It's L.A.'s first, believe it or not, and it looks mighty comprehensive. Below is all the official information.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE IRISH FILM FESTIVAL OF LOS ANGELES

The Irish Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFF) will take place on Thursday, October 2 through Sunday,October 5 at the Clarity Theater in Beverly Hills, including the Opening Night Film and Closing Night Event. The Irish Film Festival of Los Angeles is the first stand-alone Irish Film Festival to be presented in the city. Tickets are available on www.lairishfilm.com.

Festival Director Lisa McLaughlin-Strassman said, "I am pleased to announce that we have secured "Eden" as our Opening Night Film courtesy of the US distributor, Liberation Entertainment. Declan Recks is an extremely talented director and I am proud to kick-off the festival with the west coast premiere of such a wonderful film."

"Eden," directed by Declan Recks, is a new film from the producers of the Irish box office sensation, "Once". The film follows a married couple in a picturesque Irish town as they prepare for their 10th anniversary and confront their fears of the future. A vivid portrayal of marriage and the vulnerability of love, the film features tour-de-force performances by Eileen Walsh (Best Actress, Tribeca Film Festival) and Aidan Kelly. "Eden" is written by Eugene O'Brien, and adapted from his play of the same name.

The Closing Night Special Event will include two rare Irish silent films accompanied by live music with an original contemporary score composed by Eimear Noone, composer and conductor.

The festival will screen "Kings," from director Tom Collins, the first Irish-language film ever submitted in the Best Foreign Language category for the Academy Awards. "Kings" was nominated for a record 14 Irish Film and Television Awards in 2008 and won five IFTA Awards. A universal story of disenfranchisement and search for identity, "Kings" tells the past and present stories of six ambitious Irishmen who dreamed of making their fortunes in the construction industry of 1970s London. The film stars Colm Meaney, Donal O'Kelly, Brendan Conroy, Barry Barnes and Donncha Crowley.

The festival will also showcase the 'Jewish-Irish Experience,' with the west coast premiere of "Grandpa.... Speak to Me in Russian" directed by Louis Lentin and "Shalom Ireland" directed by Valerie Lapin. In his personal film, "Grandpa .....Speak to Me in Russian," director Lentin uncovers the inspiring story of his family and the lost world of the Jewish shtetl, reconstructing the life of his paternal grandfather, Kalman Solomon Lentin. In "Shalom Ireland," director Valerie Lapin reveals Ireland's small but vibrant Jewish community, focusing on three Irish-Jewish families, a community whose existence takes many by surprise, with a soundtrack that fuses traditional Irish music and Klezmer music.

The festival will present a newly-formatted HD version of John Ford's great silent epic-scale western shot in Nevada, "The Iron Horse" (1924). A treasure from archives of American cinema, "The Iron Horse" is about the building of the transcontinental railroad. The film was one of Ford's first major successes and was hugely influential on outdoor films that followed.

The festival will also screen "The Pride" directed by Gerard Hurley, which takes place in a small Irish traveler (gypsy) community in up state New York. Mickey Reilly (Gerard Hurley) returns from prison determined to win back his estranged wife Sarah (Nancy McNulty). After years of a complex bitter sweet relationship and an episode of domestic violence, Sarah struggles to leave with their new born daughter for a safer world.
The festival will feature the documentary film "Learning Gravity" (aka "The Undertaking") directed by Cathal Black an award-winning documentary about Irish-American poet and undertaker Thomas Lynch.

The festival will present a rare screening of the only print available of "The Luck of Ginger Coffey" (1964), starring Robert Shaw ("Jaws") and Mary Ure. An early film from director Irvin Kershner ("Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back") the film is based on the late Belfast-born writer and Malibu resident, Brian Moore's ("Black Robe," "The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne") autobiographical novel of the same name. Winner of the Canadian Film Award for Best Feature Film, the film is an extremely well-crafted, sombre portrait of an Irish emigrant dreamer longing for personal freedom.

On Sunday, October 5 at 4pm, the festival will host a panel discussion entitled "Shooting the Green: Funding and shooting in the Republic of Ireland". The panel will focus on how to tap into Ireland's rich tax incentives for co- production with the participation of Jonathan Loughran, VP, Irish Film Commission US, Louise Levinson, Financial & Co-production Consultant & Tara Halloran of the UK Film Council, moderated by veteran international film and television financing attorney Bill Grantham of Greenberg Traurig, introduced by educator and producer, Gabrielle Kelly.

The festival will also premiere "Dick Dickman P.I." directed by Barry O'Neill, featuring the cream of Irish comedy.

The Clarity Theater is located at 100 N. Crescent Drive in Beverly Hills. $3 parking at the theater is available through the entrance on Crescent Drive (one block north of Wilshire).
For tickets and more details about the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival please visit www.lairishfilm.com
or email lairishfilm@gmail.com

About the Los Angeles Irish Film Festival

The first Los Angeles Irish film festival is a non-competitive film festival that will provide a launch pad to bring more visibility within the Hollywood community to recent productions out of Ireland and to expose rare classics to audiences in a communal, distinctive setting.
Feature films, documentaries and short films will be shown throughout this four-day festival, interspersed with panels and other special events. Directors, producers and cast will be invited to present their films in person and participate in discussions with the audience in a relaxed, creative atmosphere. The festival's goal is to showcase the richness of Irish culture through its cinema at is most diverse and celebrate Ireland's recent artistic revolution.

Festival directors, Lisa McLaughlin-Strassman, program directors Niall McKay & John Lyons and festival producer Judith Black are joined by an advisory board that includes film directors Jim Sheridan, Neil Jordan and Mary McGuckian, International Editor of the Hollywood Reporter, Steve Brennan, screenwriter and critic, F.X. Feeney and producer Katy Haber among others.

SCHEDULED PROGRAM

Thursday, October 2

Opening Night short & Feature Film commences at 7pm

7pm: BUA directed by directed by Sonya Gildea and produced by Kirsten Sheridan- 13 minutes

A young girl drives her horse at full gallop, but when, if ever, will she reach freedom?

Followed by Opening Night Feature Film:

EDEN directed by Declan Recks - 84 minutes (West Coast premiere)

"Eden," directed by Declan Recks, is a new film from the producers of the Irish box office sensation, "Once". The film follows a married couple in a picturesque Irish town as they prepare for their 10th anniversary and confront their fears of the future. A vivid portrayal of marriage and the vulnerability of love, the film features tour-de-force performances by Eileen Walsh (Best Actress, Tribeca Film Festival) and Aidan Kelly. "Eden" is written by Eugene O'Brien, and adapted from his play of the same name.

Opening Night Gala Reception featuring live music and performance from dancer-comedienne Máire Clerkin with excerpts from her show,"The Bad Arm - Confessions of a Dodgy Irish Dancer".

Sunday, October 5

Closing Night Special Event - commences at 7pm

7pm: Orchestral Live Event with Contemporary Music composition by Eimear Noone.

Total Program 60 minutes

THE LAD FROM OLD IRELAND - B & W - Silent - directed by Sidney Olcott (1910)

The film is the story of a boy who emigrated to America to escape destitution in Ireland. After success in America, he returns to Ireland to save his betrothed just as her family is being evicted from their land.

IN THE DAYS OF ST. PATRICK - B & W - Silent- directed by Norman Whitten (1920)

The film tells the story of 4th Century Saint Patrick- the prince who became a slave, the slave who became a priest, the priest who converted a nation.

Closing Night Reception with live orchestra performance.

For updated film descriptions, schedule and ticket information visit: www.lairishfilm.com or email: lairishfilm@gmail.com.

FILM PROGRAM

Friday, October 3, 2008

THE PRIDE directed by Gerard Hurley - 82 minutes - 4:00PM

The story takes place in a small Irish traveler (gypsy) community in up state New York. Mickey Reilly (Gerard Hurley) returns from prison determined to win back his estranged wife Sarah (Nancy McNulty). After years of a complex bitter sweet relationship and an episode of domestic violence, Sarah struggles to leave with their new born daughter for a safer world.

Q & A with Gerard Hurley

KINGS directed by Tom Collins - 88 minutes - 6:30PM

A universal story of disenfranchisement and search for identity. In the mid 1970s, a group of six young men left their homes in the West of Ireland, took the boat out of Dublin Bay and sailed across the sea to England in the hope of making their fortunes and returning home. Thirty years later only one, Jackie Flavin, makes it home - but does so in a coffin. Jackie's five friends reunite at his wake where they are forced face up to the reality of their alienation as long term emigrants who no longer have any real place to call home.

Q & A with Tom Collins

DICK DICKMAN P.I. directed by Barry O'Neill - (US Premiere) - 9:00PM

Dick Dickman P.I. is the story of a hapless private detective who fumbles his way through his first case with each clue bringing him further and further away from solving it. We follow our anti hero as he haphazardly stumbles along meeting an array of crazy characters. Featuring the cream of Irish comedy including Patrick Bergin, Frank Carson, Brendan O'Carroll, June Rodgers, Jon Kenny, Joe Rooney, Alan Shortt, Louise Osbourne, Doreen Keogh, Paul Malone and Barry O'Neill as Dick Dickman.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

SHORTS PROGRAM 2:00pm

TEETH - Directors: Ruari O'Brian & John Kennedy

Producer: Noreen Donohoe

A short "Last laugh" tale of two old friends, their teeth and a series of events that leaves them lost for words.

