 | L.A. Film Festival 06.05 |
Dark Wave
First, the rules...
1. Don''t be the first one to go into an abandoned barn on Halloween.
2. Masturbation is not always the answer.
3. Blood falling from the sky is usually a bad sign.
4. Always check a new lease for hidden ape clauses
Welcome to Dark Wave, where the truly adventurous can buy a ticket and then strap themselves in for the ride. From nighttime terrors to outrageous high school exploits to a buddy movie like no other, these four films will leave you teetering on the edge of what you think you know and what you could never expect. So don''t bother buying popcorn before these films. Once they start, you''re going to be too stunned to chew
The Ape
Directed by James Franco
Written by James Franco and Merriwether Williams
In this dark comedy, put-upon family man Harry abandons his family to become the next Dostoyevsky, but finds himself sharing an apartment with a foul-mouthed, Hawaiian shirt-wearing gorilla
Promedio Rojo (Chile/Spain)
Directed and written by Nicolas Lopez
First-time Chilean filmmaker Nicols Lpez throws his obsession with comic books, Kevin Smith, bodily fluid jokes, and John Hughes movies into a blender, serving up an outrageous teen angst comedy with surprising skill
The Roost
Directed and written by Ti West
Four friends run into car trouble in the middle of nowhere and wind up battling bloodthirsty bats and the always hungry undead in Ti West''s B- movie blast
The Century Plaza
Directed by Eric Lahey
First-time feature filmmaker Eric Lahey''s stirring portrait of life inside a Portland single room occupancy hotel is as visually mesmerizing as it is emotionally riveting.
Ears, Open, Eyeballs, Click
Directed and written by Canaan Brumley
An insider''s portrait of Marine recruits enduring six weeks of boot camp, this verit documentary is so real it becomes surreal.
Everyone Their Grain of Sand
Directed by Beth Bird
This intimate and heartbreaking film chronicles Mexican community Maclovio Rojas''s 18-year long battle with their government to obtain education, electricity, and water, while town leaders fight to be freed from unjust imprisonment.
The Grace Lee Project
Directed by Grace Lee
Do you know a Grace Lee? Director Grace Lee''s The Grace Lee Project is a wry and moving examination of the many faces of Asian femininity connected by one ultra-popular name.
How to Eat Your Watermelon in White Company (and Enjoy It)
Directed by Joe Angio
Joe Angio''s revealing documentary about maverick director Melvin Van Peebles features rare archival footage and interviews with friends and family, including Spike Lee, Elvis Mitchell, and the man himself, unabashed and unapologetic.
In a Nutshell: A Portrait of Elizabeth Tashjian
Directed by Don Bernier
In the hamlet of Old Lyme, Connecticut, self-proclaimed "nut culturist" Elizabeth Tashjian walks the fine line between eccentric artist and unstable incompetent.
Romntico
Directed by Mark Becker
Carmelo peddles ballads for Mission District drinkers in this engrossing documentary, which binds audiences to a culture of Mexican men whose struggle for respect leaves them scapegoated, exploited, or ignored.
La Sierra
Directed by Scott Dalton, Margarita Martinez
Courageous and visceral, La Sierra covers a year in the life of a Medelln, Colombia barrio, where gun-toting youths fight territorial wars in a desperate struggle for survival.
Sir! No Sir!
Directed by David Zeiger
This smartly-crafted, provoking documentary about the Vietnam era anti-war movement within the military introduces men and women who sought justice but found themselves judged guilty of treason.
Stolen
Directed by Rebecca Dreyfus
Sporting a bizarre cast of characters, Stolen explores the conspiracies and rumors surrounding the unsolved mystery of what is considered to be the greatest art heist in modern times.
To The Other Side
Directed by Natalia Almada
The tradition of corridos - ballads sung to commemorate people, places, and events - in Mexico melds with the truth of today''s economy through songs about drug trafficking and illegal border crossing.
Opening Night
Down in the Valley
Directed and written by David Jacobson
A mysterious horseman rolls into a suburban enclave at the edge of the creeping sprawl of the San Fernando Valley and forever changes the lives of two young siblings in this classic yet wholly original parable of hope and disappointed dreams.
Centerpiece Premiere
Nine Lives
Directed and written by Rodrigo Garcia
Nine sometimes overlapping stories, each captured in a single take, depict critical moments in the emotional lives of nine women.
Closing Night
Happy Endings
Directed and written by Don Roos
One of the foremost chroniclers of the foibles and mores of modern life, writer/director Don Roos has fashioned a wickedly funny and unexpectedly touching look at families coming together and being torn apart.
Aerosol
Directed by Miguel Angel Rolland
Four graffiti artists from Madrid and Barcelona are part of a pioneering generation in this street art.
Blake''s Junction 7
Directed by Ben Gregor
In this deadpan comedy, Blake''s long-suffering interstellar crew makes a late night stop at a modern-day freeway service station.
City Paradise
Directed by Galle Denis
A young Japanese girl arrives in London to learn English and accidentally discovers a mysterious and supernatural city underground.
Frog
Directed by Christopher Conforti
How much bad luck can a frog endure in one day?
Missing
Directed by Kit Hui
Samuel''s girlfriend is missing. To search for her, he follows a revealing trail of words written on pieces of paper left in the most unlikely places.
Whan
Directed by Jaehyung Ju, Seungmin Song
A tiger in a zoo enjoys the happy response of the park visitors ... until the day he manages to escape.
Cheeks
Directed by Tal Sharon, Daniel Barcelowsky
With a paranoid schizophrenic father and a manic-depressive mother, an only son wants to break free.
The Ground Truth
Directed by Patricia Foulkrod
Soldiers returning from Iraq who now battle to get the necessary treatment to heal their physical and emotional wounds give forthright testimonies.
