July 2010

I'll confess that I'm a sucker for sentimental supernatural film and television. Despite its cheesiness, I'll watch Ghost and Ghost Whisperer anytime I come across them while surfing the television channels. I loved the plot twists of What Dreams May Come, The Others and The Sixth Sense, but give me a hanky for the tearful moments. It's the more profound question of the afterlife and redemption that I find mystifying and often comforting in my morose moments of recognition of mortality. Charlie St. Cloud attempts to extract similar sentimentality from its viewers. Based on Ben Sherwood's 2004 novel The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, this film directed by Burr Steers (17 Again) paints an ethereal portrait of loved ones amongst golden sunsets and raging storms.

Charlie (Zac Efron), is clearly a young man from the wrong side of the tracks. His mother (Kim Basinger) works double shifts to support him and his annoying and devoted brother Sam. Fortunately for Charlie, his good grades and sailing prowess have secured him a sailing scholarship at Stanford. On graduation day, the future couldn't be brighter for Charlie. He promises Sam that he'll play catch with him every day at sunset until Charlie leaves for school in the fall. However, a bad decision leaves both brothers dead in a car accident -- until Charlie is brought back to life by a dedicated paramedic (Ray Liotta).

The Houston Film Commission annually presents a collection of recent Texas-made short films that they feel are truly excellent and frankly, want to show off to Texas as well as the rest of the world. Tonight, the commission's most recent collection screens here in Austin, thanks to Austin Film Festival, which selected it for the monthly Austin Film Festival Presents series. 

Three Austin films are included in the lineup: Mnemosyne Rising, the science-fiction short from Miguel Alvarez that played SXSW this year; Love Bug, Kat Candler's film about young love that won an audience award at AFF 2009; and Never Do This, a series of shorts from Scott Rice about, well, things you should never do. You might remember Rice's very funny Script Cops bumpers for AFF 2007. You also can see short films from San Antonio, Houston and Fort Worth.

Tickets are available through Alamo Drafthouse at Lake Creek, or at the box office tonight before the screening. Admission is free if you're an AFF member, and a mere $4 for everyone else.

Last month I started getting nostalgic for Fantastic Fests Past as I was de-cluttering and packing for a move. And while it is only July, fans of the festival are already getting excited for the 2010 edition, with two more months to go. If you're on Twitter or Facebook and live in Austin, you probably saw an explosion of tweets anticipating -- then commenting on -- the first round of films announced for the 6th annual Fantastic Fest last week. Seems like a perfect time to reminisce about the first five years of Fantastic Fest to me. Let's start at the logical place ... Year One, October 2005.

The inaugural year of Fantastic Fest was a sparse program compared to later years -- only four days long, and just two screens at a time for films and special events. There weren't distinct programs yet, other than a retrospective of post-apocalyptic films from around the world, starting a tradition of popular retrospectives that get some attendees as excited as the new releases. With a heavy representation of Asian horror, it's no surprise in later years that trend would continue.

Buying a VIP badge got you all sorts of goodies, mostly stuffed in a SXSW bag. We had the coolest badges ever in 2005, though -- these padded deals with a little flashlight in them, very helpful for reading the black with tiny white font programs.

It hasn't been a great summer this year for big summer blockbusters, but if you look closely, it's been a great simmering summer for the arthhouse films, at least in Austin. Exit Through the Gift Shop is still holding on at the Dobie, and The Secret in Their Eyes is back. Micmacs is still doing well at Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar, and the Grease Sing-A-Long has five new screenings peppered into the South Lamar schedule through Wednesday. Here's what's opening this week:

The Kids are All Right -- This tale of an "alternative" family is too self-aware and overloaded with self-concious acting in the first half, despite having some of the best actors available today. Still, by the end it's the kids that won me over. Elizabeth can tell you more in her review. (wide)

