PTown's Most Unusual "Dinner and a Movie" Can be Found This Weekend at Ross' Grill and Waters Edge Cinema

A splendid fennel bisque, a Soup du Jour at Ross' that I hope to taste again one day.

Ross' Grill is open again after their annual brief closing during January. You'll find them on the second floor of the Whalers Wharf, looking out over Provincetown's lovely harbor.
Ross' Grill is currently open Friday through Sunday for lunch from noon to 2:30 PM, with tapas from 3 to 5 PM, and serving dinner, 5:30 to 9 PM.
There's a special event going on this weekend, and a unique menu you'll want to sample.
February 23rd through 25th we'll get a chance to taste Puerto Rican and Bulgarian dishes by Chefs César and Emil as they present their "Trust the Chef" menu, with main courses priced at just $20. Entrées from the regular dinner menu will not be served this weekend. Instead, treat yourself to something a bit more exotic from a special offering, available this weekend only.

Now for the movie...
We thank Whalers Wharf for once again bringing three great programs of Academy Award nominated short films to Provincetown. It was through theaters such as this one, repeatedly asking for the Oscar nominated shorts, that the film industry has finally made a real effort to make these films available so people could see them before award night. You won't likely find these shorts playing anywhere else within a hundred miles of PTown.

There's a program of animation, one of live action, and one of documentaries. Each program will feature several short films in its category. Audiences have given these programs a rare score of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes website, so see as many as you can, while you can.
Click on this link to Waters Edge Cinema Schedule to plan a matinee (perhaps saving a dollar or two?) or an evening performance, whichever will let you fit it in with dinner at Ross' Grill, on the other end of the building. Call Ross' to make a reservation at 508•487•8878.
The Post, the First Amendment thriller starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, is a best picture nominee, also currently playing at Waters Edge. Next week they'll feature nominee Lady Bird, and likely other nominees will be coming along as well, leading up to the award show. 
Visit Ross' facebook page using your cell phone, click on the photo that has the logo on it, and save the offer you'll find there, to get half-off entrées through March.
There! Now you've got at least the next couple of weekends planned, to save a little money on some great food and entertainment, as you get out of the house for dinner and a movie.

PIFF Brings More Than 50 Movies and Events to Provincetown Over Five Days

Pick up the film fest schedule at the box office, just beyond the
rotunda inside the Whalers Wharf, at 237 Commercial Street, or
in other likely spots, or go online to see what's playing and get
your tickets to see some of this year's most remarkable films.

The 18th Annual Provincetown International Film Festival is underway, running through Sunday night. This fabulous event comes in the middle of June every year, and typically brings more than 50 films and events to PTown in the space of just 5 days.
All over town, and stretching out as far as Wellfleet, there are films, seminars, talks, parties, and events honoring both filmmakers and actors, not to mention various awards to be bestowed on both first-timers and seasoned veterans of the movie industry.
Watch for stars like Cynthia Nixon and Illeana Douglas, and director Ang Lee, among others, any of whom might be found this week walking or pedaling a bicycle down Commercial Street.
You've missed your chance (Thursday morning) to hear Ms Douglas (Goodfellas, Cape Fear, To Die For, Grace of My Heart) talk about her passion for film. But Ms Nixon, this year's Excellence in Acting awardee, and Mr Lee, who is named as this year's Filmmaker on the Edge, will share the stage at Town Hall Saturday at 5 PM as they receive their awards and talk about their work.
As always, this amazing festival brings something for everyone, with feature films, shorts, foreign language, animation, multinational films, narratives, documentaries, student works, character studies, dramas, comedies, a couple of past favorites, and a couple of films with unflinching scenes of things that are downright hard to watch.
The goal of the Provincetown Film Society, and the point of this marvelous annual festival, is "to make Provincetown the global destination for creative exploration in film," and each year we stretch a bit closer to that lofty ambition. We thank the few actual staff members, the tremendous legion of volunteers, the filmmakers who travel all this way, and the local and national sponsors that make this wonderful event possible.
Now go on, get out and see a couple of movies. For some of these, this may be your only chance, ever, to see them.