JAMES - Writer -Director & Producer Connor Clements

James struggles as the outsider kid at his school. His teacher, Mr. Sutherland is the only person he feels he can connect with. When James finally puts a voice to his feelings, Mr. Sutherland's response isn't what James had hoped for.

NEW BOY - Writer/Director Steph Green

Producer Tamara Anghie

Cast includes Olutunji Ebun-Cole & Simon O Driscoll

Based on a short story by Roddy Doyle this poignant and comedic short deftly captures the experience of being the new boy in school through the eyes of Joseph, a nine year old African boy.

PADDY TAKES A MEETING - Written & Directed by Dermott Petty

Cast includes: Kevin P Kearns, Bryan Glanney & Carolyn Palmer

A mans life is turned upside down by a Producers wish to change a part of Irish History so the movie can be marketed correctly

FRANKIE - Director Darren Thornton

Producer Colette Farrell

Frankie is fifteen and preparing for fatherhood. He is determined that he is going to be the best Dad ever, but as his day goes on, he starts to realize how difficult this will be for him.

UNDRESSING MY MOTHER - Director Ken Wardrop

Producers

Andrew Freedman

Kristin Brook Larson

A poignant documentary that explores a woman's unique take on her aging and overweight body.

USELESS DOG - Director Ken Wardrop

Producer Andrew Freedman

A witty mini documentary about an inept dog.

RIGHT NOW LADIES AND GENTS - Director/Script John Paul Murphy

Producer Rebecca O'Flanagan

A darkly comic tale of a young man who is persecuted by an overzealous pub bouncer

DING SONG DENNY O'REILLY'S HISTORY OF IRELAND - Director Cathal Gaffney

Script Paul Woodfull

A tourist walks into a Dublin pub looking for directions and encounters Ding Dong Denny O'Reilly at the bar who insists on telling him the "real" history of Ireland over a number of pints.

THE LUCK OF GINGER COFFEY directed by Irvin Kershner (1964) - 100 mins - 3:30PM

Starring Robert Shaw and Mary Ure, the film is about Ginger Coffey (Shaw), his wife Vera (Ure) and their 14-year-old daughter, Paulie (McClintock) who have emigrated to Montreal from Ireland, in search of a better life. Ginger is an idealist and has no more success finding work than he did in his homeland. Based on Brian Moore's autobiographical novel of the same name, "The Luck of Ginger Coffey" is an extremely well-crafted, sombre portrait of a dreamer longing for personal freedom.

Q & A with Irvin Kershner

The reception luncheon and special screening of the rarely-seen "The Luck of Ginger Coffey" will be in tribute to the late actor Robert Shaw and director Irvin Kershner who currently resides in Los Angeles. Irvin Kershner will participate in a question and answer session to follow the screening.

Starring with his wife Mary Ure in "The Luck of Ginger Coffey," Shaw is known for his role as the fisherman Quint in "Jaws", the assassin Red Grant in "From Russia With Love", King Henry VIII in "A Man For All Seasons," the commander of a Nazi tank battalion in the war film "The Battle of the Bulge," Winston Churchill's father in "Young Winston," Doyle Lonnegan in the Paul Newman-Robert Redford film "The Sting," the Sheriff of Nottingham in "Robin And Mariam", among others. Shaw also wrote numerous novels, including "The Hiding Place", "The Flag," The Man in the Glass Booth" and "A Card from Morocco".

Shaw lived in the Gaeltacht village of Tourmakeady, County Mayo on the shores of Lough Mask in the West of Ireland until his death in 1978. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

Irvin Kershner, director of "The Luck of Ginger Coffey" (1964) is known for his films "The Hoodlum Priest," "A Fine Madness" starring Sean Connery, Joanne Woodward and Jean Seberg, "Loving," the comedy "Up the Sandbox" starring Barbra Streisand and the thriller "The Eyes of Laura Mars" starring Faye Dunaway and Tommy Lee Jones. Kershner has also directed big-budget action and adventure films such as "The Empire Strikes Back," the James Bond "Never Say Never Again," and "RoboCop II". Kershner directed the HBO film "Travelling Man" starring John Lithgow and Jonathan Silverman for which he was nominated for an ACE Award. He has also directed several episodes of the television series seaQuest DSV, and he made his debut as an actor in the controversial 1988 Martin Scorsese film, "The Last Temptation of Christ," playing Zebedee, the father of the apostles James and John. Kershner also played a film director in Steven Seagal's "On Deadly Ground".

WHEN HOPE AND HISTORY RHYMED produced by Kelly Candaele - 55 mins - 6:30PM

A documentary film on the Northern Ireland Peace Process following fifteen students from California on a political, intellectual and personal exploration while studying at Queens University, Belfast.

Q & A with Kelly Candaele, moderated by journalist Patricia Danaher

'The Jewish Experience'

GRANDPA SPEAK TO ME IN RUSSIAN directed by Louis Lentin - 55 minutes - 8:30PM

"The story of a man who did not tell, or choose to tell his own story and of a boy who needed to know." Louis Lentin. In this moving docudrama Lentin reconstructs the life of his paternal grandfather, Kalman Solomon Lentin who came to live with his family in Ireland in 1936. In this personal film Lentin sets out, with his son Miki Lentin, to find out where the old folk came from, what was it like and if anything survived. Leaving Ireland and journeying through the Baltic countries he uncovers the inspiring story of his family and the lost world of the Jewish shtetl. The story unfolds with fascinating archive material and drawings illustrating their journey.

SHALOM IRELANDdirected by Valerie Lapin - 57 minutes

In the documentary "Shalom Ireland," director Valerie Lapin reveals Ireland's remarkable, yet little known Jewish community. "Shalom Ireland" chronicles the history of irish Jewry while celebrating the unique culture created by blending Irish and Jewish traditions. From gun running for the Irish Republican Army during Ireland's War of Independence to smuggling fellow Jews escaping from the Holocaust into Palestine, Shalom Ireland tells the untold story of how Irish Jews participated in the creation of both Ireland and Israel.

Q & A with Louis Lentin and Valerie Lapin

Sunday October 5

LEARNING GRAVITY directed by Cathal Black - 70 mins - 11:00AM

An elegant, elegiac film on Thomas Lynch. Three generations of Lynchs work in the chain of Michigan funeral homes set up by Lynch's father. But what marks Thomas out from the rest of the brood is that he is also a renowned poet and essayist whose work has won the prestigious American Book Award and has been in the final shortlist for the National Book Award one of the most eminent literary prizes in the United States. Lynch's writing is noted for its thoughtfulness and dark humour and this film is shot through with the same acumen combined with a sharp sense of the absurd. The documentary is atmospherically shot combining family photographs and home movies with reconstructions and actuality footage and adds up to a lucid, entertaining and ultimately life-affirming take on death and what comes before and after.

THE IRON HORSE directed by John Ford B & W, Silent, 1924 - 133 minutes - 1:00PM

One of the great silent screen epic-scale westerns, portraying love, treachery and revenge, John Ford's The Iron Horse is about the building of the transcontinental railroad. The film was one of Ford's first major successes and was hugely influential on outdoor films that followed. Shot on location in Arizona in Ford's beloved Monument Valley.

Film Financing Seminar

SHOOTING THE GREEN: Funding and Shooting in the Republic of Ireland - 4:00PM-5:30PM

How to tap into Ireland's rich tax incentives for co-production of your feature, documentary, TV drama or animation made in Ireland. This panel discussion will cover development funding, production funding, equity & copyright in projects in an overview of the Section 431 funding available. Panelists include Jonathan Loughran, VP Irish Film Board, Louise Levinson, Financial & Co-production Consultant, Tara Halloran of the UK Film Council, Los Angeles, moderated by veteran international film and television financing attorney Bill Grantham of Greenberg Traurig.

For updated film descriptions, schedule and ticket information visit: www.lairishfilm.com or email: lairishfilm@gmail.com.

