It was only a week or two after viewing The Nine Lives Of Marion Barry at AFI Silverdocs earlier this summer, that the story told in the film took another turn. When Barry was arrested for stalking his mistress last month, I took in the event with new-found insight on the life of Marion Barry.

For youngsters like me, the former mayor of Washington DC is mostly known for scandal and drug use- the subject of many Weekend Update jokes. However to others Marion Barry was a civil rights leader, and the man who transformed some of the worst neighborhoods of Washington DC.

Fresh off it’s Silverdocs run, The Nine Lives of Marion Barry premiered on HBO this past Monday. The film directed by Dana Flor and produced by Toby Oppenheimer, intertwines Barry’s start in DC with his 2004 campaign for city council. The 78 minute profile depics Barry as a social leader who constantly battles scandal after scandal, but like the film’s title, manages to bounce back every time.

While film shows an inside look of Barry’s life, from riding down the streets of his Ward to his humble apartment in what looks like the middle of the projects, there’s nothing special with the production values- what really makes the film is the subject and story that is almost too spectacular to believe.

Before you write Barry’s latest scandal off, I encourage you to check out the film and learn more about where Barry truly came from- I assure you it’ll change what you originally thought of the current Ward 8 councilman and DC icon. The film is scheduled to re-air at various times throughout the month, check HBO for more details.

I know it’s hot outside, but don’t let that stop you.  Tonight’s entry in the Capitol Riverfront 80s Film Series is that classic story of star-crossed love and merengue, Dirty Dancing.

As a person who hails from the Catskill region, where the film is set (but was not actually filmed), I always get a kick out of this one.  Not to mention that it co-stars the inestimable Jerry Orbach, who was a pleasure to watch in anything he did, from Guys & Dolls to Law & Order.

The film will be shown at Tingey Plaza, near Nationals Park, starting when the sun goes down (about 8:45 PM).

Peter Capaldi and James Gandolfini in "In The Loop" (Courtesy IFC Films)

Tomorrow night IFC Films will premiere In The Loop over at E-Street Cinema. The political farce originally premiered at Sundance in 2008 and I got a chance to check it out last Wednesday.

Much like many political blunders in DC, the film starts with a, “miscommunication” on England’s position on a “war in the middle east.” Secretary of State for International Development Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) makes a grave miscue during a radio interview that quickly spills out into the international political scene. The follies that follow paint the power struggles, political gaming, and diplomacy that could easily be ripped from the headlines. While the premise makes for a thrilling drama, the film takes on a much lighter tone, using the premise as a chance to poke some fun at how government works, not from the White House, but from the cubicles and offices where the rank and file get their work done.

Anybody that has ever worked for a government agency or knows someone that works in a government agency will easily relate and find In The Loop a witty and smart take on politics as usual.

The film is a spin-off of the BBC Comedy series, The Thick of It, a satire of the inner workings of a fictitious British government department, and features Peter Capaldi reprising his TV role of Malcolm Tucker. Tucker is an aggressive  Communications director who plays the role of enforcer to those that stray from the party line. His lack of tact and dirty language easily compares him to a certain Chief of Staff. That being said you probably don’t want to bring the children to this film.

In The Loop is the perfect film for Washingtonians (insider or not) to enjoy, it delivers laughs and makes you wonder if they wrote the script based on the DC Intern two cubes down from you.

In The Loop
E-Street Cinema
555 11th Street NW
Washington, DC 20004
(202) 452-7672

Courtesy Flickr user Voteprime

Make sure you catch the tips offered by The Washingtonian, useful stuff especially for the newbie who’ve never camped out on The Mall before. The one tip I think they left out is the insider info on these weird dances I hear they do before the screening. I wouldn’t know- I still haven’t gone (I know I’m a loser.)

I’m enjoying  baseball game tonight so I hope the rest y’all have fun!

If Obama bails anybody else out this year, I hope it’s the Arlington Drafthouse.

The Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse has been a frequent destination of mine for cheap flicks and drinks. In fact I recently went there earlier this month to take in a screening of Adventureland. The place is a little out of the way in Arlington, located on Columbia Pike, a good distance from the Metro, but it always attracts crowds looking to enjoy the second-run screenings, stand-up comedy, or Redskins games during football season.

That being said, it was sad to learn that the Arlington Draft House has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to the Washington Business Journal, “Arlington Cinema Inc. listed assets of less than $100,000 and debt between $1 million and $10 million.” The report cites that the biggest chunk of that change is $5 million owed to landlord of the Montgomery Drafthouse, the failed expansion that was closed seven months ago.

While the lawyers representing the Drafthouse say that operations will continue under reorganization, I hope that the Arlington Drafthouse remains open for years to come. Like drive-in movies, the Drafthouse represents a unique movie-going experience that provides a needed alternative to the commercial monsters of AMC and Regal.

With everyone so down in the dumps over the economy we need entertainment more than ever, and that’s the value The Arlington Drafthouse provides to Arlington and the community.

I was excited to break the news that Screen On The Green will be back this year, and now we have confirmation on the four film schedule that starts on Monday July 20th and will run on Mondays til August 10th:

• July 20th: Close Encounters of the Third Kind
• July 27th: Dog Day Afternoon
• August 3rd: On The Waterfront
• August 10th: Rebel Without A Cause

Looks like the film slate will mirror the Bryant Park’s Screen on the Green series also sponsored by HBO as rumored earlier in the Post. For more information check out the festival’s official website.

I also had the chance to talk with Facing Ali producer Derik Murray, you can listen to the poorly recorded phone interview here (hey I’m a blogger- not an audio engineer!)

In the interview Murray talks about his past work doing Hockey films, “you’re based in Vancouver, you’re based in Canada and you don’t do Hockey- you don’t get a lot of work.”

He also talks about his relationship with director Peter McCormack and how the two came together to make Facing Ali a reality. Besides McCormack, Murray put together a dedicated crew, “the people I select to work on the project were passionate about and they never left my side… they are passionate about the project to this day,” and tackled the challenge of contacting families and acquiring the archival footage that em compasses the majority of the film. Murray says after SilverDocs, the film will be going to LA and NY and with luck it could reach a wider audience release.

Facing Ali premiered to a sold out crowd at SilverDocs last week, for those that haven’t had a chance to see it can catch it tonight as the festival wraps up.

Facing Ali
Showing at AFI SilverDocs
Monday June 22nd, 8:00 PM
AFI Silver Theater
http://silverdocs.com/

This past week I met Scottish filmmakers Adam Stafford and Peter Gerard. They were excited to have their short The Shutdown, screen earlier at SilverDocs. The piece is described as, “a mesmerizing portrait of the influence of an oil refinery in a Scottish town.” What really interested me was the fact two quarter-lifers were already running a production company making films, so we exchanged some e-mails and here’s a little Q&A I had with the duo:

Patrick: Reading Adam’s Q&A on SilverDocs it looks like you’ve always wanted to be involved and work in film- what led you two to choose this kind of career?
Adam Stafford: To me it’s not a career; there are career film makers, but for me it’s something more than that, it’s a case of finding the truth and the narrative and bringing the two together. It’s a case of pushing the framing of the images to a point of unacceptability. Werner Herzog said you should work as a bouncer at a sex club or a car park attendant to raise money to make films. I work as an operator for the emergency services to raise funds to make mine, and that won’t stop until someone comes along and offers us money for the next project. Until then, I will work and build up my projects from the dirt.

Patrick: You talked to me last night about the unique story and approach of The Shutdown, but what do you hope audiences walk away with after they see your short?

Adam Stafford: With a sense of something that they’ve never seen before: a documentary featuring no people, but with a stunning narrative coupled with a soundtrack of ambient drone and pink smoke.

