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April 2003 Confidence - A Film By James FoleyBy Cheryl Dixon Edward Burns is the Player. Dustin Hoffman is the King. Rachel Weisz is the Bait. Andy Garcia is the Law. These and other "A-List," stellar ensemble cast members, which also include Paul Giamatti, Donal Logue, Luis Guzman, Brian Van Holt, Franky G, and Morris Chestnut, interact in the movie, Confidence, an absorbing tale of grifters pulling off a con game in L.A. Skillfully directed by James Foley (Glengarry Glen Ross, The Chamber), this movie is stylish, smart, and sexy. A Lions Gate Film, it opens this Friday, April 25. With a great script (Screenwriter Doug Jung's first feature film) chock full of memorable dialogue, witticisms and hilarity abound and there are excellent performances all around. Expect to be entertained. This movie is so much fun. It hooks you in early, keeps you guessing until the end, and ties up nicely. I can't remember the last time I laughed so much in a movie theatre. Dustin Hoffman has never been creepier in his role as the sexually ambiguous "King." Rachel Weisz has never been lovelier in her role as the seductive, tough, yet tender "Lily." Paul Giamatti shines in his role as the quipster "Gordo." But, make no mistake about it; this movie belongs to Edward "Ed" Burns, whose character "Jake" introduces us to the confidence, i.e., "con" game, which is at the heart of this movie. Jake is cool, suave, and, dare I say it? - SELF-CONFIDENT. He's a master of the con game. Ed Burns' portrayal of Jake is convincing and sizzling. His charisma oozes off the screen. He has all the right moves whether in the boardroom as leader of the con artists or in the bedroom with Lily. I had noticed the multi-talented actor/writer/producer/director Ed Burns since his debut with The Brothers McMullen. I must confess, however, that with his character, Jake, looking remarkably like Ben Affleck, I became intrigued. More notes on Jake and observations on the movie follow. The Player The Style The Story I won't give away any more plot details, except to say that the movie thrives on the element of surprise and plot twists and delights the audience with the cross, double-cross, and triple cross. Production notes reveal that the entire cast and crew were "tightlipped and guarded" as "appropriately enough, a group of con artists." Quotable Quotes
The Skinny An Interview with director James FoleyBy Cheryl Dixon James Foley. Twenty minutes to talk with the Director who worked with Madonna and on Glengarry, Glen Ross. I had seen Confidence and absolutely loved it, but what to do? So many questions/comments, so little time. I decided to tell him upfront that I loved Confidence and that I thought it was stylish, smart, sexy, and fun. I mentioned that there was great memorable dialogue and excellent performances all around, especially those of Dustin Hoffman, Rachel Weisz, and Paul Giamatti, but that this movie clearly belonged to the cool, suave and sexy, Ben Affleck-lookalike, Ed Burns. In Hollywood pitch-style I said that this movie was "where Ocean's 11 meets The Score." Finally I said that the movie would keep the audience hooked, and keep them guessing until the end. Mr. Foley anticipated my first question, I didn't have to ask: Storyboard: Why this project? Foley: I realized that I wanted to make a fun movie. There's something about the breezy surface of the movie that I'm in love with. Doing this movie… it was done in a very pleasurable way. It was like drinking to clear the palette. Foley mentioned that he kept on getting ready to do a "great' film, a great classic, and the Confidence script came to his attention. He said that he enjoyed doing a great work of cinematic art, which is going to include humor, brightness of the human spirit. He mentioned that after The Corruptor, he wasn't interested in making a film. He had worked nonstop since USC film school. He didn't have to work, so he didn't. He read a bunch of scripts, but nothing really stood out, until he read this one. He said that it was easy to read and he read it in one sitting. When he got to the end, he felt something unique, a pleasurable rush and he realized that he was on to something. He said that he is not driven "by what turns people on in Iowa." He is, however, pleased to watch this film with an audience. He said that this was the most people-pleasing movie that he's made and it has been a pleasure to witness the universal positivism emanating from the theatre audience as he has felt the audible signs of their enjoyment of this movie. That audience satisfaction means more to him than focusing on box office receipts. However, he is fully aware of that bottom-line Hollywood indication of a commercially successful movie. He talked about the