As a Milwaukee movie lover, there’s
a certain ebb and flow one starts to expect during these late
winter and spring months.
There’s the marathon of Oscar contenders, opening on area
screens starting Jan. 1. Then there’s the reopening of the Union
Theatre at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in late January.
In February, it’s all about the Oscars. And then the countdown
begins to the Wisconsin Film Festival, which has become a staple
of the local move calendar, returning to a half-dozen venues
throughout Madison during the first weekend in April.
Something about this year’s more-than-predictable Oscar race
- honestly, was anyone surprised that "Slumdog
Millionaire" walked away victorious two weeks ago - has left
me looking forward to the Wisconsin Film Festival even more than
usual. I started hunting for information a couple of weeks ago,
and it turns out that the real countdown begins today. Early this
morning, the official slate of festival titles was to be unveiled
at wifilmfest.org, and starting Saturday morning tickets will go
on sale via the Web site and at ticket booths across Madison.
Some news has already been announced in regards to special 2009
picks. The noir thriller "Winter of Frozen Dreams" will
screen as part of the event, a movie that’s based around one of
Madison’s most notorious murder cases. In fact, the movie is
adapted from the book of the same name written by Madison author
Karl Harter. Also scheduled to screen as part of this year’s
Wisconsin Film Festival is a revival of "Stroszek,"
Werner Herzog’s 1977 film about an alcoholic in Germany who
teams up with his elderly friend and a prostitute to flee Berlin
for a better life in Wisconsin.
Herzog, who was nominated this year for an Oscar with his
Antarctica documentary "Encounters at the End of the
World," is one of the more eccentric filmmakers at work
today, and "Stroszek," employing both the scenery, and
the residents, of Plainview, is one of his most curious
concoctions. Its revival at this year’s festival will surely be
a treat.
But I know from touring some of the world’s festivals last
year what a wide swath of titles have never made their way to
Wisconsin. Sometimes they pop up at the Oriental or the Downer,
and occasionally they cruise through the Union Theatre, but the
Wisconsin Film Festival serves an essential purpose in our local
film community, giving us access to stories and filmmakers who we
otherwise might only get to through DVD.
The Wisconsin Film Festival is only a few weeks away, and for
anyone who loves art house, local, foreign or experimental films,
don’t miss your chance to start ordering tickets this weekend.
E-mail: SnyderReviews@hotmail.com
At a glance
What: 11th annual Wisconsin Film Festival
When: April 2 to April 5
Where: Madison
Tickets: go on sale Saturday
More info: www.wifilmfest.org
Who: official selections announced this morning