By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

In the motion picture industry, the last weekend in September features box office doldrums. Halloween season is starting to rev up, while some of the summer blockbuster movies enjoy their final big screen moments on the smaller screen. This is why for the past six years I have departed Deerfield to attend “Adventures in Charity” in Orlando.

The Adventurers Club in Disney World opened when Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was playing on the big screen, circa 1989, and closed when Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was released in 2008. A controversial business decision, Disney made plans to convert Downtown Disney into Disney Springs. The plan was successful, though many Adventurers Club members were displaced. [The Adventurer’s Club was a themed nightclub in Pleasure Island with theatrical entertainers in this part of Disney World]. Nature abhors a vacuum and for four years, there were reenactments. However, it wasn’t until 2013 with the creation of Adventures in Charity, that I started making the pilgrimage to the Holiday Inn Resort by Lake Buena Vista to attend. The show was so good that my 94-year-old mom has joined for the last five years.

Under Chairman Robert Croskery’s financial leadership and the dedicated attention of the Adventures in Charity Board, the Adventurers Club lived on, but with the mission of helping charities. This year, they raised $25,000, more than double the amount of the previous five individual charity event totals. Proceeds benefited the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the Texas Civil Rights Foundation, the Actors Fund, the Sjogren’s Syndrome Foundation and the Dravet Foundation.

Each year, this author donated “A Cinema Dave Adventure Pack” which featured my four published books and various unique artifacts from “The Cave of Cinema Dave” [Dave’s house], including a mini crystal head vodka bottle autographed by Dan Aykroyd.

With budget limitations, cast member Graham Murphy scripted an adaptation of club bits and featured songs. This was a true Ma & Pa operation as Graham’s wife Emily filled in as secretary/event decor and swag coordinator. The spirit of adventuring lived on.

Adventurers in Charity ran its full course last Saturday night, almost to the day of the 10 year anniversary of the original club’s closing. It was still a bittersweet moment, as many of us accepted that our club has now folded; tears were shed.

Still, being a true adventurer, there had to be one last act of defiance. Last Sunday at 1 p.m., a flash mob of 21 adventurers visited “The Edison,” the steampunk replacement artifice of our beloved club. On cue, we all sang a rousing version of the Adventurers Club all-purpose theme song. Our building and our annual charity weekend are history, but the spirit of the Adventurers Club lives on…

The Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival will be born again this Nov. 2. There will be an emphasis upon Florida locals. While Connie Francis has already been announced, Cindy Morgan (Caddyshack) and Woody Woodbury have been added to the list of attendees. Woodbury owned a nightclub in Ft. Lauderdale 45 years ago and made movies with Fred MacMurray, Ernest Borgnine, Jerry Lewis and baseball legends Mickey Mantle & Roger Maris. Expect the spirit of adventure this FLIFF season. For more info., visit www.FLIFF.com.

By Dave Montalbano

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

Run Boy Run opens tomorrow in local theaters. This film won 10 U.S. Film Festival Awards and is based on a true story about how a boy survived Nazi aggression from 1942 through the end of World War II. With English subtitles, this foreign movie does not need much language translation; it relies on the visual imagery to tell this riveting story.

Srulik (played by twin actors – Andrzej and Kamil Tkacz) has escaped a concentration camp with his father. With guards in hot pursuit, the father tells his son the most important thing to remember, if he loses memories of his father, mother and siblings, is that he is a Jew.

While on the lam, Srulik attempts to pass himself off as a Christian. He goes from farm to farm offering free labor in trade for room and food. If a farmer beats Srulik, the boy moves on. Sometimes a temporarily content life is ruined when children his own age discover, because he is circumcised, that this vagrant farm boy is a Jew.

Much like Homer’s Odyssey, Run Boy Run is a rollercoaster ride that swings from bucolic moments to frantic action scenes in which the child uses his wits to survive deadly violence. Director Pepe Danquart provides enough attention to detail rival Sir Alfred Hitchcock’s best suspenseful thrillers.

Surlik does not survive his ordeal unscathed. Due to a farming accident, Surlik’s medical situation goes from bad to worse due to the prejudice of Nazi laws. This is a strong memory to take away from this film; however, this film is life-affirming. After surviving such atrocity, ticket buyers will enjoy roaming the European countryside with the likable Surlik.

Adventurers in Charity 3 was held last weekend and “Cinema” Dave was there. This annual event brings together fans of the now closed Adventurers Club, formerly located at Pleasure Island in Downtown Disney. Since it closed seven years ago, Downtown Disney has become Disney Springs, with more stores and restaurants but fewer locations for human interaction. The annual event contributes to several charities.

While A Better Life Pet Rescue earned the majority of the contributions, Adventurers in Charity shed light on Dravet syndrome, a rare and catastrophic form of epilepsy that begins in childhood (www. dravetfoundation.org). The Starkey Hearing Foundation conducts hearing missions in the United States and around the world. This foundation plans to fit 10,000 hearing aids annually to children in need.

Adventurers in Charity is a rewarding weekend for those who contribute, and Adventures in Charity 4 is on the drawing board.