SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 26
THE DEVILS + ALWAYS ON SUNDAY
OT 301
MONDAY SEPTEMBER 27
PORCO ROSSO
DE NIEUWE ANITA
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 28
PROFOUND DESIRE OF THE GODS
CAVIA
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 29
THE HAIRDRESSER’S HUSBAND
MEZRAB
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 30
MAN ON A TRAIN
MEZRAB
Details for all films below…
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 26
20:30
THE DEVILS (1971)
Directed by Ken Russell
111 minutes
In English
This is ken Russell’s infamous film which was banned in very many countries and which is still basically refused distribution because the studios are afraid to re-release it. Back in the 70s this film was banned from Italy and its stars Vanessa Redgrave and Oliver Reed were threatened with three years jail time if they set foot in that country. Its a true story based on the documentation in Aldous Huxley’s book The Devils of Loudun.
Set in the 17th Century, the priest Father Grandier leads the congregation of the church in the city of Loudun, France. He was reported to be an extremely handsome man, and soon the women at the nunnery start having wild sexual dreams at night involving Father Grandier. The conclusion? That Father Grandier is the devil and that he is trying to possess them. The political landscape is set under the French court of Cardinal Richelieu, and a witch-hunter is sent to the city to exorcise the priest.
A film about sexual hysteria and political intrigue, which is stunningly photographed and brilliantly acted. Its amazing that such big actors agreed to star in such an over-the-top, transgressive film…but its wonderful that they did because it lends an elegance to the proceedings which is totally unique. Everyone thinks that things are so democratic and free these days….when we are actually living under very heavy censorship. Wanna see something made 40 years ago which would never be allowed to be made by a major studio today? Pure cinematic dynamite. And beyond all that, the set designs were created by the great British filmmaker Derek Jarman.
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22:30
ALWAYS ON SUNDAY (1965)
Directed by Ken Russell
44 minutes
In English
Ken Russell’s flamboyant and compact (its under 45 minutes) bio-pic of the French primitive/naive painter Henri Rousseau and his relations with midget pataphysicist Alfred Jarry and the poet Appolinaire. Oliver Reed is the narrator.
CINEMA DERIVE
OVERTOOM 301
Time: 20:30 (doors open at 20:00)
Membership 4 Euros for the evening
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MONDAY SEPTEMBER 27
PORCO ROSSO (紅の豚, Kurenai no Buta) 1992
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
94 minutes
In French with English subtitles
Porco Rosso (The Crimson Pig) ranks as Hayao Miyazaki’s (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke) oddest film: a bittersweet period adventure set in Europe under fascism about a dashing pilot who has somehow surrealistically been turned into a pig.
The story is set in the 1930’s as Hitler’s fascist allay Mussolini is taking power in Italy. Porco Rosso is an anti-fascist humanoid pig that carries a Humphrey Bogart swagger and flies planes. Being a pig doesn’t stop Porco from being suave….he’s the envy of every other pilot and the object of many woman’s desires. Originally a World War I ace pilot in the Italian air force, Porco has grown disillusioned with his own country….and because Italy has become fascist he has turned his back on the Italian air force. He now makes his living as a bounty hunter guarding ships from renegade pirates in the Adriatic sea. One day some pirate-businessmen feel that they have had enough of this guy and so they hire the cocky American pilot Donald Curtis to eliminate Porco.
Director and magician Hayao Miyazaki says that he is planning to make a sequel to this film, so now is a good time to go back to the wonderful original. For this screening we are going to dump the English dubbed version that Disney plastered onto this film and go for the French soundtrack which features the voice of Jean Reno (Leon) for Porco Rosso. The French version is more relaxed, has no corny American expressions and fits the Mediterranean atmosphere of the film best.
One viewer’s reaction:
“Forget about Disney. If you love animation and film, go no further than Hayao Miyazaki, one of the last great directors and story tellers in a world which has forgotten quality. Disney died a long time ago, and Miyazaki is a director in the old tradition – a tradition where plot and characters meant much more than special effects. Porco Rosso is an escape you’ll come back to often. Few films have captured the essence of Europe, Flying and Adventure quite like it. It lifts your spirits and inspires you to see the world in a different way. The beautiful mix of music, color, animation, detail and setting make this a most unforgettable experience. ‘Porco Rosso’ is the definitive work from the legend of modern animation, Hayao Miyazaki.”
