Peter Fonda, film notables add some stardust to festival

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Editor

FONDA: Lone star on VIP roster at film festival

Although the festival is short on stars, it still is long on films, with 150 titles from 26 nations, including 55 U.S. premieres and 12 world premieres on the agenda.

Fonda's movie, described as "a psychedelic western," has become a film festival favorite. Originally completed in 1970, Fonda premiered a new version last summer to raves at the Venice Film Festival.

It will be shown at 9:45 p.m. Saturday at the Waikiki 1 Theatre.

Fonda arrives today and leaves Sunday — and so far is the lone star on the VIP roster.

Among other film notables committed so far:

Temuera Morrison, Maori superstar who was a film juror last year, whose "Crooked Earth" receives its U.S. premiere at 9:45 p.m. Monday at the Waikiki 1 and again at 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Signature Windward theater. "Every one of the Maori films we're showing stars Temuera Morrison," said Chuck Boller, HIFF executive director. Morrison will be arriving here from London, literally off the set of the next "Star Wars" installment.

Bey Logan, producer of numerous Jackie Chan movies, whose "Gen-Y Cops" screens at noon tomorrow at the Dole Cannery 9 theater and at 9:30 p.m. Sunday at the Waikiki 2. Logan, a juror for the Golden Maile Award, will have in tow "Gen-Y Cops" star Maggie Quigley, she is a Mililani native. "He said he will be scouting locations for a future movie with Jackie Chan in Hawai'i," Boller said.

David L. Cunningham, the director of "To End All Wars," which will formally kick off the festival at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow at the Waikiki 2 and at 6:45 p.m. at the Waikiki 1. Cunningham shot the film largely on Kaua'i, which masqueraded as Thailand in the World War II story about Allied prisoners of war who died building the Thailand-Burma Railroad, which was fictionalized in the film classic, "Bridge Over the River Kwai." While one of the film's stars, Kiefer Sutherland, has been invited to the film festival, he is part of a new Fox TV series, "24," and his availability questionable.

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, a Golden Maile Award juror. A resident of Kaua'i, Tagawa has had a string of big-screen credits, including "Planet of the Apes," "Pearl Harbor," "Rising Sun" and "Snow Falling on Cedars."

Diane Baker, a Golden Maile Award juror. She made her movie debut in "The Diary of Anne Frank." She can be seen in "Harrison's Flowers," at 6 p.m. next Thursday at the Signature Dole Cannery 9 theater.

Emily Liu, a Golden Maile Award juror. She is a writer, director and producer of numerous features and shorts, including producing Ang Lee's first feature, "Pushing Hands."