DIR: Kore-eda Hirokazu | Japan | 2004 | 141min
In Japanese with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Wed. Sept. 29 | 2:40pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3
Wed. Oct. 6 | 9:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3

A single-mother and her 12-year-old son Akira greet their new landlords in the opening scenes of the latest from the director of After Life. Then, they move a couple of large suitcases very carefully upstairs to their apartment. Unzipping reveals two of Akira's younger siblings (there's one more who was old enough to take the train by herself). Nobody Knows is a fictionalised story based on real case studies of children abandoned in Tokyo. To say that depictions of real poverty in urban Japan are rare would be an understatement - i don't know that's i've seen any until now.

Needless to say, Akira's mother is a bit of a flake, and would rather pals around with her four children than be an adequate parent to them. Akira and next-eldest Kyoko basically take care of the kids and the house while she works. The children all long to attend school but only Akira is allowed to leave the house - to do grocery shopping (they had been forced to leave their last home, as small children are not usually welcomed in rental apartments). It isn't long before mentally absent mom actually physically disappears and Akira is left with the huge responsibility of caring for his siblings.

I won't lie and say that this film was not depressing - it was so sad. But for a while, Akira does a fantastic job of heading the household and keeping his family together. It's only when his hopes for his mother's return are squashed that he lets things slide. Yagira Yuya rightly won the Best Actor prize at Cannes this year for his stunning performance as Akira. He appears in every scene of the film, holding it together masterfully for the entire 2 hours and 20 minute runtime. Like all Kore-eda films, Nobody Knows is beautifully constructed, rich with details - the way Akira strokes the hard suitcase containing his youngest sister until it's safe to open, the passage of time shown through the cherry blossoms and growing hair - and strikes a very delicate balance between hope, courage and heart-break.

DIR: Vit Klusak & Filip Remunda | Czech Republic | 2004 | 87min
In Czech with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Fri. Sept. 24 | 12:30pm | Pacific Cinematheque
Wed. Sept. 29 | 7:00pm | Ridge
Mon. Oct. 4 | 9:15pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3
Wed. Oct. 6 | 4:30pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 6

Made by two filmmakers on a public grant, Czech Dream documents an elaborate and expensive prank on the people of the Czech Republic. The filmmakers hire an advertising firm to create a logo and full-on print/transit/web/television/radio media blitz to publicize the 'opening' of an entirely fictitious hypermarket (think Superstore) called "Czech Dream". They also have a location where they've erected a 10 X 100 metre scaffolding and banner made to look like a store front from far away. Oh, those wild and crazy Czechs!

The directors make it clear from the beginning that they do have a point to make about their country, post 1989. The film's opening montage contrasts radical protest footage from that time with footage of people in 2002 eagerly waiting to get their hands on opening day gate-crasher specials at the Electron store. Unfortunately, the documentary only partly illustrates the point and too often wanders off onto documenting the oh-so-clever elaborate-ness (really, -ness doesn't quite cover it - let's call it supreme elaborate-osity) of their fake campaign, which even included a trip to Hugo Boss for suits to make them look like management types.

The reactions of the people are mixed and some do pick up on the filmmakers' secondary point - they now live in a capitalist country with all the trappings of such, and many generations of people, the directors propose, are more vulnerable to its seductive downsides because of the sudden shift. By the time 'opening day' arrives, the prank has already started to seem rather cruel. And if not cruel, then a supreme - if somewhat entertaining - waste of time. A word of advice for the filmmakers: when both your advertising firm and your market research firm think you're dishonest, you may want to do a re-think.

DIR: Salam Pax | Iraq | 2004 | 90min
In English and Arabic with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Thurs. Sept. 23 | 8:45pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 5
Wed. Oct. 6 | 7:15pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 2
Thurs. Oct. 7 | 1:40pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 5

Baghdad Blogger is not a feature-length documentary in the traditional sense. It's a series of 10-minute video segments produced for broadcast on the BBC by an Iraqi citizen who has been writing a hugely popular blog since September 2002. His nom electronique is Salam Pax (both words mean peace in Arabic and Latin) and his on-camera persona and narration are as funny, insightful and energetic as his web writings*. Though each segment explores a different facet of contemporary life in Iraq, and the segments were not created as part of a larger work, the pieces do have a remarkably cohesive flow. They start off with the general, swerve into humour, get serious, build on that seriousness, swerve in beauty and ultimately leave you with a sense of what it could be like to be on the streets for an Iraqi today.

