Shari K. Green, Author at tmc.io 🍿 watch movies with friends 185

Where Is Kyra? Movie Review

April 17, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

This movie is remarkable. I’d like to warn that it was also one of the most depressing films I’ve ever seen… but oh so good, I promise you that. ‘Where Is Kyra’ was very well done and the bleak, cloudy atmosphere created was so alluring that I couldn’t look away. I’d like to say it was an exceptional film.

It’s macabre and thought-provoking, sincere and honest in its description of what someone will do and who they’ll become when faced with severe adversity. I would use the word exceptional but for one choice director Andrew Dosunmu made that had me cringing when this action occurred in his film. Yes, cringe, and not in a good way. An absolutely terrible noise would accompany scenes where Kyra (Pfeiffer) was impersonating her dead mother.

I’m quite sure it was done to keep the audience on the edge so there was cause for it but it was so absolutely annoying and incredibly irritating that, for me, it not only dropped the grade down a touch but had to be mentioned to you. The audience is already mesmerized and get the point, Dosunmu. You don’t need to use sound to attack those who might have missed it. Trust me… no one missed it. The film is good without its use to influence us.

The lighting was dark and set the tone beautifully, but I will add this, the film is a bit too slow early on for the average moviegoer, however, I implore you to keep watching. That alone should never be a reason to avoid watching a film. It’s okay to allow a director to set the stage for you. I’ll try and do the same here.

The aforementioned Kyra, who Michelle Pfeiffer nailed superbly, is a divorced woman well past her prime. She’s living in Brooklyn and wants independence but with limited skills for today’s needs, she is having trouble finding a job that will keep her afloat. She moves into her elderly mother, Ruth’s (Shepherd), apartment and helps take care of her. These scenes, one of them with a very brave and very nude Suzanne Shepherd, are tremendous and the connection they have is evident as Kyra helps Ruth in and out of her bath, keeps her company… expresses to her how much she’s loved. Suddenly and unexpectedly, Ruth dies. Kyra is alone and for the first time feels abandoned. She looks around her mother’s home where her mother no longer resides and breaks down. Not only has Ruth left her but the financial support she was able to get is gone, too. What to do?

She meets up with one of Ruth’s neighbors, Doug (Sutherland), who also happens to be a caretaker at a nursing home. He’s had a checkered past but has found helping people to be cathartic and rewarding. He genuinely cared for Ruth and decides to do what he can to help her daughter. They’re physically attracted to one another, as well, so they begin to have a much deeper relationship that’s mutually beneficial. She opens herself up to Doug but when she gets so desperate for money as to do the unthinkable, she’s afraid of losing him so she keeps it a secret. She’s aware of the fact that what she’s doing can get her into bigger trouble but she’s not finding a job and doesn’t want to risk the relationship. She refuses to ask too much of Doug as she’s prideful to a degree so she tries her best to make it on her own, however, bills are stacking up and it’s time to act to remedy the situation. The rest of the movie is truly captivating and, largely, grueling but you will not get up until the credits roll. Not for anything. Phenomenal.

See this movie. Amongst a world of remakes and reimagining’s it’s quite unique and you’ll do a lot of thinking long after the film is over.

Playing exclusively now at Harkins Camelview at Fashion Square. Don’t miss it!

You Were Never Really Here Movie Review

April 13, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

Though some may view this as painfully slow in the beginning, I see it more as art being created before your very eyes. With any piece of art, it takes time to make it come to life and why should a film be any different? Slow and lacking in story and structure is different, this builds to a magnificent climax and with its gorgeous cinematography, noteworthy performances and memorable plot, you won’t leave feeling disillusioned. In fact, if you like Martin Scorsese’s ‘Taxi Driver’ this is definitely the film for you. Joaquin Phoenix plays, Joe, his version of Scorsese’s Travis Bickle. Phoenix plays him much in the same way that DeNiro played Travis. He’s raw and unkept but Joe isn’t disturbed. He’s haunted, yes, but he has clear goals and will do anything to meet them, especially when they get personal. Phoenix won in Cannes for the film and I believe he’ll be rewarded here, too.