Posted by Bob Strauss at 12:16 PM | Comments (0)

Coincidentally enough, I'd been scheduled to interview Leonardo DiCaprio this morning. So I had to ask what Paul Newman meant to young actors like him, who not only strive to be artistically more than just handsome movie stars but also are deeply committed to causes (in DiCaprio's case, the green movement) and progressive politics.
As I suspected, Newman was one of his inspirations.
"Not only was he a part of the great generation of actors that we all admired, he was the model of what you would want your correct professional career to be," DiCaprio said. "He was a very serious actor who turned out unbelievable performances in so many great movies, but simultaneously his charitable contributions outside of his work were so profound and still continue to be through his foundation and his Newman's Own products.
"He was the role model of all role models in that sense. I didn't know the man, but at the end of the day, you felt that he led a normal life and ended up being a normal human being through a career that lasted over 50 years in the industry. And he managed, outside of his work, to do great things, and that's admirable. It's a sad day."
Newman did seem to be the perfect example of how to use celebrity to do good work both on and off the screen. The fact that he settled into a happy marriage with Joanne Woodward for half a century kept gossip from tarnishing him; his famously raunchy quote, "I have steak at home, why go out for hamburger?" is certainly one of the best arguments for fidelity I've ever heard.
Newman's liberal political stances were expressed strongly but not stridently, especially during the 1960s when everyone else was screaming their heads off (though he was justifiably proud of making President Nixon's enemies list). He clearly understood everything that was wrong with conservatism - again, something not all showbiz liberals can say - but the guy also drove race cars.
Drove them well, too. Mostly formula, but sometimes stock cars.
Boy, right wing pundits must have really hated not being able to attack him like they could every other personality they disagreed with.
Newman also managed to put his face on all kinds of pretty good foods' packages without seeming like an egomaniac about it - and earned half a billion dollars that all went to charity in the process. He probably didn't write all of them, but I loved reading the folksy stories on his pasta sauce labels. They made this immensely sophisticated artist and humanitarian sound like the real cracker he could be so good at playing.
Add it all up and you have to ask: Has any other Hollywood do-gooder ever been so unassailable? And Newman didn't even let that go to his head. He avoided fawning interview requests most of the time (believe me; I made a couple of them) and joked away the importance of many accolades he did receive. Or just didn't show up to receive them.
All great stuff. But that's not why I really liked him. When I was growing up in the '60s, Newman represented a much different role model for me than he does for folks like Leo now. They rightly admire his talent, class and philanthropy; I adored how he made acting like an asshole look like a wholly acceptable way of life.
Here's a newsflash: people who grow up to be critics probably weren't the most socially tolerant, or tolerable, kids. I've certainly had a knack for rubbing others the wrong way from a young age. I was aware of that early on and debated with myself about whether, and how much, I should change to fit in.
Not that it was anywhere near a deciding factor, but when my mother inappropriately dragged me to my first adult movie, watching that selfish Texan Hud treat everyone like crap and still get pretty much his own way really did something for me. Newman was hardly the first movie star to make bad behavior look glamorous, but he was the first one I saw. And he had a charismatic way of convincing you that acting like that may not be optimally desirable, but that didn't necessarily make it wrong.
There's no point in reading too much into this, but as the years went by and I grew to understand more of what his characters were up to, I really enjoyed the scoundrels, losers, curmudgeons and crooks Newman portrayed in "The Hustler" (predated "Hud," but it was on TV a lot), "Cool Hand Luke," "Hombre," "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," "Sometimes a Great Notion," "The Sting" "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean" and "Slap Shot."
Later, I learned about and appreciated what he'd done before my filmgoing time, like being the first movie sex symbol who didn't change his Jewish last name, and one of the first to, more or less, play a non-caricatured gay man in the watered-down film of Tennessee Williams' "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof." Later still, I saw in Newman's rueful Absence of Malice," "The Verdict," "The Color of Money," "Nobody's Fool" and "Road to Perdition" roles the price you pay for not always being the best person you can be. It showed in his increasingly haggard face, and it truthfully mirrored what I'd learned in life.
Maybe Paul Newman was such an exemplary person because he was able to indulge his darker side in his work (probably not; if that were possible, Jack Nicholson would be a saint). Anyway, people loved him for both who he was and who he pretended to be. Newman always said he was lucky, and you don't get more fortunate than that.

Posted by Bob Strauss at 7:10 PM | Comments (0)

You can buy what they're calling "The Coppola Restoration" on DVD and Blu-Ray next Tuesday. It was overseen by Francis and cinematographer Gordon Willis and apparently looks more like the movies did back in the day - less polished and more beautiful, in other words - than the last DVD set of "The Godfather" trilogy. The new pack also has all the supplemental materials from the 2001 set, plus a whole disc of new ones.
And, y'know, "The Godfather Part III," if anyone is interested.
But let's face it. All that really matters is seeing the first two masterpieces under them most optimal conditions possible. And you'll get your chance starting Friday, as the restored Parts I and II play a one-week run at the ArcLight Cinerama Dome in Hollywood.
The 1972 film will be projected digitally and the '74 follow-up will be 35 mm.

Posted by Bob Strauss at 12:23 AM | Comments (0)

Another good reason not to attend the Toronto Film Festival. Around here, critics argue profanely about stuff that usually doesn't have anything to do with movies. But that's as heated as it gets.Then we buy each other drinks.

Posted by Bob Strauss at 12:30 PM | Comments (0)

Sure, Eric Rohmer's films are talky and French and pretty much action-free. They're also smart, brilliantly insightful, often funny and always sexy.
So, in honor of the serious season that's supposed to be happening in theaters now, come to the County Museum all this month for, if you'll pardon the expression, the real deal as far as that's concerned.

Here's the official information from LACMA:

The Tales of Eric Rohmer

September 12-27

This series is presented with the support of the French Ministry of External Affairs and the Los Angeles Film and TV Office of the Consulate Generale de France.

Eric Rohmer, editor-in-chief of Cahiers du cinema from 1956 to 1963, made his first feature in 1959 and, at age eighty-seven, has just completed his final film. Eschewing the genre influences beloved by his New Wave contemporaries, Rohmer's oeuvre deals exclusively with the drama of intimate relationships. His plots are in the classical mold--they have the precision and sly wit of a Molière comedy--and are driven by the endless misunderstandings that his cerebral characters, aided by meddlesome friends, allow to complicate their happiness. Like melodies and motifs recurring in different keys, each new entry in Rohmer's canon enriches the total experience.

Rohmer, who has written all his own scripts, defined his distinctive approach to film narrative when he stated in a 1972 interview: "In the Moral Tales I only ask questions; I do not give answers... I shoot from the point of view of one of the characters. What he knows, we will know. What he doesn't know, we will never know."

This selection of eleven films drawn from Rohmer's fifty-year career presents a rare opportunity to experience in a theatrical venue the work of a master director. Included are: three of six Moral Tales, including La Collectionneuse, his first "vacation film," shot in Saint-Tropez by the brilliant cinematographer Nestor Almendros; four of six Comedies and Proverbs, including Pauline at the Beach, a clever farce that was a hit in America, and Summer (aka Le Rayon Vert), his only improvised film; two of four Tales of the Seasons, including Autumn Tale, in which a middle-aged widow in the Rhône Valley finds love during the wine harvest; and two of four historical films, including The Lady and the Duke, for which Rohmer commissioned virtual sets made digitally from historical paintings, so that his revolution-era characters could "walk through the streets and squares of a Paris that no longer exists."

My Night at Maud's (Ma Nuit chez Maud)

September 12 | 7:30 pm

Having determined to marry a demure young blonde whom he has been intently observing for weeks at Sunday Mass, Trintignant, an engineer in Clermont-Ferrand on business and stranded by a blizzard, gratefully accepts a spare room for the night in the home of worldly Fabian, an attractive divorcee. During a spirited conversation that extends late into the night, Fabian challenges Trintignant's conservative beliefs and smug assumptions about life and love before revealing that she has no spare room. Rohmer's first international hit was Oscar-nominated for Best Foreign Language Film and Original Screenplay.

1969/b&w/105 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Jean-Louis Trintignant, Françoise Fabian

A Good Marriage (Le Beau Mariage)

September 12 | 9:30 pm

A headstrong art student living in Le Mans decides that marriage is the solution to her romantic problems with married men, but the bachelor she chooses to pursue responds with a bewildered disinterest. "A beautifully acted comedy of humiliation."--Roger Ebert.

1982/color/97 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Béatrice Romand André Dussolier.

Claire's Knee (Le Genou de Claire)

September 13 | 7:30 pm

Set in the Alpine city of Annecy and photographed by the great Nestor Almendros, this seductive film focuses on a soon-to-be-married diplomat (Brialy) vacationing in the French Alps who develops an obsession with the beautiful sixteen-year old friend of a friend, in particular her knee. Like Jane Austen, Rohmer diverts the audience with witty narration and clever characters, but the real subjects of his fifth Moral Tale are male mid-life crises and adolescent sexuality. Will Brialy caress Claire's knee by summer's end, as he has vowed to do, or remain faithful to a fiancée we never meet?

1970/color/105 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Jean-Claude Brialy, Aurora Cornu, Béatrice Romand.

The Marquise of O... (Die Marquise von O)

September 13 | 9:30 pm

Desire and betrayal take on a life-and-death urgency in this adaptation of an eighteenth-century German novella about a marquise that is rescued from a sexual assault on her own estate by a visiting Russian count who becomes obsessed with her. Acclaimed for its authentic neoclassical design, the performances of Ganz and Clever, and its narrative surprises, Rohmer's only non-francophone film won the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes.

1976/color/102 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Edith Clever, Bruno Ganz.