director's talent to make a good film being an example of the "good" side of Hollywood. Storyboard: I noticed the use of strong primary colors, mostly reds and greens and also the birds motif. Would you comment on this? I think I have an idea of where you were going with this. Foley: The DP uses light-play as much as possible. To some degree you are taping the unconscious. I try to guide so that the technical things are less automatic. You can go on instinct with what looks good and the results are wonderful. Storyboard: Are you more a hands-on or hands-off Director? Foley: I am incredibly "hands- on" about everything. Well, gentle hands. You have to know when to apply or relieve pressure … be empathetic and feel and modulate the actors. You have to make the actors aware that you're empathetic. The best actors want to be directed. Once you're on the same wavelength you get incredible results. I closed the interview after Mr. Foley gave a remarkable analogy. He mentioned the Director's challenge as being one where you have all of this heavy machinery, lights, camera, action on the one hand, and the other that you have up front something quite delicate going on and finding a marriage between the equipment and the art that emerges from it is the task at hand. I didn't get the opportunity to share with Mr. Foley that the Washington, DC Film Society had organized the sold-out D.C. premiere of Glengarry Glen Ross with Producer Stanley Zupnick attending (Ed Harris had to cancel at the last-minute due to a family emergency) and that Film Society members are definitely fans of his work. We now have that opportunity! Next Cinema LoungeThe Cinema Lounge will be held on Monday, April 14 at 7:00pm to discuss "Hollywood Whipping Boys." Whipping boys--both actors and directors--always get a bum rap. Tell us who your favorite whipping boys are and why. A Golden Oscar Night!By Bonnie Joranko Filmfest DC Back for its 17th Year! Festival to Highlight Politics in Film for First TimePolitics in Film will be a highlight of this year's Washington, DC International Film Festival, to be held April 23 through May 4. "Given the times we live in and that our festival takes place in the Nation's Capital, it is appropriate that we pause to explore how international filmmakers grapple with the relationship between people and government, and the effect politics has on our daily lives," said Tony Gittens, the festival's founder and director. An Interview with Santiago LozaBy Jim McCaskill What's Your Favorite Film Line?By Jim McCaskill Calendar of EventsFILMSAmerican Film Institute The new AFI Silver Theater opens in April with three screens. Le Cercle Rouge and Ten have extended runs; there is a series of films from 1938, the date of the Silver Theater's opening; and trilogies (Godfather, Kiarostami's Earthquake trilogy, Satyajit Ray's Pather Panchali trilogy, and the Marius trilogy); plus lots more! Check out the AFI's website. Freer Gallery of Art In April the retrospective of Indian director Adoor Gopalakrishnan with Face to Face (1984) on April 11 at 7:00pm; Monologue (1987) on April 12 at 2:00pm; Walls (1990) on April 25 at 7:00pm with Adoor Gopalakrishnan in person; The Rat Trap (1981) on April 26 at 2:00pm with Adoor Gopalakrishnan in person; and Shadow Kill (2002) on April 27 at 2:00pm. In a separate series celebrating the Korean American Centennial is a panel discussion with filmmakers Christine Choy, Greg Pak, and Grace Lee, discussing making films in a Hollywood dominated industry, on April 10 at 7:00pm. National Gallery of Art In April the Gallery presents a series of seven Italian films including La Dolce Vita (Federico Fellini, 1959) on April 11 at 2:30pm and April 19 at 2:00pm; Francesco Guillare di Dio (Roberto Rossellini, 1949) on April 2 at 12:30pm and 4:30pm; Mamma Rosa (Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1962) on April 12 at 2:00pm; L'Avventura (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1960) on April 13 at 4:30pm and April 18 at 2:00pm; I Vitelloni (Federico Fellini, 1953) on April 20 at 4:00pm; Umberto D (Vittorio De Sica, 1952) on April 24 and 25 at 2:30pm; and 8½ (Federico Fellini, 1963) on April 27 at 4:00pm. Also in April is Der Schwarze Tanner (Xavier Koller, 1985) shown with The Frozen Heart (Xavier Koller, 1979) on April 6 at 4:00pm; Ernst Ludwig Kirchner (Michael Trabitzsch, 2001) on April 9, 10, and 11 at 12:30pm; Der Rächer Von Davos (Heinrich Brandt, 1924) on April 18 and 19 at 12:30pm; Frederic Remington: The Truth of Other Days (1991) on April 16 and 17 at 12:30pm; and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (Robert Wiene, 1919) on April 27 at 12:00pm. