We came.
We saw.
We drank.
We saw some movies.
We got drunk.
We went to some parties and red carpet events.
We got even more drunk.

And some of us got so drunk we thought it might be funny after seeing The Hangover if we made out with  someone named Bob.  That was me.  It’s not a surprise to say that movies have had an influence on my life… for good and for bad.  But I never expected to get so hammered that going to Graceland Chapel for a  ceremony would seem like a good idea.  I was there for a film festival and only saw The Hangover a week earlier which is a movie set in Vegas, yet not screening at CineVegas, but somehow I ended up at that chapel.

There’s a lot more to the  tale, but CineVegas was a whirlwind of amazing A-list stars, epic parties and memorable movies.  In fact, I was happy to learn that my festival favorites went on to win awards. Easier with Practice took the Grand Jury Prize with Godspeed getting a Special Jury Award and All In: The Poker Movie was awarded the Documentary Jury Prize.  What makes CineVegas special is not just the hospitality, parties and movies – it’s the city itself.  Anything can happen.  But not everything stays there as anyone who has had photos of their drunken escapades posted on the internet can attest.  Um, like me.

I am happy to note that after the dust cleared and I woke up with my “wife” Bob next to me, one detail was overlooked.  Our marriage license was never notarized or certified or even made legal.  In short, we had a great time , but somehow in my drunken stupor, I avoided the one detail that would have led to real trouble.  So while my alcohol-induced glaze drove me to do something stupid… it also saved me from making that stupid thing real.  Which means the next round is on me, I’m a single man again!

I’ll always remember… um…. most of CineVegas 2009.  2009!  And what I don’t remember, there’s photos to prove I that I did indeed have a time to remember.

Words by Chris Gore

The silent half of the post-alt-magic act of Penn and Teller narrates his very personal tale of survival in a post-apocalyptic Las Vegas.  When we first meet Teller in & Teller, he is clearly distraught attempting to survive in a world taken over by… zombies!   As boredom sets in, Teller tells the tale of how he got himself into this mundane post-apocalyptic life… how the first zombie he remembered seeing didn’t look much different than most Vegas tourists.  He even tells us how his partner Penn Jillette eventually succumbed to his own zombie fate from the bite of a zombie fan.  The sequel & Teller 2 finds a lonely Teller just wishing for some companionship of some kind.  His wish is fulfilled in the form of a zombie Vegas showgirl.  Teller passes the time being chased by the slow-moving zombie dancer.  After awhile, he even develops something of an act with his undead beauty.  Is this love?  Both films are short, sweet, pee-your-pants funny and leave one begging for more.  And even stranger than observing a celebrity deal with a world overrun by zombies is… hearing Teller’s voice for the very first time.  Scary!

Words by Chris Gore

& Teller

Link for & Teller 2

http://crackle.com/c/Horror_and_Action/_Teller_2/2364233

For Penn Jillette’s thoughts on the Teller shorts, here is his video response:

While Marvel’s Thor film based on their popular superhero comic book series is years away, the Norse God provides comic relief as part of an odd ensemble cast in Thor at the Bus Stop.  The God of Thunder is oddly annoyed that his power to wield his might hammer is scoffed at by a persnickety little child who can perform feats such as spell the word “square.”  I mean, Thor doesn’t just toss a basketball at a basket – his mighty hammer comes crashing into the backboard. This is just one of the stories in a film that attempts to explain the details behind those random people we see passing by us every day.  You know, the ones you meet and wonder to yourself, “Hey, what’s that guy’s story?”  We’ve all seen these people, a guy dressed like Thor, the dude with the Mohawk, the man named Lester who was struck by lightning and now has a road sign penetrating his torso yet he still is walking and talking as if the fatal injury does not affect him.  Okay, Lester’s story is a bit ridiculous, but each character has a story to tell and somewhere along the way, they’ll get what’s coming to them.  The most memorable exchange occurs between Lester and a woman who was so upset with her boyfriend that after he told him to stand up for himself and be more of an asshole, he left her.  Shortly after that exchange, she figured it all out.  (Be careful what you wish for… you know the rest.)

Like a series of shorts woven together into a random order with some, but not all of them connecting, the results are mixed.  Thor is worth some giggles and Lester learns his lesson – but for a mixed bag of good and bad, more than a few smiles are cracked.

