Goodbye Solo

Goodbye Solo (2008)
[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1095442/]

The Gist:
This film is made by a director who has made a little niche career in the festival circuit. That being the case, I'm wondering why this feels like a film made by a first time director. That's not to say the film is bad, it's quite good really. However, there are abrupt moments like a frame that is out of focus until the focus point comes into frame and you're sitting there for a couple seconds thinking "why am I looking at something out of focus?" or a really abrupt handheld shift in an important moment of the film that does not feel very natural, or a few stray of awkwardly delivered lines. It's not that it makes it an unenjoyable film to watch, just curious since I would think it would be directed with more of a sure hand. However, where the film does succeed is the character of Solo, a beautiful human being that radiates loves and yet is not perfect, who pries in others' lives trying to help them. The character is very well acted, feels intensely real, and stands as the greatest achievement of the film. In terms of the plot, it's a slice of life kind of film that you get the scope of within the first minute. Like many neorealist inspired efforts, the beauty is in the detail.