Champions

D: David Wike; with Wike, Kevin Corrigan, Ebon Moss Bachrach, Xander Berkeley, Clea DuVall

Categorizing writer/director David Wike’s debut feature, Champions, as one of SXSW’s Emerging Visions serves it well. About three New York City denizens – Derek (Corrigan), Stan (Bachrach), and Russell (Wike) – experiencing quarter-to-midlife crises, the film follows the trio upstate and their efforts to reconnect with the Earth and themselves. Relationships develop and disintegrate while working on a small farm with Russell’s enigmatic Uncle Doug (Berkeley) at the reins, leading the hired hands to hypothesize why and what they’re planting. Champions is estimable in almost every category: The script is taut without being stifling, the characters charm without becoming caricatures, the cinematography is engaging without being mawkish. Not bad for a first-timer. However, Wike’s vision is still emerging, as he wears his antecedents on his sleeve (Bottle Rocket seems an obvious touchstone). Nevertheless, in true film festival form, it’s enjoyable to see an up-and-comer struggle and ultimately hit his stride in a medium littered with tripwires.

5:30pm, Alamo South Lamar

This article appears in March 17 • 2006.

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James graduated from Columbia University in 2000 and moved to Austin a year later. Ever since, he has followed the arts and video game scene in ATX, editing and writing stories for the Chronicle along the way. Over his more than 20 years with the paper he has climbed the "corporate" ladder from lowly intern to managing editor.