Joe’s past, shown to us in snippets of macabre flashbacks, has led him to perform very dark things but for good reason. He is an advocate of sorts, hired to help people, mostly little girls who were abducted or are runaways, break free of the sex trade they’re forced into… and he’s exceptional at his job. His preferred method of taking people out is a hammer and when we first meet him, he’s cleaning up a crime scene, indicating to us he’s methodical, careful and very professional. He also takes care of his elderly mother and from the flashbacks, it seems she’s all he’s ever had. With his next assignment, helping a politician’s daughter escape the clutches of a sex maniac, he ends up putting his mother’s and his own life in jeopardy. The film was directed by a female director, Lynne Ramsay (We Need to Talk About Kevin) which could be why Joe, though a killer, conveys such loving and caring characteristics. You’ll sense great sorrow and warmth inside of him and take pity.

I don’t want to give too much away but there’s a scene when Joe’s in a lake. He’s sinking to the bottom for a reason I won’t tell you here but it’s handled so beautifully, so poetically, that it brings you to the brink of tears. As an audience member, you take on Joe’s anguish and heartache. It’s a spectacular look at this character and a shot you may never forget. His relationship with his charges may seem to get in the way of his missions but then you realize those relationships are the missions. He may be saving them but, in essence, when all is said and done, they are saving him.

Don’t miss this fascinating film for anything. I can’t stress this enough. Enjoy the fact that Ramsay takes some time to paint you the full picture… it’s worth it. You’ll like the soundtrack that accompanies the film, as well. The ending is somewhat vague but had it drifted on a definitive course, it wouldn’t have fit the style. Go see this asap!

Aardvark Movie Review

April 12, 2018 (updated April 13, 2018) Published by Shari K. Green

This is the story of an unstable man named Josh Norman, played by Zachary Quinto. He’s plagued with hallucinations of his brother, Craig (Hamm), who mistreated him when they were younger… or so Josh thinks. Craig, now a famous actor who Josh believes is morphing into other people, mocking and following him, actually takes care of Josh by sending him money, money that always purchases drugs for Josh that a therapist prescribes but doesn’t necessarily get Josh the true help he needs. What he needs is family and to be seen and loved; to know he’s seen and loved. I had many problems with this film, first of which is that with the amount of talent working on it, these actors should have been used better. They were great, don’t get me wrong, but the film they’re in leads you on a road to nowhere.

It opens on an owl watching an aardvark. Okay. That’s a metaphor for brothers Craig and Josh and you’re curious but, more to the point, it starts with such promise, however, by the time you’re halfway through Aardvark, you realize it isn’t going anywhere and your original thought of giving up on it fifteen minutes ago, should have been listened to. I assumed, by looking at the cast, that this was going to be quite good. I generally do approve of everything Hamm, Quinto and Jenny Slate, (who plays Emily, a therapist Josh starts going to) work on. I can’t say that’s the case with this movie. I had hoped it would be a hit, especially for Slate, as I respect her work so much that I’d like to see her continue to get larger roles but this movie might have been the one for her to skip… for them all to skip.

Enjoying the tone of the film in the beginning, you do like the characters and build a relationship with them but, unfortunately, the narrative between Emily and her patient becomes strained and consequently hard to believe. Director Brian Shoaf creates reasons for you to like Emily and then gives you all the reasons why you shouldn’t trust her and therefore, the story of Josh being unhinged falls apart to a degree.
Emily and Craig meet and she starts to speak on behalf of Craig to Josh and vice versa but she also falls for Craig. Maybe Josh just needs a new doctor? Eventually, you can’t help but wonder if the paranoid man is being gaslighted by everyone around him. Not that this would be remotely possible but is everyone around him in on it? His rich brother could be paying people to make him crazy.
The thought will cross your mind as the muddied script doesn’t get to the point until you’ve already checked out. Even when he meets Hannah (Vand) you wonder if this person really exists. That can be vaguely intriguing as he truly is under the impression his brother can transform himself to be anybody he wants but when the storyline provides you with hope, it then tears everything back down, trying to be a crafty love story but falling short of leading you to believe it’ll win you over in the end.

Perhaps this would have been better with some time to focus on which genre the script wanted to truly be. It’s frustrating as an audience member watching the filmmaker searching for the true voice of the film. The director needed to lead us. It isn’t good if he’s conflicted and this film was all over the place.

