By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

After Mission: Impossible — Fallout opens this weekend, the big Hollywood studios will cut back on their big budgeted releases until the fall season. Throughout the month of August, lower budgeted movies will be released. Released 40 years ago, the relatively low budget National Lampoon’s Animal House provided a strong return of investment, when the big budgeted/all star multi-marketed Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band nearly bankrupted the same studio, Universal Pictures. Thus due to budgetary considerations, August movie releases tend towards either comedy or horror.

Last weekend, the San Diego Comic Con laid out the blue print for the next year of movie releases. With Marvel Comics not attending, DC Comics absorbed the spotlight with Wonder Woman 1984, Shazam and Aquaman trailers. Due to be released Memorial Day weekend 2019, the Godzilla 2: King of the Monsters trailer inspired shock and awe, while Jamie Lee Curtis’ return to the Halloween franchise inspired nostalgia for Monster Kids.

It is the Monster Kids who will take over the Savor Cinema in Ft. Lauderdale for seven days beginning Friday, Aug. 10. The Popcorn Frights Film Festival concludes a four month season that paid tribute to the fun of going to the movies again. Founded and directed by partners Igor Shteyrenberg and Marc Ferman, Popcorn Frights kicked things off with a successful screening of The Return of the Living Dead featuring Scream Queen Linnea Quigley, who happens to live locally. (Pictured with Popcorn Frights founders, pg. 1).

Quigley had so much fun, that she attended the next screening Popcorn Frights presentation with a screening of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Being a vegan, Quigley did partake in a meatless BBQ sandwich, though regular BBQ sandwiches were available for carnivores. Ticket buyers drove from South Miami and Orlando to attend this grindhouse classic and eat authentic BBQ and ticket purchases have remained consistently big. A Nightmare on Elm Street 4 The Dream Master solidified the success of Popcorn Frights in July.

The Popcorn Frights Film Festival is committed to screening 28 films in seven days. The film titles seem to cross-reference 1970s Roger Corman exploitation flicks with direct-to-VHS titles found on the bargain rack at a Blockbuster video store.

From the United States comes movies like Boogeyman Pop, Wolfman’s Got Nards and Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich.Asia, Europe, Latin America and the former Soviet Union will also be represented. Those titles read much more serious: Cold Skin, Cursed Seat, One Cut of the Dead and Satan’s Slaves.

Popcorn Frights will also pay tribute to Chuck Russell, who directed A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and The Blob, before moving on to bigger budgeted fare like Eraser (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger) , The Mask (Jim Carrey) and The Scorpion King (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson). A good festival finds a balance the success of tradition with an eye to a creative future. [For more info, visit www.popcornfrights.com].

The Dog Days of August are fast upon us and the school year will begin shortly. However, there is plenty of air conditioning fun that can still be had at a theater near you.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

What the record breaking Black Panther did in two months, Avengers: Infinity War accomplished in two weeks at the box office. With the exception of the documentary about Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, RBG, which opens this weekend, there are no movies opening with any kind of buzz to stop the Infinity War juggernaut this Mother’s Day Weekend. For those who do not want to see this Avengers film for the fourth time this weekend, there will be a unique South Florida experience this Friday evening at 10 p.m.

After three years at O Cinema Wynwood, co-founders & co-directors Igor Shteyrenberg and Marc Ferman are moving their Popcorn Frights Film Festival to Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival’s (FLIFF) Savor Cinema. The Southeast’s largest gathering of horror films and fans alike, Popcorn Frights and Savor Cinema promise a year-round experience of the best in international genre cinema and cult film favorites.

The Return of the Living Dead kicks off this collaboration. Released during the summer of 1985 and directed by the late Dan O’Bannon, The Return of the Living Dead took the seriousness of George Romero’s zombie classic (Night of the Living Dead) and mixed it with dark humor.

The film opens with Frank (James Karen) talking with his prodigy Freddy (Thom Matthews) and explaining that George Romero’s The Return of the Living Dead movie is based on a true story. To prove his point, Frank takes Freddy to the basement to view these federal government canisters. After a bumbling accident, the canister releases a gas and inanimate objects come alive. The boss Burt (Clu Gulager) is called.

Freddy’s friends plan to pick him up after work. To kill time, the friends hang out at a nearby cemetery and seek refuge from the zombies. One of the friends, a punk rocker named “Trash,” performs a strip tease on a tombstone when the Living Dead return. Linnea Quigley, the local actress who played Trash, will be hosting the Friday night screening at Savor Cinema for Popcorn Frights inaugural film there.

