I caught the world premiere of the latest remake of "Dawn," this morning, and I have to say off the top that it started slowly, and I feel the exposition could have been cut down a bit more by a decent ACE; it played very much like a 'director's cut' from the kind of ego-high Hollywood favorite who feels everything they put to film is masterful and not a second should be left on the cutting room floor - think Vincent Gallo with even more time on his hands.

However, after the slow intro and dreadful exposition that nearly put me to sleep, the subtlety of the score brought a minimalistic, though varied sensation to the proceedings, adding a decent bit of drama and emotion via a few well-timed bird calls and the distant sound of a car engine. However, the masterstroke was the curious inclusion of a cicada buzz, despite the film taking place in early October; this anachronistic addition to the plot was dazzling, as with that single flourish of sound - this last lingering insect, likely the only one left of its kind, droning on proudly despite zero chance of completing its mating cycle before its demise - the director (who also scripted the story much in the vein of one of Robert Altman's more subtlely improvised endeavours) overcame the earlier downfalls to create a masterpiece.

For those interested, a sequel will be playing locally tomorrow morning around 6:53AM; check your local listings for national showtimes.

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