The Denver Film Festival is back for its 48th year, starting on Friday, Oct. 31.
From special guests Lucy Liu and former Denver Bronco John Elway, to “Sinners” star Delroy Lindo and “Good Will Hunting” director Gus Van Sant, the lineup is stacked with special guests, exciting events and must-see films.
With so much to see and do, we got some recommendations from Denver Film’s Artistic Director Matthew Campbell to help you plan your screening schedule.
Must-sees with Colorado connections
“We're always very fortunate to be able to celebrate our local homegrown talents and films about Colorado,” Campbell said. “This year, we have an elevated spotlight with our closing night presentation of ‘Elway.’ It doesn't get more Denver and Colorado than celebrating the Duke of Denver, our hometown hero, who will be in attendance for the world premiere of his new documentary about his life and career.”
The film — which chronicles John Elway’s life from his early days at Stanford through his 16 seasons as the Denver Broncos starting quarterback — screens as a special, red carpet event at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9. The film will be followed by a conversation with John Elway and the film’s directors, Ken Rodgers and Chris Weaver.
In addition to “Elway,” which will be released on Netflix following the festival, Campbell said the program includes a wide array of must-see films with Colorado connections.
“We have ‘Comparsa,’ which is produced and directed by a filmmaking team out of Boulder,” Campbell said. “This is about two young sisters from Guatemala who start an art project and a festival to combat the historic and personal trauma that happened to them in a group home.”
He also recommends “Rebuilding,” a dramatic feature starring Josh O’Connor. The film, shot in Colorado’s San Luis Valley, tells the story of a cowboy who loses his family ranch in a wildfire and drifts into a FEMA trailer park, where he begins to rebuild his life.
“Backside,” a cinema verite documentary about the workers at Churchill Downs who take care of the horses that race in the Kentucky Derby, is also on Campbell’s list, as is “Creede, U.S.A,” a documentary that captures a microcosm of America, as exemplified in this Colorado town.
“It gets into how this small town has a very diverse population in terms of their thoughts on politics and the nation, and they're all living together,” Campbell said. “(Creede, U.S.A.) does bring some hope for our current national political situation.”
Weird and eclectic festival favorites
The program features immediate attention-grabbers — like the highly-anticipated “Hamnet,” starring Jessie Buckley and Paul Mezcal, “The Choral,” starring Ralph Fiennes, and “Dead Man’s Wire,” starring Bill Skarsgård, Colman Domingo and Al Pacino. But the fun of film festivals also lies in the ability to see unusual works that you might not see outside a festival setting.
“‘Straight Circle’ is a really bizarre film,” Campbell said. “These two soldiers are manning a border between these two fictional countries out in the desert. And over time, they slowly but surely kind of become each other's doppelganger and descend into a nightmarish madness.”
“‘Hair, Paper, Water’ is a really beautiful avant-garde documentary that takes place in Vietnam,” Campbell said. “This is about an indigenous woman who has never really gone out into modern, contemporary, urban settings.”
The film is shot on 16mm film and spliced together with an experimental editing style that lingers on dreams, family rituals, and fleeting moments of daily life.
“‘Rose Of Nevada’ is another interesting one,” Campbell said. “This is sort of a time loop, high-concept, out-of-body story, kind of centered on a fishing boat that these two guys (George MacKay and Callum Turner) are working on.”
If you’re looking for more of a crowd-pleaser, Campbell suggests “The Golden Spurtle.”
“This is a fun documentary, almost in the vein of a Christopher Guest film,” Campbell said. “It's about the world competition of porridge-making in Scotland. It follows an eccentric cast of characters who are participating in this competition.”
Special presentations
“One that I'm really excited about is ‘Rosemead,’” Campbell said, “where we're presenting Lucy Liu with the John Cassavetes Award, our most prestigious award… and this performance that she gives in ‘Rosemead’ is just really a knockout.”
Inspired by true events, the ‘Rosemead’ follows a Chinese American family shaken when a mother (Lucy Liu) discovers her teenage son’s violent obsessions. Rather than turn away, she confronts his struggles head-on, engaging in family and group therapy as part of her resolve to break taboos and seek healing despite cultural silence around mental illness.
And last, but not least, Campbell recommends an alternative closing-night event for those who aren’t headed to “Elway.”
“‘The Testament of Anne Lee’ is a great alternative,” Campbell said. “This is by the creative team of ‘The Brutalist.’ It’s a musical starring Amanda Seyfried about the founder of the Shaker religious movement…. It's definitely one of my personal favorites of the year.”
The Denver Film Festival runs Friday, Oct. 31, through Sunday, Nov. 9, at various venues across Denver. View the festival program and ticketing information here.
