Category: SFFilm (San Francisco International Film Festival)

SFIFF Preview

~ Lincoln Spector

So far, I've managed to preview three films that will screen at this year's San Francisco International Film Festival. Here's what I thought of them. A Mary is Happy, Mary is Happy I believe this is the first feature film adapted from a real-life Twitter feed. The title character (Patcha Poonpiriya) is a disturbed and spontaneous … Continue reading SFIFF Preview

This Year’s San Francisco International Film Festival Announced

~ Lincoln Spector

It feels like winter has finally arrived, but according to the calendar, it's aready spring. And that means this years' San Francisco International Film Festival is only weeks away. The Film Society has been releasing bits of news for weeks, but Tuesday morning, they held the big press conference, and then the entire schedule went … Continue reading This Year’s San Francisco International Film Festival Announced

SFIFF: The Festival Closes with Before Midnight

~ Lincoln Spector

Thursday night, this year's San Francisco International Film Festival ended at the Castro with the local premiere of Before Midnight, Richard Linklater's threequel to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. (It wasn't actually the festival's end.  Six other films screened at various theaters after Before Midnight began. The last one, Il Futuro, started at the Pacific … Continue reading SFIFF: The Festival Closes with Before Midnight

SFIFF Silent Movie Night: Waxworks with Mike Patton, Scott Amendola, Matthias Bossi, and William Winant

~ Lincoln Spector

Every year, the San Francisco Intl. Film Festival hosts a silent film event, where they match a movie--generally not one everyone has seen--with one or more musicians who enjoy a strong local following--but are not associated with silent film accompaniment. This makes sense both culturally and financially. The event, always held at the Castro, attracts … Continue reading SFIFF Silent Movie Night: Waxworks with Mike Patton, Scott Amendola, Matthias Bossi, and William Winant

Harrison Ford at the San Francisco International Film Festival

~ Lincoln Spector

I caught the Harrison Ford event Tuesday afternoon. Unfortunately, I got a lousy seat. Near the back and over to the side. That's what I get for wasting time. After an introduction by Ted Hope, and clip reels honoring the recently-deceased donor George Gund III and, of course, Harrison Ford, David Darcy came onstage to … Continue reading Harrison Ford at the San Francisco International Film Festival

Cambodia, India, and the Cloud: SFIFF Documentary Sunday

~ Lincoln Spector

I saw three films at the San Francisco International Film Festival on Sunday--all documentaries. That wasn't planned. It just worked out that way. B+ A River Changes Course Kalyanee Mam's ethnographic documentary follows three struggling families in modern-day Cambodia. And while no river literally changes course, the modern world forces the film's protagonists to severely … Continue reading Cambodia, India, and the Cloud: SFIFF Documentary Sunday

SFIFF Saturday: Koreans in Japan, Geek Nostalgia, and a Surreal Documentary

~ Lincoln Spector ~ 1 Comment

Here's what I saw Saturday at the San Francisco International Film Festival B Our Homeland For second-generation ethnic Koreans living in Japan, going "home" was once very important--even though "home" was the living nightmare of North Korea. In this calmly heart-breaking drama, a man in his early 40s who migrated to a Korea he'd never … Continue reading SFIFF Saturday: Koreans in Japan, Geek Nostalgia, and a Surreal Documentary