Long time Observer readers are familiar with Linnea Quigley, one of the first actresses I interviewed for our Halloween issue in 2002. Since we met on the set of Jose Prendes’ Corpses Are Forever, Linnea has been involved in 52 independent film productions, co-wrote two books, including Night of the Scream Queen:Kiss of the Gator Guy with author Michael McCarty, and held a reunion concert for the band she was in —The Skirts — with bassist Haydee Pomar with special guest drummer Joey Image from the legendary punk rock band The Misfits.

While embracing her “Scream Queen” moniker, Linnea’s costars like Clu Gulager and Gunnar Hansen have spoken with respect to her acting talent. Who knows, with the right make up, perhaps Linnea Quigley could play Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg in a rock ‘n comedy version of RBG.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

With very little surprise, Black Panther blew up the motion picture box office and is likely to be a juggernaut until the May releases of Avengers: Infinity Wars and Solo: A Star Wars Story. Not since Titanic 20 years ago have people purchased tickets for multiple screenings. Some people have seen Black Panther on the big screen each day since the film has been released.

Much like last year’s Wonder Woman, the timing was right for Black Panther. While both films contain likeable heroes, Black Panther offers more depth of characterization, especially for the villain, Killmonger, portrayed by Michael B. Jordan. The character of Killmonger does bad things, but like any successful fictional villain or monster, there are reasons behind his reprehensible actions. In fiction, there is sympathy for the devil. Yet in reality, we learned that the devil has no sympathy for our neighbors in Parkland.

The tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School will stay with us for the rest of our lives; there is no denying that. On social media across the world, we are seeing political finger pointing with predictable political bias from the opposing sides. Unfortunately, what we do not hear or see on social or broadcast media are people working towards solutions. 

Yet, last Sunday, I saw something that made me feel better about the future.

While checking out some acoustic guitars at Guitar Center at Coconut Creek, I observed two young men strumming a guitar and a bass. Both had innate talent, playing music from the Beatles to Guns & Roses. While neither teenager spoke to each other, their guitars communicated with each other. The set ended, the bass player complimented the guitar player, who admitted that he was a student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and that one of his friends had died in the shooting. The two young men talked some more. Given that the two had not met before, I encouraged each other to exchange their names. As I told them, “This is how Paul (McCartney) met John (Lennon).” After a real trauma, it was heartening to watch this new generation reach out to each other, not by electronic resources, but through old fashioned conversation and their mutual interest.

While we shall remain vigilant, escapism is needed now. This Friday evening, Savor Cinema will be screening Ace — a short drama about first love, social norms and sexual identity. It stars 27-year-old Jonathan Lipnicki, whose best known role is that as “the Kid” in Jerry McGuire, starring Tom Cruise and Kelly Preston. 

Lipnicki, along with writer/director Jordan Gear, producers Ashley Kate Adams and Jim Kierstead are scheduled to appear. For reservations, call 954-525-FILM. www.FLIFF.com.

This Sunday, Feb. 25 and Wednesday, Feb. 28, Silverspot Cinema in Coconut Creek will be screening John Wayne’s Oscar winning performance in True Grit. If you have only seen this classic on television, take the time to see True Grit on the big screen. Besides big and broad performances from the Duke, Kim Darby, Glen Campbell and Robert Duvall, the big screen does justice to the Colorado scenery and great outdoors.

In contrast to the True Grit remake starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and Hailee Steinfield, the original True Grit is a redemptive film that is far more optimistic. Given today’s headline news, we need more optimism in our neighborhood.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

After You’re Gone is an appropriate title for the closing night film of the Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF) because the 32nd annual event will soon be a mere memory. From the Russian Federation, After You’re Gone features the story of a ballet dancer with a bad back who tries to understand the end of his career. Writer/director Anna Matison will be in attendance with a wrap-up party at Bailey Hall [at Broward College in Davie] featuring grilled wings, pizza and paninis.

Paninis and pasta sounds like appropriate food for the much-anticipated TOGA Party at the Villa Di Palma. FLIFF Executive Board Member Steve Savor is presenting live entertainment featuring Otis Day & The Knights from the 1978 classic comedy Animal House, starring the late John Belushi, the late John Vernon, Kevin Bacon, Peter Riegert and Karen Allen, who is in town to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Best known for her blockbuster body of work from the 1980s, Karen Allen is truly a renaissance woman. Besides owning her own fiber arts business in Barrington, Massachusetts, Allen teaches Yoga and acting. Born in southern Illinois and raised in Washington D.C., Karen was a camp counselor for special needs children during her teens. A natural writer, Allen was bitten by the acting bug after seeing a tour of the Polish Laboratory Theater in 1972. As an actress, Allen [perhaps best known for her role in Indiana Jones films] balanced her acting career between film and theater.