Words by Chris Gore

Director Wim Wenders is one of those directors that delivers a film that is either sheer brilliance or difficult to sit through.  For me, Palermo Shooting is a film that will stay with me, and while it does not reach the kind of brilliant heights we’ve seen before, it is an admirable failure.

The story is fairly simple, Finn (played by German actor and musician Campino) is an arrogant photographer whose work is exhibited in art museums worldwide.  Finn is sought after for his eye when it comes to photography, but his own eyes cannot see the dilemmas he faces in his own life.  During a near fatal car accident, Finn’s camera photographs Death.  Yes, Death.  Yes, the Death, the guy who shows up when you die.  And he is played hauntingly by Dennis Hopper.  Finn is then victim to some very close calls with menacing arrows meant to end it all.  His journey to avoid Death’s arrows takes him to the city of Palermo, oddly, Wim Wenders hometown. It’s there that Finn gets a dose of life lesson 101 when confronted with statements such as, “Take everything seriously, just not yourself.”  And the ever popular, “Live each moment as if it were the last time.”  Of course, no one escapes Mr. Death and the final confrontation is uplifting or “down”-lifting depending on how you look at it.

While you can pick apart the weak story, the cinematography is so pretty, you get lost in it.  And the clever dream sequences that haunt Finn are so lush, they are gallery-worthy.  One thing is certain about Wenders, he uses all the cinematic tools at his disposal to ponder questions of life and death. Any filmmaker with the guts to take the kind of risks Wim Wenders has, should be applauded.

Words by Chris Gore

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPvS-Q9tVsI

It’s easy to take it easy when your film just wins the CineVegas Film Festival Grand Jury Prize.  Well, maybe not that easy when the film is called Easier with Practice and the plot involves a phone sex relationship gone awry.  (See Easier with Practice review by Chris Gore and movie trailer.)

Relaxing in the swanky surroundings of the Palms Hotel filmmaker courtesy lounge, I found director Kyle Patrick Alvarez and his cast.  Lead actors Brian Geraghty, who plays a likable and aspiring novelist in the film and Kel O’Neill who plays his a-hole brother, are getting along fabulously.  All the tensions that existed between the two characters in the film are gone as the cast and director clearly became buds.  Or perhaps it’s a testament to their acting and the performance in front of me in the lounge is all an act and they do really hate each other.  Either way, the award-winning trio’s journey to household names begins with this revealing interview.  Yes, phone sex and other types of sex will be discussed.

How did this project come about?
Kyle: In August 2006 I read an article in GQ magazine by Davy Rothbart, creator of Found Magazine and it’s a true story about a phone sex relationship he had with this girl.

Have you ever had a phone sex relationship?
Kyle: No.  I’ve never even had phone sex.

Then how was the phone sex so realistically portrayed?  And how do I know that?
(Laugh)
Kyle: I don’t know. (Laugh)  I wrote it in an office which was essentially this corner near the coffee machine in a law office.  There were no windows and a locked door and I still felt really uncomfortable… like when you are watching a movie on a plane and it’s R-rated and you’re really self-conscious, like checking over my shoulder and I kept doing that when I was writing scenes. But if there was something in there that made me feel rotten or nervous then that’s just what I put in.

The realism of those phone sex scenes is a testament to the great performances by your actors.  So, Brian, that initial first phone sex scene is very… unnerving.  That scene is one long take and it sells the whole concept of the movie. How did you pull it off… so to speak? (Laugh)
Brian: I don’t know. I really don’t know how I did it. We shot that on my birthday. You know, Kyle and I and the crew worked a lot together and they really made me feel comfortable.  For me, this whole movie is about trust. I was able to get there once in the first take he said, (the director) “We’re done.”

