Ah, spring. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and spring cleaning is upon us.
While emptying the recycling bins here at Movies HQ, I found a few movie-related tidbits.
HopeDance magazine offers two more movies this month in its HopeDance FiLMs series.
First up is “Everything’s Cool”, a look at the history of global warming.
Filmmakers Daniel B. Gold and Judith Helfand examine the movement from the viewpoints of scientists, activists and politicians. Hear interviews with Bill McKibben, Ross Gelbspan and others.
“Everything’s Cool” will be screened at 7 p.m. Monday at the San Luis Obispo library, in San Luis Obispo. A $5 donation is encouraged.
On Wednesday, the film series takes a look at health care with “Cuba: An Accidental Revolution.”
The documentary, narrated by scientist/environmentalist David Suzuki, looks at the island nation’s surprisingly strong health care system.
It’s paired with the PBS documentary “Critical Care,” about U.S. health care.
Moviegoers are encouraged to donate $5 to $10.
“Cuba: An Accidental Revolution” and “Critical Care” play at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the San Luis Obispo library.
More information about both films is available at www.hopedance.org/.
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The Palm Theatre in San Luis Obispo kicks off its new movie series on Wednesday with “Trainspotting.”
Palm Wednesdays will offer a different flick each Wednesday. The emphasis here is on cult classics: quirky comedies, action flicks and thrillers with a strong following among Generations X and Y.
Few movies fall into that category better than “Trainspotting,” Danny Boyles’ darkly comic look at the Edinburgh drug scene. It’s smart, slick and frequently pretty damn unsavory.
“Trainspotting” will screen at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Palm Theatre, 817 Palm St. in San Luis Obispo.
Tickets are $7.50. You can also snag a six-movie pass for $35 — provided you buy it before Wednesday.
The series continues May 7 with the big-wave surfing documentary “Billabong Odyssey.” Check out the full list at www.thepalmtheatre.com/.
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The San Luis Obispo International Film Festival drew more than 7,500 moviegoers, organizers said this week, the “best ever” in the festival’s 14-year history.
About 12 percent came from outside the county, said Wendy Eidson, the film festival’s executive director.
Top events at the film festival, which ran March 7 to 16, included a train-themed opening night, an awards ceremony honoring “Easy Rider” star Peter Fonda and Surf Night, featuring a tribute to pioneer surf filmmaker Bud Browne.
This year, festival organizers introduced Western Night and the Hollywood and Vines series, which pairs movies with local wineries. They also added venues in Santa Margarita, Paso Robles and Shell Beach.
For more information, visit www.slofilmfest.org.
-- Sarah L.
Friday, April 25, 2008
Movie drips and drabs for April
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Peter Fonda, wild and on wheels
Talk about a spooky coincidence.
Just hours before local movie maven Wendy Eidson announced that Oscar nominee Peter Fonda will be coming to San Luis Obispo next month, Ticket editor Justin Hoeger and I were talking about the lanky blonde actor's cameo in "Ghost Rider."
Fonda, you see, was the only bright spot in the otherwise dismal "Ghost Rider," starring Nicolas Cage as a demon-possessed vigilante on wheels. Fonda played Mephistopheles -- a role that seemed to fit his mystique as a rough-riding rebel.
Somehow, it's hard to imagine Peter Fonda without a motorcycle.
He played a Hell's Angel named Heavenly Blues in 1966's "The Wild Angels," and the "chief biker" in "The Cannonball Run."
As Captain America, the iconic anti-hero of "Easy Rider," he went on the ultimate roadtrip -- smuggling cocaine with Dennis Hopper, introducing Jack Nicholson to weed, and tripping on LSD with two hookers in a New Orleans graveyard.
Fonda even made an appearance in "Wild Hogs," last year's paen to middle-aged men and their love for burning rubber.
In 2000, the American Motorcyclist Association inducted Fonda into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, praising him as a "motorcycling ambassador providing positive exposure for the sport."
When Fonda rolls into town on Saturday, March 15, I hope he's riding a stars-and-stripes-spangled hog.
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Peter Fonda will appear at the San Luis Obispo International Film Festival, which runs March 7 through March 16.
He's the recipient of this year’s King Vidor Career Achievement Award, which recognizes career achievement in filmmaking.
For more information about the SLO film festival, visit www.slofilmfest.org.
-- Sarah L.