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The Horse Whisperer
Thursday, September 24
A rapturously beautiful film. —New York Times
Robert Redford and Kristin Scott Thomas (The English Patient) star in this story of compassion and healing based on the bestselling novel by Nicholas Evans. The majestic Montana landscape and a hearty dose of horse wrangling guarantee something for everyone.
(Robert Redford, 1997, 164 min.)
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The Big One
Thursday, October 1
Balances serious advocacy with playful stunts. —New York Times
Known as the Robin Hood of Corporate America, Michael Moore brought to national attention the crisis of automotive industry lay-offs in his 1989 film Roger & Me, the highest grossing documentary in history. In this potent look at downsizing across the country, his crusade against corporate injustice continues with dogged persistence and plenty of kidding around.
(Moore, 1997, 96 min.)
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Buffalo 66
Sunday, October 4
A wild, whacked-out ride of a movie. —Rolling Stone
Actor, filmmaker and Calvin Klein model, Vincent Gallo created and stars in this innovative grunge fantasy about a man out to prove to his parents that instead of spending the last five years in prison, he was working as a CIA agent. On the way home, he kidnaps a cute tap dancer who falls in love while pretending to be his wife. Christina Ricci and Angelica Huston star with Ben Gazzara, Mickey Rourke, Rosanna Arquette and Kevin Corrigan.
(Vincent Gallo, 1997, 110 min.)
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Family Resemblances (Un Air de Famille)
Sunday, October 11
Flawless, spellbindingly funny. —Wall Street Journal
Winner of three César Awards (French Oscars), this first-rate film tells an intimate story of family relations in wide-screen Cinemascope format. The birthday celebration of a typical French family— complete with a domineering mother, successful son, meek daughter-in-law, rebellious daughter and dying dog—turns into an evening of surprising revelations by everyone, including the cafe waiter. In French with English subtitles.
(Cédric Klapisch, 1996, 107 min.) This program is made possible with the support of The Cultural Services of the French Embassy and Cultural Ministry of France.
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Fireworks (Hana-Bi)
Thursday, October 15
A startling mixture of deadpan comedy and explosive violence. —Toronto Film Festival
Winner of the grand prize at the Venice International Film Festival, this jigsaw-puzzle of a film artfully fuses danger, sorrow, wit and loveliness. Made by and starring Japan’s leading action hero, comic actor, a serious painter and filmmaker Takeshi Kitano (a.k.a. Beat Takeshi), it features a tough guy cop who reevaluates his life after a series of devastating personal and professional knocks. In Japanese with English subtitles.
(1997, 103 min.)
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Modulations: Cinema for the Ear
Sunday, October 18
The best film yet about the history of electronic music. —Mixmag
A full-throttle documentary trip-hop thru the hippest in electronic music from the avant-garde work of John Cage to underground legends like Can’s Holger Czukay and contemporary heroes such as Psychic TV’s Genesis P. Orridge, Moby and Brian Eno. This world survey of hot spots for the Hip and Happening ranges from a rave on Mt. Fuji to house clubs from Detroit to London. By Iara Lee, maker of Synthetic Pleasures, another high-density, information-saturated film.
(1997, 74 min.)
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Marius and Jeannette
Thursday, October 22
Tender, big hearted. Filled with joie de vivre. —New York Times
A beguiling tale of affection and humor unfolds amid the struggling French working class. In this unlikely love story, a single mother and grocery cashier rides a rocky road to romance with the aging security guard who catches her stealing paint in an abandoned factory. The woman’s colorful friends in the tenement where she lives provide boisterous support to the couple. In French with English subtitles.
(Robert Guédiguian, 1997, 102 min.) This program is made possible with the support of The Cultural Services of the French Embassy and Cultural Ministry of France.
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The Saltmen of Tibet
Thursday, October 29
A primal image of human perseverance, a spiritual palate cleanser. —New York Times
This entrancing documentary honors the arduous, endangered ritual of four Tibetan nomads. Set against the magnificent landscape of Western Tibet, it captures a traditional culture on the brink of extinction. While singing songs and telling stories, the nomads work their way across dry lake beds collecting and transporting the salt that sustains life high in the Himalayas. In Tibetan with English subtitles.
(Ulrike Koch, 1997, 110 min.)
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Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror
with live piano accompaniment by Michael Mortilla
Sunday, November 1
F. W. Murnau’s unauthorized silent film version of Bram Stoker’s Dracula terrified audiences in 1922 with Max Schreck’s eerie performance as the vampire and state of the art special effects. For this special Halloween season screening, composer Michael Mortilla will provide live piano accompaniment.
(81 min.)
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The Truce
Thursday, November 5
John Turturro gives what may be the screen performance of his career. —New York Times
An epic of post-World War II Europe, this affecting film explores life on both a societal and personal level. Based on Italian author Primo Levi’s 1963 autobiography, it captures the frail humanity in each of its richly portrayed characters as they come to grips with what they have survived. John Turturro stars as Levi.
(Francesco Rosi, 1997, 116 min.)
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Henry Fool
Sunday, November 8
Brilliant and deeply resonant. —New York Times
An unexpected house guest changes the lives of a depressed garbage man and his Queens, N.Y. family and neighbors in this resonant, original tribute to the power of the written word. With a clean, spare look and hyperreal clarity, writer/director Hal Hartley fashions a mythic parable of friendship and destiny. Winner of the Cannes Film Festival best screenplay award.
(Hal Hartley, 1997, 138 min.)
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Smoke Signals
Sunday, November 15
Warmly comic with charming performances and a splendid screenplay. —New York Times
The first feature film starring and written, produced and directed by Native Americans, Smoke Signals depicts a young man’s odyssey and his effort to forgive the father who abandoned him. Integrating contemporary reservation life and American Indians’ relationship with mainstream culture, the film won the Sundance Film Festival Audience Award.
(Chris Eyre, 1997, 89 min.)
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