Maui
Film Festival
Local Guy Seeks Culture
Every year, in the middle of June,
as the tourist season starts to build, the Maui Film Festival provides a
welcome dose of cinematic culture to an island of residents thirsty for what
has become a traditional experience.
Having lived on the island for the last 11 years, I’ve been fortunate
enough to attend at least one film every year, at every one of the many
venues. A few years back, they used to
have a free outdoor film screening at night, on the roof of the Marriot
hotel. The Maui Skydome, as it was called, was always free, never too
crowded, and they served popcorn and soda, making it an impressive venue to see
a film.
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| The Maui Skydome |
However, my favorite place to see a
MFF film, along with a few thousand other people, is the Celestial Cinema,
which is basically a big drive-in theatre without the cars. The giant grass pit, usually used as a
driving range at the Wailea Golf Course, transforms into a natural
amphitheater, strewn about with moviegoers on blankets and low back beach
chairs. Discreetly, they sip glasses of contraband wine and eat poke, as the
sun sets over the ocean behind them, constantly changing the color of the
evening sky. It’s always a memorable experience, even if the movie turns out to
be a dud, which rarely happens. Understandably,
the surf films seem to bring out the most raucous crowds, and the jubilant
audience can become a mass of positive energy, focused on the screen, immersed
in the story, reacting en masse to every wave and wipeout. Some of the films I
have seen at Celestial Cinema have been moving dramas, and enlightening
documentaries. The effectiveness and power of those cinematic experiences are
amplified by the combination of vociferous audience reaction and the uniquely
rural outdoor setting. While lying under the starry sky on a blanket on the
grass, surrounded by so many others soaking in the culture, try to recognize
how fortunate we are, and what a special event this has become.
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| Celestial Cinema |
That being said, it’s not an easy
or inexpensive Festival to attend. The
logistics of getting hoards of people into a small area without ample parking
necessitates the need for mass transit in the form of shuttle buses. Parking at the lot near the highway and
boarding the crowded shuttle bus, as you carry your chairs and blankets, can be
a daunting experience. Add some older folks and children, throw in a fair
amount of inebriated young moviegoers, and the scene can get downright
awkward. For many years, I drove my
scooter right up to the golf course and tucked it away somewhere safe, but
lately, things have changed and the parking police want $10 for the privilege
of skipping the bus trip. Since the
actual movie ticket is now $24, the cost can get a little prohibitive,
especially for those of us in the service industry, on a limited entertainment
budget. Rarely can I muster up even a
friend who wants to spend so much time, and effort, to go see a movie, so I
often find myself alone.
This year, after reading through
the MFF schedule, I wasn’t excited about the film selection at Celestial Cinema,
and wanting to take a break from the madness, I found myself drawn to the
Castle Theatre at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center in Kahului. I attended the Short Film Showcase (for a
reasonable $12), which turned out to be a collection of funny, foreign, and
sometimes flighty, films. The
announcement made before the showing, warned that a few of the films contained
inappropriate material (a boob, a reference to homosexuality, and some gory
battle violence) so that families, and those otherwise over-sensitive souls,
can go visit the lobby during those particular shorts. The directors, and a few stars of several of
the films were acknowledged, and they stood and waved to the assembly,
garnering polite applause.
Sitting in the first row of the balcony, I noticed that the
crowd was generally older and subdued, and that only about a quarter of the
seats were filled. The cavernous
auditorium was filled with the dark brown round wooden architecture of an old
time theatre and has the feel and smell of history and formality. The floor was carpeted and clean, and the
seats plushly upholstered and comfortable.
Between each seat, affixed to the wood armrest, was a little metal
placard with a two-line message from the patron who donated money enough for the
lofty recognition. The ceiling, which looks like a large inverted ship, is
resplendent and eye-catching in a geometric maze of tile, surrounded by rows of
lights. The view from the balcony is
excellent, the big screen in full frontal view, flanked by box seats for the
VIPs, which stayed empty and dark.
Try this: Have a virtual look around the theater
The first film, ABIOGENESIS, was
animated, and meticulous in detail. It
was a visual treat, met with a healthy smattering of applause at its
conclusion. The third film, THE BOY IN
THE BUBBLE, was another animation that pulled at the heartstrings, effectively
enough to make me wish I had brought a date. Several of the short films used
the recurring theme of romantic love and had the audience swooning in their
seats, literally awwing each time the credits rolled, which was about every 10
minutes. SUPERDAD AND PELE was a film
from Norway about a boy who loved his dad and enjoyed his company, when his Dad
wasn’t working. It was a particularly
effective piece, due to the relevant timing of this Father’s Day weekend, and I
could feel the audience shift, pausing to reflect together.
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| Boy In The Bubble |
The second to last film was a
narrative historical Hawaiian reenactment about chiefs battling for power, as a
pair of lovers struggled to defend their village families, called: UNTIL THE SUN
SETS. The battle scenes were
surprisingly gory, with gaping cut throats and stomachs leaking guts. The
ancient Hawaiian weapons were reproduced and used authentically (it seemed to
me) in intense BRAVEHEARTlike battle scenes.
An underwater fight scene was very well done, exciting and tense as it
played out to the rapt audience. Spoken in Hawaiian and subtitled in English,
it seemed genuine, historically accurate, and truly concerned with
authenticity. In short (no pun
intended), it exemplified everything the Film Festival probably hoped to
achieve.
I left the theatre, feeling
entertained, enlightened and energized, glad that I made the effort to quench
my thirst for a little cinematic culture on the island. With three days left in the Festival, I
might yet convince myself to get back to Celestial Cinema. There is a film on Sunday night about Stand
Up Paddleboarding that looks interesting, and I am not working that night. We get so few opportunities like this on
Maui, that it is best to seize the moment, get out there, take advantage and catch some good flicks.
