Polish director Jerzy Skolimowski’s first movie in a long time, “Four Nights With Anna,” world premiers as the opening film of the Cannes Film Festival’s 40th Directors’ Fortnight.

“Four Nights With Anna” is a tale of amour fou, detailing one man’s voyeuristic relationship with a woman while it develops over four days.

Shot in Poland, “Anna” stars Polish actors Kinga Preis and Artur Sterando.

“Four Nights” is Skolimowski’s first film since 1991’s “30 Door Key.”        

According to Variety, since 1991, Skolimowski has dedicated his time to painting and acting, appearing as Uncle Stepan in David Cronenberg’s “Eastern Promises.”

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A new ‘Hamlet 2′ trailer - it’s hilarious and utterly politically incorrect - awesome! The comedy stars  Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, Amy Poehler, David Arquette and Elisabeth Shue.

A world premiere at - and the comedy smash of - the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, in the irreverent comedy, a failed actor-turned-worse-high-school-drama teacher (Steve Coogan) rallies his Tucson, AZ students as he conceives and stages a politically incorrect musical sequel to Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

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Steven Soderbergh’s two films Che bio and Clint Eastwood’s”The Changeling” look like crowd and judges favorites at 61st Cannes Film Festival, meaning the U.S. has a contention for the Palme d’Or.

Soderbergh’s involvement appears to be a last-minute decision.

According to Variety, for much of this week, there seemed genuine uncertainty as to whether he

As made know earlier this year, Steven Spielberg’s “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” world premiers at the Croisette, hopefully Sunday May 18. It suppose to be this fest’s must-attend, highest-glam event.

Variety, also, reports, out-of-competition, DreamWorks Animation’s “Kung Fu Panda,” an adventure, comedic chop-soc tooner, promises another Hollywood red-carpet cavalcade.

Also non-competing, as is Woody Allen’s custom, is the Spain-shot “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.”

Clint Eastwood’s “The Changeling,” a 1920s-set kidnap thriller, with Angelina Jolie.

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 The Princess Bride movie is very popular; and now the Princess Bride Game based on this classic film is available to download. Contest is available to win a free download of the game by going to Princess Bride Game. Good luck!

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The film “Battle in Seattle” starring Charlize Theron is set to open the 34th Seattle International Film Festival, which runs from May 22 to June 15 in Seattle.

The film focuses on the anti-globalization protests against the World Trade Organization in Seattle in 1999. Other notables in the film are Martin Henderson, Woody Harrelson and Channing Tatum.

“Seattle” is very intense, real life movie – irrational motives overcome the best of us.  Take a look at the films web site - “Battle in Seattle.”

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Variety has a great set up with SXSW Festival at the Dell Lounge.  Go to this web site because it’s a great opportunity to experience a film and music festival. All the bells and whistles are there for you to enjoy. Check out these great videos and interviews straight from the festival. 

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The Tribeca Film Festival is sticking to its New York ties by choosing ‘Baby Mama’ as the opener for the event. The film was was shot in New York City and features the directorial debut of former Saturday Night Live writer Michael McCullers.

“As a film festival with a true commitment to New York City and its film community, what better way to open this year’s festival than with a New York production that brings together some of the city’s most beloved and creative talent,” said Tribeca Film Festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal. “The creators of this film, both in front of the camera and behind, have been making audiences laugh for years. We look forward to celebrating this crowd-pleasing comedy with our long time collaborators at Universal.”

The comedy stars other SNL names Amy Poehler, who as won acclaim her portrayal of Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and Tina Fey who shot to stardom on the show.

The Tribeca Film Festival kicks off April 23 and runs until May 4th. Further scheduling of film showings will begin on March 11th.

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The Cleveland International Film Festival takes place this week starting on Thursday. The 10 day event will show 130 feature films and 160 short films. The event, the largest film festival in the state of Ohio, is in its 32nd year.

