​The first films for the 32nd annual Telluride Mountainfilm Festival were announced today. The festival will be held May 28-31.

Louie Psihoyos's Oscar-winning documentary The Cove is the highest-profile picture of the bunch. The National Geographic film follows Flipper star-turned animal rights activist Ric O'Barry as he attempts to stop the slaughter of dolphins on the southwest coast of Japan.

The film with the most local interest here in Colorado will be Point of No Return, a documentary of Johnny Copp's last days alive on China's Mt. Edgar with Micah Dash and Wade Johnson before an avalanche killed all three. Copp was the founder of Boulder's Adventure Film Festival.

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​Tonight the American Prairie Foundation presents a free preview screening of American Serengeti at 7 p.m. at the Denver Flagship REI store, with APF representatives on hand to discuss the project.The new film from National Geographic documents the creation of the American Prairie Reserve on more than 3 million acres in northeastern Montana and the partnership between APF, the World Wildlife Fund, the Conservation Fund, and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks to acquire and manage the land to create the reserve.

The documentary premiers on the National Geographic Channel on Thursday as part of the network's Earth Day coverage.

Register for the free screening at REI.com (96 spots available).

Image from www.frozen-film.com

Don't be afraid -- it's only a bad movie.

​So we covered the Open Water-meets-Aspen Extreme epic Frozen before it opened in January. The trailer and the concept of a thriller about something as boring as sitting on a chairlift in the dark made me laugh quite a bit, but not enough to try and see the movie. Its local run left something to be desired: I'm not 100 percent it played anywhere in Denver.

But Frozen is now playing at the Speakeasy Theatre in Breckenridge to entertain the spring-break crowd. I'm still not tempted to run out to see it. More >>

Image from OfficialAvatarMovie's Flickr photostream

​In a recent column in the Denver Post, Bill Husted parses the theories of a CU prof who's positive Avatar is a metaphor for Crested Butte's battle against molybdenum mining on the Red Lady. (James Cameron apparently has a house in the area.) It got me thinking of other sci-fi blockbusters (and one not-so-blockbuster) that could serve as metaphors for some of our other esteemed resort towns. (I have a lot of time on my hands.)

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Last month fellow blogger Eric brought you his top 10 ski movies of both the good and bad variety. Here's a look at a soon-to-be-released flick that might end up deserving a spot on ski movie lists in the it's-so-bad-it's-good category. Coming out in March, Hot Tub Time Machine stars John Cusack and a few other guys you probably know.

The movie is based around the crew traveling back to the 80s after a night of drinking in a ski-resort hot tub. I can't believe MGM made this movie and I can't believe John Cusack is in it. Having said that, it looks pretty funny. See for yourself above.

In the last few weeks, my compatriot-in-bloggery Candace Horgan took you through a nice solid retrospective of climbing movies both good and bad. And, a few quibbles notwithstanding (K2 is good? Honestly? And where's Cliffhanger?), I think she nails it.

But she might have to make room for a new climbing film -- one for the good list, surprisingly enough. The German/Swiss/Austrian film North Face retells the story of Andreas Hinterstoisser and Toni Kurz's fatal first ascent attempt of the Eiger north face in 1936. Filled with allusions to Nazi hubris and what look like realistic, gripping climbing scenes, this could be a winner.

Watch the trailer above.

he film opens stateside on Jan. 29, but showings seem scarce and limited to the coasts, so start petitioning the Mayan or the Esquire now.

Generations is a new film available for free online today, documenting the consequences of climate change from the perspective of skiers and snowboarders. The film was made by Teton Gravity Research in partnership with The North Face, Clif Bar, and Protect Our Winters (POW), and features athletes Jeremy Jones, Ingrid Backstrom, Sage Cattabriga-Alosa, Seth Morrison, Dash Longe, Dylan Hood, and Erik Roner.

Via TetonGravity.com:

"Generations discusses climate change through the perspectives of those for whom snowy winters have a deeper personal significance. Going beyond charts and numbers, Generations humanizes the debate on climate change by exploring the delicateness of winter and the intrinsic value of snow to people across generations and cultures."

It's a call to action for anyone who cares about snow, and recently won "Best Environmental Message" from the Backcountry Film Festival and "Best Environmental Film" at Rossland Mountain Film Festival. The 17-minute film is now available as a free HD download from iTunes and at TetonGravity.com/generations, TheNorthFace.com/generations and ProtectOurWinters.org.

​Last week, I wrote about some of the atrocities Hollywood had inflicted on the climbing community in their attempts at portraying the dramatic. These movies are so painfully bad, they make you want to throw food at the screen, and the list doesn't even include all the ridiculous uses of climbing as a side activity in a movie, as in Star Trek V or several James Bond movies. It's not like climbing is alone in this; try talking to a Navy fighter pilot about Top Gun and see what happens.

Climbing itself is dramatic enough that Hollywood should be able to portray it with a modicum of accuracy and still keep it visually interesting. Occasionally, they actually accomplish this. The list isn't long, but it is nice to see them get it right every now and then.

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The above trailer for Beyond Midnight: The Grand Traverse, a documentary covering the most recent Elk Mountains Grand Traverse, the annual backcountry ski race from Crested Butte to Aspen, makes me want to see more. Based on mining-era mail routes, the race's course covers forty miles with plenty of elevation gain and loss, attracting about 200 diehards each March since  the inaugural event in 1998.

The film was spearheaded by Conor Hagen and Andrew Kastning of Friends of Friends Productions in Crested Butte and is just hitting the mountain festival circuit this fall, playing last month in Taos and next month at Mammoth Mountain. Keep your eyes peeled for local screenings throughout the winter.

Or if you want to take it beyond mere watching, registration for the next Grand Traverse starts next Tuesday; the race will be held March 26-27, 2010.

Level 1 Productions' new flick Refresh is a celebration of the Denver-based production company's decade of badass freeskiing filmmaking, a simultaneous look back and glimpse of the future.

Native New Yorker Josh Berman, Level 1's mastermind, started shooting his buddies skiing after he suffered an injury in the winter of 1999-2000, and he's going very strong 10 years later as one of the most innovative directors in the extreme ski movie business. Of course, it doesn't hurt that his buddies are some of the best freeskiers in the world.

Refresh, which premiered at the Bluebird in September, is playing at Woody's Wood Fired Pizza in Fort Collins this Friday and  West Portal in Winter Park on Saturday, and at other locations through the winter. Check out Level 1's events page for details. And as its creators recommend, watch the killer trailer above in HD and fullscreen mode -- you won't regret it.