Cinema Showdown

What we're excited to see at The Loft Film Fest

Not that we wouldn't be thrilled here at the Cinema Showdown desk to see any of the fine films showcased by the Loft this year, but we find these six to be our own personal must-sees.

FORT TILDEN

Friday, Oct. 17, 5 p.m.

As mentioned in our Cinema feature this week, "Fort Tilden," stars Clare McNulty, who has deep Tucson roots, as Allie, a vapid 25-year-old child of privilege. Perfect for fans of HBO's "Girls," although more critical of Williamsburg lifestyles than Lena Dunham's show, Indiewire said about the SXSW award-winner "At its best, the movie works like an indie riff on "Romy and Michele's High School Reunion," turning the plight of its clueless leads into an amusing romp in tune with their perspective."

THE WINDING STREAM

Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m.

If you love the history of American music, you can't miss this documentary, a loving look at the legacy of the Carter family, including an interview with the most famous extended member of the singing clan, Johnny Cash, taped just weeks before his death. The music is great and the story is incredible.

THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA

Saturday, Oct. 18, 4:15 p.m.

The latest film by Studio Ghibli cofounder Isao Takahata looks as beautiful as the Japanese animation studio's films always are, but also, as Slant magazine wrote, looks to put you through an emotional wringer: "But as sad as it is to imagine a parent enduring the physical death of a child, as the fable's ending invites us to do, it's sadder yet to think about the tragedy depicted by the rest of the film: the spiritual death we so often impose on our children in forcing them to conform to culturally accepted notions about the roles they're meant to play."

THE GIRL WALKS HOME AT NIGHT

Saturday, Oct. 18, 9:45 p.m

Apparently, this is the first Iranian vampire western, and frankly, that's enough information for us to want to see it.

I AM BIG BIRD

Sunday, Oct. 19, 11:30 a.m.

Funded via Kickstarter, this documentary about long-time Sesame Street puppeteer Carroll Spinney proves that the man inside the Big Bird suit is apparently just as charming and sweet as at the character he plays.

MEMPHIS

Sunday, Oct. 19, midnight

Not a film version of the not-very-good Broadway musical, but instead a quasi-documentary about Willis Earl Beal, who plays an alternate version of himself. The reviews of the film are mixed, mostly commenting on how the movie doesn't really go anywhere, but the ramshackle aesthetic seems to capture some truly great moments in the mess of Beal's life.

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