Hmm another Japanese film. There appears to be a pattern at the film festival or at least my film selection. Tokyo Idols is about a strange but growing cult of entertainers and their fans in Japan. Idols are young girls, often very young girls who are part of popular music groups and dancers who dress provocatively and attract an audience of middle aged men, knows as otaku, who literally worship them. The idols can be as young as ten years old and by the time they reach late teenage their careers are over. The hope they have is that they will attract a growing fan base that will lead to a singing career but this is not something many will achieve. The film follows one of these “aging” idols and one of her fans – a 43 year old man. He literally worships her and spends most of his money to follow her and join her for meet and greets where he is allowed a handshake and a brief conversation. He has given up real relationships to live this fantasy life. A very strange subculture and to be honest I felt a wee bit uncomfortable watching the movie as if I was part of this group of men who might be attracted to this kind of entertainment. Creepy would describe my reaction but the whole thing was fascinating nonetheless. All this is not entirely impossible to understand given the culture that guides male and female relationships in Japanese culture and the working conditions in which men in particular are often forced to live. An escape is often desired and needed. A fascinating look at a cultural phenomenon that is very different from what we might find here but not so far away from modern cultural obsession with youth and celebrity.

Another example of verité documentary style. This time we are in Norway of all places and following a Syrian immigrant who is recruiting volunteers to fight for ISIS. He is very comfortable with his tactics and approach and invites the directors to follow him as he talks to members of the Muslim community in Norway, holds meetings to promote Islam and recruits young people to join the struggle. He is careful not to break laws but his activity is clear. One of the directors is also a Syrian immigrant living in Norway which likely helped him gain the confidence of the recruiter. The film makers followed this extremist over three years gaining greater insight into his ideology and work. The information gathered became more and more incriminating resulting the film footage being seized by police as evidence in cases against the recruiter and some of his recruits. The film was ultimately released but also raised issues about how the fight against terrorism can lead to threats against freedom of speech and the press. An excellent look into a dark world.

Sometimes a documentary is not about a major political theme, a disaster, war or other kind of crisis. Sometimes is a lovely portrait of a charming woman living in a beautiful flat in Montmartre in Paris. Maison de Bonheur is that film. This is a film about an elderly woman who lives alone in a flat in a beautiful building in Montmartre where she has lived for over 50 years. She is charming with wonderful friends and a love of gardening despite her garden being entirely on her balcony overlooking Paris. We should all be so lucky. I am not sure the film will appeal to everyone but if you want to relax in a charming trip through the everyday life of this remarkable woman you will be fine. We follow her through her daily routines, making coffee, caring for her flowers, entertaining family and friends you are gently lulled into a very relaxing hour or so in Paris. A nicely done look at the everyday. Not so bad really. Watch if you get the chance. Don’t confuse this with a film entitled La Maison du Bonheur. The latter is a French comedy and while good not at all the same.

This was a short documentary paired with Death in the Terminal. The themes had some overlap but very different situations. In this case we have a director making his first documentary based on his personal experience of a violent confrontation on a bus. Set in Australia, the situation involves a group of people forced to take a bus after their train is cancelled. There is drunk passenger who begins to taunt and insult a group of French female tourists. The comments are racist and the women respond and get confrontational which results in people taking sides on the bus and getting into fights. The Director who was present on the bus filmed the whole incident on his cell phone and later posts the whole thing on YouTube. The idea was to shame the drunken racist passenger but in the end resulted in some unfortunate and unintended consequences for all involved. Mike Nayna decides to make a film about the whole outcome and it raises some very interesting questions about social media and how it is used and the ethics around the same. Nayna himself was clear in the Q and A following the film that he would not have done the same thing again and maybe tried to handle the situation that evening on the bus very differently. Interesting film.

One of the reasons I love documentaries is that you can never be sure what you are going to learn but almost always it is something you did not expect. Those of you old enough to remember the 70’s and roller derby being on TV all the time would appreciate this film. Although roller derby declined in enthusiasm after a brief time after inspiring that great James Caan film Rollerball, it is now experiencing a revival internationally. This film focussed on an international tournament and in the process on some of the stars of the game. The film centred on a Montreal women’s team as they prepare to compete with teams from around the world. To increase the anticipation of the climax we also get insight into players on the team from New York City and London, England. The interesting thing is that the recent revival is largely by female teams and it is totally amateur. This film appears to imply that this is largely a subculture within the lesbian community but in reality, ability to skate is much more important to the players than sexual orientation. There is however a whole culture around player pseudonyms and tattoos. The names are great including Michelle O’Bam Ya and Princess Lay-ya Flat. The women interviewed expressed concern that this aspect of the amateur game may be hurt as popularity expands. There are talks of the game making the Olympics in 2020 and other moves toward professional leagues. Still the charm of the film itself is in the characters interviewed and the progress toward the tournament. I guess I was not sure what to expect and was surprised but as I reflect on it – it was fun.