Hey everyone. Capone in Chicago here.

Shortly after this year's Sundance Film Festival, I was fortunate enough to see one of the festival's highlights, JACK GOES BOATING, a beautiful, delicate, and moving film directed by and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, based on the play and adapted by Bob Glaudini. Hoffman and one of his co-stars, John Ortiz, did an exceptionally fun Q&A after the screening dressed in their finest winter wear. I've seen the film again more recently, and it hadn't lost any of its impact on me. In fact, I saw this four-person piece (Amy Ryan and Daphne Rubin-Vega play the men's counterparts) a little more clearly as an examination of two relationships--one ripe with possibilities and promise, the other freefalling into a dark and bitter place. It's a tough film to shake, but it's a remarkably positive and unsentimental work capturing human behavior in awkwardly believable ways. It's a damn great film that you'd be a fool to miss. More on it from me closer to opening.

We have a very special event coming up next week in Chicago. I've got 50 reserved seats for AICN readers for this exclusive screening of JACK GOES BOATING, with a Q&A with Philip Seymour Hoffman and John Ortiz after the movie. The screening takes place Tuesday, September 7 at 7:30pm at a theater in downtown Chicago (the exact location will only be given to the winners). Here's how Chicagoland residents can get tickets (good for the winner plus 1 guest, no exceptions):

Send me an email at BoatingChicago@aintitcoolmail.com (please note the new email address) with the subject line "ROW YOUR BOAT" In the body of the email, I need your Name, whether or not you're bringing a Guest (guests' names are not required), and the answer to the following question (read carefully): "Because I want to make sure we have good questions for our guests, what question would you ask Hoffman or Ortiz if I called on you?" Simple as that. If I like your question, and think its original and might spark a good discussion, you're in. But a word of advice, if you would ask him, "What advice would you give an actor/director just starting out?" I'll stomp on your entry and toss it in the trash. Winners will hear from me by the weekend.

Please keep in mind that although this is not an exclusive AICN event, our winners will have seats saved until 5 minutes before the start of the screening. We want a full house for our guests. If you cannot arrive at this screening early, please do not enter. If there's even the slightest chance you'll have to back out of attending if you do win, don't enter. If you have a job that might make you late or unable to attend, or an ill/pregnant relative, or a temperamental significant other, or a scratchy throat, do not enter. Anyone not showing up without informing me ahead of time so I can fill their seats is no longer eligible for future screening contests.

Good luck, everyone! And thanks to Overture Films for making this happen and for bringing these guests to Chicago.



-- Capone
capone@aintitcool.com
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