Provincetown Film Festival Begins Tonight!

More than 50 films and events will be packed into our 17th annual
Provincetown International Film Festival, running through Sunday. 

Our 17th annual Provincetown International Film Festival begins this evening with ten films and events tonight alone, and over the five days of the festival, we'll pack in more than 50 films and events all over Provincetown and beyond. Click here for 2015 PIFF schedule. Tonight's events, all over town, and at the Wellfleet Drive In, include screenings of documentaries, narrative films and shorts, and the festival's opening party at the Crown & Anchor. Thursday will offer us another 24 films and events, and each day of the festival will wow you with choices. Click here for the PIFF Calendar of events, which will quickly and easily show you, day by day, the various screenings, parties and events you will all want to attend.
Click here for the Parties and Events list to find various awards presentations, filmmaker chats, parties and other events you won't want to miss. Check out the "Breakfast With…" series, where a panel of filmmakers will discuss their work and answer questions while everyone has something to eat. Thursday's panel includes folks who have made films relating directly to Provincetown, such as Andrea Myerson's Clambake, about the beginnings and evolution of Women's Week in Provincetown, now one of the biggest annual lesbian events in the world.
Buy tickets online or visit the box office on the first floor of the Whalers Wharf, at the far end of the building, on the edge of the beach. Get your tickets early, before they sell out, and be at the venue at least 15 minutes before the scheduled showtime so you don't lose your seat. If a film you have your heart set on is already sold out, you still have a pretty fair chance of seeing it by "wait listing." You can go the the venue up to an hour before the start time and wait in line for empty seats that will become available 15 minutes before showtime. I've gotten into dozens of sold out films this way over the last 17 years of the festival. It's first come, first served, so get there before the rest of the town gets in line.
Get out and see as many films as you can, attend a few parties, meet a few stars and filmmakers, and enjoy one of the best film festivals in America!

Ilona Shines in 'Advanced Style'

Ilona Royce Smithkin, a Provincetown treasure, appears in Advanced Style, a delightful documentary
about fashion, style and spirit among women who are turning heads even as they are turning older.

Provincetown's own Ilona Royce Smithkin, at the age of 94, charms the audience as she shares the screen with a number of other stunning women of a certain age, each creating their own fabulous look and sense of style, despite their advancing years. This upbeat documentary is the feature film debut of Lina Plioplyte, who one day discovered the blog Advanced Style by fashion enthusiast Ari Seth Cohen, and she became intrigued by the attitudes of the women she found in Cohen's photographs. The film debuted this past September and was screened in PTown several times during Women's Week.
Cohen's blog had taken shape when he began noticing stylishly dressed older women on the streets of New York City, and began photographing their spirited use of colors, hats, shapes and all sorts of accessories, each one creating an absolutely unique style for herself. He wanted to share his photos and show the individuality and self-confidence these women were exhibiting as they dressed exactly as they pleased, regardless of anyone else's opinions, and as he asked permission to take their photos, friendships began to form with a number of these very independent doyennes of style.
One of these women is Ilona, who divides her time between her Provincetown and New York apartments, spending her summers swimming in Provincetown Harbor and enjoying the view and the sea breeze from the balcony of her third floor, water front Commercial Street apartment in the East End, in the heart of Provincetown's Gallery District. Ilona's distinctive paintings and drawings can be found in the Karilon Gallery, at 441 Commercial Street, on her website Ilona and Friends, in the permanent collection of the Provincetown Art Association and Museum, and in a number of important private collections. Her work has included landscapes, nudes, still lifes, and portraits of Tennessee Williams, Ayn Rand and a host of other famous subjects.
A renowned artist, teacher, and in the last few years, a chanteuse, Ilona now performs in Eyelash Cabaret, the wildly popular annual PAAM fundraiser, sharing the stage with singer, songwriter and "band in a body" musician Zoe Lewis, who met Ilona many years ago, and wrote a song about her unique eyelashes.
Click this link to find "90 Is The New 40," a Huffington Post article on Ilona written by Ari Cohen in 2011, as Ilona was turning 90, and watch the four-minute video you'll find there. If you don't already know Ilona, you'll fall in love with her on the spot. You'll find out the story behind those eyelashes, too. See more of Ilona, and other strong, stylish women, when you watch Advanced Style, streaming on Netflix, and watch for the DVD to be released at a future date.

