Beasts of the Southern Wild, 2012
Director: Benh Zeitlin
Origin: USA
Language: English
Running time: 93 min
This fantastical drama follows a little girl named Hushpuppy who lives in a dilapidated pocket of homes in the Mississippi Delta. When her father falls ill and natural disasters strike, Hushpuppy sets off to find her long-lost mother. (from Netflix.com)
MPAA rating: Rated PG-13 for thematic material including child imperilment, some disturbing images, language and brief sensuality
U.S. box office: $11,240,985
Watch the trailer on IMDB.
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Review of last week's film ("In Darkness", 4 stars)
Steven says: Yes, it's a WWII film, similar to so many others that tell stories of how some Jews were able to survive with the help others. The similarity doesn't make it any less hard-hitting or less valuable to watch, learn and remember. The emotions we experience with the hidden Jews and their helper are real; and they also remind us that life still goes on, despite what evils we dream up. The final line of the film is so telling, so heartfelt, so poignant.
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
April 24, 2013 - "In Darkness" (2011)
In Darkness, 2011
Director: Agnieszka Holland
Origin: Poland | Germany | Canada
Languages: Polish | Ukrainian | Yiddish | German
Running time: 145 min
As Nazis overrun Warsaw, many of the city's Jews hide out in sewers, where they encounter Leopold, an anti-Semitic sanitation worker. His prejudice reflects the rift between Poland's Jews and Catholics in this film inspired by true events. (from Netflix.com)
MPAA rating: Rated R for violence, disturbing images, sexuality, nudity and language
U.S. box office: $1,038,733
Watch the trailer on IMDB.
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Review of last week's films ("Not One Less", 3.5 stars)Steven says: A substitute teacher, a missing student, and a promise that all students would be accounted for when the regular teacher returns in a month. What follows is a teenager's persistence in the face of what seems like insurmountable odds. From a tiny country school to a teeming city, the 13-year-old teacher searches for her most frustrating student, which is all a part of a larger message about the plight of education in rural China.
Director: Agnieszka Holland
Origin: Poland | Germany | Canada
Languages: Polish | Ukrainian | Yiddish | German
Running time: 145 min
As Nazis overrun Warsaw, many of the city's Jews hide out in sewers, where they encounter Leopold, an anti-Semitic sanitation worker. His prejudice reflects the rift between Poland's Jews and Catholics in this film inspired by true events. (from Netflix.com)
MPAA rating: Rated R for violence, disturbing images, sexuality, nudity and language
U.S. box office: $1,038,733
Watch the trailer on IMDB.
---
Review of last week's films ("Not One Less", 3.5 stars)Steven says: A substitute teacher, a missing student, and a promise that all students would be accounted for when the regular teacher returns in a month. What follows is a teenager's persistence in the face of what seems like insurmountable odds. From a tiny country school to a teeming city, the 13-year-old teacher searches for her most frustrating student, which is all a part of a larger message about the plight of education in rural China.
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
April 17, 2013 - "Not One Less" (1999)
Not One Less, 1999
The final of three films we're screening from Chinese director Yimou Zhang.
Director: Yimou Zhang
Origin: China
Language: Mandarin
Running time: 106 min
Master Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou turns his lens on the travails of modern China's peasants. When teacher Gao (Gao Enman) leaves town for a month, 13-year old Wei (Wei Minzhi) is pressed into serving as his substitute at the school. If she keeps her class intact, she will receive a bonus. But when a student leaves for the city, she follows and strives relentlessly to bring him back. (from Netflix.com)
U.S. box office: $589,114
Watch the trailer on IMDB.
Read Yimou Zhang's biography from the New York Times.
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Review of last week's film ("To Live", directed by Yimou Zhang, )
Steven says: Transpiring over 30 years, its amazing it only last two hours! The director makes us feel the heartache and fear that the main characters live with in each passing governmental iteration in China from the 1940s to the early 1970s. But within the regimented lives, humanity still exists, in a practical joke, the defense of a sibling or the wedding of a daughter. They endure "to live", simple and profound.
The final of three films we're screening from Chinese director Yimou Zhang.
Director: Yimou Zhang
Origin: China
Language: Mandarin
Running time: 106 min
Master Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou turns his lens on the travails of modern China's peasants. When teacher Gao (Gao Enman) leaves town for a month, 13-year old Wei (Wei Minzhi) is pressed into serving as his substitute at the school. If she keeps her class intact, she will receive a bonus. But when a student leaves for the city, she follows and strives relentlessly to bring him back. (from Netflix.com)
U.S. box office: $589,114
Watch the trailer on IMDB.
Read Yimou Zhang's biography from the New York Times.
----
Review of last week's film ("To Live", directed by Yimou Zhang, )
Steven says: Transpiring over 30 years, its amazing it only last two hours! The director makes us feel the heartache and fear that the main characters live with in each passing governmental iteration in China from the 1940s to the early 1970s. But within the regimented lives, humanity still exists, in a practical joke, the defense of a sibling or the wedding of a daughter. They endure "to live", simple and profound.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
April 10, 2013 - "To Live" (1994)
To Live, 1994
The second of three films we're screening from Chinese director Yimou Zhang.
Director: Yimou Zhang
Origin: China | Hong Kong
Languages: Mandarin | Japanese
Running time: 125 min
A bold, energetic masterpiece from Zhang Yimou, the foremost director from China's influential "fifth generation" of filmmakers. Continuing his brilliant collaboration with China's best-known actress, Gong Li, Zhang weaves a tapestry of personal and political events, following the struggles of an impoverished husband and wife (Ge You and Li) from their heyday in the 1940s to the hardships that accompanied the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. (from Netflix.com)
U.S. box office: $2,332,728
Watch the trailer on Netflix.
Read Yimou Zhang's biography from the New York Times.
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Review of last week's film ("Ju Dou", directed by Yimou Zhang, 4 stars)
Steven says: This was more melodramatic than I expected, but the over-the-top story was matched by the intense imagery, color, and themes. Described by some as a morality play, it shows us how freedom of choice has undesired consequences, especially in a time and culture where life is dictated more than lived. The makeshift transportation for a paralyzed character was especially creepy; that was balanced by the ingenuity of the mechanics behind the 1920s dye mill.
The second of three films we're screening from Chinese director Yimou Zhang.
Director: Yimou Zhang
Origin: China | Hong Kong
Languages: Mandarin | Japanese
Running time: 125 min
A bold, energetic masterpiece from Zhang Yimou, the foremost director from China's influential "fifth generation" of filmmakers. Continuing his brilliant collaboration with China's best-known actress, Gong Li, Zhang weaves a tapestry of personal and political events, following the struggles of an impoverished husband and wife (Ge You and Li) from their heyday in the 1940s to the hardships that accompanied the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. (from Netflix.com)
U.S. box office: $2,332,728
Watch the trailer on Netflix.
Read Yimou Zhang's biography from the New York Times.
----
Review of last week's film ("Ju Dou", directed by Yimou Zhang, 4 stars)
Steven says: This was more melodramatic than I expected, but the over-the-top story was matched by the intense imagery, color, and themes. Described by some as a morality play, it shows us how freedom of choice has undesired consequences, especially in a time and culture where life is dictated more than lived. The makeshift transportation for a paralyzed character was especially creepy; that was balanced by the ingenuity of the mechanics behind the 1920s dye mill.
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