*Opens Exclusively at Harkins Shea 14

Solo: A Star Wars Story – New Trailer

April 10, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY opens in U.S. theaters on May 25.

Board the Millennium Falcon and journey to a galaxy far, far away in “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” an all-new adventure with the most beloved scoundrel in the galaxy. Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo befriends his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and meets the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga’s most unlikely heroes.

The film stars Alden Ehrenreich, Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Joonas Suotamo, and Paul Bettany.

Ron Howard directs “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” and Kathleen Kennedy, Allison Shearmur and Simon Emanuel are the producers. Lawrence Kasdan, Jason McGatlin, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller serve as executive producers. Jonathan Kasdan & Lawrence Kasdan wrote the screenplay.

LUCASFILM

Website and Mobile site: http://www.starwars.com/films/solo

Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/starwarsmovies



In Theaters May 25

http://www.fandango.com

PHOENIX FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES 2018 AWARD WINNERS

April 10, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

The Phoenix Film Festival is excited to announce the winners of the 2018 Awards. The complete list of winners is below:

FEATURE FILM AWARDS

Best Documentary: “Forever B”

Audience Award: “Up to Snuff”

Best Picture: “The Idea of Manhood”

Best Director: Zack Wilcox – “Hunting Lands”

Best Ensemble: “Rich Kids”

Best Screenplay: Serge Kushnier – “The Idea of Manhood”

Sidney K. Shapiro Humanitarian Award: “Becoming Who I Was”

WORLD CINEMA AWARDS

World Cinema Best Director: Peter Luisi – “Streaker”

World Cinema Best Picture: “Streaker”

World Cinema Best Documentary: “Becoming Who I Was”

World Cinema Audience Award Winner: “All the Wild Horses”

FOUNDATION AWARDS

2018 Phoenix Film Festival Volunteer Of the Year: Leslie Criger

SHORT FILM AWARDS

Best-Animated Short Film: “The Driver is Red”

Best Documentary Short Film: “Mott Haven”

Best College Short Film: “Night Call”

Best Live Action Short Film: “Control”

Best World Cinema Short: “Stealing Silver”

Best Latino American Short Film: “Instinct”

Best African American Short Film: “Baby Steps”

Best Native American Short Film: “Five Dollars”

The Phoenix Film Festival continues through Sunday, April 15. For more information please visit www.phoenixfilmfestival.com.

My favorite film at the festival this year…

The First Purge – Trailer

April 6, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

THE FIRST PURGE

Behind every tradition lies a revolution. Next Independence Day, witness the rise of our country’s 12 hours of annual lawlessness. Welcome to the movement that began as a simple experiment: The First Purge.

To push the crime rate below one percent for the rest of the year, the New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) test a sociological theory that vents aggression for one night in one isolated community. But when the violence of oppressors meets the rage of the marginalized, the contagion will explode from the trial-city borders and spread across the nation.

Coming off the most successful film in the series, The Purge: Election Year, creator James DeMonaco (writer/director of The Purge, The Purge: Anarchy and The Purge: Election Year) returns alongside the producers of this worldwide phenomenon: Blumhouse Productions’ Jason Blum (Insidious series, Get Out, Split),Platinum Dunes partners Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Ouija series, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), and DeMonaco’s longtime production partner, Sébastien K. Lemercier (Assault on Precinct 13, Four Lovers).

The First Purge is directed by Gerard McMurray (Burning Sands), working from a screenplay once again written by DeMonaco. www.thefirstpurge.com

Genre: Thriller

Cast: Y’Lan Noel, Lex Scott Davis, Joivan Wade, Luna Lauren Velez and Marisa Tomei

Directed by: Gerard McMurray

Written by: James DeMonaco

Produced by: Jason Blum, Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Sébastien K. Lemercier