In theater, she found diversity of roles in classics written by William Shakespeare, August Strindberg and Tennessee Williams. Besides Patty Duke, Allen has portrayed both Helen Keller and her teacher Anne Sullivan in stage productions of Monday After the Miracle and The Miracle Worker, respectively. In the past eight years, Allen has directed theater productions in the Berkshires.

This Saturday evening, at 6:30 p.m., Allen’s cinematic directorial debut will be screened at the Savor Cinema before the TOGA party. Based on a short story by Carson McCullers, A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud is a quiet story about an old man who meets a boy at a roadside cafe. Usually published as part of Carson McCuller’s novella Ballad of the Sad Cafe, A Tree. A Rock. A Cloud. was a story Allen wanted to visualize since reading it in her early 20s.

While they never worked together, both Burt Reynolds [who received his Lifetime Achievement Award opening night of FLIFF] and Karen Allen have much in common.

Besides successful acting careers on the big screen, both have made a point of passing on their knowledge to the next generation. The Burt Reynolds Institute for Film & Theater, located in Jupiter, has been in existence for 40 years. Karen Allen is a Lifetime Member of the Actor’s Studio and is on the board of the Berkshire International Film Festival.

Given their participation at this year’s edition of FLIFF, both of their appearances have raised the cultural standards of our local community. Tickets & info: www.FLIFF.com

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

With genuine emotion, Florida history and the traditional glamour that goes along with it, this edition of Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF2017) is shaping up to be one of the best ever. The regular venues, Savor Cinema & Cinema Paradiso Hollywood, are hosting unique themed parties that are supporting the international flavor of the film being screened. Yet, it will be the opening night gala at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel that will be talked about for many years to come.

Executive Producer Stevie Salas’ Rumble: The Indians who Rocked the World delivered. This intriguing documentary provided an entertaining history about the roots of the Blues and the birth of rock ‘n roll overturning much mainstream education taught in public schools and academic institutions.

Salas had played guitar for the Rod Stewart Tour, which became the first concert at Joe Robbie Stadium on July 3, 1988.

While posing on the red carpet with actor Graham Greene [who showed off his Lifetime Achievement Award], Burt Reynolds and Chris Osceola, Salas acknowledged the moment, saying, “I performed with Rod Stewart in the first concert in the stadium. Now, the Hard Rock owns the stadium!”

With a chorus of reporters humming “Hail to the Chief,” Burt Reynolds arrived on the Red Carpet in an oversized golf cart, referred to as a “mini TransAm.” It was a fun and light moment as the gregarious Reynolds posed with the “Rumble” crew, students from his acting school in Jupiter, and cast & crew from Dog Years, the opening night film, including Nikki Blonsky (known best from Hairspray) and local actors Todd Vittum and Amy Hoerler.

It was after the screening of his film Dog Years, when a weepy Burt Reynolds took center stage to accept his second Lifetime Achievement Award. The silence was deafening as Mr. Reynolds apologized for mistakes in his life. He talked about working with great people through the years and how many of them are no longer around. He talked about Heaven and Hell, Florida State University and his childhood friend who ended up dying in Vietnam. You can find Burt’s speech on the Cinema Dave YouTube Channel – www.youtube.com/cinemadave. For all the facets of fame and fortune, Burt stressed the importance of family, friends and coming home to Florida.

Burt’s message that had an impact on Blanche Baker, whose mom, Carroll, was the recipient of the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award. Blanche was in town to support a short film she directed, STREETWRITE, a 24-minute musical about free speech that encompasses all forms of Broadway musicals, operetta, rock, contemporary and hip-hop.

Baker utilized the students at New York Film Academy, where she teaches.

There will be more fun this Veterans Day weekend when writer/director Ken Webb’s comedy, Serious Laundry, screens at the Sunrise Civic Center as the featured centerpiece film. ArtServe President & CEO Jaye Abbate and I will introduce the documentary, Cries From Syria this Friday, Nov. 10 at 6:15 p.m. (location TBA), which may be one of the most important films released in 2017. For schedule and showtimes for all FLIFF films, visit www.fliff.com.

