Mnpls St. Paul Intl Film Festival

It’s easier than ever to love movies, yet harder than ever to prove yourself a bona fide movie-lover. When home theaters have displaced pool tables as the most prevalent rec-room fixture, and the guys on KFAN are just as likely to jaw about box office figures as T-wolves stats, it takes a certain amount of dedication and genuine curiosity to set yourself apart from the multiplex masses. In that spirit, your office Oscar-pool winnings are well-spent on a pass to this year’s MSPIFF, and not just for an all-you-can-watch value that rivals anything in your Happenings coupon book. Now in its 20th year, the region’s biggest and best film fest makes the Independent Film Channel look like the WB, boasting more than 100 films from all over the planet (browse the full schedule at www.ufilm.org). Director and consummate film geek Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show) headlines the opening night kickoff at the State Theatre, appearing in the flesh to introduce The Cat’s Meow, his new movie starring Kirsten Dunst and Eddie Izzard (cast as a Prohibition-era hottie and Charlie Chaplin, respectively); promising series include roundups of Chinese and children’s films. Homegrown highlights include the premiere of the locally shot Wooly Boys (featuring Peter Fonda and Kris Kristofferson) and a revival of 2000’s hilarious I Hate Babysitting! from local filmmaker Tara Spartz. But there’s nothing provincial about this globe-spanning, genre-swirling event. Our butts are already aching in sublime anticipation!