Executive Producers: Steve Molen, Jeanette Volturno, Couper Samuelson



In Theaters July 4th

http://www.fandango.com

A Quiet Place Movie Review

April 6, 2018 Published by Shari K. Green

Believe it or not, John Krasinski (The Office) has a flair for horror. This is his third film as director and definingly not his last… hopefully not his last horror film, anyway. He said on The Tonight Show that he likes the genre now so I’m crossing my fingers he’ll stick with it. He’s so good, in fact, that you’ll have a difficult time escaping the world that he designed for you in ‘A Quiet Place.’ Well, you’ll eventually be able to after the movie but not during. You’re there. Trust me when I say that it’ll take a while to shake what you witness. He did such a spectacular job of choosing the music, setting the tone and creating an atmosphere that’s so believable you walk away from watching the film as if you were personally involved in the lives of the characters on the screen. Masterfully, he introduces you to a family and their interrupted lives, in such a deeply contriving way that it leaves a profound impact on you as you sit in anticipation of what hideous thing will happen to these people next. After being shown the ramifications of making any sound, you hope for the best but fear the worst.

I was probably the biggest baby in the theatre. By the way, the movie is so quiet, you can’t help but notice the reactions of the other audience members as they gasp in fear and surprise. Krasinski didn’t make his film all about jump scares, (though there are a few really good ones), he instead ran straight toward your psyche and struck it hard by attacking what no one on earth can possibly avoid; making noise. What would it be like to live a life of silence? Could you? How would you? How would you communicate? What of your children? Could you keep a young child quiet? Could you keep an infant from crying? He puts you in the middle of situations where silence is golden and any hit of speech or the smallest of thuds can lead to certain death. It’s hard to imagine and how this story comes together, how well it was conceived and orchestrated, is even harder to explain except to say that the actors, especially Emily Blunt, are unbelievably good at bringing this terrible existence to life and you never once question their authenticity.

The family, Lee (Krasinski), Evelyn (Blunt) and their children Regan (Simmonds) and Marcus (Jupe) are alone on their farm but have made the best of it. They hunt, grow and can their food, know enough about medicine to survive and are smart enough to work around all the sound issues they face. We learn a lot about the creatures, where they come from and what they are, by reading clippings that Lee has posted. Lee’s not only reading all he can about the creatures, trying to find a way to defeat them, but he also studies how he can help his deaf daughter, Regan, a bratty pre-teen, hear again. I must point out that Simmonds is deaf in real life and what she does for the film is lend it some legitimacy. The family communicates with sign language and Krasinski not only needed young Simmonds for her fantastic acting and the character in her face but for her ability to make ‘A Quiet Place’ look more convincing. This will be appreciated by all, especially those in the deaf community. If you want to see an edge of your seat thriller this weekend, don’t miss this film. This is a must-see and unless you can’t keep quiet, experiencing it in the theatre is the best way to go.

PHOENIX FILM FESTIVAL KICKS OFF THIS WEEK!

April 4, 2018 (updated April 4, 2018) Published by Shari K. Green

Key events not to miss!

The Phoenix Film Festival kicks off this Thursday, April 5th and will run for an expanded 11 days until April 15th!

In addition to 300 film screenings, there are also several key events and highlights happening including:

Industry Night – Friday, April 6 from 5PM-11PM. Actors, directors, producers, agents and everyone else working in the Arizona film industry gather to rub elbows and exchange business cards during this FREE event.

Kids’ Day – Saturday, April 7 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Children of all ages the chance to learn about the art of film for FREE. Younger festival-goers can grab a movie poster to color or attend a crafts and story time event. Older film fans can try their hand at acting, editing and creating their own short films. These age-appropriate stations allow kids to explore the filmmaking process from beginning to end, and every part in between!

Festival Panel Discussions – Saturday, April 7 and Sunday, April 8 from 2:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Our FREE weekend educational filmmaker panel discussions are open to the public and designed to enhance your Festival experience by bringing together filmmakers, film lovers and industry professionals.

Geek Day – Sunday, April 8 from 1:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. We know you love all things geeky! We do too! So come and gather with your like-minded friends for the 2018 Phoenix Film Festival Geek Day. Whether you love zombies, superheroes, comic books, cosplay, vampires, steampunk, Star Wars, anime or all of the above, Geek Day will cover it.

About Phoenix Film Festival

Again, the 18^th Annual Phoenix Film Festival will take place from Thursday, April 5 to Sunday, April 15. Continually breaking attendance records since its inception, last year’s festival saw over 25,000 attendees, and there are hopes to pull in even more film enthusiasts this year.

The 11-day Festival will once again be held at Harkins Scottsdale 101 Theatre located at 7000 E. Mayo Blvd. Phoenix, AZ 85054.