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

In the past decade, we have witnessed five Transformers movies from Paramount pictures, the studio that sold off their Marvel movie franchise to Disney. In the previous four incarnations, I would drag myself into a screening, but would leave pleasantly surprised with having been drawn into this science fiction world of man and machinery symbiosis.

This 5th film, Transformers 5: The Last Knight features nonstop action for the first 40 minutes of the film, takes an exposition break, and then pummels the viewer with another 45 minutes of computer-enhanced special effects that take place on a science fiction dead planet and Stonehenge, England.

The exposition scenes are the most interesting moments in this film. This is the point when major characters come together at an English castle and discuss their hypothesis. It helps that one of these characters is portrayed by Sir Anthony Hopkins, a newcomer to the franchise. With echoes of a luncheon hosted by his characters from The Remains of the Day and Hannibal, Hopkins listens to (leading man) Mark Wahlberg’s and (young Megan Fox lookalike) Laura Haddock’s plans to save the world.

While the subtext reviews the Arthurian legend of King Arthur, Merlin and The Knights of the Round Table, there are assorted clever details that link the previous four movies to The Last Knight, including a subtle dig to former Transformers leading man Shia LaBeouf (Remember him?) The palace scene also allows a moment of self-deprecation in which Sir Anthony Hopkins delivers an inspirational speech, complete with a soaring musical score.

Besides confronting the end of the world, Transformers 5 deals with Optimus Prime’s identity crisis and Bumblebee’s attempt to find his own voice. (At least this Transformer is wise enough to use John Wayne’s voice when the going gets tough.) Yet, once the good Transformers fight with the bad Transformers, one can hardly differentiate which side one is supposed to cheer for.

Cars 3, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2, Wonder Woman and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales are more fun to see on the big screen these days. Also Megan Leavey is pure drama for people who like to laugh, cry and feel patriotic.

As a vacation from computer-enhanced special effects extravaganzas, check out Filmed in Broward at the Savor Cinema in Ft. Lauderdale this weekend. The most recognized features include the Lifetime Movie Network (LMN) presentations of Boyfriend Killer and Girlfriend Killer, both starring actress/producer Barbie Castro and directed by Alyn Darnay. Be on the lookout for films featuring local talent Diana Rice and many others. The screenings are free, but there will be a fee for the parties, receptions and extravaganzas afterward. [On Saturday, July 1, from 9 a.m. to noon, Darnay will be the guest speaker at the Actor’s Cultural Theater (ACT Broward), 10 SW 11 Ave., Ft. Lauderdale. That is a free event in which he will be discussing acting, writing and directing]. For information contact 954-525-FILM or visit www.FLIFF.com.

By Dave Montalbano

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

As Kong: Skull Island and Beauty & the Beast blow up box office records for March, there are still quiet, artistic movies that are being released on the big screen this weekend. From acclaimed French Director Francois Ozon (Swimming Pool, Potiche) comes Frantz, a film with a touch of Daphne du Maurier’s literary classic Rebecca.

Set in Germany during the post World War I era, Anna (Paula Beer) grieves over the loss of her fiance, Frantz. After a visit to the graveside, Anna witnesses Adrien (Pierre Ninney), a French war veteran, put flowers on the marker.

Despite the cultural divide from the Armistice of World War I, Anna and Adrien communicate with each other. Each individual talks about their experiences knowing Frantz, an artistic soul who died in the muddy trenches. At times this relationship evolution is beautiful, but the horrors of war reveal dark secrets of human nature.

Frantz is presented in grim black and white cinematography that also echoes Sir Alfred Hitchcock’s version of Rebecca. Yet Ozon takes advantage of modern technology to include color cinematography for moments of beauty and grace. Given that Frantz is a study of grief, this film becomes life-affirming despite the tragedies on faces in life.

Cinema Paradiso Hollywood and Savor Cinema are among the two cinemas that will be screening Frantz. Homes to the annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, these movie theaters will feature unique programming for the spring season. On Saturday May 6, Savor Cinema will be hosting the running of the 143rd Kentucky Derby, which includes a live band, food prizes and a ladies bonnet contest.

For those pursuing cinema pursuits closer to home, the Palm Beach International Film Festival continues through April 2. Cinemark Theaters in Boca Raton will be one of the host sites. Dr. Oz will be in town, with his daughter Arabella Oz, to promote her new movie. [Michael Lohan will also make an appearance showing the movie The Business of Recovery]. The Tilted Kilt will feature after screening parties next to Cinemark Theater. For screen times, it is best to visit the website www.pbifilmfest.org.