A taste of Muskrat with Amy Nicholson

Amy Nicholson is the director of Muskrat Lovely, a documentary feature accepted by the Austin Film Festival in 2005. The film centers on a Maryland beauty pageant that accompanies an outdoor show, the main competition in which is a timed muskrat skinning contest.

How did you first hear about the Miss Outdoors pageant?

My Dad told me about the World Championship Muskrat Skinning contest. Of course I thought he was kidding, but when he insisted it was real, a friend and I drove down to Maryland to see it. We were reading the little brochure they hand out and saw that there was a pageant, too, and that the next year would be the 50th anniversary, so I vowed to come back and film it.

Were any of the girls uncomfortable about being interviewed or other aspects of making the film?

No one ever said no. Of course people are nervous to be on camera, but I spent some time with all the girls before their interview and they got to pick what they wanted to do that they thought was "glamorous."

Did you find yourself talking people into doing things they were hesitant to do?

The only guys I had to do a little coaxing with were the guys in front of the old store. They were a little shy, and of course the pageant tips were kind of silly. But once one agreed they all did.

What does muskrat taste like?

I never tasted muskrat the whole time. The day Rhonda Aaron was cooking and telling us how she skins, she was making her dish for the muskrat cooking competition, so she couldn't give us any. (Phew!)

How has the film been received in Golden Hill?

I had a screening for everyone in the film in March, just after this year's competition and it was huge success. They all loved it. I got a couple of hugs afterward!

The "vaseline on the teeth" trick is a standard chestnut of beauty pageant folklore. Did you pick up any unusual beauty pageant tips that you hadn't heard before?

I got the pageant tips from two books that I found that were standard old school beauty pageant manuals. When I told the ladies that wrote them what I was using them for, they thought it was cool.

The premise of the film sounds more like the stuff of a mockumentary than a documentary. Did you have to resist the urge to play certain scenes for laughs?

I played the whole thing for a laugh– never mind certain scenes! But I treated everyone with respect and tried to never cross the line of making fun of anyone on purpose. I worked very hard at that balance because I have seen films that crossed that line and I didn't like them.

The muskrat skinning competition seemed pretty fierce. Apart from the one pageant contestant who skins a muskrat in the talent show, are the younger citizens of Dorchester County interested in continuing the tradition?

There are a surprising number of young guys (and quite a few girls) that are learning to skin. We just didn't film them because they are pretty slow at this point and it didn't really add to the story. But, yes, some of the skinners are from families where the tradition has been passed on every generation.

Michael Moore was reportedly skittish about showing a woman skinning a rabbit in Roger & Me, but you seem to have no such compunctions about the skinning of muskrats. Are muskrats less loveable than bunnies?

Well, we knew the skinning would be hard for an audience to watch, so the editor and I always had the idea to show it only in the credits. But in early screenings, the muskrats seemed to 'go away' toward the end of the pageant for some people, so we chose to include the women's skinning a little earlier, and it was a nice break before the BIG QUESTION. As far as me being skittish, after you watch it a hundred or so times, you get immune. Besides, it's way worse in person . . . .

Have you heard from PETA?

No word from PETA yet but I am expecting some sort of protest.

Tell me about the gentlemen who read the competition guidelines aloud during the film.

Those guys were all the guys that hung out at a certain store down where they go out to fish in the morning. Down in that part of the country, the men get up very early and go a have coffee and gossip at the local hangout. I wanted to include the men somehow and had the idea to have them read the "tips". So I asked the guy who was my contact how I could get them all together and he said, "Just get up early and go down to the store."

Have you been back to Dorchester County for subsequent pageants?

I went back to cheer the girls on last year and I plan to go this year, too. It's fun to see everyone again, and they're such nice people.

What's next?

I've started working on something already. I want to do another documentary. After I sleep for a month.

Watch the Muskrat Lovely web site for news of upcoming screenings.

Where is Bill Watterson?

Feel like being sad? Read this CNN profile of Calvin & Hobbes cartoonist Bill Watterson. Part of me thinks he's justified in being a bit bitter and reclusive (the non-stop bootlegging of his characters) and another part thinks the man is just too sensitive to the truths of the marketplace (his refusal to sign books after learning that some of them end up on eBay).

We all miss Calvin & Hobbes, but we have the complete catalog of past strips to keep us happy.

Eleven courses with Scott Allen Perry of "The Outdoorsmen"

Scott Allen Perry, director of The Outdoorsmen: Blood, Sweat, and Beers may hang out with beer-chuggin' manly men in the woods once a year, but he's not ashamed of his more refined tastes. Perry agreed to answer our questions in exchange for some of the finer pleasures of gastronomy.

How did you find out about The Outdoorsmen?

You must bribe me with a fine swiss cheese to get that answer out of me. I suggest a fine Gruyere.

An actor I've cast in a several of the short films I've done went to high school with a lot of the guys in the film at Cascade in Everett, WA. They tried to recruit him for the competition but he was not up to the challenge, however, he did think it would be a good film and came to me with the idea of shooting it as a documentary. I did not want to a doc, but it was such a cool idea, and the guys were so interesting, I had to do it.

Did any of your budget go towards beer?

Ahh, this question will cost you a tasty port wine to compliment my cheese laden pallet.

