Amelie
Life is something that happens to Amelie. That is, until the magical day this irrepressible dreamer discovers she can make life happen for others. In this post-modern fairy tale, the winsome Amelie (played by the irresistibly gamine Audrey Tautou) escapes a childhood of unlikely calamities to alight in the Montmartre district of Paris. There she settles into a waitressing job at a quintessentially French café. Despite the diversions of her eccentric co-workers and neighbors, Amelie yearns for adventure and, unknowingly, love. When a chance discovery reveals she has an uncanny power, Amelie unleashes a string of puckish ploys for improving the lots of unsuspecting friends and strangers. Amelie sparkles with improbable digressions, sleight-of-hand special effects, tongue-in-cheek asides, and wacky interludes with an endearingly oddball ensemble of characters (including a lawn gnome). As Amelie's hijinks unfold, filmmaker Jean-Pierre Jeunet, co-director of the surreal The City of Lost Children (FF 95) and Delicatessen (FF 92), reveals a magician's sway over his audience, gleefully tossing out one visual surprise and plot twist after another, conjuring laughter out of bittersweet slices of life.

Atanarjuat the Fast Runner
Atanarjuat the Fast Runner swept down from Canada's Arctic Circle to the Cannes Film Festival this spring, capturing top honors for Best First Feature. This first-ever Inuit-produced film luminously transcribes a thousand-year-old oral legend of two brothers, Amaquiaq (The Strong One) and Atanarjuat (The Fast Runner). Atanarjuat is set in a remote hunting community, amid unending vistas of snow tinted by an incandescent horizon-hugging sun. The tale begins when a mysterious shaman provokes the village leader's envious son into murdering his father. Brewing its slow poison across twenty years and three generations, this evil deed ensnares the spirit of the tribe, divides the tiny community and ultimately loosens its malevolent dart into the lives of Atanarjuat and his brother. Director Zacharias Kunuk and his creative team display a rare combination of dramatic flair, imaginative vision, and eye for authentic detail. Inhabiting their roles with utter conviction, the Inuit cast of mostly non-professionals guide us into the timeless world of their culture and their story. Thick with human desire and folly, rich with humor and heroism, Atanarjuat resonates with the same mythic power as the great traditional epics of Norse saga and Greek tragedy.

The Big Animal
Muses come in all shapes and sizes. And in actor-director Jerzy Stuhr's droll satire, other species as well. Perhaps you've become a bit blasé about the bruins around town, but how would you respond if a truly exotic creature suddenly wandered into your life? Zygmunt Sawicki (played by actor Jerzy Stuhr who also directs) faces such a dilemma when his quiet life is unexpectedly turned topsy turvy by the appearance of a magnificent camel at supper time. Before its arrival, Zygmunt was just a regular guy, content to work as a bank clerk and play clarinet in the village band. Now (abetted by his less enthusiastic wife) he proudly cares for the camel, taking the gentle, music-loving beast for strolls around town. The fascination of his fellow citizens soon turns to envy, bureaucracy, and more when Zygmunt refuses to exploit the gentle giant. Based on a script by the late, great cinematic moralist Krzysztof Kieslowski (Blue, White, Red FF 95), this whimsical parable pits small-town narrow-mindedness against one couple's emerging taste for nonconformity. The Big Animal's charm lingers long after the final credits roll.

Dogtown And Z-Boys
The high-flying skateboard style that is now such a defining element of youth culture had its origins in the '70s, invented by a gang of Southern Californian street kids in a place called Dogtown, 'where the debris meets the sea.' Shunned by conventional surfers and skateboarders, this group of free-wheeling skate punks were the original boarding guerillas, invading swimming pools and other gravity-defying settings. Some of the Z-boys dispersed, in search of the endless summer and the endless high, but others were picked up by sponsors and continued to set skateboarding trends. Director Stacy Peralta, one of the Z-boys, reunites the crew 25 years later to encapsulate a cultural phenomenon that predates X-treme sports and corporate logos. Narrated by Sean Penn and featuring breathtaking vintage footage together with new interviews, Dogtown and Z-Boys emerges as a captivating, highly original, artistic work. It's no wonder it snagged both the Audience and Director Awards for Best Documentary at the Sundance Film Festival.

