Film festival to include ‘Purple Rain,’ Lawsonomy
The first batch of movies unveiled for the 2017 Milwaukee Film Festival includes kid-centric classics, documentaries on Lawsonomy (remember the sign off I-94?) and concussions in the NFL, and a screen salute to Prince.
Milwaukee Film, the festival’s parent organization, unveiled nine titles for this year’s festival Tuesday. Among them is “Manlife,” local filmmaker Ryan Sarnowski’s documentary following Merle Hayden, who for decades has been the last man standing up for Lawsonomy — the movement that, for years, had as its prime physical evidence a sign off I-94 reading “Study Natural Law.”
Other new documentaries showing at the 2017 festival include “Requiem for a Running Back,” in which filmmaker Rebecca Carpenter sets out to understand the concussion disorder that afflicted her late father, former Packers running back Lew Carpenter; and “Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities,” Stanley Nelson’s exploration of historically black colleges. Other titles announced for the 2017 festival Tuesday: “Aladdin,” the 1992 Disney classic, showing in a 25th-anniversary screening.
“The Dark Crystal,” Jim Henson and Frank Oz’s 1982 family-friendly fantasy.
“Lemon,” an absurdist comedy about an actor whose life is tanking, with Brett Gelman and Judy Greer.
“The Lost World,” the 1925 silent adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s landbefore-time tale, with live musical accompaniment by the Alloy Orchestra.
“Lucky,” with Harry Dean Stanton as a man in his 90s, still determined to follow his own path.
“Purple Rain,” Prince’s 1984 semiautobiographical semi-musical capturing the Purple One in his prime.
Last month, the festival announced that its centerpiece film would be “Blood Is at the Doorstep,” Milwaukee filmmaker Erik Ljung’s documentary about the family of Dontre Hamilton in the aftermath of his fatal shooting by a Milwaukee police officer.
The 2017 Milwaukee Film Festival will run Sept. 28 to Oct. 12. For information and some ticket packages, go to mkefilm.org.