This years This years festival will tribute 57 year old John Sayles who receives the Director’s Spotlight award. The event will show six films from the New York native which include ‘The Brother From Another Planet’, ‘Passion Fish’, ‘Eight Men Out’, and ‘Lianna’, ‘Return of the Secaucus Seven’ and ‘The Secret of Roan Inish’. Sayles will introduce his films on both March 7th and Saturday, March 8th to introduce his films and will also hold a question and answer session with the audience after the showings. Sayles joins notable Cleveland International Film Festival honorees Goran Markovic (27th CIFF), Todd Solondz (29th CIFF), Freida Lee Mock (30th CIFF), and Rolf de Heer (31st CIFF) with his Director’s Spotlight Award.

For more information on the Cleveland International Film Festival, please visit their website.

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“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” debuts at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday May 18.The fourth installment of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg’s period action-adventure movie cast includes Harrison Ford, Shia LaBeouf, Karen Allen and Cate Blanchett.

The official announcement won’t be until April. But it looks like a for sure engagement according to Variety. Yes, studio insiders feel confident that when fest programmers see the final print, the deal will be sealed for the summer blockbuster.  

Director Spielberg is still editing and scoring the film..

The last time Spielberg graced the Cannes was for 1982’s “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial.” 

Indiana Jones Official Web Site.

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“Easy Rider” star Peter Fonda will be honored and  receive the 2008 King Vidor Career Achievement Award at coming San Luis Obispo International Film Festival.Fonda plans to appear at the festival March 15 to accept the honor.

The King Vidor award, named after the director of the 1956 movie “War and Peace,” honors career achievement in filmmaking.Fonda turns 68 on Saturday. 

He is known for being the motorcycle hippie in the 1969 film “Easy Rider.”

He has received two Oscar nominations: acting in “Ulee’s Gold” and screenwriting “Easy Rider.” 

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Right move by the Berlinale, Martin Scorsese’s Rolling Stones film “Shine a Light,” the first time in the event’s 58-year history that the main competition section kicks off with a documentary.

“300” opened the festival last year, which was considered a popcorn flick. So perhaps, this time around “Shine a Light” is apropos for the Berlinale. Although, I’d be happy to watch Gerard Butler, stars in “300,” in any kind of movie.

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Sounds like a wonderful film that opens March 19th at selected theaters.

“Under the Same Moon” earned a standing ovation at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival for its poignant, emotionally rich tale of a mother and son living on opposite sides of the U.S.-Mexico border connected by an enduring love. In her feature film debut, director Patricia Riggen weaves their parallel stories into a vividly textured tapestry of yearning and devotion that portrays a child’s courage and tenacity, and a mother’s sacrifice.
Nine-year-old Carlos aka Carlitos (AdriánAlonso, “The Mask of Zorro”) is one of the countless children left behind by parents who come to the U.S. seeking a way to provide for their families. His mother, Rosario (Kate del Castillo, “Bordertown”) has worked illegally as a domestic in Los Angeles for four years, sending money home to her son and mother to give them a chance at a better life.
When the death of his grandmother leaves young Carlitos alone, he takes his fate into his own hands and heads north across the border to find his mother. As he journeys from his rural Mexican village to the L.A., Carlitos faces seemingly insurmountable obstacles with a steely determination and unfettered optimism that earn him the grudging respect and affection of a reluctant protector, a middle-aged migrant worker named Enrique (Eugenio Derbez, “Padre Nuestro”).  

The unlikely pair finds its way from Tucson to East L.A., but the only clue Carlitos has to his mother’s whereabouts is her description of the street corner from which she has called him each Sunday for the last four years. Unaware that Rosario is only hours away from returning to Mexico to be with her son, Carlitos and Enrique desperately comb the vast unfamiliar city for a place he has seen only in his imagination.

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Synopsis

On his way to work one day, Joel (Bodhi Elfman) is impaled through the chest by a three-foot arrow. But it doesn’t harm him. And it won’t come out. So Joel has to learn to deal – both with his newfound protrusion, and his own painful loneliness. He tries to go to work, to date women, but no one seems ready to accept his strange flaw. Little does he know, his life is about to change forever…  Background In early 2004 Screenwriter Milena Ferreira, and her husband, Producer – Nathan Lorch, came up with the original story of “Struck.” On a romantic trip to Northern California Milena was “struck” by this idea of doing it as a short film. The concepts all of a sudden flowed together seamlessly and the short script was written two days later.A week later the idea was pitched to friend and director Taron Lexton, who loved it and wanted to help see it made. From there the Producing team of Taron (TXL Films) Nathan, and Milena (625 Productions) was born. The team then grew to include Casting Director and Producer Leslie Brown, and actor Bodhi Elfman as the lead. Each of them brought to the table their unique talents and strengths as artists as well as their individual contacts in the Industry. A crew was gathered made up of friends and professionals that each knew. 

