After 8 months of planning, lots of new faces and energy on the staff, and vast amounts of incredibly hard work, the 17th annual Florida Film Festival is finally here! The Southeast Premiere of YOUNG @ HEART preceded by the World Premiere of THE PLUSH LIFE kicks things off Friday night the 28th and sets the tone for 9 more days of great cinema, parties, food, celebrities, and special events. Anthony Bourdain, Malcolm McDowell, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Jennifer Tilly will all be in town for what is shaping up to be the most exciting and well-attended festival yet.

A total of 159 films will hit the silver screen from March 28 - April 6, including World Premieres of Tom Gustafson's WERE THE WORLD MINE, Jeremy Zerechak's LAND OF CONFUSION, and Tony Cane-Honeysett's MONDO BONDO, along with the North American Premiere of Chris Rodley's FACTORY: MANCHESTER FROM JOY DIVISION TO HAPPY MONDAYS. And it all culminates in this year's Closing Night Retro screening, a gorgeous archival print of Roman Polanski's ROSEMARY'S BABY, playing in conjunction with Jeffrey Schwarz's SPINE TINGLER! THE WILLIAM CASTLE STORY and a rare 35mm screening of Castle's own Joan Crawford shocker, STRAIGHT-JACKET (at midnight of course).

Info on the complete line-up is available at http://www.floridafilmfestival.comYou can also check out this week's Orlando Weekly, Friday's Calendar section in the Orlando Sentinel, or head on over to Festival HQ at the Best Western - Mt. Vernon Inn, with the infamous Red Fox Lounge featuring Mark & Lorna. Don't miss it--be sure you're a part of one of Cenrtral Florida's great (and most fun!) cultural events.

--Matthew

The Florida Film Festival may be just 7 days away, but Enzian's special programming keeps hitting home runs as an appetizer. Tonight was CASABLANCA in the park, the March Popcorn Flick under the stars on a cool, crisp, beautiful evening to close out our sixth year of monthly, free outdoor movies in downtown Winter Park.

This Tuesday, March 25 at 9:00 PM, the Cult Classics series presents Alfred Hitchcock's THE BIRDS (1963). One of the only Hitchcock films I've never seen on the big screen (and who knows how edited those TV prints were through the years?), I am quite psyched about this rare opportunity to catch the film in an actual movie theater. Based on a story by famed British writer Daphne Du Maurier, author of two previous novels made into classic Hitchcock films ("Jamaica Inn" and "Rebecca"), the fun and terrifying thriller focuses on a San Francisco socialite who heads north to a quiet California coastal town with a gift for a man she's interested in. Once there however, she slowly discovers birds of all kinds acting strangely, and it's not a pretty picture.

The great UB Iwerks was nominated for an Oscar for Best Special Visual Effects, and Tippi Hedren won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer. The rest of the terrific cast included Rod Taylor, Jessica Tandy, Suzanne Pleshette, Veronica Cartwright, and Richard Deacon.

"And remember, the next scream you hear could be your own."

--Matthew

I'm sure my posting this will be the kiss of death for the Houston Rockets' ridiculous 22-game winning streak as they face the mighty Boston Celtics tonight, but you have to give major props for what they're doing these past few weeks. When Yao Ming went down for the season after the streak had reached 12, everyone figured that was that--no way Tracy McGrady and a bunch of no names could keep it going or make any noise in the playoffs. Still not sure what's going to happen in the post-season (and T-Mac is infamous for his teams never getting out of the first round), but the Rockets have been phenomenal in extending the streak at least 10 more games, making it the second longest in NBA history. And 5 of the top 6 winning streaks in league history have been accomplished by the eventual NBA champion.

Rick Adelman is coaching his ass off, the defense has been unbelievable, and even though McGrady's scoring is actually down, the role players like Rafer Alston and Shane Battier have stepped up bigtime. During the streak the team has never trailed entering the 4th quarter, and they've won 14 of the 22 games by double digits. There are 5 teams in the league who, combined, have not won 22 games since Houston started this improbable run in late January.

By no means am I a Houston Rockets fan. In fact, I've disliked the franchise immensely since they swept the Magic in the NBA Finals over a decade ago and then stole T-Mac in a trade for bums like Steve Francis and Kelvin Kato a few years after that. But if you're a basketball fan, you can't help but shake your head and appreciate this unlikeliest of scenarios. Going from 10th place to 1st in the ultra-tough Western Conference without losing a single game is an astonishing achievement, any way you slice it. I am impressed, interested, and paying attention.

--Matthew

Two weeks and counting...those of you who out there who still long for the printed page even as you peruse the internet for info will be excited to hear that the 2008 Florida Film Festival Preview Guide insert in the Orlando Sentinel's weekend Calendar section drops tomorrrow. That's right--your basic guide to all of the films, food, and fun events at this year's FFF will be on display (in abridged form; full-length descriptions are available at enzian.org/fff) in hundreds of thousands of copies of the Friday Orlando Sentinel, not to mention a few thousand loose ones that will be available at Enzian and Festival Ticket HQ at the Best Western - Mt. Vernon Inn on 17-92 (that conveniently opens Friday as well) while supplies last.

Be sure to check out all the enticing selections and start making your plans now. Remember--if it sounds really good to you, the same probably applies to lots of other Central Floridians and out-of-towners planning to visit during the 10 days of festivities (March 28 - April 6). Don't get shut out and don't mess with "Stand-by Only" shows. Buy early--you'll be glad you did. See you in a couple...