La Collectionneuse

September 19 | 7:30 pm | Special guest: Patrick Bauchau

Adrien (Bauchau) a self-absorbed art dealer in his mid-thirties, is surprised to find he is sharing a borrowed villa on the Riviera with housemates: Daniel, a friend; and Haydée, an energetic twenty-year-old beauty whose nightly bouts of bars and promiscuity drive the guys (whom she barely notices) so crazy that they vow to steer her onto life's higher moral path. Shot on a low budget but graced with a sexy cast and Nestor Almendros' dazzling images of the Mediterranean coast, La Collectioneuse created the mold for a Rohmer specialty: the "vacation film." "The film's mood of sardonic playfulness combines with a psychological concentration and a Warholian feeling for pose and emptiness that are unique in Rohmer's work."--Chris Fujiwara, Boston Phoenix.

1967/ color/90 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Patrick Bauchau, Haydée Polioff, Daniel Pomereulle.

Pauline at the Beach (Pauline à la plage)

September 19 | 9:10 pm

The proverb ''A wagging tongue bites itself,'' by the twelfth-century poet Chrétien de Troyes, sent Rohmer (and Almendros) back to the beach sixteen years after La Collectioneuse--this time to chilly Normandie in late August--to direct what became his most commercially successful film, a farce with tragic undertones. Five adults, three women and two men, indulge in a game of musical beds that, fueled by gossip, bad judgment, and self-justification, ruins everyone's vacation and more. Only fifteen-year old Pauline is spared a broken heart but the disdain she feels toward the adults marks the end of her innocence.

1983/color/94 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Amanda Langlet, Arielle Dombasle, Pascal Gregory.

Full Moon in Paris (Les Nuits de la pleine lune)

September 20 | 7:30 pm

Louise, a charming but complicated young interior decorator who lives with her boyfriend in his flat outside Paris, suddenly announces that her "identity" depends on living alone half the week in the city; but she is soon overwhelmed by the practical complications of her decision. Only twenty-five at the time, Pascale Ogier was widely acclaimed for her riveting performance in the role of Louise, winning the Best Actress award at the Berlin Film Festival. And Full Moon, with its urban setting and bittersweet portrayal of a woman coping with friendship, career, and independence, is Rohmer's contemporary version of the traditional proverb: "He who has two women loses his soul; he who has two houses loses his mind."

1984/color/102 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Pascale Ogier, Fabrice Luchini.

A Summer's Tale (Conte d'été)

September 20 | 9:20 pm

Rohmer's fascination with the sentimental education of young people deepened with age and the second of his Moral Tales is a comic masterpiece about a college student on vacation in Brittany who, through a series of chance encounters and misunderstandings, becomes involved with three women. "Plotting as suspenseful and manipulative as classical farce... Rohmer provides insights into matters of love, friendship, fidelity, loneliness, luck, destiny, and desire." --Time Out.

1996/color/113 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Melvil Poupaud, Amanda Langlet, Aurélia Nolin.

Summer (Le Rayon vert)

September 26 | 7:30 pm

When her roommate cancels their planned trip to Greece right before the August holiday, Delphine, a Parisian secretary, is devastated; unwilling to be alone in Paris, she attempts to vacation in Cherbourg, Biarritz, and the Alps, but her self-pity and negativity drive away potential friends, and she finds a reason to leave. Denying the rejection and masking her deep loneliness, she dreams of meeting "the perfect man" during the remaining two weeks of her vacation... In a radical departure from Rohmer's intricate plotting, crisp imagery, and polished dialogue, Summer was made on 16mm with a small crew and no script--the actors improvised their roles--resulting in one of the director's most esteemed and emotionally powerfully films. "A stunning mix of everyday naturalism and metaphysical speculation, the film is a masterpiece." --Geoff Andrew.

1986/color/98 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Marie Rivière, Lisa Meredia, Béatrice Romand.

Autumn Tale (Conte d'automne)

September 26 | 9:20 pm

The final entry in the Seasons cycle is set in the Rhône Valley during the wine harvest and concerns the complications that arise when a fortyish widow named Magali learns that her best friends are trying to find her a new husband by placing ads in the personals in her name. Rohmer favorite Béatrice Romand is brilliant as the earthy, high-strung loner who prefers to tend her vines in peace but comes to accept the bounty life offers. In the spirit of the season, the film "evokes such a sensuous atmosphere that you are all but transported into Magali's fields. A rich, emotionally satisfying experience." --New York Times.

1998/color/112 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Béatrice Romand, Marie Rivière, Didier Sandre.

The Lady and the Duke (L'Anglaise et le duc)

September 27 | 7:30 pm

The lady is Grace Elliott, a Scottish-French aristocrat living in Paris during the French Revolution, and the duke is the Duc d'Orléans, Grace's former lover and an enlightened aristocrat sympathetic to the revolution. Each worries about the other's safety and, as their story unfolds from 1790 to 1794, they debate the pros and cons of revolution, specifically the bloody days of the Terror, in a series of elegantly conceived scenes that blend the personal with the political. A faithful adaptation of Elliot's memoirs, the script portrays a woman of great courage who risked her life to save lives: the scene where she hides the governor of the Tuilleries in her home and her nocturnal escape from Paris on foot are classic suspense sequences that convey the omnipresent danger for rich and poor alike. Wanting the characters to walk through streets and squares of an eighteenth-century Paris that no longer exists, Rohmer commissioned digital sets based on nineteenth-century landscape paintings: the fantastic images evoke the magic of early cinema and lend this classically romantic film a theatricality that is entirely appropriate.

2001/color/125 min. | Scr/dir: Eric Rohmer; w/ Jean-Claude Dreyfus, Lucy Russell.

TICKETS/INFORMATION

Tickets are $10; $7 for LACMA members, seniors (62+), and students with valid ID. Price includes both films in a double bill except where noted. Tickets to the second film on a double bill are $5 and are only available at the museum box office prior to the screening. Tuesday Matinees: $2; $1 seniors (62+). Please note: Many programs sell out. Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased at the museum box office (323 857-6010). All films and guests are subject to change and many films are unrated and may not be appropriate for younger viewers. For more information or to check current programs, call the museum box office at (323) 857-6010, visit www.lacma.org or subscribe to the Film Department's e-newsletter by emailing film@lacma.org.

Posted by Bob Strauss at 4:36 PM | Comments (0)

I have no idea what's really going on with this festival or if the movies are any good. But if you're in the mood, check it out and save a whale or something.

Here's the press release:

THE AUGUST SUN FILM & TELEVISION FESTIVAL

PROMOTING WORLD PEACE THROUGH FILM & TV

at The Crest theatre in Westwood, Aug. 27-30, 2008.

FOR TICKETS: WWW.AUGUSTSUNPRODUCTIONS.COM/FESTIVAL

WHERE: Screenings are at

The Crest Theatre .

1262 Westwood Boulevard

Westwood, California 90024

WHEN: Thursday August 28, and Friday August 29, 2008

9:00am -1pm

Screening Schedule:

THURSDAY 8/28
9:00 am: Sebastian' s Voodoo (4m, U S A) dir. by Joaquin Baldwin
9:05 am: Absolute Zero (27m, Australia) dir. by Alan Woodruff
9:35 am: Bushwacker (9m, U S A) dir. by Kal Goudey
9:50 am:The Big Question (62m, USA) dir. by Vince DiPersio
Short Break
11:00am Superpower (119m, U S A) dir. by Barbara-Anne Steegmuller

FRIDAY 8/29
9:00 am: Donut Heaven (14m, U S A) dir. by Annetta Marion
9:15am The Cave: An adaptation of Plato 's Allegory in Clay (3m, U S A) dir. by Michael Ramsey
9:20am Tammuz (92m, Israel) dir. by Nir Toib
Short Break
11:00am Orion Slave Girls Must Die!!! (26m, U S A) dir. by Eric Kallevig
11:30pm Color of Truth (90m, U S A) dir. by Lucy & Frederick Smith

August 30, 2008 Saturday 6pm-11pm Black-Tie gala and Award Ceremony

(Black-tie is suggested not mandatory), at Sinigual Restaurant

The People's Party Band will be performing www.myspace.com/thepeoplesparty there will be an award ceremony at 8pm. Dancing til midnight. Hors d'Oeuvres, will be served. Full Cash bar available.

Sinigual Restaurant
9595 Wilshire Blvd.
Beverly Hills,
CA 90210,
6p-12pm
Valet parking $6, and public parking 1 blk north on Camden

Seminars at 2-5pm 8/27-29

Bel Air Camera

10925 Kinross Ave

Los Angeles (Westwood Village), CA 90024

800-200-4999 - 310-208-5150

Wednesday seminars Bel Air camera

2pm Welcome filmmakers!

3pm Joe Sutton: Legendary publicist/Talent manager www.heartofhollywood.com, "Bridging the Gap Between Artist and Executive",

4pm John Stecenko: Director/DP "Legend Of Bloody Mary", "HD vs. Film" which Cameras to use he has been using HD since it first came out, and has worked on over 50 films as Director, DP, 1st AD, and Gaffer!