Within a couple weeks the cast was set to include many name actors who were all on board out of their love for filmmaking and as an artistic collaboration for the film festival scene. The film was shot in late June of 2007 and completed in post-production in January of 2008.

Struck’s Trailer

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The votes have been tallied and the awards handed out, which means we have now a full list of this year’s Sundance winners.  Leading this year’s awards were Courtney Hunt’s “Frozen River”, a drama about women helping illegal aliens enter the U.S., and Jonathan Levine’s “The Wackness”, a comedy about a teenage dope dealer in mid-’90’s New York.  “Frozen River” took hope the grand jury prize, while “The Wackness” snagged the audience prize.

In the documentary category, “Trouble the Water” from Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, which gave a look at post-Katrina New Orleans, took the grand jury award.  Josh Tickell’s “Fields of Fuel”, which gives a look at one man’s effort to alter America’s energy policy, went home with the audience prize award.

Directing awards went to Lance Hammer for “Ballast” and Nanette Burstein for “American Teen.”

Read on »

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Courtney Hunt’s “ Frozen River,” grave and gripping film about two wretched women who smuggle illegals into the United States, won the grand jury prize for dramatic features at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.

On the comedy side of the festival, Jonathan Levine’s “The Wackness ,” coming-of-age serious, comedy about a teenage dope dealer, won the audience award.

For a complete list of winners go to Sundance.

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Check out this interview with Woody Harrelson, Emily Mortimer and director Bob Anderson at the New York Lounge, Sundance Film Festival. “Transsiberian”, A Trans-Siberian train journey from China to Moscow becomes a thrilling chase of deception and murder when an American couple encounters a mysterious pair of fellow travelers.

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Here is a great site that has numerous interviews with actors, writers, directors and producers of films showing at the Sundance Film Festival.  My favorite is with William H. Macy about his film “The Deal.”  I haven’t seen them all, but so far, this one looks great.  William H. Macy at Sundance.

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Wednesday, January 23

9:00 p.m. “Four Sheets to the Wind” directed by Sterlin Harjo

Cufe Smallhill finds his father dead one day and buries him unceremoniously in the family pond, per his father’s own request. The death becomes the impetus for Cufe to seek a new life away from the Indian reservation in rural Oklahoma. Appeared at the 2007 Sundance Film

Followed by:

“Harvie Krumpet” directed by Adam Elliot

This Oscar winner for Best Animated Short Film tells the darkly comic biography of Harvie Krumpet, a nobody with perpetual bad luck. Harvie is a working-class Polish boy diagnosed with Tourettes’s Syndrome (caused by psychotropic drugs), who is ineptly home-schooled by his mother. Appeared at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Runtine 22:01

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Tonight is an interesting line up. Make sure you check local listings for the correct time.

Tuesday, January 22

9:00 p.m. “Everything’s Cool” directed by Daniel B. Gold and Judith Helfand

A documentary film about the political debate surrounding global warming and the so-called “global warming messengers” who work to create public awareness of the issue. Appeared at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.

Followed by:

“Be Quiet” directed by Sameh Zoabi

Short film about the political tensions faced by a Palestinian boy and his father on their way home to the city of Nazareth. Appeared at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. Runtime 18:28

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Chris Pine, who stars as Captain Kirk in the upcoming J.J. Abrams reboot of “Star Trek,” talks with Sharon Swart about the Sundance premiere of “Bottle Shock,” which tells the true story of the blind taste test that made Napa a world wine destination.

“Bottle Shock”

Here’s Chris Pine — Not bad; looks like a young Captain Kirk.