Watching the first round of the Bush-Kerry debates this week, which focused largely on Iraq, i was struck by how poorly the candidates seem to understand the deeply-rooted cultural complexities within Iraq. This basic fragility within Iraq's nationhood is Pax's central theme throughout the film and he illustrates it powerfully through his choice of subjects and his reflections. He sees this moment in time as full of possibilities for the country, both exciting and terrifying. It's a refreshingly rounded perspective that has been otherwise absent from the dreary and/or ridiculousy pro-American media coverage i've seen so far.

Thankfully, though Pax is working for one of the most prestigious television news outlets in the world, he approaches the Media as a bit of an outsider and a concerned Iraqi citizen first. Of course, like any thinking person, Pax also uses the opportunity to make fun of the Americans - that's just the cherry on top. VIFF had the good sense to schedule three screenings of this marvelous work, the last of which is this afternoon.

* Though Pax' writings have recently been published in print, you can read them live on his blogs shut up you fat whiner! and Where is Raed?

DIR: Ishii Takashi | Japan | 2004 | 115 min.
In Japanese with English subtitles.

International Premier at the 2004 Vancouver International Film Festival

VIFF 2004 hosted a rare opportunity for Vancouver filmgoers to engorge in some Japanese mainstream erotica, most notably in the realm of public theatre. Ishii Takashi’s ambitious adaptation of Dan Oniroku’s famed S-M novel “Flower and Snake” certainly challenges its audience’s comfort with being publicly (and possibly collectively) aroused, and having to witnessing highly graphic portrayals of sexual violence.

On its surface, Flower and Snake seems like a relatively fast-paced, highly graphic, (presumably hetero-male) stimulant that should come with a warning: you will need to stomach highly gratuitous, repetitive nudity, overt female disempowerment, Japanese bondage and dramatizations of sexual violence (common in Japanese erotica) — shot with the seductive visual drama of a Japanese manga-film.

The thing to keep in mind throughout this film is that it is intentionally gratuitous, and more importantly, all dramatization. Despite its S-M theme, there’s very little “hardcore” about it, leaving surprisingly much to the sexual imagination. If you’re wondering about the difference between this extreme erotica and typical North American adult film, the latter is generally unscripted, impromptu and aesthetically similar to reality TV. Ironically, the majority of the film takes place in a secret arena where highly theatrical S-M exploitation-humiliation spectacles are showcased and watched by an anonymous and elite audience (who sometimes participates). Directing the show from a larger-than-life viewscreen, is “master” Tashiro Ippei, played by Ishibashi Renji — whose performance was so convincingly true-to-manga, that it actually competes with all the gratuitous nudity.

Is there a subtext to this film? This is a question often asked by those trying to hide their true motivations for wanting to see this film behind a façade of film-geek rhetoric. When he was asked this question, Fujii Kenjiro (director of Pink Ribbon, a documentary on the history of yet another Japanese cult-film genre known as “pink movies”, also premiering internationally at VIFF this year) paused for a moment and confirmed: “It’s mainstream erotica.” This could be interpreted as meaning that no one (in Japan) really cares about whether there’s ‘subtext’ and, really, you already know what this film is about.

Nonetheless, the film does have a subtext of empowerment. It unfolds as trophy-wife Shizuko (played by Aya Sugimoto), the “star” (or victim) of the private S-M show, gradually loses hope of escape. The experience forcibly transforms Shizuko (and, in the twisted mind of her captors, frees her) from her initially uninspired and prudish self, to a version of herself so mentally removed from the situation that she nearly enjoys her fate. Overwhelmed by guilt for having “lent” his wife to the Yakuza to repay his debts, Shizuko’s businessman husband attempts to buy back her freedom.