Salt -- Angelina Jolie as a spy fighting to clear her name after a defector accuses her of treason. The heavily marketed film also includes acting heavyweights Liev Schreiber, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Andre Braugher, which makes this potentially one of the more watchable films of the summer. But two questions remain; is Evelyn Salt a double agent, and is Salt really watchable? Elizabeth's review can answer one of those questions. (wide)

The Secret in Their Eyes -- This brilliant, complex, Oscar-winning thriller returns to Austin. If you love nuanced performances wrapped in layered stories, this is a must-see. Read Don's review for more. Then go see it. (Dobie)

Last Wednesday evening, I attended a packed screening of The Kids Are All Right at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar; the theater was so full that even though I was there early my friend and I had to sit in folding chairs. I was hungry, but felt too unsettled to order anything (and since I wasn't near a table, I couldn't imagine how I would eat and take notes at the same time). Then the movie started, and I forgot my own problems and got caught up in the story of the family in the film.

Nic (Annette Bening) and Jules (Julianne Moore) are a married Californian couple with two teenage kids: recent high school graduate Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and 15-year-old Laser (Josh Hutcherson). The kids love their moms, but since Joni is 18, Laser asks her to find out about their sperm donor. Thus, Mark Ruffalo enters the picture as Paul, a organic/local restauranteur (his place is called WYSIWYG, get it?) in his early forties and their biological father.

Paul becomes involved with both the kids and their moms in varying ways. Jules and Joni bloom under his attentions, and even Laser takes his advice (finally) regarding his doofus friend Clay (Eddie Hassell), the kind of guy who would want to pee on a dog's head. Yes, this film goes there! Well, almost.

Good morning! Get your coffee, here's the latest Austin film news:

• If you haven't bought a film pass yet for Austin Film Festival 2010, this is certainly the month to do it. AFF is running a promotion called Film Pass Frenzy through August 2. Anyone who purchases two AFF film passes is entered into a daily drawing for prize packs. The prizes are awfully nice and include AFF Lone Star Badges, a $150 gift certificate to Uchiko, Fun Fun Fun Fest tickets and a Soul Train CD boxed set. You can always check the AFF Twitter feed before buying your passes to see what the daily prize is. Passes are $42 each right now and for eight nights of movies, that's an unbeatable deal.
• IndieWire caught Austin filmmaker Kyle Henry's latest short film, Fourplay: San Francisco at Outfest in Los Angeles last week -- their article also includes a nice photo of all the filmmakers involved. The Fourplay series will include four short films about transgressive sex acts in four different cities (one is Austin, yes). I look forward to seeing the entire series, but in the meantime, if you have a couple of bucks, you can watch Fourplay: San Francisco yourself right now over at IndiePix Films.
• Speaking of festivals, Lights. Camera. Help. has just announced the lineup for its 2010 fest. The three-day festival runs at the end of this month, from July 29-31, and focuses on documentaries, PSAs, and other short films and videos made by and for nonprofits. I noticed a few Austin nonprofits represented on the schedule, including Capital Area Food Bank, Austin Pets Alive, the Ann Richards School and Livestrong.

Christopher Nolan's 2000 breakthrough film Memento set up an expectation for complex, intelligent storytelling. Inception secures Nolan's reputation as an outstanding director and writer.

In Memento, Nolan skillfully turned a relatively simple story into a complex thriller by toying with the timeline. In Inception, he's taken a complex story and simplified it by focusing on two things: one final job and the fundamental emotional reason why it's both necessary and more risky than his colleagues realize.

Inception is a science fiction thriller about Extractors, who construct shared dreaming scenarios to steal secrets. Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his team take corporate espionage to a new level, and after a botched job, are offered a job they can't refuse -- an Inception. Unlike Extraction, where thoughts and memories are stolen, Inception is planting a thought. Inception is thought to be impossible, but Cobb feels up to the job; after all, he's not only in no position to refuse, but his payment includes something he would do anything for.

