Journalism meets surrealism in Radiant City, writer-directors Gary Burns and Jim Brown's provocative and entertaining quasi-documentary about life in the 'burbs. While the places the filmmakers visit are real (in the Canadian province of Alberta, near the city of Calgary), the names have been changed to Evergreen, Sandy Acres, and Lake Chaparral—cookie-cutter housing developments in which there are no real neighborhoods, no sidewalks for pedestrians, no public spaces except the "power centers" (essentially gigantic shopping malls) that everyone drives to, and no sense of community whatsoever ("brutal, depressing, ugly, and spiritually degrading" is author James Howard Kunstler's apt description in one interview). These suburban communities are populated by folk such as the Moss family: dad faces a two-hour daily work commute, the kids miss their former neighborhood, and controlling mom feels obliged to defend the family's very presence in the ‘burbs. Radiant City manages to be at once both artful and artificial; the music (with songs provided by Joey Santiago of the Pixies) is strange but affecting, the cinematography terrific, and many of the scenes are amusing as well as affecting (including those depicting an amateur theater troupe rehearsing a musical based on suburban life). Easier to watch than describe, this oddball film is recommended. (S. Graham)
Radiant City
Koch Lorber, 85 min., not rated, DVD, $26.98 Volume 23, Issue 3
Radiant City
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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