SFIFF52: Next Frame Picks for 5/3
[Moon. Don't miss the premiere at 9:00 at the Castro if you can get in.]
There are four things looking good on Sunday. First, at 12:30 down at the Castro Theater, they’ll be playing Sergio Leone’s 1968 classic Once Upon a Time in the West in a restored print. Shot in Monument Valley itself, two years after the monumental success of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, the film features an all-star cast that includes Henry Fonda (as the villain!), Jason Robards, Charles Bronson, and Claudia Cardinale. A huge hit in Europe, and a huge flop in the United States, it’s considered by many to be one of the greatest Westerns ever made. Tickets are still available; I hope to see you there.
Back at the Kabuki at 3:30, check out Kimjongilia if you have the stomach for it: an incredibly depressing but important film about North Korea’s repressive regime, featuring the testimony of many who have suffered under it. There’s one additional screening at the Kabuki on Wednesday May 6th at 3:15, and one at the PFA on Monday May 4th at 6:30.
The state of film criticism will be examined at 3:45 in a screening of For the Love of Movies: the Story of Film Criticism, which will be followed with a 90-minute panel discussion at 6:00, which promises to be interesting, and I hope I can make it. For obvious reasons, this was one of the first films I checked out at the fest, and although it was a pretty solid doc, it was also a little unfocused, seemingly unable to decide whether it was going to be a general overview of the history of film criticism, or an examination of the current state of things. Worth a watch for those with some interest in the topic (probably you), if for nothing else then at least for the interesting interviews with A.O. Scott, Andrew Sarris, Molly Haskell, Roger Ebert, Kenneth Turan, Lisa Schwarzbaum, Michael Wilmington, and others, including that stream-of-consciousness guy, Harry Knowles. Too bad director Peary didn’t get footage of David Denby and Anthony Lane!
But the absolute biggest highlight of the day is the West Coast premiere of Moon at the Castro at 9:00. If you can go and you’re interested in science fiction, I definitely recommend it, as I’m sure there will be a great crowd. Directed by Duncan Jones (David Bowie’s son, incidentally), this is one science-fiction film that seems destined for instant-classic status. It features a moving and unforgettable story, an amazing performance from Sam Rockwell as the lonely crewman Sam Bell and his various doubles, a badass soundtrack, and a really clever way of constantly feinting with the expectations raised by our memories of the classic sci-fi films it consciously evokes, most especially 2001: A Space Odyssey. Plus, Kevin Spacey provides the soothing and helpful voice of Sam’s computer, Gerty. You can’t miss it.
Moon is going to open for regular release in the Bay Area on 6/19; at that time The Next Frame will feature a full review and a Q&A with director Duncan Jones.
posted: 09 May 2
under: The Next Frame