Thursday seminars Bel Air camera 2-5pm

2pm Eric L. Haney: Exec. Prod. "The Unit" former Delta Force Founding member, "From Real life to TV Life

3pm Vince DiPersio: 3 time Oscar Nominated Documentary Filmmaker!!

4pm Russ Woody: Emmy Award winning writer , "Murphy Brown", and "Becker". "Writing a

Successful Sitcom"

Friday seminars 2-5pm

2pm Alon Bar & Nancy Sexton Screenwriters "Write Your Film"

3-5pm Panelist of talent agents and managers, and other special guests! we'll be adding.

Caron Feldman: Talent Manager/Producer,

Posted by Bob Strauss at 11:58 AM | Comments (0)

Here's the official announcement:

IDA ANNOUNCES SELECTIONS FOR DOCUWEEK
THEATRICAL DOCUMENTARY SHOWCASE QUALIFIES 18 FEATURES/4 SHORTS FOR OSCAR CONSIDERATION
THE ARCLIGHT CINEMAS (HOLLYWOOD AND SHERMAN OAKS) AUG 22-28

From musicians to matadors; water to war; Kashmir to South Los Angeles, the International Documentary Association (IDA) holds a mirror up to all the corners of the world, featuring 14 documentaries in its acclaimed DocuWeek, this year for the first time at both Arclight Theatres Hollywood and Arclight Sherman Oaks. Filmmakers like Terence Davies, Scott Hicks, Ellen Kuras and Stacey Peralta are featured in the expansive lineup. Subjects include composer Phillip Glass, child soldiers, the quest to become the top-ranked matador, a history of gangs in South LA, photographer Eddie Adams, and the challenges of marathon running.

"Heartbreaking and celebratory, angry and contemplative, this year's DocuWeek films represent a wide and powerful range of human experience and emotion," says IDA Interim Executive Director Eddie Schmidt. "We're proud to present these compelling and well-made films that truly define the world we're living in - whether it's our own backyard, a distant time and place, or a state of mind."

DocuWeek was developed to give deserving filmmakers an opportunity to qualify for Oscar consideration by providing theatrical platforms where their films can be seen. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences' rules require doucmentary features to be exhibited on theatrical screens for paid admissions in Los Angeles County and Manhattan, twice daily for seven consecutive days. DocuWeek Los Angeles will be held August 22-28.

Since its inception, 25 films featured in DocuWeek have gone on to be nominated for Academy Awards, with six films winning Oscars, including the 2008 Feature Documentary winner, TAXI TO THE DARKSIDE.

Features appearing in this year's Los Angeles DocuWeek are: THE BETRAYAL (NERAKHOON), DEAR ZACHARY: A LETTER TO A SON ABOUT HIS FATHER, FIRE UNDER THE SNOW, FLOW, THE FORGOTTEN WOMAN, GLASS: A PORTRAIT IN TWELVE PARTS, MADE IN AMERICA, THE MATADOR, MEMORY BOOKS, OF TIME AND THE CITY, ONE BAD CAT: THE REVEREND ALBERT WAGNER STORY, PRAY THE DEVIL BACK TO HELL, PROJECT KASHMIR, SPIRIT OF THE MARATHON, WAR CHILD, AN UNLIKELY WEAPON, THE WRECKING CREW and YODOK STORIES.

DocuWeek will also feature the short films (40 minutes or less) BAGHDAD TWIST, CARISSA, KICK LIKE A GIRL, and SMILE PINKI.

A complete schedule is available at the IDA website at:
http://www.documentary.org/

Tickets can be purchased online for ALL Los Angeles DocuWeek Theatrical showcase screenings online at (PLEASE NOTE SCREENING LOCATIONS PRIOR TO PURCHASING TICKETS): https://www.arclightcinemas.com/ArcLight/faces/SpecialProgramming.jsp?eventCode=IDA&pageInfo=Home-Page

Posted by Bob Strauss at 11:09 AM | Comments (0)

But please, only apply if you actually have a GOOD one. I may have to watch some of these things.

Here's the official call for entries:

11th Annual Method FEST SEEKS STRONG ACTING FILMS

• Indie fest slated for March 26 - April 2, 2009

The 11th annual The Method Fest independent film festival,
scheduled for March 26 - April 2, 2009 in Calabasas, is looking for
character and story-driven films featuring strong acting performances.

The Method Fest features American and foreign feature films and short
films and is named after "The Method" school of acting, which
revolutionized the approach in acting, particularly in film.

Deadlines for film submissions for the 11th annual The Method Fest
are: Early Bird: October 1, 2008; Early Deadline: December 1, 2008;
Late Entry: January 31, 2009 (all postmarked).

Entry fees are: $40 Early Bird entry ; $50 Regular entry; $60 Late
entry, for features; $30 Early Bird entry; $35 Regular entry; $45
Late entry for short films; student entries are $20 Early Bird entry;
$25 Regular and Late Entry. Screen formats accepted are 35 mm,
DigiBetaCam and HDCam. For film submission information call (310)
535-9230 or visit the festival web site at www.methodfest.com
Filmmakers are encouraged to register through www.withoutabox.com

The Method Fest takes great pride in being a discovery festival,
looking to help launch the works of young fresh filmmakers and to
discover breakthrough performances by young, bold new actors. More
than 100 films that have premiered or played at The Method Fest have
received distribution.

The Method Fest has also taken great delight in sharing career-
defining performances of established performers and in showcasing a
few chosen well-known directors to screen at the festival. "We've
prided ourselves on not just following other festivals' lineups. We
screen world premieres and true discoveries, mixed with a few larger
films, " said Don Franken, executive director of the Method Fest.

A variety of other activities will complement the Method
Fest screenings - filmmaking seminars, daily/nightly parties and
receptions, industry events, a variety of Indie Music events,
Lifetime Achievement Tribute, and the Awards Ceremony. The Method
fest's Youth Outreach program include a short film and screenplay
competition for middle school and high school students.

The Method Fest is sponsored by the City of Calabasas and presenting
media partners, Time Warner Cable, Charter Communications and the
L.A. Daily News / LA.com. Lead sponsors include Corona, Prudential
California Realty, the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley /
Valley of the Stars, Sony, Christie, JetBlue, Country Inn & Suites by
Carlson, Modern VideoFilm, FilmFinders, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Final
Draft, Red Bull, Bernards, and Barefoot Winery

Posted by Bob Strauss at 1:18 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Simon Pegg remembers being at Comic-Con four years ago to promote "Shaun of the Dead." As he was walking around San Diego's downtown Gaslamp District in search of a good cup of coffee, he spied two people wearing t-shirts featuring characters from his BBC television series "Spaced."

"It was astonishing to see people wearing Tim and Daisy t-shirts for a show that had only been seen on American cable at odd hours of the morning," Pegg says. "I couldn't believe anyone knew it here."

The series, broadcast in two seven-episode seasons in 1999 and 2001, finally came out on DVD this week in North America.

It's currently No. 2 on Amazon.

"Spaced" was written by and starred Pegg and Jessica Hynes and was directed by Edgar Wright. Pegg and Wright went on to make two of this decade's funniest and smartest movie comedies - "Shaun of the Dead" and "Hot Fuzz."

"Spaced" sported surreal comedy and a distinct cinematic style. Wright shot it with a single camera and pulled off spot-on tributes to movies like "Pulp Fiction" and "The Matrix."

The three-DVD set includes all 14 episodes, the original commentaries taped for the UK DVD release and all-new commentaries featuring "Spaced" fans Quentin Tarantino, Kevin Smith, Matt Stone, Bill Hader, Patton Oswalt and Diablo Cody.

"Watching 'Spaced' is like watching a Kevin Smith movie if Kevin Smith had any talent," Smith said in a statement both self-deprecating and unfortunately true.

Pegg says he would have liked to have done a third season, but considers the prospect unlikely now because of the cast's age and success. He rejects the idea that "Spaced," like Ricky Gervais' "The Office," remains special because of it put quality over quantity.

"I think Ricky should have done another series of 'The Office," Pegg says. "I think it's silly to abide by this 'Fawlty Towers' thing. 'Fawlty Towers' didn't do enough. It's all very cool. But it feels self-consciously cool to only do 12 episodes."

Wright respectfully disagrees.

"The flip side is that we did 14 episodes with a very small team and as such they are very handcrafted," Wright says. "They are very personal."

Which, Hynes says, was why there wasn't a third season of "Spaced."

"In America, there's a huge industry brought up around TV and film production," Hynes says. "If a show's successful, they will support you and pay you. Incredible as it may sound, there were four people who made 'Spaced' pretty much. And that wasn't enough. We didn't have great budgets. Ultimately it led to the demise of the show."

"Me and Simon wrote it all and that's a big workload," Hynes continues. "In America there would be writing teams, show runners. And Edgar filmed ambitiously. Thinking about what we went through physically, the strain, to contemplate that again seems overwhelming."

"Well," Pegg adds. "We were younger then, weren't we?"

The DVD's bonus features, including the twin sets of commentaries, sport a longer running time than the episodes themselves.

