IT'S FILMFEST TIME! At 23, Filmfest D.C. goes pro.
Filmfest DC has finally found its mojo. While in the past Washington’s international festival has been consistent only in its unevenness, Filmfest has turned a corner in its 23rd year, offering more than 80 films that, if our critics’ samplings are any indicator, boast more hits than misses. It’s a nice surprise.
Organizers highlight a handful of themes each year, and 2009’s strongest by far is New Japanese Cinema. We were able to view four of the six films under this umbrella, including the “understated, Chaplinesque” drama Megane and family-centered heartwarmer Witch of the West Is Dead. Opening the fest is Departures, a story about a young cellist that took 2008’s Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Not that they’re all winners: You may want to skip Kabei, a World War II-set tearjerker that our reviewer said is full of “tedious, predictable pathos” that will leave viewers “exhausted.”
Another successful subcategory is Views From the News; all four of the six films our critics reviewed got passing marks. Though I.O.U.S.A., an eye-opening documentary about our national debt, may sound familiar—it showed at last year’s Silverdocs and had a limited release—you likely never saw docs like Breaking News, Breaking Down, a look at the psychological torment experienced by journalists who cover traumatic events like 9/11 or Katrina, or The Least of These, about a Texas detention center that locks up children alongside their criminal parents.
Outside of the fest’s touted themes, many of the films reviewed feature stories about families. Bonecrusher is a heartbreaking documentary about a kid who wants to follow his father into the mining business despite Dad’s wish that his child stay away from the work that made him ill. Rain dramatizes the story of a teenage girl who’s sent to live in a slum with her crack-addicted mother. But not every offering is gloomy: It’s Not Me, I Swear! is like a French Rushmore, full of angsty teen humor and dysfunctional relationships. And Marcello, Marcello is an Italian-by-way-of-Switzerland romantic comedy about a lovelorn teenager who’s trying to win a girl’s heart—but must win over her father first. Of course, the odds of every film about family being a winner are about the same as finding an actual family without any issues. —Tricia Olszewski
Films show at the Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave. NW; Landmark’s E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. NW; the Embassy of Canada, 501 Pennsylvania Ave. NW; the Embassy of France, 4101 Reservoir Rd. NW; Goethe-Institut Washington, 812 7th St. NW; Harman Center for the Arts, 610 F St. NW; and Regal Gallery Place, 707 7th St. NW. Unless otherwise noted, admission is $10. For more information call (202) 234-FILM or visit filmfestdc.org.
Our FilmFest roundup (note the starred critics' picks):
FRIDAY, APRIL 17
Ciao BellaSATURDAY, APRIL 18
Ashes of American Flags: Wilco Live
SUNDAY, APRIL 19
Kinoautomat: One Man and His House
MONDAY, APRIL 20
TUESDAY, APRIL 21
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 22
THURSDAY, APRIL 23
FRIDAY, APRIL 24
SATURDAY, APRIL 25
Bedford: The Town They Left Behind
SUNDAY, APRIL 26
Apr. 16 - 22, 2009 (Vol. 29, #16)
Comments
4:45 pm
Thanks very much for including "The Least of These" in your round-up. I hope that many people will take the opportunity to see this excellent and well-balanced film. It's important to note, however, that no one detained at the T. Don Hutto facility has a criminal history. Entry into the United States without documentation is an administrative violation. In addition, most of the families detained at Hutto are fleeing persecution in their home country and seeking asylum, a right guaranteed them under US and international law.