We are so psyched. As a single screen arthouse, it's rare that Enzian can actually schedule something appropriate around Halloween. But with Mike Leigh's much-anticipated HAPPY-GO-LUCKY going out a couple of weeks later than originally planned in Florida, the window of opportunity presented itself for another film to open at the theater on October 31--and what a film it should be! I say should because (believe it or not) I've yet to see Tomas Alfredson's LET THE RIGHT ONE IN and decided I'd wait for the chance to catch it on the big screen rather than watch a preview screener. But friends and filmmakers have been raving to me about this Swedish coming-of-age vampire flick for weeks now, and the majority of the reviews have been ecstatic. Words like "mesmerizing," "a funny, haunting dazzler," "dynamite," and "a sensationally compelling genre-bending chiller" have been flying around, not to mention that the film has won major awards at a number of very cool festivals. You can find out more for yourself and check out the trailer at www.magpictures.com

And in another unusual twist of fate, unless you live in New York or LA or near the University of Iowa (!) for some reason, Enzian is the only theater in the country where you can see LET THE RIGHT ONE IN this Halloween week--how awesome is that?!

--Matthew

We're not talking politics here, though everyone's saying it's a "must have" for McCain and right now Florida's still a toss-up--let's hope sanity and common sense prevail, even in this usually conservative state. Nope, the deadline to which I refer is Florida Film Festival deadline # 2. It's hard to believe it's here already, but the Early Entry deadline for Features (films 41 minutes or more) for the 18th annual Florida Film Festival (March 27 - April 5, 2009) hits this Friday, October 31--Happy Halloween! So to avoid those dreaded late fees (though I guess $20 isn't too bad compared to most), be sure to get your feature-length films of any kind (narrative, documentary, animated, domestic or international) in transit by this weekend. As always, entry info is available at www.floridafilmfestival.com or www.withoutabox.com/login/1139 And if for some reason you're unable to get it together by the end of the week, you should be aware that the Late Entry deadline for Features is December 5. Whichever you're able to do, we're always eager to see new work, so send it on in!

--Matthew

The fairytale season of baseball's upstart overachievers, the Tampa Bay Rays, will most likely be coming to a surprisingly swift end this evening after World Series Game 5. After a disastrous weekend in Philadelphia which saw them lose Games 3 and 4, they now have to face undefeated-in-the-postseason Phillies ace Cole Hamels in an elimination game. Oh, did I mention that Philly hasn't lost a home game yet in the playoffs?

The Rays made a valiant comeback late in Game 3, and then blew it with pitching and throwing mistakes in the bottom of the 9th that cost them the game, 5-4. Tampa's pitchers got the crap beat out of them in Game 4, and the team got trounced 10-2 (the first blowout after 3 relatively close contests). The Phillies' pitching has been uniformly good and their big bats have awakened. Two of Tampa's best and most important hitters, Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria (who bat 3rd and 4th in the lineup), are a combined 0-for-29 (!) in the first 4 games, with at least half of the outs strikeouts--ouch!

Perhaps it's the cold weather, perhaps it's their youth and inexperience, perhaps it's just that the Phillies are just too damn good right now. Whatever the combination of reasons, it appears that this dream ride is over. They've been defying expectations all season long, but coming back from a 3-1 deficit to win the Series in 7? I'm not feelin' it. But it's still been an amazing and completely unexpected season of baseball in the Tampa Bay area, and another game or two in St. Pete would be a lot of fun.

--Matthew

Attention Florida shorts filmmakers--the entry deadline for the 17th annual Brouhaha Film & Video Showcase is here. Brouhaha was established nearly two decades ago as an annual event spotlighting the work of Florida's finest independent filmmakers. The 2-day program at Enzian Theater on the afternoons of December 6 & 7 will focus on the growing number of indie and student filmmakers in the state. A recent development is that films are now judged by a panel of local industry professionals for a chance to be screened at the 2009 Florida Film Festival (March 27 - April 5).

So don't dawdle and don't hesitate. Even though the postmark deadline is Friday, October 24, you are still good-to-go as long as your submission arrives next week. All films must be narrative, animated, music video, or documentary shorts (no PSAs please) with a total running time of less than 25 minutes. The entry fee is only $10, and info and an entry form can be found at http://www.enzian.org/festivals/brouhaha2008entryweb.pdf

We look forward to seeing your work!

