Posts published under “Film Fests”
Let’s Talk About…The Artist
THE ARTIST (2011/IN THEATERS)
Sarah! I am so glad we were able to preview The Artist at the St. Louis International Film Festival, well before the unwashed masses. It’s always a pleasure to see the Tivoli packed to the gills with nerdy film buffs like ourselves, even if we suspected that many of them bought tickets in hopes that supporting actor and Hometown Hero John Goodman might make a special guest appearance. He did not! (Though his image from The Big Lebowski adorned the Major Filmmaker Awards.) Lucky for everyone, The Artist was a total delight. That a gleeful homage to the silent era could hold an audience rapt from beginning to end is no small feat in the era of 3D and seizure-inducing vampire baby nightmare birth scenes. But this B&W charmer (which follows the waning career of a silent-era star, played by the alarmingly suave Jean Dujardin, and the rise of talkie ingenue/love interest Berenice Bejo) had a magnetic cast, chipper score, beautiful sets (a staircase scene was pretty amazing in scale and choreography), and an engaging plot that, while maybe directed a little broadly, was no less sweet and compelling for it. And though it costars a very talented dog (who some people are think should be nominated for an Oscar? Whaaat? Let’s get Serkis in there first, then work our way toward actual animals, you goofs) it requires zero warning barks on my patented scale. Win-win!
Ebertfest Days 4 & 5: Saint Tilda Appears
Two SMLs appear in this photo. Can you spot them? (photo courtesy of Ebertfest)
Ebertfest Day 4 was an interesting mix of awesome and weird, starting with a mid-morning screening of Jennifer Arnold’s uplifting and, indeed, awesome 2010 doc A Small Act, which tells the story of how poor, young Kenyan Chris Mburu’s life was forever changed by elfin Swedish schoolteacher Hilde Back’s “small act” of kindness, funding his education by paying only $15 a month via an aid program. Now an ambitious, successful, and well-educated Harvard grad, Mburu has started his own Kenyan student aid program, named after his childhood benefactor Back. The film follows his attempts to contact her personally, and the relationship that ensues, in addition to closely detailing his own foundation’s work. It’s the latter that adds a surprising amount of tension and suspense as Arnold focuses on a few likely aid candidate children as they take an aptitude test and wait agonizing days for their scores, and in turn, their futures. Hilde Back’s Q&A appearance received the biggest standing O of the festival. She is adorable and tiny and real firecracker—view the Q&A here.
Just another Ebertfest party: Ebert "chats" with Hilde Back and Tilda Swindon. (Photo courtesy of Ebertfest.)
The second half of Ebert’s unofficial African Social Crisis Double Feature, Life, Above All—a well-intentioned but ultimately somewhat condescending story set around the AIDS crisis in South Africa—did not connect nearly as well with SML. This story of a young girl struggling to care for her mother and younger half-siblings—all in denial that the mother is suffering from AIDS contracted from her drug-addicted second husband—while attempting to attend school, parties, and not fall into prostitution like her orphaned and shunned best friend, is given short shrift by a contrived (somewhat) happy ending (after nearly stoning the family to death when the mother returns to the house to die [after being exiled for months], it takes just a short speech from a neighborhood biddy to turn the crowd into a supportive, teary, choir that sings an uplifting tune to the family over the closing credits), betraying the complexity of the issue and implying that all we need is neighborly love to overcome decades of ignorance. A movie like this can unintentionally diminish the very cause the director claims to support. Meh. SML skipped the Q&A (you can view it here, I guess) and the de rigueur standing O in favor of a second visit to nearby Merry-Ann’s Diner. LIKE.
Ebertfest, Day 3: Linklater Charms, a Q&A Disappoints
The nattily scarved titular host. (photo courtesy of Ebertfest)
A surprisingly blustery Champaign, IL, morning started Ebertfest 2011 Day 3 fittingly with the lighter than air 45365, a free-form 2010 doc that takes its name from the zip code of sibling co-directors Bill and Turner Ross’ small Ohio hometown. Eschewing interviews and defined character studies, the first-time directors instead float their cameras voyeuristically from subject to subject, letting the audience glean what they can about the subjects—and in turn, the town—via candid, overheard snippets of conversation. Keep your eyes peeled for the as yet unannounced DVD/BluRay release date—this compelling slice of small-town America is definitely worth a visit…though you wouldn’t want to live there.
