Cinematical

Welcome to The (Mostly) Indie Film Calendar, a weekly look at what's happening beyond the multiplexes all around North America. If you know of something indie-related happening near you -- a local festival, a series of classic restored films, lectures, workshops, etc. -- send the info to me at Eric.Snider(at)weblogsinc(dot)com and I'll add it to the list. (Please put "Cinematical" somewhere in the subject line so I can separate you from all the effing spam I get.)

First, a few indie films are opening theatrically today, all of them noteworthy in some way:

• My Kid Could Paint That, a documentary about a 4-year-old modern artist and the controversies surrounding her work, sold for nearly $2 million after it premiered at Sundance. Cinematical's Scott Weinberg reviewed it then and said it "gets exponentially more entertaining as each successive question and contradiction is offered." (L.A., NYC)

• Finishing the Game is a mockumentary from Justin Lin (whose first film, Better Luck Tomorrow, was much better than his subsequent films, Annapolis and The Fast the Furious: The One That for Some Reason Took Place in Tokyo) about an attempt to finish the movie Bruce Lee was working on when he died. Scott Weinberg saw this one at Sundance, too, and called it a "confident and consistently amusing comedy." (NYC)

• The Good Night is the first film by Jake Paltrow (Gwyneth's brother), a dramedy about a songwriter's midlife crisis involving a beautiful woman he sees only in his dreams. This was yet another Sundance premiere; Kim Voynar reviewed it there and said it has a clever script and solid performances, but has some pacing issues. (NYC)

• Lake of Fire, a documentary about the abortion battle in the U.S., is Tony Kaye's first film to hit theaters since American History X. Ryan Stewart posted a mixed review on Wednesday. (NYC)

• Kurt Cobain: About a Son uses 25 hours of previously unreleased tapes of Cobain interviews to construct a documentary of his life. (L.A. and NYC now; Seattle Oct. 12; Philadelphia Oct. 19; further dates here.)

After the jump, festivals and events in Chicago, Portland, New Jersey, L.A, New York, San Diego, San Francisco, and Arizona....Chicago: The 43rd Chicago International Film Festival began last night and runs through Oct. 17, when The Savages will be the closing-night film. A total of 160 movies from 44 countries are programmed, including gala presentations of notable upcoming releases Gone Baby Gone, Things We Lost in the Fire, and Michael Clayton. This year's fest is dedicated to Roger Ebert, because who doesn't love Roger Ebert?

Los Angeles: Paul Bojack's shattering drama Resilience opens today at the Laemmle Grande 4 in downtown L.A., and the director himself will be on hand for a Q-and-A after the 7:20 performance tonight. Says the Laemmle: "An alcoholic company man with a prostitute fetish is dragged down by the escalating rage of his destitute uncle and embittered cousin." It gets violent from there.

American Cinematheque is sponsoring two major events this weekend. One is a celebration of the 80th anniversary of The Jazz Singer (the first "talkie," you know). The other is a mini Mods & Rockers fest, featuring movies about rock 'n' roll. I already told you about both of them in previous posts, so I'm just going to include those links rather than repeat myself.

New York City: The New York Film Festival is in full swing for another week. Saturday night's "Centerpiece" film is the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men, which I am so excited to see that I can hardly see straight. This weekend is also the fest's "Views from the Avant-Garde" series, featuring all manner of innovative, bizarre, and just plain weird shorts and features.

At Film Forum, meanwhile, is a rare opportunity to see François Truffaut's The 400 Blows on the big screen -- and on a newly restored print, too. This is one of those French New Wave movies that you're supposed to have seen but that maybe you haven't. Well, now's your chance! You have until Tuesday.

Portland, Ore.: It's beginning to look a lot like Halloween! The 13th annual H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, devoted to the early-20th-century master of horror stories, runs today through Sunday at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland. Shorts and features are all either based on a Lovecraft work, or at least "inspired" by him. There are regional premieres of 9 Lives of Mara, Chill (based on Lovecraft's story "Cool Air"), and Larry Fessenden's The Last Winter, plus a couple of John Carpenter flicks: In the Mouth of Madness and The Thing.

Red Bank, N.J.: Sponsored by the Freedom Film Society, the Red Bank International Film Festival (running tonight through Sunday) brings indie cinema to the quaint riverside town. Tonight there's Emanuele Crialese's Golden Door and a midnight screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (bring your toast!); tomorrow and Sunday have several shorts programs, a few features, and a screening of the 1923 silent film The Hunchback of Notre Dame with live musical accompaniment by local band Rotting Moldy Flesh.

San Diego: The fifth annual San Diego Women's Film Festival starts in earnest today and runs through Sunday, with seven features and dozens of shorts on the roster. Lesbian comedy-drama Nina's Heavenly Delights is the opening night film. Oh, and boys are allowed, too! I checked!

San Francisco: Director Joe Dante, actress Veronica Carlson, and creature-feature TV host John Stanley will make live appearances at the Shock It To Me! horror film festival at the Castro Theatre, running tonight through Sunday. Check out some of the titles on tap: Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, Killer Klowns from Outer Space, Matinee, Gremlins 2, The Howling, Re-Animator, Blacula, Rosemary's Baby -- you know, I've never wished I lived in San Francisco before (I don't like hilly places), but right now I kinda do.

Scottsdale, Ariz.: Out in the southwestern desert near Phoenix you'll find the Scottsdale International Film Festival, running today through Tuesday. It's the rare fest with no shorts programs, only features, 21 of 'em, including such noteworthy titles as The Kite Runner, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and Lars and the Real Girl. The theaters are air-conditioned! And if you think that doesn't matter in October, you've never been to Arizona.

Is there something cool going on in your city? Send me a link! Eric.Snider(at)weblogsinc(dot)com (and please put "Cinematical" in the subject line!).