Big news at the festival. Some idiot stole the Atlanta Film Festival blimp to protest the screening of BLOOD CAR and posted the video on YouTube. He said he would only return the blimp if the festival would drop Blood Car from the program. The result:BLOOD CAR has now sold out its Friday screening and is well on the way to selling out its Thursday screening and the blimp has recently been returned. This really just shows that conservatives are terrible at protesting. Stick to talk radio, fellas.
The only film I saw today was DRIFTING ELEGANT, based on a play by Stephen Belber (who also wrote the play and screenplays for THE LARAMIE PROJECT and TAPE). The film deals with race relations in a post-9/11 world, telling the story of an unhappy white married couple, their African-American businessman friend, and an Arab-American who has just been released from jail after his rape conviction was overturned. It's easy to see that this was originally theatrical production, as most of the film takes place in a few small spaces. Director Amy Glazer's idea of translating this to a film is bridging the scenes with shots of the city, speeding up the frame to show cars whizzing by. There are also constant flashbacks that show the relationship between one of the characters and the rape victim. Neither of these add to the film very much, so Glazer should have probably stuck with the claustrophobic atmosphere of confined locations. The film is also thematically problematic. As we witness racial tensions heat up throughout the course of the film, what's really at stake is a white couple's marriage. There are a few other flaws, including a stupid ending, but the film does have some good material, with pretty strong dialogue and a surprisingly solid cast of unknowns.
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