teh Forum

3 weeks of film madness at SIFF!! This is gonna have to be a work in progress getting through the catalog. Here's what looks interesting:

Angel-A Luc Besson's dreamy story of an angel who intervenes in a man's life looks beautiful (and sure to get art house distribution). Great trailer.

The Banquet It came out months and months ago but if you missed it this is a really awesome Chinese costume drama based on Hamlet by Feng Xiaogang starring Zhang Ziyi which I like a shit ton more than Curse of the Golden Flower. It was also HK's entry for best foreign lang. Oscar.

Big Rig This is Doug Pray's (Scratch & Hype) latest docu about truck drivers.

well there is A-B. more soon...

Coburn Woah! Someone has a film they worked on in the fest!! You goin?

Confessions of Pain Andrew Lau (Infernal Affairs) new HK detective thriller.

DarkBlueAlmostBlack Lauded Spanish flick by new director Daniel Sánchez Arévalo.

Death at a Funeral Actually premiering the one night I am in Seattle, this is Frank Oz's hilarious British romp produced by my company.

Drama/Mex This Mexican based sometimes confused intertwining love story is only so-so, but it has one of the most intense sex scenes I've ever seen on screen (in the first 20 minutes too) with truly one of the most beautiful women alive, Diana Garcia. I prefer the other screen cap:


Eagle Vs. Shark Taika Waititi's comedy many have called New Zealand's Napoleon Dynamite. I would agree.

Everything's Cool The docu many have called the "what's next" to Inconvenient Truth.

Exiled Johnny To's HK action shoot-em-up.

Ghosts of Cite Soleil Awesome looking docu about gangs in Haiti.

Goya's Ghosts Milos Forman... Stellan Skarsgård... Natalie Portman... could be good.

Hula Girls Japan's entry for best foreign language Oscar.

In The Shadow of the Moon BBC docu supposed to be teh best space doc evar.

King of Kong This is definitely teh best video game doc evar about the hunt for the world title of Donkey Kong champ!

Knocked Up Judd Apatow's hilarious looking Seth Rogen comedy will be in theaters everywhere soon - Seattle sooner apparently.

Kurt Cobain About a Son AJ Schnack's Cobain docu supposed to be good.

take that!

I'll probably go to see the Coburn since I think I can get a free ticket. Plus it's playing with something by Don Hertzfeldt and something by Bill Plympton. Could be fun...

Monster Camp A docu look at live action RPGers. Lightning Bolt! Lightning Bolt!

Mushishi Otomo's (Akira) live action samurai tale.

Once Irish musical love story which has got everyone talking (won audience award at Sundance).

On the Road with Judas Quirky Sundance comedy.

PAPRIKA This crazy anime about dreams is well worth checking out from a wtf?! standpoint and for fans of the "Suck on the pipes!" Busta Rhymes episode of Space Ghost. From Perfect Blue and Tokyo Godfathers director Satoshi Kon.

Paris je'taime Already in art house release, this film is a series of Paris based shorts by renowned directors such as Alexander Payne, Tom Tykwer, the Coen Bros., and amazing cinematographer Christopher Doyle.

The Price of Sugar Expose style docu about the toll the sugar industry takes on the Dominican Republic.

***REPRISE*** My pick of the festival and my favorite indie film since Half Nelson, this awesome story of love and mental illness is told with fantastic visual style by hot shot Norwegian pro skater turned director Joachim Trier. Go see this if you have a chance!

Rescue Dawn Werner Herzog's Vietnam thriller starring Christian Bale is likely to get wide release.

Retribution Kiyoshi Kurosawa's much talked about j.horror.

Rocket Science This coming of age comedy about a stutterer on the debate team looks to be a real laugher.

Sakuran This Edo-era drama is directed by photographer Mika Ninagawa. This is awesome because I can't think of a single female Japanese director.

Son of Rambow This British comedy about kids inspired by Rambo was a huge hit at Sundance.

Superbad This is Judd Apatow's summer with this comedy looking to be a hit right up there with Knocked Up. Can't wait to see them both!

Syndromes and a Century New film from much talked about Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul.

Tekkon Kinkreet This highly stylized manga based anime from Animatrix director Michael Arias paints an amazing world for the first hour and then falls apart at the end. Still worth checking out for fans of the genre.

The Ten David Wain and Ken Marino of The State's comedy about the ten commandments.

There it is. Let me know if anyone makes it out to anything.