Movie review: Towelhead

Trevor & I are making a conscious effort to see more independent movies. Over the last 6 months especially, I’ve really fallen off the Smart Film wagon.

My main excuse for this is the time and effort required to see these types of movies. The amount of time it takes to get to a further away theatre, as well as the lack of show time options and therefore inconvenience of being an indie filmgoer is easy enough to understand. But the bigger issue is the feeling that I will be so drained after seeing a “deep” movie that I just can’t get up the emotional energy for it. I can’t tell you how many Netflix movies have sat on the coffee table for months because, no matter how much I want to see the film, I’m just not willing to commit myself to it that day. It’s so much easier to see an un-challenging movie.

I’ve been especially guilty of this lately, constantly opting for the easy, enjoyable movie escape – you know, one that’s perfect for a snuck-in bottle of wine, and very little post-viewing analysis. Before this weekend, the last 5 movies I’d seen were: ‘House Bunny, ‘Mamma Mia,’ ‘Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,’ ‘Dark Knight’ and ‘Wall-E.’ It was hard to even get me to ‘Dark Knight,’ because I was dreading the emotional rollercoaster of watching Heath Ledger playing a disturbed, doomed depressive.

Now, obviously not all independent movies are heavy and intense. And I would argue that the movies that make you think and feel heavy things are more worthwhile to the viewer (and society) by providing insight into an aspect of the human condition you likely have no idea about. Essentially, if I want to continue calling myself a movie person, I have to put my money where my mouth is, support independent movies, and join in the conversation.

Are you wondering where the movie review portion of this blog entry is? Okay, here we go.

‘Towelhead’ was written and directed by Alan Ball, the creator of ‘Six Feet Under’ and the writer of ‘American Beauty.’ It tells the story of about 6 months in the life of a 13-year old Lebanese-American girl, who, in the early 90s, goes to live with her father in Houston after an inappropriate almost sexual interaction with her mother’s boyfriend. She’s a girl coming to terms with her sexuality, and confused about what she’s supposed to feel (and for whom) and how she should act. She’s naively flirtatious, and completely isolated in her confusion (When her mother sends her away in tears, she says “This is your fault.” Her father forbids her to wear makeup, use tampons or date a black boy.). She becomes the babysitter of a boy who lives next door, whose father (Aaron Eckhart) is an Army reservist with a stash of dirty magazines.

I wasn’t a big fan of the man playing Jasira’s father – I thought he took the obvious road a few too many times, but everyone else inhabited their characters fully and realistically. Towards the end of the movie, there’s a scene where Toni Collette’s pregnant character lies on the couch while major action takes place around her – it’s a testament to the lines she was given and her ability to fully inhabit her character that she didn’t have to move once to command the screen.

It’s a quiet and deliberate movie, with glances pushing the plot forward. It’s the kind of film that’s hard to recommend because of its intense story – children and sex abuse aren’t exactly date movie material – but it’s a film that’s certainly worth seeing for its commentary on sexual politics, family dynamics, race, and even the first Gulf War.

As you watch this girl tiptoe towards The Line, and then get shoved over it, you almost lose all hope, thinking that she's lost forever. Ball, like he did in ‘American Beauty’ before this and throughout ‘Six Feet Under’ gives the audience just one tiny sliver of light in an otherwise bleak landscape: With only her eyes visible, the sun shines on her face in a hospital room, a new life comes into the world, and you are rewarded for your hope – this girl is not broken.

7 Twix bars.