The deal was, if we film them, we supply the beer. We started out at 22 cases, then had to make a beer run (1 hour to the nearest store) which upped it to 28 cases. That soon became 32 cases of beer, which is what's advertised on the posters for the film. At the end of the weekend the grand total was about 38 cases of beer. I drank one of those with my Gaffer/Grip extraordinaire, Ralph Walters.

Do you think the film will change the event in any way?

Yes. I think they will buy 38 cases of beer at the beginning, especially with gas prices lately.

Your first screening is at The Hideout, which happens to serve beer. Should people drink during the film to get in the mood?

Only if they are cute and will try to take advantage of me during and after the film. The more you drink, the cuter and funnier I get. Don't believe me? Do a couple of shots then come back and read this profile. You'll be giggling and touching yourself ... it's really making me uncomfortable thinking about it.

Will there ever be a version for women or a co-ed event?

I am feeling a rich and creamy dessert coming my way. Something layered, like a Napoleon.

There is no way they will ever incorporate women into the competition. Women can start their own weekend but this is, in the words of Scott Walker, "about the dudes." When you see him next to his wife, calm, shy, and quiet, and then see him screaming like The Incredible Hulk as he runs through a freezing riverbed with a 60 pound log over his shoulder, you'll understand.

Have you heard about similar or copycat events?

There are a lot of people who do things similar to this, but there's no groups I've come across that are as committed, organized and intense about the competition as these guys are. There is no prize money, the prize is pride, glory, and a big cup that they pass around year to year. This film was the 14th year for the Outdoorsmen. The other groups I've come across have done their thing once, maybe two or three times, and it's usually nowhere near as intense as the events these guys have created.

Are there any new competition challenges that have been introduced since the film was made?

No new ones, but the competition has been finely honed over the years. Some of the events were eliminated when deemed too ridiculous or too dangerous to continue. Like Speed Walking and the Between the Legs Log Chop. And all the beer drinking that is part of the competition is actually strategically placed to level the playing field. They call it "The Great Equalizer." It doesn't matter how good you are at chugging a beer or how amazing you are at the physical challenges. When you combine the two of them everyone suffers.

While in production, did you camp with the Outdoorsmen or keep more civilized quarters?

I slept in a tent with my Gaffer, Ralph, and a couple of our PAs. I was too sleep deprived to remember much more than that. I think I slept a total of 8 hours over 10 days. 7 days of interviews, bonfires, and Bar-B-Q's, then the grueling, nonstop Outdoorsmen Weekend. The challenges we faced as a crew are clear when you see the film. You could break a leg walking through that river much less running through it like these guys do during the competition. And we had to stay ahead of them the whole time. There was no waiting for the film crew to catch up so they could do the next event. It was 10 hours of straight competition with about a half an hour lunch break, most of which they spent joking around with each other. There was very little food consumption before the Competition was over.

Have you had to defend the film on any level?

Someone almost spilled a root beer on one of the DVDs last week. I leapt between the rogue beverage and the newly pressed DVD, keeping it dry and giving me a tasty spot on my shirt I could suck on later when I needed a little flavor in my pie-hole.

A lot of people told me they thought this movie would only appeal to men. That women would hate it. Well, every woman who has seen it that I have spoken to loves the film. Unlike a "Chick Flick", this film appeals to both genders, and probably a lot of the in betweens and/or undecideds. I guarantee you, if you see this movie you will laugh, cheer, and smile 2.353339% more in your lifetime than you will if you don't see it.

Is there a mandatory retirement age for an Outdoorsman?

No retirement required. These guys say they will do it until they can't do it anymore. They will change the competition to incorporate the use of walkers and metamucil before they give up.

What's your next project?

Can I get a napkin over here?

Changing the business of film so better movies get made. I want to start by making my own films. A big budget narrative version of The Outdoorsmen: Blood, Sweat, & Beers is in the workings of my brain. Imagine Vince Vaughn, Will Ferrell, Owen Wilson, maybe even a Bruce Willis as Outdoorsmen. I have about 5 projects ready to go, just waiting on the magic bullet (AKA moolah) to set them off. I want to create a real film industry in my hometown, Lafayette, LA. Much like Robert Rodriguez has done with Austin. But mine will have better craft service. You can't beat crawfish étouffée.

The Outdoorsmen: Blood, Sweat, and Beers premieres at the Austin Film Festival on Thursday, October 20th at 9:30 p.m. at the Hideout. An encore screening will be held on Tuesday, October 25th at 9:30 p.m. at the Bob Bullock IMAX.

James Vculek on "Two Harbors"

James Vculek is the director of Two Harbors, an unusual and thoughtful picture about friendship, commerce, and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Vculek will be in attendance at the Austin Film Festival to show Two Harbors this weekend.

Large portions of Two Harbors take place in an antique mall. Is that your natural habitat?

I'm not really an antiques person, although I don't mind spending time browsing through expensive junk. I do have a friend, also a filmmaker, who for a long time dabbled in antique dealing, so I was exposed to that world. And even though the basic idea for Two Harbors was knocking around in my mind for many years, the screenplay fell together very quickly when I suddenly imagined Vic (the main character) as a dealer in sci-fi collectibles. It just all made sense all of a sudden.


James Vculek (left), Michael Tezla (actor, middle) and Philip Geller (executive producer) on the set of Vculek's new film, "The Quietest Sound" - photo by Jana Kramer.