A few years ago, few people would have taken the phrase "Swedish crime thriller" seriously. Sweden has long been known for films as reserved as its culture; its cinematic output has consisted mostly of thoughtful, understated, often lethargic and slightly dreary films, few of which have generated much international interest. (There are obvious exceptions, of course. Masterpieces like The Seventh Seal vaulted Ingmar Bergman into the world's top echelon of filmmakers, and the indie vampire darling Let the Right One In was a not-so-surprising success in the Twilight-crazed U.S. and Europe.)

Sweden's cinematic reputation may change, however, with a trio of films based on Stieg Larsson's smashingly successful trilogy of crime novels, all international bestsellers. The first film, the taut and gripping The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, has wowed critics and audiences alike in dozens of countries and has just been released on DVD in the U.S. -- read Jette's review for more details.

The series' second installment, The Girl Who Played with Fire (Swedish title: Flickan som lekte med elden), opens in Austin on Friday. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a very tough act to follow, but The Girl Who Played with Fire is a smart, complex and chilling thriller that rivals its predecessor in most respects.

What happens when Disney recycles one of its classics? In the case of The Sorcerer's Apprentice, it gets a perfectly genial summer fantasy action tale likely to please most audiences. Based on a 20th century short film based on an 18th century poem, Jon Turteltaub (National Treasure) has created an energetic if uneven adventure about a young man who inherits magical powers and along with his unwelcome mentor, tries to save the world.

"Der Zauberlehrling" was written by Goethe in 1797. In the original, an apprentice uses magic beyond his means to clean while his master is away, resulting in comical disaster. In 1940, the poem was adapted by Disney into an animated short featured in Fantasia, and remained so popular it was included in Fantasia 2000.

The original story has exploded from a simple mishap into a centuries-old battle between evil sorcerers (Morganians) and the good ones (Merlinians), with Balthazar (Nicolas Cage), the last of Merlin's apprentices, seeking out an heir to Merlin's power. After a brief and traumatic encounter, young David (Jay Baruchel) has put the episode behind him, only to have his life turned upside down again. Now Balthazar and David have to stop the Morganians from completing a particularly heinous spell that will end the world as we know it.

In the middle of Harmony and Me is a very telling line of dialogue. Harmony (Justin Rice) is struggling through a piano lesson, and his teacher (Jeremy Pollet) aptly sums up Harmony's playing style and personality: "You're entangled in your dedication to precision."

Indeed he is. A quintessential Austin indie, Harmony and Me -- available today on DVD and streaming through the movie's website -- is the story of the title character, a less-than-lovable loser who can't let go of his ex-girlfriend, Jessica (Kristen Tucker). His obsession with her has gone from merely pathetic to thoroughly annoying, as he subjects his family, friends, co-workers and anyone else who will listen to his hopeless pining and incessant analyses of the relationship. Despite everyone's gentle suggestions to get over it already, Harmony isn't about to move on.

Then again, Harmony's fixation on the lovely Jessica is may be understandable (albeit completely irritating), given that the rest of his life is a mostly pointless bore. He has a drab job in a drab office, a bullying boss, a grumpy, slightly dysfunctional family and equally bored friends. His only outlet is music, but even this is more of a frustration than an escape. (His lack of any real musical talent doesn't help.) Of course, Harmony might not appreciate happiness even if he found it; he's much too analytical, self-absorbed, and prone to deconstructing everything to relax and enjoy life.

In character-driven, micro-budget indie fashion, not much happens in Harmony and Me. Its ambling, laconic pace will be familiar to fans of two decades' worth of similar films that have come before it, from Slacker to Beeswax. What sets Harmony and Me apart from the others is its astute use of music as both a story element and transitional device between shots and scenes. Harmony and Me uses the music in hilarious ways, from Harmony's halfhearted piano lessons to a very funny wedding sequence featuring Austin musician Bob Schneider as a wedding singer who sings a totally inappropriate song to the very pregnant bride. (The song's most prominent lyric is "I can't change your mind.") The film's musical aspects are often deeply ironic, and none are more so than Harmony's name, for his personal relationships are anything but harmonious.

