The 58th San Francisco Int'l. Film Festival is taking place
right now and running through May 7th. I
must say, this year's selection of films is the best I've seen in several years
and I have more than 12 on my radar to see.
I am hopeful I will make at least half of them as this is a very robust
effort on my part. I am thrilled about
the diversity in programming and applaud the SFIFF team for their selections
this year. From Nina Simone to an
intimate evening in conversation with stellar actor Richard Gere, bouncing
between the Kabuki and Castro Theaters is well worth the ride.
Opening night on April 23rd with the screening of Steve
Jobs: The Man in the Machine (Doc) did not disappoint. Director and Oscar-winner
Alex Gibney was brilliant in not just pulling together such an amazing story
around the build-up of how many people live now, iLife, but the sprinkles of
Jobs' life showing the audience how many strived to understand a man who was a
volatile enigma even to those closest to him during most of his life as a tech
giant. Even to the point of, in the
early days when he was worth $200M, only agreeing to pay $500/month in child
support to the mother of his first born. How did a man who so valued
enlightenment as he practiced Zen, act in often brutal self-interest when it
came to work and family? After seeing
this film I was definitely convinced that people did not fall in love with
Steve Jobs, but rather the products he created that enhanced and changed lives
forever.
In Conversation With Richard Gere - Screening: Time Out of
Mind. On April 26th, the long lines of admirers started to form
close to 2 hours before the highly anticipated arrival of Richard Gere at the
Castro Theater, for what we all knew would be one of the most engaging
conversations with an actor we would have in San Francisco. The evening with
Mr. Gere, preceding the film screening of 'Time Out of Mind', was funny,
enlightening, bold and above all genuine.
He remains, by far An Officer and a Gentleman we loved so much on screen
over 20 years ago. Richard has been a
Buddish since his 20s and he came to learn about this religion while going
through growing pains and wanting to have a deeper understanding of his place
in this life. He found comfort and
answers for his life in the study of Buddism and Zen, and at 65 years old it
remains a strong force in his life. One thing
Mr. Gere made clear, was that on the many occasions he has been with Dalai Lama,
they have never talked about films. A
huge 'aaaahhhaaa' moment for the audience. Imagine that! My favorite part of Richard's interview was
when he mentioned that when searching for media consultants and interviewing
many who represented high profile Democrats, he says, 'there was something
unreliable about them'. The crowd burst
into laughter and as a media professional, I definitely 'got it'. Mr. Gere went on further to say, that Roger
Ailes was a solid in that area.
The
film Time Out Of Mind is was about a homeless man trying to figure out how to
pass the time when you have nowhere to go? How to get identification when you
have none to start with? Disheveled and red-faced, George Hammond (Richard
Gere) wanders New York’s cold streets, facing these questions The film exposes
the bureaucracy of social services and a stirring glimpse into the lives of
those on the margins.
Yves Saint Laurent - Wow! I was really and very much
expecting to see much more glamour, fashion and couture, but the film was
largely about the 'dark side' of the legendary Yves Saint Laurent. Fashionistas, like myself, are very much
aware of the drugs and alcohol abuse, which is somewhat common in the industry,
so I was very hopeful that we would have an opportunity to see much more of the
creative process, the design mind behind the genius designer and have
take-a-ways to use in the field. But
watching a dog eat pills that accidentally made their way to the floor and
watching that dog go into overdose and die was heart wrenching. From a production perspective, film well
done. In the area of content, would have
enjoyed seeing so much fashion.
There are a ton more films showing through May 7th so get
your tickets NOW! Purchase here: SFIFF
For more Buzz check out theREGISTRYBayArea.
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