NXNE Film Reviews

As part of the North By Northeast festival, two historically significant and visually stunning films by Toronto producer/director Jerry Levitan were shown at The National Film Board. These two films, though both released previously, have timeless messages.
I Met The Walrus | Director: Josh Raskin | Executive Producer: Jerry Levitan
In 1969, when Jerry Levitan was only 14 years old, the brave young man snuck into John Lennon’s hotel room at the King Edward Hotel in Toronto, with a tape recorder and persuaded the music legend for an interview. He later turned the life-changing experience into a five minute short film, which was nominated for an Academy Award and won an Emmy. The animation by James Braithwaite and Alex Kurina is intensely creative, using black and white drawings to depict the historically important time in John Lennon’s life when he married Yoko Ono and the two participated in the famous “Bed In For Peace”. Lennon speaks about peace and the backlash he received from America in a prophetic way, but even though the interview was in ’69, the issues he speaks on are just as relevant to society today. The symbolic imagery provided by the illustration captivates the eyes, and the youthful flow of these pictures serves as an effective contradiction to Lennon’s powerful message of peace soothes the ears. It is an emotional and powerful film. At the time, the young Jerry Levitan had no idea that his brave act would serve as a historic and pinnacle memorial of the late Beatle and that the innovative style and revolutionary message of the film would have a profound impact on those who watched it.
My Hometown | Director: Jerry Levitan and Terry Tompkins | Executive Producer: Jerry Levitan
Before creating the Academy Award winning film, I Met The Walrus, Director/Executive Producer Jerry Levitan, who first met Yoko Ono after sneaking into her and John Lennon’s hotel room to interview the late legend in 1969, teamed up with the creative genius herself to create the captivating seven-minute short film titled, My Hometown, which she wrote and narrated. The film features Yoko Ono’s soothing song, “Remember Love” and warm, child-like imagery by visual and animation director, Sharmil Halaldeen, which creates a warm, calm feeling to viewers, which coincides with Yoko’s message of home, love and peace. The symbolic illustrations of Poloroid photos, hearts and maps are used successfully to ignite the powerful message of unity as Yoko tells her story. The film is almost therapeutic and its underlying meaning is timeless.