Film Screening Thursday Benefits the Matthew Shepard Foundation

This Thursday the Provincetown Film Society will present a special screening of Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine, a new documentary commemorating the 15^th anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard, the University of Wyoming freshman who was kidnapped by two homophobic men he had met in a Laramie, Wyoming, bar. Matt was tortured, tied to a fence and left to die in one of the nations most notorious hate crimes on record. This vicious crime created headlines worldwide, and the universal condemnation of this horrendous act of violence started a crucial dialogue about hate crimes and intolerance toward LGBT people, leading to the passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2009.

This important 89 minute film, touring nationwide in theatrical and festival screenings. will be shown in Provincetown one night only, at 7 PM on Thursday, July 31, 2014, at the Waters Edge Cinema, on the second floor of Whalers Wharf, at 237 Commercial Street. The film will be followed by an audience Q&A with Matt’s parents, Judy and Dennis Shepard, and director Michele Josue. The Q&A will be moderated by the Rev. Christie Hardwick, a local minister of the Centers for Spiritual Living. Tickets are $12, with all proceeds benefitting the Matthew Shepard Foundation. Get tickets online or at the Cinema box office.

Director Michele Josue was a 19-year-old film school student at Emerson College in Boston when she learned of the murder of her dear friend in Laramie. She says that before he “became ‘Matthew Shepard’—his identity forever tied to unspeakable violence and hate—he was just Matt, a normal kid who happened to be gay, with a loving family and supportive friends. He was real. And I think it’s important that the world knows that.”

Watch the trailer for '"Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine", and see the film this Thursday night at Waters Edge Cinema.

2014 Oscar Shorts Come to Provincetown

All of this year's Oscar nominated shorts can be seen
this week at Waters Edge Cinema, in the Whalers Wharf.

There were 16 short films nominated for this year's Academy Awards in the categories of documentary, animation and live action. Each nominated short, including the three winners, can be seen this week at Waters Edge Cinema, at the Whalers Wharf. There will be three separate programs, each screening all of the shorts nominated in one of those three categories.

Documentary Shorts (running a total of 135 minutes) screen Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday at 4:30 PM.
Live Action Shorts (113 min.) can bee seen Friday, Sunday and Thursday evenings at 7:30 PM, with a matinee Saturday at 2 PM.
Animated Shorts (103 min.) will play Saturday and Wednesday at 7:30 PM with a Sunday matinee at 2 PM.

Click on this link to see an Oscar Shorts Teaser with just a tiny snippet from many of these wonderful films. Then click the following link to see a trailer for Documentary Short winner The Lady in Number 6, but only if you're prepared to fall completely in love with a 109-year-old woman. Alice Herz-Sommer lived to see her remarkable story make it into theaters last year, to great acclaim from all who saw this 38-minute little gem of a movie. But just over a week ago she passed away quietly at the age of 110, just a week before this brilliant, joyous film about the world's oldest known Holocaust survivor, and pianist, would win the Oscar at the 86th Academy Awards ceremony last Sunday.

If you google "2014 Oscar shorts" you'll find other trailers as well, and some compelling reasons to see each of these three programs of Short films. They haven't been rated, some are just a few minutes long, some are in a foreign language with subtitles, and each one is worth seeing.
We thank the folks at Waters Edge Cinema for bringing these three programs of terrific short films to Provincetown.

Film Fest Fave Returns to Whalers Wharf

You'll know their voices when you hear the backup singers that
created the sounds of some of the most famous bands of the 21st century. 

You've may never heard of Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, Táta Vega, Judith Hill or Claudia Lennear, but you've seen them any number of times, and you've certainly heard them if you've listened to any kind of popular music over the last twenty years or so. They sang the backup vocals for some of the biggest stars and bands in the music industry, like Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, the Rolling Stones, Bette Midler and Sting, who all appear in this splendid movie, paying tribute to these selfless women who made these stars shine both on the stage and in countless record albums through the years.

