Are we really at the halfway mark? SIFF 42 is zipping along way faster than any middle-ager has a right to. Here’s a bushel of films that have our interest particularly piqued.
Tony: I’m way behind on my SIFFting, so I’m hoping to catch up with these and many other highlights this weekend. As has been said many times, many ways over the years, SIFF offers an embarrassment of riches.
Under the Shadow. This effort by Iranian-born, British-based filmmaker Babak Anvari follows a woman and her possibly demonically-possessed daughter during the tail end of the Iran/Iraqi War in 1988. Period drama, plus paranormal horror? I’m in.
June 3, 2016 SIFF Cinema Egyptian 11:55 PM
June 8, 2016 Pacific Place 9:30 PM
The Night Stalker. Spoiler alert (not): Megan Griffiths’ exploration of serial killer Richard Ramirez keeps the Seattle-based director’s winning streak alive (she talked at length with me about it elsewhere). Both screenings are at standby, but if you’re willing to wait in line, your persistence may pay off.
June 4, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown 5:30 PM
June 5, 2016 Pacific Place 1:30 PM
Big Sonia. This doc by local filmmakers Leah Warshawski and Todd Soliday is screening out-of-competition as a work-in-progress, but even in its rough cut it’s a funny and absorbing story about a 90-year old tailor shop owner and Holocaust survivor who’s easily as compelling as any of the fictional characters you’re likely to see all SIFF (further pimpery alert: Warshawski spoke to me about the film elsewhere).
June 4, 2016 Shoreline Community College Theater 6:00 PM
June 5, 2016 Pacific Place 6:30 PM
B-Movie Bingo Presents Rambu, the Intruder. I participated in a variation of this (Stephen King Bingo, aka Kingo!) a couple of times, and the format–Bingo cards cueing in to a film’s myriad clichés–is hella fun. The fact that the Indonesian Rambo knockoff at the center of this game looks totally batshit nuts can’t hurt.
June 4, 2016 SIFF Cinema Egyptian 11:00 PM
Gleason. Contrary to SIFF’s uneven history with Opening Night films, the Fest usually hits pay dirt with its Centerpiece Gala selections. This doc on New Orleans Saint player Steve Gleason, directed by Clay Tweel and scored by Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, looks to continue that streak.
June 4, 2016 SIFF Cinema Egyptian 5:00 PM
June 5, 2016 SIFF Cinema Egyptian 1:30 PM
Chris: I second a lot of Tony’s recommendations (and I want to check out the ones he mentioned above that I haven’t seen yet). Here are a few more movies I’m finding interesting:
Transpecos. A whole bunch of trouble ensues when some border agents come across what they think is a routine inspection. It’s getting compared to movies by the Coen Brothers, and it probably ends in a dystopian hellhole where Donald Trump is president.
June 1, 2016 Renton IKEA Performing Arts Center 8:00 PM
June 3, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown 9:45 PM
June 5, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown 3:00 PM
Atlantic Heart (Coração Atlântico) Word on the street is that this “is the first full-length narrative feature film set in Cape Verde in rare Kriolu language.” It’s about a brother and sister who lose their dog during Mardi Gras and search for it in the sleazier parts of Cape Verde. It sounds interesting to me. Plus, don’t worry if you don’t speak Kriolu; there’ll be subtitles.
June 4, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown Festival 6:00 PM
June 6, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown Festival 3:30 PM
Sam Choy’s Poké to the Max. I watched an advance screener of this engaging (but short – only 40 minutes!) documentary last night. It was great and I learned a lot about the raw fish salad that celebrity chef Sam Choy has lent his name to making ubiquitous in Seattle. It worked as a food documentary, but when I watched it, I was miles (and probably hours) away from the closest poke food truck. At Saturday’s screening in Columbia City, my dilemma was predicted and planned for. The Sam Choy’s Poke to the Max will be waiting for you outside of the theater.
June 4, 2016 Ark Lodge Cinema 1:00 PM
June 5, 2016 SIFF Cinema Uptown Festival 5:30 PM