There's a memorable demonstration of supply and demand in the film -- have you learned some hard lessons at the hands of the collectibles market?

The "Spock" scene was completely imaginary. I wrote it after the screenplay was finished, specifically for the actor in the scene - Ari Hoptman (who I had directed the year before in a musical I had written) because I knew he would be hilarious. I personally have never haggled over any purchase in my life. Maybe because I think it would turn out like that scene in the film.

What's the most precious action figure you own?

Well, again, as a follow-up to question #1, I don't really collect that stuff. But I do have the charred Princess Leia doll that appears in the film (and on our posters). In monetary terms, it probably has more value than all those other packaged toys I bought (on discount). Even the Spock action figure, which really is not worth 70 dollars. The "action" figures I value most are the 250 cloth dolls sitting in a hefty trash bag in my dining room. My mother made all of them.

Do you believe in aliens?

I think the film demonstrates pretty clearly my belief, or lack thereof, in extraterrestrials. The film was made as an antidote to all those treacly, Spielbergian quasi-religious sci-fi films where a kindly, wise alien comes to earth to solve the messy problems of messed-up earthlings. I like to think of Two Harbors as secular humanist sci-fi.

Why did you choose to shoot in black and white?

Black and white was an easy choice. Most of my favorite films are in black and white, and when I imagine films, they're in black and white. And the mood of Two Harbors in particular seemed to lend itself to black and white. Plus I wanted an easy way to de-emphasize the video-y quality of the . . . video. Which worked to a certain degree.

Would you characterize Two Harbors as a film that outperformed its budget?

I think you're getting at how cheap the film looks, aren't you? I don't really mind that response anymore. It was cheap, and you can hide that fact only so far. Do I wish I'd had a bigger budget? Sure. Do I wish I'd shot it on Super16 or 35mm? Sure. But instead of talking to you about the film, and showing it at festivals like Austin, I'd still be out there trying to raise money. And like haggling over action figures, that's just not something I do. But seriously, it's gratifying when viewers of the film are able to see past the slightly crummy surface and respond to the characters, and the story, and the dialogue. That what films are about, I like to think.

What's your favorite story about the involvement of local residents in production?

After shooting the film in Minnesota, I wouldn't want to make a film any other place. We would walk into a potential location - drugstore, antiques mall, surplus store, whatever - tell them what we wanted to do, and they practically handed us the keys. No permits, no fees, nothing. Just cooperation and enthusiasm. For example, Axman Surplus opens at noon on Sundays, so the owner told us to come in at 8:00am on a Sunday, and we had the whole morning to shoot. For free. Antiques Minnesota was the same - closed Tuesdays, so the owner came in on three Tuesdays and let us shoot all day. It's the only way to make a film.

Tell me about your two lead actors.

The true story Two Harbors is based on concerned a man in his 30's and a woman in her late forties, so that's how I wrote it originally. Then I saw Catherine Johnson, who is in her twenties, in a play in Minneapolis. I went home literally that night and re-wrote the part of "Cassie" for her. Fortunately, even though we had never met, she agreed to read the screenplay, and then agreed to do the role. Alex Cole (who will be at Friday's screening in Austin) is a Minneapolis-based actor and comic who was suggested for the role by my executive producer, Phil Geller. I had never met Alex, but Phil's instincts turned out to be exactly right. Alex is brilliant in the role.

What's next?

Since finishing Two Harbors I wrote and directed another feature film, The Quietest Sound. I wrote it specifically for Catherine Johnson and she's phenomenal in it. It's about a mother whose young daughter disappears. She's brought in for questioning and two detectives videotape the interrogation. That's it - Catherine in one take for 75 minutes. And then there's a twist, and then another twist. And finally, there's a twist. I also wrote a two act comedy for Catherine, Alex and Ari that was performed at the Minnesota Fringe Festival in August.

Two Harbors premieres at the Austin Film Festival on Friday, October 21st at 10:15 p.m. An encore screening will be held on Sunday, October 23 at 7:00 p.m. Both screenings will be held at the Hideout Theater.

Eleven Questions with Jay Edwards

Jay Edwards is the director of Stomp! Shout! Scream!, which makes its world premiere at the Austin Film Festival this coming Friday. Jay, who also edits and produces Aqua Teen Hunger Force for the Williams Street Studios at Cartoon Network, took time away from his busy schedule of watching the Encore-Love Channel to answer a few questions for Blue Glow.

The monster in your movie is a skunk ape. What's a skunk ape?

I grew up in Florida and went down to the Everglades to go fishing with my Dad every summer. He would always tell me stories about the Skunk Ape, things like, "See that tree and the way it's bent out over the water? Skunk Ape did that." "Ew, smell that? That's the Skunk Ape." Mostly stuff that makes no sense, but as an 8 year old, you never forget it. There have been several Skunk Ape sightings in the last few years right around Bradenton where we shot the movie, so obviously he's still out there.

Who was that in the skunk ape costume?

Ned Hastings, editor and producer at Williams Street. You might know him as "your host, Ned Hastings" from the Aqua Teen episode called Super Trivia. I cast Ned for a couple of reasons. As he puts it, he's "the largest mammal I know." At 6 foot 6 or something, he fills out a gorilla suit quite nicely. He's also a walking encyclopedia of film and just a great person to have on set. He's also someone from my every day life and I needed that to keep me from becoming a crazy person while we were shooting.

