Great review for The Spy and the Sparrow in The Hollywood Reporter!
Thanks Stephen for the great review, it means the world to me because we put our heart and souls into this one:
SEATTLE -- Since “The Spy and the Sparrow” was shot in Seattle and makes excellent use of the city’s varied landscapes, it’s not surprising that the film’s world premiere took place at the Seattle International Film Festival. The producers are seeking distribution for the picture, an espionage thriller crossed with an intense family drama. While it lacks major marquee names and doesn’t quite hit a home run, it is an engrossing, superbly acted movie that will please audiences who manage to catch it.
The ambitious film spans some 25 years and weaves together a large number of characters and plot strands. Black-and-white flashbacks establish Thomas Sparrow (David Rasche) as a CIA agent in Berlin during the Cold War era who was involved in a money-transfer assignment that went awry. Sparrow is now retired and has returned to Seattle, but his former CIA associates are still curious about what happened to the loot and the Russian Mafia is also in on the chase. At the same time, Sparrow is trying to reconnect with his daughter, Josephine (Elisabeth Rohm), whom he hasn’t seen since she was a child. Josephine is a heavy drinker who indulges in soulless sexual trysts while also trying to take care of a young daughter. Many of Josephine’s problems stem from her father’s desertion, and Thomas is hoping to make amends and straighten out her life.
Steve Edmiston’s screenplay brings a lot of texture to these characterizations, and the actors enrich the script. In a different kind of role from those he usually plays, Rasche movingly captures the central character’s torment and remorse. Eric Roberts gives a sensitive performance as Josephine’s shrink, who also (in a rather strained coincidence) happens to be a former CIA employee. The film’s revelation is Rohm, who exposes Josephine’s self-destructive anger while always engaging our sympathy. As the slick, baby-faced lawyer who represents Josephine in a custody battle with her ex-husband, Chad Lindberg is immensely appealing.
While the ending is easy to predict, there are some clever twists along the way. Director Garrett Bennett builds considerable suspense while also doing justice to the tortured human drama, and Julio Ribeyro’s cinematography is first-rate. One scene in which a drunken Josephine smashes her car into a power line that causes all of Seattle -- including the Space Needle -- to go dark is an amusing tour de force. The film’s technical achievements are impressive, but the more crucial accomplishment is the insight into all of the characters in this densely layered mosaic.
For a little more about Stephen:
STEPHEN FARBER is one of the country’s leading film critics and historians. He is currently a film critic for The Hollywood Reporter and Hollywood Life magazine. Farber has also written reviews and articles on film for The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Esquire, New York, New West, Harper's Bazaar, Premiere, Film Comment, and many other national publications. He has interviewed hundreds of top actors, writers, directors, and producers for these newspapers and magazines.
In partnership with Richmark Entertainment and Landmark Theatres, Stephen Farber is the host and producer of REEL TALK, a popular film series that features screenings and discussions of new movies, with their directors or stars in attendance. Before launching that series, Farber taught a similar "Sneak Preview" class for UCLA Extension. He has also lectured on film at several other American universities, at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, at the Swedish Film Institute in Stockholm, the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation in Oslo, and throughout Australia and New Zealand in a program sponsored by the Australian Film and Television School and the New Zealand Film Commission.
Farber has led tours to film festivals in Venice, Havana, Maui, Berlin, Tribeca, San Sebastian, and Montreal. He has hosted celebrity tributes at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, AFI Fest, the San Francisco International Film Festival, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, and the Seattle International Film Festival.
Farber produced three episodes of the Arts & Entertainment network's acclaimed "Biography" series in conjunction with Peter Jones Productions. "Anthony Perkins: A Life in the Shadows" was broadcast in January 1999, "Spencer Tracy: Triumph and Turmoil" appeared in June 1999, and "Roman Polanski: Reflections of Darkness" was shown in February 2000.
Farber has written screenplays for directors Sydney Pollack, Herbert Ross and Barry Levinson. His most recent screenplay was written for director Philip Kaufman and Fox Searchlight Pictures.
Stephen Farber has written several acclaimed books on film: The Movie Rating Game (1972, Public Affairs Press), Hollywood Dynasties (1984, Delilah/Putnam), Outrageous Conduct: Art, Ego, and the Twilight Zone Case (1988, Arbor House/Morrow), and Hollywood on the Couch (1993, Morrow). All of these books have been serialized at the time of publication and have been cited frequently in subsequent articles and books about the film industry.
Farber graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College and received an M.A. in English at UC Berkeley and a second M.A. in theater arts at UCLA.
