The Tribeca Film Festival: A Preview

It just keeps getting bigger. From April 19 to May 1 the Tribeca Film Festival brings an almost unfathomable array of films from 35 countries-most having their world or New York premieres. Many of the movies will come with their makers, who will answer questions after the screening. Downtown residents get $3 off ticket prices ($5 off talks) with proof of zip code, at the festival box office only, 443 Greenwich St.

As in previous years, there are panel discussions, free open-air "drive-in" screenings and, with a cast of tens of thousands, the Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair on Greenwich Street, between Beach and Duane.

What follows is just a taste of the offerings. For a full lineup go to www.tribecafilmfestival.org or call 866-941-FEST.


Drama

Among the highlights from the festival's heavier narrative offerings is AURORA BOREALIS, the story of a young drifter in life (Joshua Jackson) who seeks redemption-and clues to his father's death-in a reunion with his grandparents (Donald Southerland and Louise Fletcher). The Great New Wonderful, with Olympia Ducks and Edie Falcon, interweaves five New York stories, one year after the World Trade Center attack. War and its aftermath are the backdrops for several international offerings. GILANEH from Iran speaks to the agony wrought upon a family by the country's eight-year war with Iraq and, years later, the darkness cast by its shadow. In NIGHT OF TRUTH, set in an imaginary African country, two tribes appear to be on the verge of losing a fragile peace after 10 years of genocidal war. And post-war Serbia is the setting for MIDWINTER'S NIGHT DREAM, where a kinship develops between a former Serb fighter and a Bosnian refugee and her autistic daughter.


Documentary

Conflict, from the frontlines in Iraq to the bare-knuckle politics of Newark, N.J., is in sharp focus in festival documentaries this year. From the Iraq war come three films. BEARING WITNESS is a graphic and honest video diary from five female war reporters. In OFF TO WAR, the filmmakers follow soldiers from the Arkansas National Guard as they are transformed from weekend warriors to active duty soldiers in Iraq. And PILGRIMAGE presents a portrait of some of the hundreds of thousands of Iranians who, after the fall of Saddam, poured over Iraq's unguarded border in hopes of visiting the country's holy shrines.

SLIPPIN'-TEN YEARS WITH THE BLOODS follows, over an entire decade, the lives of five young members of one of the world's mostly deadly gangs. SAME SEX AMERICA is a compelling look at the politics of the personal as it takes a look at seven gay couples on their journey to the alter following the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling in favor of same-sex marriages. Closer to home, STREET FIGHT, follows Newark, N.J., Mayor Sharpe James, up for reelection for a fifth term, in a battle against his challenger, a young up-and-comer from the projects. The film is a lesson in street-level politics that cannot be learned in civics class. And THROUGH THE FIRE is a lesson in the impact of professional sports on the talented athletes in America's impoverished neighborhoods. The film tells the story of an 18-year-old from Coney Island who chooses the NBA over college and the pressures that come with that decision.

On a hopeful note, LITTLE PEACE OF MINE documents one 12-year-olds' journey to end the violence between Israelis and Palestinians. And lighter still is TOUCH THE SOUND, which tells the tale of Evenly Genie-one of the world's foremost percussionists. She is also deaf. A SIDEWALK ASTRONOMER is the story of John Dobson, who has been called the "Pied Piper of Astronomy." The documentary follows the former monk as he takes his love of stargazing to the street. And an entertaining look at gentrification is offered in BOWERY DISH, which shows the transformation of this city's once infamous Skid Row into a neighborhood of million-dollar lofts, trendy bars and restaurants.


Golden Oldies

From the rarely screened to the long unseen, this category is for both the serious film buff and the casual viewer in a nostalgic mood. Among the earliest restored films to find a home at the festival is FRAULEIN ELSE or MISS ELSE. Considered a masterpiece of the silent era, the German film tells the tale of a young woman crushed by her father's bankruptcy. The film will screen just as it did at its debut in 1928, with live piano pounding out the score. Among the more recent films rarely seen on the big screen is THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY? The 1969 Sydney Pollack film is the story of the desperation of the competitors in a marathon dance contest set during the Great Depression. It garnered nine Academy Awards.

Other highlights include MY SISTER EILEEN. The 1955 film, shot in Technicolor, is a remake of a 1942 version, re-imagined as a bubbly and fun musical-Jack Lemmon even sings a few numbers.


