Here's a note from Grace Lee about "American Zombie," now playing in Los Angeles. The upshot -- the better the film does this week, the more likely it'll get picked up by theaters in other cities, so spread the word!

Just wanted to remind you that AMERICAN ZOMBIE is now playing at the Sunset 5 in Los Angeles. The Friday and Saturday night shows had sell-out crowds and the audience reaction has been great. We've even received some good reviews (see below from LA Times and LA Daily News)

This weekend is especially crucial to get good box office numbers in order for the film to expand, so if you are looking for something to do on Sunday, please come to the theater TODAY. You can even use the coupon for discounted tickets -- $6 for a movie? That's a bargain! AZ is a small indie movie, but it packs a lot of bite!

If you can't make it on Sunday, we are still playing until Thursday. And there will be a Q&A session after the 7:30pm show on Tuesday with me and some cast and crew as part of a special Slamdance-sponsored screening.

Thanks so much for your support of independent filmmaking!

Grace Lee

But what starts out as a typically liberal plea for acceptance and equal rights slowly turns into something much darker, a metaphor for American paranoia at its hysterical worst - and, perhaps, its most justified. No one here gets out alive, or at least without being implicated in some kind of delusional prejudice, smug documentary filmmakers least of all. Lee and Solomon are hilariously passive-aggressive with one another ("Nobody wants to see `The Grace Lee Project 2,' " he says as the director keeps turning the camera on herself). And the key zombie players are all terrific, as are the film's funky/downscale L.A. locations.

Benson Lee's documentary "Planet B-Boy" is playing now in San Francisco, Berkeley, San Diego, and Washington. Here's an excerpt from Philip W. Chung's rave review of the film:

For those who think break dancing peaked in 1984 with the release of Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo, Benson Lee's new documentary Planet B-Boy will be a revelation. Not only is break dancing alive and well, it's gone international. And the center of it all is an unlikely place: Braunschweig, Germany, where every year crews from all over the world descend for the "Battle of the Year" showdown, the Olympics of break dancing.
...
Planet B-Boy also works on another level. Of the four crews who make it to the final round, three are Asian. Watching a film that subtly argues that the best b-boys in the world are Asian and realizing just how much hip-hop has permeated Asian culture is very inspiring. If you don't feel moved by the film's outcome, hell, if you don't stand up and cheer, revoke your Asian identity immediately.
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There hasn't been a feature this dynamic from a young Asian American filmmaker since Better Luck Tomorrow.

The San Francisco Bay Guardian loves Eric Byler's Tre, which opens at the Four Star Cinemas in San Francisco today. Here's an excerpt from the review:

A semisequel to writer-director Eric Byler's 2002 debut feature, Charlotte Sometimes, this low-key but quietly devastating relationship meltdown in the mode of Harold Pinter and Neil LaBute is his best work to date.

"Tre" screens Friday, February 15 through Thursday, February 21 at the 4-Star Theater (2200 Clement Street @ 23rd Avenue).

Byler will be present for Q&A after the 7:20 showing on Friday and Saturday and the 1:40 showing on Sunday.