"There are only 14 episodes so we feel kind of guilty that we have to service the fans with an enormous amount of content," Pegg says with a laugh. "There's a doc about the show that's almost as long as the first series."

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 8:29 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Highlights from the Univeral Pictures Comic-Con panel, in descending order of interest:

1) The crowd gave its hearty approval to Sam Raimi's return to his horror roots and with good reason. The two clips Raimi showed from "Drag Me To Hell," due next year, were both hilarious and freaky frightening, just what you'd expect from the guy behind the "Evil Dead" movies.

Raimi said that post-"Spider Man," he was looking to return to a "good, simple campfire story." In this case, the tale revolves around a young woman who, trying to get in good with her boss, rejects an old woman's loan application, resulting in an unfortunate eviction.

"She picked the wrong woman to throw out of the house," Raimi said in an understatement.

Raimi then showed a scene, rather remarkable for a movie shooting for a PG-13 rating, in which the old hag confronts the bank woman (played by Alison Lohman) in an underground parking garage. There's some creative use of office supplies and also a rather alarming incident involving the loss of dentures.

The trailer mentioned the need for a blood sacrifice, hinting that a pet cat might be involved.

"No kittens were harmed in the making of this movie," Raimi assured. "The effects team made a great live and dead kitty. Oh, and there was a great, post-digested kitty, too."

2) Universal is remaking Roger Corman's "Death Race 2000" with Jason Statham playing an inmate forced to participate in a brutal car race. Statham came to Comic-Con to plug the movie (on his birthday, no less), along with co-stars Tyrese Gibson, Ian McShane and Joan Allen.

"It's a NASCAR movie set in prison in the future and Joan Allen says f***," McShane explained. "What more do you want?"

Indeed, casting Allen as the evil prison warden feels like a stroke of genius.

"I was surprised to be sent the script," Allen says. "Surprised, but pleased."

To which Gibson, seated next to her, said: "Well, I loved you in 'The Notebook.' "

3) Brad Silberling didn't have any clips to offer from next summer's remake of "Land of the Lost," but he did have a couple of taped offerings from its star Will Ferrell.

In one, Ferrell, making like Steve Martin in his Wild and Crazy Guy days, strummed a banjo while warbling the catchy lyrics to the theme song from the Seventies Saturday morning show.

Ferrell was later seen on Hall H's jumbo TV screens in what was jokingly billed as a live feed from San Diego's Hotel Del Coronado. But the "audio link" wasn't so good, so Ferrell's reactions were always out-of-sync with what was happening with the panel.

Like most of Ferrell's recent comedy output, it was all decidedly hit-and-miss.

Funnier was co-star Danny McBride revealing he was a big fan of the show as a kid and then later it college, but "for different reasons."

There were also sleestaks and an appearance from the show's creators, Sid and Marty Krofft, who revealed that there may well be a big-screen version of "H.R. Pufnstuf."

I'd be fine with that, provided Sam Raimi directs.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 12:12 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Here's the plot of a movie teased at Comic-Con:

A 73-year-old, prune-loving, old-timer named Carl loses his beloved wife, Ellie. Carl now is about to get evicted from his house, so a developer can bulldoze it. Next stop for Carl: An old-folks home.

Just as this is about to happen, Carl ties a bunch of balloons to the chimney of the house, breaking it free from its foundation. He sets sail in this makeshift airship to Venezuela to glimpse what he and his wife had always dreamed of seeing - Angel Falls, the world's tallest waterfall.

Not really a Comic-Con movie, is it?

But I feel safe in guaranteeing that out of all the movies teased and promoted here this week, "Up," will be the best.

Why?

It's from Pixar Animation.

And its director, Pete Docter, who has been with Pixar from the beginning and worked on movies like "Toy Story," "Monsters, Inc." and "Finding Nemo," calls it the "highlight" of his career.

That's coming from a guy with a lot of obvious highlights.

Docter screened the trailer and a partly finished, five-minute scene from "Up," which will be in theaters May 29, 2009.

The footage was amazing, and just like "Wall-E," completely different from anything Pixar has ever produced. Docter says he was inspired by seeing film of the Tepui tabletop mountains in South America, an otherworldly place with "weird rock shapes" and "mysterious plants" that few people on the planet have ever visited.

Seeing that led to the setting of "Up." The character of Carl (voiced by Edward Asner) was inspired by Docter's encounters with Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, members of Disney's famed Nine Old Men responsible for much of the studio's classic film work.

"Old people have such great stories to tell," Docter says. "This is really an homage to our grandparents."

My favorite moment from the Q&A that followed came when some guy from a Disney fansite asked Docter to define "Up." His rationale: It's hard to describe Pixar movies in a way that gets people excited. (In other words: Who wants to see a movie about a rat in a kitchen, right?)

Here then is Docter's description of "Up": "Pixar takes you to a lost world. It's a love story. And it's a Pixar movie."

Really - what more do you need to know?

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 6:21 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Disney's "Bolt" is about a cute, white German shepherd who stars on an action TV show and, by extension, believes he has "Six Million Dollar Man"-like super powers.

It's the first movie from Disney Animation since Pixar's John Lasseter was brought in to oversee the company. Lasseter took a hammer to the original version of "Bolt," replacing writer-director Chris Sanders when he resisted his story suggestions.

Sanders was replaced by Chris Williams and Byron Howard, who were at Comic-Con Saturday with about 20 minutes of "Bolt" footage.

The film looks like it could be fun. The dog's cute and so is its master, an intrepid little girl who's also his co-star on the television show. An elaborate chase sequence, showing Bolt suspending a car off a bridge using only its teeth and busting through cement walls, was fantastic.

That clip was followed by a comic scene showcasing Bolt's feline co-stars, who are aware that the TV show isn't real and that Bolt is in fact delusional. Bolt, though, remains adamant that he must protect his adorable girl master at all costs from dangers he believes always exist around the corner.

Two other cool bits: Bolt has a show-stealing Hamster sidekick named Rhino who travels around in one of those plastic exercise domes. (It fogs up when Rhino gets excited - which he often does.) And Bolt believes that Styrofoam is his Kryptonite, which results in all kinds of problems.

"Bolt," due Thanksgiving weekend, could be the movie to put Disney Animation back on the map.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 5:58 PM | Comments (0)

Arriving Christmas day this year like a present from Santa Geek is Frank Miller's "The Spirit," a heavily stylized adaptation of Will Eisner's 1940s newspaper strip about a masked crime-fighter who has a way with the ladies.

Eisner's name is big among hard-core comic nerds, and Miller's rep is solid thanks to movies like "Sin City" and his writing work on the "Daredevil" and "Dark Knight" comics.

Miller is using the same digital background photography he employed on "Sin City," a technique that pleases comic fans and distances just about everyone else. He showed three clips from the movie Friday at Comic-Con, including one featuring Eva Mendes, wearing a form-fitting wetsuit, engaging in an underwater gun battle.

Sam Jackson joined the fun at the panel, walking on the stage and standing on a chair to reveal the inscription on his black t-shirt: "Badmofokos." (Since it's misspelled, it's OK to print.)

Jackson talked about Miller's continual quest to find bigger guns for him to use, which proved to be an effective weight-loss technique for the actor.

He spoke of his favorite action figure made in his likeness: "Mace Windu because I've got so many of them in all kinds of forms and sizes. I've even got little wind-up ones walking across my desk."

Jackson also waxed appreciative of the Gestapo uniform he got to wear in "The Spirit": "That was so awesome. Kind of like (Iron Man character) Nick Fury became black, I became a black skinhead."

And you look smart in that outfit, producer Deborah Del Prete said.

"Yeah," Jackson replied. "I'm hot in that."

We'll be waiting for the action figure.

---

Photo of Samuel L. Jackson at Comic Con by Denis Poroy/Associated Press.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 6:15 PM | Comments (0)

Best lines from the "Watchmen" Comic-Con Q&A session on Friday:

To Billy Crudup, playing the very blue, very godlike Doctor Manhattan:

Q: Was the rest of the Blue Man group jealous?

Crudup: I don't know. We're not on speaking terms.

Q: What about getting in shape for the film?

Crudup: There was a lot of fitness. I had to get in shape, changing my molecules and all that. That stuff, they don't teach you in drama school.

Patrick Wilson on playing the retired vigilante Nite Owl:

"It was pretty cool. When everyone else had to get ripped, I could sit back with a quart of Haagen-Dazs and a couple of beers. That was OK."

Jackie Earle Haley, on how Comic-Con fans influenced his portrayal of Rorschach:

"There's a lot to Rorschach. I studied the script. I studied the book. I had long conversations with (director) Zack (Snyder) about his multiplicity, what he's about. And actually I spent a lot of time on the websites and blogs, so I learned a lot about him from you guys. It was all really empowering when I got into the outfit."

Zack Snyder, answering a query from a man dressed as Batman, on his favorite "Watchmen" character:

"Good question, Batman. I like them all for different reasons. How's that?"

Snyder is showered with boos from the 6,500 fans stuffed in the auditorium.

