SFF: day 2, with best men and papa!

For this second day of the festival, choices had to made. There were competing blocks of screenings, at different venues. Which to choose?
For me, the choices were easy! I had no interest in watching a singer pickle herself and I had already seen the culture mash-up
. That freed me to see four films today! The two blocks each consisted of a short and a narrative feature, all new to me. Hooray!

"Best Man Wins" was first up.
A man invites his best friend, a vintner, for an intimate dinner.
As soon as the bottle of Amontillado
was opened, I knew this was going
to have a twist!
I do so enjoy Poe-flavored plots!

Next up was "Tumbledown", whisking me up to a desolate region in Maine and the home of a young widow and her two dogs. The time is two years after the death of her folksinging husband. An obsessed college writer comes knocking, asking questions about the singer. An interesting story follows, highlighting the tendency of some humans to misinterpret the facts and misjudge others.
That is not so for the character played by Joe Manganiello. He's as straightforward as they come as a past schoolmate and current 'friend with benefits' of the widow. He also has some of the best lines ever! Here's one of my favorites: 'I thought a bird in the hand was worth me in your bush.' Hahaha haha!
That works for me, dear man!
(smile)
A quick lunch from Subway and it was time for the 3:30 pm block!

A heartbreaking twist in "To Dust Return" showed how easily life can change.
A young couple awaits their son's birth...
then fate alters their plans.
The trick is to keep breathing...
and to know when to let go.
Ten minute lesson on grief, well done!

That was coupled with "Papa", a film about Ernest Hemingway, seen through the eyes of an admirer.
Giovanni Ribisi was the up-and-coming journalist invited to visit the aging writer at his home, Finca Vigia, in Cuba.
Amazingly, the movie was actually shot on the premises, as well as in other locales in Havana.
The world has definitely changed, and that change is for the better.

I found myself actually enjoying the story about Hemingway. I had always been rather dismissive of his talents, but I now am convinced that my impression of him was mistaken. I have come to have an appreciation of minimalist artists, thanks to Savannah Stage Company. Hemingway was a master of that technique.
Want a for instance?
He and the journalist are sitting in a bar. Hemingway is talking about being concise when writing and has said he could write a short story using less than ten words
Then he does so, on a cocktail napkin.

For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.

Pretty good, right?
Also, a very nice link between this film and the short which preceded it.