Ryan
Directed by Chris Landreth
This Oscar-winning animated short pays mesmerizing tribute to Ryan Larkin, a pioneering genius in Canadian animation who now panhandles for spare change in downtown Montreal.
Top Of The Circle
Directed by Shaz Bennett
How could anything be on top of a circle? Childhood nightmares, the food chain, a dying mother, and a newborn baby may give us an answer.
The Tree Officer
Directed by Neil Jack
Devoted botanist Gary laments his fate, trapped in a local council bureaucracy that sees him condemn more trees than he plants.
Bullets in the Hood: A Bed-Stuy Story
Directed by Terrence Fisher, Daniel Howard
After several friends are shot and killed, two teenagers pick up a camera to document the gun violence in their Brooklyn neighborhood.
Afternoon
Directed by Kim Spurlock
Drawn home by the grief of her husband, the spirit of the family matriarch comes calling on a rainy afternoon.
Dog Years
Directed by Sam Hearn, Richard Penfold
Ben, a mutt, talks about his mid-life crisis, the indignity of neutering, and his dreams of a loving home.
Goodnight Bill
Directed by John Mitchell, Jeremy Kipp Walker
When a cynical old man is forced to share his hospital room with a stranger, an unlikely friendship is born.
Journey to Mars
Directed by Juan Pablo Zaramella
Antonio desperately wants to travel to Mars, and fortunately his grandfather knows how to get there.
The Little Things
Directed by Reina Webster
Left alone to celebrate her 14th birthday, George eventually gives in to her six-year-old neighbor''s relentless attempts to cheer her up.
Something Other Than Other
Directed by Jerry A. Henry, Andrea J. Chia
The parents of a multi-racial child explore the malleable nature of racial identity.
Undressing My Mother
Directed by Ken Wardrop
This revealing, compassionate look at a woman in her 60s beautifully captures her self-assured reflections on her body and her life
Everything In This Country Must
Directed by Gary McKendry
An Irish teenager is forced to choose between loyalty to her father and gratitude to the British soldiers who did them a favor.
Frozen River
Directed by Courtney Hunt
Two women-one white, the other Mohawk-confront each other and their prejudices as they smuggle illegal aliens across the Canadian-U.S. border.
Maestro
Directed by Gza M. Tth
An animated behind-the-scenes glimpse of a bird''s intense preparations before the big show.
Shock and Awe
Directed by Chase Palmer
An Iraqi family in Baghdad bravely tries to finish their dinner during an American bombing attack.
Tama T
Directed by Taika Waititi
As six WWII Maori soldiers wait for night to fall, they find ways to amuse themselves, proving that even in the middle of a war, boys will be boys.
Useless Dog
Directed by Ken Wardrop
A witty documentary about a farmer experiencing problems with his inept, but lovable sheepdog.
Wrigley
Directed by Oliver Refson
Two middle-aged buddies sit in a car outside a modest house. In a moment their plan will explode into action, proving you''re never too old to act immature
Are You the Favorite Person of Anybody?
Directed by Miguel Arteta
A businessman startles passers-by with an unusual question.
The Big Empty
Directed by J. Lisa Chang, Newton Thomas Sigel
A woman''s visit to a gynecologist turns into a journey of unprecedented proportions.
Dimmer
Directed by Talmage Cooley
In the abandoned factories and suburban neighborhoods of Buffalo, New York, a gang of blind friends creates a world of its own.
Goodnight Irene
Directed by Sterlin Harjo
Stuck in a hospital waiting room, three Seminole Indians unexpectedly find some humor and truth while waiting to be called.
Harmony
Directed by Jim Trainor
In this pulsating animation, animals and humans share a strange self-awareness and guilt over their basest instincts.
La Vie d''un Chien
Directed by John Harden
Deadpan comedy is unleashed when a scientist discovers a formula that turns him into a dog.
The Pumpkin of Nyefar
Directed by Tod Polson, Mark Oftedal
Written by Tod Polson
In a faraway kingdom, a prince falls in love with a beautiful pumpkin. Will he sacrifice everything for love?
The Raftman''s Razor
Directed by Keith Bearden
Two teen boys obsessed with an unlikely comic book hero spend a summer trying to figure out his secret.
Broken Flowers
Directed by Jim Jarmusch
Broken Flowers is the story of the resolutely single Don (Bill Murray), who has just been dumped by his latest love, Sherry (Julie Delpy). Don resigns himself to being alone when he receives an anonymous letter from a former lover informing him he has a 19-year-old son who may now be looking for his father. Don embarks on a cross-country trek in search of clues from four former flames, forcing him to confront both his past and his present. The film stars Bill Murray, Jeffrey Wright, Sharon Stone, Frances Conroy, Jessica Lange, Tilda Swinton, and Julie Delpy.
Tickets for Broken Flowers are only available to passholders.
Buy Passes >
Hustle & Flow
Directed by Craig Brewer
Produced by John Singleton (Boyz n the Hood, Poetic Justice, Baby Boy) and Stephanie Allain, Hustle & Flow is the redemptive story of a Memphis street hustler (Terence Howard) who struggles to break out of his gritty world to fulfill his life long dream of becoming a respected rap musician. The film stars Terrence Howard, Ludacris, Isaac Hayes, DJ Qualls, Anthony Anderson, Taryn Manning, Taraji Henson, Elise Neal, and Paula Jai Parker.
The Son of the Sheik
Directed by George Fitzmaurice
Written by Fred de Gresac and Frances Marion
Rudolph Valentino stars as an impetuous young man who falls for a bejeweled street dancer with unsavory family ties. This special screening will feature live organ accompaniment by Robert Israel.