A F.I.G. Leaf: A Recap of AFI Dallas's Saturday, and a Look Ahead at Its Sunday

Chris Dreiling

Hell of a time not to have Patrick Michels around -- 'round midnight this morning at the Fashion Industry Gallery on Ross Avenue, where nude and semi-nude women turned a life drawing workshop into a performance-art piece amidst other computer animation exhibits, open bars and a laptop deejay trying out his Girl Talk. Said Brandt Wood, "You know, during one week every year, Dallas seems kinda ... cool" -- that one week being AFI Dallas International Film Festival week, when the West Village and (now) NorthPark Center are cram-packed full of filmgoers and gawkers till the wee small hours, just as the after-parties crank up to 11 ... and take off their clothes. Cool indeed.

If last night's screening of AFI Dallas Star Award recipient Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker was the revelation of the fest -- the story of a bomb squad unit in Iraq in 2004 had not screened at all in Dallas till Saturday -- today's offerings boil down to one muse-see, as mentioned in this week's paper version of Unfair Park: Scott Hamilton Kennedy's Oscar-nominated documentary The Garden, which has its first screening at 6:15 p.m. today at the AMC NorthPark. I won't recount the recommendation, except to say it's the story of every single big city in which politicians scream "Public good!" as they're climbing into bed with developers. Which doesn't sound familiar at all. Here's the trailer:

But, I know, you're perhaps more interested in Carlos Cuarón's Rudo y Cursi, in which the Y tu mamá también writer turns director to reteam that film's stars, Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal, as half-brothers kicking each other in the balls on a soccer field. It's at 7:30 p.m. at the Magnolia, one of many satisfying AFI offerings on today's bill. Also check out these previously recommendeds: St. Nick at 12:30 p.m. at the Magnolia, The Eyes of Me at 2 p.m. at the Magnolia, RiP: The Remix Manifesto at NorthPark at 9 p.m. and Peter and Vandy at 10:30 p.m. at the NorthPark.

And for those out and about at 3 p.m., I'm moderating a copyright panel at the Nasher Sculpture Center. If you've ever wanted to find out how Justin Wilson does everything better than anyone, well, now's your chance as we talk, among other things, Charlie Uniform Tango's epic mash-up One Nation.