Win free movie tickets
Editor's note: Comment on today's "Cinema Chat" for a chance to win free movie tickets to the Michigan Theater. Some time between now and 6 a.m. Wednesday, leave a comment on this column, written by the Michigan Theater's Russ Collins. Offer your opinion on a recent movie you've seen, or on anything Russ mentions. We'll randomly select a winner and notify that person via the email address they signed up with. They will get two passes to a movie of their choice.

Now playing at the Michigan Theater and other downtown locations is the much-anticipated Ann Arbor Film Festival. This acclaimed festival opened Tuesday with great enthusiasm and will continue until Sunday, March 28. The 48th Ann Arbor Film Festival is North America’s longest-running independent and experimental film festival.

Tonight is “Out Night,” which features films of interest to the LGBT community. Also on the program tonight are short films and documentaries of general interest. On Friday, March 27 at 7 p.m., the acclaimed musical artist Flying Lotus plays a live accompaniment to Harry Smith's avant-garde animation classic “Heaven & Earth Magic.” This is a world-premiere performance and a not-to-be-missed event.

On Saturday, March 27, the legendary experimental filmmaker Kenneth Anger returns to Ann Arbor for a tribute that will include multiple screenings of his work and a live on-stage conversation with him at the Michigan Theater on Saturday at 7:30. As one of the seminal figures of post-war American avant-garde filmmaking, Anger’s imprint on the contemporary film world is pervasive. He was a direct influence on filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese, David Lynch, Gus Van Sant, Andy Warhol, George Lucas, and Guy Maddin. This special tribute was made possible by a grant from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — the folks who give out the Oscar.

Playing at 11:59 p.m. on Friday & Saturday, March 26 & 27, at the State Theatre, as part of the Ann Arbor Film Festival, is “The Room.” An American black comedy about love and passion, betrayal and lies, that is quickly becoming a classic cult film — a film that might be weird and visionary, or maybe it’s just really bad, in a fun kind of way. You need to go to decide for yourself!

The Ann Arbor Film Festival wraps up on Sunday with a full day of programming, including re-screenings of the winning films at 6 and 8 p.m. For a complete list of Festival programs and to buy tickets in advance online, visit the Ann Arbor Film Festival web site at AAFilmFest.org.

Beyond The film fest: “Rules of the Game” and “The Red Riding Trilogy”

The day after the Film Festival you can see “Rules of the Game” on Monday, March 29 at 7 p.m. Presented as part of the Michigan Theater’s World Cinema Classics series, this 1939 film is directed by Jean Renoir. Renoir takes the film far beyond the pleasantries of a typical comedy of manners, creating instead a biting and tragic satire that captured the frenetic emotions of France on the cusp of World War II.

Opening on Monday, March 29 at the Michigan Theater for a 4-day run is “The Red Riding Trilogy.” It is a mesmerizing neo-noir epic of 3 films, based on factual events and adapted for the screen by Tony Grisoni from David Peace’s electrifying series of novels. The three films are “Red Riding 1974,” “Red Riding 1980,” and “Red Riding 1983.” They are 3 chilling films about a serial killer who terrorized north­west England in the 1970s and ‘80s. You will have an opportunity to see all 3 films in one day or, if more convenient for you, you can come back to see each film individually on a different day. The Michigan Theater web site has the complete schedule.

Opening on Friday at your local cineplex

“How to Train Your Dragon” is a Dreamworks Animation film by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, the creators of “Lilo & Stitch.” It features the voices of Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and many more. It is the tale of a young Viking, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, who is sent to the Isle of Berk in the North Sea, where he is to subdue a dragon as a rite of passage. The generally good reviews for this film are typified by this comment by ex-Ann Arborite Owen Gleiberman in his review for Entertainment Weekly: "It has winningly Potteresque teen-dragon-slayer classes, a queen-bee dragon as grand as Godzilla, and a layer of age-of-terror allegory about the ignorance bred by jingoism.”

“Hot Tub Time Machine” reunites director Steve Pink (“Grosse Pointe Blank” and “High Fidelity”) with Jon Cusack, who stars in and produces this film. It is about 4 guy friends, all of them bored with their adult lives, who travel back to their respective 1980s heydays thanks to a time-bending hot tub. Sure, it sounds silly, but the preliminary reviews are quite strong: “I can't believe I'm saying this, but 'Hot Tub Time Machine' is a smart comedy,” says a Rotten Tomatoes critic; Hollywood.com’s fun review summary was, “The 'Hangover' of home-appliance time-travel comedies.” See you at the movies!

Russ Collins is executive director of the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor. Tune in to the audio version of “Cinema Chat” on WEMU radio (89.1-FM) each Thursday at 7:40 a.m. and 5:40 p.m., or listen to it online at WEMU's web site.