20 Feet From Stardom is director Morgan Neville's brilliant and loving tribute to the women whose amazing voices and talents helped to raise others to stardom while they themselves stood just outside the beam of the spotlight. This fascinating film earns a standing ovation as it takes us into the lives of these remarkable women who created the sound and character of some of the best bands to ever record their work or to appear on stages around the world. It was the winner of this year's Audience Award at the Provincetown International Film Festival a couple of weeks ago, and is now playing around the country to packed houses whose audiences can't get enough of the great music and the remarkable stories of these extraordinary women. The Rotten Tomatoes movie review website gives it a 98% approval rating (Gone With the Wind got a 96) and Ty Burr, Boston Globe critic, gives it a five-star rating. See the trailer by clicking on the movie title in red, below.

This thoroughly delightful film has been brought back to PTown by the Provincetown Film Society and will play at the Waters Edge Cinema, at 237 Commercial Street, on the second floor of the Whalers Wharf, beginning at 1:30 this afternoon and running through Thursday, July 11th. Check the schedule below. Seeing this movie is also a great way to get out of the oppressive temperatures outdoors, and cool off during this heat wave.

20 FEET FROM STARDOM

Fri-Sat @ 1:30, 4, 6, 8 & 10pm

Sun @ 1:30, 4, 6:30 & 9pm

Mon-Thu @ 4, 6:30 & 9pm

Rainy Day matinees @ 1:30pm

You can always check the schedule at Waters Edge very easily by dialing 508 487-FILM. It's easy to remember, and it will always lead you to the very best in independent film, now available throughout the year in Provincetown thanks to the efforts of the Provincetown Film Society and their ongoing campaign to buy the Waters Edge Cinema, where they continue to support many films that won't be appearing anywhere else within a hundred miles of Provincetown. Support this wonderful theater, and see this astonishing, uplifting film sometime during the coming week.

Volunteer at 2013 PTown Film Fest and Get Some Great Perks!

Volunteer and help us put on the 15th annual Provincetown International Film Festival.

Since 1999 Provincetown has been welcoming the independent film world to our little village for what has blossomed into one of the best film festivals in the country. The schedule is out, so find one and get tickets early for things you want to see (many films sell out) and arrange your schedule so you can help put on this wonderful event bringing us independent films from around the world!
It takes a tremendous number of volunteers to pull off this remarkable feat. I've been a volunteer for all 15 years, right from the beginning, and it's one of the best things I do every year. The Provincetown International Film Festival is one of the greatest events in the country every year for independent films to be seen and appreciated by grateful audiences.  I've met all kinds of "film people" over the years, and have had the chance to have conversations with famous actors, producers, directors, screenwriters, and with many who have served in all of these functions at once in order to get their own tiny, independent films produced and made available to the public.

Gus Van Sant receives his 2002
PIFF Filmmaker on the Edge Award.

I got the chance, for example, to thank Gus Van Sant for his wonderful film To Die For, which I watch again at least once a year, with Nicole Kidman absolutely nailing the part of the local TV weather girl who aspires to greater things and who would do anything to hit the big time. Jane Lynch talked with me about scripted dialogue vs. ad libs in the "mockumentaries" she's done with director Christopher Guest, such as Best of Show and A Mighty WindI.
I'm not a collector of autographs, but Marcia Gay Harden was kind enough after our conversation to write a personal note for me to take to a friend who couldn't get out of work to attend that year's event where Ms Harden was honored with the festival's Excellence in Acting Award. This year that award will be conferred upon Matt Dillon at this annual event which takes place at 5 PM on Saturday, June 22nd, at Town Hall. Get tickets to attend this evening where festival award winners get the chance to speak extensively about their work, with an audience Q & A session as well.

Matt Dillon will be in Provincetown to receive
this year's PIFF Excellence in Acting  Award.

As you can imagine, it takes an awful lot of work to put on a huge event like this one, which will bring 132 films and events to PTown from June 19th through the 23rd.
You can get tickets (or volunteer!) for events like parties, award functions, filmmakers in conversation about their work, as well as screenings of more than 100 films ranging from shorts, animation and documentaries to feature films from around the world.
You can become a volunteer by visiting the PIFF volunteer page on their website, or contact Director of Volunteers Katie Ledoux directly. Here's a message from Katie:

VOLUNTEER!