Lighter Fare

It is a familiar set up: two buddies set out on a road trip and comedy ensues. But in two of the films among the lighter festival offerings this year, the genre is twisted nearly beyond recognition. From Belgium, there is AALTRA, in which the "buddies" who travel across the country together actually hate each other. In a further twist, their mode of transport are wheelchairs. Then there is the wild ride of TRANSAMERICA. The story pairs young Toby, a gay hustler in need of a lift from New York to Los Angeles to pursue a career in porn, with a stranger- a "woman" driver who is really a man on his way to L.A. for a sex-change operation. Oh, and the man is also Toby's long-lost father. Perhaps less of a stretch is the storyline of THE CONVENTIONEERS, a tale of star-crossed lovers set against the backdrop of the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City. He is a Republican delegate, she a protesting Democrat.

Another romantic comedy, THE BAXTER, stars the film's writer-director Michael Showalter as Elliot Sherman-the kind of guy in classic movies who never gets the girl in the end. This story asks the question: what happens when 'the Baxter" actually does get the girl?


Darker Fare

From jump out-of-your seat screamers to more subtle sinister offerings, Midnight is where you will find the films designed to frighten.

From Thailand, there is SHUTTER in which a photographer's negatives are showing ghost-like smears and his friends are turning up dead. REEKER is a tale of tripped-out teens being felled one by one by the smell of death that literally hangs in the air.

It is the category's lone documentary, though, that may bring the most squirm-in-your-seat moments: MODIFY takes an up-close look at the lives of people driven to alter their bodies with methods that go well beyond the surface arts of tattooing and piercing.


For the Family

Every day is family movie day at the film festival. And one price ($40, $20 for kids 14 and under) gets you unlimited access to all the screenings. For public school students, on break for a week during the festival, the timing couldn't be better. The international offerings-from Japan, England, Finland, and Germany as well as the U.S.- add flare to the fare. Making its U.S. debut, the British FIVE CHILDREN AND IT tells the story of five brothers and sisters who learn what they really should be wishing for when given the chance by an ancient and comical sand fairy. In PELICANMAN, a bird lands in Finland and envies the lives of humans so much that he learns to be one-with the help of a 10-year-old boy. From Japan (with English subtitles) comes QUILL, a touching tear-jerker about a golden retriever's journey from puppy to guide dog, and his wish to win over a reluctant master. LUCKY 13 features a 12-year-old boy named Ben who wants out of his upcoming bar-mitzvahs bash and recruits his eccentric uncle to help sabotage it. MAX RULES features a trio of middle schoolers who use their computer hacking skills to foil international spies. Even such far-fetched fantasy can't match the hidden worlds revealed in DEEP BLUE, a documentary that brings to the screen the most exotic creatures from the darkest depths.



Talk

The festival's panel discussions offer movie-goers a chance to hear from the industry's leading insiders. This year producer/director/actor (and Academy Award winner) Sydney Pollack talks about his nearly half-century-long career, from appearances on TV's "Playhouse 90" and "The Twilight Zone" to directing this year's film festival feature, "The Interpreter."

The critical role of music in motion pictures is the subject of a one-on-one discussion between composer and performer Jon Brion ("Magnolia," "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") and Vanity Fair contributing editor Lisa Robinson. And 12-time Academy Award-winning producer and director Irwin Winkler ("Rocky," "Raging Bull," "Goodfellas," "De-Lovely," to name just a few) talks with U.S. News & World Report editor-in-chief Mort Zuckerman about crafting the political thriller. The festival's new breakfast series features executives, marketers and agents talking about the business side of moviemaking.


"Drive-In"

The "Tribeca Drive-In" moves south this year, from Pier 25 to the North Cove in Battery Park City where audiences can take in the wild comedy of Monty Python's Flying Circus on April 22, the disco-era classic SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER on April 23, and the fun and inspiring MAD HOT BALLROOM on Sunday, April 24.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the screenings begin at 8 p.m. Admission is free, but tickets-available at J & R Music World, 23 Park Row, and the Apple Store in SoHo, 103 Prince St.-are required.

"Mad Hot Ballroom" follows three teams of New York City 5th graders from three widely different neighborhoods (including Tribeca) as they rhumba, swing and tango their way into the emotionally charged arena of competition. Go to story.


Family Fair

It's Tribeca's biggest one-day event.

This year's Family Festival Street Fair will be held on Saturday, April 30 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Greenwich Street between Beach and Duane Streets. It's all free.

Throughout the day, the street will be filled with puppeteers, stilt walkers, jugglers and storytellers. Local merchants, restaurants, schools, and other groups will have booths. And here will be arts and crafts, face painting, sand sculpting, a life-sized chessboard and booths in which kids can dress up as a vintage movie director and create a personalized movie poster.

Local youth dance groups and singers, as well as more than 50 professional artists will perform on several stages. Clifford The Big Red Dog, Maya & Miguel, and stars of Kids Go! Will make appearances, and celebrities including "Bindle" author Gregory Freshet, will give readings.