Even minimal or non-sports fans often enjoy sports movies. This year’s edition of the Peoria Film Festival, which runs from Thursday, October 19 through Sunday, October 22 at Harkins Arrowhead, will feature the chance to see four well-loved sports movies on the big screen, at just $5 a ticket.
The series begins at 7 p.m. on October 20, with Tin Cup, Ron Shelton’s wry 1996 romantic comedy about golf, featuring Kevin Costner, Rene Russo and Cheech Marin. Penny Marshall’s funny and heartfelt take on women’s professional baseball in the 1940s, A League of Their Own, which gave us the catch phrase “There’s no crying in baseball,” plays at 4 p.m. on October 21; the beloved basketball Cinderella story Hoosiers, featuring classic performances by Gene Hackman and Dennis Hopper, plays that evening at 7 p.m. Rounding out the series is Rudy, with Sean Astin as a little guy who made it onto the Notre Dame football team, at 4 p.m. on October 22.
The 5th annual fest will also feature free screenings of family-friendly flicks, notably the live-action fantasy Sparkle: A Unicorn Tale, about a teenage heroine’s efforts to save animals from a farm, and her encounter with the title equine, at 11:30 a.m. on October 21 and again at 1:45 p.m. on October 22. There are also free showings of the “Family Short Films Programs” on Saturday at 1:45 p.m. and Sunday at 11:35 a.m.
All of this fun programming happens alongside the festival’s full slate of intriguing new features and shorts. The opening night feature is the Norwegian period thriller Gold Run; other selections include June Zero, Jake Paltrow’s account of the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the sci-fi comedy The Last Movie Ever Made and the strange New Zealand documentary Mister Organ. The fest wraps up at 7 p.m. Sunday with the drama Peak Season.
Individual tickets are $5 to $10; a festival pass is $40; tickets for Opening Night are $30. Go to peoriafilmfest.com for details.
