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After three days of long, frantic days followed by sleepless nights, Monday morning started with a completely different feel. I’d actually managed to get a good night’s sleep—all the way until my alarm went off. I woke up feeling rested and ready to face the day. Isn’t that how it always goes? You finally get totally settled in—and completely used to this strange new schedule—and it’s already time to go home.
I spent much of the morning catching up on emails and getting a little bit of work done (so I wouldn’t be so far behind when I got back to the office) before I had to head out to my first movie. I said good-bye to Michael and returned to my room to pack up and get ready to check myself out.
It was a cold and rainy morning—perfect for a day inside the theater, but not so perfect for the two-hour drive home that night. Parking was more of a challenge, too—probably because it was a work day—but at least I managed to get a nice covered spot. Then I bundled up and rushed back into the Tower, eager to check out my last three films.
During the week—especially during the day—CIFF is a bit quieter. It’s not as hard to get a seat. There aren’t as many crowds to fight through. It’s a bit more relaxed. But you might be surprised by how many people are still there. The theaters still get pretty full—and there were even two Monday movies on standby (including Out of Place). In the morning, groups of high school students show up for the Film Slam. And there’s still a buzz in the hallways (instead of a roar). After the insanity of the weekend, though, it’s nice to have a day to wind down. In fact, I had the perfect schedule this year: things gradually picked up on Friday, I had two crazy weekend days, and then I wound down on Monday. Just three more movies before getting into the car and heading back to reality.
Movie #1 for the day was a Mexican film, Black Box. In the beginning, it’s fast-paced and frantic, with an interesting concept—but the bulk of the movie was surprisingly dull—a pretty rough way to start my last day.
As I was hurrying out of the theater, I once again ran into Tom, one of my favorite volunteers. We compared notes on the movies we’d seen (he loved Queen to Play—and we agreed on The Ape). I’d been planning to get lunch between movies, but I suddenly realized that I was short on time. So, instead of getting a big lunch, I decided to run up to the oh-so-convenient hospitality suite for a snack to tide me over until my next break. They actually had little sandwiches there—which, along with the shot of caffeine in my Diet Pepsi, was just what I needed to wake me up and get me moving again.
Monday was a chatty kind of day. On my way in, I stopped to chat with Jennifer at the Challenge Match booth as I bought my set of CIFF pins. On the way out, I chatted with Tom. On my way back in, I stopped to say hello to another CIFF staffer, Noelle (who handled our CIFF preview party in Columbus). It was just a relaxing day at the festival.
I slipped into the next theater with just a few minutes to spare—just enough time to eavesdrop on the people around me, who were comparing notes on their favorite movies (it seems that Dear Lemon Lima is going over especially well). Movie #2 was my one big must-see of the festival—one that I’d been looking forward to seeing since the partner preview in January. Directed by Boston Phoenix critic Gerald Peary, For the Love of Movies is all about film critics. The film gives a short history of American film criticism before opening up an interesting dialogue about the current state of film criticism (as well as its future). Of course, I’m probably a bit biased, since I live the topic every day, but I found the engrossing and thought-provoking—and it brought up a number of topics that I could, admittedly, discuss all day. For those of you in Columbus, I’m currently talking to the Drexel about setting up a couple of showings—but if you’d like to check it out on DVD, you can find it online at ForTheLoveOfMovies.net.
After the screening, I had the chance to talk to Mr. Peary for a few minutes about the film, our views of our chosen field, and the joys of CIFF. It’s always an honor to meet a respected colleague—and I look forward to continuing our discussion when he’s in town to promote his film.
Once again, I found myself short on time before my next (and final) movie—but I was having too much fun to eat anyway. So I rushed to the other side of the theater to see Movie #3 for the day, Applause—a dark Danish drama about an actress struggling with her alcoholism and a custody battle for her two sons. It was admittedly a pretty heavy way to close out my CIFF experience, but the lead actress, Paprika Steen (whom I first saw in the quirky sci-fi thriller/comedy The Substitute at CIFF08) is absolutely riveting.
After the film ended, I had a few more minutes to talk to my new friend Andy (who had to run off to start his volunteer shift at 6) before taking one last look at the festival craziness (which was just starting to pick up again for the evening) before walking down that bustling hallway for the last time (I really wish I’d taken a picture—but if I’d stopped to take a picture of the crowded hallway mid-weekend, it probably would have eaten me alive). Then I quietly, unceremoniously walked back through the parking lot, climbed into the car, and told my GPS to head for home.
This year’s CIFF was another unforgettable experience. I made some new friends, reconnected with some old ones, and introduced a first-timer to the CIFF experience—all while taking in some great new films from around the world. If you haven’t been to CIFF, there’s still time—it’s running through Sunday, the 28th. But if you can’t make it this week, start planning ahead for next year. You’ll thank me for it.
