lights, camera WorldFest

Houston's biggest international film festival unspools 200 movies and a host of stars

Buzzy films such as Teen Spirit are screening at WorldFest.

The 52nd Annual WorldFest-Houston International Film Festivalkicks off Friday, April 5 — and organizers are hoping for a big turnout. "We're always trying to improve on attendance," says founder/director Hunter Todd, who calls himself the "longest-running old fart running a film festival in the world."

Although the festival — which prides itself on being the fest that gave such film icons as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, and the Coen brothers their big break — has been known to get several thousand moviegoers on a yearly basis, WorldFest usually has the lowest attendance of any major fest in a major city. What's the excuse Todd usually gets about why there's not an abundance of cinephiles every year? "Houston is too big and too busy," he says.

Regardless, both Todd and WorldFest keep on keeping on with bringing world-premiere films, special guests, and the film icons of tomorrow to Houston. For the second year in a row, the festival will take place at Cinemark Memorial City, with its leather, lounge seats that Todd hears is already becoming kind of a problem. "They tell me that, every night, they have to get people out who've fallen asleep," he says, laughing.

Todd is looking forward to opening night, when filmmaker Tim Disney (yes, from that family) will show his cloning drama, William. "He's a Disney of the Disney royalty," says Todd, "and we're very happy about that."

For nine days after that, WorldFest will be unspooling a bevy of movies — 200 in total — and giving various stars and filmmakers the chance to show off their latest work. At the Westin Houston, Memorial City (aka the WorldFest HQ Hotel), longtime, local film critic Joe Leydon will hold public discussions with several filmmakers, including indie great Hal Hartley (Trust, Amateur) and actor Kevin Sorbo, who'll be around for his latest directorial effort Miracle in East Texas. Also look for buzzworthy flick Teen Spirit featuring actress du jour Elle Fanning.

Veteran actor Eric Roberts will be here for the world premiere of Lone Star Deception, a political action drama where he plays an oil tycoon. And Todd is hoping Oscar-nominated actress Katharine Ross will show up for the world premiere of the comedy Attachments, in which she plays an aging woman who bonds with a millennial I.T. nerd. "She's getting up there in age and doesn't get out as much," he says, "but we're still hoping Katharine will be able to join us."

And let's not forget about the foreign filmmakers who'll be screening films — especially those from China. Some 30 features and shorts will come from there, along with 200 filmmakers who are scheduled to be attendance. Says Todd, "As [executive chairman and head of Asia for WorldFest Zhang] Ling says, we are the biggest spotlight of Asian cinema in the world."

Of course, you can holler at any of these people every night at the WorldFest Festival Club, which will also be at the Westin. "Anybody can come over and have a drink with the directors," says Todd, "and you don't need no stinking badges." (Take that, SouthBy.)

Essentially, Todd wants Houstonians to know that if you're gonna attend any film festival in this town, go to the genuine article. "Do you know that there are 32 film festivals in this city?" he asks. "But we don't rent movies. I like to call those other fests 'screening events.' We are the only, true international festival in Houston."

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For more information on the festival and movie showtimes, visit the official WorldFest site.

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Movie Review

The Last Showgirl showcases Pamela Anderson’s dramatic evolution

Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions

Pamela Anderson in The Last Showgirl.

A variety of actors have had the good fortune of having career resurgences thanks to someone giving them a chance after they passed their prime, including John Travolta after Pulp Fiction, Keanu Reeves after John Wick, and Brendan Fraser after The Whale. Pamela Anderson is the latest actor hoping to be reclaimed thanks to her starring role in The Last Showgirl.

In the meta-story, the 57-year-old Anderson plays Shelly, an aging showgirl at a third tier Las Vegas casino. The show itself, called Le Razzle Dazzle, is on its last legs, and Shelly finds herself at a crossroads, with no other skills or financial means on which to fall back.

While younger showgirls like Jodie (Kiernan Shipka) and Mary-Anne (Brenda Song) are willing to move on to more sexually-suggestive shows, Shelly is only comfortable with the tried-and-true showgirl way. Three other people in her life — estranged daughter Hannah (Billie Lourd), best friend Annette (Jamie Lee Curtis), and stage manager Eddie (Dave Bautista) — seem to help and hurt her in equal measure.

The effectiveness of the film, directed by Gia Coppola and written by Kate Gersten, depends heavily on whether the viewer is willing to accept Anderson, who’s still best known for her role on Baywatch, as a serious actor. If Coppola and Gersten are trying to show a different side of Anderson, they fail; having her play a character with little-to-no makeup and a dramatic arc does not make up for her poor acting skills and a high voice that borders on shrill.

And because the story is so dependent on Anderson — she appears in literally every scene — it never has a chance of becoming interesting or involving. Her character has personal issues that are objectively sad, but any weight that might have resulted from those storylines are lost along the way. She’s not helped by an over-the-top performance by Curtis, who seems to be milking her Oscar from Everything Everywhere All at Oncefor all it’s worth.

Coppola seems to be going for an old-school feel for the film to match the storyline. The film has a weird, unfocused look to it at times, giving the audience visuals that are definitely not high-definition. Whether she’s actually using an old film stock or manipulating the image to make it look like an old film, the effect is the same, with imperfections appearing on the screen often.

Anderson — who earned a nomination for a Golden Globe for Best Female Actor for her role — and Curtis seem to take up most of the oxygen of the film, leaving little to remember from anyone else. Shipka had a breakout movie year thanks to appearances in Twisters and Longlegs, but her role here gives her little to do. The same goes for Bautista, although at least he gets to put on a grey wig and act in a way that doesn’t emphasize his bulky physique.

While actors should never be shunted aside simply because they’ve aged out of an accepted age range, you also have to have the ability to prove you still belong. Anderson can’t get out of her own way in The Last Showgirl, and consequently the film itself never has any dramatic depth, either.

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The Last Showgirl opens in theaters on January 10.

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