The Maui Film Festival (June 14 to 17) kicks off Wednesday with opening night festivities and a tribute to Josh Radnor. Here is a guide to movies showing on Wednesday at both the Maui Arts and Cultural Center in Kahului and the Celestial Cinema at Wailea Resort. More Maui Film Festival movie information will appear in next week's issue of Maui Scene.
All Maui Film Festival passes and tickets, including single Celestial Cinema and Maui Arts and Cultural Center tickets, are available now. Tickets will be sold at the door of each event if still available. See the advertisement on page 7 of this section for more details.
Wednesday's Showings
Article Photos
The long-short “Sketchy Andy” follows “Big Easy Express” at the Celestial Cinema Wednesday.
Photo courtesy Maui Film Festival
Castle Theater, Maui Arts & Cultural Center
4 p.m.
"2012: the Beginning"
The end of the world? The birth of another? Speculation about the Mayan Long Count calendar and its meaning to humanity is accurately examined in this insightful documentary that travels to sacred Mayan sites to talk with many of the most highly-revered experts in the actual sacred Mayan texts and share the true meaning of Mayan culture's deep and ancient wisdom.
"Terra Blight"
Recycling? Really? Americans buy more than 260,000 computers every day and throw away 247,000 every day. Each of those computers has required, in its making, 530 pounds of fossil fuel, 48 pounds of chemicals, and 1.5 tons of water. Every computer monitor has several pounds of lead embedded in its glass. A cinematic wake-up call for us all. What are we doing?
6 p.m.
"Quill: life of a Guide Dog" - Preceded by "Unleashing Abilities"
This just might be the most heart-meltingly effective dog story ever. Really? Yes, really. It follows an astonishingly skillful Labrador retriever (played by a number of different dogs) from puppyhood into his retirement. Directed by Yoichi Sai, director of 17 feature films and the head of the Directors Guild in Japan. In Japanese with English subtitles. Children 12 and younger admitted free.
8 p.m.
"Kumar"
This Documentary Feature SXSW Audience Award Winner is about a fictitious guru from the East, actually Indian-American filmmaker, Vikram Gandhi who fakes it 'til he makes it. Deepak Chopra raved, "The Greatest Lesson Any Guru Can Teach." Or did he? Kumare ticket also includes admission to Chico & Rita.
"Chico & Rita"
Set in the late 1940s through early 1960s, in Cuba and NYC, this sexy, seductive and spellbinding film features the music of Dizzy Gillespie, Cole Porter, Thelonius Monk and Bebo Valdes. It was hailed as "A beautiful love story that will not fail to move you" by Conde Nast Traveler. Part of a special (one ticket only) double feature with Kumare.
Celestial Cinema, Wailea Resort
8 p.m.
"Liberal Arts" - Preceded by Tribute to Josh Radnor
"happythankyoumoreplease" won an Audience Award at the 2010 Maui Film Festival. Josh Radnor is again back on Maui, alongside the brilliant Elizabeth Olsen and uber-talented Richard Jenkins and Allison Janney, as the writer/director/ co-star of another insightful, sweet-hearted dramedy about falling in love, flirting with fate and, eventually, doing the right thing. Josh Radnor is the 2012 (and inaugural) Maui Film Festival Triple Threat Award honoree.
10 p.m.
"Big Easy Express" - Preceded by "A Finger, Two Dots Then Me."
"3 bands, 6 cities, 1 train and thousands of miles of track" is filmmaker Emmett Malloy's shorthand to describe the lightning in a bottle captured in his smash SXSW hit musical journey featuring Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes, Old Crow Medicine Show and Mumford & Sons.
"Sketchy Andy" - Follows "Big Easy Express"
A sensation at the Super Bowl where many said he was the best thing about Madonna's performance, this amazing "long short" features the high-wire aerial artistry of Andy Lewis.
