Auto Parts

Two films that have been sitting in my queue for the better part of the millennium finally rise to the top:

SWEDISH AUTO (2006) (B) - This charming little film follows the exploits of a quiet small-town mechanic who has a fascination with a beautiful violinist before realizing that another woman is obsessed with him. This variation on the classic love triangle -- albeit it highly platonic -- provides a first-time director the chance to sketch out an intriguing character study.

Lukas Haas (a child in "Witness," an adult in "Inception") plays Carter, such a dutiful worker that he seems to be more of a favorite of the garage owner than the owner's son. He likes to watch Ann (Brianne Davis) perform, whether she is on stage in concert or just visible through her apartment window. Meantime, the cute gal at the diner, Darla (January Jones, before "Mad Men"), has a keen interest in Carter, and they eventually start hanging out. 

Writer-director Derek Sieg ("Hot Air") sets this tale in Charlottesville, Va., giving everything a dull grey tint -- all except the vintage magenta Saab that Carter lovingly restores. In a brisk 97 minutes, Sieg gives a long leash to Haas and Jones as they mumble their way into each other's arms (for the longest time I was trying to figure out if her character's name was Donna or Carla). Carter feels compelled to rescue Darla and her mother from the clutches of an abusive step-father, and he is working on a particular Swedish auto that might just be the vehicle for all of them to escape their drab, unfulfilled existence.

ELDORADO (2009) (B) - This quirky little road movie brings together a gearhead and a junkie as they meander across Belgium.  Bouli Lanners writes, directs and stars as Yvan, the connoisseur of American cars who arrives home one day to find scrawny Elie (Fabrice Adde) hiding out in Yvan's home after having broken in and trashed it looking for money to finance his next score. 

After this meet-cute, Yvan agrees to drive Elie to the French border where Elie's parents live. Along the way, they interact with outre characters, including a psychic and a nudist who is the namesake of actor Alain Delon (and who has his own director's chair with his name emblazoned on it). Lanners -- both as actor and director -- infuses the narrative with equal parts whimsy and melancholia. Elie seems doomed from the start, and Yvan, while well meaning, is really working out his own personal issues rather than giving selflessly to help the next generation.

The random acts of oddity pay off in the end, when the pair suddenly have to tend to an injured dog, and neither has a clue what to do, partly because neither one really seems to care about the animal's suffering, perhaps too focused on their own internal turmoil. Lanners is wise to trim this down to a zippy 80 minutes, the perfect size for it to hustle along to an indifferent but satisfying conclusion.

BONUS TRACK

Lanners opens "Eldorado" with Yvan crusing the open road in his vintage Chevy wagaon to the tune of the Milkshakes pounding out "Ida Honey (Tell Me You'll Be Mine)":