The Denver International Film Festival kicks off October 11. The 11-day event will showcase more than 150 films from around the world at the Tivoli theaters on the Auraria campus, the Buell Theatre, and the Continental Theatre. Several of the movies will have their world or U.S. premiers at the festival, and more than 70 filmmakers are scheduled to introduce their works.

The Denver Film Society had to make a last-minute change this year when Miramax pulled the film Piñero from all festivals. The movie, which is about poet/playwright Miguel Piñero and takes place in New York City, was seen as inappropriate after the attacks of September 11, Miramax officials told the society. Film Society media representative Britta Erickson said they respect the studio's right to withdraw the film. "We are working to replace the film with something else for that evening," Erickson said. Piñero was scheduled to play the night of October. 12 at the Buell, and Benjamin Bratt, who stars in the title role, was to be presented with an Excellence in Acting Award following the movie. Also scheduled for that evening is a reception honoring Latin filmmakers. "The invitation to Benjamin Bratt to receive the award is still on the table," Erickson said. "And regardless of anything, the Latino Cinema reception will still take place." Erickson said if a replacement film couldn't be found, people who had purchased advance tickets for Piñero would be able to use those for the reception, and might be offered a full or partial refund.

Another change, though not quite as unexpected, is the length of the festival. Traditionally the festival lasts 10 days, but it was extended this year because a venue wasn't available for the usual Saturday closing night. "The upshot is that it is a benefit to filmgoers, because they have one more day to see films," Film Society media representative Connie Young said. She also noted the opportunity for repeat screenings of popular films was a factor in deciding to lengthen the festival.

As it does every year, the festival will play host to several premieres, including the world premiere of Tantalus: Behind the Mask, a documentary about the epic play that premiered in Denver last year. Also notable is the U.S. premiere of the festival's longest movie, As I was moving Ahead, Occasionally I saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty, a four-hour, 48-minute autobiographical documentary about the life of Jonas Mekas.

Some of the movies scheduled for the festival are part of a series representing Latino cinema. With the cancellation of Piñero, the "Salute to Latin Cinema" includes 13 movies about various aspects of Latin culture.

The festival will also pay tribute to documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles, showing three of his movies including his newest, LaLee's Kin. Young said Maysles was being honored because he "has made major contributions in documentary filmmaking." Maysles will be present to discuss his films at the festival. Two of the festival's three biggest events will take place at the Buell. The opening film, Lantana, will play there October 11 along with a gala party. The movie is an Australian psychological drama with an ensemble cast featuring Geoffrey Rush and Anthony LaPaglia.

Life as a House, a film about a family becoming closer while rebuilding a beach house, is scheduled as the festival's centerpiece event. It will play at the Buell October 13 with a VIP reception following the movie.

The festival's closing night and subsequent party will be held at the Continental. Director Peter Bogdanovich will be presented with the Mayor's Lifetime Achievement Award, and his new film, The Cat's Meow, will be shown. The Cat's Meow is a period piece starring Kirsten Dunst, Eddie Izzard, and Cary Elwes about the death of Hollywood producer Thomas Ince aboard William Randolph Hearst's yacht. "It's a beautiful and very large theater," Young said of the venue, where festival events have been held in the past. "And there aren't a lot of very large theaters around here."

Chris Ward

CHEERS

Modern Drunkard celebrates life of little moderation

The shooting schedule for Modern Drunkard is not going quite as planned. The shoot was supposed to go down at 9:30 in the morning on October 4 at the Skylark Lounge on Broadway, but an emergency with Chris Chamberlayne, one of the film's stars, has forced the shoot at the location to be postponed. But that isn't a problem because another location has been secured for 2:30 the next morning-- an after hours shoot at the Flying Dog Brewery. It will be a chance for the crew to get some filming done after a two-week hiatus because the film's other star, Luke Schmaltz, has been on the road on a mini tour with his punk band. In theory, this is a good plan-- but not a solid one-- because nothing is set in stone in the world of independent film making. Like the first shoot, this one too has been cancelled. Not due to an emergency, but just a time conflict with a promotional event that has been booked at the bar.

For any normal person this erratic change in the schedule would probably cause a major meltdown-- or at least drive them to drink-- but for Frank Rich, the film's writer/director, it is all just part of the business of being an independent film maker. "A lot of things will stand in your way," Rich said. "But as long as you stay loose and flow like water under the obstacle, you can't be stopped."

