DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 9

Well, it’s the very last day of DIFF (that would have been Sunday, 4/10). And, the final movie, getting its premiere at the super cool Texas Theatre in Oak Cliff. “The Texas’s” lobby has the vibe of the Inwood, while the actual theatre reminds me of Austin’s Paramount Theatre, 10 years ago, for those who were at University of Texas at Austin when I was. Hip, but not taking itself too seriously. Not yet, anyway.

I received a screener of the night’s film (“Spilt Milk”) from its awesome publicist, Kelly Kitchens of Kelly Kitchens PR. Wow! This woman was a warrior for her films! I really wish that I had had someone like Kelly behind my film (back in the day), spreading the word, keeping the conversation alive at festivals, long after the screenings (or, in this case, beforehand). Ms. Kitchens is a dynamo at spreading the word, booking screenings, and making sure your product gets in the right hands–to bloggers who are awesome, like me–even if I’m not the Dallas Morning Snooze News.

Onto the film: “Spilt Milk”.  Let me just say, that this film is very indicative of the intense mediocrity that DIFF selected this year. This excludes “Elevate” and “Burke and Hare”. There are probably a few that I didn’t see that were decent or better, but, overall, names above quality, by far. Each year, there always seems to be one film that sneaks in at/near the end of the fest that has smaller names and a slightly interesting twist on an everyday plot. It is usually a last-minute addition, often a local ”favor”. This was last year’s, and it was god-awful (and, apparently, just sold to Lionsgate, per the snotty Dallas-based director/producer/writer (eek!), who stood in front of me during the fest before a screening, and ignored me, even though I said I had seen his film)! You know what they say about men with small feet and large egos…

“Spilt Milk” was not nearly that bad. From the press release: “Todd Wells is disenchanted, disgruntled, disheveled, and the assistant manager of a local grocery store. Once popular…he finds himself unable to move forward. His future is about to change. After arriving late to his night-shift, Todd encounters a robber, who takes him and everyone in the store hostage….There’s a chuckle at every twist of this accidental comedy.” Read more

DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 8

The next two posts are in arrears. Sorry. I’m a rear, sometimes. A tired one. But, two movies came and went. And, one was just effin’ fantastic!

It’s called “Burke and Hare”. To explain such narrative awesomeness is going to be really difficult. Here’s two words and a preview: John Landis.

Now, try telling me that preview doesn’t look interesting. The only thing wrong with it is that it currently has no US release date (that I can find, anyway). Simon Pegg! Andy Serkis, not playing Gollum! Borat’s Wife! And, probably the best on-screen sex scene since “Basic Instinct”, when Michael Douglas still had that ass.

What makes it so genius is 3 specific things: Read more

DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 7

Here we are, at the end of the “actual Dallas” leg of DIFF. They have an awards dinner today. Tix are still available for $150 a pop for stilted organic bbq and mescaline greens with vinagrette. They may give you a glass of Barefoot, but, don’t go in there with expectations. Starts at 6pm-ish. Pay bar starts far earlier at Dallas’s historic Union Station, I’m sure.

And, now, I pick the winners losers winners. A note before I start: This is a show friends contest for the audience awards. Not a best movie contest. People rip ballots at screenings. If your “friends” came out to “support” you at your screening, and you packed houses, you win. No packed screenings? Loser. Sorry, dudes.

The Jury Competitions are judged by the large donors to the festival, as well as some of the higher-ups that work there, like James Faust and co. So, that’s who they are.

That said, bombs away! First Juries, Then Audience. I’m only doing the ones I know about. Read more

DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 5

Just when I was ready to call this year a wash, comes, easily the best film of the festival: Anne Buford’s “Elevate”.

Now, this is a documentary, and docs often blow narratives out of the water. As a former (narrative) filmmaker, I know how easy difficult it is to make a film, having gone through all the steps from financing to so-close-you-can-taste-it-after-talking-to-the-distribution-agent close. I’m even an award-winning producer. Wha wha!! And, you will never see my film. Never! Muhahaha!

Now, multiply that experience by 30 terabyte towers to edit through, 4 more cameramen, add 10 years to your face (and life), and *poof*, you have a documentary.

Let me point out, however, that Anne Buford is gorgeous, and does NOT look 10 years older, like I did. That is not fair. It is also not fair that she knows a lot of basketball icons and can get tickets to Texas games, HOWEVER, that has NOTHING to do with her film. Take a glimpse below:

ELEVATE Assane Arrives in the US from ELEVATE on Vimeo.

This clip comes from around the middle, when Assane, an extremely bright and talented student from Senegal, has accepted a basketball scholarship to a private American high school, in hopes of going on to college basketball, and then, *hope**hope* the NBA. Read more

DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 4(ish)

So, here’s the thing: the weather in Dallas blows. Hard. It’s been great walking weather and pool weather until yesterday, when my sinuses got the better of me. It even took about 5 minutes to light my cigarettes with my click-a-Bic on full fire.

About 7:00pm, at which time I would have been in line for the formerly-TBA-but-just-announced-”Miral”, I crashed on my sofa.  The flick made a see-ya pass through at the fest, so I had my doubts already. Pretty much every movie plays twice.

As I check my mail (as in “snail mail”), I realize that “Miral” has made the cover of Variety (which I used diet coke points to get, which was actually a mistake on their part, because I ordered “Vanity Fair”, just sayin’).

A hero of any true filmie, Peter Bart, reviews director Julien Schnabel’s “Miral” here. As a woman with a booty, I do take a little offense that Bart has to stop reviewing the art to point out that “Schnabel is pear-shaped“.

We don’t do that at Baddatesindallas.com. We go with “Douche”-(suffix).

Feelings aside, it isn’t exactly positive, per se. So, I jumped to Rotten Tomatoes, which, seems to agree with Bart. Yikes! Read more

DIFF Me? DIFF Deux!: Day 3

There is a God! I left my cell-phone/lover/brain in the back of C.H. Limo’s, well, White Suburban.

Great service, this C.H., and, as usual, Baddates was chatting away, because, the privatized cab business in Dallas is small, and we have a mutual acquaintance.  Downtown became the Angelika quick as a wink, and *boom* I’m outie. Cards exchanged, I figured, that was that.

Onto today’s flick: “Salvation Boulevard”, a religious satire-com with Jennifer Connelly, Greg Kinnear, and a full-of-the-Big-Guy Pierce Brosnan.

**Editor’s interruption: Now, I’m a sinner. I’m also a non-denom Christian who believes in Karma, good times, and that people are good. Of those beliefs , the fifth makes me have far more doubt, over and over again (count ‘em), that I shouldn’t be such a, well, believer, of anything. But that’s neither here, nor there, I guess.**

And, back to our review: Read more