Austin City Hall is a public building used primarily for City business and related activities. Visitors are welcome at City Hall anytime during normal business hours. Free WiFi is available. City Hall is fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

When attending public meetings, you typically can get parking validated for the City Hall garage. Garage entrance is on Lavaca St.

The Coalition of Texans with Disabilities has expanded this year's1 Cinema Touching Disability (CTD) Film Festival, which takes place in Austin in October. For the festival's seventh year, it's adding a Thursday evening screening at the Goodwill Community Center, as well as art exhibits from Imagine Art and VSA arts of Texas. These local nonprofit organizations support people with disabilities with learning, participating in, and enjoying the arts. As always, the short film competition for grades 6-12 and college categories will take place, with finalists' entries screening at the festival. Competition registration is open until August 31.

The CTD Film Festival takes place from Thursday night, October 14, through Saturday, October 16. I'm excited to see the SXSW award-winning documentary Marwencol as the opening-night film on Thursday, although I would prefer to see it for the first time on a real theater screen at the festival's main venue, Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar. It will be interesting to see how the Goodwill Community Center works as a film venue. The documentary's subject, Mark Hogencamp, definitely fits in with the Goodwill's program of rehabilitation. Hogencamp suffered traumatic brain injuries after an attack outside a bar. His self-created unorthodox therapy is quite fascinating -- in his backyard, Hongencamp has created Marwencol, a 1/6th scale World War II-era town populated with dolls representing friends, family and even his attackers. Through his photographic images, Hogencamp documents the town’s miniature battles and dramas. Check out Jette's review to find out what she thought about this film.

How do you rate big dumb summer movies? Sometimes they can be clever, like the first Iron Man movie -- sometimes all you want is for them to entertain you without being annoying. Predators isn't fresh or new and it isn't even memorable, but on the other hand, you can enjoy some suspenseful scenes and even a few explosions without feeling bored or annoyed. In terms of summer blockbuster scale, that counts for a lot. You don't even have to know anything about the previous Predator movies -- in fact, maybe it's best if you don't.

Predators is so predictable that you can actually recite along with the dialogue, knowing exactly what the characters will say, and then feel a small sense of pride and accomplishment at having got it right. I made a bet with myself on the time and victim of the first death and was off by only about two minutes. The problem with having a number of character actors and little-known actors among well-known stars is that the audience has a pretty good idea of who's going to survive at least the first hour of the movie.

The characters don't reveal their names, which is appropriate because they are a collection of stereotypes and ass-kicking archetypes from the action-film genre. We've got the Tough Reluctant Leader (Adrien Brody), the Tough Military Chick (Alice Braga), the Mexican You Don't F*** With (Danny Trejo, natch), Silent Yakuza, Wise-Ass Serial Killer ... you get the idea. Oh, and one meek and seemingly out-of-place Doctor (Topher Grace). They each find themselves suddenly parachuting into an unfamiliar jungle, and after a few scuffles, all band together to find out what's going on.

The 1978 hit movie musical Grease has been re-fashioned into Grease: The Sing-A-Long and is back in theaters for limited-run engagements, here in town at the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar starting July 8.

The musical -- which once held the honor of longest running show on Broadway -- was turned into a movie seven years after it premiered onstage. The 1978 film is back on the big screens with the addition of lyric subtitles, hoping to find a new audience and bring out fans looking for some nostalgia and a young Travolta. It's the same movie: Rebellious Danny (John Travolta), straightlaced Sandy (Olivia Newton-John) and their friends grappling with love and lust in Rydell High School's class of 1959, with an often clever mix of nostalgia and sharp wit that shows happy days weren't always so happy and innocent.