The film, which is based on Rich's underground magazine of the same name, began shooting at the beginning of September and should wrap by the end of October. Rich and crew have high hopes for Modern Drunkard, which they will try enter in the Sundance Film Festival.

Rich, who also has written four action/ adventure novels, came to Denver by way of London, Austin, Texas, and Grand Junction. His family lives in Rifle. Modern Drunkard, he said, is a project that is very close to his heart. Although close to Rich's heart, the film might not resonate well with card carrying members of Alcoholics Anonymous or Mother's Against Drunk Driving. It is not a modern day look into personal destruction via the bottle like Leaving Las Vegas. It is just not that kind of message that Rich is trying to get out. Modern Drunkard is a love song to alcohol. It's a tribute to the ideals and lifestyles advocated by Hemmingway and Kerouac in their primes. It is a romantic look into the art of drinking-- an instructional piece about doing it right. "Part of being a drunkard is being a gentleman," Rich said.

And that is exactly what the film is about. It's also about breaking new ground in a subject that, Rich said, nobody has really explored in a positive light before. "It explores the culture and the relationships of alcohol. It's a very pro-drinking movie. Which everybody is afraid to touch." Rich said. "Alcohol has been legal forever but it is still such a taboo. You'll find more movies about heroin abuse then you will about straight drinking. The thrust of it is drinking is good for you; we all do it, it's not going away. It's been with mankind for the last twenty thousand years. Through famine, war, plague-- it got us through it. Can you imagine a society without alcohol?"

That's not to say that the movie is a frat house excursion into beer bongs and sloppy drunks. Moral questions are at the core of the film-- dilemmas about right and wrong and what is acceptable in a society that is always quick to admonish anything out of the box and finger point to anyone that is behaving "unacceptably."

The film explores a four-day period in the lives of Jack and Dean, characters inspired by the writings of Jack Kerouac. Jack and Dean are the ying and yang of the story. Chamberlayne's Jack is a man hanging on to what he thinks society requires of him as a human being. And Dean, played by Schmaltz, is the enabler. "I'm the one who says 'screw what society wants out of you," Schmaltz said. "We've only got one chance to grab this life by the balls and swing it over our heads, and with the other hand we're carrying a fifth of whiskey. And we're going to live every moment to its fullest. And even though some of those moments might be hazy because we were drunk, they would not have been as fun-- you need that lubrication, and that's what alcohol provides for Dean."

Rich's films are unique because traditional actors are not cast in the lead roles. Instead, local musicians play the leads. Schmaltz fronts the Denver punk band King Rat, and Chamberlayne has been a popular mainstay on the Denver music scene for over a decade, singing for the widely popular Dogs of Pleasure in the 1990s and currently for the Dead Heaven Cowboys. Schmaltz is the veteran actor of the two, appearing in Rich's 1996 noir crime film Nixing the Twist. The film, like Modern Drunkard, was shot at locations around Denver and used non-actors in the lead roles. "Musicians and comedians, they're not afraid of the camera," Rich said. "They're all naturals and hams. The worst enemy of independent filmmaking as far as acting goes is fear of the camera. You cast for the part as close as possible. As long as you get somebody who's actually close to that character they don't have to stretch much."

Schmaltz said there is a plus to not using "actors" to fill the roles, and that plus is spontaneity. "I've taking acting workshops and have been around actors, thespians and all that," Schmaltz said. "The guerrilla style of independent filmmaking is very similar to independent rock 'n roll. You're not sure where the next scene is going to be shot like you're not sure where your next gig is going to be if you're on the road-- you're just picking up gigs. And there's the thing that you're relying upon, the fact that you're committed that it's going to make progress and move in your direction. You don't have everything planned out. You're not paying for everybody. You don't have a lot of goodies for everyone to eat. You don't have pillows and foot massages, it's like 'ok, everyone grin and bear it for a really long time. ' And being an independent musician and going into the filmmaking with Frank it was like going on tour or being in the studio for a really long time and not knowing how we were going to pay for it. A lot of the actors that I know would not be able to hang on the set."

Chamberlayne agrees with this assessment. "I have a lot more respect for the whole acting and filmmaking thing because it's a lot more work than you think it is," Chamberlayne said. "I'm getting more comfortable with it as it goes on. But initially it was quit a shock. I had no idea when Frank approached me. I had never done anything. I had no idea of the whole process. Singing is something. natural. When you're in front of people you don't have that fear that some people might have. Initially I had no idea what I was doing-- not that I have a ton of ideas now."

