West
Virginia International Film festival 19th ANNUAL SPRING FILM FESTIVAL
April 29 - May 2, 2003
WVSC
Capitol Center Theater 123 Summers Street, Charleston
GENERAL CONTACT INFORMATION
Festival
Telephone: 304-342-7100
Theater Box Office Telephone: 304-342-6522
Festival Email: wviff@aol.com
Festival website: www.wviff.org
Festival Mailing Address: P.O. Box 2165, Charleston, WV 25328
ADMISSION
PRICES $7.00 single admission per evening film $4.50 single admission per matinee
film $30.00 Six-Ticket Package (6 single admission tickets) $50.00 Festival
Package (12 single admission tickets)
Festival Package and Six-Ticket Package go on sale April 26.
Single admission tickets go on sale April 19.
TO PURCHASE
ADVANCE TICKETS: You may purchase in advance only the Festival Package and Six-Ticket
Package by stopping by the Theater Box Office (123 Summers Street, telephone
304-342-6522) during regular business hours on or after April 26. NOTE, you
should call the theater prior to arrival to confirm personnel is on site. We
accept checks as well as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and Diner's
Club.
NOTE:
Film schedule, times may change without notice. WVIFF reserves the right to
hold an event which may require purchase of a separate ticket. WVIFF reserves
the right to screen short films before feature films, which will be included
with the price of admission to the subsequent feature film.
ACCESSIBILITY
INFORMATION: Wheelchair seating, accessible restroom, and water fountain available
on first level of theater. For speech/hearing impaired, call WV Relay, 711-342-6522.
Upon 4 days' advance notice, the WVIFF can make available the following special
needs and services requests: large-print program and/or audio description of
each film program and interpreter and/or device for hearing and visually impaired
patrons.
FILM SCHEDULE
Thursday, Apr. 29
6:30 p.m. Burning Annie
Featuring
Director Van Flesher sponsored by the West Virginia Film Office Comedy (USA)
Starring:
Gary Lundy, Sara Downing, Kim Murphy Zandell Directed by Van Flesher Not rated
- 95 min
http://burningannie.com/
Max is
a college student whose universe is defined by the "cautionary tale"
of Annie Hall, a guy who only reaches out to the world through a radio show
that he prays nobody listens to. "Burning Annie" is a humorous slice
of college life, filled with authentic characters and moments sure to strike
a chord. It is an up-close look at the fallout of our media-saturated society,
a love story for the post-existential generations, and a wise-beyond-its-hero's-years
study of human interaction that delivers poignancy and laughs to spare.
9:00
p.m. The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara
Oscar Winner for Best Documentary Feature Documentary by Errol Morris Not rated
- 107 minutes
http://sonyclassics.com/fogofwar/
Documentary
expert Errol Morris directs "The Fog of War", a captivating look at
Robert S. McNamara, who servedas the Secretary of Defense during the Vietnam
War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. The movie does not exclusively focus on this
part of McNamara's career, however, and instead gives a broad overview of the
man he was, his multitude of roles -- a Harvard Business School graduate, a
Colonel in the Air Force during WWII, president of Ford Motor Company -- and
his opinions on a variety of historical topics. Inspired by two books written
by McNamara, Morris gives McNamara a forum to talk about the decisions he made
and the influence he had during his career.
Friday, Apr. 30
6:30
p.m. Vozvrashcheniye (The Return)
Drama
(Russia) Starring: Vladimir Garin, Ivan Dobronravov, Konstantin Lavronenko Directed
by Andrei Zvyagintsev
Not rated - 105 min
http://kino.com/thereturn/mainframe.html
In contemporary
Russia young brothers Vanya and Andrey have grown a deep attachment to each
other to make up for their fatherless childhood. Running home after a fight
with neighborhood kids the boys are shocked to discover their father has returned
after a 12-year absence. With their mother's uneasy blessing Vanya and Andrey
set out on what they believe will be a fishing vacation with their taciturn
father.
8:30 p.m. The Barbarian Invasions
Oscar
Winner for Foreign Language Film Drama (Canada/France)
Starring: Remy Girard, Staphane Rousseau, Dorothe Berryman
Directed
by Denys Arcand
R
for language, sexual dialogue and drug content - 99 min
http://www.miramax.com/thebarbarianinvasions/index.html
Denys
Arcand's "The Barbarian Invasions" is a story about the humor, hope
and unspoken bonds that hold family and friends together against the onslaughts
of life in our contemporary times. Winner of two major awards at the 2003 Cannes
Film Festival, the film merges Arcand's alternately witty and tender storytelling
style with his most deeply emotional tale to date: that of a father and son
who think they have nothing left in common until -- hit with a major crisis
--they learn to share an insatiable appetite for life.
