Monday, May 05, 2008

'Honeydripper' opens at film center today


UPDATED: RFC's bistro will open Tuesday at 5 p.m., according the spokesman Chris Jay. They're experiencing some computer glitches. Movies, however, will screen today as planned.

They're still working out some Who's still sleeping off the aftereffects of Shreveport's downtown Saturday night? The city was on the verge of spontaneous combustion this weekend: Robinson Film Center's gala, plus the Shreveport Symphony at Riverview, Cinco de Mayo at Festival Plaza, "spaceart" opening at artspace, and the Pink Party at Municipal Auditorium. I was exhausted by attending just two events.

And oh yeah, by the way. The Robinson Film Center opens today. I'll be at the 5:15 p.m. screening of "Honeydripper" (if I survive an afternoon trip to the dental chair). I'll be hanging out in the bistro until they kick me out. If you come see a movie, say hi (to the guy still giggling from laughing gas).

Here's the schedule for the first two weeks. Scroll down for synopses.

Today, May 5
"Honeydripper," 5:15 p.m., 7:40 p.m.
"Forever," 5:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, May 6
"Honeydripper," 5:25 p.m., 7:50 p.m.
"Forever," 5:40 p.m., 7:40 p.m.

Wednesday, May 7
"Honeydripper," 5 p.m., 7:30 p.m.
"Forever," 5:15 p.m., 7:15 p.m.

Thursday, May 8
BPCC student film, 6-10 p.m.
"Forever," 5:30 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 7:35 p.m.

Friday, May 9
"In Bruges," 4:45 p.m., 9:15 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 7 p.m.
"Forever," 5:10 p.m., 9:40 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 7:15 p.m.

Saturday, May 10
"Under the Same Moon," 12:15 p.m., 4:45 p.m., 9:15 p.m.
"In Bruges," 2:30 p.m., 7 p.m.
"Forever," noon, 5 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 2:05 p.m., 7:15 p.m.

Sunday, May 11
"In Bruges," 11:50 a.m., 4:20 p.m., 9:05 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 2:05 p.m., 7 p.m.
"Forever," 12:15 p.m., 6 p.m. (with special guests)
"Honeydripper," 2:25 p.m.

Monday, May 12
"Under the Same Moon," 5:30 p.m.
"In Bruges," 7:40 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 5 p.m.
"Forever," 7:25 p.m.

Tuesday, May 13
"In Bruges," 5:25 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 7:35 p.m.
"Forever," 5 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 7:05 p.m.

Wednesday, May 14
"Under the Same Moon," 5:15 p.m.
"In Bruges," 7:30 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 5:30 p.m.
"Forever," 7:55 p.m.

Thursday, May 15
"In Bruges," 5:15 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 7:25 p.m.
"Forever," 5:35 p.m.
"Honeydripper," 7:45 p.m.

Friday, May 16
"Counterfeiters," 7 p.m.
"The Band's Visit," 5:15 p.m., 9:20 p.m.
"Chop Shop," 7:15 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 4:45 p.m., 9:05 p.m.

Saturday, May 17
"Counterfeiters," 12:15 p.m., 4:45 p.m., 9:15 p.m.
"Chop Shop," 12:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 9:30 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 2:25 p.m., 7 p.m.
"The Band's Visit," 2:40 p.m., 7:15 p.m.

Sunday, May 18
"The Band's Visit," 12:15 p.m., 4:30 p.m.
"Chop Shop," 2:20 p.m., 7:20 p.m.
"Under the Same Moon," 1:55 p.m., 7 p.m.
"Counterfeiters," 11:50 a.m., 4:15 p.m.

"Honeydripper" (2007): Set in 1950 rural Alabama, the fable about the birth of rock'n'roll takes place at the down-and-out Honeydripper Lounge. In a last-ditch effort to save the club, its proprietor (Danny Glover) hires Guitar Sam for a one-night-only show. When the headliner lands in jail, the Honeydripper bets its future on an unlikely savior. Written, directed and edited by John Sayles ("Lone Star").