Did the suit make his dancing better or worse?

Yes absolutely.

Why would Adult Swim fans want to see "Stomp! Shout! Scream!" ?

Uh, not sure. I really made this for myself. It's a movie that I'd really want to see. It's not that I didn't have an audience in mind, I just wanted to do something that I'd be able to enjoy all the way through the process. So there's garage rock, monster, girls... all the good stuff. The film is described as a beach party rock and roll monster movie about an all-girl garage rock band and the legend of the Florida Skunk Ape. I think people will know right away whether that is something they would want to see.

(ATHF fans should also take note that in addition to Ned Hastings as the Skunk Ape, Dana "Master Shake" Snyder has a brief cameo in a Dodge Dart.)

What's the mind-altering chemical of choice at Williams Street?

Comedy. The Onion. Cigarettes. Most of Williams Street is out of their 20's, married, with a mortgage and some even have kids. We're not in the party crowd as much, but we can remember when we were.

What beach party movies did you most try to emulate in this picture?

I watched all the Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon AIP ones from the '60's-- Beach Party, Muscle Beach Party, Bikini Beach, Beach Blanket Bingo. They're supposed to be comedies, but they're painfully not funny anymore. I really just took the parts that I liked – the look (bright, super-saturated colors), the extended live music scenes, and that moment late in the movie where Annette walks the beach singing a lonesome lament.

Which of the three main actresses has the best scream?

They're all very talented scream queens, amazingly so. Claire Bronson, the lead, was really the best. She's kind of reserved, kind of serious, but then when the time came, she just about broke the microphone.

Who did the film's music, and where can I get a copy on CD?

The songs played by the band in the movie were written and recorded by Atlanta band Catfight! (www.catfight.net). The Stomp! Shout! Scream! soundtrack is tentatively scheduled to come out in January on Austin label Chicken Ranch Records. The other songs on the soundtrack are mostly previously released by the bands: The Woggles, The Hate Bombs, The Evidents, The Penetrators, The Vendettas, and Johnny Knox & HI-TEST. The score was written by Atlanta composer John Cerreta.

Where'd you get those great vintage cars?

It's amazing, but there's only 4 vintage cars in the whole movie – the band's station wagon, John's Ford Fairlane, the Plymouth Police Car, and the Dodge Dart Swinger that's in only in one shot. The wagon belongs to TK, one of the grips on the shoot. The beautiful Ford Fairlane was borrowed from a retired St. Petersburg man who we found through an on-line Car Club. The police car is owned by the St. Pete Police Department and they loan it out for movie shoots. The Dart is from a friend of a friend of somebody who let us borrow it for the day for free. Production Designer Lisa Yeiser did an amazing job, especially considering our budget.

Be honest: how much of your "on location" shoot consisted of just enjoying the beach?

Zero for me. All the actors had a day or two off while we were in Florida, so they had it pretty good. I was on set all day everyday for the 5 days we were in Florida. The worst day? Leaving to shoot at Sarasota Jungle Gardens at 7 AM, shooting driving scenes that afternoon, then shooting in a St. Pete motel room until after 3 AM that night. Plus, I don't really like getting sandy and sunburned.

Will there be more monster movies from Jay Edwards?

Stomp! Shout! Scream! is the first of a Skunk Ape Trilogy. The next film will catch up with the main character, Theodora, five years later, 1971. She’s stuck in the Midwest, bartending at a honky tonk and playing in a country band. She falls in love again, but the Skunk Ape returns to terrorize her. In the third film, Theodora has escaped to Los Angeles. It’s 1978 and she’s in a punk band. The Skunk Ape tracks her down and terrorizes her once again. I'm working my way through all my favorite music genres. And it’s kind of the Sam Raimi school of film making. Make the same movie over and over again (i.e. Evil Dead, Evil Dead II) until you get really good at it.

Stomp! Shout! Scream! premieres at the Austin Film Festival on Friday, October 21st at 10:15 p.m. An encore screening will be held on Tuesday, October 25 at 9:30 p.m. Both screenings will be held at the Landmark Dobie Theater.

Snakes on a Plane

Sometimes it takes a while for these things to permeate my consciousness, it's true. I've been seeing "Snakes on a Plane" references for about a week now and I figured it was just one of those wacky Internet gags like the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Come to find out, it's an upcoming film from New Line starring Sam Jackson.

Well I'll be a monkey's cobra's uncle.

You will Wigu

Remember when the funnies used to be funny?

No? Well, it has been a while.

Internet comics have been struggling to fill the void, but I have yet to find one that makes me smile on a regular basis. That is, until I found Wigu.

Don't miss the not-so-narrative companion "diary comic," Overcompensating.

the electric biscuit: dawn of the knitted dead

If you ever wanted to see what knitted action figures of the characters from Dawn of the Dead would look like (and really, who hasn't?), your chance to see it is here: Dawn of the Knitted Dead. There's obsession and then there's the rest of us posers.

Serenity takes #1 box office spot in UK

Why am I not surprised that the Brits get this movie more than we Yanks? Probably because this is the same nation that kept the highly cerebral and entertaining Dr. Who going for 30 years.

