Ticket sales are surging at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival.
Thursday's opening night feature, Norwegian WWII thriller "Max Manus" blew the doors off the St. Anthony Main Theater. It generated three sold-out screenings, for a total of more than 700 seats, a 70 percent gain over last year's festival opener, "500 Days of Summer."
According to MSPIFF programmer Ryan Oestreich, the strong showing "had to do with the choice of film, the chance to be part of an exciting event, the opportunity to see and heat a World War II hero as highly regarded and respected as Gunnar Sonsteby," the 91-year-old Resistance hero who flew in from Norway to introduce the movie.
"We had to add folding chairs for the screenings," he beamed.
Friday through Sunday, the figures were also strong, a 7 percent rise in attendance over last year's.
"Going up against the opening of the Twins' stadium and gorgeous weather, we're very pleased," Oestreich said. "We're looking at a very good first week."
