Panning for gold at the Florida Film Festival

By STEVE PERSALL, Times Film Critic

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 2, 2000

Ah, summer, when moviegoers can dodge the heat and hype at the Florida Film Festival in Orlando.

Two kinds of cool mark this 10-day festival, beginning June 9: Air-conditioned theater venues and the rush of discovering new talent and movies uncorrupted (so far) by Hollywood.

Over the past nine years, the Florida Film Festival has become a popular stop for filmmakers and their calling card projects. Few will become box office phenomenons like last year's centerpiece, The Blair Witch Project. Many will never be noticed again, while others gain a measure of respect, if not fame.

For example, last year the festival presented a creepy thriller, The Corndog Man, which greatly impressed me. The film never found a distributor, but it did locate other fans. When nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards were announced in February, Noble Willingham's portrait of a coarse, cowardly bigot was among the best actor choices.

Seeing his name on that list confirmed my admiration of the film. It's a nice feeling, kind of like picking a longshot at Derby Lane. The payoff is satisfaction rather than money. Film festivals can provide that feeling for moviegoers seeking something different from studio blockbusters.

The ninth annual Florida Film Festival includes more than 100 features, documentaries and short subjects hoping to impress. As usual, most of this year's lineup includes films making their Florida, eastern United States or national debuts.

Screenings will be rotated among three locations: Enzian Theater, 1300 S Orlando Ave. in Maitland, Colonial Promenade, 4672 E Colonial Drive in Orlando, and Loews Universal Cineplex at Universal Studios Florida City Walk. Directions, synopses and show times are available at the festival Web site: (http://www.floridafilmfestival.com).

A popular portion of the festival is typically those "Spotlight Features" not entered in competition since they already have distribution deals. These include Kenneth Branagh's musical Shakespeare romp, Love's Labour's Lost; the dysfunctional family drama Chuck & Buck; Patrice Laconte's French drama, Girl on the Bridge; Istvan Szabo's Sunshine, starring Ralph Fiennes; and the documentary The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

[Photo: Artisan Entertainment] Buck, left, played by Michael White, is an infantile 27-year-old who becomes fixated on his childhood best friend, Chuck, played by Chris Weitz, in Chuck & Buck.

Midnight movie sessions include Julian Temple's chronicle of the Sex Pistols, The Filth and the Fury. Special screenings include anniversary reissues of Sunset Boulevard and Vittorio De Sica's The Gold of Naples. A works-in-progress sidebar features Bill Plympton's latest animated oddity, Mutant Aliens.

One entry in the live-action short competition already is a minor legend. Joe Nussbaum's nine-minute spoof, George Lucas in Love, combines the Star Wars guru and the writer's block angle of Shakespeare in Love. Lucas saw the film and loved it, opening a few doors in Hollywood for the first-time filmmaker.

This year's celebrity guest list is still incomplete. So far, it includes an evening with actor Robert Loggia (June 15), with a screening of Jagged Edge, the 1985 mystery that earned him an Oscar nomination. Actor Famke Janssen (GoldenEye, X-Men) will attend the opening night screening of her new romantic comedy, Love & Sex.

Ticket prices range from $7 for single screenings (if available) to $500 for a Platinum Pass providing access to all films, special presentations, the closing night gala at Universal Studios Florida and memorabilia. Call (407) 629-8587 for information and reservations.

Summer flicks

You don't need a golden ticket to visit Gene Wilder's fanciful world of sweets. The regular admission price of $4 will do

Not all of the selections are as candy-coated. The list of films scheduled from Sunday through Aug. 27 includes many of the finest adult-themed films of all time. June's lineup includes:

Jack Lemmon working as a corporate pimp in Billy Wilder's 1960 Oscar winner, The Apartment (June 11); Humphrey Bogart chasing "the stuff that dreams are made of" in The Maltese Falcon (June 18); and John Ford's Western archetype, The Searchers (June 25).

The mood briefly turns musical in July with the Beatles' Yellow Submarine (July 2), followed by 42nd Street starring Ruby Keeler on July 9. Things turn serious again with Alfred Hitchcock's 1944 film Lifeboat (July 16) and sci-fi favorite The Day the Earth Stood Still (July 23). Rounding out the month is the indomitable Citizen Kane (July 30).

Stanley Kubrick's Cold War satire Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb will be shown Aug. 6. Carol Reed's restored director's cut of The Third Man (Aug. 13) and Mel Brooks' hilarious Young Frankenstein (Aug. 20) complete the official summer program.

But, wait, there's more.

On Aug. 27, Tampa Theatre bids farewell to summer with Buster Keaton's 1923 silent comedy Our Hospitality. Rosa Rio will provide musical accompaniment on the Mighty Wurlitzer Theatre Organ. An old-fashioned sing-along with Rio before the show should be fun.

Like the other Sunday films, the Keaton tribute begins at 3 p.m. However, admission is $6 for adults, and $4.50 for seniors, students, military personnel and Tampa Theatre Film Club members. Tickets are available at Tampa Theatre box office. Call (813) 274-8286 for information.