HOLLYWOOD—Hollywood A-listers once again, flocked to the annual Tribeca Film Festival, in its 12th year. The festival kicked off on April 17 and ends on April 28. The Vanity Fair’s party kicked off the Tribeca Film Festival hosted by Ronald Perelman, Graydon Carter and the festival co-founder Robert De Niro. Among the many guests were: Evan Rachel Wood, Sienna Miller, Robert De Niro and his wife Grace Hightower, Karolina Kurkova, Christopher Walken, Whoopi Goldberg, Gayle King and Drew Nieporent.
The festival attracts A-list celebrities, VIPs and filmgoers. They even provide coffee at the premieres and red carpet events since the journalists really need all the coffee they can drink to keep up with all the premieres. The festival reminds me of the holidays where you have a smorgasbord of appetizing meals to indulge in and you know that you have to leave some room for delightful and delicious desserts. The film festival brought an array of diversified films to New York City.
The festival never disappoints with an array of films from political thrillers to documentaries that provoke the individual moviegoer to explore not only the film itself but the company of the people behind the film. While some films will be successful, others will never be seen outside of the festival. The festival was created in 2002 and has been bringing people together since the September 11 terrorist’s attacks.
One of the movies that will become successful is the film “The Reluctant Fundamentalist,” which stars Kate Hudson (Erica) and Keifer Sutherland (Jim Cross) with whom he was set to share the future together. In the film, a young Pakistani professor Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed) is interviewed by American journalist Bobby Lincoln (Liev Schrieber.) It gets intriguing when the CIA suspects him of having ties to a local terrorist organization. The film was based on the acclaimed novel by Mohsin Hamid back in 2007. The book was the winner of the 2007 Booker Prize. The film was premiered last year at the Venice Film Festival; the US premiere was on April 22. According to an interview by the director Mira Nair, it was her trip to Pakistan that inspired her to direct the movie.
Another must-see movie is “Sunlight Jr.” which stars Naomi Watts, Matt Dillon, Norman Reedus and Keith Hudson. Writer/Director Laurie Collyer is an intense and intimate love story about a young couple that wants to follow the American dream. Naomi Watts (Melissa Winters) works as a cashier at a local store and lives in a motel with her boyfriend Richie (Matt Dillon) a former repairman who lives on his government disability check, spending most of it at a local bar. Then reality sets in, when their lives turn in a new direction.
A festival favorite is “At Any Price,” starring Dennis Quaid, Zac Efron, Heather Graham, Kim Dickens and Maika Monroe. The film is about the family’s farming empire and the investigation that takes place into their business. Henry Whipple (Dennis Quaid) wants his son Dean (Zac Efron) to help expand the family business, however Dean, has his mind on becoming a pro-race car driver. The films at the festival have a wealth of riches from Academy Award nominees to rising stars.
Rose’s Scoop: Kate Hudson really lights up a room especially the red carpet on April 22, at the premiere of the film “The Reluctant Festival.” Kate was in NYC to celebrate her birthday as well, with A-lister pals, Gwyneth Paltrow and Sarah Jessica Parker. She turned 34 years old. Her fiancé, Matthew Bellamy and his band, Muse, played Madison Square Garden last week while on the East Coast.
By Rose Quintiliano