Door to Door
In this affecting new drama based on a true story, William H. Macy (who co-wrote) plays Bill Porter, a man with cerebral palsy whose dream is to follow in his father's footsteps as a door-to-door salesman. Porter doesn't waste time on self-pity; determined to make a living and independent to a fault, he persuades the Watkins Company to give him its worst sales route and doggedly sets out on a remarkable life journey. Sustained by his mother (Helen Mirren), his Girl Friday, Shelly (Kyra Sedgwick), and mostly by his own persistence, gentle Porter weaves his way into the lives of everyone he meets. Macy is never one to make easy or obvious acting choices, and his portrayal of this unlikely but entirely likeable hero - a part that is both physically and emotionally challenging - is a particular tour de force. Door to Door was created for television and will not be broadcast until 2002. This unique preview has been arranged specially for Reel People, Filmfest's members. William H. Macy will be present to talk about this extraordinary project. Everyone is welcome - all you have to do is become a member of Reel People!

The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition
"Men wanted for Hazardous Journey. Small Wages, Bitter Cold. Long Months of Complete Darkness, Constant Danger, Safe Return Doubtful. Honor and Recognition in Case of Success." Had you responded to this 1914 newspaper advertisement, you might have found yourself on the legendary Antarctic expedition of heroic British explorer Ernest Shackleton. Thanks to George Butler's gripping new documentary, now you can. With vibrant new color photography, remarkable archival footage, interview with descendants of the crew, and poignant diary accounts, The Endurance further transports us into the extraordinary world captured in South (FF 99), the original film commissioned by Shackleton. What results is much more that a time-frozen snapshot of the finale to the great Age of Exploration, when 'gentlemen of adventure' could boldy go where no man had gone before. The Endurance combines edge-of-your-seat adventure with an inspiring investigation of the human spirit. Book your passage now.

Fargo
Fargo is certainly one of the darkest, funniest and most original films made in recent years and widely regarded as a classic - in fact, it was included in the American Film Institute's top 100 movies of all time. As part of this year's Independent by Nature tribute to William H. Macy, we're thrilled to present this big-screen treat with a terrific 35mm print. While Macy's filmography spans dozens of memorable performances both pre- and post-Fargo, perhaps none is more widely beloved than this cult favorite for which Macy garnered enormous public acclaim and critical recognition including an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He stars as Jerry Lundegaard, a Minneapolis car salesman who's seriously in debt and decides to hire two lowlife ex-cons (hilariously portrayed by Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare) to kidnap his wife and get his wealthy father-in-law to cough up the ransom. It sounds like the perfect crime, but quickly, painfully, and inevitably, things get more complicated than the hapless Jerry had ever intended - especially with the heavily pregnant local police chief Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand in a fabulously deadpan performance) on his heels. You'll laugh yourself silly, and you'll squirm in horror - at the same time!

Focus
Set in New York during World War II, Focus is a highly-charged drama about the unravelling of a community under pressure of intolerance. Larry Newman (William H. Macy who brilliantly articulates his character's inner turmoil) is no hero. All he wants is a quiet life. But very near the surface of his all-American neighborhood lurks a seething suspicion of 'foreign elements' prompted by resentment of U.S. involvement in the war. Almost invisible in his ordinariness, Larry's problems begin when he starts wearing glasses, and events propel him into a spiral of conflict with his neighbor Fred (played by a superbly menacing Michael Lee Aday, better known as rock star Meat Loaf). A burgeoning relationship with provocative Gertrude Hart (Laura Dern) does nothing to divert attention from Larry as the tension between neighbors escalates. Based on Arthur Miller's controversial 1945 novel, Focus is both a taut period drama and a highly contemporary look at intolerance.

Ikingut
Sure to delight viewers of all ages, Ikingut is an exciting historical adventure - a heart-warming tale of magic and mystery set in the spectacular Arctic scenery of Iceland. After a particularly hard winter, the members of a tiny village look to superstition and old Norse folk tales to explain their dire straits. Something must be blamed for the rough times, and they find the perfect scapegoat in a small creature that has mysteriously appeared in their midst. The object of their suspicion is in reality a lost Inuit boy, Ikingut, who wins the friendship of young Boaz, the minister's son. But Ikingut's endearing smile and resourceful ways aren't enough to convince all the fearful villagers, and some of them resolve to get rid of him. Get ready for Boaz and Ikingut's thrilling exploits! This award-winning, highly entertaining story will appeal to the child in each of us.