Kyle: I was happy with the first one, but we did another one just in case and we used the second one. It was a scene we never rehearsed or talked about much because I was so nervous.  I was so nervous about being in the room that I had them drill a hole in the wall so I could be in the other room which is totally my own defense mechanism but I tried to play it off as being totally respectful toward him.
(Laugh)

Now you guys have a great brotherly relationship in real-life, but in the film, you’re kind of a dick. Is that fun to play?
Kel: (Laugh) It’s the best thing to play, it’s the most fun thing to play.  If you are playing a nice person, it’s not really leaving your comfort zone.  In so many interactions in every day you have to be nice, so when you can take the gloves off and be a complete dick for like two or three weeks, it’s great.  You can just compartmentalize that.  And then when you’re done with your work on set, people are like, “Oh, you’re so much nicer, you’re nothing like your character… which isn’t true because I’m a complete fuckin’ asshole!  (All three laugh)

One of the most hilarious scenes is when Davey and his phone sex girl reveal the number of sex partners they’ve had.  So, can you each give me your number?  That was hilarious because that’s a conversation that couples seem to always think they need to have.
Kyle: I’m kind of a serial monogamous, I’ve always been in long term relationships in my life but there’s always going to be that kind of pressure as a guy.  So, I’ve always been in these like, 3-5 year relationships as a guy and I’m 26 so you do the math. I thought that would be honest for the character, so it was my own issue.

Would it be appropriate to talk about the, um, promotional item for the film?  I’ve seen a lot of different types of promo items, but this I’ve never seen.

Kyle: They come as individual socks, not pairs.  When I called the sock company they were surprised that I wanted individual socks with the movie logo. I had to tell them that people were not going to wear them… that they were intended to be used for something else.  Yeah… I know… classy.

Interview by Chris Gore, photos by Dustin Downing

“…Candy was born James Slattery, but you wouldn’t know it from her pictures.”

Andy Warhol’s circus of characters from the 1960s have provided an endless supply of stories filling magazines, books and films.  One of the most notable figures from the period, Candy Darling, is now the subject of Beautiful Darling, a work-in-progress documentary screened at the CineVegas Film Festival.

Candy’s story is one of triumph and tragedy, which makes it the perfect subject for a doc by first-time feature director James Rasin.  Candy was born James Slattery, but you wouldn’t know it from her pictures.  Candy was a stunning blonde bombshell on the level of a Marilyn Monroe or a Kim Novak — a movie star.  She or, uh, he inspired not only Warhol, who cast her in several of his art movies, but also playwright Tennessee Williams who penned a stageplay especially for her.  Candy lived her dreams of becoming a star, but as soon as she reached this height, she fell just as fast.  Her sad tale to be loved for who she was is told through present day interviews, archival footage and Candy’s own words from her journals.

It’s not fair to express strong opinions about any film that is at the work-in-progress stage, but suffice it to say that director Rasin (once he gets some decent music or, I might suggest, no music for many of the scenes) is on the road to making not just a good doc, but a great one. I look forward to seeing Candy’s tale unfold without timecode and temp music.

Words by Chris Gore, red carpet photos by Dustin Downing

Beautiful Darling Writer/Director – James Rasin

Beautiful Darling Producers

Stability should never be under-rated. Having the basics in life like a place to call home, regular meals, a job, a family, love, commitment, a lawn. These are all things the average person might take for granted. Perhaps if you lose one or two of these things, life gets a little harder, but what would happen if they all disappeared one by one? Vegas: Based on a True Story, a film by director Amir Naderi, tells a compelling story about a vegas family of 3 struggling to stay out of the casinos and maintain the precarious balance of their lives.

He’s a used tire salesman, she’s a waitress, and their 12 year old son is just your average good kid. When a marine shows up at their modest home claiming to have grown up there, they welcome him in and invite him to stay for dinner. When he continues to show up he plants seeds of drama. Playing off of the couples past gambling addictions, and human nature, a sad true story unravels.

Naderi does a fantastic job of psychologically showing the slow decline of a family barely attempting to keep it together. Hope is what keeps you feeding the slot machines, and hope is what keeps all rational thinking at bay. Maybe all it will take is that final pull on the handle….and the audience finds itself investing hope and playing along just one more time.

Words by Barbie Brady, red carpet photos by Dustin Downing

“…while there may be little royal blood in the players, they are treated like royalty.”

Card games have been played for centuries.  In fact, as far back as the 14th century, but way back then the players were royalty — real kings and queens.  Now the game of poker can be played by everyone and anyone and while there may be little royal blood in the players, today they are treated like royalty.

