Nothing staves off the Fall blues better than partying all night and drinking until your body assumes a horizontal position. But in case you needed a break from the nightly saturnalia, fight the gray reality the old-school way—by going to the movies. And this time strive for something more than the over-crowded multiplexes rolling the same themes of violence, sex, drugs and money over and over again. New York offers more advantages than watching the latest Cameron Diaz flop in Times Square: it is the capital city of film festivals, and Fall marks the onslaught of indie cinema’s best film festivals.
Chelsea Classics
October 2 – 16
Who cares that you can see The Shining on ABC every month? That flood of murky blood is phenomenally jarring when splashing around the big screen. The Chelsea Classics showcase takes our favorite oldies—The Shining, Psycho, The History of the World, Part I—and returns them to their rightful thrones. Since most of us know the plot so well, The Classics festival allows us to appreciate cinematic details we missed on first screenings while we were too wrapped up in the plot, and the full-sized theater showing always reveals more to the eye than your crappy Best Buy TV.
Click here for more info on The Chelsea Classics, New York NY
World Cinema Showcase
When: October 3, 2008 - May 22, 2009
Supported by the Museum of the Moving Image, The World Cinema Showcase enjoys universal adoration among cinephiles. As seasonal depression spreads throughout the city, treat yourself with colorful movies from France, Hong Kong, Iran, Israel, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, and the United States. Features include internationally recognized stories like Iranian Offside (Jafar Panahi) and the Romanian thrilled 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (Cristian Mungiu). The director of In Between Days, a touching story about a young Korean-American girl, will hold a discussion after her movie’s screening on January 23, 2009. The showcase also adds an insider’s touch with special events and panels-- such as an evening with film director Mira Nair and author/screenwriter Suketu Mehta.
Click here for more info on Mira Nair's panel at the World Cinema Showcase, New York NY
The Hamptons International Film Festival
When: October 15-19, 2008
The Hamptons fest is an event driven to “express fresh voices and differing global perspectives.” Taking the reins over from America’s failing educational system, this festival is bent on illuminating the populace about world politics and history. "The Films of Conflict and Resolution” section presents cinema that explores war around the world. The remaining categories are World Cinema, Narrative and Documentary competitions, Spotlight films and Shorts, and The Rising Stars. Since this year’s festival coincided with Israel's 60th anniversary, the program will focus on Israeli films, filmmakers and culture. And, as usual, the organizers will make sure that no moviegoer gets left behind.
Click here for more info on the US premiere of Valentino: The Last Emperor at the The Hamptons International Film Festival, New York NY
Israel Film Festival
When: Oct. 29th – Nov. 13
As the largest showcase for Israeli films in the United States, The Israel Film Festival has shown more than 750 features, documentaries, television dramas and short films to roughly 800,000 film enthusiasts. This year, 60 new productions from the past 60 years have been selected to celebrate the country’s round anniversary, with over 36 new features and documentaries. And if you think that this is just another niche, unknown event, bzz, you’re wrong. Danny DeVito will receive the festival’s Lifetime Visionary Award, and two more industry big fish-- Irwin Winkler (producer of Rocky, Goodfellas, Raging Bull, The Right Stuff) and Edward Zwick (director, producer)—will appear to accept rewards for their cinematic achievements. The film roster includes such titles as Beaufort (Joseph Cedar), The Debt (Assaf Bernstein) and Noodle (Ayelet Menahemi), as well as scenes from Mr. Zwick’s much-anticipated upcoming release, Defiance.
Click here for more info on the opening night of The Israel Film Festival, New York, NY
The Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival
November 14-16, 2008
Get ready for a night at the museum. The longest-running premiere showcase for international documentaries in the United States, The Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival, kicks off mid November at the American Museum of Natural History. Tired of the rich, white, middle-class anxieties endemic of so many Hollywood productions? This festival unfolds a whole different theme area—controversial and global. Iinnovative thrills include Jacqueline Goss’ Stranger Comes to Town--an eclectic animated movie where themes evolve from political to visual motifs of World of Warcraft and Google Earth, or Negin Kianfar and Daisy Mohr’s The Birthday, a moving depiction of women in Iran.
Click here for more info on The Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival, New York NY
