Thursday, January 21, 2010

Life is Too Short for Long Films 



Image from Sparks by Joseph Gordon-Levitt

When you live in a thriving city full of cultural events happening every night of the week you try to take advantage and drink it all in. Or not so much. The couch is pretty much where this particular metropolitan usually finds his sorry self. In fact, "drinking it all" is not something I do with anything other than beer and "taking advantage" of anything is entirely too effortful. Yet, I somehow found the energy tonight to pull my metropass from my pocket and board a downtown bound street car. Against all odds, I sat quietly for fifteen minutes or so and walked first to a pub, then onward some 200 metres to the theatre.

Not just any theatre, but the taxpayer owned NFB theatre. Every third Wednesday of the Month the Canadian Film Centre hosts a program of short films. As Kai Pindal used to say (or at least his t-shirt did), "Life is too short for long films." Too bad Tartovsky never learned this.

What follows was tonight's program.

STRUCK
Taron Lexton | USA, 2007 | 7 minutes

When Joel spies a beautiful woman, his heart might have been instantly stolen, but it's his chest that's struck by a very noticeable arrow. He tries dating a parade of other beauties with his extra inches, including Kelly Preston (Jerry Maguire) and Jenna Elfman (Dharma & Greg), but it's nearly impossible when love has made other plans for you.



ONE OF THOSE DAYS
Hattie Dalton | UK, 2008 | 14 minutes

Howard (Sir Derek Jacobi, GLADIATOR, GOSFORD PARK) and his wife have lived a very ordinary life. But none of that matters on Judgment Day, when a small mix-up in paperwork causes an otherworldly bureaucratic experience. Parody meets superb performance in this classic British satire.


GLOCK
Tom Everett Scott | USA, 2008 | 12 minutes

A promising new secret agent is dying for his first assignment. Waiting by a phone that doesn’t ring, his dreams of spy super-stardom comically dwindle.


THE SPLEENECTOMY
Kirsten Smith | USA, 2008 | 12 minutes

Judy Curtis (Anna Faris, THE HOUSE BUNNY, OBSERVE AND REPORT) is a suburban mom who dreams of being an actress. After a pretentious community theatre director crushes her hopes, she gets one more chance to nail her dream role. Absurd comedy abounds in screenwriter Kirsten Smith’s (THE HOUSE BUNNY, LEGALLY BLONDE) directorial debut.


CTRL Z
Rob Kirbyson | USA, 2007 | 7 minutes

Stuart (Tony Hale, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT) is an office loner who keeps his feelings and thoughts to himself. When he discovers that a broken computer keyboard can undo his mistakes, he wastes no time in letting his co-workers Ben (Zachary Levi, CHUCK) and Elizabeth (Emy Coligado, CROSSING JORDAN) know what he really thinks of them in this funny look at chancy second chances.


SPARKS
Joseph Gordon-Levitt | USA, 2008 | 24 minutes

Smooth talking private eye Joseph (Eric Stolz, PULP FICTION) has a few questions for former rock’n’roller Robin (Carla Cugino, SIN CITY) who may or may not have burnt down her late husband’s Malibu villa. Adapted from the Elmore Leonard short story, star Joseph Gordon-Levitt (BRICK, THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN) writes and directs this sexy, updated film noir.

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