June 21, 2008 · 4:14 PM

From sweaty Caan to golden footwear: A red-carpet wrap

By John Katsilometes

The CineVegas Film Festival's star power, from left: James Caan, Rosario Dawson, Don Cheadle, Anjelica Houston, Sam Rockwell, Viggo Mortensen and festival chairman Dennis Hopper.

Photo: Getty Images

Random thoughts (my own) collected from last night’s CineVegas awards ceremony and reception at the Planet Hollywood pool:

Two guys who know the grip-and-grin: Viggo Mortensen and Dennis Hopper, as Mortensen accepted his Half Life Award.

Photo: Getty Images

Two guys who know the grip-and-grin: Viggo Mortensen and Dennis Hopper, as Mortensen accepted his Half Life Award.

James Caan said he wasn’t sure just what award he would be accepting, but when reminded it was the festival’s Vegas Icon Award, said, “I like the sound of that. It sounds noble. Icon Caan.” He was sweated through his white suit jacket and complained about the heat, but seemed enlivened about the event. “This is the first time my bag will be heavier when I leave Las Vegas than when I got here,” he joked. More than once, actually … The difference between men and women covering the red carpet: Women were quick to point out Rosario Dawson’s gleaming gold, 3-inch high-heel shoes. I would not have noticed had they not been pointed out. The gaze was higher … To experience the relatively tame Sam Rockwell (at least, the red carpet Sam Rockwell) is to be struck by how effective he was as a manic Chuck Barris in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind … The strangest anecdote from any of the speeches was from Explicit Ills writer and director Mark Webber (remember him as the dangerous-when-not-medicated Billy from Six Feet Under, who described the moment he finally felt comfortable working with the impressively gifted Dawson: When they were sitting in an empty bathtub (clothed) on set, and she passed gas. “I felt a lot more comfortable after that, because I fart a lot.” When Dawson took the stage, she waved her hand behind her as if to disperse a foul odor. … Viggo Mortensen shrugged off a question from People magazine’s Mark Gray (a former Vegas PR rep with KirvinDoak Communications) about starring in the Lord of the Rings film, saying portraying Aragorn was “just another role” and moving on. There’s no reference to Lord in the festival program, either … Best line from the stage, from Marquee Award honoree Angelica Huston, who said, “I guess this is a full-life award. For those who won Half Life Awards, this is what you have to look forward to, and it’s great." … The frantically networking crowd included Clint Holmes and Kelly Clinton; he’s expecting some news about his autobiographical musical, Jam around September, and she is working on a somewhat secretive project involving herself and two other female Vegas entertainers … A surprise red-carpet pacer was Robert Duval, who introduced Caan. “He’s macho. Everything about him is macho,” Duval said, describing his friend of many decades. He also told a story about one of Caan champion pit bulls sending one of Caan’s Hispanic landscapers up a tree, but didn’t elaborate.

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