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20th Philadelphia Film Festival – Day 1 – 4 Picks
I picked up my press pass for the 20th Anniversary Philadelphia Film Festival tonight! Just to get you in the festival mood, here’s the films I plan to see the first few days (Thursday, October 20th thru Sunday October 23rd). Of course, the festival runs till November 3rd, and I plan to be present throughout most of it; however, during the festival, I’ll be posting on facebook and twitter each day what film(s) I plan to see. In fact, if time runs short and things get hectic, my commentary on a few films may never make it to this blog or PFF blog, but may only be posted on facebook…
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Commentary – THE DEBT
If our civilization continues into the 22nd Century and we evolve into beings who finally respect and view each other as equals; we undoubtedly will still be telling stories of these two most heinous times of our history – Slavery and the Holocaust. There are many societal, economical, historical and psychological reasoning’s for the continual re-examining of these atrocities; but artistically, every time these topics are seen through the eyes of new characters the story is looked at from yet another perspective. As such, is The Debt by director John Madden (Shakespeare In Love), based on the novel Ha-Hov by Assaf Bernstein and Ido Rosenblum. The Debt was my weekly…
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MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE – Sean Durkin & Elizabeth Olsen Q & A
Have you heard about Martha Marcy May Marlene? It’s been a darling of this year’s festival circuit – The title gives the impression four women share top billing, but in actuality newcomer Elizabeth Olsen (cast only two weeks before shooting), is not only the subject of the multiple monikers, she hauntingly carries the full weight of this dark drama; along with some good, creepy assistance by John Hawkes (Winter’s Bone). The film explores the mind altering experience of cult life. A group of mostly 20-something men and women share an old farm house in upper state New York. The initial impression is one of communal, live off the land, find…
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Tinsel & Tine Mini-Hiatus
As previously mentioned, I was hired to write posts, fb & tweet out social media for Philadelphia Cinema Alliances’ QFEST 2011! The festival runs July 7th – 18th, but I’ve been at it steadily for the last two weeks; so be sure to check out the Qblog. Now that I’m blogging for both film organizations in Philadelphia, a full-time career in this arena can’t be far away!? Actually, I had some apprehension about accepting the QFest gig for three reasons: 1) As many Philly readers know, there once was only one non-profit film association, until a couple of years ago when there was a nasty split. I never chose sides;…
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Commentary – Cave of Forgotten Dreams
by Le Anne Lindsay, Editor I arrived breathless to the PFS preview screening of Cave of Forgotten Dreams, with only moments to find a seat and tear open my 3D spectacles. I do believe the Paleolithic artists of these ancient cave renderings would have understood my tardiness, as I had come from a second full day of hanging wonderful works of art for the opening of The Art of the Garden Exhibit in Haverford. As I began to shift my focus to the screen before me, taking in the beauty and breathing elegance of these 32,000 year-old drawings, brought to life with incredible texture by the 3D filming, I took…
