The Sedona International Film Festival kicks off with sold-out Friday- and Saturday-night concerts by the ageless rock band Chicago – in town to support weekend screenings of the new documentary Now More than Ever: The History of Chicago.

The film examines the band’s five-decade arc, which has yielded classic songs such as 25 or 6 to 4, Saturday in the Park, Hard to Say I’m Sorry and You’re the Inspiration. Formed in 1967, Chicago released its first album, Chicago Transit Authority, in 1969. Since that first effort, it has had record sales top the 100 million mark, 21 Top 10 singles, five consecutive No. 1 albums and 11 No. 1 singles. Of 36 albums, 25 have gone platinum.

Emerging Stars

Back in the present day, independent movies featuring some of Hollywood’s hottest young actors highlight the festival, running through Feb. 28 in north-central Arizona.

Already generating buzz is Tumbledown – starring Jason Sudeikis (Saturday Night Live, Horrible Bosses), Rebecca Hall (Vicky Cristina Barcelona) and Joe Manganiello (True Blood, Magic Mike) – about a young musician’s widow and the writer who prompts her to confront her loss.

Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory, 8 Simple Rules) stars in Burning Bondhi, about high school friends who reunite following the death of one of their own.

Baby Baby Baby, a story about love and relationships, features Adrienne Palicki (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Friday Night Lights), as well as Kelsey Grammer (Cheers, Frasier) and Greg Grunberg (Heroes).

In The Girl in the Book, Emily VanCamp (Revenge, Captain America: The Winter Soldier) portrays a book editor tasked with re-releasing a best-seller that drew from her own life.

In The Adderall Diaries, which screened last fall at the Scottsdale International Film Festival, the prolific James Franco plays a writer following a high-profile murder case while coming to terms with his own troubled past and embarking on a potentially life-changing romance in the present. Amber Heard (The Rum Diary, Pineapple Express) plays the love interest; Ed Harris (Snowpiercer, The Truman Show) the writer’s estranged father; and Christian Slater (Mr. Robot, Heathers) the murder defendant.

Timely Documentaries

The festival also offers some infesting-looking documentaries, including:

• The Armor of Light, which looks at whether it’s possible to be both pro-gun and pro-life.
• The Human Face of Big Data, the premise of which is that all of our devices are creating a massive gathering and analysis of data in real time that suddenly allows us address to some of humanity biggest challenges but leaves an indelible digital trail that threatens personal privacy.
• Deep Web, about … well the deep Web.
• Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon – again, the title pretty much says it all.
• (Dis)Honesty: The Truth About Lies, which explores the human tendency to be dishonest.
• One Rock Three Religions looks at Jerusalem’s most sensitive site, the Temple Mount or Haram Al Sharif, and how events there have, and continue to, affect the world.

Nostalgia on Hand

Also, highlighting this year’s festival will be an American Graffiti (1973) screening and cast reunion, including Mackenzie Phillips and Cindy Williams – and Mike Farrell (TV’s M*A*S*H) in his one-man, global-warming-themed show, Dr. Keeling’s Curve.

Elliott Gould will receive the festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday, Feb. 27. The actor is known for playing Trapper John McIntyre in the original, 1970 movie MASH, his Oscar-nominated performance as Ted Henderson in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) and, more recently, his portrayal of old-time con artist Reuben Tishkoff in the 2001 remake of Ocean’s Eleven and its sequels, Ocean’s Twelve (2004) and Ocean’s Thirteen (2007).

For ticket information, as well as the dates, times and venues for screenings, visit the festival’s website.

###

Stu Robinson practices writing, editing, media relations and social media through his business, Phoenix-based Lightbulb Communications. Some of the background information included in this blog was provided by the festival.

Tags: Adrienne Palicki, Amber Heard, Baby Baby Baby, Burning Bondhi, Chicago, Christian Slater, documentaries, Dr. Keeling’s Curve, Ed Harris, Elliott Gould, Emily VanCamp, Greg Grunberg, James Franco, Jason Sudeikis, Joe Manganiello, Kaley Cuoco, Kelsey Grammer, Mike Farrell, Rebecca Hall, Scottsdale International Film Festival, Sedona International Film Festival, The Adderall Diaries, The Girl in the Book, Tumbledown