16th Annual AT&T St. Louis
International Film Festival
Features
American Fork
Chris Bowman, USA, 2007, 84 min.
Tuesday, Nov. 13, 7 p.m., Tivoli Theatre
It’s hard not to like Tracy Orbison, a dopey Midwestern guy who excels in the food-stocking profession. He politely and passively lives out his days scribbling poems in a notebook during shift breaks and dreaming of making something more of himself. Thinking he may have found the answer, he enrolls in an acting class taught by a pompous Z-list has-been (William Baldwin). Though things don’t quite go according to plan, a tragically comic chain of events is set off that leads Tracy to take a more active role in his life: mentoring a young thug, fending off his obnoxious mother and sister, attempting to pass his driver’s exam, and trying to lose “about 10 pounds.” A different kind of everyman, Tracy Orbison reminds us all to take care when following our dreams.
Director Bowman will attend.
American Visa
Juan Carlos Valdivia, Bolivia/Mexico, 2005, 100 min.
Spanish with English subtitles
Tuesday, Nov. 13, 5 p.m.,Plaza Frontenac
Friday, Nov. 16, 2 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
A Bolivian college professor, frustrated by his meager income and limited options for better financial prospects, seeks an American visa so that he can illegally move to the United States and be closer to his son. He loses hope when his application is denied; without any other options, he becomes involved in a web of criminal activities, holds up the American consulate, and falls for a beautiful prostitute from the Bolivian lowlands.
Best Adapted Screenplay at 2006 Ariel Awards, Mexico
Another Man’s Garden
(O Jardim do Outro Homem)
Joao Luis Sol de Carvalho, Mozambique, 2006, 80 min.
Portuguese with English subtitles
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 5 p.m., Tivoli Theatre
Sunday, Nov. 18, 4 p.m.,COCA
For a young girl who wants to study medicine in Mozambique, the obstacles extend far beyond the distractions of her boyfriend and her family. A moment of weakness or an error in judgment can cost her a place at the university, an irretrievable loss in a country with so few opportunities for women. Director Joao Sol de Carvalho dedicates this film to the courage of young women who continue to strive against the odds, proving that educating a girl is not a waste of time in a land where it is perceived that “sending a girl to school is like watering another man’s garden.”
Aviva My Love
(Aviva Ahuvati)
Shemi Zarhin, Israel, 2006, 107 min.
Hebrew with English subtitles
Sunday, Nov. 18, 1 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Sunday, Nov. 18, 3:30 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Strong and sexy Aviva writes thoughtful, magical stories that she hopes one day to publish, but she struggles to keep her family together. She supports her unemployed husband by working as a cook in a hotel kitchen, raises teenage children, cares for her obstinate, unpredictable mother, counsels her spirited sister through a troubled marriage, and keeps the peace between them all. A pathway out of her provincial life appears when she meets a well-known author who believes her writing has promise and agrees to help edit her work. As Aviva begins to suspect that the author’s intentions are less than noble, she is forced to make crucial decisions that pit her family’s interests against her own dreams.
Best Feature, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Editing, and Best Screenplay at 2006 Israeli Film Academy Awards;
Best Actress and Best Screenplay at 2006 Jerusalem Film Festival Wolgin Awards
The Band’s Visit
(Bikur Ha-Tizmoret)
Eran Kolirin, Israel, 2007, 85 min.
Arabic, English, and Hebrew with English subtitles
Sunday, Nov. 18, 6:15 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
The Egyptian Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra arrives in Israel to play at the opening of an Arab Cultural Center. Dressed in full regalia and observing all military-police protocol, the orchestra members are at a pivotal time in their careers. The unique political nature of the band playing traditional Arab music in Israel makes this event important, yet reorganization and budget cuts has threatened their continued existence. Faced with the heavy burden of this assignment, the stoic conductor is determined not to foul their excursion. Despite all his efforts, it’s not long before problems arise. When the band arrives at the airport, no one is there to greet them. Stranded and unable to contact their Israeli hosts or the Egyptian consulate for help, they decide that the orchestra will persevere with their assignment and attempt to ask for directions. Despite their best efforts, the orchestra winds up in a small forgotten town in the Israeli desert.