10:30
p.m. The Dreamers Drama (United Kingdom/France/Italy/USA)
Starring:
Michael Pitt, Eva Green, Louis Garrel Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
NC-17 for explicit sexual content NO ONE 17 OR UNDER ADMITTED - 115 min
http://www2.foxsearchlight.com/thedreamers/
Left
alone in Paris whilst their parents are on holiday, Isabelle (Eva Green) and
her brother Theo (Louis Garrel) invite Matthew (Michael Pitt), a young American
student, to stay at their apartment. Here they make their own rules as they
experiment with their emotions and sexuality while playing a series of increasingly
demanding mind games. Set
against the turbulent political backdrop of France in the spring of 1968 when
the voice of youth was reverberating around Europe, Bernardo Bertolucci's "The
Dreamers" is a story of self-discovery as the three students test each
other to see just how far they will go.
Saturday, May 1
3:00 p.m. – Girl with a Pearl Earring
Winner of three Oscar nominations Drama (Canada)
Starring: Colin Firth, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Wilkinson, Cillian Murphy
Directed by Peter Webber
PG-13 for some sexual content
100 min
www.girlwithapearlearringmovie.com/
Delft, Holland, 1665. After her father, a tile painter, is blinded in a kiln explosion, seventeen-year-old Griet must work to support her family. She becomes a maid in the house of Johannes Vermeer and gradually attracts the master painter's attention. Though worlds apart in upbringing, education and social standing, Vermeer recognizes Griet's intuitive understanding of color and light and slowly draws her into the mysterious world of his paintings. Alone and unprotected, Griet also contends with the attentions of Pieter, a local butcher boy, and Vermeer's patron, the wealthy and lascivious Master van Ruijven, who is frustrated that his money does not buy him control over the artist. While Griet falls increasingly under Vermeer's spell, she cannot be sure of his feelings for her ignored. The two aging men become fast friends, passing wintry afternoons in the rural countryside sipping coffee, smoking pipes, and telling each other fantastic stories.
5:00
p.m. Les, Triplettes de Belleville (The Triplets of Belleville)
Oscar
nominee for Best Animated Feature
Animated
comedy (France/Belgium/Canada/United Kingdom)
Starring:
the voices of Betty Bonifassi, Lina Boudreault, Michèle Caucheteux Directed
by Sylvain Chomet
PG-13 for images involving sensuality, violence and crude humor - 80 min
http://sonyclassics.com/triplets/
In this
animated French film, a boy named Champion trains relentlessly for the Tour
de France, with the help of his loyal grandmother and overweight dog, Bruno
(who loves to bark at passing trains). When the big race comes, Champion and
a few of his fellow racers are kidnapped by some box-shouldered thugs who spirit
them off to Belleville (a surreal impression of 1930s-1950s Manhattan) where
they are forced to pedal as part of a clandestine gambling operation. Bruno
and grandma set out across the sea in a paddle boat to rescue their boy, but
once ashore they soon become lost, hungry and penniless, that is until the frog-eating
Triplets of Belleville, former scat singing jazz prodigies turned experimental
musicians, come to their rescue. Filled with inspired, twisted imagery, this
nearly dialogue-free film is a crowd-pleaser of unusual power, with the strange,
measured pacing of a dream, and a great soundtrack of bizarre alternate-reality
'30s jazz. It also offers a touching and believable evocation of a dog's life.
7:00
p.m. Super Size Me
Featuring guest Director Morgan Spurlock, sponsored by PEIA (www.wvportions.com)
(USA)
Documentary by Morgan Spurlock
Not rated - 98 min.
http://supersizeme.com/
Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock hit the road and interviewed experts in 20 U.S. cities, including Houston, the "Fattest City" in America. From Surgeon Generals to gym teachers, cooks to kids, lawmakers to legislators, these authorities shared their research, opinions and "gut feelings" on our ever-expanding girth. During the journey, Spurlock also put his own body on the line, living on nothing but McDonald's for an entire month with three simple rules:
1) No options: he could only eat what was available over the counter (water included!)