We are celebrating the 15th year of the Provincetown International Film Festival and we would love for you to be part of it. In order to produce one of the best festivals in the country we need your support !If you love films and want to get the chance to get up close and personal, VOLUNTEER today. Volunteer perks include admittance to the Opening and Closing Parties, a movie voucher for every four hour shift worked, a free t-shirt and on Monday the 24th we have a volunteer party with free food and drink and a free screening of one of the films from the festival!

To sign up please email our Director of Volunteers directly at: kaledoux@yahoo.com

Thanks so much!

Katie

My volunteer experience over the years has included countless different functions such as taking tickets as patrons enter the theater, introducing a variety of filmmakers to the audience, putting up banners at the sponsor's exhibit, ushering at events like the awards ceremonies, and one year I counted ballots for the audience awards given at the closing party at the end of the festival.

Volunteer, get some great perks, and help us put on Provincetown's best film festival yet.

Provincetown's 6th Annual Chocolate Festival is Highlighted by a Special Screening at Waters Edge Cinema

Waters Edge Cinema holds a benefit screening of
Chocolat tonight only, 5 PM at Whalers Wharf

When a woman and her young daughter open a chocolate shop in a small French village during Lent, the Roman Catholic inhabitants of this little hamlet find their unbending views on morality are flexed a bit as they succumb to the pleasures of these sensual confections. Directed by Lasse Hallström (Cider House Rules,) Chocolat was named one of the best pictures of the year 2000 by the L. A. Times and was nominated for 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Johnny Depp, Alfred Molina, Academy Nominee Lena Olin and Academy Award Winners Juliette Binoch and Judy Dench star in this delightful film that is much more than a romantic comedy.
To watch a trailer for Chocolat, click this link, then click on the "watch trailer" button. Then close that window to return to this page.
There will be one screening only, at 5 PM this evening (Saturday, April 13th) at Waters Edge Cinema in Provincetown. It can be a little hard to locate this theater if you've never been there. You'll find it at 237 Commercial Street, on the second floor of the Whalers Wharf, although you'll press button number three if you take the elevator.
"A Taste of Chocolat" promises to be a grand affair beginning with the film at 5 PM, followed at 7:15 PM by a special chocolate tasting hosted by The Purple Feather, featuring a variety of chocolates from around the world. This event is a collaboration between The Purple Feather, hosting their 6th annual Spring Chocolate Festival, and the Provincetown Film Society, creating community through film. Tickets are $26, giving you admission to the film and to the chocolate tasting, with a portion of the proceeds going to the film society. You can also get tickets for the tasting only. Tickets are limited and will likely sell out. You can also just attend the movie.
The Provincetown Film Society brings a tremendous variety of independent features, shorts, documentaries and international films to the tip of Cape Cod year round, and provides screening opportunities for local filmmakers and students, not to mention bringing us the Provincetown International Film Festival in June each year. You can support the society's mission by attending "A Taste of Chocolat," and by becoming a member of the organization.
Other events of the chocolate festival include a demonstration by Dutch Chocolatier Paul Kearns, and a scavenger hunt, with a dozen unique chocolate sculptures hidden along Commercial Street. Winners will be treated to a two-night stay at the Surfside Inn, on the water in the East End, or at Sage Inn, nestled in the heart of Provincetown.
Find out more about the festival on the Purple Feather events page.

