#quentin depiuex

[greensparty]

2023 BUFF - Dispatch #2

Green’s Party is proud to be covering the 2023 Boston Underground Film Festival, which kicked off Wednesday at the Brattle Theatre (Cambridge, MA).  I’ve been lucky enough to cover the festival since 2016 (the fest took off in 2020 and 2021, and I was unable to attend 2022).

Day 2 of BUFF continued with Spaghetti Junction. It’s about a teenage girl, who recently lost her foot in a car accident. She doesn’t have the best relationship with her single-dad alcoholic father or her older flighty sister, but one day she wanders into the woods, where she meets a mysterious man “The Traveler”. I thought the first two thirds were really well-done and really visually impressive. Without getting into spoilers, what the ending built to was not as fulfilling as the build up. But I’m not lying about how visually impressive it was!

the heroes of Smoking Causes Coughing

Then it was a later-night (not going to say late night, but 10:15 is later on) screening of Smoking Causes Coughing, from French director Quentin Dupieux. This is a wild off-the-wall crazy take on the super hero genre, that I am so happy I saw with an audience. This is a perfect example of a movie that would not work if I watched it alone at home, it needs to be seen with a BUFF audience of genre film fans! It’s like a 70s-style super-hero movie: After defeating a giant, evil, foaming turtle, the Tobacco Force consisting of Nicotine, Benzene, Methanol, Mercury, and Ammonia must take on the even more evil Lizardin. But first, they prepare by going on a retreat to reflect on existential quandaries such as the meaning of life and the importance of clear instructions and staying calm in difficult situations. This is full of so many WTF moments. It’s as if Michel Gondry tried to make a super hero movie but pushed the envelope of WTF-ery even more than he usually does. It was LOL funny with tons of comedic set pieces. See this with any audience if you can!

Today: Highlights include The Dunwich Horrors shorts program, Mister Organ, and Enys Men.

For info on this year’s #BUFF23: https://bostonunderground.org/

Stay tuned to Green’s Party for my coverage of this year’s fest!