Paco (Jamie Kierans) is the “bastard” town boy who believes his father will come back from Spain soon. His best friend Frogs (John Carpenter) is a gypsy boy who beats up bullies and encourages Paco to keep one eye open for E.T. They also spend their days making mischief. Everyone from the local DJ (who hides in a tower and illegally broadcasts rock-and-roll) to the grumpy old man with the fix-it shop, are recipients of pranks and disturbances.

One evening Paco gets his wish and witnesses a spectacular event. A plane crashes in the middle of a field, but instead of a bald otherworldly creature, Colombian pilot Ernesto (Damian Bichir) emerges from the wreckage. Unfortunately for Ernesto, Paco is the only one in the town who knows any Spanish and tells the townspeople that Ernesto is on a mission to find food and water for his village. The revelation motivates the people to fix the plane and get Ernesto back home.

‘The Runway’ is set in the 80s and very much an ode to that magical time. Director Ian Power does a great job of capturing the wonder that kids yearned for and the hunger for a little magic in their lives. The soundtrack reiterates the sentiment with music from U2 and killer score by composer Gast Waltzing.

The behind-the-scenes is also a throwback to the 80s. Power had a small budget but got the project off the ground thanks to the Irish Film Board and help from what producer Brendan McDonald calls “the small Irish community”. In fact, according to McDonald, this is how they got permission to play the U2 song “Electric Co”. And then there is the story of how Power found Paco and Frogs. After seeing about 2,000 kids, Power was about to throw his hands up when two kids with Cork accents stroll in–one (Kierans) auditioning for the part and later, the other, (Carpenter) interested in going to McDonalds after the audition.

The actors are really what make the movie. Bichir is a talented Mexican actor who plays the part of Ernesto with just enough heart but not too much that it becomes sappy. Paco’s mother Grace (Kerry Condon) is much like the mother on E.T., a bit tough but oblivious to the truth.

‘The Runway’ is inspired by a true story, but the fiction is predictable and overly romanticized. That’s not to say that it is not a great little film. After all, Spielberg started his career making films that were warm and fuzzy.

Red Carpet Crash is pleased to team up with TXU Energy and NewTek to present live streaming coverage of the 2011 Dallas Film Society Honors on Friday, April 8 from Union Station in downtown Dallas.

The sold out event presents awards for outstanding achievement in films selected for the 2011 DALLAS International Film Festival, as well as honoring 2011 Dallas Star Awards winners Ann-Margret, Horton Foote, Scott Burns, Steve James, and Chris Sanders and Dean DuBlois.

Viewers will be able to catch all of the DFS Honors Red Carpet beginning at 6:00 pm CT, as Red Carpet Crash editor Devin Pike talks with all of the attendees as they arrive for the night’s festivities. Included in the guest list are the student filmmakers who were selected as finalists for the TXU Energy Light Up the Red Carpet competition – Olivia Pich from Garland High School, Christian Vasquez from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing Arts, and Kassidy Testut from Richardson High School competing in the High School competition; and Katherine Yarbrough of the Art Institute of Dallas, Dylan Voisard of the University of North Texas, and Aaron Carolina from the University of Texas at Arlington competing in the College competition. Their nominated films are online for viewing at TXUStudentFilmContest.com.

Online streaming coverage of the 2011 DFS Honors is made possible by NewTek, makers of the TriCaster. The lightweight, portable system (small enough to fit in a backpack) gives any broadcaster all of the tools, including live virtual sets, required to broadcast, live stream, project, and record your show. Get more information at NewTek.com.

Keeping to our mission to HONOR filmmakers and recognize their achievements and contributions in enhancing the creative community, the Dallas Film Society will present its second annual tribute gala, Dallas Film Society Honors, on Friday, April 8th at Dallas’ historic Union Station. Presented by The Arthur E. Benjamin Foundation, this star-studded evening of tributes with over 500 attendees will feature some of the top filmmakers in the industry for a one-of-a-kind spectacular event filled with big names, big talent and big entertainment preceded by a big red carpet. We’ll be inviting some of Hollywood’s most notable filmmakers as potential honorees for the 2011 Dallas Film Society Honors.

Past recipients of the Dallas Star award include John Lee Hancock, Wally Pfister and Frank Darabont as well as Pete Docter who received the coveted Texas Avery Animation Award presented in partnership with REEL FX ENTERTAINMENT. For a complete list and more on past honorees, click here.

Additionally, over $100,000 in prizes and grants will be awarded to novice and student filmmakers alike: $50,000 – Target Filmmaker Awards, $20,000 – MPS Studios Texas Filmmaker Award and $30,000 – TXU Energy High School and College Technology Grants. Other non-cash prizes will be awarded by Movie Magic and REEL FX to winning filmmakers in various competitions. Neiman Marcus will once again provide winners and honorees with Steuben Crystal awards.

The DALLAS International Film Festival presented by Cadillac has announced the Closing Night film will be John Landis’ BURKE & HARE. The screening will take place on April 9 at 8PM at the Texas Theatre in Oak Cliff, Dallas.