"OK," Snyder offered. "Everyone likes Rorschach the best, so that rules him out. And everyone likes The Comedian because he's a badass and morally ... you know. Also the girls ... awesome, but that's a copout. It seems obvious."

Pause. "OK. I'm gonna say the girls. I like the girls best."

Someone from the audiences screams, "Copout!"

Snyder: "Thanks a lot Batman."

---

Photos of Carla Gugino and Malin Akerman (top) and Billy Crudup (above left) at Comic Con from the Associated Press.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 5:50 PM | Comments (1)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Figuring most everyone at Comic-Con has already seen the "Watchmen" trailer since it was shown before multiplex showings of "The Dark Night," director Zack Snyder cut together three and a half minutes of footage that he said highlighted the "non-PG aspects of the movie."

"Watchmen" is dark. During the Q&A portion of Friday's panel presentation, one fan asked Snyder if he had tried to balance out the nihilistic spirit of the film's graphic novel source material.

"Why would we want to do that?" Snyder replied good-naturedly. "I mean, we never sat and thought, 'Oh, this movie is going down a dark path. People are going to slit their wrists in the movie theater.'

" 'Saw' is dark because people get their arms sawed off," Snyder continued. "Well, people get their arms sawed off in our movie, too. But for a MORAL CAUSE. To teach a lesson!"

The wordless footage, scored partly to what sounded like Phillip Glass and featuring many images already revealed in the trailer, covered the bases, introducing each of the superheroes and their dilemmas, ending with Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Comedian being thrown through a plate-glass window of a high rise.

As the glass shattered and the Comedian fell, we saw the iconic, blood-stained "Watchmen" smiley-face button, dropping to the ground with him.

The panel featured Snyder and artist Dave Gibbons, who collaborated with Alan Moore on the novel. When asked if Moore, who has disavowed the movie and his profit share in the movie (just as he has most every other film adaptation of his work), could ever be brought on board, Gibbons laughed.

"I see there is an elephant in the room," Gibbons said. "I wish that Alan could feel the same kind of joy I'm feeling now. I wish he hadn't had such a bad experience in the past."

Also on hand were cast members Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Goode and Carla Gugino.

Recognizable names, yes. But not necessarily recognizable faces, which was the point of the casting process.

"If it had been say, Jude Law, playing (MG's character), it would have taken you out of it," Snyder says. "When people see it, they'll say that world. Not: That's not some actor dressed up like a guy. It happened on '300' too. No one knew those guys. It was just '300.' "

For Synder, it's all about the source material, which he referred to constantly as "the bible."

"People are asking me if the movie is going to comment on modern times and today's mass culture," Snyder told me yesterday. "It's not. The comic asks a lot of moral questions, but you've got to answer them yourself. That's the beauty of it."

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 2:58 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Benicio Del Toro has his fans among the Comic-Con faithful, but you wouldn't go so far to call him a Comic-Con kind of guy.

Sleepy-eyed, chewing gum and unshaven, Del Toro ambled on stage Friday to promote next summer's "Wolfman," a classic horror remake of the famed Universal Pictures franchise. He made a point to mention he was paid well for the movie and that he was "still being paid."

Del Toro's enthusiasm for the Wolfman franchise was considerably greater.

"It goes all the way back to Lon Chaney, Jr.," Del Toro said. "I loved those movies. My manager saw I had a poster of the original 'Wolfman' in my house and he said, 'I'm going to Universal and talk to them.' "

Del Toro and co-star Emily Blunt joined make-up genius Rick Baker Friday at a panel presentation. They unveiled a trailer that included silver bullets, dark woods, lots of blood and brains and guts and a shot of hands turning into hairy claws.

Anthony Hopkins, playing Del Toro's father in the movie, sees his son covered in blood and says with appreciation: "You've done terrible things."

The Wolfman's look is all makeup. No CG.

"That's the best approach," Baker said. "There's a magic that happens when you get a really good actor in that Wolfman makeup. It's called the 'Wolfman.' It's an old-fashioned gothic horror film so this was the right way to do this."

Baker turned to Del Toro: "And I can make a man look like a Wolfman just fine -- especially someone like that."

Blunt's makeup required considerably less effort. As did the role itself.

"I thought: I can run. I can scream. I can even run and scream wearing a corset," Blunt said. "I liked the idea of being a damsel in distress."

Blunt also got off the best line of the brief, half-hour panel. Twin guys, each wearing the same brown "Family Guy" t-shirt, making them look like some kind of freaky, two-headed creature, approached the mike and asked Del Toro about working with Blunt.

Blunt then had a question for them.

"What are your names?" she purred. "And what are you doing later?"

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 2:44 PM | Comments (0)

Today's big deal is the noontime panel for "Watchmen," Zack Snyder's movie adaptation of the graphic novel generally accepted as the holy text among comic book fans.

Snyder will be screening three and a half minutes of special footage, and I'll file my impressions this afternoon, as well as quotes from him and the movie's cast of (mostly) unknowns.

But I did hang with Snyder a bit yesterday in the middle of the densely populated exhibit hall, where tens of thousands of fans hunt for limited edition Ugly Dolls and mint vintage comics.

Snyder was holed up on the second floor of the Warner Bros. exhibit area, his presence unknown to those roaming the floor. Unlike a lot of Hollywood types hawking their wares here, Snyder actually digs coming to Comic-Con. He'd like to be out there on the floor, hunting for the latest breakout pop culture totem.

Instead, he's talking to people like me.

The great thing about Snyder is he brings a genuine, boyish, Mountain Dew-fueled enthusiasm to his work (and conversation) as well as the actual know-how to pull his ideas off.

This separates him from somebody like McG, who will be here Saturday explaining just what he's doing to the "Terminator" franchise.

Snyder has long said he didn't think "Watchmen" lent itself to a movie. But he knew Warner Bros. was going to make it - whether or not he directed it. So he felt a responsibility to the Alan Moore / Dave Gibbons graphic novel, a comic that revolutionized the field with its sharp deconstruction of the superhero genre.

"Them offering it to me presented a responsibility," Snyder said. "If they had never presented it to me, I could have washed my hands. But the fact that they said, 'Do you want to do it?' If I had said no and for whatever reason it didn't work, I would have felt like it was my fault no matter what."

Like, I asked him, if McG had made the movie.

"McG is a nice guy," Snyder said, laughing. "No. Somebody could have made a better movie than I did. I don't know. Even if they did, I'd still feel like I betrayed it a little bit. Like a child. 'Hey, do you want to take care of this kid?' 'No. No. he'll be fine on the streets.' You've got to do it. You can't say no."

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 8:38 AM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Friday is guaranteed to be a better day at Comic-Con because, if for no other reason, there probably won't be a big rig overturning, catching fire and shutting down Interstate 5 in the early morning hours, turning a drive from LA to San Diego into a seven-hour endurance marathon.

Ask Dakota Fanning.

Fanning was supposed to take part in an afternoon panel for "Push," a psychological horror movie in which she plays a "special person" hunted for her psychic abilities.

When the presentation began at 2 p.m., Chris Evans and Camilla Belle and Djimon Hounsou took the stage with director Paul McGuigan. But no Dakota.

About 90 minutes later, a moderator brought little Dakota (now 14, not quite so little any more) out on stage.

"I'm sorry!" she said, waving to the crowd. "I was in my car ... for seven hours!"

Fans did get to see a clip of Fanning in action. She and Chris Evans were in an outdoor Hong Kong market, being chased by bad mind-readers capable of delivering a high-pitched wail that shatters glass and eardrums.

The screeching sound seemed straight from Godzilla's C-movie cousin, Mothra.

That or the sound of a thousand teen-aged girl "Twilight" fans, driven to delirium at the sight of Robert Pattinson running his hands through his hair.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 8:18 AM | Comments (0)

Marketing execs at 20th Century Fox are betting the house on three words - Klaatu barada nikto - when it comes to selling their remake of Robert Wise's sci-fi touchstone "The Day the Earth Stood Still."

Comic-Con attendees were given black t-shirts bearing the famous phrase from Wise's Cold War-era movie. Then, when the lights went dark in Hall H, the screens were filled with several seconds of white noise before a familiar voice could be heard uttering ... Klaatu ... barada ... nikto.

Nobody knows exactly what the words mean, so it's probably perfect that they were being said by Keanu Reeves. Reeves, a figure loved by most and hated by some in Comic-Con circles, is playing Klaatu, an alien who travels to earth bearing a dire warning.

Shape up or risk alien obliteration.

It's perfect casting: Reeves, so often seen in movies struggling to make sense of the world (whether it should be an effort or not), playing an alien trying to understand both the humanoid body he has temporarily inhabited as well as the human race itself.

"He is trapped in this human body," Reeves said. "It's a containment, a compression. That's how I tried to play it. In the original, the character was a little more warm and fuzzy, more human than human."

Reeves paused for effect.

"I'm not that guy."

Director Scott Derrickson said "Day" was ripe for a remake as it's the kind of movie that lends itself to different issues that speak to different eras. In 1951, it was nuclear peril. Now, it's environmental implosion.