Italian for Beginners
Danish film movement Dogma 95 is known for its hand-held style and dramas like Breaking the Waves and Celebration. This stern group seems an unlikely home for a filmmaker with a funnybone but Italian for Beginners, a mellow, clever romantic comedy, deftly proves otherwise. Using raw materials which seem more suited to tragedy than comedy, the film begins in a drab Copenhagen suburb peopled with a clutch of lonely, seemingly unrelated characters. However, writer-director Lone Scherfig transforms these elements with her alchemy of wry humor. Scene by scene, she brushes color and detail into her portraits of a rookie preacher, a shy hotel manager, a compulsively abrasive bartender, a beautiful Italian cook, a lonely hairdresser, and a hopelessly clumsy pastry-shop clerk. Her characters spring to vibrant, sympathetic life as we watch them fumble through various life crises. When, after numerous chance meetings, false starts and hesitations, a common interest in speaking Italian draws them together, we are rooting for them all as they help each other learn a new emotional, as well as linguistic, vocabulary.

Jump
What do a gray-haired artistic couple, a middle-aged policeman, a twenty-something new dad, and an enchanted Central European landscape have in common? In their engaging new documentary, Jump, Emmy Award-winner John Catto and his climbing/film partner Allen Frame Hill set out to show us. In the Czech Republic there are hundreds of towering sandstone pillars which have been a rock-climbing haven for decades. And with their weathered tips often only a tantalizingly short span apart, these pinnacles support another remarkable sport - tower jumping. Interspersing gripping footage of spine-tingling leaps with engaging interviews, Jump profiles three generations of hearty jumpers who discuss what motivates them, why they love this off-beat and hazardous hobby, and how it has impacted their lives. Beautifully shot, Jump provides a fascinating glimpse into a mountain region, an extreme sport, and a small band of quirky individualists, all deserving a closer look. Winner of the Grand Prize and People's Prize at the International Mountaineering Film Festival in Teplice Nad Metuji, Czech Republic. Screening followed by discussion with filmmakers.

Life as a House
Like the dilapidated bungalow he calls home, George's life is in shambles. He is middle-aged and estranged from everything - his job, his ex-wife, even his teenage son. When confronted with life-changing news, George seizes the chance to begin living on his own terms. He hatches a dramatic scheme that family and neighbors view with skepticism, even hostility. But his passion proves contagious, affecting other lives in the most unexpected ways. In a captivatingly nuanced performance, Kevin Kline imbues George with such humanity and disarming candor that no one can fail to be drawn into his story. And there is simply no weak link in the stellar ensemble cast that director Irwin Winkler has assembled: Kristin Scott Thomas, newcomer Hayden Christiansen, Mary Steenburgen, Jena Malone, Sam Robards and Jamey Sheridan. Life as a House is a beautifully played-out drama, but one with a number of different tones which makes it hard to categorize - it's a great story with interesting and truthful characters; it's optimistic, funny and also extremely affecting - in short, a wonderful piece of cinematic entertainment, offering a much-welcomed breath of fresh sea air.

My First Mister
You may recall the engagingly deft touch of Lieberman in Love (FF 95), Christine Lahti's Oscar-winning short that delighted our audience in 1995. Lahti triumphantly returns with her feature debut, an equally beguiling dramatic comedy about a special first love that both departs from and fulfills expectations. Seventeen-year-old Jennifer (Leelee Sobieski) is a multi-pierced and tattooed rebel without direction, angry with her divorced parents in particular and life in general. Middle-aged Randall (Albert Brooks) is a study in complete contrast; owner of an upscale clothing store, he's as buttoned-down and straight-laced as they come. A disastrous first encounter pitches this odd couple into an unlikely friendship, offering each a refuge from loneliness and leading to important discoveries and the revelation of secrets. A love story in the truest sense of the word, My First Mister is about getting a second chance and provides a funny and touching tonic for the cynical soul. The superb supporting cast includes John Goodman in a delirious performance as an attenuated hippie dad and Carol Kane as the utterly oblivious mom.

