PORT TOWNSEND — Films and the people who make them will be the stars of the three-day Seventh Annual Port Townsend Film Festival that begins Friday.
Special guest Malcolm McDowell, best known for his portrayal of the chilling gang leader and Beethoven enthusiast Alex DeLarge in Stanley Kubrick’s 1971 film, “A Clockwork Orange,” will be on the scene.
Sedge Thomson will interview McDowell on National Public Radio’s West Coast Live!, at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Upstage Theatre, 923 Washington St.
Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door.
McDowell, who has appeared in 147 films, will also be on hand for a screening of another movie he’s well-known for, “If.”
In it, McDowell plays Mike Travis, an anti-establishment student rebelling against an autocracy that denies individual freedom.
The screening is at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Broughton Theatre, located at the Port Townsend High School auditorium, 1500 Van Ness St.
McDowell will answer audience questions following the film.
And of course the festival is not leaving out “A Clockwork Orange.”
It will be shown as part of the “Almost Midnight Movies’ at 11:30 p.m. Friday at Rose Theatre, 235 Taylor St.
“LOL” starts it all rolling
The festival begins at 6:20 p.m. Friday with “LOL,” which is Internet lingo for “laugh out loud.”
The film follows a cast of technology-addicted characters to see how dependency on computers and cell phones effects their relationships.
Director Joe Swanberg will attend the viewing at Broughton Theatre. He will talk about his film and answer questions from the audience.
Formative Films
In this year’s Formative Films featured Saturday, Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne will discuss one of his favorite films, “Laura.”
“Laura,” a 1944 film noir, tells the story of a police detective who falls in love with the portrait of a woman who has been murdered.
It will begin at 12:25 p.m. in the Broughton Theatre.
Outdoor films
Three outdoor films will be screened throughout the weekend at Taylor Street Theatre.
On Friday at 7:30 p.m., “Viva Cuba,” a fable of two children who are neighbors, classmates and best friends, will be shown.
“The Adventures of Robin Hood” will be screened Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
And the Marx Brothers’ “A Night at the Opera,” will show on Sunday at 7:30 p.m.
Audience members are encouraged to bring blankets, patio chairs or even Lazy-Z-Boy recliners, and whatever will be necessary to enjoy a chilly, late-September night.
Live music will play throughout the weekend outside on Taylor Street and in the Broughton Theatre.
To wrap up the festival, The Whales of August will be shown Sunday at 6:35 p.m. in the Broughton Theatre.
Producer Mike Kaplan will be on hand to answer questions.
More information on the festival is available on the Port Townsend Film Festival’s Web site, www.ptfilmfest.com or by phoning the festival office at 360-379-1333.
Passes are also sold in the festival hospitality suite in the downtown Eisenbeis Building, 830 Water St.
All festival passes include access to film screenings, question-and-answer sessions and panel discussions on a first-come, first-seated basis.
Day passes are now on sale, and tickets for individual movies will be available throughout the festival.