Interview with Monte Yazzie from the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival

April 4, 2018 (updated April 4, 2018) Published by Shari K. Green

Monte Yazzie was extremely busy when I tracked him down for a little chat a week before the festival starts. He is the Director of the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival here in Phoenix, a husband, father and rabid movie fan. I can’t think of better hands than his for the festival to be resting. Not that he ever gets rest because Monte’s also a film critic for ‘The Foothills Focus,’ for www.dailydead.com and their publication known as ‘Deadly.’ You can find all of his reviews on his extremely interesting site www.thecodafilms.com, which covers horror, art house films, music and even his own work in the independent filmmaking community. I, being completely unaware of the horror side of the festival circuit, of course, asked him to inform me of what I have been missing out on.

Me: I haven’t yet gone but plan to so could you educate me about the festival?

Monte: It’s going into its fourteenth year. It started as its own entity for quite a few years. It was its own separate event that happened in October of every year and its transitioned to a partnership with the Phoenix Film Festival so now we run concurrently. We’ve been running with the Phoenix Film Festival now, at the same time, for probably going on six to seven years. It’s a really great partnership that we have with them and I always mention that Horror and Sci-Fi now is becoming so mainstream and crossover, it makes sense for us to play at the same time as the film festival. It’s a great opportunity for us to, kind of, expand, continue to grow and get better at what we’re doing.

Me: You want it to run at the same time so you can get more attendees rather than stand alone?

Monte: Part of it was just necessity. It’s hard doing a film festival in October, especially a genre film festival. And with Arizona being so widespread, trying to find a place to do that and make it run efficiently and try to compete with all the other horror events that were happening at the same time, was pretty difficult and so part of it was necessity. We needed the help from the Phoenix Film Festival to continue to grow but it has also been a great opportunity for us to expand so that we can continue to service and provide these great horrors and fantasies to our viewers.

Me: How and when did you get involved?

Monte: I’ve been involved in some way shape or form for probably the past seven years. But I have been going to the festival since year one. I was sitting in the audience, as a film fan, year one. It’s so amazing that I was given this opportunity to be in the audience and slowly evolve into being a volunteer to working as a judge and then moving into program management work and just four years ago I was given this opportunity to take over. It’s been pretty much a dream come true because this festival has meant to so much to me when it first started, and it still means that much to me now. To have this opportunity to be a festival director is just fantastic.

Me: What has been your largest attendance so far?

Monte: I believe was last year. I don’t know the exact numbers but we had so many movies playing last year, we filled every single slot.

Me: What percentage of the films being submitted are you able to watch yourself?

Monte: Most of the films that are going to be programming for our showcase for the horror showcase at the festival, I have probably seen all of them. We’re talking about anywhere between, depending on the year, anywhere between ten to sixteen movies. While I’m at the festival, I often fill my schedule up and I’m sitting and watching everything at the Phoenix Film Festival because that’s something I’ve been going to from the very beginning, as well. So, this is my time to sit and indulge in cinema. I try my best when I’m not actually working at the festival, to fill those open spaces with movies that I can watch.

Me: How many do you see a year?

Monte: My record at the festival, right before I took over as festival director, I believe I saw thirty-seven films in seven days.

Me: I don’t know how you do it. Do you have any special guests coming this year?

Monte: This year we have one special guest that will be coming for our opening night. We have the world premiere of a movie called ‘Cynthia.’ It’s a crossover between- kind of a little of ‘Basket Case’ and ‘The Unborn,’ two 80’s throwback movies. But, what makes it so fun is the lead actress is Scout Taylor-Compton. She was in Rob Zombie’s Halloween I & II and she will be our special guest for the evening for that opening night film; along with the directors who’ll be there and the producers will be there, as well, so it’ll be a big event. World premieres are a lot of fun because, you know, you got the entire cast and crew; everyone wants to show up for it so we’re going to have a lot of people who were involved with the movie, here. We’re hoping we get a nice big crowd of people to come and show up for that one. It’s a lot of fun.

Me: How do you unwind after all of this, Monte?

