posted 08-31-2005 09:05 PM                       

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Silver Screen's Best of the Worst

Bicknell (population 353 at last count) is a farming and ranching community situated amid Utah's 11,000-foot mountains and red rock cliffs. It may be tiny but it lays claim to a big title: smallest U.S. town with a year-round movie house. The Wayne Theatre, which has operated for nearly 60 years, seems an unlikely venue for a global movie event, yet it will present the Bicknell International Film Festival this July 22 and 23. As BIFF promoter and Wayne Theatre owner James Anderson points out, "There is always someone from out of the country in one of our movies."

In honor of the festival's 10th anniversary, this year's theme is "The Best of the Worst of BIFF." It will showcase three cult classics that loyal BIFF fans helped select: Rubin and Ed, an odd-ball comedy filmed locally; Beach Blanket Bingo, the 1960s musical comedy with Annette Funicello; and Half Way to Hell, a 1961 film written, directed, and produced by B-movie maker Al Adamson. Weekend festivities include parties with food, live music, and microbrews; special guests; a swap meet; and a 55 mph parade of beach-themed cars that travels for eight miles from Torrey to Bicknell. Movies are $7 and parties are $10.
-KATIE SHOWALTER

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