Lovers of the oeuvre of writer-director Christopher Guest and his brilliant mockumentary/comedy ensemble (like myself) are getting Busy Bee-level excited about the upcoming Netflix release of Guest's latest work, Mascots, coming on October 13. And those same superfans are going to be most psyched to know that the San Francisco Film Society is doing a sneak preview in cooperation with Netflix, screening Mascots at the Castro Theatre on October 4 with Guest live in person for a Q&A and tickets just went on sale today.
The film stars Guest ensemble vets Parker Posey, Jane Lynch, Jennifer Coolidge, Ed Begley Jr., and Fred Willard, as well as newcomers to the gang Zach Woods and Maria Blasucci.
Per the SFFS:
With this latest film, the director and his extended family of gifted collaborators usher us into the milieu of professional mascots, those energetic individuals who bravely don ridiculous oversized costumes to excite sports fans and cheer on their team with slapstick antics. Chronicling the competition for the World Mascot Association's Gold Fluffy Award, Mascots is an inspired showcase for the comic genius of Guest and company.
Guest is best known for his films Waiting For Guffman (1996), Best In Show (2000), A Mighty Wind(2003) in which he and company skewered the insular worlds of community theater, dog shows, and folk music, respectively and as an actor in This Is Spinal Tap (1984), and playing the evil six-fingered Count Rugen in The Princess Bride. He also wrote and directed the HBO series Family Tree, which only lasted one brief season in 2013.
With Mascots Guest is fully back in his element with members of his quirky, improv-trained ensemble, and as Slate puts it, "it looks like it will be weird and hilarious." (Also, apparently, Guest's original character from Waiting for Guffman, Corky St. Clair, makes a cameo appearance!)
The movie premiered last week at the Toronto Film Festival, and Variety gave it a so-so review. But so what.
Mascots premieres at 7 p.m. on October 4 at the Castro Theatre. Tickets here.
Related:
