Running from April 26 through May 10, the festival boasts a schedule of more than 200 films from a record-high 54 countries — 42 more than when the festival started out in 1957.

Bloated action movies and sappy period films dominate the American film market, with only the occasional interesting piece seeping through to theaters. The SFIFF offers Bay Area audiences a chance to view independent cinema they might otherwise never get a chance to see.

The festival kicks off with Golden Door, an Italian-French co-production that tells the story of an immigrant family’s journey from Sicily to the United States. Rounding out the festival is La Vie en Rose, a biopic of the world-famous French singer Edith Piaf.

Other notable films to be shown this year include Delirious, the festival’s “centerpiece,” a comedy starring Steve Buscemi as a paparazzo shamelessly trying to take the Holy Grail of celebrity photos; Brand Upon the Brain!, experimental filmmaker Guy Maddin’s latest, a silent film loosely based upon his youth; a new 35-mm print of The Phantom Carriage, a silent film from 1921 that will feature live musical accompaniment from local rock musician Jonathan Richman; and Notes to a Toon Underground, a collection of 15 animated shorts made from 1912 and 2005 with live music from 11 renowned indie musicians, such as members of Xiu Xiu, Granddaddy and Jet Black Crayon.

The festival also features 25 documentaries on topics ranging from Hitler’s artistic ambitions to political turmoil in Haiti to punk rock.

Punk's Not Dead

“Punk is just rebellious rock for kids all over — not a bunch of old men playing music for your mothers and fathers,” says Johnny Ramone in the opening sequence of Punk’s Not Dead, an entertaining new 98-minute documentary about punk rock’s vitality in the world today. Johnny couldn’t have summed it up better. Punk was, and is, a dirty, sweaty rebellion against normal middle-class values that most every kid can relate to. And, for the most part, director Susan Dynner is able to flesh out the essence of this rebellion in a movie that is both informative and enjoyable to watch, despite its flaws.

Punk’s Not Dead has no discernible story arc or plot but, rather, serves as a video-essay about punk’s roots and how they are being kept alive today. Because of this, it sometimes seems almost like an advertisement for punk rock. This is the film’s one main fault — it just isn’t critical enough of its subject. It includes lots of information about the punk movement, and by the end the viewer is definitely convinced that punk is alive and well throughout the world, but the movie has trouble rising above the level of well-intentioned tribute. Where Dynner could have taken time to explore any less-than-perfect issues in punk, she instead continues to pile on the accolades, resulting in a sentiment that, however sweet and loving, seems a bit naïve.

Punk was as much about the personas of its musicians as about the message behind the music, and Punk is a joy to watch when it is showing the different kinds of people who characterize the genre. Ian Mackaye (front man of Minor Threat and Fugazi as well as co-founder of Dischord Records) and Fat Mike (front man of NoFX and founder of Fat Wreck Chords) fill in the role of humble music gods with Henry Rollins of Black Flag, serving as punk’s own heavily-tattooed, muscle-bound guru. Some of the most interesting interview subjects were the surprising ones. For example, who would have thought that Frank Iero of My Chemical Romance is so articulate? On the same note, who knew that Keith Morris of the Circle Jerks and Tim Armstrong of Rancid are such self-righteous, arrogant pricks?

Punk’s strengths lie in its devotion to its cause. The movie stands by its topic, no matter how frivolous it all seems at times, and this is something to be admired. Punk clearly means a lot to Dynner, and she is able to get many insightful comments from her interview subjects. Her choices for topics, although often predictable, are well-researched and thought out, providing a veritable ton of information. The movie also finds creative ways to avoid common clichés — the self-congratulatory nonsense usually expounded upon endlessly by older, nostalgic musicians is thankfully kept to a minimum, for example.

Punk also occasionally has problems with inconsistencies in tone. For example, pop-punkers Good Charlotte are praised (and even interviewed) for their take on the genre, only to be cut down by other bands and the movie itself a few minutes later. The same fate befalls Sum 41, which become part of a montage of bands the movie mocks for their choreographed movements and corporate affiliations.

In the end, Punk’s Not Dead is a frivolous feature that still manages to be a lot of fun. It’s worth watching. Dynner’s heart is definitely in the right place, and now she just has to develop her ideas more carefully. Still, for a first film, not bad. Punk is a dirty, gritty, grimy thing and, although Punk’s Not Dead isn’t any of those things, no matter how hard it tries, it is the next best thing — a loving testament to freedom, rebellion and, most of all, the spirit of the music that it worships.

The Third Monday in October

The Third Monday in October is another of the festival’s featured documentaries. Set against the backdrop of the 2004 United States presidential election, Monday covers the school elections of four middle schools around the country, including an affluent Marin County school, an Episcopal school in Texas, a school in Alabama and San Francisco’s Francisco Middle School.

One of Lowell High School’s own, sophomore Mick Jagger Del Rosario, is a subject of the movie, having run for president of Francisco Middle School. Del Rosario says that he is very happy with the way the movie turned out — if not the elections themselves — and that he appreciates the diversity in students represented at the schools.

Although Monday often suffers from some poor editing and an overall feeling of innocuousness — much like Punk’s Not Dead — it is a very charming movie with its heart definitely in the right place. See it, if only to support a fellow Lowellite.

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Lower-profile films also worthy of note include Black Sheep, part of the festival’s Late Night series of extreme cinema, a gory dark comedy about a species of genetically engineered zombie sheep accidentally unleashed upon a small New Zealand farm; Rocket Science, a coming-of-age comedy about a geeky stutterer who joins his school’s debate team to win the affection of his crush; and How is Your Fish Today?, a contemplative character study of a struggling Beijing screenwriter desperately trying to find meaning in his life.

The festival’s major award recipients showcase a wide variety of talent. George Lucas will be honored, along with Spike Lee (whose Acts III and IV of his Hurricane Katrina documentary, “When the Levees Broke,” will be screened), Peter Morgan (fresh off his Oscar win for “The Queen”) and Robin Williams (whose Terry Gilliam-directed “The Fisher King” is also showing). Actor Peter Sellars will also deliver the state of the Cinema address.

Events will take place at several different locations this year. The AMC Kabuki, the festival’s main theater in San Francisco, has been remodeled and put under new ownership. Rechristened the Sundance Kabuki Cinema, the multiplex’s screening rooms now have one-third less seating. To make up for this loss in capacity, the festival has expanded to the Clay Theater, higher up on Fillmore Street and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Of course, the festival will continue to show many films and hold most of its main events at the city’s own movie palace, the Castro Theater.

Although usually overshadowed by much larger festivals that are able to show many more premieres, such as the Sundance and Cannes film festivals, the SFIFF hopes that this monumental anniversary will build its reutation. “We’ve pulled out all the stops this year,” said Graham Leggat, now in his second year as executive director of the Film Society. “In this year, when more than ever we’re expected to be everything to everybody, I feel like we have hit as many of the key notes as we possibly can. We won’t be this size again.”