SXSW Film Festival 2008: Online Buzz
by Andre Soares
Q&A with We Are Wizards director Josh Koury at indieWIRE (which is conducting several Q&A’s with SXSW 2008 filmmakers). Koury’s documentary is described as a "portrait of the unusual and passionate culture of Harry Potter fans." A sample question and answer:
indieWIRE: "What was the inspiration for this film?"
Koury: "I’m actually a big Harry Potter fan. We began talking about ideas for films, and different projects that might have potential. This film seemed to come back on the table repeatedly. It seemed like a difficult project at first, particularly since we weren’t interested in making a ‘Trekkies’ style documentary, or a film that simply panders to the HP fans. We knew it would be a challenge to create something that general audiences, as well as fans, would appreciate and enjoy.
"… I always say that the film really isn’t even about Harry Potter. It’s about people, their struggles, and creating work that you believe in. If the film were simply about Harry Potter fans at face value, it wouldn’t have the same impact or touch people the way I hope the film does."
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Kim Voynar at Cinematical:
"[Mister Lonely] is directed by Harmony Korine and stars Diego Luna (Y tu Mama Tambien, Milk) as a Michael Jackson impersonator and Werner Herzog as a priest (yes, seriously). More on the film later, but can I just say here that I love the concept of eat-in movie theaters?…
"After Mister Lonely we ran over to the Paramount to catch Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. We’ve already reviewed that film, but I’ll chime in here my agreement with the general consensus that this film is going to play really well to fans of the first Harold and Kumar film. I don’t have quantifiable data to back this up, but I’m pretty certain that at least 80% of the audience was completely baked for the screening, because they laughed hysterically throughout the film, even in the parts that weren’t especially funny."
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Eric D. Snider on the Michael Caine-Demi Moore vehicle Flawless, also at Cinematical (which offers a number of SXSW reviews):
"Like so many good heist movies, Flawless presents us with a seemingly unsolvable puzzle, lets us stew over it for a while, then solves it for us. The puzzle is of the ‘How did Person X manage to accomplish Task Y?’ variety, and it is indeed a head-scratcher. I wish the film came up with an answer that was anywhere near as ingenious as the question, but it’s a generally satisfying story anyway."
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Laremy Legel at Film.com:
"I … managed to catch [Peter Galison and Robb Moss'] Secrecy, [Josh Koury's] We Are Wizards, and [Nanette Burstein's] American Teen (all three are documentaries). Would you like to hear about them? I’m sure you would and we’ll be running full reviews in the next day or so but until then here’s a quick-hit synopsis of each:
"Secrecy: All about what our government is hiding from us (and why), it’s a somewhat scary film. Unfortunately, it’s too based in the philosophy of secrecy as opposed to actuality. Grade: C+"
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The other synopses plus some lengthy airport/airline rants can be found at Legel’s Film.com post.
Béla Tarr Retrospective at LACMA
Manoel de Oliveira Retrospective at BAMcinématek
Academy’s Contemporary Documentaries 2008
"Films from the New Europe" at USC
CineKink NYC 2008 Film Line-Up
THE ELITE SQUAD: The 2008 Berlin Film Festival’s Controversial Winner
Francesco Rosi to Receive Golden Bear for Lifetime Achievement
THE ROAD TO GUANTANAMO - Notes/Trivia
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