Austin Film Festival Preview

Next week the Austin Film Festival begins – a week of features, shorts, documentaries and, for the attendees of the accompanying Screenwriters' Conference, panels about the craft of writing for the movies. I've been volunteering for the Festival for a few months now so I've got a good idea of what's on the way and where I'll be spending my time that week.

Big events include the opening night film Shopgirl (with Claire Danes and Jason Schwarzman in attendance), The Ice Harvest (with director Harold Ramis in attendance), and the big Saturday night screening of Ghostbusters at the historic Paramount Theater, where Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson will answer questions after the movie. (I've even heard rumors that some Ghostbusters fans plan on attending in costume.)

Here are some of the other screenings that look like fun. For those films about which I don't know enough to do my own write-up I have used the Festival's synopsis.

Stomp! Shout! Scream! (competition feature) - a rock & roll beach party monster movie directed by Jay Edwards, one of the minds behind Cartoon Network's Aqua Teen Hunger Force. As it is a monster movie I've watched the festival screener for this several times and I'm excited that the AFF will be hosting the film's world premiere. Jay, who is a really nice guy, will be at the conference and both of the screenings of his movie. Check out the web site for Stomp! Shout! Scream!

Dirt (competition documentary) - DIRT follows a season inside the soul of American auto racing--the World Class Street Stocks at the legendary Devil's Bowl Speedway, in Mesquite, Texas as the racers careen on and off the track toward the 2002 season championship. DIRT is about primal forces: horsepower and ego, the roar of machines and the power of teamwork. It's also about relationships between fathers and sons, between men and women. Director Jeff Bowden will be in attendance.

Mrs. Henderson Presents (advance screening) - In pre-World War II London one of England's most prominent and eccentric society figures, Laura Henderson, buys the historic Windmill Theatre and begins a legendary "nude revue" musical extravaganza. Driven by a desire to win back the music hall audiences who have been lured away by the advent of talking pictures, this charming lady and veritable force of nature is aided by her equally formidable and tenacious theater manager, Vivian Van Damm, as she sets about her task with the kind of vigor and determination that belies her advanced years. Starring Ricky Gervais, Judi Dench, Christopher Guest, Bob Hoskins.

R-Point and Three... Extremes (advance screening) - Double feature of Asian horror at the Bob Bullock Museum's IMAX theater!

Winter Passing (advance screening) - Will Ferrell and Zooey Deschanel in another movie together? I'm there! (No, this is not the sequel to Elf.)

Muskrat Lovely (competition documentary) - I've seen a little bit of this one; it involves a beauty contest that coincides with a Muskrat skinning competition. Could be a Chris Guest mockumentary if it weren't completely for real.

The Outdoorsmen: Blood, Sweat, and Beers (competition documentary) – Once a year, an exclusive group of men travel to a top-secret location somewhere in the wooded mountains of Washington State to compete in an all-day event they call The Outdoorsmen. They battle their way through a series of events that combine physical challenges with high-speed beer chugging. For the past 14 years, this dedicated group has competed relentlessly to bask in the glory of winning the coveted title of Outdoorsmen Champion.

Runaway (competition feature) – Michael Adler, abused by his father as a child, sees the cycle beginning again. Fleeing home with his young brother Dylan, Michael holes up in a motel out of town. He gets a job at a gas station with a friendly owner and a flirtatious coworker, but there is a heartbreaking price. Never allowed outside, Dylan remains confused by his new life. A harrowing film about the recurring pain of abuse, Tim McCann's neo-noir drives to the heart of personal darkness. Writer Bill True in attendance.

The Ape (competition feature) – Aspiring novelist and corporate drone Harry Walker separates from his wife and family in order to focus on his writing. Harry's efforts and dreams are thwarted when he finds himself constantly harassed by a raunchy, English-speaking gorilla that takes up full-time residence in his apartment. The writing and directing debut of James Franco, The Ape skewers white male angst and the life of the would-be writer. Director James Franco in attendance.

Backseat (competition feature) – In Backseat, a "coming of age late" story about prolonged adolescence, two old friends flee New York City on a three-day road trip to Montreal to escape their problems and meet the great Donald Sutherland. Between running drugs and meeting a man who only communicates through instant messaging, they run head-on into the always lingering problem of real life. Writer Josh Alexander and director Bruce Van Dusen in attendance.

Two Harbors (competition feature) – This one is a little rough around the edges but it's actually one of my favorite pictures (of the ones I've seen during screenings) so far. It centers around a flea-market action-figure dealer who is on a personal crusade to locate extraterrestrial intelligence, and the young woman who begins selling dolls in a nearby stall. She's a little lost in life and quite possibly deranged, but they strike up an unsteady friendship – until he starts to receive signals on his home satellite rig whenever she's around. Contains one of the best demonstrations of "collectible" supply and demand I've ever seen. Director James Vculek in attendance.

There are lots of other great films I've left out but I this should give you an idea of what's in store. Be sure to check out the AFF web site, where you can construct your own calendar of screenings and (once the festival begins) rate and review the films.

It was only a matter of time - new iPod, G5 iMac

Today Apple released a video iPod, and integrated the sale of video clips with the iTunes music store.

