Year: 2018

The Phoenix Film Festival and Foundation reel off a new movie celebration, the Peoria Film Fest

Jeff Mitchell

The Phoenix Film Festival has been living large in the Valley of the Sun for 18 years, but Arizona’s top festival is branching out.  Branching out to the West Valley, actually. Peoria! The first Peoria Film Fest – sponsored by Phoenix Film Festival and Phoenix Film Foundation – will light up Harkins Arrowhead Fountains 18 Theatres on Oct. 19 to Oct. 21 and feature upcoming studio and independent movies. “We’ve been looking to host an event in the North Valley and Peoria made the most sense. The growth of the…

‘Eighth Grade’ feels difficult, and that’s perfect

Jeff Mitchell

“Eighth Grade” – Kids can be kids in elementary school, and teens can be teens in high school, but what about middle school?  Well, unfortunate 11, 12 and 13 years-olds trudge, through that hellish purgatory between preteen innocence and young adulthood, otherwise known as middle school. With social pressures, hormonal changes and anxiety at their peaks, these kids attempt to cope with their current, dire 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. existences that feel similar to a never-ending slog through mud pit, 18 inches deep.  Every step is a struggle, and…

‘Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot’ gets horribly lost

Jeff Mitchell

“Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot” – According to Google, a mess is defined as a situation or state of affairs that is confused or full of difficulties. Gus Van Sant’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot” – a biopic about cartoonist John Callahan’s life after a car accident left him mostly paralyzed at age 21 – is a mess. A confusing mess, one that Van Sant overcomplicates and creates narrative difficulties, where none should exist. A successful film adaption of John’s story should be a foregone…