Wednesday, June 15, 2016

The Great Hobnobben Festival Preview Pt. 3 by Ian Maxton

This is Pt. 3 (of 3) of my Hobnobben Festival Preview. You can view Pts. 1 and 2 below.



Hobnobben begins Thursday, and since I will be writing up the festival at the Cinema Center and Hobnobben blogs, I thought it might be a good idea to offer a preview of the festival.

The trouble with film festivals (and especially ones as stacked as Hobnobben) is that the average filmgoer will likely not have seen, or even heard of, many of the films being shown. And there are a ton of good films at Hobnobben. So where do you even begin?

Right here.

This is by no means the final word on what the festival has to offer. Like most of you, I have yet to see any of these films. So my excitement is based on three things: my previous experience with the filmmaker/cast, the distributor of the film, and word of mouth about the film. So feel free to follow or ignore my advice and, by all means, purchase a festival pass and see everything you can. But if you find yourself lost and wondering what the must-sees are, here is a completely subjective list of what I am most excited for this year.

I am going to do something a little different with this final festival preview. It’s no secret that Hobnobben is packed with great films, but I wanted to use this space to emphasize that Hobnobben is not just for adults, you should take your kids. So here are some great films to head out and see with the whole family this weekend.

FRIDAY



April and the Extraordinary World is a new film from distribution heavyweights GKids. If you’ve seen a Studio Ghibli film in the theater (like The Tale of Princess KaguyaFrom Up on Poppy Hill, or Only Yesterday) these are the people you should thank. They have also brought us films like The Secret of Kells, A Cat in Paris, and Earnest and Celestine.

April and the Extraordinary World is based on the works of legendary French artist Jacques Tardi and takes place in an alternate version of the year 1941.

The plot (per IMDB): “1941. France asleep in the nineteenth century, governed by steam and Napoleon V, where scientists vanish mysteriously. April, a teenage girl, goes in search of her missing scientist parents.”

And the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RC-9eya8Yso

Like all GKids films, this one looks to be an exciting visual feast fit for everyone.

April and the Extraordinary World screens at 6:30 at the University of St. Francis Performing Arts Center on Friday.

SATURDAY



GKids is also bringing their Oscar Nominated film Boy & the World to Hobnobben. Not only does this film have the backing of GKids perfect pedigree, but it was also nominated for Best Animated Feature at the most recent Oscar ceremony.

The plot (per IMDB): “A little boy goes on an adventurous quest in search of his father.”

And while that is vague on any details, the trailer will give you a good idea of what you are in for: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqdrwu0NvY8

The film looks unlike any other animated film I have seen and will certainly be a highlight of the entire festival.

Boy & the World screens at 2:30 at the University of St. Francis Performing Arts Center on Saturday.


SUNDAY



Do not fear. If you have been absolutely exhausted by animated films lately, there is a perfect remedy. Dark Horse is, appropriately, a film that families might overlook at the festival, but nonetheless it fits in perfectly with these others despite being both live-action and a documentary.

But it is anything but boring. Here’s the plot (per IMDB): “An inspirational true story of a group of friends from a working men's club who decide to take on the elite 'sport of kings' and breed themselves a racehorse.”

Frankly, this doesn’t sell the movie well at all. The film follows a group of people (spearheaded by a woman who works two jobs, one at a pub, and another bagging groceries) from working class Wales who band together and purchase a racehorse, pay for its training, and infiltrate the highest levels of UK horse racing. If you don’t know how the story ends, I won’t spoil it here. One of the great things about sports documentaries is watching as the drama builds and rooting for the subjects to beat the odds.

Here is the film’s wonderful trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DulrxbnzF2U

Dark Horse screens at 7 at Cinema Center on Sunday.



That wraps up my Hobnobben preview. Come out and enjoy the festival this weekend!

And for more info on the festival, including a complete list of films and show times, head to hobnobben.org.

No comments:

Post a Comment