Monte: I go back to the movies! For me, growing up… I started as a cinephile when I was pretty young. My parents turned me onto ‘Twilight Zone’ and King Kong movies when I was probably four or five years old. ‘Twilight Zone’ was something that shaped me into the genre fan that I am today and it just continued to grow. Every single year I got older, I seemed to watch more and more movies. In the heyday of the video store, Blockbuster Video, Video Update, Superstar Video, Hollywood Video, all those places, on my summer break, I would go into the horror section and start at A and work my way all the way to Z. That was kind of my summer thing that I would do and then I started to expand and watch more stuff. Before you knew it, I was traveling to different places to see movies. Vacation for me, well when I had kids going on vacation became about them, but before them, it was going to theatres. This week I’m in San Francisco and I can guarantee that I’ll be downtown at the Castro. I’ll be going there Thursday night to watch, Mulholland Drive on 35mm.

Me: How charming. I love knowing all of that about you. Now I must know, what are your favorite films, if you can narrow them down, in the two genre’s that your festival represents?

Monte: All time or only at the festival?

Me: All time.

Monte: Oh, my goodness! That’s like asking me which my favorite child is. (laughs) Science Fiction is actually pretty easy. I still have the one ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ by Stanley Kubrick. That’s the easy answer. Everyone’s going to say that. But I really love that one. I think there’s something about that movie that continues to captivate my mind every single year that I get ahold of it… it means a little something a little bit different to me every time I watch it. On the horror side, you know, the greatest horror film ever made was ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.’ I think it changed the genre. That and ‘Night of the Living Dead’ had two of the biggest impacts on what filmmakers were making at the time but ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’ took it to another level. The visceral feeling that you get from that movie, that gut-punch, the fact that it looks so authentic and genuine, it just paints this portrait of horror that I think, even today, it still stands up some forty years later… that movies still has such an effect on people that I think people sometimes think it’s unreal that they were able to do that. As far as the GREATEST horror film ever made, that’s it but my FAVORITE, greatest and favorite are two different things, my favorite today, at this very moment, is probably Evil Dead Part Two, or Psycho or… there are so many! Evil Dead Part Two. That’s my favorite right now. For the next five minutes that’ll be my favorite movie until I realize I told you the wrong movie.

Me: Now what’s your favorite for the festival this year?

Monte: We have a lot of really fun stuff and part of the fun of programming the festival is the puzzle. You know, we can’t bookend it with just horror stuff because we are horror and science fiction so, we’re trying to meet all of those prerequisites and I think this year, as with most years, we do a pretty decent job of getting that good balance of films. This year, our opening night film is ‘Down Range.’ It’s a really visceral, kind of, gut-punch of a film. Simple premise. There’s a sniper in a tree and a bunch of college kids get broken down outside of town and what happens after that is pure mayhem and explosions of gore. But it’s a great adrenaline rush to start the festival off. We have a really subdued yet really innovative science fiction film called ‘Imitation Girl.’ It has a really strong performance from actress Laura Ashley Carter and it’s directed with such confidence by Natasha Kermani, a female director. We have that female perspective really on display this year. We have four films that are directed by females. Jen Wexler is the director of a film called ‘The Ranger.’ It’s also a simple premise, it’s a punk-rock, slasher mash-up. I just love saying that. It’s a lot of fun. Great soundtrack, great performances. It’s a slasher. Everyone loves a slasher. We have a dystopian fantasy film called ‘Rock Steady Row.’ It’s about… in the future, fraternities are in control of the school and they’re terrible people. This young boy, a college freshman, gets his bike stolen by the fraternity group and he ends up turning the tables on them. It’s not like ‘Animal House’ or ‘Revenge of the Nerds’ or anything like that, it’s like ‘Mad Max’ at a college. It’s a lot of fun. Great social commentary on the state of what college kids might be feeling their college is doing to them for them to get their education… it’s a really fun movie.

The best part of our expansion is we were able to program a majority of our films twice which gives you the opportunity or not having to make that difficult choice of picking one festival over the other. Many of our films will be playing two times during the festival so it makes it a little easier to catch them. The second weekend of our festival is kind of dedicated to horror and sci-fi. We have two dedicated screens at the theatre and we’ll be playing horror and sci-fi movies during the day so I believe if you look at Friday the 13^th and Saturday the 14^th, you can start programming horror/sci-fi movies at 2:00 in the afternoon.

