Day 4: Sell Outs, Standing O's (Biz as Usual)

Movies Watched: Historias Extraordinarias, Witch Hunt, Billy was a Deaf Kid, Esther's Inheritance.

Stuff We Missed: All About Dad's mega-sellout. We stood outside the Rep watching as an unfortunately tasked usher explained to a sweet old Asian grandma that her ticket would be refunded because there was no more room. Then some of the cast and crew came out, giving up their seats, and she was allowed in. Can we petition Mayor Reed to give director Mark Tran the key to the city?

Saturday was one of the longest day we've ever had at Cinequest and it was also once of the most rewarding. How is your festival experience so far? Our Saturday was 10 hours of Mavericky goodness. We tried but once again failed to make it to the midnight horror movie screening. If we would have stayed for a sixth film this post would be even more rambling and incoherent. We're not sure how Jason does it but we think the commissioner should test him for review-enhancing substances.

Here's some short hits about what we watched:

HISTORIAS EXTRAORDINARIAS, shit even the title is long, was truly and unreservedly great. We were more than a little sceptical that it would hold our attention longer than this guy's workweek but it did. Oh, it did. It was helpful to an impromptu round table interview afterwards with Alejandro Adams and some other filmmakers who watched it. Our pitch: It's the cinematic equivalent of tantric sex. It takes a long time and it's very rewarding but you're gonna be a little sore afterwards.

Afterwards we wandered over to the Cal to see WITCH HUNT. We purposely waited to watch it with a crowd, something about the impact and atmosphere of the room that makes these kind of documentaries special. The film opens with a dedication to the 1000s of inmates who are currently falsely imprisoned in the California penal system. Then a very gravely voiced (we mean like Sam Elliot level) narration by Sean Penn recounted the events that lead to the wrongful imprisonment of ten people for child molestation in Bakersfield in the late 1980s. Maybe it was the editting or the twangy acoustic guitar soundtrack but something about the film did not resonate as strongly as other Cinequest documentaries. Maybe we need more fiber in our diet?

A quick pizza break and it was off to BILLY WAS A DEAF KID, a film that we totally misread but ended up liking anyway. Based on the trailer we thought it could easily fall into the kind of earnest mainstream-indie trap that's so hot right now. About a minute into the opening scene, when the male lead spits in the face of the female lead, we knew our worries were completely unfounded. Rhett Lewis, who wrote, directed and spit in this movie, reminds us of a cherubic Vincent Gallo. It's left handed film making at it's finest; disjointed and awkward, it's movements and appeal limited both design and execution. And thank *** for that couch.

Finally we were meeting a friend to ESTHER'S INHERITANCE (it was their choice) but they flaked out on us and we watched it away. Friends and family flaking on attending Cinequest is kind of a theme for this year, we're not sure why. We write this blog so maybe we're a little biased but a world class film festival in your backyard should register at least a 1 on your interest scale. But what're ya gonna do? C'est la vie! Back to Esther. Thanks for waiting darling. Esther is a spinster who receivies startling news that her ex-lover (and all around douche) Lajos is coming back to town. The smart bet is that he needs some money from her and if you made that bet you'd win. It's based on a 1932 novel and looks amazing. After a full day of movies it felt a little too austere and withering for our taste. And to the gentleman snoring during the film: may you have dreamt of Altman drama and Hungarian beauties.

We're a few hours away from our Sunday session which is looking significantly lighter (in volume, not subject matter) than yesterday. How's your schedule looking?