This dramatic shift heightens the contrast between Shizuko’s physical restraints and those of the aging (essentially dying) Tashiro Ippei, whose real pursuit is to eyeball some genuine sexual passion from his squeaky wheelchair. Despite being the show’s conductor, he is inescapably bound to his frail body, which limits him to being a spectator as others fulfill his demented fantasies. It’s a strong and comical statement about the male obsession with world domination, which is perhaps motivated by the horror of physical self-imprisonment and sexual depravity.

Moved and inspired by the lovemaking of Shizuko and her husband, the Yakuza boss defies his handicap and has sex with Shizuko himself. This leads to a lethal orgasm, her escape and a very sudden ending. Shizuko asks, “Was this all a dream?”, while the audience asks, “Was that it?” But that was the only disappointment. The two-hour journey through this bizarre and titillating film fantasy left me stunned, and I have to admit, quite smitten. As the lights returned, I was tempted to turn to the person next to me and ask “Was it good for you?” But realized that this was an experience I had just shared with a room full of strangers, which left me a bit embarrassed (and possibly a bit disturbed). On another level, however, in questioning my own public inhibitions, that might very well have been the point.

DIR: Stephan Fjeldmark et al. | Denmark | 2004 | 78min
In Danish with English swearing and subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Sat. Oct. 2 | 1:00pm | Ridge
Mon. Oct. 4 | 9:30pm | Vogue

South Park, it ain't, but it's also definitely not for the Jimmy Neutron set either. This foul-mouthed, refreshingly nasty computer-animated feature from Denmark aims for its country's weakest spots and hits more often than it misses. Terkel is an average 12-year-old boy trying to navigate through life with its mentally-absent parents, bullies, drunken uncles and accident-prone little sisters. One day, after a series of misadventures, Terkel starts receiving anonymous death threats - as if he didn't have enough to worry about already. To top things off, he and his best friend Jason (who's from the suburbs and therefore knows to carry an iron rod in his back pocket at all times) have been drifting apart. You know how rough that can make things when someone's trying to kill you.

This is the first feature-length animated film from Denmark and the animation is fairly well done, though its cartoon-y style would have lent itself perfectly to classical 2-dimensional animation as well. At times, it reminded me of an Aardmann (Wallace and Grommit) model-based animation, but minus that studio's sense of pacing and unique attention to witty detail. Overall, Terkel in Trouble is an entertaining piece that offers a few fun surprises, especially if for those of you who have been watching less adult-oriented cartoons and wishing those cute little furry or scaley creatures would curse more.

DIR: Danny Verete | Israel/Canada/Germany | 2004 | 94min
In Hebrew, German and English with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Tues. Sept 29 | 10:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 1
Mon. Oct. 4 | 3:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 1

This international co-production starts off in an Israeli car dealership. An Arab-Canadian offers to sell his American nightmare vehicle - a bright metallic blue 1985 Lincoln stretch limousine - to Shmuel, the dealer's owner. Convinced that the car will fetch a handsome price in Germany, Shmuel talks his his more level-headed friend Siso into partnering with him on the opportunity. The two soon embark on a downward spiral of a roadtrip through Germany, where bad things that could happen do happen, and Shmuel's terrifying childhood memories of the Holocaust begin to resurface.

Mostly, the film is about scars - those left on both survivors and the German people as a nation, wholly unprepared to deal with these sharp reminders who come in the form of people still suffering 60 years later. The filmmaker wisely uses a few moments as punctuation in what is otherwise a pure (if depressing) buddy/road-movie. There are also some bright comic moments, and the performances of the two leads are always spot on.

