MIFF FILMS FOR SMALLER FESTIVAL GOERS
By Joel Johnson
New in
the 2006 edition of the Maine International Film Festival (MIFF) are films
that have been selected specifically for their appeal to children. Since
film festivals—including MIFF—tend to show films that are both more
challenging than typical commercial fare and to frequently show them before
they have been rated for a commercial release, there often are very few
films suitable for children and those that are may not be labeled as such.
It would be the audience buzz that would heighten a film’s family audience
appeal. This is what happened with Kirikou and the
Sorceress a few years ago at MIFF. A fair-sized audience showed up for
the initial screening of Kirikou and the Sorceress, but
its remaining shows were sellouts, and extra unscheduled screenings were
needed to try to accommodate the demand. This time the MIFF organizers have
sought and grouped films that are child-oriented in a section they have
identified as Fireflies.
What
better film to include in the Fireflies section than a sequel to
Sorceress called Kirikou and the Wild
Beasts? Four African folk tales have been adapted for Michel
Ocelot and
Bénédicte Galup’s gorgeous and
charming animated film. The young protagonist Kirikou will be confronting
challenges both supernatural and environmental.
Sorceress
was clearly an audience favorite even though it, like
Kirikou and the Wild Beasts,
was in French with English subtitles. Parents should note that the dialogue
is quite simple and the reading level needed for the subtitles is probably
about first grade. School-aged children should enjoy the film without any
difficulty at all, but prereaders may have difficulty following the story.
Five short films (The
Ballad of the Purple Clam, The Man Who Walked Between the Towers,
Catfish Blues, Mr. Mergler’s Gift, and Through My Thick
Glasses) have been
grouped together in one screening called Children’s Shorts. The Purple
Clam is a Maine
film (see MIFF Films with Maine Connections) with a revenge theme
that suggests Moby-Dick being set on the mudflats. The Man Who
Walked Between the Towers is a terrific animated version of a
true adventure story that may need the advisory: Don’t try this at home.
Catfish Blues is the animated story of a twelve-year-old boy heading off
to Memphis and Chicago to become a big-time jazz musician, encountering
racism and prejudice along the way. Mr. Mergler’s Gift is about a
young Chinese girl who becomes the last and most extraordinary piano student
of Mr. Mergler. The final film is Through My Thick Glasses. This
Norwegian-Canadian animated film has a grandfather telling his granddaughter
about his experiences during World War II just to get her to put on a hat
before going out in the middle of winter.
Summer
is a most wondrous season—not just in Maine (where the season is only a few
short weeks long), but everywhere—and it doesn’t get anymore special than
when you can link the word “vacation” to it. For adults that may be a week
or two, but for children the entire summer is a vacation. What could be more
perfect? Come Away Home will show
how it can all go wrong on a summer vacation and then how it can turn out
all right. Jordan-Claire Green is a young girl whose own vacation plans get
diverted to spend the summer with a grandfather that she barely knows.
Veteran character actor Paul Dooley—whose career began on TV’s Sergeant
Bilko Show and extends to all the way to Desperate Housewives and
Cars—gets a rare opportunity to be the lead. I think there are some
important lessons here that cannot be learned too well, no matter what age
we are.
The
heroic and lovable collie Lassie returns to the big screen in a remake of
Lassie Come Home (1943). Baby boomers will, no doubt, recall the TV show
that ran for twenty years, but the original Lassie Come Home film was
British—not American—and featured child stars Roddy McDowell and Elizabeth
Taylor. Their role successors, Jonathan Mason and Hester Odgers, may be
unknown newcomers, but an A-list cast including Peter O’Toole, Samantha
Morton, Edward Fox, John Lynch, and Kelly Macdonald has been assembled for
the film. Of course, what chance do mere human stars have against the canine
superstar? After all, the film is called Lassie.
The
final family film is a special outdoor screening of
The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill. This was the
2004 MIFF Audience Favorite and went on to be an extraordinarily successful
film for Waterville-based Shadow Distribution. Since it does not have a
child protagonist and is not otherwise directly aimed at children, it is not
intrinsically a child-oriented film. It tells a unique love story about a
man who loves parrots and the parrots who love him back. This may not be the
easiest thing for adults or children to accept, but Mark Bittner is a most
compelling witness for a personality and spirit residing in all living
things. The film is thoughtful, has a lot of music and laughter, and then
has just a touch of sadness. It is a great movie that will forever change
how one thinks about the fellow creatures that share our world.
If you
have children, here are some films that will warm their hearts, tickle their
fancy, fire their imaginations, and make them think. The film may only be an
hour and a half long, but the impact may last a lifetime. ENJOY!!
|
