we confront every day that we walk out of the door—about what are we, what our obligations to others are, and what our obligations to ourselves are. It’s not out yet, but hopefully soon.”
Mabel is currently seeking U.S. distribution. Learn more here.
Eternal You (Best Tech Documentary)
Directed by Hans Block and Moritz Riesewieck
When ChatGPT and other similar endeavors started to take off, journalists were soon publishing articles on the existential questions that arise from the implementation of artificial intelligence. It didn’t take long for tech entrepreneurs to see an opening in what is perhaps the most growth-stable market imaginable: the bereaved.
What began as a series of chatbots to “connect” the living and the dead is now a rapidly growing industry, and the work of several of these companies is explored in Eternal You.
While those paying for these services may have the most noble of intentions, several outcomes shown in the film make the blood run cold. One woman started regularly “chatting” with her deceased boyfriend because it served her search for closure. Then, one day, the chatbot claimed the boyfriend was trapped in hell, unable to reach his loved ones in heaven. We also see a mother in VR glasses sobbing while she “holds” an avatar of her dead daughter. The psychological effects of these services can be immeasurably devastating, which begs the question—should such a dangerously unethical market be allowed to exist?
Set to a superb score by Gregor Keienburg and Raffael Seyfried, Eternal You is a timely documentary that deserves a wide audience, as this seemingly niche sector of the tech industry may soon become the new norm if left unchecked.
Eternal You will be released in Germany on June 20 via Farbfilm Verleih. It is currently seeking U.S. distribution.
Uncropped (Best Biographical Documentary)
Directed by D.W. Young
Uncropped traces the career of legendary photojournalist James Hamilton from his start with forged press credentials at a Texas music festival to capturing images of both war zones and scandalous A-list fêtes featuring legendary names like Muhammad Ali, Meryl Streep, and Alfred Hitchcock.
It is fascinating to see a seemingly reserved Hamilton reflect upon photographs of such intense scenes; that such a quiet person has lived such a loud life is but one reason why a documentary on Hamilton was well-deserved.
Interwoven throughout Hamilton’s story is a theme of adaptability; whether it be the shift of focus on an assignment or the dissolution of a publication. He has now proven himself to be a survivor in the rapidly evolving landscape of professional photography; one notable development in his career is his long-cultivated relationship with Wes Anderson who, after viewing Hamilton’s work, decided to hire him as the set photographer on several of his films. Ever since, the two have developed a deeply personal creative relationship that is reflected in Hamilton’s images of the intricacies of both Anderson’s sets as well as the organic connections formed between the cast and crew.
Uncropped is currently in theaters and will be released digitally on May 7.
Sugarcane (Best Overall: Tied with Thelma)
Directed by Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie
Sugarcane follows the story of an investigation of St. Joseph’s Mission near Williams Lake, British Columbia, a Catholic-run Indigenous boarding school that operated until 1981. After mass graves of indigenous students were uncovered elsewhere in Canada, co-directors Emily Kassie and Julian Brave NoiseCat embarked on a journey to discover the truth around the “school” that nearly broke an entire community—and had a devastatingly direct impact on Brave NoiseCat’s family.
The story on its own would carry the film, but it is the incredible direction and cinematography that brings the audience to a near-physical experience. The scenes are so breathtaking, the pain so searing, that the viewer comes as close as possible to stepping inside the screen.
Brave NoiseCat shares strikingly intimate conversations with his father and grandmother with the documentary crew, who filmed in a way that did not feel intrusive or inappropriate; rather, I felt a sense of honor that I was bearing witness to such deeply personal moments, which led to a sense of responsibility to learn more about how places like St. Joseph’s have harmed native populations across North America.
Sugarcane has been acquired by National Geographic and will be available to stream at a date yet to be announced.
Thelma: (Best Overall: Tied with Sugarcane)
Directed by Josh Margolin
Written by Josh Margolin
Starring June Squibb, Richard Roundtree, Parker Posey, and Fred Hechinger
A triumphant June Squibb absolutely glows as the titular character in her first leading role after over seven decades in show business, and it’s hard to imagine a script to better suit the occasion. Thelma is a 93-year-old grandmother who is scammed out of $10,000 after she receives a phone call from a man claiming to have her grandson, beaten and bloodied. The film takes us along on her journey to reclaim her money and also features the final, exquisite performance by Richard Roundtree, who passed away from pancreatic cancer last year, as Thelma’s partner in anti-crime.
The script was born of a real occurrence that writer and director Josh Margolin experienced with his grandmother. While Margolin and his family were able to intervene before the real-life Thelma paid the scammers, her fantastically (and sometimes hilariously) fearless nature led him to imagine what could have ensued. The film is comedy gold in many ways but, within just a few deeply tender scenes, it manages to strike a universal chord: our fear of mortality and our absolute terror at the thought of our loved ones dying. The roaring laughter that steadily rang out from the audience sometimes gave way to a symphony of sniffles and sighs—a signature mark of a film that offers a fully realized reflection of a human experience.
Now, that was supposed to be the wrap-up to this review. But as I was finishing those last few sentences, just a few moments ago, I received a phone call from a random number. I answered and heard, “Hello, this is Officer Langley calling from the U.S. Border Patrol.” With Thelma on my mind, I immediately shot back, “Really? Because this sounds like a scam.” It is true that, as the author of a true crime book, it’s not unheard of for me to get phone calls from law enforcement—but I’ve never contacted Border Patrol, and the tone in his voice was off. He’d flubbed the first line; one cannot flub the first line and maintain the suspension of disbelief.
Here is a transcript of what followed my scam accusation:
Scammer: “This is Officer Langley.”
Me: “What exactly are you calling about?”
Scammer: “I’m a Border Patrol officer. I’m calling… from the border.”
[I start laughing because the Steve Carell-esque delivery was truly divine.]
Scammer, injured upon hearing my laughter: “I… you… Get ready to be arrested, Katherine.”
[I laugh harder and slip into that mocking, low-pitched voice we all used in grade school.]
Me: “Oh, okay.”
[Scammer hangs up.]
While there were no high(ish)-speed chases or daredevil escapades in this scammer short story, I have to smile, because there is a little Thelma in me—and you’ll likely see yourself in her too.
Thelma will be released in theaters via Magnolia Pictures on June 21. Be sure to stay through the credits to catch the most poignant moment of the film.