Oscar Nominated Shorts Play at Waters Edge Cinema in the Whalers Wharf

All 15 of this year's Oscar nominated short films will show at Waters Edge Cinema,
 237 Commercial Street, 2nd floor of the Whalers Wharf, Provincetown

Provincetown has one of the very few theaters in the country where you'll be able to see all 15 of this year's Oscar contenders in the short film categories of live action, animation and documentary, in that order. Thanks to the programmers at Waters Edge Cinema, on the second floor of Whalers Wharf, we'll have a chance to see each one of the shorts nominated for an Academy Award before the award ceremony itself is broadcast on TV this Sunday night. You'll also find these programs of shorts each playing again next week. You can see a minute-and-a-half teaser for these terrific short films by clicking on this link: http://theoscarshorts.shorts.tv
Friday at 4 PM (and repeating Monday at 4 PM) you can see the program of live action shorts, which leans heavily toward the dramatic end of the scale this year. Films will include Death of a Shadow, a dark love story set in WWI, along with Buzkashi Boys, from Afghanistan, and Somalia's Asad, both dealing with growing up in a land devastated by war. Henry tells of an aging concert pianist and the enigma of a past love. Curfew, about a troubled man asked to babysit his young niece for a few hours, has been honored by 33 film festivals in the US and abroad.
The animation program runs Saturday at 1:30 and at 4 PM, repeating at 4 PM on Tuesday. Familiar objects become edible in the 2 minute animated short Fresh Guacamole. In The Simpsons: The Longest Daycare, you'll likely recognize baby Maggie from the long-running TV series The Simpsons, as she spends a day at the Ayn Rand School for Tots. Paperman is a 7 minute romantic comedy about an office worker who uses paper airplanes to meet a girl. In the more serious Adam and Dog, the Garden of Eden is populated by Adam and a dog. Head Over Heels is a charming 11 minute claymation film about a marriage turned upside down, nominated 8 times in festivals and award programs, and poised to win the Oscar with 4 other wins so far.

The 5 shorts in the documentary category play in 2 programs, with Program A running 2 hours and 3 minutes, playing Sunday at 1 PM and repeating Wednesday at 4 PM, while Program B runs an hour and 23 minutes, playing both Sunday and Thursday at 4 PM. These films could practically be mistaken for a 5 part anthology of films revolving around human relationships and tough topics like aging, terminal illness and homelessness, yet they are surprisingly hopeful, and, of course, each film was made independently of all the others, each one with excellent reviews. Films include Kings Point; Redemption; Open Heart; Innocente; and the inspiring Mondays at Racine, with 4 nominations to date and 2 film festival awards so far. It shows us a couple of Long Island sisters who regularly open the doors of their beauty parlor to the laughter, gossip, tears and fears of women who've been diagnosed with cancer.

Trailers for many of the films can be found, along with all kinds of tidbits to feed your Oscar fever, at the IMDb website. The Internet Movie Database is the world's leading authority on film, television, actors, directors, movie plots, production notes and anything to do with the big or the small screen.

Most folks, and probably many members of The Academy, never get to see Oscar's shorts, but this year, over the coming week, you have a chance to see each one of them. And if you camp out at Waters Edge Cinema, you could actually see them all before the awards are announced on Sunday.

Waters Edge has been operating under the direction of the Provincetown Film Society, the folks who bring us the annual Provincetown International Film Festival, since April of 2010, when they began serious fundraising efforts to buy the theater, create an additional theater on the site, and commit to bringing independent and art house films to PTown year round. We thank them for bringing us this spectacular series of short films.