Based on the true story about the famous murderers, BURKE AND HARE follows the hapless exploits of these two men as they fall into the highly profitable business of providing cadavers for the medical fraternity in Nineteenth Century Edinburgh, then the centre of medical learning. The one thing they were short of was bodies. The film stars Tom Wilkinson, Tim Curry, Simon Pegg, Andy Serkis, Jessica Hynes and Isla Fisher.

The DALLAS International Film Festival also announced that PETER FONDA will be attending the DALLAS Film Society Honors on April 8, 2011 to present the Target Filmmaker Awards to the best narrative and documentary feature film as chosen by an independent jury of filmmakers and film professionals. The winner from each category will receive an unrestricted $25,000 cash prize courtesy of Target.

LARRY HAGMAN will also be attending the DALLAS Film Society Honors to present the Environmental Visions Award to the film that best communicates the importance of environmental conservation through the art of film. Known for being incredibly eco-conscious the presentation of this award ties in perfectly with Hagman’s dedication to green issues.

Finally, ANDY TENNANT (director of THE BOUNTY HUNTER, HITCH, SWEET HOME ALABAMA) will be in Dallas on April 6 to speak at the Young Presidents Organization. He will be walking the festival’s red carpet on April 6 at the Angelika Dallas between 6-7PM.

The two-and-a-half hour film is an epic futuristic tale of romance and robots. Dr. Vaseegaran (Rajnikanth) is a brilliant scientist who creates a doppelgänger android prototype for the Indian government to consider using in the place of human soldiers. The story begins when the robot named Chitti is brought to life. Chitti seems like a blessing at first. He becomes best friends with Dr. Vaseegaran’s girlfriend Sana (Aishwarya Rai) and protects her from ruffians.

The film takes a turn when Chitti is rejected by government appointed professor Dr. Bohra (Danny Denzongpa) who is jealous of Dr. Vaseegaran. Dr. Bohra claims that Chitti is dangerous because he cannot make moral decisions. In the wrong hands, androids could be used by enemies to kill innocent people. Dr. Vaseegaran promises to upload human emotions in Chitti. Predictably, Chitti becomes emotionally invested in Sana, Dr. Vaseegaran becomes jealous, and the bad guys get a hold of the android technology.

‘Robot’ is ‘Terminator’ 2.0 with singing and dancing. In fact, the robots were created by the talented artists and engineers at the Stan Winston Studio, the Hollywood legend and who created the animatronic Terminators and the dinosaurs in ‘Jurassic Park’. Winston died in 2008 and ‘Robot’ was the last project worked on by his studio while he was alive. It has become an ode to his legacy—“the most expensive Indian movie ever made.”

The downside to this film is that it is a little too long. American audiences may not be receptive to the drawn-out musical numbers and the montages that flood the first half of the film. But the story is well-written (especially the second half) and Shankar addresses questions about the morality and the responsibility of handling such technology. Those who prefer a more testosterone driven film, the last 30 minutes are saturated with explosions and creative robot on human violence.

‘Robot’ has everything a true film-lover could want—amazing CG, an epic story, car chases, and romance.

Javier (Carlos Areces) was a boy who was robbed of his father, the famous Padre Payaso Tonto (Santiago Segura), and his childhood during the Spanish War. In the opening scene, Tonto is forced to fight against the fascist in his clown costume. After he is captured by the opposition, he is forced to work in a labor camp and rarely gets to see young Javier. Desperate, Javier attempts to free his father fails and must go in hiding.

Years later Javier decides to join the circus as a classic “sad” clown because, as was stated later in the film, if he weren’t a clown, he’d be a killer. The circus, of course, is sprawling with alluring creatures. But not just the typical bearded lady, cannon guy, and midgets. This circus has the mentally disturbed, alcoholic “happy” clown Sergio (Antonio de la Torre) and the provocative acrobat Natalia (Carolina Bang). The problem starts and ends with the Natalia. She is Sergio’s girl but starts to show affection for Javier. “I feel safe with you,” she tells him. Sergio discovers the emotional affair and havoc is unleashed. The rest of the film is Javier’s mission to destroy Sergio and get the girl.

This is a gorgeous film brimming with outrageous humor and violence. Not many directors can combine the two and avoid a cheesy horror film. De la Iglesias proves to be a visionary who understands that the audience craves creative twists and surprises along with spectacular CG. But this film is not for all. The humor is very dark and almost always offensive. Those who love cult will truly relish this film.

Add one more point to the programmers at DIFF for bringing this one to Dallas.

History isn’t a bore; some filmmakers just craft it that way. Luckily, it seems director Tanner Beard made a historical film the way he wanted to – tightly-contained, shot beautifully and packed with name talent, clearly having some fun. And that makes all the difference.

