Friday night we watched a couple of good movies on the Cox Free Zone.

A Simple Curve

A Simple Curve has gorgeous scenery of the Kootenay Mountains of British Columbia and a good story. An American woodworker who went to Canada rather than be drafted remains a dogged perfectionist. But it's really the story of his son and business partner Caleb, raised on carob and late to rebel.

The arrival of an ecotourism entrepreneur who once vied with Caleb's father for his late mother's affections, and Caleb's own budding love life, change all that.

Great scenery, a tale of generations, and one answer to the question, "What ever happened to those earnest young men in exile since the '70s?"

The Mantis Parable

The second is the eight-minute, beautifully animated The Mantis Parable, winner of 17 festival awards, including Best Children's Film at the Rhode Island Film Festival. It's stunning on the Free Zone big screen, or you can watch all eight minutes of it below.

Created by veteran computer game designer Josh Staub (the Myst series), now a Disney artist, in his spare time, it's a totally charming and visually beautiful story of a a caterpillar and a praying mantis in a bug collector's home.

Background: 2003 Interview With Josh Staub and 2005 story about him.