directed by Allan Mindel
USA 2003

 

Albert is mentally retarded, but has a unique gift: He can hear the fish talking below the ice. This has made him a champion ice fisher, and throughout the years, he has won every contest he ever entered and thus has a little fortune hidden away in price money. Money that some people would do anything to get their hands on.

When his overprotective and very dominating mother is killed in a hit and run accident, these people suddenly show Albert much kindness. The grifter Tuey and her hypochondriac brother Stan are moving in on Albert, likewise is the travelling salesman Jerry, who pretends to be Albert’s long lost father.

Director Allan Mindel got into films thru Gus van Sant, for whom he co-produced “My own private Idaho”, and this, his debut film, has the feel of an early van Sant. While Alison Folland, herself a van Sant veteran, who played the female dopehead in “To die for”, who despite former rather good acting here overacts like hell, and while the lead, Troy Garity, son of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden, comes off as a hybrid between Forrest Gump and Adam Sandler, the film also has some very strong supporting acting by veterans Randy Quaid and Bruce Dern, and its thanks to their performances, that the film doesn’t collapse into amateur night.

But despite this and that Mindel's insecurites as a director, the story is surprisingly well told and very life-affirming. Where other Indy and debut filmmakers desperately wants to make an important statement and thus makes a film which becomes overpretentious, “Milwaukee, Minnesota” never tries to make any statements or to be important. Its just a little slice of life, quirky and strange, but nevertheless very believable. A great little story, that never attempts to be bigger than it is, that just takes you by the hand and puts a smile on your face.
 

Henrik Sylow

Poster

Theatrical Release: January 24, 2003 (Slamdance Film Festival)

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DVD Review: Tartan - Region 0 - PAL

Big thanks to Henrik Sylow for the Review!

DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	Tartan Region 0 - PAL
Runtime	1:39:31 (4% PAL speedup)
Video	1.78:1 Original Aspect Ratio 16X9 enhanced Average Bitrate: 7.46 mb/s PAL 720x576 25.00 f/s
	NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes.
Bitrate
Audio	2.0 Dolby Digital Mono English, 5.1 Dolby Digital English, DTS English
Subtitles	No subtitles
Features	Release Information: Studio: Tartan Aspect Ratio: Widescreen anamorphic - 1.78:1 Edition Details: • Audio commentary by Allan Mindel and Troy Garity • Interview with Allan Mindel (42:37) • Tartan Trailer Reel • 4-page booklet with film notes by Miles Fielder DVD Release Date: March 21, 2005 Keep Case Chapters 16

 

 

 

 

Comments

Simply a beautiful transfer. Details are rich and only very minute signs of compression artifacts, not visible while playing. As with most of Tartans productions, it comes with its original very mono like 2.0 Dolby Digital stereo, and additional 5.1 Dolby Digital and DTS, which here is a bit of a waste, as the film is dialogue only. The additional material begins with an audio commentary where director Allan Mindel and leading actor Troy Garity talks discusses the film as it goes, how the shots were done, what the intention of the scene is and so forth. A very personal commentary which is a delight to hear. The commentary is strongly supported by a for this DVD exclusively made interview with Mindel, where he talks about how he got into making film, what he thinks of filmmaking and about various elements of the film itself.  - Henrik Sylow

 

 

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