Next up was Richard Linklater’s delightfully lighthearted 2009 coming-of-age romp Me & Orson Welles, a mostly fictionalized account of the pre-Citizen Kane titular director’s legendary 1937 modern-dress off Broadway re-staging of “Julius Caesar” as seen through the eyes of a young bit player (played likably here by Zac Efron) who, with no theatrical experience, bluffs his way into a part and under the flamboyant director’s wing. Shining brightest is actor Christian McKay, whose authentic turn as the young Welles feels completely without caricature or artifice–from the voice to the baby-face, McKay is THE definitive Welles. Somebody should use this guy to capture more of Welles’ famously rocky life and career, stat. McKay’s tour-de-force performance alone makes this joyfully crafted comedy worthy of a spot in your Netflix queue, pronto. The laid-back Q&A following the screening touched on how Linklater discovered McKay (the latter was performing in a one man show as a much older and heavier Welles) and how/why the film was shot on location on the Isle of Man (the tiny country’s film bureau’s fiscal incentives, a sweet old theater there fit the bill perfectly). As a fun bonus, Linklater conducted a Welles trivia quiz throughout his Q&A, with special handmade prizes–a few personally redesigned M&OW posters and a few self-burned CDs of a Linklater-approved version of the M&OW soundtrack. Whatta guy. Read more »
A Trip to Ebertfest, Days 1 & 2
After a few short welcoming remarks from a white-scarf-adorned Ebert, via his laptop’s robotic voice, Ebertfest 2011 was officially underway in downtown Champaign, IL’s gorgeous Virginia Theater with one hell of an opening night feature: the beautifully restored and artfully reconstructed original cut of noted German a-hole/genius director Fritz Lang’s magnificent 1927 silent masterpiece Metropolis, accompanied by the always amazing Alloy Orchestra. Featuring 30 minutes of previously lost footage found in a Buenos Aires private collection in 2008, this version of Metropolis clocks in at a staggering 150 minutes that manages to delight, unnerve, and downright creep out more than ever. (Check your cable listings for Metropolis Refound, a short doc making the rounds on basic cable detailing this amazing reconstruction.) And while you’re online—stream the reconstructed version of Metropolis in HD on Netflix.) While this version was released in 2010 on DVD/BluRay (and streaming in HD via Netflix), the one thing you won’t get at home is the transcendent experience of the Alloy Orchestra’s genius (and often very loud) original score, a stunning bombast of various synthetic yet naturalistic orchestral strings and organs, weird metal springs that make weirder noises, chimes, low-tuned cello, and, heh, a rain stick. One of the most exciting and entertaining moments these viewers have ever experienced in a theater. Thanks, Eb! Read more »
On Location: 2011 Taos Shortz Film Fest
TAOS, NEW MEXICO 
Just how cool is Taos?! Pretty darn cool….In its fourth year, the Taos Shortz Film Fest which ran last weekend at the Harwood Museum of Art featured a terrific lineup of 60 selections and welcomed 20 filmmakers from across the globe. Three world premieres were featured: Next, a 5 minute experimental from Germany; The Necklace a 6-minute dramatic fiction work from Colorado and of course, our local favorite and winner of The People’s Choice Award Good Luck Mr. Gorski, which we reviewed earlier this week. Other award winners and personal favorites (of mine!) were two comedy fiction shorts: Asesino—a hilarious piece featuring Victor Ramirez in the title role and directed by Ravi Kapoor, and Uncle Jack—also hilarious, directed by Jamin Winans and filmed in Denver. The animation award winner was The Astronomer’s Sun from the UK, directed by Simon Cartwright (who was in Taos for the festival) and Jessica Cope—Cartwright informed us that this very compelling animation used absolutely no digital tricks and was completely hand-done. Impressive. My friends and I were also impressed by The Fall Line, directed by Tyler Stableford and featuring a young soldier who lost both legs in Iraq but is now a world competitive para-olympic skier and also Prayers for Peace, directed by Dustin Grella and dedicated to his brother who lost his life in Iraq—both these shorts received Honorable Mentions in their respective categories (documentary and animation). The driving force behind the Taos Shortz Fest is Anna Cosentine, who single-handedly started the festival and makes it bigger and better each year. She promises to be back in 2012. Excellent!