Oh yeah, and there's a new iMac G5 with a remote and built-in iSight. Looks like Apple is going full steam ahead with the Internet video concept, as long predicted/wished-for. Cool.

Cool OS X Apps

A couple of years ago I used to rely on ChezMark's weekly MacPicks to clue me in to nifty new Mac software releases. Then the updates abruptly ceased; I think Mark had a kid or other family obligations to take care of, and I was left to stumble upon new Mac software for myself. With the sheer volume of software that comes out every day (most of it either irrelevant to my needs or sheer crap), however, it's impossible to sort out the good from the bad without help.

Fortunately, Cool OS X Apps has stepped in to fill the void, and they do so admirably in blog form. The site is perhaps not as polished and complete as ChezMark, which rated each program on a scale from 1 to 5, but it's darn good otherwise. If you're a Mac user, check it out.

Screen Door Jesus Premiere

Drop in this weekend at the Regal Arbor Cinema (Austin, TX) for the opening weekend of Screen Door Jesus, a movie produced in Austin and surrounding areas.

The central thread of this unusual story involves a vision of Jesus sighted on the screen door of Mother Harper’s (Cynthia Dorn) front porch. The misadventures begin as the media and crowds gather around the phenomenon and the townsfolk start to take sides. As more people flock to the door, some for guidance, some for healing and some for pure entertainment, the pressure on this sleepy town starts to build.

According to a message posted to the Austin Community Livejournal, actors Scarlett McAlister and Mark Dalton and director Kirk Davis will appear Friday and Saturday at the theater for informal question-and-answer sessions.

Two Fifty Dot Org

That's how many of the movies on the IMDB Top 250 list I've seen. I guess that's an OK percentage; there are a few gaps I'm not proud of (Bridge on the River Kwai, On the Waterfront), but there are a number I couldn't possibly care less about (Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels – and oddly enough, I think I have a copy of that around here somwhere). I guess what it comes down to is that there are an awful lot of good movies out there, and the number grows every year. I, however, am too busy watching and writing about b-movie crap to see all of them. (And let's face it, the list is impossibly skewed towards films made in the last three decades.)

Visit twofifty.org to track your own performance on the Top 250. It's one of those whiz-bang Web 2.0 type sites; once you've signed up, all you have to do is click a film's title to cross it off the list. No submit buttons or nothin'.

Fantastic Fest report #5: The Birthday, Dark Hours, Sin City Recut

The Birthday, according to the self-confessed "half-assed English" of director Eugenio Mira, is a "polyphonic" film – the audience is invited to "hear" it in different ways, to interpret it according to our own experiences and prejudices. This comment did not mollify my wife, who reacts to ambiguous film endings with incredulous distaste. I rather enjoyed the fact that the film (and I don't think I'm spoiling too much here) ends with a central question unanswered, much as John Sayles' Limbo ended with some uncertainty.

What can be stated more definitively is that this is a Corey Feldman you've never seen before – a nebbishy, bumbling milksop completely unlike the leering and ubiquitous teen rogue from the '80s. (We got to see that Corey in a trailer for Meatballs 4 that rolled just before The Birthday.) To see Feldman – well, act is akin to discovering an extra body part on your person. It's a bit of a shock and it makes you question things that heretofore had been indisputable. I'll say more in a full review of the movie soon, but if you have adventurous tastes in motion pictures, put The Birthday on your short list.

The phrase "psychological thriller" usually induces in me a bit of glazed-eye syndrome. Such pictures seem to rely either on the crutch of the much-misunderstood multiple-personality disorder or the attempted reproduction of Anthony Hopkins' performance as Hannibal Lecter, which rarely ends well. Dark Hours eschews mere imitation, preferring to play with perception and honesty and fear in a tantalizingly logical fashion. There are a few bits of cheap theatrics but I must confess that it is one of the most compelling and tightly-written "thrillers" I've seen in years. Who says good movies don't come from Canada?

Both of these features contain mysteries that should make second (and perhaps third) viewings necessary, if only to watch for the little details and hints that one missed the first time around. This point brings me to the film that began my day, Sin City - the extended and recut edition, which did little to reward a second viewing. Having seen the original edition just once (in part because I didn't enjoy it that much), I detected only one additional scene in this version (in the Mickey Rourke segment), but I will say that seeing the "Yellow Bastard" chapter as one continuous story (as opposed to the wraparound version presented in the theatrical cut) made more sense. I allowed myself to enjoy the film's visuals more this time around – the Alamo Drafthouse upgraded the digital projector in one of its theaters in part to accommodate this movie's presentation – but I still had trouble with the way the dialogue failed to properly roll off the lips of modern actors like Jessica Alba and Michael Madsen. I guess Frank Miller's dialogue in the movies may never sound as good as it does in my head when reading his books.

If you'd like to read a little more about Fantastic Fest, including coverage of Zathura (which I haven't written about yet) and GORA, which I was too wiped out to go see on Thursday night, check out Jette Kernion's entries on the festival over at Cinematical.

up next: Bloodshots, P, Creep, and eventually more about Zathura and Narnia

Fantastic Fest: Birthday

Could it be? The second coming of Corey Feldman? It may be a little early to consider his career revived, but based on what I saw of him in The Birthday I wouldn't mind at all.

Beyond the lovers of Corey, the Lovecraft legions will also want to turn their attention to this atmospheric new horror flick. More after the next screening.