While James McKinnon (Beard) is certainly a central character in the story, there is no focal. Rather, a cast absolutely stacked with talent creates a powerful ensemble that crackles with both wit and menace, including Jamie Thomas King as Doc Holliday, Eric Balfour as a brigand with an honor code, Lou Taylor Pucci as a two-bit thief looking for a big score, and Henry Thomas as a Shakespeare-spouting bartender with a bigger secret than the villains who frequent his saloon.

“The Legend of Hell’s Gate: An American Conspiracy” doesn’t just tell the story of how the rock formation from Texas’ Possum Kingdom Lake received its name. Incorporating three tales of thievery, betrayal, and flights from justice, the film manages a compelling duck-and-weave storytelling method that piques audiences’ interest and curiosity, then gracefully weaves those story points together, increasing momentum to an explosive conclusion.

Fred (the superb Colm Meaney) lives in his car at a carpark off the Irish shore.  He is a meticulous man whose attempts to obtain welfare support from a snitty bureaucrat always end in disappointment and more forms to fill out.  One day, young Cathal (Colin Morgan) parks his car in Fred’s lot and soon the two become fast friends.  Cathal provides Fred the opportunity to meet Jewels, a pianist who attends water aerobics and plays in the local church.  Fred, in return, tries to get Cathal to stop using drugs, but only one of the men will get closer to their intended goal.

Fred is good at fixing timepieces; clocks and watches are repairable, but we get the sense that Fred’s past has had serous impacts on the man’s worldview.  He frequently scribbles notes which we learn are pure poetry; Cathal, by the same token, has poetic thoughts, but never seems able to completely escape darker realities tied to his drug use.

“Parked” is a deft piece of filmmaking; it allows occasional, vivid visuals to augment its ongoing narrative emotions (visible breath in a cold room, the city as a sea of stilled fireworks).  And it has a centerpiece performance by Meaney that is just stunning, the actor’s quiet patience with life memorable.

DIFF has again proven its ability to make terrific choices when it comes to its international showcases.

“13 Assassins” offers audiences an instant cinema classic, if by way of a fairly familiar story: a group of samurai prepare to kill a brutal leader before he can gain power. Led by Koji Yakusho (“Toad’s Oil”), the cast is first-rate, and the set designs, costumes and pacing are all excellent. The film is deceptive in its first two acts, as the period drama plays out to great effect, revolving around the established motivations and preparations for the battle to come. The final act is almost completely devoted to a protracted massacre in a small mountain village, a skirmish waged between the titular baker’s dozen and more than 200 opposing warriors. It is thrilling and powerful, the perfect finale to an already great film.

How good is “13 Assassins”? Reminiscent of the classic samurai films of Akira Kurosawa, it places the promise of a new Miike film in a completely different light.

Most people will tell you they have a favorite. I’m a Grover girl from way back; my late grandfather would routinely ask after Oscar The Grouch when he saw me. I had college friends who worked out their dorm room squabbles by comparing themselves to Bert and Ernie. There are two Dallas film critics whom I’ll always think of Waldorf and Statler – and if you’re thinking to yourself, “that’s not ‘Sesame Street,’ that’s “The Muppet Show,” then you’ve made my point exactly about how pervasive and integrated these characters have become in pop culture lexicon, but more importantly, in most of our hearts.

And then came Elmo.

1985 was the year puppeteer Kevin Clash tried his (literal) hand at what is now known worldwide as the fuzzy red monster with a tiny squeak of a voice. From that moment, a kind of magic was made, turning the character – and the man whose spirit made him real – into a part of television and real-life history which continues on in great success today.

“Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey” is a not a simple story writ large to fit media hype and further millions of Elmo-themed merchandise sales. It’s the opposite of cold commerce. It’s a story about love. This is the story of Clash himself: a boy who, very early on, realized a calling within his own heart – to be a puppeteer – and his lifetime of focused pursuit to make that dream come true.

Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, “Being Elmo” brings you in close to Clash for the entire journey to date, including intriguing and serendipitous live footage from “Big Blue Marble,” which followed Clash as he discussed his goals and learned the trade with master puppeteers.

And this is only a small part of the story. The rest I think I’ll leave for you to discover with the same joy I did, noting only the following: Clash’s first puppet creation. His work with Sesame Workshop France, demonstrating how a character’s mouth position makes all the difference. An exercise with his French counterparts, rehearsing a dance sequence with no puppets but simply arms, moving in the air. Elmo embracing a child with a wish, and the family’s reaction. Clash’s meeting and highly technical talk with an aspiring young puppeteer.

It important to note here that the filmmakers could have easily played up the more dramatic elements of Clash’s story. The Elmo-affiliated dreams from numerous Make-A-Wish Foundation clients could have been played up, rather than simply acknowledged as an important part of Clash’s work. Likewise, the personal costs to Clash and his own family, as he travels and works all over the world, could have been shot or packaged for higher dramatic effect. But none of that is here. What lives in “Being Elmo” is as simple, beautiful and heartfelt as Elmo himself.

As all the world knows, Elmo loves you. And we love Elmo. Thank you, Kevin Clash.