Calgary Underground Film Fest Top 5 Picks

The Calgary Underground Film Festival has been the festival where I’ve seen some of my most memorable films.  In 2009, I had the opportunity to catch Graphic Sexual Horror, an intense documentary on a bondage website. The next year (2010), I took in Harmony Korine’s Trash Humpers. It was a blast. It was great to see a film shot on video, especially a Harmony Korine film, in theatres. The Calgary Underground Film Festival has proven to me that it is a festival full of guts. Bringing films to a Southern Albertan audience that would otherwise never have an opportunity to engage with in a social setting. I am excited for this year’s festival since they’ve introduced a festival pass that will allow for the in take as many films as wanted. Regardless of the fact there are at least 5 films that will not be passed up this year. FYI, order is random the numbers don’t mean a thing.

1. We are Legion: The Story of Hacktivists

Revolution! Although the documentary’s trailer didn’t really tickle my fancy, the topic of this documentary is strong enough that I’m willing to bypass the awkward “badass” that is showcased in the trailer. In a time where we’ve seen the Occupy Movement splash headlines and infiltrate even our city this documentary seems to in sync with the times. The documentary promises to tell the story of Anonymous, a group of anonymous hackers, who are all about online civil disobedience and takes a look at hacker-activist history. There is something magical about a group of people using the internet as a weapon for social justice. The documentary screens Tuesday April 17^th at 7:00 pm.

2. Better than Something: Jay Reatard

Who is Jay Reatard? It seems as soon as I encountered his music I woke up to social-media buzzing with news of his death. This happened to me when I was 10 years-old but that time with the beautiful Hispanic singer Selena and the news came to be in the form of old-fashioned word of mouth instead of frantic tweets. Listening to his music now there is no denying that Jay Reatard had something most musicians are hoping soon comes in a bottle. His music is fun (music never dies) so I’m excited to see the layers of Jay Reatard unfold in this rockumentary. The ROCKUMENTARY screens April 16 at 9:30 pm.

3. Klovn (Clown)

CUFF warns us in the description of this film about icky factors. That’s all I need. But for the rest of you: the film promises to take the viewer into uncomfortable scenarios brought to you by two Danish men on a road trip with a child. My stomach is already turning! The film is based on a Danish cult TV show of the same name and stars comedians Frank Hvam and Casper Christensen. The trailer reveals the film to be shot in a style that has been made famous by the Office and embedded with material that would strike the fancy of those who like their comedy with a twist of sick. The film screens April 19^th at 9:00 pm.

4.  Marina Abramovic: the Artist is Present

In 2010 MOMA put on a performance retrospective of the work of Marina Abramovic. Not only were performance pieces of Marina Abramovic re-performed by younger artist but Abramovic also had a new performance piece running in conjunction with the show. Abramovic is an artist that uses her body as the medium, she embodies her ideals and performs them in such a way that seeing her is seeing her belief, her art. I am interested to see how the MOMA reconstructed her performance pieces and to see the effectual artist perform both in the show and for the camera. The documentary screens on April 21 at 7:00 pm.

5. Beyond the Black Rainbow

Hyper-stylized film! Described to be a film for the senses this Canadian film tells the tale of doctor that breaches all ethics all for the search of inner peace. I am more than willing to support home-grown film if it follows a beautiful character through the inner bowels of an experimental institution. The film is set in 1983, perhaps a reference to the book 1984 but has a feel of the future. Sign me up.

Thanks to guest blogger Karla for her picks. The Calgary Underground Film Festival runs April 16th to 22nd and features a number of films and special events. For more information check out their website.

Tagged as: Calgary, Cuff, downtown, film, film festival, globe cinema, hacktivists, jay reatard, klovn, movies, underground film festival