Tribeca Film Festival

The near-death of an old friend forces a man to look back at a painful chapter in his life in a wartime drama from Argentinean filmmaker Tristan Bauer. Esteban (Gastón Pauls) is a writer edging into middle age who has received word that Vargas (Pablo Ribba), who served with him in the Argentine Army during the 1980s, has attempted to commit suicide and is now in a coma. The news floods Esteban's mind with memories of their days in the Falkland Islands war of 1982. Esteban, Vargas, and Juan (Cesar Albarracin) were all new recruits who knew next to nothing about battle when they were sent to the rocky islands to fend off a possible invasion by the British military. Juan and Vargas both have more on their minds than imminent battle -- Juan worries about his young son at home, while Vargas left for the islands on bad terms with both his parents and his girlfriend. As the soldiers struggle to pass the time while waiting for the seemingly inevitable war to start, Esteban, Juan, and Vargas capture and roast a sheep; Vargas is severely punished for his part in the sheep-napping, and is on emotionally shaking ground when the British Navy begins raining death upon the ill-equipped Argentineans. Iluminados por el Fuego (aka Blessed by Fire) was named Best Narrative Feature at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This documentary follows one man's efforts to better his own life and the community he calls home. Anderson Sa grew up in the ghettos of Rio de Janeiro (known locally as "favelas"), where drug dealing, gangs, corrupt police officials, and violence were a common part of daily life. However, Sa came to realize that the life he was living was a dead end, and gave up selling drugs and gang life to become a community activist. Sa also had musical talent, as did a handful of like-minded friends, and together they began fusing the energy and immediacy of hip-hop with the hypnotic grooves of reggae, creating a new sound called afro-reggae in the process. Favela Rising follows Sa and his comrades as they share the story of his violent past, his vision of a better future for the favelas of Brazil, and the crucial message behind their music. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Take a trip to a musical terrain where art and punk collide as filmmaker Scott Crary presents an illuminating look at New York City's short-lived no wave scene of the late 1970s and early '80s. A scene that birthed bands more concerned with challenging listeners rather than getting them out on the dance floor, no wave was an attempt by frustrated punk rockers to eschew such traditional concepts as influence and rhythm to birth something truly transgressive and original. Though the music of such no wavers as Suicide, Lydia Lunch, and Theoretical Girls would ultimately be deemed unlistenable by the majority of music fans, the post-punk elements of the style would later be adapted into a more commercial sound by such popular bands as Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Black Dice, and Liars. In addition to allowing the artists from each generation speak about what they believe to be the true value of their music, Crary attempts to contrast and compare the decidedly anti-commercial sentiments of the original no wavers with the radio-friendly output of their millennial counterparts. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A 12-year-old boy befriends a mysterious young girl whose appearance in town suspiciously coincides with a horrifying series of murders in director Tomas Alfredson's adaptation of the book by author John Ajvide Lindqvist, who also wrote the screenplay. Oskar is a young boy who can't seem to shake off the local bullies, but all of that begins to change when a new neighbor moves in next door. After striking up an innocent friendship with his eccentric next-door neighbor, Oskar realizes that she is the vampire responsible for the recent rash of deaths around town. Despite the danger, however, Oskar's friendship with the girl ultimately takes precedence over his fear of her. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Israeli director David Volach's chamber drama My Father, My Lord (aka Hofshat Kaits, 2006) provides an intense character study of a rabbi in an Orthodox neighborhood, whose letter-of-the-law application of Talmudic tenets takes an exacting toll on his life. He must thus grapple with the conflicting demands of his belief system and his familial obligations to his wife and child. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Dead Man's Shoes and This Is England director Shane Meadows takes the helm for this monochromatic childhood drama concerning two young friends living in London, and their efforts not to turn out like their aimless fathers. Tomo has just turned 16, and as a result he's no longer under parental care. Eager to escape the Midlands and seek out a better life in London, Tomo sets out for the big city and strikes up a friendship with Polish immigrant Marek while traversing the streets of Somers Town. Marek is a quiet and sensitive boy who harbors a growing interest in photography and still lives with his father. But Marek's father is a hopeless drunk, and doesn't even notice when his son invites Tomo to share their apartment. Most days, Tomo and Marek are content to pass earning some quick cash from an eccentric neighbor, wandering the streets, and admiring a pretty French waitress named Maria who works at a nearby café. Eventually, the two become obsessed with the girl and begin tracking her every move. But one day Maria simply vanishes, leaving the boys to feel as if they have lost their muse. Later that night, Tomo and Marek decide to dull their pain by sharing a bottle. Of course, it's this very same night that Marek's father discovers his son has taken in a new roommate, and Tomo is swiftly evicted. As a result, the growing bond between the two boys is put to the ultimate test. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

