SIFF 2nd Weekend Recommendations

There's a lot of stuff going on every day at SIFF between now and June 9th. To try and cut through some of the clutter I wanted to share some recommendations for this long Memorial Day weekend. I've only seen a small fraction of the SIFF films (hard as that may be to believe) so likely there are some gems I'm missing. But based on what I've seen here are some interesting, quality choices worth staying inside for. I haven't watched yet but am really looking forward to catching The Spectacular Now, Her Aim is True, Drug War and of course some of the shorts packages playing.

And don't forget if you're having difficulty navigating the SIFF website it's probably not you. I'd written up some snarky instructions on how to get around that folks keep mentioning have proved helpful to them.

On to the suggestions...

Nightmare Mystery Theater - Speaking of shorts, I recommend checking out as many sets from this ShortsFest weekend as you can. Specifically I highly recommend the Nightmare Mystery Theater session in order to see The Quiet Girls Guide to Violence and The Sleepover. The former is one of my fave shorts of the past year. The latter is just bloody, fun and rather clever. Don't miss this set for those two reasons.

OK ... now on to the feature length stuff.

Out in the Dark - Roy and Nimr are two people who aren't really supposed to be in a relationship - due both to conflicting cultural and political reasons. Nimr is Palestinian and Roy is Israeli. They meet, they fall in love - that's the easy part. The rest is hard. Really, really hard. When I picked this up I didn't expect much. But the film manages to adeptly combine a relationship story that feels real, with the intractable political situation of the middle east conflict that also feels painfully authentic. Feeling at times more like a thriller than a love story Out in the Dark works extremely well on multiple levels. Definitely recommend.

The East - The latest from Zal Batmanglij and Brit Marling, also featuring the dreamy Alexander Skarsgård in a prominent role. While it's not quite as good as their earlier Sound of My Voice the eco-terrorism vs. big business thriller was overall a satisfying watch. With the bones of a Hollywood approved style story the pair manage to create something a bit richer while still delivering something just a bit different. Plus, Marling as always is very easy to watch onscreen.

SIFF's 2013 Renton Opening Night Red Carpet

On Thursday night I attended the Seattle Premiere of Lynn Shelton's latest film Touchy Feely. Beforehand I had a chance to capture some photos from the red carpet arrivals. Fuller resolution shots are available in this album. As always if you're in one of the shots and would like a copy just let me know. Thanks to everyone in Renton for a fun evening including an afterparty a few blocks away.

Lots of attendees from the production of Touchy Feely

Mary Bacarella and Carl Spence

Miss Washington along with the Mayor of Renton and owner of Brotherton Cadillac

Free Preview Screening: The To Do List

If you're a bit warn out from SIFF, or just want to stand in line for a different sort of movie then I've got a plan this coming Tuesday (5/28). It's to see The To Do List. The screening is at the Thorton Place Regal and starts at 7pm (though of course you'll want to get there considerably earlier as it's generally overbooked). Getting a pass for two is pretty simple. Just go over to Gofobo to rsvp and use the code RWTFC8W0.

I haven't seen the film myself - so no promises. The one review currently up on IMDb makes it seem at least a bit promising. If it weren't for SIFF I'm pretty sure I'd make the trek up north to check it out. And of course here's the official description of the film.

Brandy Clark (Plaza) is a Type-A, over-achiever with a list of things she needs to do before college – buy a computer, read the classics, stock up on shower shoes for the dorm –  when she suddenly realizes her college prep needs are far from the realm of Bed, Bath and Beyond.  That is, she finds she’s seriously lacking knowledge in a subject most other girls her age are beyond proficient in – Sex.  Determined to become educated in ways college guys expect, Brandy sets out with a new, quite literal ‘to-do list’ filled with all the risqué extracurricular activities she missed out on in high school.

Seriously, they use the word "risqué" so how could it be anything but awesome. ;-)

The "red band" trailer is below.

Fateful Findings

I'm calling it right now, Fateful Findings is going to win SIFF. Regardless of category; best dialog, plot, love story, computer hacking - this film takes the experience to eleven. Admittedly, for some that might be to negative eleven. But in the bad movie olympics Fateful Findings sticks the landing to take the gold, silver and bronze. A hell of a lot of fun to watch by myself, I cannot believe it won't be 10 times more enjoyable at its world premiere midnight screening. I seriously cannot wait for the equally improbable sequel. Take a gander at the trailer - if you're intrigued run don't walk to buy a ticket. In a just universe they'll sell out.

On one hand Fateful Findings is an absolute masterpiece of "can't look away" dysfunction for which the phrase "hot mess" seems too complimentary. On the other hand the bizarre and often unexplained vision makes it hugely entertaining - in ways many other bad films such as The Room don't approach. One doesn't need to throw spoons at the screen to enjoy Fateful Findings. Though I suppose a few cocktails or bit of other now legal in Washington substances couldn't hurt. Troll 2 you've got some serious competition.

Fateful Findings is having its world premiere at the Seattle International Film Festival on May 25th at the Egyptian Theater. You'll want to be there. It's unclear when the opportunity to see this masterwork will present itself again.

I'll say no more here but instead suggest heading over to the full analysis at Three Imaginary Girls. I think you'll find it worth the effort.

SIFF 2013 Opening Night Red Carpet

Earlier tonight I had an opportunity to attend the red carpet arrivals for the Joss Whedon production of Much Ado About Nothing. The film was great, that was established during SXSW where I also had the opportunity to shoot the cast's red carpet arrivals. This was an opportunity to be part of their welcome to Seattle, where amazingly bright sun made the photography a bit more challenging than I expected.

 

What follows after the jump is just a small subset of the photos I took. I'll be adding more over the next few days. The full resolution versions are available here. I'll also be posting some photos of less famous SIFF patrons who walked the red carpet within the week. If you spot your photo there and would like a full resolution version just shoot me a note and I'll be happy to get it to you.

SIFF Recommendations - Round 2

It has been a week or so since my big post of early SIFF recommendations. Thanks to the super supportive SIFF press office I've managed to take in a number of additional films. Which brings me back here to talk about the good the bad and the awesome. There are a few I'm seriously itching to write up full reviews for (yes, I'm looking at you beautifully terrible Fateful Findings). But this is going to be more of the speed dating version of festival recommendations. So strap yourself in and get ready to meet some cinematic strangers. To selfishly hold your attention I'm going to list the 18 additional films in the order I saw them. Rather than the best first or something like that. Full reviews will follow throughout the festival.

This brings to 31 the number of SIFF films I've had a chance to watch. Don't forget to checkout some of my earlier recommendations as well the festival programmer recommendations. And of course it never hurts to follow along on twitter for realtime festival updates.

So without further delay let's rip through these 18 films to see which are worth your time.

And we have a winner

I'd like to thank everyone who participated in the drawing to win a pair of tickets to the sold out SIFF opening night gala presentation of Much Ado About Nothing featuring the Joss Whedon players. This morning using the services of random.org a winner was chosen from all the entries. The lucky person selected was John Eddy (@jaydeflix) who will be attending opening night with a guest of his choosing. Thanks again to everyone who entered. And especially for the tons of good recommendations of things they're interested in seeing at SIFF. Hoping to meet lots of you in real life at the festival over the weeks ahead!