Stony Brook Film Fest gets global lineup

The word "international" doesn't figure into the title of the Stony Brook Film Festival, but this year's event, which begins Thursday, looks more worldly than ever.

Between "Sonny Boy," the Dutch romance that opens the 16th annual festival, and the German comedy "Almanya" that closes it July 30, you'll find films from France, China, Poland, even Iceland.

Fourteen of the festival's 22 features come from abroad -- a slight increase over last year -- but festival director Alan Inkles isn't trying to cultivate a reputation. Rather, this year's foreign submissions simply tended to outdo many American ones in terms of quality and accessibility. "I didn't want to open with a Dutch film again," says Inkles, recalling last year's festival, which opened with "The Storm" and "Bride Flight." "My staff said, 'You can't do it!' But at the end of the day, it just felt like the right film."

The festival will also feature appearances by filmmakers and actors. Here are highlights:

Sonny Boy

(Thursday, 8 p.m.)

The opening-night film, about a Dutch woman (Ricky Koole) who begins a taboo-breaking romance with a young student (Sergio Hasselbaink), is based on the novel by Annejet van der Zijl, who will attend the screening along with the actors and director Maria Peters. U.S. premiere.

Roadie

(Friday, 9:30 p.m.)

After touring with Blue Oyster Cult for 20 years, Jimmy (Ron Eldard, "Super 8") returns to Queens and reluctantly confronts real life. From Dix Hills filmmaking brothers Michael and Gerald Cuesta. Jill Hennessy and Bobby Cannavale also star.

Young Goethe in Love

(Saturday, 9:30 p.m.)

The poet's 1787 novel, "The Sorrows of Young Werther," inspired an international cult of swooning romantics; this German drama looks at the real-life story behind it.

9/11: An American Requiem

(Sunday, 3 p.m.)

A documentary on the World Trade Center tragedy with stories from the Stony Brook Medical Center's World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program, which cared for first responders and workers. World premiere.

Don't Touch My Children

(Sunday, 9:30 p.m.)

Based on a true story, this Dutch thriller follows a mother whose children are kidnapped by their Syrian father. With Karina Smulders ("Bride Flight"). U.S. premiere.

Kings Park Stories From an American Mental Institution

(July 25, 7 p.m.)

A documentary on the now-shuttered facility from Lucy Winer, who was committed there as a suicidal teenager in the 1960s. Interviewees include former patients and staffers. Winer will attend the screening.

My Wife's Romance

(July 27, 9:30 p.m.)

A French thriller about a wealthy young woman, a vanished husband and an old friend. Léa Seydoux, seen briefly in "Midnight in Paris," stars. U.S. premiere.

The Tree

(July 28, 9:30 p.m.)

Singer-actress Charlotte Gainsbourg plays a young widow holding her family together in rural Australia. The film opened in Manhattan last week.

Late Bloomers

(July 29, 7 p.m.)

William Hurt and Isabella Rossellini are an aging married couple trying to keep their love alive. U.S. premiere. Rossellini is expected to attend.

Trust

(July 29, 9:15 p.m.)

David Schwimmer directed this drama -- well-reviewed but overlooked upon its release in April -- about a couple (Clive Owen, Catherine Keener) whose daughter begins an Internet romance.

Almanya

(July 30, 9 p.m.)

The closing-night film is a comedy about a large Turkish family living in Germany -- until Grandpa decides to move everyone back to the homeland.

16th Annual Stony Brook Film Festival

WHEN | WHERE Thursday through July 30 at Staller Center at Stony Brook University

TICKETS Individual screenings: $9; passes: $75-$225

INFO 631-632-2787; stonybrookfilmfestival.com