Jury Coup de Coeur at 2007 Cannes Film Festival; Audience Choice Award at 2007 Sarajevo Film Festival
Sponsored by Ken and Nancy Kranzberg
Beauty in Trouble
(Kráska v nesnázích)
Jan Hrebejk, Czech Republic, 2006, 110 min.
Czech with English subtitles
Friday, Nov. 16, 4:45 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Sunday, Nov. 18, 3:45 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Set against the backdrop of the devastating recent floods in Prague, “Beauty in Trouble” explores a young woman’s romantic dilemma: torn between a primal connection in her love of two men and the need to provide for the future of her children. The film, inspired by a Robert Graves poem of the same name, features amazingly assured performances by the lead actors, humor, difficult in-laws, unexpected plot twists, and a surprising, paradoxical ending.
Best Film, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress at 2007 Czech Lion Awards; Best European Film at 2006 Denver International Film Festival
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead
Sydney Lumet, USA, 2007, 117 min.
Sunday, Nov. 11, 7 p.m., Plaza Frontenac
Master filmmaker Sidney Lumet directs this absorbing suspense thriller about a family facing the worst enemy of all – itself. Oscar winner Philip Seymour Hoffman plays Andy, an overextended broker who lures his younger brother, Hank (Ethan Hawke), into a larcenous scheme: The pair will rob a suburban mom-and-pop jewelry store that appears to be the quintessential easy target. The problem is, the store owners are Andy and Hank’s actual mom and pop. When the seemingly perfect crime goes awry, the damage lands right at their doorstep. Oscar winner Marisa Tomei plays Hoffman’s trophy wife, who is having a clandestine affair with Hawke, and Albert Finney is the family patriarch who pursues justice at all costs, completely unaware that the culprits he is hunting are his own sons. A classy, classic heist-gone-wrong drama in the tradition of “The Killing” and Lumet’s own “The Anderson Tapes,” “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” is smart enough to know that we often have the most to fear from those who are near and dear.
Sponsored by Diane and John Kalishman
Big Dreams Little Tokyo
David Boyle, USA, 2006, 86 min.
Tuesday, Nov. 13, 9:30 p.m., Tivoli Theatre
“Big Dreams Little Tokyo” is the story of the driven Boyd, who aspires to succeed in the world of Japanese business but finds himself mostly on the outside looking in. Meanwhile, his roommate Jerome is a Japanese-American who has always felt too American to be Japanese but too Japanese to be American. He aspires to be a sumo wrestler but finds his relatively “low” weight and blood pressure thwarting his dreams. Together, they struggle to find their place in a world where cultural identity is seldom what it seems. This charming, quirky comedy paints vivid characters and hilarious cross-cultural conflicts while finding both humor and drama in the inherent disconnects of the modern global community.
Co-star Jayson Watabe will attend.
Bill
Bernie Goldmann and Melisa Wallack, USA, 2007, 92 min.
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7 p.m., Tivoli Theatre
Shot on location in St. Louis in 2006, “Bill” features Aaron Eckhart, Jessica Alba, Timothy Olyphant, and Elizabeth Banks in a comedy about a guy fed up with his life – from his soul-sucking job as vice president of human resources at a bank owned by his in-laws to his empty marriage to a scornful wife who has a suspicious “friendship” with a local news anchor. As his brother-in-law puts it, Bill is “in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly.” But Bill’s fate begins to change when he is forced into participating in his former prep school’s mentorship program. The self-assured boy who chooses him ends up reversing their suggested roles, helping Bill find the confidence to tackle his mess of a life. “Bill” is essentially a film about what it means to let go of your inhibitions and find the path you’re destined for.
Sponsored by Sight and Sound Production Services, Dave Houlle, and the Missouri Film Office
The screening of BILL on Thursday, Nov. 15th at 7 p.m. is SOLD OUT
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