--Matthew

Even though the gargantuan shadow of the upcoming 17th annual Florida Film Festival hovers over all Enzian activities this time of year, it's still business as usual for many of our special programs. This past Sunday afternoon the theater played host to FilmSlam # 3 for 2008, and March's group of short works by local filmmakers did not disappoint. This truly was a collection worth losing an hour's sleep over (see: Daylight Savings Time). Presented to a substantial, perhaps bleary-eyed gathering of local film lovers and indie film supporters, six films duked it out for first place honors with the Audience Award ballots and thus an official "bye" into December's Brouhaha Film & Video Showcase. And once you're in Brouhaha, you've got a shot at making it into the 2009 Florida Film Festival as part of the "Florida Shorts - Best of Brouhaha" program in the Florida Sidebar, the same path that four of 2007's monthly FilmSlam winners took to get into the 2008 FFF.

So congratulations go to Chris Tharp for nailing 1st Place with his surreal western tale of a coffin builder, THE COFFIN MAKER. Kudos also go out to Patrick Scott Barnes for earning 2nd Place with BLOW SUNDAYS, a doc about open-mic night at a local Orlando nightspot, and Banks Helfrich for WHY?, the 3rd Place finisher that poses 150 answers in 5 minutes to that particular question.

See you all at FilmSlam # 4 on April 13 at 1:00 PM.

--Matthew

It wouldn't be the Florida Film Festival without a healthy dose of our homegrown talent and Sunshine State connections in the lineup, and this year's 17th annual edition (now a mere 3 weeks away!) is no different. No less than 23 titles out of the 159 films we have lined up beginning March 28 have that Florida association. And it's not just the 15 films in the Florida Shorts - Best of Brouhaha program that represent both FilmSlam winners from 2007 and works from UCF, FSU, Ringling College of Art & Design, Daytona Beach Community College, and other talented local filmmakers. The incredibly diverse Florida touch can be found in a total of 6 other sections of the festival.

In the American Independent Competition, we've got two narrative shorts, one animated short, and a doc feature all ready for their close-ups. Ron Davis and Stewart Halpern's PAGEANT is the funny and highly entertaining feature-length doc about the 34th Miss Gay America Pageant, and Orlando's own Robert Martin (aka "Chantel Reshae") is one of the five men caught following their dream. Robert Scott's ANATOMY OF A KISS is an extremely clever send-up of Japanese melodramas set on the beach of Tokyo Bay in 1956. Benjamin Piety's SUNLIT SHADOWS is the other live-action competition short, a well-shot, somewhat experimental visual mix tape of a relationship, complete with a Side A and Side B. Lee Stringer's ZOMBIE DEAREST, featuring Tofu the Vegan Zombie, plays in the Animated Shorts program and is cute and funny and features some fine CGI and a few homages to the horror greats as well.

Not to be outdone in the horror department, our two in-state consituents in the infamous Midnight Shorts program lay on the gore, the scares, and the laughs. Jason Kupfer's THE SLEUTH INCIDENT is the bizarre story of a giant stuffed teddy bear out looking for a little buddy. Ryan Spindell's KIRKSDALE takes no prisoners in its unforgettable take on goings on at an insane asylum in early 1960's rural Florida--you've been warned!

This year's Florida Sidebar Doc Feature is Vivien Lesnik Weisman's THE MAN OF TWO HAVANAS, a fascinating and controversial work filmed in both Cuba and Little Havana, Miami, in which the filmmaker explores her father's role as a revolutionary and rabble-rouser. And last but certainly not least, Stephanie Johnes' DOUBLETIME is one of this year's family friendly offerings, a tremendous doc feature about two totally different jump rope teams--one suburban white and one inner-city black--as they train to compete against each other for the very first time. Footage shot in Orlando at Disney's Wide World of Sports as they compete in the National Championships helps set the tone for their ultimate showdown at the Apollo Theater in Harlem.

This is just a small sampling (w/ a Florida twist) of the many cinematic gems that await at this year's FFF--can't wait to see you there.

--Matthew

Is it really true? As a lifelong Vikings fan, I couldn't help but feel a little giddy at the big breaking news of the day as reported on ESPN's "Mike & Mike" radio show Tuesday morning--Green Bay Packers legendary QB Brett Favre has finally decided to hang it up. Though it was recently reported that Favre had said he was willing to come back for another couple of years if the Packers signed free agent receiver Randy Moss (who just last night signed a 3-year deal to go back to the New England Patriots), today he apparently told the team he was simply worn out, both mentally and physically, and he's "just tired"--isn't that timing a bit of a coincidence?

So after an amazing (and surprising) 2007 in which he broke Dan Marino's career records for most touchdown passes and most yards passing, and John Elway's record for most career victories by a starting quarterback, the man who's completed more passes than anyone in history will let that last throw--an interception in the NFC Championship game that set up the NY Giants' winning field goal--stand as his final toss. Or will he?

The three-time MVP and 1997 Super Bowl champion has started every game since taking over as the Packers starting QB in 1992 . Until this whole off-season passes and I see Aaron Rogers lining up behind center in the first regular season game of 2008 at Lambeau Field, I remain skeptical about life without Brett in the NFC North. And I certainly won't be shedding any tears if it really is the end of an era. He's broken the hearts of Minnesota fans way too many times over the past 16 years.

--Matthew