The Blue Hour
Encyclopedia
The Blue Hour is a film directed and written by Eric Nazarian
. It stars Alyssa Milano
and had its world premiere at the San Sebastián International Film Festival
in 2007. Additionally, the film was selected by Nanni Moretti
to screen at the 2007 Torino Film Festival
, in Turin
, Italy.
The Blue Hour takes place in Los Angeles
and follows four strangers whose lives cross paths, unaware of the ties that bind them together.
weave their stories of loss and hope, not knowing that their lives have brushed up against each others in small but sometimes profound ways. A multi-ethnic ensemble drama, the film explores the connections between a Mexican
graffiti muralist, an Armenian camera repairman, an African-American blues
guitarist and an English
pensioner living near the Los Angeles River
.
Happy is a talented teenage graffiti muralist with a passion for spray paint and hip hop
. Her playground is the concrete banks of the Los Angeles River. While painting a mural of her trademark Payasa, a sad-faced Lady Clown, she encounters Sal, a mentally challenged homeless man who attempts to make contact with her.
Unable to communicate with Happy, Sal then crosses paths with Avo, a vintage camera repairman living with his wife Allegra on the East Bank of the river. Their apartment overlooks Happy’s Payasa mural near the area where their four-year old daughter Heidi recently drowned. Since Heidi’s death, Avo and Allegra have not spoken. As Happy toils on the Payasa, Avo attempts to reconcile with his wife in the wake of the family tragedy.
A block away from Avo’s apartment, Ridley is a struggling blues guitarist staying in an old hotel by the river. He has returned temporarily to Los Angeles to care for his mother. One night, Ridley hears an enigmatic voice coming from somewhere inside the hotel. Haunted by its mysterious presence, Ridley sets out to discover the source of the voice, running into Sal in the wake of a hit-and-run accident.
Humphrey is an aging pensioner living in an apartment overlooking the ‘islands’ in the river. One morning he wakes up to the sound of Sal screaming on the sidewalk. Having recently lost his wife Ethel, Humphrey spends his days eating lunch by her grave, a few feet from Heidi’s resting place where he sees Allegra. Unsure when his time will come, Humphrey readjusts to everyday life, crossing paths with Happy as he wanders the riverside neighborhood.
Connecting each character peripherally through the Los Angeles River, The Blue Hour explores the delicate ties and common humanity among strangers in a seemingly disconnected landscape.
.” –Variety
“Nazarian demonstrates an uncanny affinity for the language of cinema. ...this is clearly another filmmaker to watch out for in the coming years. ..like the late Cassavetes
, Nazarian demonstrates an uncanny ability to compose the most striking images and memorable performances on a shoe string budget.” -Turin Film Festival, 2007
“Eric Nazarian’s work is a film of the senses. The film speaks almost without words, replacing them with a colorful cinematic language well adapted to the four different stories told which form a unity in a very natural way.” –European Network of Young Cinema
Eric Nazarian
moved to Los Angeles
from the former Soviet Union
. He was raised in a neighborhood near the Los Angeles River. The river's unique landscape inspired him to make the film.
Eric Nazarian
Eric Nazarian is an Armenian-American film director and screenwriter.His film The Blue Hour premiered at the 2007 San Sebastian International Film Festival andwas selected by Nanni Moretti to screen at the 25th Torino Film Festival in Turin, Italy....
. It stars Alyssa Milano
Alyssa Milano
Alyssa Jayne Milano is an American actress and former singer, known for her childhood role as Samantha Micelli in the sitcom Who's the Boss? and an eight-year stint as Phoebe Halliwell on the series Charmed. She was also a series regular on the original Melrose Place portraying the role of...
and had its world premiere at the San Sebastián International Film Festival
San Sebastián International Film Festival
The San Sebastián International Film Festival is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of San Sebastián .-History:The festival was founded in 1953...
in 2007. Additionally, the film was selected by Nanni Moretti
Nanni Moretti
Giovanni "Nanni" Moretti is an Italian film director, producer, screenwriter and actor.-Life and work:Moretti was born in Bruneck, South Tyrol , in 1953 to parents who were teachers...
to screen at the 2007 Torino Film Festival
25th Torino Film Festival
The 25th Torino Film Festival was held 23 November – 1 December 2007 in Turin, Italy and was directed by Nanni Moretti.-Films in competition:*The Art of Negative Thinking *Away from Her...
, in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Italy.
The Blue Hour takes place in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and follows four strangers whose lives cross paths, unaware of the ties that bind them together.
Plot
Several strangers in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
weave their stories of loss and hope, not knowing that their lives have brushed up against each others in small but sometimes profound ways. A multi-ethnic ensemble drama, the film explores the connections between a Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
graffiti muralist, an Armenian camera repairman, an African-American blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
guitarist and an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
pensioner living near the Los Angeles River
Los Angeles River
The Los Angeles River is a river that starts in the San Fernando Valley, in the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, and flows through Los Angeles County, California, from Canoga Park in the western end of the San Fernando Valley, nearly southeast to its mouth in Long Beach...
.
Happy is a talented teenage graffiti muralist with a passion for spray paint and hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
. Her playground is the concrete banks of the Los Angeles River. While painting a mural of her trademark Payasa, a sad-faced Lady Clown, she encounters Sal, a mentally challenged homeless man who attempts to make contact with her.
