On Friday I had the rare privilege of seeing Cory McAbee's new film Stingray Sam in a theatrical format (with Mr. McAbee there in person) at the Boulder International Film Series. My overall impression: it's great.
Stingray Sam was partly created as an experiment in distribution, made "for screens of all sizes" and primarily available for download online. It's formatted like an old theatrical serial--a series of six ten-minute-long episodes. I can state definitively that it looks beautiful projected on the big screen.
Like McAbee's earlier film, The American Astronaut (also highly recommended), Stingray Sam is a "musical space western," which, if you're not familiar with the genre, is exactly what it sounds like. McAbee's band, The Billy Nayer Show, performs all the music in Stingray Sam. You will want to own the soundtrack.
The series is quite funny, but it has some sweet moments, particularly with respect to the little girl. McAbee's daughter makes her screen premiere in this film, and the real rapport she has with the cast (especially her dad) comes through the screen. Emotionally, it is an entirely different kind of film from The American Astronaut--perhaps in part because McAbee didn't have a daughter yet when making the first film in 2000. In the Q&A session after the film, he also told us that The American Astronaut was very personal, whereas the goal of Stingray Sam was focused more on making an entertaining story. Take that as you will.
On the same night I also got to see a new, virgin print of The American Astronaut, so the parallels and differences between the two films were clearly contrasted. I was pleased as punch to finally see The American Astronaut theatrically--my only previous experience with it had been the old now-out-of-print DVD, which was kind of sloppily formatted and not a great transfer. It was an entirely new experience to see it in glorious 35mm.
Want to watch these films? Stingray Sam is making an international theatrical tour, but they won't be hitting most major American cities. If you aren't one of the lucky few, you can still watch the first episode online free and download the rest in digital format for a reasonable price.
The American Astronaut is currently out of print on DVD, but a new DVD is in the works and will be available in early October. If you like Stingray Sam, you will almost certainly like The American Astronaut and its soundtrack, which is available on iTunes.
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