2016 Sleepers
                                                             Part 3

Herewith the third batch of really good movies that flew well under most radars last year. 
Perhaps stop motion animation is an acquired taste. Those of you old enough might remember the wretched Mr. Bill from Saturday Night Live, a crude example of the process. Believe it or not, stop motion is filmed by moving the figures a tiny bit between each shot until the result flows seamlessly. The French-Swiss My Life As A Zucchini is a superb example. It is about a little boy who accidently causes his mother’s death, goes to live in an orphanage and meets other kids like him. He has adventures including falling in love with a little girl and winning the heart of a policeman. I urge you give this a try. And stay with it past the end when the producers show how stop motion is achieved.
Over 50 years ago, in 1964, Kitty Genovese was murdered in a New York alley. News stories at the time, and forever after, insisted that at least 38 people witnessed the slaying and nobody did anything. Kitty’s brother Bill doesn’t believe that’s the way it was and he sets out to find out for himself in Witness, a fascinating documentary. Bill interviews as many people as he can find who were around at the time, including the killer. The film features Bill’s interviews, and archival footage of Kitty and of the media coverage. The result will surprise you!
Think of all those pols who step down beside a martyred wife in order to “spend more time with my family.” Andrew Weiner was once one of the rising stars in the Democratic party. A liberal congressman with wit and moxie, he frequently appeared on MSNBC and other news outlets. And then he posted a picture of his private parts and it went viral. Weiner is the story of this bright but twisted politician who ruined himself and finished his career. It seems like there’s a lot of this going around, but this documentary gets as close to the story as possible. 
Mia Madre is an Italian film about a female movie director (Margherita Buy) trying to make a film about a factory strike. She is beset by many problems. There’s a balky American actor (John Turturo), a dying mother, an estranged daughter and a resentful brother. I think the film wants you to ask if a man would have handled the situation any differently (or better). A good look at a woman making the best of a lot of hard choices. 
Finally, there is old pro Susan Sarandon at the absolute top of her game as The Meddler. Rose Byrne plays her quite capable and fully mature daughter, but she is about all that is left in her mother’s life and the mom just can’t stop-well-meddling. The film is funny and touching in many ways. 
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.