MVFF47 - RSVP Guide

It’s 10pm on October 11th, 1975, and the Not Ready for Prime Time Players are definitely not ready. Gilda Radner, Chevy Chase, Garrett Morris, Dan Aykroyd, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, and John Belushi (has anyone seen Belushi?) are in alternating states of confusion, excitement, rage, disbelief, and blissfully buzzed. If SNL producer Lorne Michaels can’t pull these impossibly loose ends together within 90 minutes, his career is over before it’s begun, and NBC’s risk-averse execs will be proven right: Live sketch comedy on TV can never beat old Johnny Carson reruns. Jason Reitman (MVFF Award Recipient 2009) delivers a deliciously dizzying behind-the-scenes panoptic view of the lights (some toppling onto the stage), cameras (like producer Dick Ebersol’s beloved Polaroids), and action (loads of it) leading up to the moment Chevy Chase broke late-night television’s fourth wall and proclaimed to the world, “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!”

A former US Army mechanic with PTSD (Sonequa Martin-Green) has a most unusual “best friend”—her late colleague (Natalie Morales) from a tour in Afghanistan, still a motor-mouthed constant companion despite the inconvenience of death.

Uneasily back in civilian life after an eight-year US Army hitch, Merit (Sonequa Martin-Green) has a BFF who’s maybe a little too “forever”: Fellow mechanic Zoe (Natalie Morales), her inseparable colleague during a tour in Afghanistan, one that Zoe ultimately did not survive. There’s a comedically supernatural—or perhaps just psychological—aspect to Merit’s wisecracking companion, whom no one else can hear or see. Merit has PTSD, which she copes with poorly by running from a veterans’ support group (led by counselor Morgan Freeman), ostensibly to deal with her crusty Vietnam vet grandfather’s (Ed Harris) weakening health. But her demons won’t leave Merit alone until she confronts them. Executive produced by Kansas City Chief Travis Kelce, Kyle Hausman-Stokes’ debut feature was inspired by his own Army experiences in Iraq—and by an ongoing epidemic of US military veteran suicides. Its engagingly singular mix of wit, warmth, and tough issues won the Audience Award at SXSW this year.

Expected In Person Guest

This beautifully understated Western is the story of a son raised by two fathers, one from the European East and one from the American West. On the cusp of the 20th century, somewhere on the American frontier, Igor, an immigrant and recent widower, struggles to raise his two-year-old son Ivo on his own. When his American friend and mentor Duncan decides to move his horse-breeding business and young family to California, Igor and Ivo join the wagon train headed West. Co-directors Biliana and Marina Grozdanova command the mise-en-scene with effortless elegance, and their mostly non-professional actors offer astonishing performances rich with verisimilitude and depth. The cast includes Igor Galijasevic, a Bosnian refugee, and his real-life young son Leo, as well as professional horse wrangler Duncan Vezain and his family, also playing versions of themselves transported in time. A tender and resonant tale of friendship, faith, and resolve.

Expected In Person Guest

After her boyfriend dumps her, down-on-her-luck actress Laura Franco (Melissa Barrera, In the Heights) moves back into her family’s home and discovers that her imaginary childhood nemesis—the monster in her closet (Tommy Dewey, Casual)—is real. Abandoned by her man, mother, and best friend, Laura finds solace in the charming monster’s arms as her rage grows after her ex recasts her role in the musical they wrote together. Caroline Lindy’s delightful directorial debut spins a dark, whimsical tale of comedy, romance, and musical theater set to the beat of Broadway showtunes. Barrera dominates the screen of this beauty-and-the-beast fable as Laura taps into the monster lurking within her.

Expected In Person Guest

A high school jock mistakes a 29-year-old slacker for a fellow teen in this Slamdance Breakouts grand jury prizewinner that stars an Asian American and Pacific Islander cast.

Blithe 29-year-old Misha insists that she is content as she goes through life making unorthodox choices that keep her alienated from her loved ones. Supported by a family inheritance and responsible for the neglected house her grandmother bequeathed her, Misha barely tends to its needs, as she leads a casual life free of any serious commitments. She appears self-possessed, but when a sweet, handsome 19-year-old high school athlete mistakes her for a fellow teenager Misha’s bad decisions pile up and her self-assurance begins to crack. Shot in beautiful Hilo, Hawai’i, Zoe Eisenberg’s first solo feature is a sincere portrait of the dangers that arise when aimlessness meets ambiguity.

Expected In Person Guest

In Sarah Friedland’s poetic debut feature, Kathleen Chalfant stars an octogenarian struggling to hold on to her memories and identity in a refreshing depiction of aging that celebrates the persistence of self.

This poetic debut feature by Sarah Friedland is an intimate exploration of the beauty and pain of transformation later in life. Kathleen Chalfant plays Ruth, an octogenarian struggling to hold on to her memories and identity as she transitions into an assisted living facility. As Ruth experiences cognitive decline, she balances her conflicting desires that are at once transient and immediate. Chalfant’s arresting performance reveals Ruth’s multitudes as she reaches for her past and present life. Friedland’s graceful writing and naturalistic direction paints an honest portrait of dementia that centers the person experiencing it and honors their spirit and humanity. Familiar Touch is a refreshing depiction of aging that celebrates the persistence of self and reminds us that we are always coming of age.

Expected In Person Guest

With an extraordinary acting ensemble and an astute sense of cinema, Malcolm Washington’s memorable directing debut continues his father Denzel Washington’s (Fences) project of adapting playwright August Wilson’s work to the screen. Set in 1936 during the depths of the Great Depression, Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize–winning story of siblings battling over legacy is riveting. Boy Willie (the director’s brother John David Washington, BlacKkKlansman), a sharecropper, wants to sell an heirloom piano in order to buy land that his family once worked as slaves. But his sister Berniece (Danielle Deadwyler, Till, MVFF45) insists on keeping the instrument, which is embellished with images carved by their enslaved great-grandfather of his wife and son. The inimitable Samuel L. Jackson costars as their Uncle Doaker, who attempts to mediate the dispute but is disturbed by ghosts of the past in this beautifully rendered, searing drama exploring identity, birthright, and generational trauma.

Expected In Person Guest