2) No supersizing unless offered
3) No excuses: he had to eat every item on the menu at least once
It all adds up to a fat food bill, harrowing visits to the doctor, and compelling viewing for anyone who's ever wondered if man could live on fast food alone.
"Super
Size Me" is a satirical jab in the stomach, overstuffed with fat and facts
about the billion-dollar industry besieged by doctors, lawyers and nutritionists
alike. "Would you like fries with that?" will never sound the same!
9:30
p.m. Elephant
Starring: John Robinson, Elias McConnell, Alex Frost, Eric Deulen Drama (USA)
Directed
by Gus Van Sant
R for disturbing violent content, language, brief sexuality and drug use - all
involving teens - 81 min
http://www.elephantmovie.com/
Winner
of the Palme d'Or and Best Director prizes at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival,
Gus Van Sant's Elephant takes us inside an American high school on what appears
to be an ordinary day. With "Elephant," Van Sant works with actual
high school students to create a portrait of teenagers in today's volatile world.
"Elephant" unfolds on an ordinary day, filled with class work, football,
gossip and socializing. The film observes the comings and goings of its characters
from a gentle remove, allowing us to see them as they are. For each of the students
we meet, high school is a different experience: stimulating, friendly, traumatic,
lonely, hard. Beautiful and poetic -- yet deeply disturbing -- "Elephant"
shows high school life as a complex landscape where the vitality and incandescent
beauty of young lives can shift from light to darkness with surreal speed. An
ordinary high school day. Except that it's not.
Sunday, May 2
1:00 p.m. Student Filmmaking Competition
Features
films from students from West Virginia schools. Awards will be handed out by
West Virginia Filmmaker Bill Richardson to students in three categories, K-8th
grade, high school and college.
5:00
p.m. Wiener 5 minutes
A grieving
young man learns to deal with his father's death by remembering his father's
story of Wiener, a brilliant professor with an unusual problem. This short drama,
filmed in black-and-white, was written and directed by Wheeling native Preston
DeFrancis as part of the MFA program at the University of Southern California.
Hungry Hearts
Guest:
Producer Gaynelle Sloman
Comedy (USA)
Starring:
Susan Blakely, S. Greg Gardner, Marjory Graue, Pauley Perrette, Kristen Shaw
Directed by Rolf Schrader
84 minutes
http://imdb.com/title/tt0294631/
The story
focuses on a young, up-and-coming chef, Miles (S. Greg Gardner), who caters
a party at the home of Hollywood socialite (Susan Blakely) for four mysterious
women only to discover they have a shocking surprise in store for him. As the
twisted tale unfolds, Miles begins to get closer to each of the guests and begins
to relate to their problems.
7:00
p.m. The Company Drama (USA/Germany)
Starring:
Neve Campbell, Malcolm McDowell, James Franco, Directed by Robert Altman
PG-13 for brief strong language, some nudity and sexual content 112 minutes
http://www.sonyclassics.com/thecompany/
"The
Company" is an opportunity for iconic Director Robert Altman to bring his
fluid, masterful camera-work to the world of dance. Altman's vision for the
film is an extremely intimate one: we will see the difficult daily work, the
intense pressures of performance, the richly textured behaviors of the dancers
-- whose professional and personal lives grow impossibly close -- and of course
the sheer beauty of dance: exhilarating, kinetic, and thrillingly observed.
The authenticity and richness of "The Company" is rooted in the unprecedented
way in which Altman will shoot the film: with the complete cooperation of the
Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. The only actor who worked as part of the Joffrey
corps is Neve Campbell ("Scream"). Campbell, an accomplished dancer,
studied with The National Ballet of Canada before becoming an actress. She originated
"The Company," the culmination of a long-held dream to create a nuanced
and realistic film about a world for which she has deep and abiding affection.
9 p.m.
Dracula: Pages from a Virgina's Diary Drama (Canada)
Directed
by Guy Maddin Starring: Zhang Wei-Qiang, Tara Birtwhistle, David Moroni, C.M.
Not rated
www.zeitgeistfilms/current/dracula/dracula.html
Maverick filmmaker Guy Maddin used a commission by the CBC to transform a ballet by the Royal Winnepeg Ballet (music from Gustav Mahler Symphonies 1 & 2) into a witty, provocative film, widely hailed as one of the best and strangest Draculas ever. This delightfully demented bodice-ripper in black and white and red welds silent-film technique, sensual music, seductive dancing and avant-garde imagery into a hallucinatory masterpiece full of cultural digs and unforgettable images.