4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Moving family drama, set in New York City art scene., April 26, 2001
I took my first peek at this film when I saw that Annie Sprinkle -one of my heroines- played a supporting role. I had no expectations for the film as a whole, and was jazzed to find that this is a very good film all around.
The plot, in a nutshell:a woman who lives in New York City tries to put on a facade for her father, who has come from Germany to visit her. She leads a liberal lifestyle set in New York City's art scene, and wishes to give her father the impression that she is living a traditional American life. Her father, however, unintentionally gets acquainted and friendly with some of the artists who work and reside in his daughter's stomping grounds (especially cute subplot where he gets a major crush on Annie Sprinkle!). Without revealing the entire story, what results is a moving story about a daughter and father getting to understand and accept each other, learning that the generation gap isn't necessarily as wide as they first thought.
What I liked as much as the story itself is the environment the film is set in. The performance artists are portrayed with a depth that we see too little of in other media. I cannot boast that I know much about the performance art scene, nor have I made an effort to define "the average portrayal of a performance artist." But what I have happened across -by channel surfing or video renting- too often paints extreme pictures of contemporary artists. The pro often hands us a flawless genius and superior human being, the con shows us untalented buffoons who know nothing about true art. This film shows us people who believe in their craft, are quite empathic, but are human enough have prejudices and jealousies (one scene that comes to mind is when two women crudely stereotype the father as the ethnic-cleansing type based solely on the fact he is German)
Annie Sprinkle, the ultimate porn star turned ultimate sex guru, plays herself in this film. If you are an aficionado of Annie, check out this flick; she comes off as the sweet-hearted people-loving goddess we know and adore! She has enough screen time to fulfill your "Annie-Time," and I suspect that you will be just as pleased by the film as a whole.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A Real Person!, May 22, 2005
This review is from: My Father is Coming [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I love films where characters toggle between actor & human. Vicky (Shelly Kastner), a German girl with Dietrich looks, came to the U.S. to find a new life - yet another driven by the fantasy of becoming an actor. In this film she is so very real! All the more powerful for her few moments on the "stage." The other characters in the film are mostly kooky, highlighting Shelly's performance. Vicky will remain in my mind as an actual friend. I would mention Rosanna Arquette's Jill Rosen(John Sayles "Baby It's You")as a similarly wonderful & rare role
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3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Landmark of Feminist Filmmaking, August 9, 2000
This review is from: My Father is Coming [VHS] (VHS Tape)
For people who are interested in women directors, this film is not to be missed. It is a stylish piece, full of mockery and subversion of artistic icons. The script and filmming are carefully crafted. Occasionally overdriven gender politics weakens the overall impact of the work; for this reason, I rate it under Gorris's more famous _Antonia's_Line_. But for artistic innovation, I think this film is actually more interesting.
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