Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 23, 1994 TAG: 9410240070
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: VIRGINIA EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
No major stars or filmmakers will be on hand as guests, and the new films are not potential blockbusters. Instead, the focus will be on some excellent older films and the writers behind them.
This year's theme, "Love and Other Obsessions," is so broad that festival organizers had a limitless range of films. For regional premieres they have David Mamet's screen version of "Oleanna," his play about sexual harassment; Alan Rudolph's "Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle," starring Jennifer Jason Leigh; and an animated film, "The Swan Princess."
As he has done in previous years, critic Roger Ebert will lead a shot-by-shot workshop of a great American film. This time, the subject is Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo," and the event is a sellout already. Samuel Taylor, the writer of "Vertigo," also will appear, on the screenwriting panel. He and Frank Pierson, Jules Feiffer and John Guare will discuss "Evolution of Love: Screenwriting Romance Through the Decades." Some of their best work will be shown at the festival: Pierson's "Dog Day Afternoon," Feiffer's "Carnal Knowledge," Guare's "Atlantic City" and Taylor's "Sabrina."
For those whose tastes in love and other obsessions is a bit more outrageous, there also will be screenings of Ebert's "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" and "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."
As always, the festival will have excellent older films that deserve another viewing on the big screen before they're consigned to video. Among the cream this year are "McCabe and Mrs. Miller," "She's Gotta Have It," "The Lady from Shanghai," "Rebecca," "Wuthering Heights" and "The Thin Man."
So, even if this festival won't be a star-studded gala, it will still have a lot to offer serious filmgoers.
by CNB