Sarasota Film Festival-The Fun Begins with Kevin Kline

The 12^th Annual Sarasota Film Festival opened with a huge crowd and a huge star. Kevin Kline received a warm welcome to Sarasota with a sold-out audience. In Sarasota for a premiere of The Extra Man, Kline was accompanied by husband and wife directing team, Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman. Pulcini and Berman adapted Jonathan Ame’s book for the screen – a book which was sent to them by mistake. But it was too late; they had already “fallen in love“ with the book. Kline, who reportedly is sometimes referred to as “Kevin Decline” because of his tendency to decline films, told the audience he found this script irresistible because of its unique and original voice. His description of the film as “terribly funny, kind of touching and weird as hell” was right on target. The audience laughed out loud throughout the movie. One of the most hysterical moments was when Kline’s character painted on the socks he forgot to buy with shoe polish. As the "extra man", Kline played a very eccentric escort for wealthy elderly women. Since Pulcini had heard that Sarasota has its own share of extra men, he commented that the film was "a valentine" to the extra men in the audience.

For my red carpet interview with Kevin Kline, see the video this week on the site.

The Extra Man will be released nationwide in July. If you like to laugh and you want to see a truly original comedy that also has a soul, I highly recommend seeing The Extra Man when it hits the theatres.

Last night was more than a film, it was a unique opportunity to hear question and answers following the film with Kline, Pulcini and Berman. The good times continued into the early morning hours. First stop was Opening Night’s Dessert Soiree immediately following the film. The band quickly drew the crowd to the dance floor while bystanders chatted about how much they loved the film. Although everyone seemed to have a great time, a resounding complaint at the soiree was the lack of real food. From some desserts, a meal can be made, but not from those served at Opening Night’s Dessert Soiree. Although delicious, the tastes of macaroons, chocolate candies and petite cupcakes didn’t quite make it – especially since most film-goers arrived by 6 o’clock. Hey, but at least I lost that pound I’ve being trying to lose all week!

Next stop was the Late Night After Party at Ceviche. Filled with party-goers on all four floors, guests traversed between floors. The perfect weather made for a perfect evening at Ceviche’s rooftop bar – certainly giving visiting film lovers a nice introduction to Sarasota. Still, even at a restaurant, I left hungry. But my stomach wasn’t the only part of me that was hungry; I left hungry for the nine remaining days of the film festival. It’s going to be a great week!

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