If you aren't familiar with the story, Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsson have had an idyllic summer romance far from Rydell High. Only when school starts, Sandy's there too, sending both partners into a tailspin and trying to win each other back over. Not helping matters is the brassy Rizzo (Stockard Channing), the biggest rebel of the bunch, who constantly stirs things up even as she falls for Kenickie (Jeff Conaway, who played Danny in the Broadway production). 

Could the next Marko Zaror be staying at your place in September?

One my favorite things about Austin's festivals, and Fantastic Fest in particular, is the camaraderie. There's a tremendous feeling of community, and it's common for out-of-towners to stay with locals, especially since most of their waking time will be spent around the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar.

Cut to last month when some friends of mine -- other Fantastic Fest veterans -- noticed that the Fantastic Fest website didn't include anything about housing. We found something about hotels, but nothing else. We talked about Butt-Numb-a-Thon and how one person in particular who has a guest room had a great time hosting an international guest for BNAT, and was thinking it would be fun to host someone else for Fantastic Fest.

That made me think about  how Alamo and Fantastic Fest staffers have often hosted visiting filmmakers on tight budgets -- one year a call went out looking for housing options for some shorts filmmakers from Colombia. So I passed on the suggestion to Jill, the Guest Manager for Fantastic Fest, and guess what? Now you can host a filmmaker yourself.

One of the most iconic devices in horror films is a maniac terrorizing a local town, the worst of which is one who preys on children. But what if the urban legend turns out to be real? 

Filmmakers Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio explore a real-life horror story of a boogeyman legend come to life in Cropsey, a movie about a series of murders centering on an abandoned state institution on Staten Island, New York, the suspect, the victims, and perceived versus actual guilt.

The "Cropsey" urban legend is so pervasive in the Hudson River valley region of New York, even people in outlying areas are familiar with it. Details change, but the core is the same: there's a maniac, he's armed, and he hunts kids. From a time when it was still common for kids to spend hours on their own without adult supervision, such cautionary tales kept some of us who were old enough to leave our own yards to be just a little more careful. On July 9, 1987, Jennifer Schweiger disappeared, and suddenly the boogeyman was real.

It's a light week for film releases, but then, with the last Twilight film coming out, who in their right mind wants to take on that? Still, there are options this Independence Day weekend.

Cropsey -- Cropsey (pictured above) takes on the boogieman concept with the real story of a local neighborhood, missing kids and a man so creepy he's tried for murder. This documentary will make you think about how quick we are to judge, and the monsters among us.  If you love true crime or fictional, this is a must-see during its three-day run at the Alamo. (Ritz)

I Am Love -- Tilda Swinton stars in a early 19th century period piece set in Milan and described as "the fall of the haute bourgeoisie due to the forces of passion and unconditional love." You had me at Swinton. (Arbor)

I Hate Luv Storys -- Oh, how I weep for the English language sometimes. This latest Bollywood flick pairs a jaded guy with a gal in love with love.  (Tinseltown 17)

One of the few documentaries from Fantastic Fest 2009, Cropsey, returns to Alamo Ritz for a three-day run this month. Jenn Brown calls this real-life mystery movie a "provocative film that will make you think about guilt and innocence as well as what horrific crime really is, and how elusive facts can be."

If you wish you were going to Willie Nelson's July 4 picnic this year -- well, Alamo can help you jump into a virtual time machine, at least. They're showing the 1979 documentary about Willie's picnic that includes music from not only Willie Nelson but also Waylon Jennings, Leon Russell, Ray Wylie Hubbard and others.

For my money, Robert Rodriguez's most entertaining film ever for anyone of any age is Spy Kids, his first venture into "family films" from 2001. It was shot in Austin on location, not that it's easy to tell. Here's a chance to check it out on the big screen -- for free. Not only that, but producer Elizabeth Avellan will be at the screening for a Q&A afterwards. Hosted by Austin Film Festival.