This Week's Hot Ticket - BearCity 2

Although Douglas Langway's new movie BearCity 2 is scheduled for its world premiere in Los Angeles later this month, its very first theater showing was here in Provincetown last night, at the new Waters Edge Cinema, on the second floor of the Whalers Wharf, at 237 Commercial Street. It's only fitting, because Provincetown is a lead character in this movie. The film continues the adventures of many of the characters we met in Langway's prequel to this film,  the very popular BearCity. In this sweet romantic comedy, New York City Bear Roger (Gerald McCollouch) and Cub Tyler (Joe Conti) decide that, now that it's legal for New York couples to get married, they'll go to Provincetown to tie the knot. So they and all their friends head off to Ptown, right in the middle of Bear Week. Of course, not everything goes as planned, and in the midst of the hundreds of Bears who have gathered in Provincetown, as you would imagine, old lovers turn up left and right. Fred (Brian Keane) and Brent (Stephen Guarino) have a few problems of their own, one of them being that Brent's mom, Rose (Kathy Najimy) thinks Brent deserves someone more attentive and committed than Fred, and she says so.
There are cameo appearances by director Kevin Smith, radio host Frank DeCaro and a number of others, including celebrities well known to PTown visitors, like the Hat Sisters, and Varla Jean Merman, who deftly carves out several scenes for herself while others have only seconds on the screen. But the most breathtaking character is Provincetown itself. Cinematographer Michael Hauer does a remarkable job in capturing the beauty of Provincetown and its surroundings. The streets, the dunes, the harbor... all play a roll in this extremely independent film. Familiar faces and places are fun for PTown residents and visitors to spot throughout the film, with scenes filmed in well known locations like the deck at the Boatslip (or under it.)
This film is quite satisfying, with a good mix of comedy and drama, an enthralling story line, a funny, well written script, great cinematography and good acting throughout. It plays through July 14th at Waters Edge Cinema, at varying times each day, so call 508 487-FILM (3456) for schedules. Tickets are $12 for all tickets. Your film society membership doesn't help you this time. Tickets are available online at http://www.watersedgecinema.org/, but I tried no less than eleven times with no success, so if you have trouble buying tickets online, go early to the theater. The box office opens a half hour before the first show of the day, with tickets on sale for any show that day. Tickets may sell out during Bear Week, so get yours early.

This Week's Hot Ticket - Moonrise Kingdom

Everything about this movie, set in 1965, is quirky, odd and totally engaging. I knew I loved this film right from the opening scenes where director Wes Anderson gives us a sort of cursory introduction to important as well as minor characters by tracking horizontally and then vertically through the New England island summer home (a peculiar old lighthouse) of the Bishop family. Parents Walt (Bill Murray) and Laura (Frances McDormand) could not be any colder nor more disengaged from each other, and from their four children, but in an oddly comical way.
We learn that twelve-year-old daughter Suzy (Kara Hayward)  had met a sort of kindred spirit in young Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) on the island the previous summer, and the two odd ducks had been writing to each other from the autumn through the spring, hatching a plan to meet again when suzy's family returns for another summer on the island and Sam returns for another summer at scout camp. When they run away together to live in the island wilderness, Sam brings an extensive kit of camping equipment, while Suzy brings six favorite storybooks, stolen from the public library, and a portable record player, stolen from her younger brother.
Sam's consummate skillfulness as a "Khaki Scout" enables him to MacGyver anything the two need as they set out through the back-country, and provides some very funny moments as the two make their way toward a secluded cove tucked away in a far corner of the island. When a storm off the coast escalates to near-hurricane proportions and the forecast turns dire, finding the two run-aways becomes urgent. The police (Bruce Willis as Captain Sharp) and the officious Scout Master (Edward Norton) practically compete against the parents in the search for the kids.
Production Designer Adam Stockhausen has created a unique look for this film, and the costume designs of Kasia Walicka-Maimone add to that look and the general eccentricity of the production. Wonderful, poignant performances of the two young stars further elevate a terrific script by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola. Critically acclaimed, this
is the best-reviewed film of the year to date. Don't miss it.
Playing only through Thursday, July 5th, with an extra matinee at 3:15 on the 4th of July, at the new Waters Edge Cinema, found on the 2nd floor of the Whalers Wharf at
237 Commercial Street. Phone 508 487-FILM (3456) for more show times. 

This Week's Hot Ticket - PIFF

Seeing two women carrying gigantic film reels down Commercial Street is a sure sign that the Provincetown International Film Festival is underway, and this terrific annual Provincetown event is this week's Hot Ticket. It happens in the middle of June every year, so put it on you calendar for next year now, so you can clear as much time as possible to devote to seeing movies, talking with filmmakers, attending events, and rubbing elbows with directors, producers, actors, and with film buffs from far and wide. 

We're smack in the middle of the 14th annual Provincetown International Film Festival, running this year from June 13th-17th, so you still have time to see movies, attend parties, and hear this year's honorees talk about their films, their careers, and whatever topics come up at the Conversations With Honorees event, which is always the most popular special event of the festival. It takes place in Town Hall, at 260 commercial Street, at 5:00 PM tonight, Saturday, June 16th. For tickets go to the box office, which is sharing space with the Crown and Anchor box office at 241 Commercial Street.