Check out the complete lineup of films here.
Liftoff!
Gary Houston as Mr. Gorski
GOOD LUCK MR GORKSI (World Premiere/March 5, 2011/Taos Shortz Film Fest) So….you’re wondering, what on earth is “Good Luck Mr. Gorski.” Good question!! It’s an original short film, produced and scripted by Allegra Huston –Taos resident and famous half sister of Angelica Houston, Danny Huston and Gary Houston (also a Taos resident). Gary stars as Mr. Gorski in this fun little period comic piece set in 1969 on the famous day when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the moon. According to Allegra at last night’s world premiere showing, the story is based on an old joke from Buddy Hackett! (Don’t remember Buddy Hackett—no worries—you’re too young. Check him out here.) At any rate, the movie had a big send-off last night at the Fourth Annual Taos Shortz Film Fest which has become a real world-class event, complete with 60 shorts and over 20 filmmakers from all over the world. The crowd for Allegra’s piece was big, by Taos standards. One of the reasons was her creative fundraising: for a $20 contribution toward the film, anyone could join the “launch crew” and get a listing in the credits as well as a free download of the film. Check it out! I’m there just past the 700 mark!
NOTE: A full review of the Taos Shortz Film Fest is coming this week as well. Stay tuned!
SLIFF: 127 Hours (& About a Thousand Crappy Decibels)
127 HOURS (2010/SLIFF: PREVIEW) Oh, Danny Boy(le)! What has that horrible destroyer of quality cinema “Oscar” done to you? It certainly hasn’t dampened your relatively newfound affection for manipulative cheezeball OTT synth-rock score, or for your new fave composer and Slumdog Millionaire alum A.R. Rahman, who seems to have been under the impression that this was indeed a sequel to that misguided, overrated, Oscar-sweeping crapsterpiece with this samey collection of bombastic beats. Exhibit A: Your soon-to-be released and much buzzed about Oscar bait grossout adventure 127 Hours. It’s source material is a true story, however slight: Our oddball (read: dumbass) fitness adventure nut hero goes run-hiking ALONE through treacherous canyons in Utah when he suddenly finds himself trapped under a boulder in a remote crevasse. He struggles in vain for 127 hours or theareabouts, eventually freeing himself (SPOILER, SORTA) via chopping off his arm just under the elbow with a dull pocketknife. But while you succeeded in stretching this 20 minute, tops, story into an engaging full-length feature—much to the credit of a game and funny James Franco in the challenging role of the self-amputee—what ultimately knocked your film down a couple of letter grades for me was your Slumdog-esqe ham-fisted, overcooked visuals (Oh, split screens of office drones scored by Coldplay-in-overdrive-type tunes, etc, go fuck yourselves) and the aforementioned crap score. MIND YOU: This film will be a huge audience-pleasing hit, let there be no doubt about that. And it will likely be a Best Picture contender. *Sigh* I do hope that this is just the inevitable keep-making-what-the-people-want phase of your post-Oscar career that will eventually run its course, allowing you to tone down your current 30 Seconds to Mars music video treatment M.O. and move your focus from the flash-pots and blood bags into creating something a little subtler and hopefully a bit more resonant. Something more like your creepy sci-fi masterpiece Sunshine.
Don’t get me wrong here—127 Hours isn’t a terrible movie. And the scene with Franco taking his arm off will indeed stick with you. As for the rest, it’s certainly just as rousing as any other energy-drink-infused popcorn thriller. Aw, Danny. You break my heart.
My grade: C+
SLIFF 2010: An Evening with Harry Shearer
Eeeeeexcellent!