From the producer of Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room and Who Killed the Electric Car? comes a documentary that takes a critical look at the Bush administration's policy on torture by investigating the death of an Afghan taxi driver who, after being taken into the custody of American soldiers at Bagram Air Force Base, suffered fatal injuries at the hands of U.S. soldiers. In 2002, American soldiers accused an Afghan taxi driver of taking part in a deadly rocket attack. Five days after being handed over to the U.S. military for questioning, the man was found dead -- the victim of a brutal bout of torture and abuse according to the medical examiner who inspected his body. The examiner concluded that the taxi driver's hands had been bound to the ceiling, forcing him to stand for hours on end as his assailants repeatedly -- and relentlessly -- kicked him. Compelled to finally unearth the truth about the mysterious fate of the deceased taxi driver, filmmaker Alex Gibney takes viewers on an illuminating journey from a tiny Afghani village to Guantanamo Bay to Abu Ghraib, and ultimately the White House, to explore why the man who turned up in the morgue wasn't the only victim to fall prey to the Bush administration's controversial foreign policy. By examining the sad fate of the wrongly accused, the toll that the War on Terror has taken on an exhausted United States military, and Justice Department official John Yoo's internal memo concerning interrogation techniques, the filmmakers behind Taxi to the Dark Side encourage viewers to weigh out the issues for themselves, and never accept what's told to them on face value. The film won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature at the 80th Annual Academy Awards. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

When a whistle-blowing executive at an international energy firm prepares to expose his company's corrupt practices in Latin America, he secretly hires a private detective to track his every move for fear that he will be killed for his bold transgression. Jimmy Stevens (Frank Langella) has had enough of the lies and deception, and now he's going to something about it. He also knows that chances are good he'll pay the ultimate price for doing what he's about to do, so as a form of insurance Jimmy hires private detective Frank Turlotte (Elliott Gould) to keep a close tab on him. But Frank doesn't realize that the man who hired him and the man he was told to trail are one in the same, and as the paths of the two men begin to intertwine, the secrets of the past offer clues to the mysteries of the future. Mulholland Drive star Laura Harring co-stars in a twisting neo-noir thriller from A Hole in One director Richard Ledes. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A young man is faced with a dilemma when a threatening figure from his past returns in this drama, the directorial debut from Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst. Charlie Banks (Jesse Eisenberg) and his best friend, Danny (Chris Marquette), grew up in a rough section of New York, where they both knew Mick (Jason Ritter), a kid whose was much admired for his cool and equally feared for his talent for violence. When Mick got into a fight that left two teens nearly dead, Charlie was a witness, and when he was approached by the police, Charlie told them what he saw, though he later refused to testify against Mick in court for fear of his own safety. Several years later, Charlie and Danny have left the old neighborhood behind and are students at a prestigious private university when Mick pays them an unexpected visit. Charlie has no idea if Mick knows that he informed on him to the police, and is afraid to find out, but in the meantime, Mick aggressively reintroduces himself into Charlie and Danny's lives. As Mick starts dressing like a wealthy college boy, reading F. Scott Fitzgerald, and dating a girl Charlie has a crush on, he seems to be transforming himself into someone who can be all Charlie is and more, but in time Mick learns he can't completely turn his back on his past. The Education of Charlie Banks had its world premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Three soldiers offer viewers a close-up and deeply personal view of the war in Iraq in this documentary. Filmmaker Deborah Scranton gave digital video cameras to three National Guard volunteers who were called up for duty in Iraq and asked them to keep a visual diary of what they saw and how they felt about it. The three men who took Scranton up on her offer were Sgt. Zack Bazzi, Spc. Mike Moriarty, and Sgt. Steve Pink. Bazzi is a Lebanese immigrant who previously fought in Bosnia and Kosovo and loves the thrill of battle, though he has serious reservations about the nature of the American occupation and feels most of his fellow soldiers are dangerously unaware of the habits and customs of the Iraqis. Moriarty is a husband and father who volunteered for service after the terrorist attacks of September 11; he's a proud warrior and loyal to his fellow soldiers, though he's come to hate the sting of battle. And Pink is a carpenter and would-be writer who joined the Guard to help raise money for college; his dark sense of humor often rises to the surface as he confronts the uglier aspects of the conflict. Scranton took the footage shot by the soldiers (sometimes uploaded by Internet just hours after a battle) and fashioned it into a story of three different men united by a single cause who are fiercely loyal to their fellow fighting men and women, even as they become increasingly cynical about the causes and motivations behind the war. The War Tapes was screened in competition at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The first film by Duncan Tucker, Transamerica stars Felicity Huffman as a pre-operative transsexual named Bree (whose given name was Stanley). One week before going under the knife, Bree learns that she fathered a boy who is now 17 and is in trouble with the law. Bree would like to ignore this information, but is forced to meet the young man, Toby (played by Kevin Zegers), by her analyst Margaret (Elizabeth Peña), who will not allow the surgery to happen unless Bree meets him and confronts this aspect of her past. Upon meeting, the son believes that Bree is simply a do-gooder. She buys a car and the two road-trip back to her home in Los Angeles, Bree all the while attempting to keep from Toby the truth of the situation. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi