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Film

Sarasota's film feast

Movie buffs, grab a menu and make your picks, because it's impossible to sample everything in this 160-course buffet.

By STEVE PERSALL
Published January 27, 2005

	[Photo: Outlaw Productions]
	Peter Falk, left, and Paul Reiser, stars of the festival’s debut film, The Thing About My Folks, will attend the screening and a gala reception afterward.

How do you take your film festivals? Some moviegoers sample a bit of this and that, and others seek one screening, maybe with a celebrity attending, just to say they were there. Some focus on a particular genre - foreign languages, for example - and others play festivals like lotteries, buying tickets and gambling on their choices.

It's impossible to see everything available at the seventh annual Sarasota Film Festival, beginning Friday and continuing through Feb. 6. A lineup of nearly 160 features, documentaries and short films, and a multiauditorium setup for overlapping screenings simply won't allow it. Not to mention the musical events, tributes, discussions and parties luring visitors outside the theater.

You need a plan of attack, then a surrender to your selections.

Some screenings may be sold out by the time you read this, so exploring the festival's Web site (www.sarasotafilmfestival.com) for a complete schedule, alternate showings, ticket availability and advance sales is wise.

Joining the opening night festivities of any festival is fun. This year's debut film is the East Coast premiere of The Thing About My Folks, written by and starring Paul Reiser (TV's Mad About You), who will attend with his co-star, Peter Falk. The domestic comedy will be shown at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall at 7 p.m., followed by a gala reception. Tickets are $15 for the movie and $150 for the party combo.

On Saturday, the choices begin at Regal Hollywood 20. A 10:30 a.m. screening of Dear Mr. Cash, a drama about a young girl obsessed with Johnny Cash, looks promising. Or else start darkly with Strange Fruit (11:45 a.m.), a drama of deadly racial and sexual prejudice. Documentary buffs have a tough decision between The Loss of Nameless Things (noon), a profile of doomed poet Oakley Hall III, and Imaginary Witness (12:15 p.m.), an examination of Hollywood's treatment of the Holocaust.

Your afternoon can detour into foreign territory: France (Le Grand Role, 12:30 p.m., and Autumn, 5:45 p.m.); or Austria (the documentary Calling Hedy Lamarr, 2:15 p.m.). Or else stick with American sensibilities in the comedy Film Geek (3:15 p.m.) and two sports documentaries: Power, Passion & Glory: The Real Story of Texas Football Madness (2:45 p.m.) and Up for Grabs (4:45 p.m.), about the legal fight over Barry Bonds' record-breaking home run ball.

Maybe you can get into the free 3 p.m. screening of the Disney classic Mary Poppins, starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.

Saturday evening offers a thespian mockumentary (The Definition of Insanity, 7:15 p.m.) and Citizen Verdict (7:45 p.m.), an amusingly apoplectic drama of reality TV and capital punishment partially filmed around Tampa Bay. Co-star Jerry Springer, a part-time Sarasota resident, will attend the show. More serious is The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (also 7:45 p.m.), Asia Argento's story of an abusive punk rock mother.

The day concludes with dramatic features about World War II (Straight Into Darkness, 10:30 p.m.) and the possibilities of World War III (After the Apocalypse, 9:45 p.m.). Perhaps the German ballet documentary Rhythm Is It! (8 p.m.) will be a more pleasant experience before bedtime.

Wake up Sunday to a pair of student film showcases (10 and 10:15 a.m.), or eight short films collections throughout the afternoon. I suggest the 11 a.m. Having It My Way collection, featuring a clever 30-minute film, Maestro, starring Saturday Night Live performer Seth Meyers as a would-be symphony conductor. It's the only short I've seen, but it's a comedic gem, co-created by former University of South Florida student Daniel Stephens.

Among Sunday's documentaries, Searching for Angela Shelton (2:45 p.m.) looks like an interesting profile of rape victims, and Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music (7 p.m.) focuses on the Christian rock phenomenon. In the Realms of the Unreal (7 p.m.) uses "after effect" animation a la Waking Life to profile underground artist Henry Darger.

Feature films include Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis as a woman plagued by wartime memories in Charlie's War (noon); the high school drama Speak (2 p.m.); a story of interfaith romance, The Tollbooth (4:30 p.m.); and encores of Citizen Verdict (4:30 p.m.), Autumn (7:15 p.m.) and The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things (8 p.m.).

The festival continues throughout the week with more repeat screenings and a few foreign imports that are highly recommended. Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior (Monday, 7 p.m.) is an unvarnished martial arts adventure for folks who think the genre has gotten a little too beautiful for its own good after Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. A Rider Named Death (Monday, also at 7 p.m.) is a Russian revolution drama with timely themes of terrorism, and Torremolinos '73 (Monday, 7:45 p.m.) is a Spanish sex romp that Pedro Almodovar might appreciate.

There's much more in the lineup, from musical tributes to film, concerts by former Husker Du front man Bob Mould and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, informal chats with film industry types and children's activities. And that's just the first few days; we'll preview an equally hectic closing weekend in the next issue of Weekend.

Seventh annual Sarasota Film Festival, Friday through Feb. 6 with most screenings held at Regal Hollywood 20, 1991 Main St. Tickets are $8 and $15 for individual screenings. Packages for multiple films $60-$1,200 are available. Visit the festival Web site (www.sarasotafilmfestival.com) or call toll-free 1-877-733-8491 for information and advance sales.

[Last modified January 26, 2005, 10:43:05]