Chamberlayne and Schmaltz are electric-- --role models for a future lost generation in need of a spokesperson. They are throwbacks to a time when it was derigueur for a guy to say he drinks and be damn proud of it. They are reminiscent of that time when noir was cool and the Rat Pack owned the Vegas strip.

Chamberlayne is the intense one with piercing eyes that meet you directly. They are eyes that have nothing to hide. They are eyes that demand to be noticed-- and are. Schmaltz is the cool one-- a twenty first century James Dean. On screen he is a natural with an edgy coolness that perfectly compliments Chamberlayne's intensity.

Rich doesn't subscribe to any standard by-the-book film school method. Rather, he said, he likes to keep his shooting schedule loose and flexible. It is a style that his actors say keeps them on their toes. Rich said he developed this method while shooting Nixing the Twist. "It was really touch and go," Rich said. "I was homeless during the shoot. I was crashing on my actor's floor. We never knew where the next roll of film was coming from. And I'd always say 'is the film going to be here tomorrow? Are we going to shoot tomorrow? So in theory it was a guerrilla war. I always thought filming is war. It's a very loose group of guerrillas fighting against the shadowy entity that's called finishing the film."

For Modern Drunkard, Rich said he is basically shooting the film without a budget. A feat made possible by shooting digitally. "The hardest part of filmmaking is raising the money," Rich said. "The rest of it is easy." Shooting digitally allowed Rich to shoot without having to worry about where his next roll of film was coming from. It is a technology, Rich said, that is being used more frequently, and being accepted by the film going public more readily. "The technology has advanced to the point where it almost looks comparable to 16 millimeter," Rich said. "Audiences are getting used to the look of it. And that's the biggest barrier for us. When it first came out audiences didn't buy into it. Now there's so many digital movies that are coming out they're getting used to the look of it so it's not a problem any more."

Another benefit of shooting digitally, Rich said, is that is allows him to edit the film as goes. That way, he can see what works and what doesn't, and correctly it immediately. "I have an editing bay at my house. Which is a huge plus," Rich said. "We didn't have the money when we shot the last one. We had to wait to raise the money to get the film processed and dropped down to video so we could watch. We'd finally get to look at what we shot three months before."

With the film getting ready to wrap Rich's attention is turning toward getting the film out to the public. And if the film is successful, Rich said his goal is to stay in Denver and continue to make movies. "I would like to build a machine here," Rich said. "Denver would be a great place to do it. It's so easy to get places to shoot here because nobody's used to it. L.A.'s very jaded. If you want to shoot at a bar there they're going to ask for money. Everybody here is much more open to being exploited."

For those interested in becoming a drunkard, Frank Rich will be tending bar for a Modern Drunkard booze and schmooze on Sunday October, 21 at the PS Lounge at 3416 E. Colfax Ave. 303- 320-1200. --Matthew Davis

Movie Review

MULHOLLAND DRIVE

The last movie David Lynch made was The Straight Story, a simple film of a man who was traveling across the country on a tractor to visit a dying relative. There weren't any midgets, or strange characters lurking from scene to scene, rather it remained much like it's title, straight. I thought since these were the best reviews Lynch received in years, he might decide to stay on the path to normalcy. All of those delusions of grandeur came to a halt after catching his latest film, Mulholland Drive, a typical ambiguous tale with all the bells and whistles that made Lynch the man he is.

The story revolves around a few key characters including a prima donna actress, a young director and a struggling actress who is the main focus of the film. We follow her through Los Angeles as she is our guide on an adventure which includes murder, jealousy and corruption, (you know, typical everyday L. A. stuff).

As with most of Lynch's obscure films, you're going to have to sit back with a few friends and try to piece together the film, which is half the fun. I will be the first to say that walking out of the screening, I didn't get it. However, even after figuring it out and piecing the puzzle together, this film isn't as great as some of his former films.

Mulholland Drive gained Lynch a Best Director Award at Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, but I must admit I was a little disappointed in his latest effort and I am not alone. This film was initially optioned by ABC as a new series for the network but after seeing dallies, they decided to back out for multiple reasons, (most notably homosexual innuendos between characters). That's unfortunate because this film would have been much better as a series that could build on character development over weeks rather than within a few hours.