--Matthew

Can you really bet against the Tampa Bay Rays in the World Series? The team that had never won more than 70 games in a season in their miserable 10 years of existence that went on to win the toughest division in baseball (AL East), beating out the Boston and New York mega($$$)powers and a good Toronto club with an astounding 97 victories? The team that went from the worst record in the league last year with 96 losses to playoff victories against the Central Divison winning Chicago White Sox and the mighty, ever-resilient World Champion Boston Red Sox, who they took out in a pressure-filled 7 game series? The same Red Sox team that had been 9-0 in elimination games under Terry Francona and had all the momentum in the world after a miracle 7-run comeback late in Game 5 and a solid road win in Game 6 of the ALCS?

While Vegas odds are favoring the Rays, most of the pundits on ESPN are picking the Phillies to win the Series based on their 3-All-Star infield (Howard, Utley, and Rollins), experience, and unblemished stopper in the bullpen, Brad Lidge (49-0 in save opportunities!?). Of course, these were the same experts who picked the Red Sox and Dodgers to meet in the Series. If the Rays win, they will be the first team in history in any of the four major sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey) to go from absolute worst to a world championship the very next season--it's never been done before.

It's already one of the greatest sports stories ever, if not one of the greatest underdog stories ever. Journalists are using the "Miracle on Ice" and the '69 Mets as reference points. A World Series victory would simply be icing on the cake to this amazing turnaround. I may be a bandwagon fan, but with this team who isn't? And at least Tampa has two former Twins players (ALCS MVP Matt Garza and shortstop Jason Bartlett) in key roles. This is awesome (and pretty damn fun to boot!)--the Rays in 7.

--Matthew

Coincidence, or do we just have good taste (and for that matter, Zeitgeist as well)? It turns out that yesterday's announcement of the nominees for this year's Gotham Independent Film Awards featured two titles scheduled for Enzian this very weekend: Tia Lessin and Carl Deal's Sundance and Full Frame-winning Katrina doc, TROUBLE THE WATER, and Guido Santi and Tina Mascara's poignant and remarkable relationship film, CHRIS & DON: A LOVE STORY. TROUBLE opens a week-long theatrical run on Friday the 24th, and CHRIS & DON plays once only on Sunday the 26th at 11:00 AM as part of the 6th annual Gay Orlando Film Festival. Both of these superb films happen to be distributed by Zeitgeist Films, an indie in New York City that has consistently demonstrated excellent taste in its acquisitions over the years.

Interestingly, two of the three remaining nominated docs also opened at Enzian, and the third would have had it not appeared on HBO prior to its theatrical release. Herzog's ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD played in July, and James Marsh's MAN ON WIRE opened in September. Marina Zenovich's fascinating ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED was one of my favorites at Sundance, but there's no way we can open a film after it's aired on television (let alone numerous times). So box office grosses for doc features may be down from a couple of years ago, but Enzian is certainly doing its part to keep fighting the good fight.

--Matthew

Enzian's monthly showcase for short works from Central Florida filmmakers, FilmSlam, drew a healthy crowd of just under 100 local indie film enthusiasts last weekend. With one more event to go in 2008 prior to the "Grand Slam" program of the Brouhaha Film & Video Showcase on December 6 & 7, eight films sought Audience Award honors to guarantee themselves a spot in Brouhaha. And a guaranteed spot in Brouhaha translates into a possible invitation for the Florida Shorts program in the 2009 Florida Film Festival.

So congratulations go to Xavier Arijs for his SOPHIE & ALEX, which took 1st Place in the audience voting. Kudos also to Justin de Leon's JOURNEY: A STORY OF URBAN POVERTY and Christopher K. Morgan's HALLOWEEN H30 for 2nd and 3rd place respectively. November 9 will be the last Slam of the year, so be sure to get those submissions in by the end of the month--as always, info can be found at www.enzian.org .

--Matthew

Enzian Film Society Membership Month activities continue this weekend with a stellar combination of 80's movie gems and a Meet-the-Filmmaker event, and best of all, they're both free. Sunday afternoon at 1:00 PM we'll be screening a 35mm print of TOOTSIE (1982), easily one of the most beloved films and great comedies of the period, and a perfect opportunity for us to pay tribute to the recently deceased director/producer/actor Sydney Pollack, whose truly remarkable career spanned six decades. A double Oscar winner for OUT OF AFRICA (not one of my favorites), Pollack's Best Picture and Best Director nominations were just two of the ten (!) that TOOTSIE received, including the two for Pollack plus Best Actor (Dustin Hoffman), Original Screenplay, and two Supporting Actress nods for both Teri Garr and Jessica Lange, with Lange taking home the only trophy for the film. The wonderful screenplay was actually co-written by Larry Gelbart of TV's "Your Show of Shows" and "M*A*S*H" fame, and the terrific cast also included Bill Murray, Dabney Coleman, Charles Durning, and a stunning Geena Davis in her film debut. TOOTSIE is a members-only (+ guests) special event, so if you're not already part of the Enzian Film Society, now's the time to join.