All In: The Poker Movie is the ultimate movie about the sport.  And while the argument about whether or not poker is a real sport, there is no doubt that this documentary directed by Douglas Tirola deals a winning hand.  (Sorry, I could not resist.)  The film provides a detailed accounting of the history of cards and the game, the rise in popularity during Word War II when cards were circulated to soldiers, online pokers ups and downs, how poker exploded based on TV coverage, and the most compelling story of the players who have become like rock stars.  And while most of the movie consists of talking head interviews, visually it’s never boring with quick cut archival footage and graphics to supplement each subject.  The best story of all, the rise of everyman Chris Moneymaker is the thread running throughout.  Moneymaker’s story provides the glue that holds the film together along with the edge-of-your-seat climax.  Moneymaker’s Horatio Algeresque tale is well known — he’s the regular schlub who spent $39 on an online poker game and won a seat at the World Series of Poker where he went on to… well, you’ll have to see the movie.  The poker stories provide inspiration to millions of players who enter the game.  In no other sport — basketball, football, hockey, baseball, whatever — can players compete against the best in the field with a chance to win.  Poker does actually make dreams come true… and the game can dash dreams just as quickly.

Whether you love or loathe the game, All In: The Poker Movie will leave you with a newfound appreciation for the game and the players.  And you might even consider picking up a deck yourself and starting a game.

Words by Chris Gore, red carpet photos by Dustin Downing

Davy Mitchell is on a dull road trip with his brother to promote stories from his unpublished book.  Davy the writer is the intellectual who wears his heart on his sleeve.  His younger brother Sean is just along for the easy girls that Davy doesn’t have the guts to bang, much less approach.  When Davy receives a random phone call from a sexy-sounding woman named Nicole, the conversation quickly devolves into nasty phone sex.  Both Davy and the voice on the other end finish their virgin phone call… and it’s really hot.  This scene is intense (seen in one long shot does not cut) as Davy and Nicole discuss what goes where and how and what they’re touching and how that after awhile you’ll feel dirty just for listening in.  Nicole continues to call Davy, at sometimes awkward times, but no matter how intimate their conversations get, she keeps her identity a secret.

Nicole becomes more revealing as she admits to having a boyfriend who just doesn’t get her.  Davy attempts to have relationships with another girl, but he cannot contain his obsession for that voice on the other end of the phone.  Davy finally insists they can’t continue this relationship over the phone.  They have to meet.  And they do.  And when Nicole and Davy finally meet, well, it should not surprise you that… the result is something you won’t see coming.

It’s not often that a film about sex has something to teach me, but I can say, I learned a few things.  Not just about sex, but about humanity.  But sex too.

Words by Chris Gore

“…What would it be like to meet… yourself?”

In a not-too-distant future, we meet lonely moon miner Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell).  Sam is nearing the end of his three-year mission on the moon mining valuable Helium 3 that provides most of the earth’s power.  And he is going a little nuts all by himself on this space station biding his time by fixing broken down machinery, talking to his plants and building a replica model of his hometown.

Okay, he’s not all alone, his automated robot friend, sort of like HAL from 2001 named GERTY, voiced by Kevin Spacey, provides some relief from the boredom.  But the occasional message from his wife and child back on earth only remind Sam just how lonely his world has become.  With just a few weeks left until he departs home to earth, a wrench is thrown into the plans when Sam awakens from an accident.  When he investigates to see what happened, he discovers another astronaut who turns out to be… him.  To describe anything further would be spoiler territory, so let’s just leave it at that.

Director Duncan Jones provides a smart sci-fi thriller in the vein of Silent Running and Outland, two great classics of the genre.  This is the kind of real science fiction that is rare today in the age of overblown mega-special effects spectacle where people themselves are merely backdrops.  Great sci-fi asks questions that relate to how humans react when confronted with the unknown… normally provided by an advance or accident involving science. The first question that Moon asks is what would it be like to meet… yourself?  From this very first question, the issues of life and death are explored in somber and sometimes humorous ways. Sam Rockwell is amazing acting in scenes especially when you consider he is basically alone, interacting with either GERTY the robot or with… himself. Director Jones studied movies such as David Cronenberg’s Dead Ringers to provide the realism for complex scenes in which Sam and other Sam interact.  This clearly provided the guidance to make a simple game of ping pong with Sam and Sam look absolutely seemless.

I hope that the success of Moon will inspire a return to the type of intelligent sci-fi that is sadly lacking at the movies currently.  So make it your mission to seek this

Words by Chris Gore, red carpet photos by Dustin Downing