FILM: Gerry (10) [dir. Van Sant, 2002] I’ve been aggressively predisposed to like this movie ever since I saw the preview for it in one of the Ritz theaters. As the austere, poetic visuals flickered before me, out of nowhere came laughs of ridicule from a chorus of frat-party voices seated somewhere behind me. So, in lieu of going back in time to throw my popcorn at them, I am going so far as to score this film a “10.” Take that, you roughians! When I finally rented Gerry this week, I was not disappointed. The film is gorgeous from start to finish and not without humor, irony, and drama. I could write for an hour on the rock-jump scene alone. It was such a simple distillation of what is great about cinema. All you need for compelling visual storytelling is a human situation: “help me, friend, I am stuck on a rock.”