The 19th Annual Stella Artois St Louis International Film Festival (but still SLIFF, because SASLIFF just looks silly) kicked off on a more somber note than had originally been intended, with the sudden death last week of St. Louis-born filmmaker George Hickenlooper turning the opening gala screening/reception featuring his new buzzy film Casino Jack into a makeshift memorial ceremony. (Of course, I missed this reportedly moving tribute, due to a sneak preview of Burlesque playing across town in Chesterfield. There are priorities, people!) The film’s star, Kevin Spacey, was respectfully in attendance and, according to a SLIFF rep, later closed several bars and, eventually, sidewalks, in and around the Loop. Friendly!) After such gravitas, I think a laugh or two was definitely in order. Funny songs about priests molesting deaf boys, anyone?
An evening with this guy.
Well, if that sounds fun to you (and it surprisingly was!), you likely (wish you had) caught the following night’s packed but surprisingly not sold out SLIFF coup, An Evening With Harry Shearer, a fun and revealing two hour live interview/career retrospective of the comic actor/writer/director, already in town to promote his Hurricane Katrina exposé doc, The Big Uneasy, which was screening the following afternoon in the same venue, the gloriously unfashionable time machine known as the Hi-Pointe theater. Read more »
On Location: Peter Halter and Movies at the TCA
Peter Halter
TAOS COMMUNITY AUDITORIUM (October 17, 2010) Google Peter Halter and you’ll get his photo linked to a website listing him as one of the Presentation Specialists (i.e. Projectionists) for Sundance in 2011, as well as for the Doha Film Festival which is running next week. Cool. Peter is also the Programming Director for our own “Movies at the TCA,” a wonderful weekly event featuring indie films which have missed Taos (and are still new enough not to be on DVD).
This past week, Peter was showing Get Low and I was lucky enough to meet up with him in the projection booth to talk about movies, film festivals and how to program successfully for an audience as quirky as the one here in Taos. Peter has been working with the TCA and Taos for 16 years now, 5 years as the Programming Director. Among the other festivals he has worked are the Travers City Film Festival (Michael Moore’s event), Telluride, Durango and the Dominican Republic Global Film Festival. He was also part of Taos Talking Pictures, the legendary film festival that ran here between 1994 and 2003, and created some serious buzz by giving away land to award winners. Unfortunately for all of us movie lovers in town, the festival failed thanks to a combination of financial and political issues and nothing yet has risen to take its place, though there’s still some talk. Read more »
Ebertfest PS: The Virginia Theater
The Virginia Theater
12th ANNUAL ROGER EBERT’S FILM FESTIVAL, CHAMPAIGN, IL One of the coolest parts of Ebertfest is that, even though there is no shortage of manic, territorial weirdoes in line hours before each day’s first screening, it is entirely possible, with a Festival Pass, anyway, to walk up to the Virginia Theater only a few minutes before the scheduled show time and still secure yourself a wonderful seat with a great view. (Without a laminated Festival Pass, which covers all 13 screenings @ $12 a pop, individual ticket buyers are left lined up until a few minutes after the announced show time, when volunteers are able to count how many empty seats are still available. Ebertfest usually runs a full 30 minutes or more behind that scheduled time, btw.)
I’m normally one of those nerds who cannot properly enjoy a film unless I’m in a very specific location within the theater—not too close, never all the way in back, and definitely somewhere in the center—but the Virginia Theater (capable of seating something like 1500 mopes) has maybe 5 bad seats in the whole joint. Our first experience in the Virginia—Day 1’s sold out Pink Floyd: The Wall screening—led us to seats that normally would have been unbearable to this finicky film fancier: the very last row of an extensive balcony. We discovered quickly enough that, with the Virginia’s ENORMOUS, stage-filling screen and crystal clear sound system—not to mention the room’s stellar natural acoustics—sometimes the very last row in of an extensive balcony can be the best seat in the house. After bouncing around to a few different locations in subsequent screenings we discovered one advantage to the floor seating, however: leg room. The floor actually has some, which becomes increasingly more important with each successive screening. While the floor seats generally go first to those previously mentioned manic, territorial weirdoes, they tend to leave several options open for we lazy latecomers on the room’s far right, non-Ebert section (our King sits on a raised black leather throne/recliner in the very last row on the center/left and decidedly more crowded section), a vantage point that, in smaller theaters with smaller screens, would have bothered me. But in the Virginia? Perfect.
