Movie review
'Ellie' has local angle and gives glimpse of rising star
By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Editor
"Ellie Parker," a quirky day-in-the-life film by budding indie filmmaker Scott Coffey, will be shown tonight at the Honolulu Academy of Arts theater as part of the Hawai'i International Film Festival.
Kailua Films
Coffey, a former Kailua resident, not only wrote the small-budget feature, but directed it, filmed it, and co-produced it. He even co-starred in it.
Naomi Watts, as the title heroine of "Ellie Parker," participates in an acting workshop in this scene from the movie, directed by Islander Scott Coffey.
A few things that make this film worth seeing:
• Coffey has a sharp eye for comedic detail and his camera angles can be voyeuristic — reason enough for Filmmakers magazine to tag him one of the top 25 new faces in independent films.
• Naomi Watts (currently in David Lynch's "Mulholland Drive") is a radiant and luminous young actress whose performance brings to life the excitement and frustrations of an Australian actress scampering from one audition to the next. She is fascinating to watch, particularly in moments of exasperation.
• The cinema verita flavor, resulting from the use of digital video, gives the film a here-and-now, family-movie currency and intimacy.
"Ellie Parker" is a fictional depiction of a day in an actor's life — capturing a life not unlike Watts'.
The movie started out as a quick one-episode short and later expanded into a series of four episodes at getting an acting job. It is now a revealing featurette.
'Ellie Parker'
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A film by Scott Coffey
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8:30 p.m. today, Honolulu Academy of Arts theater; also at 2:45 p.m. Friday, Hawai'i Convention Center 2
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$7 ($6 for HIFF 'Ohana members, students, seniors, military and Pacific Islanders in Communication), on sale at the HIFF box office at the Dole Cannery Signature Theatres
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528-HIFF (4433), www.hiff.org
Watts is a wonder in front of a camera — notably when she's behind the driver's seat — putting on make-up, juggling a cell phone and changing her clothes. It sure is hard to tell where real life ends and reel life begins.
Plagued by a boyfriend (Coffey) she manages to elude, Ellie winds up in a surreal, astonishing acting workshop, then later appears, albeit stoned, at a Dogstar concert and tries to put the make on band member Keanu Reeves. Yes, Reeves has an unbilled cameo.
Watts effectively portrays a walking (well, driving) catalogue of the desperate wannabe, always hustling for the next cattle call. Watts is an actress short on method and long on majestic allure; she's got to be an "it" girl, one to watch.
Ditto Coffey. As an actor, he has done a number of entertaining but unremarkable films; but on the other side of the camera, he has a voice that folks are starting to acknowledge. And "Ellie Parker" is a nice introduction and speaks volumes about his potential as a filmmaker.