The clips Derrickson showed sported a more bad-ass Klaatu, with Reeves' alien flipping the switch on a lie-detector test and eerily rendering his captors powerless.

"In some ways, it's the story of an alien becoming human and understanding what makes humans worth saving," Derrickson said. "It's such a good story. And I'm surprised how few people have actually seen the first movie. I hope people go back to it after seeing ours."

---

Caption (both photos): Actor Keanu Reeves, left, and actress Jennifer Connelly, right, during an interview to promote their new movie "The Day the Earth Stood Still" at the Comic-Con 2008 convention Thursday, July 24, 2008 in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 11:24 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Call it a new trend of Comic-Con

Gerard Butler ("Gerry" to his friends), had just finished answering a question about his new crime thriller "Rocknrolla" and there was a silence in Hall H ... which was soon filled when a woman bellowed to Butler: "Take it off!"

This command - made repeatedly throughout Thursday's "Rocknrolla" panel --follows the shout-outs earlier in the afternoon during the "Twilight" presentation, which featured various begs, screams and shouts from a rabid female fan base, mostly directed toward young star Robert Pattinson.

The "take it off" directive was actually more interesting than anything said or seen during the "Rocknrolla" presentation, which featured Butler, director Guy Ritchie and actors Jeremy Piven and Chris Bridges.

Ritchie called the film a "spillover" from "Snatch" and "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels." Is a "spillover" the same as a leftover? This does not sound promising.

It takes awhile, but someone from the audience mentions - in a good way -- the movies that Ritchie has made in the eight years since "Snatch"? (That would be "Swept Away" with wife Madonna and "Revolver.")

Q: "Was there pressure to go back to films that were as successful as the first two?"

Ritchie: "Yup."

As for the trailer, which made its debut at Comic-Con, it sports a bunch of mooks, young and old, shooting guns, crashing cars and repeating the word "rocknrolla" over and over again.

To Butler, this "defines cool."

It certainly feels like old times for Ritchie. We'll see if he can recapture a bit of the magic when the movie arrives in October.

One funny moment came when Piven, whose HBO series "Entourage" famously featured an episode set at Comic-Con, was asked how reality of the event compared with television.

"I'm in awe of all of you," Piven says. "And I would like to celebrate each and every one of you."

An audience member immediately yelled for Piven to toss out some of the chocolate candies Butler had been throwing into the audience.

"I have no more chocolate left," Piven said. "But I will be taking my shirt off."

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 10:18 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Joel Silver has mellowed over the years, and when I've encountered him lately, he seems like a nice enough guy. The legendary screaming seems to have tapered off.

But the man's movies of late aren't exactly generating a lot of whoops and hollers from the Comic-Con crowd.

Silver returned to Comic-Con Thursday, selling the latest slate from his Dark Castle brand. First up: "Ninja Assassin," a movie whose title speaks for itself. It stars Korean pop singer Rain, also seen earlier this summer in Silver's "Speed Racer."

Silver introduced a "Ninja Assassin" clip. "It's really out there," he said. The footage Silver showed featured lots of fire and people hitting each other with sticks and fists and a fair amount of stylized blood geysers in the vein of "300."

Yawn. The teen girls in Hall H didn't seem to care about the quality - or the movie. They just wanted to express their undying affection for the one known as Rain

Sample: "Hi. This question is for Rain. I love you Rain! Just wondering how you prepared for this role of Ninja Assassin."

Rain, who has shiny hair and a bright smile but not the most exacting command of the English language, responded: "I always dreamed about being an action star. Finally I made it. Please wait for 'Ninja Assassin.' Thank you."

Here's a guess: There will not be much Rain-related dialogue in "Ninja Assassin."

Sample question No. 2: Does Rain hope to conquer America as he has South Korea?

"I love America. Here ... is a lot of girl. That's it. I'm just kidding, you know. Thank you."

What's up next for Rain, one fan wondered. A musical, maybe? A romantic-comedy? (Suggestion: A silent film.)

Rain: "I think it's going to be huge. Really. My first girlfriend was sword. My second was ninja chain. I think it's going to be really successful."

Thank you.

Posted by Glenn Whipp at 9:52 PM | Comments (0)

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

The women - packs of teens, many of whom had their mothers in tow -
began lining up outside the San Diego Convention Center last night at
8 p.m. They carried pillows and blankets. Some had sleeping bags.
They were all there for one reason - "Twilight."

Stephenie Meyer's series of vampire novels have attracted a cult
following unknown to most Americans. But they made their voices heard
loud and clear Thursday inside Hall H. Their numbers, which had grown
to several hundred campers by midnight Wednesday, dominated the day's
Comic-Con presentations.

And when "Twilight" cast and crew disappeared, so did the women.
Probably to hunt for Robert Pattinson, who plays the vampire boy toy, so they could tell them, just one more time, that they love him.

Stars Pattinson and Kristen Stewart were on hand Thursday, along with Taylor Lautner, Cam Gigandet, Rachelle Lefevre, director Catherine Hardwicke and author Meyer to answer questions and show a clip from the film, which opens Dec. 12.

The movie, based on the first book in Meyer's series, is essentially a Romeo and Juliet love story about a mortal teen named Bella (Stewart) and a vampire stud, Edward (Pattinson), who fall deeply in love.

When Stewart admitted that she hadn't heard of the book before she was sent the screenplay, there was an audible gasp from the thousands of fans close to the stage.

When those fans were given the chance to ask the cast their own questions, the first one out of the gate pretty much set the tone for the afternoon:

"Um ... I just want to ask how it is to portray superhot vampires in the movie," a teen girl queried.

It was revealed Pattinson would sing a song on the soundtrack. It was also revealed that Pattinson had a hard time forming a complete sentence, though you could forgive the 22-year-old Brit because of the decibel level in the hall.

The typical exchange went something like this:

Nervous teen girl: "What's your favorite Edward/Bella moment?"

Pattinson: "Umm ... (Shout from audience: "WE LOVE YOU ROBERT!!!") my
favorite mmmoooom ... ("WE LOVE YOU ROBERT!!!!") ... maybe ... ah ... (ROBERT
... WE LOVE YOU!!!") how about a little scene I did where ... ("YOU'RE THE GREATEST ROBERT!!!") ... I tried to intimate her and she's not scared at all."

Some questioners were shy. Others were not. One teen asked Pattinson: "How does it feel to be one of the most wanted guys in America ... because I WANT YOU, BABY!"

Another woman, one of many sporting black TwlightMoms.com t-shirts, asked of the male cast members: "Is it boxers or briefs or nothing?!?"

There was the occasional nugget about, you know, the movie itself. And the clip, featuring evil vampire James battling Edward over dear, sweet Bella, got the kind of reception usually afforded rock stars and/or natural disasters - lots and lots of high-pitched wailing.

The most telling moment may have come at the end when someone asked who would top the box-office the weekend of Dec. 12 - "Twilight" or Fox's "The Day the Earth Stood Still."

Short answer: Don't look for a lot of teen girls at "Day" in December.

"Twilight" is going to be a monster.

Posted by Robert Lowman at 4:35 PM | Comments (1)

PHOTO GALLERY: Comic Con: Day 1

Before Comic Con got under way, Glenn Whipp — who's covering the event for the Daily News — wrote this piece about the event:

Comic Con: Where movie buzz is born

By Glenn Whipp, Film Writer

Freaks-and-geeks fest Comic-Con opens its doors Thursday at the San Diego Convention Center, and Hollywood studios are ready for what has become an annual sales job.

Jon Favreau remembers taking the trip to the four-day fest last year to present an early look at "Iron Man." Favreau's energetic meet-and-greet, supported by an appearance from a clearly enthusiastic Robert Downey Jr., generated great buzz among fans, which carried over to the movie's breakout performance at the box office this year.

"I can't say I was looking forward to going to Comic-Con," Favreau says. "I was nervous. This is the core audience of the movie. I thought they'd like it, but until you hear the response, you never know."

Scott Derrickson, director of the upcoming remake of "The Day the Earth Stood Still," knows the feeling.

"I think having the trailer out for the movie broke the ice for some people," says Derrickson, who will be attending Comic-Con with Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly. "They know we're not delivering the 'Lost in Space' version of 'The Day the Earth Stood Still.' "

Among the highlights this year at Comic-Con:

"Watchmen": Zack Snyder, the dude (and there really is no better word to describe this guy) behind "300," brings the revered graphic novel to the big screen. For this crowd, there is no more anticipated movie than this. The core question: Can Snyder make a movie that comments on superhero movies in the fashion that the Moore/Gibbons serial commented on comics?

"Pineapple Express": This stoner action comedy stars Seth Rogen and James Franco and comes from the folks behind last year's Comic-Con comedy sensation, "Superbad."

"Terminator Salvation": McG is directing this sequel focusing on the adult John Connor trying to stave off the annihilation of mankind.

McG will be greeted with skepticism. The presence of Christian Bale, playing Connor, will stave off some of the hate, particularly given all the adulation for "The Dark Knight."

"Drag Me to Hell": Sam Raimi returns to his horror roots. But he won't be going all the way ba