Me: Hmm… horror on Friday the 13^th!

Monty: I know there’s a lot of people who will think it’s an obvious choice, but I was really happy with myself. We have a documentary in the festival this year called, ‘To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story.’ He’s the iconic version of Jason Voorhees from the ‘Friday the 13^th’ movies so, we programmed that movie to play on Friday the 13^th. When we did it, I had a big smile on my face. No one has mentioned it yet but I’m sure it’ll seem very obvious.

Sounds like I’m going to finally get my chance to check out Monte’s festival and I can’t wait. I’m checking my schedule now so I can get my tickets today. You better do the same and stop and say hi to Monte if you see him. He’ll love it. Don’t miss out on the fun. Come check out the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival, where you can watch features and shorts in both genres from all over the globe. See you there!

Interview with Jason Carney of the Phoenix Film Festival!

April 3, 2018 (updated April 3, 2018) Published by Shari K. Green

I spoke with Jason Carney of the Phoenix Film Festival, now in its 18^th year, and asked him a few questions about what fun the festival has in store for us this year. I was also curious about how he thinks his festival, being eleven days long as opposed to the eight it had been, will be perceived. If you don’t know, Jason is the Director of the Phoenix Film Festival and the International Horror & Sci-Fi Film Festival. This year it runs from April 5^th through April 15^th.

If you’ve never gone, you should give it a try. There’s something for everyone to enjoy! There’s a very popular Kid’s Day, Middle and High School Workshops, several different Panels and each of these events are informative, educational and entertaining. I’ll let Jason fill you in on a few things, including the fact that the Harkins theatre it’s held in is even nicer than before, and that’s hard to beat. They added a bar inside which is not a bad idea with as many thirsty festival goers that walk through their doors.

Fred Rogers on the set of his show Mr. Rogers Neighborhood from the film, WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Jim Judkis / Focus Features

Me: What is your favorite movie of the festival this year?

Jason: I think it’s ‘Won’t You Be My Neighbor?’

Me: The film about Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood? Really?

Jason: Yep. It’s really fantastic.

Me: I’ve heard it’s good. I’ll have to check it out. By the way, I thought the festival films from 2017 were terrific. What was your favorite from last year?

Jason: That was like a year ago, Shari! (Thinks) What did we play? Now I’m going to have to look up a program and see what we played from last year. (We laugh) I’m old. I can’t remember last years festival! I really liked, ‘The Hero’ the Sam Elliot movie we had for opening night. I loved it and I really like Sam Elliot. That was a good movie.

Me: Do you see all of the films that play in your festival… or what would your percentage be each festival season?

Jason: Percentage of movies I see? That is ridiculously low.

Me: Really?

Yeah, because of the programmers. I don’t really watch much. We bring in program directors for each category and since they’re watching all the films, you know, I trust them to make the choices. We brought on another programmer to help with some of the films from some of the smaller distributors so, he’s watching a lot of that content. I’ve probably seen maybe a half dozen to a dozen films out of the 120 feature films we’re choosing from so maybe 5 or 10 percent. You know, it’s all about having really strong people to watch the films. There’s just not enough time in my life to watch all of those films.

Me: I’m judging the short films for you this year and I gotta say that I’m enjoying them tremendously.

Jason: Oh, yeah. They’re so good and you see it. Our programmers watch so many and have such a great eye. I trust them to do the right thing. My job isn’t to watch the films and tell them how to program, my job is to choose the right people and put them in the right place and let them do their thing. That’s part of any, like working anywhere, you want to trust people to do their job and stay out of their way. That’s kind of how a film festival should be able to work, as well.

Me: What special things do you have planned for us this year and are you nervous about the added days or looking forward to them?

Jason: The big thing this year is the expansion; going from 175 screenings to 300 is huge. We’re anxious to see how that goes and what it’s like with the theater being remodeled now. There’s also that factor… to see how that features into everything. There are a lot of variables of potential change this year that we just don’t know about. It’s kind of exciting and fun to see how things play out this year. We have different new categories and things like that, that make it exciting and that’s part of what a film festival should be. It’s always changing, always evolving, you know, otherwise, you get stagnate and it becomes the same thing year after year and we don’t want to do that.

