The Eclectic Choice: Viva

Viva (2007)
dir. Anna Biller


This is an impressive debut from a woman who has a real eye for creating a world that is drenched in 0's nostalgia. I'm not just talking about bell bottoms and afros, this is a world of crappy cologne, tacky pantsuits, and macrame plant holders filmed so lovingly that it is almost creepy.

Falling somewhere between a John Waters' film and Louis Buñuel's Belle de Jour (1967), Viva tells the story of bored housewives trying to live life in the swinging 70's. With a rich palette that makes everything pop, this is a visually arresting send up of sexploitation movies right down to the camera placement and a Doris Wishmanesque visit to a nudist colony.

It does run long at two hours, meandering at times in order to revel in it's exploitative roots while working to deliver a fresh approach on feminist cinema. A tighter film would play better, but this is the first feature from a filmmaker with a ton of promise and it's worth watching just to see its exacting design and execution. Biller not only stars and directs the film, but also wrote, edited, designed costumes as well as the entire production. That's a hell of a lot of work so I'll let her indulgence slide on this one. When she learns how to let things go and fine tune, she'll be unstoppable.

I'd say it's worth the purchase just to be able to watch specific scenes whenever you want or show off some scenes to friends, which you will.