The Wrath of Silent Bob

Apparently there was some "pissing and moaning" about Kevin Smith's teaser trailer for Clerks 2, which was cut from original Clerks footage. Smith lashes out at those unsatisfied "AICN folks" with a follow-up teaser that is not safe for work or anyone with sensitive ears. It's brilliant.

Fantastic Fest report #4: Night of the Living Dorks, Wolf Creek

I haven't linked to the Fantastic Fest site in a few entries, so here it is in case you're too lazy to type fantasticfest.com.

Seeing Night of the Living Dorks in its entirety was very much worth it. I think even Christina enjoyed the film for its Buffy-esque comedy when she wasn't directing her gaze elsewhere in protest of the gore effects, which are used mostly for laughs. I thought the film might not carry after the lead-ins (the notorious short Forklift Driver Klaus and trailers for both Return of the Living Dead and Evil Dead 2), but it held up remarkably well.

Wolf Creek is quite a contrast to Dorks. Feeling a bit run down after a day of movies I foolishly ordered a cup of coffee at the film's start, but I got enough of an adrenaline rush from the film's scarier moments that the coffee's main consequence was the need to visit the restroom as soon as the end credits rolled. The picture is a highly effective slasher flick that follows some time-worn paths and threatens to buck the trend of idiot plots until the last twenty minutes or so. Then the picture is felled by a single "why would you do that?" moment, at which point it lost me.

I feel like I've been through quite the festival experience already but tomorrow is the first full weekend day and kicks off with the new extended edition of Sin City. I didn't particularly enjoy the "short" version of the film but I'll give this cut a chance. We'll see.

Fantastic Fest report #3: Hagukei, Narnia, Wild Blue Yonder

The weather turned from romantically cool to chilly and damp, so my plans to sneak out to the wireless connection were foiled somewhat. The full skinny on Zathura will have to wait until I get some time at home to write, but here are a few quick thoughts on the day so far. I'll write more extensively on each in future installments.

The day started with the first four episodes of Hagukei: The Legend of the Moby Dick (sic), which is an anime series that retells the story of Moby Dick in space. It's a charming piece but it's awfully slow to get started - it wasn't until the end of the fourth episode that the plot really started to take shape. Still, considering that it's based on one of the most notoriously impenetrable novels in history, that's not inappropriate.

A short called Herman the Legal Labrador preceded Hagukei. I'd seen it as a screener when it was submitted to the Austin Film Festival, but it was even more enjoyable on the big screen. Herman is making the festival rounds; if you get a chance to see it, don't miss out.

The high point of the day was an hour-long look into the practical effects of the upcoming feature The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe with "the B in KNB EFX," Howard Berger. Just this for now: even if you've seen the trailer or various stills online, it is nothing compared to the opulence of the five (ten?) minute trailer we saw on the big screen today. Narnia fans will be fighting back tears when they see the reverence with which C.S. Lewis' fantasy world has been recreated.

Brad Dourif is the highlight of Werner Herzog's new science-fiction film crafted from documentary footage, Wild Blue Yonder. Some will find it fascinating, others will fall asleep. I was somewhere in between.

Night of the Living Dorks is another flick I've seen most of on DVD, but I enjoyed it enough to return tonight for a 10:00 screening -- in German, with subtitles. If I can stay awake for it, I'll catch the midnight screening of Wolf Creek as well. Horror films right before bed? Why not?

Is Netflix really saving you money?

Here's a short but thoughtful post on how to tell if Netflix is really saving you money on video rentals.

Fantastic Fest report #2: Moon Girl, Strings, & Zathura

Moon Girl is the first computer-animated short by stop-motion master Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach), and it can be safely said that Selick brings charm to any project regardless of the medium. The picture follows a young country boy whose evening of night fishing quickly turns strange when he becomes embroiled in a plot to extinguish the moon's light. It's a turn of pure fantasy, by which I do not mean tired ren-fest cliché but rather unadulterated make-believe, daydreams made real – or at least as real as a computer animated film can be. Short, agreeable, and pleasing to the eye, but not much more than that.

Strings, on the other hand, is an odd animal. You can check out the trailer here for a taste, as the concept is much easier to understand when seen than when explained. The basic idea is an adventure set in a world inhabited by marionettes whose strings descend from the heavens; the easiest way to kill a person in this domain is to sever the string that extends from his head. The notion of embracing the puppets' strings rather than trying to hide them is a novel one, and the script does a good job of defining a set of rules for how life works when you're a wooden puppet. For example, scavenging body parts from other people is common practice, and imprisonment need not involve walls when you can simply capture someone else's strings in a wooden square set too high to jump through. One of the picture's most fascinating scenes involves the "birth" of a marionette infant, though how one grows into an adult body is a mystery.

As fascinating as this marionette universe is, however, the story set within it is quite pedestrian – the hero is a young prince who sets out to avenge his father's death and discovers that not all is as it seems. The form is that of a classic tragedy, so when our young protagonist's victory comes it is quite literally a pyrrhic one. I'm sure there were folks in the audience who were moved by Strings and I can appreciate it on a technical and conceptual level, but I didn't quite connect with the narrative. I'd like to see another movie set in this universe, though I'd also like to see marionettes with a slightly broader range of facial expressions. Blasphemous, I know, but body language and tone of voice simply can't communicate it all.