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden On April 3 and 4 at 8:00pm is How to Draw a Bunny (John Walter, 2002), a documentary about artist Ray Johnson. on April 10 and 11 at 8:00pm are two different programs of shorts and features from the Slamdance 2003 festival. National Museum of African Art On April 3 at 7:00pm is Taxi to Timbuktu (1994); on April 10 at 7:00pm is Diaspora Conversations: From Gorée to Dogon (Manthia Diawara, 2000) and Drive-By Shoot (Portia Cobb, 1994); on April 24 at 6:00pm is a film and discussion about sacred practices and traditions from West Central Africa to Cuba When the Spirits Dance Mambo (2003); and on April 25 at 7:00pm is Otomo (Frieder Schlaich, 1999), a drama about a West African immigrant in Germany. Renwick Gallery On April 16 is Frank Lloyd Wright: A Film by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick at 1:00pm. Films on the Hill On April 2 at 7:00pm is a silent double feature Helen's Babies (William Seiter, 1924) with Clara Bow, child superstar Baby Peggy, and Edward Everett Horton shown with Yankee Clipper (Rupert Julian, 1927) which stars William Boyd and Junior Coghlan. On April 11 at 7:00pm is It Happens Every Spring (Lloyd Bacon, 1949), a comedy with Ray Milland. On April 23 at 7:00pm is The World in His Arms (Raoul Walsh, 1952) with Gregory Peck and Anthony Quinn in the first of their three films together. DC Jewish Community Center On April 1 at 7:00pm is How I Learned to Overcome My Fear and Love Arik Sharon (Avi Mograbi, 1997), a mockumentary about the former general and cabinet minister. On April 7 at 7:00pm is Mah-Jongg: The Tiles That Bind (Bari Pearlman and Phyllis Heller, 1998) followed by a reception and mah-jongg instruction. Director Bari Pearlman is the special guest. On April 13 at 3:00pm is Zehava Ben the Solitary Star (Erez Laufer, 1997), a video documentary about the Israeli singer's 1996 tour. JUST ADDED!--On April 28 at 7:00pm is Hitler's Hat, (Jeff Krulik, 2003), a video about how Richard Marowitz, a 19 year old Jewish-American GI who stormed Adolph Hitler's apartment on April 30, 1945 in Munich searching for military intelligence found a black top hat belonging to the Fuehrer. First hand testimony from the Rainbow Division veterans mixes with archival footage to make an unconventional and entertaining film. Special guests: Jeff Krulik, the director and Rich Marowitz, the finder of Hitler's hat. Pickford Theater Phantom of the Paradise (Brian DePalma, 1974) is on April 1 at 7:00pm; Bedazzled (Stanley Donen, 1967) is on April 4 at 7:00pm; and The French Connection (William Friedkin, 1971) is on April 11 at 7:00pm. Check the website for others. Goethe Institute Starting in April is a series of four programs of films by Karl Valentin (1882-1948), an early pioneer in the German film industry who wrote, directed short comedies and sketches using styles derived from the circus and music hall. The Nazis censored most of his work which was finally rediscovered in the 1960s. On April 14 at 6:30pm is Program I "Body Catastrophes Without Words--Film Studies of a Stage Eccentric" which includes Karl Valentin's Wedding (1913), The Jolly Vagabonds (1913), The New Desk (1914), The Mysteries of a Hairdresser's Shop (1922), and Karl Valentin and Liesl Karlstadt at the Oktoberfest (1923). The series continues in May. Griot Cinema at Erico Cafe On April 30 at 7:30pm is Mogzitwa (The Nanny, Nikodimos Fikru) The filmmaker will be present. National Museum of Natural History On April 18 at noon is The 1899 Harriman Expedition Retraced (2003) about two scientific expeditions to Alaska, 100 years apart. On April 25 at noon is Mystery of the Yunnan Snub-Nosed Monkey (2002) about the rare non-jungle living monkey in China shown with In Quest of the Frogmouth's Nest (2001) about the rare owl in Sri Lanka. Smithsonian Associates--SPECIAL PRICE FOR DCFS MEMBERS On April 21 at 7:00pm is a film premiere of Confidence (James Foley, 2003) with James Foley as special guest. The film stars Dustin Hoffman, Andy Garcia and Ed Burns. Author and journalist Tom Wiener will interview Foley before the screening at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History Baird Auditorium. James Foley's other credits include Reckless, Glengarry Glen Ross, After Dark, My Sweet, Fear, and The Chamber. Call (202) 357-3030 for more information. Special price for DC Film Society Members: $10.00. Another special offer is coming up next month! FILM TALKS Smithsonian Associates On April 5 at 1:00pm is a half-day seminar "Billy Wilder: Master of the Sublimely Subversive Film" with film historian Max Alvarez. FILM FESTIVALS FilmfestDC begins on April 23 and runs through May 4. Check the story above or the website. This on-line version of the newsletter was last updated on April 15. Please check periodically for additions and corrections. Previous Storyboards
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