The 59 second trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98RjgQMO4kM
CINEMANITA @ De Nieuwe Anita
Frederik Hendrikstraat 111
Doors open at 19:30
Film starts at 20:30 sharp
Membership- 2.50
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TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 28
PROFOUND DESIRE OF THE
GODS
(神々の深き欲望, Kamigami no Fukaki Yokubo) 1969
Directed by Shôhei Imamura
172 minutes
In Japanese with English subtitles
This film by the legendary Shôhei Imamura (The Pornographers, Pigs and Battleships) is one of the greatest films ever made about the modernization and industrialization of our lives. The film takes place on the southern Japanese island of Kuragejima, which is a strange kind of paradise. Incest is rampant, the villagers have deep Pagan roots and hold bizarre rituals. The film is great in depicting the influence of nature on everyday life, and how the beliefs and chosen lifestyles of the villagers, even though they might be immoral and irrational, are still tied in within the system of nature and the power of natural forces. Things like mystery are still a huge part of everyday life for these villagers. Enter an engineer from Tokyo who arrives to build a well for a sugar mill, and needs more and more land for the project. That is the set-up of the story, and its all I want to say about the narrative.
One of the things that makes the film so amazing is the mesmerizing technicolor cinematography….the camera work of especially the wildlife is haunting and is sure to knock your socks off. These images shimmer, dazzle and cut a wound deep within you. It is a sizzling masterwork filled with Buñuelian surrealism, which deftly captures the alchemy of the natural world.
Since it was made it has since risen in stature to become one of the most legendary — albeit least seen — Japanese cult films of recent decades. Clocking in at 3 hours, and a project which went 18 months over schedule while they were shooting, this is one of Imamura’s most ambitious, near-epic films.
“I am interested in the relationship of the lower part of the human body and the lower part of the social structure.”—Shohei Imamura
Ciné Interzone
Filmhuis Cavia- Van Hallstraat 52-B
Time: 20:30
Membership for the evening: 3 Euros
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WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 29
THE HAIRDRESSER’S
HUSBAND
(Le Mari de la Coiffeuse) 1990
Directed by Patrice Leconte
In French with English subtitles
82 minutes
This is one of French director Patrice Leconte’s very best films, thanks to the whimsically wonderful performance of actor Jean Rochefort. It’s a film with a simple bittersweet story, taking place in the south of France. The narrative concerns a little boy who is infatuated with the local female hairdresser…and who, 40 years later is able to realize his fantasy when he impulsively marries a stunningly beautiful woman who owns a barber shop. More than just a story it is a film of faces, of glances, of hands, of sensuous atmospheres, and of music. Hypnotic and passionate, it is an ode to the capriciousness of life. It is also a film which has a wickedly quirky sense of humor.
I should say here that this is a romantic film which remains leagues away from what american mainstream cinema considers romantic. Its absorbing because its so unique, and that’s the reason it takes you off guard. A one of a kind film which is otherworldly and magical….what can I say, its a masterpiece which will haunt you….
There will be food before the film, the cost is up to you…based on donation. But they do need to have an idea how many people to cook for, so send them an email if your planning on eating: info@behnambornak.com
Art Cage / Mezrab
Domselaer straat 120
Doors open at 19:00
Film starts at 20:30
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THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 30
MAN ON A TRAIN
(L’homme du train) 2002
Directed by Patrice Leconte
90 minutes
In French with English subtitles
This is a French crime-drama film directed by Patrice Leconte. French rock singer Johnny Hallyday plays a professional criminal who one day drifts into a small town to commit a robbery. By chance he meets talkative Jean Rochefort (The Hairdresser’s Husband), a poetry teacher who invites the laconic Hallyday to stay at his house because the hotel is closed. The two form an unlikely friendship. Each is bored of what their life has become and want to switch places in life…the bank robber is plain tired of the excitement and the other wants excitement in his life.
The pitch-perfect performances make Man on the Train completely involving. Rochefort and Hallyday play off of each other beautifully; resulting in pure magic. This film takes on big issues in a subtle way, its a smoldering fire which will disarm you with its wit and intimacy. Sad to say but this is yet another film that has been just remade in English, so see the original before its ruined by the damn remake!
Once again, there will be food before the film (cost is based on donations), so send them an email if your planning on eating: info@behnambornak.com
Art Cage / Mezrab
Domselaer straat 120
Doors open at 19:00
Film starts at 20:30