This year's Filmmaker on the Edge honoree, producer/director Roger Corman (director of HOUSE OF USHER, PIT AND THE PENDULUM, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS and 50 others, and producer of 401 films ) was honored with the 2009 Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement. He will be interviewed by John Waters, legendary director of PINK FLAMINGOS, FEMALE TROUBLE, SERIAL MOM and many other off-the-wall films. and the first-ever PIFF Filmmaker on the Edge honoree back in 1999, the first year of the festival.

Indy film queen Parker Posey (DAZED AND CONFUSED, PARTY GIRL, BASQUIAT, CLOCKWATCHERS, and my personal favorite, WAITING FOR GUFFMAN, among many others) is this year's Excellence in Acting honoree. Indy actor/director Craig Chester (KISS ME GUIDO, I SHOT ANDY WARHOL, ADAM AND STEVE) will interview her.

Documentary filmmaker Kirby Dick (OUTRAGE, TWIST OF FAITH, DERRIDA, SICK: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF BOB FLANAGAN, SUPERMASOCHIST) receives this year's Faith Hubley Career Achievement Award. Director Mary Harron (I SHOT ANDY WARHOL, THE NOTORIOUS BETTIE PAGE, AMERICAN PSYCHO, THE MOTH DIARIES) will conduct this interview. Dick is Emmy and Academy Award-nominated, and has won Sundance, San Fransisco and Los Angeles Film Festival awards. His new film, THE INVISIBLE WAR, a stunning investigation of the staggering number of rapes committed within the US military and the government cover-up of these crimes, can be seen Sunday at noon at the Schoolhouse, 494 Commercial Street. This film won the Audience Award at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.

Each of theses honorees has two films in the festival. The Awards for these three PIFF honorees are sponsored by the Coolidge Corner Theater Foundation, American Express, and the MALLRD Foundation, respectively. We thank them for their support. 

There are films scheduled all day long on Saturday and Sunday, and the HBO Audience Awards and the Closing Party are also still to come, so pick up a schedule at the box office or at many other locations around town, or go to ptownfilmfest.org, or click this link to the 2012 PIFF Schedule. And keep an eye out for filmmakers walking the streets.

During last year's festival. I found myself on the back deck at Waydowntown looking out over the beach and the harbor, having lunch with a friend, and sitting at the table next to ours was Kathleen Turner (WAR OF THE ROSES, THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, SERIAL MOM) who was in town for the festival. Her film THE PERFECT FAMILY, by Anne Renton, was in the festival, and she was receiving the PIFF Lifetime Achievement Award. We were respectful and didn't bug her, but as my friend and I were talking about something to do with the film festival, Ms Turner heard a bit of what we were talking about, and she had an opinion, so she joined our conversation.   

This afternoon I ran into animator Emily Hubley, walking down Commercial Street between films. Her animated shorts have been featured at The Museum of Modern Art, Tribeca Film Festival, Seattle International Film Festival and many others. We must have similar tastes, because we often end up at the same films when she's here for our festival. We've talked at a few parties over the years, and I've been pleased to get to know her a bit. I can spot her distinctive animation style without even looking at the credits. Among others, she did the animation for HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH, which was a favorite among audience members when it played here. I've been crying for more animation at PIFF since the beginning, and it's been great to see a bit more of it here.
One of the greatest PIFF pleasures for me came in the very early years of the festival, when I found myself sitting off to the side in the row ahead of Emily's mother, renowned animator Faith Hubley, whom I had become acquainted with through my work as a volunteer with the festival. During a screening of her beautiful film OUR SPIRITED EARTH,  I found I could turn in my seat and see the joy and amusement on Faith's face as she sat in the midst of the crowd watching her film, feeling their reactions to her work. I spent as much time watching her face as I did watching the film that afternoon.
Well, gotta dash...I'm off to see this years program of animated shorts. There's still time, with more than 30 films playing on Sunday, so get out and see a couple, and put us on your calendar for next year. The 15th Annual Provincetown International Film Festival will be a great excuse for you to come to visit us. I guarantee, many of these films will not soon be coming to a theater near you!