Unable to communicate with Happy, Sal then crosses paths with Avo, a vintage camera repairman living with his wife Allegra on the East Bank of the river. Their apartment overlooks Happy’s Payasa mural near the area where their four-year old daughter Heidi recently drowned. Since Heidi’s death, Avo and Allegra have not spoken. As Happy toils on the Payasa, Avo attempts to reconcile with his wife in the wake of the family tragedy.
A block away from Avo’s apartment, Ridley is a struggling blues guitarist staying in an old hotel by the river. He has returned temporarily to Los Angeles to care for his mother. One night, Ridley hears an enigmatic voice coming from somewhere inside the hotel. Haunted by its mysterious presence, Ridley sets out to discover the source of the voice, running into Sal in the wake of a hit-and-run accident.
Humphrey is an aging pensioner living in an apartment overlooking the ‘islands’ in the river. One morning he wakes up to the sound of Sal screaming on the sidewalk. Having recently lost his wife Ethel, Humphrey spends his days eating lunch by her grave, a few feet from Heidi’s resting place where he sees Allegra. Unsure when his time will come, Humphrey readjusts to everyday life, crossing paths with Happy as he wanders the riverside neighborhood.
Connecting each character peripherally through the Los Angeles River, The Blue Hour explores the delicate ties and common humanity among strangers in a seemingly disconnected landscape.
Reception
" ...Largely dialogue-free, the pic shuns histrionics, instead generating its gathering emotional force via carefully crafted images and sharp editing... a strong calling card for debutante Eric NazarianEric Nazarian
Eric Nazarian is an Armenian-American film director and screenwriter.His film The Blue Hour premiered at the 2007 San Sebastian International Film Festival andwas selected by Nanni Moretti to screen at the 25th Torino Film Festival in Turin, Italy....
.” –Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
“Nazarian demonstrates an uncanny affinity for the language of cinema. ...this is clearly another filmmaker to watch out for in the coming years. ..like the late Cassavetes
John Cassavetes
John Nicholas Cassavetes was an American actor, screenwriter and filmmaker. He acted in many Hollywood films, notably Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen...
, Nazarian demonstrates an uncanny ability to compose the most striking images and memorable performances on a shoe string budget.” -Turin Film Festival, 2007
“Eric Nazarian’s work is a film of the senses. The film speaks almost without words, replacing them with a colorful cinematic language well adapted to the four different stories told which form a unity in a very natural way.” –European Network of Young Cinema
Genesis
As a child, directorFilm director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
Eric Nazarian
Eric Nazarian
Eric Nazarian is an Armenian-American film director and screenwriter.His film The Blue Hour premiered at the 2007 San Sebastian International Film Festival andwas selected by Nanni Moretti to screen at the 25th Torino Film Festival in Turin, Italy....
moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
from the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. He was raised in a neighborhood near the Los Angeles River. The river's unique landscape inspired him to make the film.
Cast
- Alyssa MilanoAlyssa MilanoAlyssa Jayne Milano is an American actress and former singer, known for her childhood role as Samantha Micelli in the sitcom Who's the Boss? and an eight-year stint as Phoebe Halliwell on the series Charmed. She was also a series regular on the original Melrose Place portraying the role of...
- Allegra - Yorick van WageningenYorick van WageningenYorick van Wageningen is a Dutch actor.After acting in several Dutch plays, movies, and television series, van Wageningen was asked to come to Hollywood to appear in Steven Spielberg's Minority Report. Due to problems with his visa, he was unable to work on that movie in the United States....
- Avo - Emily RiosEmily RiosEmily Clara Rios is an American actress and model.Rios, a Mexican American, was born in Los Angeles, California. She was raised as a Jehovah's Witness in the city of El Monte, California. Rios was discovered while shopping in an area shopping mall. She has appeared in the short For Them and...
- Happy - Derrick O'ConnorDerrick O'ConnorDerrick O'Connor is an Irish character actor, mostly known for his roles in Terry Gilliam films. He was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company....
- Humphrey - Clarence Williams IIIClarence Williams IIIClarence Williams III is an American actor.-Early life:Williams was born in New York City. His grandfather was Clarence Williams, the jazz pianist and composer. He was raised by his grandmother.-Career:...
- Ridley - Paul DillonPaul DillonPaul Dillon is an actor born in Joliet who began his career in show business in Chicago. His movie career began in 1994 with the movie Blink in which he played the role of Neal Booker...
- Sal - Sophia Malki - Heidi
- Rachel MinerRachel MinerRachel Miner is a Broadway, film and television actress, born in New York City.-Personal life:A third generation Miner in show business, she is the daughter of director and teacher Peter Miner and the granddaughter of director/producer Worthington Miner and actress Frances Fuller...
- Julie - Sarah JonesSarah Jones (screen actor)Sarah Jones is an American actress.Jones has played roles in Huff, Ugly Betty and Big Love. She played the youngest of three sisters who run a wedding planner business in Fox's short-lived dramedy series The Wedding Bells. She will be seen in two upcoming movies, Still Green and The Blue Hour...
- Young Ethel - Eric BurdonEric BurdonEric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter best known as a founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War and for his aggressive stage performance...
- Bar Singer