This is a Lynch movie and it attracts a certain crowd who will go regardless of what most critics say, (for Lost Highway, Lynch purposely added the negative reviews to his newspaper ads), so if you aren't ready to be frustrated and lost for two and half hours, go see Glitter. But if you are willing to take a journey through the surreal world of David Lynch, albeit not his best work, catch Mulholland Drive. C- --Neal James

Movie Review

JOY RIDE

Joy Ride tries to be a cautionary tale, teaching today's youth not to play pranks on CB radios. Fuller and Lewis, two brothers on a road trip, play such a prank on a never-seen truck driver, telling him an attractive woman is waiting for him in a motel room. Apparently this guy doesn't take well to disappointment; he attacks the man he finds in the room, and then devotes all his energy to stalking and harassing the brothers. This guy has trouble taking a joke.

Of course, the driver is never seen; at the most he is a truck with a voice, like something out of a deranged episode of "Knight Rider." A talented filmmaker might be able to turn this into an ominous threat, playing on the audience's fear of the unknown. In Joy Ride it comes off as exactly what it is: a gimmick to avoid showing an antagonist who has been built up too much to have a face. If his face were shown, Fox would have more trouble carbon-copying the movie for a sequel.

While for the most part Joy Ride is nearly mind-numbing, at times it actually becomes insulting. While these kids from the East Coast are portrayed as normal, everyone they run into between Utah and Nebraska is a backwards hick. Every person they interact with, especially in the field of law enforcement, is a stereotype of incompetence and ignorance. When compared to boys who invite strangers to hotels where theirs is the only car in the parking lot with a CB antenna, I would think anyone would come off looking more intellegent, not less.

The real brains in this movie go to the truck driver, who apparently has information at his fingertips that most people have to cut through week's worth of red tape to get. I kept thinking what an excellent investigative reporter he would make if the whole psychotic truck driver job didn't pan out.

Basically, Joy Ride's title is a half-truth. While anyone paying for this movie has indeed been taken for a ride, there is no joy to be found. D- --Chris Ward

DVD REPORT

CONAN THE BARBARIAN

It has been 20 years since Conan The Barbarian made Arnold Scwarzenegger a household name, and now the collectors edition of the film is available on DVD with such features as The Conan Archives and other perks that make this a staple for any action lovers library.

The film follows a child as he becomes an Adonis of a man searching through life for the people responsible for the death of his parents, all the while becoming a skilled fighter and swordsman. During his journey, he befriends an archer and a beautiful thief who become allies in his adventures.

Conan was played by Scwarzenegger, who at the time was a nobody struggling to get into the film industry. In Conan Unchained, The Making of Conan, director John Milius discusses how he almost didn't get the role because the producers couldn't understand his English, but warmed up when they met the personable actor. In the feature, Milius and co-screenplay writer Oliver Stone discuss how Conan creator Robert Howard was delusional and insane during the days he wrote the stories. "He felt that the real Conan would come to his home and stand behind him with an axe every night and cleave him if he didn't stop writing" Milius said. "He did this every night for days until he completed the series."

The DVD also has features on how some of the special effects were created, including the infamous 30-foot mechanical python that battles Arnold in a temple, details on the creation of the haunting score and it also delves into the larger than life sets created by Oscar winner Ron Cobb.

The best addition to this film has got to be the commentary with Milius and Scwarzenegger, (one of only two Arnold has ever done). We really get a feel that these two guys seem like old college buddies coming back home after years apart, as they laugh through most of the film and discuss the injuries sustained during filming, (there is an outtake where we see Scwarzenegger's leg being attacked by a "trained" dog, etc.).

Conan is probably the best example of how the "American Dream" is still attainable, as Scwarzenegger used this film, (through his diligence and hard work), to catapult his way into stardom. In an interview, Scwarzenegger discusses how he maintained his incredible physique during the shoot "I ran 4 or 5 miles, then lifted weights for two hours, practiced kendo and sword fighting and worked on my speech everyday."

For a film that never received the critical acclaim it deserved when it was released, Conan deserves a second look as it has become a viable contribution to the action film genre. With an all-star cast including James Earl Jones, screenplay by former Oscar winners Milius and Stone, and breathtaking sets created without the aid of computers, Conan is a great addition to any film lovers DVD collection..

Conan The Barbarian-B
DVD Features-B+

Conan The Barbarian is available at Uptown Discs, 310 17th street www.uptowndiscs.com

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