This year’s San Francisco International Film Festival closed last night with a screening of On Tour at the Castro, followed by a party at The Factory.
I got to the Castro early–about 6:15 for a 7:00 show–and discovered something that would reasonably upset most moviegoers. Almost the entire middle section of the house was reserved for filmmakers, staff, and other notables. Paying customers would have to be content with the first four rows, the last two rows, the side sections, or the balcony. This didn’t bother me personally as I like to sit way down in front, but I could understand if others were upset.
Nevertheless, it appeared to be a happy crowd. Several women in the audience were appropriately dressed for a movie about burlesque and striptease.
The evening’s ribald merriment started a little early with a slip of the tongue by Program Director Rachel Rosen. While praising the many people who made the festival possible, she said "I’d like to spank all the…" After the laughter settled down, she continued, "I’d like to thank all the filmmakers," and the laughter lit up again.
About the movie:
A On Tour. A small troupe of American New Burlesque performers tour France, while their French producer (director Mathieu Amalric) tries desperately to hold the show and his life together. What’s New Burlesque? Striptease as a form of female empowerment. And male empowerment, since not all the performers are women. Most of the performers (at least in this movie) are well passed the age and size considered sexy by Hollywood standards, but that doesn’t hurt their acts a bit.
A large portion of On Tour is devoted to those acts, both in rehearsal and 
performance. The acts are amazing–funny, sexy, and in some cases seeming to defy biology. (How did she get all that up her derrière?) A woman dances with a giant balloon and appears to crawl inside of it. A man starts his striptease dressed as an 18th century French aristocrat, to the tune of Louie Louie.
We also watch the strippers–all basically playing themselves–as they joke around, pick up guys, worry, and travel from hotel to hotel. Meanwhile the producer–the black sheep of a theatrical family–tries desperately to get a venue in Paris, keep the performers happy and punctual, and hold his collapsing personal life together.
Unlike that personal life, the movie hangs together amazingly well.
Unfortunately, you’ll probably never get to see it. Song rights issues are keeping it from getting an American release. According to a cast member (four of them came onstage for Q&A after the film), American movie rights for one of the songs was set at 300,000 Euros. She wasn’t sure which song.
After the Q&A, a male cast member entertained us with a striptease. The theme was Kentucky Fried Chicken. I won’t go into detail.
Because of the lateness of the hour on a weeknight, I didn’t spend a lot of time at the party. But I enjoyed the time I was there.
Bayflicks 