Urbania

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Craig N There is a purposeful ribald madness lurking in the fabric of Shear's debut feature, which drives forward like a poetic freight train. Formally, the film is disorienting in its framing and fractured in its editing, serving to carefully keep us at a distance from what some may assume to be the truth. But the truth here is one of an inner experience; the unfolding narrative mirrors the shattered and at times disembodied psychological state of our leading man. As embodied by Dan Futterman, who at times charms, at times mulls in a timorous silence and other times thoughtfully trods towards the inevitable climax of his ... Undoing? Revenge? Salvation? The film teases as it unfolds portent by portent, bit by bit, bringing us face to face with his tormented soul. The troubled psyche is difficult to express, but the trenchant Shear puts image and sound to use to capture the darker depths. The story proceeds with a different sort of momentum, unlike a Hollywood classic. Films that move similarly different, are PT Anderson's adaption of Thomas Pynchon's Inherent Vice; Scorcese's After Hours; and the works of Resnais, Bunuel and Lynch come to mind. The mind is being explored, as such, it is the maker of the story. In Urbania, we have a naturalism paired with an other worldliness, and often enough we aren't allowed in on the joke, the story or the truth. I'm sure certain viewers find themselves irritated, piqued or even bored. But such is the case when you're dealing with an alternative approach. As it stands, Urbania is a testament to what can be achieved on a small budget by creative minds and I for one am curious to see what world Shear would create with a Hollywood sized budget. Nearly 20 years later, I guess we'll have to keep waiting. In the meantime, there may be an auteur on the sidelines. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 07/20/20 Full Review Audience Member ***Due to the recent RT changes that have basically ruined my past reviews, I am mostly only giving a rating rather than a full review.*** Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member Started out as a really cool idea...Urban Legends come to life..and then it turns gay...real gay..Literally Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member Urbania is a WONDERFUL film. Although 40% of it is bogged down with the stuff of Urban legends, the remaining 60% tells a beautiful, if troubling story or love and loss. Dan FUTTERMAN and Matthew KEESLAR both win and break my heart. If you are a gay man, this is an absolute must see -- however, the beauty of the film is that, while its main characters are gay, it isn't AT ALL about them being gay, so being gay is not at all essential to appreciating and LOVING this film. See this one if you like a little thrill with your urban epic romances. Urbania: A- Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member A film that is, at varying time, heartbreaking romantic and tragic, vengeful and dark, and abrasively humorous, there's a lot to admire here! Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member A rather negative film, not the cheeriest. It has some good scenes, the acting is fine, the direction okay, but just didn't care for the seaminess of it. Gloomy. It almost works great, it is just lacking something. but it did hold my interest. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Urbania

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