Janaki picks his favorite films of 2011
1) DRAGONSLAYER
Depressing and awesome.
2) DRIVE
Awesome and depressing.
3) HANNA
Just awesome.
4) THE ARTIST
I should get a dog in case I’m depressed.
5) CEDAR RAPIDS
I’m having John C. Reilly’s baby.
July 27-28, 2012
Valerie Coit’s Five Favorite Films of 2011
1) DRIVE
I knew walking out of the theater that nothing was going to to this for me. It was my favorite kind of movie: tense, dark, quiet and violent. Oh, and Ryan Gosling was dreamy.
2) X-MEN: FIRST CLASS
This seems a bit crazy to me when I see it in print. But when I think about what I loved most this year in movies, the obvious choice is Magneto hunting Nazis. Obviously.
3) MELANCHOLIA
I loved this movie so much, I continued to watch even though it made me seasick and I felt like I was going to puke for the last hour. You should see it.
4) SENNA
This movie was so good it almost made me want to become a fan of Formula 1 racing. Almost.
5) RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
My love of apes is what secures this in the top 5 for me. After all, you don’t see a movie called Rise of the Planet of the Polar Bears.
Annie Dugan’s Five Favorite Films of 2011
1) THE ARTIST
This movie had a dog, tap dancing, period costumes and the second-best mustache of 2011.
2) DRIVE
I finally understand that whole “Ryan Gosling” thing.
3) DRAGONSLAYER
One of the best parts of programming the Free Range Film Festival is finding movies that divide families and friends and plunge them into bitter arguments. This movie fulfilled that role beautifully.
4) TREE OF LIFE
Sometimes I judge movies on the way they would look inside the barn. And the 1950s look amazing inside a 100-year-old wooden structure.
5) HANNA
I put this one in partially because I’m imagining what a great double feature it would make with Drive. Both had great music, inventive chase scenes and amazing wardrobes [See the jacket in DRIVE and the turquoise short shorts in HANNA].
Episode 09 – Best of 2011
Val and Mike and Annie and Janaki argue about the year’s best and worst films. (And if you had anything to do with making Dragonslayer, you’re going to dig this episode.) As usual, feel free to drop by iTunes and write a review for our podcast. Or drop us a line. We’re going to start responding to listener feedback soon. Really. We are.
Duluth News Tribune names July “Free Range Film” month
The Free Range Film Festival is featured in the Duluth News Tribune as a must see for July 2012. And we all know that you can believe everything you read in the paper.
Filmmaker Josh Carlon pimps our barn!
A big thank you to Josh Carlon (and ALL our free range film makers!). Josh chose to nominate the Free Range Film Festival as a Minnesota Arts Highlight of 2011:
Episode 08 – Muppets vs Hugo
Mike teaches a lesson in Muppet history. Val compares Hugo to Three’s Company. And we debate whether Animal is an animal or a very hairy person. It’s a good episode.
Episode 07 – Twi Harder
Join Mike, Val and Annie as they discuss the merits of a shirtless Taylor Lautner and the latest film in the Twilight series. It’s guaranteed to enlighten Twi-hards and the merely Twi-curious alike. Feel free to review us on Itunes too. (Especially if you’re with Team Jacob.)
Episode 06 – Supersized Star Wars Episode
Episode 06 – Supersized Star Wars Episode
Enjoy this very special episode filled with crackpot theories and misguided nostalgia about the Star Wars films. As always, feel free to drop by iTunes and write a review for our podcast.
Coming soon to a barn near you
Check out this trailer for WILD BILL’S RUN, a documentary we’ll be playing at the next fest.
Wild Bill’s Run – Teaser from Mike Scholtz on Vimeo.
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