Okay, we’re all probably nearing the end of our conversational interest in this year’s Academy Award results, ceremony, attire, and Kazan controversy. Or is there a limit? Less discussed are the results of last Saturday’s Independent Spirit Awards, which saw Gods and Monsters take home the best feature award as well as best actor and best supporting actress awards for its co-stars Ian McKellan and Lynn Redgrave. Taking home the best director award was UT philosophy alum Wes Anderson for his comedy gem Rushmore (co-star Bill Murray also received the best actor award for his work in the picture). Completely overlooked by the Academy voters, Rushmore received its proper due from the Indie Spirit voters. Barbara Sonneborn‘s Regret to Inform, which just played during the SXSW Film Festival, picked up the best documentary prize. Complete results can be found at http://www.ifctv.com…
Another film that played during SXSW, Radiohead: Meeting People Is Easy, was reported this week in indieWIRE (http://www.indiewire.com) to have been picked up at the conference for distribution by Seventh Art Releasing and is making plans for a limited theatrical release in advance of its plans of going straight to video…
When film director Guillermo del Toro gets an idea in his head his enthusiasm makes him a hard man to resist (in fact, I’d love to be a fly on the wall during one of his pitch meetings). It came to him that Harry Knowles, head film geek at Ain’t It Cool News (http://www.aint-it-cool-news.com) would be a great guest critic on the Siskel and Ebert Show and insisted that Harry write a letter to Ebert to suggest the idea. The show has been getting by with different guest critics on a weekly basis until the end of the season, until the show figures out what course it wants to take in the absence of Gene Siskel. Well, Ebert took the bait and Knowles is scheduled to appear on the shows that air on April 24 and 25. (Perhaps this might encourage KXAN to find a consistent weekly time slot in which to air the show instead of moving it around like a pawn in the Federal Witness Protection Program, forever obliterating any trace of its permanent whereabouts. Please … the show, and its would-be regular viewers, deserve better treatment). Anyway, the pairing of Ebert and Knowles should be a fun spectacle and we know that pound for pound the match-up should be a real bellyful… It’s official: Longtime owner and manager of the Dobie Theatre, Scott Dinger, will be retiring from that outfit as of April 15. He’s informed the new owners, Landmark Theatres (the arthouse chain to whom he sold the theatre back in January), of his plans to leave but so far Dinger is mum regarding his future plans. Likewise, no word yet from Landmark regarding Dinger’s replacement, but filmgoers should remember to hold Landmark to their word that no changes are planned for the Dobie’s long-term booking policies. Without Dinger there to hold them to that promise, it’s up to patrons to make sure the promise is kept…
The Austin Film Society begins its new series “Calling the Shots: Women Screenwriters of the 1930s” this Tuesday at the Alamo at 7pm. See http://www.austinfilm.org or call 322-0145 for more info. Additionally, the beginning of spring is bringing to life a number of other film series and programs. Check out this week’s “Film Listings” for all the details. And anyone up Dallas way should be aware of the Dallas Video Festival taking place at the Dallas Theater Center this weekend. Call 214/999-8999 or see http://wwwvideofest.org for more info.
This article appears in March 26 • 1999 and March 26 • 1999 (Cover).