"Forever" (2006): The documentary explores the enduring mystique of one the world's most famous cemeteries, Paris' Père-Lachaise. Oscar Wilde, Frédéric Chopin, Marcel Proust and Jim Morrison, among many other famous names, are buried there.

"In Bruges" (2008): Hiding in Bruges, Belgium, after a difficult job, two hit men clash on the meaning of life, death, tourists and local customs. The darkly comic crime picture stars Colin Farrell, Ralph Fiennes and Brendan Gleeson and was written and directed by award-winning playwright Mark McDonagh.

"Under the Same Moon" (2007): A young boy travels to the U.S. from Mexico to find his mother after his grandmother passes away. One of the most successful Spanish language films to be distributed in the U.S., the drama features "Ugly Betty's" America Ferrera in a supporting role.

"The Counterfeiters" (2007): Winner of 2007 Academy Award for best foreign language film, the Austrian film is based on the massive Nazi counterfeiting ring established in 1936. After being arrested and thrown into a concentration camp, a notorious counterfeiter is forced to put his skills to work making fake foreign currency.

"Chop Shop" (2007): A street smart Latino orphan named Alejandro works in an auto-body repair shop inside a junkyard on the outskirts of Queens, N.Y. Within a chaotic world of adults, young Alejandro yearns to make a better life for himself and his 16-year-old sister.

"The Band's Visit" (2007): A small Egyptian police band travels to Israel to play an initiation ceremony. Through no bureaucratic fault of their own, the band members are left stranded at the airport and soon find themselves in a small desert town. The Israeli/French film was an official selection of 2007 Cannes film festival and has won many festival awards.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Why we can't have afternoon movie starts for people who work shifts? Surely there's enough medical, casino and other workers to make it profitable. Not to mention all those lawyers and sales folks who might want sneak out of the office for a few hours. Or visitors to the casinos who can be lured away from the one armed bandits to take in other fun in SB Land. Pleeezzzee.......

Alexandyr Kent said...

Why? Ask Chris Jay that question: cjay@robinsonfilmcenter.org.

Anonymous said...

Mostly because of the lack of free parking in downtown Shreveport. "Honeydripper," for example, is two hours and three minutes long, plus 5 minutes or so of trailers, so that's about 2 hrs., 15 mins. Parking meters only hold 2 hours, so there's a really good chance that anyone seeing that film at, say 2:00 PM, would get a ticket. I'm totally open to ideas on this, though. The truth is that we thought we'd start small and see what we could grow into. I would definitely expect some afternoon screenings this summer, just to test the waters.

Unknown said...

Rockin!

I'm thinking of doing a video essay on the walkability of downtown. Since a local TV station awarded me a video camera and I watched folks be totally confused at Sunday's home tour on just how easy it is to get around downtown, I'm inspired to make a "how to make it around down here." Compare your urban foot steps to how much you walk at the boardwalk, the mall, Wal-Mart, or one of our parks.

Chris Lyon said...

I just watched Under the Same Moon tonight at the RFC, screening it for errors as it was the first print I've ever built entirely on my own! It releases tomorrow and I believe that if you don't shed a tear (or maybe even two) you are in need of some form of professional help.

Besides being put together correctly (nothing upside down or backwards!) the print is also now clean as per the process each film goes through before screening at the RFC.

Having seeing a few projection booths during my training prior to the opening of the film center, we are, by far, the most considerate projection team I've seen if I do say so myself. Because we have less theaters than most, we can spend time and care while preparing our prints which I believe results in a cleaner, crisper image even after it has been through several other venues.

Of course, our digital projection is spot on. It's bright, in focus and we are deadly accurate with a point and click device... so watch out. Honeydripper is in full HD, by the way!

Come check us out if you haven't already. You saw the article above, come see a flick!

Chris Lyon said...

As for parking I'm stumped too. There has to be some sort of way to work something out. Chris Jay and I visited a theater in Buffalo, NY that had a similar problem and they had a solution that may or may not work for us because of our 2 hour limit on the meters. I'll break it out tomorrow and see what the team thinks.