MR K. is playing at SBIFF (Santa Barbara International Film Festival), and I had the opportunity to see an early look – here’s my Spoiler Free take:
Certain movies and TV shows hinge on paying off the amount of narrative debt they take on. Think LOST crumbling over the amount of debt it took on, and THE LEFTOVERS paying off enough debt to have the narrative land. MR. K. is a challenging film to review since the journey is entertaining and thought-provoking enough, but jeez, writer/director Tallulah Hazekamp Schwab stumbles to pay off the debt with a satisfying ending. In other words, the “egg is not worth the amount of time it takes to whisk” in this mind-bending Kubrick-like film.
The film follows Crispen Glover, playing the titular character, Mr. K, a magician stuck in a hotel building where he cannot leave. It’s “Hotel California” by the Eagles but with the style of early Jean-Pierre Jeunet (DELICATESSEN and THE CITY OF LOST CHILDREN).
From a technical point of view, the sound design and music score evoke the intensity of the BABYLON horns, while Glover’s performance is weird and captivating enough to draw viewers in. However, the ending is like one F.U. to the audience, making everything that came before it not worth your time.
Schwab should be able to use MR. K as a calling card that will land her a big-budget feature. “The Grand Illusion” that she nearly pulls off in Mr. K is tricking audiences into thinking it’s a good movie.