DIR: Lee Sung-Gang | S. Korea | 1995-2003 | 66min
In Korean with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Tues. Sept. 28 | 12:30pm | Pacific Cinematheque
Thurs. Sept. 30 | 7:00pm | Pacific Cinematheque

Part of the Dragons & Tigers' special focus on animation this year, this program of shorts is effectively a retrospective of the work of independent animator Lee Sung-Gang (who also has feature in this year's festival, My Beautiful Girl, Mari. Most of the shorts have a dreamy, ethereal look and pacing but simultaneously address concrete worldly problems like depression in urban life. Onuri, the most recent of the shorts, is based on a folktale, and is wonderfully innocent fantasy work. The range of styles showcased in this program is impressive; there's video-gamey computer animation, Miyazake-esque hand-drawn animation, and manipulated real video - all very well executed. Largely due to the inclusion of a short computer-animated sequence that was produced for an independent feature and a trippy music video, the program has an uneven feel when redrawn in the mind, but the animation itself is so strong that its sometimes has the ability to drown out all pesky outside thoughts.

DIR: Ryu Seung-Wan | S. Korea | 2004 | 114min
In Korean with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Sat. Oct. 2 | 9:45pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 7
Sun. Oct. 3 | 1:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 7

**JUST ADDED:**
Thurs. Oct. 7 | 9:30pm | Ridge

Supremely goofy, entirely delightful and welcome entertainment. Arahan is an 'urban martial arts story' set in present-day Korea. The "Seven Masters" (though there are currently only 5 of them) are noble keepers of an ancient Taoist secret who have - rather begrudingly - learned to adapt to modern-day consumer society. Like most funny, grumpy old people on film, they just don't understand why the younger generation doesn't see how important their work is. Then one day, a bumbling cop with exceptional untapped chi enters their lives... I could explain more of the set-up, but a film like this is really not about the plot; it's a comic book come to life - all about fight sequences, special effects, a sweet romance and funny dialogue - and this film oozes with them. Shamelessly begging to entertain its audience for its entire two hour run, Arahan does not require a lot of thinking to be appreciated. This film is a pure, commercially-viable M-O-V-I-E and, were it not from Asia and we not in North America, would probably be written off as very fun multiplex fodder.

The film is thankfully from Korea, and we are watching it in the context of a film festival so, pressed, i will submit that the film is trying to insert a bit of faith into a world where faith in all things mystical is generally discouraged. It seems almost nostalgic for a time when magical martial arts feats were part of everyday life - at least the sort of everyday life that films once portrayed without irony or a video game excuse. Most of us have drab jobs and dull lives - it's nice to believe that a huge well of potential lies right under our skins. I don't think this makes the film admirable in and of itself, but it's pure pop pleasures do a fine of making us forget that fact til afterwards.

DIR: Xiao Jiang | China | 2004 | 93 min.
In Mandarin with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Sat. Oct. 2 | 7:00pm | Vogue
Sat. Oct. 2 | 9:45pm | Vogue

Bring kleenex and possibly your mommy to this extremely effective first feature from one of China's brightest young female filmmakers - it's melodrama par excellence. The film starts off with a goofy delivery man who accidentally knocks over a stack of bricks with his bike one day. A woman, who he later learns is named Ling Ling, assaults him with one of the bricks. He ends up agreeing to take care of her goldfish while she is in police custody. At the woman's apartment, the delivery man begins reading the bittersweet story of her childhood. Born in an outdoor theatre and out of wedlock, Ling Ling's arrival forever shatters her mother's dreams of becoming a great movie actress and singer. But her mother, a head-strong woman who pushes her daughter to walk tall in their small-minded village, decides to build a new life for herself as a single parent. The two stand united against the world, play together on sunny hilltops and, most importantly, share a profound need for cinema. Their biggest ally in the village is Pan, a family friend who runs the outdoor film theatre. As in all good melodrama, heart-rending tragedy follows happiness. Don't say you were not warned.

Though the comment on the devastating effect that feeling unwanted can have on a child is powerful, Electric Shadows is really a story about the love of cinema. Purposefully set in a golden age for Chinese film-watching, the narrative consciously echoes the classic weepy films of a more 'pure', pre-television age of cinema. The characters in this movie - and, clearly, its director - are all in love with the experience of going to films - a love that television has eroded, if not destroyed, in most people. An extremely polished debut, Electric Shadows is one of the most purely pleasurable films i've seen at this festival.