Monday night at 6:30 we're honored to host perhaps Florida's greatest living indie filmmaker, Victor Nunez (RUBY IN PARADISE, ULEE'S GOLD), along with a virtually brand new print of his 1984 American Playhouse production, A FLASH OF GREEN. Based on the novel by John D. MacDonald, this drama of small-town Florida corruption and journalistic ethics stars Ed Harris, Blair Brown, Richard Jordan, and John Glover. It is presented in conjunction with Rollins College Critical Media & Cultural Studies Dept. and Dr. Denise Cummings, and thanks to her, this Meet-the-Filmmaker event and film screening with post-film Q&A is free as well and open to everyone, general public included. Just be aware that seating will be on a first come, first served basis, and part of the house will be reserved for Rollins students and faculty.

--Matthew

Holy Crap! Can it really be that time already? It's hard to believe it's here, but the Early Entry deadline for Shorts (films 40 minutes or less) for the 18th annual Florida Film Festival (March 27 - April 5, 2009) hits this Friday, October 17. So to avoid those dreaded late fees, be sure to get your short films of any kind (narrative, documentary, animated, domestic or international) in transit by this weekend. As always, entry info is available at www.floridafilmfestival.com and withoutabox.com/login/1139. And if for some reason you're unable to get it together by the end of the week, you should be aware that the Late Entry deadline for Shorts is November 14. Whichever you're able to do, we're eager to see new work.

--Matthew

CHRISTMAS ON MARS is finally coming to Orlando. The long-awaited (and we do mean long), micro-budget, sci-fi, self-described "fantastical film freakout" was actually conceived by Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne back in 2001, and we've been looking forward to it and in hot pursuit ever since. In fact, my very first show in Orlando after moving down from NYC in September, '87, was the Lips in a club off of South O.B.T. somewhere (nice neighborhood), and the Florida Film Festival was honored to have the East Coast Premieres and 2nd US showings of both Bradley Beesley's previous projects starring the band, THE FLAMING LIPS HAVE LANDED (2000) and FEARLESS FREAKS (2005).

This Saturday, October 18, at 1:00 and 11:59 PM, Enzian is proud to present, in glorious 35mm, the Florida Premiere of the film that the Village Voice compared to both David Lynch's ERASERHEAD and John Carpenter's DARK STAR. So don't wait for the DVD release in November you wusses--this is your one and only chance (actually two) to catch this trippy, bizarre, utterly ridiculous and highly inventive sci-fi fable from one of the coolest bands on the planet on the big screen. Hell, even SNL's Fred Armisen and the Hebrew Hammer himself, Adam Goldberg, make cameos. And remember to hang on to your ticket stub and redeem it for $2 off at Park Ave CDs when the DVD actually does see the light of day (one fan called it "the Chinese Democracy of DVDs.")

--Matthew

Despite nearly every baseball pundit picking the Dodgers and the Red Sox to meet up in the World Series (which of course would be the network's dream matchup with the whole Torre/Manny/Boston thing), I was surprised to see the results of a viewer poll on ESPN's Baseball Tonight on Wednesday. Asked who do you think will win the Series, Tampa led the way with over 31% of the votes. Boston and LA were virtually tied for second with over 27% each, and the Phillies were last with over 14%. The announcers seemed just as surprised when they revealed the totals, commenting that "a lot of people must have voted in Florida." Perhaps that's the case, or perhaps baseball fans everywhere are believing in this amazing worst-to-first fairy tale and think team depth, home field advantage, and destiny will triumph over the stud starters, ace reliever, and tons more playoff experience of the evil empire. This should be a great league championship series--two teams very evenly matched (Tampa was 10-8 in the 18 games with Boston during the season, 8-1 at home and 2-7 on the road--just like the Twins and White Sox!) that don't like each other one bit. I can't wait...

--Matthew

Halloween month means horror-themed treats in Enzian's special programming goodie bags, and this year we have some fun things planned for the Central Florida community. Kicking things off on Thursday night the 9th under the stars will be Mel Brooks' classic parody from 1974, YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN. Shot in gorgeous b&w by Gerald Hirschfeld on sets filled with props from some of the actual 1930's Universal classics, this hilarious work stars Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Terri Garr, Madeline Kahn, Cloris Leachman, and watch for Gene Hackman in a little homage to BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN. Weather permitting, the October Popcorn Flick starts at 8:00 PM in Central Park, downtown Winter Park, and as always, admission (like the popcorn) is free. The raindate will be a week later, 10/16, if we get rained out.