Patrick: I also commented talked how I was impressed that two young guys like yourself decided to start a production company and push stuff out there- what led you two to decide to form this group of artists? This kind of work isn’t guaranteed to pay at all and I’m sure it’s not the 9-5 job that most people do after college…

Peter Gerard: I started Accidental Media while I was still in high school in Missouri. I moved to Scotland in 2000 and eventually turned Accidental Media into a full-on production company with a focus on documentaries, short films, and innovative shorts. “The Shutdown” is our first collaboration with Adam and we see a lot of potential in developing his talents along with his collaborator, the writer Alan Bissett.

Patrick: What kind of advice would you give a person looking to get into film making but doesn’t exactly know where to start?

Peter Gerard: Always start with a good story, and make sure it’s well told. It’s also essential to create a film with cinematic beauty. There are too many films these days that ignore visual aesthetics, and really that’s what film making is all about.

Adam Stafford: I agree with the above. But I would also recommend just watching films. Don’t sit around reading books about how you should construct a narrative, or how this person did that, or what this person recommends you to do to better yourself as a filmmaker. Watch films by the masters! Go out and experiment and then decide for yourself! Listen to every kind of weird music! Look at art and photography! Read Richard Brautigan, William Burroughs and Flannery O’Conner. You can be as surreal and as experimental as you like, as long as there is an honesty in your vision.

Courtesy Washington City Paper

Is DC jumping the Hollywood shark?

All of a sudden we’ve become the new Toronto or Vancouver in terms non-LA filming locations. Forget about the slew of reality shows including Real World DC which should of started filming at their house on the corner of S & 20th. Forget about SilverDocs, the film festival that’s eaten most of my time this week. We got a new Hollywood distraction in town this weekend!

If you have been living under a rock (or maybe the Bethesda Metro Station), filming on Untitled James L. Brooks Project (however it’s speculated that the title is How Do You Know?) has been under way in Adams Morgan for the past few days and will wrap up at the end of next week.

The cast is packed with names like Jack Nicholson, Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd. Which has caused everyone in DC to momentarily stop planning ways on how to get into the MTV hot tub and into Paul Rudd’s pants. My friends have already had their own personal encounters with the cast: The Pumpernickel made eye contact with Rudd and my friend Sarah got to go on a bike ride with Owen Wilson.

According to DCist, “other scenes will be filmed inside the lobby and outside of the office building at 875 15th Street NW, aka The Bowen Building, for big chunks of the weekend — a security notice sent to workers in the McPherson Square-adjacent building says they’ll be there pretty much all day Saturday and Sunday, and then again overnight at the end of next week.” The film is expected out this December.

Here are some clips of the filming, note Paul Rudd was filming a scene for the movie and probably wasn’t really hit by a car- but when you are trying to walk DC it’s totally possible.

It almost sounds like the plot of a bad action film.

Take a bunch of prisoners and throw them in a rodeo where they face off against angry bulls, ready to tear them apart. Sounds like a modern day gladiator bout but it’s reality at the Oklahoma Prison Rodeo which is billed as the world’s only “behind the walls” rodeo.

Sweethearts of the Prision Rodeo profiles the female inmates of the Dr. Eddie Warrior Correctional Center, as they train and compete while struggling to live a life behind bars. Director Bradley Beesley has spent his career documenting, “oddball Americana, strange sub-cultures, and homegrown rock stars.” He has no doubt found a very interesting story and subject with the ladies of the Oklahoma Prison Rodeo.

Even though Beesley is from Oklahoma, he was inspired while on the West Coast reading The Washington Post, “I was living in San Francisco and I read an article in the Washington Post, which announced that for the first time in Oklahoma State Prison Rodeo history female inmates would be competing against the male inmates.  Because I had already thought this would make a good short film and now that females were added, I was compelled.”

The film, selected for this year’s SXSW festival, screens this afternoon and on Sunday at SilverDocs, and the film has already been sold to HBO.

Sweethearts Of The Prision Rodeo
Showing at AFI SilverDocs
Friday June 19th, 4:30 PM
AFI Silver Theater
Sunday Jun 21st, 2:30 PM
Round House Theatre
http://silverdocs.com/