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Variety’s Michael Jones interviews Jack Black and Michel Gondry about their film “Be Kind Rewind.” The actor and director discuss metaphors, improvisation, and whether or not Americans landed on the moon. Plus, see Jack Black’s impression of Gondry in a temper!

Here’s the interview: “Be Kind Rewind.”

Here’s the plot: FUNNY!!! I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE IT.

A man (Black) whose brain changes and becomes magnetized. He unintentionally destroys every tape in his friend’s video store. Angst, and wanting to repair the damage in order to satisfy the store’s most loyal renter, an aging woman with signs of dementia, the two men set out to remake the lost films, which include “Back to the Future,” “The Lion King,” and “Robocop.”

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Every night in January the Sundance Channel plays films from former Sundance Festival favorites.

Tonight’s movie, “Half Nelson,” is exceptional — won many, many awards including the Sundance Grand Jury Prize.

Sunday, January 20

9:00 p.m. Half Nelson directed by Ryan Fleck

Ryan Gosling earned a Best Actor Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Dan Dunne, an idealistic inner-city junior high-school teacher wrestling with inner demons and addiction. When Drey (Shareeka Epps), a 13-year-old student, stumbles upon Dan’s secret, she becomes curious about the history teacher, leading to an unexpected and complicated friendship. Appeared at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival

Followed by:

Songbird

A short film about the oppressive marriage between Isabella (Janet Chiara) and Walter (Jack Hunter). Gruesome consequences occur one night at the dinner table when Walter threatens to take away his wife’s songbird. Appeared at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. Runtime 06:00

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Saturday, January 19

9:00 p.m. “The Motorcycle Diaries” directed by Walter Salles

This road movie retells an episode in the early life of revolutionary Che Guevara. In 1952, Ernesto Guevara (Gael García Bernal), then a 23-year-old medical student, joined Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna) on an ambitious 5000-mile South American motorcycle trek. As Salles’s film suggests, the things Guevara saw and the people he met were essential in transforming him into the world-famous political figure of the ‘60s. Appeared at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival

Followed by:

“Oedipus” directed by Jason Wishnow

Filmmaker Jason Wishnow employs stop-motion animation and a cast fresh from the produce aisle to serve a memorable spoof of Hollywood epics in a witty retelling of the classic Greek drama. Appeared at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Runtime 08:32.

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Buyers and sellers come to Sundance in hopes of making their dreams come true. As an indication of such selling, Thursday for the opening of Sundance 2008, buying was already under way as HBO Doc Films’ acquired “The Black List: Volume One.”

The documentary is a collaboration between photographer-filmmaker Timothy Greenfield-Sanders and former New York Times film critic Elvis Mitchell. The documentary features intimate interviews with contemporary African-American leaders and icons about their personal experiences and social structure and its repercussion in relation to race.

Interviewed 20 people including musician-actor Sean Combs, former basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tony-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks and comedian Chris Rock.

Check this out: The documentary includes a traveling photo exhibit, portrait book and multiplatform content that will be user-generated.

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Sundance Channel is a venture of NBC Universal, CBS and Robert Redford. Sundance Channel operates independently of the non-profit Sundance Institute and the Sundance Film Festival, but shares the overall Sundance mission of encouraging artistic freedom of expression. Sundance Channel’s website is available to check local listing times for films.

Friday, January 18

9:00 p.m. “A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints” directed by Dito Montiel

Debut effort from Dito Montiel based on his memoir of the same name captures Montiel’s own experience as a youth in Astoria, Queens during the mid-1980s. The film won the Dramatic Directing Award and a Special Jury Award at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. Robert Downey, Jr. plays Dito, a successful writer in LA who returns to Queens after 15 years when his father becomes seriously ill. Appeared at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival

Followed by:

“Harvie Krumpet” directed by Adam Elliot

This Oscar winner for Best Animated Short Film tells the darkly comic biography of Harvie Krumpet, a nobody with perpetual bad luck. Harvie is a working-class Polish boy diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome (caused by psychotropic drugs), who is ineptly home-schooled by his mother. Appeared at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Runtime 22:01

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