Posted Thursday, May 17, 6:07 p.m.
NEW YORK
Though there is free popcorn on the corner of West and Chambers, at $18 dollars a movie and $2 for the subway, TRIBECA Film Festival can put a dent in your wallet. But for a city like New York - it's a darn good deal. Unlike other festivals, TRIBECA is unconfined to a particular area. Unfortunately, the venues are often not within walking distance from each other, which rules out any sense of communal enjoyment. Rather than a festival atmosphere based on love of the motion picture, TRIBECA is a celebration of New York's underground cinephelia. Here's a glance at the diversity of films it offers in just one day:
"Unearthed" is a classically cheesy Sci-Fi/horror movie that is only enjoyable after midnight, drunk and with a bunch of friends who are willing to throw things at the screen. It follows a motley crew of hot young people through a night of terror in the lonely desert where their lives are constantly threatened by a mysterious creature. The creature, which looks like a T-Rex-Predator hybrid, runs around shoving sharp pokers into peoples' chests and leaving squirming metal devices roaming through their innards. But wait, here's the best part-it's an alien sent here to gather DNA from all five "kingdoms" of species. Even better-the only thing that can stop it is uranium. Thank goodness, this group of buff bods is led by their sexy sheriff, Annie, right into a uranium mine.
In the background of all this madness and mayhem is an American Indian myth of a creature that wiped out an entire population 900 years ago. There are cave paintings and even a wise Indian grandfather, played by Russell Means-the first national director of the American Indian Movement and author of "Where White Men Fear to Tread: The Autobiography of Russell Means"--that hide and then uncover the secret to defeat the beast. "Unearthed" is a theme park ride through absurd horror films of the nineties.
On the other side of the spectrum of motion pictures is The Invisbles, produced by Doctors Without Borders, a humanitarian-aid NGO. It's a compilation of short vignettes exposing sickness in Bolivia, rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo, displacement in Colombia, child soldiers, poverty and violent oppression. It seeks to educate the general populace on issues that go unnoticed by most media. The film relies on the poignant stories rather than style and technique in direction. Perhaps it isn't a wise entry into TRIBECA'a artistic bazaar.
NEW YORK
Though there is free popcorn on the corner of West and Chambers, at $18 dollars a movie and $2 for the subway, TRIBECA Film Festival can put a dent in your wallet. But for a city like New York - it's a darn good deal. Unlike other festivals, TRIBECA is unconfined to a particular area. Unfortunately, the venues are often not within walking distance from each other, which rules out any sense of communal enjoyment. Rather than a festival atmosphere based on love of the motion picture, TRIBECA is a celebration of New York's underground cinephelia. Here's a glance at the diversity of films it offers in just one day:
"Unearthed" is a classically cheesy Sci-Fi/horror movie that is only enjoyable after midnight, drunk and with a bunch of friends who are willing to throw things at the screen. It follows a motley crew of hot young people through a night of terror in the lonely desert where their lives are constantly threatened by a mysterious creature. The creature, which looks like a T-Rex-Predator hybrid, runs around shoving sharp pokers into peoples' chests and leaving squirming metal devices roaming through their innards. But wait, here's the best part-it's an alien sent here to gather DNA from all five "kingdoms" of species. Even better-the only thing that can stop it is uranium. Thank goodness, this group of buff bods is led by their sexy sheriff, Annie, right into a uranium mine.
In the background of all this madness and mayhem is an American Indian myth of a creature that wiped out an entire population 900 years ago. There are cave paintings and even a wise Indian grandfather, played by Russell Means-the first national director of the American Indian Movement and author of "Where White Men Fear to Tread: The Autobiography of Russell Means"--that hide and then uncover the secret to defeat the beast. "Unearthed" is a theme park ride through absurd horror films of the nineties.
On the other side of the spectrum of motion pictures is The Invisbles, produced by Doctors Without Borders, a humanitarian-aid NGO. It's a compilation of short vignettes exposing sickness in Bolivia, rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo, displacement in Colombia, child soldiers, poverty and violent oppression. It seeks to educate the general populace on issues that go unnoticed by most media. The film relies on the poignant stories rather than style and technique in direction. Perhaps it isn't a wise entry into TRIBECA'a artistic bazaar.
