Cinematical

I arrived in lovely Urbana, Illinois late Wednesday night after being grounded by a thunderstorm and missing my connection in Chicago, but all is well now that I'm here for this lovely little fest. The heart and soul of Ebertfest, of course, is Roger Ebert, who is sadly absent this year due to fracturing his hip while doing physical therapy trying to get strong enough to be here.

Roger has written on his own blog about his sadness at not being able to be here to enjoy the films he programmed and to see his many friends. Those of us who are here for the fest feel his absence. Last year, he sat in the back row of the Virginia Theater, ensconced in the recliner brought in for him, where he sat flanked by his nurse on one side and wife Chaz on the other, and his warmth and enthusiasm radiated through the stately theater. This year, the chair sits empty, and though he is here in spirit, that gentle, humble presence and ever-ready smile are keenly missed, though everyone here, of course, is more concerned about his health than anything else.

Nonetheless, the show must go on, as Roger might say, and so it does, with Chaz ably filling in for her husband, introducing the films and warmly greeting old friends and new with that same welcoming spirit Roger so embraces. Many filmmakers and actors are here this year carrying the fest forward. I sat in yesterday morning on an excellent panel on the future of independent film, ably moderated by fest director Nate Kohn. The panel included critics Richard Roeper and Lisa Rosman, actors Rufus Sewell and Timothy Spall, and a spate of filmmakers, including Tom DiCillo (Delirious), Joseph Greco (Canvas), Jeff Nichols (Shotgun Stories), Eran Kolirin (The Band's Visit), Bill Forsyth (Housekeeping), and producer Adam Hammel (Canvas).

Discussion was lively, with topics ranging from how independent films get financed and made (DiCillo: "It actually has less to do with how much time you spend behind the camera, as how much time you spend getting there. It takes everything you have to make a movie -- more than that, you have to give your soul. It's a brutal, brutal business, and nobody cares about you, I don't care what they say, they don't. It's the truth. That's not being dramatic, it's just the truth. The only way you're going to get a movie made is to do what it takes to make it yourself.") to the double-edged sword of films getting shown on the fest circuit, where they get seen by more people, but don't make any money back to recoup the cost of making them.

Questions from the enthusiastic audience were quite good. One audience member asked about the proliferation of violence in films, to which Spall responded, "I believe violence in film is often reflective of people's real fears and paranoias. It's a form of release -- some might say it's a glamorization of violence, but films that have a lot of violence are a reflection of something else, of insecurity." The filmmakers' favorite question, though, came from a 76-year-old woman who, after noting that at her age, she has more money than she knows what to do with, asked how senior citizens with money to spare might get connected with independent filmmakers in need of investors. I expect she'll be a very popular woman the rest of the fest.

After a yummy lunch in the "green room" with Lisa Rosman and Nate Kohn, I caught the first film of the day, Delirious, which somehow I'd managed not to see before. The film played Sundance and Cannes (among other fests) in 2007, but for whatever reason only saw a limited release. That's a damn shame, because it's an excellent film all the way through, with sharp performances by Steve Buscemi and Michael Pitt in the lead roles. Buscemi plays Les Galantine, an aging, friendless paparazzi (or, as he prefers to call himself, a "licensed professional"); Pitt plays Toby Grace, a young homeless kid who talks his way into living in Galatine's closet and working for free as his assistant. When Toby catches the eye of emotionally fragile, camera-shy pop starlet K'harma (Alison Lohman), the balance of Les and Toby's relationship changes drastically.

What a revelation Pitt's performance in this film is. His take on Toby is completely honest and heartfelt, and the young actor more than holds his own on-camera with Buscemi, who's one of the best character actors working today. Solid turns by the excellent supporting cast, a sharply written script with funny, realistic dialog, and very nice camera shots and editing that prove DiCillo an able filmmaker all serve to bolster the film. If you get a chance to see Delirious, I highly recommend it.

Next up was Sally Potter's Yes, another film I'd wanted to see for a long time. Starring Joan Allen, Sam Neill and Simon Abkarian (who recently voiced Marjane's father in Persepolis), the entire film is in iambic pentameter, though I'm not sure, if I hadn't know that going in, that I would have necessarily noticed that, so well were the lines delivered. Allen and Neill play a wealthy, unhappily married couple; Abkarian is a cook who comes into Allen's life rather serendipitously, and the two embark on a passionate affair that masks, for a time, their cultural differences. Yes is the kind of film you either love or hate, and I absolutely loved it for its beauty, its subtle and lovely portrayal of passion and relationships, and the sheer artistry of the dialog. Shirley Henderson (aka Moaning Myrtle from the Harry Potter films) adds levity as the all-seeing, all-knowing maid who cleans up after the messes her employers make, while dispensing poetic wisdom to the audience.

After a break for dinner, I headed back for the evening film, Canvas, starring Marcia Gay Harden and Joey Pantoliano. Canvas is a moving tale about a mother (Harden) suffering from the onset of schizophrenia, and the way her husband (Pantoliano) and young son cope with her illness. Devon Gearhart (who's all over the place lately, as the young son in Funny Games and in Clint Eastwood's The Changeling, just announced for Cannes) does a nice job as Chris, the couple's young son, and Harden and Pantoliano turn in their usual solid performances.

The film was based on the childhood of director Greco, who also wrote the script based on his own childhood dealing with a mentally ill parent, and Greco, Pantoliano, and producer Adam Hammer were on hand for a post-show Q&A.. Prior to Canvas, a short film about the life and remarkable influence of Toronto International Film Fest founder (and good friend of the Eberts and many folks here) Dusty Cohn, who died last year, was shown.

I have a very packed day tomorrow, so signing off for now ... but I'll be back.