Alan Cumming appears in My Old School
Screening multiple films a day at a festival can lead to the discovery of unexpected thematic connections. Initially, My Old School and The Cathedral, may seem to be completely unrelated films, but, seeing them within twenty-four hours of each other (with two or three others in between), I was surprised by their similarities. They both grapple with memory and history on a very specific level, and do so in inventive manners…
My Old School tells the story of Brandon Lee, a 16-year-old student who enrolled at a Scottish secondary school in 1993, and who just happened to have the same name as the actor who was killed on set earlier that year. Without spoiling anything, it’s enough to say that Brandon was not who he said he was, and his classmates are interviewed in the present day to process how they didn’t see the truth. Most intriguingly, the subject of the film agreed to lend his voice but not his face, and so audiences are treated to the peculiar but somehow perfectly suited sight of Alan Cumming lip-synching everything he says to the camera.
The Cathedral, described as a “semi-autobiographical reflection,” takes place around the same time in America, with young Jesse Damrosh (Robert Levey II) watching his father (Brian d’Arcy James) step in and out of his life, moving from one spouse to the next. Jesse latches on to the people who are there and the moments that stand out for him, as advertisements for Kodak film underline the significance of documentation and its ability to preserve things in a way that the human mind can’t quite do, at least not entirely accurately.
The Cathedral
Both of these films come from relatively new filmmakers, with Jono McLeod delivering his first feature and Ricky D'Ambrose his second. The stories they tell are deeply personal, and they bring a remarkable approach that elevates what could have been perfectly standard documentaries to something experimental and unusual. In the former, Brandon’s unwillingness to appear on camera could have left his perspective out entirely, but having Cumming participate adds dimension and weight to his side of the story. In the latter, presenting McLeod’s past might have worked as pure nonfiction, but its matter-of-fact showcasing and narration of events with actors playing the parts makes it come alive so much more.
While only The Cathedral is playing at Sundance under the NEXT section, which, per the festival site, consists of “pure, bold works distinguished by an innovative, forward-thinking approach to storytelling,” both of these films really belong there. Their styles ensure that their content, which could be seen as purely bizarre or all too normative, respectively, are very much worth watching, and they remain interesting throughout, even if a satisfying conclusion feels like it might be elusive right up until the end. They are both thought-provoking and indicative of tremendous thought, intent on grabbing audience interest and holding it. B+/B
My Old School is screening in Premieres and The Cathedral in the NEXT program.