Next up on 10/14 at 9:30 PM at Enzian is Tim Burton's 1988 BEETLEJUICE for the Cult Classics series ("all 35mm prints, all the time"). Burton's breakthrough, Oscar-winning comedy about a dead couple (Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin) learning how to haunt their house from a mad ghoul (Michael Keaton), upped the craziness ante on the similar in tone PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE, and boasts another great score from Danny Elfman and fine supporting work from Winona Ryder, Catherine O'Hara, Sylvia Sidney, and Dick Cavett.

And hold on to your hats, because last but not least will be the October 28 Cult Classic presentation of John Carpenter's THE THING (1982). A remake of the 1951 film about an Antarctic outpost terrorized by an alien organsim, this version is much more faithful to the source material and stars Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, Richard Masur. and Keith David. It's also jaw-droppingly gruesome, terrifying, and thrilling to watch, with incredible makeup and special effects. All in all, a perfect appetizer for your Halloween fun just three days later.

--Matthew

Tuesday night at 7 PM (with a reception starting at 6:15) at Enzian, don't miss the feature film screening event of this year's 4th annual UCF Latin American Cultural Festival of Orlando. A six week celebration (produced by the University of Central Florida) of all the cultural arts--including music, theater, dance, poetry, literature, fine art and cinema--this year's presentation of POR SUS PROPIOS OJOS ("Proper Eyes") follows in the footsteps of Carlos Sorin's INTIMATE STORIES, a newly struck print of Marcel Camus' BLACK ORPHEUS, and Francisco Vargas' Cannes-winning THE VIOLIN.

Skillfully mixing documentary and narrative and filmed on location at the San Martin Penitentiary in Cordoba, Argentina, Liliana Paolinell's powerful drama focuses on a couple of college students attempting to make a film about the women in the lives of prisoners at a local jail. An accomplished blend of social criticism, fear, fantasy, and reality, PROPER EYES won four awards at the Gramado Film Festival (Best Screenplay, Actress, Jury Prize and Audience Award) and its two leads shared the Best Actress Award at the Biarritz International Festival of Latin American Cinema.

So come out and support this one-of-a-kind screening and terrific local cultural event. And since the film's only 82 minutes long, you'll still have plenty of time to make it home for the big debate.

--Matthew

October at Enzian is always Membership Month, and this Sunday at 1:00 PM promises to be the first of many exciting special events planned for both Enzian Film Society members and the Central Florida community. Enzian, the Bach Festival Society, and Steinway Piano Galleries have combined efforts to bring the acclaimed doc feature, NOTE BY NOTE: THE MAKING OF STEINWAY L1037, to town for one matinee screening, with director Ben Niles in attendance for Q&A after the showing. Tracing the yearlong creation of a single grand piano, this is a beautiful and fascinating film about music and craftsmanship.

This Meet-the-Filmmaker event is free for all current Enzian Film Society and Bach Festival Society members, and regular matinee price ($7) for the general public. And if you like what you see (and hear), one of the extraordinary musicians featured in the film, famed pianist Helene Grimaud, will be in concert a week later on October 12 at 3:00 PM at the Tiedtke Concert Hall on the Rollins College campus. Show your Enzian membership card at the door and receive $5 off the ticket price.

Joining the Enzian Film Society--good for us, and good for you...many times over!

--Matthew

With exception to the "Bucky-friggin' Dent" game decades ago between the Yankees and Red Sox to decide the AL East, why should they even need a tiebreaker to find a division winner? Granted this may sound like sour grapes after my Twins lost a 1-0 heartbreaker to Chicago in game # 163 last night to end their season, but even if Minnesota had won, it's a valid question.

These teams played 18 times during the regular season, with the Twins beating the White Sox 10 times. And how did that benefit them when both teams finished with identical records (amazingly home, away, and divisional were the same as well)? Not a single bit. Rather than decide the standings based on head-to-head in the case of similar records like they do in the other major sports, Major League Baseball calls for an extra game to settle things. Unfortunately for the Twins, the site of the game is determined by a coin flip, not head-to-head records. So the Twins lost the coin flip and had to play the game in Chicago, where their record was an awful 2-7 during the year (conversely, the White Sox were 1-8 in Minnesota). If baseball isn't going to choose a division winner based on head-to-head, the least they can do is award the team with the better record home field in the tiebreaker game. And if the two teams split the season series, well then you flip the goddamn coin.

None of this may have mattered in the grand scheme of things (the Twins mustered only two hits and their studs, Mauer and Morneau, failed to reach base at least once for the first time all season), but I sure would have liked to find out. After a tremendous and surprising season full of many ups and downs, and the valiant effort they gave taking it past the last day of the season despite the losses of Johan Santana, Torii Hunter, and others, they deserved better. I have only next year to look forward to... now Go Rays!

--Matthew