As Strings lets out I am joined by my wife Christina, who informs me that my fears about being shut out of the Zathura screening with subsequent Q&A are baseless. Badge holders (like me, who shelled out a pretty penny for a pair of badges that still weren't quite VIP level) are admitted first and there is plenty of room, thought eventually the room is packed. Over the course of a feature film it appears that Austin has gone from Summer to Fall; a cold front has rolled in and we've gone from 90-degree weather to 70-degree weather, which lends a bit of a romantic air to the evening. Christina and I sample the Alamo hors d'oeuvres and wine while watching our hosts steer Jon Favreau into an impromptu TV interview. Securing seats is as easy as submitting to a metal-detector wand test; we are told to leave recording devices and cameras outside the theater. I tells ya, that piracy paranoia is running high. Even this advance screening print of the film had a few of those annoying brown copy-protection dots that pop up in a few frames in every theater-screened movie these days.

Our emcee for the evening, Harry Knowles, gives the film an enthusiastic (if rambling) introduction and Zathura begins to roll.

up next: Zathura and that nice boy Jon Favreau.

Fantastic Fest report #1

3:55 p.m.

It turns out that the wireless connection I was able to pick up outside the theater doesn't penetrate inside. Unfortunately the South Lamar Alamo either doesn't have wi-fi or it isn't working. So these updates may come to you later than I'd hoped, unless I'm able to duck outside between films to catch some signal. As I mentioned previously, at this point the only thing I'm really concerned about getting into is the first screening of Zathura with the Favreau/Billingsley Q&A. After glancing at the schedule, just about everything else has a couple of screenings, so there seems to be plenty of opportunity to see everything I want to see. Granted, there are probably some films I just don't know I want to see yet (having not yet scrutinized the synopsis of every picture), but I'll be able to hit the highlights at least.

A fun little side note: the badge holders for the festival double as flat-card flashlights, which comes in handy when you want to take notes or read the program guide in a darkened theater. I long ago started carrying a keychain flashlight for these circumstances, but it's a thoughtful extra.

I'm seated for the 4:10 showing of Strings, with the short Moon Girl preceding it. And hey, they just started up the trademark Alamo pre-film shorts beginning with an excerpt from Goliath and the Dragon, so I'm going to wrap it up now.

'Til later.

6:04 p.m.

Strings taught me that marionettes are creepy when they're not in comedies. I mean, they're creepy when they are in comedies, but outside comedies they're even creepier. I'm sure I'll come up with something more cogent later, but for now that's my first impression.

The lobby of the theater is now decked out in full Zathura mode, with a robot and spaceship from the picture prominently displayed; looks like it'll be a cool time. You can check my Flickr photostream for pictures until I can make a full report.

Fantastic Fest begins

For the next few days I'll be posting live updates (so long as my iBook battery and the Alamo Drafthouse's wi-fi connection hold out) from Fantastic Fest, the newest film festival to invade Austin's already film-heavy month of October. (Watch for updates from the Austin Film Festival at the end of the month.) Fantastic Fest was cooked up by a number of local (and not-so-local) film luminaries to soothe an apparent itch for a regional genre film festival. Not that every week at the various Alamo Drafthouses isn't like a miniature genre film fest, but I must admit there is an impressive array of fantasy and sci-fi pictures assembled here, including Strings, Zathura, and Wild Blue Yonder. There's also a sort of "sub-festival" of vintage post-apocalyptic films going on at the Downtown branch of the Alamo, but I doubt I'll make it down there much what with all the action going on at the main festival at the South Lamar location.

First up on the docket: Strings, though I may have to bail out of that early if it seems like the line for Zathura (only one showing of which has a Q&A with Jon Favreau and Peter Billingsley) is going to be a bitch. And somehow I suspect it will be.

Clerks 2 video entries begin

The video entries documenting the production of Clerks 2: Passion of the Clerks are now rolling in, and already Kevin Smith has made me laugh. Particularly amusing is Smith's insistence on calling the film a "follow-up" instead of a sequel, "because Jaws 2 was a sequel and look what happened to that!"

Check it out at the Clerks 2 production diary.

More cross-genre trailer genius

If you liked the Shining trailer from earlier, you'll enjoy these two re-worked movie previews: West Side Story as a zombie movie and Titanic as a horror flick. The Titanic trailer is somewhat less effective as a joke because there were scenes in the movie that were meant to be horrific, but it's still an amusing concept. The West Side Story preview, on the other hand, is brilliant – the cinematography really works to the advantage of the trailer, though I wonder if the "shining eyes" effect was really necessary, or even if a different visual could have been used more effectively. Enjoy.

Stomp Tokyo review: Serenity

Stomp Tokyo's review of Serenity is now available. We tried our best not to give anything away but there are some mild spoilers in the review. So if you somehow haven't seen it yet (and judging by the opening weekend numbers, there are a fair number of you who didn't), you've been warned.

"Serenity" - go see it

The early Friday numbers on Serenity are less than could be hoped for (a little under $4 million); I'm guessing that a lot of Firefly fans got in to early screenings and took Friday evening off. If you're one of them, don't forget that this opening weekend counts for something. If you want to see more Firefly movies, get out there and vote with your dollars. And take ten of your closest friends.