My 10 Most Anticipated Films at the Virginia Film Festival

Later tonight the 25th annual Virginia Film Festival kicks into high gear down in Charlottesville, VA, and this is by far the best line-up the event has ever put together. Eschewing the international flavor of this past FilmFest DC, VFF boasts a diverse mix of biting documentaries and grounded dramas from local filmmakers, along with highly anticipated blockbusters and awards season contenders. As I gear up to head out there for the festivities, and have picked out the ten films that are tops on my must-see list....

10. Fat Kid Rules the World

Matthew Lillard will probably always be best identified as Shaggy from the live-action Scooby-Doo movies, or the cult punk rock comedy SLC Punk, but he's making the transition to directing with Fat Kid Rules the World. An adaptation of KL Going's 2003 novel, the film stars Jacob Wysocki(Terri) as an overweight, suicidal teen who is saved by a homeless ex-classmate(Matt O'Leary) who he forms a rock band with and begins to gain some measure of confidence.

9. West of Memphis
We've already had a handful of Paradise Lost movies and a ton of TV specials highlighting the legal saga of the West Memphis Three, but the story is far from over even if they've been freed from prison after 18 years. Longtime supporter Peter Jackson produces this documentary which goes into further detail on their suspect convictions and eventual imprisonment, all the way up to their release. The film debuted at Sundance earlier this year to rave reviews, showing that there's always more to learn about this compelling true life story.

8. The Sapphires
Bridesmaids breakout Chris O'Dowd gets a chance to show his dramatic chops in The Sapphires, an Aussie musical comedy based on the true story of four Aboriginal women who are molded by an opportunistic agent into his own version of The Supremes, overcoming racial prejudices to sing for the troops in Vietnam. While the film has received mixed response on the festival circuit, the chance see O'Dowd stretch himself a little, plus a rousing soundtrack taken from Tony Briggs' stageplay, should make for a crowd-pleasing charmer.

7. Quartet
Dustin Hoffman pulls together an all-star cast of British thesps for his directorial debut, including Maggie Smith, Billy Connolly, and Michael Gambon.Targeted squarely at those who loved The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Downtown Abbey, the film follows a retired group of opera singers who hold an annual fund-raising event to celebrate Verdi's birthday, only to have the event thrown into chaos with the arrival of a legendarily self-absorbed diva.

6. Stand Up Guys

Put together Christopher Walken, Al Pacino, and Alan Arkin in a crime comedy directed by Fisher Stevens and what have you got? A potential Oscar contender, that's what. At least that's Lionsgate is banking on as they recently set Stand Up Guys for an awards qualifying run before the end of the year. The film stars Walken and Pacino as two lifelong friends and criminals who embark on one wild and crazy night of violence and comedic hijinks. There's just one catch: one has been hired to kill the other before the night is through.

5. A Late Quartet
More quartets, more Walken. Quartet stars Walken, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, and Mark Ivanir as the members of a world-renowned string quartet who are thrown into turmoil when their first cellist(played by Walken) is diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. The ensuing chaos unleashes a torrent of long held jealousies and anger that threatens to rip them apart. Imogen Poots co-stars, and in general this looks like a true acting showcase for all involved, and should feature some great orchestral music.


4. Not Fade Away
The Sopranos creator David Chase continues his examination of Italian-American life in his directorial debut, Not Fade Away. The rock 'n roll drama reunites him with James Gandolfini, along with fresher faces John Magro, Jack Huston, and Bella Heathcote, in a story of three kids with aspirations of being the next Rolling Stones, only to meet resistance from their more traditional families.

3. Silver Linings Playbook
Just a couple of years after The Fighter, David O. Russell is back in the Oscar hunt with Silver Linings Playbook, his new dramedy which pairs the red hot Bradley Cooper with the equally buzzing Jennifer Lawrence. Once eyed as a potential starring gig for Mark Wahlberg, Cooper takes on the role of Pat Solitano, a troubled man recently released from a mental hospital and sets out on a course to get his life and ex-wife back. Nothing quite goes as planned, and he winds up meeting Tiffany(Lawrence) who has her own emotional baggage that makes her one of the few who can understand where Pat is coming from. The film co-stars Robert De Niro, Jacki Weaver, Julia Stiles, and Chris Tucker in his first role since 2007.

2. Rust and Bone
There is perhaps no film with greater expectations placed upon it than Rust and Bone. It seems like a sure fire awards contender with an impeccable pedigree of talent both in front of and behind the camera. Directed by Jacques Audiard(A Prophet), and starring Matthias Schoenaerts(Bullhead) with Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard, the film charts an unlikely relationship that forms between a homeless single father and a famous killer whale trainer. When she suffers a horrific accident, the bond between them only grows as they learn to depend on one another for happiness and to maintain their sanity.

1. The Man with the Iron Fists
It's obvious that Wu-Tang Clan founder and sensei RZA has learned a lot from his buddy Quentin Tarantino. His directorial debut The Man with the Iron Fists is a genre-busting action extravaganza that combines classic kung fu flicks infused with hip-hop, Westerns, and everything else RZA has been itching to put on screen. Gathering together an unlikely cast including Russell Crowe, Lucy Liu, Cung Le, Dave Bautista, and RZA himself, the barely stitched together plot follows an assemblage of heroes and villains uniting their various styles to defend against an invading army.