The Natural History of the Chicken
"Ain't nobody here but us chickens," or so the song goes, but it turns out that a bird's life isn't quite that simple. This hugely entertaining and unexpected documentary by Mark Lewis takes us on a journey through the world of chickens, introducing us on the way to their habits and desires - and also to a number of their more bizarre owners. Chickens excite incredible passion in Lewis's human subjects. We see chickens lovingly bathed, clothed, pampered, chickens miraculously brought back from the dead, and the heart-warming story of Mike, the rooster from Fruita, Colorado, who lost his head, got an agent and went on to enjoy a brief but glorious career on the vaudeville circuit. Somewhere within all this wonderful weirdness, Lewis makes serious and important points about mass farming and the distance it places between our food and ourselves. But mainly it's chicken - served straight up! See this fabulous documentary, and we guarantee you'll never think about poultry in quite the same way again.

Pauline and Paulette
Pauline and Paulette is a tender, funny family portrait with heartfelt and often heart-rending performances by its small cast. Belgian filmmaker Lieven Debrauwer begins his delicate debut feature with three aging sisters living in their small hometown, comfortably absorbed in their daily routines. Paulette (Ann Petersen) is a zaftig, precise (not to say prissy) shopkeeper who glories in her thirty-year reign as resident diva of the local operetta troupe. Her biggest fan is her adoring but pestering sister, Pauline (Dora Van Der Groen). Sweet, willful Pauline is mentally impaired, and though now in her sixties, experiences life through a four-year-old's eyes. When sudden tragedy upsets their ordered lives, the sisters must accept change, but learning new lines at their age proves comically, and at times, painfully difficult. Never heavy-handed or overbearing, this hit from the Cannes Film Festival deals beautifully with the ties of obligation that bind, as well as the heartstrings of affection that bond families together.

There's Only One Jimmy Grimble
Anyone who is - or was - a teenager is sure to enjoy this spunky film about adolescence, soccer, and magic. Winner of numerous awards at international festivals, the story is kicked off by the star power of top British actors Robert Carlyle (The Full Monty), Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast), and Gina McKee (Notting Hill). Add to the mix, beguiling newcomer Lewis McKenzie as Jimmy and a soundtrack of exuberant British pop music and you've scored! In the finest tradition of British social realism, There's Only One Jimmy Grimble unflinchingly, and humorously, addresses the realities of Jimmy's life as a latchkey kid in Manchester. Between his mum's idiotic new boyfriend, the school bullies, his apathetic coach, and his inability to play if anyone's watching, Jimmy is doomed to the darkest corner of awkward adolescence. But with a little magic and a lot of soccer, Jimmy comes out on top in this realistic urban fairy tale that will bring you to your feet and teach a lesson or two about believing in yourself.

Vengo
Vengo is a majestic ode to the artistry and magic of gypsy culture, set in the dusty plains of Spain against the backdrop of two families locked in a struggle for power. Caco, a proud clan leader (Antonio Canales), must fight to end the bloody feud that has been raging for generations between his family and a rival clan. After the death of his beloved daughter, Caco transfers his love and protection to his disabled nephew Diego. But caught between allegiance to his family, and knowing his enemies' unquenchable thirst for revenge, Caco must stop the bloodshed from tearing his world apart. At the center of the story is flamenco itself - the heart and soul of the gypsy people. A mesmerizing feast for the eyes as well as the ears, this latest by director Tony Gatlif (Latcho Drom, Gadjo Dilo) weaves flamenco's ancient rhythms into the story, using the haunting, desolate laments performed by internationally-acclaimed musicians to comment on the mounting drama.

Waking Life
It is rare to be able to say with complete conviction that something is genuinely new and different, but in Waking Life you will see something so radically innovative that you're likely to come away feeling that you've witnessed the reinvention of conventional cinema. Interweaving amazing animation and free-floating dialogues on existence, dreams, life, and consciousness, Waking Life provides an entertaining fly-on-the-wall glimpse into people?s inner lives. Part of what makes this film so unusual is that visionary director Richard Linklater's (Slacker, Dazed and Confused) live-action digital footage has been transformed into light, pliable cartoon images by Bob Sabiston (who with Tommy Pallotta was honored at Aspen Shortsfest last spring), to truly extraordinary effect. The film follows a nameless floating hitchhiker (Wiley Wiggins of Dazed and Confused) who drops in on random conversations as he travels along a dream highway. With a 74-strong cast, including Ethan Hawke, Steven Soderbergh, and a tango quartet, Linklater weaves a funny, moving and altogether trippy experience that will leave you simultaneously breathless and sated. Unbelievably cool.