The verdict is in –it’s a lucky #13. We’ve taken over Front Street, averted bad weather, and Skyped with a chicken –and we’re only half done.
We’ve added an additional screening of the film everyone wants to see but can’t get into –and one of Michael’s top two favorite films of the festival –“I Am Not Your Negro.” Tickets are available for Sunday, July 30 at 6 pm at the Bijou, but they’re going fast.
While there’s still time to soak in the magic of TCFF before it evaporates into thin air, consider checking out a few more gems. After all, with concessions this good, you don’t really even need to leave the theaters.
1. All Governments Lie: Truth, Deception, and the Spirit of I.F. Stone
It sold out its first two screenings in a flash, but a few tickets remain for the encore screening of this remarkably nonpartisan indictment of mainstream media, told through the lens of maverick journalist I.F. Stone and his quest to expose deception. Featuring Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky, Ralph Nader, Matt Taibbi, Jeremy Scahill, Glenn Greenwald, and Amy Goodman.
2. Attack of the Lederhosen Zombies
On Saturday night, in the time-honored tradition of “Dead Snow” and “Black Sheep,” we present for your viewing pleasure a horror-comedy about American snowboarders messing about with flesh-starved Austrians dressed in suspenders and short pants. And, Breaking News: beforehand, we’re featuring one of the best shorts at the festival, “Hot Winter: A Film by Dick Pierre,” with filmmaker Jack Henry Robbins, son of TCFF favorite Susan Sarandon, LIVE, in person. Drink some coffee and join us at midnight.
3. The Blood is at the Doorstep
Dontre Hamilton, an unarmed, schizophrenic black man, was shot 14 times in broad daylight by a police officer responding to a non-emergency complaint. In director Erik Ljung’s clear-eyed doc, he explores what happened next: out of unimaginable heartbreak came hope and strength and vigilance. The director and Dontre’s mother join us in TC to present this vital work.
Come to see a funny doc and get a chocolate bar for your trouble — can that be true? At TCFF, yes. Everyone who joins us for this hilarious doc about a group of charming Dutch journalists who kind of stumble into challenging the chocolate industry’s unethical practices, leading them to attempt production of the world’s first slave-free chocolate bar, will receive a FREE Grocer’s Daughter chocolate bar — locally made, and child labor and slave free!
5. Gook
Two Korean American brothers who own a struggling women’s shoe store have an unlikely friendship with an 11-year-old girl. On the first day of the 1992 L.A. riots, the trio defend their store and contemplate the meaning of family, their personal dreams, and the future.On the 25th anniversary of a landmark American event, witness the multi-threat filmmaking talent of newcomer Justin Chon in this electrifying period dramedy that mixes Italian neorealism and the monochrome visual template of Charles Burnett’s masterpiece “Killer of Sheep.”
6. The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson
The current political climate and this week’s jaw-dropping announcement makes David France’s riveting look at trans activism even more fascinating, as supporters of trans activist Martha P. Johnson cast doubt on the NYPD’s decision to rule her death a suicide. France will Skype in following the screening.
Donald Trump looms large in this quietly devastating, scrupulously restrained, beautifully produced doc. TCFF favorite Cullen Hoback (“Terms and Conditions May Apply”) presents a cogent, nonpartisan paranoia about state and federal regulatory agencies, and links the contamination of drinking water to a perfect storm of industry maleficence, government negligence, and bureaucratic malpractice. The Great Lake State may want to take note.
Only eight states require that police look at, and use evidence from, rape kits that are so intrusively gathered from women, in order to find and arrest rapists. Michigan is not one of these states. Wayne County prosecutor and all-around inspirational badass Kym Worthy set out to change that, with unbelievable results. Worthy, other subjects from the film, and the directors of this explosive film are here in TC to present this most powerful of screening events.
9. Junction 48
Two Arab musicians in love struggle with life in a crime-ridden ghetto, and try to grab the chance to do something great with their lives when they finally get a chance to perform in a Tel Aviv hip-hop club. The film’s incredible lead actress Samar Qupty will be here to answer questions following this crowd-pleasing musical that provides unique insight into the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
10. Nowhere to Hide
Kurdish Norwegian director Zaradasht Ahmed joins us in TC to present a harrowing but doggedly life-affirming revelation about life in Iraq following the departure of American troops. Zaradasht gave his camera to Sharif, a soulful, eloquent father of four, who then spent three years recording his life, first as nurse in an Iraqi hospital, and then as a desperate refugee seeking safety for his family.
11. Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World
Like music? This one’s for you. Buddy Guy, Steven Van Zandt, Tony Bennett, Taj Mahal, Cyril and Ivan Neville, Martin Scorsese, John Trudell, Steven Tyler, George Clinton, Jackson Browne, Martha Redbone, Iggy Pop, and Marky Ramone explain the dramatic impact Native musicians Charley Patton, Mildred Bailey, Link Wray, Jimi Hendrix, Jesse Ed Davis, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Robbie Robertson, and Randy Castillo have had on the soundtracks of our lives.
12. Tom of Finland
This beautiful, crowd-pleasing biopic of the legendary Finnish artist won’t make anyone blush, and may be too cautious about letting its freak flag fly, but the conventional, enjoyable portrait welcomes a wide audience to a truly excellent, rainbow flag-waving, art-loving WWII drama that’s a wonderful fit for TC audiences. Really!
13. True Conviction
After spending over 60 years in prison for crimes they did not commit, three exonerated men form a detective agency. Director Steve Meltzer and agency founder Christopher Scott will appear in person with this doc for true crime fanatics and anyone interested in issues of justice in the United States.
