WUD Film: Wisconsin Film Festival 2014 Picks

Posted By terraceviews-admin on Apr 1, 2014 |

By Nancy Payne x’16

Next week begins a much-loved and anticipated time of the year in Madison: The Wisconsin Film Festival. While the cold weather seems never-ending, this week-long event starting Thursday, April 3 and going until Thursday, April 10 is the perfect distraction and segue into spring. With over 150 films to choose from, we turned to Wisconsin Union Directorate (WUD) Film committee members to send us their picks for this year’s festival.

Victor Alicea x’14

Vertigo, 1958

Vertigo – Vertigo is, at least in my opinion, one of the most beautiful, moving and thematically complex films ever made. It was recently voted the greatest film of all time in the 2012 Sight and Sound critics poll, and I can’t disagree with its placement. Vertigo may just be my favorite film of all time.

The Congress – I’ve been looking forward to seeing The Congress, Ari Folman’s followup to his 2008 masterpiece Waltz with Bashir, ever since it premiered at Cannes last year. Beyond my interest in the director, I’m a big fan of both science fiction and animated films, so this seems especially up my alley.

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Ryan Jelinek x’16

Stray Dogs – Stray Dogs is a film about a poor family in Taipei. I don’t know much about being poor in Taipei, but I love the director’s other work. His films play at a different pace than most. They’re full of long takes drenched in melancholy and atmosphere, with a little humor thrown in. I see them as exercises in empathy. He obviously loves his characters, and I could sit and spend time with them all day.

Why Don’t You Play in Hell?, 2013

Why Don’t You Play in Hell? – Again I haven’t seen the film but the director’s previous work makes me excited. One example of Sion Sono‘s talents is a sequence of ninja-panty photography set to Beethoven’s 7th that manages to be legitimately heartwarming. The film itself is about a struggling director who gets the opportunity to shoot an action film in the middle of a real Yakuza battle. While Stray Dogs might bore some, I doubt Why Don’t You Play in Hell? will bore anyone.

Visitors – A film composed of beautifully filmed reaction shots of people playing video games and texting on digitally removed cellphones, Visitors seems like it wants to give us a glimpse of ourselves as we lose ourselves to technology. Philip Glass‘s score gets us in the mood to contemplate. The director, Godfrey Reggio, who collaborated with Glass before on his Qatsi trilogy will be at the screening I’m going to, and I hope to be wowed.

Bess Donoghue x’14

Age of Panic, 2013

Age of Panic – The film chronicles two parallel stories: one about a historical moment in France and the other a journalist’s personal story to cover the big event. When one character has to try and tackle two issues at once, it’s a journey that always has the audience at the edge of their seats, and I can’t wait to experience the foreign film and everything it has to offer.

Obvious Child – One of the most celebrated films at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, this movie shares a story of a bookstore clerk who also spend her nights as a stand-up comic. Often intertwining her romantic and personal life into her humorous monologues, what happens when something goes unplanned? A funny, but great story.

Joe, 2013

Joe Poschung ’16

Joe – Nicolas Cage continues to astound me with the sheer diversity of roles he is able to take on. This role promises to be one of his best, with the film having already picked up two awards at the Venice Film Festival, as well as acclaim from numerous film festivals throughout the season. I could not be more excited to see Nic Cage play the part of Joe in this sure to be intense southern drama.

For the full list of the Wisconsin Film Festival screenings, click here. Regular tickets are $10 and student tickets are $5.

Nancy Payne is a UW sophomore majoring in Strategic Communication frequently seen in Der Rathskeller eating a bag of Stiftskeller popcorn with a bowl of Chocolate Peanut Butter Babcock ice cream on the side.