DIR: Mania Akbari | Iran | 2004 | 72min
In Farsi with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Thurs. Sept 30 | 6:40pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3
Sun. Oct. 3 | 11:30am | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3

**JUST ADDED**
Sun. Oct 3 | 2:20pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 6

People famliar with Abbas Kiarostami might recognise director/writer/producer/actress Mania Akbari from Ten. I am pleased to report that this woman's talents only begin at acting. 20 Fingers, her feature-length directorial debut, is an incisive eye-opening film about gender relations in contemporary Iran. Each scene consists of a 10-minute, one-shot dialogue between two characters (played by Akbari and Bijan Daneshmand). Usually, though not in every scene, the two characters are a couple - Mania, a progressive woman who says what's on her mind and Bijan, a not-so-progressive man who also says what's on his mind; they honestly discuss subjects that range from abortion and adultery to lesbian experimentation and jealousy. The results are sometimes explosive and always entrancing in their intimacy. Dedicated to master filmmaker Kiarostami, the director has carefully placed his influence throughout the film.

Purposefully shot on DV in Iran (where 35mm equipment must be borrowed from the state), 20 Fingers has been effectively rejected by state censors and will not be shown on a large screen. Luckily for the rest of us, prints are making their way around the world - to places like the Venice Film Festival, where it took the top prize for 'Digitale' filmmaking earlier this year. 20 Fingers is a startlingly accomplished debut - keep an eye on this director.

DIR: Zero Chou | Taiwan | 2004 | 73min
In Taiwanese with English subtitles.
Preceded by Cut... more on that later.

SHOWTIMES:
Thur. Sept 30 | 7:30pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 1
Fri. Oct. 1 | 3:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 1

The fiction debut of documentary filmmaker Zero Chou is a story about grief bridging the double life of Roy/Rose. By day, Roy is a Taoist priest whose family owns a funeral service business; every night though, Roy becomes Rose, a beautiful drag queen who travels and performs elaborate shows with her friends on the back of their loud rainbow truck (the 'splendid float'). Roy/Rose soon falls in love with smalltown fisherman named Sunny and things are great until Sunny drowns suddenly. Through the rest of the film, Rose must deal with her grief amongst her friends since she'll never be recognised as Sunny's widow.

There isn't a lot of plot (i've covered about 80% of it) and the what plot remains gets stretched out over most of 73 minutes. Needless to say, the film, though touching and funny at times, gets very repetitive.

*****
However, there is something about this program that makes it a not-to-be-missed fun machine - Royston Tan's short Cut, which immediately precedes Splendid Float. Tan's 2003 feature 15 was apparently hacked to bits by censors in his home country Singapore, and this campy little bit of cheek was his response. It's a political film and a hilarious dancy, musical. We should have more of these. I think i may even make my way back to the first 15 minutes of this program again...

DIR: John L'Ecuyer | Canada/Quebec | 2004 | 88min
In French with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Thurs. Sept. 29 | 6:20pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 4
Sat. Oct. 2 | 12:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 1

The French-language debut of the director of Curtis' Charm is another chapter in the neverending epic that is the Canadian coming of age film. Based on the autobiographical novel by Dany Laferrière, the film is set in Haiti, 1971. Amidst dangerous political upheavals, sweet-natured 15-year-old Fanfan lives with his very religious and overly protective mother. His has a bad influence in his life in the form of his friend Gégé but his biggest distraction is the house of fun-loving young hotties who live across the street. Through a chain of misadventure one Friday night, Fanfan ends up hiding out from the brutal militia at the house across the street, and the four women stop being mythical creatures of his fantasies and become real people. At the end, Fanfan's relationship with women will never be the same and that's probably a good thing.

Though there isn't much that will surprise you in this good-natured film, the very real danger of the backdrop does creep in, adding a unique dimension to an otherwise routine story. Similarly, the gentle humour and the beautiful cinematography make the film worthwhile but not must-see.

DIR: Shinohara Tetsuo | Japan | 2004 | 120min
In Japanese with English subtitles.

SHOWTIMES:
Thurs. Sept 30 | 9:15pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 3
Fri. Oct. 1 | 3:20pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 2

All you lovers of senseless violence and black humour, get ye to this afternoon's screening of The Complete Japanese Showa Songbook.