Me: What are the new categories?

Jason: There’s this cool thing, it’s called Music in Movies and so we’re showing a few new titles featuring music in film and then we’ve got some older titles that we’re showing. We’ve got this cool documentary that’s called ‘The Godfather of Hardcore.’ It’s about this hardcore punk band called, Agnostic Front and the guys will be here. These guys are, like, legendary. It’s not my style of music but these guys are great characters and even if it’s not your style of music, it’s really a cool documentary; something I might not otherwise have seen. That’s kind of what a film festival is all about.

But we also have some old titles like, ‘Empire Records’ to show the music store thing and we’ve got ‘The Buddy Holly Story’ which is our music bio-pic and ‘That Thing You Do’ and ‘Moulin Rouge.’ So, a lot of cool new things and some old stuff to kind of show how prolific music is in film.

Me: When is this all taking place?

Jason: It’s part of our second weekend.

Me: Speaking of, what brought you to the decision of making the festival eleven days long?

Jason: You know, we’ve been talking about it a couple of years now and it just seemed right. Our contract with Harkins was up for renewal and with it being remodeled and where we were creatively as an organization it felt right. All these things kind of came together. Like, alright, we gotta make a jump eventually so let’s do it this year. I think we’re as ready as we’re gonna be so let’s give it a go.

A lot of festivals are at ten or eleven days and so, eleven days is our magic number. We start on a Thursday and run it through the following Sunday.

Me: Everyone has loved the location in the past. Is Harkins an easy company to work with?

Jason: Harkins was super helpful and super cooperative. Even going back to when they were talking about remodeling the theatre, they wanted to kind of, start earlier but they were super cooperative with working with us on the festival last year. Our festival ended on a Thursday and they started remodel construction the Monday after the festival. They were ready to go to get that remodel done.

They looped us in way in advance, of when they were doing it, so we could start talking about how the theatre remodel was going to impact us; we could talk about expansion. All through the way in the planning stages, they’ve been nothing but a great partner. I can’t say enough things about how good they are.

Me: They better stock up on the alcohol at that new bar, I’m guessing.

Jason: I’ve warned them that filmmakers and film fans will be living it up at the festival. I think they’re going to have extra bartenders on staff so that’ll be great.

Me: Outside of Agnostic Front, are there any other guests coming to the festival?

Jason: We have something really cool on our closing night film Eight Grade. Bo Burnham, he’s a comedian, is going to be here. He directed the film. This was a passion project he had been trying to get made for years so he’ll be here to be a part of our closing night event and have a discussion afterward which will be awesome.

Me: Since you made these changes, how do you expect things to go for the International Horror & Sci-Fi Film Festival to go?

Jason: They’ve always been solid. We’ve added some extra screenings which will be really cool. Before, they had only one theatre on opening weekend. Well, we shifted that on opening weekend where there’s just too many primary (inaudible) but the second weekend, they’ll have two screens running. That’ll be really cool to get more and more out there in terms of content for Horror and Sci-Fi fans.

Me: Do you attend the festival every day or only some of the time?

Jason: Oh, yeah. I’m here, gosh, bright and early and I’m leavin’ late at night. It was previously eight days, so we’ll see how it goes with these extra three days. I actually stay not too far from here at a hotel and that makes my life easier, so I can get some sleep. But it’s important for my psyche to be on site. My brain would go crazy if I wasn’t here during the festival. We spend like 350 days planning it, so I want to make sure I’m here for it. (laughs)

Me: It would be a lot to take. How do you unwind after all of it?

Jason: I watch a lot of T.V. I don’t watch any movies at home. That’s another thing, people are like, ‘You’re watching all the festival movies at home.’ I am not! I’m escaping films at home. If I see something, a new film that’s coming out, I see it at the theatre or I’m probably not going to see it. It’s all about breaking away from the movies at home so I watch a lot of T.V. and stuff like that. I do the baseball card thing, that’s kind of my hobby on the side, as well. Greg Hall, our Feature Film Program Director is also a baseball card guy. So, we’re movie nerds and baseball card nerds all at once.

If you’ve never gone to the Phoenix Film Festival, make this your first year. HERE is a link to help make your festival decisions easier. Have fun and I’ll see you there!

Author: Shari K. Green