I saw three films in 5 hours yesterday night and, when 9:15 rolled around, i was fading fast. But this film brought be from the brink of a nap and then some. The story begins with a young man with a small circle of friends who share his obsession with Showa-era pop music. On a restless afternoon walk, he commits an act of random and horrible violence for no apparent reason - he pesters a random woman on her way home from buying groceries and decides to slash her throat (though, 'decides' is perhaps too strong a word).

Movies about sociopathic young men who commit random acts of violence are nothing new. What makes this film different is what follows this woman's murder. The victim also belonged to a circle of friends who all have karoake, being divorced, middle age and a first name - Midori - in common. The Midori's decide to find their friend's killer and exact revenge long before the police even appear on screen. The remainder of the film recounts a back-and-forth revenge scenario that escalates into pure, giddy nihilism.

Though i recently noticed a local newspaper call the film (or the filmmakers) misogynist, i think that's just too simple, though it certainly depicts misogyny and often uses it for laughs. It certainly is a mean-spirited film at times. But, I found the evolution of the women characters really interesting. After they've killed, they take on an aura of confidence and their relationships with each other become deeper and more meaningful. The young men, on the other hand, never really clue into anything and most of them die as ridiculously as they lived.

Based on Murakami Ryu's infamous novel, The Complete Japanese Showa Songbook is actually a fascinating, if somewhat long, treatise on post-WWII Japan - touching on everything from post-industrial malaise and the changing family to karoake and atomic bombs. On top of that, it's delicious, mercilessly entertaining.

DIR: Hou Hsiao-Hsien | Japan | 2003 | 104 min.
In Japanese with English subtitles

SHOWTIMES:
Wed. Sept. 29 | 9:30pm | Vogue Theatre
Sat. Oct. 2 | 1:00pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 7

Taiwanese director, Hou Hsiao-Hsien's first collaboration with Japanese actors, proves a wonderfully open story that leaves the audience with an abstract notion of passage. The Chinese title can be better translated as "Coffee, Time and Light," denoting the passage of the years as a still and luminous process. Yoko, a young woman researching Taiwanese composer Jiang Wenye, is pregnant by a boyfriend she will not marry (because he is too close to his mother). She finds companionship with Hajime, a bookstore owner and a lover of Japanese railways.

Dedicated to Yasujiro Ozu, this film succeeds in conveying the passing of the everyday, the natural development of human relations and changes in life. When compared to Ozu's Tokyo Story, Hou Hsiao-Hsien has yet a lot to learn. In Ozu's masterpiece, subtle characterizations and events lead to emotional punctures. Hou's film remains flat throughout and no emotion escapes the calm surface. Although this subtlety is an art in itself, it can become ineffective when overused. Like the many scenes of trains and railroads, the serene, regular movement of this film promises a final destination; however, it only takes us to mid-way stops where we are left waiting.

DIR: Jem Cohen | USA | 2003 | 99min

SHOWTIMES:
Tues. Sept. 28 | 7:15pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 2
Wed. Sept 29 | 1:40pm | Granville 7 Cinema, Theatre 5

A moving and challenging fictional film from experimental filmmaker Jem Cohen, Chain interweaves and contrasts the stories of two women experiencing very different lows that corporate America has to offer. The first woman is a mid-level Japanese executive sent, and essentially stranded by her company, to research theme parks. Her life is an endless stream of cookie-cutter hotel rooms. The second woman is homeless, spending her days in the warm shelter of different malls and creating a video-letter for her sister and mother that may or may not get sent. Both women narrate portions of the film, offering observations - some delicately poetic, some sharp and devastating - about American culture as they experience it.

Shot over a number of months in cities all over the world, Cohen's footage is remarkable in its total lack of regional differentiation. If you look really hard, you may catch a couple of shots from his trip to Vancouver but, for Cohen, all of America is becoming mono-coded - mall, mcdonalds, mall, walmart, mall, disneyland, mall - and it's taking the rest of the world with it. Though the film has a scripted narrative, the haunting 16mm images are largely documentary in feel, capturing the bleakness of the American landscape with laser precision.